Tag Archives: 1954

OSCA 2000 S

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1954 OSCA 2000 S by Morelli

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 7, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Here’s a somewhat beefy-looking Italian sports car from the 1950s. Built by the Maserati brothers, this car features what is perhaps the largest engine stuffed into any OSCA automobile: a 2.0-liter straight-six making 165 horsepower.

While it might look like a small, Italian sports car from the 1950s, this particular car has some serious race cred. It’s first owner won the 1954 12 Hours of Messina race with this chassis before selling it to an Argentinian. It raced in South America at the 1000km of Buenos Aires and remained on that continent until it was discovered in the 1980s.

The original engine was never located, but a comparable six-cylinder lifted from a Maserati was installed and the restoration was completed in 2003. Only five 2.0-liter OSCAs (four of this model) were built and this is one of three carrying open bodywork by Morelli. It should bring between $1,050,000-$1,175,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Paris.

Update: Sold $970,994.

Ferrari 500/735 Mondial

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1954 Ferrari 500/735 Mondial Spider by Pinin Farina

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19, 2017

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The car in this photograph definitely has the look of a child’s car. But it is not, as it is a true Ferrari race car. It started life as a 500 Mondial, the third car in Ferrari’s Monza line of sports racers. Bodied by Pinin Farina, it doesn’t quite resemble other 500 Mondial Spiders by the same coachbuilder.

Before it left the factory, Ferrari installed an engine from the slightly-earlier 735 S race car. That means this 500 Mondial is powered by a 2.9-liter straight-four that puts out 225 horsepower. That’s actually quite an upgrade over the Mondial’s comparatively weak 170 horsepower, 2.0-liter unit. To this day, no one knows why Ferrari built this car this way.

Sold new to a man in California, it spent its early days tearing around tracks on the West Coast in regional sports car races. The current owner has had the car since 1999, meaning it is being offered from relatively long-term ownership. It’s one of only 13 Pinin Farina Spider-bodied 500 Mondials. And possibly the only one with a 735 S engine. It should bring between $4,000,000-$5,500,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $3,850,000.

Three Late Ferraris

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1952 Ferrari 342 America Cabriolet by Vignale

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 18, 2017

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

RM Sotheby’s really packed their Monterey catalog this year, so much so in fact that I thought they were finished adding cars to it so I mapped out which cars to feature over the three weeks prior to the Pebble Beach Weekend. And then they added these three rare Ferraris. Time is tight, so they are being combined into one post. Enjoy the Ferrari overflow!

The 342 America was the second car in the Ferrari America line, produced in 1952 only. It’s powered by a 4.1-liter V-12 making 200 horsepower. This particular car is the only 342 America bodied by Vignale and it totally has that early-1950s Ferrari appeal.

The amazing thing about the 342 America is that Ferrari only built six examples (with this being the first). Six! That’s it. It’s one of the rarest road-going Ferraris ever made. Only three of them were drop tops and this car was delivered new to Switzerland. The current owners acquired it in 2007 and had it restored to the spec you see here. The estimate on this car is $2,250,000-$3,000,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $2,255,000.

1954 Ferrari 500/735 Mondial Spider by Pinin Farina

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19, 2017

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The car in this photograph definitely has the look of a child’s car. But it is not, as it is a true Ferrari race car. It started life as a 500 Mondial, the third car in Ferrari’s Monza line of sports racers. Bodied by Pinin Farina, it doesn’t quite resemble other 500 Mondial Spiders by the same coachbuilder.

Before it left the factory, Ferrari installed an engine from the slightly-earlier 735 S race car. That means this 500 Mondial is powered by a 2.9-liter straight-four that puts out 225 horsepower. That’s actually quite an upgrade over the Mondial’s comparatively weak 170 horsepower, 2.0-liter unit. To this day, no one knows why Ferrari built this car this way.

Sold new to a man in California, it spent its early days tearing around tracks on the West Coast in regional sports car races. The current owner has had the car since 1999, meaning it is being offered from relatively long-term ownership. It’s one of only 13 Pinin Farina Spider-bodied 500 Mondials. And possibly the only one with a 735 S engine. It should bring between $4,000,000-$5,500,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $3,850,000.

1955 Ferrari 121 LM Spider by Scaglietti

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 18, 2017

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

This is one of the more obscure Ferraris. But because it’s a sports racer from the 1950s, that means it’s worth a huge amount of money. Ferrari’s chief competition during the 1955 World Sportscar Championship were cars like the Jaguar D-Type. So Ferrari went head-to-head, developing a monster six-cylinder engine to take down the English.

This car is powered by a 360 horsepower 4.4-liter straight-six. This chassis began life as a 118 LM and was one of two examples of that model to be upgraded by the factory to 121 LM specification. In this new spec the cars were unbelievably fast: capable of over 180 mph! The race history for this car includes:

  • 1955 Mille Miglia – DNF (with Paolo Marzotto as a 118 LM)
  • 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans – DNF (with Maurice Trintignant and Harry Shell as a 121 LM)

After that, Ferrari sold it and it entered service as a privateer car in California road races. Unfortunately, driver Ernie McAfee was killed while racing this car in Northern California. The then-owner rebuilt it and the present owner acquired it in 1997. This is a rare chance to acquire a factory Ferrari Le Mans racer. One of just four 121 LMs built, it should bring between $6,500,000-$7,500,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $5,720,000.

OSCA MT4 1500

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1954 OSCA MT4 1500 by Frua

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 8, 2017

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

This pretty little sports car was built by Officine Specializzate Costruzione Automobili-Fratelli Maserati S.p.A. – or OSCA, for short. You’ll also notice the name “Maserati” in there, as OSCA was founded by three Maserati brothers after leaving the company bearing their name.

The MT4 was OSCA’s first automobile, introduced in 1947 with a 1.1-liter engine. Engine sizes grew with time and the MT4 was available well into the 1950s. This 1954 “1500” example is powered by a 135 horsepower, 1.5-liter straight-four. The very racy body was by Frua – and the racy part was intentional: an MT4 won the 1954 12 Hours of Sebring. The competition history for this particular car includes:

  • 1954 Mille Miglia – 10th (with Giulio Cabianca)
  • 1954 Targa Florio – DNF (with Cabianca)
  • 1954 Carrera Panamericana – DNF (with Roberto Mieres)

This car’s history sort of went cold after 1955 before reappearing in 1987 and the current owners acquired it in 2003. A five-year restoration followed, as did appearances in a few historic races – races it is still eligible for. It is one of just 72 OSCA MT4s ever built and you can read more about it here. Click here to see the rest of RM’s lineup.

Update: Not sold.

Bedford CA Pickup

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1954 Bedford CA Pickup

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | March 2, 2016

Photo - Brightwells

Photo – Brightwells

Bedford Vehicles was founded in 1930 and they built light and heavy commercial vehicles their entire existence. Did you know that the company was founded by General Motors as a sort of commercial sibling to Vauxhall? In fact, the first Bedfords were actually a Chevrolet model before becoming its own brand. GM divested itself of the heavy commercial vehicle part in 1987 and shuttered the light commercial vehicle brand name in 1991.

The CA was a light van built between 1952 and 1969. All sorts of vans were offered – high-roof, low-roof, short and long wheelbases – even campervans. It was pug-nosed and a pickup was also available. But this is no ordinary pickup. This is the most spaceship-like pickup truck that has, perhaps, ever been built.

It’s powered by a 1.5-liter straight-four making 52 horsepower. It’s not fast. But the styling is just so… unique. Yes it looks like the engine compartment was bolted on as an afterthought. Yes it has sliding doors like a Dodge Caravan. Yes part of the pickup bed is enclosed like a Chevy Avalanche minus the pass-through part. We. Love. It. It should bring between $8,500-$11,350. Click here for more info and here for more from Brightwells.

Update: $5,975.

The First Facel Vega

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1954 Facel Vega 54 Prototype V

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Facel S.A. was a company founded by Jean Daninos in 1939 to make aircraft parts. After the war, they turned to building bodies for other French manufacturers. In the early 1950s, Daninos decided he wanted to build his own car, an attractive French car using big Chrysler engines.

This very car was the first car produced by Facel that wore the Vega name. It was a prototype that Daninos sent to the U.S. for engine testing with Chrysler and then became the factory tester and demonstrator. It has some details that differ from later production cars, like a shorter wheelbase.

The engine is a 4.5-liter Chrysler V-8 making 180 horsepower. Once production Facel Vegas were ready, Daninos kept this as his personal ride and had its styling updated and repainted. It has had other owners over the years but it has never been completely restored. This is the first Facel Vega and it is as it was when company founder Jean Daninos owned it. It should bring between $385,000-$600,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial.

Update: Sold $560,968.

Siata 208S

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1954 Siata 208S Spider by Motto

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | New York, New York | December 10, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Siata began life in Turn in 1926 when Giorgio Ambrosini began selling aftermarket performance bits for Fiats (so yes, there was a tuner scene in the 1920s). The company’s first original model was introduced in 1948 and they continued to build cars up through 1970. This is their finest work.

Sure, it may look a little AC Ace-ish but they were contemporaries from different parts of Europe. The 208S was produced in 1953 and 1954 only. It is powered by a 125 horsepower 2.0-liter alloy V-8 engine from Fiat (the famous “8V’ engine).

Only 56 examples of the 208S were built and this is the final of 33 Motto Spiders. This car has known ownership since 1956 and has been the recipient of two restorations, the most recent of which occurred in 2011. Since then it has appeared at some major Concours shows around the world (Pebble Beach, Kuwait, Villa d’Este), taking awards home in the process. It could be the nicest example anywhere. And it can be yours for between $1,500,000-$1,900,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of RM’s New York lineup.

Update: Sold $1,650,000.

Bugatti Type 101C

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1954 Bugatti Type 101C Coupe by Antem

Offered by Bonhams | Chantilly, France | September 5, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Post-war Bugattis are essentially impossible to come by. The company Ettore founded built its final pre-war car, the Type 57, in 1940. The Molsheim factory was destroyed during the war and Bugatti no longer controlled it. Ettore died in 1947 and his son Roland attempted the bring the company back in 1949 supposedly building a handful of Type 57s.

In 1951, the revived Bugatti announced that they would be building a new Type 101 (or 101C in supercharged form) which was based on the pre-war Type 57 chassis. The engine (in this case) is a supercharged 3.3-liter straight-eight making 190 horsepower. Only seven would end up being built, including the prototype (two more Type 57s would later be converted to 101 spec).

The hoarders Schlumpf had three Type 101s, including the prototype, and they remain in that collection. One more is in a museum. The remaining three are in private hands. Bugatti only built one more prototype after the 101 (the 252). And that was it. So that means this is one of about 10 post-war Bugattis ever built.

It is the only Type 101 bodied by Antem and has a very racy two-door coupe body. The final 101 wasn’t fitted with a body until 1965. This car entered the Harrah collection in 1964 and would later be owned by Nicolas Cage and John O’Quinn. It was sold in 2009 to its current Belgian owner. It’s the only one like it and this has to be the easiest way to acquire a post-war Bugatti (before the whole 1990s supercar revival thing). It should sell for between $1,700,000-$2,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Sorrell SR-100

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1954 Sorrell-Manning Special

Offered by Auctions America | Santa Monica, California | July 18, 2015

Photo - Auctions America

Photo – Auctions America

Sorrell Engineering was a company based in Inglewood, California, in the 1950s and 1960s. Run by Bob Sorrell and his father, they fabricated bodies for a variety of different automobiles – all types of racing cars and even some show cars and customs.

Bob designed a sleek fiberglass body in 1953 that he fitted to a Kurtis Kraft chassis. He called it the SR-100 and he actually ended up building seven of them for customers. But the final one, this one, never made it into a customer’s hands. The chassis was built by Chuck Manning, an aerospace engineer who built customs and racing specials on the side.

Sorrell retained this car until his passing in 2003, despite numerous offers to buy. The car was restored by the current owners and is powered by a Chrysler Hemi V-8, which the whole body lifts up – funny car-style – to reveal. This car is known as the Sorrell-Manning Special, but it is also known as a 1954 Sorrell SR-100. It is expected to sell for between $175,000-$225,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $125,000.

Delaney Delta

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1954 Delaney Delta

Offered by Osenat | Fontainebleau, France | June 14, 2015

Photo - Osenat

Photo – Osenat

Delaney Gallay, still in business as Gallay Ltd, traces its roots back to Jean Gallay in Switzerland in 1911. The Delaney family joined the company (or bought it, or something) at some point and it moved to the north of London. The company has built car parts for a long time and still manufactures bits and pieces for companies like Caterpillar, McLaren, and BAE.

Eric Delaney was part of Delaney Gallay and he built the above car. He had a chassis built by John Griffiths and attached a 1.2-liter Ford straight-four. The hand-fabricated aluminium body work was built at Delaney Gallay.

Delaney raced the car for a few years before letting it sit. It was sold in 1970 and rediscovered in the 80s. A small restoration was carried out to repair what was needed and at that time, the car was green. It has since been stripped to bare aluminium and is race ready. It’s the only one like it anywhere and it could be yours. Click here for more info and here for the rest of this sale’s lineup.

Update: Not sold.