Challenger Motors Traction 11BL at Pebble Beach Auction
A rare yet familiar Traction Avant will be on the block at the Gooding & Company auction held at Pebble Beach on August 13 and 14, 2021. We have reported on this 1937 Challenger Motors 11BL before as it was purchased in 2015 by the Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, California for their exhibit in 2017 called “Citroën: The Man, The Marque, The Mystique” (https://citroenvie.com/mullin-museum-elevates-classic-citroens-to-a-new-awareness-level/ and https://citroenvie.com/citroen-eye-candy-from-the-mullin-museum/).
Prior to its purchase by the Mullin Automotive Museum, it was owned by a lady named Amy Shugar – a rock & roll musician who lives in Arizona.
She saw it for sale on the side of the road in the southern California desert, fell in love with it, but in a few years realized that costs to keep it were beyond her means when she was going through a breakup with her boyfriend. At the time she wrote:
Yes, it is very very hard and sad for me to sell my baby… I
remember jumping out of a yet still moving car when I saw this car for
sale and running up to everyone exclaiming “mine mine mine!!” I
really fell hook line a sinker for this beauty.
The history behind Challenger Motors is interesting unto itself. Located in Los Angeles, CA, they brought the Traction Avant into the USA as early as 1938 and continued operations servicing all models of Citroëns until 1997. Read full details here:
This “Challenger” Traction (chassis # 369084) has headlamps with top mounted running lights that we have never seen on any other Traction.
It is expected to sell at the Gooding & Company auction for between $35,000 – $45,000 US (without reserve). The listing by Gooding & Company can be found here: https://www.goodingco.com/lot/1937-citroen-traction-avant-11-bl/
Update — Aug 1, 2021: The “Challenger” Traction sold at Pebble Beach for $20,160 USD.
Update — April 14, 2023: The Challenger Traction appeared on ebay, offered by a dealer called Auto Sport in West Palm Beach, Florida. It sold today for $8,750 US and the buyer was Citroënvie member Larry Lewis from Toronto, Canada.
Those headlights with the small light on top are a generic American aftermarket headlight called a “Guide” headlight- I saw a Mercedes 170 with those in Virginia many years ago. I would assume that they replaced whatever the car came with when it was imported to the US but I could be wrong about that as sealed beams weren’t mandatory until about 1940.
Hello
I would love to possibly have my car back again someday Larry!! Maybe come at least visit “Thor” !
Cheers!
Amy
928-200-4317