Classic Roadsters cars for sale

Overview

Classic Roadsters was an American kit-car manufacturer in Fargo, North Dakota that built replicas of pre-war and 1950s European sports cars on modern running gear. It operated from 1979 to 2008, which makes it one of the longer-lived firms in a trade where most names last a few years.

Its cars are scaled interpretations rather than exact copies, and that is worth understanding before you view one: a Classic Roadsters Marlene is a smaller car than the 1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K special roadster it evokes.

History

The range covered several eras at once. The Marlene took its cues from the 1930s Mercedes-Benz roadsters and later passed to Bradley Automotive. The Duchess was an MG TD interpretation on a Volkswagen Beetle chassis, and the Saxon and Sebring were modelled on the Austin-Healey 3000, with a hard top available. The Duke, a Jaguar SS100 interpretation, arrived in 1982, and an AC Cobra-style car was also offered.

Buying one in Australia

Establish the donor. A Volkswagen-based car and a Ford V6-based car are entirely different propositions to service, insure and register, and the badge on the bonnet tells you nothing about either.

As with any replica, registration here runs through your state or territory’s individually constructed vehicle process against the national light vehicle construction and modification code. Ask for the engineering certificate; if the seller does not have one, budget for the assessment before you agree a price.