1909 Washington Model A1 Touring

This particular example is a 1909 Model A1 that was purchased in September of 1936 by Francis George duPont, whose father, Eleuthere Paul duPont, had been the driving force behind the duPont luxury car. In the late-1950s, George duPont rebuilt the car mechanically and completed a cosmetic restoration. Mr. duPont sold the car in February of 1980 to Connecticut collector Robert Sahl. In the 1990s, he treated the car to a thorough body-off restoration. It was painted red with black moldings. The upholstery is black leather, and there is a tan canvas top.

Since restoration, it has won Junior and Senior First Place awards from the Antique Automobile Club of America, as well as AACA's W. Emmert Swigart Memorial Cup in 1995. In 1997, it was named Best Brass Auto at Connecticut's Greenwich Concours d'Elegance. The car joined the O'Quinn Collection in 2004. It has since twice been invited to the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance but has never been shown on the West Coast.

The car has a four-cylinder engine, three-speed sliding gear transmission, and two-wheel mechanical drum brakes.

In 2012, the car was offered for sale at the St. Johns sale presented by RM Auctions. It was estimated to sell for $80,000 - $100,000. As bidding came to a close, the car had been sold for the sum of $71,500 inclusive of the buyer's premium.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2012