Undoubtedly worthy of its name, as the champion of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 2025. Holstein, being described in some quarters as the most famous French automobile ever, and now the epitome of Spanish-Swiss automotive talent, the 1924 Hispano Suiza H6C Nieuport-Astra Torpedo, affectionately known as the Tulipwood Torpedo, achieved victory over nearly all others and class champions at this year’s prestigious event.
Owned by Penny and Lee Anderson Sr. of Naples, Florida, the Tulipwood underwent a very costly and painstaking restoration with RM Auto Restoration; RM notably holds the record for having nine restorations awarded the grand prize. “Winning Pebble Beach is probably the highest award you can win,” said Lee Anderson Sr. “We’re lucky to have won it twice.” This they achieved once again in 2022 with their stunning 1932 Duesenberg Model J Figoni Sports Torpedo – again restored by RM.
While the Duesenberg is worthy of admiration, this year’s winner is even grander in importance. Commissioned by Andre Dubonnet, a WWI fighter ace and heir to the Dubonnet aperitif fortune who was also an accomplished Olympic bobsledder and driver, the Tulipwood thrived on the famous Hispano Suiza Boulogne chassis and was thrust forward by an 8.0-liter H6C inline-six engine putting out about 45 hp.
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The crowning glory of the Tulipwood is the breathtaking boat-shaped mahogany bodywork designed by Henri Chasseriaux and made by Nieuport-Astra. This exquisite body comprises many pieces of one-eighth-inch-thick wood secured to three-quarter-inch ribs by thousands of aluminium rivets; it weighs just 160 pounds, shockingly light. This extraordinary design helped contribute to Dubonnet’s respectable sixth-place finish in the 1924 Targa Florio and fifth in that year’s Coppa Florio.
Restoring a century-old wooden valve is no lightweight endeavor, as the scope of this one is. Over multiple years, RM stated that the immense restoration project called for more than 12,000 man-hours and nearly two years of research and restoration to the criteria.
