Estimate:
€1.300.000 - €1.500.000

• Rare and elegant one-off cabriolet coachwork by Etienne Brandone
• Superb sweeping lines with tasteful chrome accents
• Quality restoration to original configuration that presents beautifully
• Classic example of an extravagant convertible, perfect for touring the Côte d’Azur

In 1934, Hispano-Suiza introduced the lovely K6 which shared many components with its otherworldly sibling, the incredible 9.5-litre, twelve-cylinder Hispano-Suiza J12. K6 production is believed to have been a mere 204 chassis, all fitted with individually coach-built bodies, painstakingly constructed by the very finest carrosseries in France and abroad.

Chassis no. 16035 was delivered by Hispano-Suiza on 4 May 1935 and sent to the premier coachbuilder on the Côte d’Azur, the Carrosserie Etienne Brandone in Cannes. The designs of Etienne Brandone were always tasteful, well-proportioned and with a certain elegant sophistication that is perfectly epitomized in this lavish K6 cabriolet. Indeed, chassis no. 16035 has previously been falsely attributed to Saoutchik, Figoni, Letourneur et Marchand and even Kellner, unquestionably some of the greatest coachbuilders of all time.

Originally delivered to a Mr Copley-May living in the Villa Rangimore on Avenue de la Corniche in Nice, chassis no. 16035was given Alpes-Maritimes registration 6542 BA4 on 29 June 1935 and was shown at the Cannes concours on 27 March 1936, in light blue with darker blue accents. As reported in the May 1936 issue of the famous trade publication La Carrosserie: ‘. . . the two highlight prizes, the Grand Prix d’Honneur and the cup for the most beautiful French car were given to a splendid 1935 Mercedes-Benz coach by Saoutchik and a very beautiful roadster by Brandone on a 32 CV Hispano-Suiza, in front of all the other cars’ – a perfect summation of the appreciation received in period. The following year, it was shown in Cannes once more, now repainted in an elegant dark shade of either blue or black.

Still in the Alpes Maritimes, the car was re-registered 487 BB 06 on 22 May 1952 to a company in Lyon with the initials M.A.S.E. It then passed to a Mme Pierre in Villeurbanne in October 1955. By 1964, chassis no. 16035 was owned by Jim de Bickero in Chicago, Illinois, who carried out a first restoration that included a redesign of the rear deck, top and windscreen and converting the car from two to four seats. It was subsequently acquired in this configuration by the Blackhawk Collection and then the famous collector Peter Mullin. After a second restoration, it was shown at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 1986, 1991 and 1999, winning several awards.

Chassis no. 16035 then passed to noted collectors Sam and Emily Mann, and noted French historian André Vaucourt was commissioned to perform in-depth research into its provenance. Based on his findings, Mann commissioned Stone Barn Restorations in Vienna, New Jersey, to return the K6 to its precise configuration as delivered to the Copley-Mays in 1935. The car was shown at Pebble Beach once again, this time chosen as a Best of Show nominee. In 2013, it participated in the Hispano-Suiza Rally in Arizona and received a full engine rebuild by RM Auto Restoration in 2015.

This presents a rare opportunity to acquire the best of several worlds: a rare and elegant cabriolet with sumptuous French style by a supremely talented coachbuilder, supported by one of the finest luxury chassis of the interwar years. From its immediately recognizable radiator topped by perhaps the most beautiful hood ornament of all time, to the beautiful flow of the sculped fenders and rear deck, chassis no. 16035 exudes French joie de vivre from every panel and curve of its exquisite body and would be welcomed at high-level events worldwide.To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/pa19.