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Lancia 2000 Sedan

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1972 Lancia 2000 Sedan

Offered by Anglia Car Auctions | Online | Feburary 27-28, 2021

Photo – Anglia Car Auctions

Today, the barely-alive Lancia only produces badge-engineered versions of cars from other manufacturers, namely, Fiat (they’ve only made one model since 2016). You might think that this car was the start of it all, but it isn’t. It was actually designed by Lancia before they were taken over by Fiat.

The car was production-ready in 1969, the same year Fiat took control of the brand. It was never supposed to go on sale because it was expensive to build, but once Fiat realized Lancia had nothing else in the hopper, they launched it anyway in 1971. Production would continue through 1974. Both sedans and coupes were offered.

I actually quite like the look of the sedan, which is powered by a 2.0-liter flat-four (weird, right?) that made 126 horsepower when fuel injected. The injected engine, which this car has, also got an extra speed in the gearbox for a total of five. Only 14,319 sedans were built, and this 66,000-mile example should sell for between $11,000-$14,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $34,378.

Leyland Mini

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1978 Leyland Mini

Offered by Shannons | Melbourne, Australia | February 23, 2021

Photo – Shannons

Dorky watermark alert. So what do we have here? First, Shannons’ write-up says that the Leyland Mini dropped the Clubman name after 1973. Yet they list this 1978 model as a Mini Clubman. I left it off.

What we do know for sure is that Leyland is the marque. The original Mini was sold under a number of different marques throughout the world, including Austin, Morris, Innocenti, Authi, Mini, and, down under, Leyland. The Leyland Mini was produced in Australia between 1973 and 1978.

This one is powered by a 1,275cc inline-four sourced from a European Cooper S model. This isn’t a version of the Mini seen very often, especially outside of Australia, where this one is located. It should sell for between $9,000-$11,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $7,744.

Alfa 1600 Junior Zagato

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1973 Alfa Romeo 1600 Junior Zagato

Offered by Mecum | Glendale, Arizona | March 18-20, 2021

Photo – Mecum

It may not look like it, but this is actually part of the same series of Giulia/Sprint/GTVs cars such as this one. But the styling is radically different, which is where the “Zagato” part comes in. Alfa’s 105/115 Series of coupes went on sale in 1963 with the Giulia Sprint GT, and the general styling would continue on through 1976’s GT 1300 Junior.

Zagato applied their boxy-yet-aerodynamic bodywork to two cars in the series, including the 1600 Junior Z seen here (there was also a 1300 version, although it was just called the “Junior Zagato”). This one is powered by a 1.6-liter Twin Cam inline-four rated at 108 horsepower. Top speed was 118 mph. The 1600 Junior Z was actually based on the floorplan of the Alfa Spider 1600, and it went on sale in 1972.

Only 402 were built through 1973, although sales continued through 1975. This is one of 12 known to be the U.S., and you can read more about it here. See more from Mecum here.

Update: Sold $52,800.

2002 Turbo

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1974 BMW 2002 Turbo

Offered by Mecum | Glendale, Arizona | March 18-20, 2021

Photo – Mecum

This site doesn’t feature too many post-war German cars, but people love BMW’s 2002. The name was a little short-sighted, but I guess they never imagined having to try and Google “BMW 2002” only to get a ton of results for 2002 325Cis.

The 2002 was mixed in with a number of other visually similar but mechanically different models, including the 1602, 1802, 1502, 1600, and 1800. The 2002 went on sale for the 1968 model year and would be offered in base, cabriolet, ti, and tii forms through 1976. There was one model that topped all of those, and it was the Turbo, which was sold between 1973 and 1975. Only 1,672 examples were produced.

It was BMW’s first turbocharged production car and features a turbocharged, fuel-injected 2.0-liter M10 inline-four rated at 168 horsepower. Top speed was 130 mph. The Turbo is easily the most sought-after 2002 variant, with prices that can easily climb into the six figures. Check out more on this one here, and see more from Mecum here.

Update: Sold $154,000.

Lamborghini Espada

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1976 Lamborghini Espada Series III

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Ascot Racecourse, U.K. | March 20, 2021

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

The Lamborghini Espada is an interesting car. They’ve never been as valuable as any other 1960s Lambo, and they feature a pretty polarizing design. It is kind of like someone smashed a Murena GT, an Iso Lele, and DeTomaso Mangusta into one four-seat, front-engine GT.

This rear-wheel-drive car is powered by a 3.9-liter V12 that was rated at 350 horsepower when new. The Espada was built in three different series between 1968 and 1978, with the Series 3 launching in 1972. Only 456 S3 cars were built, but they seem to be the ones that crop up most often (the S2 cars were actually more common).

This one has been restored and is finished in black. Some Espadas wear some pretty wild colors, so this one looks pretty restrained. The pre-sale estimate is $155,000-$175,000, which is expensive, but not Miura expensive. That said, this is not a cheap car to own. You can read more about it here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Sold $138,417.

Fiat 600 Rendez Vous

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1959 Fiat 600 Rendez Vous by Vignale

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 13, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Fiat 600 was introduced in 1955 and would remain in production until 1969. It was the basis for Fiat’s 500 and was available as a two-door fastback and a mini-MPV called the Multipla. They built over 2.5 million of them. But this example is no ordinary, somewhat-dumpy Fiat 600.

The famed Italian coachbuilder Vignale decided that they wanted to take this near-microcar and make it look like a fancy, two-door coupe. Its classy looks make it look a lot bigger than it is, and it isn’t made clear if this car has a 633cc inline-four or the 767cc version. In either case, the engine is mounted out back.

Fewer than 20 of these “Rendez Vous” cars are thought to have been produced, and this one was restored less than 300 miles ago. You can read more about it here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Not sold.

599 GTZ Zagato

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2009 Ferrari 599 GTZ Nibbio Spyder Zagato

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 13, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The 599 GTB Fiorano was Ferrari’s front-engine V12 grand tourer between 2007 and 2012. It spawned a few notable factory variants, including the HGTE (which was more of an add-on package), the XX (which was a track car), and the GTO (which was a road version of the XX). There was also the limited-edition drop-top, the SA Aperta.

Zagato, which had done similar things to the 599’s predecessors, the 575 and the 550, decided to do a limited run of modified 599s, dubbed the GTZ Nibbio (there were both coupes and spyders). Basically, they took a 599 GTB and re-sculpted the body to include their current weird design language, which consists of a rounded tail and two bulbous pointy bits on either side of the front grille. In this case, they also chopped off the roof.

The 6.0-liter V12 remains unchanged and is still rated at 612 horsepower. Only nine Nibbios were made, six of which were convertibles. Somehow this car was completed in 2020 and retains Zagato’s prototype serial number. You can read more about this car here and see more from RM here.

Update: Not sold.

Pilgrim Family Tourer

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1980 Pilgrim Family Tourer

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | February 13-18, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

Pilgrim Fiberglass was founded in 1985 in Brighton, England, by Den Tanner and Bill Harling. The company is still around, having outlasted early models like this to become one of the most prolific Cobra kit car manufacturers in the world.

Their first two models were the Bulldog, which was introduced in 1985, and the Family Tourer, which went on sale in 1989. The Family Tourer was essentially a four-seat version of the Bulldog and largely shared its 1950s MG-inspired styling.

The basis for the car was actually the fifth-generation of the Ford Cortina. This is based on a 1980 model, hence the model year listed above, even though it was built in 1992. It’s powered by a 1.6-liter inline-four and features a steel backbone chassis. Only about 250 Family Tourers were built, and this one will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $4,398.

Nelson-LeMoon

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1928 Nelson-LeMoon Stake Truck

Offered by Mecum | East Moline, Illinois | March 25, 2021

Photo – Mecum

A.R. LeMoon sold his first truck in 1910, and in 1913, the Nelson & LeMoon company of Chicago started selling vehicles under the Nelson-LeMoon name, which would last through 1927. At that time, Nelson was dropped again, and production wrapped up in 1939 (when Mr. LeMoon shifted to becoming a dealer for Federal trucks). In 29 years, the company produced approximately 3,000 trucks. Not a lot. And many of them remained in the greater Chicago area.

This truck is powered by a Waukesha inline-six and was purchased by the current owner in 1979. It was essentially a derelict at that time, but has been restored. It must be one of the nicest examples in existence. It’s now a stake bed truck, and the cab forward is pretty much how it would’ve looked when new.

It’s an interesting, all-American pre-war heavy commercial vehicle. And it’s from a marque most people have never heard of, let alone seen. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $20,350.

Update: Sold, Mecum East Moline 2022, $18,700.

Renault Clio V6

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2002 Renault Sport Clio V6 Phase 1

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Online | March 5-6, 2021

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

In the 1980s, the French were doing some crazy stuff with their hatchbacks. Renault and Peugeot produced some monsters. Twenty years later, Renault decided to go crazy again and produced probably the coolest hot hatch of the 21st Century (yeah, I said it).

The second-generation Clio went on sale in 1998 and somehow lasted through 2012. It was available as a three- or five-door hatchback and a four-door sedan. Some of them actually looked okay for what they were, but they were all largely sad in the power and front-engined, front-wheel-drive departments.

In 2001, Renault designed a mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive version of the Clio (okay, it was a pretty different car, but shared the name and corporate face). It was based on the Clio V6 Trophy race car of 1999 and was powered by a 2.9-liter, 24-valve V6 located in the rear hatch area, like the Renault 5 Turbo.

This is a “Phase 1” example, meaning output was rated at 227 horsepower and that the car was actually assembled by Tom Walkinshaw Racing in Sweden. Later cars were built by Renault themselves and made more power. Top speed was 146 mph. Only 1,513 Phase 1 cars were built through 2003.

These cars will only appreciate with time, and once they are eligible for U.S. import, I expect them to be grabbed up and hard to get for a good price. Check out more about this RHD example here, and see more from Silverstone here.

Update: Sold $41,240.