Tag Archives: rm sothebys

Griffith 200

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1965 Griffith 200

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | October 23-24, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

RM has rescheduled the sale of this monster Indiana collection for late October instead of the beginning of May. But that’s not going to stop us from talking about some of these great cars now! That is partially because this is more or less the only auction catalog available anywhere on the internet at the moment.

The Griffith is an awesome little beast. They have a short wheelbase, a lot of power, and are notoriously difficult to drive at the limit. It’s kind of like a Shelby Cobra – a British sports car (in this case, a TVR Grantura) with a big Ford V8 stuffed under the hood marketed by an American company. Jack Griffith was a TVR repair guru in the U.S., and he initially tried to shove a Cobra’s V8 into a Grantura.

Eventually, he figured it out and started selling 289-powered Griffiths. This car is actually the only one ever built with a 260ci (4.3-liter) Ford V8. Only 261 examples were ever built, 192 of which were supposed to be U.S.-market cars. The rest were branded as TVRs in the U.K. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $134,400.

Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale

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2010 Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale Zagato

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | May 1-2, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Here’s a rare one. The TZ and TZ2 were classic Alfa Romeo sports racing cars of the 1960s. They are quite sought after and very valuable. In 2010, Alfa Romeo introduced a “TZ3” to celebrate 100 years of the marque.

Based upon its newly-adopted corporate cousin, the Dodge Viper SRT-10, the TZ3 features unique bodywork by Zagato and is powered the Viper’s 8.4-liter V10 that, in this car, makes 600 horsepower.

Only nine road-going versions were built, along with one Corsa racing variant that was actually powered by a V8. The cost when new was over a million dollars, and they were sold behind closed doors directly to collectors. This one has only covered 201 miles since new. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $489,000.

March 2020 Auction Highlights

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March begins with Amelia Island, where Bonhams sold this 1932 Bugatti Type 55 Super Sport Roadster for $7,100,000.

Photo – Bonhams

The 1907 Renault Vanderbilt Racer was another big sale, bringing $3,332,500. Two old German cars sold, but the final sales prices were not listed, presumably because the new buyer is weird. They were the Opel Phaeton and the Demarest Benz. The other Benz failed to sell, as did a previously-featured Boyer and Knox.

The Volkswagen Kubelwagen sold for $58,240, and the Schwimmwagen $145,600. And the Marcos GT went for $33,600. Final results can be found here.

RM’s Amelia sale boringly saw this 2003 Ferrari Enzo sell for the most money (there were so many cool classics here, so a late model Ferrari is kind of a bummer). It sold for $2,782,500.

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

All of our feature cars sold, led by two Duesenbergs. The Stationary Victoria sold for $1,325,000, and the Convertible Coupe brought $1,132,500. Cars that crossed the $100k mark included the Talbot-Lago at $250,000 and the Muntz Jet at $117,600.

The 1907 Cadillac sold for $53,200, the Nash-Healey brought $89,600, and the Offy-powered Indy car went for $95,200. A previously-featured Roamer also sold for $95,200. Click here for complete results.

Historics Auctioneers held a sale on March 7. The EJS-Climax we featured way back failed to sell here, as did the Bristol Brigand and the Panhard 24. The top sale was for this $404,519 1970 Aston Martin DB6 Mk II.

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

The Mean Can-Am sold for $36,928, and more results can be found here.

Gooding & Company’s Amelia Island sale saw this 1914 Rolls-Royce 40/50HP Silver Ghost Torpedo Phaeton by Kellner lead the way at $2,205,000.

Photo – Gooding & Company

The Porsche 356B Super Coupe sold for $395,500, and the Lamborghini failed to sell. More results are provided here.

Aguttes’ March sale might just be the last one we get to recap for while, considering that most sales in late March and heading into April and May have been either canceled or postponed until later in the year. You know, pandemic and all.

The Facel Vega we featured sold for about $74,345, and the overall top sale was this 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ Coda Tronca for $750,825. The rest of the results are posted here.

Photo – Aguttes

Ferrari 225 S

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1952 Ferrari 225 S Berlinetta ‘Tuboscocca’ by Vignale

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | May 1-2, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Well if you’re wondering what the biggest dollar car from RM’s Elkhart Collection sale is, you’re looking at it. Selling at no reserve, this car is one of just 21 examples of the 225 S produced by Ferrari in 1952.

The 225 S could be had with two different chassis types: a spaceframe or a tubular semi-monocoque, aka the Tuboscocca. This car has the latter and is one of just four Berlinettas produced on that chassis (of 12 total Tuboscocca cars). It is the fifth of the 21 cars produced, and power is from a 210 horsepower, 2.7-liter V12.

Because the Tuboscocca was a competition-geared chassis, it’s no surprise that this car has some racing history, including:

  • 1952 Mille Miglia – 10th, 2nd in class (with Franco Bordoni-Bisleri and a Mr. Geronimo)
  • 1952 12 Hours of Casablanca – 2nd (with Jean Lucas and Jacques Peron)

There were some other successes before the car was repaired by Ferrari and sold to an SCCA privateer in Ohio through Luigi Chinetti Motors. The current owner purchased it in 2012 and has used it extensively in historic events. You can see more about the car here and see more from this sale here.

Update: Sold $2,810,000.

Lloyd Kombi

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1960 Lloyd LS 600 Kombi

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | May 1-2, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

“He who is not afraid of death, drives a Lloyd.” That’s the sticker I saw on a Lloyd once, and it stuck with me. Lloyds were built under the Hansa marque early on, and the Lloyd marque really appeared in 1950 and disappeared with the rest of the Borgward group in 1963.

The 600 was a range of Lloyd models produced between 1955 and 1961. A two-door sedan and convertible were offered, along with a panel van and a station wagon Kombi. Power is from a 596cc twin making a little less than 20 horsepower.

This tiny shuttle van has three rows of seats and wears Pan-Am branding on the outside. I’m not sure where the luggage was supposed to go, or if this was even a real thing Pan-Am did. In any event, it will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this collection.

Update: Sold $33,600.

Elcar 8-91 Roadster

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1928 Elcar Model 8-91 Roadster

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Elkhart, Indiana | May 1-2, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Elcar was a descendant of Pratt-Elkhart and went on sale in 1916. It was built in Elkhart, Indiana, where this collection is being sold out of. The brand actually continued on through 1930, making them both a victim of the stock market crash and one of a fairly limited number of companies that actually lasted as long as they did. Remember, most of the brands that outlived Elcar are household names today.

In 1928, Elcar offered four models, with the 8-91 being the cream of the crop. It’s powered by a 115 horsepower Lycoming straight-eight. The Roadster was the least expensive variant of the 8-91, priced at $1,995 when new.

This car actually reminds me of the 1930 Willys-Knight Great Six, a six-cylinder roadster that played in a similar pricing bracket as the car you see here. This Elcar is selling at no reserve, and you can check out more about it here. See more from RM here.

Update: Sold $95,200.

EuroBrun ER188

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1988 EuroBrun-Cosworth ER188

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Essen, Germany | TBD…

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

EuroBrun was a short-lived Formula One team that competed between 1988 and 1990. The team was formed by the joining of powers of Giampaolo Pavanello’s Euroracing team (that operated the factory Alfa Romeo F1 team in the early 1980s) and Walter Brun’s Brun Motorsport.

Based in Milan, the team used Cosworth engines in 1988 before switching to a Judd powerplant. This car retains its 3.5-liter Cosworth DFZ V8. It was driven by Stefano Modena during the 1988 season, but the specific history for this chassis is not provided.

Modena finished 11th at the 1988 Hungarian Grand Prix, the team’s biggest highlight. They did not pre-qualify for any races in 1989 and made only two starts in 1990 before it was all over. This orange-and-green F1 car (with an engine!) is now being offered at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $99,952.

Panther Lima

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1979 Panther Lima

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Essen, Germany | Date TBD…

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Robert Jankel’s Panther Westwinds had not only a weird name but also a weird catalog of cars. The Lima was a retro-styled sports car introduced in 1976 and eventually replaced by the Kallista in 1982.

The Lima was based on the Vauxhall Viva and Magnum. It featured a fiberglass body reminiscent of a Morgan and is powered by a 2.3-liter Vauxhall inline-four. They weren’t terribly quick or powerful, but a turbocharged version went on sale in 1979.

In all, 897 examples were produced. This bumblebee-liveried RHD example will sell at no reserve whenever this auction ends up taking place. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $8,329.

Two Ginettas

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1991 Ginetta G33

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Essen, Germany | Date TBD…

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The G33 was produced by Ginetta Cars between 1990 and 1993. This example was actually the first one built and was used as a factory prototype and demonstrator. It was purchased by the current owner in 2008.

The G33 is a front-engined car powered by a 3.9-liter Rover V8 good for 205 horsepower. Only 98 were built, and this one is offered at no reserve. The only question is when will it sell. RM Sotheby’s has delayed its Essen sale until mid-to-late June due to Coronavirus fears. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $27,147.

ca.2005 Ginetta G20

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Essen, Germany | Date TBD…

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The G20 is another Ginetta road car. But it’s not much of a road car. Built more for the track, the G20 features a cut-down windshield, a roll bar, seating for two, and, uh, no doors.

So hop on in and fire up the car’s 1.8-liter Ford-Cosworth inline-four. It’ll hit 60 mph in 6.4 seconds. It’s almost like something TVR would build. They were built between 2002 and 2010. This one was listed without a year, so I just picked one from the middle of the run. Like the G33 above, it will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $10,180.

Glas 1300 GT

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1964 Glas 1300 GT Coupe

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Essen, Germany | March 26-27, 2020

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Here is another Hans Glas rarity. The 1300 GT debuted at the 1963 Frankfurt Motor Show and was updated to 1700 GT specification in late 1965. Most of the cars were coupes, but a limited number of cabriolets were also produced. BMW bought Glas in 1966, and in 1967, they launched the BMW 1600 GT, a BMW-badged version of this car with a bigger engine.

This 1300 GT is powered by a 1.3-liter inline-four rated at 74 horsepower. That enabled a top speed of 106 mph. Styling was actually by Frua, and only 5,013 coupe examples were built between the 1300 and 1700 models.

Finished in blue over black, this car is sold at no reserve with a spare engine. It’s a rare coupe that will stand out wherever it goes. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,892.