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Made in Faenza: A Visit to Minardi Part 1

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The Minardi Facotory in Faenza, Italy

By Clyde P. Berryman
Photos by Gulay Berryman

In 2000, we visited the factory of the smallest racing team in Formula One in search of clues to its rugged survivability at the pinnacle of motor sport.

Having fought for an hour to escape from the traffic snarl surrounding Milan that morning, it had been pedal to the metal for the last couple hours to try and stay on pace for an 11 o’clock appointment. [Read more…] about Made in Faenza: A Visit to Minardi Part 1

Remembering the Citroën SM on its 50th

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This year at Retromobile, Hugues Vanhoolandt photographed a rare example of the SM on display. Heuliez, a coachbuilder, produced two examples of the SM “Espace,” which is a pillarless targa top convertible. The rear quarter windows do retract into the bodywork, unlike the SM.

By Brandes Elitch
All photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt unless otherwise marked.

“That the car was a moonshot didn’t concern our judges. Rather it invigorated them. Viewed in the perspective of the last 21 years, the SM fits more precisely in the spirit of the COTY, maybe better, than anything else being made in the world today.”

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Dr. Raymond Boniface and His Car Shows

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Dr. Ray Boniface in 2013. Photo by Carl Goodwin.

It is with a heavy heart that I inform fellow Alfisti of the passing of my father Raymond S Boniface. He will be sorely missed by all who had the pleasure of his company. His passion for life was felt by all who knew him. Although his health prevented him from enjoying his passion for driving cars, he continued to read, discuss and ruminate about his love of Italian cars right to the end.-James Boniface, March 2020

Below is a article from the archives about the Boniface Picnic, written in 2010 by Carl Goodwin. It provides a good background to the car shows Mr. Boniface organized every year. [Read more…] about Dr. Raymond Boniface and His Car Shows

Donald E. Toms, Bugatti Bookseller

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The Bugattis of Jean DeDobbeleer and Bugatti Memories can be ordered for only $85 via Donald E. Toms (inset).

By Pete Vack

Sometime last year I determined that we needed to add more books on Bugatti to our library, and went looking for a book called Bugatti Memories by Gene Cesari, a reference I found in the latest ABC Register. It entailed a search on the Internet, and that was how I eventually stumbled onto one Donald E. Toms, in Florida, who handled the Cesari book. An email address was listed as don@bugattibooks.com and soon we were in touch.

Now, don’t figure that since his email is attached to bugattibooks.com, that there really is a bugattibooks.com website. There isn’t. Don does not have a site. And yet Don believes he “…can furnish a greater variety of Bugatti titles than any other bookseller in the world.” Except maybe Amazon.

Take that, Jeff Bezos! [Read more…] about Donald E. Toms, Bugatti Bookseller

Albert Uderzo, Artist and Ferrari Enthusiast

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Albert Uderzo with his Ferrari 512M at Mas du Clos in the 1990s.

Story by Graham Gauld

Sixty years ago last December, the French became fascinated by a comic strip feature whose hero was Asterix the Gaul.

The comic strip was the work of René Goscinny, who came up with the story line, and Albert Uderzo, who was the artist who sketched out the great characters. This cartoon series was about a group of ancient French from the area of Gaul who were constantly fighting against the Romans. who had occupied France. But it was not just for kids.

Goscinny added contemporary political incidents of the 1960s into the narrative, so that adults were also attracted to the political satire. Two years later the first of their hard cover books hit the market and have been an annual best seller. The stories and books kept coming along, earning both a great deal of money.

So what has this got to do with cars?

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Seven Glorious Gordinis

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By Pete Vack
Photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

From the VeloceToday Archives, April 18, 2013

Thanks to our man Hugues Vanhoolandt, we are able to present these Gordini photos, listed by chassis number, for this article. They were taken at a variety of events from 2008 to 2013. And, thanks to VeloceToday contributor and author Roy Smith for his book Amédée Gordini, a True Racing Legend.

Before VeloceToday contributor Roy Smith wrote his comprehensive book on Gordini, the only source of in-depth information about the cars was Christian Huet’s amazing book, on the subject. Published in 1984 in French, Huet traced the history of Gordini, plus all known cars.

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Jonathan Sharp: Alfas at Retromobile

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Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

A visit to the Lukas Hüni AG stand at Retromobile is one of the top highlights in a show full of many highlights. In 2017 the stand featured treasures from the Bentley and Bugatti. In 2018 it was the Ferrari 250 series, Last year it was Lancia, with an amazing multi colored line up of Stratos. As 2020 is the 110th birthday of Alfa Romeo it was not surprising that they were the chosen marque, and boy what a line up it was, as you can see from the following shots. [Read more…] about Jonathan Sharp: Alfas at Retromobile

Retromobile Tatra Exhibition

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Story and photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

We begin with a wonderful story from the superb collection of Tatras at Retromobile.

In 1947, two young Czech adventurers, Jiri Hanzelka and Miroslav Zikmund, had a plan to see the world and report their findings to the world through films, radio, and books. They approached Tatra with the idea. Impressed by the plan and the opportunity to promote its vehicles, Tatra provided the team with the Tatra Type 87 seen above. They didn’t just hand over the keys however. Hanzelka and Zikmund had three months of experience with the car at the Tatra factory in Koprivnice before embarking upon a continuous three-and-a-half-year voyage through Africa and Latin America, covering 44 countries and 111,000 kilometers. Along the way, they made films, wrote articles, and they even had a broadcast on the Czech radios as they traveled by Tatra to see the world. Truly happy campers! But while they were away, the Communists, with the support of Stalin, took control of Czechoslovakia, beginning one of the bleakest eras of the country’s history. [Read more…] about Retromobile Tatra Exhibition

Roy’s 200 hp Abarth

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Roy’s little but not so slow Abarth 595.

Story and photos by Roy Smith

Take one Abarth Competizione 595, add to it an Ascari engine tune up kit and you get one ferocious Scorpion. 200+ BHP on a standard 1368 cc Abarth engine means improved torque, fast pick up, and great flexibility through the power range.

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Sharp at Retromobile, February 5-9, 2020

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Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

How best to sum up Retromobile (February 5-9) in a few words; variety, rarity and quality! This year it was perhaps a little bit crowded at times and halls two and three could do with a renovation. But according to the press release from the organizers, 620 exhibitors exhibited, 1100 vehicles were on display over an area of 75,000 square meters, and 122,000 people attended over the five days of the show. Imagine what it would be like if it were to be held in summer! [Read more…] about Sharp at Retromobile, February 5-9, 2020

Siata Daina, Gran Sport and Assorted Others

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Daina, Diana, Gran Sport or none of the above?

Story by staff, and color photos by Gianni Petta

Gianni Petta, known for his wonderful Targa Florio dioramas, sent along a series of photos of a variety of Siatas, all taken in Italy, at the Targa Florio or the Mille Miglia vintage avents in the past few years. This prompted us to recall a very thorough road test of the Siata Gran Sport conducted by a rare early sports car magazine, which we quote from below. And why was it called a Gran Sport and Daina at the same time? [Read more…] about Siata Daina, Gran Sport and Assorted Others

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