The Hobby of Beverly Hills’ Joe Lubin Part 2
Story by Willem Oosthoek
It is doubtful that Alfieri would have made the commitment to Lubin for a larger Birdcage engine so quickly if he had not already been in the process of enlarging the 2-liter unit into the 3-liter range. As a result, Lubin received the first Tipo 61 ever built, the 2.9-liter chassis 2452.
Movie Review: Ford v Ferrari
Our intrepid reporter, having been invited to a sneak preview of Ford v Ferrari shown on November 6th, filed this review. The movie opens in a theater near you on November 15th.
By Wallace Wyss
Photos copyright Merrick Morton, 20th Century Fox
Movies about racing cost a lot of money to produce, and it is likely that the audience could end up just being hard core race car nuts watching it over and over. McQueen had his film Le Mans yanked away from him for going over budget; RUSH didn’t do that well, (I feel it’s partly because the driver’s faces were covered and you couldn’t read their expressions) and it seems that most racing movies seem to have a robot-like interaction between the characters. [Read more…] about Movie Review: Ford v Ferrari
London to Brighton Run, 2019
Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
What a difference a day makes. The weather on Saturday had been terrible, with gale force winds and torrential rain for most of the day. It did not bode well for the London to Brighton Veteran car run taking place the next day.
The Joys of Genevieve
From the VeloceToday Archives, November, 2015
By Pete Vack
Perhaps it is the lack of events and publicity that tends to keep the Veterans in the museums (ok, they are not very practical or streetable, but that applies to a lot of later cars as well). The ongoing successful Brighton run proves that enough people are interested to both participate and watch such events even in the usually cold early November dates. Without actually being there, another way to experience the excitement (of which there is plenty) of Veteran cars is to watch one of the best racing movies ever made, Genevieve. [Read more…] about The Joys of Genevieve
The Hobby of Beverly Hills’ Joe Lubin Part 1
Story by Willem Oosthoek
Today only a few surviving California motorracing enthusiasts seem to remember the name of Joe Lubin. Yet, Lubin’s activities were a major part of the West Coast sports car scene from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s. After all these years it is pertinent to go back in time and revisit his contributions to the sports.
Roger’s Models
One day Dale LaFollette sent me a photo of a King Alfonso Hispano Suiza model to illustrate one of our articles. This was no ordinary model; I was struck by the sheer beauty of the model, it’s construction, color, simplicity and lightness. La Follette told me it was built from scratch by a friend of his in the U.K., and that he had many such models. Please tell us more, we asked, and here is the story of Roger’s models.
Story and photos by Dale La Follette
In the early 1960s, slot car racing was about to sweep the country, and as a total car guy, it captured my imagination. I met a couple of people that had built a track in a garage, and I joined them in informal evening races. Great fun, but the cars that were available at the time were of poor quality, and did not allow close racing. It was evident that we would have to build our own cars, but the basics like gears, wheels and tires were not available in in the U.S.
Savonuzzi, the Designer, Part II: Ghia To Fiat
From the VeloceToday Archives, April, 2011
By Pete Vack
In Part I we described how Savonuzzi created the 202 Cisitalia, a new DOHC engine to power a new line of Cisitalia, designed a record-breaking motorboat and more. But his career had hardly begun. Part II takes him from Ghia to the exciting work with Chrysler Turbines to Fiat and retirement.
Going to Ghia
In 1953 Giovanni Savonuzzi went on to Ghia, which at the time was a hotbed of activity and anonymity. Chrysler was there; Boano had left and a series of freelancers were hired, including Michelotti and Frua. Everyone was doing something and individual accomplishments were somehow left behind, even Chrysler’s Virgil Exner’s. It wasn’t until David Burgess-Wise was doing research for his book on Ghia in the 1980s that it became clear that the famous Ghia Chryslers, in particular the gorgeous K models, were in fact Chrysler designs, handed to Ghia for their translation into metal. 1 It was, perhaps, the kind of environment Savonuzzi enjoyed, but it was not the place to polish his star. Ironically, he became more famous for his work at Ghia than for anything else, before or since.
Recent Comments From Our Readers
We realize that we get many interesting comments from readers which are posted to the article in question but then rarely seen, as the article and the comment section then go to the archives. Plus, we get many emails which are sent directly to the editor at vack@cox.net, but do not get posted under any particular article. Herein then, are some selected comments and emails that we recently received on a variety of subjects and articles.
The GTO and the Hole in the Donut
I have known Larry as a sculptor/artist for many years. To read about his experiences as a race car driver is always fascinating. This one is truly hilarious!
Well done, Larry!
Manijeh Badiozamani [Read more…] about Recent Comments From Our Readers
The GTO and the Hole in the Donut
Story by Larry Perkins
We were off to the races.
And I had piles. [Read more…] about The GTO and the Hole in the Donut
The Cars of Giovanni Savonuzzi
From the VeloceToday Archives, February 2011
A Photo Portfolio by Hugues Vanhoolandt.
Captions and text by Pete Vack
In gathering these photos for this article we were struck by the vast differences in style that emerged before us. Giovanni Savonuzzi played a seminal role in the creation of the Cisitalia 202, one of the world’s most beautiful cars, a much lauded landmark design that changed the face of the post war automobile. Yet less than a decade later, he would be criticized for the Wilke Ferrari 410 Superamerica, also called ‘Super Gilda’. What happened? How could this be so?
[Read more…] about The Cars of Giovanni Savonuzzi
Barossa Vintage Collingrove Hillclimb, South Australia
By Vince Johnson
Photos by Vince Johnson unless othewise marked
It’s been sixty-seven years since the first cars went up the hill at Collingrove in the wine country north-east of the state capital. They’ve been doing it ever since and it doesn’t look like slowing down anytime soon. Not even when the morning is wet, cool and windy.