My parents were in attendance for this year’s Straight-Eights car show in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. I had other plans that weekend, but my Dad got some solid photos of the event. Get ready for spiffy cars from the 1950’s galore! Enjoy.
Tag Archives: American Cars
Pebble Beach Concours 2013: The Lincoln Continental and Zephyr
I’ll be honest, I’m a complete sucker for the Lincoln Zephyr and the Continental of this era. They get overlooked occasionally by Cadillacs and by independent marques of the Depression era, but their long-standing reputation of simple elegance, beauty, and dashes of brashness are symbols of what the Lincoln name used to mean. They all pack V12 engines, they all have (except the ’42 model in this gallery) restrained styling, and each one was an excellent example of its year and body type. This being a feature year for Lincoln at Pebble Beach, they had their very own class. The cars within this class included everything from the classic 1938 Zephyr coupe in black, to an all-original 1940 Zephyr Continental Cabriolet, to a 1942 Continental Cabriolet (1 of 11 left in the world). Some of them included all the original brass fittings in the interior, something I’ve never seen on a Lincoln. The car pictured up top is a 1941 Continental Coupe which won the class. In fact, for those of you with good memories (or those of you who can pair cars with movies as well as I can sometimes), that body style and year were featured in one of the most memorable mob movies ever, The Godfather. Sonny Corleone, played by James Caan, drives a black 1941 Continental coupe to his grisly death in one of the most memorable scenes of the film. If you don’t remember, I’ve included it at the end. Enjoy the photos of these understated, elegant automobiles.
Continue reading Pebble Beach Concours 2013: The Lincoln Continental and Zephyr
Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance: 1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Boano Coupe
At the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, every car is nothing short of immaculate. However, even among the hundreds of exquisite automobiles, some find a way to stand out in the crowd. This 1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Boano Coupe does it with a stunning color draped over a sleek, if a bit peculiar, design.
Jalopnik even said they thought this car should have won “Best In Show”, but naturally they are always into the most offbeat thing present. While I don’t agree that this car should have won “Best In Show”, I really did enjoy getting to see this Indianapolis Boano Coupe in person. It definitely brings an event with it wherever it goes, and at a big car show such as this, that is what really matters.
Enjoy the photos.
Continue reading Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance: 1955 Lincoln Indianapolis Boano Coupe
Spotted! 1981 DeLorean DMC-12, Pasadena, CA
My brother Matt sent this photograph and some others my way while he was out driving with his colleague Nick near Caltech over in Pasadena. It’s quite a pretty area and there’s actually a good amount of older classics and quirky old cars running around (there are lots of hipsters in old Beetles there too, if I recall correctly). What’s strange about this example is that it seems to have had its louvers over the engine cover removed and replaced by Back to the Future style fins. Matt, thanks for sending this in.
-Albert S. Davis
Spotted by: Matt Davis and Nick Cowper
The Malaise Era: As bad as it gets, or misinterpreted?
We all know how bad cars in America became after Nixon won a second term. From that point until the end of Reagan’s second term, cars built here in America were, to most of the country, lacking in performance, quality, and innovation. I understand the sentiment. Looking into the cars built during the era, we see engines strangled by emissions regulations, stylists stymied by big safety bumpers and lighting changes, and salesmen who were stuck with cars that Americans didn’t want. I do not want to go into any of that today, however. The reason? I think the Malaise Era of the USA deserves another look, from a more universal perspective. Continue reading The Malaise Era: As bad as it gets, or misinterpreted?
Elmiraj, the Cadillac of Cadillacs
We got to see Cadillac’s Elmiraj Concept at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and plainly, this is the sort of thing the Cadillac Brand needs right now. Cadillac has not been “the Cadillac of cars” since the mid 1960s in my opinion, and it’s about time they step up and reclaim their original status in the world.
The Elmiraj looks to be a grand touring car of world class standards. It’s design is unmistakably that of a Cadillac, but it has a nice sleek, modern shape. While I doubt it would make it to production in its current form, the Elmiraj’s interior is breathtakingly gorgeous, with gratuitous amounts of wood, leather and metal used throughout.
As far as what’s under the hood, I’ve heard rumors of a twin turbo 4.5L V8 with more than 500hp. That will most likely put the Elmiraj in competition with the Jaguar XKR, Maserati Granturismo, BMW 650i/M6, etc, in the price range around $100,000. That, of course assumes that Cadillac will ever have the guts to actually produce an ambitious concept car such as this.
I think with proper execution, a production version of the Elmiraj would do a lot to put Cadillac back where they need to be as a brand. The ATS, CTS, and the CTS-V have done a lot to show that Cadillac has potential, but they need a capstone, a mighty flagship to lead their assault. I know Cadillac’s track record with concept cars is awful when it comes to anything making it to production, but I am really holding out hope that the Cadillac Elmiraj is not indeed a mirage.
Enjoy the photos
1956 Continental Mark II Convertible by Hess and Eisenhardt, owned by Barry Wolk, at Pebble Beach.
At Pebble Beach this year, Lincoln was a featured marque. In my opinion, a celebration of the Lincoln brand is not complete without mention of the Continental. To further that point, featuring the Continental name in any way is not finished without mention of the famous Continental Mark II of 1956-1957. This particular car has a heck of a history to it. Barry Folk of Farmington, MI collects cars with the Continental nameplate and owns this Continental Mark II convertible. 3 convertibles were built out of examples which were damaged during delivery. Two of them were built by Hess and Eisenhart, and one other was built by Durham. This particular car is one of the two Hess and Eisenhardt cars. It won 3rd in class at the Concours (and I’ll be honest, I wanted it to win first place, it was a stunning example), and participate in the Tour d’Elegance as well, where I first discovered it while Nick was busy photographing the Ferrari 275 GTB NART Spyder. Enjoy the photos of this unique Continental Mark II. Continue reading 1956 Continental Mark II Convertible by Hess and Eisenhardt, owned by Barry Wolk, at Pebble Beach.
Highlights from the 2013 Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance
We were in attendance for the 2013 Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance this past weekend. Instead of our normal photo highlights, we have decided to try on a video compilation of the cars at the show. For those of you who like the photo galleries, do not worry because we have plenty of still shots from the show as well (to be used later on). Let us know what you think of the video in the comments.
Radnor Hunt is always a wonderful show, with some fantastic cars and a great venue. It is basically Philadelphia’s major Concours event, for those of you unfamiliar with the area. The features this year were Art Deco cars, Rally cars, and Aston Martins, but there was quite a motley crew within those classes. Some of my favorites included a pristine 1927 Rolls Royce Phantom I, a Ferrari 250 GT Boano Coupe, an Aston Martin DBR1 racing car, and a genuine Subaru STi 22B. “Best in Show” went to a 1929 Isotta Fraschini 8A SS Boattail Convertible Coupe LeBaron (seen above and at the end of the video), and yes, the cars with the longest names always wins these events.
Check out the video, and stay tuned for the features to follow. Enjoy.
-Nick
Test Driven: Dodge Challenger SRT 392 (5.5/10)
Of the muscle cars back in the 1960s-70s, I always find myself drawn to Mopars the most. Something about their cartoonish, yet badass nature. A bright green Challenger, a purple Plymouth Barracuda, and the roar of a 426 Hemi V8, that just defines the flavor of the era for me.
Back in 2008, Chrysler blessed the world with the reincarnation of the legendary Dodge Challenger. With its retro look, it seemed poised to reignite the muscle car wars with the Ford Mustang, and the soon-to-be-released Chevrolet Camaro. However, we are not in the 1960s anymore, and there are far more contenders than just the good old American boys these days.
My real question going into this drive was, where does the Challenger fit in today? Is it still a Muscle Car in the traditional sense, or has it adapted, like the Camaro SS has, to meet modern expectations of handling performance?
Continue reading Test Driven: Dodge Challenger SRT 392 (5.5/10)
The 1950 Lincoln Presidential Limousine at the Pebble Beach Concours
This year, Lincoln was a featured marque at Pebble Beach. Back in 1950, the US Secret Service took delivery of a brand-new presidential limousine, this 1950 Lincoln Cosmopolitan. This year, that very automobile was featured at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. I think it’s fantastic to see these overlooked early 1950s Lincolns in general, but to see this one is a treat. It’s a living piece of American history. In fact, it was used until shortly after Kennedy was sworn in, making this one of the few Presidential cars to be used by three presidents (in this case, Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennedy). And here, on the lawn of the 18th hole, it looked truly majestic. Amazingly, the car was not armored and the glass for the bubble roof (added during the Eisenhower administration) is Plexiglas. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading The 1950 Lincoln Presidential Limousine at the Pebble Beach Concours
2013 Monterey Motorsports Reunion: Paddock Highlights
During the Monterey Motorsports Reunion, the paddock of Laguna Seca is always full of interesting and legendary things. 2013 was no exception, with drool worthy race cars everywhere you looked. In particular there were numerous Porsche 962s, monster Group Group C racing cars for those unfamiliar with them. It is always difficult to focus your attention while down in the paddock because everywhere you look there is something awesome to see. I will let the photos take it from here. Enjoy.
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Spotted! 1948 Tucker Torpedo, Carmel, CA
While at Monterey Car Week, we saw this incredible 1948 Tucker Torpedo numerous times. This was the first time that either Al or myself had seen a Tucker on public roads, so we made sure to get photos.
The first time we saw it was in Carmel, right as we were arriving for the Tour d’Elegance. We saw it cross the street a block down, realized it was a Tucker, and then I proceeded to sprint a block and a half to catch it. After that, Al was able to shoot it while we were in the car a few times, once in Monterey and once in Carmel.
Only 51 of these masterpieces were ever produced. They were way ahead of their time technologically, with a rear-mounted flat-6 engine (yes like a Porsche), and a center headlamp that turned with the steering wheel, among other things. They made a movie about Preston Tucker and his car, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in a great story. The Tucker is a legendary piece of American automotive history, and it was beyond thrilling to catch one out in the wild. Enjoy.
Mind Over Motor 