11 Cars That Caught Our Eye at Gooding’s 2024 Pebble Beach Auction

Gooding’s Pebble Beach auction reached nearly $109M in total sales, just shy of the $109.4M record total achieved in 2022. Gooding offered more vehicles this year than at any Pebble Beach sale of the 2020s. Older vehicles worth $1M or more struggled here, as they did across all the Monterey auctions this year. Some record prices were achieved, and some results were soft. In other words, things were mixed.

This auction is always heavy on rare coachbuilt prewar cars, high-spec Porsches, vintage Ferraris, and important race cars. This year was no different, and here are the 11 most interesting lots we looked over in detail on the ground.

Lot 176: 1957 Alfa Romeo 1900C SS Coupe Lugano by Ghia-Aigle

Sold for $162,400

Chassis no. AR1900C.10439; Engine no. AR1308.01385. Light blue with Champagne metallic roof over tan leather. Older restoration, #2 condition.

Equipment: 1975cc/115hp inline-four, 5-speed, Borrani wire wheels, Pirelli Cinturato tires, Nardi wood-rim steering wheel, Veglia gauges.

Condition: One of four thought to remain. Restored in Italy in the 2010s. Beautiful paint and chrome. Striking colors. Excellent interior with clear gauges and clean switches. Some light dust and surface rust on the edges of the wheel spokes. Even panel gaps. The side trim doesn’t fit completely flush to the body, but it isn’t loose. A rare, charming, coachbuilt Alfa that is mostly top notch and just a few details away from being a concours car.

Bottom line: What a lovely car, bodied by the little known Swiss Ghia subsidiary and later independent Ghia-Aigle. Bonhams sold it here in 2016 for $165,000, but that was before its restoration, and it was painted a less attractive silver at the time. This result, then, is a great value to the new owner, who has a nearly unique car that won’t need any major attention for quite some time.

Lot 17: 1960 Lotus Type 18 Formula 1

Sold for $379,000

Chassis no. 374. Green with white nose stripe. Older restoration, #3 condition.

Equipment: 2498c/225hp Coventry Climax FPF inline-four, dual Webers, sequential 5-speed, yellow “wobbly web” wheels, inboard rear brakes, red leather-wrapped steering wheel.

Condition: F1-spec car, the last of six 18s built for Team Lotus. Driven in period by Jim Clark (third at Portuguese GP, second at Snetterton Lombank Trophy), Graham Hill, John Surtees, Innes Ireland, Trevor Taylor, and Ron Flockhart (sixth at French GP). Restored in the 2000s and in race-car condition with some dirt and grime, mild cracks in the paint, worn seat, and faded interior. None of that matters, though, as this Lotus had seat time with some of Britain’s all-time great drivers at multiple Grands Prix and non-championship races.

Bottom line: The 18 was a groundbreaking car from a groundbreaking carmaker. It was Lotus’ first mid-engine car and in 1960 was the first Lotus to win an F1 race. It was versatile, too. Depending on what engine it ran, the 18 competed in Formula 1, Formula 2, and Formula Junior. This one looks great, has really good if not exceptional history, and is eligible for all sorts of historic events, so it’s seriously undervalued at this final price, if you ask me.

Lot 196: 1968 Ferrari 330 GTS

Sold for $1,957,500

Chassis no. 11033; Engine no. 11033. Fly Yellow over red leather with black cloth top. Visually maintained, largely original, #3 condition.

Equipment: 3967cc/320hp V-12, six Webers, 5-speed, ANSA exhaust, Borrani wire wheels, Pirelli Cinturato tires, unique third seat in the middle, wood-rim steering wheel, power windows, leather boot cover.

Condition: Represented with three owners from new. One of 99 built and unique in this configuration, as it was a custom order for its first owner, Professor Vittorio De Nora. Tired but sound original chrome. Old repaint with some blemishes in the nose and cracks near the headlights. Unrestored but maintained underneath. Very good, well preserved interior, though the leather is too bright and soft to be original.

Bottom line: Even putting this charming, high-dollar Ferrari at no reserve didn’t entice much more than sleepy bidding. Its final price is soft for the condition and relative to other 330 GTSs sold, and the buyer gets the unique special-order third seat (best for dogs or children, adults would be awkward) thrown in as a bonus.

Lot 44: 1995 Ferrari 333 SP Evoluzione

Sold for $5,120,000

Chassis no. 010; Engine no. 027. Competition car, original as-raced, #3+ condition.

Equipment: 3997cc/650hp V-12, 5-speed sequential gearbox.

Condition: One of nine Dallara-built cars. Raced by the Scandia Motorsport team. Retired at Daytona, then started on pole and finished fourth at Sebring. Won the Halifax 3 Hours overall and finished second at Atlanta, Mosport, and Texas World Speedway. Also notched top 10 finishes at Lime Rock, Sears Point, and New Orleans. Started on pole at Le Mans in 1996 but retired after 208 laps. More decent results followed in 1997, including sixth overall and second in class at Le Mans, the best overall finish for a 333 SP there. Used in a few private track events since, and represented with a recently rebuilt and upgraded gearbox. In race-car condition with blemishes and aged finishes, but no major cause for concern.

Bottom line: Until Ferrari’s triumphant return to Le Mans last year with the 499P, the last time the company tackled the top tier of international sports car racing was with the 333 SP. Developed in collaboration with Dallara, it borrowed heavily from Ferrari’s F1 program and became the car to beat in the IMSA GT and European ISRS series. Just 40 examples were completed by Ferrari, Dallara, and Michelotto, so auction appearances are rare. The last one to actually sell at auction was a $2.1M car way back in 2015.

Lot 25: 1934 Duesenberg Model J Disappearing Top Convertible Coupe by Murphy

Sold for $3,745,000

Chassis no. 2490; Engine no. J461. Black over black leather with beige cloth top. Older restoration, #2+ condition.

Equipment: 420cid/265hp inline-eight, 3-speed, wire wheels, blackwall tires, dual chrome horns, cowl lights, suicide doors, two rear-mounted spares.

Condition: Represented as one of three disappearing-top cars (the top stows away beneath a flush metal canopy) fitted with dual spares. Bought new by the grandson of John Roebling (of Brooklyn Bridge fame). It originally had phaeton bodywork but, after and accident, was reskinned in its current configuration. It was restored in the 1980s but still looks spectacular even if it’s lost some of the freshness.

Bottom line: There were four Duesenbergs on offer in Monterey this year, but this one was the most desirable, as reflected in this deservedly strong price. It last sold at auction in 2010 for $1,815,000.

Lot 143: 2013 Lamborghini 5-95 Zagato

Sold for $720,000

Chassis no. ZHWGU5AU6DLA13335. Yellow over light gray leather with yellow stitching. Original, #2 condition.

Equipment: 5204cc/570hp V-10, E-gear 6-speed sequential, Pirelli P Zero tires, roof scoop, tinted glass.

Condition: Based on an LP570-4 Superleggera, to celebrate Zagato’s 95th anniversary. Just 1115 miles from new. Zagato trademarks include the double bubble in the roof and an overall look best described as “not exactly pretty, but definitely distinctive.” The front in particular is a little odd. The way the headlights are situated make them look cross-eyed from some angles, and the front grille looks sort of like a sad, drunken cow or maybe a donkey with its tongue half hanging out. One of nine built, and reportedly cost about $1M when it was new. Also reportedly the first one ever offered for public auction.

Bottom line: Gooding’s presale estimate suggested that this rare, coachbuilt modern supercar could be had for basically half price from what it cost new, but a few people were taken with this thing, bidding was spirited, and it’s hard to argue with the price paid.

Lot 18: 1971 Fiat Dino 2400 Spider

Sold for $252,000

Chassis no. 135BS0001569. Red over black. Recent restoration, #2 condition.

Equipment: 2418cc/180hp V-6, dogleg 5-speed, Cromodora wheels with Fiat hub caps, wood-rim steering wheel, wooden dash.

Condition: One of 424 built. Restored by specialists in Italy. Beautiful paint and chrome. Perfect wheels. Excellent interior. Looks like nobody has ever been in it. This Fiat with eccentric Pininfarina style and Ferrari power was fresh and well done, but not overdone.

Bottom line: Before Fiat bought 50 percent of Ferrari in 1969, the two companies worked together on the Dino. Ferrari wanted to homologate its Dino V-6 for Formula 2 racing but didn’t have the production capacity. Fiat did, and benefited from the prestige of a Ferrari-powered halo model in its lineup. Like their more exotic mid-engine cousins, Fiat Dinos have become valuable in their own right. Whereas not even the nicest one in the world would have cracked 100 grand 10 or 15 years ago, they bring a lot more than that today, although this result is surprisingly high, and the second-most expensive Fiat Dino sold at auction.

Lot 19: 1968 Lamborghini Miura P400

Sold for $2,315,000

Chassis no. 3459; Engine no. 1863. Azzurro Cielo over black. Older restoration, #1- condition.

Equipment: 3929cc/350hp V-12, 5-speed, Campagnolo wheels, Pirelli Cinturato tires, leather-wrapped steering wheel. Includes books, tools, and documentation.

Condition: Represented as matching-numbers engine and original body. Originally finished in white. Restored in the late 2010s. Gorgeous fresh paint, wheels, and tires. Even panel gaps. Beautiful interior. Some scratches in the side windows are the only things that take away from a remarkable, fresh, high-quality restoration on an early Miura.

Bottom line: In the Miura hierarchy, the first-series P400 cars are the least desirable, being slower and more compromised than the later ones. All Miuras, however, benefitted in a big way from the pandemic boom, and since 2020 all versions of Lamborghini’s seminal supercar have more than doubled in value. This car brought near the very top of the current price range for a P400 and, given the quality of its restoration, it deserved to.

Lot 154: 1970 Lamborghini Miura P400 S

Sold for $2,040,000

Chassis no. 4614; Engine no. 30531. Luci del Bosco over Gobi vinyl and cloth. Unrestored original, #4 condition.

Equipment: 3929cc/370hp V-12, 5-speed, vented disc brakes, gold Campagnolo wheels, power windows, leather-wrapped steering wheel.

Condition: Delivered new in Turin, then made its way to an owner in New York, who eventually stuck it in his living room, where it sat for decades. Only recently removed from there (which apparently required some demo-ing on the house) and reportedly unknown in Miura circles until it resurfaced. Paint is flaking off the wheels and chipping off the body. There are several large scratches as well as a big dent on either side of the nose. Upholstery is all aged but there, although there is a rip in the console and a big chunk taken out of the passenger’s seat. All original and rough underneath, but correct. There can’t be many Miura discoveries like this left, given how valuable these cars have gotten.

Bottom line: Among the many testaments to the sheer beauty of these cars is that they look just as good in brown and gold as they do in bright green or orange. There’s no telling why this Luci del Bosco (“lights of the forest”) over Gobi (beige) car wound up becoming a glorified coffee table, but my guess is that the owner was either single or his wife was easygoing. It’s also not clear what the new owner’s plans are for it, because the temptation to fully restore it or just sort it out mechanically while leaving the top side original are both there. Either way, it brought a solid but not excessive premium for its as-discovered condition.

Lot 142: 2010 Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale by Zagato

Sold for $632,000

Chassis no. 1B3AZ6JZ4AV100005. Dark blue metallic over brown leather. Original, #2 condition.

Equipment: 8.4L/640hp V-10, 6-speed manual, Michelin Pilot Sport tires.

Condition: One-owner car and the fifth of just nine built to celebrate Alfa’s 100th birthday. An odd choice of platform for celebration, though, because underneath the 1960s-esque TZ skin is not an Alfa Romeo from Milan but a Dodge Viper ACR from Detroit. Represented with 1832 miles, it looks new—and great. It’s a Viper in an Italian suit.

Bottom line: Technically, a Viper has never sold for more than this at auction, though $632K compared to the $1M or so that it reportedly cost new reflects plenty of depreciation.

Lot 29: 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Spider by Touring

Sold for $14,030,000

Chassis no. 412027; Engine no. 422031. Black over beige leather. Older restoration, #3+ condition.

Equipment: 2905cc/180hp twin-supercharged inline-eight with twin gear-driven overhead camshafts and hemispherical combustion chambers, 4-speed transaxle, independent suspension, finned drum brakes, black wire wheels, fender skirts.

Condition: Represented as one of just five 8C 2900B Lungo (“long”) Spiders by Carrozzeria Touring known to exist. In Egypt by the early 1940s, then passed through a couple of Swiss owners before making its way to the U.S. in 1955. Dr. Fred Simeone bought it in the 1980s and had it restored, but it was restored again in England in the 1990s and sold to the Oscar Davis collection. In 2022, while in transit to a restoration facility in Maine, someone stole the truck/trailer transporting it and probably had the shock of their life when they discovered they’d also swiped an eight-figure Alfa. Recovered late last year. Its restoration shows its age a bit but this is still a solid, gorgeous car.

Bottom line: One of the most anticipated cars of the week, the Lungo Spider had an estimate of $16M–$20M, and was probably insured for much more than the price paid here. It still brought a lot of money, just significantly less than anticipated, which was a common theme during Monterey Car Week.