Tag Archives: corvette

Local Car Show Revue – July 2012

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I was able to hit up a few local car shows during July (as of this writing July still has more than a week left, so hopefully I can hit up more). Here’s a quick rundown:

July 15 was the date of the British Car show put on by the British Car Club of Greater Cincinnati. The setting was nice but the weather was uncooperative. I had to hand it to some of the owners, embracing the spirit – and weather – of British motoring. I saw a guy in an MGA driving in – sans roof – during a downpour. Many of the cars received impromptu plastic coverings, but some were open to the elements. It was both sad and awesome to see. Sad because you hate to see the interiors of these restored cars get wet – awesome because it means the ones that did get some rain probably also get some regular use. And I’m all about cars being driven regularly – flawless paint isn’t as attractive as paint that shows it is being enjoyed.

Photos are sparse due to the heavy rain and the fact I treat my camera as if it were my child. Here are some highlights:

My favorite of the show came down to two cars, first this Daimler SP250 “Dart.”  This was the first Dart I’ve ever actually seen in person. The side view (below) shows it better, but I had two people tell me how Daimler had the styling so right… until they got to the front. Either way it’s a great looking car with a Chrysler Hemi V8 underhood. It’s also a lot longer than most of its contemporaries.

The other car I loved very much wasn’t even British – it was a Saab Sonett II. Many of these cars simply fell apart over time but this one was glorious. And it had, if I remember correctly, the three-cylinder two-stroke engine.

Some other cars: Jaguar Mark 2 (white), 1959 MG Magnette (black), 1970 Austin America (bluish-green), and a DeLorean DMC-12 (silver, obviously).

Another show was the 2012 edition of Rollin’ on the River (held on July 22). It is a properly big show with cars just rolling in one after the other. Again, I failed to take a plethora of photos (although the weather was brilliant) as I spent the early part of the day watching – and more so listening – to the cars roll in. The afternoon was spent chatting up some of the owners and unfortunately, no one offered to just give me their car.

This show had something for everybody, from customs:

To muscle cars:

And Corvettes:

The two directly above I really liked. One is an obvious “work in progress” and the one with the black wheels looks racy and mean. I love it.

And there were cars for everything in between. My favorites included a super rare Pontiac Trans Am Tojan and a 1912 Ford Model T Town Car. This Viper was perhaps the most exotic supercar there. It was listed and displayed as a 1997 Viper GTS-R. The window sticker didn’t mention an “R” (which was mostly an aero package that would be duplicated in 1998 for the GT2). I’m guessing it was all dealer-added post-sale. But whatever, it’s still fast.

(Don’t worry about this one, once it got a little speed it fired right up).

Mecum Bloomington Gold 2012 Highlights

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Mecum’s Bloomington Gold all-Corvette sale was held on June 22-23, 2012. Because every car that sold was a Corvette (and so were those that didn’t), this recap will be pretty brief. You can always check out the complete results at Mecum’s website, here. Top sale was a 1967 Corvette Convertible with the 427/435 engine option. This one was has a white stinger over Goodwood Green paint and it looks immaculate. There were other cars that were bid to higher prices, but they failed to meet their reserves.

Our feature car, the 1995 Indy Pace Car Convertible, sold for $18,500. Two other cars I liked included this 1996 Grand Sport Coupe that sold for $28,000.

And finally, this 1963 327/340 Convertible. It’s nothing remarkable, but I love the wheels on this car. It sold for $27,500.

2012 Ault Park Concours d’Elegance

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The 2012 Ault Park Concours d’Elegance, held in one of Cincinnati’s most beautiful parks in one of Cincinnati’s most uppity neighborhoods, was held two weekends ago. The show was full of some of the finest cars from around the mid-west. This year’s featured marque was “A Century of American Power.” Classic Car Weekly was in attendance and here are some of our favorites.

Our pick for best in show was this 1929 Stutz Model M Lancefield Supercharged Coupe.  It came out of the Mitchell Collection in Texas and is the only surviving example of the five originally built. The low roof-line and gives this car a truly sporting presence.

One of the other awesome rides was this 1910 Oldsmobile Autocrat Prototype Race Car built for the 1910 Vanderbilt Cup. Old race cars like this are fascinating – they’re as big as trucks and the driver and riding mechanic were just hanging on, completely exposed to the elements in tiny little seats with absolutely no protection whatsoever. Also, don’t forget about the 7.7-liter four-cylinder hanging out front.

Oh, and check out these exhaust, which look like something of a battle tank:

I really enjoyed this 1911 Lozier Briafcliff, as it was gigantic. A gentlemen hanging around it all day tried to convince me that it was worth $40 million. I nodded and smiled but politely declined to tell him he was insane.

This 1968 Bizzarrini 5300 Spyder is one of three 5300 Spyders built. It has a 327 Corvette engine making 350 horsepower and a stunning interior.

One of the most mind-blowing aspects of this show, was that, on either side of the Stutz mentioned above, there was an SJ Duesenberg. Not a bad day when there are multiple SJ Duesenbergs vying for your attention. This one is a 1929 Bohman & Schwartz Disappearing Top Roadster. 320 horsepower and 140 mph in 1929 must have been incredible.

Another exotic was this 1969 Lamborghini Miura S, one of 338 built. Only when standing next to one of these do you realize how impossibly low they sit to the ground. What a wonderful machine.

MG was a featured marque this year. Two cars that really stood out included this brilliant blue 1934 NA Evans-Wilkinson Special, one of three built.

There other super-cool MG was this crazy 1985 Metro 6R4 Group B Rally Car from the Lane Motor Museum in Nashville, Tennessee. It was built by Williams F1 for the rally circuit and, yes, crazy is the correct word.

Some other interesting, newer cars include this 1991 BMW Z1, a car you don’t see often, especially in America.

This track-day special (although it was listed as “street-legal”) 2009 Ariel Atom 3 drew a crowd, as you could look around it and see just about every part on/in/within it.

American classics (and muscle cars) were prevalent, with muscle cars being part of the featured “American Power” motif. Easily the most interesting among them was this 1964 Studebaker Commander Super Lark – the only production steel-bodied R-3 package car with the 5.0-liter supercharged V8, which was built for Studebaker by the Granatelli Brothers. It was the fastest compact car in the U.S. when it was built, turning sub-13 second 1/4 miles in excess of 110 mph.

Other fantastic American (or semi-American) classics include this 1957 Dual-Ghia D-500 Convertible. Dual-Ghias are simply beautiful cars and this one in red was no exception.

And finally, this 1964 Buick Riviera looked amazing in Coral Mist, my new favorite automotive color. It has the 425 cubic inch Super Wildcat V8, making 360 horsepower.

And what would any good car show rundown be without a trip through the parking lot, a car show in itself. Some of the more impressive cars I saw included a 2013 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Convertible. It looked mean, and made me wonder why GM hadn’t built these before.

This Mercedes-Benz 190SL Roadster was pretty classic and it looked fun, as it drove past me with four people packed in and on it, having a good time.

This Lamborghini Diablo SV got the attention of the high-school student within me – and plenty of others.

And finally, from the environmentally responsible crowd, this Fisker Karma gathered a lot of interest from onlookers saying things like “What is that?” and “I’ve never seen one of these.” While this car might look like some kind of extended coupe, it is actually a very long car in person – much bigger than you’d think.

1995 Indy Pace Car

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1995 Chevrolet Corvette Indy Pace Car

Offered by Mecum | St. Charles, Illinois | June 22-23, 2012

The Chevrolet Corvette has (of this writing, including the 2012 race) paced the Indianapolis 500 ten times, the first being in 1978. It was there for a second time in 1986 and 1995 marked the third time. This is one of 527 (actually it’s #46) of the special “Indy 500 Pace Car” optioned replicas sold for street use.

It was based on the C4, the fourth-generation Corvette, which was introduced for the 1984 model year, so it was 11 years old by this point – more than a little long in the tooth. The paint scheme is actually quite nice with Dark Purple Metallic over White. 1995 was in the midst of ZR-1 production but this car is not a ZR-1 – even though it sports ZR-1 wheels and brakes.

It has the LT1 under the hood, the 350 cubic inch (or 5.7-liter) V8 makes 300 horsepower and 340 lb-ft of torque. 1996 would be the final year for the C4, so this is one of the final special edition C4 Corvettes – and it’s a rare one. Get it, it won’t be too terribly expensive. For more information click here and to see the rest of Mecum’s Bloomington Gold Corvette Auction, click here.

Update: Sold $18,500.

Mecum Spring Classic 2012 Highlights

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Dana Mecum’s 25th Original Spring Classic Auction held May 15-20, 2012, sold a ton of cars. I mean, it has seriously taken me two days to go through the results and my mind has melted from staring at the computer screen. The top sale was this gorgeous 1968 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Convertible, one of 18, that sold for $600,000.

Muscle cars were the stars of the show. Numerous Hemi Mopars and big-block Chevys went across the block and brought big numbers. One of my favorite Hemi cars to sell was a 1966 Dodge Charger – my favorite Charger bodystyle. It sold for $190,000 – and it’s all original and unrestored.

Another wonderfully rare muscle car brought the second-highest price paid for a car at this sale. It’s a 1969 Yenko Nova and it’s one awesome looking car. It sold for an eye-popping $475,000.

Our featured car, the Baldwin Motion Manta Ray GT failed to sell. Interesting sales of note included this 1978 Jeep J10 Honcho 4×4 that looks great and would’ve only cost you $7,000.

Carroll Shelby’s recent passing put a spotlight on all Shelby-badged vehicles. One of the more obscure models with the Shelby name on it is this 1989 Dodge Shelby Dakota. It’s one of 1,500 built and sold for $9,500.

And finally, there was the 1964 Voisin Biscuter microcar – and it’s about as cheap as you can go on the Voisin scale. It sold for $13,000 – less than half of what it was priced at a month ago at Hyman Ltd.

There are countless – literally – other cars that sold at this sale. Check out the complete results at Mecum’s website.

Avelate Corvette

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2002 Chevrolet Corvette Avelate

Offered by Auctions America | Auburn, Indiana | June 1-3, 2012

I guess it’s been more than a month, but a while ago we featured an aftermarket Corvette re-body from AAT. Well, this is another aftermarket re-body, but this time it’s from a company called Avelate Automotive.

The styling is tasteful, I think, and not school-boy garish – as the words “aftermarket re-body” generally lead me to think. Some people might ask “why? What’s the purpose of modifying the styling?” That’s a fair question – especially if it’s done by some random individual. The Avelate was penned by two men: one an automotive designer and the other a customiser.

There are Corvette touches on the redesign – among them a split rear window, reminiscent of the 1963 Coupe. This is one of 11 with the split window. A convertible and speedster were also offered. Only 27 were built in total at a cost of about $100,000 each. It has an 5.7-liter V8 (LS1) under the hood and, mechanically, it’s identical to a 2002 Corvette.

Estimated to sell for between $60,000-$75,000, this shows that there is a market for these late model “coachbuilt Corvettes.” With time, I dare to predict, these will become more and more collectible. Think of the limited edition aftermarket muscle cars of the 1960s. They’re now worth a pretty penny. You might think that, because it’s a 10-year-old Corvette, it will never be worth anything. But back in the late 60s a Yenko was just another car you could abuse at the drag strip. You never know what the future holds.

For the complete catalog description, click here. And for more from Auctions America on their home turf in Auburn, Indiana, click here.

Update: Not sold.

Update II: Not sold at Auctions America’s 2012 Auburn Fall Sale.

Auctions America Spring Carlisle Highlights

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Auctions America’s Spring Carlisle auction featured quite a number of cars. Some of them sold. The International Travelall we featured here, did not. Here are some of the highlights of those that did sell.

Top sale was the 1957 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster pictured above. It brought $99,000 and is one of only 10 built in 1957 with this color combination. The next largest sale was a 1969 Buick GS 400 Convertible, bringing $78,650.

Other interesting sales included this 1968 AMC AMX which brought $18,590.

And finally, this special edition 2004 Chevrolet Corvette Le Mans Commemorative Edition built to, well, commemorate Corvette’s back-to-back class victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It sold for $28,600.

For complete results, check out Auctions America’s website.

Mecum Kansas City Highlights

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Mecum Auctions’ Kansas City Auction (which ended on March 31) did not have any huge sales that broke any records. In fact, there were numerous sub-$10,000 cars that would have been a lot of fun to buy. As far as highlights go, we’ll start with the Divco Milk Truck we featured, which sold for almost exactly what I predicted at $52,000.

The top sale was a brand new 2012 Mercedes-Benz S600 sedan which sold for $133,000. Not exactly super-exciting.

The next three top-sellers were 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Convertibles. One sold for $77,500 (a 427/300). One sold for $120,000 (a 427/435). Our favorite, the 427/435 pictured below, brought an even $100,000.

Other highlights include a 1969 Plymouth GTX with the 375 horsepower 440 engine that sold for $52,000.


.As far as cheapies go, this 1955 Chevrolet Ambulance that included period medical response equipment from the 1970s sold for only $3,100.

And finally, two rare Mustangs: a 1984 SVO (top) and and 1978 King Cobra (bottom):

The SVO was from the first year of production and only about 4,508 were made between 1984 and 1986. It sold for $3,800. The King Cobra was one of only 4,313 built and has some very Trans Am-like hood decals. It sold for $7,100.

For complete results, check out Mecum’s website.

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.

Commemorative Edition Corvette by AAT

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2003 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 50th Anniversary Commemorative Edition by AAT

Offered by Barrett-Jackson | Palm Beach, Florida | April 7, 2012

Advanced Automotive Technologies (AAT) designed this aftermarket Corvette and have built 178 of them (thus far) to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Corvette. They’ve incorporated styling from the 1953 car as well as the C5. It really isn’t a bad looking car, I don’t think, and they’ve been popping up at auctions more and more.

The AAT Commemorative Edition could be applied to any C5 Corvette convertible or even a hardtop (but not the hatchback). The car here started life as a 2003 Z06 Corvette, which is a pretty stout car to hack up. However, by doing so, two owners (only two Z06s were converted by AAT) have a Corvette with original looks and serious performance. Plus, GM never built a Z06 convertible, so they’ve got that going for them.

This car has less than 4,000 miles. In an auction recap a few months back, I mentioned how this model is becoming more and more collectible. And they kind of are, bringing more than twice what you would get for a standard Corvette of similar vintage. At least five of these AAT Commemorative Editions have sold at auction in recent years. The average price is $65,670, with the high end of that being $88,000. We’ll see what this one brings, but time will really be the judge as to whether these cars can maintain their value. It will be something to watch as coachbuilt cars are not all that common nowadays.

To read the complete catalog description, click here. For the rest of Barrett-Jackson in Palm Beach, click here.

Update: Sold, $90,200.