Tag Archives: porsche

2013 Ault Park Concours d’Elegance

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Okay, so it’s been about a month since the 2013 Ault Park Concours d’Elegance (I’ve been busy!) was held in Cincinnati’s beautiful Ault Park. I was at the show bright and early and it was great. The weather was perfect and the rain held off until just after the show had completed (by literally minutes). While I managed to photograph every car on the show grounds, I’ll only show you some of the highlights here. I even managed to capture some of them on video.

Best in Show went to this 1938 Steyr 220 Special Roadster. I think most people knew going into the show that this was going to be the major award winner.

If this website were to give out an award for something – it would undoubtedly have gone to this 1911 Thomas Flyer K6-70 Flyabout. I don’t know if you’ve ever had the chance to hear a starter on a 1911 Thomas Flyer, but I highly recommend trying to get the opportunity. It is a noise. Watching this thing being driven was one of my favorite points of the show. I’ll post video below!

Hands down the most popular car at this year’s show was the Goldfinger Aston Martin. This was the DB5 that was actually used in two James Bond films: Thunderball and Goldfinger. The best part? It was just sitting there so you could get up close and personal with it AND the owner was driving it around. You can see video of it here.

One of my other favorite cars was perhaps the most infamous of the show. It is a 1978 Monteverdi 375/4 High Speed Sedan. The High Speed 375/4 was built for a few years in very limited numbers. After production wrapped, the Royal Family of Qatar wanted a sedan version, so Peter Monteverdi built seven of them. This is one of those cars. It was exquisite and I took more photos of it than any other car there. Then, while lining up for awards, the owner (who brought the car here from Germany) was trying to keep the car running by revving the throttle. His foot slipped off the brake (or something) and he peeled out and smashed into the back of a McLaren MP4-12C Spider. Luckily no one was hurt and the McLaren will be fine. This thing will need slightly more repairs.

Some other cool cars included this 1908 Locomobile Model I 7-Passenger Touring, the restoration of which, concluded at something like 4 a.m. of show day.

This 1955 Cadillac Custom Viewmaster was one of seven built locally by Hess & Eisenhardt and was really cool as you rarely ever see a Cadillac wagon.

From the “you’ve got to be kidding” category: a 1996 Vector M12. This was the auto show car first displayed by the company and is painted in some hideously patriotic paint scheme. I couldn’t believe where the car was from – a small town not far from where I live and a place you definitely would not associate with supercars (more like beat-up pickup trucks and Ford Aerostars).

Two of the featured marques this year were Corvette and Porsche. There were some awesome Corvette race cars on the field but the most valuable has to be this 1957 Corvette SS Concept Car. I believe it resides at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway museum.

There were two Porsches that stood out (to me) above all others. First, this 1964 904 Carrera GTS:

And second, this 1955 550 1500RS Spyder. This car is so small but it’s worth about $3 million. And the sound! The engine is about the size of a lunchbox but it packs a punch. I couldn’t believe how loud and how enthralling the noise actually was.

Finally, I have to give a shout-out to this car. It is the best-looking MGA (it’s a 1959) I have ever seen and this color is amazing in person. I talked to the owner and he said that something like 1% (or less) of MGAs were painted this color back in the day but no one wanted them so dealers sprayed them red and they drove off the lot. Only a fraction of the cars were sold without the repaint and those who bought them must be quite proud today because the combination of this soft teal and whitewall tires is outstanding.

Be sure to check out some of our videos from the show at our YouTube channel! These cars are ever better then they are in-motion and making noise. Sorry I couldn’t capture the smells for you too! And check the show’s website here for more winners.

Porsche Pre-A Speedster

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1955 Porsche 356 Pre-A 1500 Speedster by Reutter

Offered by RM Auctions | Lake Como, Italy | May 25, 2013

1955 Porsche 356 Pre-A 1500 Speedster by Reutter

The Porsche 356 was introduced in 1948 in coupe and cabriolet form. In 1954, the U.S. importer for Porsche, Max Hoffman, saw a potential market opportunity for a stripped-out 356 roadster.

They called it the Speedster and it had a short windshield, bucket seats and a basic folding top. It was race-ready and a big hit in the U.S. What makes this particular car even more special is that it is a “Pre-A” Speedster. Porsche 356s are broken down by their letter: there was the 356, 356A, 356B and 356C (the last of which was built in 1966 – almost 20 years after the first model). The 356A was introduced in 1955, meaning that Pre-A Speedsters are very rare and were only produced for a short time. Pre-A was not a company designation and the differences between them and the 356A are mostly cosmetic.

This car has been completely restored and is magnificent in Signal Red with red wheels and whitewall tires and a light cream interior. The engine in this car is not original. When it was restored, an upgraded, period-correct 1500 Super engine was installed – at 1.5-liters, the flat-four makes 70 horsepower – 15 more than the non-Super engine.

This is a really rare car and one of (if not the) most desirable variant of the 356. The body by Reutter is an updated version of the original Gläser 356 body. This is expected to sell for between $210,000-$260,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $247,520.

Draz-bodied 356A

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1959 Porsche 356A 1600 Super Convertible D by Drauz

Offered by RM Auctions | Fort Worth, Texas | April 27, 2013

1959 Porsche 356A 1600 Super Convertible D by Drauz

The Porsche 356 is an extremely important car as it was Porsche’s first production car. It was in production from 1948 through 1965 – an eternity in sports car terms. The 356A was the second iteration of the model and it bowed in 1955, with production lasting through 1959.

The Convertible D was produced in 1958 and 1959 only, with the “D” standing for Drauz – that’s Drauz Karrosseriewerke, a German coachbuilder that had been around since 1900. The trim level was very similar to the much-loved Speedster, with the exception that the D had roll-up windows, a taller windshield and a nicer interior.

The car was sold new to Cincinnati, where it had spent much of its life until being acquired by Don Davis (presumably sometime after 2006). It was restored in 1988 and 2003. This car has the 1600 Super motor in it – a 1.6-liter flat-four making 75 horsepower. This particular car has covered over 200,000 miles in its life. Incredible.

Only 1,330 Convertible Ds were built by Porsche and bodied by Drauz. They are highly sought after. This one is expected to bring between $125,000-$150,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of the cars coming from the Don Davis collection.

Update: Sold $137,500.

Porsche RSK

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1959 Porsche 718 RSK

Offered by Gooding & Company | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 19, 2013

1959 Porsche 718 RSK

The Porsche RSK-series of sports racing cars got its start in 1957 on the heels of the 550 Spyder program. They stuck with the mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout for this car, and some of the styling cues seem to have bee carried over from the 550 as well. The engine had more power: it was a 1.5-liter flat-four making 148 horsepower. The cars were nimble and quick, grabbing class wins all over the world. This was a privateer car all its racing life, and it’s race record includes the following:

  • 1959 4 Hours of Alamar (Cuba) – 4th (with owner Roy Schechter)
  • 1959 Nassau Speed Week, Nassau Trophy Race – 14th (with Schechter)
  • 1960 12 Hours of Sebring – 2nd (with Schechter, Bob Holbert & Howard Fowler)
  • 1960 Riverside Grand Prix – 3rd (with Schechter)

After Riverside, Schechter sold the car and it would become a fixture in a prominent Porsche collection for many years, until 1999. It was restored in 2006, but it is still one of the most correct and undamaged 718s you will likely find. It should sell for between $2,800,000-$3,200,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Gooding in Arizona.

Update: Sold $3,315,000.

Mecum Monterey 2012 Highlights

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Mecum’s multi-day sale at this year’s Pebble Beach weekend featured a number of high-dollar Porsches, including this year’s top sale, our featured 1972 Porsche 917/10 that brought an impressive $5,500,000. The second-highest selling car was our featured 1908 Simplex that was also impressive at $1,900,000. Our featured Duesenberg from this sale was bid to $350,000 but didn’t meet the reserve and thus failed to sell. The only other million dollar car was this $1,050,000 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spider.

1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spyder

I mentioned all the cool Porsches and one that really struck me as awesome is this 1974 911 RSR that was driven in the IROC series by Emerson Fittipaldi. There were only 15 of these built by Penske for the 1974 season. Fittipaldi drove this in the season’s first race and it was a reserve car the rest of the year. It sold for $875,000.

1974 Porsche 911 RSR IROC - Emerson Fittipaldi

Another race car, or sort of race car – a car that was designed with racing in mind but could probably be easily driven on the street, was this 1955 Devin Monza. It sold for $105,000.

1955 Devin Monza

Some other cool cars from the 1950s included this one-off 1952 Astra Coupe. This car was for sale last year in at Fantasy Junction in California for $125,000. It sold here for $43,000.

1952 Astra Coupe

Perhaps one of the most beautiful cars of the sale was this 1953 Muntz Jet. Designed and originally built by Kurtis, production was taken over by Earl “Madman” Muntz for a little while. They’re rare and they’re pretty. This one cost $75,000

1953 Muntz Jet

From large-ish American convertibles to tiny European microcars – this 1958 Goggomobil TS400 brought a small-ish $26,000.

1958 Goggomobil TS400

Another teeny-tiny European car was this 1970 Autobianchi Bianchina Panoramica. I’ve seen a number of Bianchina Transformables (the convertible) but I’ve never seen the wagon variant. It sold for $17,500.

1970 Autobianchi Bianchina Panoramica

This 1977 International Scout SSII (yes, I’m out of transitions) is a very rare find – especially in this condition. It sold for $23,000.

1977 International Scout SSII

Continuing with the theme of utility, I thought this 1956 Hudson Rambler Station Wagon was pretty cool. I’ve actually seen one of these up close and they are kind of bizarre looking – in a very good way. It sold for $19,500.

1956 Hudson Rambler Wagon

And finally, we always seem to be able to find some oddball Corvette at Mecum auctions (and Auctions America’s sales too, I guess). This sale was no different. Witness: the 2009 Corvette SV 9 Competizione. Only four of these were built (aftermarket). They have an all-carbon fiber body, so don’t ding it – or chip it. It sold for $44,000.

2009 Chevrolet Corvette SV 9 Competizione

For complete results, click here.

Porsche RS60

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1960 Porsche RS60

Offered by Gooding & Company | Monterey, California | August, 18, 2012

The Porsche 718 (or RSK) was introduced in 1957 as a further developed racing version of the 550 Spyder. In 1960, due to FIA rule changes, Porsche had to refine the 718 and the RS60 was born. The RS60 was a one-year only racing model, as it was lightly changed for 1961 to become the RS61.

Changes over the 718 included a larger cockpit area and windshield, as mandated by the FIA. The engine in this car is a 1.5-liter flat-4 making 150 horsepower. It cost $9,000 in 1960 and is one of 14 non-works RS60s built.

This car ran in sports car races across the U.S. during its day, never suffering an accident and passed through the hands of a few owners/collectors until it was “sympathetically” restored (I guess that could mean anything, but I take it to mean “as needed”) sometime after 1999. It has seen track time during the Monterey Historics and the Rennsport Reunion.

The pre-sale estimate is $2,250,000-$3,000,000 – which is a lot of money for a car that begs the question: “Is it going forward or backward?” For the complete lot description, click here. And for more from Gooding & Co in Monterey, click here.

Update: Sold $3,465,000.

Porsche 911 GT1 Roadcar

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1998 Porsche 911 GT1 Straßenversion

Offered by RM Auctions | Monterey, California | August 18, 2012

Photo – RM Auctions

Remember a week or so ago when we talked about the late-90s homologation specials that were thinly disguised race cars made street legal by some soft tuning and modification, namely the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR? Well you’re looking at its biggest competitor, the Porsche 911 GT1. This is the rarest supercar Porsche has ever made. And it is glorious.

The race version of the CLK GTR never won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Porsche, however, did – taking the top two spots on the podium in 1998. We actually featured a 911 GT1 Evo a few months ago when it came up for sale. But, in order to race these ridiculous “GT” cars, Porsche was required to build road-going examples, just as Mercedes and McLaren did.

The first road car was delivered in 1997. It featured a detuned version of the race car’s 3.2-liter twin-turbo flat-6, making 544 horsepower. The car could do 194 mph and hit 60 mph in 3.6 seconds. The base price was a very Porsche-sounding $912,000. This particular car is believed to be the only registered 911 GT1 road car in the United States. Approximately 25 were built in total (how no one knows the exact number is a little disheartening as Porsche is a reputable company and they are German, thus they are, stereotypically, supposed to be organized and on top of such things).

If you want to own the rarest of rare Porsches with performance and outrageous looks equaled by very few cars, then this one’s for you. Show up at any Porsche show with it and even people with 959s and Carrera GTs will be staring at their shoes in embarrassment of having “just another production Porsche.” The price is expected to be in the $1,250,000-$1,400,000 range. For more information, click here. And for more from RM in Monterey, click here.

Update: Sold $1,175,000.

Update II: Sold, Gooding & Company, Amelia Island 2017, $5,665,000.

Artcurial Le Mans Highlights (7/7/12)

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Artcurial’s July 7th, 2012, auction held at Le Mans was an interesting one. Among the many exotics and classics, there was a small collection of Ligiers, quite a few race cars, and a large collection of one-off cars built by Heuliez. Top sale went to this 1966 Ferrari 275 GTC in deep maroon for $1,961,553.

Our featured Audi R10 TDI failed to sell. So did the Liger JS2. A Ligier JS1 followed the JS2 across the block and it too failed to reach reserve. The following two Ligier Formula One cars were then both withdrawn from the sale. The fifth and final Ligier, a 1985 JS6D sold for $3,305.

Our featued Simca Butagaz promotional vehicle sold for $30,346. And the Peugeot 905 Evo 1B brought $833,855. Other interesting sales (and there were many) included this 1966 ASA RB Type 613 1300GT for $379,329.

This 1979 Marcos Mini Marcos Mk IV sold for $16,690.

Other race cars included a 1962 Terrier Mk 6 that brought $51,589 (below) and a 1988 WM P88 Le Mans prototype that sold for $151,732 (second below).

The WM prototype was from the Heuliez Collection. Heuliez designs, and in some cases produces, cars for various automakers, usually European. They specialize in convertibles (lately, retractable hardtops) and station wagons. They’ve even built a few prototypes of their own to showcase what they can do. They sold a bunch of cars from their collection including all of the following, beginning with two cars designed and built by Heuliez. First the 1992 Raffica Concept which sold for $4,552. And following that, the 1986 Atlantic “Stars & Stripes” concept, which sold for $3,035.

There were a few Heuliez prototypes based on German cars, namely this 1969 Porsche 914-6 Murene, which brought $54,623 and the 1998 Mercedes-Benz G Intruder concept which brought the exact same amount.

Two other concepts, both French, included this very 1970s Peugeot 204 Taxi “H4” of 1972, which brought for $25,036 (orange car below) and this 1990 Citroen Scarabee d’Or Concept (tan roadster below), which sold for $9,104.

One of the more road-going (or off-road-going) prototypes was this c.1988 UHM-Heuliez VLH 4×4 which looks quite rugged and sold for $9,104.

And finally, an actual road-going car, a 1941 Peugeot VLV Electrique, a small electric car made at the onset of WWII. It is just one of 377 built and it sold for $22,760.

For complete results, click here.

1972 Can-Am Champion Porsche 917/10

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1972 Porsche 917/10 Spyder

Offered by Mecum Auctions | Monterey, California | August 18, 2012

Can-Am was an amazing race series with innovation and pure power and speed being the most important things. There were few rules and the cars were over the top. Porsche had little success in 1970 with its underpowered 908 and 917PA models (they won a single race with a privateer team). In 1971, with factory backing, the 917/10 was introduced into the series, as the hardtop 917 was not eligible. The engine was a flat-12, but it didn’t make enough power.

So for 1972, Porsche strapped two turbochargers to the engine of 5.0-liters (this car was upgraded to 5.4-liters mid-1973), and with enough boost they could crank the power up over 1150. The wins came about as quick as this cars 0-60mph sprint of 2.9 seconds. This Penske-prepped car won the 1972 Can Am Championship. Here is a breakdown of chassis #003’s competition history:

  • 1972 Road Atlanta Can-Am – 1st (with George Follmer, who drove in all following races)
  • 1972 Watkins Glen Can-Am – 5th
  • 1972 Buckeye Can-Am (Mid-Ohio) – 1st
  • 1972 Road America Can-Am – 1st
  • 1972 Minneapolis Tribune Grand Prix (Donnybrooke) – 4th
  • 1972 Klondike 200 (Edmonton) – 3rd
  • 1972 Monterey Castrol GTX Grand Prix (Laguna Seca) – 1st
  • 1972 Los Angeles Times Grand Prix (Riverside) – 1st
  • 1972 Can-Am Championship – 1st
  • 1973 Interserie Nürburgring 300km – 17th, DNF
  • 1973 Interserie Imola  – 11th, DNF
  • 1973 Labatt’s Blue Trophy (Mosport) – 13th, DNF
  • 1973 Watkins Glen Can-Am – 20th, DNF
  • 1973 Buckeye Cup (Mid-Ohio) – 2nd
  • 1973 Road America Can-Am – 3rd
  • 1973 Molson Cup (Edmonton) – 2nd
  • 1973 Monterey Castrol Grand Prix (Laguna Seca) – 11th, DNF
  • 1973 Los Angeles Tims Grand Prix (Riverside) – 20th, DNF
  • 1973 Can-Am Championship – 2nd

As you can see, this car was only raced by one guy, George Follmer, and he was no slouch behind the wheel. The car didn’t stand a chance in the 1973 championship, as it was competing with the mighty 917/30 driven by Mark Donohue. But second place that year is kind of like a win.  The car was destroyed in a testing crash in late 1973 and that was the end of its brief career.

Obviously, it is back to as-new/as-raced condition. With this being only one of 18 cars built, and the fact that it is an ex-Penske Can-Cam Championship-winning car, it is quite valuable. Mecum does not publish estimates, but the Sunoco-liveried 917/30 sold for $4.4 million. I think this would bring less as it isn’t iconic, but it certainly has provenance. But what do I know? For more information, click here. And for more on Mecum in Monterey, click here.

Update: Sold $5,500,000.

Dauer 962

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1989 Dauer 962 Le Mans

For Sale at Taylor & Crawley | London, England

The 1990s were a crazy time for supercars. Little (and large) companies were coming out with more and more over-the-top race cars for the road. This is about right at the top of the list, as it is literally a race car for the road.

Jochen Dauer drove Porsches in various racing series’ before concentrating full-time on team ownership in 1987. This car was once his team’s Porsche 962 and it was raced by Bob Wolleck, Hans-Joachim Stuck, Derek Bell, Henri Pescarolo and one of the Unsers. In 1992, the World Sportscar Championship altered its rules, essentially barring the 962 from competition. Porsche, being the clever motorsports company it is, found a loophole that would allow them to keep the 962s on the track.

Basically, the GT rules said that the race cars had to be based on a road-going car – with no minimum production number. Dauer had converted one of their 962s to a road-going car and, because of it, Porsche was back in business on the track. A Dauer 962 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1994, beating all comers in classes with cars that were supposed to be higher-performing. The ACO (who sets the rules for Le Mans) quickly closed that loophole and the 962 was set out to pasture for historic racing.

But Dauer wasn’t done. They received a few orders here and there for road-car conversions of the 962. About 13 in total were built between 1993 and around 1997. The cars were amazing – using a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter flat-6 making an insane 730 horsepower. Because they were essentially built on the back of a race car (a new, wider body made of carbon-kevlar was fit so a passenger could ride along in terror), the cars were sleek and capable of about 251 mph!

It has leather interior, air conditioning and hydraulic suspension so you don’t scrape the chin on any curbs. It also has what appears to be a DVD player, because if you can afford this car, it is likely you don’t also own some large theater in which to watch your movies, so a cramped cabin of a two-seat race car is the next logical option. It’s listed as a 1989, but that is likely the date on the racing chassis, as the conversion was performed sometime after 1993.

The price is, not surprisingly, withheld. I’ve never seen another come up for sale (this is one of those cars that is so rare that no one is exactly sure how few were actually built), so I don’t know what it’ll cost you. But you can check out more pictures and get some more information from the dealer’s website here.