This 1959 3/4 ton Studebaker is our favorite pick-up model that they made, with styled fenders, scalloped two-tone paint, and a nicely rounded cab. This one has older tires on factory 8-lug wheels, but runs and has new upholstery inside. Find it here on Craigslist in San Bruno, California for $6500.
Mecum auctions are always large with vehicles numbering in the hundreds, and though not the most selective, there are always good cars to be found by digging into the catalogs. Scrolling through all 33 pages of their upcoming Houston sale, we encountered a lot of muscle cars wearing large billet wheels, fiberglass hotrods, and C6’s rebodied to look like Sting Rays, but we’ve saved you the task and featured four of their very best offerings below. Find the full catalog here, with the sale itself scheduled for April 8th through the 9th in Houston, Texas.
Lot S147.1 is GT40 chassis GT/104, reported to be the 4th prototype ever built and the first example to score a podium finish at Daytona in 1965. The car counts drives by Phil Hill, Bruce McLaren, Bob Bondurant, Ken Miles, Jo Schlesser, Richie Ginther, Richard Attwood and more in its history, and is further claimed to be the second oldest GT40 remaining in existence. It looks incredible following a 2010 restoration to its original 1965 Shelby livery, and it will be fascinating to see how much it trades hands for—we’re fully expecting it to break records.
Up first is lot S100, a 1974 Porsche 911S with some interesting race history including a Paul Newman drive at the 1977 12 Hours of Sebring and a 1st place finish at the Mid-Ohio Camel GT Challenger the following year. The car was campaigned extensively from 1975 through 1987 in GTU, GTO, and O classes before finally being retired after a stint at the ’87 Sebring endurance race, and is said to include lots of documentation backing this claim. It looks to be in excellent shape following a four year long restoration beginning in 2006, and the owner speculates it should be race-ready and reliable as-is.
Second is this 1963 Corvette, lot S129.1. This car was prepped for racing by Harry Mann, owner of the largest Corvette dealer in America, after being snubbed by Chevy for one of the four Z06′s released by the factory for the 1962 Times Grand Prix in Riverside. Undeterred, Mann ordered a new L84 (fuel injected 327/360 HP) coupe with the intent of building his own. Following delivery it was immediately stripped, fitted with a roll cage and big brakes and was raced throughout Southern California with the numbers 7 11 on its doors as a nod to Mann’s gambling habit. The car was restored in 2013 and has since received an NCRS American Heritage Award.
Rounding off our list is lot S71, an extremely rare NAPCO 4X4 converted Suburban from 1959. The truck looks to be in excellent condition and has clearly been restored, though only a fresh rebuild of its original straight six is mentioned within the listing itself. Originally owned by Sante Fe Railroad, it’s sold with hundreds of pages of documentation and history. We’re happy to see it retain its original black California plates, and the truck is said to have always remained in dry Arizona or SoCal from new.
This 1973 Land Rover Series III 109 Pickup is said to be an ex-British military unit, and wears driver-quality paint that was applied to bare aluminum, with several body panels having been replaced. This 12V truck is said to run smoothly even on cold mornings, and has been maintained well, with all the electrics working, and with only a small leak at the oil pan to report. We love that this one has only seen farm work for the last 10 years, but still looks great doing so. We’d keep that up. Find this one here on eBay in Sperryville, Virginia with reserve unmet.
This 1961 Thiokol Trackmaster 4T-10 is powered by a 300-inch Ford engine mated to a rebuilt C4 transmission, while the steering differential mechanism is out of a Bombardier Snowcat for greater reliability and parts availability. The interior is ready for 10 passengers, and the exhaust now runs through double-wall pipe in the front part of the cab for extra heat. We might try to find a safer solution for the heating issue, but it would still look good in the garage, if it fits. Find this one here on eBay in Cle Elum, Washington with reserve unmet.
This 1960 Willys Jeep FC150 (chassis 6554823290) was originally used by a Wisconsin fire department and is said to have only 32,465 miles from new. The floors and body show some rust, but from what we can see underneath the frame seems mostly solid apart from some heavy grime and surface corrosion. The truck is said to run well but wanders a bit at speed and is speculated to need new steering components. Find it here on eBay in Chicago, Illinois with no reserve.
These two 1949 Dodge B-series Carryall woodies supposedly served as school buses, but by the looks of things were retired long ago and left to rot in storage. The seller doesn’t provide any info apart from stating the obvious and calling them unrestored, but from what we can make out, they seem to be mostly intact apart from disintegrating wood. A similar 4×4 Dodge was one of our favorites at the Wavecrest Woodie show in San Diego a couple years ago, which we featured here. Find them both here at The Guild of Automotive Restorers in Ontario, Canada for $12,000 for the pair.
Both appear to have pretty solid cabs and dashes, but the possibility of hidden rust is distinct—both on bodywork and chassis. In happier days these must have been beautiful trucks, and it’s hard to imagine there was once a time when it was economical to build such labor intensive bodies on a mass scale. Things are different today, with relatively inexpensive materials but costly labor. The new owners should expect to pay heavily for both in order to restore even one to its former glory.
Aside from the dash and seat frames there appears to be very little left salvageable of their interiors. With all of the bodywork aft of the A-pillars made of wood, though, there’s nothing irreplaceable to worry about. Wood is thoroughly rotten on one example, but the other seems to have enough left with which to pattern new framework from.
Under their split hoods these trucks run factory flathead straight sixes. Only one is pictured and appears to be mostly intact, and the missing air cleaner housing can be seen riding shotgun on the front bench. They’re bone-simple motors, though, and as long as it isn’t seized, rebuilding one should be straightforward enough compared to the monumental task of sorting the bodywork. Transmissions are floor-shifted 3-speed manuals, and there doesn’t appear to be much else to worry about from a mechanical standpoint excluding brakes and suspension. Electrics should be minimal, the only big question remaining the condition of these truck’s frames.
It’d be great to see both given the love they deserve, but even if only one can be resurrected from both sets of remains we’d be happy. Any experienced boat makers with a big garage and plenty of spare time out there?
– www.bringatrailer.com … Barn finds, rally cars, and needles in the haystack.Sign up for BaT email updates at: http://bringatrailer.com/email/
This 1985 Volkswagen Transporter drop-side pick-up is a factory Euro turbo-diesel model with a 5-speed manual transmission. It was re-painted in 2011 in the attractive factory blue and features a 5-speed manual trans. Find it here on Craigslist in Bainbridge Island, Washington for $27k. Special thanks to BaT reader Don G. for this submission!
This 1976 Ford Bronco (chassis U15GLB12011) remains mostly stock and the seller claims 2000 hours of detailing during his 7 years of ownership. The 45,560 miles are believed to be from new, and the 302/C4combo is a good one. We’d swap out the aftermarket steering wheel and paint the hardtop and grille white. Find it here on KSL.com in Salt Lake City, Utah for $12,600.
This 1973 Ford Bronco (chassis U15GLR80633) is said to be an 100% original example, and looks quite good excluding a minor cosmetic flaws picked up over the past 41 years. Rust is said to be limited to surface corrosion on the frame and two small spots on the inner front fenders. An automatic, power steering equipped truck, it’s said to drive straight has been sitting for some time and may need some suspension refreshing as a result. Find it here on eBay in Sheridan, Wyoming with reserve not met.
This 1984 Toyota Land Cruiser (chassis JT3FJ60G0E1124525) is said to be entirely rust free and original, and though the mileage is a bit high at 192k it’s clearly been well looked after. Excluding the head unit and speakers, aftermarket wheels shod in 31” tires are the only non-stock item. It’s a 4-speed manual equipped truck, and mechanical condition is said to match the cosmetics. Find it here on eBay in Marysville, Washington with no reserve. Special thanks to BaT reader Geoff A. for this submission!
This 1951 Standard Vanguard 4-door is an uncommon model in any condition, but we especially like this one because it has been prepared for historic racing. The car was built to HRDC regulations and Brian Redman drove it at the 2010 Goodwood Revival. The green hauler was custom built to carry the racer, and itself was built from a saloon and features impressive bodywork and alloy ramps. Find the hauler here on eBay and the race car here on eBay, both from the same seller in England, for 15,000 GBP each.
IK Classics & Racing apparently built the car and campaigned it at Goodwood that year. Their lettering is also on the door of the transporter, which is said to by vinyl decal so easy to remove. They have some very cool photos of the car here on their site. The shot below shows the racer coming out of the chicane at Goodwood. It is apparently faster than a ponton Mercedes but slower than a Borgward.
Here is the car being run around Silverstone in 2011:
We love the look and feel of these vehicles, and even more we love that it look like the owners are having good fun with them at a price that will hardly get you into the club parking at many US events.
This 1969 Scout 800 is a right hand drive postal model equipped with a 3-speed automatic. The owner has restored it themselves and overall the truck looks like a clean, sorted driver rather than an over-detailed garage queen. The dash features a cool IH-stamped placard detailing the truck’s post office order number and warranty expiration date, and is said to be leak-free and capable of driving anywhere—as long as it’s under 55 MPH. Find it here on eBay in Cornelia, Georgia with no reserve.
We don’t really dig the later square El Caminos, but this SS Royal Knight edition is a package we’ve never seen before, and this example is in impossibly clean shape. It has only 89k miles, and comes with documents, a factory build sheet, and new tires on Rallye rims. The 4-speed should help restore some driving enjoyment from the smog-choked 305. Find it here on Craigslist in Los Angeles, California, for $19k.
This 1986 Mercedes Benz 280 GE looks clean and nicely cared for inside and out, and the 32,384 miles showing on its odometer are thought to be correct. We like the dove gray color over checkered Recaro color combo, and these LWB wagon body style versions are the most practical for frequent use. It’s said to run and drive excellently, and doesn’t appear to have seen much heavy off-roading. Find it here on eBay in Bellevue, Washington for $34,950 OBO.
This 1946 Willys CJ2A had undergone a three year restoration by father and son, after being acquired by the seller, with the engine being rebuilt professionally by a specialist shop. Apart from being a weekend cruiser, the seller says the Jeep has been on several off-road trails in Nevada and Utah since the restoration. Find it here on Craigslist in Harrison, Idaho for $6k.
This 1949 Diamond T 201 is a model we’ve never seen before and looks to be straight with the exception of some dents across the hood. The seller says the truck isn’t in driving condition, but it will start and runs well. Rust looks scarce, and the odometer reads just under 20k miles; we’d guess it’s turned over at least once. Find it here on Craigslist in Post Falls, Idaho for $15k.
This 1951 Holden FX 50-2106 Ute was purchased new in its native Australia and then put to use on the McMahon family orchard in Canberra where it worked for nearly 50 years. Retired in 1998, its bare metal restoration was started in Australia and finished in New Zealand where it now resides, and the seller says they have nearly all receipts from the process. It looks very clean and well prepared throughout, and is said to run and drive perfectly. Find it here on trademe.co.nz in New Zealand for $33k OBO (~$28,459 today).
Starting from a media blasted body, the ute was resprayed in the electric Smurf blue it currently wears, and though no mention of the original color is made we can imagine it wearing a similar hue when new. All rubber seals were also replaced, and bodywork looks straight and clean with nice chrome and other brightwork. The ute’s GM DNA is clearly on display in the shape of the fenders and Buick-esque grill.
The interior looks clean and tidy, and the red upholstery makes for a striking contrast with the exterior color. From what we can make out, shifting appears to be done through a column-mounted stalk, and though very simple, we like the dash’s design, especially the shape of the instrument binnacle and large speedometer. It’s hard to think of a more foreboding shape for hazard lights than one resembling a radiation hazard—we wonder if they illuminate yellow.
Underneath, things look straight and free of corrosion, and the engine bay is clean and nicely detailed with what look like factory correct colors. The ad describes the motor as a gas four cylinder, but we count six sparkplug wires. It’s said to have less than 1,000 kilometers, which must be the post-restoration total—a totally believable figure based on the overall cleanliness on display. The wood lined bed is a nice touch, and we’re happy to see that it’s escaped a V8 hot rod conversion—not that such a build would be entirely uncool.
As the seller points out, this ute seems like an important piece of Antipodean motoring history, even from our viewpoint as rather uninformed outsiders. We can’t imagine it leaving New Zealand—except for perhaps Australia—but it’d definitely be welcome at any stateside vintage gathering as well.
This 1972 Datsun truck is in remarkably nice condition for the age, having been repainted a few years ago. The black spray-on bedliner in the bed and cab looks a bit jarring against the light green finish, but will likely preserve this truck beyond most. The venerable L16 four cylinder should run forever with no worries, and the single Weber carb is a worthy upgrade. We love the simplicity of these early trucks, and wish more could still be found in solid running condition. Find it here on eBay in Ripon, California.
This 1975 International Harvester pick-up is said to have 93,300 miles on it’s 304 V8 with a 4-speed manual trans and 4×4 capability. Inside the truck, the vinyl and cloth bench seat look clean with no visible rips or tears, and everything is said to work. The body looks to be straight apart from a spot of what could be rust on the driver’s side rocker, and the white steel wheels add to the truck’s rugged feel. Find it here on Craigslist in Garland, Texas for $8000.
This Toyota Land Cruiser FJ45 based rally raid truck is an intriguing build, but few details are provided in the ad beyond that it comes with many spares, is provided by what sounds to be a 250HP V8 of some sort, and has partial polyester bodywork. We’ve never imagined a Land Cruiser on white OZ rally wheels, but have to admit they work surprisingly well—at least in this unusual context. Find it here on Rally24.com in France for 45k euros (~$62,267 today).
