<![CDATA[AutoMobilia Resource - Grille Badges]]>Sat, 15 Aug 2026 03:39:36 -0400Weebly<![CDATA[The Big Kahuna and Holy Grail]]>Thu, 01 Nov 2018 04:00:00 GMThttps://www.automobiliaresource.com/grillebadges/the-big-kahuna-and-holy-grailNov/Dec 2018 edition
Issue #2 AutoMobilia Resource Magazine
Jerry Haussler
Decisions, decisions.... Where to start? First off, I prefer the path of education i.e. read, read, and read some more. That said, I have been known to stray from the straight and narrow on occasion… actually more occasions than I care to admit. I started collecting badges around the year of my two cars, but before too long things got out of hand… way out of hand. Can you say “slippery slope”? 

​Some themes to guide your collecting may include colors that compliment your car, or an event from a town where you grew up. I’ve seen folks run badges dated before their cars were built!  From my perspective that’s OK with me, after all, it’s their car, not mine! Others may hold to the old adage “I don’t know art, but I know what I like.”  Whichever camp you fall into there are certainly enough to choose from. Generally speaking the mid to late 1950s are at the higher end of the price spectrum and should be available in the $150 range for a local or regional non-Marque specific event. Once you throw in the name of a specific marque such as  Porsche or one of the more prominent events like Monte Carlo, the numbers start to get scary....$300 - $600 and up. 
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More recently with the popularity of early Porsche 911s on the rise I see a corresponding interest in badges from the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. Pay attention and stay on the trail. Eventually you’ll find something that has an overwhelming appeal or at a price too hard to pass up. As always, buy what you like. If the market doesn’t smile on you in the long term, you will still have something you enjoy.  

Let’s talk ‘grail.’ Could it be a ‘50s era Nurburgring badge with the correct Adam Donner maker mark for your 1956 550A Porsche Spyder? Maybe a vintage SCCA badge for your split window Corvette?  The first Porsche Ski Treffen badge for your ‘58 Speedster?  Or if it’s all of the above, then aren’t YOU the lucky one!  Naturally the answer will vary from one person to the next. 
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Monte Carlo a.k.a. “The Big Kahuna”. Starting at the beginning, there are at least three versions of this coveted badge. Concurrent for competitor, Equipier for support, and a third version carrying neither of the two aforementioned designations. This last version is considered a souvenir, and was available to a DNF (did not finish). 

​Generally prices are at the top of the heap. Typically $450 to $600, although recently, I saw a 1958 Concurrent badge change hands for under $275... a steal at that price. For the 1970 event the design of the badge incorporated a Fuchs road wheel. Here you’ll have a crossover effect where Monte Carlo collectors will collide with Porsche collectors and drive an already hefty price even higher.       

​Liege Rome Liege. Held from 1931 to 1960 before changing names and configurations, this was one of the premier sports racing events of the era. Unfortunately lost to history, its’ ephemera are rare, desirable, and therefore expensive.  Fortunately the badges are dated. Typically postwar examples will trade in the $300 to $400 range without an established provenance.  The example shown was originally presented to Herbert Linge for the 1957 event. More ‘grail’ next issue. 
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Jerry Haussler
1970RallyeMonte-Carlo39GrilleBadgeJerryHausslerAutomobilia

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]]><![CDATA[My Badge Collection]]>Sat, 01 Sep 2018 04:00:00 GMThttps://www.automobiliaresource.com/grillebadges/my-badge-collectionSept/Oct 2018 edition
Issue #1 AutoMobilia Resource Magazine
Jerry Haussler
My badge collecting started in the late 1980s by purchasing a Porsche 100K badge at what was then an exorbitant amount. These were issued by the Porsche factory to congratulate owners on reaching 100,000 km of safe and trouble free driving. Mercedes-Benz and Volks- wagen issued similar badges. 

​My collecting really got going sometime in 1997 when I purchased several items from a party in Germany. As part of the package there was a handful of late 50s automotive event badges. Owning a ’58 and a ’59 Porsche, I thought these would add a nice touch to my cars. That was the end of it for about 6-7 months....until I was contacted again by the same party. He had just acquired a collection. Was I interested in a list?  “Sure” I replied off-handedly. Shortly thereafter, the images started to pour into my e-mail inbox.
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Ultimately, I would send a large donation to the party’s vacation fund, and in turn receive a box with about 80 badges! These spanned from mid-1950s to late 60s. Frankly, I didn’t have a clue as to the market potential for badges as I almost never saw them at the shows. A few months later at the L.A. Lit & Toy Show I had a very good day of selling. Hmmm… maybe there’s a market after all? I’ll share some observations I’ve made in the course of handling upwards of 1,200 badges over the past nearly 20 years.
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Although auto related badges may be as old as the automobile itself, most of my writing will highlight the post WW II era. A future column will discuss pre-WW II badges. 
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For those not familiar with car badges, they were used to commemorate rallies, hill climbs, wine tours, flower shows, festivals such as Oktoberfest, Veteran car shows, Concours de’Elegance, and more. Other events lost to history include Fox and Hound chases, Night Orientation rallies and Economy runs.  One of the badges in my collection even commemorates a Soapbox Derby!

Auto badges are miniature works of art used to display your fine taste in how you spend your free time. Designs run the gamut from plain to quite ornate.  In all instances the craftsmanship is old world in a manner seldom seen today. Event badges, as opposed to club or venue badges, were never for sale to the public. They were issued only to the participants of that event. Further, in the case of competitive events, it seems there were additional pieces.  I have badges with gold, silver or bronze wreaths added to the basic design to indicate first, second and third place respectively. Sometimes these were in a presentation case and not drilled for mounting.
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Some race tracks offered souvenir badges for sale at their gift shops. Interestingly with Nurburgring, there was a kiosk with their badges at the gas station across the street from the track. Club badges were somewhat generic date wise. They most likely required club membership, but beyond that were generally available.  Most badges showing up on the secondary market today are in mint condition. This makes sense. After all, how many can you mount on a given car? If you did any amount of driving at all these little gems were going to pile up in a hurry. I have a client who specializes in badges from 1960. In a conversation with him several years ago I inquired as to the size of his collection. His answer ? “…about 240.” 

Many badges come to me mounted on small wooden plaques. This can facilitate easy display and provide the option to rotate your prizes if you have limited space. If you’re starting to see a pattern regarding event badges my experience indicates that Germany and, to a lesser degree Austria, was pretty much the center of the universe.  For those thinking of starting a collection expect to pay $50 to $75 on the low end, and $400 to $500 on the upper end, generally speaking.   

Future columns will discuss the variables which drive price as well as highlight badges from the ordinary to the extraordinary. I’ll offer opinions on the pitfalls and pointers of how to start or build your collection.
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Jerry Haussler​

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