Appropos of absolutely nothing at all.
Car pr0n – this of the Italian variety. 1953 Fiat 508S “Balolla” to be exact.
Image taken by me at the Saratoga Springs Auto Museum in July 2011. At the time they had a collection of Italian sex on wheels cars that mostly came from one collector – Oscar Davis.
So pretty. The 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 – long, lean and looking like it was actually breathing. This was used as a race car.
These are some gorgeous pieces of design and function. Made at a time when everyday driving was an adventure. Very few of these cars came with any kind of roof – open touring was the order of the day.
Racing. Small windscreen. No roof. You do the math – I come up with a driver who was clearly batshit crazy!
Which among The Lexicans is … normal.
It’s sort of ironic that – as I would say the Golden Age of Automobile design came full bloom – we were in the depths of the Depression and few could afford them.
Look at the Duesies – Alfas – Delahayes
http://www.gizmag.com/the-outrageous-1949-delahaye-175-s-saoutchik-roadster/15949/
Mercedes-Benz 540K Special Roadster (I think 6 made)
http://www.supercars.net/cars/1208.html
Gosh Kris – I could talk for the rest of the day on this subject but better get back to work!
Look at the Bugatti Royale – 6 made – +$50,000 in 1933
Well I am off work now (working part time) – remember during the 30s you could get a nice new Ford – with the new V8 – for $600 – I gave an example of the Delahaye – in my haste – from the 40s – but looks at these –
http://www.classicandsportscar.com/news/classic-car-events/delahayes-headline-at-california-concours
Every decade and have an example of a good auto design(er) – one of my favorites from the 60s is GMs Bill Mitchell –
http://mecum.com/auctions/lot_detail.cfm?LOT_ID=BG0609-80925
or Malcolm Sayer’s masterpiece – the E-Type Jaguar Even Enzo Ferrari, upon seeing it, said “it was the most beautiful car ever made”.
http://www.moma.org/explore/multimedia/audios/280/3156
The fact that he was an aerospace engineer didn’t hurt – here’s a car that was introduced in Geneva in 1961 and I guarantee still turns heads 51 years later….
Well i could go on and on – might be fun to have everyone’s favorite of each decade from the 30s though the – well, today….
The Jag is clearly a cut above just about everything out there – both for its time and today.
For me, American Muscle fanatic that I am – nothing beats the 1967 Shelby GT500. Sexy, growly and the pinnacle of American Muscle production. Nothing since then has ever come close; today’s Mustangs are pretty good but they will never be a true Shelby, even though they might put the name and logo on the vehicle.
And because I can brag about this as it is so cool: That ’67 Shelby is the first car I ever drove. My dad was a serious car fanatic – American muscle, classics, etc… At one time in the mid 70s he owned TWO Shelby’s – the ’66 GT350 and the ’67. So, being his little princess he let me drive the Shelby when I was just 12 years old.
We didn’t go far and certainly not fast but…tis true that I drove it. Of course he would take me racing in it (without ever telling my mother) and those experiences … well, pure language just doesn’t cut it, there is no describing it.
Today, that ’67 in the condition it was in back then would fetch about $180K…I think he sold it in the late 70s for around $20K. He turned to the classics for awhile after that – 1934 Ford Cabriolet with rumble seat, 1940 Ford Convertible, 1939 Mercury, 1939 Mercedes…
Kris – your father was one cool guy! My favorite Shelby Mustang – the other car of your Dads – the GT350 – so named because Shelby, meeting in Venice CA at his first “factory” (the former Scarab garage) – talking with Ford execs (who really pushed him to making this Mustang he initially didn’t want) – well, anyway, they couldn’t agree on a name for this new car.
Finally Carroll (who I heard just died yesterday) asks one of his people to walk to the garage and count the steps.
It was 350, or thereabouts. And so the GT350 was born!
My cousin, an only child, was given a ’66 Pontiac GTO for her 16th birthday. A bit spoiled I think but my aunt and uncle waited 16 years before she came into the world.
Fun to drive? Check. Handled Well? (we’ll skip that) – and you could literally watch the gas gauge drop as you were driving.
If you love muscle cars look at some of Jay Leno’s videos. One of them he is driving his ’65 or ’66 GT350 and giving his driving impressions as he is driving.
The point he makes – and really is true of all the cars we idolize from the 60s – is that handling – and fuel economy – were poor. Your off the showroom-stock Mustang GT would run rings around that GT350 – or 500 for that matter – and get twice the mileage. More than twice.
A 427-435 HP Corvette from ’67 or ’68 got maybe 8-10 mpg. The new Corvettes get 20 – and above if you don’t step on it. With more hp.
On values – if you love old Muscle cars try Hemmings MuscleCar magazine. I learned a lot about small production cars (a GM stock ’69 427 Camaro went for $700K a few years ago – yes, you could with enough effort order one from the factory) – and your GT350 – in 65 or ’66 they had a competition version (GT350R?) went for over $200K a few years ago.
These are cars that could be had in the early 70s for $3K-$6K? And we were all smart and filled our garages with them right ?
Part of the reason these “retro” cars don’t really work is all the new Federal regulations.
But style? Give me those old cars anytime. And that’s what we’re talking about here
Bill – just saw your comment! My dad was beyond cool; if he was still alive I’m sure he’d have read Lex everyday, gotten hooked on Plane Pr0n and would have had his own blog.
As to Hemmings – that was the Bible in my house growing up. When it arrived, we all knew to just leave Dad alone for a few hours, or possibly a few days. Depended on his mood and what he was hankering for – reading about it or buying it.
My first car – 1973 Cougar Convertible with a custom 351 Cleveland engine. Spoiled? check. Muscle? check. Daddy’s girl in every single way possible? check check check
Made at a time when everyday driving was an adventure.
Driving ANYTHING made in Italy used to be quite an adventure, as in not knowing if you’d actually make it to where you were going, be it the corner store or the next state over. Fiat: “Fix It Again, Tony.”
I’ve heard the Eye-talians finally make fairly reliable cars these days. It’s about time.