$1.3 M Austin Healey

[curtisaa]

Moral of this story : Never underestimate what something is worth.

http://msn.foxsports.com/motor/story...ctioned-113011

[advtracing]

true , here's a porsche one but not so dramatic . a porsche 911 1965 in parts came up for sale 6 months ago ( amazingly 5 mins up the road from me ) i didn't bother with it as i didn't need project and others were keen to buy it and restore it. it was rusty and as it had changed hands 3 times in parts things might be missing. Anyway car was sold to a member and we did some digging on the vin ......turned out the car was the first porsche 911 ever sold in new zealand . so it's worth suddenly jumped up

[t6dpilot]

What the hell?



That is unbelieveable!



Well not really, didn't we have a sale occur here recently that was similiar? Actually, that looks like a neat car and with a storied history. Interesting sale. There truly is a butt for every seat.

[advtracing]

if in a museum imagine the tour dialog with visitors "....and here we have the MG that caused the accident at le mans that killed the most spectators ever..." some how i don't think it works

[JohnT]

It's not the car's fault. But I agree that 1.3 million dollars for a car whose only significance is that it was involved in the deaths of 80+ people....... Well the James Dean car probably would change hands for more and it only killed 2 people!

johnt

[MarkH]

If I'm not mistaken, this is a 100S. These cars are now 500K so it's not quite as big a stretch.

[Bullethead]

It's historically significant for considerably more than being the car Levegh skipped off of, but of course that fact overshadows it's other unique qualities. Not the least of which is it's one of the four 'Special Test Cars' that precedeed the 100S. So, bound for a museum or private collector?

A brief history on the Bonhams site: http://www.bonhams.com/eur/press/6016/

http://www.automotiveface.com/classi...itcher=desktop

[Vintage Racer]

It's historically significant for considerably more than being the car Levegh skipped off of......

Thanks for the links. Despite the history and rarity, I'd still have a problem owning a car that was involved in such a tragic incident.

I'd guess the buyer would leave it in its current condition? Or restore it to its LeMans livery?

I've always liked the older Austin-Healey cars. They were a easy way to learn car control and easy to work on (important since they broke a lot of parts ). I raced this car in the early 1990's.

[LongRanger]

. . . . for reference (. . . and after the link dies) . . .

. . . A car involved in motor sport's worst ever accident — in which 84 people were killed — sold for £843,00 ($1.3 million) at a UK auction Thursday, after it was kept in a garage for the past 42 years.

In 1955, the Austin Healey swerved to avoid another vehicle at a refueling stop during the Le Mans 24-hour race and was hit by a Mercedes-Benz traveling at 150 mph (241 kph). The Mercedes took off and crashed into the crowd and sparked several fires.

The Mercedes' driver and 83 spectators were killed, while 120 other people were hurt.

The driver of the Austin Healey, Lance Macklin, escaped injury, but the disaster had enormous ramifications for international motor sport.

James Knight from Bonhams said the accident "was tragic but a catalyst for many changes in safety."

The car was impounded after the crash and it was not returned to England until 1956. It then passed through several owners until it was acquired by the present vendor in 1969 for £155 in its current condition.

The sale was held at Mercedes-Benz World in Weybridge, southern England . . .

Rick