This Week’s Weird and Wonderful—May 22, 2026: A Practical Look
Welcome to the Weekly Weird and Wonderful, our all-too-abbreviated collection of the most interesting, significant, and unusual vehicles to appear on BaT in the last seven days. Think of this as a core sample full of worthwhile information that should ultimately guide you to excavate the full depth of our live auctions page, armed with a brush and a magnifying glass.
Enjoy this week’s selection of Weird and Wonderful BaT auctions, and let us know what else you think should be on our list!
44-Years-Owned 1966 Ferrari 275 GTS and 1972 Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Spyder Conversion
In 1974, this 1-of-200 Ferrari 275 GTS was a used car—the kind of used car that an Air Force major could theoretically afford to purchase while on deployment. By 1982, it had made its way to the US and into the hands of its current owner, with whom it scooped up a number of awards from Ferrari Club meets as well as the Concorso Italiano and Cavallino Classic. Even more awards were received after a 2016 refurbishment, and now it’s here for us to marvel at in all its Rosso Cordoba glory.
The 365 GTC/4 is naturally a 2+2 coupe, but this one received a roof-ectomy in 2024 with Newport Specialty Cars of Huntington Beach, California, at a cost of $109k. That’s one expensive haircut, but the job came with a hardtop that almost restores the original lines of the car.
Here’s the first 959 Sport on BaT! The S variants have always been as scarce as hen’s teeth—only 29 of these track-tuned weapons were built from 1986 to 1988. In comparison with the Komfort version (which itself was no slouch), the Sport shed some 220 pounds by leaving its rear seats, adaptive suspension, air conditioning, and radio at the factory, while horsepower output climbed to 508 Pferdestärke. This one returned to Stuttgart in the early aughts for a “Stage II” engine upgrade, pushing output to 540 horsepower. We don’t know how many more stages there are, but that oughta do it. This 959 Sport is the headliner for the latest Gruppe P collection, put on by the The Bond Group and Road Scholars.
1971 Rolls-Royce Phantom VI All-Weather Cabriolet by Frua
Pietro Frua must have been huffing some funky mustard when he penned this gigantic brutalist Phantom VI. The car is one of two for which he designed custom bodies, and apparently his was the only independent carrozzeria do so for the Phantom VI—the rest were made by RR’s in-house coachbuilder, Mulliner Park Ward. It also has the honor of being the last Rolls-Royce Phantom delivered, as it wasn’t completed until 1993. The car changed hands during the initial build process and Frua was unable to complete it, on account of being dead. David A.C. Royle and Co Ltd. of Durham, England, took up the job, and while they took their sweet time getting it done, the end result is superlative even by Rolls-Royce standards.
The top is a two-piece affair, with a retractable cloth roof over the passenger compartment and an upholstered panel over the driver. Both the driver’s panel and the privacy divider stow in the trunk while the B-pillars retreat into the center bulkhead, creating a fully-open party-mobile with a wet bar, a TV, cigar lighters, a silk-lined lady’s vanity, and a drawer containing a custom Cross stationery kit. Dearest Mum, thanks for having me. We sure are enjoying all this money.
Bertone was struggling in 1952, when the carrozzeria snagged two MG TDs and built a pair of prototypes (seen above) for that year’s Turin Salon. The idea was to at least sell both cars, but ideally secure a production contract for a couple hundred more. Enter Chicago-area industrialist Stanley “Wacky” Arnolt, who not only bought both cars on the spot, but ordered another 200 to sell back in the States. (His nickname didn’t come from this stunt—Arnolt once traveled from St. Joseph, Michigan, to the Chicago Navy Pier in a 13-foot boat powered by one of his Sea-Mite engines, and was given the moniker by the local newspapers.) The resulting Arnolt-MG was built both as a convertible and a coupe; this example was one of 36 produced with Bertone convertible bodywork.
2005 Ford Explorer Sport Trac Adrenalin SVT Concept
We could’ve had it all—an AWD, supercharged V8-powered performance pickup—but instead we were left rolling in the deep with an appearance package, a mere shadow of what the Sport Trac Adrenalin could have been. In 2005, Ford’s SVT division unveiled the Sport Trac Adrenalin concept at the New York Auto Show as a teaser of what was to come in 2007: a slammed, all-wheel-drive street truck powered by the supercharged 4.6L DOHC V8 from the Terminator Cobra. The project never fully made it to fruition, and the Adrenalin package arrived as a set of appearance doodads on the second-generation Sport Trac but without the DOHC V8 theatrics. This vehicle was the one shown by Ford at the 2005 NYIAS, and it’s powered by the production motor—a naturally aspirated version of FoMoCo’s 4.6L SOHC V8. It remained in Ford’s ownership until 2010, and it’s offered by Local Partner @VintiqueMotors.
1991 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL 6.0 AMG
A little history on AMG and its Japanese arm: the dealer network known as YANASE dates back to the early 1900s and became Mercedes-Benz’s exclusive Japanese distributor in 1954. According to the lore, YANASE and the famed West German tuner AMG joined forces in the late 1980s in what became known as AMG-Japan. This pre-merger 560SEL AMG was reportedly assembled by AMG-Japan and features the AMG flair of the time, including a modified 6.0L V8. The big Merc was repainted in Astral Silver Metallic under previous ownership.
1967 Mercedes-Benz 200 Universal 4-Speed
We love it when coachbuilders employ their skills to practical ends. This Fintail wagon is one of a reported 2,754 produced by Belgian outfit IMA (Inter-Europe Mechanics Association). Binz and Meissen also built their own variants, but the IMA version looks particularly cohesive. Saloon bodies were delivered to the workshop in Belgium sans roof and interior, and IMA converted them using a combination of MB parts and pieces of their own design. Fittingly, the Air Tractor in the pic above is the most utilitarian aviation photobomb we’ve seen to date.
2018 Chevrolet Callaway Corvette C7 GT3-R
During the late 1980s, the late Reeves Callaway met Giovanni Ciccone and Ernst Wöhr in Germany, and after what we assume were various rounds of firm handshakes, the trio formed a partnership to distribute Callaway Corvettes in the European market. The group also got into racing and, by 1994, had partnered with Callaway to build a competition Vettes; the C7 GT3-R was perhaps the ultimate evolution. Just eight cars were produced, and this one was campaigned in time-attack events under Swedish ownership before being purchased by the current seller, who’s since raced it in Norwegian GT Championship events.
250+ MPH, Record-Setting 1993 Audi S4 6-Speed
Jeff Gerner passed just a few weeks ago at age 72, but he had a hell of a second act. After a career spent as an automotive fleet maintenance manager (with a lifetime of engine building on the side), he opened his own performance shop and fulfilled a promise he made to himself in his youth: to set a land speed record. This car was previously his daily driver, which he of course modified; finding it to be a stable ride at 160 mph in street tune, he decided to go for broke and built it up into an 1,100-horsepower AWD land missile.
Here’s his record-breaking run, during which the car topped out at 261 mph and became the fastest sedan on earth. Amazingly, the only squirrely moments occurred early in the run under acceleration. At .34 Mach, the Quattro kept the car rock steady.
1937 Pierce-Arrow Travelodge Model C Travel Trailer
The Travelodge came about during the sad final chapter of the Pierce-Arrow company, but even under serious financial strain they kept their production standards high: independent suspension, Bendix drum brakes, riveted aluminum bodywork over a steel lattice frame, and attention paid to every detail. Around 450 of these trailers were made, and very few survive today—even fewer with their period fixtures and equipment.
Fortunately, this trailer found its way the seller, who refurbished it with a strict adherence to appropriate materials; he refinished the plywood, sourced period hardware, and worked to an impressive level of detail—the cushions even have reproduction Pierce-Arrow mattress tags. We’ve sold some fancy trailers in the past, but if we were ever to live a life on the road, this shiny bread loaf might be all we’d ever need.
Honorable Mentions:
Volkswagen-Powered Veepster and Volkswagen-Powered Fiber Jet Industries Cobra Dune Buggy
You’ve seen the Meyers Manx. You’ve seen the Bradley GT. You’ve even seen the Death Race 2000 Monster. But just when you thought you’d seen every kind of Beetle kit imaginable, BaT sellers swoop in with the Veepster and the Fiber Jet Cobra. Who knows what other treasures await?
1963 Willys-Overland Aero-Willys 2600 Project
The Willys postwar compact sold a respectable 90,000 copies in the domestic market, but they don’t show up on BaT very often. Even rarer is the Brazilian version that was sold in the 1960s, which featured face-lifted styling by Brooks Stevens. Stevens was a designer, not a self-promoter, so it’s a treat to see his signature on the glovebox.
1968 Chevrolet C20 CST Custom Camper w/1966 Del Rey Sky Lounge Camper
This extraordinary 1960s camper combo is back on BaT for a second round. At the core is a 1968 Chevrolet C20 3/4-ton pickup fitted with a tri-level Del Rey camper—we must say, the pairing looks right. Pack an Igloo full of High Life and prepare to become the hero of the infield.
2003 Aston Martin DB7 Zagato 6-Speed
The Aston Martin and Zagato relationship traces back to the legendary DB4 Zagato, and the partnership was revived in the early 2000s with the DB7 Zagato. Compared to the standard DB7, the Zagato was shortened and went on an aluminum diet to shed 130 pounds. This one is #78 of 99 cars built for the single model year, and it current resides Stateside under a Show or Display exemption!
Thanks for checking out this edition of the Weekly Weird & Wonderful! Follow this page to get updates when new installments post, and tell what caught your eye or what you think we’ve left out!
