Price as advertised (1955): £750
Adjusted for inflation (2008): £15,120 (US $24,169.32)
What that buys today: Mini Cooper S, Volkswagen GTI, well equipped Mazda Miata
I always assumed that the D-Type was never a full production model. I know they made a few dozen of them, but assumed they were fairly coachbuilt one-offs. This picture sure seems to indicate otherwise.
The panels were supplied by Abbey Panels of Coventry and shipped over to the factory itself to be assembled in the factory alongside XK140s and MK VIII sedans. These shots are from late ’55/early ’56 shortly before the factory was nearly flattened by fire in 1957, so this is indeed a rare view of the Coventry facility.
Just look at them all. This could easily be described as a D-Type assembly line; albeit a non-mechanized one. Fantastic.
Categories
Nordschleife
Tell us about the greatest track in the world won’t you, Sir Jackie.
This absolute stunner of a Machine participated in the Mille Miglia from 1951-1955. Without the race numbers or chassis number I’m at a loss as to her results, but at least she looked damned good getting there.
via.
Bonus: build your own Gilco chassis for this car — if you happen to be a skilled welder.
The Mille Miglia legacy and Ferrari are closely intertwined, and with good reason. As such, Mille Miglia 2010 is celebrating the history of the race and the marque by allowing a special 120 car procession of post 1958 Ferraris to precede the Mille competitors from Rome to Brescia. This means, of course, that drivers of contemporary Ferraris can join in the fray, driving through the lovely Italian towns that are otherwise closed to automobile traffic. Pistunzén here sure seems excited about it (what the Hell is up with the cartoon piston?). I suppose this is good news for Ferrari drivers, but I really don’t see the point of it all.
The Mille Miglia isn’t a race anymore, officially anyway ;). It’s billed as a time trial, but even that is a bit of a stretch. It’s a renaissance festival. I’m not saying that to disparage it. The thing I like most about it is that we get out our early sportscars—the Mille ended quite early after all—and we parade them through some of the most picturesque countryside the world has to offer. I think that is what makes the event what it is, extraordinarily rare cars seen in the appropriate environment. Oddly, in this case, it’s the modern cars that are an anachronism. There’s a reason Lord March hides the modern cars indoors during Goodwood.
Don’t spoil the fantasy.
What do you think? Do modern Ferraris add to the fun and I’m just a stick in the mud? Or should the Mille Miglia remain the exclusive domain of period appropriate racers?
285 Horses! I’m impressed.
Categories
New Nardi Book
This book is fantastic and can be ordered at the here.
We’ve had quite a bit of focus lately on the factories and workshops that turned out our dream machines. Winter has hit the upper Midwest and the garage must be calling.
These scenes were photographed in preparation for the 1953 Mille Miglia and the wrenches were spinning furiously amongst the Italian makers. The home race is always reason enough to turn up the heat a bit.
OSCA
Maserati
And of course, the rather more commanding Ferrari floor.
Here’s Mike Hawthorn checking in on the 250MM Spyder he’d be piloting for the race. He DNFed that year, but his car is still looking amazing 56 years later. The race would be won by the 250’s larger brother, Giannino Marzotto’s 340MM Spyder.
Mike Hawthorn’s Ferrari 250MM Spyder 
Mike Hawthorn’s Ferrari 250MM Spyder Today
Maybe I’m feeling a little nostalgic in the approaching Holiday season. I was about 7 or 8 years old and sitting at the south side of Hart Plaza with my fingers in my ears. If only I’d understood. It wasn’t until years later that punk rock taught me that loud = good. For engines too.
After the race weekend, my dad was able to grab one of those Renault Elf banners you see lining the track. It hung for a couple of years from my ceiling, eventually tearing. It’s near the top of my list of things I wish I’d kept from childhood.
If you can look past the lackluster photography and vacuum of information at all on the sale detail page, this 1939 Maserati 4CL 1500 offers a remarkable story and a beautiful shape. I’m on a bit of a pre-war Italians kick lately, so this Maser jumped right off the screen on Klaus Werner Klassische Automobile’s web site. Like all 4CLs, this straight-4 powered, 4-speed menace was important not only for it’s brutal appearance, but for giving a solid go at fending off the Silver Arrows during their absolute domination in the immediate pre-war period.
This example, chassis 1567, wasn’t just any Maserati 4CL: it’s the first one. British GP Driver Reggie Tongue bought this car, the first complete example, on April 5, 1939, just in time for the International Trophy race at Brooklands a month later. In the 4CL’s race debut, Tongue wrestled the Maser to a 3rd place finish, with Prince Bira winning. Two months later at the Grand Prix de L’albigeois, Tongue did one better, taking 1567 to 2nd place. This time finishing behind fellow Brit Johnnie Wakefield.
After the war, as was so often the case, 1567 was pulled out of mothballs to take back to the track, this time in the hands of former Delahaye driver, Robert Mazaud. Mazaud re-introduced the car to the racing world at the 1946 Grand Prix de Nice. Unfortunately the car didn’t go the distance, dropping out on lap 22 with a faulty magneto. He had mixed results a few weeks later in the Grand Prix de Marseille, taking pole and winning the first heat, but crashing out on the first lap of heat 2. A 3rd place at I Coupe René le Bègue in June would be his last success with the car. In the following few races, the Maserat DNFed for a variety of reasons; bad steering, bad cylinders. I cannot confirm the chassis number, but it would stand to reason that this 4CL was the car Mazaud was driving when he was killed in the 1946 Prix des 24 Heures du Mans in a crash on the 3rd lap. Mazaud’s popularity was such that in October of ’46, the Bois de Boulogne race was christened “I Coupe Robert Mazaud“.
Can you believe that the seller hasn’t shared any of this amazing story? It’s not only a markedly beautiful car, but this very example shared Brooklands with Bira and Boulogne with Nuvolari. It’s an stunningly beautiful monoposto, and I hope the new owner will continue to race her at vintage events to share her with the rest of us.
Update: It looks like we’ve mixed up our 4CLs in the immediate post-war. The commenter below informs us that Tongue’s 4CL was sold during the war and the Mazaud record above was with a different Maserati. We’re sorry for the incorrect information in the original post and thank you, Gigleux, for correcting me. I still contend that dealers should share the histories of their cars so it’s not entirely up to racing fans to try and track down this information. Such as the tidbit that The Mestro may have driven this car. This page shows a racing record of Fangio driving 1567 in the Buenos Aires Formula Libre race in January, 1948.
Oh Hell.. I give up.