1938 Maybach SW38 Roadster

Wilhelm Maybach was a pioneer in the automotive industry, and he helped Gottlieb Daimler develop his first car. After inventing the honeycomb radiator, he turned his attention to another new industry - airplanes. He built powerplants for the German Zeppelins before turning using his skills and abilities to the production of automobiles.

His automobiles were technically advanced, built to high standards, and equally expensive. Their SW38 models featured a six-cylinder engine and had a top speed of around 100 mph. The bodies were elegant and sporty, their chassis were refined, and the interior featured some of the finest luxury amenities available.

The 3790 cubic centimeter inline six-cylinder motor offered 140 horsepower and was mated to a DSG manual transmission with four speeds controlled from a pre-selector in the center of the steering wheel, with a floor-mounted shifter for selection of low, high, and reverse gears. This setup allowed for a total of eight forward speeds and four in reverse.

This particular Maybach SW38 with chassis number 2055 wears coachwork by Spohn Karrosserie, who bodied most SW38 models. The roadster was built on the shorter of the two available SW38 chassis and featured long front fenders with integrated running boards. This example has 'comet tail' chrome spears on the body sides, and a rear-mounted spare.

The first owner of chassis number 2055 was Erich Tghart of Germany. It was ordered as a short-chassis four-door, 4/5 passenger convertible. It is believed that Tghart changed his order after it was initially recorded, or a new body was fitted a short time after the car's delivery.

The car's next known owner was the Director of the Sohler Maschinenfabrik in Wangen, Germany. At the time, the recorded motor number was 11164, which is a replacement of the original unit, and must have been installed prior to 1951. By 1961, the car was in the care of Colin 'Dick' Spaight of Platteville, Wisconsin. The car may have been acquired by Mr. Spaight from a United States Army officer stationed in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, who is thought to have imported it to the U.S. Mr. Spaight sold the car in 1963 to M.L. 'Bud' Cohn. Within a year, the car was sold to Lenora Pope Lytel of Chula Vista, California. She drove it around 15,000 miles and displayed it at the 1965 CCCA Far West Grand Classic and at the Santa Barbara Grand Classic in 1966, as well as in the AACA San Diego Region's annual Antique Ramble in the latter year.

Mrs. Lytel sold the car when she was 72 to 25-year-old Don Williams in 1970. Mr. Williams retained the car for several years before selling it to Phil Malouf of Albuquerque, New Mexico, who re-sold it back to Williams a few years later. It was then given a restoration and finished in its current black with an oxblood red interior. After the work was completed, it joined the collection of Richard and Linda Kugh. The Kughns traded it to the Imperial Palace of Las Vegas, Nevada, in 1988. It was put on display for over a decade, before the current owner acquired it in 1999.

Maybach built just 520 examples of the SW38 chassis between 1936 and 1939, and approximately 152 remain in modern times. Most of the examples wore Pullman limousine or four-door convertible body styles. A small number were authentic cabriolets and roadster, making them very rare and adding to their desirability.

This example has a SOHC inline six-cylinder engine with two Solex MMO VS 35 carburetors, a four-speed DSG manual transmission, and four-wheel drum brakes.

This SW38 Roadster by Spohn was offered for sale at the 2016 Monterey auction presented by RM Sothebys. The car had an estimated value of $1,250,000- $1,600,000, and was sold for the sum of $1,072,500, which included the buyer's premium.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2016