A few Scottscale Auction highlights: a record $6.8 million for a 1955 alloy-body Mecedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing; a $335,000 sale of the 1949 “Rain Man” Buick Roadmaster convertible; and $775,000 for a rebuilt Duesenberg Model J engine – yes, just the engine. Read all the highlights here
The F355 was Ferrari’s successful response to the next-to-last ranking of its F348 predecessor in a five-way Car and Driver comparison. This 1995 F355, with only 900 miles, is offered by Bonhams at its Scottsdale auction, with a pre-sale estimate of $130k – $160k.
The “Elkhart Collection” is no more. RM Sotheby’s offered all of them at no reserve and brought in $44.3m. The top sale was a 1952 Ferrari 225 S Berlinetta by Vignale, which brought in $2.8m, followed by 1953 Fiat 8V Supersonic by Ghia $2.04m.
The first 1965 Shelby GT350R, a star-studded racing steed with a trophy case of documented history, sold for $3.85m at Mecum’s Indy sale this month. This is just 7 months after the “Bullitt” Mustang movie car sold for a $3.75m, breaking that record. The $3.8m GT350R was one of 36 such cars built for the track. Other GT350R models are hardly cheap dates, with selling prices around the $1m mark.
Featured in the James Bond movie, The Spy Who Loved Me, the Lotus Espirit is a classic car that was once turned into a submarine. It was a badass-looking wedge-shaped road missile that captured the spirit of the mid 1970s.
The Lamborghini Jalpa revamped the basic Urraco platform, keeping the Silhouette’s two-seat, targa-roof layout. Originally priced at $60,000 in 1980, one sold at RM Sotheby’s Palm Beach online auction for $99,000. With just 410 made and 100 sent to the U.S., it’s not something you normally see at a Cars and Coffee.
The Ferrari Testarossa burst onto the scene for 1985, starring in Miami Vice alongside Don Johnson. It competed against Magnum P.I. starring Tom Selleck, his famous mustache and Ferrari 308 GTS. The Testarossa is an iconic 1980s wild child that belongs in every Ferrari collection.
Mecum Auction House is selling a twofer 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 at its Glendale, AZ auction this Saturday, March 14. Pre-estimates for 1967 L88s, can command well over $1m, the rarest Corvette, with just 20 made. The more “common” 1968-1969 models draw less impressive sums, but remain a powerful draw for collectors.
A 1969 ZL1 Camaro sold at the Scottsdale Auctions for a whopping $1.094 million on the Barrett-Jackson stage. The ZL1 was an all-out performance package that also included heavy-duty suspension and drivetrain components.
