Now that 2024 is just about squarely in the rear view mirror, we can reflect on what an extraordinary first 12 months of operations it has been at OTS. Since the business is new, most everything we did represented some kind of first, but noteworthy highlights included our first Car Week, the Goodwood Revival, plenty of travel to visit clients, the launch of our video channel and Derek's series, and of course, car deals.
Picking favorites is always hard, but these were some of our most interesting sales of the year. These are not necessarily the most valuable cars we sold, but some of the coolest ones with the best stories.
Coming out of approximately 50 years of single family ownership, this 330 GTC belonged to a Ferrari mechanic who crewed for Luigi Chinetti’s North American Racing Team (NART), including at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1964. Having seen very little use in the last 40 years, the car is now being recommissioned so it can be enjoyed on California’s coast.
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Rare and obscure, especially compared to its well-known Pantera replacement, the Mangusta was designed by Giorgietto Giugiaro while at Ghia. Just 401 were built, and this example is surely one of the finest in existence, having been comprehensively restored by a marque specialist. We were unsure whether it lacked the mainstream appeal to do well on BringaTrailer but it generated a thrilling 45 minute bidding war that saw the bid go from $182,000 to the final sale price of $389,000.
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One of the most collectible Porsches of the modern era, the 911R was launched at the Geneva Motor Show in white with red stripes. We had the opportunity to privately broker this example from its original owner, a collector of exceptional Porsches, to a buyer who was specifically seeking a single mass flywheel example in the original launch colorway.
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Created to celebrate 30 years of the Lamborghini marque, the Diablo SE30 had a host of surprisingly substantive changes, both cosmetic and mechanical. These made it a purer driver’s car and the model has become thoroughly collectible. Finished in the iconic Viola 30 (a color created for the SE30) with blue alcantara interior, this stunning example has covered fewer than 9,000km from new.
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The exceptional specification, obsessive maintenance, and condition of this final year Autobiography L322 meant that it fetched a record-setting price for an L322 generation Range Rover when we auctioned it on BringaTrailer. The striking Wimbeldon green paintwork was surely a big part of the appeal, and is a particularly rare color since it was originally a $14,500 option.
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The color Laguna Seca Blue enjoys a cult following among E46 M3 enthusiasts. Usually, it is paired with a gray interior, but black was also available and is regarded to be more desirable. 19 Coupes did come to the US with a cinnamon interior, of which this car was one, and it was the only manual transmission example made without a sunroof. This made it a holy grail specification and its sale price reflected this, setting the all-time record for an E46 M3 on BringaTrailer. We found this car with its original owner having covered just 29,000 miles from new.
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Although this car was already nicely restored when its owner acquired it, he is a particularly obsessive type and spent over $200,000 bringing it to the next level in nearly every respect. Each round of sorting would come with a punchlist with items such as “windscreen wipers vibrate above 120mph,” and the result of all this work was one of the most well-resolved Daytonas we’ve ever encountered.
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A client made a request for an exceptionally rare car (just 55 examples of the 964 3.8 RS were made) with a few other conditions that made the search even more specific, but we were able to dig up this exceptionally preserved example and import it for its appreciative new owner.
A rare car with only 268 examples brought to the US, the supercharged Elise made the car supercar quick while retaining the exceptional agility and clarity of purpose that defines the model. This particular example is perhaps one of the most seen in the world, and we were delighted to handle its sale on behalf of its long-term owner, automotive journalist Jason Cammisa.
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This early Boxer was originally purchased by a 67 year old woman who had it registered to a man with a different last name who was more than 30 years younger. Aside from a single respray in its evocative original color, it is fabulously original, and runs and drives beautifully. We sold it to a collector in Europe.
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Sourced in Switzerland for a client with an exceptional collection, this outstanding 26,000 km Evo II was the perfect first Mercedes to join the motorsport-inspired cars with which it will be sharing garage space. The roadgoing Evo II homologated the most advanced developments of the Cosworth-engined 190E and eventually allowed the car to win the elusive DTM championship.
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Retained by a 45+ year keeper, this Lusso received an award-winning restoration in stunning blu sera with red interior. The seller bought the car out of the San Francisco Chronicle in 1977 from a peculiar couple they met in the parking lot of the once legendary but now defunct Hippopotamus Hamburgers. The sellers took the $17,000 in cash and put it in their motorcycle boots before riding off.
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This outstanding early Esprit had one owner from new until 2017 when a collector acquired it with 15,000 miles from new in non-running condition. He performed a complete mechanical restoration at a cost of over $105,000. Still cosmetically original and superb, the car is doubtless among the finest Series I Esprits in the world and very much deserved its price, which not only set a BringaTrailer record, but also a global record. It was also the subject of our first feature episode on YouTube.
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The GT was a limited run of just 80 road cars that applied Lamborghini’s lessons from racing the Diablo in GT2. It was the only rear wheel drive 6.0 liter Diablo made and incorporated a whole host of other upgrades ranging from racing seats to individual throttle bodies to a widened track. The car was comprehensively upgraded, and was never sold in the United States, making it the ultimate Diablo. This example has covered a remarkable 63,000 kilometers and received an engine rebuild by Lamborghini before we imported it.
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Thanks for following along this far and we are excited for what 2025 has in store! Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Youtube if you don’t already.