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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

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The Story Behind the Alfa TZ Poster Part 1

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The TZ Poster. Photos of and for the poster by Hans Sipma.

Story by James Lanoway

If ever there was a paragon of poster art that speaks to the fascination with fine Italian automobiles, it would have to be this one. Its visual effect is arresting, the harmony of design sublime, drawing the eye back to it repetitively, to drink up its offerings. It predates the digital era and yet persists as suitably contemporary. How was it conceived and brought forth, and who was involved in its creation? Here is its story, and that of its creators.

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Le Mans Test Day and Scrutineering

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And guess who won Le Mans a week later?

Story and photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

Since the creation of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1923, technical scrutineering (Pesage in French) has been a pre-race ritual. It often took place in the city, sometimes at the circuit, but the tradition endures, and it’s an unmissable event for the city of Le Mans. It’s also an opportunity to discover the new liveries of certain cars, new crews, and to gauge each team’s chances.

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Valletta International Concours, June 1, 2025

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Crowd pleasing Alfas at Valletta.

Story and photos by Gary Axon

Considering its overall population of just 550,000 inhabitants, the diminutive but beautiful Mediterranean island of Malta has a surprisingly large number of older and interesting cars. Every year in early June since 2017 (excluding the Covid period), many of the proud local owners and restorers of these classic vehicles gather next to the Maltese Parliament building at St. George’s Square in the historic capital city of Valletta for the annual Valletta International Concours (VIC).

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Ballot at Chantilly

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Photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

From the VeloceToday Archives, July 2019

Last week Hugues presented his coverage of the classics at Chantilly. But the editor decided to delete a number of photos from the selection in order to create a special, if short, article about Ballots. How often does one see a Ballot at an event? Rarely. So this is a special occasion, timed for not only the 100th anniversary of the Ballot marque, but the publication of Ballot by Daniel Cabart and Gautam Sen, published by Dalton Watson. The information below is taken from this fantastic new book.

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Building BAT Better Part 7

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Story and photos by Paul Wilson

I have put off writing this chapter of my BAT project because I keep thinking of that classic of all-time worst opening lines: “This is the meticulous record of a life in which absolutely nothing of interest happened.” Repairing and cleaning aren’t as exciting as designing and fabricating. But I had a few adventures and challenges, not just tedious work, and some experiences were new to me, and maybe to you who are reading this.

The body was made in bolt-on sections, which were easily removed. Next came disassembly of everything attached to the chassis. Off came the front suspension, steering, rear axle, and gas tank. Every little piece had to be removed. The chemicals used in the dip-strip process dissolve paint and rust, but also aluminum. Alfa used aluminum spacers inside some steel box sections. Unless these were found and taken off, they would disappear. [Read more…] about Building BAT Better Part 7

Villa Erba 2025: Italians

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Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

It’s easier to understand Villa Erba, Villa d’Este and the Fuori Concorso if we list the schedule:

Saturday, Sunday, May 24-25 Fuori Concorso
Saturday May 24 Exhibition and Inspection of the cars by the Jury, Villa d’Este
Sunday May 25 Transfer of all Historic Cars and Concept Cars to Villa Erba
Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este Public Day – Il Festival, Villa Erba

After the Fuori show (see last week) is the Villa d’Este concours, which then shifts over to the nearby Villa Erba, still on the lake shore, for the public day, which is what we cover here.

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Villa Erba 2025, Non-Italian

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Christian Troelsfeldt’s 1950 Bugatti Type 101 C by Antem. Of the one prototype and six series Bugatti 101s constructed only one, chassis,101504, carried two-seater coachwork by Antem. Commissioned by Rene Bollore, the second husband of Ettore Bugatti’s widow, chassis 101504 was originally painted dark green with chrome spoke wheels and white wall tires.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

This we covered in two parts last week. This week we continue the event coverage with the non-Italian cars featured at this year’s show at Villa Erba. Villa d’Este Class winners are listed below the gallery.

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Fuori the Bountiful

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Alfa 159

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

This was the fourth edition of the Fuori Concorso, held on the glittering shores of Lake Como on May 24. The theme chosen by the event creator Guglielmo Miani and his chief curator Andrea Luzardi was ‘Velocissimo’ a celebration of Italian motor racing. Spread across the gardens of Villa Grumello and Villa Sucato the event was certainly a sight for sore eyes. Beautiful cars, a gorgeous backdrop and beautiful weather… what more could an Italian car fan wish for. Part 1 below informs the readers via captions, Part 2, Fuori the Beautiful, is a non captioned gallery of our favorites.

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Spa Classic 2025 Part 1

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A faithful member of the Peter Auto series, the 1953 Aston Martin DB2/4 Bertone Spider driven by the Swiss Heinz Stamm.

Story and photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

Since its creation in 2011, Spa Classic has established itself as a pillar of historic racing organized by Peter Auto, organizer of the Tour Auto and Le Mans Classic, among others. Ten grids made up this 2025 edition, which was very wet from Saturday noon until Sunday afternoon, typical weather for the Francorchamps circuit. This didn’t stop the competitors from putting on a show on the track, with a reduced number of accidents despite the conditions, and the brave spectators from enjoying the experience. For photographers, the rain is certainly a challenge, but the difficult conditions add an extra dimension to the task, and that’s what makes it so rewarding. Here’s a look at some of the grids on track this weekend.

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