1913 Pipe M22 All-Weather Cabriolet
Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 8, 2018
Founded in Brussels in 1898, Compagnie Belge de Construction Automobile (which is the most generic company name you could have as an automaker in Belgium) was the product of two brothers: Alfred and Victor Goldschmidt. Rare and relatively unknown today, Pipe was one of Belgium’s largest auto manufacturers before WWI. Their factory was destroyed during the war and they didn’t attempt production again until 1921. But it wasn’t to be and their passenger cars disappeared after 1922.
This four-cylinder car, as all Pipe’s were in 1913, is of unknown displacement but it may be a 16/20 hp car, based on its remarkable similarity to another Pipe of the same vintage. It is thought that this is a 1913 model, as that is what the [presumably] original registration plate says.
And, because of that registration, it is thought that this car was delivered new in the U.K. – as Pipe did export a fair number of cars. It did spend some time under American ownership before coming back to the U.K. in the last 15 or so years. It’s thought to be mostly original but it has not run in some time. A rare example of the Belgian Pipe, this car should bring between $36,000-$48,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.
Update: Sold $39,728.