Category Archives: Uncategorized

540K Cabriolet B

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1938 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet B by Sindelfingen

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Houston, Texas | April 23, 2016

Photo - Worldwide Auctioneers

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

I feel like we’ve been featuring a lot of Mercedes-Benz 500K/540Ks recently – and we have – but the reason is that these are some of Mercedes’ finest cars and, while we tend not to feature the same car twice, there were a lot of different styles offered. This is the Cabriolet B. There was also an A and a C, among others.

Powered by a 5.4-liter straight-eight, the 540K makes 115 horsepower and, when the supercharger is engaged (i.e. the gas pedal is pushed to the floor), 180. The Cabriolet B was the most popular body style of all 500K/540K production with 296 built (there were 419 540Ks built in total).

The restoration on this car was completed in 1981 but it has aged so well that it has continued to win awards up through the 2000s. It was even shown at Pebble Beach in 2013. It is expected to bring between $900,000-$1,300,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $836,000.

The Original Z06

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1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06

Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | May 20, 2016

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

This car has a lot going for it. First of all, it’s a ’63 Corvette Coupe, meaning it carries the signature “split window” rear glass –  a one-year-only feature. Then we have the fact that it is a Z06. The modern Z06 was introduced in 2001 and is the Track Attack variant of the ‘Vette. But this was the first model to carry that letter and number combo.

In 1962, Zora Arkus-Duntov wanted to build a performance Corvette for sale after the factory ban on racing went into effect. So they created “RPO Z06” – a high-performance package that could be ordered. It included beefier brakes and suspension and could only be had with the 5.4-liter V-8 making 360 horsepower. It wasn’t cheap, adding over 40% of the base price onto the cost of the car.

Only 199 of them were built in 1963. This one features a nut and bolt restoration and is an award winner. It’s about a $250,000 car. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $210,000.

Ghia 1500 GT

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1965 Ghia 1500 GT

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

Carrozzeria Ghia is primarily known for their custom bodies that they apply to other people’s cars. There’s a little more history about that coming in a future post, but I’ll keep it short and say that Ghia built a few models of their own in the 1960s. This, the 1500 GT, is one of them.

This 1500 GT is powered by a Fiat 1.5-liter straight-four with power ratings varying based on whom you ask, but it was probably somewhere around 73 horsepower. Top speed was over 100 mph and it is said that this is a fantastic sounding car for having such a tiny motor.

The cars were only built between 1963 and 1966 and about 300 were made. It was bought by an American soldier in 1967 and it returned stateside with him in 1970. It went to Canada in 1987 but just sat there. The current owner, who acquired it much more recently, restored it. It should bring between $72,500 and $106,000. Click here for more info and here for more info.

Update: Sold $71,900.

Tornado Typhoon

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1960 Tornado Typhoon

For sale at The Gallery Brummen | Brummen, The Netherlands

Photo - The Gallery Brummen

Photo – The Gallery Brummen

Tornado Cars Ltd was a British manufacturer of sports cars and kits founded in 1957 by Bill Woodhouse and Tony Bullen. Based in Hertfordshire, the company offered a variety of models and went out of business in 1964.

What we have here is a Typhoon, the first model the company sold. It was built from 1957 through 1962. It could be had already assembled or as a kit that fit to a pre-War Ford. The body is fiberglass and the engine (which could’ve been anything) in this case is a 1.2-liter straight-four out of a Ford.

Although meteorologically a little confusing, this Tornado Typhoon is in amazing shape and has been completely restored. Only about 300 Typhoons were sold and it’s a car you rarely ever see (you rarely see anything from Tornado to begin with, much less this model). It is for sale in the Netherlands for $53,857. Click here for more info.

1983 GAZ Chaika

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1983 GAZ Chaika M14

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

The GAZ Chaika was a Soviet luxury car built in two series between 1959 and 1988. The first series somewhat resembled an American sedan from the 1950s. This, the second series (which was built between 1977 and 1988) doesn’t really resemble anything sold in America. This wasn’t the top of the line Russian car of the day – for that, you had to step up to the ZIL Limousine.

This car is powered by a 5.5-liter V-8 making 220 horsepower. It’s a limousine and should seat six. They were generally only available to government officials, and this particular car was purchased straight from the Lithuanian government.

They only built about 100 of these per year with final production output reaching 1,114. There’s a number of them still around, but Mikhail Gorbachev had the blueprints and tooling destroyed, which is nice. This is being sold without reserve. You can read more here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Sold $18,380.

Monteverdi Sierra Sedan

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1978 Monteverdi Sierra

For sale at The Gallery Brummen | Brummen, Netherlands

Photo - The Gallery Brummen

Photo – The Gallery Brummen

Peter Monteverdi’s Swiss car company built cars between 1967 and 1984. They built all kinds of things: SUVs, sedans, coupes, supercars… you name it. This, the Sierra, was available between 1977 and 1982. Strangely, it was based on the fairly-lame Plymouth Volare but had pretty features thanks to Carrozzeria Fissore.

The engine is a 5.2-liter V-8 making 160 horsepower. Three body styles were offered: sedan, cabriolet, and station wagon (this, the sedan, was the one actually sold to the public). No one is quite sure just how many were built, but it is believed to be between 20 and 50.

This car is in great shape and if you’re a collector of American cars or European cars, it should appeal to you. Alongside most Monteverdi vehicles, the Sierra is a model you almost never see. The price on this one? $50,192. Click here for more information.

Spectre R45

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2001 Spectre R45

For sale at The Hairpin Company | Wiltshire, U.K.

Photo - The Hairpin Company

Photo – The Hairpin Company

Spectre Supersport Ltd was a company in the mid-1990s that sold a car called the R42 that was based on a Ford GT40 replica (a car which the man behind the car, Ray Christopher, had been building successfully for years). The 1996-1997 R42 is pretty rare, but the company went bust in ’97. They returned in 2001 with this, the R45.

If it looks a little kit car-ish, that’s because it is a prototype. The R45 never made it into production, though two prototypes were built. This is the second, and final, car. It is powered by a mid-mounted 4.6-liter V-8 making 350 horsepower. Top speed should be about 175 mph.

This car, the only running, driving example, has 14,000 miles on it. If you’re looking for what essentially boils down to a one-off supercar, here you go. No price is currently listed, you’ll have to contact The Hairpin Company for more.

Grosser Werkmeister

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1952 Grosser Werkmeister

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

The car you see here (quite possibly for the first time) is an East German race car that was built by Georg Werkmeister. East Germany really isn’t known for their automobiles (other than say, the Trabant), but there were a number of pop up race car builders in the 1950s that came from the far side of the wall.

Like most of these cars, they were based on the pre-war BMW 328. So the engine here is a 328-donated 2.0-liter straight-four making about 135 horsepower. The low, streamlined body was designed by an ex-Auto Union aerodynamicist. It was raced, semi-successfully, in 1952 and 1953.

But in ’53, Werkmeister left for West Germany and his car was seized by the East German government. It continued to race into 1954 before suffering some engine damage. Over the following decades, the car was used as a road car under the care of many owners. It was expertly restored in 2004 and is ready for historic races and tours. Click here for more info and here for more from Coys.

Update: Not sold.

Cadillac Town Car

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1940 Cadillac Series 75 Town Car by Brunn

For sale at The Auto Collections | Las Vegas, Nevada

Photo - The Auto Collections

Photo – The Auto Collections

The second generation of the Cadillac Series 70 (and its derivatives) was introduced in 1938 and lasted through 1940. This series was Cadillac’s mid-level model in 1940, being flanked on either side by the entry-level Series 40 and the top-of-the-line Sixteen. For 1940, this series included the Series 62, Series 60 Special, Series 72, and Series 75.

The engine in the Series 75 is a 5.7-liter V-8 making 140 horsepower. Cadillac and their in-house coachbuilder Fleetwood offered a bunch of different bodies for the Series 75. But for a wealthy Ohioan, these options were not enough. So he went to The Brunn Company and ordered what was to be the final Brunn Town Car ever produced. The body is all aluminium and almost all custom from Brunn, save for the hood and front fenders.

The car is said to drive splendidly and it has been winning awards for decades. It is all-original and well-preserved and can be yours for $175,000. Click here for more info.

The Speed Camel

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1980 Citroen Méhari

Offered by Coys | Essen, Germany | April 9, 2016

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

I feel like trying to explain the Citroen Méhari to someone who has never seen one would be a very amusing conversation:

So is it a car or an SUV? Yes. It’s low like a car, but it has stamped lines down the side of it to make it look rugged and to imply off-roadiness.
Does it have four wheel drive? Three years worth of them do. It’s made of plastic.
Well at least it’s light. Is it powerful? No, it has a two-cylinder engine. But it is implied that it is fast because it is named after a fast camel.
That’s weird. Does it look cool? Is it functional? Well, uh, sorta? It only has two seats and a kind of flat space behind them. And it has kind of a tarp for a roof, and windows. So it’s technically a convertible, so that’s cool, right?
I guess. Who made it? The French.
Oh, now I get it. Yep.

The Méhari could have only come from a French factory. Featuring a 602cc flat-twin, the car was introduced in 1968 and stayed in production for the next 20 years. 4WD cars were only built between 1980 and 1983, with about 13,000 of them made. In total, 144,953 Méharis were built.

This one has been well restored and I can’t tell from the information provided whether or not this is a front or four driver. I’d guess the former as the expected price is listed between $16,860-$22,500. Click here for more info and here for more from Coys.

Update: Sold $26,250.