ESTIMATE: $850,000 - $1,000,000
Fred and August Duesenberg were already renowned race car and engine builders when they founded the Duesenberg Motor Company in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1913. After relocating to a larger facility in New Jersey in 1917, the Duesenbergs built a special 16-cylinder engine to propel a Land Speed Record car to an amazing 158 MPH at Daytona Beach.
The following year they designed and built a Bugatti-inspired 180 CI inline-8 engine using a single overhead camshaft and three valves per cylinder, which in 1921 powered the only American car ever to win the French Grand Prix. Duesenberg racers won the Indianapolis 500 three times in a four-year period ending in 1927, by which time the company had been purchased by E.L. Cord. Cord’s plan for his new acquisition was to capitalize on the Duesenberg brand and engineering acumen to produce “The World’s Finest Motor Car.” That grand goal was realized when the new Duesenberg J was unveiled at the 1928 New York Auto Show.
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