Tag Archives: classic cars

Citroen Kégresse

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1929 Citroen P19 Kégresse

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 6, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Everything we’ve ever written about half-tracks on this site has become quite popular, so here you go: a 1929 non-military Citroen half-track. Or Snowcat. Citroen actually built half-tracks (or Kégresse, for the name of the man who patented the tracks) throughout the 1920s and 30s. The French Army used them, but they were also sold to anyone who wanted one. Andre Citroen used one to cross the Sahara.

This model is a P19 – it uses a 2.5-liter straight-six, making it more powerful than most other half-tracks built by Citroen. And rarer too. The rear end is a flatbed, which isn’t that exciting – but at least it’s functional.

In fact, this whole thing is very functional and could be a lot of fun. It’s certainly different. Strangely, Kégresse production ceased in 1940 (when Germany took over), but there are a number of these out there. Here’s your chance to get one for between $43,000-$65,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Artcurial’s auction lineup.

Update: Sold $40,068.

The First Facel Vega

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1954 Facel Vega 54 Prototype V

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Facel S.A. was a company founded by Jean Daninos in 1939 to make aircraft parts. After the war, they turned to building bodies for other French manufacturers. In the early 1950s, Daninos decided he wanted to build his own car, an attractive French car using big Chrysler engines.

This very car was the first car produced by Facel that wore the Vega name. It was a prototype that Daninos sent to the U.S. for engine testing with Chrysler and then became the factory tester and demonstrator. It has some details that differ from later production cars, like a shorter wheelbase.

The engine is a 4.5-liter Chrysler V-8 making 180 horsepower. Once production Facel Vegas were ready, Daninos kept this as his personal ride and had its styling updated and repainted. It has had other owners over the years but it has never been completely restored. This is the first Facel Vega and it is as it was when company founder Jean Daninos owned it. It should bring between $385,000-$600,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial.

Update: Sold $560,968.

Vertias Meteor

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1950 Veritas Meteor

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 4, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The regulations for Formula One changed after the war, leaving a hole below it for smaller displacement cars. Enter Formula 2. It lasted up through 1984, when it was then replaced by Formula 3000. Veritas was a German manufacturer that hopped on the Formula 2 train early. The Meteor was their single-seater model.

Vertias cars were mainly powered by pre-war BMW 328 engines. Cars built after 1949 used a new 2.0-liter straight-four from Heinkel. This example was the final single-seater built by Veritas and it was only raced once, at the 1952 Chemnitz Grand Prix.

When Veritas shut down in 1953, this car was given to an employee instead of a paycheck. He kept it until the late 1970s, when it made its way to Las Vegas and stayed there until 2008. It was a runner-up in class at the 1992 Pebble Beach Concours and was most recently restored in 2010. Less than 50 Veritas competition cars were built and this one should bring between $230,000-$260,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams in Paris.

Update: Not sold.

Abarth 2200 Coupe

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1959 Abarth 2200 Coupe by Allemano

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 3, 2016

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

Carlo Abarth’s company began out of the downfall of Cisitalia, where he worked. So in 1949, Abarth & C. became its own marque… sort of. They built some of their own cars, but most of them were just tuned Fiats of some variety. The name lives on today as a trim level on Fiat cars.

One such Fiat that Abarth got his hands on was the 2100 Sedan. Produced from 1959 through 1968, the 2100 was Fiat’s large car. They were all four-door sedans and wagons. But Abarth went to Italian coachbuilder Allemano and decided they’d build a coupe version. Allemano crafted this nice body for it and Abarth went to work on the engine, enlarging the straight-six to from 2.1 to 2.2-liters. Horsepower was rated at 135.

Only 28 of these were built (and not all were bodied by Allemano, but most were). The restoration was completed in 2011 and it isn’t a car that comes up for sale all that often. It should bring between $195,000-$220,000. Click here for more info and here for more from RM Sotheby’s in Paris.

Update: Sold $131,200.

December 2015 Auction Highlights, Pt. II

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Rounding out 2015, we have an all-Porsche sale from Auctionata. The top sale was this 1970 Porsche 911 2.3 ST Group IV for $1,167,800. Click here for the full rundown.

Photo - Auctionata

Photo – Auctionata

Bonhams held a special sale of the two millionth Land Rover – a 2015 Land Rover Defender 90 that brought $596,404.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

And to finish off 2015, Coys’ London sale. The top seller was this 1969 Mercedes-Benz SSK Count Trossi re-creation (based around the mechanical bits of a 1953 MB 300). It brought $502,625.

Photo - Coys

Photo – Coys

Both of our featured cars, the Delin and SLR Stirling Moss, failed to sell. Check here for complete results.

Now we move into January and that means Mecum’s Kissimmee sale. The top seller was our featured 1970 Plymouth Hemi Cuda Convertible for $2,675,000. The next top seller was a 1971 Plymouth Hemi Cuda Convertible. For a one model year newer car you’re gonna pay $2,300,000.

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

A 1970 Dodge Hemi Challenger Convertible we featured also broke the big money barrier, coming in at $1,650,000. And the Corphibian Prototype brought a relatively reasonable $70,000. Click here for full results.

With this post, we are getting into the Scottsdale sales, starting with Bonhams where our featured McLaren P1 was the top sale at $2,090,000. A previously-featured Buckmobile sold for $44,000. Interesting sales included this 1993 Porsche 911 Strosek Mega Speedster for $134,200.

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The 1928 Mercedes-Benz La Baule brought $973,500 and the Fiat 8V failed to sell. More results can be found on Bonhams’ website.

Four-Wheeled Darmont

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1934 Darmont Type V Junior

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 4, 2016

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

Darmont was a car manufacturer from just outside Paris that was founded in 1919 when Robert Darmont began importing three-wheeled Morgans from the U.K. When the war ended, he teamed up with his brother André and to build Morgans under license under the name Darmont-Morgan. Darmont-branded cars went on sale in 1926 and lasted through 1939.

The Type V Junior was the last new model introduced by the company and it was the only four-wheeled car the company produced. Going on sale in 1935, the car was powered by a 1.1-liter V-twin engine.

Production ended in ’39 and this one features an “older” restoration. These are rare and it’s unknown how many were built. It should bring between $22,000-$33,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $20,619.

T26 Grand Sport by Dubos

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1951 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport by Dubos

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Talbot-Lago T26 Record was a car introduced by Talbot-Lago in 1946. In late 1947, a Grand Sport version was introduced, which included a more powerful 4.5-liter straight-six making 190 horsepower (in this form). Grand Sport cars (that weren’t race cars) were all sent out to coachbuilders to have some of the best designs of the period attached to them.

This one went to Carrossier Louis Dubos near Paris for this elegant cabriolet that, while originally black, looks glorious in white. Never completely restored, mechanical bits have been redone as needed. This is one of three T26s bodied by Dubos and the only Grand Sport to wear one of their bodies. It should sell for between $260,000-$350,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $293,834.

Coachbuilt Classics at Rétromobile

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Coachbuilt Classics at Rétromobile

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

1951 Salmson G72 Coupe by Saoutchik

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Salmson, the French auto manufacturer, built cars up through 1957. They had a range of sedans and two-doors. This is a G72, a model introduced in 1950. Most G72s were sedans, but some of them were sent to coachbuilders for something a little more fancy. Power was supplied by a 2.3-liter straight-four.

This car was bodied by Saoutchik, the legendary French coachbuilder. It was repainted some 25 years ago but otherwise it is original. Only 254 of this series of the G72 were produced and this one carries a one-off body. It should bring between $175,000-$240,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $207,019

1953 Renault Frégate Ondine Cabriolet by Ghia

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Renault Frégate was Renault’s executive sedan that they built between 1951 and 1960. Estate wagons were available as well, under different names. Renault showed a convertible at the 1953 Paris Motor Show, but it never entered production. Later, three more examples were shown and two disappeared. It is believed this is the only survivor of those cars.

The body is actually made of some kind of polyester blend. We’re really not sure what that means, but the engine is likely a 2.0-liter straight-four. The restoration was completed in the 1990s and it is believed that this car was used by legendary French singer Edith Piaf in the 1950s. It is the only car like it and it should bring between $87,000-$110,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial.

Update: Sold $86,814.

1939 Graham-Paige Type 97 Supercharged Cabriolet by Pourtout

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Graham brothers of Dearborn, Michigan, began producing their own trucks in 1922 after years of modifying Fords. That company was bought by Dodge in 1925 and the brothers joined Dodge’s board. But when Chrysler took over Dodge in 1928, the Graham brand was soon phased out. Good thing the brothers bought the Paige-Detroit Motor Company in 1927.

So in 1928, the Graham-Paige marque was introduced. In 1938 they introduced a bold (and awesome) new style that they built in low quantities through 1941. After the war, the automotive portion of the company was acquired by Kaiser-Frazer (which never reintroduced the Graham-Paige automobile brand), but Graham-Paige, strangely, soldiered on as a real estate company into the 1960s before becoming the Madison Square Garden Corporation. Weird, huh?

Anyway, the Type 97 Supercharged was built in 1938 and 1939. It is powered by a supercharged 3.5-liter straight-six making 115 horsepower. This car left Graham-Paige as a coupe (they didn’t offer a convertible) and made its way to France to be bodied by Pourtout in Paris. It may be the only such car with this body. It has been restored and should sell for between $165,000-$215,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $186,985.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island 2017, $770,000.

1949 Delahaye 135MS Coupe by Ghia

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Delahaye 135 was one of their best models. It lasted (in some form) between 1935 and 1954. The 135MS was the sportiest version – sometimes it was a race car, and sometimes it was a road car. It was the final Delahaye car available for purchase before the brand was phased out.

Bodies for the car varied widely. This car, with its covered wheels and sort of boxy design, was styled by Ghia in Turin. It’s beautiful. The engine is a 3.6-liter straight-six making 120 horsepower. It was built for the Shah of Iran who owned it until the late 1950s when it went back to Europe. Since then it spent time in the Blackhawk Collection and the John O’Quinn collection. The restoration was carried out sometime in the early 1990s. It’s a wonderful car and one of three Delahaye 135s styled by Ghia. It should sell for between $210,000-$285,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $180,307.

1951 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport by Dubos

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Talbot-Lago T26 Record was a car introduced by Talbot-Lago in 1946. In late 1947, a Grand Sport version was introduced, which included a more powerful 4.5-liter straight-six making 190 horsepower (in this form). Grand Sport cars (that weren’t race cars) were all sent out to coachbuilders to have some of the best designs of the period attached to them.

This one went to Carrossier Louis Dubos near Paris for this elegant cabriolet that, while originally black, looks glorious in white. Never completely restored, mechanical bits have been redone as needed. This is one of three T26s bodied by Dubos and the only Grand Sport to wear one of their bodies. It should sell for between $260,000-$350,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $293,834.

Pourtout-bodied Graham-Paige

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1939 Graham-Paige Type 97 Supercharged Cabriolet by Pourtout

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Graham brothers of Dearborn, Michigan, began producing their own trucks in 1922 after years of modifying Fords. That company was bought by Dodge in 1925 and the brothers joined Dodge’s board. But when Chrysler took over Dodge in 1928, the Graham brand was soon phased out. Good thing the brothers bought the Paige-Detroit Motor Company in 1927.

So in 1928, the Graham-Paige marque was introduced. In 1938 they introduced a bold (and awesome) new style that they built in low quantities through 1941. After the war, the automotive portion of the company was acquired by Kaiser-Frazer (which never reintroduced the Graham-Paige automobile brand), but Graham-Paige, strangely, soldiered on as a real estate company into the 1960s before becoming the Madison Square Garden Corporation. Weird, huh?

Anyway, the Type 97 Supercharged was built in 1938 and 1939. It is powered by a supercharged 3.5-liter straight-six making 115 horsepower. This car left Graham-Paige as a coupe (they didn’t offer a convertible) and made its way to France to be bodied by Pourtout in Paris. It may be the only such car with this body. It has been restored and should sell for between $165,000-$215,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $186,985.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island 2017, $770,000.

Renault Frégate by Ghia

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1953 Renault Frégate Ondine Cabriolet by Ghia

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 5, 2016

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Renault Frégate was Renault’s executive sedan that they built between 1951 and 1960. Estate wagons were available as well, under different names. Renault showed a convertible at the 1953 Paris Motor Show, but it never entered production. Later, three more examples were shown and two disappeared. It is believed this is the only survivor of those cars.

The body is actually made of some kind of polyester blend. We’re really not sure what that means, but the engine is likely a 2.0-liter straight-four. The restoration was completed in the 1990s and it is believed that this car was used by legendary French singer Edith Piaf in the 1950s. It is the only car like it and it should bring between $87,000-$110,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial.

Update: Sold $86,814.