Tag Archives: classic cars

Nash-Healey Coupe

Posted on by
Reply

1953 Nash-Healey Le Mans Coupe

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 6-7, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Nash-Healey was one of America’s first post-war sports cars, beating competitors like the Chevrolet Corvette to market by a number of years. The first Nash-Healeys went on sale in 1951 and were only available as convertibles.

The cars were restyled for 1952 to more closely resemble what you see here, and a hardtop model was introduced in 1953. Named the “Le Mans” coupe, the hardtop commemorated Nash-Healey’s podium finish at Le Mans. It cost twice as much as a 1953 Corvette when new and features a body penned by Pininfarina.

Power in this car is from a 4.1-liter inline-six from Nash capable of 140 horsepower. Only 62 coupes were built for 1953, and only 30 are thought to survive. This one was restored in 1994 and is now being sold at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Amelia Island.

Update: Sold $89,600.

Bugatti Type 59

Posted on by
Reply

1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports

Offered by Gooding & Company | London, U.K. | April 1, 2020

Photo – Gooding & Company

After Bugatti’s Type 35 series of cars finished their run as some of the best Grand Prix cars of the era, Bugatti went and introduced the Type 51 in 1931. The development of that car culminated in the Type 59 of 1933, the last pre-war Bugatti Grand Prix car.

It is powered by a 250 horsepower, supercharged 3.3-liter inline-eight. Only eight examples were built. Ralph Lauren has one, but his is restored. This car is as it was in 1938. It’s an ex-factory Bugatti team car, and it’s competition history includes:

  • 1934 Monaco Grand Prix – 3rd (with Rene Dreyfus)
  • 1934 Belgian Grand Prix – 1st (with Dreyfus)

After the 1935 season, the car’s supercharger was removed and it went sports car racing with revised bodywork. In 1938, it was painted in its current black and was acquired by King Leopold III of Belgium. It’s had four owners since and is now estimated to bring “in excess” of $13,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $12,158,412.

Muntz Jet

Posted on by
Reply

1952 Muntz Jet

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 6-7, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Earl “Madman” Muntz was a businessman in Glendale, California, who acquired the rights to the Kurtis Sports, a car designed and produced by Frank Kurtis. Only 16 examples were built by Kurtis until Muntz took over production.

Production shifted to Illinois, and the design was tweaked somewhat to make the car longer. It’s still aluminum-bodied, and various engines were used during the course of the model’s 1950-1954 run. This car has a triple-carbureted V8 under the hood, but the catalog makes zero mention of the engine’s origin or displacement. Sad face.

The purple finish over a white iguana skin interior is quite striking. It also comes with a black Carson top. Only about 198 of these were built, and Muntz lost $1,000 on each of them. This one is selling at no reserve. You can see more photos here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Sold $117,600.

Duesenberg J-490

Posted on by
Reply

1932 Duesenberg Model J Stationary Victoria by Rollston

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 6-7, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

A few weeks ago we featured a Model J Duesenberg with engine number J-490X. The X is said to denote a factory rebuild and restamp. Why they would’ve restamped it with a number of an engine that was already out there in another car is beyond me.

This car is said to retain its original chassis, body, and 265 horsepower 6.9-liter straight-eight engine. The body is by Rollston, and it is a one-off creation that was specially ordered to resemble Rollston’s convertible victoria – but in fixed-roof fashion.

It has known ownership history since new and was “cosmetically restored” at some point in the past. I think that’s another way of saying a body-on restoration. You can see more about this car here and more from this sale here.

Update: Sold $1,325,000.

Bugatti Type 35C

Posted on by
Reply

1928 Bugatti Type 35C

Offered by Gooding & Company | London, U.K. | April 1, 2020

Photo – Gooding & Company

Bugatti’s Type 35 line of Grand Prix cars were some of best racing cars of their era. Their design has held up well, and this car has about every bit of patina you could ask for, wearing a repaint from approximately 1932.

The 35C is powered by a supercharged 2.0-liter inline-eight capable of 125 horsepower. It features four-wheel drum brakes and a four-speed transmission. This particular example was entered by the Bugatti factory in the 1928 Targa Florio. Results are unknown, but Louis Chiron drove one of the team’s two 35C entries, Gastone Brilli-Peri the other. They finished 40th and 50th, respectively.

Only 50 examples of the 35C were built, and this one has known ownership history since new, including three Belgian owners spanning the last 60 years. Mechanically restored, the car otherwise remains as it was in the 1930s. Gooding expects this to bring “more than $4 million.” Click here for more info and here for the other lots from this interesting sale.

Update: Sold $5,017,656.

Marmon Model 68 Sedan

Posted on by
Reply

1928 Marmon Model 68 Sedan

Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | March 18, 2020

Photo – H&H Classics

Marmon is an automobile marque that usually summons images of fancy speedsters, 16-cylinder coachbuilt classics, or the yellow Wasp that won the first Indy 500. But they also had to churn out cars like this, the Model 68, to stay afloat.

It was the “baby” Marmon for 1928, slotting in below larger, more powerful cars like the Model 78 and Model 75. It was powered by a 42 horsepower inline-eight, and only three factory body styles were offered, including this sedan that was advertised for $1,395 when new. It was the least expensive Marmon that year.

The Model 68 remained in production for 1929, but that car received a big power boost. This right-hand-drive example has been in the U.K. for a long time, probably since new. It should now sell for between $40,000-$45,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

DB HBR4

Posted on by
Reply

1959 DB HBR4 Coupe

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 7, 2020

Photo – Artcurial

Charles Deutsch and Rene Bonnet built cars under the Deutsch-Bonnet marque until 1947 when they shortened it to DB. Their HBR5 model was sold between 1955 and 1961, with both road cars and race cars constructed.

The HBR5 was powered by an 848cc flat-twin. Cars with the smaller 747cc flat-twin were dubbed “HBR4,” such as this one here. It was purchased new as a road car and modified by its first owner, Jacques-Edouard Rey, for competition use.

It was successful its first time out, so much so that Rene Bonnet ended up building 10 factory examples. The interesting competition history for this car includes:

  • 1960 Rallye Monte Carlo – DNF (with Andre Guilhaudin and Jacques-Edouard Rey)
  • 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans – 20th (with Guilhaudin and Jean-Francois Jaeger)

The car remained in Rey’s possession until 1989, and it was restored in 1994 to its 1961 Le Mans configuration, which is how it sits today. How many cars have competed in the Monte Carlo Rally and Le Mans? This one should sell for between $155,000-$200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Artcurial in Paris.

Update: Sold $190,176.

Bristol Brigand (The Car)

Posted on by
Reply

1983 Bristol Brigand

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Ascot, U.K. | March 7, 2020

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

The Bristol Type 603 was introduced in 1976 as one of the replacements for the 411. It was a pretty big step, style-wise, for little Bristol, especially considering how their designs had evolved up to that point. The third series of the 603 was called the Britannia, and an upgraded version of that car was sold simultaneously as the Brigand.

The Brigand name was lifted from a Bristol ground attack plane from the 1940s, which is pretty cool. In car form, it was powered by a turbocharged 5.9-liter Chrysler V8. That turbo, and its associated hood bulge, is what set it apart from the Britannia. Top speed was 150 mph.

By the time this car was built, Bristol had ceased publishing production figures, so the true number of Brigand examples built is unknown. It was available from 1982 through 1994, and for a long period of that time, they sold approximately three of these. Per year. So yeah, they’re rare. Still, this car is estimated at $29,000-$34,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Two Prototype Racers

Posted on by
Reply

Two Prototype Racers

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 7, 2020

1974 ToJ SS02

Photo – Artcurial

ToJ was a racing team founded by driver Jorg Obermosser. They were most famous for their prototype sports cars and Formula Two/Three single-seaters. This sale features three of their sports racers from the 1970s. The team was in existence between 1974 and 1990.

This was the team’s first sports prototype, and it was developed using Obermosser’s previous GRD-BMW S73 prototype as a launching point. This car is powered by a 2.0-liter BMW inline-four. It never made it to Le Mans, but it did contest the European 2-Litre Championship. It’s the only survivor of two built and should bring between $300,000-$315,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

1967 Serenissima 3000SP Prototipo

Photo – Artcurial

Last year at this sale, Artcurial sold three extremely rare Serenissima cars, including a race car. And this year they are featuring another of Giovanni Volpi’s rarities. This is one of two other Serenissima cars that still exist.

It was built in 1967 using a McLaren chassis and 3.0-liter V8. Originally featuring a closed-cockpit fiberglass body, the car was reworked for the 1969 season and fitted with the steel body you see here. Unfortunately, this new look proved unstable at high speed.

It was restored two years ago by Volpi’s original chief mechanic and should now sell for between $1,100,000-$1,500,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $990,226.

Countach 25th Anniversary

Posted on by
Reply

1990 Lamborghini Countach 25th Anniversary

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Stoneleigh Park, U.K. | February 22-23, 2020

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

It’s amazing that the car shown above and this Diablo were sold by the same company in the same year (yeah, that Diablo is a ’91, but they made the same car in ’90 too). What is perhaps even crazier is that this is the final iteration of this Countach. Sure, you can see the similarities, but they are vastly different cars, styling-wise.

The original Countach was a streamlined Italian masterpiece. By the late 1970s, things started to get a little boxy. And by the 1980s, things were certainly box-ified, with side strakes, rear wings, and other add-ons that really made them hot in their day.

In 1988, Lambo debuted the 25th Anniversary Countach, which would be produced until the end of Countach production in 1990 (27th Anniversary?). The styling was updated by Horacio Pagani. It was popular – the most popular Countach, in fact, with 657 examples produced. This one doesn’t have a rear wing and is finished in a Miura Orange, which was specially-ordered for this car.

Power is from a 5.2-liter V12 capable of 449 horsepower. It made for the quickest Countach: able to hit 60 in 4.5 seconds on the way to a 185-mph top end. This one-owner example would be a great addition to any supercar collection. And it’s the only one in this color. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.