Tag Archives: cars

GT500KR Convertible

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1968 Shelby GT500KR Convertible

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auction | December 2023

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

Of all of the true Shelby Mustangs (those produced in the ’60s, not the modern mass-produced Fords with Shelby badging), this is the best. The GT500 was the GT350‘s big brother, and in “King of the Road” spec, it was one step beyond that.

The GT500 debuted in 1967, and the KR came a year later. Just 518 of them were convertibles. Power is from a 428 Cobra Jet (7.0-liter) V8 that was rated at 335 horsepower. Shelby-specific stuff included a fiberglass hood, a spoiler, Thunderbird taillights, a heavy-duty suspension, and a few more tweaks. The KR convertible got that distinctive roll bar.

This car was restored before being relocated to Canada in 2021. GT500KRs seem to change hands with some regularity. But that doesn’t make them any less awesome. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $265,000.

964 Turbo 3.6

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1994 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.6

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | New York, New York | December 2023

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Porsche’s 964-generation of the 911 went on sale in 1989 with the Carrera 4 coupe. It was only around through 1994, so it was relatively short-lived. But being a relatively modern, air-cooled version of the 911, prices have gone up. Way up.

The Turbo arrived in 1990 with a turbocharged version of the previous-generation’s 3.3-liter flat-six. Come 1993, Porsche had finally found the time to slap a turbo on the 964’s 3.6-liter flat-six, and thus the Turbo 3.6 was born. Produced for just two years, about 1,500 were built. Output was rated at 355 horsepower, which was almost 40 more than the 3.3 car.

The 3.6 was the hero car in the movie Bad Boys, and there were even more exclusive sub variants of the Turbo 3.6, but we’ll save those for another day. Remember how we said things have gotten expensive? The estimate for this sub-7,000-mile car is $525,000-$625,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

BAC Mono

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2020 BAC Mono

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | December 2023

Photo – Bring a Trailer

Neill and Ian Briggs are brothers that founded the Briggs Automotive Company in Liverpool, England, in 2009. Since then, BAC has produced a lone product: the Mono, which is a single-seat supercar. It’s kind of like an open-wheel car for the road, but it does have fenders, of course.

The Mono went on sale in 2011, and in 2015 the company changed up the stock engine, which is a 2.5-liter inline-four rated at 305 horsepower. The whole thing weighs about 1,300 pounds. It’s quick.

An even more powerful R variant went on sale in 2019. At the time of this writing, the car is already bid over $100,000 with 10 days left. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $196,000.

Manta Mirage

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1976 Manta Mirage

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 2024

Photo – Mecum

The Manta Mirage is one of the coolest kit cars ever produced. Manta Cars existed from 1974 through 1986 in Costa Mesa, California. The Mirage was their attempt at a do-it-yourself supercar (for the day). The design is like two steps removed from a McLaren Can-Am car, but it is road legal.

Chevy small-blocks were the main engine option, and his one has a 5.7-liter V8. The body is fiberglass, and the whole thing weighs less than 2,000 pounds. It also has detachable gullwing doors that transform the car into a targa-like thing.

About 1,000 examples were produced in kit and turn-key form. This one looks pretty nice for a 1970s fiberglass special.

Update: Sold $15,500.

Mass Torpedo

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1909 Mass Model B Torpedo Tourer

Offered by Gooding & Company | Online | December 2023

Photo – Gooding & Company

Automobiles Mass is a mostly unremembered French automaker that existed from 1907 until 1923. Based near Paris, the company was founded by a Mr. Masser-Horniman, who was apparently English. The chassis/engines were assembled at the French factory, but the cars were then bodied in England. Very economical.

This car is powered by a 3.3-liter inline-four rated at 30 horsepower. It has a three-speed gearbox and rear drum brakes. The body was constructed by Shaw Brothers in the U.K. It has known ownership back to the 1950s and spent years in a Colorado museum.

The catalog notes that it has received “improvements” over the last few years to get it into the condition it is today. This is not a well-known or common car (in fact, I can’t remember another one coming up for public sale in the last ~15 years). It has an estimate of $40,000-$55,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $33,000.

Ford GT Mk II

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2020 Ford GT Mk II

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 2024

Photo – Mecum

From a performance – and pedigree – standpoint, Ford’s second-generation GT blew the first-gen out of the water. It arrived in 2017, and production continued into 2022 (the first gen lasted just two model years). These were more powerful, faster, and more expensive. And they had racing trophies to back it up.

The GT race car, in the hands of Chip Ganassi drivers, scored class victories at Le Mans and Daytona. So it only made sense that Ford would offer some of that racing prowess to the public. The GT MK II was launched in 2019 as a track-only variant of the road-going GT. The twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 was modified to produce 700 horsepower.

It gained a big rear wing and lost some niceties (and weight in the process). This car is #18 of 45 built and wears a Gulf livery. These were over $1 million new, and this one hasn’t been used. Click here to read more about it.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $1,200,000.

Buick Century

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1991 Buick Century Sedan

Offered by Mecum | Kansas City, Missouri | November 30, 2023

Photo – Mecum

“Well hang on a minute,” you’re saying, “this is no collector car. Nor is it interesting.” Well, depends who you ask. This car, despite being old model-year older and sans chrome rear luggage rack, is a dead ringer for my first car. And I never thought I’d see the day where it rolled across a collector car auction block.

Buick launched the Century name in 1936 on their Series 60, as it was capable of 100 mph. Sadly, the speedometer on this bad boy only goes to 85. How times change. This is a Century Custom, which was the middle trim, and a sedan from this range would’ve had a base price of $13,685 in 1991. Power is provided by a 3.3-liter V6, which was optional, and made 160 horsepower.

Somehow this car only has 346 miles on it. I kind of want it. Buick built 102,435 Century sedans in 1991, with 1,600 coupes and 6,500 wagons also made. I wonder if this car, like mine, pulls the right-rear suspension down when you slam the brakes, among other odd behavior it exhibited. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $9,350.

Grifo Targa

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1970 Iso Grifo Series I Targa

Offered by Bring a Trailer | December 2024

Photo – Bring a Trailer

The Iso Grifo is perhaps the most muscular of all of the Italian/American hybrid muscle cars. Sure, it’s a two-door coupe and a sports car. But it has angry lines and big American V8s. That’s a muscle car.

The Grifo has an interesting history, as discussed here, and went on sale in 1965. This is one of 330 Series I cars built, just 14 of which were targas. Power is from a 5.7-liter Chevrolet V8 rated at 300 horsepower.

It was cosmetically overhauled in Europe in the early 2000s and received mechanic work in the years following its importation to the U.S. These are very rare big-dollar cars. You can read more about it here.

Update: Sold $550,000.

Duesenberg J-121

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1929 Duesenberg Model J Dual-Cowl Phaeton by LeBaron

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Miami, Florida | March 2, 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

There are not many cars better than a sweep-panel dual-cowl phaeton. This one carries a relatively low engine number and was delivered new to Philip K. Wrigley, he of gum fame. It was originally delivered with Murphy convertible coupe coachwork, to which Mr. Wrigley added over 10,000 miles before deciding he wanted a dual-cowl phaeton.

But not just any such phaeton, he wanted the specific body on a family friend’s Duesenberg. But he didn’t want their car. So a body swap was arranged. Oh to be rich during the Great Depression. This chassis retains its original 265-horsepower, 6.9-liter inline-eight.

The Wrigleys sold it back to Duesenberg in 1936. The current restoration was completed in 2004, and it’s finished in all black, which is an interesting choice (but apparently the original look). It has an estimate of $2,650,000-$2,850,000. More info can be found here.

Update: Not sold.

Vauxhall PA Cresta

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1959 Vauxhall Cresta

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Brooklands, U.K. | November 25, 2023

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

The Cresta was Vauxhall’s executive car, the largest in the lineup when it went on sale in 1954. The second generation, the PA, arrived three years later in 1957 sporting very American styling, with tailfins and chrome galore.

Between 1957 and 1962, 81,841 examples of the Cresta were built between the four-door sedan and wagon. For the first few years of production, the cars featured a 2.3-liter inline-six carried over from the previous generation. It made 82 horsepower. A 2.7-liter unit would appear in 1961.

It took five years to restore this example, which is one of just 32 still registered in the U.K. It’s big by British standards, and stylish too. The estimate is $22,000-$32,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold ~$35,306.