Tag Archives: cabriolet

212 Inter Cabriolet

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1951 Ferrari 212 Inter Cabriolet by Vignale

Offered by Bonhams | Carmel, California | August 14, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Another high-dollar Ferrari – but recently, aren’t they all? Even Ferrari 308s are commanding sums into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Is there a Prancing Horse bubble? Well if there is, this is the kind of Ferrari to have your money in. These early, Colombo V-12 cars are the roots of Ferrari.

The 212 Inter (not to be confused with the race-bred 212 Export) was a grand touring car built between 1951 and 1952 only. The bodies were all by the leading Italian coachbuilders of the day, with this car sporting a distinctive Vignale drop-top body. The car looks sort of Aston Martin and Maserati-ish.

The engine is a 2.6-liter V-12 making 170 horsepower. This was car #16 of 78 Inters built and one of only four with this Vignale coachwork. This car spent most of its life in Switzerland and has known ownership history from new. The restoration was completed last year and it’s being offered fresh off an award-winning debut at Pebble Beach in 2014. It should bring between $2,400,000-$2,800,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $2,200,000.

Update: Sold, Bonhams Scottsdale 2020, $1,930,000.

Veritas Scorpion

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1949 Veritas Scorpion Cabriolet by Spohn

Offered by Bonhams | Carmel, California | August 14, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Veritas cars were built in the aftermath of WWII in Germany by Ernst Loof, Georg Meier and Lorenz Dietrich based on pre-war BMW machinery, namely the BMW 328 – a car they all worked with prior to the war at BMW. The 2.0-liter BMW 328 straight-six powers this car, making 100 horsepower.

Veritas introduced three road models in 1949, the Scorpion among them. The Scorpion was a convertible and the bodies were outsourced to Spohn of Ravensburg (I wanted to say “Spohn, based near Berlin” or some such thing but Ravensburg is in the middle of nowhere. So much for that).

The funding behind Veritas dried up in 1953 and BMW swallowed them whole in a sort of I-brought-you-into-this-world-and-I’m-going-to-take-you-out sort of way. Ownership history on this car goes back to its first American owner in the early-1960s. Only two Scorpions are known in the U.S. with less than a handful in Europe. In all, Veritas built about 78 cars, so anything from them is considered a rarity. This one just happens to be magnificent. It is also one of a few cars not associated with a pre-sale estimate at Bonhams’ sale, which makes it big. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $907,500.

Ferrari 400 SA Cabriolet

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1960 Ferrari 400 Superamerica SWB Cabriolet by Pinin Farina

Offered by RM Auctions | Amelia Island, Florida | March 14, 2015

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

The Ferrari 400 Superamerica is a very underrated Ferrari. Maybe it’s not so much underrated as it is just unknown – only 47 were produced in total (compared to a similar vintage 250 California Spider, which is actually much more common, comparatively). A short-wheelbase cabriolet like this car is much, much rarer.

This beautiful machine is powered by a 4.0-liter V-12 making 340 horsepower. It has a smaller engine than the previous model (the 410 Superamerica) had and other upgrades. The first 400 Superamericas were all short-wheelbase cars – and only six of them were built.

The ownership history has this car bouncing between continents on either side of the Atlantic. More than half of the six SWB cars built were coupes, so this Pinin Farina Cabriolet, in wonderful Verde Bottiglia green paint – is pretty rare. The proceeds for this sale will benefit charity and it is expected to bring between $6,000,000-$7,000,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of RM’s Amelia Island lineup.

Update: Sold $6,380,000.

Nash Special Six

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1928 Nash Special Six Cabriolet

Offered by Mecum | Las Vegas, Nevada | February 27-28, 2015

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum Auctions

Nash Motors Company was founded by Charles W. Nash, a former G.M. president, in 1916 when he acquired the Thomas B. Jeffrey Company. Nash branded cars went on sale in 1917. The company would  go on to become part of American Motors, with the Nash name disappearing after 1957.

This Special Six wears an attractive body from the Seaman Body Corporation, which from 1919 was part of Nash. The Special Six nameplate dates back to 1925 and lasted through 1929. It was Nash’s mid-range model for 1928 (a year in which they only offered six-cylinder models). It was slotted between the Standard and Advanced Six models.

The engine is a 3.7-liter straight-six making 52 horsepower at 2600 rpm. This Model 341 Cabriolet retailed for $1,290 in 1928. It has a rumble seat and rear-mounted spare tire. It shows very nice. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,000.

Voisin C3 Transformable

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1925 Voisin C3 Cabriolet Transformable by Rothschild et Fils

Offered by RM Auctions | Paris, France | February 4, 2015

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Voisins are highly desirable cars because they’re just so unique. Gabriel Voisin was an aviation engineer but he was also a former student at the Fine Arts School of Lyon. So the combination of art and engineering really came together with his cars.

This C3 is a long chassis model powered by a 4.0-liter sleeve-valve straight-four making 80 horsepower. The body is by Rothschild and features a convertible passenger section behind the open driver’s compartment.

Delivered new to an American architect living in Paris, the car is being offered from the collection of John Moir, who had the car restored. Look for it to sell for between $200,000-$285,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Paris.

Update: Sold $243,656.

Isotta 8A SS

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1930 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A SS Cabriolet by Castagna

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 5, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

There is no argument to be had: Isotta Fraschinis have the best grilles. That lightning bolt crossing it is so eye-catching it’s hard to believe it wasn’t copied all over the world. Isottas were some of the most prestigious cars on the market in 1930 – right there with Duesenberg Model Js and Rolls-Royces. In 1930, a coachbuilt Tipo 8A could cost you upwards of a stunning $20,000.

Isotta Fraschini marketed the world’s first straight-eight engined car in 1920. In 1924, that car was replaced by the Tipo 8A. It uses a 7.4-liter straight-eight engine. In SS trim, the engine put out nearly 150 horsepower.

The four-door cabriolet body work on this car was done by Castagna – a very popular coachbuilder for Isottas. It is believed that this car sat on the stand at the 1930 Milan Salon and from there it was believed sold to the son of William Randolph Hearst. It was restored by the current owner, who acquired the car in 2009, at a cost in excess of $800,000.

Only 950 Tipo 8As were built, with the SS being much rarer. And one with the history of this car will elevate it above all others. It is expected to sell for between $1,100,000-$1,500,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams in Paris.

Update: Sold $1,066,288.

Grégoire Sport Cabriolet

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1958 Grégoire Sport Cabriolet by Chapron

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 6, 2015

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Jean-Albert Grégoire founded Tracta in France in 1926. They built some beautiful, rare, front-wheel drive luxury cars up through 1934. The company may have closed before the war, but Grégoire showed off this highly-styled Sport Cabriolet in 1955 with a body by French coachbuilder Chapron.

It is powered by 2.2-liter supercharged flat-four making 120 horsepower. The car is, like Grégoire’s Tractas before it, front-wheel drive. It’s a rare, attractive car with 1950s engineering and a coachbuilt body from an era past.

Less than 10 of these were built and this one was owned by the same family for the first 50 years. It should sell for between $120,000-$155,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial in Paris.

Update: Sold $152,817.

Excelsior Albert I

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1927 Excelsior Albert I Court Cabriolet by Snutsel & Fils

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 5, 2015

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Arthus de Coninck established his company, the automaker Excelsior, in Brussels, Belgium in 1903. Car production began the following year and they began building very fine cars shortly thereafter. In fact, the Belgian ruling family were Excelsior customers for a number of years. But cars favored by royalty are hard to sell when the world economy turns, and the company sold out to Imperia in 1929 with the marque being retired in 1932.

The Albert I was one of the finest cars built in the era and the high point for Excelsior. It uses a 5.3-liter straight-six making 130 horsepower. The body is aluminium and was done by a local coachbulder in Brussels, Snutsel & Fils.

This example was ordered new by the Romanian ambassador to Great Britain but ended up going to South Africa instead where it spent a majority of its life up until 2004. The restoration began in Belgium in 2004 and was completed in 2013. What a fantastic opportunity to acquire a rare and incredible automobile. It can be yours for between $420,000-$480,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams in Paris.

Update: Not sold.

CLK DTM Cabriolet

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2007 Mercedes-Benz CLK DTM AMG Cabriolet

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Birmingham, U.K.| November 15-16, 2014

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

The Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class was purchased in convertible form mainly by South Florida former-trophy wives now in their 50s. It was built between 1996 and 2009, preceded and succeeded by the E-Class Coupe. But this ain’t your aunt’s CLK.

Mercedes in-house tuner arm AMG always got their mitts on all of the Benz model lines. And they built some pretty stout versions of the CLK, none more menacing than the CLK DTM (CLK GTR supercar notwithstanding).

Mercedes campaigned the CLK in the DTM series in Germany, so they decided to build a short run of road cars inspired by these awesome machines. There were 100 coupes built, and for 2006, 80 cabriolets. They all used a 582 horsepower supercharged 5.4-liter V8. The convertibles were “limited” to a 192 mph top end.

These cars were popular with F1 drivers of the period, with Mika Hakkinen and Juan Pablo Montoya being among their purchasers. It’s the ultimate overly-powered Monaco cruiser. This example has 26,000 miles on it and should sell for between $175,000-$200,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Silverstone’s auction lineup.

Update: Sold $196,560.

Traction Avant Cabriolet

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1937 Citroen Traction Avant 7CV Cabriolet

Offered by Osenat | Chassieu, France | November 9, 2014

Photo - Osenat

Photo – Osenat

The Traction Avant is one of Citroen’s most classic models. Introduced in 1934, the model would take a few years off for WWII before returning after the war and being produced through 1957. They built around 760,000 of these things in various body styles. It was the world’s first steel monocoque front-wheel drive car.

Three models were produced over the years. This is a 7CV model – the lowest horsepower model they built. The 7CV was produced from 1934 through 1941 (when production was suspended). It was the only model not produced after the war.

The engine is a 1.6-liter straight-four driving the front wheels. The sedans are extremely French – it’s their definitive sedan. The coupes and cabriolets are actually very attractive cars. They’re often overlooked in favor of more prestigious French marques from the same time period. That said, this car should still command a hefty $90,000-$115,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Osenat’s auction lineup.

Update: Not sold.