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GREAT PRETENDER OFFERS ADVICE ON CHOOSING A CONCOURS

Perhaps it's just my imagination but I'm getting the impression that more and more concours d'elegance are being added to the calendar each year. Is this a good thing? Yes, in a way, for it means that people all over America, who otherwise might never see a great classic car, are being exposed to these rare and exquisite beauties. Those same folks wouldn't travel halfway across the country to attend a concours but if there happened to be one within a hundred miles and it's properly promoted, they might make the effort.

On the other hand, in spite of the popularity of the collector car hobby and the number of restored survivors from almost any era, we may be reaching a point where concours organisers begin competing against each other for important entrants. Much as car owners enjoy showing their vehicles and seek to win prizes for best in show, there is a limit to how many they can attend without stretching personal schedules and even budgets. And that forces them to make choices which may not be in an organiser's best interest.

What made me think about this was a conversation I had the other day with a fellow enthusiast who owns a 3-year-old Shelby GT500 and pours a considerable amount of money into performance and aesthetic upgrades. Chris' area of interest revolves around this and similar cars and though he's aware of collector cars and likes them, my friend had no exposure to the great classics of the 20's and 30's until he saw one being auctioned during Barrett-Jackson's Scottsdale TV coverage. It was, literally, an eye-opener, and led him to ask me about those "concoors" and how he might get to attend one.

We began by discussing Pebble Beach but our conversation soon focused on other locations and he was quickly overwhelmed by the number of possibilities (as was I). In California alone there are, in 2012, at least seventeen concours worth seeing. We live in the Pacific Northwest so California, which has more classic cars than anywhere in America, is an obvious destination. As well, my friend is an avid golfer and several locations have notable courses nearby.

Now here's the funny, or sad, truth about me as an expert on concours d'elegance. When Chris asked how many I'd actually attended I was forced to admit, "just three... Pebble Beach, Kirkland (Washington), and Palm Springs." That's it, folks. Dozens of car shows and other events in Canada, the US, and England but only three concours. Through most of my adult life I was too busy working and when I finally retired to write about classic cars I could no longer afford the journeys.

I'm still undecided about which to recommend to Chris as his first concours, although the Palo Alto Concours d'Elegance next September 16 (see above, and click on this link) is a serious contender. An outstanding show amid magnificent surroundings and this year featuring "French Curves," those sensuous, curvaceous French beauties of the pre-war era. Think of it as the Moulin Rouge with cars instead of dancers. As for me, I intend to get around more in the future and would love to combine a concours with a special "railfan" event, for I enjoy vintage trains as much as I love classic cars. And two-for-one would be a lot easier on my travel budget.

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY: A DELIGHTFUL '72 DATSUN

Every year there are cars at the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction that make me wish I was there but because I stayed home I missed the opportunity. This is one, a 1972 Datsun 510 Wagon that sold for $8525. At that price it was a real bargain although if I'd been bidding the numbers might have gone higher. And yes, you are correct. If I'd paid more attention to the 2012 B-J catalog that I was recommending on this very site I'd have known about the Datsun and could have bid by phone. I might have even persuaded Marque1's Nigel Matthews, who was there, to check it out for me.

Ah well, hindsight, etc., and the world is full of "what ifs" and "I wish I had," along with too many "wait 'til next years." Put me in that latter category as I don't expect to be any wealthier then and nice cars at the bottom end of the price scale will still attract me.

The good folks at WindingRoad.com found the Datsun Wagon while they were perusing cars that humble folk like we auto journalists can actually afford. The writer said he tries to stay away from modified or unoriginal cars "but this one was too hard to pass up." Judging from the photo and the specs it appears that any modifications must have been minimal, for it still has a 1.6-liter engine in US specification plus its original rear-wheel drive. The wheels are not stock but I don't have any problem with that, nor with the green paint job. Or was the 510 available in that colour when new?

Nissan/Datsun enthusiasts, along with vintage race fans, will be well aware that the 510 was a fast, chuckable, and fun car that could easily be modified for competition. Paul Newman, the actor and race driver, drove a Datsun 510 when he began his racing career in 1972. Of course a wagon was not likely to be seen on a track, but as a street car the one featured in this blog would be a delightful combination of practicality with good times. Well, there's always next... no, no, I won't say it.

ARTIST SHOWS US WHY FERRARIS ARE RED

Back when the demands of commerce had yet to mar the beauty of Grand Prix racing, it was a tradition that team cars must appear in their national colours. Thus the Ferraris would be red, which we've come to permanently associate with the Italian marque. It was this that inspired Canadian artist Paul Chenard, in a new painting for a Colorado collector, to portray the Ferrari team as it appeared prior to the 1956 Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

Interestingly, these cars were not "pure" Ferraris, for the Lancia racing team, lacking the finance to continue, had been absorbed by its Italian competitor at the end of the 1955 season. Its promising D50 then became the basis for the 1956 Ferrari, initially rebadged as the Lancia-Ferrari D50, and then simply the Ferrari D50. Several of designer Vittorio Jano’s innovations were removed, but not the lightweight four-overhead-cam V-8 engine, which was shorter than the straight six or eight engines used by Maserati and Mercedes-Benz.

The twin panniers located between the front and rear wheels were another distinctive feature. They contained the fuel and oil tanks. Normally located in a large tank at the rear, the fuel load could affect a car's handling as it decreased, whereas the central location helped maintain balance through the corners. The panniers also had aerodynamic benefits.

The 1956 Monza GP was a race of good luck, generosity, and plenty of drama. The great Juan Manuel Fangio, driving a Ferrari and with an eight-point lead in the world championship, was forced to pit with a broken steering arm. When team-mate Luigi Musso refused to turn over his car to Fangio (they did that in those days) Peter Collins relinquished his Ferrari seat, giving up his own chances of becoming champion. Meanwhile a young Stirling Moss, in a Maserati, ran out of fuel while in the lead with just five laps to go.

Stirling recalls “I spotted (Luigi) Piotti, the Italian Maserati privateer, coming up behind and gestured frantically for him to use his car to push me to the pits”. Luckily for Stirling he understood and the Maserati’s proceeded to the pits nose to tail, with Stirling’s 250F receiving what would be in modern terms, a splash and dash. Moss won the race and Fangio, in his red Ferrari, won the championship.

Artwork © Paul Chenard

TOUR OF A LIFETIME FOR ITALIAN CAR ENTHUSIASTS

If you admire Italian sports cars (and who doesn't?) here's one event you won't want to miss. It's the annual Car Guy Tour, which kicks off on the beautiful shores of Lake Como and runs for ten days, beginning May 6th and ending May 16th, 2012. Organised each year by Frank Mandarano and sponsored by Keith Martin's Sports Car Graphic, the Car Guy Tour visits the great styling centers, including Italdesign, Pininfarina, Zagato and Bertone. It will also visit world-class restoration shops and major collections.

As if that were not enough, the Tour will take you to legendary companies such as Maserati, the Maserati Collection, Lamborghini, Borrani, Pagani, Schedoni and the Alfa Romeo Collection. Is Ferrari included? You bet it is. Participants will spend one complete day in Maranello visiting all that is Ferrari: including the Ferrari Galleria, the first official Ferrari Store, a Ferrari F1 warm up, with time for shopping and lunch at the famous Cavallino Ristorante.

According to the Car Guy Tour's car guys "May is one of the most beautiful months to be in Italy; the sidewalk cafes are bustling, the flowers are in full bloom, and the number of tourists are at a lower level." Having been there in May, for an entire month, I couldn't agree more. I would also go along with the suggestion that you come early and enjoy Lake Como. Take the fast boat to Bellagio for lunch or the slow boat for a leisurely tour of the lake, getting off to explore the little villages and coffee bars. And keep an eye for those gorgeous wood-hulled Riva speedboats, the Ferraris of the boating world.

The Tour will officially end in Modena, the "automotive and gastronomic capital of the world." But you might want to allow yourself a little more time and take in the Historic Monaco Grand Prix on the weekend of May 12th and 13th. This will be the perfect time to experience beautiful Monte Carlo and the period European racing cars on the circuit and at speed.

The price may seem a little steep if you don't have deep pockets but to be honest I think it's quite reasonable considering all that's included. Tickets for a person traveling alone are $6,000; for a double they're $8,200 ($4,100 per person). Air fare is extra but if you act now you should be able to find a discount. In fact, if the Car Guy Tour appeals, I'd suggest signing on soon, for seats are limited. More information is available from the Car Guy Tour Website, by e-mailing to frank@carguytour.com, or by calling Frank Mandarano direct at (206) 310-8380.

BEAUTIFUL BUICK BECOMES AN ANTIDOTE TO WINTER

I would very much like to be at the auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona, right now, instead of sitting at a desk in southwestern British Columbia. There are two reasons for this. First, because nowhere in the USA can one witness such an incredible display of collector cars, ranging from the affordable to the exotic. And second, because I'm looking out at a landscape covered in snow, with temperatures hovering around zero.

Now the latter may not seem surprising to those who have an image of Canada as a snow-covered nation, but the reality is quite different, especially in this part of the country. Here our winters are mild, with daytime temperatures normally around plus-5 celcius (40 degrees fahrenheit). And we often get through winter with only a day or two of heavy snowfalls. Or, if we're lucky, none at all. But three days ago we got dumped on, big-time, and although rain is scheduled to return this afternoon, meaning it will all be washed away soon, the mere sight of the white stuff has me depressed. (And that from one who took annual ski-bob vacations in the Alps!)

Fortunately I can go online and look at many of the cars being auctioned in and around Scottsdale, and then cheer myself up by admiring them and even dreaming of someday becoming a collector. In an effort to keep my dreams manageable I try to avoid the million-dollar exotics in favour of cars that I can actually visualise owning. Especially if they take me back to times when I was younger and such cars were a common sight on our roads and driveways. Like this beautiful 1953 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon.

It was America’s last wood-bodied station wagon, and with only 676 built was quite rare even when new. Restored to concours condition it features perfectly restored original wood with new rear posts and is equipped with a set of superb Kelsey-Hayes wire wheels. The 322 c.i. V-8 engine sends its 188 bhp through a twin-turbine Dynaflow automatic transmission. 4-wheel power-assisted drum brakes bring it to a halt. It is being offered by Gooding for $75,000 - $95,000, with no reserve.

Suddenly my imagination was working overtime. Here was a car I could actually use, at least for trips to concours, auto museums, and Buick owner's club events. For a few minutes the luxurious Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon took my mind off that snowy scene outside the window and I hope the new owner, whoever that may be, treats this beauty with the respect it deserves.

ART DECO MEETS MG PA, LEAVES US DAYDREAMING

A few weeks from now I hope to be moving into a rental apartment in Vancouver, though the exact date is dependent on selling my condo during what is undeniably a slow market. Though my future home won't be large I intend to indulge a long-held wish to decorate the living room walls with transportation art; mostly cars but with trains and boats as part of the composition. So, sometimes when I'm sitting around doing a little daydreaming, I go to Peter Aylett's carart.us, which has possibly the world's largest stable of automotive fine artists in its online catalog.

Today I found an artist that I hadn't noticed on previous visits and immediately fell in love with his work. Brian James and I also have something in common. He became an art director in advertising, eventually joining a top London illustration agency, where he worked on some of the biggest national and international ad campaigns. And I had a long career as an ad writer and creative director, including a stint with the J. Walter Thompson agency in London.

What we also share is an appreciation of art deco design. Brian’s love for art deco began as a boy, with many British cinemas, buildings and homes created in that style. His interest has since grown into all things from the 1920s and 30s period, including his love of cars. Brian likes "the art deco flat color image, influenced by posters of the inter-war period" and says "I also think it’s important to use a setting that’s appropriate to its era and style.” He has certainly done that here with his painting of an MG PA, "the archetypical small sports car of the 1930s that introduced motorsports to so many. Incredibly, the engine was just 847cc with an output of 36bhp, but enough to give it a top speed of 72mph -- quite fast back then."

Printed as a giclée on paper, sized 11" x 17," and simply titled MG PA, it is available from carart.us for a reasonable $250.00. It's on my list of potential candidates for that living room gallery, for this combination of classic sports car, very English background, and art deco's flat colour poster style, is almost irresistable.

FERRARI F40 ONCE OWNED BY LEE IACOCCA, ON STAGE AT SCOTTSDALE AUCTION

Having worked with a few, and met or known a few, I'm well aware that auto executives at the top don't always limit their garages to vehicles made by the company that employs them. That's especially true of designers (all of whom are enthusiasts) along with those rare execs who get off on cars as much as they do rising sales numbers. Lee Iacocca was one of those, both during his Mustang days at Ford and his later tenures at Chrysler. So we shouldn't be surprised to find a Ferrari F40 originally owned and loved by Iacocca, on the RM auction block this weekend.

Built to celebrate Ferrari's fortieth anniversary, the F40 was the fastest street Ferrari when it was produced and the last one built under the guidance of founder Enzo Ferrari. It was originally meant for a production run of just 400 but popular demand led to over 1300 examples being made. Oddly, just 213 were built for the North American market, including Iacocca's car which, no doubt, received special attention before it left the factory. There were two subsequent owners but over twenty-one years the three owners managed to put just 480 kilometers on the odometer. One wonders what they actually did with the car. Was it just a toy to be possessed?

The F40 featured a 2,936 cc mid-mounted V-8 engine with dual overhead camshafts per cylinder bank, four valves per cylinder, Weber-Marelli engine management, port fuel injection, twin IHI turbochargers, and Behr air-to-air intercoolers. It delivered its 471 bhp through a five-speed manual gearbox in a rear transaxle. Suspension was independent all-round, using  unequal-length A-arms, coil springs and anti-roll bar. Four-wheel ventilated hydraulic disc brakes brought it to a very quick stop. An enduring supercar icon, Iacocca's F40 is expected to sell for $650,000-$750,000 US.

MERCEDES RESPECTS CORPORATE HISTORY WITH RESTORATION OF OLDEST 300 SL

No doubt all automobile manufacturers respect their corporate histories but the Germans do more to preserve the cars that made them successful than those of any other country. At least that's the way it seems when you regard the fabulous museums of BMW, Porsche, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz. Not only do they populate them with a broad selection of vehicles representing the marque, they also have little hesitation in restoring some of the rarest and putting them on display, or even providing demonstration runs at vintage race meets.

The latest, and one of the most stunning, is featured in a Hemmings newsletter article by Mike McNessor. His fascinating story details the restoration of the second in a line of ten original Mercedes 300 SL racecars. The very first 300 SL was destroyed by the factory decades ago but in this instance Number Two is equally worthy of our admiration and respect. It has been with Mercedes since it was hand-built in 1951-52 and holds the distinction of being the oldest SL in existence. With the SL celebrating its 60th anniversary this year Mercedes decided to display the car looking as close to new as possible, without totally removing the patina absorbed during its fabled history.

As Mike reports, the car was used as a training and backup vehicle for the race team, and was never involved in an accident, so the chassis and body panels were as straight as original. It is one of the two vehicles built by hand in Rudolf Uhlenhaut’s Stuttgart-Untertürkheim racing workshop. The ensuing eight 300s were used mainly for racing in 1952 and were manufactured in the Sindelfingen factory. As related in Mike's story "the restoration of the original bodywork was particularly complex and took about five months to complete, from May to September of last year. Mercedes-Benz’s experts strove to make the delicate shell look like it was formed out of one piece of sheetmetal as it originally did, working out previous restoration efforts and deformities that happened over the years along the way."

The 3-liter, overhead-cam six was actually a reworked version of the engine in the Mercedes 300 (W186) luxury sedan. Output was boosted to around 170 hp. It was placed in the tube chassis at a 50-degree left-tilt so it would fit under the car’s streamlined hood. Today's equally meticulous German engineers rebuilt the original engine then ran it for ten hours on a test stand. The chassis was completed in the course of several months at the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center, with every single component cleaned, examined and reconditioned where necessary.

The interior has been fitted with new blue tartan seat covers, but the headliner and the rest of the interior fabric were cleaned and replaced. The aluminum seat frames were reused without needing any significant work. All of the other appointments, such as the wooden steering wheel, gearshift knob and gauges, are also original pieces. As Mike McNessor says, "the finished product is an amazing piece of automotive history and a testament to the work Mercedes-Benz Classic is performing on old Benzes these days." And proof, once more, that when it comes to auto manufacturers preserving and displaying their past, no one does it better than the Germans.

[With thanks to Hemmings and Mike McNessor]

EDSEL FORD SPEEDSTER HELPS KEEP LINCOLN ALIVE

As a classic cars guy, I'm delighted when a major manufacturer adds an historic vehicle to an auto show display. So my thanks go to Ford for including the Model 40 Special Speedster in its Lincoln stand at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. The car was designed at Edsel Ford's request by Bob Gregorie, who had previously worked at Harley Earl’s GM Art and Colour studio. Edsel wanted a personal roadster similar to those he’d seen on the European continent. The first design reportedly disappointed him, for he wanted something lower and racier. Gregorie then created a more dramatic, streamlined design.

It probably started with a stock 1934 Ford (aka Model 40) frame, but its subsequent chassis was radically altered. The Model 40 Special Speedster was unlike anything Ford Motor Company had built up to that time. After Edsel’s death in 1943, the Speedster crisscrossed the U.S. and in 1958 was purchased by a U.S. Navy sailor in Florida for $603, then disappeared. Forty years later it was discovered in Florida by Bill Warner, founder of the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, who conducted minor restoration on the car and displayed it at the Concours in 1999. In 2008, Warner sold it to a Texas car collector for $1.76 million. Following the collector’s untimely death in 2010, the Speedster was acquired by Edsel & Eleanor Ford House (Ford House), the nonprofit historic estate of Edsel and Eleanor Ford, located in Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.

Ford House engaged RM Auto Restoration (RM) in Chatham, Ontario, to completely rebuild and restore the vehicle, which over the years had unfortunate alterations made to its grille, engine, paint and interior. During the process RM revealed the stunning, custom-made “one off” as it originally looked in 1940, after a final redesign by Edsel and Gregorie. The restoration also resolved many long-held assumptions about the illustrious vehicle’s history. So why did the company choose to show the Special Speedster on the Lincoln stand? Probably because the once great marque has so little to boast about these days it might otherwise have been overwhelmed.

FOUND! HISTORIC PHOTOS OF TOWER BRIDGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Every major city with a river running through it has one or more bridges to help facilitate the movement of people, traffic, and trade. When properly constructed they can last for centuries. Many are of historic interest, some are elegant works of art. In San Francisco the Golden Gate Bridge is a national landmark that inspires songs, movies, and countless tourists. New York's Brooklyn Bridge is a visual icon that played a major role in the growth of that great city. The medieval bridges of Florence are famed for being constructed with built-in apartments and shops.

London, England, has numerous bridges spanning the Thames river, some of which enjoy world fame. Because the Thames is relatively narrow the spans are more functional than spectacular, with one exception, the Tower Bridge, so named because of its proximity to the Tower of London. But unlike those that follow, the Tower Bridge was built with a "bascule," a center section that can be raised and lowered to permit ships and tall-masted boats to proceed upstream.

When the foundation was laid some 125 years ago, the Tower Bridge was a technological marvel. Nothing like it had been made before nor nothing since. The structure was such a landmark feat of engineering it was nicknamed The Wonder Bridge. Yet visual recordings of its construction seem to have disappeared. Until now: An article in the Daily Mail has unveiled the story behind the finding of a rare pictorial history, something we classic car fans can equate with the "barn finds" of our world.

A stash of hundred-year-old prints were found in a "skip" (English terminology for what we North Americans call a "dumpster"), revealing in incredible detail the ingenuity behind one of London's most popular tourist destinations. According to the Daily Mail, the discarded pictures, which were retrieved by a caretaker who was looking after a building being turned into flats in 2006, have spent the last five years in a carrier bag underneath his bed. He said: "I took the ledgers to the Tower Bridge Museum because I thought they might have some historical value."

In November 2011, the owner of the photos mentioned them to his neighbor, City of Westminster tour guide Peter Berthoud. And that's when the significance of the find fully emerged. Peter says "people are always surprised when I tell them that the Tower Bridge is a steel bridge, as the stone cladding is so recognisable". Scenes include turn-of-the-century laborers taking orders from a site foreman in a bowler hat and a shot of the bridge's original steam-powered engine room, which could open the bridge in less than a minute.

Perusing this story, handed on by Marque1's chief (and so far only) correspondent Nigel Matthews, reminds me that whatever bridge we cross, whether it be over a tiny stream or a vast canyon, is the result of someone's architecture, engineering, and art. And therefore deserving of our admiration.

[Photo Credits: Barcroft Media]