Two Mercedes-Benz 300 SLs offered at Artcurial’s Monaco classic car sale found new homes. The 38,000-mile Gullwing carrying options of an NSL camshaft and Rudge knock-off wheels sold for €1,416,000, exceeding its €1.2-1.4M estimate and setting the top price of the auction. A recently restored 300SL Roadster sold for €858,240 against an estimate of €800,000-€1M.
The 1939 Bugatti Type 57 Cabriolet from the Volante Collection – known as one of the ‘Bordeaux Orphans’ – sold €100k below bottom estimate at €500,640. The Orphans were five unsold but fully assembled chassis that were moved to Bugatti’s new factory in Bordeaux just prior to the outbreak of war.
During the 1940s, this car, chassis ‘57780’/engine 546, was fitted with the unique 4-seater cabriolet body from chassis 57757/52C and displayed at the 1938 Paris Motor Show. After joining the seller’s collection in 2014, it was treated to an award-winning two-year restoration by René Grosse.
Other highlights from the classic car sale at Monaco by the rather choosy Artcurial auction house included a three-owner 1966 De Tomaso Vallelunga which sold for €321,840, a 1972 Alfa Romeo Montreal with little use since a €40,000 restoration easily exceeded its conservative guide price of €45-65k at €73,904 including premium and a 31,000-kilometre Ferrari F40 from 1990 made a mid-estimate €959,560.