Tag Archives: roadster

OPAC Piu Prototype

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1996 OPAC Piu Roadster Prototype

Offered by Bonhams | Paris, France | February 3, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Opac S.r.l. is an Italian company whose services include building prototypes for other manufacturers, hardtop and soft top design and production, and various marine services. In the 1990s, they decided to build a prototype for their own brand.

The Piu is based on a contemporary Peugeot 106 XSi, which means it is powered by an inline-four displacing either 1.4 or 1.6 liters (that catalog description does not state if it’s based on a 1.4 or 1.6 XSi). Power outputs were 94 horsepower for the smaller motor and 102 for the larger.

The interior is a wild combination of yellow and blue suede… on everything. The car debuted at the 1996 Turin Motor Show and features a VHS player and a 10-disc CD changer. The current owner purchased the car, at the time in a state of disuse, directly from Opac. It now carries a pre-sale estimate of $45,000-$68,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $18,279.

Chalmers 30

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1911 Chalmers Model 30 Roadster

Offered by Worldwide Auctioneers | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 26, 2022

Photo – Worldwide Auctioneers

Chalmers-Detroit lost the “-Detroit” suffix beginning in 1911, making this a first-year stand-alone Chalmers automobile. The Model 30 was a carryover from the prior year, but now with updating branding, revised running boards, and a new dashboard.

Power is from a 30-horsepower inline-four. Six body styles were offered, including the $1,500 roadster. Not super cheap, but then again the Chalmers was not an entry-level automobile.

This example was restored as needed over the years, the last 20 or so of which were spent in a private collection. It is now offered at no reserve and without a pre-sale estimate. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $36,960.

JBA Falcon

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1991 JBA Falcon Roadster

Offered by H&H | Online | November 24, 2021

Photo – H&H

JBA Engineering, later JBA Motors, was founded by Kenneth Glyn Jones, John Barlow, and David George Ashley in Norwich, U.K., in the late 1970s. They were all engineers at British Leyland. The Falcon was introduced in 1982 and was based on Ford Cortina running gear.

Yes, it’s kind of a neo-classic sort of thing, as it isn’t an exact replica of anything in particular. It’s just supposed to evoke the look and feeling of a much older British sporting car. The body is aluminum with fiberglass fenders. This example is powered by a 2.0-liter Ford inline-four. Some cars had V6s.

It spent several years in storage with its original owner before being recently refreshed. JBA went out of business in 2007. This car, which was completed in 1991, is expected to sell for $5,000-$8,000. Click here for more info and here more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

1920 Stevens-Duryea

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1920 Stevens-Duryea Model E Roadster

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 8, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

With a brand like Stevens-Duryea, you tend to picture large touring cars dating back to before World War I. But quite a few of these companies survived the war and continued building cars into the 1920s. Yet for some reason, these later cars are much more rarely seen. There are various reasons for this.

In the case of Stevens-Duryea, it’s that a new owner bought the brand name in 1919 and set up shop in the old factory. Things just… never took off. The company built only 200 cars in 1920, and the Model E was carried over for ’21. The same 80-horsepower inline-six would continue to power the brand’s offerings until the lights went out in 1927.

This Roadster has been restored and exudes an up-scale aura missing from what you’d get from a contemporary Buick, etc. The pre-sale estimate is $75,000-$90,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $71,500.

Duesenberg J-434

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1931 Duesenberg Model J Roadster by Packard

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Hershey, Pennsylvania | October 8, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

This is kind of an odd combination, a Packard-built body on a Duesenberg. Sure, many old cars had their bodies swapped around. It was usually sedans being rebodied as more desirable convertibles once they became objects of pleasure instead of daily transportation.

But in this case, this Model J was fitted with a period Packard roadster body… in period. By Duesenberg. The story is that a Duesenberg branch purchased a brand new roadster body from Packard before it could be installed on one of their cars and fitted it to a J chassis in 1931. It’s said to be one of very few true roadsters on a Model J chassis. And probably the only Packard-bodied car.

The engine is a 265-horsepower 6.9-liter straight-eight, and this particular engine was fitted in this chassis in 1989. The pre-sale estimate is $1,400,000-$1,800,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $1,650,000.

Pedroso Roadster

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1928 Pedroso Roadster

Offered by Bonhams | Carmel, California | August 13, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

Ivanrey de Soriano and the San Carlos de Pedroso were two Spanish marquises who teamed up to build the Soriano-Pedroso automobile in France between 1919 and 1924. The first cars were produced out of Biarritz, while general production stemmed from Neuilly. Three models were offered over the five-year period, most of which were pretty sporty.

After production wound up, the two men each produced a lone car under their own name (both of which still exist). The Marquis de Pedroso wanted to go to Le Mans, and he designed a sophisticated supercharged 2.0-liter twin-cam straight-eight to power his cars. Two engines were built, one of which is in this car. de Pedroso never made it to Le Mans, but his son would race this car in vintage events in the 1960s on the east coast of the U.S.

Pedroso’s son Jose Luis gifted the car to the Petersen Automotive Museum upon his death, and it’s now offered for sale for the first time in its history. The pre-sale estimate is $100,000-$150,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $296,500.

Cadillac 30 Roadster

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1910 Cadillac Model 30 Roadster

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Slough, U.K. | July 17, 2021

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

Cadillac’s Model 30 was produced from 1909 through 1911. It was their only model those three years and was based on a design stemming from 1906 (although it was called by different names then, including the Model G). The four-cylinder model would continue one essentially unchanged through 1914.

The engine is a 4.2-liter inline-four that was rated at 33 horsepower when new. In 1909 and early 1910, you could only get the 30 as an open car. Limousines and coupes didn’t come until mid-1910. Two roadsters were available at $1,600 each. This is the two-seat roadster.

It was restored over time, and the body is said to have been fitted about 100 years ago. So I guess that makes it close enough to being “original.” It is expected to fetch between $37,000-$55,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $46,194.

Hudson Mile-A-Minute Roadster

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1912 Hudson Model 33 Mile-A-Minute Roadster

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | May 20, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

The Speedster body style is a popular one that people slapped on old car chassis during restorations that have occurred pretty much since the 1940s. Everyone wanted a Mercer Raceabout, a Stutz Bearcat, or a Marion Bobcat. It’s rare to see such a car that is as it was from the factory.

Hudson’s Model 33 was produced in 1911 and 1912, Hudson’s second and third year of existence. The Mile-A-Minute Roadster was a factory model offered in 1912. The name denotes the car’s ability to reach 60 mph, which was no small feat in 1912. The 3.7-liter inline-four made 33 horsepower.

Only 5,708 Model 33s were built this year, very few of which were in this style. Even fewer survive. This one should sell for between $80,000-$120,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $89,600.

1916 Cole

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1916 Cole 8-50 Tuxedo Roadster

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | Online

Photo – Bring a Trailer

The Indianapolis-based Cole Motor Car Company existed between 1909 and 1925. Their claim to fame is that they were an early adopter of the V8 engine, which was actually introduced with this model, 1916’s 8-50 (which was more or less identical to 1917’s Series 860).

A handful of body styles were offered, including this three-seat roadster. That’s right, three seats. It’s practically a McLaren F1, except that the driver and front-passenger seats are split apart, with a narrow pathway to the rear bench that has a backrest for someone to sit in the middle.

The V8 engine, curiously, was actually produced by a then-division of General Motors. It’s a 5.7-liter V8 and it was made by Northway. The factory rating was 39 horsepower. This car is listed as a project, but the seller (the Indy Motor Speedway Museum) has a video of it driving around. Bidding is up to $8,500 at the time of this writing, and the car will sell at no reserve. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $22,750.

300SL Roadster

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1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 16, 2021

Photo – Mecum

I think we all know at this point that the Mercedes-Benz 300SL is one of the poster children for “collector cars.” The Gullwing coupe version is probably in the dictionary next to the phrase. The roadster was introduced in 1957 when the coupe was discontinued. It would be built through 1963.

Power is from a fuel-injected 3.0-liter inline-six. Output was rated at 240 horsepower when new. Also, keep in mind that fuel injection was no common sight in 1960. Or even 1970. The 300SL was really a landmark car and deserves its reputation as an amazing machine.

With its extended production run, the roadster was more common than the coupe, with 1,858 built. This restored example is finished in Silver Gray Metallic over red leather. It’s good-lookin’ stuff. A little over a decade ago, these were $500,000 cars. They’ve been trading right at about a million dollars now for the last five years or so. This one carries an estimate of $1,100,000-$1,300,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $1,210,000.