VeloceToday.com

The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

VeloceToday for December 9, 2014

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This week, a very special edition of VeloceToday featuring the Alfa Giulietta Sprint. We previously published Part 1 of Graham Earl’s Mille Miglia adventures but now present all three parts in one edition. Graham’s writing is superb, and he shares his experiences and many trials with a tremendous sense of humor and honesty. In addition to that, fellow Brit Nicholas Lancaster gives us a brief history of the Sprint Veloce. Please enjoy!


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Limited Edition, numbered Stanguellini prints available now from Graham Gauld. Email directly for prices and shipping; several numbered copies of the below art still available. Shipping location is Southern France. Click on photo to see all selections.
Contact:Grahamgauld@Gmail.com

FINE ART T-Shirts
Classic car portraitist offering fine art tees of his favorite paintings. All have caption pertaining to art services. Available now, L,S,2XL, and M.Other sizes require two weeks wait. $50 each.

CONTACT Photojournalistpro@gmail.com

Rent a Race Car to drive in the 2015 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.

All five of Burt Levy's fantastic racing novels now available as eBooks. Clic pic for more.

There are few good books on the Fiat Dino available. Now, Mike Morris’s great book on the Fiat Dino, “Ferrari by Another Name” is offered for sale. Like new condition, perfect dust jacket, a classic on a classic. Asking $300 USD plus shipping. Buy now to beat the XMAS postal rush.
Contact Will Grant,willgrant@yahoo.co.uk

*$25 Ads for anyone who has something to sell, to giveaway, or to holler about. Ad will be placed above the fold and run for one month. Contact vack@cox.net .

Entering and Preparing for the Mille Miglia

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La Mille Miglia, Part 1 UK to Brescia

A longtime contributor to VeloceToday, Graham Earl entered this year’s Mille Miglia with one of our favorite cars, an Alfa Giulietta Sprint. Earl is a veteran of three Mille Miglias, and in no respect a novice. This three part article is an absolute must-read and like the Alfa and the Mille Miglia, itself a classic. Remember Henry Manney’s account for Road & Track? This one is better! Ever wanted to run the Mille Miglia? Read it! Owned an Alfa? Delight in it! Earl writes the truth while composing one of the most maddeningly humorous and interesting series of articles to appear in VeloceToday. Ever. We’ll also make it available as a pdf so you can read it at your leisure. Ed.

Story by Graham Earl
Photos by author and Hugues Vanhoolandt

Read Part 2
Read Part 3

Before its demise in 1957, the Mille Miglia had been one of the most important rounds of the world championship for sports cars, and became the happy hunting ground for Alfa Romeo and Ferrari, with 11 and eight wins respectively, out of the 24 events run. Other manufacturers also took it very seriously, with works entries from Porsche, Maserati, Lancia (winner in 1954), Jaguar, Bentley and BMW (who won the event in 1940) to name just a few. The first race, in 1927 was won, appropriately enough, by local brand O.M. (

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Driving in the Mille Miglia

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La Mille Miglia, Part 2 Brescia to Rome

Story by Graham Earl
Photography by
Hugues Vanhoolandt
© 2014 Rene’ collection Cars Official Photographer 1000 miglia
© 2014 Giorgio Borgonovo – Ag. Archimede

The day the transporter came the rear lights went out. The new wiring loom which I had had fitted sometime earlier had lost a couple of the crimped-on terminals, so a quick work-around with crimping pliers was necessary. I gladly loaded the car onto the transporter before I could find anything else wrong.

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Finishing the Mille Miglia

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La Mille Miglia, Part 3 Rome to Brescia

By Graham Earl
Photography by
Hugues Vanhoolandt
© 2014 Rene’ collection Cars Official Photographer 1000 miglia
© 2014 Giorgio Borgonovo – Ag. Archimede

When we arrived in Rome, we were marshaled into a car park, from where we were led in convoy by a Police escort to our hotel on the far side of the city. This was another 3.30am arrival, met with chaos and confusion while the hotel staff attempted to place all the crews in the correct rooms. By now tempers were frayed and the odd altercation broke out between staff and competitors. We had covered half of the route, driving in very difficult conditions for very long periods and we were all very tired, so it’s no surprise that some people were not in the best of spirits when told they were in the wrong hotel.

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A Brief History of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce

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Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce Bertone

Story by Nicholas Lancaster
Photos by Paul Gregory
Historic photo courtesy Automobili Storico Alfa Romeo

Shortly after the introduction of the totally new Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint in 1954, the directors at Portello took the decision to develop the Sprint as a competition car. It was certainly a good place to start. The basic Giulietta Sprint had been designed by the same technicians responsible for the racing program, and it showed. [Read more…] about A Brief History of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce

VeloceToday for December 2, 2014

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FINE ART T-Shirts
Classic car portraitist offering fine art tee shirts of his favorite paintings. All have caption pertaining to art services. Available now,in L,S,2XL, and M.
Other sizes require two weeks wait. $50 each.
Order now in time for XMAS.
CONTACT Photojournalistpro@gmail.com

There are few good books on the Fiat Dino available. Now, Mike Morris’s great book on the Fiat Dino, “Ferrari by Another Name” is offered for sale. Like new condition, perfect dust jacket, a classic on a classic. Asking $300 USD plus shipping. Buy now to beat the XMAS postal rush.
Contact Will Grant,willgrant@yahoo.co.uk

Rent a Race Car to drive in the 2015 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.

All five of Burt Levy's fantastic racing novels now available as eBooks. Clic pic for more.

*$25 Ads for anyone who has something to sell, to giveaway, or to holler about. Ad will be placed above the fold and run for one month. Contact vack@cox.net .

NEC Classic Show, Birmingham, UK

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Bugatti T51

Bugatti T51. Mechanical artistry is evident in this Bugatti T51 engine courtesy of Ivan Dutton

This year’s Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show was held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, U.K., from November 14-16. It is fast becoming one of the UK’s best classic car venues; VeloceToday has reported on it for three years running now. [Read more…] about NEC Classic Show, Birmingham, UK

Gauld: Diamond Earrings and Rusty Camaros

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Victor Powell, the owner of Volusia Speedway, with young up and coming Steve Shuman who was a race winner that night.


By Graham Gauld

There are times when I sit back and wonder what motor racing is all about. Is it really multi million pound deals and diamond ear-rings? To me, motor racing is basically a bunch of like-minded lads racing against each other with their cars. What level you choose to race in really doesn’t matter; it is the fun and spirit of taking part and challenging each other that matters.

By pure chance I was filing some negatives from the early 1980s and came across some that I took at one of the most unlikely and fascinating race meetings I have ever attended. [Read more…] about Gauld: Diamond Earrings and Rusty Camaros

Recreating the Past: The Lancia D50

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Life is Beautiful, Ed at Lugagno enjoying every second. Credit: photoagencyRene

This article originally appeared in VeloceToday on August 13, 2002.

By Ed McDonough

There are cars and there are cars.

I like to work on my personal list of the greatest/most desirable racing machines of all time, and then check off the ones I’ve driven. The list is at 72 out of a possible 100 and I have managed 20 so far, lucky person that I am—Ferrari 268SP, GTO, Jaguar C-Type—all with significant history.
The Lancia D50 would have been on the list, naturally, though I knew some time ago that it would never be driven. The two surviving machines reside quietly in the Lancia and Biscaretti Museums in Turin, and never run. However, I was towed around in one of them at the end of a rope, but that hardly counts. [Read more…] about Recreating the Past: The Lancia D50

A Talk with Auto Italia’s Phil Ward

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An interview with Phil Ward. owner and Editor of Auto Italia magazine

By Pete Vack
All photos courtesy Auto Italia
For orders and all general questions email: josie@gingerbeerpromotions.com

Latest issue of Auto Italia

Phil Ward has a been promoting his passion for Italian cars since the early 1990s, creating Auto Italia, the best Italian car magazine on the market. He is also the author of Great Small Fiats, published by Veloce Publishing in the U.K. [Read more…] about A Talk with Auto Italia’s Phil Ward

VeloceToday for November 25, 2014

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Win a Fiat 500 Abarth Turbo AND a trip to Italy! This year’s IMRRC Raffle Tickets are $40 for one, 3 for $100. Call (607) 535-9044 now to purchase. The annual car raffle is the Racing Research Center’s major fund-raiser!

There are few good books on the Fiat Dino available. Now, Mike Morris’s great book on the Fiat Dino, “Ferrari by Another Name” is offered for sale. Like new condition, perfect dust jacket, a classic on a classic. Asking $300 USD plus shipping. Buy now to beat the XMAS postal rush.
Contact Will Grant,willgrant@yahoo.co.uk

Rent a Race Car to drive in the 2015 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.

All five of Burt Levy's fantastic racing novels now available as eBooks. Clic pic for more.

*$25 Ads for anyone who has something to sell, to giveaway, or to holler about. Ad will be placed above the fold and run for one month. Contact vack@cox.net .

Gijsbert-Paul Berk Remembers: To Paris With Portfolio

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I was great a fan of Bugattis. This was one of the reasons why I designed this Coupé de Ville body for a Type 57 chassis. Of course I was inspired by the prewar designs of Jean Bugatti but tried to give the car a more modern appearance. I used the horse- shoe symbol not only as a fake radiator for the cooling intake but also as headlight covers. I did send a photocopy of these drawings to Monsieur Pierre Marco, then the Managing Director of Bugatti. However I never got a reply. Note that the headlight arrangement bore a striking resemblance to the last Saoutchik to be produced, the Pegaso SIII. Ed.

By Gijsbert-Paul Berk
Photos and drawings courtesy Author unless otherwise noted

Read Part 1

Off to Paris with Portfolio

As related in Part 1, I wanted to work as am automotive designer, and became very interested in Bugattis. In fact I had the chance to restore such a car. In 1949 one of my friends discovered in the port of Rotterdam a Bugatti type 40 roadster with a Bordino type or boat tail factory body.

The car was used there as a tractor to move freight cars and in a deplorable state. But we bought it and together restored it. A 1928 four-cylinder Chevrolet machine of just over 2 liters had replaced the original 1500 cc engine. Because it functioned very well in the car and we could not find nor afford a comparable Bugatti unit we retained it. But the chassis and body were renewed bolt for bolt. It took us several months.

This did nothing to diminish my desire to become an automotive designer. Having had no luck with local coachbuilders in the Netherlands, I was at a loss until a friend of the family remembered that he knew John (Johan) Sijthoff, scion of a printing and publishing family and – more important in my case – a shareholder and director with Carrosserie Saoutchik in Paris. He organized an introduction for me. [Read more…] about Gijsbert-Paul Berk Remembers: To Paris With Portfolio

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