VeloceToday.com

The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

A Car Life, by Larry Crane

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ferrari Crane negotiates Turn 9 (now Turn 11) with Arutunoff and the Cooper closing for the exit pass. The 166 would choke at the exit.

Last week Larry left us off at the very edge of Riverside Raceway. He continues below.

IGNITION: Fuel

The Ferrari Owners Club let me in even though our Ferrari didn’t survive the move for long. It transformed into a Mini 1275 S Mk II and an Alfa Giulietta Sprint Veloce. The Ferrari crowd became my California family. Some continue to be, 40 years later. A much-read library and developing track skills were my tickets in. [Read more…] about A Car Life, by Larry Crane

Just a Couple of Ghia-Aigles

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ferraris The Ghia Aigle, S/N 0137 E. Photo courtesy Warren de France.

Last week in Larry Crane wrote of an early 195 Ferrari Ghia-Aigle, “It was a pretty, little car built by Ghia-Aigle in Switzerland,” he recalled.

We ran a photo of the Ferrari Ghia-Aigle, one I had found in the parking lot at the Monterey Historics in 2002. Both Larry and I thought it to be the same car, but a day or so later came an email from the current owner, Warren de France, along with a complete history and nice photos, some of which we are reprinting below. [Read more…] about Just a Couple of Ghia-Aigles

A Car Life, with Larry Crane

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crane The rare Ghia-Aigle coupe Crane just missed buying for $1500.

Allow us to introduce someone who needs no introduction. His resume consists of positions with an all-star cast of motoring journals: Editor and designer, “Auto Aficionado;” Art Director, “Automobile Magazine;” Associate Art Director, “Road & Track;” Founder and Editor, “Vintage Racer” and Art Director, “Motor Trend.”

We are proud to add Larry Crane to the staff of VeloceToday. Below, his first column, in which he lights the fire of a long-burning enthusiasm.

IGNITION: Making sparks

Ideal Toy Company made my first cars. Our vacant lot wore out the plastic wheels pretty fast (first lesson about going sideways) and they segued into wood cars I made with a bandsaw and Elmers glue. A $5 bicycle restoration and a paper route put me on the road. [Read more…] about A Car Life, with Larry Crane

French Dressing

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french design
Photo by Brandy Elitch.

When Terry Cook was the Editor of HOT ROD in the early 1970s, he had always been more passionate about how cars look than how fast they can accelerate, brake or go around corners. To Cook, styling was everything. He became interested in the French and German coachbuilders who, during the 1930s and 1940s pushed the envelope with bold, fresh, risky styling. [Read more…] about French Dressing

Alfa Romeo 177-001: All-Italian Alfa F1

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alfa 177 Vittorio Brambilla Monza in 1979 with the all-Italian Alfa Romeo 177. Archive photography by Automobilismo Storico Alfa Romeo Centro Documentazione (Arese, Milano).

Story by Roberto Motta

Even though many people have not heard of it, the Alfa Romeo 177 is one of the most important cars in the long racing history of Alfa Romeo.
[Read more…] about Alfa Romeo 177-001: All-Italian Alfa F1

Italians at the Schlumpf

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schlumpf 1936 Alfa 2.9A Coupe, S/N 412004 began life with a ‘botticello’ body (meaning cask or barrel-like), and won the 1936 Mille Miglia. In 1939 it was rebodied as a striking convertible by Pininfarina, and after the war converted into a coupe by a coachbuilder named Martin.

Photos by Lorenzo Marchesini
Text and captions by Staff

With the little Fiat 500L, our Editor at Large Lorenzo Marchesini traveled to the The Schlumpf Collection at the National Motor Museum. (Read Introduction to the Schlumpf) With the permission of Director Monsieur Emmanuel Bacquet, Marchesini wandered the museum and took enough photos for us to separate the visit into Italian, French and Bugattis at the Schlumpf. Here is a tiny portion of the Italian cars at the Museum. We encourage you to visit and see the rest.
[Read more…] about Italians at the Schlumpf

Barnyard Bugatti Well Known by Collectors

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red flag A T57S at the Schlumpf Collection in France, similar to the Bugatti found in Newcastle. Note the low cut grille and the low profile of the car itself, made possible by a redesigned frame. Photo by Lorenzo Marchesini.

The full story of the Newcastle Bugatti

By Pete Vack and Staff

We first heard of the latest barnyard Bugatti on January 1st, in a blurb published by the newspaper website Telegraph co.uk. [Read more…] about Barnyard Bugatti Well Known by Collectors

A Case for Classics in China

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red flag

Interview with Don Williams of the Blackhawk Collection

VT: Perhaps you can address some of our reader’s comments from last week. One reader stated that a collector car has to have something unique, style, power, handling, innovative design and implied the Red Flag did not meet those standards.
DW: How much more unique can you be than to have the first Red Flag exchanged in the United States with China, one of the first cars built by China, and the car which exemplifies the start of cultural sharing and automotive exchange between the United States and China if not the world.
[Read more…] about A Case for Classics in China

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