Monthly Archives: March 2016

Spectre R45

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2001 Spectre R45

For sale at The Hairpin Company | Wiltshire, U.K.

Photo - The Hairpin Company

Photo – The Hairpin Company

Spectre Supersport Ltd was a company in the mid-1990s that sold a car called the R42 that was based on a Ford GT40 replica (a car which the man behind the car, Ray Christopher, had been building successfully for years). The 1996-1997 R42 is pretty rare, but the company went bust in ’97. They returned in 2001 with this, the R45.

If it looks a little kit car-ish, that’s because it is a prototype. The R45 never made it into production, though two prototypes were built. This is the second, and final, car. It is powered by a mid-mounted 4.6-liter V-8 making 350 horsepower. Top speed should be about 175 mph.

This car, the only running, driving example, has 14,000 miles on it. If you’re looking for what essentially boils down to a one-off supercar, here you go. No price is currently listed, you’ll have to contact The Hairpin Company for more.

Grosser Werkmeister

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1952 Grosser Werkmeister

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

The car you see here (quite possibly for the first time) is an East German race car that was built by Georg Werkmeister. East Germany really isn’t known for their automobiles (other than say, the Trabant), but there were a number of pop up race car builders in the 1950s that came from the far side of the wall.

Like most of these cars, they were based on the pre-war BMW 328. So the engine here is a 328-donated 2.0-liter straight-four making about 135 horsepower. The low, streamlined body was designed by an ex-Auto Union aerodynamicist. It was raced, semi-successfully, in 1952 and 1953.

But in ’53, Werkmeister left for West Germany and his car was seized by the East German government. It continued to race into 1954 before suffering some engine damage. Over the following decades, the car was used as a road car under the care of many owners. It was expertly restored in 2004 and is ready for historic races and tours. Click here for more info and here for more from Coys.

Update: Not sold.

Cadillac Town Car

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1940 Cadillac Series 75 Town Car by Brunn

For sale at The Auto Collections | Las Vegas, Nevada

Photo - The Auto Collections

Photo – The Auto Collections

The second generation of the Cadillac Series 70 (and its derivatives) was introduced in 1938 and lasted through 1940. This series was Cadillac’s mid-level model in 1940, being flanked on either side by the entry-level Series 40 and the top-of-the-line Sixteen. For 1940, this series included the Series 62, Series 60 Special, Series 72, and Series 75.

The engine in the Series 75 is a 5.7-liter V-8 making 140 horsepower. Cadillac and their in-house coachbuilder Fleetwood offered a bunch of different bodies for the Series 75. But for a wealthy Ohioan, these options were not enough. So he went to The Brunn Company and ordered what was to be the final Brunn Town Car ever produced. The body is all aluminium and almost all custom from Brunn, save for the hood and front fenders.

The car is said to drive splendidly and it has been winning awards for decades. It is all-original and well-preserved and can be yours for $175,000. Click here for more info.

The Speed Camel

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1980 Citroen Méhari

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

I feel like trying to explain the Citroen Méhari to someone who has never seen one would be a very amusing conversation:

So is it a car or an SUV? Yes. It’s low like a car, but it has stamped lines down the side of it to make it look rugged and to imply off-roadiness.
Does it have four wheel drive? Three years worth of them do. It’s made of plastic.
Well at least it’s light. Is it powerful? No, it has a two-cylinder engine. But it is implied that it is fast because it is named after a fast camel.
That’s weird. Does it look cool? Is it functional? Well, uh, sorta? It only has two seats and a kind of flat space behind them. And it has kind of a tarp for a roof, and windows. So it’s technically a convertible, so that’s cool, right?
I guess. Who made it? The French.
Oh, now I get it. Yep.

The Méhari could have only come from a French factory. Featuring a 602cc flat-twin, the car was introduced in 1968 and stayed in production for the next 20 years. 4WD cars were only built between 1980 and 1983, with about 13,000 of them made. In total, 144,953 Méharis were built.

This one has been well restored and I can’t tell from the information provided whether or not this is a front or four driver. I’d guess the former as the expected price is listed between $16,860-$22,500. Click here for more info and here for more from Coys.

Update: Sold $26,250.

March 2016 Auction Highlights, Pt. II

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We’re back with more auction highlights from March, starting with Silverstone Auctions’ third sale of the month. This, the Restoration Show Sale, didn’t have any feature cars here on our site, but the top sale was this 1999 Lamborghini Diablo SV for $248,550. Click here for full results.

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Next up, more Amelia Island sales. Motostalgia held a sale during the Concours weekend and, while we didn’t get to feature anything, the top seller was this 2011 Ferrari 599 SA Aperta for $1,250,000 Click here for complete results.

Photo - Motostalgia

Photo – Motostalgia

Also at Amelia Island was Gooding & Company where the top seller was the insane $17,160,000 paid for this 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider. Long one of the most sought-after road-going Ferraris, their prices have seemingly doubled in the past five years. We aren’t surprised.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

Of our feature cars, a number brought big money, including a previously-featured Duesenberg for $2,640,000. The Ford GT40 went for $3,300,000 and, from the Seinfeld collection, the Porsche Jagdwagen went for a tenth of that at $330,000 (Seinfeld appears to have taken a million dollar loss on the 917/30). Three of our feature cars failed to sell including the Jerry Seinfeld Carrera GT, the Porsche 908, and the O.S.C.A. Click here for complete results.

And the final Amelia Island highlight is that of RM Sotheby’s. Another classic Ferrari road car topped the results, this time being a 1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica LWB Coupe Aerodinamico for $4,400,000.

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Our top-selling feature car was the Edsel Ford Speedster ($770,000) while the other featured Ford, the RS200 Evo brought $522,500. Falling between those two was the Stutz Monte Carlo at $550,000. The Mercedes 540K failed to sell.

The other three feature cars all sold: the Kurtis Aguila brought $423,500, the Packard Limousine $137,500, and the Siata $198,000. Click here for complete results. And finally we have Bonhams’ Mercedes-Benz sale in Stuttgart. All three of our feature cars failed to sell, including the 540K and both 500Ks. The top sale was this 2009 Mercedes-Benz SLR Stirling Moss for $2,594,170. Click here for complete results.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Bianco Coupe

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1979 Bianco S Coupe

Offered by Auctions America | Ft. Lauderdale, Florida | April 2, 2016

Photo - Auctions America

Photo – Auctions America

Here’s another Volkswagen-based car from Brazil. The Bianco was designed by Ottorino Bianco (who designed Formula 3 cars first). It debuted at the 1976 São Paolo Motor Show but would only last through 1979 when the company closed.

It’s powered by a rear-mounted 1.6-liter Volkswagen flat-four. The body is plastic and fiberglass. It certainly looks like a kit car but they were actually built at a factory – by hand. About 20 per month were churned out.

If you’ve never seen one these don’t worry – most people haven’t. This car comes out of a Brazilian collection and has to be one of very few in the U.S. It should bring between $10,000-$20,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $24,750.

Stoddard-Dayton Runabout

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1907 Stoddard-Dayton Model K Runabout

Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | May 21, 2016

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

I’m trying to think of a good comparison… what company from today is the modern equivalent of Stoddard-Dayton? They were sporty, luxurious cars but not extraordinarily extravagant. If they were still around they would probably compete against the likes of Maserati or Cadillac. Somewhere in there.

In 1908, Stoddard-Dayton would move to a number/letter model name combination (think the last number of the year in front of the model letter, like Model 8-H, for a 1908 Model H). But in 1907, the models were standalone, and the Model K was the top of the range. It was only offered in this three-passenger Runabout form.

The engine is a 30 horsepower 5.5-liter straight-four. The Model K, new for 1907, would continue on through 1911 (albeit, with a numerical prefix). This example was discovered in a barn in South Dakota and the engine was overhauled in 2015. It’s a quick, rare early sporting machine (with white tires!) and is one of three known to exist. Click here for more info and here for more from Mecum.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $200,000.

Update: Sold, Worldwide Auctioneers, Auburn 2017, $118,800.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island 2017, $190,400.

SSC Aero

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2005 SSC Aero SC/8T

Offered by Barrett-Jackson | Palm Beach, Florida | April 8-10, 2016

Photo - Barrett-Jackson

Photo – Barrett-Jackson

As we always say: we love our supercars. And in the spirit of not featuring any cars that are still in production, we have this: the SSC Aero. Produced between 2006 and 2013, the Aero is, so far, the only automobile produced by Shelby SuperCars Inc. (now known as SSC North America). The “Shelby” refers to Jarod Shelby, not Carroll (no relation and thus why they had to change the name of their company).

Specifications of the Aero changed on a near-annual basis. This, the SC/8T (2005 edition) is powered by a 6.3-liter supercharged Corvette racing engine making 787 horsepower. A later version of the car would take the title of “World’s Fastest Car” but this model had to settle for 236 mph.

The company’s followup car, the Tuatara, was shown as a concept in 2012 but production has yet to start. With that, you’re looking at a true home-grown American supercar. No one is really sure how many were actually made but this is car #2 and it has 2,178 miles on it. The original price of this car was over $600,000 but it will be much cheaper at auction. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Withdrawn from sale.

Dodge WD15

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1947 Dodge WD15 Pickup

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 14-16, 2016

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

The Dodge WD15 was ¾-ton light truck built by Dodge between 1941 and 1947. The truck was also actually built during the war years of 1942 and 1943 (primarily for the government. No ’44 or ’45 models were made). The 1941 model was essentially the same as the 1940 VD15 truck.

Original equipment here was a 3.6-liter straight-six making 95 horsepower. The WD was offered in five styles with the pickup being the base “complete” truck (two chassis versions were available). The original list price was $1,096 in 1947.

Only 9,992 of these were delivered for this year. Most trucks like this were used heavily and probably scrapped. They were utility vehicles that were run into the ground, meaning: not many remain. This one is really nice and has some modern mechanical bits (think: brakes) and 10-year-old paint. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $18,000.

Ferrari 340 America

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1951 Ferrari 340 America Barchetta by Touring

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monaco | May 14, 2016

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

There were a number of Ferrari automobiles that wore a “340” badge. There was the 340 Mexico, the 340 MM, the 340 F1, and this, the 340 America. The America, obviously, was part of the Ferrari America line of cars that began in 1950 with this model. It would continue through 1966 with the 500 Superfast (and maybe through 1967 with the 365 California if you count that one).

The 340 America is powered by a 4.1-liter V-12 making 317 horsepower. That’s some serious get-up-and-go for 1951. It’s first owner was a Frenchman who drove his first 24 Hours of Le Mans 20 years prior. And with that, this car was entered in the 1951 24 Hours (just a week after its owner took delivery, no less). It’s competition history includes:

  • 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans – 56th, DNF (with Louis Chiron and Pierre-Louis Dreyfus (the car’s owner)
  • 1952 24 Hours of Le Mans – 45th, DNF (with Dreyfus and Rene Dreyfus)

It’s a quick car, too – able to hit 150 mph on the Mulsanne. It sports a recent restoration to 1951 Le Mans spec and has both competed in the historic Mille Miglia and has been shown at Villa d’Este. It is the third of 23 340 Americas built. Only eight were bodied by Touring (this is the second). Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $8,233,680.