The Convertible Phaeton Sedan offered here is without doubt one of the very best-known of all L-29 Cords. It was restored to its present appearance while owned by the noted Southern California collector, the late Leonard Urlik. In Mr. Urlik’s ownership, the L-29 was widely shown on the West Coast, winning its first Senior award in Auburn Cord Duesenberg Club competition and becoming the first winner of the Classic Car Club of America’s Warshawsky Award, with a 100-point score at the 1994 Annual Meet, the highest score of any automobile at the event. It was also First in Class at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in 1987, the year that the L-29 was a featured car, making it a major achievement.

Mr. Urlik’s Cord was featured in Dennis Adler’s books, Speed and Luxury: The Great Cars and The Art of the Automobile—the latter naming it one of the 100 most beautiful cars of all time. It was also the subject of the cover photograph of Josh Malks and Lee Beck’s well-known Auburn and Cord, one of the authoritative books on its manufacturer.

From Mr. Urlik the L-29 passed to Bruce Iannelli, then to William and JoAnn Cranston, in whose ownership it was largely exhibited in an Indiana museum. When the Cranstons parted with the car in 2008, it joined the vast Texas collection of the late John O’Quinn, from whose estate Terence E. Adderley, a longtime L-29 connoisseur, purchased it in 2011. It remained a favored piece of the Adderley Collection and was occasionally shown by him at the ACD Club’s National Reunion, where it was issued Category 1 certification in 2014.

Today the award-winning concours restoration of the L-29 has mellowed but remains beautiful overall, with the Tongan Red paint and tan interior combination being quite striking to the eye. It would certainly be a great head-turner at any ACD Club, Antique Automobile Club of America, and CCCA event, or on tour—as it is, after all, one of the 100 most beautiful cars ever built.