If there were a dedicated league for neoclassical cars, there would be multiple divisions and conferences capturing the many different manufacturers who once dominated this space. Curiously, these companies were not unsuccessful in their attempts to convince the rich and famous that they needed a car like this to accurately capture their status in life, but sadly, very few of these cars retain value anywhere close to their original sale price. This is a 1974 Clenet Roadster listed here on eBay with an asking price of $45,000.
That’s not exactly pocket change for a car that’s a borderline curiosity. Built on a Ford chassis with Ford V8 running gear, the Clenet was clearly marketed to an affluent customer base. The company was headquartered in Santa Barbara County, California, building approximately 250 examples throughout the the 1970s and 1980s. Although Ford donated the engine and underpinnings, the rest of the car was conceived with high-end features including leather seats, Italian walnut dashboards, and Waterford crystal ashtrays. These details pushed the price into the $100,000 range.
Of course, that didn’t phase customers like Farrah Fawcett and Rod Stewart who were among the company’s loyal customers. These days, Hollywood celebrities don’t have much interest in a car like this, but that entire era is a bygone one, when actors and singers considered a car like this essential to their identity. The various custom Cadillacs and Lincolns that members of Sinatra’s “Rat Pack” favored were another tangent of this high-luxury coachbuilt industry, but given how limited the Clenet’s production numbers were, this high-style roadster seems far more exclusive.
A robust Clenet database keeps track of the surviving cars, but I’m not sure how actively the webmaster is monitoring the current status of these obscure cars. The example shown here is said to have just 367 original miles, which is likely the motivating factor behind the high asking price (and likely justified with such low mileage). With working A/C and front and rear disc brakes, it’s hardly a penalty box to drive. The question is, could you manage all of the attention that comes with a classic Clenet like this one? Thanks to Barn Finds reader JDC for the find.
These types of cars has always been intriguing to me. They were always way above my pay grade but if I ever won the powerball………Hmmm
Is it “Cle-nette” or “Cle-nay”?
Amazing what you can do with an MG Midget tub.