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€1,461,800 Talbot Lago T 150 C, 1936, chassis no.
82930, inline 6-cylinder engine developing 170 hp at
4,700 rpm; max. speed: 210 kph.
Coupé, no longer with its original engine. In 1962, the
Bugatti register published by HCG Conway indicated
that "the vehicle has been considerably altered during
its long career at the factory" (twenty years –Ed.). It has
a type 101 compressor engine coupled to a Cotal
gearbox. A majestic 1938 Mercedes-Benz 540 K
cabriolet with coachwork by Vanden Plas went for
€672,750. This has silver grey paintwork with a
burgundy leather interior. Its first owner was the son of
American press baron William Randolph Hearst.
Talbot Lago, Duesenberg J, Bugatti:
a winning combination
On 8 February, right in the middle of the Rétromobile
show, the Artcurial-Briest-Poulain-F. Tajan auction
house posted the highest total ever obtained for a
collectors' automobile sale in France: €14,618,984
(90% by lot). At €1,461,800, a French collector carried
off the star of the sale, the Talbot Lago T 150 C shown
in the photo. This was used in competitions from 1936
to 1950. The original design of its coachwork was
restored in 1983 by specialist Paul Grist, who based it
on two types of racing 150 Cs then in England. Only six
T 150 Cs were built, all belonging to the extremely
restrained category of French cars produced in line
with the 1936 Automobile Club de France regulations,
AUCTION RESULTS THE MAGAZINE
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with the aim of winning back places in competitions
from the German rivals. It is thought that fewer than
twenty cars in this category still exist in a drivable
original state. A well-deserved million-plus bid! An
American car from the Roaring Twenties with coachwork
by Walter M. Murphy in California went for
€1,036,344. Beautifully maintained, in 1981 this had
carried off the most prestigious prize a classic car can
receive, the "Best in Show" at the Pebble Beach
Concours d’Elégance. The Duesenberg J is an
American legend, considered by enthusiasts as one of
the fastest, most powerful and best-constructed cars
of its time. Murphy produced around sixty roadsters
with this model, considered must-haves. €586,112
acclaimed a 1935 Bugatti type 57 with cabriolet coachwork
by Vanvooren in Courbevoie. The bodywork,
chassis and engine are all original, and it has only had
four owners. There was a lively battle for another
Bugatti type 57, this time from the second series,
which went for more than its estimate. €421,445
rewarded the first Type 57 C ever built, with a Ventoux
body and an engine sporting the number "1C". In a
more "celebrity" vein, we can just mention the
€162,025 obtained by Alain Delon's 1987 Ferrari Testarossa,
after an estimate of no more than €80,000…
decidedly a gain in value thanks to the cinema!
Sylvain Alliod
N° 23 I GAZETTE DROUOT INTERNATIONAL
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