Tag Archives: 1938

Maybach SW38 Sport Cabriolet

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Maybach SW38 Sport Cabriolet by Spohn

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Los Angeles, California | October 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Maybachs do not come up for sale very often. That’s because they weren’t super common in their day. In their history they only made 1,841 vehicles. And if Daimler’s 2000s Maybach resurgence taught us anything, it’s that Maybach is step up from Mercedes-Benz. And they were.

Wilhelm Maybach was an engineer supreme, and the cars that bore his name were very solid. The SW38 was offered between 1936 and 1939 and saw power from a 4.0-liter inline-six that made 140 horsepower. It could hit over 100 mph and was available in your coachbuilder’s choice. In this case, Spohn supplied the body. Maybach delivered 172 new cars in Germany in 1938.

This car was sold new to Carl Krone, of European circus fame. It was reupholstered in the U.S. in the 1960s or ’70s and was acquired by the current owner in 1989. It was then hidden in a barn until now. At some point, back in Germany in the 1950s, the engine was upgraded to a 4.2-liter unit. The car now has an estimate of $150,000-$200,000. More info can be found here.

Delahaye Torpedo Roadster

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Delahaye 135M Torpedo Roadster by Figoni et Falaschi

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California, August 2024

Photo – Gooding & Company

This is one of the swoopiest old cars we’ve ever featured. Figoni et Falaschi, the coachbuilder responsible for some of the best – or at least, wildest – designs of this era displayed a very similar example on Delahaye’s 135M chassis at the 1936 Paris Motor Show.

The 135M was introduced for 1936 and saw power from a 3.6-liter inline-six with three downdraft carburetors for a listed output of 116 horsepower. This particular car was ordered new by the Algerian importer for a client. The trail then goes cold.

It wasn’t until 1992 that it was found, relatively complete, in Algeria. It was then shipped to France and restored, with work finalized by 1997. In 1999, it was purchased by the Petersen Museum, where it has remained since. There were apparently 11 of these built, with this being #8. Only about five survive – and this one is going back into circulation with an estimate of $2,000,000-$3,000,000. Click here for more info.

The Last Voisin

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Voisin C30 Cabriolet by Dubos

Offered by Gooding & Company | April 2024

Photo – Gooding & Company

The C30 was the final Voisin road car. Sure, there was a post-war prototype, but this was the last real model from the company. Coupes and convertibles were offered, but only about 30 chassis were completed in total. The Mullin museum had a copy of each.

This one has cabriolet coachwork by Dubos. Earlier Voisins utilized Knight sleeve-valve engines, but by this late in the game, Voisin had switched to a more modern powerplant (but still American): a supercharged 3.5-liter Graham-Paige inline-six (interestingly, Gooding described the last C30 as have a 3.6-liter engine).

This car entered the museum in 2008 and has been on display since, so it’ll need some work if you want to use it. The estimate is $150,000-$250,000. More info can be found here.

British-Bodied Delage

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Delage D6-70 Cabriolet by Coachcraft

Offered by Osenat | Fontainebleau, France | March 2024

Photo – Osenat

The D6 was, perhaps, the most successful model Delage ever had. The launch model, the D6-11, went on sale in 1932. Eight more variants would be produced before production wrapped… in 1953. This car is a D6-70 chassis, a model that was only offered in 1937 and 1938.

Originally, it would’ve been powered by a 2.7-liter inline-six rated at 78 horsepower. However, this car was purchased by its current owner in 1985 as a project, and part of completing that project was upgrading the drivetrain to D6 Olympic specification, which resulted in the inline-six jumping to 3.0 liters and sporting three carburetors – a setup rated at 100 horsepower during D6 Olympic production from 1948 to 1949.

This car was one of few delivered new to the U.K., where it was bodied by Coachcraft. While it’s been parked since 2020, the car was used heavily under current ownership, being driven to lands as far away as Syria. Now it has an estimate of $43,500-$65,000. Click here for more info.

Voisin C30 S

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Voisin C30 S Coupe

Offered by Gooding & Company | Amelia Island, Florida | March 2024

Photo – Gooding & Company

Gabriel Voisin was a visionary designer – of both automobiles and aircraft. But brilliance doesn’t necessarily transfer over to business skills. By 1937 Avions Voisin had been reorganized under SADAV, and the new heads of the company tapped Voisin to design a new car.

It would be his final pre-war design. Long known for their use of Knight sleeve-valve engines, Voisin would shift away from them for the C30 and move to the (likely) 3.6-liter supercharged Graham inline-six. Only about 30 C30s were built before the war put an end to production.

This is said to be the only “C30 S” Coupe produced. It bounced between two owners between 1945 and 1998. For the next 10 years it resided with one owner and was sold in 2008, presumably into the Mullin collection. You can read more about it here.

Mercedes 170H Convertible

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Mercedes-Benz 170H Convertible Sedan

Offered by Bonhams | Brussels, Belgium | May 13, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Not a Volkswagen. But not all that different. Mercedes-Benz introduced the W23 130H in 1934. It was their smallest car to date. The related W28 170H debuted in 1936 and was produced as the rear-engined alternative to the front-engined 170 V.

The 170 models shared an engine: a 1.7-liter inline-four that was rated at about 37 horsepower. The 170H was produced until 1939, with just 1,507 built – only 250 of which were made in 1938. Low demand was due mostly to the fact that it cost more than the 170 V but had less room and was altogether a worse car.

The restoration on this convertible version was completed in 2020. These rear-engined Mercs are a rare sight, and this one is about as good as they come. The estimate is $66,000-$100,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $67,054.

Wanderer W50

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Wanderer W50 Cabriolet by Glaser

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | March 2023

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

Wanderer was founded in 1896 by Johann Winklhofer and Richard Jaenicke, with the Wanderer name first appearing in 1911. It became part of Auto Union in 1932, and the final Wanderer-branded automobiles were produced in 1941.

The W50 was introduced in 1936, with two body styles available: limousine or cabriolet. This was the “big” Wanderer, despite it only being a six-cylinder car. It you wanted a larger Auto Union, you had to set up to a Horch. The 2.25-liter inline-six was rated at 55 horsepower.

The cabriolet body here is by Glaser, and this car was founded in a Berlin parking garage in the late 19980s before it was restored. This is the type of car you could only find stashed in a barn or basement of a parking garage in Germany. Bidding is open, and it closes this weekend. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold, high bid of $47,000.

Vanvooren-Bodied Delage

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet by Vanvooren

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

Photo – Artcurial

The D8 was Delage’s masterpiece. It was available in various forms, but the D8-120s seem to always have the most beautiful coachwork. The D8-120 was available from 1937 through 1940 and was the ultimate iteration of the D8.

Power is provided by 4.7-liter inline-eight rated at 115 horsepower. French coachbuilder Vanvooren built the body here, and it seats five. It was restored around the 1980s in a pretty excellent two-ton cream and brown. Check out the artillery-style wheels: the fronts are cream and the rears are brown.

This coachbuilt Delage is expected to fetch between $705,000-$920,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Atalanta V12

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Atalanta 4.3-Litre V12 Drophead Coupe

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | September 17, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Atalantas are very good-looking cars that were produced in small numbers by Atalanta Motors of Middlesex between 1937 and 1939. They were designed by Alfred Gough, who had also designed Frazer Nash‘s overhead-cam engine. Most Atalantas were powered by four-cylinder engines, but a few left the factory with a 4.3-liter Lincoln-Zephyr V12.

This is one of those cars, and Bonhams has a V12 coupe in this sale as well, which is kind of incredible as only 20 Atalanta automobiles were built of all types. The Lincoln-powered cars made 112 horsepower, and all featured a four-wheel independent coil-sprung suspension, an X-brace tubular steel chassis, and 16″ hydraulic drum brakes at each corner.

The cars were quick, stylish, and expensive. Body work here was by Abbott of Farnham, and it was restored a while back. These are pretty great cars, on par with just about anything else coming out of England near the outbreak of WWII. The estimate is $140,000-$210,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Alfa 6C 2300B Mille Miglia

Posted on by
Reply

1938 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B Mille Miglia Berlinetta by Touring

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 19-20, 2022

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

We’ve featured two examples of Alfa Romeo’s pre-war 6C 2300 B before, and both looked quite different from this car, which resembles a hardtop version of the Touring-bodied 8C 2900 B Lungo Spider. The 6C 2300 was built between 1934 and 1938, with the B version first offered in 1935.

The Mille Miglia version of the B was powered by a 2.3-liter inline-six fitted with triple Solex carburetors for a rating of 95 horsepower. It was essentially the best version of the model. Only 107 examples of the 2300 B Mille Miglia were produced, most looking like this or the Touring-bodied convertible counterpart.

This car has known ownership history back to 1946, showing time spent in Switzerland, France, and the Netherlands before coming stateside in 2008. While this car won’t carry the nearly $20 million dollar price tag of an 8C Lungo, it still won’t come cheap. Click here for more info.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Paris 2023, $943,202.