Tag Archives: 3-litre

Lagonda 3-Litre

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1957 Lagonda 3-Litre Mk II Saloon

Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | November 30, 2022

Photo – H&H Classics

The 3-Litre was Lagonda’s follow-up model to the 1948 through 1953 2.6-Litre, which itself was Lagonda’s first post-war car. The 2.6-Litre was also the first Lagonda produced by the company after its takeover by Aston Martin‘s David Brown.

The 3-Litre was produced between 1953 and 1958. It was available as a four-door saloon, a two-door coupe, and a two-door drophead coupe. Power is actually from a 2.9-liter inline-six (curse you Lagonda marketing department!) that made 140 horsepower. The sedan could hit about 110 mph.

The Mk II debuted in 1955 and featured a redesigned dashboard and a floor-shifted transmission. Just 266 3-Litres were produced. Lagonda took a few years off after this model before coming out with the Rapide in 1961. The pre-sale estimate here is $33,000-$41,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Withdrawn.

Omega-Six

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1928 Omega-Six 3-Litre Short-Chassis Competition Roadster

Offered by Aguttes | May 1, 2022

Photo – Aguttes

Omega-Six was a car company that operated out of the Paris region of France between 1922 and 1930. They were founded by Jules Daubeck, and the cars were designed by Maurice Gadoux, a former Hispano-Suiza engineer. Production didn’t do much better than about 50 cars a year.

They did have some sporting credentials, running at Le Mans in 1924 and 1925. Their lone victory came in an all-female race with Helle Nice at the wheel in a 3-Litre Competition car, which were unveiled in 1928. The 3.0-liter inline-six featured dual carburetors and carried a factory-advertised rating of 150 horsepower.

This chassis was purchased by Robert de Ganay, who won his class at Le Mans in 1931 under a pseudonym. It is believed to have been re-bodied around 1930 and has only had four owners since new. The car has been rarely shown since the 1970s and is offered with a spare 2.7-liter six. The pre-sale estimate is $425,000-$530,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Delage D6 3-Litre Cabriolet Milord

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1948 Delage D6 3-Litre Cabriolet Milord by Guillore

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | November 1, 2020

Photo – Artcurial

It’s amazing that this car was produced in 1948. Mostly because it looks like a coachbuilt classic from the 1930s, not something that could’ve been bought new five years before the Corvette debuted. What’s even crazier is that the D6 3-Litre was produced until the end of Delage in 1954!

The D6 was introduced in 1932, and it was updated over the years. The 3-Litre model was introduced after the war in 1946 and is powered by a 3.0-liter inline-six rated at 90 horsepower. This example carries Cabriolet Milord coachwork from Guillore.

It wears an older restoration and was part of its previous owner’s collection for 40 years. It is now estimated to bring $140,000-$190,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Marcos 3 Litre

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1970 Marcos 3 Litre

Offered by H&H Classics | Chateau Impney, U.K. | December 12, 2015

Photo - H&H Classics

Photo – H&H Classics

Marcos Engineering Ltd was founded in 1959 by Jem Marsh and Frank Costin (the brother of Cosworth co-founder Mike Costin). The company built quite the variety of kit cars and sports cars over the years before going out of business in 2007. The Marcos GT was a line of sports cars first introduced in 1964. The first car featured a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine.

But in 1968, the company introduced the 3 Litre model – which uses a 3.0-liter V-6 making 140 horsepower. Most of these were sold as kit cars. This one is in decent shape but could use a freshening.

The GT was built until the company went out of business in 1971 after an aborted attempt to enter the U.S. market. It wasn’t until 1981 that the company re-emerged and the GT went back into production until 1990. This example could bring between $18,275-$22,850. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

A Darracq Talbot-Lago

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1939 Darracq T120 Major 3-Litre Three-Position Drophead Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | June 27, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Someday I’ll have to do one of our “Car Guy History” posts about Darracq’s corporate history, but until then I’ll answer your question: no, this is not a Talbot-Lago. Well, I mean, it is a Talbot-Lago – but the brand name of this car is a Darracq. See, today’s proliferation of brand-engineered mini-SUVs wasn’t the first time stuff like this has happened.

Because of the weirdness in the history of the Talbot name, Talbot-Lago cars were only “sold” in France. The Rootes Group in England owned the Talbot name everywhere except France, so for more generic-looking exports (to places like the U.K. and Sweden, where this car was bought new), Talbot-Lago badged their cars “Darracq.” This is essentially a badge-engineered Talbot-Lago T120 Major.

The engine is a 3.0-liter straight-six and the car has spent most of its life in Sweden and Denmark. In the last 10 years, it came to the U.K. via a sale at Retromobile in Paris. It was freshened (the restoration was done in the late-80s) and used for touring. Bonhams describes this car as “elegant” – which it certainly is. It should sell for between $120,000-$130,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $122,735.

Autovia Roadster

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1939 Autovia 3-Litre

Offered by Coys | Graz, Austria | October 12-13, 2013

1939 Autovia 3-Litre

There are sporty cars from the U.K. from the 1930s that everyone knows about, like the SS100 and Invictas. Then there are the lesser known ones like Arabs and this beautiful Autovia.

Like Arab, Autovia was a very short-lived marque. Founded in Coventry in 1937 as a subsidiary of well-known Riley. The cars were expensive, luxurious and sporty. It was a market that was already full of more prominent manufacturers. Two different sedan bodstyles were offered, as well as a limousine. In total, only 38 four-door cars were built. There were also six bare chassis sold – this is one of those cars. The Autovia proved an expensive experiment that ultimately bankrupted Riley, which was acquired by the Nuffield Organization in 1938. Autovia disappeared forever after that.

This car is the only Autovia to receive two-door aluminium roadster bodywork. What sets this roadster apart from many other British sports cars of the day is the engine. It’s a 3.0-liter V-8 making 125 horsepower. That’s a lot more than most of its competition – it’s Bugatti territory. This is a very quick car.

And very desirable too. Only eight Autovias are thought to survive, with this one having the most desirable coachwork (by far). This is definitely one of the stars of this auction. You can read more here and find out what other cars will be crossing the block here.

Update: Sold for about $110,000.

Fisson Tonneau

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1898 Fisson 8HP 3-Litre Tonneau

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 8, 2013

1898 Fisson 8HP 3-Litre Tonneau

Louis Fisson founded his car company in Paris in 1896. While only in business for a few years, he managed to build an unknown number of cars before he gave up the venture in 1898. There were two types available – a rear-engined and a front-engined model. This is of the front-engined variety and it is the only one like it that survives. It uses a 3.0-liter straight-two (the cylinders are giant) making eight horsepower.

It spent a long time in a Long Island (New York) automobile museum and was sent back to Europe (the U.K.) in the 1980s. It was not restored until 1995 and it competed in the 1996 London-to-Brighton run. It is a very early, very rare motorcar that can be yours for an estimated $290,000-$340,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial at Rètromobile.

Update: Sold $311,050.