DKW Munga

Posted on by
Reply

1965 DKW Munga

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | September 14, 2022

Photo – Brightwells

DKW was part of Auto Union, having joined that group in 1932. The last DKW-branded automobiles were produced in 1969, after which the four-ringed logo would go on to adorn Audis alone.

Known for smaller, more inexpensive cars, DKW products were never built in great numbers. The Munga was an all-wheel drive, multi-purpose off-road car that debuted in late 1956. Production continued on through 1968, during which time 46,750 were built. The trucklets were used by the West German military and border police along with other European countries.

There was also a civilian version, which was popular in Africa and South America. Power is from a 1.0-liter two-stroke inline-three that made about 50 horsepower. This well-used example carries a pre-sale estimate of $3,400-$5,800. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $3,863.

Mors NX Roadster

Posted on by
Reply

1912 Mors Model NX Roadster

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 10, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Mors was one of the earlier French automobile manufacturers, having been founded by Emile Mors in 1897. They built quality, if not expensive cars, pretty much right from the outset. Even some of their veteran cars were pretty massive.

They were one of the first to use engines in a V configuration, however, this car is powered by a 2.1-liter inline-four. This car would’ve been made during the time when Mors was led by Andre Citroen, who stepped in as chairman after a 1908 near-bankruptcy.

But Citroen’s leadership wasn’t that benevolent, as he bought the company outright in 1925 and shuttered it so he could have the plant for his own cars. The pre-sale estimate here is $19,500-$25,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $21,818.

Lancia Stratos

Posted on by
Reply

1975 Lancia Stratos HF

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | St. Moritz, Switzerland | September 9, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Lancia Stratos HF, or commonly just the Stratos, was produced from 1973 through 1975 with just 492 examples were completed in that time. The car was intended for rally competition and succeeded wildly, winning the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975, and 1976. A Stratos also won the Targa Florio.

It has a steel space frame wrapped in a Bertone-designed fiberglass body and features a 2.4-liter Dino V6 mounted transversely behind the driver. There’s also a mini-car-like 85.8″ wheelbase with very little rear overhang. The car is small and compact and, with just 188 horsepower, can still pack a punch.

The true era of the supercar wouldn’t dawn until the 1980s, but this car certainly deserves mention in the “early supercar” conversation. This particular example was mostly totaled by its first owner and rebuilt at a Lancia dealer with a replacement chassis. With that in mind, it is still estimated at $610,000-$715,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Arrol-Johnston

Posted on by
Reply

1919 Arrol-Johnston 15.9HP Tourer

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 10, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

When I think of Arrol-Johnston, I think early, London-to-Brighton-style vehicles. But the marque actually survived until about 1930. The company built its first car in 1895 and was named for financial backer William Arrol and the prototype’s designer, George Johnston.

The 15.9HP model was introduced around the time this car is dated to. It would be a mainstay of the Arrol-Johnston lineup, even surviving the merger with Aster in 1927. The model would last through 1929.

It’s powered by a 2.6-liter inline-four. Most of the 15.9HP model’s production was front-loaded during its run, with about 2,100 produced by the end of ’23. They trickled out after that. The restoration on this one was completed a dozen years ago, and it now carries an estimate of $23,000-$35,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Autech Gavia Zagato

Posted on by
Reply

1995 Autech Gavia Zagato Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 10, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

The Autech Zagato Stelvio, which was based on an Infiniti M30, was produced in very limited numbers with just 104 built. And yet, it is relatively well known compared to this, the Stelvio’s successor, the Zagato-styled Gavia.

Autech was a tuning subsidiary of Nissan from 1986 to 2022, when it was merged with Nismo. The Gavia project started in 1993 and again was based on the Nissan Leopard, aka the Infiniti M30. Under the hood was the turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 from the 300ZX. Output was rated at 280 horsepower.

The car features the signature Zagato double-bubble roof. It only has Zagato badging on it, and this one was sold new in Japan. It is one of just 16 built. The pre-sale estimate is $35,000-$58,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $39,670.

Aston DB3

Posted on by
Reply

1952 Aston Martin DB3

Offered by Bonhams | Chicester, U.K. | September 27, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

The DB3 was Aston Martin’s sports racing car for the early ’50s, with the cars being built in 1951 and 1952. It was their first post-war purpose-designed race car and was usurped by the somewhat-prettier and more famous DB3S in 1953. This car is number five of 10 built, and the the first five were all Aston team race cars. The remainder of the run were sold to privateers.

The first cars were powered by a 2.6-liter Lagonda inline-six, and later cars got a 2.9-liter version of the same powerplant that was good for up to 163 horsepower. This chassis has period competition history as a works racer, including:

  • 1952 24 Hours of Le Mans – 19th, DNF (with Lance Macklin and Peter Collins)
  • 1953 12 Hours of Sebring – 2nd (with George Abecassis and Reg Parnell)
  • 1953 Mille Miglia – DNF (with Abecassis)

The nose was damaged during the Mille Miglia DNF. The entire body was removed, and the rolling chassis was sold to a driver who fitted a closed body. It wasn’t until 1990 that the car was restored with an original-style DB3 body. Now, this incredibly rare 1950s race car is offered with “estimate upon request.” You can read more about it here.

Update: Not sold.

Force India VJM08

Posted on by
Reply

2015 Force India VJM08B

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | September 17, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Another Bonhams sale in England and another car from the former Force India reserves. The VJM08 was the car used by the Sahara Force India F1 Team during the 2015 season, during which the team employed drivers Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg. They upgraded the car to VJM08B spec after the first eight races. That upgrade was just revised aerodynamics.

Mercedes engines were used in conjunction with the VJM08 chassis. Mercedes, naturally, also used that power source, as did Williams and Lotus. This car no longer has an engine. It is chassis #2, and its competition history includes:

  • 2015 Australian Grand Prix – 10th (with Sergio Perez)
  • 2015 Malaysian Grand Prix – 13th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Chinese Grand Prix – 11th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix – 8th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Spanish Grand Prix – 13th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Monaco Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Canadian Grand Prix – 11th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Austrian Grand Prix – 9th (with Perez)
  • 2015 British Grand Prix – 9th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with Perez)
  • 2015 Belgian Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Italian Grand Prix – 6th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Singapore Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Japanese Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Russian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Perez)
  • 2015 United States Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Mexican Grand Prix – 8th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Brazilian Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)

It can now be yours, as a roller of course. The estimate is $60,000-$82,500. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $89,919.

Duesenberg J-239

Posted on by
Reply

1929 Duesenberg Model J Convertible Coupe by Murphy

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Auburn, Indiana | September 1-3, 2022

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

Another week, another great Model J. This one is not a sedan, but instead is a very desirable convertible coupe by the Walter M. Murphy Company of Pasadena, California. About 25 such bodies were applied to Model J chassis by Murphy.

The car features a naturally aspirated 6.9-liter inline-eight that was rated at 265 horsepower. The most interesting aspect of this car is one of its previous owners: Maurice Schwartz, of Bohman & Schwartz, a coachbuilder that had their fair share of Model Js come through their studios. Prior to his own company, Schwartz worked for Murphy. He owned it in the 1950s while working for Bill Harrah.

This particular chassis remained with a single owner for almost five decades. It was restored after he sold it in 2014 and went on to win various awards. Read more about it here.

Update: Sold $3,305,000.

One-Off Hampton

Posted on by
Reply

1931 Hampton 16HP Open Sports Tourer

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 10, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Hampton Cars was a British automobile manufacturer that existed from 1912 into the 1930s. It’s kind of remarkable that this is the first car from this marque that I can recall coming up for auction in the last decade. And they were around for about 20 years!

The company was originally founded by William Paddon in 1912, but they were out of business by 1915, with very few cars built. Hampton reappeared in 1919. Four years later they were selling 300 cars a year, but bankruptcy followed in 1924… and again in 1925. They reformed once more but were done for good sometime around 1930. About 1,100 Hampton cars were built, and only five are thought to exist. Well that explains that.

This particular car was built in 1931 after Hampton’s final bankruptcy. It was constructed by/for former company GM William Milward. Right before they went out of business, they planned to produce 50 independently sprung chassis and ordered 100 engines from Rohr in Germany. Only one such chassis arrived before both Hampton and Rohr went out of business.

So Milward left the company upon its demise, taking all of the parts with him. This car was the result. It’s powered by a 2.3-liter inline-eight paired with a ZF gearbox. It has known ownership history since new, having been with the current owning family since 1961. The car has not been used in some time, so it’ll need a recommissioning. The estimate is $30,000-$35,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Voisin C14 Lumineuse

Posted on by
Reply

1927 Voisin C14 Lumineuse

Offered by Gooding & Company | London, U.K. | September 3, 2022

Photo – Gooding & Company

We’ve featured a Voisin C14 before, and we’ve featured this body style on a different Voisin model. But when a car looks like this, it’s hard not to pay it special attention. The C14 was produced from 1927 to 1932, a fairly long time, and was an evolution of the earlier C11, which itself was Voisin’s first six-cylinder car. But still, they only made 1,795 of them in that time.

Power is from a 2.3-liter sleeve-valve inline-six that was rated at 66 horsepower. Factory bodies included four-door sedans, two-door coupes, and this, the Lumineuse, which had a lot of glass, most of which slants inward as it moves up.

The paintwork here is a real attention-grabber. Not the original scheme, it was inspired by an artist’s hand-drawn Vogue cover of an open Voisin wearing a similar paint job. All of these things (Voisin. Lumineuse. Crazy paint) add up to one thing: an estimate of $330,000-$425,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $232,847.