Auburn's last hurrah! - Old Cars Weekly Newsletter

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Car of the Week: 1936 Auburn 852 Speedster The 1935 Auburn 851 and 1936 852 Speedsters were the third generation of a model that was intended to bring eyes and wallets to Auburn showrooms, where buyers would more likely purchase a sedan or coupe or perhaps even a Cabriolet. However, it was the Great Depression, and Speedster sales were all too rare of an occasion. Auburn dealers were often forced by the factory to take one of the impractical Speedsters beginning in 1928, when the body style bowed in the Auburn line. The Speedster was dropped for 1930, then returned in the freshly restyled 1931 Auburn line and remained available into 1934. Auburn gave the Speedster one last hurrah in 1935 and 1936, but in every generation, the relatively expensive and impractical open car was a tough sell, and dealers were rightfully skeptical of adding one of the racy two-seaters to their inventory. The very definition of a halo car, the Speedster made the Indiana-based Auburn marque memorable even after it forever ceased building cars at the end of 1936. So memorable is the Auburn Speedster that it's been replicated like a nesting doll in every scale, from a finger-size toy to full-size "replicar." Many moons aligned in order to create the Auburn Speedster, and before those celestial bodies went into position, no one in the early 20th Century could possibly have predicted that in 40 years, a small Midwestern carriage maker would build the sportiest horseless conveyance yet to travel a road. See More Make your car our "Car of the Week"  If you've got an old car you really love, we want to hear about it! Click here to submit your ride! Gooding Christie's hammers home over $128 million at 21st Annual Pebble Beach Auctions Pebble Beach, Calif. — The official auction house of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance Gooding Christie's concluded one of its highest-grossing auctions to date this past weekend at Pebble Beach, realizing over $128 million in total sales. This year's results saw a 19% increase in total sales compared to last year's figures, undoubtedly due to the higher volume of big-ticket blue-chip offerings spanning the exceptional catalogue, led by the top lot of the sale, the 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider Competizione. Selling for $25,305,000, the California Spider Competizione set a new record as the most valuable car to ever be auctioned by Gooding Christie's, as well as the most valuable Ferrari 250 GT California Spider to ever sell at auction – by a margin of nearly $7 million. See More Newport Car Museum to host Mustang Day on Saturday, September 13 PORTSMOUTH, R.I. – The Newport Car Museum, located in Portsmouth, R.I., will host a Mustang Day on Saturday, September 13, and has invited all Mustang clubs in New England to attend. Among the clubs signed up are the Cape Cod Mustang Club, Mustangs of Massachusetts, and the Mustang Car Club of New England, all of which foster – through shows, cruises and other gatherings – the "preservation of the breed" and camaraderie among people who love Mustangs and have fun driving them. See More Now You Can Look 'Em Up Online! How much is your vintage ride worth? You can now join the Old Cars Price Guide Membership and find out online. Pricing right at your fingertips. Join Now! Subscribe Now to the Highest Frequency Publication for Die-Hard Car Lovers!  Your subscription to  Old Cars includes: All the recent news from around the old car hobby Coverage of all the important collector car auctions and shows Classifieds including expert advice SUBSCRIBE NOW Active Interest Media 2143 Grand Ave. Des Moines, IA 50312 United States View online  You received this email because you are subscribed to newsletters from Old Cars Weekly. Update your email preferences to choose the types of emails you receive.