The BMW 3.0 CSL is always a special car to see in person, but at last weekend’s Amelia Island Concours d’ Elegance, they had one of the Art Cars on display. This one was created by Frank Stella. It was the second of the BMW Art Cars, as well as the final 3.0 CSL Art Car. The car was roped off in its tent, so these were the best angles I could get, but I think the shots do the car enough justice. Enjoy.
Continue reading Amelia Island Concours d’ Elegance: 1976 BMW 3.0 CSL Art Car
Two gorgeous pre-war Bugatti Type 57’s, one Type 57S and one Type 57C. It is very interesting to see both sides of Bugatti during this era. The Type 57S is very much a racing car, and the Type 57C is an elegant touring car. Back then there was a more obvious direct line between race cars and road cars than their is today. Enjoy the pics.
Continue reading Lime Rock Historic Festival: Bugatti Type 57S and Type 57C
Sir Stirling Moss was the guest of honor at this year’s Lime Rock Historic Festival, and we were fortunate enough to be in attendance for one of the evening events where he was a speaker. Sir Moss is famous for his sharp wit, and it’s clear he’s still got it despite being in his 80’s now. It was fascinating to hear a firsthand account of some of the great races of history from one of the most legendary drivers of all time. Put plainly, Sir Moss is a man among men, and any racing enthusiast will enjoy hearing what he has to say. The video is a little long, but it is totally worth the watch. I’m just sorry I didn’t have enough memory left in my camera to record the whole talk, however, I did catch most of the best moments. Enjoy.
-Nick Walker
This pristine Ferrari 250 LM was in attendance for the 2012 Radnor Hunt Concours d’ Elegance. It is owned by the Simone Foundation Museum in Philadelphia, PA. The 250 LM came about when Ferrari finally decided to give up on front-engined GT racing cars. The 250P was the first mid-engined Ferrari that saw major success, and was a contemporary of the legendary 250 GTO in the early 1960s. Seeing the success of their rivals with mid-engined racing cars, Ferrari decided to end the 250 GT cars, and carry on competition with a development of the 250P. And with that, the 250 LM was born.
The 250 LM was very similar to the 250P, except it had a roof and was built from a higher gauge of steel. The LM used an enlarged version of the 250 GTO’s 3.0L V12. At 3.3L the LM’s V12 produced 320hp, and it only had to propel a car which weighed under 1900lbs, lighter than the GTO. The result was a car that was very fast, and despite being denied homologation as a GT class, it still saw success in the Prototype class. 250LMs won 10 out of the 35 races they competed in, and in 1965 the NART team won the Le Mans 24 Hours. This would be the final outright Le Mans victory for Ferrari to this day, ending an era of Ferrari dominance in the late 50’s, early 60’s.
A total of 32 250 LMs were produced, making it on par in rarity with the GTO, and certainly worth a solid fortune in its own right. Seeing a car like this up close, with no barriers to keep people away is a rare treat indeed. I stuck around after most people had left the show, and had the privilege of some quality, un cluttered photo time with this epic car. Enjoy the gallery below.
One of the biggest fears of any car enthusiast is being paralyzed, and not being able to drive. This video, from Jalopnik on Drive, is about Michael Johnson, a guy who was paralyzed in an accident, but has still managed to become a professional race car driver. Michael has a very real chance of making his way to the IndyCar series, all without the use of his legs. No joke, this may be the most inspiring thing I have seen in quite some time. Hopefully we will see Michael spraying champagne at the Indy 500 in the coming years! Enjoy.
-Nick
Maserati Birdcage raced by Sir Stirling Moss at this year’s Lime Rock Historic Festival. Enjoy the pics of this legendary car.
Continue reading Lime Rock Historic Festival: Sir Stirling Moss’ Maserati Tipo 61 “Birdcage”
When it comes to Ferraris things do not get much better than this. The 250 Testa Rossa is one of the most legendary cars of all time, and this was the first one sold in the United States. Owned by the Simone Museum in Philadelphia, we were fortunate enough to be able to see this car up close at this year’s Radnor Hunt Concours d’ Elegance. The design of the Testa Rossa is nothing short of breathtaking, with its voluptuous Italian curves. It is a work of functional art rivaled by few other objects on Earth. While visually beautiful, it remains a race car in purpose, so it was built to be as light and simple as possible. Under the hood there is a V12 engine, which is beautiful enough in its own right. Even going to car events all the time, I don’t get to see too many of these, so I ate up my time with this rare Ferrari (likely worth around $20M) by taking tons of photos. I hope you enjoy them; if this isn’t “Art”, then I don’t know what is.
Continue reading Radnor Hunt CDE: 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa
This is from the glory days of Maserati, back before they had fallen victim to corporate structuring. They now exist in the shadow of Ferrari, but back then Maserati was a real contender. In 1956, Sir Stirling Moss drove this very car to victory at both the Italian Gran Prix and the Monaco Gran Prix. It was a real treat to see this car in person, both up close and racing on the track at Lime Rock Park. Enjoy.
Continue reading Lime Rock Historic Festival: Sir Stirling Moss’ Maserati 250F
In the 1980s Porsche decided to take the most advanced supercar they had ever made and go rallying with it. While original designs were for Group B, the car never actually partook. The 959 did win the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1986 though, coming in with a 1-2 victory. There were a few 959s at the Porsche Museum, in Stuttgart, the day I was there, including one of these rally monsters. Check out the comparison between the road car and the rally car, and just imagine seeing a monster-truck 959 barreling up behind you on a dirt road….. you’d move.
Some things just need to be reposted when I see them, and this is one of those. Yet another truly epic video from the folks at Drive. The cars Chris normally tests are incredible, but this Porsche 962 is straight up Biblical. Keep it up, we all love it!
-Nick
We were in attendance for the Lime Rock Historic Festival earlier this month. It was actually my first time at Lime Rock, despite having lived in the Northeast US for my entire life. It is a fantastic facility with great views of the track all around. I have loads of photos from the weekend, but here are a few varied shots from around the paddock. More to come. Continue reading 2012 Lime Rock Historic Festival: Some shots from the paddock
This is the 3rd year in a row we have attended the Radnor Hunt Concours, and it continues to blow us away each time. For me this year was especially interesting because Ferraris and pre-war Cadillacs were being featured. What you see above was the view as we entered the show, a row of Ferraris worth tens of millions of dollars alone. Most of these cars will be getting their own specific features later on so just let this be a nice preview of things to come. Enjoy. Continue reading The 2012 Radnor Hunt Concours d’ Elegance
Mind Over Motor 