Rare Alfa to break record

A 1939 Alfa Romeo is tipped to break the record for the most money ever paid for a pre-war vehicle when it goes under the hammer in August. The 1939 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Touring Spider is expected to sell for more than NZ$21.4 million, beating the previous record set in 2012 when a 1936 Mercedes 540K sold for $14.1 million. The car is believed to be one of only seven ever made, and has a 2,905cc, twin-supercharged eight-cylinder engine producing 134kW, with a top speed of 177km/h. Ian Kelleher, managing director of auctioneer RM Sotheby’s US West Coast division, says: "This was a car that was designed to be a race car, but then clothed in very lightweight coachwork so that you basically could do anything you want with it. "You can race it, you can take it out at night, it's the best of both worlds in that respect, and the embodiment, in a lot of ways, of what pre-war Italian manufacturing in the classic car world, was about." The Lungo Touring Spider will be auctioned in Monterey, California.