An Early Lagonda

1904 Lagonda 10HP Tricar

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 4, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

There’s nothing scarier on Halloween than being the front passenger in a tricar. You are the bumper and crumple zone.

Wilbur Gunn was actually born in the United States. He was an opera singer that became a British citizen in the 1890s and got his start in the automotive realm by building motorcycles in his backyard around 1904. He named them Lagonda, after a place in Ohio. Naturally.

The first four-wheeled cars arrived in 1907, meaning this tricar predates Lagonda “cars.” It’s thought to be the oldest known example of the marque and is powered by a 1.2-liter V-twin that was rated at 10 or 12 horsepower, depending on which rating system you subscribed to.

A Lagonda tricar was victorious in its class in a London-Edinburgh trial in 1906. This car is considered a prototype of its kind and is the only Lagonda eligible for the London-to-Brighton run. It was restored in 1936 and again in the 1990s (and in the ’90s it was Lagonda that did the work). It’s been under current ownership since 2004. The estimate is $85,000-$90,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

10HP MMC

1902 MMC 10HP Twin-Cylinder Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 4, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

MMC seemed to have been named in a hurry. The Motor Manufacturing Company didn’t get a fancy name, probably because company backer Harry J. Lawson was in a hurry. MMC was formed out of the remnants of the Great Horseless Carriage Company in 1898. The company went out of business in 1904 when Lawson was sent to prison for fraud. It reorganized twice before disappearing for good in 1908.

The 1902 model line included three front-engined options: a single, a twin, and a four-cylinder car. This car is the middle offering, powered by a 2.1-liter vertical twin rated at 10 horsepower.

This example has known history back to 1951, when it was found in a scrapyard. It took a while to get it back on the road, with the reconstructed body not being completed until the 1990s. It now carries an estimate of $195,000-$250,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $281,915.

The Lion

1932 Fowler 10HP B6 Showman’s Locomotive

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | October 30, 2020

Photo – Bonhams

Well here’s a new class of vehicle we haven’t featured before. The Showman’s Road Locomotive. It’s basically a steam traction engine that is made to go down the road, helping transport a circus or carnival. And then once it gets to where it’s going, it’s the powerplant for the show. They are very large and very ornate.

This one was manufactured by John Fowler & Co. of Leeds. The company built four B6 “Super Lion” road locomotives. These were the last such machines built, as steam’s popularity was on the wane. The last road locomotive ceased operation in 1958, and most of them ended up scrapped. This example is the first of the four Super Lions, two others of which also survive.

When new, it was used to power carnival rides until it was retired in 1946. It had two owners between 1950 and 2018, and it was restored over a two-year period in the mid-1990s. Like many other showman’s locomotives, it features a full canopy, a front dynamo, and a lot of brass.

Steam traction engines are impressive beasts in the own right, but once you add this sort of over-the-top glamour to them, they really just become awe-inspiring. This one is expected to sell for between $1,000,000-$1,600,000. Why not? Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $1,195,794.

A Pair of Benzes

1897 Benz 10HP Mylord-Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 5, 2020

Photo – Bonhams

Let’s start with the fact that this car is listed as a “circa 1897” in the catalog, which is interesting because it is powered by a 2.7-liter flat-twin. This 10 horsepower engine was first found in the Benz Dos-a-Dos of 1899. Earlier in this car’s life, before its late-1980s restoration, it was registered as an 1895. So who knows.

This Mylord-Coupe is one of three known examples. These early twin “contra-motor” Benzes are highly sought after for their increased power. The Dos-a-Dos was gone by 1902, giving way to more modern vehicles. This incredibly rare early car is expected to fetch between $500,000-$750,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.


1911 Benz 50HP Victoria by Demarest

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 5, 2020

Photo – Bonhams

And here we have a larger, “modern” Benz. The 50HP model was introduced in 1906 and was only available to American customers here and there. According to the auction catalog, it was almost a special-order occasion in order to get one stateside.

This particular car was sold new in the US and wears American coachwork from Demarest. Power is from a 7.4-liter inline-four good for, you guessed it, 50 horsepower. It was near the upper reaches of the Benz model line, but by 1911 it had effectively been replaced. This is likely one of the last 50HP models produced, and it cost $10,000 when new.

And it’s the only known survivor of the model. Its first owner perished on the Titanic, and the car was restored in 2014. The pre-sale estimate is $400,000-$500,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold for unknown amount.

Benz Mylord-Coupe

1897 Benz 10HP Mylord-Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 5, 2020

Photo – Bonhams

Let’s start with the fact that this car is listed as a “circa 1897” in the catalog, which is interesting because it is powered by a 2.7-liter flat-twin. This 10 horsepower engine was first found in the Benz Dos-a-Dos of 1899. Earlier in this car’s life, before its late-1980s restoration, it was registered as an 1895. So who knows.

This Mylord-Coupe is one of three known examples. These early twin “contra-motor” Benzes are highly sought after for their increased power. The Dos-a-Dos was gone by 1902, giving way to more modern vehicles. This incredibly rare early car is expected to fetch between $500,000-$750,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

1907 Adams

1907 Adams 10HP Two-Seater

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | April 7, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

The auction catalog for this car lists it as an American car, which it isn’t. Arthur Adams teamed up with Edward Hewitt to build the Adams-Hewitt in Bedford, England from 1905 through 1907 when Hewitt left the company. Cars built thereafter until 1914 were known as just “Adams.”

This small two-seater is powered by a 1.7-liter single-cylinder engine pushing out all of 10 horsepower. It was discovered in Turkey, of all places, and brought back to the UK and restored for museum duty. Only a handful of these cars remain.

Bizarrely, Mr. Adams died aboard the Lusitania (not the Titanic as mentioned in the catalog), much like the founder of the Trumbull cyclecar that is being sold from this same collection. It’s either a weird coincidence, or this collector has, um, very morbid tastes. Look for a price between $20,000-$26,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $22,547.

Columbus Autobuggy

1907 Columbus 10HP Twin-Cylinder Autobuggy

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 7, 2019

Photo – Bonhams

There were quite a few Columbus and Columbia-branded automobiles in the early days of motoring. The Columbus Electric was a fairly popular one, and there was another, completely separate “Columbus” that operated in 1913 and 1914. But this car was built by the Columbus Buggy Company, who could trace their history as a buggy manufacturer back to the Civil War-era.

This car is actually a relative to the Columbus Electric, as a few investors purchased the gasoline-powered side of the business in 1905. They sold gasoline-powered Columbus highwheelers like this in 1907 and 1908. The cars were engineered by none other than Eddie Rickenbacker and are powered by a 1.6-liter twin-cylinder engine making 10 horsepower.

They sold these for $750 before moving on the Firestone-Columbus, a more modern automobile. This car has rope drive and, it would appear, a whip in case it all goes to hell and you need a horse to pull you. That, or to scare children and/or peasants out the way. This car should sell for between $30,000-$50,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $62,750.

Five Old Cars from Bonhams

Five Old Cars from Bonhams

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 1, 2018


1909 Alldays & Onions 10/12HP Tourer

Photo – Bonhams

Alldays & Onions is one of my favorite automotive marque names. It just sounds funny. It was actually two people’s last names from their respective companies that merged in 1889. Cars were available from 1898 through 1918.

This, the 10/12HP was their most successful model, built from 1905 through 1913. Power came from a 1.6-liter two-cylinder engine and this example has been in the same ownership since 1971. A longtime museum car, it does get driven annually, but you might want to check it out a little more thoroughly before planning any road trips. It should bring between $28,000-$33,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $33,513.


1905 Corre Type F Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Photo – Bonhams

Corre was founded in 1901 by Jean-Marie Corre in Levallois-Perret, France. The company actually lasted until 1949, but the name had changed to La Licorne. Corre-branded cars were only produced through 1907 when the company became known as Corre-La Licorne.

This Type F was Corre’s single-cylinder model in 1905. It’s a De Dion engine and the body is by Delalande. Not much about this car is known prior to 1957 and the current owner acquired the car in 2005. It should bring between $28,000-$33,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $40,215


1910 Paige-Detroit 25HP Challenger Open Tourer

Photo – Bonhams

Paige-Detroit has an amusing early history. Harry Jewett bankrolled a car built by Andrew Bachle and promoted by Fred O. Paige in 1909 in Detroit. The Page-Detroit went on sale in 1909 and after 1910 production was halted because Jewett thought the cars were terrible. He forced Paige (company president) out and dropped the “Detroit” suffix and re-launched Paige, which lasted until he sold it to the Graham Brothers in 1927.

This “Model No. 1” is one of those early “terrible” cars. This was the first – and only – model sold by Paige-Detroit and it’s powered by a kind of weird two-stroke, 2.2-liter three-cylinder engine that was somehow capable of 25 horsepower. Only two of these are thought to still exist and this one was reportedly part of the Henry Ford from 1930 until 1985. It’s been in Belgium since 1993 and probably hasn’t been run since it went to the Ford Museum way back when. Completely original, it should bring between $57,000-$83,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Sold, Bonhams Retromobile 2019, $37,838.


1908 Phoenix 10HP Sports

Photo – Bonhams

The Phoenix Motor Company, originally of London, was founded in 1903 by one of the great names in automobiledom: Joseph van Hooydonk. Their original products were tricars, then quadcars that looked like tricars. “Real” cars were introduced in 1908.

The company soldiered on until 1926 and the first traditional car they built was a 10hp model introduced in 1908. It lasted until 1915 and the car you see here is an example of this model. It’s powered by a two-cylinder engine and features a wooden skiff boattail body. It was made roadworthy again in 1997 and it can be yours for $15,000-$19,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $32,768.


1905 Reo 16HP Five-Passenger Touring

Photo – Bonhams

Ransom Olds is one of only a few people to have independently founded more than one successful automobile company. August Horch and Henry Leland come to mind, but I’m not sure who else. This 1905 Touring is from the second year of Reo production.

The 16HP was Reo’s two-cylinder model and it was offered in four body styles, with this being the largest. Four-cylinder and single-cylinder models were also offered. This largely original car comes from a Belgian collection where it has remained since 1994. 113-years-old, it should bring between $26,000-$38,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $23,831.

1908 Phoenix Sports

1908 Phoenix 10HP Sports

Offered by Bonhams | Beaulieu, U.K. | September 1, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

The Phoenix Motor Company, originally of London, was founded in 1903 by one of the great names in automobiledom: Joseph van Hooydonk. Their original products were tricars, then quadcars that looked like tricars. “Real” cars were introduced in 1908.

The company soldiered on until 1926 and the first traditional car they built was a 10hp model introduced in 1908. It lasted until 1915 and the car you see here is an example of this model. It’s powered by a two-cylinder engine and features a wooden skiff boattail body. It was made roadworthy again in 1997 and it can be yours for $15,000-$19,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $32,768.

1909 Zedel

1909 Zedel Type CA 10HP Double Phaeton

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 8, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

Zedel was actually a Swiss company when it incorporated in 1901. In 1902, they opened a factory in France and in 1906 they produced their first vehicles. The Swiss arm of the company was gone by 1908 and Zedel was primarily a French concern thereafter – until the entire company shut down in 1923 (though they had been selling cars as Donnet-Zedel since 1919).

This, the 10 horsepower Zedel, was in production at least from 1908 through 1910. It’s a four-cylinder engine and it moves a pretty large touring car body that was built for this chassis by Henri Gauthier.

Zedel never built cars in large numbers and this is the first non-Donnet Zedel that I can recall coming up for sale in the past few years. It is coming out of a decent-sized collection of French and Belgian cars that Bonhams has on offer. This one should bring between $36,000-$48,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $53,917.