An exotic and vintage Stutz Blackhawk coupe will go under the hammer in the USA in a few months. There are no price estimates yet, but the sheer rarity of the car, its superb condition and background – Elvis Presley himself bought it 51 years ago – should make it worth a fortune.
Stutz was a car company established in 1920s and revived by U.S. entrepreneur James O’Donnell in late 1960s. The Blackhawk model was based on production parts of General Motors vehicles of that era, but the body was all custom. Designed by Virgil Exner, it was pieced together by a coachbuilder named Padane in the city of Modena, Italy.
The exclusive status of the car and production difficulties led to its price being exorbitantly high. Starting in the range of 25,000 USD, the Stutz Blackhawk might just have been the most expensive car on the planet back in its era. The King of Rock & Roll was the first private buyer who took and drove the second pre-production prototype (the first prototype went to the founder of the company).
The media of the period reported that the company considered handing the car over to Frank Sinatra, but ultimately chose Presley because he was willing to pose with it for advertisement. Unfortunately, the car was soon destroyed in an accident when driven by Elvis’ chauffeur in the summer of 1970. It was subsequently restored and is currently kept in a museum.
The listing fails to mention it, but the photos suggest that the Stutz Blackhawk on sale is actually the second one bought by Elvis after losing his first one. It was further customized by the famous U.S. tuner George Barris and is still in great condition despite the age.
Stutz produced an estimated total of 500–600 such cars in 16 years. Rumor has it only a dozen and a half or so vehicles from the first manufacturing batch still survive to this day, the rest destroyed or otherwise lost.
