crosley

Precarious Bridgeheads Part 2

June 6, 2022 By pete

The below article was part of an unfinished manuscript about the foreign car invasion, written by the late Howard Moon. This is part two of a series. Editor

Too Big: The Big Three

By the late 1930s, the American love affair with the auto developed frictions. Dissenters arose in public opinion against Detroit’s mainstream trend towards mass, bulk, weight and complexity. Consumer Reports and the New Yorker criticized unnecessary size and weight. Surveys of drivers registered complaints against heavy steering and lack of vision to front and rear resulting from bulky bodies and long, high hoods.

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Full Circle: Powers and the Hotshot

October 27, 2020 By pete

Dale Powers in his Crosley, circa 1954. Dale Powers photo

By Eric Davison
With a sidebar on the Bandini Crosley

COVID 19 has raised hell with most lives and relationships. Too much togetherness has caused some serious family breaches. Just about every activity that you can name has been affected. Hang around at your favorite tavern? No! A round of golf with your pals? No, unless you each have a private cart. So much for the fellowship that has drawn so many to the game. Maybe trout fishing in a river in Montana is OK but fishing is a lonely sport to begin with. Football games, baseball games, basketball; they all seem a bit weird without screaming fans.

It seems that us car guys have been spared. Those of us who enjoy hands-on experiences with machines propelled by fossil fuels can still participate. Got a great car. Get in it and go. Or, go to the garage and polish it. Or, just sit there and admire it.

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Nardi at Le Mans Part I, In English and Italian

February 1, 2012 By Roberto

By Roberto Motta and Pete Vack
Photos courtesy of Roberto Motta, Dino Brunori and Alessandro Nassiri © Archivio Museo Scienza

Nardi
Enrico Nardi was always ahead of his time, even as a youth; take a close look at his very first car, constructed in 1932 with his good friend Augusto Monaco. With more imagination than money, the 25 year old engineering student put together a ladder chassis (designed by Monaco) with a 65 hp V twin JAP engine upfront and a five speed transmission driving the front wheels. It featured inboard front brakes; the lack of a driveshaft allowed the single seat to be positioned very low and it sits very low. Even if it weighed in at only 672 pounds, it was no lightweight contender, winning many hillclimbs in Italian National events from 1933 to 1937.
[Read more…] about Nardi at Le Mans Part I, In English and Italian