For the last two years, the highlight of the Rétromobile show has been the auction sale organised by Artcurial Motorcars, which provides thrills and surprises. In front of a crowd of 3,000, the most desirable cars on the planet parade across the stage like the stars of Hollywood or Haute Couture, under the gavel of former racing driver Maître Hervé Poulain.
The talented Artcurial Motorcars team, headed by Matthieu Lamoure, took last year’s sale to new heights, achieving an all-time record result for a car sale in France, with a Ferrari California selling for $5.9m, which put Paris firmly on the map for international collectors.
SOME EXCEPTIONAL DISCOVERIES AMONGST THE LINE-UP OF AROUND ONE HUNDRED COLLECTORS’ CARS AND TWENTY MOTORCYCLES ON OFFER IN THE SALE:
– The ex-Works 1936 Talbot T150 C, one of the stars of pre-war endurance races, which took part three times in the Le Mans 24 Hour Race and once in the Mille Miglia, driven by Chiron/Chinetti/Rosier. Artcurial estimate: $1.6m–$2.1m.
– The nine-car collection belonging to Pierre Brignole, Corsican publisher and singer. Maître Poulain says, “I am proud to have known this Corsican, since the end of the 1980s when, moving on from a newspaper of small ads, this press man began to diversify his interests and passions, with automobiles at the forefront. The majority of the cars were bought at auctions I held at the Palais des Congrès. The line-up of models reveals two favoured themes : classics of the grand marques bodied by the best coachbuilders, and sports cars.”
– The 1962 Ferrari 250 GT cabriolet Pininfarina Series 2, with hardtop, discovered in the basement of a building in Marseille, with 15,000 km on the clock, and in the hands of the second owner since 1969. Estimate: $800k–$1m.
– The 1995 Bugatti EB 110 SS, 31st and last EB 110 built and belonging to Romano Artioli, creator of Bugatti Automobili Spa in 1987. 14,000 km from new. Estimate: $500k–$650k.
– Alain Delon’s Ferrari Testarossa. In his book which reminisences about his career, Le marteau et son maître, Hervé Poulain devotes a chapter to Alain Delon. The auctioneer is proud of the oxymoron he uses to define the actor: a man who is “brutally sensitive.” Their friendship grew from the passion they share for art and speed. The Parfums Delon sponsored the racing driver to take part three times in the Le Mans 24 Hour Race in a Porsche 935 and a Rondeau M379.
– The 1953 Fiat 8V Vignale. Estimate: $1m–$1.1m. A unique model bodied by Vignale in 1953 that belonged to an Italian playboy from Rimini.
– The private collection of a Peugeot dealer in Germany, including 8 Citroëns in exceptional condition and a Peugot 402 Eclipse, one of 29 known examples, in concours condition (Estimate: $230k–$230k) and various other marques.
– An Italian collection of 20 motorcycles road and racing models, some of the best models from the 1960s and 1970s.
For the complete run list, visit www.artcurial.com.