Monthly Archives: August 2016

Fuller Touring

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1908 Fuller Model A Touring

Offered by Bonhams | Monterey, California | August 19, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

There were a couple of early manufacturers that went by the trade name of Fuller in the United States. The one we are talking about today was built by the Angus Automobile Company of Angus, Nebraska. The company was founded by Charles Fuller and existed between 1908 and 1910.

The Model A (also known as the Four-30) was offered as a Runabout or the Touring car you see here. The engine is a 4.0-liter straight-four making 40 horsepower. Only about 600 Fullers were built in total (they weren’t cheap but they were very well made) – but at least one still survives!

And the story behind this car is pretty incredible. It goes: a young man saw a Fuller in his hometown and set out on a lifelong quest to have one. Except instead of being able to buy one (as two World War scrap drives had destroyed most of them), he had to piece one together, scouring the country for parts over decades. The car was completed in 1967 and is being sold out of the family that constructed it. It will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $11,000.

Abarth Record Car

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1960 Fiat-Abarth 1000 Monoposto Da Record “La Principessa”

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 20-21, 2016

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

When you think of Abarth, you might think of the current Fiat 500 Abarth – a very sporty hot hatch. Or maybe you think of compact racers from long ago. We’d wager that most people don’t think of speed record cars.

Carlo Abarth built his first endurance speed record car in 1956. It set some records, working well enough to encourage Abarth to build a second streamliner the following year. The final cars were built in 1960 and this is one of them. Looking like one of the Auto Union streamliners from decades before, this car features a canopy top and is powered by a 1.0-liter straight-four producing 108 horsepower. Top speed was 136 mph – which should tell you that the aerodynamics here are quite slippery.

This car set eight endurance speed records at Monza in 1960 using drivers like Umberto Maglioli. Later that year Abarth displayed it at the Turin Motor Show and then it went into Pininfarina’s storage until they sold it in 1970. The same family that bought it from Pininfarina is the same family consigning the car at auction. It is in original condition and is one of those cars with a wild design that will only become more famous and legendary with time. No pre-sale estimate is available but you can read more here and see more from Gooding & Company here.

Update: Not sold.

Big Mercedes-Simplex

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1904 Mercedes-Simplex 28/32 Five-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | Monterey, California | August 19, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Mercedes-Simplex was one of the premier cars of the pre-1910 era. They were big, powerful, and fast. The Simplex was produced by Daimler between 1902 and 1909 and was the successor to the Mercedes 35HP, a car largely considered as the “first modern automobile.”

There were multiple Simplex models, the largest being the 60 HP model. This is the mid-range 28/32HP – meaning it is powered by a 32 horsepower 5.3-liter straight-four. It will do 65 mph+. Imagine being able to keep up on the interstate today in a car from 1904… that has dual chain drive.

When new, a Simplex would have cost roughly $7,500 – an absolute fortune in 1904. This example was sold new in England and later used by the British military during WWI. It was discovered on a farm in the 1970s and has been completely restored (and “refurbished” a couple of times since the restoration was completed). It’s extremely usable and has seen its fair share of use at the London-to-Brighton run.

In total, 1,500 Mercedes-Simplex cars were built and only 20 pre-1905 Mercedes cars still survive. Only six of those are this model. It’s a beautiful machine and should bring between $2,500,000-$3,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $2,805,000.

Four-Door Rolls-Royce Convertible

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1971 Rolls-Royce Phantom VI Four-Door Cabriolet by Frua & Royle Cars

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 20-21, 2016

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

If the Rolls-Royce Phantom VI wasn’t rare enough (only 374 were built between 1968 and 1990 – an eternity as far as single model production goes), this Rolls-Royce is a one-off, four-door convertible.

The Phantom VI was the final version of the numerical Phantoms that began all the way back in 1925 with the Phantom I. A VI was actually Queen Elizabeth’s official state car until 2002. It’s powered by a 6.2-liter V-8 engine making 220 horsepower. VIs were sold as bare chassis and most were bodied by Mulliner Park Ward. This car was sold as a bare chassis to an Englishman who sent it to Frua in Italy for a Sedanca de Ville body to be fitted.

It never was and the chassis changed hands, this time to an American. It wasn’t until 1977 that the body you see here was designed. But it wouldn’t actually be completed until 1993 – after Pietro Frua had died and after the American owner’s collection had been sold. The new owner had Royle Cars Ltd. complete the Frua design and it was done just in time for the 1993 Geneva Auto Show, which makes this the final Phantom VI to be completed.

It also makes this practically a brand new car. It has covered only 72 miles in its life. It’s a Rolls-Royce, so the car’s interior is way off the end of the luxury scale, with a dizzying amount of details scattered throughout. It’s also one of the rarest bodystyles in the world: a four-door convertible. Not many people are crazy enough to build such a car. Only two Phantom VI convertibles were built, here is the other one. This one should bring between $800,000-$1,200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2017, $385,000.

Cheetah GT

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1964 Cheetah GT Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Monterey, California | August 19, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Shortly after the sporty Corvette went on sale, tuners got their hands on it and began modifying it for racing. Bill Thomas was one of those tuners and he began his career in 1956. GM was impressed and paid him to help with the Corvair and Chevy II.

Thomas also opened Bill Thomas Race Cars in 1960 in Southern California. When Ford partnered with Shelby, General Motors felt a little left out and went to Thomas to see what could be done about it. Thing was, GM had a ban on factory racing so they had to support the program covertly.

So Bill Thomas and Don Edmunds designed the Cheetah. Chevrolet supplied the 400+ horsepower 5.5-liter V-8 and a bunch of other parts. The first two cars were bodied in aluminium by California Metal Shaping. After GM gave the thumbs up, the rest of the cars were fiberglass, done by Contemporary Fiberglass. GM wanted 100 cars to homologate it for FIA competition but they cancelled their support after only 11 cars were made between 1963 and 1965.

This is the fourth fiberglass Cheetah built. It was one of three purchased by Alan Green Chevrolet in Seattle and the only one of those to see action on the track, competing in the SCCA. A subsequent owner converted it for street use, which included stamping his own serial number on the chassis and replacing the body. In 2012, the original body was put back on the car.

There were extra chassis and bodies completed, but only 11 actual cars were ever built, turn-key, by the factory. These are legendary American performance machines that are much rarer than Shelby’s counterpart (and also like the Cobra, originals are way outnumbered by replicas). They rarely change hands and this fully restored example should bring between $300,000-$500,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Ferrari Daytona Wagon

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1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Shooting Brake by Panther Westwinds

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 20-21, 2016

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

We’ll start by urging you to go to Gooding & Company’s website to check out more pictures of this awesome car. Sure, it’s a Ferrari Daytona, but it has been turned into a shooting brake – a two-door wagon. The rear section features a lot of glass, including a huge rear window and gullwing-hinged side glass that fold up. It’s astonishing.

As a 365 GTB/4 this car is powered by a 4.4-liter V-12 making 352 horsepower. The design was actually done by Luigi Chinetti Jr. for a customer at his dealership. The body was built by Panther Westwinds, a manufacturer of sports cars in their own right.

The first owner was a Floridian who surely enjoyed driving this mobile, black, glass greenhouse. It would have a few other American owners (and one Belgian). The current owner acquired the car in 2013 and had it completely restored. It has only covered 4,500 miles in its life, which is incredible. This unique one-off is expected to bring between $700,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Bugatti Type 51 Grand Prix

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1931 Bugatti Type 51 Grand Prix

Offered by Bonhams | Monterey, California | August 19, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Bugatti Type 35 (and ensuing series) is one of the most famous Grand Prix Bugattis, launching in 1924. For 1931, Bugatti upped the game, introducing the Type 51 (which to the untrained eye looks identical to the earlier cars). The Type 51 would give way to the Type 54 and later, Type 59.

It is powered by a supercharged 2.3-liter straight-eight that makes 160 horsepower and 180 with the supercharger engaged. It was a true race car, and the competition history of this example includes:

  • 1931 Monaco Grand Prix – 11th, DNF (with Earl Howe)
  • 1932 Monaco Grand Prix – 4th (with Howe)
  • 1933 Monaco Grand Prix – 12th, DNF (with Howe)
  • 1933 French Grand Prix – 9th, DNF (with Howe)

It raced through 1937 before being damaged and sidelined. Years later, the current owner acquired it (in 1983). It has been relatively hidden since then – but has recently been freshened so it does run and drive. It is one of the first of 40 built and was raced competitively in period by Earl Howe (and was driven by Tazio Nuvolari at some point, too). The fantastic history of this car leads it to be one of those “inquire for the pre-sale estimate” types. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $4,000,000.