College students put restored rare car up for auction

The car, a BMW 850csi, was donated by Diane Borsberry from Trimdon Grange to The Technical Academy at East Durham College last summer, to be restored by staff and students in the motor vehicle department to its former glory.

The extremely rare car was the first vehicle to ever be fitted with a V12 engine and manual six speed gearbox and is one of only 160 produced to this specification.

It has been valued by specialist auctioneers, Tennants of Yorkshire, at between £8,000 and £12,000, and will be up for auction at their automotive event on Saturday, April 9.

The money made from the sale will go back into the college’s motor vehicle department, to fund further projects.

Rob Hutchinson, centre manager at The Technical Academy, is really proud of the hard work that has been put in by the staff and students on the car, and is excited about the auction.

He said: “It was fantastic for us to receive such a kind donation of this beautiful car last summer.

“It’s a magnificent car and it’s been a great teaching aid for the students who hadn’t had the opportunity to work on a car of this calibre before.

“The motor vehicle department have done a great job to make sure this car is back to its original standard and they have done a brilliant job.

“We are now really excited to get the car to auction and see how much money we can raise to help fund future projects and further development of our motor vehicle department.”

For more information on the car, look at the auction listing HERE.