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A 1950 Aston Martin that raced twice at Le Mans sold for 550,000 pounds ($900,000) at an auction in London last night as demand contracted for other high-value classic cars.

The dark blue DB2 Team Car came fifth and third in the French 24-hour race in 1950 and 1951 respectively. It was offered with a low estimate of 250,000 pounds by RM Auctions, in association with Sotheby’s, at its annual “Automobiles of London” sale in Battersea Park.

The classic British racer had been owned by Aston Martin’s chairman David Brown, who coined the “DB” marque, and had been kept unrestored in the same private collection for the last 52 years.

“It was a strong price,” said Simon Kidston, a Geneva- based classic car adviser. “The purchase will give the buyer instant access to exclusive racing events like the Le Mans Classic,” Kidston said in an interview.

The sale raised a total of 10.9 million pounds with fees, with 81 percent of the cars successful, RM said. These figures include lots that were sold after the auction, such as a 1925 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 GS that found a buyer later in the evening at 522,500 pounds, said RM. No figures were available for the number of lots left unsold at the end of the auction. The presale estimate for the event, which included 84 cars and 37 lots of memorabilia, was 10 million pounds.

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BRIDGEVILLE, Pa. — Donna Mae Mims, the first woman to win a Sports Car Club of America national championship in 1963, has died. She was 82.

Mims died Tuesday of complications following a stroke, said Aaron Beinhauer, director of Beinhauer Family Services, which is handling the arrangements.

Per her wishes, Mims’ body was seated behind the steering wheel of a 1979 pink Corvette for visitation hours at the funeral home in McMurray, Pa., Beinhauer said Sunday.

Known as the “Pink Lady” because of her preferred color for cars, Mims worked for Yenko Chevrolet and the company’s sports car division and started racing in 1958, according to Beinhauer Family Services. Mims’ association with the car company led her to race cars, including the Camaro, Austin Healey, MG, Corvette and Corvairs.

Mims participated in the original Cannonball Run, where her 1968 Cadillac limousine was wrecked with her teammate behind the wheel. She also became known as “Think Pink,” “Donna Amazing” and “Free Maui.”

“On the back of most of my cars I had ‘THINK PINK,’” Mims, of Bridgeville, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette earlier this year. “I liked pink ever since I was a little girl.”

A procession of more than 60 Corvettes is expected for Mims’ funeral service Monday, Beinhauer said.

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Chinese-owned MG Motor U.K., the British sports-car marque, is to halt production of its TF sports car for six months, not resuming until March next year. Sales of the low-volume sports car, the only vehicle now built at the once-massive Longbridge factory in England, have been slow through the year.

The midengine two-seat TF sports car started life as the MGF in 1995 and was Britain’s best-selling sports car for years. It’s now sold in limited numbers in the U.K. Just 265 were sold in the first nine months of this year, although September was the revived brand’s best month yet, with 65 TFs finding buyers. The company also has orders for all 50 copies of a new 85th-anniversary limited edition.

According to newly appointed sales and marketing director Guy Jones, the small-sports-car market is down 30 percent this year and 40 percent since 2007, and the end of the summer selling season helped make the decision to halt production. About 20 of the 100-strong vehicle assembly workforce will be laid off.
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Jones will take responsibility for UK sales, marketing, PR and aftersales, as well as the development of the MG brand. He has previously worked as brand manager at Bentley and marketing director at Kia UK.

‘MG is a much loved iconic British brand that now has SAIC as a proud new owner, capable of developing the brand on a global basis,’ said Jones.

‘SAIC are already playing a leading role in China, now the world’s largest car market, and have ambitious global plans for the MG brand.’

MG is now owned by Chinese firm SAIC, and re-commenced production at Birmingham’s Longbridge plant last year.

It launched its first advertising since the 2005 break-up of MG Rover last autumn, focusing on its TF LE500 model.

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