Despite the popular saying, history cannot simply repeated. So, when faced with the possibility of losing the entire classic collection of cars that had made up the official Saab museum in Trollhättan after the officials in charge of the automaker’s bankruptcy proceedings threatened to break it up, a few organizations stepped up to the plate to keep it together.

According to a report from Autocar, the city of Trollhattan, SAAB AB and The Wallenberg Foundation came up with the .05 million required to purchase the entire collection outright. A total of 120 cars are included, including the Ur-Saab, which is the first automobile built by the Swedish company.

Trollhättan buys entire classic Saab collection to preserve museum originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not every day that concept cars go up for grabs. The automakers and design studios that craft them typically hold on to their show cars for posterity, putting them away in archives that we’d imagine resemble the end scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark or else putting them in their own museums for visitors to their headquarters to see. That’s what makes this particular item such a rare opportunity.

Bertone unveiled this BMW Spicup concept at the 1969 Geneva Motor Show. But unlike some of today’s concept cars, this one was actually made to be driven, taking its chassis from a BMW 2000 CS, complete with its 2.5-liter inline-six engine. Sometime after the show, it was acquired by a Dutch individual who drove it regularly, but then the car disappeared into obscurity for a couple of decades.

Now restored to concours condition, the Spicup concept has been showcased at Villa d’Este and at the BMW Museum in Munich. That’s where Bonhams just auctioned it off at its POWER by BMW event, where it sold for a high bid of €460,000 (~0k). Other highlights of the event included a Le Mans and Spa-winning ’75 3.0 CSL (est. €350,000/0k), a ’79 M1 Pro-Car (€500k/0k), a ’37 328 Roadster (€500k/0k) and even a BMW-powered Abbatte wooden speedboat (€150k/0k).

Follow the jump for more info on the Spicup show car, this link for more on the POWER by BMW event and this other link for more images.

Continue reading Bonhams auctions one-of-a-kind Bertone Spicup concept at BMW Museum

Bonhams auctions one-of-a-kind Bertone Spicup concept at BMW Museum originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fast Lane Daily – Car News. Fast Cars. Fast and Fresh. Every day.

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Over the past half-century, James Bond has driven a wide variety of vehicles. (Okay, so most of them have been Aston Martins. The point is there’s been a lot of them.) And while the occasional former Bond vehicle may pop up at auction every now and then, seeing more than one or two in the same place is a rare occasion indeed.

Next year, however, the Bond franchise is turning 50, and to celebrate, a number of parties are teaming up to put together the largest display of Bond cars ever. The exhibition will take place at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, England, and is being orchestrated with help from Empire (the world’s foremost movie magazine) and EON Productions (which puts together every Bond movie ever filmed).

The display will be part of the Big Screen exhibition there, which already includes the Aston Martin DBS from Quantum of Solace, the DB5 from Goldeneye, the Jaguar XKR from Die Another Day, and the 1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom lll from Goldfinger. All told, some 50 cars from various Bond movies will be on display from January through December 2012. Follow the jump for the full press release and scope out the quartet of high-resolution images of the four aforementioned vehicles in the gallery.

World’s largest James Bond car collection coming together next year at British museum originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 15 Aug 2011 10:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve been big fans of the Mullin Automotive Museum ever since it opened its doors over a year ago. The Oxnard, California shrine to French Art Deco automobiles should be on the must-visit list for any enthusiast.

Still, traveling to Oxnard isn’t ideal for everyone, so Peter Mullin, chairman of the museum, has teamed up with French automobile experts Richard Adatto, Claude Figoni and Shana Hinds to create a book highlighting some of the most beautiful automobiles on the planet. Titled French Curves: Delahaye – Delage – Talbot-Lago, the book provides an up-close look at some of the all stars of the Mullin Automotive Museum collection.

The book will make its debut at the 2011 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. A fitting entry for a tome that will certainly class up even the fanciest of coffee tables. You’ll be able to purchase a copy for yourself later this year through the Mullin Automotive Museum website. Read all the details in the press release after the break.

Continue reading Bring the Mullin Automotive Museum to your coffee table

Bring the Mullin Automotive Museum to your coffee table originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 03 Aug 2011 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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