Tag Archives: classic cars

Cannon GT

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1964 Cannon GT Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, U.K. | March 18, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

Mike Cannon was originally from Australia but it was when he came to the U.K. that he got hooked on trials racing. He made quite a name for himself at it and ended up building a series of really basic trials cars – about 120 in total – that saw a fair amount of success on the off-road hillclimbs.

In the 1960s, Cannon decided to take his skills to the pavement and his goal was to beat the popular – and winning – Diva GT. He built a spaceframe chassis and coated it with fiberglass and aluminium skin. Underneath is a 1.1-liter Ford straight-four.

It is believed that only two of these were ever actually built. It kind of looks like a British Cheetah. It’s been pretty active on the historic racing circuit and is looking for a new wheelman (or woman) to keep it going. It should sell for between $34,000-$41,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $31,256.

March 2018 Auction Highlights

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We pick up where we left off last time, with the other half of Silverstone Auctions’ Race Retro sale. This was the “Classic Car” half and this 1997 Aston Martin V8 Vantage V550 that was purchased new by Elton John was the top sale at $306,412.

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

The one-and-only Aspira supercar we previously-featured sold here for $95,851. Click here for full results.

On to Historics at Brooklands at Ascot Racecourse. The Railton we featured failed to sell, but the top sale was this 1992 Porsche 911 RS that brought $386,596. Click here for complete results.

Photo – Historics at Brooklands

Brightwells held a Classic & Vintage Cars sale on March 7th. The only car we featured, the Daimler DS420 Landaulette, sold for $13,852. The top sale was this 1975 Aston Martin V8 Series 3 for $76,190. Click here for more from Brightwells.

Photo – Brightwells

Onward to Amelia Island! We’ll start with Bonhams where two of our feature cars failed to sell: the 1899 Panhard and the Kurtis KK4000 Indy car. The overall top sale was this 2015 McLaren P1 for $1,710,000.

Photo – Bonhams

The 1912 Thomas Flyer sold for $196,000, the Kellison J4R $28,000, and the Lotus Mk VI $30,240. Click here for other results.

To finish off the first half of Amelia Island results, we have Gooding & Company. The cars with the largest estimates all failed to sell so the top seller ended up being this dusty fresh 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB Long Nose Alloy for $2,530,000 (which is still some pretty big money).

Photo – Gooding & Company

Another Ferrari, the 212 Europa we featured, brought some big money too: $1,600,000. The Lion-Peugeot handily exceeded its estimate, selling for $220,000. And Frank Kurtis’ 500S sold for $112,750. Click here for everything else.

Attila-Chevrolet

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1965 Attila-Chevrolet Mk 3

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, U.K. | March 18, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

Attila was the brand name used on sports racing cars built by Racing Developments of London. The company only operated in 1964 and 1965 and was the brainchild of Mark Perry and Val Dare-Bryan. Their cars were made in extremely limited numbers.

This Mk 3 features a tubular spaceframe chassis and has a 5.0-liter Chevrolet V-8 mounted behind the driver. This particular chassis was built for a wealthy gentleman driver and it was used in competition around the U.K. into the 1970s.

Active on the historic circuit, this Attila would be welcome at most events. It is one of three Mk 3 chassis built (and one of two known), with total Attila production totaling not much more than that. A sleek 1960s racer, this car should bring between $125,000-$150,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Not sold, Bonhams Goodwood, October 2020.

Duesenberg J-540

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1935 Duesenberg Model J Special Berline by Judkins

For Sale at Hyman Ltd. | St. Louis, Missouri

Photo – Hyman Ltd.

I was recently at the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum in Auburn, Indiana, and I was talking to someone who worked there who described the Model J Duesenberg to me as a “clean sheet, ground-up, no expense spared design to rival the best Europe had to offer.” Well the designers really over-delivered and the result was essentially the best car in the world.

Three different wheelbases would ultimately be offered, with this car sporting the optional “long” wheelbase, which is the preferred length for cars with opulent, closed bodywork. After 1932, a bare chassis (which included the 265 horsepower, 6.9-liter straight-eight engine) would run you $9,500. A majority of the Model J engine and chassis were built in 1929 and 1930 but the economy didn’t produce as many buyers as boss man E.L. Cord might’ve liked and Duesenberg continued to sell chassis up through 1937.

This car was purchased in 1935 and sent to Judkins in Massachusetts to be fitted with this “Special” sedan body. It’s been fully restored to as-new condition and has already won awards. It’s now for sale in St. Louis for just over $1 million. Click here for more info.

Lotus Mk VI

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1954 Lotus Mk VI

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 8, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

The Mk VI was the first production car built by Colin Chapman’s Lotus. That’s right – there were five cars before this one that never made it to production, including this one (though to be fair, the Mk V was never actually built).

Introduced in 1952, the Mk VI was available through 1957 when it was replaced by the legendary Lotus Seven. It’s powered by a 1.3-liter straight-four from an MG TA that makes 50 horsepower (though other engines with similar outputs were also used). Top speed was about 93 mph.

These were mostly sold as kits (which explains the engine differences) and made for great track cars, though anything requiring a pit stop was probably out as those rear wheels are pretty much covered up. Only about 110 of these were sold and this one should bring between $50,000-$70,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $30,240.

Ferrari 212 Europa

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1952 Ferrari 212 Europa Cabriolet by Ghia

Offered by Gooding & Company | Amelia Island, Florida | March 9, 2018

Photo – Gooding & Company

The 212 Europa was actually a series of 212 Inter cars that had an “EU” suffix on their chassis and engine numbers. The 212 Inter was introduced in 1951 and lasted through 1952. In all, just 78 examples were made and only the last 29 of those were identified as Europas. It was sort of a stepping stone to the 250 Europa that burst on the scene in 1953.

This car has wonderful style. Bodied by Ghia, it appeared on the 1952 Geneva and Turin Auto Show stands. It was one of two cars like this they built but the cars differ slightly as they were different colors and had minor trim differences. The rear fender skirts make this thing look amazing. It’s powered by a 2.6-liter V-12 making 170 horsepower.

This car has a pretty amazing history. It was in the Detroit area in the 1960s and in 1972 it was found at a swap meet (it had a Corvette engine in it at that point) and traded hands for $600. Ferrari hunter Tom Shaughnessy was able to rescue it in 2011 and it was restored over a six year period thereafter by its next owner. It’s a classic Ferrari with great 1950s styling and it should bring between $1,800,000-$2,200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $1,600,000.

Update: Sold, Bonhams Carmel 2021, $1,820,000.

Thomas Flyer Roadster

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1912 Thomas Flyer Model MC 6-40 Roadster

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 8, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

We’ve featured a number of Thomas Flyer motorcars over the years but all of them have been massive touring cars. What we have here is a sporty – but still quite large – two-seat roadster. Thomas Flyer touring cars are famous because of their win in the 1908 New York to Paris race.

Thomas built automobiles between 1903 and 1918. Their sweet spot was right around 1906 through 1912, and I would consider this a “later example” of the marque as their offerings really tapered off after 1912. The Model MC 6-40 was offered in 1912 only and it was the smaller of the two models Thomas sold that year. It’s powered by a 7.2-liter straight-six making 64 horsepower.

The two-passenger roadster (or runabout) was the entry-level Thomas Flyer for 1912. It cost $4,000 when new and should bring between $175,000-$225,000 at auction. The first time it was shown after the restoration was complete was in 2015. It hasn’t been used much since then and is ready for the new owner to use and show. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $196,000.

Kurtis 500S

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1954 Kurtis 500S

Offered by Gooding & Company | Amelia Island, Florida | March 9, 2018

Photo – Gooding & Company

This is a Kurtis road car. But not just any Kurtis road car. This is Frank Kurtis’ Kurtis road car. Frank Kurtis built some of Indianapolis’ best race cars in the 1940s and 1950s and he also built some great sports cars. The 500S was based on his Indy Roadsters and kind of resembles an Allard J2X – which had a similar purpose.

This car is powered by a 5.7-liter Chevrolet V-8 making an estimated 400 horsepower. The body is aluminium. This chassis was sold to Frank Kurtis (and his son, Arlen) in the early 1980s as a disassembled car for the father and son team to restore.

The running gear they used was new (thus the huge horsepower rating from the Chevy crate motor) but it was an original 500S chassis. The Kurtis family sold the car in 2003 and the current owner bought it in 2014. Only about 26 500S road cars were built and this one has a pretty good story. It should bring between $125,000-$175,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $112,750.

Duesenberg J-187

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1929 Duesenberg Model J Clear-Vision Sedan by Murphy

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 10, 2018

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

You might think that a sedan version of a Model J Duesenberg would be less desirable than any of the big convertibles or touring cars and, for the most part, you’d be right. Now that isn’t to say they aren’t desirable, but they tend to be on the cheaper side of the Model J spectrum.

But this is a special kind of sedan. It is one of six such examples constructed and one of five that remain. Murphy’s “Clear-Vision” consisted of skinny pillars around all of the car’s windows, increasing sight lines and decreasing blind spots. It’s a very pleasing design.

This example, if course, is powered by a 6.9-liter straight-eight engine good for 265 horsepower. This car retains its original body, engine, and firewall and has known ownership history from new (which included a stint as a Duesenberg company car). It was restored while part of the Imperial Palace collection and has been preserved in a private museum for almost the last decade. It should bring between $750,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Panhard Wagonette

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1899 Panhard et Levassor Type M2F 6HP Twin-Cylinder Wagonette

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 8, 2018

Photo – Bonhams

In today’s market, the hot segment is SUVs, particularly small SUVs. Mazda has the CX-5, Honda has the CR-V, and Toyota has the RAV4 (among many, many others). But think back to just prior to the turn of the century (as if any of us were there). There were a fair number of automakers and they were all competing for business. But they all produced completely different vehicles, right? Well, apparently, in the late 1890s, the Wagonette was a popular segment to be in. Check out this Daimler (and this one) and this Fisson. Who knew?

This Type M2F Wagonette is powered by a 1.7-liter straight-twin making six horsepower. It is thought that it was discovered alongside two other extremely old cars in France in the 1960s. The restoration on this car is a few decades old, but it’s seen continual use (such as the at the London-to-Brighton run) and has been kept in very nice condition.

There are some of these out there, but I’m not sure how many were actually built. It is one of very few early Panhards in the U.S. and is a great example of what was once a popular car. It should bring between $250,000-$350,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Not sold.