I’m guessing the German caption translates to, “No, I don’t have a lift, high-shine epoxy floor, Snap-On rolling cabinet, or 10hp air compressor… Nürburgring.”
Categories
Racecar Shed
Categories
On/Off
Death Spray Custom captured a quirky gallery of the ubiquitous “on-off” battery switches on their trip to Bonneville Speed Week. I’ve always been a sucker for these kinds of detail galleries.
Those of you heading to the Goodwood Revival this weekend might find this handy. This iPhone app released by the event organizers offers a venue map and calendar of events. It’s simple, yes, but might prove invaluable if you need to make it to a good corner in time for Saturday’s Madgwick Cup race or know what time to look up to see the P-51 Mustang fly-by.
If you’re heading to Goodwood—controlling seething envy—be sure to send some photos our way. We have to live vicariously through someone after all.
Shane Balkwitsch wrote in with this outstanding project that he’s undertaken, and looks nearly complete. Hamilton Classics is assembling this very promising 356 outlaw, with some interesting specifications. As you can see in the ‘before’ shot above, this was no small matter of a paint refresh and some tweaks to the motor. When the car was found she hadn’t been on the road in more than 25 years. As is so often the case with these types of long dormant cars, the disassembly happened and then…. 20 years in a garage.
Shane has documented the progress very well as he keeps tabs on the project remotely. The Internet and digital photography must make these sorts of projects so much easier to keep up with. I’d imagine that in the past, you had to send your car to the specialist that would restore the body, then you’d see it again months later; with nothing but phone calls and an occasional mailed photo along the way. Today owners can receive frequent updates on the status of their projects—perhaps to the dismay of restorers, who must feel they are spending as much time photographing and emailing as beating panels.
The new paint looks marvelous and has a bit of a story of its own. Shane wanted to imbue the car with some Porsche history, despite the updates and mods. What better choice for a color then, than the original shade of silver grey that bedecked Porsche No. 1—the first example Porsche produced in 1948. A phone call to the Porsche Museum later, the paint code was in hand (K45-286). It’s a lovely shade, even if you don’t know the story as it passes you by on the freeway.
Still to come on the project, engine upgrades to boost the factory 95hp motor upwards of 150hp. That, coupled with the modifications that have already been completed to strip weight from the car, are sure to provide no shortage of smiles when Shane travels to Texas to drive her for the first time. Have a blast, Shane! And we wouldn’t mind seeing some photos of her maiden voyage.
More information on Shane’s project site.
Categories
The Evening Before the Race
“Richard arrived the evening before the race, at the moment when cars were making practice runs. Inez was in the passenger seat beside him.”
Bob Peak for Cosmopolitan Magazine, Feb 1964. Via This Isn’t Happiness
via Good Old Valves
This photo of the Alfa Romeo TZ Zagato coupe we featured earlier is jaw dropping. Photos like this remind us that these highly coveted, highly priced vintage sportscars were once just simple tools. This damp dirt lot, with it’s disorganized pile of racecars waiting for an event, holds untold tens of millions of dollars worth of sportscars in today’s eyes. GTO, 904, Cobra Daytona Coupe, this Alfa.. The racing season of 1964: when every race’s pits was Pebble Beach.
I love when a basket case returns to such marvelous shape.
After a hectic racing season in 1964, this lovely machine was unceremoniously retired; boarded up in an Italian garage; and hibernated for 35 years. That story is nothing new; many of the cars we’ve showcased here have shared a similar fate. Thankfully, when the car was rediscovered in 2002, having been completely disassembled along the way, it was lovingly brought back to the condition you see her in today. Better yet, the restoration was almost entirely carried out using the original parts—miraculously not misplaced once removed from the car. And although the original engine was separated from the chassis, it was quickly found a reunited with the frame. The FIA has signed off on the authenticity of the bits and pieces when the car was stripped down a subsequent time for inventory and vintage racing preparation.
She’s presented today in the livery she wore in ’64. It was a busy year for the Zagato, with appearances at the Le Mans 24 Hours race, the Nürburgring 1000km, the Tour de France, and other stops on the World Sportscar Manufacturer Championship. This green is so very out of the ordinary for Alfas, and it’s always refreshing to see an Italian in colors other than red. It makes a rare machine seem even more unique and precious. This flat tail era of sportscar design, particular in Italy, sits at the very pinnacle of sportscar design. Somehow it combined an attitude of brutish utilitarianism, but manages to remain elegant; even delicate.
She’s ready to race. The engine has been swapped for a vintage racing prepped motor (the original is crated and included in the sale). The running gear has been refurbished from nose to tail. Something I wasn’t familiar with, but is a fantastic setup for vintage racing, is the parallel exhaust system. Side pipes for unmuffled events, and a rear exit exhaust for sound limited races.
This jewel is surely eligible for some of the best events worldwide, and I hope that the new owner has the car out there competing with the GTOs, 904s, and the rest of her competition sisters on the vintage racing stage. More information on the dealer’s information page.
James Hunt in a deerstalker, Brands Hatch 1974 
Jochen Mass in a deerstalker, Nivelles 1974 
Mark Donohue in a deerstalker, Zolder 1975
Imagine the following scenario. You’re a Formula 1 driver preparing for Sunday’s race when a Belgian race fan approaches you with a deerstalker in hand. He explains that he’s a Pedro Rodriguez fan and that, because of Pedro’s love of the deerstalker, would you take a photo wearing one in tribute to the Mexican great.
This improbable request is exactly what Luc Ghys asked of many F1 drivers. Even better, many of them took him up on it. According to Luc, only Graham Hill and a hurried Jacky Ickx turned him down. What an incredible collection of photographs. What a marvelous, if idiosyncratic, tribute to Rodriguez. Click over for the complete collection.
Categories
Ready for LeMans
People thought I was crazy when I said I wanted to run a Willys MB Jeep at La Sarthe. Just wait until you see my pit crew.
Ok. Ok. That’s actually the Canadian Army’s Technical Services Division performing a complete Jeep disassembly and rebuild in under 4 minutes. Amazing.
via.