AUCTION WATCH
Quail Lodge and Golf Club, Carmel, California
Bonhams Quail Auction on August 19 promises an exceptional selection of cars for its silver anniversary, including a 1931 Stutz DV-32 Convertible Victoria, one of the most awarded American classics in modern Concours d’Elegance events. A meticulously restored and impressive one-off design, this blue slate grey Stutz is estimated at $1,400,000-1,800,000.
With coachwork by LeBaron, this unique one-off bodied Stutz is remarkably designed to visually lower its lines with a striking ‘coach sill’ that descends to cover the frame and doors that open all the way through the bottom of the sill. It additionally features an exceptionally long hoodline, the longest of any known Stutz, and a low, steeply raked windshield which contributes to its otherworldly proportions.
Due to the timing of its production in the 1930s, this Stutz was sold and spent more than four decades in Argentina, one of the thriving international markets American manufacturers of ‘Great Cars’ found ready at the height of the Great Depression in the US and Europe. Other than the addition of metal to lengthen the hood and beaded moulding, as well as mechanical upgrades, the car’s time in South America left it largely intact.
After returning to the United States, the car was owned by two notable collectors before its current owner commissioned a full concoursquality restoration which preserved the car’s distinctive styling features. Once the impressive restoration was completed, the Stutz debuted at the 2016 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, where it earned awards for First in Class, Elegance in Motion, and a nomination for Best of Show. Additionally, it received Best of Show at the Concours d’Elegance of America at St John’s in 2017, Hilton Head in 2018, and The Quail in 2019.
Additional American pre-war highlights include, from the peak of Packard’s classic era, a 1933 Packard Model 1004 Super Eight Convertible Victoria, one of the finest of its model to survive, estimated at $350,000450,000 and a well-preserved and original 1930 Packard Deluxe Eight Dual Cowl Phaeton estimated at $275,000-325,000. A part of Packard’s Seventh Series, it was designed by the famed Ray Dietrich and is the last series to use piano spoke wire wheels. Yet another rarity is a 1920 Stutz Series K Bearcat, a legendary model, estimated at $160,000-180,000. First offered to the public in 1912, the Bearcat is a radically designed sports car and was a roadworthy version of the successful Stutz racers.
The Quail Auction will take place on Friday, August 19 as a live auction, with telephone, internet and Bonhams app bids all welcome. See www.bonhams.com for more information or to register to bid.