Collector Alert: Rare Invicta Type S Going on Auction Block

MELBOURNE, Australia — Invicta was a short-lived British brand in the 1920s famed for created exciting two-seaters that competed with the powerful Bentleys.

Now one of the few survivors is set to be sold off by an Australian auctions company. Australia is a gold mine for rare classic cars — the first surviving Alfa and several rare French 1930s coach-built cars currently reside in the land of kangaroos.

The late Robert Shannon, founder of his own auction company in Australia, bought this Invicta in 1988 and made it a flagship of his company. It was used extensively in local and international classic-car events. Following his death in 2000, his family retained the car but used it only rarely.

The Invicta Low Chassis Type S was introduced at the 1930 London Motor Show. Its sleek appearance was due to its underslung chassis, which means that the axles were running over the chassis, rather than the more frequently used solution in which the axles ran under the chassis. It was one of the first cars of its era to exceed 100 mph. Only 77 Type S models were made before the company folded in 1933. It is thought that only a handful remain, two of which are now in Australia.

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