Given the company he kept, Prohibition-era gangster Al Capone had more need than most for a bulletproof car. So he arranged for his 1928 Cadillac V-8 Town Sedan to be armored with nearly 3000 pounds of asbestos-wrapped steel plating. When it appears at RM’s St. John’s auction on July 29, it’s expected to ell for $300,000-$500,000.Back in 2006, the car sold for $621,500 to noted collector John O’Quinn. A year after O’Quinn’s death in 2009, it stalled at $355,000 and failed to find a buyer at auction. Since then, however, its continuous history has been documented, adding greatly to its value. Among its other protective niceties, the car is fitted with glass almost an inch thick, with circular cutouts to accommodate a gun’s muzzle, and a rear window that drops, allowing one to fire at pursuers.
Al Capone’s 1928 Bulletproof Cadillac
July 18, 2012
100 MPH Without Brakes: Steve McQueen’s 1914 Indian At Bonhams
April 12, 2013Of all the motorcycles owned by Steve McQueen—and there were many—one of the more unusual is the 1914 Indian Board Track Racer that Bonhams will offer at its Stafford sale in England later this month. Produced for one of the first pine-board motordomes in the country, it was fitted with neither brakes nor throttle. Racers went all out, powered by a 4hp, 500cc engine, reaching speeds of 100mph. Restored by Indian specialist Stephen Wright, McQueen’s bike is estimated at $34,000-$43,000.
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Duesenberg Leads Boca Raton Concours Auction
February 22, 2013In its day, the ultra-sleek 1930 Duesenberg Model J Torpedo Phaeton had few rivals for style, luxury, engineering or power. More expensive than a Rolls Royce or Hispano Suiza, fewer than 500 were made, making the cars’ owners members of a very exclusive club that included Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, and William Randolph Hearst. The example that Bonhams will offer tomorrow at the Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance belonged to the wife of Duesenberg’s owner, E.L. Cord and has been featured in numerous movies. Restored to show standards, it comes to the auction without an estimate, generally a sign of high expectations.
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George Lucas’ Tucker May Fetch $2m
February 19, 2013The Tucker motor car company produced just 51 examples of the Tucker 48, known as the Torpedo, before going out of business in 1949. Characterized by its suicide doors and distinctive center headlight, which was conceived to move in tandem with the steering wheel, the 1948 car was the creation of visionary Preston Tucker, whose struggles were chronicled in a 1988 film directed by Francis Coppola and produced by George Lucas. The 1948 example that RM will offer in Amelia Island next month has its own story, having been owned by Lucas himself. The product of an extensive restoration, it’s expected to sell for $1.5m-$1.9m.
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Rising Value of Unrestored Cars
By Malcolm Welford, Vintage Car Specialist
