Tag Archives: rm auctions

A Pair of European Prototypes

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1972 Citroen SM Prototype Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Monaco | May 11, 2012

The Citroen SM grand tourer was introduced in 1970. This coupe version using the same mechanicals – mid-front-engined layout with front-wheel drive – was built by Frua for the 1972 Geneva Auto Show. It has the same 2.7-liter V6 making 170 horsepower. The engine was designed with help from Citroen-owned Maserati (which they acquired in 1968).

This car is one-of-a-kind and in original, un-restored condition with about 26,000 miles on the odometer. It has been privately owned since it left the auto show circuit in 1972. This is a rare chance to acquire a one-off prototype. The pre-sale estimate lists this car at $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: did not sell.


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1964 Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Double post! This wickedly-bizarre looking car was a Lancia works race car with one-off Zagato styling. It was entered by Lancia in the 1964 Targa Florio (where it DNF’d). The engine is 1.8-liter flat-four making 148 horsepower.

Again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire a car unlike any other. It was sold from Lancia to one of its drivers in 1967. In the early 1990s, it was acquired by the current owner. Like the Citroen prototype above, it is also estimated to sell for between $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: sold $246,568.

Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

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1964 Lancia Sport Prototipo Zagato

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Photo – RM Auctions

Double post! This wickedly-bizarre looking car was a Lancia works race car with one-off Zagato styling. It was entered by Lancia in the 1964 Targa Florio (where it DNF’d). The engine is 1.8-liter flat-four making 148 horsepower.

Again, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire a car unlike any other. It was sold from Lancia to one of its drivers in 1967. In the early 1990s, it was acquired by the current owner. Like the Citroen prototype above, it is also estimated to sell for between $180,000-$240,000. For the complete catalog description, click here.

Update: sold $246,568.

Ferrari 225 by Vignale

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1952 Ferrari 225 Sport Spyder ‘Tuboscocca’ by Vignale

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

When production of the Ferrari 212 ended in 1951, Ferrari introduced the interim 225 model – an enlarged 212 that was produced for one year, 1952, before the Ferrari 250 was introduced in 1953. Mainly sold to privateer sportsmen, the 225 was a successful racer in many parts of the world. This particular example was bought by an Alfa Romeo dealer who split his time between Milan and Buenos Aires. The car remained in South America until 1980 when it was brought back to Italy and restored.

Since its restoration, it has been campaigned in vintage races, but in its day, it also had a few victories. It’s competition history includes:

  • 1952 Bologna-Raticosa Hill Climb (first race) – 1st (with Pietro Palmieri)
  • 1953 Argentine Sports Car Championship – 1st (with José Maria Ibañez, where it won two races and placed on the podium fives more times)

Of all of the super-rare and early Ferraris offered at RM Auctions’ Monaco sale, this is my favorite. It’s not the fastest and it’s not the rarest, but that Vignale coachwork is near-perfect. It’s well-proportioned and don’t even get me started on those portholes.

The 225 features a 210 horsepower 2.7-liter V12 and “Tuboscocca” refers to the frame layout. Just 12 Sport Spyders were produced (and seven Berlinetta coupes) – all by Vignale. There was also one non-Vignale 225S. While fairly rare, a 225 will pop up for sale every now and then. The estimate on this one is $2,380,000-$2,900,000. For the complete catalog description, click here. And for more on RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $3,263,400.

Peugeot 908 HDi FAP

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2007 Peugeot 908 HDi FAP

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

The 24 Hours of Le Mans has had some historic battles between manufacturers since it began back in 1923. The latest of these battles has been between Audi and Peugeot. Beginning in 2007, Peugeot took Audi head on with this car, the 908 HDi FAP. Like its competitor, it is diesel-powered – a 5.5-liter twin-turbocharged V12 making in excess of 700 horsepower.

I should probably come clean and admit that I am a massive Audi fan. However, I will also admit that these cars are far more attractive than any of the Audi prototypes they raced against. They are gorgeous – and those wheels! The 908 was a worthy competitor to Audi’s R10 and R15, but it only got the better of them at Le Mans once – in 2009 when they finished 1-2.

The competition history of this car includes:

  • 2007 1000km Monza – 1st, in it’s debut race (with Nicolas Minassian and Marc Gené)
  • 2007 1000km Valencia – 36th, DNF (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans – 30th, DNF (with Minassian, Gené and Jacques Villeneuve)
  • 2007 1000km Nürburgring – 2nd (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2007 1000km Spa – 46th, DNF (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2007 1000km Silverstone – 1st (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2007 Mil Milhas Brasil – 1st (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2008 12 Hours of Sebring – 11th (with Minassian, Stéphane Sarrazin and Pedro Lamy)
  • 2008 1000km Catalunya – 1st (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2008 1000km Monza – 5th (with Minassian and Gené)
  • 2008 1000km Spa – 1st (with Minassian, Gené and Villeneuve)
  • 2008 24 Hours of Le Manes – destroyed in practice crash (with Gené)

Peugeot suddenly cancelled it’s LMP program in 2012. If you never had a chance to see these cars come whistling by you at Tertre Rouge or come flying at you at the Indianapolis and Arnage corners, well you’ve missed something beautiful. When a gasoline-powered prototype car races past, they are burbling and popping and spitting fire at an incredible volume. Not so with these cars. They are eerily quiet and you can hear them punch a hole in the air. It’s amazing. If you missed out on it, I’m sorry – but here’s your chance to buy one – and it’s the first time one has been offered for public sale.

It is expected to bring $2,000,000-$2,400,000 and is being sold directly from Peugeot. It comes with a commitment to three years of technical support from Peugeot Sport, as modern race cars are technology-laden. But it isn’t free. For the complete description, click here. And for more on RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $2,175,600.

Rondeau-Cosworth

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1978 Rondeau M378 Ford-Cosworth

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

What is it about Le Mans that inspires racecar drivers to want to become manufacturers? Yves Courage, Henri Pescarolo, Alain de Cadenet all caught the bug – and so did Jean Rondeau, who began constructing and racing his own cars at the famed 24 Hours in 1976. 1978 was the first year that the cars actually bore his name and this was the first of them. Rondeau would win the 1980 race in a car of his own design – the only time this has ever happened.

This car, chassis no. 001 holds the record for the most starts at the race with 10. No longer are single cars competitive for an entire decade. It’s an impressive feat. Here’s a rundown of those years:

  • 1978 24 Hours of Le Mans – 9th overall, 1st in class (with Rondeau, Bernard Darniche, and Jacky Haran)
  • 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans – 30th, DNF (with Rondeau and Haran)
  • 1980 24 Hours of Le Mans – 3rd (with Gordon Spice, Philippe Martin and Jean-Michel Martin)
  • 1981 24 Hours of Le Mans – 2nd (with Haran, Jean-Louis Schlesser and Philippe Streiff)
  • 1982 24 Hours of Le Mans – 10th (with Pierre Yver, Bruno Scotty and Lucien Guitteny)
  • 1983 24 Hours of Le Mans – 28th, DNF (with Vic Elford, Joël Gouhier and Anne-Charlotte Verney)
  • 1984 24 Hours of Le Mans – 11th (with Jean-Philippe Grand, Jean-Paul Libert and Pascal Witmeur
  • 1985 24 Hours of Le Mans – 43rd, DNF (with Michel Dubois, Hubert Striebig and Noël del Bello)
  • 1986 24 Hours of Le Mans – 17th (with del Bello, Scotty and Lucien Rossiaud
  • 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans – 27th, not classified (with Scotty and Pierre-Alain Lombardi)

Jean Rondeau was killed in a road car accident in 1985, but his name lived on at the race he lived for – on this car, through 1988. This car also competed in nine other European endurance events, with at least one win.

The engine is a 3.0-liter V8 from Cosworth making 415 horsepower. It’s a race car and weighs next to nothing. So it’s quick. And it’s a piece of history – although it never won the big race, it holds an impressive record and is eligible for historic events. The pre-sale estimate is $790,000-$990,000. To read the complete description, click here. And for the entire RM in Monaco offering, click here.

Update: sold $464,128.

Ferrari 206 S Dino

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1966 Ferrari 206 S Dino Spyder

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

In 1966 Ferrari introduced their gorgeous V-12 powered 330 P3 race car to compete against the big boys in the biggest sports car races on the continent. Alongside the 330, there was a new, smaller race car, powered by a 2.0-liter V6 making 218 horsepower. It was called the 206 Dino S.

With a body penned by Pierre Drogo and built by his company, Carrozzeria Sports Cars, it was certainly a looker. And it was no slouch on the track, placing second at the Targa Florio and taking the bottom two podium spots at the Nürburgring. The car here (chassis #006) was actually the third car built for sale. Some of it’s competition highlights include:

  • 1966 1000km Nürburgring – DNF (with Richard Attwood and David Piper)
  • 1967 Brands Hatch – 6th overall, 1st in class (with Michael Parkes)
  • 1968 Targa Florio – 22nd (with Hans Wangstre and Evert Christofferson)

Most of its brief competition history was at the hands of amateur drivers and it was placed into storage in the early 1970s. When it was removed, it was carefully restored over a number of years to it’s original condition as it was campaigned at the ’66 Nürburgring race.

Ferrari’s original intention was to build 50 homologation examples but they ended up building only 18. And this is a very early example. I love the striking light blue on red color scheme – it’s not something you see everyday. But then again, a 206 S isn’t something you see everyday either, regardless of paint scheme. The price proves it, with an estimate between $2,875,000-$3,600,00. For the compete catalog description, click here and here for the complete lot list.

Update: sold $3,263,400.

Here’s video of a similar car:

Lancia Hyena

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1995 Lancia Hyena

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Lancia was achieving success on the Rally circuit with their series of Delta Integrale rally cars. They also had to produce homologation models for street use in order to compete. Some of these are highly sought after. They were boxy and fast but not necessarily the epitome of Italian automotive style and grace.

Enter Zagato, the famed Italian design house that penned the design you see here – a small two-dour coupe version of the five-door Integrale hatchback. They proposed a limited edition run of these coups, to which Lancia said: “Uh, no thanks.” Their loss, as Zagato went ahead and built them anyway by purchasing Integrales, stripping them down, and fitting them with the body you see here. The cars were lighter and had more power and the same rally-bred all-wheel drive system.

The original Zagato plan pitched to Lancia called for 500 units to be built. But, doing it themselves, the costs soared and only 24 were built and sold for about $75,000 each. They had a 250 horsepower (although the one for sale here has been upped to about 300) 2.0-liter turbocharged straight-four.

These are very rare cars and the price shows it, estimated between $130,000-$185,000. For the complete catalog description, click here. For more on RM in Monaco (including a tremendous collection of Ducati motorcycles) click here.

Update: sold $116,032.

Ferrari 375 MM

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1953 Ferrari 375 MM Spider by Pinin Farina

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

When new, the Ferrari 375 was the top dog among Ferraris with the 4.5-liter Lampredi V-12 making a potent 340 horsepower. It was also capable of a speeds in excess of 170 mph – insanity in 1953. This car was shipped new to Argentina where it quickly built a reputation for speed and success. It’s impressive competition history includes:

  • 1954 Argentine Sports Car Championship – 1st (with Diaz Saenz Valiente)
  • 1954 Turismo Carretera – 1st (with Valiente)
  • 1955 Buenos Aires 1000 km – 2nd (with Cesar Rivero and Raul Najurieta)
  • 1955 Argentina Sports Car Championship – 1st (with Najurieta)
  • 1956 500 Miles of Argentina – 1st (with Najurieta)

The car suffered a few serious crashes in its lifetime, but it is a race car, and repairs from racing are kind of expected. The last serious accident was in 1957 and it’s racing career ended. An American V8 was then installed in the car and it was used on the street until it was eventually parked and forgotten.

In 1983, the car was discovered again in Montevideo, Uruguay. It was shipped to Italy and restored under the ownership of Count Vittorio Zanon di Valgiurata between 1984 and 1986. A correct 375 MM engine was found and put into the car – although it is not the engine it came with from the factory. Since its restoration, it has changed hands a number of times and has enjoyed a career of historic racing – including the Monterey Historics and Mille Miglia Storica.
Only 15 Ferrari 375 MMs were built and they are valuable. This one has known (and successful) competition and ownership history. It is simply a killer Ferrari and won worth it’s weight in gold. The pre-sale estimate is (converted to USD) $4,300,000-$5,300,000. Good luck bidding.

For the complete catalog description, click here and for more from RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: did not sell.

The 9th Ferrari Built

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1948 Ferrari 166 Inter Spyder Corsa

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

The Ferrari 166 Inter was among the first models produced by the company. This particular example was the ninth Ferrari built – of all models (the sixth 166). It is an extremely early car that is preceded mostly by competition cars. It has a coachbuilt body by Carrozzeria Fontana of Padua, which is near Venice. Only 37 of these cars were built.

The 166 Inter was a competitive model from the get-go, with this car winning the 1949 Italian Hill Climb Championship. Here is a brief (and not in any way complete) rundown of it’s competition history:

  • 1948 Pescara Grand Prix – 2nd (with Count Bruno Sterzi)
  • 1948 Coppo d’Oro – 9th (with Sterzi and Enzo Monari)
  • 1949 Italian Hillclimb Championship – 1st (with Giovanni Bracco)
  • 1949 Mille Miglia – unknown result (with Bracco and Umberto Maglioli)
  • 1949 Grand Prix di San Remo – 6th (with Bracco)
  • 1950 Targa Florio – abandoned (with Giannino Marzotto and Marco Crosara)
  • 1950 Mille Miglia – 9th (with Count Vittorio Marzotto and Paolo Fontana)
  • 1951 Grenzlandring – 2nd (with Franco Comotti)
  • 1951 Grand Prix di Modena – 6th (with Frolian Gonzalez)
  • 1955 Targa Florio – unknown result (with Francesco Matrullo)

This car was entered in many other races and hillclimbs with various other drivers. The body that is on the car now was introduced to the car in 1950 by the then-owners, the Marzottos. The ‘722’ on the door was first given to the car for the 1950 Mille Miglia, when it was driven by the car’s owner and the designer of the car’s body.

The engine had been swapped and upgraded over the years, but when the car was discovered in Rome in 1970, a 190 horsepower V-12 166 engine was pulled from an ex-Marzotto Ferrari Formula 2 car and installed when it was restored in 1977. It was restored again, with the final pieces being finished in 2012, including a “preservation” of the 1950 Fontana body.

This is a storied example of the early days of Ferrari. It’s fresh and eligible for just about any historic event you wish to partake in. The pre-sale estimate is €1.100.000 – €1.800.000 or $1,440,000-$2,350,000. For the complete catalog description, with a more in depth history, click here. And for more on RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $1,307,950.

Ferrari 625 TRC

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1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spider

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Impossible as it may seem, auction houses keep topping themselves with rarer and rarer cars – or in the case of RM, rarer and rarer Ferraris. This is one will be hard to top as it is but one of two 1957 Ferrari 625 TRC Spiders built. And it’s just sitting there, waiting for you to open your checkbook.

Originally purchased by West Coast Ferrari distributor Johnny von Neumann, this car has spent its entire life both A) in known hands and b) at the race track. While it never competed “with the big boys” at races like Le Mans, it has plenty of SCCA and other club racing wins under its belt. More recently, it has competed in over 100 races dedicated to vintage racing cars – far more than it did when it was new. The most interesting, perhaps, of all races this car was involved in was the very first race at Laguna Seca in 1957, where it finished 2nd.

When Ferrari shipped this car new to California, it was equipped with a 2.5-liter Lampredi straight-four engine making about 225 horsepower. In 1960, the second owner swapped out the original engine for a Chevy V8 (I shuddered as I read that the first time). Later on, the Chevy engine was replaced in favor of a 3.0-liter V-12 making 320 horsepower and the car was restored in the early 1980s.

“But, wait!” you say. “This is not a numbers matching car, surely the value is lessened.” Ah, but the original engine was tracked down (at some point, presumably by the current owner who has owned the car for 30 years) and it is offered with the car. So when you buy it, you can re-install it if you so choose. I’m beginning to wish my list of problems in life included: “which engine do I want in my Ferrari this week?”

This is one of those pesky “Estimate Upon Request” cars, so, in other words, if you need to ask, you can’t afford it. But look for it to fetch multiple millions. For the entire – and much more complete – catalog description, click here. To check out the other cars from RM in Monaco, click here.

Update: sold $6,526,800.