Opel Olympia OL38

1940 Opel Olympia OL38 Roadster by Glaser

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Munich, Germany | November 2024

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Well, the OL38 generation of Opel’s Olympia didn’t really look like this. The Olympia went on sale in 1935, and just two years later it was updated to the OL38, which remained in production until being interrupted by the war in 1940. It resumed production in 1947 and lasted through 1949, when a fresh generation debuted.

The OL38 was offered from the factory as a two- or four-door sedan as well as a two-door cabriolet. This car received, what is claimed to be, one-off roadster coachwork by Glaser. Power is provided by a 1.5-liter inline-four that made around 35 horsepower. It was capable of 70 mph.

This car was purchased out of Ukraine in 2014 and later restored. It now has an estimate of $22,000-$33,000. Click here for more info.

Horch 855 Special Roadster

1939 Horch 855 Special Roadster by Glaser

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

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Horch has an interesting history which we have probably discussed here before. They were a German luxury car manufacturer by the 1930s – the most luxurious of the four Auto Union marques. In 1935 they introduced the 850, which brought with it a fairly large inline eight-cylinder engine.

There were various versions, including the original 850, the uprated 851, and the uprated and shorter 951 and 951A. And then there were the sportier variants, including the original 850 Sports, the now-quite-famous 853 and 853A, and the ultimate iteration: the 855. The Horch 853 is a pretty sought after pre-war classic, but the 855 is pretty much impossible to get your hands on.

Part of that is the only built between five and seven of them. The other part is that only two remain: the 853-based prototype and this, the only production version left. It wears Special Roadster bodywork from Glaser. The 855 is powered by a 120-horsepower version of the 850’s 4.9-liter inline-eight. It had a top speed around 87 mph, weighed less than the 853, and typically had a shorter wheelbase.

This car was sold new in the Netherlands and was brought to the U.S. by a returning member of the military in the 1940s. It spent time in a museum in the 1950s, was used in at least one movie in 1959, and moved to its current collection in 1980. In 1992, Audi found out about the car and convinced its reclusive owner to lend it to them. Audi then restored it and kept it on display in their museum until this sale. You can read more about it here.

Wanderer W50

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.

Audi Front UW

1933 Audi Front UW Prototype by Glaser

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Ascot, U.K. | May 15, 2021

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

The Audi Front was the first front-wheel-drive European car with a six-cylinder engine. The “UW” part was a sort of German abbreviation denoting that this Audi used a Wanderer engine that was flipped 180 degrees to drive the front wheels. The cars were also built in a Horch plant, making it a real Auto Union effort. Two different engines were offered during a production run that lasted from 1933 to 1938.

This car was in Russia during WWII, and it’s owner kept it hidden in his basement to avoid it be confiscated by Soviet authorities. It was purchased by the current owner in 1984 and relocated to Armenia, where it sat in storage until a restoration began in 2012.

Of the two Wanderer engines offered in the Audi Front (220 or 225), this car has neither. It has a 3.0-liter inline-six and some one-off features that have led people to believe it was some kind of prototype fitted with a four-seat, two-door convertible body by Glaser. Historics hypothesize that it was ordered by a high-ranking German military official. The pre-sale estimate is $480,000-$520,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold.

Update: Not sold, Historics Auctioneers, July 2021.

Mercedes-Benz S-Type Sports

1928 Mercedes-Benz S-Type 26/180 Sports Tourer by Glaser

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 19, 2017

Photo – Gooding & Company

The Mercedes-Benz S-Type is one of Mercedes’ most impressive vehicles. It was the foundation for the legendary SSK and SSKL racing cars. Consider it the Jazz Age equivalent of the current Mercedes-AMG GT – you know, if the GT could be had with two or four doors and was, you know, gorgeous.

Built between 1927 and 1933, the S-Type was a performer in its day. It’s powered by a supercharged 6.8-liter straight-six that makes 180 horsepower with the supercharger activated. The body here is a one-off by Glaser and it was white with red interior much earlier in its life.

The current family that owns this car acquired it in 1964 (!) and it was first restored in the mid-1960s to the color scheme it now carries. A second restoration was completed in 2013. The auction catalog states that 146 S-Types were built and only 58 remain. A few have changed hands in the last few years, but they are rarely attainable. It’s a pretty awesome machine that will grab everyone’s attention wherever you take it… if you can afford the $5,000,000-$6,000,000 price tag. Click here for more info and here for more from Gooding & Company.

Update: Not sold.

Horch 780 B

1934 Horch 780 B Cabriolet by Gläser

Offered by Bonahms | Paris, France | September 3, 2016

Photo – Bonhams

Horch’s first eight-cylinder model went on sale in 1926. In 1931, their largest straight-eight was introduced, displacing 4.9-liters. The 780 B was the ultimate version of this series, produced between 1932 and 1935. That engine put out 100 horsepower, which made the car good for 77 mph – the fastest eight-cylinder Horch produced up to that time (the 4.9-liter engine would return in 1937 for the legendary 853 series).

This particular example was bodied by Gläser of Dresden and it’s very attractive. During or after WWII, this car ended up in Belarus, of all places, and it didn’t return to Germany until 2005 when it was finally restored after untold decades in a barn.

The 780 B is one of the rarer Horch models, with only 82 built. While the 853/853A is among the most sought-after models, they tend to appear for sale more often than the likes of this. It’s price reflects its rarity as this car carries a pre-sale estimate of $680,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $712,701.

Dingman Collection Highlights

RM Auctions recently held a reserve-less auction of the Dingman Collection in Hampton, New Hampshire. There were a lot of 1940s-era Ford’s – a lot of woodies too. Our feature car, the 1947 Ford Super Deluxe Sportsman Convertible sold for $253,000. The top sale was a 1936 Ford Custom Cabriolet with a coachbuilt body by Glaser. It bettered the upper end of its reserve by more than $100,000, selling for $396,000.

The next biggest sale was also the top-selling Lincoln – a 1938 Lincoln-Zephyr Coupe. As one of the all-time great automotive designs, it commanded a premium at $330,000.

The top selling Mercury was $187,000 for this 1942 Model 29A Station Wagon.

And finally, on a brighter note, this 1940 Lincoln Continental Cabriolet in a brilliant shade of blue sold for $93,500. For complete results, click here.