Tag Archives: 1964

Peel P50

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1964 Peel P50

Offered by RM Auctions | Madison, Georgia | February 15-16, 2013

1964 Peel P50

Photo – RM Auctions

The Peel P50 is the smallest closed-roof microcar you’re likely to find. It was advertised as having enough room for one adult and one shopping bag. Jeremy Clarkson on Top Gear drove one of these through the hallways of the BBC offices. He didn’t so much ride in it as he did wear it. Parked next to an Isetta, the Isetta looks giant. Clarkson also called it “almost cheaper than walking.” It’s powered by a 49cc single-cylinder engine making 4.2 horsepower. It could do 38 mph and only 50 were built, 27 of which still survive. The car re-entered production in 2011, for whatever unnecessary reason. This original example should sell for between $35,000-$45,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $120,750.

Lightburn Zeta

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1964 Lightburn Zeta Sports

Offered by RM Auctions | Madison, Georgia | February 15-16, 2013

Photo – RM Auctions

I think I could best describe this car as “pointy.” It’s very odd looking and it has no doors or opening panels of any kind. Easy to build, I would guess. Produced by Lightburn & Co Ltd of Camden, Australia, the car is sometimes referred to as a Zeta Sports, with Zeta being the marque. But not today. The engine is a somewhat large 494cc two-stroke twin making 20.5 horsepower. And it will do a serious 77 mph. This car was intended to be driven on the road with power and performance like that! Just take your insane pills before trying to do it. Only 28 were built and only 6 survive. Two of them are offered in this sale, the other a coupe. Learn more here.

Update: Sold $51,750.

GAZ-69

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1964 GAZ 69

Offered by H&H Auctions | Newbury, England | September 19, 2012

Pretty beefy, eh? This Cold War-era Russian military truck is a cheap way to have fun with both an old car and a serious off-roader. Although it is listed as a GAZ-69, it is most likely a UAZ 69. What’s the difference?

Well, GAZ (or Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod… which translates to Gorky Automobile Plant)  is and has been one of Russia’s largest vehicle producers for a very long time. Founded in 1932 as NAZ (roughly, Nizhny Novgorod Automobile Plant, named after it’s location), it was a company set up by the Soviet Union and Ford. Well, the Soviets and western business never really got along and Ford was ousted after a year and it was renamed in honor of Maxim Gorky, a Soviet author and political activist.

GAZ has built cars over the years, but commercial and military vehicles are their specialty. The GAZ-69 was introduced as a light off-road truck for the Soviet Army in 1953. GAZ only built them through 1955, when production was taken over by UAZ (a similar, but different, company). UAZ built them through 1972. So this is technically a UAZ 69, but all UAZ models were referred to as GAZs, thus heightening confusion.

These were also built in Romania as ARO IMS-57. You can learn more about ARO vehicles on other parts of this website, namely here. The truck you see here has a 2.1-liter  straight-four making 55 horsepower. You can expect to pick it up for between $6,400 and $9,600. For more information, click here. And for more from H&H at Newbury Racecourse, click here.

Update: Sold $8,000.

Apollo 5000 GT

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1964 Apollo 5000 GT

Offered by Russo & Steele | Monterey, California | August 16-18, 2012

Well the countdown to Monterey is underway and the level of incredible cars is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Russo & Steele were the first to get their complete catalog online, so they get featured first. And no, this is not a Ferrari 330, as much as it may resemble one.

It’s an Apollo – a short-lived American marque based in Oakland, California – not necessarily the first place that comes to mind when you see a stylish Italian automobile. But Italian it was – at least partly. Intermeccanica of Italy produced the bodies, which were mounted to fresh Buick Skylark chassis. The engine was also from Buick, a 4.9-liter V8 making 225 horsepower. There was also an Apollo 3500 GT model with a 3.5-liter Buick V8.

This car has neither engine. It’s a 5000 GT, but the engine under hood is actually a Chevy 327. When Apollo had the cars shipped from Italy with the bodies, they were to go to Oakland for installation of their powertrain. They did – except for seven of them which were sold before they ever made it back to the Oakland shop. The owners took it upon themselves to finish the cars. Five got Chevy engines, one got a Ford… and one disappeared. The man who bought this car took it to a shed in San Francisco to complete it, but then disappeared. The car was rediscovered in 2004, when the current owner acquired it and completed it using the Chevy engine.

Only 66 Apollo coupes were built and this is #43. This is a rare car and it is quite nice, having only covered about 3,600 miles. The fact that it was completed only a few years ago makes it essentially a new Apollo. No estimate is available, but a 5000 GT in similar condition was recently for sale with an asking price of about $125,000. For more information, click here. And for more from Russo & Steele in Monterey, click here.

Update: Not sold.

A Pair of European Prototypes

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1972 Citroen SM Prototype Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Monaco | May 11, 2012

The Citroen SM grand tourer was introduced in 1970. This coupe version using the same mechanicals – mid-front-engined layout with front-wheel drive – was built by Frua for the 1972 Geneva Auto Show. It has the same 2.7-liter V6 making 170 horsepower. The engine was designed with help from Citroen-owned Maserati (which they acquired in 1968).

This car is one-of-a-kind and in original, un-restored condition with about 26,000 miles on the odometer. It has been privately owned since it left the auto show circuit in 1972. This is a rare chance to acquire a one-off prototype. The pre-sale estimate lists this car at $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: did not sell.


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1964 Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Double post! This wickedly-bizarre looking car was a Lancia works race car with one-off Zagato styling. It was entered by Lancia in the 1964 Targa Florio (where it DNF’d). The engine is 1.8-liter flat-four making 148 horsepower.

Again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire a car unlike any other. It was sold from Lancia to one of its drivers in 1967. In the early 1990s, it was acquired by the current owner. Like the Citroen prototype above, it is also estimated to sell for between $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: sold $246,568.

Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

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1964 Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Photo – RM Auctions

Double post! This wickedly-bizarre looking car was a Lancia works race car with one-off Zagato styling. It was entered by Lancia in the 1964 Targa Florio (where it DNF’d). The engine is 1.8-liter flat-four making 148 horsepower.

Again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire a car unlike any other. It was sold from Lancia to one of its drivers in 1967. In the early 1990s, it was acquired by the current owner. Like the Citroen prototype above, it is also estimated to sell for between $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: sold $246,568.