Tag Archives: 1957

Giulietta SVZ

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1957 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce Zagato

Offered by Mecum | Monterey, California | August 17-19, 2023

Photo – Mecum

The Tipo 750 and 101 Giulietta was produced by Alfa Romeo between 1954 and 1965. The Giulietta SZ was a Zagato-bodied competition car, and later Zagato rebodied a Sprint Veloce (while the SZ was just based on the Sprint). The Sprint Veloce Zagato (SVZ) appeared in late 1956.

Just 18 would end up being produced, all powered by a 1.3-liter inline-four that was rated at around 116 horsepower. This car was originally sold in Italy, and the first owner wanted a double-bubble Zagato body, which Zagato went ahead and built for him.

The aluminum coachwork on this car is said to be the only SVZ re-bodied in this fashion. It’s eligible for historic runs of the Mille Miglia and has an estimate of $150,000-$250,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $115,500.

Lagonda 3-Litre

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1957 Lagonda 3-Litre Mk II Saloon

Offered by H&H Classics | Duxford, U.K. | November 30, 2022

Photo – H&H Classics

The 3-Litre was Lagonda’s follow-up model to the 1948 through 1953 2.6-Litre, which itself was Lagonda’s first post-war car. The 2.6-Litre was also the first Lagonda produced by the company after its takeover by Aston Martin‘s David Brown.

The 3-Litre was produced between 1953 and 1958. It was available as a four-door saloon, a two-door coupe, and a two-door drophead coupe. Power is actually from a 2.9-liter inline-six (curse you Lagonda marketing department!) that made 140 horsepower. The sedan could hit about 110 mph.

The Mk II debuted in 1955 and featured a redesigned dashboard and a floor-shifted transmission. Just 266 3-Litres were produced. Lagonda took a few years off after this model before coming out with the Rapide in 1961. The pre-sale estimate here is $33,000-$41,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Withdrawn.

Turner 803

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1957 Turner 803

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Birmingham, U.K. | November 12-13, 2022

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Turner Sports Cars was founded by Jack Turner in Wolverhampton, England, in 1951. The company stuck around for 15 years, building turn-key and kit cars featuring fiberglass bodywork that could be paired with Austin, Triumph, and Ford mechanicals.

The 803, also known as the A30, was the first Turner product. It utilized a ladder frame and the engine, transmission, and suspension from an Austin A30. Most of these had 803cc Austin inline-fours, but this car got 948cc unit from the Austin A35. This car was actually the prototype for the Turner 950 Sports, which would duplicate its drivetrain setup when it went on sale shortly after this car was produced.

This car was restored in the 1990s and had a successful vintage racing career thereafter. It’s now got a pre-sale estimate of $23,000-$34,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $22,285.

Bertone XK150

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1957 Jaguar XK150 Coupe by Bertone

Offered by Bonhams | Knokke-Heist, Belgium | October 9, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Jaguar’s XK120/140/150 series of cars are pretty distinctive, and this looks nothing like them. It actually looks like a Vignale-bodied Ferrari from the mid-1950s. But it is actually an XK150 under there.

The XK150 was built from 1957 through 1961 and was available in three factory body styles and with five different engines. This car was originally powered by the base 3.4-liter inline-six that was rated at 190 horsepower. It now has a 3.8-liter unit underhood. It is one of nine supplied as a bare chassis to coachbuilders, and it is one of three bodied by Bertone.

The car was previously on display at the Blackhawk Museum and was restored in 2020. It’s a one-off mid-1950s beauty with Italian style and British underpinnings. It has a pre-sale estimate of $800,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $862,500.

Ferrari 500 TRC

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1957 Ferrari 500 TRC Spider by Scaglietti

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

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

The Ferrari Monza was a series of sports racing cars from the early 1950s. Unlike the V12 Testa Rossas, the Monzas were powered by Lampredi four-cylinder engines. The Monzas started with 1953’s 625 TF and included the 500 Mondial and 750 Monza.

In 1956, Ferrari entered the 500 TR, which replaced the Mondial, in World Sportscar Championship races. The following year, that car was upgraded to be the 500 TRC, which was powered by an upgraded 2.0-liter inline-four good for 190 horsepower and 153 mph.

Only 19 examples were built, with this (0706 MDTR) one being #18. Its competition history includes:

  • 1957 24 Hours of Le Mans – 29th, DNF (with Francois Picard and Richie Ginther)
  • 1958 12 Hours of Sebring – 44th, DNF (with Gaston Andrey, Bill Lloyd, and Dan Gurney)

Later, the car was powered by a 289 Ford V8 before being reunited with its factory engine. No pre-sale estimate is provided, but you can read more about it here.

Update: Sold $7,815,000.

Bandini 750 Saponetta

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1957 Bandini 750 Sport Internazionale Saponetta

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | March 18, 2022

Photo – Artcurial

Ilario Bandini’s little car company was founded in 1946 and was pretty popular in the 1950s, taking SCCA class championships in the middle of the decade. They built a number of models over the years, some as late as the 1990s, and it seems that very few were all that similar.

This particular car features a streamlined body and similar mechanicals to the company’s 750 Siluros. The engine is a 747cc inline-four that made 68 horsepower when new. A total of nine Bandini Saponettas were built. The competition history for this chassis includes:

  • 1957 Mille Miglia – DNF (with Carlo Camisotti and Giovanni Sintoni)

Bandini himself campaigned this car for years thereafter, selling it in the late 1960s. It was restored in the late 1990s/early 2000s and has been used in the Mille Miglia Storica. It now carries an estimate of $675,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $707,815.

Corvette Super Sport

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1957 Chevrolet Corvette Super Sport

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 6-16, 2022

Photo – Mecum

Super Sport isn’t a name typically associated with Corvettes. But this Corvette was actually the first Chevy to wear that moniker. It’s a one-off show car that GM commissioned to showcase their new Rochester Ramjet fuel injection. It debuted in New York in January 1957 and was sold into private ownership after its tour of the show circuit was completed. The current owner acquired it in 1997.

The fuel-injected 283ci V8 was rated at 283 horsepower when new, and the car is claimed to have covered less than 5,000 miles since new. Styling alterations are obvious, including the dual concept-car-style windscreens, brushed aluminum coves, and a lot more bright interior trim.

This is one of those big-boy Corvettes that gets a lot of attention. It hasn’t traded hands in 25 years, so what to expect, price-wise, when it crosses the block next month is kind of a question mark. You can read more about it here and see more from Mecum here.

Update: Withdrawn from auction

Nash Metropolitan

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1957 Nash Metropolitan

Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | May 14-22, 2021

Photo – Mecum

Here is a car I adore. Partly because it is adorable, but also because it is affordable. The car was designed by Nash in the U.S. with the aim of offering a less expensive and economical alternative to the big behemoths rolling out of Detroit. But the cars were actually produced in England by Austin.

Series I examples were introduced in 1953, and this Series III hardtop would’ve sold for $1,527 when new. Power is from a 1.5-liter inline-four that was factory rated at 52 horsepower. Metropolitans were sold as Austins in the U.K. and under the Nash brand in the U.S. through 1957. Hudson-branded models were also offered until Nash and Hudson were phased out in ’57. From 1958 through 1962, Metropolitan was a standalone marque.

This restored example is finished in teal and white (excellent) and features houndstooth upholstery. Affordable when new, they remain an inexpensive way to get into 1950s American (or British, depending on your perspective) cars. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $17,600.

1957 Eldorado Brougham

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1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Phoenix, Arizona | January 22, 2021

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Many people think that peak American cars of the 1950s culminated in the outlandish 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz. Not so. It peaked more mid-decade, with cars like the Continental Mark II and this, the Eldorado Brougham. These were in a class of their own. The ultra-luxury class.

The Brougham was based on Cadillac’s Orleans and Park Avenue concept cars and featured a pillarless four-door hardtop body with suicide rear doors. The roof was finished in brushed stainless steel, and the car featured a self-leveling suspension, power seats with memory, cruise control, an automatic trunk opener, automatic high-beam headlights, and air conditioning. So basically, it was loaded with all of the stuff (and more) than that of your average 2020 mid-size sedan.

Over-the-top features included drink tumblers, a leather-trimmed cigarette case, a vanity, and a bunch of other stuff Cadillac threw in so everyone could know how high-maintenance you were. Power is from a 6.0-liter V8 that makes 325 horsepower courtesy of dual Rochester carburetors.

So what does all of this run in 1957? Well, how about $13,074 – nearly three times the price of a base Series 62 hardtop sedan from the same year. It also bested the Continental Mark II, which up to that point was the most expensive American car. This car cost more new than a Rolls-Royce. The Brougham was actually the Series 70, to set it apart, and only 400 were built this year. The 1958 model was even rarer. This one should sell for between $80,000-$120,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $184,800.

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.