Tag Archives: race cars

Footwork FA14

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1993 Footwork-Mugen-Honda FA14

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | April 16, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Footwork was the name the Arrows team competed under in Formula One from 1991 through 1996. The name is actually that of their largest investor/sponsor, Footwork Express, a Japanese logistics company.

1993 was the second of two seasons that the team sourced their 3.5-liter V10 engines from Honda, which were branded as Mugen-Honda. Output was likely around 720 horsepower. This chassis, FA14-04, retains its engine, but that engine is lacking internals. So it’s essentially a roller.

The competition history for this one includes:

  • 1993 Spanish Grand Prix – 10th (with Aguri Suzuki)
  • 1993 Canadian Grand Prix – 13th (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 French Grand Prix – 12th (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 British Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 German Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Hungarian Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Belgian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Italian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Portuguese Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Japanese Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Australian Grand Prix – 7th (with Suzuki)

So, no points for this car, and quite a string of bad luck. I kind of love relatively livery-less F1 cars from this era. They look so plain as to be almost homebuilt. But even a mid-pack car like this was highly sophisticated in its day. The estimate now is $145,000-$190,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $140,759.

Ginetta G50

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2008 Ginetta G50

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Coventry, U.K. | February 24, 2023

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Ginetta Cars has been around since 1958, and since that time the company has produced all manner of road and racing cars, with an emphasis in the last decade or two on the racing side of the business. The G50 was developed as a GT4 class racing car and was produced from 2008 through 2014.

Developed in less than six months, the G50 was eligible for a one-make series and was also competitive in the British GT Championship. Power is from a 3.5-liter V6 sourced from Ford, and it developed between 300 and 355 horsepower depending on spec and the tune.

This one has all the stuff you’d need to go racing, including air jacks, a carbon-fiber rear wing, a fire-suppression system, and two sets of wheels. The current owner bought this car just to learn to drive at Spa, but never got the chance. Now it can be yours, likely for between $30,000-$36,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

A6CGS Monofaro

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1950 Maserati A6GCS 2000 Race Car by Fantuzzi

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Amelia Island, Florida | March 4, 2023

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The A6GCS was among the final models designed by the Ernesto Maserati before the family company was taken over by the Orsi family. The A6 1500 was a road car that went on sale in 1947. Meanwhile, the sporting derivative, the GCS was also launched that year.

The A6 1500 gave way to the A6G 2000 in 1950, which is why this GCS is equipped with a 2.0-liter inline-six. It wears open-wheel coachwork by Fantuzzi and is one of 14 or 15 to have been built.

It was delivered new in Brazil, where it won its class at a race at Interlagos in 1951. It remained in South America until being discovered in the early 1970s as a project and taken to the U.K., where nothing of note happened to it. It would be restored in San Francisco, remaining with its owner there for over 20 years before being purchased by the current owner in 2004.

No estimate is provided, but this is stated to be one of eight surviving examples. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,088,500.

575 GTC

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2003 Ferrari 575 GTC

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 3, 2023

Photo – Artcurial

Sometimes it is easy to forget that Ferrari had a GT sports car presence in the early 2000s. They built two GTC examples of the 550 Maranello (after production had wrapped for the street car). Those were sort of proof-of-concepts for this, the 575 GTC, based on the 575M Maranello road car.

Just 12 of these were built by Ferrari. They featured a 6.0-liter V12 rated at 605 horsepower. It’s a tube-frame race car with a composite body, making it much lighter than the road cars. The competition history for this chassis, #2204, includes:

  • 2004 24 Hours of Spa – 22nd (with Andrea Garbagnati, Antoine Gosse, and Peter Kutemann)
  • 2005 1000km Spa – 44th, DNF (with Gosse, Kutemann, and Hans Hugenholtz)
  • 2005 24 Hours of Le Mans – 39th, DNF (with Jean-Rene de Fournoux, Stephane Daoudi, and Jim Matthews)
  • 2005 1000km Nurburgring – 40th, DNF (with Gosse, Daoudi, and Kutemann)

The V12 was overhauled in 2015, and the car now wears its 2005 Le Mans livery. This is a factory Ferrari race car with Le Mans history. It has an estimate of $3,500,000-$4,100,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Racing Point’s First F1 Car

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2019 Racing Point RP19

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 2, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

The Force India Formula One team had some pretty major financial and legal issues surrounding its owner Vijay Mallya and went bankrupt in 2018. The assets of the team (which could be traced back to Jordan Grand Prix) were bought by a group led by Lawrence Stroll. Racing Point would compete in F1 for two seasons: 2019 and 2020 before being re-branded as Aston Martin.

The RP19 was the team’s first car and competed in the 2019 season, during which the team employed drivers Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez. For power, the RP19 used a Mercedes powerplant, specifically the turbocharged 1.6-liter V6 and a KERS system. This chassis has had its relatively modern engine removed.

The competition history for this chassis, #RP19-03, includes:

  • 2019 Monaco Grand Prix – 12th (with Sergio Perez)
  • 2019 Canadian Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2019 French Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Austrian Grand Prix – 11th (with Perez)
  • 2019 British Grand Prix – 17th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Russian Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Japanese Grand Prix – 8th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Mexican Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2019 United States Grand Prix – 10th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix – 9th (with Perez)
  • 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)

That’s a fair bit of points-scoring finishes for this chassis, which is about as new of an F1 car chassis as you’re likely going to be able to find on the open market. It’s coming directly from The Aston Martin F1 team, who has been slowly selling off cars with Bonhams over the last few years. Engineless, it is expected to fetch $120,000-$150,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Withdrawn.

Maserati 4CM

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1937 Maserati 4CM

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 2, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Maserati has been around since the mid-1920s, but not many of their early cars survive. Most of that has to do with the fact that not many were built, because they were all low-production racing cars.

The 4CM was an open-wheel Grand Prix car produced between 1932 and 1938. It was the Maserati Brothers’ first light racing car, powered by a supercharged 1.1-liter inline-four that was good for 125 horsepower and 130 mph. This particular car was one of the last of the model built. It was purchased new by driver Johnny Lurani, and it’s competition history includes:

  • 1938 Tripoli Grand Prix – 3rd (supposedly) (with Johnny Lurani)
  • 1938 Targa Florio – DNF (with Lurani)

It was first restored in the 1960s and, after, was shown at a Swiss classic car show before being hung on a wall for 38 years. It was returned to usable condition in 2017 and was on track at the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix historics. It has an estimate of $1,200,000-$1,500,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $880,507.

Ermini Sport

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1954 Ermini 1100 Sport Competizione

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 2, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

I’m not sure if Ermini or Bandini are the definition of “etceterini,” but I’d have to lean toward Ermini. The cars are named for their constructor: engineer and racing driver Pasquale Ermini. He built his first cars in 1949 and shifted from full cars to bodies for specials in the mid-1950s. By 1962, it was all over.

Only a small number of Ermini cars were actually built, with some sources estimating total output of less than 40 examples. This car is powered by a 1.1-liter Fiat twin-cam inline-four. This car had a fairly extensive racing career in Italy with its first owner through 1959.

It’s been in Italian collections of the last few decades. This is a ticket into historic racing and rallying events worldwide. It’ll cost the next owner between $405,000-$460,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Benetton B195

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1995 Benetton-Judd B195

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 3-4, 2023

Photo – Artcurial

Benetton’s first year in Formula One was 1986, and their last was 2001 before they became the Renault factory team. The team’s first year using Renault power was 1995, in which they campaigned the Rory Byrne/Ross Brawn-designed B195.

The car featured a 3.0-liter Renault V10 capable of up to 700 horsepower. This one now has a 3.5-liter Judd V10 in it. Drivers Michael Schumacher (in his last season before departing for Ferrari) and Johnny Herbert ran for the team, which won its first and only constructors championship this season. Schumacher also won his second title this season, with some of it spent behind this chassis (#02).

The catalog states that Schumacher won races in this chassis but doesn’t specifically state which ones. Oh well!. The Judd engine was installed prior to the current owner’s purchase, and it’s been gone over apparently. Artcurial estimates this car to sell in the range of $2,165,000-$3,250,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

DKW-Vemag GT Malzoni

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1965 DKW-Vemag GT Malzoni Race Car

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | January 2023

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

DKW was a German automobile manufacturer that was part of Auto Union and lives on today as one of the rings in Audi’s logo. In 1956, DKW designs (and the name) were licensed to a Brazilian company called Vemag. A couple of their cars were just re-branded DKWs, and a few models were distinct to South America.

One of them was designed by Rino Malzoni. These GT coupes were initially developed for racing, and this car is one of three fiberglass-bodied cars built for Vemag’s in-house racing team. It’s powered by a 981cc two-stroke inline-three. This car was raced in-period by Emerson Fittipaldi.

The cars were produced for Vemag by a company called the Lumimari Company and branded as DKW-Vemags. Only a handful of road-going versions were made before Lumimari changed their name to Puma and continued on with a very similar design. To be clear, this car is not a Puma. It is the proto-Puma. DKW-Vemag shut down after 1967. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $32,250.

Jordan 191

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1991 Jordan-Ford 191

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 2, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Eddie Jordan’s Jordan Grand Prix competed in F1 between 1991 and 2005. This car is from their debut season, which saw drivers Bertrand Gachot and Andrea de Cesaris start the season. Roberto Moreno, Alex Zanardi, and a very young newcomer called Michael Schumacher also ran races for the team in place of Gachot.

Power is provided by a 3.5-liter Ford V8 that made about 650 horsepower. This particular chassis, #6, has the following competition history:

  • 1991 Hungarian Grand Prix – 7th (with Andrea de Cesaris)
  • 1991 Belgian Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with de Cesaris)

It was used as a spare at Italy, Portugal, Spain, Japan, and Australia as well. Schumacher used this car at Spa during free practice one before it was raced by de Cesaris. That makes this the first F1 car ever driven by Schumacher during an F1 weekend. It’s had a few private owners since, and was used on F1 TV race coverage at Silverstone in 2021 when Mick Schumacher did some demonstration laps with it. It’ now has an estimate of $1,500,000-$2,150,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,658,926.