22 December 2014
19 December 2014
17 December 2014
1957 Chevy - Quick Silver
Buying an unfinished project is always fraught with pitfalls; unless the seller built the car with a detailed build record up to that point, you're usually buying a mystery waiting to be solved, usually with money. Chuck in a few previous owners adding to the broth and you're usually on course for a half-cooked disaster.
The '57 Chevy 210 pictured is possible even worse than that scenario; a megabucks road/race car built by a person with more money than talent, resulting in a untamed animal best parked in the garage. But, the current owner (Ben Thomas) soon realised that this Tri-Chevy turd would need completely rebuilding to realise the potential that was fermenting under the all-steel body. It's now a vision of trackday terror that no doubt makes people do a double-take when this tuff machine fills their rear-view mirrors with a 'get outta my way' attitude.
More info here, and take the time to read the captions to the pictures on the link; this is one fully-resolved street-legal racer with a ton of great mechanical highlights.
- Amazosan
15 December 2014
12 December 2014
Belgian Grand Prix, Spa-Francorchamps, 15 June 1958
Words: Amazosan/Ed Foster
Photo: LAT
The Belgian Grand Prix returned to the Formula 1 calendar after being taken off the year previous, and the 8.7 mile Spa circuit had been slightly modified. The pits had been rebuilt, the pit straight had been widened and straightened and the entire track had been resurfaced. The race distance had been shortened from 36 to 24 laps.
The race was won by British driver Tony Brooks in a Vanwall. It was Brooks first solo Grand Prix victory after his car won the 1957 British GP in a shared drive with Stirling Moss. Brooks finished 20 seconds ahead of Mike Hawthorn driving a Ferrari 246 F1. Brooks' Vanwall team mate Stuart Lewis-Evans finished third in a career-best finish, the first of just two podium finishes to his short Grand Prix career. The race also marked the first World Championship race start (and finish) by a woman, Maria Teresa de Filippis driving her privately entered Maserati 250F. She finished tenth and last, two laps behind Brooks' Vanwall.
As an aside, on the last lap, Brooks came out of La Source to end the race, and his gearbox seized as he crossed the line. When Hawthorn was coming out of the same corner to end his race in second, his engine failed as he was coming to the finish line. Lewis-Evans's suspension collapsed on the way into La Source, and he crawled to the line in third.
Also, in ’58, a constructor was only awarded points for its highest-placed car and at season’s close, only the best six results counted. Vanwall scored six victories throughout the year thanks to Brooks and Stirling Moss while second-placed Ferrari only managed two.
Photo: LAT
The Belgian Grand Prix returned to the Formula 1 calendar after being taken off the year previous, and the 8.7 mile Spa circuit had been slightly modified. The pits had been rebuilt, the pit straight had been widened and straightened and the entire track had been resurfaced. The race distance had been shortened from 36 to 24 laps.
The race was won by British driver Tony Brooks in a Vanwall. It was Brooks first solo Grand Prix victory after his car won the 1957 British GP in a shared drive with Stirling Moss. Brooks finished 20 seconds ahead of Mike Hawthorn driving a Ferrari 246 F1. Brooks' Vanwall team mate Stuart Lewis-Evans finished third in a career-best finish, the first of just two podium finishes to his short Grand Prix career. The race also marked the first World Championship race start (and finish) by a woman, Maria Teresa de Filippis driving her privately entered Maserati 250F. She finished tenth and last, two laps behind Brooks' Vanwall.
As an aside, on the last lap, Brooks came out of La Source to end the race, and his gearbox seized as he crossed the line. When Hawthorn was coming out of the same corner to end his race in second, his engine failed as he was coming to the finish line. Lewis-Evans's suspension collapsed on the way into La Source, and he crawled to the line in third.
Also, in ’58, a constructor was only awarded points for its highest-placed car and at season’s close, only the best six results counted. Vanwall scored six victories throughout the year thanks to Brooks and Stirling Moss while second-placed Ferrari only managed two.
10 December 2014
Digital Garage: BMW CS Vintage Concept by David Obendorfer
David Obendorfer has a real penchant for designing modern versions of European classics from the 60s and 70s; his modern takes on cars such as the Fiat 600 and Renault 4 are evidence of that.
Paying homage to the Giovanni Michelotti-designed 1965 BMW 2000 CS (E120 series), Obendorfer has created a modern reinterpretation of the model in the form of the BMW CS Vintage Concept. Inspired by Michelotti’s E120 and its successor the 1968 BMW E9 series, the CS Vintage Concept is based on BMW’s current 6 Series platform, and as Obendorfer states, “despite numerous citations from the past, [the CS Concept] is substantially contemporaneous with updated proportions and with modern details, many of which are inspired by nautical styling solutions".
Inside, the CS Vintage Concept showcases a minimalist design that homages the original, with simple lines and high quality materials synonymous with modern BMWs, including polished wood and hand-stitched leather. The references to the classic BMW coupes of the 60s abound, such as the four circular instruments,which are actually four small TFT screens (two of which are programmable) while a central hideaway monitor displays navigational and infotainment data.
This is a reinterpretation so convincing that you have to wonder why it can't exist in reality and be a financially viable exercise. BMW is looking to the future with the “i” range for electric/plug-in hybrid vehicles, why not have a retro-inspired range that looks to past glories?
If you build it BMW, surely they will come.
- Mr Fabulous
And for reference, here is the 2000 CS:
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