Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
£5.5m buys ‘daddy of all racing cars’
A 104-YEAR-OLD Peugeot dubbed the “father of all race cars” has sold at auction for £5.5million.
The two-seater L45 had a revolutionary 4.5 litre engine capable of 100mph that was immediately copied by rivals.
The car, sole survivor of four L45s, was shipped to the US from France during the First World War.
In 1916 it came third at Indianapolis and was bought by farmer and car enthusiast Lindley Bothwell in 1949.
It was auctioned by Bonhams in Los Angeles and its selling price was a world record for a Peugeot.
The firm said: “The significance of this race car cannot be overstated.
“It is one of the most original and pure racing cars of this era.”