Pegasos in New York, 1953

By Pete Vack

With some material from the VeloceToday Archives, April 2017

Not too much mystery about the Pegasos that appeared at Bridgehampton in May of 1953. Two photographers, Robert Pauley and Glen Glendenning were there and photographed two of the Pegasos. Perhaps a mystery was the chassis number of the Z102 model that accompanied the famed “Tea Rose.” That’s where our readers come in!

Earlier in the year, photographer Jerry Lehrer was checking out the many auto shows in the New York area and took the following photos of the “Tea Rose” and a rare spider, chassis 0118. The exact location and date may still be in question, so your help is again requested.

The 1953 New York International Motor Sports Show was held from April 4th through April 12th and had a lot to offer. The Alfa Disco Volante was on display, straight from its showing at Geneva. The new Austin Healey 100 was also on display, a great new sports car for under $3000.

But it was the Pegaso display that nearly brought down the house. But which house? According to Tony Adriaensens:

The Pegaso stand had a white Saoutchik coupé and another in fire-engine-red flanked the Perspex-enhanced display chassis that was already shown at the Paris Salon and Earl’s Court. This stripped chassis exposed the quad overhead cam alloy V8 with dry-sump lubrication, 5-speed transaxle, torsion bar suspension and deDion rear end with inboard brakes. Main attraction however was the one-off supercharged Z102 ‘BE CUP’ offered for sale at $29,220, the most expensive car in the show. Nicknamed ‘Tea Rose’ for its iridescent almost pink to yellow paint job that bloomed as it grew paler from rocker panel to roof, it was purchased immediately by Dominican dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo.

Photographer Jerry Lehrer took these photos of the Brewster Automotive Corporation stand with a number of Pegasos; the Tea Rose, the Touring Spyder, two Saoutchik bodied cars and the plexiglas covered chassis displaying the mechanicals. These photos are not identified by year or location, and Tony was writing not about these images but of the International Motorsports Show in particular. We always assumed that these photos reflected that event. But in doing further research, we find a lot of confusion.

And here is where we need your help, dear reader. We don’t think these were taken at the International Motor Sports Show after all, which was held at the Grand Central Palace, where indeed the Pegasos were also displayed, but at the New York World Motor Sports show held earlier at Madison Square Gardens (III) on February 21, 1953. And of course, don’t forget the Harford, CT. show!