Some car enthusiasts prefer red - some black, some blue. A buyer at a Michigan auction on Saturday got a truly one-of-a-kind color — transparent.

The “Ghost Car,” a 1939 Pontiac Deluxe Six was first displayed at the New York World’s Fair and later on at the Smithsonian Institution, sold on Saturday for $308,000.

The original build cost was $25,000, the Pontiac with a Plexiglas body was the first transparent car ever built in America. Another was built the next year, but its whereabouts are unknown.

Alain Squindo, a car specialist for RM Auctions, “This car is the only one known to exist,” he said, which held the auction for the “Ghost Car” along with other specialty vehicles in Plymouth, Mich. “It’s a very original car.”

First displayed at the 1939/1940 New York World’s Fair, the Ghost Car toured a number of dealerships, and then was housed at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. for a number of years.

It has been owned by the same family since the 1980s, and were rather sad to see their beloved car go. Squindo could not disclose the name of the buyer.

The Ghost Car had less than 100 miles on it, only by being driven in and out of dealerships for displays. It was a collaboration between Rohm & Haas chemical company which made the Plexiglas, and GM. Structural metal underneath was a copper wash finish and all hardware, including the dashboard was chrome-plated.

Squindo said the top price paid for a car at the auction was a 1932 Packard convertible sedan once owned by singer Al Jolson, selling for $1.1 million.

*************************************************************

The Views and Opinions expressed by the author are his or her opinions only and do not necessarily reflect those of this Web-Site or its agents, affiliates, officers, directors, staff, or contractors. The author at the time of this article did not own any shares or receive any consideration financial or otherwise from any company or person mentioned or referred to in the article.