The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts
Every instinct says “It’s backwards”! No, it’s the front wheel drive 1936 Cord engine, although the car in the picture is a 1937.
Story and photos by Charley Seavey
A recent trip to the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum in Auburn, IN, produced 403 pictures of some of the greatest American cars ever. I imagine that the vast majority of VT readers know what the cars look like, but the museum has a lot of picture worthy items that are not complete cars.
1907 Renault radiator cap ornament, but not up front, as the radiator was back on the firewall between the engine and the driver’s cockpit.
Story and photos by Charley Seavey
Time was when almost all cars had some representational statuary of some kind on the hood (bonnet) of the car. Some were famous: the Rolls Royce “Spirit of Ecstasy,” and the Jaguar “Leaper” Spirit…is now a tiny vestigial remnant of its former self. The Leaper is no more. Bentley’s Winged B is now a flat representation. The three-pointed star of Mercedes Benz is mostly flat, although there may be a pop-up version. Ornaments on lesser cars rarely attracted attention, although many were quite lovely, and some (Pontiac’s illuminated Chief) were quite clever. While seemingly superfluous I remember using them as a nice way of keeping track of where the off side of the car was in any tight situation.
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They are historians, authors, editors, photographers, columnists, journalists, judges, drivers, restorers, artisans, collectors and constructors. They hail from the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Germany, France, Belgium and Italy. Here are the names of thirty-three whose contributions made the year 2024 one to remember.
Jeff Allison, Gary Axon, Giles Chapman, Bob Cullinan, Rodney Diggens, Joseph Duray, Brandes Elitch, Graham Gauld, Greg Glassner, Bob Harrington, Joe Hurwich, Stefan Ivanov, Vince Johnson, Jackie Jouret, Allen R. Kuhn, Dale LaFollette, James Lanoway, Frederic Levaux, Bernard Linck, Roberto Motta, Herb Miska, Chris Nugent, Willem Oosthoek, Paul Sable, Charley Seavey, Jonathan Sharp, Jim Sitz, Roy Smith, Sean Smith, Pete Vack, Hugues Vanhoolandt, Paul Wilson, Robert Young
This 1925 Hispano-Suiza H6b Landaulet looking for a parking space in Cerrillos, NM, during the 2013 Santa Fe Concorso. A fascinating car, built for Andrew Mellon, US Secretary of the Treasury under no fewer than 3 US Presidents. The car, body by Kellner of Paris, was powered by a 6.6 liter, OHC straight six that was basically one half (plus 2 cylinders) of the Hisso V-8 engine that had powered Spad aircraft in WWI. Its four-wheel power brake system was used, under license, by Rolls Royce for many years. The car was retrieved in more or less derelict condition from the estate of Mellon’s chauffer who had been given the car when he retired. Restoration ensued.
Photos by Charley Seavey
Charley Seavey has done a number of Galleries for us in the past, and his photo archives are not yet depleted by any account. Here, we see that cars in this gallery are mostly pre WWII and were built for the rich and very rich. What Seavey eyes is the touches of quality, size, and luxury that are conspicuously absent from more mundane vehicles and in themselves great examples of conspicuous consumption.
Seavey’s previous work for VeloceToday can be accessed via the links following this gallery.
1907 Jewel Model E Stanhope. Oldest car at the Concorso, 2015. And a weird one. One cylinder, two stroke, producing 8 hp. Of course it only weighs 900 pounds. Colin Chapman would have approved.
Story and photos by Charley Seavey
For this gallery, which I named Age of Brass, I decided to present cars earlier than World War I, which was a fascinating time as at the beginning of the era, no one really knew what a car was supposed to look like. Of course, the older ones bear a close resemblance to horse drawn buggies as that was the experience. But by the end of WWI you could see the modern automobile starting to emerge. Ten more years, with the development of all-metal enclosed bodies we were pretty much there. While my real interest in cars doesn’t kick in until the 1930s it turned out I had a lot of pics of old timers floating around.
Not exactly what one expects from Fiat. When I first saw it I thought it was one of those later Chrysler Ghias. The resemblance is not accidental as this was designed by Ghia. RM auctions, 2014
Photos by Charley Seavey
There is always something about Charley Seavey’s photos that sparks one’s interest, opens the eyes, surprises, delights, fascinates. He sees and photographs things that most, or at least, I, would not notice or simply ignore, like the baggie disc brake or the door at the ACD Museum. Even a simple shot of a well-known make or model like the Alfa SS and Arnolt Bristol catches the light in a more dramatic way that we normally see it. His comments too, originate from a different point of view, often with less knowledge than one might assume but with charm it adds rather than detracts from the composition. And he often does so with a humor we can all recognize. So we make no apologies when we present the work of Charley Seavey. Enjoy.
The Marlboro BRM crew working on Jean Pierre Beltoise’s car. He would finish 9th.
Story and photos by Charley Seavey
As with a lot of my European pictures I’m amazed at the ability then to wander around pit and paddock and watch the guys at work. In this day no bits and bobs of cars lying around on the ground, or random guys with cameras snapping away. I’m glad I was around for those days. Here are some shots from Silverstone, 1973. [Read more…] about Charley Seavey F1, 1973
Talbot. 1955 Talbot Lago T26 GSL. 2014 Concorso car on the Plaza early one morning. I mentioned earlier about the recalcitrant pre-selector gearbox. This was the car in question. Only 19 of these were ever built, and this is the only one with a factory built 4.3 liter six, making 210 hp.
Photoart by Charley Seavey
In a few weeks we’ll feature early 1960s Grand Prix photos from the Seavey photo archives, but this week Charley shows more of his Santa Fe Concours photos from various years. You’ll see a Tubster, a rare in this country Maserati A6GCS/53, a car with no name and most impressive, an Isotta Fraschini Flying Star. Then there is the yellow TZ1 with a number reminiscent of the Bob Tullius race team. And see what happens when a lowrider lifts its skirts.
All here and more. Just enjoy.
Oh yes, the first reader to properly identify the car in the very last photo gets a free year’s subscription to VeloceToday. If you are already a subscriber, give it to a friend! Send your guess to vack@cox.net.
Possibly the most famous car to appear at the Concorso was the Boyle Special that won the Indy 500 in 1939 and 1940. It was a Maserati 8CTF driven by the legendary Wilbur Shaw. As we shall see, some other legends showed up for the event. The car was somewhat reluctant to start but did cooperate to everybody’s great pleasure.
Memories of Cars in Santa Fe, NM. (and elsewhere)
Story and photos by Charley Seavey
Your correspondent lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico for a long time. One of the great things about Santa Fe is that it is an excellent town in which to be a car geek. The premier attraction while I was living there was the Santa Fe Concorso, held from 2010-2016 on the expansive grounds of the Las Campanas Club and Golf Course.