We spotted Don Murray’s gorgeous Iso Grifo coupe at his private collection in Irvine California, and wondered what it was. It was obviously Italian, based on its styling, and obviously a high-end touring car. In fact, it looked like a Bertone-designed Ferrrari, except for its unusual rectangular hood scoop called a pagoda, the like of...
2-Liter Tourisme an honest car Without any doubt, the Ballot 2LS was a brilliant design, what with its cutting-edge technology and amazing performance. But it had one major shortcoming: its price! Ballot was well aware that the price of this technological tour de force would keep away most of the enthusiast car buyers, so he...
The first Japanese Grand Prix held in 1963, at Honda’s then very new facility at Suzuka, is generally recognized as the coming of age of Japanese motor sport. But six years prior to that, a Japanese car competed in an overseas event for the first time – the 1957 Mobilgas Round Australia Rally. The Round...
A very rare Shelby was profiled in the December 2013 issue of Vintage Roadcar (The Only One – 1967 Shelby GT 500 Convertible). It was the only 1967 G.T. 500 convertible ever built. At the time, it was believed to have been built as a prototype for the upcoming 1968 model. Brian Styles, and his...
Beverly Rae Kimes has been called the “First Lady of Automotive History” for good reason. She has written histories of many of the great cars of the 20th century. Her article titled “Auburn – From Runabout to Speedster,” published in Automobile Quarterly Volume V, Number 4, provides an interesting opinion about Auburn automobiles: “The Auburn was always a...
The Dutch name DAF—Van Doorne Automobielfabriek(Van Doorne’s Automobile Factory)—is world-famous for its beefy trucks. But some familiar with its massive long-haul semis might be surprised to learn that DAF produced compact and small family cars from 1959 to 1974. Two points to remember about these DAF cars are that they were all two-door models (though...
In the 1940s, Chrysler Corporation’s Dodge division had a reputation for building solid, dependable, conservatively styled cars. That was fine, however, Chrysler wanted to add some glamour and excitement to their cars. The American public was fascinated with the new jet-age technology that had developed after the war and car companies where eager to capitalize...
In the early 20th century, the motor car was considered a killer. The culprit was the 1903 Paris to Madrid road race that never made it to Madrid. It was stopped by the French prime minister, Emile Combes, as it got to Bordeaux. The reason? The race had killed 10 people and injured many more in just...
Alex Bacon grew up a student of automobile design. He cut his teeth as a teenager with a ground up restoration on his father’s ’63 Ferrari 250 GTE and fell willing victim to the allure of its sexy design, exotic engineering and the quixotic addiction that comes from driving something you meticulously rebuilt piece by...
There is a saying, “an apple never falls far from its tree” and similarly a carrossier needs strong antecedents. The Grümmer family had been in the saddling and coachbuilding business long before the creation of the Grümmer company in Clichy, France, in 1924. The oldest traceable origins of the family have been found in the...
We open the smallish front doors, typical of open cars of the 1920s, and climb in. Chris Kidd pulls down the spark lever on the big Lincoln open tourer’s steering wheel hub and then eases out the choke, flicks the key, and steps on the starter pedal. The starter spools up, kicks the engine over,...