Tag Archives: Sports Cars

The Bizzarrini 5300 S.I. Spyder Trio at the Concours of America

January 18, 2016 ndubs77 1 Comment

These are the only three Bizzarrini 5300 S.I. Spyders built, the entire production run by Stile Italia, and they all belong to the same family. Now that’s fun, ain’t it?

They decided to bring them all out together for the Concours of America this year, and my, what a spectacle they were. Stunning, curvaceous Italian metal draped over what is essentially a racing chassis with a built 350ci Chevy V8 that makes 420hp. Yes, back in the mid-late 1960s, these Bizzarrini supercars were about as serious as a road car could be. American muscle powering Italian handling, and beauty, it is a perfect combination!

Giotto Bizzarrini was an ex-Ferrari engineer, one of the heads of the 250 GTO program. One day, Enzo Ferrari pissed him, and a bunch of other engineers off, and they all left the Ferrari in spite. Giotto Bizzarrini went on to design the V12 used by Lamborghini from the 1960s until just recently. He then founded a company under his own name, and started building the gorgeous cars you see here.

Obviously, Bizzarrini’s company didn’t last; they went bankrupt in 1969. But that left their machines a rarity among sports and racing cars, and they are highly treasured today.

I had seen the silver prototype and the blue Spyder before on different occasions, but never the red one. What a treat to see all three 5300 Spyders together! They are a beautiful and impressive nook in the lineage of Italian Sports Cars.

Enjoy the gallery!

Continue reading The Bizzarrini 5300 S.I. Spyder Trio at the Concours of America →

Opinions

NAIAS 2016 Reaction: Lexus LC 500

January 15, 2016 ndubs77 Leave a comment

Yes, folks, this is a real production car, not a concept car. Lexus dropped a bomb on the North American International Auto Show, and they call it the LC 500.

What is it?

The Lexus LC looks to be a luxury sports car somewhere between the small Porsche 911 and the huge BMW M6. It appears Lexus has taken the inspiration behind their mighty LFA supercar, and has distilled it into a more approachable, more affordable, sports car.

The price for the LC 500 will be around $100,000 when it goes on sale, right on par with the Porsche and Bimmer.

Continue reading NAIAS 2016 Reaction: Lexus LC 500 →

Cars We've Driven, Cheap Fun Cars, Luxury Cars

2016 Mazda ND Miata Club Review: Joy On Four Wheels

January 13, 2016 ndubs77 3 Comments

The original Mazda Miata brought driving enjoyment to the masses. Like the great British and Italian roadsters before it, the Miata offered the full wind-in-your-hair experience, but it did so without all of the reliability problems suffered by the european cars. It was a simple, affordable, enjoyable machine. They basically materialized fun, and gave it four wheels.

Some have criticized the Miata for being soft as a sports car, though, even saying that it isn’t really a sports car at all. For the original NA Miata in stock form, I have to I agree. It’s a lot of fun, and is surely a great roadster, but a stock NA Miata lacks the handling composure that really defines a true sports car.

As the Miata has grown and evolved over the years, Mazda has worked to make it more of a sports car, while keeping it a great roadster as well. When I took the new ND Miata out for a spin, it became clear that Mazda has finally found the right balance for the total Miata experience.

In some regards Mazda has taken the Miata back to its roots. In other ways it has benefitted from many modern technological improvements. All in all, I am confident in saying that it is the best Miata they’ve ever made. Here’s why…

Continue reading 2016 Mazda ND Miata Club Review: Joy On Four Wheels →

Car Shows, Uncategorized

Nissan Hakosuka Skyline 2000 GT-R at Laguna Seca

December 29, 2015 ndubs77 Leave a comment

This JDM gem was lurking in the paddock at Laguna Seca. It is a 1971 Nissan Hakosuka Skyline 2000 GT-R, the great, great, great grand daddy of today’s R35 Nissan GTR.

These things are worth a pretty penny now, too. In fact, that same weekend another Hakosuka GT-R sold for $242,000 at auction in Monterey.

The Skyline 2000 GT-R is now a godfather figure amongst Japanese cars, and rightfully so given the lineage of groundbreaking cars it produced.

Enjoy the pics!

Continue reading Nissan Hakosuka Skyline 2000 GT-R at Laguna Seca →

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

Alfa Giulia at the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show

December 24, 2015 Albert S. Davis Leave a comment

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The new Giulia is probably Alfa Romeo’s most important product launch of the past decade. Twenty years ago, Alfa left the American market, and for the first time, there’s hope that the brand is back and can compete on a mass-market level with this product. The Giulia shown at L.A. was the top of the line Quadrifoglio series, complete with a snarling V6 (they wouldn’t start it up for me, but we’ve heard it before on spy videos and it does sound great), six-speed manual, and stunning styling. I can’t wait to see this at dealerships, and I can give a full guarantee that I’ll do whatever is necessary to get behind the wheel of one when the chance arises. Until then, enjoy the photos–Alfa is back and they mean it. Continue reading Alfa Giulia at the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show →

Car Shows

2015 Los Angeles International Auto Show General Gallery

December 3, 2015 Albert S. Davis Leave a comment

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Over Thanksgiving weekend this year, I finally got to cash in my birthday present from last year–my brother Matt agreed to take me to the Los Angeles Auto Show if I’d come visit him. I decided that it would be foolish to say no–after all, I’d been going to the New York Auto Show for a decade and a half, and I’d never seen the show in Los Angeles. Sorry, New York crew–but the LA Auto Show is indeed better. It’s cleaner, the city doesn’t smell like a New Jersey sewer, there’s real parking (and they charge only twenty bucks, whereas New York charges whatever they darn well please), and there’s even some ride-and-drives (which I did only two, but will definitely drive one of those two cars again soon). Continue reading 2015 Los Angeles International Auto Show General Gallery →

Auto Idolatry

The Admiral’s blue Ferrari 500 Mondial

November 23, 2015 ndubs77 Leave a comment

This gorgeous bright blue 1955 Ferrari 500 Mondial is one of very few 4 cylinder Ferrari racing cars ever built. Petrolicious does a magnificent job of featuring the story of this machine and its owner.

We actually had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with Admiral Phillips back in 2011 at the Radnor Hunt Concours. He was great, and shared every detail we could imagine with us that day, so it’s awesome seeing him and his 500 Mondial now in a feature film like this.

Enjoy!

-Nick

Opinions, Uncategorized

Meet the “Fiata”, or Fiat 124 Spider as they call it

November 18, 2015 ndubs77 Leave a comment

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We’ve all know that Fiat was working on a new Spider for a while now, and that it would be based on the new ND chassis Mazda Miata. Well now it’s for real, and we’re calling it the “Fiata!”

Now, officially, the new Fiat roadster is called the Fiat 124 Spider. It is an homage to the classic Fiat 124 Spider, which was built from the mid 1960s until the mid 1980s. I’d say its styling does the old design justice…

As for the new Fiata, you can think of it as an ND Mazda Miata with a 500 Abarth engine swap done to it. Under the hood it shares the same growly 1.4L turbocharged four cylinder engine as the Abarth. It makes the same 160hp and 184 ft/lbs of torque. Not a huge horsepower leap over the figures of the Miata’s 2.0L SkyActive engine, but it will have a wider powerband thanks to all that turbo torque.

Everything else is similar, or even exactly the same as in the Miata. There are automatic and manual transmission options, as well as sporty and more luxury-focused models. The Fiat also weighs about 100 lbs more than the ND Miata, and will likely be positioned slightly up-market.

So what should we think of the Fiata?

Having just recently driven an ND Miata (review coming soon), I can attest that the platform of this car is fantastic.

I like the new 124 Spider’s styling a lot, but I was hoping for something a little more drop-dead-gorgeous. I get that they were going for the retro look, though, so maybe it’ll “pop” more for me when I see one in person.

I think the real deciding factor that will draw many to the Fiata over the Miata will be the power potential from that turbocharged Abarth engine.

Continue reading Meet the “Fiata”, or Fiat 124 Spider as they call it →

Car Shows

JDM Heaven at First Class Fitment

November 16, 2015 ndubs77 Leave a comment

There were plenty of awesome Japanese performance cars at First Class Fitment 2015, including two Nissan Skylines and a few FD Mazda RX7s, among others. It was a nice slice of JDM heaven with a little extra stance sprinkled on top.

Enjoy our highlights from the Land of the Rising Sun!

Continue reading JDM Heaven at First Class Fitment →

Car Games

Make sure you never get a raise again with this ’03 Maserati Spyder for Just $19,995!!!

November 13, 2015 ndubs77 Leave a comment

Does your boss drive a nice car after working hard for years and years climbing the career ladder? Well now it’s time to beat them at life while you’re still lower-middle management!

Just imagine the look on their face when you pull up next to them, 5 minutes late, in your shiny new (to you) Maserati Spyder. Sure, they may have paid the full $80,000 on their brand new generic Audi or Mercedes, but theirs doesn’t say “Maserati” on it like your new chariot does.

What’s more, this pleasure of showing up your superiors comes at a price of JUST $19,995. You can’t even get a Honda Civic with a pleather interior for that much, but you can get this 170 mph Italian stallion. With its sporty paddle shifters, you’ll be driving around like Mario Andretti!

Okay, maybe there are other cars out there that get more than 10 MPG. And maybe there are other cars where 30,000 miles isn’t considered “high mileage” from a servicing standpoint. Maybe a Honda dealer wouldn’t charge $500 for an oil change. And maybe everything in a Civic would still work 6 months after you bought it.

So what?

Do you really want to wait until you’ve proven yourself to have the status you already know you deserve?

Why go through all that crap when instant gratification is right at your fingertips? Just do it!

Fitty Cent drives a Maserati, and now you can too!

By purchasing this sleek pasta-rocket, you’re taking the short cut to the top in life. Successful people will treat you as one of their own, and all the losers from your high school will be super jelly on Facebook and Instagram.

Life is all about scoring points, so go for the grand slam!

Car Shows

1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 at the Concours of America 2015

November 12, 2015 Albert S. Davis 1 Comment

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This isn’t just any run-of-the-mill split window Sting Ray. C2 Sting Rays are probably the most highly sought-after Corvettes of the brand’s sixty-plus year history, but the 1963 model can claim fame as quite a great story. The split window was a one-year option on the 1963 model year only, and that this is a Z06 and a development mule makes our featured car here a great story itself. Continue reading 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 at the Concours of America 2015 →

Cars We've Driven

Lexus RC-F Review: The Best GT Car For The Money?

November 11, 2015 ndubs77 7 Comments

$75,000 will buy you a hell of a lot of car. For those looking for a posh grand touring coupe, options will include Aston Martins, Maseratis and Bentleys, in addition to your more run-of-the-mill German luxury sleds. There are a lot of fine cars to choose from.

But now I’m going to tell you why you should consider forgoing all of the above, and write the big check out to your local Lexus dealership instead. The Molten Pearl Orange car you see here is the Lexus RC-F, and it may well be the best grand touring coupe available on a $75,000 budget.

A grand touring car is mainly about three things, style, speed and comfort. But the RC-F brings even more to the table, and it winds up making a hell of a lot of sense to any thinking buyer.

Wait, isn’t this supposed to compete with the BMW M4 and Cadillac ATS-V?

Yes, in many regards it does. But the RC-F has a different sort of character about it.

The BMW and the Cadillac are very much sports cars at heart. While the RC-F has a lot of sporting elements, it feels more varied in its focus. It’s quite a bit heavier than the BMW and Caddy, certainly not a nimble handler to the same degree. But that solid, heavy feel in the RC-F, mixed with its dynamic ambidexterity, gives it the unmistakeable flavor of a grand touring car. That is why I am framing it as such, and it seems to make a lot more sense when looked at through the grand touring lens.

Continue reading Lexus RC-F Review: The Best GT Car For The Money? →