Tag Archives: sports cars

Bentley Continental GTZ

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2006 Bentley Continental GTZ by Zagato

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8, 2014

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

I don’t think anyone would argue that Bentleys aren’t stylish cars. The Continental GT has made Bentley a huge brand globally. After decades of low-volume production, they finally went mainstream with this mass production (for Bentley) coupe. It was introduced in 2003 and the first generation was produced through 2011. Go to Monaco sometime, these things are like Honda Accords there.

So what if you want a Bentley but you don’t want everyone else’s Bentley? You get a coachbuilt version. That’s right, this is a special-bodied Continental GT, dubbed GTZ for its Zagato design. This car marks the first time Bentley and Zagato have ever collaborated on a car. The engine is the standard 552 horsepower 6.0-liter twin-turbo W-12 found in all Continental GTs of the era.

This car started life as a 2006 Continental GT and in 2009 it was sent to Zagato to receive this custom treatment that they debuted at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show. It was job worth over half-a-million dollars (on top of the price of the donor car). Only nine examples were produced. Look at the picture of the rear of the car below and see how wild it is. This one should sell for between $425,000-$530,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of RM’s London lineup.

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Update: Sold $391,961.

Vector W8

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1993 Vector W8

Offered by Mecum | Dallas, Texas | September 3-6, 2014

Photo - Mecum

Photo – Mecum

Vector Aeromotive (which is one of my favorite company names ever) was the child of Gerald Wiegert. The company is still technically around, but they haven’t built a car in over 15 years. This was their first production car – and it was intended to be America’s first supercar – and it pretty much was. At over 20 years old, it still looks wild and has the performance to match.

The engine is a mid-mounted 6.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 making 625 horsepower. Although they were built between 1990 and 1993, they remain an incredibly quick car by today’s standards: top speed is estimated at 220 mph.

Vector had a rough history. It was sold to Megatech, the ill-fated then-owner of Lamborghini. Megatech imploded in the late 1990s over an embezzling scandal and the brand was more or less scuttled until Wiegert returned to the scene circa 2007 to revive it, although they have not sold any new cars since 1999.

Only 19 or 20 W8s were built. This is car #16 of 18 built for public sale (the others were prototypes), making it one of the last. It’s been in the same family since new, too. For you supercar collectors out there, 1. I envy you and 2. this is a must-have for any supercar collection. Read more here and check out more from Mecum here.

Update: Mysteriously disappeared from the auction catalog.

Ferrari Daytona Spyder

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1971 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spyder

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | London, U.K. | September 4, 2014

Photo - Silverstone Auctions

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

While many vintage Ferrari models as of late have quickly approached (and in some cases, surpassed) the million dollar mark, the Daytona Spyder has long been a million dollar Ferrari. They are very rare – although recreations seem to be as numerous as originals as many owners had their Daytona’s roofs cut off in the 1980s and 1990s because a convertible was cooler.

No one would dare cut open a Daytona today, but those conversions are out there. This, however, is the real thing – a genuine 365 GTS/4. One of only 122 built (for comparison, 1,284 hardtop coupes were built, the GTB/4). The engine is a front-mounted 4.4-liter V-12 that makes 352 horsepower. This is one of the most classic Ferraris (in coupe or spyder form) and perfect for your daily driver around Monaco.

This particular car was purchased new by Bill Harrah and he sold it in 1976. It spent the next 31 years with that new owner before the current owner acquired it in 2008 – and to date, the car has only covered 3,946 miles. It’s practically brand new (although it has been thoroughly recommissioned and repainted).

If you feel the need to drive around pretending you’re Don Johnson from Miami Vice (as I so often do), then this is a car you’ll need in your fleet (Crockett’s car in the show was actually a Corvette done up to look like a Daytona Spyder). Anyway, this is the real deal and it’s among the very finest Daytona Spyders in the world (and perhaps the lowest mileage). It should sell for between $3,000,000-$3,750,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Silverstone’s auction lineup.

Update: Sold $3,711,510.

Jaguar XJR-15

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1991 Jaguar XJR-15

Offered by RM Auctions | London, U.K. | September 8, 2014

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

Everyone talks about the Jaguar XJ220 and how amazing it was (and how it was kind of a flop). It was one of the most well-known supercars of the 1990s. But no one ever mentions the XJR-15, the XJ220s direct predecessor and equal-in-awesomeness.

The droopy-eyed front end was styled by the same guy who went on to do the McLaren F1. The car is based around Jaguar’s Group C-dominating XJR-9 and XJR-12. The XJR-15 was a road car from the get-go, becoming the first street-legal vehicle that is fully made of carbon fiber. The engine is a Group-C spec 6.0-liter V-12 making 450 horsepower. The top speed was 191 mph (although 215 is listed – which would make it faster than the XJ220 that replaced it and the XJ220 was widely known as the “world’s fastest production car.”)

The cars were assembled by Tom Walkinshaw Racing and they sold new for approximately $1 million. 50 were scheduled to be built, but only 27 were turned out as road cars (there were 16 race versions built for a one-make racing series that ran three events in 1991 alongside the F1 calendar). It’s far rarer than an XJ220

This is an legitimate early-90s supercar and one that doesn’t get much respect today. If I were a supercar collector (I mean, when I become a supercar collector) this will definitely be on my list of “must-haves.” You can buy it for between $300,000-$425,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $363,964 (outselling XJ220 at same sale)

Ferrari 365 “Tre Posti”

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1966 Ferrari 365 P Berlinetta Speciale by Pininfarina

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 16-17, 2014

Photo - Gooding & Company

Photo – Gooding & Company

The Ferrari 365 P2 was essentially a Ferrari 330 P2 with a 4.4-liter V-12. They were race cars, members of the family that began with the 250 P and 250 LM. As you can probably tell, this does not resemble a race car and you’re right, it’s a road car. A very special road car.

Originally built as a 365 P2, the car was given to Pininfarina by Ferrari and they designed this really awesome road car that blends 365 GTC and Dino design and styling cues (except that both of those cars came after this one). The most interesting part? It has McLaren F1-like three-wide seating with the driver in the middle, hence its nickname “Tre Posti.” The engine is a 4.4-liter V-12 mounted behind the driver making 380 horsepower.

This car has been owned by the Chinetti family since 1969. Prior to that, it was on the stand at the 1966 Paris Auto Salon and four other very important 1960s auto shows. It proved so popular that the head of Fiat commissioned a second one built for himself (that car is still in that collection today). This is essentially a race car that was adapted to road use, so it’s not exactly pleasant on the road – which might explain how it only has 4,950 miles on it. You can expect it to bring a lot of money and you can read more here and see more from Gooding here.

GT40 Roadster

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1965 Ford GT40 Roadster Prototype

Offered by RM Auctions | Monterey, California | August 15-16, 2014

Photo - RM Auctions

Photo – RM Auctions

We’ve already featured a Ford GT40 Prototype, but what we haven’t featured is a Ford GT40 Roadster Prototype. That’s right, back in the 60s, Ford was adventurous and decided a GT40 with the roof chopped off might be a good idea. I can’t vouch for how good of an idea it was at the time, but it is certainly pretty awesome now.

Ford actually built a few of them, but this is the only one that has maintained its identity over all the years. The other three roadsters were converted to coupes or used as spares (at least one has been converted back to a roadster). This is the eighth GT40 Prototype built (of the twelve, total) and one of four roadsters.

This one uses a 4.7-liter Ford 289 V-8. It was a test car, mostly, and was never entered in competition. The most on-track action it ever saw was in the vintage racing circuit over the past 25 years. During testing, it was driven by Carroll Shelby, Jim Clark, and Ken Miles. It’s a once in a lifetime chance to get an as-built GT40 Roadster and it will likely cost you around $5 million. Click here for more info and here for more from RM in Monterey.

Update: Sold $6,930,000.

Update: Sold $7,650,000.

Koenig Evolution Testarossa

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1987 Ferrari Testarossa Koenig Competition Evolution II

Offered by Artcurial | Le Mans, France | July 5, 2014

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

The Ferrari Testarossa sort of defines 1980s exotic sports cars (along with the box-ified Countach). But what happens when you need more than just a Testarossa? Well Koenig happens, that’s what.

We’ve featured another Koenig-tuned Ferrari in the past, but this one is decidedly cooler and more extreme. It started life as a Testarossa but within a year of its manufacture, it was in the hands of Koenig Specials in Munich. They applied their Competition Evolution package to it (and later, re-worked it to look more like a 512 M at the front). There’s a little F40 look to it at the back too, no?

The engine is the standard 4.9-liter Flat-12 but it has been tuned to make 800 horsepower. A lot has been revised here and more than you can see. Technical bits have been bettered so that this thing drives a little less wild than it looks. Koenig only modified 21 Testarossas with this (or a similar) package. It should sell for between $110,000-$165,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $160,860.

Fitch Phoenix

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1966 Fitch Phoenix

Offered by Bonhams | Greenwich, Connecticut | June 1, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

This is one of those cars that I cannot believe is actually for sale. That’s partly because it has never been offered for sale before. It’s the only one like it and a lot of people admire this thing – partly because of what it is, but mostly because of who built it.

John Fitch was an Indianapolis-born racer and innovator who lived cars his whole life. As a racing driver, Fitch won the Mille Miglia and the 12 Hours of Sebring and ran at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and had two Formula One starts. When Pierre Levegh was killed in the 1955 Le Mans disaster, Fitch was his co-driver, standing in the pits as the Levegh in their Mercedes-Benz shredded into the stands. It was this accident that fueled Fitch’s desire for safety innovation: he invented those sand-filled barrels you see on the highway and on race tracks, among other things. He also designed this car.

He loved the Corvair. He saw the potential of a low center of gravity and a rear-engine layout. So he built a prototype sports car around the Corvair. The 2.7-liter flat-six was tuned to put out 170 horsepower. It was 7.5 seconds to 60 mph on its way to 130. The car has great styling and two spares behind the front wheel wells, which is a cool, unique look. He was going to build a run of 500 of them, but the government’s hate of the Corvair helped put a stop to those production plans. This remains the only example built.

John Fitch passed away in October of 2012 at age 95. He remains an American legend to those who know about him and it’s a shame more don’t. He was one of America’s great racers from the golden era of motorsport. The Phoenix is being offered from his estate. The pre-sale estimate is $150,000-$200,000 – but under the right conditions, it could bring more. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $253,000.

A Ferrari Rally Car

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1976 Ferrari 308 GTB Group B by Michelotto

Offered by Bonhams | Francorchamps, Belgium | May 18, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

When one thinks of Ferrari race cars, they think of Formula 1 or sports cars. Hardly anyone pictures rally cars. And yet, that’s what we have here. Not only a Ferrari rally car, but a Ferrari 308 rally car – one of the cheapest Ferraris money can buy today.

But this car ain’t cheap. Let’s start with a little history… the FIA brought about Group B rally in 1983. Michelotto built and campaigned Ferrari race cars and they jumped at the chance race in Group B. But Ferrari didn’t want to build 25 homologation specials in order to take it racing. So Michelotto took standard road-going cars and turned them into rally cars. No specials needed if the road car is quick enough to be made into a racer. The engine is a 2.9-liter V-8 making 288 horsepower.

This is a 1976 Ferrari (the 308 was fiber glass until 1977, when it became steel) that Michelotto converted to rally status in 1983. They only built four of them and this is the first and most successful of those four, having won the Spanish rally championship and coming in as “Vice-Champion” in Italy (which makes it sound like a proponent of gambling and drugs). The other three cars all had more powerful engines.

You can pick up a road-going 308 for about $35,000. If you want a Michelotto Group B 308, be prepared to shell out between $760,000-$1,000,000. Yikes! Click here for more info and here for the rest of Bonhams’ Spa sale lineup.

Update: Sold $835,136.

Hommell Vaillant

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1999 Hommell Vaillant Grand Defi Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Francorchamps, Belgium | May 18, 2014

Photo - Bonhams

Photo – Bonhams

The Hommell Berlinette might be a car you know of it you actually owned one (or are a more-than-casual fan of the Gran Turismo series on PlayStation, where the car is among those you can purchase and race). But outside of those two limited circles, Automobiles Michel Hommell isn’t really well known.

The Berlinette was shown in prototype form in 1990 and in production form in 1994. The company lasted until the end of 2003. The Vaillant is a special racing edition of the Berlinette (although this car is road-registered and street-legal – in Europe anyway). It is named for the comic book character Michel Vaillant, of whom I know nothing about. The mid-mounted powertrain mirrors that of the standard Berlinette, featuring a 2.0-liter straight-four making 167 horsepower.

About 16 examples of the Vaillant were built and they were intended for a Celebrity racing series featuring celebrities that I’m sure I don’t know. At any rate, Hommells are very rare and are an attractive late-90s sports car for those who like them. This one should sell for between $83,000-$110,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Bonhams at Spa.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Not sold, Artcurial Paris, June 2019.

Update: Sold, Aguttes June 2021, $66,230.