1924 Hispano-Suiza H6C
Words: Mike Ryan
Photos: Pebble Beach Concours, Hispano Suiza, RM Auctions
The 74th edition of the Pebble Beach Concours of Elegance in the US saw a unique, aero-engined car awarded the event’s Best of Show. Against a field of more than 220 entries, a 1924 Hispano-Suiza H6C, known as the ‘Tulipwood Torpedo’ for its unique timber body, took the top honour.
Owned by Florida couple, Lee and Penny Anderson, the H6C, with a body by French aircraft company, Nieuport-Astra, triumphed against other Best of Show finalists that included a 1939 Maybach SW38 Spohn Sport Zweisitzer from Wisconsin, a 1956 Maserati 200SI Fantuzzi Open Sports Racer from California, and a 1933 Invicta 4½ Litre S Type Corsica Drophead Coupé that came from Bahrain for the prestigious concours event.
The Invicta was one of 55 international entries from 22 countries at the 74th Pebble Beach Concours, including one – a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM Scaglietti Berlinetta – from Australia.
Mahogany Landship
Despite its ‘Tulipwood Torpedo’ name, the body of the Best of Show winner is actually constructed from hundreds of strips of mahogany, each individually cut and curved to shape. These were fastened to a timber frame with 8,500 rivets, then given multiple coats of varnish. When first built, the body reportedly weighed just 50kg. This was extremely light compared to the common steel and aluminium bodies of the 1920s, with only Weymann fabric-covered bodies being lighter.
Lee Anderson said it was all the wood in the body that first attracted him to the car: “I like wood! I’m a wood boat antique collector. I started collecting them 40 years ago, before it became vogue-ish to do that.
“I’ve always loved varnished wood, and when I saw this [car], I said, ‘My gosh! This is right in my wheelhouse. This is what I really like’.
Dubonnet’s Desire
The first owner of this unique Hispano-Suiza was Andre Dubonnet, the grandson of the eponymous aperitif brand’s founder, Joseph. A fighter pilot in World War I, the young Dubonnet was also a keen participant in motorsport, with a fondness for both Bugatti and Hispano-Suiza automobiles.
Seeking a new car to contest the 1924 Targa Florio and related Coppa Florio, Dubonnet chose an H6C, with his car being one of only three examples with a lower chassis and larger fuel tank to suit endurance racing. Dubonnet’s car was fitted with a lightweight body designed and built by Nieuport-Astra, the French aircraft manufacturer known for their racing aircraft before switching to building fighter planes during the Great War. The slim strips of mahogany were attached to a wooden frame with the aforementioned thousands of aluminium rivets. A tinted varnish over the finished body resulted in the rivets having a brass appearance.
With its special chassis, H6C-specific 7.9-litre six-cylinder engine, and unique body, the Dubonnet Hispano-Suiza finished sixth in the Targa Florio and fifth in the Coppa Florio.
Changing Hands
Converted to road use soon after its Italian adventures, the H6C then passed to the Coty family of perfume fame: most likely Roland Coty, another French ‘Hispanophile’. By 1925, the car was in the UK with its third owner, Alexander Keiller. Further changes were made to the car under Keiller’s ownership, including new body elements (thought to be the work of English coachbuilders, Barker), a new exhaust system and some trim changes.
After surviving minor bomb damage while in storage during World War II, the Hispano-Suiza was sold again in 1950, this time to Rodney Forestier-Walker. He fitted new headlights and changed the windscreens before reluctantly selling the car to Gerald Albertini, a UK-based American oil baron, in 1955.
Changing Styles
Along with a mechanical restoration of the H6C, Albertini commissioned cosmetic changes to the car that included copper plating outside and cream leather trim inside. Additionally, the interior was reconfigured, apparently to suit Albertini’s large build. Specialist UK coachbuilders, Panelcraft (better known as FLM Panelcraft), restored the timber body and properly repaired the WWII bomb damage that had been patched previously. Panelcraft also fabricated unique timber mudguards to match the bodywork.
In its restored form, the ‘Tulipwood Torpedo’ was used by Albertini on tours through France and Italy before it was sold to US-based Bentley collector, E. Ann Klein in 1964. Klein sold the car to enthusiast and historian Richard Riegel Jr. soon after, who parted with it at auction in 1973. Subsequent owners included JCB heir, Anthony Bamford, French-based racer Michel Poberejsky and Greek shipping magnate, Ares Emmanuel.
An unnamed owner purchased the car in 1983, had it restored for a second time, then entered it in the 1986 Pebble Beach Concours. It lost out to a 1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K Special Roadster in Best of Show judging but did win the Alec Ulman Trophy for the event’s best Hispano-Suiza.
The Re-emergence
In the 1990s, the Hispano-Suiza was sold to a private collector and rarely shown until it reappeared at RM Sotheby’s Monterey auction in 2022, when Lee Anderson bought it for US$9.24 million (AU$12.9M approx.).
Anderson commissioned a third and much more comprehensive restoration of the car with RM Auto Restoration in Canada. Many of the H6C’s later alterations and additions, like the C1950s timber mudguards, were removed during this restoration, in order to bring car back to its 1924 ‘road’ specification, as Dubonnet would have used it after the Targa Florio. The restoration reportedly took more than 12,000 hours, with the 2025 Pebble Beach Concours being its post-resto debut.
Second Time Lucky
A gap of almost 40 years between this car’s first and second Pebble Beach appearance is remarkable, while the fact it won the Best of Show trophy is testament to the quality of the restoration.
“This Hispano-Suiza ticks every possible box,” said Pebble Beach Concours Chair, Sandra Button. “The underpinnings are technically advanced. The body is meticulously hand-crafted, light and lovely.
“A later owner added pontoon fenders to the car, but the Andersons sought to return the car to its original form, so you can see and truly appreciate its torpedo shape.”
Asked whether the Best of Show win was expected, Penny Anderson exclaimed: “We had no idea, but we were dreaming about it!
“Winning Pebble Beach is probably the highest award you can get in automobile collecting,” Lee Anderson added. “We are very fortunate to have done it twice.”
The Andersons previously took the top award at the 2022 Pebble Beach Concours with a Figoni ‘Sports Torpedo’ bodied 1932 Duesenberg J roadster. Sold new in Paris, that car came to the US in the 1930s and had a similarly convoluted path to restoration as the H6C.
Hispano-Suiza has captured the top prize at Pebble Beach twice before; the first time in 1972 and the second in 1989. Both of those winners were 1922 H6B tourers with Labourdette bodies that are closely related to the Andersons’ winning H6C.
For full results and further details from the 2025 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, go to: pebblebeachconcours.net
Aussie Winner
Given its position in collector car circles, it’s surprising to know that a Ferrari has won the Best of Show at Pebble Beach only once – in 2014 – when a 1954 375 MM Scaglietti took the top honour. This is perhaps more reflective of the event’s preference for pre-WWII cars than any bias against Ferrari. However, there is a Ferrari-specific award. This was introduced in 1974 as the Hans Tanner Trophy, renamed as the Luigi Chinetti Trophy in 1996, then the Enzo Ferrari Trophy from 2005.
For the 74th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the Enzo Ferrari Trophy was awarded to a car that may be familiar to the JUST CARS audience. Owned by Brisbane couple, Peter & Jan Harburg, the 1964 Ferrari 250 LM with a Berlinetta body by Scaglietti is the same car that won People’s Choice, Class 3 (‘Speedy Gonzales’) and Best in Show at the 2024 Sydney Harbour Concours d'Elegance.
One of only 32 built, the Harburgs’ 250 LM has race history, both when new and at historic events more recently. It spent time with owners in the US, Europe and Japan before coming to Australia in 2023.
The 2026 Sydney Harbour Concours d'Elegance is scheduled for 27 Feb - 1 Mar, on Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour.
