Tag Archives: auctions

1902 Liberia

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1902 Liberia 12HP Twin-Cylinder 2/4-Seater Detachable Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 2, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

Gustave Dupont founded his car company in 1900 near Paris, in a commune of which he was the mayor. Dupont himself drove his cars in competitive events and rallies, never doing well, but always finishing. Liberias were on display at 1901 Paris Motor Show, but the company was bankrupt before the end of 1902.

All Liberia automobiles used one of two Aster engines. This car uses the larger, 12 horsepower Aster twin-cylinder unit. The body was built by the little-known Carrosserie L. Barjou. The catalog calls this a c.1902 Dupont-Liberia, but reference materials list it simply as “Liberia,” with Dupont being the man behind the curtain, as it were.

This example is one of two known examples of the marque to still exist, and as you can see it is in a condition that certainly looks original, even though it may have been repainted at some point in the past and wears replacement tires. As a rare survivor, it should bring between $160,000-$180,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $149,420.

Horch 830 BL

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1939 Horch 830 BL Convertible

Offered by Bonhams | Padua, Italy | October 27, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

Horch really hit their stride in the 1930s. The last cars they built were sold in 1940 and some of them were quite extravagant. The 830 BL, and 930V sister car, were sold between 1937 and 1940. The 830 BL was the long-wheelbase model.

While the grand 853 cars were powered by a straight-eight engine, the 830 BL was offered with a pair of V8s, with this later car carrying the larger 3.8-liter V8 that made 92 horsepower.

This example was sold new in Sweden and has known ownership history from new. The car was rebuilt over a 24 year period and it is considered to be largely original. This big convertible – seriously, look at that parachute-like folded soft top – is one of approximately 6,400 830 models produced by Horch in the 1930s. It should bring between $350,000-$460,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Not sold, Bonhams Retromobile 2019.

Borgward Isabella

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1960 Borgward Isabella Coupe

Offered by Oldtimer Galerie | Toffen, Switzerland | October 20, 2018

Photo – Oldtimer Galerie

The Isabella was a car built by Carl F.W. Borgward GmbH between 1954 and 1962. It was the brand’s volume model and the one they are best remembered for. It was available as a two-door sedan, wagon, pickup, coupe, and convertible.

This car is powered by a 1.5-liter straight-four, as were all Isabellas. Power was rated at 75 horsepower and they were underpowered compared to their competition. The Coupe was not initially available and went on sale halfway through the production run.

Unfortunately, the company filed for bankruptcy in 1961 and various conspiracy theories persist to this day as to why, and Borgward himself died in 1963. It makes for an interesting read, but I don’t really want to go down that rabbit hole right now. This blue example should bring between $24,000-$26,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Porsche 959 Paris-Dakar

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1985 Porsche 959 Paris-Dakar

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Atlanta, Georgia | October 27, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

It seems like many people love their Porsches in Gulf Oil colors. Don’t get me wrong, it’s one of the best racing liveries there is, not to mention they are great colors. But when it comes to racing Porsches, the Rothmans livery is where it’s at.

And speaking of “where it’s at” – this car is where it’s at. Let’s start with the 959. It was Porsche’s first true full-bonkers supercar. It was the most technologically-advanced car in the world at the time of its introduction. They went on sale to the public in 1986.

This 1985 car is called a 959 and what it represents is Jacky Ickx’s intent to take a Porsche to the world famous Paris-Dakar rally. But let’s back up. Porsche introduced a concept car in 1983 called the Gruppe B. It was essentially the 959 in concept car form.

Ickx entered three Porsches in the ’84 Paris-Dakar. They were based on the contemporary 911 SC RS. For 1985, Porsche offered up three purpose-built 959 rally cars. This is one of those cars and it’s powered by a naturally-aspirated 3.2-liter flat-six 911 Carrera engine with all-wheel drive. It was sort of an “almost-959.” All three cars failed to finish the race, including this one piloted by Dominique Lemoyne and René Metge.

It all came together in 1986 when Porsche put the 959-spec engine in the next batch of rally cars and ended up with a 1-2 finish at the Paris-Dakar. Only seven 959 rally cars were built, three in ’85, three in ’86, and one Le Mans prototype. Porsche kept five of them and one was destroyed in a fire. This is the only true 959 rally car in private hands.

It’s a pretty awesome opportunity to acquire a Porsche that most hardcore Porsche collectors will never have the chance to own. Oh yeah, and it also sports that Rothmans livery. It should bring between $3,000,000-$3,400,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $5,945,000.

1916 Buick Truck

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1916 Buick D-4 Express Truck

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 11, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Whaaat? That’s right, Buick once built trucks. And not like a Buick Rendezvous pseudo-SUV thing. Like real trucks. Between 1910 and 1918 the company’s passenger car chassis were used for commercial vehicles. It happened again in 1922 and 1923. Oldsmobile had similar offerings.

This is a D-4 Express and it’s powered by a straight-four engine. Apparently, with the exception of a repaint in 1951, the truck is entirely original, which is pretty amazing. Commercial vehicles were meant to be used and used hard. This one somehow survived without being completely worn out.

Trucks like this, even from Buick, were popular during WWI. This one was initially used as a service department truck for a Buick dealership in Indiana. Only one other example is thought to exist and this one should bring between $20,000-$30,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $30,800.

Honda S800 Coupe

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1969 Honda S800 Coupe

Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | October 17, 2018

Photo – H&H Classics

The S800 was Honda’s third sports car, after the S500 and S600. It was the second that could be had as a coupe or convertible. We’ve previously featured an S800 Roadster and this is the much rarer coupe variant.

Introduced in 1966, the S800 is powered by a 791cc DOHC straight-four. These cars are screamers, with a tachometer that lets you rev it like it’s a superbike. Along with the Datsun Roadster, these were Japan’s answer to tiny British cars from Austin-Healey, MG, Triumph, and the like.

This 56,000-mile example has had three owners. Apparently, it has a starter issue, so it will need a little work before being roadworthy. Only 11,536 S800s were built, many of them drop-tops. This rare coupe should bring between $14,000-$17,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,615.

1948 Playboy

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1948 Playboy A48 Convertible

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania, October 11-12, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Playboy Automobile Company was founded in 1947 by Lou Horowitz, a Buffalo, New York-area Packard dealer who wanted something smaller to sell after WWII. The prototype was shown in late ’46 and the Playboy Convertible went on sale in 1947.

Early cars used a Hercules engine and this, one of the later cars, uses a 2.0-liter Continental straight-four making 40 horsepower. It features an early retractable hardtop and sat on a 90-inch wheelbase. Featuring three-abreast seating, this car topped out at 75 mph.

The company folded in 1951. This car is #88 of 97 built and 43 are thought to survive, including the original prototype (a total of 99 cars were made, only 97 were “production” models). A rare example of a Post-War start-up automobile company, this car was painted in 2010 and can now be yours. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $132,000.

September 2018 Auction Highlights, Pt. II

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The latter half of September was chock full of sales, beginning with Leclere-MDV’s Peugeot/Citroen sale. We featured a Peugeot 177M that sold for $25,454. The top sale was $124,442 for this 1977 Peugeot 504 Rallye-Raid Coupe. Final results can be found here.

Photo – Leclere-MDV

Up next is Historics at Brooklands’ sale at the Brooklands Motor Museum. The top sale was $556,387 for this 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Series I Pinin Farina Coupe.

Photo – Historics at Brooklands

The Rinspeed Porsche we featured failed to sell, but the Alvis brought $71,012. Click here for more results.

On to Brightwells’ Leominster Classic & Vintage sale. The top sale was this 1972 Jaguer E-Type Series III V-12 Coupe for $57,534.

Photo – Brightwells

The three Soviet minicars we featured all sold. The ZAZ-968A and the SMZ S-3d sold for $719 each and the ZAZ-965 went for just $475, making it the cheapest car we’ve ever featured. Click here for complete results.

Silverstone Auctions’ “The Porsche Sale 2018” saw, guess what, a Porsche as the top sale. Specifically, a 2018 Porsche 911 GT3 Touring for $249,198. The Ruf BTR2 failed to sell, and full results can be found here.

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Porsche was also the top marque at Barrett-Jackson in Las Vegas. This 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder sold for $1,760,000 – far and away the top sale.

Photo – Barrett-Jackson

The Moreland Gas Tanker sold for $35,200 and final results can be found here.

Baker Electric Convertible

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1912 Baker Electric Model W Runabout

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 11, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Baker Motor Vehicle Company of Cleveland, Ohio, was founded in 1899 by Walter C. Baker. They built passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, and land speed record cars (yep). All electric. And many of them looked like conventional gasoline-powered automobiles of their time (not something every electric car company could say, though Baker built similar-looking cars too).

This particular car, an ex-Harrah car, had its motor replaced in the 1980s and is now powered by an 18 horsepower unit, and a partial restoration was carried out in 2012. This car looks like a normal convertible from 1912, except that it is essentially square (as long as it is wide, riding on an 80″ wheelbase), which is kind of unusual.

Four different body styles were offered in 1912, with this being the least expensive. In 1914, Baker would merge with Rauch & Lang and the final Bakers rolled off the line in 1916, though commercial vehicles soldiered on for a few more years. Thomas Edison’s first car was a Baker Electric. So if you have a 16-year-old out there waiting for their first ride, go ahead and buy this for them. Maybe they’ll invent something.

This car should bring between $85,000-$100,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $192,500.

Rickenbacker Brougham

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1926 Rickenbacker Model E6 Coach Brougham

Offered by Mecum | Chicago, Illinois | October 25-27, 2018

Photo – Mecum

Eddie Rickenbacker really had little to do with this brand of car, other than lending his name and image. In fact, the people behind it were also behind earlier failures such as E-M-F, Everitt, the Flanders 20, and so on. The trio of Barney Everitt, William Metzger, and Walter Flanders took one financial beating after another and always came back for more.

Rickenbacker was famous for being the first non-luxury car to offer four-wheel brakes. That may seem insane, but cars in general have always been a development-in-process since day one. The first Rickenbackers went on sale in 1922 and this 1926 model features a 3.9-liter, 60 horsepower straight-six engine, and a 3-speed transmission.

Eddie Rickenbacker resigned from the company the year this example was built and the company closed in 1927. It is estimated that 5,400 cars were made in 1926 alone, split between six and eight-cylinder models. This Coach Brougham would’ve cost $1,895 in 1926, but you’ll have to check back to see what it brings in 2018. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.