A lineup of coachbuilt cars will be among the headline entries for the Gooding Pebble Beach 2016 auction, scheduled for August 20-21 at the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center during Monterey Classic Car Week. The official auction of the Pebble Beach Concours will featured Aston Martin, Cisitalia, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Mercedes-Benz and more across the auction block.
“These automotive treasures represent coachbuilding at their finest from renowned European designers such as Vignale, Pinin Farina and Bertone,” said David Gooding, President and Founder of Gooding & Company. “We feel privileged to offer this unique opportunity for our clients to own a historic piece of automobile design from an era of exceptional Italian craftsmanship.”
Early highlights include the 1954 Aston Martin DB2/4 Spider (Estimate: $3,000,000 – $4,000,000). The story behind this Bertone-bodied Aston Martin begins with the owner of one the largest American distributors of European cars, S.H. “Wacky” Arnolt, who had a strong creative pursuit to deliver to the United States special-bodied cars built on British chassis. While Arnolt ordered various British chassis for Bertone to body, he was truly drawn to the Aston Martin DB2/4. Six chassis (LML/502-LML507) were shipped to Italy for bodywork and three were produced in this Spider style by Bertone.
The 1954 Aston Martin DB2/4 Spider offered at the 2016 Gooding Pebble Beach sale, chassis LML/505, is the sole “Deluxe Competition Model” Spider and featured chrome trim, a full windscreen and luxurious interior appointments. It was the 1954 New York Auto Show car that was purposely built to impress none other than David Brown himself. This Aston Martin comes from a prominent car collection, has been restored, well documented and is a perfect candidate for any concours or rally event.
Another consignment is the 1946 Cisitalia 202 CMM (Coupe Mille Miglia), one of the most striking examples of streamlined coachwork and a testament to the collaboration between engineer Dante Giacosa, designer Giovanni Savonuzzi and coachbuilder Alfredo Vignale. Based on the Cisitalia’s 202 model — which featured an advanced chassis and modified Fiat 1100 mechanicals — the CMM was purpose-built for endurance racing, with the first example unveiled at the 1947 racing season. This car, chassis CMM-002, was built for the 1948 Mille Miglia, where it was entered by the factory team and driven by the Piero Tarrufi and Domenico Rabbia. After many years in a Japanese collection, this Italian sports racing car is being presented at public auction for the first time (Estimate: $2,000,000 – $3,000,000).
Another Italian coachbuilt offering is the 1960 Abarth 1000 Bialbero Record Car “La Principessa”. Presented at the 42nd Turin Motor Show, the Abarth was conceived by Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Pinin Farina. Built on behalf of Fiat-Abarth, the shape was developed utilizing the wind tunnel at Turin Polytechnic University, with the sole goal being to create a car that would break the world record for highest sustained speed over the longest period of time. Pinin Farina’s hand achieved just that and more. With a drag coefficient of just 0.20, La Principessa would set nine world records including 10,000 kilometers with an average speed of 118.7mph, as well as 72 continuous hours at an average speed of 116mph. This unrestored car has been with the same private owner for decades and is being offered for public sale for the first time (Estimate Available Upon Request).
Additional coachbuilt entries at the Gooding Pebble Beach 2016 sale include:
- 1968 Ferrari 330 GTS (Estimate: $2,700,000 – $3,000,000)
- 1960 Ferrari 250 GT Series II Cabriolet (Estimate: $1,500,000 – $2,000,000)
- 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Cabriolet C (Estimate: $1,200,000 – $1,400,000)
- 1951 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Cabriolet (Estimate: $700,000 – $850,000)
Gooding and Company – 2016 Pebble Beach Auction
Dates: Saturday, August 20 at 5:00pm and Sunday, August 21 at 6:00pm
Location: Equestrian Center, corner of Stevenson Drive and Portola Road, Pebble Beach, CA
Public preview: Wednesday, August 17 – Sunday, August 21
Auction catalogues: $100, includes admission for two to the viewing and the auctions
General admission: $40, includes admission for one to the viewing and the auctions
Bidder Registration: $200 includes a catalogue, admission for two to the viewing and auction with two reserved seats, subject to availability.
For further information, visit GoodingCo.com.
[Source: Gooding & Company]
