Tag Archives: classic cars

One-Off Lincoln Concept Car

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1955 Lincoln Indianapolis by Boano

Offered by RM Auctions | New York, New York | November 21, 2013

1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Executive Study by Boano

This outlandish-looking Lincoln was designed and built in Italy by Gian Carlo Boano. There are some aircraft-inspired design elements that really take you back to the golden age of concept cars: the 1950s. I love the exhaust (even though the aren’t even functional and don’t match the number of cylinders under the hood).

What is underhood is a 200 horsepower 5.6-liter V-8. The car debuted at the 1955 Turin Auto Show and Ford purchased it from Boano right after. Ghia had a successful run with Chrysler in the 1950s and Boano wanted the same thing with Ford. Ford offered Boano a 10-year contract after this car was built, but Boano decided to partner with Fiat instead. So much for that.

The car has had a few owners since it left Ford’s ownership and was owned by one man for over three decades. The restoration was completed a little over 10 years ago and the car was shown at Pebble Beach in 2001. This has to be one of the most stylish Lincolns ever built. It will command a pricey sum. The pre-sale estimate is $2,000,000-$2,500,000. For more info click here and for more from this awesome sale, click here.

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

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s, Andrews Collection 2015, $1,210,000.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2019, $1,105,000.

A British Star

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1931 Star Comet Fourteen Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Harrogate, U.K. | November 13, 2013

1931 Star Comet Fourteen Coupe

This is not to be confused with the American car company also called Star that operated between 1922 and 1928 (there were other as well, but this was the biggest) and was part of Billy Durant’s little empire. This Star was actually founded in 1898 in Wolverhampton by Edward Lisle and William Sharratt who owned the Star Cycle Company since the 1870s.

Cars were sold under the Star, Starling, and Stuart brand names over the years. Star found new owners around 1932 but the economy was tanking and the company, which had become known for their well-appointed and well-made cars, didn’t have a model in the entry-level segment. The Comet Fourteen was introduced near the end of 1931 and it was luxurious and too expensive to make – and even harder to sell in tough economic times. Star folded in 1932 and their leftover cars were sold through 1935.

The Comet Fourteen used a 2.1-liter straight-six making 14 horsepower. Very few were made and even fewer survive. They were available with two or four doors and even though this one has four, Bonhams still lists it as a “coupe.” I don’t know. Anyway, it should sell for between $13,000-$16,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams’ Harrogate sale.

Update: Sold $12,857.

October 2012 Auction Roundup

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First up, we head to Paris for a sale from Osenat. I wasn’t able to feature anything from this sale, but wanted to feature this 1935 Hotchkiss 411 Cabourg. It sold for $17,800.

1935 Hotchkiss 411 Cabourg

The top sale was this 1937 Citroen Traction 11B Cabriolet for $117,800. Click here for full results.

1937 Citroen Traction 11B Cabriolet

Next up was H&H’s sale at the Imperial War Museum. The top sale there was this 1956 Bentley S1 Continental Fastback. It brought $498,900.

1956 Bentley S1 Continental Fastback

Cool cars were topped by our feature cars: the Argyll sold for $56,250 and the Briton failed to sell. Next up was this 1910 Renault AX Tourer for $36,000.

1910 Renault AX Tourer

And finally, a weird one: a 1965 A.K.S. Special. These kit cars were made by Auto Kraft Shells in England during the 1950s and 1960s and this one is based on a Triumph Spitfire. It sold for $5,080. Click here for full results.

1965 A.K.S. Special

Artcurial’s October sale had some big numbers. The top sale was this 1962 Maserati 3500 GTI Cabriolet by Vignale for $704,972.

1962 Maserati 3500 GTI Cabriolet by Vignale

Our featured Lamborghini LM002 brought $125,669. And the Matra Djet sold for $67,432. Interesting cars were topped by this 1972 Alfa Romeo Junior 1600 Zagato Coupe which went for $56,704 (no links to the individual catalog pages as Artcurial had taken them down).

1972 Alfa Romeo Junior 1600 Zagato Coupe

Then there was this 1968 Fiat 2300 S Ghia Coupe which sold for $26,053. Check out full results here.

1968 Fiat 2300 S Ghia Coupe

Moving on, H&H’s October 30th sale at Pavilion Gardens saw one of our featured cars (the Brough Superior road car) as the top sale. It brought $107,800. Our other feature car, the Mills Busy-Bee, sold for $15,100. The coolest other car was this 1924 Panhard et Levassor X46 Landaulette that sold for $32,000. Check out full results here.

1924 Panhard et Levassor Type X46 Landaulette

And finally, Bonhams’ London-to-Brighton sale. The top sale was our featured Clement-Talbot for $967,458. Second place went to this very interesting 1902 Panhard et Levassor Type B1 12HP Four-Cylinder Rear-Entrance Tonneau by Labourdette. It sold for an equally-impressive $931,714.

1902 Panhard et Levassor Type B1 12HP Four-Cylinder Rear-Entrance Tonneau by Labourdette

Our featured Warwick failed to sell. The Ariel tri-car/quadricycle sold for $73,401. There was another cool three-wheeler at this sale: a 1904 Cyklon 3.5HP Cyklonette. It brought $47,710.

1904 Cyklon 3.5HP Cyklonette

Our featured Georges Richard sold for $91,571. And the Lacoste et Battmann went for $123,920. One more cool car: a 1903 Winton 22HP Twin-Cylinder Two-Seat Runabout. That’s a decent amount of power for 1903 – yet another reason why Winton was awesome. This could’ve been yours for $172,173. Check out full results here.

1903 Winton 22HP Twin-Cylinder Two-Seat Runabout

Duesenberg SJ-512

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1933 Duesenberg Model SJ Beverly Berline by Murphy

Offered by RM Auctions | New York, New York | November 21, 2013

1933 Duesenberg Model SJ-512 Beverly Berline by Murphy

This is one beautiful Duesey. The SJ variant of the Model J was first available in 1932. It offered a factory supercharger for the Lycoming straight-eight. Horsepower jumped to a whopping 320. There was nothing else like it.

There have been a number of normal Model Js that have been upgraded over the years to SJ specification. But this is the real deal. This is one of just 36 factory SJs built and one of only five that has an enclosed body on it. The body in this case is from Murphy and it’s a stunner.

This car was delivered new to Powell Crosley, Jr. in Cincinnati. He would later build his own cars – but they were no match in size or power. More recently, this car was restored by RM and is being sold from the ownership by Joseph Cassini (who has won top honors at Pebble Beach twice). This will be a very pricey car. You can check out more here and see more from this impressive sale here.

Update: Pre-sale estimate $2,000,000-$2,500,000.

Update II: Sold $1,760,000.

Clement-Talbot

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1903 Clement-Talbot Type CT4K 18hp Four-Cylinder Roi-d’Italie Tonneau by Rothschild

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 1, 2013

1903 Clement-Talbot Type CT4K 18hp Four-Cylinder Roi-d'Italie Tonneau by Rothschild

This is one of the stars of the show at what has become one of my very favorite auctions of the year. One thing that makes me happy about this car is that it comes from one of the most confusing car company histories ever: the Clement and Talbot mess. I find it fascinating. Continue reading →

1901 Georges Richard

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1901 Georges Richard 3.5hp Single-Cylinder Four-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau by Vedrine

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 1, 2013

1901 Georges Richard 3.5hp Single-Cylinder Four-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau by Vedrine

Sometimes early cars don’t really have model names – or maybe that have model names that we just don’t know. So instead, we call them by every conceivable descriptive attribute we can see – hence the somewhat ridiculous-in-name name of this car above. And sometimes, there are car companies that sound like a guy’s full name, but aren’t. This time, Georges Richard was an actual person.

Richard worked in a bicycle shop with his brother and by 1897, he and his brother had branched out on their own and began building cars under Georges’ name in a shop north of Paris. In 1901, an engineer named Henri Brasier joined the company and after 1903, the cars were re-branded Richard-Brasier (and just plain old Brasier in 1905 after Richard left the company).

The car you see here was built by Georges Richard in 1901 – during the time when the company was building the Belgian Vivinus car under license (so it is very similar). The engine is a 785cc single-cylinder putting out 3.5 horsepower. It tops out near 25 mph.

This car has been in the same ownership for the last quarter-century, but not much is known of it prior to that. Fun note: this car has a reverse gear that you can’t use because the original owner was too cheap to tick the box for the lever that engages reverse. In any case, this is a neat old car from a short-lived marque that should bring between $89,000-$97,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this awesome sale.

Update: Sold $91,571.

Warwick Stanhope

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1902 Warwick 6hp Four-Seat Stanhope

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 1, 2013

1902 Warwick 6hp Four-Seat Stanhope

Warwick was a very short-lived automobile marque. They introduced their first car toward the end of 1901 and were out of business by 1905. The company was based out of Springfield, Massachusetts, which was kind of a hot bed for early automobile manufacturers.

In 1902, Warwick introduced their most powerful car, the six horsepower model powered by a 700cc De Dion engine. This example was a barn find of the late 1980s and was restored in the U.K., where it has resided since. Yes, the third and fourth seat are rear-facing, for those of you wondering how this is a “four-seat” Stanhope.

Only being in production for a little over three years will make any car rare. It was once noted that this may be the only surviving 6hp Warwick. It should sell for between $97,000-$110,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Ariel Quadricycle

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1901 Ariel 375cc Quadricycle

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 1, 2013

1901 Ariel 375cc Quadricycle

Diversifying your business is a good way to stay in business. Many early motorcycle manufacturers started out life as bicycle manufacturers. When it became feasible, they added engines and went into the motorcycle business.

But what do you do if you’re already a motorcycle manufacturer? Well, you build cars – or, at least, you try. This Ariel Quadricycle is about as much bike as it is car. The driver sits out back on a motorcycle seat, straddling the engine and tank. The passenger sits up front, acting as both windscreen and front bumper.

Actually, this car can be easily converted to a tricycle – and was sold as such with a “Quadricycle attachment.” I guess you just scoot the front wheel over, add another wheel and a seat and boom! you’ve got a car. This particular example has known ownership history from new and has been exquisitely restored.

1901 Ariel 375cc Quad-Tri-Cycle

Ariel would offer more traditional cars here and there until they focused solely on motorcycles beginning in 1925. Motorcycle production ceased in 1970. The Quadricycle is very rare but not unheard of. This one could bring between $40,000-$56,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this cool Bonhams sale.

Update: Sold $73,401.

Lacoste & Battmann

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1903 Lacoste et Battmann 12hp Twin-Cylinder Four-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau

Offered by Bonhams | London, U.K. | November 1, 2013

1903 Lacoste et Battmann 12hp Twin-Cylinder Four-Seat Rear-Entrance Tonneau

I’ll start by saying that this car is described as “believed 1903 Lacoste et Battmann” – meaning no one’s really sure what this is. It was believed to be a Regal for many years until 2000 when an expert said it might actually be a Lacoste et Battmann. But if it were a Regal, it would still be a Lacoste et Battmann.

Here’s why: Lacoste & Battmann was founded in 1897 by Jacques Lacoste in Paris. But they rarely sold cars under their own name. In fact, they built cars for other companies – as many as seven different marques. Regal was one of those seven companies.

This car was purchased by its second owner at auction in 1908. It was worn out and restored (after only five years!) and put back on the road in 1910. The car has been in the same family since. The second restoration (which was mechanical in nature only) was completed in 2001.

The engine is a 2.4-litre two-cylinder making 12 horsepower. If this truly is a Lacoste et Battmann, it is very rare. Even if it isn’t, it is very likely one of their cars that was marketed under a different name – and the rarity remains. The company closed up shop in 1913. This example – with 1908-era interior and exterior – should sell for between $210,000-$260,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams.

Update: Sold $123,920.

IKA Torino Sedan

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1970 IKA Torino 380S

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Birmingham, U.K. | November 15-16, 2013

1970 IKA Torino 380S

It’s not often you see Argentinian cars come up for sale. Most people probably don’t even realize there are cars native to Argentina. Here’s the brief history of IKA: in the early-1950s, some Argentinians met with U.S. automakers, hoping to lure some production to South America. The only manufacturer to take the bait was Kaiser and they created a wholly-owned subsidiary known as Industrias Kaiser Argentina (IKA).

They built mainly Willys and Jeep products in the early days before becoming a joint venture with Renault in 1959. In 1962, they formed another joint venture – this time with AMC and they built Rambler-based cars, such as this Torino. 1975 was the end of the road for IKA, when it was absorbed entirely into Renault.

The Torino was introduced in 1966 and built as an IKA model through 1977 (and as a Renault-badged vehicle from 1978 through 1982). This is a very famous car in Argentina. Why? Because in 1969, IKA sent three cars to the 84 race at the Nürburgring. The team’s manager was none other than Juan Manuel Fangio himself – the most famous Argentine racing driver of all time. One of the Torinos finished first but was not awarded the win due to penalties. It was a big deal in Argentina.

This particular car was Fangio’s personal ride. It’s all original and is being sold by his family. The engine is a 3.8-liter straight-six making 215 horsepower. There is no pre-sale estimate available, but you can read more here and check out the rest of Silverstone’s auction lineup here.

Update: Sold $45,644.