Monthly Archives: June 2022

Frazer Nash-BMW 315

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1935 Frazer Nash-BMW 315 Three-Position Drophead Coupe by E. Bertelli

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | June 24, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Archibald Frazer-Nash was the British importer of BMWs beginning in 1934. They re-branded and sold BMWs in the U.K. as Frazer Nash-BMWs, but this only lasted until the outbreak of war in 1939. After WWII, Frazer Nash sold sports cars of their own design.

So this 315 model is essentially a re-branded BMW 315, which was sold from 1934 through 1937. These small BMWs were part of the 303 lineage of cars that dated back to, well, 1933. But the 315/1 was a factory roadster. This particular car is said to be one of three fitted with three-position drophead coupe coachwork by British coachbuilder Enrico Bertelli of Feltham.

Power is from a 1.5-liter inline-six that was rated at 40 horsepower when new. These were sports cars in their day, even if this one has a less-sporty body. It’s been in the ownership of the same family since new, and it’s gonna need a restoration. The pre-sale estimate is $24,500-$37,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $31,767.

Monteverdi 375S

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1969 Monteverdi 375S Coupe by Frua

Offered by Bonhams | Gstaad, Switzerland | July 3, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

It’s always interesting when auctions take place outside of the “normal” locations of the U.S., the U.K., or France. Places like Switzerland usually bring out some real weirdos, car-wise. And this Swiss-built Monteverdi is the perfect example as to why more auctions should take place in otherwise less-often-visited countries.

The Monteverdi High Speed was a series of coupes, convertibles, and sedans that were attractively styled and powered by big American V8s. The first model was the 375S, of which we have an example here. These were styled by Frua and look very Maserati-ish. Power is from a 7.2-liter Chrysler V8 that was rated at 450 horsepower.

This one was sold new in the U.S. and was owned by Jay Leno for a time prior to the consignor’s purchase. Between 10 and 12 of these were built over a six-month span. The pre-sale estimate here is $70,000-$110,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $234,427.

Force India VJM10

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2017 Force India VJM10

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | June 24, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Force India was a Formula One team founded by Vijay Mallya and Michael Mol. They appeared on the grid for the 2008 season after having purchased the Spyker F1 team (which itself had formerly been Midland F1 and Jordan). The cars donned a pink paint scheme beginning in 2010 when sponsorship from water-treatment company BWT arrived.

This chassis, #4, was used in the second half of the season by Esteban Ocon, and it was originally powered by a turbocharged 1.6-liter Mercedes-AMG V6 with a KERS system. This chassis was also tested by George Russell during the season. This car was used in eight races in 2010, including:

  • 2010 Japanese Grand Prix – 6th (with Esteban Ocon)
  • 2010 U.S. Grand Prix – 6th (with Ocon)
  • 2010 Mexican Grand Prix – 5th (with Ocon)

It also scored points in the other five races in which it competed. It’s a roller now, so you just get the body and chassis. But it is being sold by Force India’s successor: the Aston Martin Formula One Team, who are apparently thinning the herd. The pre-sale estimate is $86,000-$125,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $92,655.

Duesenberg J-362

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1930 Duesenberg Model J Convertible Berline by LeBaron

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19-20, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

This is what you’d call a stately Model J. While it’s not a traditional limousine, it has that look but with a retractable soft top with landau bars and removable B-pillars. The coachwork is by LeBaron, who were responsible for some great Duesenberg designs back in the day.

Power is from a 6.9-liter inline-eight that made 265 horsepower when new. Model Js had a three-speed manual transmission. But all that power and favorable gearing means that this beast can do almost 90 mph in second gear.

This car was originally owned by an heir to a Chicago department store fortune. Ownership history is more or less known, and the car was restored by RM with work completing around 2000. The current owner bought it in 2010. Price estimates? More than a limo but less than a dual-cowl phaeton. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,061,000.

Chiron Pur Sport

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2021 Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | June 2022

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

Another day, another insane supercar. The Chiron was Volkswagen – er, Bugatti’s follow-up to the impossible-to-top Veyron. Well it topped it. And then they went and made it more extreme with a series of special and high-end editions.

The Chiron launched in 2016 and used an updated version of the Veyron’s quad-turbocharged 8.0-lite W16 that in Chiron spec put out 1,479 horsepower. The Pur Sport got a redline increase and a revised gearbox.

Introduced in 2020, the Pur Sport was supposedly limited to 60 units. It is described as a “handling-focused variant” with lightweight components, a fixed rear wing, a pretty crazy wheel design that pulls air into the rear diffuser, and, somehow, stickier tires.

This example is finished in a pretty awesome two-tone color scheme – inside and out. The price is eye watering so far, with the bidding already at $3.7 million at the time of this writing. More can be read about it here.

Rover 8HP

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1904 Rover Eight

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | June 18, 2022

Photo – Brightwells

Rover was one of the U.K.’s longest-running automotive marques. The Rover Company Limited got its start as so many others did, with bicycles. They were founded in 1878, and motorcycles followed in 1902. The first Rover car was 1904’s Eight, an example of which we have here.

The first Eights were powered by a 1.3-liter single cylinder that made eight horsepower. A 1.0-liter sleeve-valve single was offered for the model’s final two years of production in 1911 and 1912. The car had a backbone frame that was essentially just the running gear, and this evolved into an ash chassis by 1907.

This first-year Rover is said to be the oldest surviving Rover in private hands and one of the earliest Rovers built. It has known history back to 1921 and is a former London-to-Brighton participant. It has a pre-sale estimate of $85,000-$90,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $122,595.

924 Carrera GT

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1981 Porsche 924 Carrera GT

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | June 2022

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

The 924 is not the most-loved Porsche of all time. It was the entry-level replacement for the 914, a car that was co-marketed by Volkswagen. The 944 replaced the 924 in the U.S. market beginning with the 1983 model year, however, the 924 remained on sale elsewhere in the world through 1988.

There was a 924 Turbo and a sporty 924S, but the real halo car in this range is the homologation Carrera GT (and GTS). Based on the 924 Turbo, the CGT featured an increased compression ratio and an intercooler for the turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four that pushed output to 210 horsepower. More modified race versions (Carrera GTR) made up to 375 horsepower.

Just 400 road-going examples of the Carrera GT were built, and they are visually differentiated from standard road cars with their fender flares and hood scoop. As of this writing, bidding is already at $54,000, enough to buy a few really nice 924s. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $119,937.

Alfa 6C 2300B Mille Miglia

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1938 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B Mille Miglia Berlinetta by Touring

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19-20, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

We’ve featured two examples of Alfa Romeo’s pre-war 6C 2300 B before, and both looked quite different from this car, which resembles a hardtop version of the Touring-bodied 8C 2900 B Lungo Spider. The 6C 2300 was built between 1934 and 1938, with the B version first offered in 1935.

The Mille Miglia version of the B was powered by a 2.3-liter inline-six fitted with triple Solex carburetors for a rating of 95 horsepower. It was essentially the best version of the model. Only 107 examples of the 2300 B Mille Miglia were produced, most looking like this or the Touring-bodied convertible counterpart.

This car has known ownership history back to 1946, showing time spent in Switzerland, France, and the Netherlands before coming stateside in 2008. While this car won’t carry the nearly $20 million dollar price tag of an 8C Lungo, it still won’t come cheap. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Paris 2023, $943,202.

McLaren Sabre

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2020 McLaren Sabre

Offered by Mecum | Monterey, California | August 18-20, 2022

Photo – Mecum

The Sabre is a car that came out of McLaren Special Operations after they asked American VIP customers what kind of car they’d want. Apparently there answer was “a Senna, but less ungainly looking.” This car is Senna based, and it was McLaren’s fastest two-seater ever when all examples were built in 2020.

Power is from a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 that was rated at 824 horsepower. No hybrid assist here. Just pure internal combustion power. Top speed is 218 mph. The cars were only supposed to be for the U.S. market, but apparently a few went overseas. And it’s unclear if they built 15 or 16 of them. This car is #11.

It only has low (100) miles, as many modern supercars do. Which is either because the owner’s have plenty of other cars to drive… or they are horrible to actually drive. Probably both. This might be the first one to come up for public sale, and the price will be into the seven figures. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $3,500,000.

57C Aravis Special Cabriolet

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1939 Bugatti Type 57C Aravis Special Cabriolet by Gangloff

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19-20, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Among the most valuable Bugattis – and pre-war cars in general – are variations of the Bugatti Type 57. This particular car is a rare version called the Aravis Special Cabriolet with coachwork by Gangloff, who were also responsible for the Stelvios.

This is a Type 57C, which indicates a racing chassis powered by a supercharged 3.3-liter inline-eight capable of 160 horsepower. This car is one of three Gangloff-bodied Aravis cars in existence, of what is thought to be six built (in addition to six from Letourneur et Marchand). Only two of the remaining three were factory-supercharged examples, with this being one of them.

In 1959, the coachbuilder Graber was hired to put a fixed roof on the car, a configuration it was rescued from after being purchased by its current owner in 1993. It has a replacement engine, but of the correct type. You can read more about it here.

Update: Sold $1,545,000.