What does a car-enthused lifestyle look like?
Drive has posted their NBC special on YouTube, so we figured we’d share it for everyone who hasn’t seen it. It originally aired on NBC as part of the coverage for the Monaco Grand Prix. Big props to everyone at Drive for getting that gig, and doing a phenomenal job with making us all learn, laugh, and drool. Chris Harris, Mike Spinelli and Matt Farah make a great trio, could Drive be the Top Gear of tomorrow?
-Nick
In 1982, the vast majority of the USSR’s general population didn’t own a car. An automobile was considered a genuine luxury thanks to the high cost and the waiting lists. I’m not talking about waiting lists for something like a Mercedes, Porsche, or perhaps even a Cadillac. I’m talking about a waiting list for just a car that one could drive to work every day.
Into this void steps this 1982 VAZ 21033. This is a car that cost almost 5 times an average factory worker’s salary in 1982. It can count among its features a radio (optional and very expensive to buy), an overhead valve engine, thick metal in the fenders, and even a hand starter to make sure the car would start up during Russia’s genuinely fearful winters. The VAZ wasn’t a particularly glamorous car, but this particular one has a great history. It was originally won for 1 ruble in a lottery in 1982, then spent the next thirty years under wraps, until the owner’s grandmother purchased it and helped ship it to the United States, where it lives today.
The owner, Roman, is very proud of his work (he restored this car himself) and his hard work paid off on Concours Sunday at Greenwich, when the little VAZ-21033 won the Best Special Interest Car award, beating out a Russian Volga, a rather straight Volvo 262C, and a very clean 1984 Toyota Supra. Congratulations on your award, Roman–the VAZ looked excellent in the strong June sun. Enjoy the photos.
Continue reading 1982 VAZ 21033 at the 2014 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance
Blue and white is a fetching color combination. On a Ferrari, it’s usually a great combination no matter what. The Superamerica series was a fantastic piece of artwork, with lines by Pininfarina, a Colombo V12 engine, and even a set of tail fins on this show car. This one has been featured at numerous Concours events over the past few years or so and is the show car from the 1956 Paris Motor Show. The distinctive blue and white two-tone finish has been painstakingly well-kept and in the bright sunlight of Amelia Island, this Ferrari Superamerica caught my eye over the course of the entire day. It didn’t hurt that this car stayed on the course until it was time for Nick and I to leave the show for the day. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1956 Ferrari Superamerica at the Amelia Island Concours, 2014
In 1949, Chrysler redesigned their entire lineup for the first time since the end of World War II. The postwar era was officially in full swing, but the Town and Country would continue to sell for a few more years despite its existence as one of the last wood-bodied cars that the Big Three would sell. This was the second to last year for the Town and Country, and the sales proved that buyers weren’t swayed by its attractive wood panels since the price tag was rather high. In fact, only 993 convertibles were built last year.
List price for this car was $3,765 in 1949, which translates to a new price of just about 40 grand today. They’re worth far more than that–in fact, one sold at a Christie’s auction a few years ago for over $150,000. Someone was kind enough to bring one of these 1949 models to the New Hope Car Show last summer and I took some time out at the end of the show to photograph this green one, which is still the only 1949 model I’ve ever seen. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1949 Chrysler Town and Country at the New Hope Auto Show
Happy Memorial Day to all of our readers in the US. For you to enjoy on your day off, here is a battle between the new BMW M4 and the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG from Autocar in the UK. Can the old V8 Merc still play ball against BMW’s new, turbocharged poster-child?
Enjoy.
-Nick
Cadillac was pretty bold back in the 1950s. They started the craze with tail fins in 1947 and didn’t eliminate them until 1964, years after the competition. They had the mainstream luxury car market in the palm of their hands, with only Lincoln as a volume competitor (Imperial was there but sold in far fewer numbers at the time). Even though the glory days were to fade in the future, they were still the “Standard of the World.”
They were also fully intent on capturing the ultra-luxury market in that decade by making an ultra-sumptuous sedan based off of the new Eldorado. The Eldorado Brougham was only produced until 1960 and was a genuinely expensive car when new–in fact, it cost over $13,000, more than twice the price of the Eldorado hardtop coupe and more than the Rolls Royce Silver Cloud at the time. It had a number of never-before-seen features at the time for a General Motors product. They came fully loaded, with superb paint, interior equipment like a full set of shot glasses, tissue and cigarette dispenser (try finding one of those on a Rolls-Royce today), perfume, air conditioning, memory seats (ahead of its time in 1957), a stainless-steel finished roof, a choice of 40-plus interior colors, and a twin-quad V8. These were all hand-built–General Motors, unsurprisingly, lost money on every single one sold.
Despite the fact that it’s a Cadillac, the high price, rarity, and over-the-top equipment standard reminds me of the recently-departed Maybach. Only 400 of these were built in 1957 and they are a very rare sight today. Seeing one is a thrill for a Fifties Cadillac nut like myself and I was not expecting to see one at a Concours, no less Amelia Island. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance
The French are not known these days for timeless, elegant styling. Wind the clock back 75 years, however, and they had the honor of calling companies like Delage and Delahaye home, two manufacturers that could lay claim to some of the most beautiful Depression-era automobiles ever produced. This particular Delage is one of the last D8s built before the Germans invaded France in 1940 and with its Vanvooren coachwork looks absolutely stunning. It is a shame that this striking car did not win any awards at Amelia this spring. Notably, it’s the only car I felt obligated to photograph after the rest of the show field had left for the evening at the close of the Concours. Although the starting rod failed, it did not have any problem making my heart skip a beat that day in Florida. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1939 Delage D8-120S Coupe at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance
Back in 1934, this Rolls Royce Phantom II Streamline Saloon was the pride of Park Ward at the Olympia Motor Show in London. The car was a one-off that showcased a much more flamboyant design style, and it helped to cement Park Ward’s reputation as the premier coach builder for Rolls Royce motorcars.
An immaculate full restoration from 40 years of neglect in a barn, the Streamline Saloon took the award for third place in the Pre-War Rolls Royce class at last year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. This car is known in restoration circles as “The Raccoon Rolls” because it was the home for a family of Raccoons during its four decades in the barn. In an interview with USA Today, the owner said that 80lbs of “refuse” was removed from the car prior to the onset of its restoration. So it went from raccoon den to Pebble Beach award-winner in the span of ten years, quite a story.
Continue reading 1934 Rolls Royce Streamline Saloon at Pebble Beach
Jay Leno is a very lucky guy. Forget the whole successful comedian thing, that’s great and all, but he is the first American to take delivery of the new McLaren P1 hypercar. In this video, Jay goes for a ride with McLaren CEO, Mike Flewitt, and aims to show us what his new car is like to drive on real roads.
It’s pretty incredible to think that the P1 can go to a drag strip and run under 10 seconds in the quarter mile, and then cruise home in electric mode without making a sound. It also traps at around 150mph, so at many drag strips it may need a parachute fitted, and this is 100% stock! Not to mention the handling, which the P1 can do just as well as it goes in a straight line.
So enjoy this hands-on video of Jay Leno’s McLaren P1. It’s quite something.
-Nick
Although this site tends to focus largely on performance cars, I feel that it’s time to give those who serve and protect a bit of time in the spotlight. At the New York Auto Show last month, the NYC Police Museum was grateful enough to provide a collection of cars, along with some privately-owned police cars, to put on display in the back of the basement room during the week. The quality of the cars gathered for the display was impressive, and all three of the Detroit Three were proudly represented, with examples of New York City’s finest chariots from the 1950s all the way up to 2014. Here are some of my favorites from the display. See the photos after the jump for a bit more information about each car featured. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading Classic NYPD Patrol Vehicles at the New York International Auto Show
Deusenbergs are an example of a truly bygone era when cars were truly built to order. There is an air of royalty to the history of this particular car, although it’s not just in the styling. Barbara Hutton, heiress to the Woolworth fortune, ordered this SJ, but not for herself. She was married to Alexis Mdivani at the time and actually ordered this car for her brother-in-law, Serge Mdivani. The Mdivani family was the Georgian royal family, which fled their home country after the Soviets indvaded, and indeed married well. Hutton’s generosity was apparent in giving this gorgeous automobile to her brother-in-law, who passed away after a polo accident a short time later. This is one of the most unique Duesenbergs Id have seen in some time and the dark red finish looked great along the golf course amongst its rivals. In fact, this stunning convertible won Best in Class this year. I hope to see more of this car at various Concours events down the road. I doubt I’ll tire of it. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1935 Duesenberg SJ 509 Roadster at the 2014 Amelia Island Concours
Motor Trend got some brief quality time with the McLaren P1 hypercar at the Top Gear Test Track recently, and they managed to get some performance numbers that we’ve all been eagerly awaiting. Watch the video for the full effect, but they measured 0-60mph in 2.6 sec, 0-100mph in 4.7 sec, and the 1/4 mile in 9.8 sec @ 148.9mph.
So basically, to put things in perspective, the McLaren P1 does 0 to 100mph in the same amount of time it takes for a Subaru STI to reach 60mph, and it reaches the STI’s claimed top speed in around 10 seconds. There are fast cars, and there are hypercars. DAMN!
-Nick
Mind Over Motor 