The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts
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To access a Premium article, you must sign up to our Premium Service. However, we also offer several great in depth articles that are Freemium (Free to everyone), as examples of what you’ll get with our Premium Service.
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*Alfa Berlina Series
*OSCA 1600GT Series
*Giovanni Savonuzzi Series
Proceeds of Watkins Glen F1 book to benefit IMRRC
Award-winning historian Michael Argetsinger’s latest book, “Formula One at Watkins Glen: 20 Years of the United States Grand Prix, 1961-1980”, is a special limited edition book and advance orders are now being taken at only $49.95 each. It’s a great price for this book with over 250 color and B&W images. But even more important, Michael and his publisher, David Bull, are donating ALL the proceeds from the sale of the book to the International Motor Racing and Research Center in Watkins Glen.
Orders can be telephoned to the Center at (607) 535-9044 and ask for Jon McKnight.
Enter Raffle and win copy of McQueen’s Machines!
Again this year the IMRRC is offering car for raffle, this year a 1967 Mustang Steve McQueen “Bullitt” replica valued at over $72,000. Tickets are $60 each or two for $100 and can be purchased by calling Jon McKnight at (607) 535-9044.
To help kick this off, the first VeloceToday reader to purchase four raffle tickets will win a copy of Matt Stone’s book McQueen’s Machines: The Cars and Bikes of a Hollywood Icon.
Be sure to tell Jon that you read about the raffle in VeloceToday. To participate, you MUST call Jon and order directly through him. Be sure to provide your complete mailing address.
The IMRRC is undoubtedly one of the most complete automotive libraries in the United States and also the most accessible and user friendly. We at VeloceToday have already put an order in for the new Formula One book and purchased raffle tickets. We urge you to support the IMRRC by doing the same.
For more information:
The International Motor Racing Research Center at Watkins Glen
610 S. Decatur Street
Watkins Glen, NY 14891-1613
Call: (607) 535-9044
Fax: (607) 535-9039
Raffle Mustang can be seen here: http://www.racingarchives.org/raffle.htm
Hours of Operation: 9 am – 5 pm Monday through Saturday
Below, some articles you may enjoy reading.
Doing Villa d’Este
Some guys just dream, other guys dream and do. Oliver Collins is one of the latter. But better yet, he not only lives his dream but comes back and is glad to tell the world (via VeloceToday) what and how he became a contestant in the Concorso d’Eleganza at Villa d’Este.
Click here
Etceterini Books
What is surprising is that there are so many books about Etceterinis. While most books on the subject are in Italian, increasingly, more are being printed in both English and Italian. This article lists many of the books available on or about small displacement Italian cars.
Click here
This week we have a real gem: the Paul Farago story as written by Eric Davison. Plus we catch up on some of the events of May via the striking photography of Hugues Vanhoolandt.
Watkins Glen, 1949. Paul Farago parades his Farago Fiat in streets. Color photo by Eric Davison.
By Eric Davison
The entry list of racing cars for the 1948-1950 events at Watkins Glen was a mixed lot and most were cars produced before WW2. One of the few new cars and arguably one of the most attractive was the Farago Fiat.
Paul Farago was an Italian from Calabria, Italy who immigrated to Detroit with his family in 1930. Paul’s father operated a bus line and Paul was a skilled mechanic by the time the family arrived in Detroit. He quickly established himself as an expert on foreign car repairs as well as a race car driver on local Michigan dirt tracks.
When WW2 broke out Farago served in the Army Air Corps. When the war ended he established Farago Auto Service at 18725 John R. Street between Detroit’s Six and Seven Mile Roads. His business flourished as the private garages of Detroit and its suburbs spilled out all the wonderful cars that had been put on blocks for ‘the duration.’
Farago was also a charter member of the Detroit Region of the Sports Car Club of America. The Region had been formed when Bill Woods and his brother Jack placed a classified ad in a Detroit newspaper. The Woods brothers were sports car enthusiasts and were the owners of Woods’ Motors on Detroit’s east side. They sold MGs, Hillmans and other miscellaneous imports. [Read more…] about The Paul Farago Story
Ferraris on the Big Screen?
It could happen, but they may have to share track space with Fords…
By Wallace Wyss
According to a story disseminated by Reuters last week, director Michael Mann is in talks with 20th Century Fox to develop and potentially direct “Go Like Hell,” the real-life story of the famous competition between the Ford Motor Co. and Ferrari that led to Ford winning the Le Mans in 1967. (Ironically the Reuters reporter must have forgotten that Ford first won in 1966.)
The Reuters story says that Ford ” was the first American car maker to win the world’s oldest car race, held annually in France. For years, Ferrari had dominated the contest.”
20th Century Fox plans to base their film on A.J. Baime’s (a Playboy editor) book of the same name, which they describe as the story of when “a young Henry Ford II — determined to infuse new life into his family’s company — decided to get into the European racing scene. With the help of racer Carroll Shelby and Lee Iacocca, Ford built and designed a car that could take on Ferrari cars, known for their speed and style. They ultimately won the Le Mans.”
In actuality, Ford pretty much designed the GT40 without Shelby’s help and ran their first season in endurance racing–1964–without his help but in the winter of ’64 sent the Ford GTs to Shelby to sort out since they had failed so miserably in ’64.
The Reuters story says “Insiders say the initial idea was for Mann to develop the script.” Various stories in the last few days say a script already exists, penned by Jason Keller. He has sold several scripts and is also developing “The Devil’s Throat” with Josh Brolin attached to star, as well as being in pre-production on “Snow White.” Coincidentally Brolin has been reported in being interested in the film, as well as Brad Pitt, though no stars are attached as yet.
Mann is a great friend of Ferrari. He, of course, is famous for featuring the Daytona Spyder in the pilot of the TV show Miami Vice though in the TV series itself it was a replica, later replaced by a Ferrari Testarossa replica. In the later feature film of Miami Vice, he features a Ferrari 430 Spyder. In 2009, Mann produced and directed a 3-minute promotional film on the new Ferrari California Spyder which was played at the American preview in Santa Monica to a Ferrari-owning crowd of invitees. Mann also once displayed his own modern Ferrari 599 GTO at a concours at the Art Center College of Design.
Wallace Wyss, a prolific non-fiction book author, has just signed with an agent to promote his unpublished suspense thriller set in the world of Ferraris.”
[Ed.]
Welcome to VeloceToday! Please scroll down to read: Rally Sardinia in Italian and English, The OSCA GT S/N 0094, Broadway Bugattis, and F1 in Turkey.
Morry Barmak sent us a brief description of a sign he just acquired that may be of interest to our readers. It’s pricey, but certainly caught our attention! If you are interested, drop us a line at pete@velocetoday.com.
Has anyone seen this car? This car was built by Andy Schwartz in the early 2000s. At the time he was an engineer with the Ford racing group but is currently not working there. He built this car in his home workshop from his own design using basically stock Cosworth Vega engine. We have not been able to locate Mr. Schwartz or the car. Can you help? Email pete@velocetoday.com.
We received an email from Bill Miller, who happened to purchase some items from the estate of the late John Bentley, who passed away on 10/26/98. Email pete@velocetoday if you are interested in purchasing these rare items. Omega watch engraved on the back as follows: 12 Hours Of Sebring 1st place Index of Performance 3/26/60. Helmet and software, SCCA driver’s license.
Childe Freeman's OSCA 1600GT Zagato of the double bubble variety, S/N 0094.
By Antony Childe-Freeman and Mark R. Brinker
You’ve already read about the exploits of the OSCA 1600GT at Le Mans. Here’s a bit more history of the car itself, with a focus on another ex racer, S/N 0094.
The OSCA 1600 GT Zagato is perhaps one of the most underappreciated and misunderstood GT cars of the post war era. Signaling a close to the Maserati brothers dynasty and remaining in the shadow of the legendary OSCA MT-4 (overall winner at Sebring in 1954), the 1600 GT emerged with a very different goal in mind; to produce an agile and stylish coupe. The results were an international success.
The OSCA 1600 GT Zagato prototype debuted at the 1960 Turin Auto Show. The car was tested by Ludovico Scarfiotti (Auto Italiana Sport, February 1, 1961), receiving rave reviews. The Maserati brothers knew they had a winner. OSCA 1600 GT Zagato production quickly commenced.
An All-New Tubular Chassis
The 1600 GT was built on a specially designed tubular OSCA chassis, not on a Fiat 1500 or 1600 unit as some authors have incorrectly described. The chassis for the 1600 GT was constructed at the OSCA factory with some components sub-contracted out. The wheelbase was 2250mm (88.5 inches), 50mm longer than the MT-4. The majority of cars were equipped with independent suspension front and rear, although a few cars had live axle rear suspension. The rear live axle, also known as the Ponte Rigido (PR), was a less expensive alternative, but also used on the Le Mans Experimental flat topped OSCA Zagato s/n 0036.
Alberto Luti in 0094 before the start of the Ascoli-Colle San Marco event.
It is hard to attract a crowd on Broadway. It takes something like a Bugatti Veyron, suitably roped off to get bystanders to notice. And that is what you need to wear, automotive wise, in NYC to get gawkers. Photo by Werner Pfister.
Story and photos by Werner Pfister
Not one but two Bugattis debuted on Broadway recently. A White Grand Sport and an all Blue Carbon Fiber Super Sport were displayed in front of the landmark Sardi’s Restaurant on West 44th Street in New York. It is most appropriate that the latest Bugattis had their coming out party at Sardi’s which is a Broadway institution after being located continuously for 90 years in the Theater District. [Read more…] about Bugattis On Broadway
Some articles you may enjoy….
Driving the RLSS Alfa
Being able to drive both the Alfa 8C 2300 and the much earlier Alfa RLSS meant that we were given the even rarer opportunity to drive the work of both Giuseppe Merosi and Vittorio Jano. We’ll tell you which was more fun and why.
Click here
Solving the Mystery of the Lancia Special
We were just beginning to think that the case of the Lancia Mystery car would go unsolved. It was probably a one off, and it was described as having mechanical components from a Lancia Aprilia, including the engine, transmission, and front end, connect by a ladder chassis.
Click here
Below are Roberto Motta’s sketch of Michele Alboreto in both English and Italian, Alboreto’s life in photos, Matra in both English and Mp3, and a dueling book review and aliens at Le Mans. They are all free. So scroll down and enjoy!
The Matra MS12 V12, 1970. Photo by Brandes Elitch. To listen to the Matra V12, click on the photo.
By Brandes Elitch with photos and music by John Sexton
Matra has a wonderful history of building successful racing cars, but it is a name unknown to most Americans. The French love acronyms: Matra stands for Engins Mechanique Aviation-Traction, SA. It is an old company, founded in 1941 by Marcel Chassagny. It was and is an aerospace company and arms manufacturer for the French government.
In 1964, with absolutely no automotive racing experience, Chassagny tapped one of his engineers, Jean-Luc Lagardere, also without any automotive background, to create a new enterprise to build race cars: Matra Sports. He assembled a team, one of which, Andre Legan, summoned his friend Bernard Boyer by saying, “Bernard, on est chez les fous; il faut venir!” This could be translated as, “Everyone here is crazy; you must get over here!” Lagardere announced at the outset that within a few years, they would win both LeMans and a Formula One Championship – no wonder they thought him mad! But when it was all over, Matra had won at F-1 (1969, including the Constructors and Driver’s F1 World Championship) and captured the Manufacturer’s World Championship (1973 and 1974), and won LeMans in 1972, 1973, and 1974.
Rene Bonnet began producing the Djet with a 1108cc Renault engine in the rear, fiberglas body and four wheel disc brakes, but Matra took ownership in 1964 and continued to produce the Djet.
We have made much ado about our Premium Service, Premium Subscriptions and Premium Articles. But what makes a Premium Article so different and actually–heavens forbid–worth paying for?
Let’s take this week’s offering, “French Survivor”, for example. It’s free—a Premium Freebie, as we want everyone to see what we are talking about. (we will continue to offer these “Freemiums” on occasion).
First, it is written with the support of the owner and a leading Delage historian, Daniel Cabart, combining both driving impressions, details and accurate historical accounts.
Second, it includes a history, rare factory drawings, specs and documents pertaining to the exact car.
Third, it includes rare historical photos of the car as purchased by the first owner as well as excellent contemporary images.
Fourth, it is well written and enjoyable to read: in this case the author was ably assisted by the owner and the historian.
Fifth, it is exclusive to VeloceToday. You will not find it anywhere else.
Sixth, Premium Articles are similar in scope and quality to those the editor and our authors submit to major automotive journals, which would in turn be sold via paid subscription or on the newsstand.
You’ll find that similar criteria apply to all of the Premium articles now available, which can be found on the Premium Service Page.
Scroll down with us as we take you from beater Ferraris to Delage survivors and some delicious Delage historic eye candy from “Delage, France’s Finest Car”.
By Pete Vack with comments and research by Daniel Cabart
(This great Delage has changed hands since this article was originally published in 2011)
The last time our readers heard much of Alex Vazeos was in an article about last year’s Ville d’Este, where he was the first entrant to brave the judges with an Etceterini, in this case the ex-Rafi Minasian Giaur. Seemingly bent on buying small Italian cars, Vazeos found others, including the purchase the editor’s old Abarth 750 Zagato to sit next to his Record Monza. Alex also owns the ex-Jack Reuter Bandini, an Abarth Simca 1300 Corsa and a very rare Moretti 1200 Grand Sport.