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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

Grand Prix of Singapore 2011

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Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg, Felipe Massa

By Erik Nielsen
Photos courtesy and copyright Ferrari Media

This weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix was more or less the end of the season. Sebastian Vettel has for all practical purposes clinched the title. Yes, there is a mathematical chance that Button could catch up, but it would involve the Brit winning every race and the German gaining no points. And quite possibly, requiring a particle to move faster than the speed of light. [Read more…] about Grand Prix of Singapore 2011

This Week, of Interest

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Mystery car no more.


Last week reader Bill Spear emailed a photo taken from Life magazine back in the 1950s. We don’t know when or where the photo was taken, but while Spear has always thought it neat, he had no idea what the car is, who built it, nada.

So of course he sent it to us. After doing a bit of searching, we could find nothing definite. It was time to call in the real experts. We turned to Dino Brunori, author of “Enrico Nardi, a Fast Life”, who replied:

The car is a Fiat 1100 body by Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro from Reggio Emilia, built in 1948. Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro was founded in 1946 by Franco Bertani, a gentleman driver italian champion in 1938 1100cc class, and Officine Reggiane in Reggio Emilia.

Officine Reggiane was a small factory that grow up during the war, manufacturing parts for airplanes, mainly wings and cockpits, and therefor had nothing to do at the end of the war.

The workforce was rescued by Bertani with the set up of Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro. The Ala d’Oro bodied most part of the first Stanguellini production cars and several sports models, plus artisans cars and trucks. This 1100 was originally fitted with an hard top very similar to an airplane cockpit (see picture). The design was an in-house work. The car still exist in the hands of an italian collector.

Our thanks to Bill Spear for the question and Dino Brunori for the answer!

Photo courtesy Dino Brunori.

Lynch on the First Ferrari GTO

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When Pebble Beach announces a special display, the enthusiast community immediately comes to life. No one who saw the six Bugatti Royales at Pebble Beach in 1985 will ever forget the spectacle. A class for Bugatti Type 57s with coachbuilt bodies in 2003 was extremely impressive, with a large entry and car histories on placards mounted on standards. (This article originally was published in September 2011.)

Ferraris also have had their days at Pebble. An exceptional turnout was guaranteed every ten years when Ferrari was the featured marque at the Monterey Historic Automobile Races and Pebble Beach added more classes for the products of Maranello. Hopefully, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion will continue this tradition. Other years have yielded some gems as well. In 2009, there were Pebble Beach classes for ten Ferrari 166 Barchettas and all four remaining 250 TR/59s. Last year, there were eight iterations of the 250 Short Wheelbase on the field.

A contemporary image of 3223 GT at the 1966 Daytona 24 Hour. This is the livery as it appeared at Pebble Beach this year.

This year provided one of the best, if not the best, Ferrari entry ever, and the highlight was a 50th Anniversary class for 250 GTOs. It had 21 cars aligned along the shoreline. Heading the line on the right was Bruce McCaw’s 250 Sperimentale, one of two SWBs used in developing the GTO. There were also two four-liter GTO variants with hopped up Super America engines. [Read more…] about Lynch on the First Ferrari GTO

Alfa 4C Appears at Frankfurt: In English and Italian

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Good retro-styled Alfa grille, front is pugnacious in the extreme. This is a short car and you can't scrunch together most of the design cues of a classic like the 8C into a shorter package and expect it to look good. Marco Tencone of Alfa styling should know better—Wallace Wyss.

By Roberto Motta
Caption critiques by Wallace Wyss

Photos: fiatautopress

At its world premiere last April in Geneva, the Alfa Romeo 4C was voted the “most beautiful concept car of the year” by readers of German magazine Auto Bild. Now, the Alfa Romeo 4C Concept is on display at the Frankfurt Motor Show now open from September 15 through 25.
[Read more…] about Alfa 4C Appears at Frankfurt: In English and Italian

Fairfield County Concours

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At the Fairfield County Concours, I spotted a fantastic ‘Barn Find’ 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux Coupe. The pre-auction estimate was $150,000-200,000. I knew that these were very desirable models even in such sad shape and I was not surprised to find out the next day that it sold for significantly over this estimate at $337,000!

Story and Photos by Werner Pfister

Fabulous weather, fantastic cars and a good cause underscored the Fairfield County Concours in Westport, Connecticut this past weekend. Since its humble beginning eight years ago in Westport’s Veterans Green on Main Street, this event has grown into a world class event at the expansive Fairfield County Hunt Club.
[Read more…] about Fairfield County Concours

This Week, of Interest

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Today:
*Brandes Elitch on the Alfa 1900SS Ghia
*Alessandro Gerelli takes us to the Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti
*Newcomer Al Axelrod highlights WWII planes and classic cars at Morgan Adams, Colorado
*Roberto Motta’s full report with images of the surprising Rally Australia
*Erik Nielsen is back with the Grand Prix of Italy

Coming up:
*Larry Crane reviews a Delahaye history
*Ed McDonough drives a very special Delahaye
*Karl Ludvigsen on his Talbot
*Michael T. Lynch on the GTO
*Roberto Motta and the Editor on the Abarth SP 1000
*Eric Davison’s Watkins Glen Memoirs

Brandes Elitch on the Alfa 1900 SS Ghia

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Eltich found this rare one off Ghia Alfa at Concorso. But does it have a twin? Photo by Petya Elitch.

By Brandes Elitch
Color photos by Petya Elitch

“The early fifties were a magical time for all Italian coachbuilding, one of those magical moments when, for no particular reason…a series of favorable conjunctures determine the success…of an entire category. These were the years in which the Italian bodywork line was born…Mario Boano participated in Italian coachbuilding’s moment of grace with the Lancia Aurelia B20 and the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint. A third model worth remembering is the 1953 Alfa Romeo 1900 C coupe. This is a model which is understandably influenced by Ghia’s contemporary work with the Chrysler stylists.”
From “Ghia, Catalog Raisonne, by Valerio Moretti, Automobilia, 1991, Milan

While not as famous as Pininfarina or Giugiaro, Ghia has an illustrious history, employing designers such as Michelotti, Frua, Savonuzzi, Boano, Exner, Tjaarda, Giugiaro, Sapino, and others. Most American collectors would be surprised to learn that the contract for the Lancia B20 was personally given to Ghia by Gianni Lancia, although it is one of the best known of Pinin Farina’s products. Likewise, they would be surprised to learn that Alfa Romeo gave Ghia stylists Boano and Scaglione the brief for the Giulietta, which was then produced by Bertone. There are a lot of surprises in the Ghia Catalog Raisonne. On page 148 is a picture of a 1954 Alfa Romeo 1900 C, a straight side view. In this view, there are a few seemingly contradictory design elements, but there is no question that it is a compelling design. And then it was my turn to be surprised, when I saw this same car, now a show quality restoration, likely better than new, on the field at the Concorso Italiano during the Monterey Historics.

Elitch ponders the Ghia's influence on the 1964 Mustang and wonders what would Bob Cumberford think? Photo by Petya Elitch.

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Morgan-Adams Concours 2011

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1963 330 America 2+2, Chuck and Janice Kirkpatrick at Morgan Adams.

CENTENNIAL COLORADO AIRPORT, August 27th

Text and Photos by Al Axelrod

A concours event at an airport? Didn’t we all complain when Concorso Italiano was held at the airport a few years ago? But when the planes are vintage WWII like the P51 and a B25 combined with a select group of excellent vintage cars and bikes, the airport setting becomes a plus rather than a liability. And that was the ambiance of the Morgan Adams Concours, held on August 27, 2011
[Read more…] about Morgan-Adams Concours 2011

Rally Australia 2011 in English and Italian

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Ford’s Hirvonen wins, Latvala 2nd, Loeb and Ogier commit hara-kiri.

By Roberto Motta

Photos courtesy of Citroën Communication, Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, Ford Motor Company, BMW Press, Rally Australia – Media

The tenth round of the World Rally Championship 2011  held in Australia proved to be an exceptional event, a rally full of twists and turns. The suprising results reawakened interest in what looked to be season dominated by Citroen.
[Read more…] about Rally Australia 2011 in English and Italian

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