A one-off modified Rolls-Royce Corniche that took on the Paris-Dakar rally is heading to auction next month
Rolls-Royce purists would do well to turn the page now, but for those of us who love the oddball, French auction house Aguttes has a real treat in its December 10 sale: a Paris-Dakar Rolls-Royce Corniche.
The brainchild of Thierry de Montcorgé – described brilliantly as a ‘dandy playboy adventurer’ in the catalogue – and friend Jean-Christophe Pelletier, the idea of a Paris-Dakar Rolls-Royce was apparently created over a liquid lunch in the spring of 1980. Pelletier would donate his Corniche and the madcap plan was made reality by Michel Mockrycki, famous for Citroën prototypes and a specialist in American V8s.
Sponsorship from Christian Dior promoting its new Jules fragrance made the project possible and Mockrycki duly set to work. The finished item contained very little Rolls-Royce, being a combination of Toyota Land Cruiser chassis, 5.7-litre Corvette V8 and a tubular frame carrying a fibreglass copy of the Corniche bodyshell.
The car competed in the 1981 Paris-Dakar as a ‘Jules prototype’ and despite a crash which damaged the steering and a field repair later disallowed by officials, it was allowed to finish the 6200-mile event. Although it has been seen a few times since then, the car has never come up for public sale until now and Aguttes has it estimated at a hefty €400,000–800,000.
More details can be found at aguttes.com
