Iso Rivolta GTZ

2021 Iso Rivolta GTZ

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 6-16, 2022

Photo – Mecum

Iso is a name that goes back to some pretty sleek sports cars (or proto-supercars) of the 1960s and 1970s. They also produced what I’ve always considered to be Italian muscle cars, in addition to the original Isetta. The brand was revived in 2017 in collaboration with Zagato to introduce a Vision Gran Turismo prototype.

That led to a project dubbed the GT Zagato, or GTZ. The Rivolta family is still behind the cars, which are designed and built by Zagato. It’s based on a C7 Corvette Z06, but has a completely unique carbon-fiber body and shares no exterior bits with the Corvette, glass included. The supercharged 6.2-liter Z06 V8 makes 660 horsepower, enough to propel this very A3/C-esque design to 185 mph.

These are technically still in production, I guess, and in the last year they’ve built 19 of them. This is apparently the only one imported and registered in the U.S. Click here for more info and here for more from Mecum.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $700,000.

Abarth-Simca 1300 GT Coupe

1963 Abarth-Simca 1300 GT Coupe by Sibona & Basano

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Le Castellet, France | November 19, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Abarth used cars from many different manufacturers as base cars for their wild creations. In this case, the base car is a Simca 1000, which was a small, rear-engined sedan produced by the French marque between 1961 and 1978.

Confusingly, there were Simca-Abarth variants of the 1000, which were really just hot sedans. What we have here is an Abarth-Simca. It’s a GT car that Simca wanted Abarth to build that they could take racing.

It’s got a Simca 1000 floor pan, an Abarth-tuned 1.3-liter twin-cam inline-four, and a Simca 1000 four-speed manual gearbox. The cars were eventually homologated for FIA competition, and they were successful in European road racing events.

This car was sold new in Italy, where it was campaigned successfully. From there, it has kind of a complicated ownership history, and frankly it’s too late in the day for me to make much sense of it. You can read more about it here and see more from this sale here. The pre-sale estimate is $405,000-$500,000.

Update: Sold $311,399.

250 GT Ellena

1958 Ferrari 250 GT Coupe Ellena

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | July 9, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Ferrari’s 250 GT line of cars spawned many sub-models, beginning with 1954’s GT Europa. In 1955, Ferrari introduced the 250 GT Coupe, which could initially be had as a Boano or Ellena variant. The cars were named after their respective coachbuilders, even though both were from the same family. Felice Mario Boano’s namesake company was only around from 1954 through 1957, at which time he renamed the company Carrozzeria Ellena after his son-in-law, who took over the business that would last through 1966.

The two coupes are distinct from each other, but both share the same 3.0-liter Colombo V12 good for 237 horsepower. Only 50 examples of the 250 GT Ellena were built between 1957 and 1958. This one, like others, features a wonderful two-tone paint scheme with a maroon lower body and a silver roof.

This car, #25, was first registered in Rome and made its way to the U.S. in the 1970s. It spent over two decades in a private New York collection and was restored in the U.K. in 2005. It now carries an estimate of $970,000-$1,200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $707,269.

Ferrari 365 GT 2+2

1970 Ferrari 365 GT 2+2

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Online | August 14-15, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The 365 GT 2+2 (of no relation to the 365 GT4 2+2, which was the first of the “400” line of cars) was Ferrari’s followup to the successful 330 GT 2+2. Introduced in 1967, the 365 GT 2+2 would also be relatively successful, with Ferrari building 809 examples through 1971. In Ferrari-speak, this means they were churning them out.

Styling was by Pininfarina, and the car has a faint pretty strong 500 Superfast look to it. Power is from a Colombo V12 – the 4.4-liter engine put out 320 horsepower. They did build 14 drop-top versions, the 365 California. But they cost 10 times as much as one of these.

That’s right, this car is one of the least expensive entry points into classic Ferrari ownership (and by classic, I mean before everything got all boxy). The estimate on this car is $150,000-$180,000. Not bad for a 60s-era Ferrari. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $176,000.

Murena GT

1969 Intermeccanica Murena GT

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Palm Beach, Florida | March 20-21, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

What we have here is the obvious love child of a Lamborghini Espada and a Reliant Scimitar. Between 1967 and 1969, Intermeccanica (who was then still building cars in Italy before a move to the US and then Canada) built 11 of these two-door shooting brake wagons.

They were powered by 7.0-liter Ford V8s and seat four. They’re very rare and very cool. Intermeccanica built some sleek sports cars around this time before moving into the replica business, where they remain today.

This example is selling at no reserve from the collection of a disgraced yoga master who fled the U.S. to avoid prosecution. The funds go to the people that were owed money by this piece of trash. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Withdrawn.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Auburn 2020, $41,250.

Gemballa Mirage

2005 Gemballa Mirage GT

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Paris, France | February 5, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Okay, so maybe labeling this car as a Gemballa and not a Porsche is giving Gemballa a little too much credit. It’s a Porsche Carrera GT… with some subtle mods and some not-so-subtle paint. Visual modifications include Gemballa wheels, a roof-mounted air intake, and relocation of the reverse lights.

Mechanical modifications aren’t all that extreme considering what some people do to supercars. A freer-flowing exhaust system, a revised intake system, an adjustable coil-over suspension, and a Gemballa clutch were also added. These things added 40 horsepower to the output of the 5.7-liter V10 for a new rating of 645 horsepower.

This is one of three “Gold Edition” Mirages, and I think what that means is pretty self-explanatory. Only 25 Mirage GTs were built. That accounts for 2% of all Carrera GT production. It’s had just one owner, who also happens to be an Olympic gold medal-winning soccer player. You can see more here and more from RM in Paris here.

Update: Not sold.

Wiesmann MF5 Roadster

2010 Wiesmann GT MF5 Roadster

Offered by Coys | London, U.K. | December 4, 2019

Photo – Coys

Wiesmanns are some of the coolest boutique sports cars from the last 20 years. Unfortunately, they went out of business in 2014. The last model they introduced was the GT MF5, which went on sale in 2009.

It’s powered by a monster 5.0-liter V10 from BMW that puts out 547 horsepower. Sixty arrived in 3.9 seconds, and the car topped out at 193 mph. What happened during production of the MF5 was that BMW discontinued the V10-powered M5 and M6, so many of the MF5s ended up with V8s.

Only 55 MF5 roadsters were built, but as few as 10 were finished with the V10 engine, making this a rare supercar. You can read more about it here and see more from this sale here.

Scimitar GT

1965 Reliant Scimitar GT

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | November 27, 2019

Photo – Brightwells

The Scimitar was a line of two-door sports cars produced by Reliant (and later, Middlebridge) between 1964 and 1990. The original car was designed by David Ogle and is quite attractive when equipped with wire wheels as we see here.

The first cars were produced in 1964 and early 1965 and were powered by a 120 horsepower, 2.6-liter Ford inline-six. Top speed was 117 mph. Later cars used a V6, and only 296 examples of the straight-six-powered Scimitar were built.

This one was recently repainted and looks good. Later cars favored a shooting brake body style, but this is a true coupe. It should bring between $6,500-$7,750. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $10,848.

Bullitt

1968 Ford Mustang GT

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 2-12, 2020

Photo – Mecum

Okay, so this isn’t just any old 1968 Mustang GT. This is the actual car driven by Steve McQueen in the 1968 film Bullitt. It’s the car that was primarily used in the legendary chase scenes around San Francisco. It’s one of the most famous film cars of all time and is one of two Highland Green ’68 Fastbacks used during the film.

Modifications performed by McQueen at the time of filming included the addition of gray Torq Thrust wheels, removal of the emblems and backup lights, and finishing the front grille in black. The look became so iconic that Ford has sold “Bullitt” edition Mustangs since that mimic this very look.

After filming, the car was sold to a Warner Brothers employee, who used it daily. It was later purchased by someone in New Jersey. In 1974, it was purchased by Robert Kiernan, whose wife used it as a daily driver until the clutch went out in 1980. The car was parked with 65,000 miles on it. McQueen tried to buy it back, multiple times, but Kiernan refused. The car bounced around the garages of friends until 2001.

That’s when Ford introduced the Bullitt Edition Mustang. Kiernan and his son decided to get this car running again. It was unveiled to the public again in 2018. A few bits have been replaced, and the 325 horsepower, 6.4-liter V8 has been rebuilt. Otherwise, the car is all original.

This car has the potential to bring a pretty incredible amount of money. Short of James Dean’s “Little Bastard” showing up for sale, it’s hard to imagine a more valuable “pop culture” car. You can check out more about it here and see more from Mecum in Kissimmee here.

Update: Sold $3,740,000.

Wiesmann GT

2007 Wiesmann GT MF4

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | London, U.K. | October 24, 2019

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Martin and Friedhelm Wiesmann started a company in 1988 to build a classic-style roadster. That came to fruition in 1993, and from there, the company moved from neo-classic-esque open roadsters to something bordering on an insane supercar wrapped in a classically-styled package.

Their first closed car was the GT, which went on sale in MF4 guise in 2003. This two-seat coupe is powered by a 4.8-liter BMW V8 that puts out 367 horsepower. That’s enough power to propel this little thing to 60 mph in 4.6 seconds on the way to a top end of 180 mph. After 2010, the MF4 broke the 400 horsepower barrier. I saw one of these parked on the street in Switzerland. They are great-looking cars.

More extreme versions were offered, but this example represents the classic Wiesmann GT before they went power-crazy. Production lasted until 2013 when the company went bankrupt. They’ve since been purchased by a group of investors, but it is unclear if production will resume. Between 1988 and 2013, Wiesmann built about 1,600 cars. This one should bring between $100,000-$125,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $103,257.