Tag Archives: Bonhams

Aston Martin Lagonda Prototype

Posted on by
1

1969 Aston Martin Lagonda Prototype

Offered by Bonhams | Newport Pagnell, U.K. | May 17, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

You’re looking at the first 4-door Aston Martin. The Lagonda Rapide was David Brown’s attempt at reviving the Lagonda marque, which Aston Martin acquired in 1948. The Rapide lasted from 1961-1964. But that was a Lagonda. In 1969, Aston itself hand-built a prototype four-door version of their two-door DBS V8 and called it the Lagonda. This is that car.

It uses the same 5.3-liter V-8 from the DBS making about 315 horsepower. The Lagonda entered production in 1974 and it was short-lived, ending the following year. Only seven ended up finding homes. This was Sir David Brown’s personal car.

The Lagonda would change shape for 1976, taking on a boxy, angular form that is much more well-known (although, not necessarily more well-liked). The design of this car actually reminds me of a Monteverdi sedan I filmed last year. At any rate, this is the prototype for a run of only seven cars – so it is exceptionally rare. And being David Brown’s personal ride only adds to it. The pre-sale estimate here is $540,000-$640,000. Click here for more info and here for more the rest of Bonhams’ Aston Martin sale.

Update: Not sold.

Waltham Orient Buckboard

Posted on by
Reply

1906 Waltham Orient Buckboard

Offered by Bonhams | Cape May, New Jersey | May 10, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Waltham Manufacturing Company of Waltham, Massachusetts, was founded by Charles Metz (who would later build the Metz automobile). They began by selling the Orient bicycle before turning to automobiles in 1905.

Four different models were offered for 1905, with that shrinking to three for 1906. The Orient Buckboard was the entry-level car and was marketed as “The Cheapest Automobile in the World.” It is powered by a rear-mounted single-cylinder engine making only four horsepower. It has tiller steering and can do 35 mph. This is about as basic as cars came, even for 1906.

Waltham’s last year was 1908 (until some weirdness involving the return of Metz in 1922 when he tried to revive the brand which ultimately failed). The Orient Buckboard – as well as the rest of their models, are exceedingly rare. This car is thought to contain mostly original parts and is super-interesting, if you’re into this kind of thing. It should sell for between $12,000-$18,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $12,320.

Premier Model 45

Posted on by
Reply

1909 Premier Model 45 Raceabout

Offered by Bonhams | Cape May, New Jersey | May 10, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Premier Motor Manufacturing Company of Indianapolis, Indiana, was founded in 1903. If this car looks big for a two-seater, that’s because it is. These old racer-style cars are huge and insanely cool.

Premier’s 1909 model line consisted of two models, with the Model 45 being the larger. It’s a six-cylinder engine under the long hood and it made a crazy-for-1909 45 horsepower. The Model 45 was available in three body styles – none of them a raceabout. In fact, this car was a formal limousine when new and the body was replaced to what you see here in the 1950s – a popular thing to have done to big, powerful old cars. And given this car’s Indy roots, it’s not unseemly.

Bonhams describes this as one of only a few six-cylinder Premiers still in existence, even though it hasn’t been used in decades. Premier closed its doors in 1925. This is a great way to get your hands on a racy old car on the cheap – if you’re up for a little project. This should sell for between $45,000-$60,000. Click here for more info and here fore the rest of this auction’s lineup.

Update: Sold $143,000.

Ford Model AC

Posted on by
Reply

1904 Ford Model AC Four-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | Cape May, New Jersey | May 10, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The 1903 Ford Model A was the first automobile produced by the Ford Motor Company. They built between 1,500 and 1,700 of those flat-twin-powered cars in only two years. The updated Model C followed in 1904 and lasted through 1905.

Then what is a Model AC? It was a 1904 model year-only car that was essentially a Model A with the larger, more powerful engine from the forthcoming Model C. Call it a hot rod with its 2.0-liter flat-twin making 10 horsepower (up from eight in the Model A).

It is thought that this car was restored in the 1950s and has been preserved since. With about 1,700 Model A/Model AC cars built, Bonhams states that only about 30-60 of them remain (but it is unclear if they are referring to Model As or Model ACs or both). At any rate, it is safe to assume that this is much rarer than a normal Model A. It’s in nice but not perfect shape and should sell for between $60,000-$80,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $88,000.

Ferrari 612 Sessanta

Posted on by
Reply

2008 Ferrari 612 Sessanta

Offered by Bonhams | Hendon, U.K. | April 28, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Ferrari 612 Scaglietti was the 2004 replacement for the long-lived 456M. It’s a 2+2 four-seat coupe. It is not the most popular Ferrari of all time, but I’ve always liked them. It lasted through 2011 before it was replaced by the new FF.

The Sessanta was a limited-edition model built in 2007 and 2008. The engine is a front-mounted 5.7-liter V-12 making 540 horsepower. That makes this four-seater capable of 196 mph. The Sessanta (Italian for “60”) was to commemorate Ferrari’s 60th year. It featured two-tone paint (available in two variations) and special trim and badging. Ferrari also hiked the price big time.

Guess how many they built. That’s right, 60. This is one of only four right-hand drive models constructed. It is very rare and should sell for between $130,000-$170,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Bonhams’ Hendon lineup.

Update: Sold $153,309.

OSI 20M TS

Posted on by
1

1967 OSI-Ford 20M TS Coupe by Ghia

Offered by Bonhams | Hendon, U.K. | April 28, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Here’s a weird one. Officine Stampaggi Industriali was founded in 1960 in Turin by two men – one the former president of coachbuilder Ghia, the other from the Fergat automotive component manufacturing company. OSI built custom cars and bodies for other manufacturers. The company was absorbed into Fiat’s design office in 1968.

In 1967, OSI designed a sporty Italian coupe based off of the Ford Taunus 20M (hence the “20M” in this car’s name). The car has four seats and two engines were offered – this one uses the larger 2.3-liter V-6 making 106 horsepower. Top speed was about 112 mph. It wasn’t quick, taking over 11 seconds to hit 60 mph.

This car was recently restored and, because it is based on a very popular old Ford, it is easy and inexpensive to maintain. Only 409 2.3-liter coupes were built (and 870 with the 2.9-liter). Only about 200-300 of these cars (both engines) remain today, making them fairly rare. This one should sell for between $20,000-$27,000 – a nice price for a pretty Italian automobile. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams in Hendon.

Update: Sold $29,029.

Ansaldo Tipo 14

Posted on by
Reply

1928 Ansaldo Tipo 14 Sports

Offered by Bonhams | Hendon, U.K. | April 28, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Ansaldo was an Italian car manufacturer that existed as a spin-off of a very old Italian engineering company known for armaments and railway components. When they were absorbed in 1993, they were one of Italy’s oldest companies. The car manufacturing period only lasted from 1919 through 1936.

The company built a few different models over its short life, with the Tipo 14 being new for 1928 (and not lasting long thereafter). It uses a 1.8-liter straight-four making 36 horsepower.

In 1932, Ansaldo cars was absorbed by OM and they ran out production of Ansaldos through 1936. The car offered here could be the only one like it left. The Tipo 14 was not the most popular model and Ansaldo only built between 1,000-2,000 cars per year. So Ansaldos in general are extremely rare. This one should bring between $75,000-$92,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.

Bianchi Roadster

Posted on by
Reply

1918 Bianchi Tipo 12 Roadster

Offered by Bonhams | Hendon, U.K. | April 28, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Edoardo Bianchi founded his bicycle company in 1885. Automobiles came in 1899 and early cars were luxurious. The factory was destroyed during WWII, and post-war, his name (and company) became most famous as part of Autobianchi.

By the second decade of the twentieth century, Bianchi was the second largest Italian automobile manufacturer. The Tipo 12 came about near the end of WWI. It uses a 1.7-liter straight-four making about 25 horsepower. As sporty as this early racer looks, it’s only good for about 50 mph.

This car has been in a private collection for the last decade and is really quite rare. It’s small and has the bodywork of an early competition car. It can be yours for between $66,000-$83,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.

Update II: Sold, Historics at Brooklands, March 2017, $21,347 (and listed as a Tipo 16)

Aston Martin Atom

Posted on by
Reply

1939 Aston Martin Atom

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

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Aston Martin built their first car in 1915. The built sporty open cars in the 1920s and 30s, but the company we know that builds luxurious tourers didn’t take off until the 1950s. But there was one landmark car that kind of signaled the direction the company would take once David Brown took over after World War II. This is that car.

In fact, this is the car that caused David Brown to buy Aston Martin once he had the chance to drive it. What you see here is a one-off concept car – one of the first fully-functional concept cars ever built. It has an aerodynamic aluminium body and a tubular spaceframe chassis. It looks like a fastback coupe, but it actually has four doors.

It was driven over 100,000 miles by the then-owner of Aston: Gordon Sutherland. But the war broke out and it couldn’t be put into production. The engine was swapped out in 1945 for the new 2.0-liter straight-four that can also be found in the DB1. It makes 90 horsepower.

This car has only had a few owners in its life and has only changed owners once in the last 49 years. It has been maintained (meaning, presumably, never restored) over the years and used a lot – the odometer shows over 250,000 miles. This is a one-of-one car – the rarest Aston Martin there is. Bonhams isn’t listing a pre-sale estimate just yet, but they expect “many hundreds of thousands” of dollars. Perhaps more. You can read more here.

Update: Not sold.

March 2014 Auction Highlights Part I

Posted on by
Reply

The first weekend in March was an eventful one for car auctions – and shows, with the Amelia Island Concours going on. But before we get to Amelia Island, let’s cross the pond and check out Bonhams’ Oxford sale highlights. The top sale there was this 1964 Bentley S3 Continental Coupe by Mulliner, Park Ward. It sold for $124,601.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Our featured MG NB Cresta Tourer failed to sell. And our featured BSA Scout doubled the lower-end of its estimate, selling for $20,249. Style-wise, I think the coolest non-feature car was this 1962 Ford Consul Capri Coupe which sold for $14,464. Check out full results here.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Now we get to Amelia Island and first up is Gooding & Company, where our featured Porsche 907 Longtail was the top sale at $3,630,000. The other 24 Hours of Daytona-winning Porsche, the 1983 March 83G, failed to sell. Cool cars were topped by this 1955 Porsche 356 Speedster once raced by Pedro Rodriguez. I’ve seen this car in person before and it is cool. It sold for $462,000.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

Another cool featured Porsche was our 356 Carrera 2 that sold for $550,000. This 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS Lightweight brought an eye-popping $1,402,500.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

Another great German car was this stunning green 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster. This was as cheap as I’ve seen a 300SL in some time and the color combo makes it an even better deal at $946,000.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

Our featured Voisin failed to sell. The Madame X V-16 Cadillac brought $264,000. And the 1909 Alco Runabout sold for $280,500. This sale also featured a very nice BMW collection. One of the lesser-seen modes was this 1958 BMW 501 A. It sold for $121,000. Check out full results here.

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

And finally, on to RM’s Amelia Island sale. The top selling car was easy to spot beforehand – our featured Figoni et Falaschi Delahaye sold for $6,600,000. The deal of the sale was our featured Kissel White Eagle Tourster which sold for only $60,500! Somebody made off like a thief with that car. Congratulations.

Cool cars were topped by this beefy 1974 Iso Grifo 7-Liter coupe for $440,000.

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Our featured Locomobile Speedster sold for $126,500. There was another Locomobile at this sale, this sporty 1919 Model 48 Roadster by Merrimac. It brought $143,000.

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Our featured American De Dion sold for $115,500 and the all-original B.N.C. race car $181,500. This 1965 Shelby GT350 R race car is the “winningest” Shelby race car of all time, notching 17 straight wins in the late-60s. It sold for $984,500.

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

The only featured Duesenberg from the Amelia Island weekend sold for $1,567,500. And finally, there was this 1937 Packard 120 Pickup. It was custom built well after 1937 but it’s been around for a while and looks like the trucks Packard dealers used to use. It sold for $93,500. Check out full results here.

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions