1924 Hispano-Suiza H6

To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION at RM Sothebys The Monterey Auction event, 13 - 15 August 2026.
$500,000 - $800,000 USD

• Built on an original, exceedingly rare Monza short-wheelbase H6C chassis
• Formerly owned by noted Hispanophiles John Sebert and Edwin Ted Jameson
• Raced by Mr. Mann against George Holmans Stutz at the 2011 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Celebration of Automobiles
• A veteran of numerous rallies, with outstanding performance; a thrilling drivers car par excellence

One of the most legendary motoring contests, a duel that in automotive circles ranks with Hamilton and Burr, was the AAA-sanctioned challenge between Hispano-Suiza and Stutz held on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on 18 April 1928. Both cars were outfitted to the latest specification, with the Hispano-Suiza having a two-seater body on the most potent H6C chassis. Driven by coachbuilder Charles Weymann and co-driver Robert Bloch over a 24-hour period, the Hispano-Suiza handily vanquished its American counterpart, winning a $25,000 bet between Weymann and Stutz engineer Fred Moskovics. As noted by Raymond Katzell in The Splendid Stutz, the French automobile won the day (literally), loafing along at an average lap speed of 65 mph and winning the challenge at an average of 70.14 mph.

Hispano-Suiza historian Johnnie Green noted that chassis number 11452, offered here, was one of very few short-chassis H6Cs produced perhaps as few as 13 to the same general specification that was the basis of the 1928 Indianapolis match race model. Historians indicate that it was acquired new by a Mr. Jeantet and originally fitted with a two-passenger open body. The car was later located post-war in Australia, as reported in the January 1953 issue of Motor Sport magazine. It was inspected by the legendary race mechanic and tuner Cattaneo, by this point employing his skilled hands at mechanical restorations, who also identified it as a short-wheelbase H6C, seven inches shorter than a standard production model and some eight inches lower thanks to the use of double shocks at each corner. Working for new owner Peter Dale, Cattaneo mounted the chassis with a 1930s fixed head coupe body, and, more significantly, fitted the engine with triple Zenith carburetors.

The car was acquired from Dale in the late 1960s by Canadian Hispanophile John Sebert, a founder of the Hispano-Suiza Society (HSS), who decided that it would be an excellent basis for a recreation of the famous boattailed two-seater built for racing driver Count Louis Zborowski by Kellner. The car was completed in this much more attractive guise, using the coachbuilding talent of Dick Simondsen, in 1975, and was reportedly an award winner with the HSS in 1979.

Not long after, Mr. Sebert sold the Hispano-Suiza to former aviator Edwin C. Ted Jameson Jr., who during the 1970s began a spree of acquiring usually very original Brass and Classic Era automobiles, and squirrelled them away in buildings on the East Coast, in Canada, and in England. Most of the Jameson cars remained hidden away until after his passing in 2002, when the long-concealed collection was dispersed by a series of auctions. It was at one of those events, in 2003, that Sam Mann acquired the Hispano-Suiza.

Mr. Mann undertook a fresh and comprehensive restoration, largely completed by his own in-house shop. Inspection showed that while the speedster bodywork had held up well over the years, the long storage in Canada had been less than kind to the engine, which had corroded badly. A new H6B-style block, then the only type available, was acquired from the noted French Hispano-Suiza technician Eric Limpaler and built to 8-liter Type 56 H6C specifications. That said, Mr. Mann notes that Mr. Limpaler is now making correct H6C blocks should a new owner wish to fully return the car to original configuration.

The Manns have employed the car for numerous historic rallies, savoring its excellent performance on the road. Most prominently it appeared at the Indianapolis Motor Speedways centennial Celebration of Automobiles in 2011, where it was featured against the late George Holmans Stutz, in a restaging of the April 1928 match-up in other words, as near a correct head-to-head matchup as could be achieved today, even if this time the contest was only for six laps!

It is a wonderful and pleasurable car to drive, and I am only sorry that we did not put more mileage on it than we did! We ran it on a Hispano rally out of Sedona, covering about 1,000 miles. On one section we climbed from virtually a couple thousand feet up to 8,000 feet or more through the twisties, and this car did it in high gear, accelerating all the while. I was blown away by the torque and the horsepower of this car, and the ability of Hispano-Suizas legendary brakes to stop the car, from no matter what speed, quickly, smoothly, and quietly. S.M.To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction, please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/auctions/mo26/.