Offered by Dorotheum | Salzburg, Austria | October 15, 2022
Photo – Dorotheum
So it’s not pronounced “oaf”… it’s actually ÖAF, for Österreichische Automobil-Fabrik. The company was founded in 1907 as the Austrian Fiat truck plant. The trucks were called “Austro-Fiats”, and they started developing their own stuff during WWI. In 1925, Fiat lost control of it, and the name shifted to OAF.
MAN took over OAF (what a sentence) in 1938. After WWII, the company was split off, eventually going private in 1970, merging with Graf & Stift. The following year, MAN acquired them again. The last OAF-branded trucks left the assembly line in 2008.
The AFN express truck debuted in 1924 powered by a 2.9-liter Fiat inline-four that made 42 horsepower. This fire truck dates from 1930 and remained with it’s local Austrian fire department until 2009 (though not in use, I hope). It was then sold into private ownership and restored. The estimate here is $24,000-$34,000. Click here for more info.
Offered by Dorotheum | Salzburg, Austria | October 15, 2022
Photo – Dorotheum
The “Steyr Baby” was a small car produced by Steyr-Daimler-Puch between 1936 and 1940. It was actually called the Steyr 50 upon its introduction, and it was renamed the 55 when it was updated for 1938. Updates for the Type 55 included a lengthened wheelbase (by like two inches) and a stronger engine.
That engine is a 1.2-liter flat-four that made 25.5 horsepower compared to 22 horsepower of the Type 50. Only 7,800 Type 55s were built, all in two-door sedan style. The diminutive shape and rounded profile has lead to the occasional “Austrian Volkswagen” nickname.
This example was restored at the end of the 1990s and wears a two-tone paint scheme, as they came with from the factory. A rare survivor, it’s likely the best one around. The pre-sale estimate is $37,000-$47,000. Click here for more info.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 5-6, 2022
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
The Model 79 was one of two products sold by Overland in 1914, the other was the Model 46. The Model 79 was offered in three body styles: a roadster, coupe or touring, the latter of which cost $950 when new.
Power is provided by a 35-horsepower inline-four. This one was sold new in Wyoming to a sheep rancher. In 1914, cars had been on sale for a bit, approximately 14 years. Yet, this was the first car for the family of its first owner. Makes you wonder when the last hold outs finally converted to automobiles.
Touring cars from this era are just great, and this one is no exception. It’s actually being sold by the family of its first owner – and at no reserve. Click here for more info.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 5-6, 2022
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
I can’t believe it’s taken this long for this site to feature one of these little trucks. They are a lot smaller in person than you’d think, even though the door makes it pretty obvious that they aren’t that large. Twin Coach existed from 1927 through 1955 in Kent, Ohio.
The company was actually formed by Frank and William Fageol after they left their eponymous company. In addition to their delivery vans, Twin Coach also made buses. Flxible acquired them in 1955 and continued marketing vehicles under the Twin Coach name through 1963.
The delivery trucks are most famous in the Helms Bakery livery, but they were used by other companies as well. It’s powered by a Hercules inline-four, and the driver can operate the vehicle either standing or sitting. This one is selling without reserve. Click here for more info.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 5-6, 2022
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
E.R. Thomas‘s automobile company got off to a modest start in 1902. But it only took about five years for them to make quite a name for themselves by winning the 1908 New York to Paris Race with an ’07 Model 35.
Their cars were some of the nicest you could buy in the U.S. prior to WWI. The Model K 6-70 was introduced in 1908 and featured a 140″ wheelbase and a preposterous 12.8-liter inline-six. That car made 70 horsepower. If that was not enough, you could order, as a factory option, an increased cylinder bore that would up the displacement and also the power – to 88 horsepower.
Thomas actually ran out of money in 1912, and after that they sold the Model K chassis for truck use, which is how this car was initially configured. Used as a fire truck by a few cities, it was eventually spotted and purchased by Bill Harrah in 1959. It would be one of nine Thomas cars he owned (including the New York-Paris race winner). It wasn’t until its next owner in the 1980s that the car was rebodied in Flyabout fashion.
Only about 500 Model K 6-70/90 cars were built in total, and only 10 are known to exist. This one has an interesting history, which you can read more about here.
Offered by Mecum | Chicago, Illinois | October 15, 2022
Photo – Mecum
Larry Schneider and Gene Davis built about 20 Ocelot race cars out of the Madison, Wisconsin, area from about 1968 through 1981. The cars were built to target the SCCA D Sports Racing (DSR) class. The car featured here is utilizes a tube-frame chassis and fiberglass bodywork.
This is the only Mk-8A built, sort of at the end of the road for new Ocelot cars. It’s powered by a 2.0-liter Ford inline-four mounted behind the driver. It’s got a Hewland four-speed gearbox and comes with a bunch of spares.
This car has been active all over the Midwest, having been last on track about a year ago. You can read more about it here.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 5-6, 2022
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
The classic milk truck, the Divco milk truck, was introduced in the late 1930s. It had a streamlined design with a waterfall-ish front grille and would be produced into the 1960s with a few design tweaks but the overall profile remaining essentially the same. That’s what most people picture when they hear “Divco.”
But the company was actually founded in 1926 by George Bacon, an engineer at Detroit Electric who wanted to try a gasoline engine in their delivery vehicles. The company balked so he set out on his own with the Detroit Industrial Vehicles Company. Earlier Divcos, like this one, featured a snub nose design but looked much more similar to other trucks and cars of the era.
They still had a step-through design with a flat, low floor. This one is powered by an inline-four and has had its rear cargo area converted to bench seating. It’s selling without reserve. Click here for more info.
Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | October 19, 2022
Photo – H&H Auctions
McIntyre was based in Auburn, Indiana, and was surrounded by quite a few other local manufacturers. They produced cars out of the old Kiblinger factory, and like Kiblinger, also produced high-wheelers.
From 1909 through 1911, they exclusively produced high-wheelers. The company claimed they were the only high-wheeler manufacturer to offer a full line of automobiles. And in 1909, they sold four models across nine body styles and sub-models. So yeah, kinda.
This car is one of 264 Model NNs produced in 1909. It’s powered by an 18-horsepower twin and sold for $650 when new. It’s basically an early pickup. It’s offered at no reserve. Click here for more info.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 5-6, 2022
Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s
Two days ago we featured a car called an S.G.V., which was built in Pennsylvania. Well this completely unrelated C.G.V. was built in France. The company was named for its founders, Fernand Charron, Leonce Girardot, and Emile Voigt, the three of which were racing drivers or racing cyclists.
The company built cars between 1901 and 1906, at which time Girardot and Voigt left the firm. Automobiles Charron continued on through 1930. This is a very large car for 1904, and it’s believed to be the only Type 75 that survives.
The auction catalog does not mention what this car would’ve been powered by when new (C.G.V. offered 9.8-liter and later 12.9-liter engines beginning in 1905), but it does say it was fitted with a 75-horsepower Seagrave fire truck engine circa 2000. It was refurbished in the late 2000s and can hit 70 mph in third gear. It has four gears.
C.G.V.s were borderline obscenely expensive when new, but no pre-sale estimate is available for this one. Click here for more info.
Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Lincolnshire, Illinois | October 29, 2022
1996 Lola T96/00
Photo – RM Sotheby’s
We’ve talked about the Newman/Haas sale before (but we may have forgotten to say what a shame it is). Anyway, let’s jump into the cars. This is the era. The black Havoline/Kmart-liveried Michael Andretti cars. The pinnacle of CART.
This car, chassis HU 14, is a Lola T96 (we’ve featured a T95 before). It is currently without an engine, but in period had a Ford-Cosworth V8. The competition history here includes:
1996 Milwaukee Mile – 1st (with Michael Andretti)
1996 Road America – 1st (with Andretti)
1996 Molson Indy Vancouver – 1st (with Andretti)
Michael also used it in five other races that year on his way to second in the championship. It’s being sold without reserve. Click here for more info.
Update: Sold $70,000.
1997 Swift 007.i
Photo – RM Sotheby’s
For the 1997 season of the CART PPG World Series (man, remember those TV graphics?), Newman/Haas switched from Lola to Swift as a chassis manufacturer. Swift Engineering is based in Southern California and supplied chassis to Newman/Haas for a few years.
This 007.i would’ve been originally powered by a Ford-Cosworth V8 but is currently sans motor. The team used six examples of the 007.i in the ’97 season, four of which are in this sale at no reserve. Competition history for this one, #005, includes:
1997 Surfers Paradise – 3rd (with Michael Andretti)
1997 Gateway – 11th (with Andretti)
1997 Mid-Ohio – 8th (with Andretti)
1997 Molson Indy Vancouver – 18th (with Andretti)
He also used it in two other races that year. It’s now selling at no reserve. Click here for more info.
Update: Sold $53,200.
1998 Swift 009.c
Photo – RM Sotheby’s
Newman/Haas continued with Swift into the 1998 season, which saw drivers Michael Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi doing most of the driving. This chassis, #004, would’ve been originally equipped with a Ford/Cosworth V8, but it is currently just a roller.
This car competed in seven of the season’s 19 races, including:
1998 Rio 400k – 5th (with Michael Andretti)
1998 Michigan – 6th (with Andretti)
1998 Road America – 18th (with Andretti)
It’s selling at no reserve. Click here for more info.
Update: Sold $39,200.
2000 Lola B2K/00
Photo – RM Sotheby’s
So I know I said “cars of the late-1990s” but 1. we’ve already featured Newman/Haas’s 1999 entry, the Swift 010.c and 2. 2000 was very much a part of the late 1990s.
The team switched back to Lola chassis for the 2000 season after a few years with Swift. They still employed both Michael Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi this year. Their engine supplier was Ford/Cosworth, with an XF V8. This car has no engine at the moment.
This car, chassis HU 07, competed in 12 of 20 races that year, including:
2000 Homestead-Miami – 7th (with Christian Fittipaldi)
