Tag Archives: auctions

Raleigh Safety Seven

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1934 Raleigh Safety Seven

Offered by H&H Classics | Castle Donington, U.K. | February 23, 2017

Photo – H&H Classics

Many early automobile manufacturers began their corporate lives as bicycle companies. The Raleigh Bicycle Company was the same way – except that they remained the Raleigh Bicycle Company from their inception in 1888 through, well, today as they still build bikes.

The Raleigh Safety bicycle was an early popular product and in the early 1930s the company introduced the Safety Seven, their first motorized passenger vehicle. It’s a four-seat roadster powered by a 742cc V-twin. This example comes with a rare removable hardtop. Top speed was 55 mph.

It’s a three-wheeler and Raleigh planned a sedan version but it never got off the ground (but it was responsible for the beginning of the Reliant Motor Company in 1935). In the 1950s and 60s, Raleigh made scooters, but after that motorized vehicles disappeared from the company’s product lineup. This example has been restored and shows almost 85,000 miles. It should sell for between $8,600-$11,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Evanta Barchetta

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2015 Evanta Barchetta

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Stoneleigh Park, U.K. | February 25, 2017

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

The Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato is one of the all-time great automotive designs. But it isn’t one that has ever really been produced in replica form. The Evanta Motor Company of Hertfordshire never really built replicas of it either. Instead, they built a car that took the Aston’s classic looks and updated them for the 21st century.

And what a splendid job they did. Other Evantas resembled other Astons, but all the cars were “original” designs. Founded in 2008, Evanta put cars on the market shortly thereafter and in 2013 they presented the “Barchetta” – an open top roadster that incorporates the DB4GT’s overall aesthetic as well as its “Double Bubble” roof in the form of the twin headrests behind the cockpit.

The engine is a 6.2-liter V-8 from Chrysler that makes 470 horsepower. The one piece body shell is made of fiberglass and Kevlar and is incredibly light. This car sports just five miles since completion. Production was supposed to be limited to 49 examples but Silverstone Auctions points out that Evanta is in administration and is essentially being liquidated. The company’s owner, Ant Anstead, will warranty this new example through his new company. It will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $47,560.

Nissan Pao

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1989 Nissan Pao

Offered by Mecum | Los Angeles, California | February 17-18, 2017

Photo – Mecum

I just asked someone in the room when they thought this car was built and their answer was “1969.” Something funky was going on in Japan in the 1980s (and let’s face it, every year before and after that, too). Mazda and Toyota were building strange things, but Nissan was taking the cake.

Their “Pike” series of cars was a line of four small cars with far-out designs. The Pao was the second “Pike” car introduced and it was only sold during the 1989 through 1991 model years. It is powered by a 1.0-liter straight-four making 51 horsepower that could regularly get over 50 mpg.

These cars were only ever sold in Japan and could be had with a cloth sunroof. Their retro styling was, strangely, ahead of its time. In just 1.5 years of production, Nissan moved 51,657 cars – which they managed to sell all of in just three months. This 65,000 mile example is a rare bird in the U.S. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $12,500.

Bugatti 57S

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1937 Bugatti Type 57S Cabriolet by Vanvooren

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 10-11, 2017

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Some of the highest-dollar Bugattis come from the Type 57 family of cars that was produced by the firm between 1934 and 1940. In 1936 they introduced a few updated versions of the model, among them the Type 57S – a lowered variant that gave the car a sportier stance.

It’s powered by a 3.3-liter straight-eight making 170 horsepower. The 57S was successful on the European racing circuit and about half of the cars were bodied by the factory. There were 22 chassis that were unsold by mid-1938, when the 57S was killed off. Most of these ended up in coachbuilders’ hands and this car is one of four Vanvooren Cabriolets built in Paris (three of which are known to still exist).

This car has known ownership history since new and was on long term display. RM has brought the car back to being a runner and driver, but it’s not quite ready for long distance trips. Only 42 Type 57S chassis were built and this is, again, one of just three Vanvooren Cabriolets remaining. It’s a matching-numbers, unrestored car (though it has had certain mechanical elements rebuilt for functional purposes). It’s fantastic. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Amelia Island.

Update: Sold $7,700,000.

January 2017 Auction Highlights, Pt II

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A few more from Scottsdale, starting with Bonhams. The Ferrari California Spider we featured would’ve been the top sale, had it reached its reserve. Instead, this 1963 Jaguar E-Type Lightweight Competition was the top sale at $7,370,000.

Photo – Bonhams

Other big dollar cars included two of our feature cars: the Mercedes S-Type brought $4,812,500 and the Ferrari 340 America $6,380,000. The Abarth Scorpione sold for $116,600. Click here for complete results.

Next up, Worldwide Auctioneers and their inaugural Arizona sale. We didn’t get to feature anything from these guys, but the top sale was $1,980,000 for this 1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Roadster. Click here for more results.

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

Finally, from Scottsdale, we have Russo & Steele. Their top sale was this 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 S Cabriolet A that brought $423,500.

Photo – Russo & Steele

Our featured Falcon Mk III failed to sell. Click here for complete results.

Before we move on to Retromobile results, let’s jump back to December to Coys’ True Greats sale where this 1969 Porsche 911 S/T was the top seller for about $856,000. Click here for all of the results from this sale.

Photo – Coys

Now we move to Paris and the three Retromobile sales, the first of which is RM Sotheby’s. The top sale was the incredible Alfa Romeo Tipo B that went for $4,177,896. The OSCA and Porsche 917 failed to sell but the Porsche 901 Prototype went for $692,337. I know it’s kind of cliché to list a Ferrari as “most interesting” but this one is too pretty not to. It’s a 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB in Verde Pino that sold for $2,059,106. Click here for complete results.

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Ginetta G16

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1968 Ginetta G16

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Stoneleigh Park, U.K. | February 24, 2017

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Ginetta, which has been building sports and racing cars since 1958, has built its fair share of road cars and race cars. And some of those models blurred the lines between both categories. The G16 was an evolution of the earlier G12 model. It’s a mid-engined race car that looked every bit the part of Can-Am racing superstar.

Built between 1968 and 1969, the G16 would accept a few different engines. This car is powered by a 2.0-liter BMW straight-four that puts out around 225 horsepower. It’s perfectly suited for the historic circuit even though this particular chassis had no race history when new.

In fact, this was the final G16 chassis built (#8 of eight – which also makes it one of the rarest Ginettas). It was owned by the Walklett family (the family that founded the company in 1958) until 2014. The current owner acquired the car and finished it to what you see here. It should sell for between $110,000-$135,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

1928 Tracta

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1928 Tracta D2 Sport

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 9, 2017

Photo – Bonhams

SA des Automobiles Tracta was a French car company founded by engineer Jean-Albert Grégoire in 1926. Tracta built some of the first successful front-wheel drive vehicles anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, business was never super profitable and Grégoire shuttered his company in 1934 to become a design consultant.

Interestingly, a front-wheel drive Tracta won its class at Le Mans in 1927 and continued to compete there through 1930. This car is powered by a 1.6-liter straight-four from SCAP. The body on this car looks really long, but it’s a two-door sports car and it is eligible for the Le Mans Classic.

This example was sold new in the U.K. – one of just a few ever sold there. It was restored (mostly, anyway – the interior looks original) in the 1980s while owned by a front-wheel drive specialist. It’s a driver and will be a talking point wherever it goes. Tractas were never built in large numbers and don’t change hands often. This one should bring between $64,000-$85,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Bonhams’ lineup.

Update: Sold $63,938.

Ferrari Nembo Spyder

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1964 Ferrari 330 GT Nembo Spyder

Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | March 29, 2017

Photo – H&H Classics

There are four “Nembo” Ferrari Spyders (though one might be a coupe) and Nembo refers to two men: Giorgio Neri, Luciano Bonacini, Italians based in Modena with their own car shop. In the 1960s they started doing one-off Ferraris and it is thought that one of their early 250 GT-based Nembo Spyders was the basis for the design of the 275 NART Spyder, which this car sort of resembles.

The first three Nembo Spyders were all unique. This car, the fourth and final, wasn’t commissioned until the 1980s. A British collector wanted it made and the car was to be based around a 1964 330 GT 2+2. That means under the hood lies a 4.0-liter V-12 that makes 300 horsepower.

The wheelbase was also shortened at the time of construction, giving it a racier look than the four-seater 330 GT would’ve had. It is noted that all four of the Nembo Spyders (of which, this is the only one with a 4.0-liter V-12 and the only one in RHD) are ineligible for Ferrari Classiche certification because they are all technically re-bodied cars. It’s obviously very rare and quite attractive. It will be interesting to see what it brings at auction, but it is being sold at no reserve and the proceeds will benefit an air ambulance service. You can read more about it here and see more cars from H&H Classics here.

Update: Sold $744,015.

Bugatti Brescia Torpedo

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1923 Bugatti Type 27 Brescia Torpedo

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 9, 2017

Photo – Bonhams

The Bugatti Brescia was the marque’s first true road car. It was introduced as the Type 13 in 1910. More “Types” would follow, such as the Type 15, 17, 22, and 23. Production of the Brescia lasted through 1926 and their racing counterparts scored victories across Europe, lending some real credibility to the Bugatti brand.

The little-seen Type 27 was a development of the Types 22 and 23 (which different only slightly from earlier cars). The engine in the Type 27 is a 1.5-liter straight-four making 50 horsepower. The sporty Torpedo coachwork is thought to be the work of coachbuilders Lavocat et Marsaud.

This example had eight owners in its first three years! In the 1930s, it is said that it was used as a getaway car for robberies in Paris. Most of its ownership history is known and the famous automotive hoarders known as the Schlumpf brothers attempted to purchase this car in 1959. Luckily for enthusiasts everywhere, they were rebuffed. This car was mechanically restored in 2006 and is ready to drive. It should bring between $410,000-$580,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $541,015.

CAP-Fiat Scoiattolo

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1971 CAP-Fiat 500 Scoiattolo

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 9, 2017

Photo – Bonhams

Carrozzeria Arrigo Perini was an Italian coachbuilder from Trento, Italy, that was active in the 1960s. It just so happened that in the 1950s and 60s there was a craze around turning tiny cars into beach-going machines. Think of cars like the Fiat 500 Jolly and the Mini Moke.

CAP took a Fiat 500 in 1967 and made their own beach car prototype out of it. Arrigo Perini called it the Scoiattolo, which is Italian for squirrel… which is an interesting name for a car. It’s powered by the 500’s straight-twin engine of 499cc. The doors are removable and the windshield folds flat – so it’s pretty much an electric Barbie Jeep, except that instead of four-year-old girls roaming the driveways of the American suburbs, this will be driven by some really rich person around Monaco.

This example was registered to CAP until 1981 and was probably their publicity car. The price for one of these (between $19,000-$27,000) is much less than that of a Fiat Jolly, and it’s also much rarer – only about 200 were ever built. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $9,836.