1951 Moskvitch 400-420

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Auburn, Indiana | September 3-6, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Moskvitch was a brand of automobile produced by the Soviet Union beginning in 1946. The first cars were actually built at a former Opel plant in East Germany. Production continued until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and afterward under a privately-owned company until 2002. Somehow, Volkswagen currently owns the brand name.

The cars were reliable and low-cost by Soviet standards, although they were not always easy to get. The 400 was based on the pre-war Opel Kadett and went on sale in December 1946. The “400” meant that the car was powered by a 23-horsepower 1.1-liter inline-four, and the “420” meant that it was a sedan.

Other body styles were offered, and the model was ultimately succeeded by the short-lived 401 in 1954. Between the 400 and 401, 247,439 examples were produced. I have no particular history on this car, as this post is being written well in advance of RM’s catalog going online. But, these are rarely seen in the U.S. (or even Western Europe), and this one is selling at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $5,225.

1966 Jaguar FT Coupe Prototype by Bertone

Offered by Bonhams | Oxford, U.K. | June 7, 2014

Photo – Bonhams

If you Google “Jaguar FT” you’ll get a lot of results for the new Jaguar F-Type. What you mostly likely won’t see right at the top is any information about the very rare Jaguar FT by Bertone. The Jaguar 420 sedan was built from 1966 through 1968. In 1966, the Italian Jag importer went to Bertone to have them build a five-seat coupe based on the new 420. He named it after his father, Ferruccio Tarchini.

The plan was to produce these in limited quantities and sell them through the Italian distributorship. But it didn’t pan out – only this prototype and one other car were built. The engine is a 4.2-liter straight-six making 245 horsepower.

This is the original prototype and is being sold from the family of Giorgio Tarchini (the importer who commissioned the cars). It hasn’t been used in eight years and the engine doesn’t even start, so it will need a restoration. Still, Bonhams expects it to bring between $97,000-$130,000. They sold the other, much nicer, FT Coupe two years ago for $121,000. You can read more here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Not sold.

Update II: Sold, Bonhams Zoute 2014, $76,382.