Tag Archives: 1968

Siata Spring

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1968 Siata Spring

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | November 11, 2012

In the 1950s, Siata was known for their little two-seat sports cars, namely the highly desirable 208S. Steve McQueen had one and he called it the “Little Ferrari.” They have that classic 1950s Italian sports car look. As you can see from the photo above, something changed.

The marque was relatively dormant from about 1958 until 1967 when Siata introduced the Spring, a car whose design and introduction was dictated by market research. It might look like an MG in kit-car form, but it isn’t. There were other cars at the time going for the retro-look, as cheap as it looks today.

The Spring is based around a Fiat 850 – so it is rear-engined. It’s a straight-four of 843cc making 46 horsepower. This unusual (and maybe a little under-powered for a “sports car”) rarity was restored in the 1990s, turning very few miles since. Spring’s were produced by Siata through 1970 when production was taken over by ORSA, who built them for another five years. Only a few thousand were built. It is expected to sell for between $10,500-$18,000. For more information, click here. And for more from Artcurial’s sale, click here.

Update: Sold $15,900.

Alfa Romeo Daytona

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1968 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/2 Daytona

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 11-12, 2012

The Tipo 33/2 was Alfa Romeo’s prototype sports racing car for 1968. This one was a works race car that had at least one victory – finishing first at Imola in 1968 with Nino Vaccarella and Teodoro Zeccoli. The rest of the podium consisted of two other Tipo 33/2’s – a testament to the car’s dominating performance.

The “Daytona” moniker was given to the car after it won the 2-lire class at the 1968 24 Hours of Daytona. Tipo 33/2’s grabbed wins at the Targa Florio and class wins at the 1000km of the Nürburgring and 1000km of Monza.

The competition history of this car  includes:

  • 1968 500km Imola – 1st (with Nino Vacarella & Teodoro Zecolli)
  • 1969 1000km Monza – 10th (with Antonio Zadra & Giuseppe Dalla Torre)
  • 1969 GP Swerige – 12th (with Antonio Zadra)
  • 1969 Sports Neubiberg – 7th (with Klaus Reisch)
  • 1970 Dijon – 14th (with Hubert Ascher)
  • 1970 Sports Neubiberg – 5th (with Klaus Reisch)
  • 1970 Magny Cours International – 3rd (with Klaus Reisch)

This model is stated to be “the most original of its kind” and it looks fantastic – I’m sure it sounds just as good (you can get a brief snippet of engine noise from the very dramatic video of the car that RM has on their website). It has a 270 horsepower 2.0-liter V8 (there were cars with a 315 horsepower 2.5-liter V8).

A total of 28 Tipo 33/2’s were built between 1967 and 1968. Amazingly, there is an even rarer road-car variant – but who needs that when the car offered here is road registered and ready to race… er drive safely on the highway! RM’s pre-sale estimate on this car is €900,000-€1,100,000 or $1,199,970-$1,466,630. For the complete catalog description, click here. And to see the rest of what RM has in store for Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $1,305,360.

Ford P68

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1968 Ford P68

Offered by Coys | London, England

This is the first car we have featured that is for sale, but will not be crossing the block at auction (at least, not yet). And it’s very exciting, being one of only two built by Ford for the 1968 FIA season, where new rules dictated a 3.0 liter engine for the Group 6 cars. This car features just such an engine – a 3.0 liter Cosworth DFV V8, making about 420 horsepower. But with a slippery drag coefficient of 0.27, it was capable of over 215 mph.

While these numbers are impressive, they did not translate into track success. In fact, the P68 program was a disaster with the car never finishing a race. This particular chassis was essentially destroyed during practice for the 1968 1000km of the Nurburgring. The damage was extensive to the point where the car was written off and not rebuilt nor entered in any more races. The other chassis was entered in about six more races. It scored pole position for the 1968 1000km of Spa but DNF’d due to electrical failure – this was easily the car’s best outing.

This chassis was entered in one race prior to the Nurburgring in 1968 – the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch where it did not start due to an engine mount failure in practice. After the Nurburgring disaster (where driver Chris Irwin was able to walk away), the car – or what was left of it – was shipped back to Alan Mann Racing where it sat until Alan Mann Racing shut its doors. The car was later rebuilt and entered in historic events including Goodwood.

After the disastrous 1968 season, Ford opted to develop a sister car called the P69. Only one of these was built. The P69 Spyder had an open cockpit and a system of hydraulically-controlled adjustable aerofoil wings. The handling was so temperamental that Jack Brabham refused to drive it and the car was withdrawn from the only race at which it was entered.

The Ford P68 does not have the glamorous history of its predecessor, the GT40, but it is a rare, awe-inspiring machine nonetheless. And it’s a lot rarer too. I haven’t the slightest idea what the asking price is ($1.5 million would be my starting guess, but it’s a complete guess). Coys is selling it on consignment. For more information, click here.

’68 Z28

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1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z28

Offered by Mecum | Kansas City, Missouri | December 3, 2012

This matching numbers Z28 is one of 7,199 sold in 1968, the second year for Camaro production. This car sports a fresh restoration and the 4.9 liter V8 down rated to 290 horsepower (it was actually more like 350).

This is a one-owner car in attractive Grotto Blue. F-Body Camaros are the best-looking and most desirable and this Z28 has its original interior, original body panels and other original parts under the hood. Other than a respray, I’m wondering what is meant by “Ground-Up Restoration” when everything else is listed as original. In any case, it’s a great looking car.

No pre-sale estimate was given, but based on Z28 results from the past few years (not taking into consideration condition, originality, etc.), I’d estimate this somewhere between $55,000-$70,000.

You can find out more about this car here and more about Mecum’s Kansas City auction here.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $65,000.