Marion Roadster

1911 Marion Model 30 A Roadster

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | November 25, 2015

Photo - Brightwells

Photo – Brightwells

Marion was a marque produced by a few different companies in the early days of the automobile. The company that produced this car in 1911 was the most prolific. Based in Indianapolis, Marion was one of the first companies to build a sports car: the Bobcat.

But their bread and butter were more standard cars in an array of body styles. The 1911 range included the Model 30 and 40. The 30 (seen here) uses a 30 horsepower, 3.7-liter straight-four. It was offered in four styles, with this Model A Roadster being the least expensive and smallest.

This car spent most of its life in the American Northeast before being exported to the U.K. in 1991. It was restored in the mid-1990s and has been used steadily since. It should sell for between $30,000-$46,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Brightwells’ lineup.

Update: Sold $30,211.

Marion Bobcat

1911 Marion Model 33 “Bobcat” Speedster

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 7, 2013

1911 Marion Bobcat Speedster

The Marion Motor Car Company of Indianapolis, Indiana, was founded in 1904. You might be thinking “This car sure looks like a Stutz Bearcat.” And you’d be right. Harry C. Stutz was the chief engineer at Marion until he left to form his own company in 1911.

And by that time, he had already designed the Model 33 (or “Bobcat”) Speedster for Marion. He changed some things on his original design and built the car under his own name as the Bearcat beginning in 1912. The idea was simple: power was available, but cars of the period were heavy and had virtually no performance attributes. So Stutz stripped away those big heavy bodies and invented the sports car. The Marion Bobcat was produced from 1911 until 1913 and Marion was out of business in 1915.

It’s a four-cylinder car and it has that super-cool “monocle” windscreen, with the third spotlight below it. These are legitimately rare cars and while a Stutz Bearcat will set you back about $300,000 – the prices for these cars are all over the place. I’ve seen one sell for  $165,000 and one sell for less than $30,000. This one was restored over 30 years ago and is expected to sell for between $26,000-$39,000, which seems like an absolute steal. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams in Paris.

Update: Sold $67,800.