Daimler used by Churchill to star at RM Auctions Battersea sale
Between 1940 and 1950, the Daimler Motor Company loaned a 1939 Daimler DB18 drophead coupé bodied by the Carlton Carriage Company for special occasions. Its most notable loan was to Winston Churchill in 1944 and 1949 and it heads to auction on Monday 8th September at the RM Auctions Battersea sale.
The 70bhp, 2,522cc car has a wheelbase of 2,900mm and is the only known pre-war DB18 drophead coupé in existence. Twenty-three were meant to be built but only eight were actually built before the factory where they were to be made was destroyed by a bomb during the Blitz of 1940. It was used by Churchill to assist with his political campaigns and on both occasions he sat on the rear deck to address the crowds in various British cities.
A £111,000 renovation has been carried out by E. Thiesen of Berlin to bring this car back to its original glory and it is now described as “presenting extremely well” and as a “true piece of history”. A guide price of £225,000 to £325,000 has been set.
All photos by Pieter E. Kamp ©2014.
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