A 1962 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato will be among the featured entries at the 2015 RM Sotheby’s New York City auction, to be staged Thursday, December 10th at Sotheby’s headquarters in Manhattan.
“Nevermind being the greatest Aston of all time, this is one of the greatest GT cars ever produced,” says Rob Myers, Chairman and Founder, RM Sotheby’s.“To many, it is more beautiful than the stunning Ferrari 250 SWB but it is also vastly rarer. To my mind, the DB4GT Zagato begs closer comparison to the iconic Ferrari 250 GTO, although far fewer Zagatos were built than even that. It is an absolute jewel of a car and truly an opportunity that presents itself once in a generation.”
Typically topping the list as the most desirable (and valuable) road-going Aston Martin ever built, the legendary Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato combined Aston Martin’s DB4 clothed in Zagato’s lightweight aluminum bodywork. The 19 examples constructed are among the most coveted on the planet.
The DB4GTZ offered at the 2015 RM Sotheby’s New York auction, chassis DB4GT/0186/R, is the only example delivered new to Australia having been completed in 1961. Purchased by businessman Laurie O’Neil, the car was raced extensively in the 1962 season and enjoyed numerous victories and podium successes in the hands of Doug Whitehead, including victory in the South Pacific GT Championship and 4th-overall in the Sports Car Championship on the same day. The car remained in Australia for the next 30 years with only two subsequent owners.
Returning to England in 1993, the car boasts known history from new and has been seen at events such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Revival. After a two-year restoration in 2002 undertaken between Richard S. Williams in England and Carrozzeria Zagato’s own facilities in Italy, the car has been awarded numerous accolades at events such as the Louis Vuitton Concours, Villa d’Este, Pebble Beach and the Quail (Estimate available upon request).
The 2015 RM New York sale also lifts the gavel on a 1955 Siata 208S Spider, chassis BS 535. In the competition world, the model caused a marked disruption to the SCCA establishment with its winning combination of V-8 power in a lightweight body and chassis. RM said chassis BS 535 is “the finest of the breed.” The last known built of approximately 35 Motto-bodied examples and powered by Fiat’s Tipo 104 aluminum V-8, BS 535 was delivered in 1954 to an Italian enthusiast who imported it to the United States the following year. In the spring of 1956, the Spider was sold to Fred Celce of Massachusetts, a U.S. Air Force pilot who flew F-100 Super Sabre jets from bases around the world. After 12 years with Celce, the car passed through a well-documented chain of owners, including a 27 years in single ownership prior to purchase by its current custodian.
The recipient of a restoration to original factory specifications in 2011, BS 535 has recently been awarded top accolades at Pebble Beach, Villa d’Este, Amelia Island and the Kuwait Concours. This well-documented example comes to auction with its original matching-numbers engine and is accompanied by an extensive history file (Est. $1,500,000 – $1,900,000).
Don Rose, car specialist, RM Sotheby’s commented, “The 208S took the American sports car racing community by storm during the 1950s, proving highly competitive against the brute force competition. No less an aficionado of the finest and the fastest sports cars available, Steve McQueen raced a 208S, notably calling it ‘my little Ferrari.’ No better endorsement is necessary in my book.”
Additional recently secured entries for RM’s ‘Driven by Disruption’ auction include:
- 1953 Ferrari 250 Europa Coupe, chassis 0313 EU, with one-off coachwork by Vignale. Originally displayed at the 1953 World Motor Sports Show at Madison Square Garden, the Europa returns to New York this December for the first time in nearly 60 years, Classiche-certified (Est. $3,800,000 – $4,500,000);
- 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Atalante, chassis 57766, embodying French Art Moderne design, formerly owned by John W. Straus, heir to the Macy’s fortune (Est. $2,000,000 – $2,500,000);
- 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo, chassis 9305700163, Purchased by the vendor from its original Japanese owner, this first year Type 930 has been restored to its original special-order Copper Brown Metallic (Est. $350,000 – $450,000); and,
- 1981 Lamborghini Countach LP400 S Series III, chassis 1121316, presented in its original color of Verde Metallizzato, and showing 3,700 actual miles (Est. $900,000 – $1,200,000).
The RM Sotheby’s Driven by Disruption sale will be held December 10 at Sotheby’s New York and features 30 motor cars, along with select automobilia. As a prelude to the auction, a six-day exhibition will open over the weekend of December 5 in Sotheby’s 10th floor galleries.
For more information, or to view a frequently updated list of entries, visit www.rmsothebys.com or call +1 519 352 4575.
[Source: RM Sotheby’s]
