The post-war cars at Artcurial added to an unforgettable car spotting experience

The first part of our Artcurial report shot most of the firecrackers, but we saved a few big ones in the second part too. For ease of loading, the comprehensive gallery with 180 photos is available on the second page of this article (you have to click the nr 2 at the bottom of this page). We recommend to have a peek in Artcurial’s online catalogue with sales results and lots of details on the cars.

Some of the modern cars were grouped according to the collection that was put up for auction. The Bandini Collection offered nine vehicles from the Italian marque Bandini.

The collection was assembled by Dino Bandini in tribute to his uncle Ilario, who founded the marque in 1946. Based in Forli in Emilia-Romagna, the marque folded with the death of its founder in 1992.

The best selling Bandini car was the 1957 Bandini 750 Internazionale sold for Sold €637,720. The car was also called nicknamed Saponetta for its streamlined aluminium bodywork, designed for the 1957 Mille Miglia.

Also destined for the greater good, the white 1957 Bandini 750GT Veloce Berlinette Zagato remained unsold. In 1957, Ilario Bandini called on the renowned coachbuilder Zagato to create a body for his Gran Turismo Berlinetta.

The car won first prize in the 1959 Rimini Concours d’Elegance before being taken to the United States, where it competed in several races, including Daytona and Sebring.

Opposite the Bandinis, there was a trio of red Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Zagato “Coda Tronca” editions from the ‘60s, each should fetch over half a million euros.

Our favourite was still the 1957 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce Allegerita.

There was also a unique selection of race cars, like the ultra-flat green 1958 Lotus XI Le Mans Série 2 sold for €238,400.

There were a few exciting specimens on this side, like a silver 1975 BMW 2002 Turbo sold for €101,320, a much cooler but unsold 1973 BMW 3.0L CSL and a 1984 BMW 635 race car with Groupe A specs.

Another of our favourite was the 1957 Talbot Lago Sport 2500, sold for €135,000 (just under estimate), in original unrestored condition.

Another highlight of the auction was the 19 rally cars from the Lempereur collection. Beaudoin Lempereur was a Belgian race driver and race car specialist who deceased last year. His collection included rally cars that inspired him, including models that he drove in regularity and competitive events.

From this corner of the hall, the 1986 Renault 5 GT Turbo Groupe N was sold for a moderate €14,304, but the two Turbo 2 editions fared much better (the 1984 Renault 5 Turbo 2 was sold for €78,672 and the 1986 Renault 5 Turbo 2 fetched €79,864 ).

The selection also included a classic 1986 MG Metro 6R4, sold for €197,872 and our favourite, a 1991 Ford RS200, which sold for €295,616.

As usual, there were a few weirdos in the auction, like the Porsche Diesel agricultural tractor. This swamp thing is a must-have for all die-hard Porsche fans and hence featured at most auctions.

Probably the weirdest was the green 1983 TAG Croco 4×4 amphibious vehicle sold for €29,800.

Next to that, the blue 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser BJ 40 (sold for €101,320) was quite a standard car (despite the tent 🙂 ).

The most striking vehicle of the entire auction was the 1967 ZIL 114 sold for €104,896. This spectacular ZIL is in its original (somewhat derelict) condition. This parade limo was procured in Mongolia for the President of the Republic.

As for the model, the ZIL 114 replaced the earlier Russian presidential limo ZIL 111 in 1967. The limousine featured a 7-litre V8 engine developing over 300hp mated to an automatic transmission that could accelerate the car to speeds over 190 kmph.

The Moscow-based manufacturer offered this model until 1985, and apparently, other communist states also ordered for their representation fleet.

The Auction also featured a high number of distinct British luxury classics. We were indeed happy to see a more robust British contingent that could not compensate for the absence of many brilliant trader stages from the UK.

Obviously, a few Astons were there, but there was also an unusually high number of classic mastodons from Bentley and Rolls.

In the past, these 40-year-old labour intensive giants did not sell as well as their sleek and sporty compatriots, and we did not see a sudden shift in trends.

One of the central stage cars, the black 1961 Bentley Continental S2 cabriolet with a body coachbuilt by Park Ward, fetched €220,520, and its brothers did not fare much better.

The grey 1963 Bentley S3 Continental Coupé coachbuilt by H.J. Mulliner Park Ward was sold for €184,760 and the striking blue metallic 1960 Bentley Continental S2 Flying Spur with a chassis tailor-made at Mulliner was worth €202,640 for someone.

German cars were not so abundant as at Belgian or Dutch events, but there were a few interesting specimens like the 930 Speedster.

There was also a selection of two-wheelers casually placed in the centre of the auction area. Some of them fetched fairly impressive amounts.

So here is the end of the line, with our personal favourites from the Artcurial Auction, an absolute highlight of Rétromobile.

Also, a less affluent offering was provided at the corner of cheap cars, where you could find youngtimers under 20.000 euros (even if only a few).

For the introduction to the Rétromobile event, including links to the detailed articles, please visit the main article on the show:

And for an overview of events, check out our regularly updated ultimate automotive events calendar for 2022:

Here we take a rhetorical break, as we reached some 180 photos in our gallery until here. Take a deep breath before clicking on the last chapter, as loading the pictures might take some time.