Coachbuilding has its origins in the horse-drawn carriages of the past. The tradition of a gentleman or woman commissioning a custom built body on an existing chassis continued into the early days of the automobile, before series production from a factory line didn’t exist. These bodies were often opulent and luxurious and came from such makers as Mulliner Park Ward, Figoni and Falaschi, Chapron and many more. Today’s Good Find Friday is an example of a modern coachbuilt car in the tradition of historic Porsche racecars: a Runge Frankfurt Flyer.

Modern coachbuilding is quite alive and well, though perhaps not as well-known among the average automotive enthusiast. The big names, such as Singer, Zagato and Pininfarina may be known, but smaller shops like Moal, Niels van Roij and others also turn out some amazing works of automotive art.

One such coachbuilder is Runge Karosserie. Located in Minnesota and operating out of a small barn at first and then a custom shop, Chris Runge produces bespoke superleggera vehicles for his clients using aluminum hand-hammered over wooden bucks.

I learned of Chris many years ago almost immediately after he produced his first car: the Frankfurt Flyer. Inspired by custom-built racecars using Porsche and Volkswagen powertrains such as those by Glocker and Rometsch. I would count him as one of my personal heroes in the industry, as a man who decided to risk it all and pursue his passion as a business, with tremendous dedication and tenacity.

Today’s Good Find Friday car is one of Chris’ earliest creations and was commissioned in the early 2010s specifically as an SCCA race car. It’s currently listed on Bring A Trailer with 6 days remaining on a reserve auction.

The car was built on a chassis fabricated by Chuck Beck (known for his replica Porsches) and with hand-formed aluminum bodywork applied over a super light wire frame. The auction lists it as a Speedster chassis, but given the transmission is at the rear of the car, it’s mostly likely a Spyder chassis.

003 was the first Frankfurt Flyer left in bare aluminum instead of painted in silver. Being one of Chris’ early cars, the fit and finish is not what you’d call precise. The bonnet and trunk lids have variable gaps and a somewhat poor fit, as do the doors, but the look is fitting for a vintage-style homebuilt racer.

As an SCCA race car, Frankfurt Flyer 003 is even more spartan than the usual stripped-down look of Runge cars, with bare aluminum race seats and no carpet or cockpit coaming. The gauges are Porsche 356-style and mounted in a Spyder-like pod ahead of a dished racing wheel.

Out back, the car is powered by a 1300cc Volkswagen engine built to produce 85 horsepower. Apparently this engine was originally built by Tom Bruch, known for building landspeed record cars. Transmission is a Volkswagen 4-speed transaxle unit.

The tubular chassis is mounted with a Volkswagen beam front suspension with trailing arms out rear in VW fashion. The wheels are a very cool vintage size—4.5×15” up front and 5.5×15” in the rear. Front steering should be pretty light with those skinny tires!

Lighting is all 12 volt, and while the car was built for racing, it looks relatively easy to convert the car to street legal operation. The California title listing the car as a 1960 Volkswagen should allow for easy titling in most states.

I love these early Runge cars, as they recall a very cool period in historic racing where individuals could prepare a lightweight special to compete against the factory race cars and win through aerodynamic and lightweighting ingenuity.

So how much is a small-production coachbuilt car like this worth? Well, Chris Runge is still building cars and to a much higher standard than these early builds. I believe those bespoke creations are in the $200K+ range. Not many Runge Frankfurt Flyers have been sold, but those that have netted their sellers between $100,000-$125,000.

This car would be an absolute blast, and a true piece of motoring art that shows the hand of the artisan who crafted it. If I had the funds I’d absolutely be a bidder. My only changes would be to go back to a standard set of lap belts instead of the harnesses, add some padding to the seats and perhaps a banjo steering wheel.

This will be a fun one to watch for sure! It’s a shame the photography isn’t great and doesn’t show the car off well. If I were a betting man, I predict this one will be bid to less than $100K. In an auction, though, you never know.

UPDATE: This cool little hand-built race car sold for $88,800.

Wolf and Mare provides car finding, appraisal and auction services for sellers and buyers of collector European cars. We also provide importation services. Give us a call or drop us a line!