retromobile

Citroen DS named "Most Beautiful Car", Rare Example fetches $440k at Auction

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Auctions

A rare Citroen DS convertible set a new record when it sold last week at Bonhams' Retromobile auction in Paris – the same event where the barn-find Bugatti Type 57 Atalante found a new home – for a high bid of 337,500 euros, equivalent to about $440k. Wait a second, a Citroen? A 1973 Citroen, actually, making the high price even stranger, but this was no ordinary DS. The rare convertible was made by French coachbuilder Henri Chapron, one of only three DS23 convertibles he made and the only one with fuel injection. The striking shape the roofless DS cut prompted Citroen to put it in its catalog for public consumption.

The sale came at an apropos time, as Citroen prepares to relaunch the DS line with a new concept at the upcoming Geneva show, and a panel of automobile designers named the original Citroen DS to be the most beautiful car of all time. Beauty being in the eye of the beholder of course, but now seems like a golden time for the iconic DS.

Gallery: 1973 Citroen DS23 Chapron convertible

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Tags: auction, bonhams, bonhams paris retromobile, BonhamsParisRetromobile, car design, CarDesign, citroen, citroen ds, citroen ds convertible, citroen ds23, CitroenDs, CitroenDs23, CitroenDsConvertible, most beautiful car, MostBeautifulCar, retromobile

Porsche Designed For Hitler May Be The Most Expensive Car Ever To Hit The Auction Block

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Auctions

A racing car commissioned by Adolf Hitler from Porsche may be the most expensive car ever to be sold at auction. Christie's will be selling the car during the Rétromobile 2007 show in Paris, February 16 and 17.

The 1939 Auto Union D-Type is said to be one of only two in existence, a request from Hitler who wanted to display the technological prowess of German engineers. Most of the D-types were destroyed after the war but this one survived because it had been taken to Russia to be studied. The dissembled parts of the car were found in the 1990s and the car was reassembled. The car could bring in over $15 million, setting a world record.

[via Ananova]

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Tags: auction, christies, hitler, porsche, retromobile