Gangster’s car comes up for sale
Former museum star with Al Capone connection could be yours for £26k
The only right-hand-drive example of a legendary American luxury model ever made is for sale – and it boasts connections to notorious mob boss, Al Capone.
Graham-Paige was established in 1927 when the three Graham brothers – who had just sold their truck-building firm to Dodge – bought car manufacturer, Paige and Jewett.
The resulting cars earned themselves a reputation for quality, speed and strength, and were very popular with America’s gangsters during the prohibition era, before Graham-Paige’s automotive interests were sold to Kaiser-Frazer in 1947.
The 610 being offered for sale was registered in Surrey in 1930 by a man known as Wallace, a close associate of Al Capone sent to Britain to set up a protection racket. His efforts were scotched by the police.
The car spent 30 years in a Surrey garage after Wallace left the country before being rescued and restored in the mid-1960s. The car was also displayed at the Cars of the Stars museum in Keswick for 18 years. It is said to be in excellent condition, and has covered just 26,000 miles from new.
The car is being offered by Essexbased Vintage and Prestige Classic Cars for £26,000. Spokesman, Christoff Cowens, says: ‘We pride ourselves on offering rare cars but this is a one-off with an incredible history.’
‘This is a genuinely rare car – a true oneoff with an incredible history’ christoff cowens