Monthly Archives: October 2021

Honker II

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1967 Holman-Moody Ford Honker II

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Le Castellet, France | November 19, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Ralph Moody was a NASCAR driver who ran 47 races in four seasons between 1956 and 1962. In ’56, he won four races driving for Ford and their chief mechanic, John Holman. When Ford pulled out of NASCAR in 1957, the two teamed up and bought Ford’s former Charlotte workshop, forming Holman-Moody. By the mid-1960s, they were the American racing powerhouse, with cars they built dominating NASCAR.

They also dabbled in sports car racing, entering Sebring in 1962 with a Ford Falcon. They wanted to compete in Can-Am, so the Honker II was built for that purpose. It’s powered by a 6.2-liter V8 with Gurney-Weslake cylinder heads. Paul Newman put up the cash to have the car campaigned in the 1967 Can-Am season with Mario Andretti behind the wheel. In five races, the best result it managed was an 8th position.

Newman later used the car in the film Winning. It sat in the Holman-Moody workshop until the mid-1980s, when the company had it restored in its original Passino Purple. The car sold at a Gooding auction in 2013 for $200,000. I’d think the price has gone up significantly since then. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $285,920.

1909 Cooper

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1909 Cooper 22.5HP Torpedo Tourer

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 5, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

If your tiny car company built six cars over 110 years ago, you’d think the chances of any of them surviving would be essentially nil. But don’t tell that to the long-deceased Thomas Cooper of the Cooper Steam Digger Company Ltd of Norfolk, England. His company typically built steam traction engines and farm equipment. But in 1909 he designed a two-stroke 3.3-liter inline-four that he debuted in a motorcar at that year’s Olympia Motor Show.

It had a three-speed gearbox and a two-speed rear axle. Only six cars were built, each of them different. This is the only survivor. It was parked in 1921 and re-discovered in 1951, where its history trail picks up.

It was later restored and acquired by its current owner in 1994. Museum duty followed, with the car last driven in 2014. It now carries a pre-sale estimate of $55,000-$83,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $44,735.

Prost F1

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1999 Prost-Peugeot AP02

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Le Castellet, France | November 19, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Alain Prost won four Formula One World Championships before tossing his hat into the F1 ownership ring. He purchased the Ligier F1 team in 1997, just before the season started, and rebranded it Prost Grand Prix. The following year, the team secured a deal to be supplied with factory Peugeot engines.

The AP02 was 1999’s car, and it was powered by a 3.0-liter Peugeot V10 making about 785 horsepower and revving to 17,000 rpm (!). The team had a decent 1997 season, a poor 1998 season, and an okay 1999 season. Things went south quickly thereafter, and it was all over after the 2001 season. The assets of Prost (and Arrows engines) were bought by a group called Phoenix Finance, but they never made it to the grid.

The competition for this chassis, 03, included:

  • 1999 Australian Grand Prix – 15th, DNF (with Olivier Panis)
  • 1999 Brazilian Grand Prix – 6th (with Panis)
  • 1999 San Marino Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with Panis)
  • 1999 Monaco Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with Panis)

It was used as a test car after that. It now wears the team’s 2000 paint scheme and 2001 sponsor livery. The engine is not currently installed, but is included, along with the gearbox. You can read more about it here and see more from this collection here.

Update: Sold $195,332.

VM180 Zagato

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2001 TMI VM180 Zagato

Offered by Bingo/BH Auction | Online | October 25-31, 2021

Photo – Bingo/BH Auction

Guess the base car. If you said “2000-2007 Toyota MR2,” you are correct. This generation of the MR2 isn’t as beloved as earlier versions, but it was popular among the The Fast and the Furious crowd in the early 2000s. It even went Super GT racing.

In 2001, a Zagato-bodied version of the MR2 was shown at the Tokyo Motor Show. It featured the same mid-mounted 1.8-liter inline-four as the standard MR2, but was tuned slightly to make 155 horsepower (up from 138). The styling was by Zagato and is obviously much different than the standard car. It’s got some funky lighting front and rear in addition to some other, uh, not-so-subtle tweaks.

Only 100 were built. They were only sold in Japan through the Toyota Vista dealer network. And the cars were actually branded under the Toyota Modelista International brand, or TMI. It’s a weird one, and not one that pops up often. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Sunbeam-Talbot 4-Litre

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1939 Sunbeam-Talbot 4-Litre Sports Saloon

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | October 23-28, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

Sunbeam-Talbot was a short-lived marque and part of the myriad of Talbot-branded cars over the decades. The brand came into being in 1935 when Rootes merged Sunbeam and Talbot into a single marque. In 1954, after dealing with confusion in relation to the French Talbots, Rootes dropped the name and Sunbeam soldiered on alone.

The 4-Litre model was introduced in 1939 and was made in very limited numbers into 1940. This was the company’s largest model and was derived from the Humber Super Snipe. It’s powered by a 4.1-liter inline-six that made 100 horsepower. It topped out at 85 mph.

WWII cut short the 4-Litre’s production run, and only 229 were built. Just 44 of those were Sports Saloons. This example was restored in 1991 and is one of two Sports Saloon 4-Litres known to exist. It should sell for between $39,000-$44,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $34,671.

1904 Brennan

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1904 Brennan 14/18HP Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 5, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Brennan – or, officially, the Brennan Manufacturer Company – was an engine-building company based in Syracuse, New York. Founded by Patrick Brennan in 1897, the company produced engines for other manufacturers, including Selden. Between 1902 and 1908, Brennan sold their own car. Brennan actually survived as a marine engine outfit until 1972.

Brennan built their cars to suit, which was not very economical. The cars were too expensive despite the engineering behind them. The engines were good though: this car has a flat-twin that made 14 horsepower at 700 rpm and 18 horsepower at 1,000 rpm. Pretty stout for 1904.

This particular example is said to have resided in the Henry Austin Clark Museum before relocating to the U.K. in a sad state in 1990. The restoration was completed in 2005, and the car is a London-to-Brighton veteran. It now carries an estimate of $110,000-$140,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $154,260.

AC 2-Litre

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1948 AC 2-Litre Saloon

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | October 23, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

AC’s 2-Litre was their first post-war automobile, and it was really the largest shot at a “mainstream” automobile that they ever took. Pretty much everything after this was pure sports car. The 2-Litre, which was sold from 1947-1956, was available as a two- or four-door sedan. Drophead coupes were also offered. The Buckland was the open roadster variant.

The 2.0-liter inline-six dated to 1922 but was fitted with triple SU carburetors for post-war use and a factory-rated output of 74 horsepower. Top speed was 80 mph. Only 1,284 examples were produced of all types combined.

This car has been in the same family since new and was restored in the 1980s. It now carries an estimate of $8,200-$11,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $10,334.

Paige Larchmont II

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1921 Paige Model 6-66 Larchmont II Sport Touring

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | October 2021

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

Paige has interesting roots. Bankrolled by Harry Jewett, the company was originally lead by Fred Paige, previously of the Reliance Motor Car Company. After two years of Paige-Detroit production, Jewett booted Paige out of the company, but kept his name, albeit without “Detroit.”

The 1912 Paige was a completely different car, and a more successful one. In 1927, amid mounting losses, Jewett sold the company to Graham Brothers. Paige’s 1921 model lineup consisted of the 6-42 and more ominous 6-66. The latter became famous for its Daytona Beach speed runs where it hit 102 mph. Different body styles were offered, including the Daytona Speedster. Among the others was the Larchmont II Sport Touring, the “II” apparently to differentiate it from 1920s’ Larchmont tourer.

This one is powered by a 5.4-liter Continental inline-six rated at 70 horsepower when new. It’s an ex-museum car with a restoration dating back more than 30 years. Impossibly, this is Bring a Trailer’s second Larchmont II offering in as many months. This one closes today. Check out more here.

Alpine A610

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1991 Alpine A610

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | October 24, 2021

Photo – Artcurial

The A610 was the last Alpine before Renault recently relaunched the brand. It was sort of an evolution of the Renault-Alpine GTA and was produced between 1991 and 1995. Only 818 examples were produced during that time, making the car pretty rare today.

The turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 is mounted out back of the 2+2 cabin. Output was rated at 247 horsepower when new, which was enough to propel the car to a 165-mph top end. This car is actually pretty interesting and unusual. A great 90s sleeper sports car.

This particular car has remained with a single owner since new. That owner was an Alpine racing driver who had the factory turn up the boost, delete the A/C, and pop in an ABS override button. The pre-sale estimate here is $40,000-$57,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $34,707.

Durant Rugby

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1925 Rugby Model F Tourer

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | October 28, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

Billy Durant’s second automobile empire after GM was Durant Motors. It only lasted for a decade, from 1921 through 1931, but he did manage to assemble a small contingent of brands, including Durant, Flint, Mason, and Star. He even expanded overseas.

But the Star name was already in use in the U.K. So Durant rebranded his Star cars as the Rugby for the British Commonwealth. It was a relative success. About 70,000 Model Fs were churned out under the various Durant brands across all markets. This car is powered by a 2.0-liter inline-four that was rated at 35 horsepower when new.

The great thing about Stars is that they are very inexpensive today, even for a nice one, which this looks to be. The pre-sale estimate is only $10,000-$11,500. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold (I think), $10,001.