1938 Tatra T77A Limousine
Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 17, 2019
Let’s start with this: Tatras are amazing with their unique, otherworldly designs. These big, streamlined, rear-engined cars must’ve seemed completely alien to car shoppers in the 1930s. That’s right, the 1930s! The Tatra 77 was introduced in 1934 and was the world’s first production aerodynamically-designed air-cooled car.
Features include three headlights and a sloping fastback body style that achieved an insanely-low drag coefficient. Power is from a 75 horsepower, 3.4-liter V8. The engine compartments in these cars are so interesting – it looks like there is some kind of machine back there, not an air-cooled V8. Top speed on the 77A was 93 mph.
The interior here is pretty luxurious as well, with a huge rear passenger compartment partitioned off from the driver. And the rear seatback folds forward to reveal a nicely-trimmed trunk ahead of the engine. Only 255 combined examples of the 1934-1935 Tatra 77 and 1935-1938 77A were produced. Only 20 are thought to remain.
Check out Gooding’s posted ownership history: purchased new by a Czech citizen who had the car confiscated by the German army in 1939. The Soviet army took possession of the car in 1945. In 1950, a Russian bought the car and kept it for 50 years before the current owner bought it from him. It should sell to its next owner for between $450,000-$650,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.
Update: Sold $412,000.