ROMPING through the countryside in a supermodel’s supercar, Michael Hipperson gave no thought to his neighbour’s opinion that the roar of its engine was anti-social.

Today, his only regret is the Lamborghini Miura he sold for £8,000 in 1973 is now worth £1.2 million.

But the Miura, with a top speed of 171mph, was not the only car the 69-year-old bought and sold during 20 years of collecting, and now the motor fanatic has detailed his obsession in a memoir.

Born in Sible Hedingham, Mr Hipperson opened a garage in 1971.

Until 1985, he bought and sold supercars including Ferraris, Aston Martins, Jaguars, Porsches and the Lamborghini which was bought from Lesley Hornby, better known as Twiggy, in 1971.

He said: “It started on forums. I would post about my cars and get thousands of hits a day.

“People were saying, ‘You must write a book’.”

“I got a double dose of cancer 18 months ago so I thought I’d better get on with it in case I become brown bread.”

The finance broker began buying cars from Gibsons garage in Sible Hedingham during the 1960s, after the Government passed new MOT laws which meant many cars in disrepair were sold cheaply.

Despite eventually setting up a business, the petrolhead was more interested in driving the cars around Essex and Europe.

Mr Hipperson said: “In those days, cars like this were just old racing cars.

“My brother and I used to drive them around the farm and knock the hell out of them. The value was just starting to rise so we made profit on everything.

“They were expensive to keep and we wanted to chop and change them. In hindsight I should have kept some of them.”

The book, Let Them Stare, features details of rides taken through the Essex countryside as well as a couple of racy tales – in more than one sense of the word.

All profits go to the Little Havens Hospice which cares for children with life-limiting conditions.

The book can be purchased at letthemstare.co.uk.