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Peugeot’s Time Machine Museum Part 2, 1945 to present

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Probably remembered best, especially by me, from watching Peter Falk in Columbo on wet Saturday afternoons, this 403 Cabriolet dates from 1960. Only 1814 Cabriolets were made.

Probably remembered best (especially by me) as detective Columbo’s means of transportation, this 403 Cabriolet dates from 1960. Only 1814 Cabriolets were made.

Photos by Jonathan Sharp

Read Part 1

Part 2 of Jonathan Sharp’s journey through Peugeot’s time machine museum begins during WII when despite Nazi occupation, Peugeot’s engineers planned the first postwar car, the 203. Peugeot had been building cars for over 50 years by that time and wasn’t going to give up; in fact they survived despite the many changes that eliminated many French manufacturers during the 1950s and 60s, and are now the second largest auto manufacturer in Europe. Sharp’s photos reminded the editor that Peugeot decided to pull out of the American market in 1991, at about the same time as did Alfa and Fiat…and we have not seen any new (and very few old!) Peugeots in the U.S. since then. Peugeot, who now owns Citroen, has stated that they are considering a comeback to the U.S. perhaps by 2018. Time will tell. [Read more…] about Peugeot’s Time Machine Museum Part 2, 1945 to present

Voiturette Racing Cars: Part 1 Alfa through Delage

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By Pete Vack

The voiturette (750cc, 1100 cc and 1500cc) races which took place between 1931 and 1940 were magic; technically interesting cars, around the house race venues, truly international with multi-make participation, a cast of characters from a Siamese Prince to Enzo Ferrari, Dick Seaman’s drives with the ERA, MG and Delage, and a devastating secret weapon unleashed by Mercedes Benz which defeated and demoralized the opposition. There was never a dull moment on or off the track. The venues were largely ‘around the houses’ circuits such as Pau and San Remo, the drivers were semi-professional or talented amateurs, and interestingly, there were no points or championships for manufacturers or drivers. In fact the formula was so good it became the official Grand Prix class in 1945, which lasted until 1952.

Below, we present the first six of twelve short stories about the primary voiturette racers of the 1930s, covering Alfa, Alta, Amilcar, Austin, Bugatti and Delage. Part 2 will cover ERA, Maserati, Mercedes Benz, MG, Salmson and Talbot.

Alfa Romeo (S.A. Alfa Romeo, Milan, Italy)

Competitive years: 1938-1940 Horsepower Range: 195-225

The voiturette class was eventually dominated by the 158 Alfetta in 1939 and 1940. However, it is not clear why Alfa did not choose to participate in the voiturette races of the early 1930s. Many of their customers, such as Count Gianni Lurani however, did so using the 6C 1750 reduced to 1500cc and equipped with a lightweight open-wheeled body. They won class victories at the Nurburgring in 1932 and a third place in the 1500cc in the 1933 Czech Grand Prix.

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The Detailed World of Alessandro Gerelli

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Alessandro Gerelli as seen by Simone Rossetto in Murano glass.

Alessandro Gerelli as seen by Simone Rossetto in Murano glass.

By Pete Vack
Photography by Alessandro Gerelli

Alessandro Gerelli: 140 articles, 3000 photos and 14 years with VeloceToday

In the summer of 1967, September 8th, to be exact, a 19 year-old college student by the name of Alessandro Gerelli was lucky enough to have obtained a pit pass to the Italian Grand Prix. Like today, pit passes were extremely difficult to obtain. But Gerelli was determined. He would not listen to the sound of Amon’s Ferrari from far behind the fences; he wanted desperately to be where the action was. In what must have been a passionately good letter, he wrote to the organizers and asked them if a student could obtain a pit pass. He would do no damage, he wrote, wouldn’t create problems, and maybe if he could just get a pass for the official test day, he could then take some photos. “The process worked,” says Alessandro, “and a very kind lady from the Monza organization called me, and said she had been touched by my letter.” The young Gerelli went to the Monza practice on Friday with a pit pass. He had to access a certain gate and mention the name of the lady who responded to his letter. “The miracle had been done,” recalled Gerelli.

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His patience and fortitude resulted in catching a rare photo of Enzo Ferrari in the pits. Ferrari rarely attended races, even at Monza. Gerelli knew that Ferrari would often show up during practice for the Grand Prix so it was not a surprise. “But of course he was Ferrari and in any case the opportunity to see him and to take a picture of him was something exceptional for a young Ferrari lover like me,” said Gerelli. [Read more…] about The Detailed World of Alessandro Gerelli

Adelaide Motorsports Festival, South Australia 2015

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Thomas/Christ 1962 Fiat 1500, Gouger Street

Thomas/Christ 1962 Fiat 1500, Gouger Street.

Story and Photos by Vince Johnson

It’s been 30 years since Keke Rosberg won the first Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix held on the streets of Adelaide. To commemorate the anniversary, the Sporting Car Club of South Australia assembled an impressive line-up of F1 cars of the era to headline a 200-strong field of race and road cars for a weekend of sprints in the city’s Victoria Park.

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The Dino 308GT4: Still a Ferrari…

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This is not the particular Ferrari discussed below, but a very nice one and similar to the one owned by Mr. Sharp’s good friend. Jonathan Sharp photo.

By Jonathan Sharp

After all, it was a Ferrari and that still leaves a glow on your soul.

A friend of mine used to own a 308GT4. He was a normal working man and he worked every hour he could, so that he could save his money to buy his dream car which had to be a Ferrari. He had all the books and models, went to all the shows with me and Ferrari was about all we talked about. So after many years of saving he finally had enough to full fill his dream.

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Peugeot’s Time Machine Museum, Part 1

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Jonathan Sharp has returned from a French sojourn where he visited the Peugeot Museum. Part 1 covers the Peugeot from 1889 to 1945, and next week Part 2 will illustrate Peugeot’s cars from 1945 to the present.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

Information from Museum Placards

I imagine that most of us have a visit to the Schlumph collection on their to-do list while in France. If you get an opportunity to tick that item off, I recommend you extended you stay in the area for one more day and make a trip to the town of Sochaux which is only about an hour from Mulhouse.

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Fiat’s New 124 Spider as seen by Wallace Wyss

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Fiat and Pininfarina got it right back in 1965. But did the DNA transfer?

Fiat, Tom Tjaarda and Pininfarina got it right back in 1966 with the 124 Sport Spider. But did the DNA transfer?

By Wallace Wyss

New 2017 Fiat 124 Spider Announced at LA Auto Show: Time will tell if it’s better than the Mazda it sprang from…

Photos courtesy Fiat

Lately I have been straying from cars and messin’ with horses…thoroughbred horses, and the most important thing you can say about a thoroughbred is its pedigree…its DNA.

Now I know carmakers have a burning need to establish identity to pull in new customers but the big fat Fiat badge on the nose is a tad big for my taste, I could live with it being 1/4th smaller, because this one is so big, abut the size of an apple, it makes the whole car look smaller....

Now I know carmakers have a burning need to establish identity to pull in new customers but the big fat Fiat badge on the nose is a tad big for my taste, I could live with it being 1/4th smaller, because this one is so big, about the size of an apple, it makes the whole car look smaller.

[Read more…] about Fiat’s New 124 Spider as seen by Wallace Wyss

VeloceToday for November 24, 2015

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12C art print engine

It is Thanksgiving week and VeloceToday has a lot to be grateful for. Thanks to our many new premium subscribers, we made our first sales goal ahead of schedule and the new subscription system is working perfectly. If you haven’t signed on yet, it’s only $5 per month!

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As Found Classic Number Eighteen

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The response to the Alfa in search of a chassis was so helpful that our French collector sent another mystery Alfa for our readers to solve. Surely someone in Europe or the U.S. might remember this chop job…who would forget this attempt make a sow’s ear out of a silk purse. Here is all we know:

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