Tag Archives: classic car

Daimler Star of India

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1926 Daimler 45 HP Salon Cabriolet by Barker

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 18-20, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Big Daimler’s from this era are impressive cars (perhaps none more so than this Double Six). Let’s keep in mind that this is a British Daimler, as the German Daimlers had become “Mercedes” by 1902. The British concern started building cars in 1896, and the last one was sold in 2010. It’s a dormant marque right now under Tata’s control.

But who cars about all of that, because look at this thing. The 45 was the “big” Daimler, with this being of the third model to carry that name, and it was produced from about 1926 through 1927. It would be replaced by the Double Six. Daimler called the 45 the largest production car in the world. Hard to argue. It’s powered by a massive 8.5-liter inline-six.

This car was purchased as a bare chassis by the Maharaja of Rewa for a cost of $7,000. It then went to Barker & Co. of London for a body. The body is actually made of “German silver,” which RM declines to define but is actually a catchall for various alloys. This one has some crazy features, like snakes that come over the front fenders, a single rear door, and an upright V-shaped windshield.

The car remained in India until the 1970s, and RM claims the tires date back to the period the car was built. Another Blackhawk car, this one has an estimate of $1,000,000-$1,500,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $880,000.

Top Open-Wheel Cars in Monterey

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Open-Wheel Race Cars

Offered during the Pebble Beach Concours Weekend | August 15-17, 2014

 1986 March 86C Cosworth

Offered by RM Auctions

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

This was the car in CART in 1986. Fielded by Truesports, the March 86C was campaigned by Bobby Rahal for the 1986 season. It is powered by a 700 horsepower 2.7-liter Cosworth turbo V-8. Just take a look at this car’s competition history:

  • 1986 Indianapolis 500 – 1st (with Bobby Rahal)
  • 5 other wins that season
  • 1986 CART Championship

The chance to own an Indy 500-winning car is a very rare thing, and one this cool driven by such a legend makes it even better. The car still retains its race-winning engine. It should sell for between $1,750,000-$2,500,000. Click here for more info.

S/N: 86C-13

Update: Not sold, high bid of $1,550,000.

2000 Ferrari F1-2000

Offered by RM Auctions

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

The F1-2000 was, you guessed it, Ferrari’s F1 car for the 2000 season. And guess who drove for Ferrari in 2000? That’s right, Michael Schumacher. And it was one of those seasons that he had with Ferrari where he nearly won everything on the calendar. He also won the championship. This car won the 2000 Brazilian Grand Prix. The engine is a monster: 3.0-liter V-10 making 770 horsepower. It should sell for between $1,750,000-$2,500,000. Click here for more.

S/N: 198

Update: Sold $1,804,000.

1970 Brabham-Cosworth BT33

Offered by Bonhams

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

You’re looking at the final car driven by Jack Brabham in Formula One. In fact, he won his final grand prix in this car – the 1970 South African Grand Prix. What’s even better, this is a Brabham chassis and he remains the only person to ever win in a car bearing his own name. The car looks fabulous. The engine is too: it’s a Cosworth V-8 of 3.0-liters and puts out 430 horsepower at an ear-shattering 10,000 rpm. It can be yours for between $1,000,000-$1,400,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,034,000.

1978 Ferrari 312 T3

Offered by Bonhams

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Ferrari 312 T3 was Ferrari’s second car for the 1978 Formula One Season. The car used for the first two races was a carryover from 1977. The T3 was introduced for the third race. This car was driven primarily by Carlos Reutemann (who won the 1978 British Grand Prix in it). It also driven by Gilles Villeneuve. Villeneuve won the 1978 Race of Champions (a non-points F1 race) in this car. The engine is a 530 horsepower 3.0-liter Flat-12. Ferrari built five of these cars and this one is offered in more-or-less as-raced conditions and has spent many years in the Maranello Rosso Collection. It should sell for between $1,500,000-$2,000,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $2,310,000.

1969 AAR Eagle-Santa Ana

Offered by RM Auctions

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Here’s the last open-wheel car we’ll feature from Monterey (mostly because I just lost all of the work I did on this post and had to start over – there are other awesome racers this weekend). This car comes from AAR, Dan Gurney’s All American Racers. It was their car for 1969 and it uses a 5.2-liter Ford V-8. AAR built four of them, three of which raced at the Indy 500 that year. This one did not, although Gurney did run it in practice. The only racing this car has ever done is on the historic circuit and it has been in the same ownership for nearly a quarter of a century. It can be yours for between $125,000-$175,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $104,500.

Speedwell Speed Car

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1912 Speedwell 12-J 50HP Speed Car

Offered by Bonhams | Carmel, California | August 15, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Dayton, Ohio’s Speedwell Motor Car Company built cars for only seven short years, but they made the most of it. As the company name may suggest, they were sporty (for the most part) but also reliable and well-built. Company premises were damaged during a flood in 1913 and they closed the following year.

The Series 12 was built in 1912 only and they were available in nine configurations, with the Model J denoted a four-passenger touring car. The 7.2-liter straight-four under the hood makes 50 horsepower. This particular example is a “Speed Car” – a racier version of their normal production car. It is the only Speedwell Speed Car in existence.

Speedwell built about 4,000 cars in their lifetime, and they are super rare today. This one has known ownership since the 1930s, including Bill Harrah, and it was restored in 1999. You can be next in line if you can write a check for between $550,000-$750,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $869,000.

Rondeau-Cosworth

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1978 Rondeau M378 Ford-Cosworth

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

What is it about Le Mans that inspires racecar drivers to want to become manufacturers? Yves Courage, Henri Pescarolo, Alain de Cadenet all caught the bug – and so did Jean Rondeau, who began constructing and racing his own cars at the famed 24 Hours in 1976. 1978 was the first year that the cars actually bore his name and this was the first of them. Rondeau would win the 1980 race in a car of his own design – the only time this has ever happened.

This car, chassis no. 001 holds the record for the most starts at the race with 10. No longer are single cars competitive for an entire decade. It’s an impressive feat. Here’s a rundown of those years:

  • 1978 24 Hours of Le Mans – 9th overall, 1st in class (with Rondeau, Bernard Darniche, and Jacky Haran)
  • 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans – 30th, DNF (with Rondeau and Haran)
  • 1980 24 Hours of Le Mans – 3rd (with Gordon Spice, Philippe Martin and Jean-Michel Martin)
  • 1981 24 Hours of Le Mans – 2nd (with Haran, Jean-Louis Schlesser and Philippe Streiff)
  • 1982 24 Hours of Le Mans – 10th (with Pierre Yver, Bruno Scotty and Lucien Guitteny)
  • 1983 24 Hours of Le Mans – 28th, DNF (with Vic Elford, Joël Gouhier and Anne-Charlotte Verney)
  • 1984 24 Hours of Le Mans – 11th (with Jean-Philippe Grand, Jean-Paul Libert and Pascal Witmeur
  • 1985 24 Hours of Le Mans – 43rd, DNF (with Michel Dubois, Hubert Striebig and Noël del Bello)
  • 1986 24 Hours of Le Mans – 17th (with del Bello, Scotty and Lucien Rossiaud
  • 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans – 27th, not classified (with Scotty and Pierre-Alain Lombardi)

Jean Rondeau was killed in a road car accident in 1985, but his name lived on at the race he lived for – on this car, through 1988. This car also competed in nine other European endurance events, with at least one win.

The engine is a 3.0-liter V8 from Cosworth making 415 horsepower. It’s a race car and weighs next to nothing. So it’s quick. And it’s a piece of history – although it never won the big race, it holds an impressive record and is eligible for historic events. The pre-sale estimate is $790,000-$990,000. To read the complete description, click here. And for the entire RM in Monaco offering, click here.

Update: sold $464,128.

1910 Gladiator

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1910 Gladiator 12/14hp Type P Series 51 Tourer

Offered by Bonhams | Hendon, U.K. | April 30, 2912

The Gladiator Cycle Company was founded in 1891 by Alexandre Darracq and Paul Aucoq. From here the history of the marque becomes complicated: in 1896 Darracq sold the company to a group of Britons including Harvey du Cros. Darracq then went on to found the automobile company that bore his name. Meanwhile, Gladiator merged with Clément Cycles – which was founded by Adolphe Clément. The Clément-Gladiator company built it’s first car in 1896. In 1903, Adolphe Clément resigned to start Clément-Bayard and build cars of his own.

Gladiator produced cars under the name “Gladiator,” as well as “Clément,” simultaneously.  At the same time, Adolphe Clément began selling his new, French-built Clément-Bayards in England under the name Clément-Talbot. There were other Clément-dash-somethings as well, but we won’t go into them now.

The car featured here is a 12/14hp Type P and it features a four-cylinder engine and a four/five seat coachbuilt body by Fred W. Baker Ltd of Stourbridge. It looks nice and has a detailed ownership history. There were so many automobile marques that didn’t last too terribly long and I find them all pretty interesting. Quite a few still have examples extant, while countless marques have been lost to time. The Gladiator marque ceased production in 1920.

The pre-sale estimate is $40,000-$48,000. For the complete catalog description, click here and to see the rest of Bonhams offerings for the RAF Museum in Hendon, click here.

Update: Did not sell.

The 9th Ferrari Built

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1948 Ferrari 166 Inter Spyder Corsa

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

The Ferrari 166 Inter was among the first models produced by the company. This particular example was the ninth Ferrari built – of all models (the sixth 166). It is an extremely early car that is preceded mostly by competition cars. It has a coachbuilt body by Carrozzeria Fontana of Padua, which is near Venice. Only 37 of these cars were built.

The 166 Inter was a competitive model from the get-go, with this car winning the 1949 Italian Hill Climb Championship. Here is a brief (and not in any way complete) rundown of it’s competition history:

  • 1948 Pescara Grand Prix – 2nd (with Count Bruno Sterzi)
  • 1948 Coppo d’Oro – 9th (with Sterzi and Enzo Monari)
  • 1949 Italian Hillclimb Championship – 1st (with Giovanni Bracco)
  • 1949 Mille Miglia – unknown result (with Bracco and Umberto Maglioli)
  • 1949 Grand Prix di San Remo – 6th (with Bracco)
  • 1950 Targa Florio – abandoned (with Giannino Marzotto and Marco Crosara)
  • 1950 Mille Miglia – 9th (with Count Vittorio Marzotto and Paolo Fontana)
  • 1951 Grenzlandring – 2nd (with Franco Comotti)
  • 1951 Grand Prix di Modena – 6th (with Frolian Gonzalez)
  • 1955 Targa Florio – unknown result (with Francesco Matrullo)

This car was entered in many other races and hillclimbs with various other drivers. The body that is on the car now was introduced to the car in 1950 by the then-owners, the Marzottos. The ‘722’ on the door was first given to the car for the 1950 Mille Miglia, when it was driven by the car’s owner and the designer of the car’s body.

The engine had been swapped and upgraded over the years, but when the car was discovered in Rome in 1970, a 190 horsepower V-12 166 engine was pulled from an ex-Marzotto Ferrari Formula 2 car and installed when it was restored in 1977. It was restored again, with the final pieces being finished in 2012, including a “preservation” of the 1950 Fontana body.

This is a storied example of the early days of Ferrari. It’s fresh and eligible for just about any historic event you wish to partake in. The pre-sale estimate is €1.100.000 – €1.800.000 or $1,440,000-$2,350,000. For the complete catalog description, with a more in depth history, click here. And for more on RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $1,307,950.

Ferrari 625 TRC

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1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spider

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Impossible as it may seem, auction houses keep topping themselves with rarer and rarer cars – or in the case of RM, rarer and rarer Ferraris. This is one will be hard to top as it is but one of two 1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spiders built. And it’s just sitting there, waiting for you to open your checkbook.

Originally purchased by West Coast Ferrari distributor Johnny von Neumann, this car has spent its entire life both A) in known hands and b) at the race track. While it never competed “with the big boys” at races like Le Mans, it has plenty of SCCA and other club racing wins under its belt. More recently, it has competed in over 100 races dedicated to vintage racing cars – far more than it did when it was new. The most interesting, perhaps, of all races this car was involved in was the very first race at Laguna Seca in 1957, where it finished 2nd.

When Ferrari shipped this car new to California, it was equipped with a 2.5-liter Lampredi straight-four engine making about 225 horsepower. In 1960, the second owner swapped out the original engine for a Chevy V8 (I shuddered as I read that the first time). Later on, the Chevy engine was replaced in favor of a 3.0-liter V-12 making 320 horsepower and the car was restored in the early 1980s.

“But, wait!” you say. “This is not a numbers matching car, surely the value is lessened.” Ah, but the original engine was tracked down (at some point, presumably by the current owner who has owned the car for 30 years) and it is offered with the car. So when you buy it, you can re-install it if you so choose. I’m beginning to wish my list of problems in life included: “which engine do I want in my Ferrari this week?”

This is one of those pesky “Estimate Upon Request” cars, so, in other words, if you need to ask, you can’t afford it. But look for it to fetch multiple millions. For the entire – and much more complete – catalog description, click here. To check out the other cars from RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $6,526,800.

Alfa Romeo Daytona

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1968 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/2 Daytona

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 11-12, 2012

The Tipo 33/2 was Alfa Romeo’s prototype sports racing car for 1968. This one was a works race car that had at least one victory – finishing first at Imola in 1968 with Nino Vaccarella and Teodoro Zeccoli. The rest of the podium consisted of two other Tipo 33/2’s – a testament to the car’s dominating performance.

The “Daytona” moniker was given to the car after it won the 2-lire class at the 1968 24 Hours of Daytona. Tipo 33/2’s grabbed wins at the Targa Florio and class wins at the 1000km of the Nürburgring and 1000km of Monza.

The competition history of this car  includes:

  • 1968 500km Imola – 1st (with Nino Vacarella & Teodoro Zecolli)
  • 1969 1000km Monza – 10th (with Antonio Zadra & Giuseppe Dalla Torre)
  • 1969 GP Swerige – 12th (with Antonio Zadra)
  • 1969 Sports Neubiberg – 7th (with Klaus Reisch)
  • 1970 Dijon – 14th (with Hubert Ascher)
  • 1970 Sports Neubiberg – 5th (with Klaus Reisch)
  • 1970 Magny Cours International – 3rd (with Klaus Reisch)

This model is stated to be “the most original of its kind” and it looks fantastic – I’m sure it sounds just as good (you can get a brief snippet of engine noise from the very dramatic video of the car that RM has on their website). It has a 270 horsepower 2.0-liter V8 (there were cars with a 315 horsepower 2.5-liter V8).

A total of 28 Tipo 33/2’s were built between 1967 and 1968. Amazingly, there is an even rarer road-car variant – but who needs that when the car offered here is road registered and ready to race… er drive safely on the highway! RM’s pre-sale estimate on this car is €900,000-€1,100,000 or $1,199,970-$1,466,630. For the complete catalog description, click here. And to see the rest of what RM has in store for Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $1,305,360.

Baldwin Motion Manta Ray

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1973 Chevrolet Baldwin Motion Corvette Manta Ray GT

Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | May 19, 2012

The Baldwin-Motion Performance Group came together in 1967 and was active in its original form until 1974. It was a partnership between Baldwin Chevrolet and Motion Performance – both located in Baldwin, Long Island in New York. They took standard Chevrolets of the day and turned them into monsters – drag strip terrors that would eat up competitors.

Well, the muscle car era began to fade rather abruptly in the early-70s and the partnership tried something different: this 1973 Manta Ray GT Corvette. It was one of three built and the only one known to exist. It has the 350 small block V8 putting out 425 horsepower. It was also given a makeover – the attractiveness of which depends on your taste. But it is certainly distinctive.

Baldwin-Motion cars are very desirable today. The name carries similar gravitas as “Yenko” or “Nickey.” And this one is far rarer than a Baldwin-Motion Camaro from the late 60s. Better buy it now.

There is no pre-sale estimate available for this car. For the complete catalog description, click here and for more on Mecum’s Spring Classic in Indianapolis, click here.

Update: not sold.

1947 Standard Eight

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1947 Standard Eight Convertible

Offered by Barrett-Jackson | Palm Beach, Florida | April 6, 2012

The Standard Flying Eight began production in 1938 and crept along until 1941 when the Standard Motor Company focused on building de Havilland Mosquitoes for the RAF. Production of the Eight restarted in 1945 without the “Flying” part of the name.

Just about everything carried over from the pre-war model, including the 28 horsepower 1.0 liter straight-four. The only new feature was the four-speed gearbox, up one gear from the pre-war model. The car was phased out in 1948 to make way for its replacement – the Triumph Mayflower. In total, 53,099 Eights were built between 1945 and 1948, including two-door, convertible and estate body styles.

The model on offer here shows quite nice and, for whatever reason, has the pre-war three-speed transmission. Cute sells, but the Standard name is not well-known in America, however, this would be a fun car to pick up for less than $20,000. For the complete catalog description, click here. And to see the other cars Barrett-Jackson has for sale in Palm Beach, click here.

Update: Sold $10,450.