Tag Archives: maserati

Maserati Tipo 26 Four-Seater

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1930-31 Maserati Tipo 26 Sport

Offered by Bonhams | Goodwood, England | September 15, 2012

If you can believe it, there are actually two 1930 Maserati Tipo 26s up for auction at this sale. One is a two-seater, and the one seen here is a four-seater – you know, the more useful of the two when hauling the kids to soccer practice. Both cars come out of the same collection and having similar histories, as they were both imported into the U.K. for racing purposes in 1930. We’ll focus on the four-seater from here on.

The car is powered by a supercharged 2.5-liter straight-8, taking direct aim at Alfa Romeo’s 8C competition cars. This car competed against Alfa 8Cs, driven by the likes of Henry “Tim” Birkin, in the 1931 Eireann Cup in Dublin, Ireland. This car finished second to Birkin in an 8C. It was driven by Giuseppe Campari, who mid-race, was temporarily blinded when mud and debris from another car came off the track and shattered his goggles, sending glass into one of his eyes. Giulio Ramponi, a sometimes riding mechanic who was working in the pits, took over the car while Campari had his eye tended to. Before long, Campari ran back onto the track, flagged Ramponi down, and resumed his race.

The car was entered at Brooklands earlier that year, but only one of the two cars offered here actually competed (chassis unknown, based on price, I’d say likely this one). This car did compete at Brooklands in 1933 and a few other races over the next few years. It passed through numerous hands – and numerous drivetrain configurations – before being acquired by its current owner in 1952. All of its original pieces were located and reinstalled, making this a highly original example of an already extremely rare car.

It is very impressive, in both history, rarity and condition. It is an exquisite alternative to the comparatively common Alfa Romeo 8C. The pre-sale estimate is $2,900,000-$3,500,000. For the complete lot description, click here. And from more from Bonhams at Goodwood, click here.

Update: Sold $2,727,000.

Gooding & Company Monterey 2012 Highlights

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Gooding & Company held their very successful Monterey sale last weekend. They had the top two cars in terms of selling price. The top car was this 1936 Mercedes-Benz 540K Special Roadster. It sold for $11,770,000 including buyer’s premium. It is an astounding car at a price that was more or less expected.

1936 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster

Not far behind was, not surprisingly, this 1960 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spyder Competizione. This was the 1960 Chicago Motor Show Car and one of a few high-dollar Ferraris sold from the Sherman Wolf Collection. It sold for $11,275,000.

1960 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Competizione

Other Ferraris from this collection included our featured Ferrari 340 MM Spider that brought $4,730,000. Also from this collection was the 1957 Ferrari 500 TRC that sold for $4,510,000.

1957 Ferrari 500 TRC

The final car from the Sherman Wolf collection also went for over a million dollars (unfortunately, do to the insanely high number of million dollar cars, those are the only ones we’re recapping in this rundown. Fortunately, these are also the most interesting cars). It was this 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO. If $1,045,000 isn’t a world record price for this model, it’s pretty close.

1985 Ferrari 288 GTO

Our other featured Ferrari, the ex-Andy Warhol 1955 857 Sport, sold for $6,270,000. And another really high-dollar Ferrari was another California Spider, this one a 1957 LWB Prototype for $6,600,000.

1957 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Prototype

For something other than a Ferrari, check out this 1928 Bentley 4.25-Litre Le Mans Sports Bobtail that brought $6,050,000.

1928 Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Le Mans Sports "Bobtail"

A couple of Maseratis up next, first the ex-Jay Kay 1955 A6G/2000 Berlinetta by Frua (below). It sold for $1,650,000. And the 1959 Tipo 61 Birdcage (second below) sold for $3,520,000.

1955 Maserati A6G/2000 Berlinetta

Mercedes-Benz 300SLs were, as always, well represented. Two of them cracked the million dollar mark at this sale. Strangely, a Roadster was the highest-selling of them all. A white 1963 300SL Roadster sold for $1,595,000 and a blue 1955 300SL Gullwing sold for $1,127,500.

1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster

There were three million dollar Bugattis at this sale, the cheapest of which being a 2008 Veyron at $1,182,500. Our featured 1920 Type 13 sold for $379,500. Our other featured Bugatti, the 1932 Type 55, failed to sell. A 1938 Type 57C Stelvio brought $1,292,500.

2008 Bugatti Veyron

1938 Bugatti Type 57C Stelvio

The other Bugatti was a beautiful yellow and black 1936 Type 57 Atalante. It sold for $1,485,000.

This 1964 Ford GT40 Prototype is the second-oldest GT40 in existence. It sold for a hefty $4,950,000.

1964 Ford GT40 Prototype

Our featured – and unbelievably awesome – 1932 Daimler Double Six sold for $2,970,000. Another English car was this 1953 Jaguar C-Type which went unsold on the block but found a buyer a few minutes later with a little behind-the-scenes work from the folks at Gooding & Co. The final price was $3,725,000.

1953 Jaguar C-Type

This 1919 Miller TNT is sort of the pre-Miller Indy Car Miller Indy Car. It’s an ex-Harrah Collection car and it sold for $1,210,000.

1919 Miller TNT

One feature car that didn’t sell was the 1911 S.P.O. Raceabout. The 1960 Porsche RS60 did, however, bringing $3,465,000. Two more million-dollar Ferraris included a 2003 Enzo for $1,430,000 and a 1962 400 Superamerica Coupe Aerodinamico for $2,365,000.

2003 Ferrari Enzo

1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica Coupe Aerodinamico

This 1972 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV sold for $1,375,000.

1972 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV

Duesenberg recap time! Only the ex-Clark Gable Model JN went unsold. The Model J known as “Blue J” went for $1,980,000. The Willoughby Limousine was the bargain of the bunch at $330,000 and the Murphy Convertible Sedan sold for $522,500. And okay, I lied when I said we would only highlight million dollar cars. Here are some of the more interesting lots sold, starting with a 1970 Monteverdi HAI 450 SS Prototype for $577,500.

1970 Monteverdi HAI 450 SS Prototype

And some pre-WWI cars, beginning with this 1913 Pope-Hartford Model 33 Four-Passenger Touring Phaeton. It sold for $319,000.

1913 Pope-Hartford Model 33 Four-Passenger Touring Phaeton

This 1904 Knox Tudor Touring was the earliest car at the sale. It brought $198,000.

And this really cool 1907 Panhard et Levassor Model U2 Transformable Seven-Passenger Town Car with body by Audineau & Cie is, I guess, an early version of the “retractable hardtop.” Instead of retracting, in this case, the entire top half of the town car body comes off to turn it into a large touring car. See the “before and after” photos below. How cool. It sold for $264,000.

For complete results, click here.

Osenat, June 17, 2012, Sale Highlights

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Osenat’s recent sale had a number of unique – at least to those of us not in France – cars that sold. Unfortunately, the D.B. Le Mans we featured, didn’t. However, the other D.B. in the sale did. It’s a 1960 D.B. Type HBR 5 and it brought $28,000.

Top sale went to this 1960 Maserati 3500 GT Spider Vignale – in all it’s wondrous Photoshopped glory. It sold for $303,000 – about three times more than the next highest-selling car.

Other interesting sales included a 1926 Hispano-Suiza T49 (below) for $38,000 and a 1951 Talbot-Lago T26 Record for $76,500 (second below).

This 1954 Panhard Dyna Junior convertible really popped in this shade of gold. I can’t tell if it’s attractive or hideous, but it certainly grabbed my attention. It was one of two Dyna Juniors that sold. This one for $19,000 and one in blue for $20,000.

And finally, one car I found quite pretty was this 1962 Simca Plein Ciel – which was the hardtop coupe version of the Simca Aronde. It sold for a touch under $23,000. For complete results, click here.

Maserati 222

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1992 Maserati 222 SE

Offered by Bonhams | Oxford, U.K. | June 16, 2012

The Maserati Biturbo was in production in various forms from 1981 through 1994. The original models were all called “Biturbo” something or other. In the late 1980s, the models were named 222, the SE model being offered from 1990 through 1992. There were also four-door sedans with various numerical names from 420 through 430.

While the Biturbo was the first twin-turbocharged production car, the engines that the turbos were attached to varied based on model. The 222 SE had a 2.8-liter twin-turbo V6 making 225 horsepower. It was good for 143 mph.

Only 210 of these cars were built and this one has 53,000 original miles. This one was in storage for eight years, but has been freshened and serviced and is ready to drive. Biturbos aren’t known for their reliability – in fact, they are more well known for leaking, bursting into flame and generally falling into disrepair. It was born out of Maserati’s De Tomaso ownership – and cash was not plentiful. But as a cool, cheap exotic, this car could be a lot of fun… you know, until you have to fix it. And I wouldn’t recommend trying to use it as a daily driver.

The car is to sell without reserve with an estimate between $7,700 and $11,000. And it does have that Maserati badge on it. I am seriously tempted. For more information, click here. For more from Bonhams Oxford sale, click here.

Update: Sold $4,500.

Gooding Scottsdale Highlights 2012

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Gooding & Company’s Scottsdale auction featured some major cars selling for some major cash – $39,833,900 all told. It was also one of the more successful auctions in recent memory, with only two cars going unsold for not meeting their reserves. Top sale at this auction was a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Alloy Gullwing. Mercedes-Benz built 29 aluminum-bodied 300SL coupes and this is number six. This is as desirable as Gullwings come and it exceeded it’s estimate by $1.5 million, selling for $4,620,000.

Also, somewhat shockingly, every car we featured here on this site from Gooding’s auction sold. The 1930 Duesenberg Model J Disappearing-Top Convertible Coupe sold for $2,640,000, which was the third highest at the sale. Second place went to the 1959 Ferrari 250GT California Spider – a car that Gooding seems to find one of for each of their sales. Where are these things coming from? It brought $3,905,000.

Other million dollar sales included the 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV we featured a few weeks ago, selling for $1,100,000. There was also this matching-numbers 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 which sold for $1,200,000.

The final million dollar sale went to this awesome 1965 Ferrari 500 Superfast which was hammered away for $1,100,000. It’s one of only 36. It has 400 horsepower – more than just about every muscle car of its day – but the shape of it is so much sleeker than a GTO or Mustang. Super fast indeed.

Two cars that Gooding promoted heavily in the lead up to the auction also showed well. There was a brilliant green 1971 Maserati Ghibli 4.9 SS Spyder which split its pre-sale estimate, selling for $880,000.

Also, this 1969 Iso Grifo 7 Liter – one of only 66 Grifos built with the 7.0 liter V8 making more than 400 horsepower. A 1960s supercar in crazy purple paint? Yes, please. It satyed nearer its lower estimate at $352,000.

Another purple exotic was the 1927 Bugatti Type 38A Tourer by Figoni that we featured. It brought a hefty $495,000. Among our other featured cars, the 1967 Trident Clipper V8 was a steal, missing its estimate entirely and selling for $39,600. Our final feature car was an unbelievable 1937 BMW 328 which was well bought for $517,000. Another rare BMW sold there too, this 1958 507 Roadster. While not as good-looking as the car offered by RM across town, it still rang up a hefty $962,500.

Other interesting sales included a 1938 American Bantam Roadster which far exceeded its pre-sale estimate of $35,000-$55,000 and ended up selling for $90,200. Cute sells.

There was also an ultra-rare 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe. The car is a survivor – unrestored in Monaco Orange with less than 18,000 original miles. This was the king of Corvettes in 1969 – the L88 option got you more horsepower than a ZL1. This car was rated at 430 horsepower but likely put out more like 560. It doesn’t play around. And neither does its hammer price of $451,000.

And from the fun-file: this 1963 Volkswagen Beetle Sunroof Sedan – which sounds pretty normal from the name of it. Until you see it:

This car was featured in the film Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo. There are desirable, well-optioned Volkswagens, but people are going to recognize this one. And for $66,000 ($15,000 below it’s pre-sale estimate) it’s going to be a lot of fun. For full results click here.

Bonhams Mercedes-Benz World Highlights

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Bonhams recently held sale at Mercedes-Benz World in Weybridge, Surrey (on the 1st of December, 2011), featured a few interesting sales. Foremost among them was the 1953 Austin-Healey 100S Prototype that was involved in the infamous wreck at the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans. The car was being driven by Lance Macklin who swerved to avoid a Mike Hawthorn’s Jaguar D-Type that was entering the pits. Pierre Levegh in a Mercedes-Benz 300SLR struck the rear of this Healey and was launched into the crowd, killing 83, including Levegh. The car’s infamy definitely played a part in it reaching a hammer price of $1.3 million – especially as it was sold in “barn find” condition seen here:

Other highlights include the red Maserati Quattroporte we featured a few weeks ago, selling for $80,000, falling right in the middle of the pre-sale estimate. Also sold was this super unusual 1912 Lanchester 38hp Detachable Open Drive Limousine for just over $130,000.

The car was owned by a Maharajah – as it seems more and more early British motorcars are – especially those with outlandish or highly unusual bodywork. The fixed roof over the rear passengers is completely removable on this car. The wheelbase is ridiculous and the whole front of the car looks like it was smashed backwards by about five feet. Unusual indeed.

I’ve decided that we’re going to give special mention to the final lot in every sale, as that lot usually tends to not be the most valuable or unusual car sold. It’s kind of overlooked. Like Mr. Irrelevant (the last pick in the annual NFL draft). For this sale it was a 2001 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage Volante very similar (but not exact) to the one below.

As far as I’m concerned, this is one of the most beautiful cars of all time. It’s an extraordinarily pretty car and this one was dark blue with tan interior and had 63,000 miles on the odometer. It sold for almost $47,000 with buyer’s premium.

For complete results, check Bonhams’ website here.

1967 Maserati Quattroporte

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1967 Maserati Quattroporte

Offered by Bonhams at Mercedes-Benz World, Brooklands, December 1, 2011

Bonhams December 1st sale at Mercedes-Benz World at Brooklands has a number of very interesting cars including a very rare Arab as well as the most unusual Lanchester I have ever seen. But their pictures remain hard to come by, so I present this, a 1967 Maserati Quattroporte. Four-door Italian elegance. The one offered by Bonhams is red.

This was the first generation of the Quattroporte (“four doors” in Italian). The modern version is one of the best performing luxury sedans in the world and, in its day, this car was no different. This car features the 4.2-liter V8 making 256 horsepower allowing it to hit a top speed of 143 mph (according to Maserati, Car & Driver was able to get it comfortably to 120) – which, either way, is pretty quick for a full-size sedan in 1967.

The car was bodied by Frua and just 776 examples were produced. The interior of the car for sale is gorgeous tan leather with red striping. It underwent mechanical “refurbishment” a few years ago and still looks great. Pre-sale estimates range from about $70,000-$85,000.

More info (and pictures) here, with more sale information here.

Update: Sold $80,000.