Category Archives: Uncategorized

Pontiac Banshee Concept

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1964 Pontiac Banshee XP-833 Concept

Offered by Dragone Auctions | Greenwich, Connecticut | May 30, 2015

Photo - Dragone Auctions

Photo – Dragone Auctions

The Ford Mustang was an industry-altering car. When Ford announced it, everyone had to react, including General Motors. Head of Pontiac, John DeLorean, quickly green-lit the Banshee concept in 1963 and the first one, this one, was built in 1964. It toured the auto show circuit in 1965 and was a big hit.

This car is a driver and is powered by a straight-six. The Banshee never saw production as it would have competed directly with Corvette sales. Instead, there are definitely a few lines on this car that you can see in the first generation Firebird and the third generation Corvette.

There were four Banshee concepts, with the XP-833 being the first. Two were built and both still survive (the other is a white, V-8 convertible). This is one of one and should sell for between $600,000-$650,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

BMW-Glas 3000

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1967 BMW-Glas 3000 V8 Fastback by Frua

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Lake Como, Italy | May 23, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Hans Glas GmbH was a German auto manufacturer that built things like the Goggomobil and a few cars under the Glas brand. In 1966, BMW acquired Glas, mainly for their production capacity. They phased out most of the Glas models, or at least changed their names to BMWs. The 3000 was branded as BMW-Glas 3000 V8 for 1967 and 1968.

The original Glas 3000 was designed by Frua. It was a kind of boxy coupe, but when BMW came in, Frua designed this Fastback version. BMW took it to motor shows all over Europe, but it was the only one like it built.

It is powered by a 160 horsepower 3.0-liter V-8. It is coming up for sale off of a fresh restoration and has just under 65,000 miles on the odometer. Being one of one, it will command a premium over all over 3000 V8s. It should sell for between $410,000-$520,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Sold, Bonhams Paris 2020 – $229,581.

Elgin Six

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1916 Elgin Six Touring

Offered by Bonhams | Greenwich, Connecticut | May 31, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

A few executives of the Elgin National Watch Company of Argo, Illinois, decided that they were going into the automobile business in 1916. The leap was a rational one: watches required precision and engineering. So did cars.

This car is from the first year of manufacture. The only model Elgin produced in 1916 was the Six. It was available as a Tourer and Roadster. The engine, a 2.0-liter straight-six, makes 21 horsepower.

Elgin would only produce six-cylinder cars until the business went under in 1924. This is one of only eight 1916 Elgins known to exist. These were reliable, durable cars – obviously, as this is an unrestored survivor. It should bring between $20,000-$30,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,600.

Ferrari 195 Inter

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1950 Ferrari 195 Inter Berlinetta by Ghia

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Lake Como, Italy | May 23, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

The Ferrari 195 Inter was one of Ferrari’s earliest road-going Grand Tourers. It was actually the company’s second car designed specifically for the road. It was an evolution of the 166 Inter and based on the 195 S race car. The great thing about Ferraris is that they don’t need to be purpose-built race cars to take them racing.

This particular car, which was bodied by Ghia (all 195 Inters wore custom bodies), was displayed at the 1951 Brussels Motor Show. Later, its new owner took it rallying. At some point, this thing ended up in Zimbabwe. Can you imagine how that happened? And how lucky the world is that someone rescued it?

It is powered by a 130 horsepower 2.3-liter V-12 and has a top speed of 111 mph. The 195 Inter was only built in 1950 and the early part of 1951. In total, just 25 were built. Only 36 Ferraris have ever been bodied by Ghia, and this is the fourth one completed. This would be an awesome car to own and drive – those early V-12s are just special. It should sell for between $1,350,000-$1,750,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Italy.

Update: Not sold.

Delta Integrale 16V

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1990 Lancia Delta Integrale 16v

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Silverstone, U.K. | May 23, 2015

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

The first generation Lancia Delta went on sale in 1979 and continued in production through 1994. That’s a long time. But it wasn’t the same stale car for 15 years – as it grew closer to the end, the cars got more and more extreme.

The Delta was also Lancia’s rally car for the late-1980s. The Delta Integrale 8v won the 1988 World Rally Championship. A variant of that car was sold to the 4WD-buying public as the Delta HF 4WD beginning in 1986. At the end of 1987, it was replaced by the Delta Integrale 8v. In 1989, the Delta Integrale 16v went on sale.

The engine is a 2.0-liter turbocharged straight-four making 200 horsepower. This was the ultimate hot hatch for 1990. Top speed was 137 mph and with its 47/53 front-rear torque split, the 4WD car could hit 60 mph in 5.5 seconds. That’s quicker than a Ferrari Mondial, which was on sale at the same time and had twice the cylinder count. More extreme versions were yet to come. This is a recently-serviced, 71,000-mile car that can be yours for between $20,000-$25,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Silverstone’s lineup.

Update: Sold $27,540.

Maurer C87

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1987 Maurer-BMW C87

Offered by Bonhams | Francorchamps, Belgium | May 24, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Group C racing was awesome. Loads of major automobile manufacturers built ridiculous prototype sports racing cars – some of the fastest race cars ever built. They had huge engines with big turbos and they all looked like wedges with wheels. And lost among the Sauber-Mercedes, Jaguars and Porsches were some privateers cars, like this Maurer.

Walter Maurer was an artist known in the car world as being part of BMW’s “Art Cars” projects as well as a part-time racing driver. The car was designed by an ex-Sauber engineer and the body was built by Dornier Aerospace. Maurer’s ties to BMW landed him a sweet 2.0-liter turbocharged BMW straight-four that could produce 1,350 horsepower in qualifying trim. Maurer designed the paint scheme himself.

Maurer drove the car in competition with co-drivers Helmut Gall and Edgar Dören lending a hand during endurance events. This car did not compete in the World Sportscar Championship, and instead raced in Supercup, a German series that also used Group C cars. It’s best result was 10th in 1988 and a 12th place finish in 1989. It has been used recently and would be great to take vintage racing. It should sell for between $1,000,000-$1,300,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Bonhams’ Spa lineup.

Update: Not sold.

The First McLaren Road Car

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1969 McLaren M6GT Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Francorchamps, Belgium | May 24, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

New Zealander Bruce McLaren founded the racing team that still bears his name to this day in 1963. McLaren was killed in 1970 in his own Can-Am car in a crash at Goodwood. Needless to say, his legacy is alive and well.

McLaren Can-Am cars were some of the best in the late-60s and early-70s. The M6A was their car for 1967. 1968 brought the M6B and for the 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans, the company was developing a closed-coupe sports car called the M6GT. In order to race it in a sports car class, they had to build models for the road. The plan didn’t work out, and only three prototypes were completed – two of which were converted from M6B Can-Am cars, and one, which was a road car built from scratch. The first road car was sold to a customer in the U.S.

The two converted M6Bs were converted to road cars and Bruce McLaren used one as a daily driver. This is the other one. It was sold to a racer named David Prophet who actually raced it for a little while. It was restored in 1996 and is perfect for the road today. It uses a 5.0-liter Chevrolet V-8 making 370 horsepower. It’s as sleek as a race car and can do 180 mph. While it may look like a kit car or something, this is a legitimate McLaren road car – the grandfather of the F1. It should sell for between $210,000-$260,000.  Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.

Lechner Sports Prototype

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1991 Lechner-BMW LSC1 Spyder

Offered by Bonhams | Francorchamps, Belgium | May 24, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Walter Lechner Racing is a racing team and a racing school based in Austria. They’ve competed in Porsche Supercup for over the past decade, but in the early 1990s they tried their hand at prototype sports car racing. They commissioned Reynard to build them a car. It was called the Lechner Spyder SC91. This is actually that car, but with newer bodywork and a different name.

This chassis was raced competitively between 1991 and 1999 under a variety of different names with revised bodywork as it went. The chassis is from ’91, hence the model year listed, but the bodywork (and name) it currently carries come from later on in the decade. It was originally fitted with a 3.5-liter Judd V-10 but now wears a 4.0-liter BMW V-8. Some highlights for this car include:

  • 1991 Interserie Siegerland – 2nd (with Walter Lechner as Lechner Spyder SC91)
  • 1991 Interserie Zeltweg II – 2nd (with Lechner)
  • 1992 Interserie Zolder – 2nd (with Lechner)
  • 1993 Interserie Siegerland – 2nd (with Lechner as Reynard Spyder)
  • 1993 Interserie Donington – 1st (with Lechner)
  • 1993 Interserie Zeltweg – 2nd (with Lechner)
  • 1994 Interserie Zeltweg – 1st (with Lechner)
  • 1994 Interserie Division I Championship (Lechner as driver, using this car for one race)
  • 1997 Interserie Spa – 2nd (with Josef Neuhauser as Reynard-Judd Can-Am)
  • 1997 Interserie A1-Ring (with Neuhauser)
  • 1997 Interserie Hungaroring (with Neuhauser)
  • 1997 Interserie Division I Championship (with Neuhauser)
  • 1998 Interserie Most – 1st (with Neuhauser as Horag-Reynard-Judd Can-Am)
  • 1998 Interserie A1-Ring – 1st (with Neuhauser)
  • 1998 Interserie Hungaroring – 1st (with Neuhauser)
  • 1998 Interserie Division I Championship (with Neuhauser)
  • 1999 Interserie Most – 3rd (with Neuhauser)

Good Lord! That’s a lot of podium finishes, not to mention an extended racing life for a type of car that normally doesn’t stay that competitive for that many years. At any rate, this thing has been raced privately and is ready to run. You can buy it for between $130,000-$200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $119,038.

Fiat 1100S Speciali

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1948 Fiat 1100S Berlinetta by Carrozzerie Speciali

Offered by Coys | Ascot Racecourse, U.K. | May 16, 2015

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

The Fiat 1100 was produced in many forms between 1937 and 1969. Post-war cars didn’t technically go on sale until 1949 as the 1100E, but between the end of the war and resumption of passenger car production, Fiat built a racing variant based on the pre-war 1100 and called it the 1100S

Based on the 1100B, the car featured a 1.1-liter straight-four making 51 horsepower. Bodies were offered from a few coachbuilders and all were relatively streamlined. The effect was a top speed of nearly 100 mph. This is perhaps one of the best examples of the streamlined coachwork with a sleek front end and a sweeping rear.

The body is by Carrozzerie Speciali – Fiat’s own in-house coachbuilder. It’s gorgeous. It is quoted that Fiat built 401 examples of the 1100S, but that number is likely pretty high. In reality, far fewer were actually built. A car with this much style seems like a bargain with an estimate between $65,000-$72,500. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Coys’ lineup.

Update: Sold $63,500.

Veritas RS

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1948 Veritas RS

Offered by Coys | Ascot Racecourse, U.K. | May 16, 2015

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

Veritas was a short-lived sports and race car manufacturer from West Germany that set up shop in 1948. The company was started by a few ex-BMW employees (Ernst Loof, Georg Meier, and Lorenz Dietrich) who wanted to build cars based on the BMW 328 (that BMW built before the war). They closed in 1950 but reformed for a few short years before the marque disappeared after 1953.

The RS was the sports racing car (there was also an open-wheeler and a road car, which was based on the RS). The RS is powered by a BMW 328 2.0-liter straight-six making about 125 horsepower. Only about 20-25 of the RS model were built, with about 15 known to still be in existence.

This car was owned by a BMW and Veritas collector until 2001. After he passed, the car was sold, restored and campaigned in vintage races throughout Europe. It is for sale now in ready-to-run condition. It will cost you between $225,000-$270,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $263,700.