The Moretti-Cadillac Revealed
By Frédéric Levaux, Moretti Registry Curator
All photos courtesy of Jay Nichols except when otherwise noted
After reading Part 1, it is easier to understand who we were dealing with; you see why a modified Cadillac wearing Moretti emblems could actually make sense.
But why would Moretti customize a Cadillac for a Nicaraguan client?
Moretti was no stranger to one-offs, after the end of their mass production as a full-fledged car manufacturer at the end of the 50s, Moretti switched to body making exclusively on Fiat chassis. But there were exceptions, the most notable one being the Maserati 3500 GT rebodied by Moretti in 1965 as pictured in Part 1. This was based on an accident-damaged customer car from Denmark that had left the Maserati factory in Modena in 1962 as a normal coupé. Instead of simply having the car repaired, the owner at the time decided to have an independent fastback body built at Moretti. Moretti rebuilt the body but the car kept its original Maserati ID plates. [Read more…] about The Moretti-Cadillac Revealed
BMW’s Italian Designers Part 4
By Jackie Jouret
Photos courtesy The BMW Archive
As we saw in the first three installments of this series, BMW had fostered an association with Touring of Milan before World War II put an end to civilian automotive activities in 1941. That association had resulted in the Superleggera coupe that won the 1940 Mille Miglia, a pair of roadsters for which Touring crafted the bodywork to a design by BMW’s Wilhelm Meyerhuber, and a trio of stunning roadsters created for the proposed Berlin-Rome race.
One might have expected the Touring-BMW partnership to have resumed after the war, given the competitive and aesthetic success of those automobiles, but it did not. When BMW began building cars again in 1951, the company turned instead to Pinin Farina for the external proposal that would be weighed against an in-house design for the 501 sedan. [Read more…] about BMW’s Italian Designers Part 4
Auto e Moto d’Epoca Part 3
What can our readers tell us about this Bandini?
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
We continue with the amazing coverage of this year’s Auto e Moto d’Epoca at Bologna thanks to the efforts of Jonathan Sharp. (Read Part 1) There is just so much to be seen and photographed at this show, and it is a pleasure to be able to bring this to our readers, as if we had all been able to attend the show ourselves. Alfas and Abarths and oddballs this week and we haven’t even processed the rest of the Etceterinis, Ferraris and Maseratis, which we will fit in next week. [Read more…] about Auto e Moto d’Epoca Part 3
Racing an Abarth at Pittsburgh
By Alain Raymond
Photos courtesy Alain Raymond
Vintage car racing: for some, it’s all about winning. For most, it’s the atmosphere, the camaraderie, the joy of driving old – very old – machinery on a race track. Here’s the story of one such delightful adventure.
We are all packed and ready to travel the 12-hour road taking us from Quebec to the “Steel City.” [Read more…] about Racing an Abarth at Pittsburgh
The Moretti Cadillac and the Man Who Almost Saved Beria
By Frédéric Levaux, Moretti Registry Curator
For more than 10 years now, I’ve been managing the Moretti registry. Having lived through the crazy adventure of restoring one of these diminutive Italian spyders from the 50s, I fell in love with this little brand, so innovative and so unloved. So much so, that over the years I’ve continued to add to the register of discoveries I’ve made through discussions, conversations, phone calls and e-mails with owners and lovers of these little cars all over the world. And indeed, as the register has grown in size, a certain reputation and visibility has now been attached to the site I manage (www.moretti-registry.com).
That is why I wasn’t all that surprised to receive a somewhat unreal message from Forest (Jay) Nichols, an American cattle farmer, in October 2023. Jay wrote that a Moretti, which looked very much like a Cadillac, had been seen by his son’s girlfriend deep in Nicaragua, and that he wanted to know what the vehicle was worth.
St James’s Motoring Spectacular
Not what I expected to see parked on a street in London in November, but it is not quite what it seems, Courtesy of Mercedes Benz W196 show car.
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
There once was a time that I could hop down to the waterfront in Brighton and photograph the end of the London to Brighton Veteran Run. But for the past few years the event has become just part of a motoring extravaganza. It is now a key part of the five-day London car week, which kicks off on the Wednesday with the opening of the Royal Automobile Club’s Art of Motoring Exhibition at the Iconic Images Gallery just off of Pall Mall. The week also includes motoring lectures, two major car auctions, the St James’s Motoring Spectacular, the run itself, and the Veteran Car Club’s annual dinner at the Grand Hotel Brighton!
Ladies Automobile Club, circa 1904
Probably the most famous car on the run, the 1904 Darracq two seater, 2 cylinder 10 HP ‘Genevieve’ entered by the Evert & Quirina Louwman, driven by Quirina Louwman.
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
The 2024 London to Brighton Veteran Car Run included a celebration of the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Ladies Automobile Club. A special prize was awarded to Andrea Holden who was driving a 1902 Thomas specially imported from Australia for her to drive. This was indeed something special and we found a good deal of information about the Ladies Automobile Club in the event booklet, which we impart in part below.
London to Brighton Run, 2024
Our favorite car not only at St. James but here finishing the London to Brighton Run, the Fiat 130 hp Grand Prix car.
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is the longest running motoring event, and probably the happiest judging from the smiles on the entrants faces when reaching the finishing line on Brighton’s Maderia Drive, and from the warmth and enthusiasm of the thousands of spectators who line the route all the way from London’s Hyde Park. We present the following images in hopes that you might click to enlarge them and catch the smiles on the faces of the participants.
Auto e Moto d’Epoca Part 1
Auto e Moto d’Epoca Part 2
1952 Fiat 1100E with coachwork by Monviso.
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
You may not know or have forgotten that 2024 is the 125th anniversary of Fiat, so the following selection is just the Fiats on display at the show, from the main display in the atrium featuring some highlights from the forthcoming anniversary exhibition at the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile Museum Turin, to the examples on display at the various club/event stands, to the many many examples for sale from the dealers and private individuals.
BMW’s Italian Designers Part 3
By Jackie Jouret
Photo courtesy The BMW Archive
Among the most fascinating races of the pre-war era is one that never took place: the Berlin-Rome race. Announced in June 1937 for the following year, the race had been conceived by Adolf Hühnlein, an early follower of Adolf Hitler, who in 1931 became head of Germany’s National Socialist Driver Corps (or NSKK, to use its German acronym). The NSKK was in charge of all motoring and motorsport activities for the Nazi government, and Hühnlein ensured that German racing was well-supported in service of its propaganda value. A high-speed race on the newly-built freeways connecting the two Axis capitals would be ideally suited to that purpose, and it would allow German and Italian automakers to highlight their technical superiority where aerodynamics were concerned.