Story and illustrations by Frederic Levaux
“Hello, I’m Frederic Levaux, and I am a car enthusiast with a registry addiction.” This is probably how my introduction should go if I ever attend an AA meeting. Like many of you I have bought and restored a few cars, but my problem, when I buy a car, is that I can’t help but trying to learn as much as possible about the car, the model, the brand… and if I do not find what I am looking I tend to build it myself.
Curing my OCD by Building Rare Car Registries
My passion for vintage cars began on the passenger side of friend’s classic Ferraris and enjoying every bit of it. When I bought my first Ferrari in 2011, I found myself spending countless hours on the www.barchetta.cc website, captivated by the ability to trace the racing history and ownership of certain Ferraris back to their factory-specs origins. This passion even led me to have my Ferrari Classiche-certified, retracing its storied past. I always loved car history, the official one and the anecdotes that goes with car ownership and transmission. But since my personal wealth would not allow me to enjoy Ferraris or Maseratis with historical records that can fill a book, I looked at more reasonable post war Italian cars (my domain) and discovered lovely little cars that we today classify as Fuoriserie and Etceterini. These cars were often overlooked and sometimes abandoned as they were deemed unworthy of restoration since their market value would be way below their restoration costs.
Some of the cars I owned were pretty well covered in terms of historical research. The Ferraris were easy because now all major brands dig into their archive to provide you with detailed archiving (at a cost). My Lancia Fulvia 1.3HF and my Autobianchi Stellina were not too complicated to trace back as there was already existing literature. And, more precisely, my long-time go-to bible, the unique and most precious “Italian Car Registry” of John de Boer. (John is still involved in my registry efforts and is a tremendous source of knowledge and wisdom on these cars).
However. the addiction really got underway with my Ghia 1500 GT. I loved this car but was not able to find a proper and trusted source of information on production figures, factory specs, original options, etc. Even the Centro Storico Fiat was unable to certify the rolling chassis they supplied to Ghia for coachbuilding. So I started doing it myself and contacted a few other owners I knew, asked them for pictures, restoration photos, tips and advices and from there started to build a small local database on my computer.
Creating the Registries
As it often does, one car leads to another one, so I made the acquisition of a 1958 Moretti 750 Moretti Tour du Monde Spider and a few years later a 1952 Siata 300BC, and both cars led me down the same path as the Ghia. I wanted to learn more, build a reference database and share it with other owners and enthusiasts. And at some point, being a little tech savvy, it dawned on me that the best way to grow my databases was to make them public, share them on the web to potentially have other owners register and share their information.
Building the Websites
Choosing to build websites instead of books was a deliberate decision. Registry books are outdated as soon as they are published, whereas a website allows for continuous updates as new discoveries happen. Additionally, I wanted the websites to be very visual, featuring beautiful recent pictures and classic historic photos. After all, browsing through nice pictures is much more engaging than scrolling through a dry list of chassis numbers.
The Process
Building these registries wasn’t easy. It required extensive research, contacting owners and clubs worldwide, and verifying data. For each car, I aim to gather as much information as possible, including the model, make, chassis and engine numbers as the minimum. When available, ownership and racing history are also documented, along with a maximum number of photos. Each entry is detailed, covering the car’s specifications, history, and current status. Photos, production records, and stories from owners add depth to each vehicle’s journey.
The technical work involved setting up a user-friendly platform, ensuring it could handle large amounts of data, and making it visually appealing and easy to navigate. This way, the registries are not just informative but also enjoyable to explore. And while I was at it , I opened Facebook and Instagram accounts for all websites. I am by no means a social media afficionado or expert but it is an amazing source of content to update my databases.
The numbers
As of today, the Ghia Registry lists 41 identified cars and 46 to be identified out of the 846 that Ghia claimed to have built.
The Moretti Registry has identified more than 133 cars with double that to still identify. As for the Siata 300 BC, it is relatively easy since we have only have 11 cars left to identify out of the 50 produced.
My definition of “identified” is that we have not only gathered a chassis number and the model info, but we also have a visual proof of existence of the car, either a photo or a scan of identification papers. This is where I differentiate from “factory-listing” registers, where you only see sequential lists of chassis numbers next to a list of specs. What I am interested in is what happened after they left the factory, where did they go? Who bought them? To do what? Were they transformed? Did they race? How do they look today? I find this much more interesting.
Free Access and Respect for Owner’s preferences
The registries are free to consult for everybody and will remain so forever. I rely on donations and the sale of merchandise to cover our technical costs and expenses, such as purchasing valuable pieces of information or photos for the registries. Furthermore, we always respect the owners’ choices regarding what we publish about their cars. We double-check with them to ensure they are comfortable with the information shared before it goes live.
My registries are really only tools for owners to research, compare and find help for the car they bought, I built them as an owner looking for information, not as a business venture.
Adding Market Value Information
In my quest to provide the most comprehensive information, I am also adding a market value section for all car models in the registries. This section aims to trace market prices, including auction and classified listed prices, for each model. This will provide enthusiasts and collectors with valuable insights into the current market trends and the potential value of these rare vehicles.
Visual 3D Re-creations
One of the unique aspects I wanted to bring to the registries was the ability to visualize the cars “as they were” at specific races or events. With the help of talented 3D artists, we are recreating almost all the race configurations of the Siata 300 BC that we have identified in photographs. This includes creating photo-realistic renderings of cars, such as their appearance during the Watkins Glen road races or Sebring or Torrey Pines. These detailed 3D models allow enthusiasts to experience the historical significance of these vehicles in a visually captivating way. Additionally, the 3D models help us create bespoke memorabilia for car owners, allowing them to cherish and share the evolution of their treasured automobiles. Hopefully, if these renders are successful, we will extend them to the other registries.
Challenges and Rewards
Creating these registries came with challenges. The rarity of Moretti and Siata cars means information is often scarce. Finding original documents, verifying vehicle authenticity, and ensuring data accuracy requires dedication and patience. It involves hours spent poring over old articles, tracking down elusive photographs, and meticulously documenting every detail. This kind of work isn’t for the adrenaline seeking enthusiast, more a library rat job, but the sense of accomplishment is unparalleled when you finally have 100% certainty of the traceability of a old photo or clipping.
The rewards : The Community
One of the best parts of creating these registries has been the community it has built. Enthusiasts of Ghia, Moretti and Siata now have a reference to feed their passion, exchange knowledge, and connect. The registries have become a go-to source of information for restoration tips, tech advice and discovering rare vehicles. Through this endeavor, I have had the privilege of meeting extraordinary people from all over the world. For example, we have identified Moretti cars everywhere from Bali in Indonesia to Pori in Finland!
The registries have also allowed me to meet and bring together great brand experts and car collectors who have made everything possible. For Moretti, I must mention Silvio Cibien, Karl Ludvigsen, and Mark Brinker; for Siata, Daniel Rapley, Tony Adriaensens, Joel Driskill and Mark Bean have been invaluable. Great researchers like Sandro Binelli (automotivemasterpieces.com), Cliff Reuter (etceterini.com) or Francesco Maurizi (Archivio Vetture Sport), great car collectors like Alex Vazeos, Howard Banaszak and so many others that will hopefully forgive me for not citing them. And of course John de Boer has been a cornerstone for everything.
The challenges: Unexpected Responsibilities
What started as a simple hobby has sometimes turned into a high-stakes responsibility. When you gather vast amounts of information and cross-reference it, you make significant discoveries. For example, identifying a specific chassis number’s participation in a famous historical race or uncovering duplicate chassis numbers. These are the kinds of revelations a car enthusiast might not be prepared to handle. The stakes are high, and many eyes are watching. Big auction houses are suddenly turning to you for validation as they found no other reliable source of information. Sometimes, your content gets reused as selling points. That’s why working closely with brand experts is essential to maintain accuracy and credibility. One of the pitfalls is to be too trusting of web sources, as mistakes and typos get very quickly copied and pasted on the web.
Also making this information available for free to all enthusiasts has ruffled the feathers of some peoples’ legitimate information businesses. I did encounter some resistance or even hostility from people that believe that information should remain hidden or only disclosed for a hefty price, but never from the owners themselves. I actually saw a gradual change in the attitude of car collectors over the years, probably linked to the increasing use of social media by an increasing number of them. In the beginning I was the one reaching out to beg owners to let me put some photos of their cars on the registry and they would accept if they remained anonymous. Now I mostly get contacted by new owners, willing to update the ownership publicly and add more flattering pictures of the car. Times they are changing.
The Future
Looking ahead, plans are in place to expand the registries, add interactive features, and improve the user experience. Providing more and higher quality content is a priority. For Siata, other models beyond the 300 BC will be included. For Moretti, Fiat-based models will soon be added. The registries are living documents that evolve with new discoveries, ensuring they remain current and comprehensive.
The vision for the registry platform is also a complete under-the-hood rebuilding to make the updating easier for the administrators. Our goal is for those registries to become vibrant platforms that other small brand owners could re-use for their cars. Collaborations with museums, participation in vintage car shows, and publishing articles and books are some ways to promote these incredible marques.
Richard Duncan says
How about the “Specials” built by talented people all across the US and the world?
I own two of these, one a H Mod Crosley powered Sports Racer known as the “Unicorn”. Built in San Francisco, CA. It raced at Pebble Beach as well as the first inaugural race at Laguna Seca.
The second is the 1965 USRRC / CanAm car known as the Leonheart Special designed, built and driven by Bill Leonheart in San Jose, CA. Using Chevy V8 engine and “home built” Hewland type transmission the car first entered the Elkhart Lake CanAm race at Road America. The car has been well documented by Pete Lyons in his writings over the years.
I restored the Leonheart Spl. over a 9 year period and it is still being Vintage raced by myself. It is a very competitive car considering it is period correct car with an early Gold Medallion designation by Steve Earle the “father” of true Vintage Car Racing at the Rolex Reunion in Monterey.
Jonathan Wright says
Thank you and congratulations for cementing the histories of these very interesting smaller Italian “brands”.
Italian cars are the most intriguing, from Maserati, Ferrari and Lamborghini, through Alfa Romeo, Lancia and Fiat in the “mid range” to those you feature, all technically and stylistically magnetic.
Forza!