While the sleek “boattail” speedster models justifiably draw a great deal of attention, they are by far not the rarest of the eight-cylinder 1935 to ’36 Auburn models. That illustrious honor goes to the two-passenger coupe. The coupe shared its bodywork with the open cabriolet model, but featured a full trunk rather than a rumble seat, and was mounted with a fixed roof—essentially a simple wooden framework bolted to the top of the body, fitted with rear quarter windows and covered in fabric. A package shelf behind the seat replaced the cabriolet’s top well, and that was that. Alas, this interchangeability resulted in many of the coupes being “decapitated” and converted to cabriolets later in life, making intact survivors extraordinarily scarce. Today fewer than 10 eight-cylinder coupes exist in their original form.

The example offered here is one of those rareties. Its ownership history includes Mills B. Lane, Jr., an Atlanta banker and joyfully eccentric man-about-town, who in the 1950s built one of the United States’ most impressive early collections, dubbed the Stable of Thoroughbreds. The Stable included outstanding examples of many of the great Classic marques, including Duesenberg, Lancia, Maybach, Packard, and of course Auburn. When Lane’s plans for a public museum of his collection were spoiled in the early 1960s, he gradually sold off the fleet.

The Auburn was eventually restored in its present livery, a deep red with tan roof and matching interior, and in 1999 was purchased by Lee and Floy Barthel of Michigan, the well-known longtime Classic Car Club of America members and friends to many, who enjoyed it in CCCA events for 15 years. It was then acquired by Terence E. Adderley in the summer of 2014, and has remained part of his distinguished collection, alongside so many other great Auburns, for the last decade.

With the Dual Ratio rear axle, standard in Custom trim models, this car promises excellent, usable performance, making it ideal for driving in CCCA CARavans and on Auburn Cord Deusenberg Club tours. As a fellow 851 coupe owner once noted, its extremely large trunk provides ample space for luggage…or can accommodate up to 20 cases of beer, depending upon the owner’s needs. It would be wonderful fun, in any regard, for the Auburn connoisseur, whether bound for the ACD Club Reunion or simply for a favorite cruising road.