Monthly Archives: August 2021

Alvis TC 21/100

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1952 Alvis TC 21/100 Drophead Coupe

Offered by H&H Auctioneers | Duxford, U.K. | September 8, 2021

Photo – H&H Auctioneers

The Alvis TC 21 was sold in two forms, the first being the TC 21. It was only offered as a four-door sedan, although that didn’t stop coachbuilders such as Graber from turning it into a two-door convertible. The car was introduced in 1953.

Later that year, Alvis tweaked the formula a bit, offering the TC 21/100, aka the Grey Lady. It featured a top speed of 100 mph thanks to a revised exhaust and an increased compression ratio in the 3.0-liter inline-six. The TC 21/100 was offered as a drophead coupe, with bodies like this one sourced from Tickford.

Only 757 examples were produced between the standard TC 21 and the Grey Lady through 1955, making it about twice as rare as the TA 21 that preceded it and way more common than the ultra-rate TC 108G that came later. This one is expected to fetch between $96,000-$116,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Horstman Tourer

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1924 Horstman Tourer

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 5, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Sidney Horstmann and his brothers founded a company producing transmissions and other automotive components in 1904. In 1913 they branched out into automobiles… like fully assembled ones.

At the end of WWI, the company dropped the final “N” from their name to make it look less German. Automobile production continued through the end of the 1920s. Approximately 3,000 cars were made by the firm in that time.

This rare survivor features body-color disc wheels and a 995cc inline-four. The car is said to require a little TLC, but it’s a good chance to acquire a rare, nearly-100-year-old car that appears to be in decent shape. It is expected to sell for between $19,000-$24,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Metrocab

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2000 Metrocab TTT

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 5, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Metrocab was a brand name of taxi produced for the British market by Metro Cammell Weymann, a bus manufacturer. The MCW Metrocab went on sale in 1987 and was rebranded alongside some major updates in 2000 as the Metrocab TTT. This version remained in production through 2006.

Styling looks familiar because it used off-the-shelf parts from mainstream cars. I think it looks like an Austin hatchback, but there are a lot of Ford parts in there as well. Power is from a 2.5-liter diesel inline-four sourced from a Ford Transit. Most TTTs got Toyota diesels.

This car was a licensed taxi for its first 19,000 miles, and then it was put into storage for 18 years. It has to be one of the best ones left and is expected to sell for between $6,800-$11,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

1909 Packard Runabout

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1909 Packard Model 18 Runabout

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Auburn, Indiana | September 3-4, 2021

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

Packard’s Model 18 went on sale for 1909 and would remain in production through 1912. Launch-year body styles included a limousine, landaulet, touring, and demi limousine, in addition to the runabout. While Packard was known mostly as a luxury car manufacturer, this one has a twinge of sportiness.

It’s powered by a 5.3-liter inline-four rated at 18 horsepower. The two-seat body is finished in white, with a matching fuel tank, trunk, wheels, and tires. It’s a lot of white. I can’t imagine it was ever this clean back in the day.

Only 802 Packards were produced for 1909, and this is said to be one of a dozen Model 18s known to exist across all model years and body styles. It would’ve cost $3,200 when new and will sell at no reserve for much more next month. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $102,150.

Minardi M198

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1998 Minardi-Ford M198

For Sale by RM Sotheby’s | Thurleigh, U.K.

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Giancarlo Minardi’s Formula One team first appeared on the grid in 1985. In their first 46 races, the team saw at least one car running at the finish only eight times. While they were more reliable in later years, they weren’t much more successful. The team’s best finish was fourth, which happened three times. But they did have a pretty loyal fanbase. The team lasted through the 2005 season, and their new owners rebranded the team as Toro Rosso for 2006.

The M198 was their chassis for the 1998 season, which saw drivers Shinji Nakano and Esteban Tuero on the team. This chassis was the first one built, and it is powered by a 3.0-liter Ford Zetec-R V10 that made about 710 horsepower. The competition history for this chassis includes:

  • 1998 Australian Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Shinji Nakano)
  • 1998 Brazilian Grand Prix – 21st, DNF (with Nakano)
  • 1998 Argentine Grand Prix – 13th (with Nakano)

After that, the car was refinished in the team’s 1999 livery and used as a show car. It still wears that scheme today. Since 2011, the car has been restored and used at events. It’s now for sale with an asking price of about $579,000. Click here for more info.

Jowett Javelin

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1951 Jowett Javelin DeLuxe

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | September 16, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

Jowett was founded in 1906 and made it through WWII. Unfortunately, a post-war boom for new cars in the U.K. saw Jowett’s body builder get bought out by Ford, leaving them without a source for car bodies. So they said “aw the hell with it” and closed up shop.

Despite its looks, the Jupiter was actually their large car, and it was offered between 1947 and 1953. The car is powered by a 1.5-liter flat-four mounted directly behind the grille in front of the radiator. It produced 52 horsepower in this car, which was enough to get it to 80 mph.

The weird engine location meant that this was a roomy six-seater car, and the DeLuxe trim added bigger bumpers, a fog light, leather seats, and a wooden dashboard. This four-owner example is one of 23,307 built and should sell for between $12,000-$15,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $10,455.

Lorraine-Dietrich Race Car

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1905 Lorraine-Dietrich CR2 Two-Seat Sports Racer

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 4, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Lorraine-Dietrich built cars and airplane engines after branching out from railway locomotives in the late-19th Century. Bollée-designed cars were first, beginning in 1896 under the De Dietrich marque. The brand become Lorraine-Dietrich in 1905, and automobile production lasted through 1935.

Racing had always been a part of the company. In fact, they won Le Mans twice in the early years. The company was involved in racing as early as about 1903. This car was built to replicate the period factory racers. It’s a true 1905 chassis, but the body was added in the 2000s. Power is from a 8.6-liter inline-four rated at 60 horsepower.

It certainly looks the part of an Edwardian race car, and it is apparently quite usable too. There are similar cars from this brand around, although I’m unsure of their provenance or originality. This seems like a good way to get pretty close to the real thing. The pre-sale estimate is $110,000-$170,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $190,955.

Frazer Vagabond

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1951 Frazer Vagabond

Offered by Mecum | Chicago, Illinois | October 21-23, 2021

Photo – Mecum

Frazer had a short existence as a marque: just five years from 1947 through 1951. The brand was supposed to be an upmarket Kaiser, with prices just a few hundred dollars more than their Kaiser counterparts. Joseph Frazer left the company in 1949, and Kaiser Motors didn’t find the marque to be all that profitable, so it was shuttered after 1951. The final model year consisted of leftover bodies from the ’49 and ’50 model years.

As sort of homely and 1950s-American-generic as this car may look, it is actually spectacular. The Vagabond is one of the coolest American cars of the 1950s. Why? Well it isn’t the 115-horsepower 3.7-liter inline-six. It’s the fact that it is five-door hatchback, or utility sedan, as it was called.

Photo – Mecum

Look at that. The Vagabond (Kaiser made one too) featured two rows of bench seating. The rear folded flat and was lined with wood slats on the rear to match the cargo area floor, which is accessed via a folding tailgate and an upper rear hatch. The left-rear door is blocked by the spare tire. Funky.

Only 2,951 Vagabonds were built by Frazer for 1951. And this one looks great. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $40,700.

Packard Box Truck

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1916 Packard Model E 2.5-Ton C-Cab Box Truck

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Auburn, Indiana | September 3, 2021

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

Packard was one of America’s grandest automobiles around the start of WWI. But they were also producing some pretty heavy-duty commercial vehicles at that time as well. We’ve actually featured a 3-ton variant of the Model E in the past, but this earlier 2.5-ton variant features a C-cab design.

Power is from an 8.6-liter inline-six good for about 60 horsepower. This truck was built in 1916 – the first year for shaft drive after Packard ditched its drive chains. This thing is pretty massive and sports a cool period-style corn starch livery.

Old commercial vehicles are always a treat as their survival rates are dismal at best. This one is coming out of a Packard-focused museum and will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $30,800.

Alvis TA21

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1953 Alvis TA21 Drophead Coupe

Offered by H&H Auctioneers | Duxford, U.K. | September 8, 2021

Photo – H&H Auctioneers

We’ve featured a good number of post-war Alvis sports cars. Okay, so they aren’t that sporty. But they were two-door coupes or drophead coupes, which are inherently sportier than sedans. The TA21 was the first of the “21”-suffix cars and was Alvis’s first new post-war car.

The TA21 was produced from 1950 through 1953. It’s powered by a 3.0-liter inline-six fitted with a single Solex carburetor for a factory rating of 83 horsepower. Top speed was 88 mph. Two body styles were offered: a sedan and a rarer drophead coupe, the latter of which carried a body by Tickford.

This particular car carries a later engine from a TC21. There were 1,316 TA21s produced, only 302 of which were convertibles. This one is selling at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $38,641.