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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

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Features This Week, Ads for January 21, 2014

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$25 Ads for Anything and Anyone

Over the fold, Under the table, Around the world!
*ONE TIME ads ($25 USD) for anyone who has something to sell, to giveaway, to holler about (a special sale), a change in address, venue or schedule, you name it.
*Ad will be placed RIGHT here RIGHT UP FRONT where it will be seen by 10 to 20 thousand eager beaver car nuts all over the globe. Contact vack@cox.net .

SOLD!
One is this mint copy of the 1955 Sebring Race Program – the year Sebring really gained fame. Comes with the entry list, also in excellent condition. Asking $100 or best offer. Contact me at pete@velocetoday.com

A good deal on Susann Miller and Richard F. Merritt’s classic Porsche Brochure book. Covers all Porsches and other from 1948 to 1965. A reference book for Porsche enthusiast, a joy for everyone else. Only $75, shipping included.
Contact Susann Miller at susannart@aol.com

Rent a Race Car to drive in the 2014 Mille Miglia, Bassano, and other Italian Vintage events! Drive this rare Siata Daina Coupe, an A.C. Ace, or a Colli barchetta or others. This is an opportunity of a lifetime. Contact me at vack@cox.net for further details.

Australian Renault Owners! Last Call! Have YOU registered for the Renault Muster Down Under 2014 yet? Please do so NOW and contact Graham Nordling ASAP. For more information and forms, CLICK HERE.

To see last week’s ads, click here.

Win Roy Smith’s Alpine Book!
We’ve aready sent out three free copies of “Incredible Barn Finds” this month to new Premium Subscribers. Next month we’ll be giving away one new copy of Roy Smith’s brand new Alpine book, just in time for the Retro Alpine spectacular. Same rules apply as usual; only Premium Subscribers are eligible to win the drawing and MUST contact me to enter. Free shipping world wide. Another good reason to become a Premium Subscriber now.



Our Features This Week

Ice, Snow, Renault R8s, Alpines, Lancia Fulvias and Gauld

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Eugen Bohringer in the Porsche 904. One of Gauld's favorites, taken at the top of the Col de Turini, during the Monte Carlo Rally when there was snow, as it should be!

In which Gauld recalls his favorite Winter Rallies
Story and photos by Graham Gauld or courtesy thereof

The legendary Monte Carlo Rally finished last Saturday, but lost a lot of its fascination because there was precious little snow. Winter rallies should have snow, which differentiates them from other rally championship events.

All this got me thinking of my favorite snow rally, the International Swedish event that takes place in February and, being located over 2000 kms north of Monte Carlo, can usually provide plenty of the white stuff. I covered the Swedish Rally four times, the first time in 1966 by persuading Henry Manney III that we had had enough covering the Monte three years running. Why don’t we do something different I asked, and from the moment we landed in Gothenburg and set out on our 120 mile north into Varmland and the town of Orebro it truly was different!
[Read more…] about Ice, Snow, Renault R8s, Alpines, Lancia Fulvias and Gauld

A Visit to Fiat’s Remarkable Lingotto

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Lingotto's Lancia Loraymo in the lobby

Story and color photos by Jonathan Sharp

You may not be that familiar with Lingotto but if you have seen the original (and by far the best version) of The Italian Job, you may recall the scene in the film where the three Mini Coopers containing the stolen gold are pursued by the Police in their Alfas around a banked test track. That test track is on the roof of Lingotto, the Fiat factory which is located in a suburb of Turin. [Read more…] about A Visit to Fiat’s Remarkable Lingotto

Non Classified Ads

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$25 WHAM-BAM-THANK-YOU-SAM AD!

Over the fold, Under the table, Around the world!
*ONE TIME ads ($25 USD) for anyone who has something to sell, to giveaway, to holler about (a special sale), a change in address, venue or schedule, you name it.
*Ad will be placed RIGHT here RIGHT UP FRONT where it will be seen by 10 to 20 thousand eager beaver car nuts all over the globe.
*For only $25USD we’ll post your ad below with one photo and four lines or about 50 words, ONE TIME. And if you sell your wondercar via this slot for enough money to retire on, remember us in your will or use the Donate button. Space is limited to only FOUR ads in one week’s VT. Pay via Paypal and contact me at vack@cox.net for ad insertion. Here are a few for this week:

1956 Austin Healey 100M, S/N BN2L228887, 9,000 miles. Frame-off restoration finished with M kit in 2003. 2013 addition of new alloy head, clutch, transmission synchronizers. BMIH Trust Certif. Mille Miglia eligible. Contact John Piccin 352 351 5446, john@piccinlaw.com (FL)

1949 Ferrari Yearbook with Peter Coltrin Translation iinsert. Excellent but aging condition, no rips, tears. This is the Richard F. Merritt version from 1969. For sale now for $400. Original versions are worth thousands. Check Contact me at vack@cox.net.

Wallace Wyss is now into French Classics. So far he’s completed a dozen canvases in oil including a Talbot Lago and a Bugatti. “If an owner or fan of these cars wants me to depict their French classic, they can reach me at Photojournalistpro@gmail.com.”

Martini Racing at Museo dell’ Automobile

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The Beta Montecarlo Turbo, driven by Riccardo Patrese, Markku Alén and Ilkka Kivimaki which won the 1980 Giro Automobilistico d’Italia.

Text and Photos by Jonathan Sharp

Captions by Martini PR and staff

It was always the stripes that caused me problems.

As a child, like most children I would spend hours putting the car kits together, even more hours painting the bodywork, usually using an aerosol paint which made the house stink. Then it came to the Martini stripes. Even though they came as decals there was always one set of stripes that would not sit right on the bodywork no matter how many times you lifted them off and put them back on again. But the picture on the box looked so neat one had to get it right.

I had forgotten how cool they looked until I had made my way through the turnstile entrance of the Museo dell’ Automobile in Turin. Right in front of me was the Martini Racing-striped Lancia Beta Monte Carlo Turbo of 1981- oh those stripes. With the car parked next to a blue lit Christmas tree I wanted to dig out my model making box again and have another go at those stripes.

The reason the Monte Carlo was sitting in the middle of the Museum’s main atrium was because of an exhibition to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Martini & Rossi Brand and 45 years of Martini Racing. (Exhibit closes January 26th). The cars on display covered the entire history of Martini Racing, starting with the Porsche 917, winner of the 1970 Le Mans 24 hour race,to the 1973 Targa Florio-winning 911 RS, right up to the current Porsche 918 Hybrid race car of 2014. [Read more…] about Martini Racing at Museo dell’ Automobile

Pegaso Z 102

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Francisco Godia in his Pegaso in May 1955 while another Pegaso is on the shoulder.

Book Review Pegaso by Monsalve by Pete Vack
Purschase from: autodromo@autodromo.es. (any questions? contact vack@cox.net)
Direct link to purchase page (in Spanish)
Softback, 90 pages, B&W and color
$55 USD in Europe, $65 USD rest of world

Naturally, VeloceToday includes the Pegaso in our portfolio of strange and wonderful cars that don’t quite fit in the regular scheme of things French or Italian. Pegaso has links to Alfa Romeo, Touring and the Swiss-French-Spanish Hispano Suiza, so it fits well within our borders.

The problem is, or has been, a good lack of information about these cars. They are not only rare, but extremely rare in the U.S., and come to find out, a lot are held dear within the borders of their native country. [Read more…] about Pegaso Z 102

Montier Model A Ford

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VeloceToday’s Australian Agent

Our latest VeloceToday Select Folio, Montier’s French Racing Fords, was an idea developed by author Chris Martin who became intrigued by this unusual story about a French family who raced their modified Fords at Le Mans and at Spa.

The restored 1923 Montier-Ford at the Le Mans Classic.

Chris contacted VeloceToday with his idea and it was decided that the story deserved to be published in its own right as a booklet or Folio.
Chris lives in Australia, VeloceToday is located on the East Coast U.S.A but the distance did not hinder this union with Chris becoming the contact point in the Asia Pacific region for his new book. In the making of this publication, ideas were collaborated from the very start, proofing the copy, researching the photos and permissions, and working on the design, even sharing the printing costs. From Virginia where it was printed, half of the run was then shipped to Chris.

[Read more…] about Montier Model A Ford

Lancia 037 and S4

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Lancia 037 at a recent meet.

Story and Photos by Hugh Doran

Ever since Lotus boss Colin Chapman took out a competition license in the name of “Gold Leaf Team Lotus”: motorsport has been a rather colorful sport. Today we are well used to seeing racing cars painted in the colors of all manner of various products. Looking back over the years there have been some bad paint jobs on the cars, but there have also been some good ones. Then there are the ones that really stand out. One such livery is the Martini colors worn by Lancia in the World Rally Championship
[Read more…] about Lancia 037 and S4

Our Features This Week, January 7th, 2014

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News Briefs and Hot Items

Incredible Barn Finds to first three Premium Subscribers!

Special Offer: A free copy (including shipping) of “Incredible Barn Finds” by Wallace Wyss to the first three NEW Premiums Subscribers to VeloceToday. Just sign up for a year and we’ll contact you if you are among the first three for your mailing address. Click here to get started!.

Wallace Wyss and others including Porsche expert Randy Leffingwell would like to know if anyone has any idea of what happened to the Bertone Porsche as seen in Randy’s photo. We’ll have a story on the car shortly but it would be nice to see if we could establish its current whereabouts first.

Coming up: Jonathan Sharp takes us on a tour of the Fiat Lingotto facility and the new museum. The Museum is an incredible visual feast and serves as a homage to the greatest cars of the 20th century; from Marlene to Moss and the cars they drove. Don’t miss Jonathan’s latest adventure.

For the New Year, a new banner, buttons and font size. Sharp’s image from Lingotto now graces our banner head; be sure to take note of our new buttons and shop at our store; notice the larger font size now used for our articles. We hope you approve of all!



Our Features This Week

Fiat 508 Balilla Mille Miglia Berlinetta

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The neatest, prettiest, most Italianate small displacement pre-war coupe ever made.

In one sense, the paltry 998 cc 36 hp Fiat Balilla Mille Miglia Berlinetta Coupe is much ado about very little. In another sense, it is the quintessential example of prewar Italian design in miniature and very nearly takes your breath away. And the name is no auction house hype; Mille Miglia Berlinetta it was from the day it rolled out of the factory in 1935.

If looks aren’t enough, consider that the ultra-rare MM Berlinetta may be one of the first true Grand Touring cars ever conceived, and most certainly one of the first small displacement GT cars ever built.
[Read more…] about Fiat 508 Balilla Mille Miglia Berlinetta

Epoqu’Auto in Lyon, 2013

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Story and Photos by Thomas Bromehead

Next month everyone will be headed to Paris for Retromobile, France’s largest classic car show. But last November 8-10, 50,000 people attended France’s second largest event, Epoqu’ Auto. No newcomer, the event celebrated its 35th anniversary and now boasts more exhibitors than even the fabled Retro. [Read more…] about Epoqu’Auto in Lyon, 2013

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