Monthly Archives: March 2018

The Original NSX

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1991 Acura NSX

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Ft. Lauderdale, Florida | April 7, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The fact that this 1991 Acura NSX is technically a “historic vehicle” kind of makes me sad. And feel old. This was the most exotic Japanese car of its era. It had supercar looks and supercar construction coupled with Japanese build quality and efficiency. That’s a great combo.

It’s a mid-engined car with a transversely-mounted, naturally-aspirated 3.0-liter V-6 making 270 horsepower. It redlined at 8,300 rpm. It’s an amazingly even-keeled car, handling wise – which probably has something to do with Aryton Senna’s input during development.

The NSX was sold as an Acura in North America and as a Honda everywhere else. Introduced near the tail end of 1990, the first generation of the NSX was built through 2005 which included a hefty styling update in 2002. This example shows 14,700 miles and retains it’s 1991 car phone! It’s still a head turner and the values on nice examples will continue to climb as people look for the pure driving experience offered by the NSX. This one should bring between $70,000-$90,000 – proof that prices are on the way up. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Ft. Lauderdale.

Update: Sold $71,500.

Palladium

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1923 Palladium Victory Super Sports

Offered by Brightwells | Bicester, U.K. | April 11, 2018

Photo – Brightwells

Palladium was a British car company that got their start in 1910 importing and selling French commercial vehicles as their own. Cars followed in 1912 and they were still largely French though they sported English coachwork.

After WWI, Palladium got back into the commercial vehicle business but this time they were building trucks of their own design. When they needed something more profitable, they reintroduced cars to their range in 1922. This model, likely a Victory tourer, features a Dorman 1.5-liter straight-four rated at 12 horsepower. In Victory form it was capable of 60mph – which, while scary, wasn’t so bad as these cars were fitted with front brakes.

This car is listed as “largely complete” and it has been partially restored but it’s not quite done. As you can probably see, the interior is mostly absent. Palladium cars are rare, even in this condition (only 280 were built between 1922 and 1925 when the company closed). This project is expected to bring between $10,000-$13,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $18,342.

DS 21 Cabriolet d’Usine

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1968 Citroen DS 21 Cabriolet d’Usine

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | April 8, 2018

Photo – Artcurial

The Citroen DS is one of the classic French cars. In production for 20 years (from 1955 through 1975) it was offered in a variety of submodels and body styles. The DS 21 was introduced for the 1965 model year and featured a few improvements over the original DS 19 models, namely it offered electronic fuel injection – one of the first mass market cars to do so.

The DS 21 also had a larger engine: a 2.2-liter straight-four making 109 horsepower. It would later be one-upped in 1973 by the 141 horsepower DS 23. The DS is also famous for its hydropneumatic suspension: there aren’t springs at each wheel but rather, a hydraulic accumulator. The effect was akin to floating down the road. For extra weirdness, the DS came with a single spoke steering wheel. Why not?

Most DS models were sedans, but Citroen did offer a factory convertible (or “Cabriolet d’Usine”) which was actually bodied by Henri Chapron. It was only sold between 1958 through 1973 and in very limited numbers – just 1,365 factory convertibles were built. and this is one of only 95 built in 1968. Chapron bodied some other DS convertibles outside of these “factory” cars and they are even more expensive.

The consignor has owned this car since 2000 and it was restored since that acquisition. DS Cabriolets are some of the most common-looking big money French cars out there. This one is estimated to bring between $160,000-$250,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $156,745.

Laforza

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1998 Laforza Magnum Edition

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Ft. Lauderdale, Florida | April 6, 2018

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Remember these? Back in the 1990s, high-end sport utility vehicles weren’t all that common. Outside of a Range Rover, your choices among Rodeo Drive-cruising super utes were pretty slim. That is unless you went Italian and bought a Laforza.

Introduced in 1985 in Italy, this SUV was sold in Europe as the Rayton-Fissore Magnum. It was based on an Iveco 4×4 that was built for the military. Designer Tom Tjaarda was responsible for prettying it up for road use. The European engines were small four-cylinders and turbo diesels.

When the Magnum was exported to the U.S. for the first time in the late 1980s, they were rebranded as the Laforza. The biggest difference was that the trucks for the U.S. got big V-8s. This example has a supercharged, 6.0-liter GM V-8, which was unique to the “Magnum Edition” which was offered only from 1999. The final trucks were built in 2003.

This Magnum Edition is one of the last five thought to have been built. It’s got 4-wheel drive and a Pininfarina-styled body. Though limited in production, these were able to be found on the lots of used exotic dealers in Florida and California 20 years ago. Now they’re just oddballs and who knows – maybe their collectibility is just starting to hit (RM has another one set for their Auburn Spring sale in May). This should bring between $15,000-$20,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $4,125.

Continental Mark II

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1956 Continental Mark II

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 5-7, 2018

Photo – Mecum

Here is one of the loveliest American cars of all time. When it was released in 1956, it was the most expensive car sold in America. In 1956 the base price was $10,400 – the same as a Rolls-Royce and double the price of a Cadillac. And this was no Lincoln. Ford knew they were making a special car and created the Continental Division to produce this car under a separate marque.

It was so opulent that it only lasted two years, through 1957. It’s powered by a 285 horsepower, 6.0-liter V-8 (the ’57s got 300 horsepower). While Mark IIs look best in white (opinion) I really love this 1950s pastel blue with wide whitewalls. The interior is the same shade of blue, mixed with white.

In beautiful condition, this Mark II was once owned by socialite Lolita Armour. It’s one of just 2,550 examples built in 1956 and one of only 2,996 built in total. They’re rare, but they’re around. Click here for more info on this one and here for more from Mecum in Houston.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $42,000.

Update: Not sold, Mecum Indy 2018, high bid of $35,000.

Update: Not sold, Mecum Harrisburg 2018, high bid of $40,000.

March 2018 Auction Highlights, Pt. II

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We’re back with more from Amelia Island, this time with RM Sotheby’s. One of the Duesenberg’s we featured failed to sell, but the other one, a Hibbard & Darin-bodied example brought $995,000. Speaking of Hibbard & Darin, this previously-featured Hispano-Suiza failed to find a new home at Amelia Island this year. The top sale was $2,205,000 paid for this 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB.

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

We featured a trio of Porsches from this sale, all 1993 911s. The RS 3.8 brought the biggest money: $1,655,00 followed by the RSR racing version of the same car for $1,270,000. And the RS America sold for a comparatively paltry $190,400.

On the British side, the Arnolt-Bristol sold for $401,000 and the Healey Westland $218,400. You can see all of the results from this sale here.

Motostalgia was the fourth sale at Amelia Island this year. The overall top sale was this 2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren that brought $260,000.

Photo – Motostalgia

A Chevy Beauville Wagon we featured a few weeks ago sold again here for $19,800. Click here for more results.

We move next to Mecum in Kansas City where it finally happened: a Demon was the top sale. In this case it was this poorly-photographed 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon (with crate!) for $130,900.

Photo – Mecum

The Tesla Roadster we featured sold for $55,000 and you can see the rest of the results here.

The first of Bonhams’ Goodwood sales was held in March. The top seller was this 1967 Aston Martin DB6 for $259,671.

Photo – Bonhams

The Attila race car we featured failed to meet its reserve, but the Amilcar sold for $95,756 and the Cannon GT brought $31,256. Click here for complete results.

And finally, a sale from Brightwells, which consisted of a bunch of cars from that giant collection Jaguar Land Rover bought a few years ago and didn’t want (because they were too ordinary or just didn’t have space for 450 cars). We featured three unusual British cars: a Rover Estoura ($13,578), Vauxhaull Velox Friary ($12,729), and a Princess 2200 ($3,111). The top sale was this 2002 Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG that brought $29,136. Click here for more results.

Photo – Brightwells

Aston Martin Cygnet

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2011 Aston Martin Cygnet

Offered by Leclere MDV | Avignon, France | March 25, 2018

Photo – Leclere MDV

As a fan of obscure cars from big manufacturers (even those from Aston Martin), this 2011 Aston Martin Cygnet really hits the spot. The car is essentially a fancy version of the Toyota/Scion iQ city car sold all over the world. It got the Aston grille and a nicer interior. If they haven’t already, people will completely cease to remember this car ever existed in another five years.

Probably because it was still a Toyota underneath. No silky-smooth V-12 power plant here. The engine is a puny 97 horsepower 1.3-liter straight-four. So with that in mind, the question you’re probably asking is “Why?” Well Aston Martin decided they needed to meet the 2012 European Union fleet emissions regulations and by offering a car that got 60 mpg they could continue to build other insanely powerful road cars.

It’s easy to question their strategy of re-branding a Toyota now (well, it was then too) but, as you might expect, it failed spectacularly. They planned to sell about 4,000 of these a year at a price of about $45,000. Initially they were only sold in the U.K. and at one point Aston dealers in the U.K. were giving them away if you bought a DBS, DB9, or V8 Vantage (according to the auction catalog). Over two years of production, they managed to sell just 143 of these in the U.K. (there may have been another 150-ish sold elsewhere but I can’t verify that). Having covered 34,000km, this car is still expected to bring $48,000-$62,5000, proving even un-sellable cars appreciate if they have the right badge. Click here for more info and here for the rest of this auction’s lineup.

Update: Not sold.

Venturi 260 APC

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1991 Venturi Coupe 260 APC

Offered by Osenat | Fontainebleau, France | March 24, 2018

Photo – Osenat

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: we love Venturis! Founded in the 1980s, the first Venturi road cars went on sale in 1987. The first series of models, the Coupes, were built into 1996 (the 260 LM was the final iteration).

This is a Coupe 260 APC. It was built from 1990 through 1996 and is powered by a turbocharged 2.8-liter V-6 making 260 horsepower. The APC model was thus named because it is equipped with a catalytic converter. Sixty mph arrives in 5.2 seconds.

Only 70 examples of the 260 APC were built and this carries chassis #21. This car is in good shape with exterior yellow paint and a blue interior. Venturis are always cool and this car is no exception. It should bring between $43,000-$55,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $52,101.

1923 Léon Bollée

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1923 Léon Bollée Type M Roadster

Offered by Leclere MDV | Avignon, France | March 25, 2018

Photo – Leclere MDV

The Bollée name is a very important one in the history of French automobiles. Amédée Bollée built some of the earliest steam cars beginning in 1873. Léon, his son, began building gasoline-powered cars in 1893. His Voiturettes are some of the best pre-1900 vehicles built.

And those are what people usually think of when they hear the name Bollée. But his company actually lived on for a few more decades (Léon died in 1913). In fact, in 1924, the company was purchased by Morris Motors of the U.K. as a way for Morris to break into the French market. It went just okay and production ended in 1928 and the French company closed in 1931.

This four-cylinder Type M is a four-door, five-passenger Roadster. If the entire car was restored (the interior definitely has been) it was done long ago, as the paint is showing its age. But where are you going to find another one? In the last decade, give or take, this is the first post-WWI Léon Bollée car that I can recall seeing (actually, it’s the first post-1900 Léon Bollée car that I can recall seeing). It should bring between $30,750-$37,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

La Buire Coupe

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1910 La Buire Type 8000

Offered by Osenat | Fontainebleau, France | March 24, 2018

Photo – Osenat

La Buire was founded in 1847 to produce chassis for rail cars. In 1900, the company joined forces with Léon Serpollet and turned to automobiles. Their first car was presented in 1904 and the marque lasted through 1930.

This “Type 8000” is a coupe with house-like windows and a very carriage-like appearance. It’s powered by a four-cylinder engine, likely displacing 3.2-liters and rated at 12 horsepower. It was the the company’s small car for 1910.

It’s an older French car with a very nice interior. It’s definitely the most interesting-looking example of a La Buire I’ve come across in the past decade. It should bring between $25,000-$37,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $64,754.