The Key 2019

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This is a real 1933 Voisin C24 completely disassembled and photographed by Bruno des Gayets (bdg@nikoja.com).

His collection comprises Formula 1 as well as motorbikes portrayed using the same technique.

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“Passione? Si può.”

Passion? It’s possible

Curiosity. What’s that noise? Why are all those people lining the road?

Interest. Cars with numbers, a race! Wonderful! Emotional response. Look at all those brave drivers! What risks they’re facing at that speed - Fantastic!

The boy is only eight, it’s a Sunday morning, and beyond the garden hedge, he discovers the Mille Miglia. He clings to the fence, entranced until the last car has passed. The sequence of feelings he has experienced are curiosity, interest, emotional response, reactions that turn into a persistent deeply felt involvement destined to shape his entire life: an absolute passion. Passion for cars, the world of automobiles, the challenge of racing.

At school, behind his desk, with a razor blade, he fashions little cars out of blackboard chalk, then paints them at home. Those little cars the grown-up boy is showing us today still speak of a childhood passion that has never waned.

For those who collect cars today, who take part in events, who look around and get the feeling that young people are not interested in automobiles, it might be helpful to think for a moment about the objective reality of the classic car scenario as it is today, and what has changed in the mechanisms that kindle the spark of this special passion. Objective reality is the fruit of endless and potentially excessive access to information. Most people know something about practically everything, but this rarely goes beyond the surface. The eightyear-old of yonder years would have known everything in advance today. He wouldn’t be intrigued, surprised, or thrilled because between him and his perceptions would be the flat screen of a tablet or a smartphone.

So, if we would like to see young people taking over and getting impassioned about automobile collecting, we need to take a serious look at what is really going on. For a start, it is simply not true that they are indifferent to classic cars. “The Key” came to this conclusion analyzing the data contained in over 600 interviews conducted during the foremost European and American classic car events. Another truth that came to light was that current changes in the transport sector have somehow contributed to a pleasantly reassuring and slightly nostalgic perception of the cars of bygone eras on the part of the digital generation. However, this attitude, which is the equivalent of the curiosity and interest of the past, needs to be transformed into emotional involvement. This is precisely where passion starts. And once it’s there, it will never wane.

In other words, you become a devotee, a fan, a buff So what’s the best way to impart enthusiasm of this sort? For today’s collectors, who saw the cars they now cherish and love at the time when they were first launched, at motor shows and races, memory itself embodies deeply felt values that help keep the passion alive. But nostalgia mechanisms of this sort aren’t effective for young people who observe with curiosity the cars that speak for a world they never knew. The instrument through which they expand experience is the Internet, so it is here that that future flame must be ignited. What makes the Web so attractive?

The fact that it offers a vast universe of experiences. For a young person, a De Dion-Bouton of 1903, a Bugatti Type 35, and a Ferrari 250 are all more of less coeval vehicles. Fascinating, interesting, intriguing. But also totally unknown. Museum items. Whereas if two kids in their early twenties could drive the De Dion in the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run,

all this would change. They would experience the thrill of discovering what it was like to drive at the time, to take part in an adventure, to realize that being cold and short of sleep can actually fire the adrenaline required for the endeavor. Those kids would post endless photos and footage of their undertaking on the Web, and social media would spread information about a curious event throughout the digital universe. The experience of two young people and a crazy car unlike anything their peers had ever come across would become viral, turning the world of classic cars into an irresistible attraction, a focus for new energies, vision, and involvement. This is just one idea, perhaps an extreme example of what could be done. It’s no coincidence that in the survey carried out by “The Key” (see page 154-157), the classic car models that most appeal to the young are those that are best suited to adventurous projects, to commitment, to engaging the imagination. Many decades have gone by for the eight-year-old boy. But there’s been no cooling of the passion that began with those fantastic cars with numbers painted in white on the body, driven at full speed past his house. From the Mille Miglia to the time he spent carving cars out of chalk at school, and beyond to the races as an amateur driver, the experiences in journalism, the involvement with Renault and then with Ferrari: a true story of unending love.

Antonio Ghini Chief Editor Passion? It’s possible

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Imprint

Authors

The Key - Top of the Classic Car World

Richard Adatto is a world-renowned expert on French aerodynamic cars produced before World War II.

is the official magazine of The Classic Car Trust

He is a member of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Advisory Board and the Board of the Mullin

and is published annually.

Automotive Museum, and has been since those bodies’ inceptions; he is also a judge at the annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and has been for more than 20 years.

Publisher The Classic Car Trust, Pflugstrasse 12,

Massimo Delbo is the Italian contributor for Octane magazine, a regular contributor of The Classic Car Trust

9490 Vaduz, Principality of Liechtenstein

Blog, of American Sports Car Market and Insider, the Pebble Beach Concours Magazine. Since years Massimo, member of the ICJAG (International Chief Judge Advisory Group) is part of the judging team in Concours of Ele-

Editorial Board Fritz Kaiser

gance for classic cars all over the world and, in his spare time, loves to research the hidden history of classic cars.

Antonio Ghini

Mark Dixon, Having trained as an archaeologist, he made the logical leap to writing about old cars in 1989

Duccio F. Lopresto

and has done so full-time ever since. He’s involved in every aspect of producing Octane, including a fair bit of photography, and his classics range from a 1927 Model T Ford to a 2001 Honda Insight hybrid, via 1964

Editor-in-Chief Antonio Ghini Market Intelligence Duccio F. Lopresto 21iLAB Translations James Knight Kate Singleton

Chevy van and 1970 Lamborghini Espada.

Antonio Ghini is a journalist and brand marketing & communications specialist who started his career in racing. He worked first at Renault as Director of Communication for Italy and then as Global Director of Communication and Brand Management at Ferrari for more than 20 years. Today he works as a journalist and consultant in the automotive sector.

Roberto Giolito, today Head of division Heritage FCA Italy, directing the activities of a dedicated team to protect the heritage of all the Group’s classic cars, has been head of Design for Fiat Group and FCA. In his career, he has always pursued prototype studies as well as mass-production models. His designs include the new Fiat 500 and the Fiat Multipla.

Project Coordinator

John Lamm was 15 years old when he decided to become an automotive journalist, and this decision turned

Pascal Rossi

out to be more than right. Writer for various prestigious international Magazines, such as Road & Track, he received the prestigious Ken Purdy and Dean Bachelor award for his achievements in the field of Automotive

Art Director

Journalism.

Pascal König Duccio F. Lopresto has had cars in his bloodstream since birth. Born into a collector’s family, he developed Printing Company

a taste for beauty and design thanks to his father, Corrado. He worked for Lamborghini, RM Sotheby’s and

Thurnher Druckerei GmbH

Hagerty, before joining The Classic Car Trust, where he is a member of the Market Intelligence team and the Editorial Board of The Key.

Copyrights & Credits Find all credits & copyrights on:

Jun Nishikawa Freelance editor and writer for more than 20 years, Jun Nishikawa is one of the most respected

classiccartrust.com/thekey/credits

Japanese car journalists. He was previously also one of the editors of Car Sensor Magazine. He graduated from Kyoto University, with a bachelor in Engineering.

Contact The Classic Car Trust reg.

Pflugstrasse 10/12 9490 Vaduz Principality of Liechtenstein +423 236 52 22 office@classiccartrust.com classiccartrust.com classiccartrust.com/thekey

Donald Osborne, Accredited Senior Appraiser, automotive consultant, and remarkable author, loves to share his passion for cars and his considerable knowledge with other car enthusiasts on the CNBC Primetime show “Jay Leno’s Garage” as well as in his monthly column in the Sports Car Market magazine.

Stefano Pasini, born in Bologna on 28 April 1957, is an M.D. (ophthalmologist) who has been interested in historic automobiles since 1975, collaborating with various magazines, such as Auto Capital, Le Grandi Automobili, and others.

An internationally recognized expert about Lamborghini and Porsche. He has been a member of the 2013 Honorary Committee of the Mille Miglia and is since 2012 a member of the Jury of the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este.

Rob Scorah is a writer and photographer based in the north of England. He writes mainly about classic cars and racing, watches and travel. Rob is a contributor to Classic Car magazine and a respected photographer worldwide.

Rob Widdows was brought up on racing, being taken to Goodwood as a small child and devouring his father’s copies of Motor Sport. During a career in newspaper, radio and TV journalism he created the ‘Track Torque’ motorsport show on radio and was IndyCar commentator for Eurosport before co-founding the Festival of Speed and Revival events.

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Contents 4

Passion? It’s possible

8

I just wanted to tell you why

18

38

12

40

Piero Ferrari: In the name of the Father An encounter with Piero, Vice President of Ferrari and guarantor of the continuity of the family, and the young Enzo, his nephew.

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From Z to one hundred Andrea Zagato explains why the Milanese Carrozzeria can look to the future with confidence after 100 years of success.

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A Bugatti in Your Garage?

The Key explains why there are at least ten reasons for having one.

Je ne sais quoi

A visit to Peter Mullin’s collection at Oxnar in California reveals how the typically French ability to transcend the concept of magnificence influenced the history of automobiles.

Recognition of accomplishment – Looking ahead

The first edition of The Classic Car Trust Circle Award goes to Giorgetto Giugiaro for his extraordinary contribution to fostering the passion for automobiles.

And the Best of the Best is...

Ginny and David Sydorick’s 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2.9 Touring.

Top 100 Collectors 2019

Who are the world’s most significant car collectors?

What has changed compared to the 2018 edition.

Great things are born of dreams

Charles March has been consumed by the love for cars since he was young, as you can discover in this fascinating story.

Cars, Architects, and Designers

The ideas of famous architects, such as Le Corbusier, Giò Ponti, and Frank Lloyd Wright, have also enriched the world of automobiles.

Democracy? No, thank you

We asked 27 world leaders in the collector’s car business what are the ten cars for the garage of their dreams. Everyone’s dream garage is different, and for a number of interesting reasons.

Racing the History

The perfect brake at the Tertre Rouge chicane in the middle of the night, full throttle on the endless Mulsanne straight, the looming arc of the Dunlop Bridge, the overtakings...

Collier collection. More than a family passion

Race and engines are part of the Collier family since forever. The rare collection and the REVS, based in Naples, Florida, are a showcase of their commitment to the car culture.

British Mystique

You need to have the right spanners and be aware of the type of thread of your screws to understand why British cars are different.

Young Judges: Mainstays for the Future

The current generation of judges should prepare the way for newcomers by passing on the necessary skills and ethical guidelines to preserve and foster the passion and respect for classic cars.

Lucky to have been there

Federico Göttsche’s life is suffused with the scent of very special and romantic automobiles.

He’s living proof that youth is not a hindrance to passion.

D on D

Dino e Dallara. Two car engineers steer us through 60 years of the history of engines, designs, ideas and inventions. A story that brings together the dreams of two geniuses.

Japanese people, and their subtle love for collecting

Discovere here the fascinating and secret stories of the most important Japanese collectors, preservers of cars that belong to history.

146 Cockpit

An insightful and analytical view on the top end of the classic car market focusing on the top 100 global collectors and their cars.

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The collectors who foresaw the future

A very quick view into the history of auto collecting.

Secrets around the world

Every private or public museum hides interesting and rare cars.

We present the first global guide of must-see classic car museums.

The Secret Archives of The Classic Car Trust

The One-Off Pininfarina Archive.

CONTENTS // 7

I just wanted to tell you why Fritz Kaiser Founder of The Classic Car Trust Fritz Kaiser is a Liechtenstein entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist who collects iconic sports cars of the ‘50s and ‘60s.

Fritz Kaiser with the Porsche 550 Spyder 1500 RS, VIN# 550 0084, which won at the Nürburgring in 1956, and is now part of the Kaiser collection.

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Dear Collectors, Aficionados and Friends

foster the heritage, enjoyment and preservation of classic cars in a fast-moving world.

The photo of our editor, Antonio Ghini, on the opening page, is a lovely portrayal of passion for cars. As a little boy, Antonio hid behind his school desk and used a razor blade to carve his dream cars out of blackboard chalk, which he then painted at home. He still has them as a grown-up boy today. Between his childhood passion and now, he was responsible for Ferrari’s brand communication and museum for more than 20 years.

We were thrilled at how our first edition in 2018 was welcomed by the community.

Someone said to me that he sees it as the new bible for the upscale classic car market. And a former head of a Formula 1 team, now a leader at FIVA, wondered how we could maintain the publication’s level of quality in future. He promised to keep it on his desk until he could compare it with the 2019 edition. Well, here it is. We look forward to his and all our readers’ judgments.

The passion for cars is one of the most important driving forces in the world of classic cars, and we want to help nurture this passion and excite younger people.

In this 2019 edition of “The Key - top of the

The 1000 Miglia is said to be “the most beautiful race in the world,” and it is a great example of pure passion. In 2018, my son Benedikt and I took part in the race with our Porsche 550 Spyder and we are happy to be able to share some of our personal photos of the adventure in this publication. This year we did the 1000 miles of passion again in our black Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing. Antonio Ghini and his wife Cristina joined us in a Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider America and Duccio Lopresto, and his girlfriend Francesca in a Cisitalia 202 Berlinetta, both from our collection. Together we formed the “Scuderia The Classic Car Trust,” with Duccio and Francesca forming the youngest team in this year’s 1000 Miglia.

This fabulous event is essentially a fast, intense four-day racing experience, where several hundred thousand people – old and young – cheer you as a hero through the cities and along the roads from Brescia to Rome and back. The Classic Car Trust is also the 2019 market intelligence partner of 1000 Miglia Srl, so as well as being enjoyable, our participation in the race also allowed us to support the market survey project with our observations from personal experience.

The Key - One Year Later This annual publication of The Classic Car Trust is one important tool in our mission – to

classic car world,” you will find exciting stories about Piero Ferrari and Enzo Ferrari junior, about the origin of the passion of the Duke of Richmond and about Goettsche, the nephew of Conte Lurani.

We introduce Miles Collier with his Revs Institute, the wonderful flamboyant French cars of Peter Mullin and some of the most important Japanese collections. And you will hopefully enjoy reading about the Le Mans Classic and Stefano Pasini and the British Mystique. All these stories are written by outstanding authors.

We are building our own archive and have dug deep into the historic files to share some important, well-researched stories with you.

You will learn more about 100 years of Zagato, and you will find a rather unique story about Bugatti. There is also a special piece by Roberto Giolito about the cars of the architects. And, we share a unique piece of history from our Pininfarina archive, which details all the unique cars ever built by this famous coachbuilder.

Of course, we have also updated our list and ranking of the 100 most important collectors in the world and are very happy to present some major new findings from the scientific work of our market intelligence unit. And those aficionados who travel the world will find our guide to the best museums useful.

We hope the 2019 edition will again be perceived as thought-provoking, useful, and enjoyable.

The Top 100 Classic Car Collectors 2019 Our ranking of the global top 100 collectors aims to honor the efforts of great collectors and to create a podium of recognition for the most important of them. At the same time, this ranking should offer valuable reference points for collecting in general.

We already had a fairly well-grounded database for our first ranking list in 2018, and we have developed a sophisticated scoring system to take into account value, historic importance, awards won, reputation and the contribution of a collector to the classic car community.

Since 2018 we have increased our research activities and are thankful for all the valuable information and suggestions we have received.

Some collectors also opened their private garages and shared their treasures and personal stories with us. All this was and will be tremendously helpful as we continuously seek to improve the database and produce a solid list.

The new 2019 ranking reflects the progress we have made. Based on our substantially enhanced database, we were able to take 19 new collectors into our top 100 list and to adjust some of the 2018 ranking positions.

Today the top 100 collectors together own cars worth US$ 10 bn (+20%) and their average age is 71 years.

Computers can now generate sophisticated suggestions for the ranking from our ever-growing database. However, we also want to incorporate the human side of collecting. Looking at the very top of the ranking, we find some truly wonderful worldclass collections, each different from the other and each reflecting the personal taste and perspective of the collector. This makes it hard to choose the best of the best.

Having considered everything we have learned since last year, the US collector Fred Simeone reached the top of our ranking in 2019, and we want to celebrate him this year as our global number 1 collector. The Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum in Philadelphia, which is open to the public, is a great place to visit.

I just wanted to tell you why // 9

The passion for classic car racing. The Kaiser Family at the 1000 Miglia 2018. Fritz (Driver), Benedikt (Co-Driver), Birgit & Max (Team Management).

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The Market Cockpit: Next generation view and more In our Market Cockpit, you will again find valuable analysis and data about our collector ranking and related cars around the world.

Over the past 12 months, we also conducted various surveys and can now offer interesting new results and insights into today’s thinking and preferences with regard to classic cars.

In one survey, we asked 27 world-leaders in their sectors, which ten dream cars they would like to have in their personal garage. We wanted to lift the curtain on the secrets behind the passion, and indeed we found that every dream garage is different. The Miura was the car mentioned most by these celebrities. I am sure you will enjoy taking a peek into these dream garages.

We are also pleased to present our first comparison of the tastes and opinions of the younger and older age categories from our international survey. For this task, our survey team interviewed a significant cross-section of 500 individuals at five major international events. We wanted to know how much the older and new generations of collectors diverge in terms of their focus and interest in different models and marques.

of Liechtenstein, you can get your driving license at 18 years of age. As soon as my twin boys got theirs, I invited them to the racetrack in Salzburg, Austria, to earn their racing license. Just a couple of months later, they were driving our Porsche 356 Drauz Roadster in the “Terre di Canossa” regularity race – another wonderful event in Italy. They did well, and I was proud of them.

About The Classic Car Trust

Fast forward two years, I was driving with one of my sons in our brand new Ferrari GTC4 Lusso, which we had just received. I asked my son if he wanted to try it. Guess what – he said yes. After his test drive, I was interested to hear what he thought about the car, and he responded: “Daddy, the car is wonderful. However, the Ferrari is somehow driving me, while in our 1960 Porsche I feel that I am really driving the car myself.“ Aha, I thought, to myself, for our family collection, at least, the succession issue shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

Our various initiatives for the classic car world are based on sound and professional market research. Our strategic thinking and our initiatives and activities are all fueled by the aims of preserving the heritage of important cars of the past and of passing their enjoyment into the future.

A Leaders’ Forum for the Good of the Future of Classic Cars

The question of succession is omnipresent in the world of classic cars, and it concerns everyone, from owners, promoters, and judges of famous events to restorers of cars and silver generation club members around the world.

In September 2018, we launched The Circle at the Grand Basel event in Switzerland. This is a new platform for a meeting of minds, which aims to foster an exchange among leaders of the international classic car community for the good of the future of classic cars. The Circle is an annual gathering that brings together major collectors, business leaders, politicians, opinion leaders, and experts to discuss solutions for the most pressing questions in the classic car world.

It is a not-for-prof it initiative by personal invitation, and it is run along with similar principles to the World Economic Forum. At the 2018 meeting, we also honored Giorgetto Giugiaro for his lifetime achievements as a car designer.

One fundamental question which I often hear is, “How can we promote great old cars to younger people?” And there is one answer to this difficult question, which I like a lot: “By giving them the keys to drive them.” Maybe I like this because it’s what we’ve done in my family.In the Principality

The new edition of The Key was presented for the f irst time at the 2019 Circle meeting.

This took place in June 2019 at the Automobile Club de France in Paris, where a group of leaders gathered to discuss possible solutions to some of the fundamental challenges we are facing in today’s market.

These findings could provide important signposts with regard to value developments, the generational shift in the collector world, and the future of collecting in general.

Classic Car Passion Makeover

We live in fast-moving times, and the world of classic cars is coming to a crossroads. There are serious challenges to be mastered if we are to give this market a long-term lifeline: the generational shift, new mobility concepts, technological developments, and environmental concerns are the most obvious ones.

Our overarching goal is to create a trusted international platform, made by collectors for collectors, aficionados, and experts — a place to meet and share knowledge.

We are currently studying different ways of supporting our mission with new initiatives, and, from time to time during the year, we will offer our thoughts via our website. We are thankful for any support and suggestions we receive. You can always reach us via office@classiccartrust.com.

A big thank you to all our contributors and friends. We appreciate the many encouraging words of recognition our team has received for their passionate work as they strive for excellence.

Fritz Kaiser Chairman & Founder of The Classic Car Trust

I just wanted to tell you why // 11

Piero Ferrari: In the Name of the Father For an Italian firm in the luxury sector whose cars are the objects of desire for collectors the world over, the ongoing involvement of the original families is a guarantee for the future.

by Antonio Ghini

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This image is more than a symbol because it summarizes the past, that of Enzo represented by the Alfa of the Scuderia of the 30s, the present, that of Piero Ferrari, vice president of Ferrari today, and the future of Enzo Ferrari, the young nephew who bears the name and passion of the legendary founder.

Piero Ferrari: In the Name of the Father // 13

 Enzo Ferrari, 58 years old, in 1956 with three of the first four cars classified at the Mille Miglia: the 290 MM number 548, victorious with Eugenio Castellotti, and the twin, number 600 driven by Manuel Fangio, which finished fourth. With the number 556 the 860 Monza of Luigi Musso finished third behind the other 860 number 551 driven by Peter Collins.

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F

or an Italian firm in the luxury sector whose cars are the objects of desire for collectors the world over, the ongoing involvement of the original families is a guarantee for the future. Piero Ferrari, Enzo’s son, talks about the company as it is today, and how it can count on the heritage represented by chairman John Elkann, grandson of Giovanni Agnelli, who in 1969 became a partner in the business founded by Enzo Ferrari. He also tells us about his own considerable experience in the company, and that of his grandson, also called Enzo Ferrari, Enzino to his f riends, who works at Maranello and is naturally attuned to the idiom of today’s millennials.

“My father would have liked the Internet, he was always very interested in everything that was new,” says Piero Ferrari, reminiscing about his father, Enzo, thirty years after his death. We are in Piero’s office in Modena’s Viale Trento Trieste. It was right here that his family’s great automobile and racing venture began; here that the history of the Alfa Romeos with the Prancing Horse was written. The Ferraris were born in Maranello, starting in 1947. All of them, from the racers to the road cars that today represent over 40% of the overall value of the world’s foremost collections. It’s a percentage that would rise considerably if it reflected the actual desire to own such gems. “My father would have been proud of this,” Piero states as he turns the pages of The Key and observes the values of other marques, all of them much, much lower. “And the Alfa comes second, surely that’s no coincidence!”. Then, he picks up his smartphone, as if the stream of his memories had originated from there: “He was always looking forward to the car that was still to come. Even his own that he’d sell after one year. That’s why he would certainly have paid great attention to the whole digital revolution, communication first and foremost.” This rings completely true: among Enzo Ferrari’s many intuitions, there’s even an early form of social media.

Every morning, Enzo used to go for a shave at Antonio’s barber’s shop on Corso Canal Grande, a stone’s throw from his home. That was common enough at the time, when electric razors where noisy and inefficient and

disposable razors were still to come. Lying back in the barber’s chair, his face covered in shaving cream, he liked to hear Antonio’s take on local news, reciprocating with more or less veiled messages that he knew would be relayed to the intended recipient. A sort of shaven Facebook, but fifty years before the birth of Mark Zuckerberg! “We made it alone and we don’t need anything,” Enzo dared to say to Italy’s erstwhile Prime Minister Bettino Craxi when he visited the Maranello plant.

Autonomy and independence boosting the pride of the successful Italian family business were core messages that Piero remembers well as he had personally witnessed the meeting. Companies like Ferrari nurture a form of entrepreneurship made up of creativity and courage, where decisional independence is essential. Ferrari was indeed a family concern, and all things considered, it still is today. Piero, the second shareholder, is deputy chairman.

John Elkann, chairman and main shareholder, is the grandson of Giovanni Agnelli, the eminent President of Fiat, who in 1969 agreed to take a 50% and then a 90% stake in Ferrari, thereby helping the company consolidate and grow. “I was pleased at the end-of-year convention when John pointed out that it was the first time since my father’s death that the chairman of Ferrari is a member of the family that led the company through to the present day....” Between the lines, his words reveal that also in future years, when Ferrari will have to keep passion alive in a changing world, there will still be room in the company for members of the families that made it so successful. Elegantly attired in a dark suit, Piero sits at the head of a large table in the meeting room of HPE, one of his firms. One can’t help wondering what it was like to live alongside such a powerful and esteemed father. “I loved cars as much as he did, but I was also aware of having a completely different character. He was invincible, a deliberately legendary figure, and I always knew that emulating him wasn’t the right thing for me. Initially, I was drawn by situations outside Ferrari because I love technology and everything that’s future-oriented,” he says calmly. And there’s plenty that speaks of his foresight and qualities. He founded HPE Coxa, a company specialized in advanced technology, he is a partner of the Ferretti Yachts Group, and he was Chairman of

Piaggio Aero. But it’s Enzo’s blood that flows in his veins: he doesn’t like to play to the gallery; he’s aware of his own abilities and doesn’t feel the need to show off. It’s an approach to life that might seem to be almost oriental, but even this can be misleading. “There are certain situations in which I fly off the handle and I’m perfectly able to insist on my point of view.”

Enzo used to wear dark glasses “as a sort of visual shield, so that no one quite knew what he was thinking.” When he took them off, he always came across as friendly, though everyone was rather afraid of him. He would invite his closest collaborators to lunch, people such as Benzi, Sergio Scaglietti, Franco Gozzi, or racing drivers and technicians. Piero is completely different in this respect. He’s a man who openly says what is on his mind. As president of COCER, the committee that handles the certification of Ferrari Classiche automobiles, for instance, he’s never been prepared to give in to pressure, no matter where it comes from.

In other words, Ferrari is not just a historic car manufacturer successfully listed on the stock exchange, because at heart it’s still a family concern that is irresistibly Italian. What’s more, another family member is now also involved in the company: Piero’s thirty-year-old grandson Enzo Ferrari, who worked for Ducati in the MotoGP sector managing the Philip Morris sponsorship. Enzo junior joined the Maranello team in spring 2018. During a dinner with family and friends, Sergio Marchionne turned to Enzo and asked him when he was coming to work for the firm. A few weeks later, there he was at Ferrari, initially dealing with product marketing with Nicola Boari, and thereafter expanding his expertise in the brand department.

We’ve known young Enzo for some time now, and though it may seem a little early for predictions, we feel that it’s not unrealistic to think of him as the right person in the right place. He has talents that seem made to measure for the challenges ahead, for tomorrow’s world of new technologies, in which success will be the fruit of the right balance between human and non-human. Enzino’s culture and experience are international, he’s young enough to be classified as a millennial, he has a real passion for engines and racing, and to cap it all, he’s naturally warm and understanding. It’s as though Enzo junior were putting Piero Ferrari: In the Name of the Father // 15

into skillful practice Piero’s vision of Enzo senior enjoying the Internet. Back in the 1930s, the original Enzo Ferrari began publishing Annuals that exalted the achievements of his driver customers (paying customers who spurred the company forward), and then in the 1950s, Enzo himself wrote some magnificent books, including Piloti Che Gente and Le Briglie del Successo, as well as producing the series of magnificent Annuals. A man of such vision would certainly have appreciated the new prospects for communication brought about by the Web today. But will today’s youngsters still nurture the passion for cars?

Piero has an interesting, thought-provoking theory on the subject: “We are attracted by cars that recall the years of our youth, our unaffordable dream vehicles. By collecting them in later years, we are buying the dreams we had as kids. Not just Ferraris. Those were great years, with styles in continual evolution: just think of the little English Spyders. It’s different

for young people today, and I also wonder what the future holds. But I’m convinced that the attraction will remain, and not just on account of the appeal of the design and knowledge of the technology involved. The real change will be moving from memories to the desire for first-hand experience. There’s nothing like classic cars for a unique experience.” It’s a persuasive viewpoint, because in these times of storytelling, experience can become an effective narrative that gets people involved. The Web itself is all about participation.

We ask Piero if he agrees with the tendency among certain car manufacturers for launching contemporary versions of classic cars. The Ferrari Monza SP is a case in point. “Yes I do, actually. It’s a way of breathing new life into models of the past. But this can’t be done too often....” Yet such vehicles don’t coincide with the Ferraris people want to collect, because

what collectors want is monetary as well as emotional investment. “When you look at the trends, you realise that the value of Ferraris continues to grow,” Piero explains. So how did Enzo’s magical automobiles come about? “My father always had a gut reaction to new models, he didn’t look at the details, just said whether he liked them or not. He didn’t analyze the style. I remember that he used to go to Scagliettiin Modena when they were beating the sheet metal, and on occasions would say that the wheel arch was too rounded and he made them change it.”

‘Old’ Sergio (Scaglietti) used to work “drawing the iron threads,” which meant tracing the outline in space so that the metal could be pounded into shape. Sergio nurtured great respect for Enzo, and would never have dared contradict the man he referred to as “l’omon”, (the big man), on account of his imposing size. “My father once went to see how a car intended for some Motor Show or other was

Enzo Ferrari, seated next to Piero on the 815 Auto Avio Costruzioni, Ferrari’s first car built in 1940, shows, behind his glasses, the same cut of his great great-grandfather’s eyes. With an international culture, dynamic and deeply passionate, open and empathetic nature, the young Enzo has already had wide experience in the world of MotoGP. Today he works in Maranello.

Good news for Ferrari lovers.

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coming along. He looked at it and said: ‘I don’t like the wheel arch, or the nose, and not the boot either.’ Scaglietti had to do it all again, commenting dryly that he could only save the doors!” For The Key we were hoping to unearth some hidden aspect of Enzo Ferrari’s life, even if he has been the subject of endless books and articles. But Piero’s answer to the first probing question was negative: “No, he left no account of what he thought the Ferrari of the future should be. Perhaps he thought it wouldn’t have been the same, or maybe he just didn’t want to think about it, or perhaps he’d imagined leaving some kind of a testament in this sense, but not one we know of...” In much respect, his effective testimonial was already there in the racing that he was so passionate about.

“We watched the last Grand Prix together on television, it was July 1988, and he was very sick and found it hard to follow the race. At a certain point he asked me: ‘Piero, how are the Alfa Romeos doing?’. He’d begun his involvement in racing with the Alfas, and even though he’d won everything with the Ferraris, and there had been no Alfas in the Grand Prix for some time, his thoughts at that moment returned to his origins.” Likewise, his automobiles are his testimonials, because they bear witness to his ceaseless urge to transcend in everything.

That’s why they feature in so many collections.

However, the best insight into what he had in mind for the future of Ferrari lies in his desire that it should remain a company that cultivates the human element.A concern firmly rooted in the land of his origins, made up of people who work together with passion, where relentless drive for excellence is accompanied by the endless joy of successes that seem so utterly unattainable to become possible.

A company of this sort can only exist if the people who work there put their guts and feelings as well as their minds into the job. A company in which boundless family spirit can guarantee the continuity that eludes the constraints of analysts and quarterly reports. A healthy company with solid public equity based on achievements, both past and present; a concern where you can feel the soulful effort of the people and of the families who created it, made it grow and helped it become truly a part of world heritage. This is Ferrari. 

It does not require any presentations as it keeps breaking records, even in auction prices on top of all the race wins. The myth of its name, as simple as it is suggestive, comes from connecting the O of “Omologata” (homologated) with that of the category in which it had to run, the “Gran Turismo”. It was 1962 and the approval required that at least 25 cars were produced. The small Ferrari manufacturer, faced with this rule designed for the great builders, was struggling to reach the number. When the telegram from the FIA ​​finally arrived, approving the homologation, the name came out spontaneously: Gran Turismo Omologata = GTO.

The cars on this page have a special value in the memory of Enzo Ferrari: the GTO was a symbol of his ability to win, in the ‘60s, when he wanted to participate in every championship: Formula 1, Sport Prototypes, Gran Turismo, and even the European Hill Climbs Championship. The F40 has a different symbolic value: in 1987, it was the last car he wanted. So extraordinary and coveted, it triggered a furious race to get one. At any price.

In 2002, to prepare Ferrari’s upcoming 60th anniversary celebrations, the then-president Luca di Montezemolo, wanted an extraordinary Ferrari dedicated to Enzo. The powerful Berlinetta has a design that recalls that of Formula 1 and the World Championships wins by Michael Schumacher. The Enzo remains the authentic symbol of the engine most loved by Enzo Ferrari: the V12-cylinder engine.

Piero Ferrari: In the Name of the Father // 17

Je ne sais quoi 18 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

A visit to Peter Mullin’s collection at Oxnar in California reveals how the typically French ability to transcend the concept of magnificence influenced the history of automobiles from the 1930s to the postwar years. The Key takes an analytical look at the marques, models, and constructors involved, and how they relate to the historic avant-garde movements and Deco style of Modernism at its best.

by Richard Adatto

Je ne sais quoi // 19

 Renowned French coachbuilder Saoutchik relied on the creative genius of André Dubonnet to create, in 1938, the splendid Hispano Suiza H6C ‘Xenia’.

Miraculously unscathed after the devastation of the war, this one-off example is now part of Peter Mullin’s collection, and it is exhibited in his magnificent museum.

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E

legance. Everyone knows what the word means, yet it can be surprisingly difficult to define. There are many related concepts – beauty, grace, dignity, class – but the notion of elegance is more than the mere sum of its parts. It is the embodiment of that certain je ne sais quoi, a French phrase that has become so common in the English language, and it has even entered the dictionary. It is appropriate that a French phrase has come to represent the idea of elegance. France and its culture have, for hundreds of years, been the international hub of all that is considered sophisticated, and the French people are deservedly proud and protective of their reputation.

They apply their high standards to everything that is created in their country: their art, their food and, perhaps most especially, their cars.

When the automobile first became available in the early 20th century, it was little more than a carriage with an attached engine. Boxy and awkward, these cars were made by the same men who had produced horse-drawn carriages, and they changed very little in design. But, by the early 1920s, a few individuals in France had come to recognize that the horseless carriage had enormous potential for advancement, both aesthetically and mechanically.

Men like Joseph Figoni, Jean Bugatti, and Louis Delage understood that not only could the automobile change the world, but it also could do so in style. It was a realization that decades later, Peter Mullin would memorialize in his magnificent automobile collection.

In 1925, Paris witnessed an event that would set the standard for the automobiles of the coming decades: The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts.

Attended by 16 million people, it became the stage on which French artists and craftsmen of all stripes brought their best work to display before the world: furniture makers, fashion designers, painters, sculptors – and coachbuilders. A few years later, when the marques and coachbuilders truly hit their stride, they began to create machines that were as beautiful as they were powerful. Balancing technical innovation with artistic design, these cars were a tribute to the luxury, art and, at least until the economy collapsed, optimism of the era. The onset of the Great Depression, however, was

not the end of the French automotive industry. Manufacturers and coachbuilders continued to create amazing chassis and beautiful bodies as people looked for work, as they tried to pay the bills – and as Germany rebuilt. It was not until the outbreak of World War II that the efforts of artists and artisans were stymied.

The cars from this time period – from 1927 to 1939 – are among the most beautiful, the most desirable, and most elegant in Mr. Mullin’s collection, and indeed in all the world.

Mr. Mullin remembers the thrill it would give him when, as a boy, he saw Porsches traveling up and down the Pacific Coast Highway. When it came time to begin his own collection, he began with a 356 Porsche coupe from 1965. But it wasn’t long before he knew that his true love was the French automobile, specifically the models created in the 1920s and ‘30s. As a devotee of both style and substance, Mr. Mullin recognized how special those cars were, more than half a century after they had been created.

The focus of Mr. Mullin’s entire collection is French cars. He is drawn to them for both their mechanical abilities and their status as “rolling sculptures.” The French manufacturers of the era felt that there was no point in making something beautiful that did not perform well.

As a result, they took a wonderfully pragmatic approach to solving mechanical challenges; the results were often simple, elegant, and in some cases, ahead of their time. The Bugatti Type 57 Aérolithe concept car, for example, used Elektron composite for its body panels, a material that was lightweight and durable but extremely flammable at high temperatures.

This meant that the panels could not be welded, so the engineers borrowed an aviation technique and riveted the panels externally, creating a signature dorsal seam. And the Citroën SM boasted an active hydraulic suspension that adjusted for speed and weight distribution – a feature found in only the very highest-end vehicles of the 21st century. Ettore Bugatti once said “It’s what you can’t see that counts,” and this seems to have been a maxim followed by all the best marques and coachbuilders.

On the flip side of the coin, the best French coachbuilders refused to compromise when it

Peter and Merle Mullin. In this picture, their refined passion is clearly perceptible.

came to style. After all, what was the point of creating a car that drove superbly but looked hideous? French coachbuilding came of age in the Roaring Twenties, an era of luxury and wealth. The burgeoning art deco movement was pervasive, and its simple yet voluptuous lines were incorporated into many of the car bodies of the era. Wood paneling and upholstery were similarly inspired by furniture and haute couture. Under French guidance, the automobile became a mobile status symbol, one that declared its presence everywhere it went.

These magnificent cars were, of course, primarily the possessions of the rich and powerful. Politicians, actors, royalty – they all knew that when it came to cars, French models were the best to be had, and so the orders streamed into Paris, the center of it all.

But the middle and lower classes were not left out completely. As long as there has been social hierarchy, the lower classes have copied the habits and styles of their social superiors.

One of the most pervasive instances is the traditional white, tiered wedding cake. In Victorian times, such a confection was a symbol of money and social importance. Wanting a taste of the “sweet” life, the other classes Je ne sais quoi // 21

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 A view of the Mullin Automotive Museum, a collection that shows the peculiarity of French cars, even through nonexclusive models like the Citroen DS and 2CV.

About the Mullin Automotive Museum The Mullin Automotive Museum is located at 1421 Emerson Avenue, Oxnard, CA 93033, in the building formerly occupied by the Otis Chandler Vintage Museum of Transportation and Wildlife. The museum is typically open to the public on the second and fourth Saturdays of every month from 10 AM to 3 PM. Tickets must be purchased in advance at www. mullinautomotivemuseum.com.

Semi-Private tours are offered on Tuesdays at 10 AM and Thursdays at 11 AM for $40 per person.

Other weekdays may be available by appointment. Reservations are required. For information on semi-private tours or Mullin 1000 Club membership benefits, please call +1 (805) 385 5400. To see photos of the exhibits and the cars on display, please follow the Mullin Automotive Museum’s official Instagram page.

Je ne sais quoi // 23

1937 Talbot Lago Type 150-GS

began to incorporate such cakes into their own weddings, until, today, wedding cakes are predominantly tall and light in color. The same thing happened (and still happens) with the beautiful cars of the 1920s and 1930s. Although most individuals could not afford such a machine, there were still ways for them to taste the “sweet” life. For those not among the elite, there were marques such as Citroen, US manufacturers like General Motors and Chrysler, and German companies like BMW. Representatives from these concerns attended the Paris Auto Salon to see the latest innovations and styling trends. They took this information back to their own technicians and artists, who created fairly affordable cars that were still on-trend.

All of this is important to keep in mind when considering the cars of Peter Mullin’s collection.

These automobiles were produced by an era that celebrated excellence in all its forms. In both form and function, the French cars built from the mid-1920s until the start of World War II are some of the most beautiful, creative, and inspiring machines ever made. And while every car in Mr. Mullin’s collection has its place, there are a few that deserve to be highlighted as the rare collectables they are.

Bugatti Among all the cars in Peter Mullin’s collection, it is the Bugattis that hold pride of place in his heart. They are “the apex when it comes to the combination of performance, engineering, and aesthetic – a package so visceral that it is hard to stop looking at them...that sculptural beauty is irresistible to me.” There are numerous Bugattis that are eminently collectable for one 24 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

1938 Delahaye 135M

reason or another: style, originality, mechanical innovation, or perhaps when they stand in the evolution of the automobile. Ettore Bugatti’s Type 41 Royale, for example, was first manufactured in 1927, at the very beginning of the golden era of the automobile. Only seven examples were ever created, and since one of those was destroyed, the collectable value of six still in existence is tremendous. Another example would be Jean Bugatti’s Type 57 SC Atlantic, which was based on the 1935 Aérolithe.

The Atlantic is highly collectable for several reasons. Only four were ever created, and only two still exist in their original state, so it is extremely rare. It is also extremely recognizable, arguably the most so among all the Bugatti designs, and examples have won Best of Show at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on several occasions. Finally, it is exceptionally beautiful, a prime example of the streamlined styling that characterized the best cars of the time period. From a design perspective, Mr. Mullin believes his Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic to be one of the two most beautiful cars in his collection: “I think that it was the crème de la crème of Jean Bugatti’s young, brilliant life.

With a teardrop shape, riveted spine, slightly raked windscreen, and 3.3-liter engine, it’s just a drop-dead gorgeous car.”

Talbot Lago While perhaps not quite as well-known as Bugatti, Talbot Lago was a key figure in the automotive scene, especially in the late 1930s. The T-150C SS coupe and convertible were often paired with coachwork by Figoni & Falaschi, one of the foremost coachbuilders

1938 Hispano Suiza H6C Xenia

of the period. The most famous result of this partnership was the 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C SS coupe “Teardrop,” sometimes called one of the most beautiful cars in the world. Mr. Mullin certainly agrees and holds the Teardrop’s sleek styling to be among the most stunning in his collection.

While the T-150C SS coupe models are some of the most sought-after cars on the collectors’ market, also very popular among collectors are the T 23 “Baby” coupe, the T 150 C Lago Special, and the T 150CSS convertible, all built between 1937 and 1939 and all bodied by Figoni & Falaschi. After World War II, Talbot Lago produced the Grand Sport from 1947 to 1954, and while these models are also considered collectable, their individual values depend greatly on who did the coachwork; bodies by Saoutchik and Figoni & Falaschi are the most prized.

Delahaye No collection of classic French cars would be complete without a strong showing by Delahaye. The marque’s 1936 Model 135 Paris Show car was bodied by Figoni & Falaschi and was at the forefront of the streamlined styling movement, as was its 1938 Model 165 Paris Show Car and its 1939 Model 165 New York World’s Fair convertible. Aside from Figoni & Falashi, Delahaye used a number of other coachbuilders, including in-house designers, and the origin of the car’s body is often a deciding factor in a model’s current value and collectability.

As an aside, the first time this author ever met Peter Mullin, I was in a 1948 Delahaye.

I was in the French Maritime Alps over Monte Carlo, participating in a rally from Paris to Monaco. Mr. Mullin had missed the start of the race and had arrived at the stopover in a taxi in search of his car, which was being driven by a friend. He had racked up an impressive tab: more than $900. I told him to jump in my Delahaye and ride with me, but he preferred to stay in his taxi. Later that evening, however, we reconvened at dinner and discovered our mutual passion for classic French cars—and the next day, after I helped him detail his car in the morning, he beat me in the rally in the afternoon!

Other Collectable Marques No discussion of a collection of French cars would be complete without a number of other marques. Delage, for example, created a number of highly collectable models, beginning with the D8-S in 1932 and ending with the D8-100 and D8-120 in 1937. These cars were often bodied by Letourneur & Marchand or Chapron, both of which were prominent coachbuilders of the period. Generally

speaking, the D8 models are more desirable than their second-tier counterparts, the D6 models, unless the former has a body by an especially desirable coachbuilder.

Voisin was another major player of the era.

Unlike most marques of that time, Voisin builds most of its bodies in-house, so that the marque could maintain complete control over the end result. One of the only coachbuilders that Voisin would work with was Figoni & Falaschi, and any Figoni & Falaschi-bodied Voisin is considered an excellent acquisition among collectors. Voisin began with the C11 and C14 in 1927, then continued with the C20, C22, C23, C24, C25 Aerodyne, C27 Aerosport, and C28 Clairiere.

The 1933 C25 Aerodyne is considered particularly collectable.

If you were in the market for a high-quality luxury car in the 1920s or ‘30s, you often went to Hispano Suiza. The marque was responsible for a number of early models, but those with the best coachwork, and, therefore, the

most collectable, are the H6 B series (produced from 1927 to 1929), the H6 C series (produced from 1927 to 1929), the J12 series (produced from 1931 to 1938), and the K6 series (produced from 1934 to 1937).

Unfinished Business As any collector knows, the hunt is half the fun. Mr. Mullin’s collection includes hundreds of automobiles, but that does not mean he’s finished. He continues to keep a weather eye out for additions that might be desirable, either for their style, their performance, or for some other reason. That being said, he says, “I’ve been lucky. The ones I’ve really wanted the most have fortunately found their way into my collection. I’m a pretty happy camper right now.” Still, he prevaricates: “Even with decades of searching and researching under my belt; I always find new and interesting cars that I would love to them...that joy in the hobby and the hunt is that there is always more to learn and more to find!” 

A beautiful and elegant lady in an evening dress and the red 1939 Delahaye Type 165, truly “flamboyant.” What better word to describe them?

Je ne sais quoi // 25

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From Z to one hundred

The coherence of a rationalist design, where nothing is unnecessarily foppish, and the continuous striving for lightness are the recipe behind the century-long history of Carrozzeria Zagato. Andrea, Elio’s son and founder Ugo’s grandson, reveals the secret of a success that is going to continue for many years to come thanks to the enhancement of the past through the design of the future.

by Antonio Ghini

Andrea Zagato, third generation of a family that, over the past 100 years, has been creating unique cars. Together with his precious wife, Marella, he has been able to keep their historical company modern over time.

From Z to one hundred // 27

T

urin and Milan are only 60 miles apart.

Not much. Between the World Wars, these two cities were the cradle of arguably the best coachbuilders of all time, who clad the rolling chassis of the car manufacturers, one of the rules that accompanied the development of the means of transport destined to change the world. Farina, Bertone were active in Turin; Zagato, Touring, Castagna in Milan. Then why was the Turin style different from the Milan style? More precisely, why were they culturally different?

There is a reason for this, and it lies within the different perception of the change of taste that was occurring in those years. In Milan, the rationalist trend was getting off the ground, thanks to the support of numerous illustrious architects. A movement that, at international level, took inspiration from Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius’s Bauhaus school. This way of thinking, aimed at the purity and functionality of form, soon extended also to furnishings and automobiles.  The first two generations, and one of their creatures that has become a symbol of the magnificence of Ferrari cars, even when entrusted to capable hands: the 1956 250 GTZ.

bove, founder A Ugo, first man standing on the left, in a group photo with Enzo Ferrari, sitting on the right. Right, Elio, Andrea’s father and fervent racing driver, with brother Gianni: together they led renowned carrozzeria after World War II.

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As far as applied art is concerned, Turin, given its traditional ties with the reigning House of the Savoia, culturally maintained a classical approach, also towards the motorcar. Due to its geographical position, it was also influenced by the French culture that, at the time, was strongly characterised by the Liberty and then by the Deco styles. In short, if in Turin the design of a car body implied the addition of elements that would make the vehicle more eye-catching, in Milan the trend was opposite: the design was brought to the maximum functionality by subtraction.

 Lightness, top priority in each project signed by the Milanese atelier, was the reason why Zagato-bodied cars were always very successful in motorsport.

To Ugo Zagato, Milanese at heart, after working at Ansaldo during the war, building the highly efficient fuselages and cabins of the SVA aircraft, the automotive world represented a natural business choice. He had been one of the contributors to the project of the biplane that took poet and writer Gabriele d’Annunzio to Vienna to launch a load of peace-exalting flyers: the long flight had required a large fuel supply on board and, therefore, a drastic reduction in weight. Zagato had clear in his head that this principle could also be applied to racing cars. Soon after, in fact, Enzo Ferrari and Ugo Zagato started a felicitous collaboration. Ferrari wanted the Alfa Romeos of his Scuderia to be as light and easy to handle as possible.

Zagato knew how to do it, cladding the cars with light tubular structures and aluminium skin. Theirs was a totally strategic association, as clearly portrayed in the famous photograph where the Alfas of the Scuderia are surrounded by the logos of the companies who worked with Ferrari, with Carrozzeria Zagato’s right in the middle, below the Alfa Romeo emblem.

Magic Enzo: he had the vision to enhance the contribution of his partners. Carrozzeria Zagato in 2019 celebrates its 100th anniversary, a goal achieved thanks to Ugo’s intuition to couple Milanese modernism with his own aeronautical expertise. Thanks to the cleverness of his sons, Elio and Gianni, who, after WWII, understood the values of their father’s philosophy and worked towards the modernisation of their cars, making them functional and even lighter. A race driver, Elio also contributed to the conception and promotion

of the Granturismo motorsport category.

And, finally, thanks to his son Andrea’s sharp determination to continue in the steps of his forebears, putting to good use the Zagato heritage, built over a century of relations with more than forty different automotive brands.

“A brand must be recognised, not explained.

That’s why we removed the Zagato Milano wording from the original logo and now use instead the dynamic ‘Z’ of futurist inspiration,” says Andrea Zagato, in the meeting room of the fascinating Milan-based Atelier, where the company relocated on June 16, 1962. The showroom is an ample space with a style of

“In the span of a century, everything has changed, but we are unique in many ways and this gives us assurance for the future: we are the only coach builder to be pure, independent and with the third generation of the founder’s family still at the helm; we are unique for having worked with all the main car manufacturers; we are unique because we have always privileged, in our design, function and lightness, proving with the successes in motorsport that this is the right path to follow. After the war, models like the 1900 SS Zagato and the Giulietta SZ, although in a more modern take, showed the same spirit of lightness in their performance that allowed the pre-war Alfas to win.” Undoubtedly, what Zagato represented in the car world is utterly unique. The insert illustrating ‘just’ a hundred examples, ten for each decade, of the more than four hundred models produced till now speaks for itself.

That the dynamic “Z” of Zagato represents an added value to a collectible car and a guarantee for the collectors is confirmed by a number of facts: “Zagato-bodied cars have shown a constant positive trend at auctions. Beside their substance and style, one of the reasons for this is that we have always, with very few

The Alfa Romeo  Zagato cars from the Scuderia Ferrari.

rationalistic inspiration, where the visitor can admire a number of cars ranging from the beginning of Zagato’s activity to the future, from the glorious Alfa 6C of the ‘30s, to Ferraris, Aston Martins, and Porsches, to Maseratis and the IsoRivolta Vision due in 2020.

exceptions, produced only limited runs: that’s why our models are very much sought-after. I must say that the fact they keep their value is a reassuring thing for wives and companions, who can understand the purchase is not only a pleasure, but also an investment. Our job, From Z to one hundred // 29

The harmony of

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1919-1930

1931-1940

1921-Diatto- DS Zagato

1931 - Isotta Fraschini - 8B Lusso Zagato

1921 - Itala - 51 S Zagato

1932 - OM - 665 S MM Lusso Zagato

1926 - Spa - 24 Sport Zagato

1932 - Edoardo Bianchi - S5 Tipo Zagato

1927 - Alfa Romeo - RLSS Corsa Zagato MilleMiglia

1933 - Alfa Romeo - 6C 1500 GS TF Zagato

1928 - Bugatti - Type 43 Corsa Zagato

1933 - Chrysler - CI Tipo Zagato Aerodinamica

1929 - Fiat - 525 Lusso Zagato

1933 - Essex - Terraplane Tipo Zagato I

1929 - Rolls Royce - Phantom Lusso Zagato

1936 - Maserati - 4CS 1500 Zagato

1930 - OM - 665 SS MM Zagato

1937 - Alfa Romeo - 8C 2300 Corto Zagato Aerodinamica

1930 - Ansaldo - 22 Lusso Zagato

1937 - Fiat - 1500 Zagato

1930 - Isotta Fraschini - 8A Lusso Zagato

1938 - Lancia Aprilia Sport Zagato Aerodinamica

lightness. The efficiency of func 1941-1950

1951-1960

1961-1970

1947 - Fiat - Giusti Drin Drin Zagato

1952 - D_B - 750 Zagato

1961 - BMC - MINI Cat Zagato

1947 - Maserati - A6G 1500 Zagato Panoramica

1953 - Osca - 4000 V12 Zagato

1962 - Lancia - Flavia Sport 1.5 Zagato Prototipo

1947 - Isotta Fraschini - 8C Monterosa Zagato

1955 - Frazernash - 2000 LM Zagato

1964 - Hillman -Zimp Zagato

1948 - Fiat - 500 B Topolino Zagato Panoramica

1956 - Renault - Dauphine Zagato

1965 - Alfa Romeo - 2600 SZ

1948 - MG - 1500 Zagato Panoramica

1957 - AC - Ace Bristol Zagato

1965 - OSCA - MV 1700 GTZ Zagato

1948 - Alfa Romeo - 6C 2500 Zagato Panoramica

1959 - Porsche - 356B Carrera Zagato

1966 - Lamborghini - 400 GT Zagato

1949 - Ferrari - 166 Panoramica Zagato MilleMiglia

1960 - Bristol - 406 GTZ

1967 - Fiat - 125 Zagato

1949 - Lancia - Ardea Sport Zagato Panoramica

1960 - Abarth - 1000 RM Corsa Zagato Compasso d’Oro

1967 - Rover - 2000 TCZ Zagato

1949 - BMW - 319 Barchetta Zagato

1960 -Jaguar - XK150 GTZ

1967 - Ford - Mustang Shelby GT350 Zagato

1950 - Fiat - Gilco 1100 Zagato

1960 - Aston Martin - DB4 Stradale GTZ

1969 - Volvo - 2000 GT Zagato

tionality. Decade by decade Zag 1971-1980

1981-1990

1991-2000

1971 - Honda - Youngstar Zagato

1983 - Alfa Romeo - Zeta 6 Zagato

1993 - Ferrari - Testarossa FZ93

1971 - Cadilac - N.A.R.T. Zagato

1986 - Aston Martin - V8 Vantage Zagato

1993 - Lancia - Delta Sport Zagato

1971 - Volvo - 3000 GT Zagato

1987 - Aston Martin - V8 Volante Zagato

1992- Nissan - 300ZX Bambù Zagato

1971 - Ferrari - 3Z N.A.R.T. Zagato

1987 - Maserati - Biturbo Spyder 2.0i Zagato

1992- Nissan - 300ZX Seta Zagato

1971 - Lancia - Fulvia Sport 1.3S Zagato

1988 - Maserati - Biturbo Karif Zagato

1995 - Mercedes - S 600 Zagato

1974 - Ferrari - 330 N.A.R.T. Zagato

1989 - Alfa Romeo - S.Z. Stradale

1996 - Lamborghini - Raptor Zagato

1972 - Alfa Romeo - Giulia 1.6 GT Zagato

1990 - Ferrari - 348 Tb Zagato

1996 - Fiat - Bravo Bis Zagato

1977 - Fiat - 131 Z80 Zagato

1991 - Alfa Romeo - R.Z. Stradale

1997 - Lamborghini - L147 Zagato

1980 - Lancia - Beta Sport USA Zagato

1991 - Ferrari - 348 Ts Zagato

1998 - Audi - Zuma Zagato

1980 - Bristol - Beaufighter Zagato

1991 - Nissan - Autech Gavia Zagato

2000 - Toyota - VM180 Zagato

gato’s 100 years.

2001-2010

2011-2019

2002- Aston Martin - DB7 GT Zagato

2012 - AC - 378 GT Zagato

2003 - Aston Martin - DB AR1 Zagato

2012 - Aston Martin - V12 Stradale Zagato

2006 - Ferrari - 575 GTZ

2012 - BMW - Coupé Zagato

2007 - Diatto - Ottovù Zagato

2013 - Porsche - V10 Carrera GT Zagato

2007 - Spyker - C12 Zagato

2013 - Aston Martin DBS Zagato Centennial

2007 - Ferrari - 550 GTZ Soft Top

2014 - Lamborghini - L595 Zagato

2007 - Maserati - Gran Sport Zagato

2015 - Maserati - Mostro Zagato

2008 - Bentley - Continental GTZ

2016 - Ferrari - Nibbio Zagato

2010 - Alfa Romeo - 8C TZ3 Corsa

2017 - IsoRivolta - Vision GT Zagato

2011 - Alfa Romeo - 10C TZ3 Stradale

2018 - Aston Martin - Vanquish Zagato Shooting Brake

From Z to one hundred // 33

today, hasn’t changed: like artists make multiples, we produce nine-unit, numbered runs (it is the rule that makes a work of art equivalent to a unique piece even if it’s not, editor’s note) or 99-unit limited editions, as we are doing at the moment with Aston Martin.

For celebratory models, like, again, the Aston Martin DB4 and DBS Zagato, we have adopted 19-unit runs to be sold exclusively in pairs.

We have already used this approach, that requires the purchase of both versions, for the Lamborghini 595 Coupé and Roadster.”

Andrea, young of age, but also young at heart, looks at today’s collecting with the new generations in mind. Quite a visionary thought as

The pure elegance of the 1958 Lancia Flaminia Sport Zagato.

too many people tend to affirm that young people are no longer interested in cars. “Young people are receptive, but you need to know how to spark their interest. For example, we managed to include the IsoRivolta Vision Zagato in the new release of the Sony Polyphony Granturismo videogame for Playstation.

This means getting inside their dreams. And staying there. To get the young generations involved I’m favourably disposed also towards the replicas produced directly by the Manufacturers or certified as faithful reproductions of iconic models. It’s a message that conveys the appeal of certain shapes and brings back up a way to produce cars that will disappear.

These continuations, just like the old-timers,

maybe equipped with an electric motor as a backing, are able to speak to the young in a language that everyone understands. Moreover, they prevent forgeries, which is a good thing.” As purists, we mean that an ideal world should be made up exclusively of authentic models, but man was never able to make the ideal world come true. People move on, things change, but when the motorcar appeared, horses didn’t become extinct: they found new purposes, in sport and culture. The cars of the twenty first century have this assignment.

A mission that, according to Andrea Zagato, must go beyond the boundaries of the Western World, reaching out globally, overcoming linguistic and cultural barriers to convey a message that helps glance at the future.

If you look at it from this angle, Andrea Zagato’s vision is perfectly clear. It is clear the approach he has with his clients, wanting to offer them a global experience: “We don’t have dealers or representatives. Who wants to buy a Zagato comes to Milan and together we decide how to make it. Today we are luxury artisans. The client may drop in whenever he wants to see how work is progressing.

Then, for instance, we can deliver the car at a given concours d’elegance, which is something our clientele really appreciates, or we can organise transportation to various events and so on. We do this also for our historical models: at the Mille Miglia our collectors may benefit of the services of Scuderia Sports Zagato, taking part in the timekeeping training sessions we organise in Sirmione in the days prior to the race. This way, they also feel they belong to a winning team: the Argentinian driver, Tonconogy, at the wheel of one of the cars of our Scuderia, an Alfa 1500 Testafissa, won the 2018 Mille Miglia. And this notion electrifies everyone.”

It is difficult to summarise in a short story the span of a century, but when it comes to Zagato the clarity of the ideas and the consistency of the rational approach - enhancing performance and driving pleasure - over such a long period of time certainly explain its success. We will just have to check the models insert ten years from now: it will be the best way to verify how coherence, in an ever changing world, can repay.

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The 1938 Lancia Aprilia Sport Zagato and the 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C Aerodinamica Zagato.

The 1960 Aston Martin DB4 GTZ and the 1956 Ferrari 250 GTZ.

The 1960 Porsche Carrera GTL Zagato and the 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ2.

From Z to one hundred // 35

The Secrets of a Successful Story A 100-year-old family company working in a field – that of the coachbuilding designers – which has seen the majority of its most famous names disappear. Zagato represents a unique example, but what business strategy lies behind it? The clever vision of Andrea and of his sharp and dynamic wife Marella made them work with small production runs - 9 cars like the multiples of art or 19, to recall the year of their funding, 1919. This approach guarantees a healthy balance between engineering, prototype and production costs and the final price of the car. The cars on offer follow different themes.

Andrea with his wife Marella, who supports him with lucidity and energy in managing the company.

Andrea Zagato and his righthand man, Paolo Di Taranto, among some of the compact Zagatos of the Fifties on show at the Kyoto Concours d’Elegance.

The celebrations for the Centenary started right there in Japan.

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From the Atelier Classic, you get the so-called Sanction Lost or Continuation models, i.e. iconic or lost models that are brought back to life. Like in the case of the highly successful Porsche 356 Carrera Coupé and Carrera Speedster, or of the Lancia Aprilia Sport. The building process is exactly the same as the original one, starting from a restored vintage donor car, re-bodied and equipped with period components. From the Atelier Contemporary, The Twin Collection, formed by pairs of cars, one closed and one open, in limited series of 9 or 19 units. They keep stylistic features, mechanics and safety equipment of their original manufacturer: a 599-based Ferrari, a Gallardo-based Lamborghini and a Vantage V12-based Aston Martin. To celebrate the Zagato Centenary, Aston Martin has announced the start of direct sales of the DBZ Centenary or The Pair Collection, a special series of 19 DB4 GTZ Continuation (1960) plus 19 DBS GTZ, which can be bought exclusively in pairs.

Zagato, besides traditional Car, successfully covers the wide area of Industrial and Brand and Corporate Design. 

The Lamborghini 595 Coupé and Spider Zagato.

The Aston Martin Vantage V12 Coupé and Speedster Zagato.

The Maserati “Mostro” Coupé and Speedster Zagato.

From Z to one hundred // 37

Recognition of accomplishment – Looking ahead

The first edition of The Classic Car Trust Circle Award goes to Giorgetto Giugiaro for his extraordinary contribution to fostering a passion for automobiles.

by Antonio Ghini

Our world is changing at a faster pace than ever before in history. The trend toward a “connected life” and ”mobility as a service“ will change the car world fundamentally over the next decade. What will this mean for the world of classic cars? The Classic Car Trust is dedicated to fostering the heritage, enjoyment, and continued value of classic cars in this fast-moving world.

The Classic Car Trust’s Circle initiative involves a small and effective independent platform of leading minds with a desire to contribute to the preservation of the values and traditions of the classic car market, and thus to help direct and enhance its future. The model underlying the Circle project resembles that of the World Economic Forum (WEF), which provides helpful guidelines regarding good governance and principles of practice.

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Devised and organized by The Classic Car Trust, the first meeting of The Circle took place in Basel on September 3. 2018. There were two main subject areas that reflected a dual intent: how to attract younger generations by making classic cars an irresistible focus for culture and experience; and at the same time, how to define and shape the role of classic cars at a time when road transport is undergoing radical change. A select audience of leaders in the world of classic cars took part in these discussions and round tables. One of these was on classic car design, another focused on events – rally and concours d’elegance events – and a third concentrated on issues and opportunities for collectors. In the early afternoon, the event also comprised a ceremony: The Circle Award, which went to Giorgetto Giugiaro in recognition of his mixture of pragmatism and

creative brilliance that has shaped his fundamental contribution to automotive history.

The standing ovation that followed revealed how the world of classic cars appreciates the work of the great designer, whose involvement in the sphere of mass-produced cars has led to many highly significant products, such as the Volkswagen Golf, the Fiat Panda, and the Uno. Giugiaro’s designs are also part of the history of collecting; especially on account of his work on exclusive vehicles and one-off models; particularly, during the early years at Bertone. Giorgetto gave an elegant thank-you speech that confirmed the image of him as man whose designs engage the heart as well as the brain. It’s a great story, and one that will undoubtedly be followed by other important names. 

During The Circle 2018 meeting, Giorgetto Giugiaro receiving The Circle Award from Fritz Kaiser, for his creative achievement, the perfect mixture of genius and rationality.

The Circle - Recognition of accomplishment – Looking ahead // 39

And the Best of the Best is...

Ginny and David Sydorick’s 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2.9 Touring

by Massimo Delbo

40 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

M

erely by reading the name, Best of the Best, one has a clear picture of the importance of this trophy, revived a few years ago by the automotive consultant and journalist, Christian Philippsen, with the enthusiastic support of Sir Michael Kadoorie, chairman of Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels and owner of the Peninsula Hotel Group, and the precious help of Bruce Meyer. The concept is simple: take the year’s most important Best in Show winners - already highly-selected cars given that we’re talking of just eight in total - and pick the best one to elect a sort of classic car as a symbol of the previous year. The winner is selected by a mixed commission, including classic car historians, journalists, designers and professionals from the worlds of art, beauty and design, all highly qualified and fully capable of analyzing and selecting the best possible contender.

The Alfa Touring, Ginny and David at the exciting announcement of their victory at the luxurious Hotel Peninsula in Paris.

The lavish evening of the 2019 finale, which took place during the Rétromobile Salon, featured one or even two favorite cars. David and Ginny Sydorick arrived in Paris with two of the eight Best in Show entrants: the Ferrari 250 Zagato and the Alfa Romeo 8C Touring, which, respectively, had won the Cavallino Classic and Pebble Beach. But being one of the front-runners wasn’t enough: the three cars fighting for the top spot on the podium were the Alfa, another Ferrari, the magnificent 1957 335 Sport of Andreas Mohringer, and the pristine Lancia Aurelia Pininfarina 200C Spider, entered by Anne Brockington, the charming wife of the late Bob Lee. A post-war beauty versus a pre-war one. Everybody was ready for a twist in the plot, but the refined lines of the Alfa and the quality of its powertrain prevailed. Therefore, for the second time running, the winner is a two-door saloon from the 1930s. The challenge for 2020 is already underway and is, unsurprisingly, very open.

And the Best of the Best is... // 41

Bruce McCaw, Races are his passion The 1928 Mercedes-Benz 680 S Boat Tail Roadster Coachwork by Barker makes its return to The Best of the Best selection, having already been a potential winner in 2017 when it was entered as Best in Show at Pebble Beach. It is not surprising that this car, whenever shown, achieves great results: it is immensely beautiful, classy, rare and oh so special. Chassis #35956 was originally displayed at the 1928 London Motor Show, hence the unique features of the silver painted chassis, instead of the standard black, and the polished firewall. Just after the show, it was sent to Barker & Co., a coachbuilding firm established in London in 1710 that was particularly appreciated by the British Royal family and which, in the early 1900s, became one of the preferred bodywork suppliers for RollsRoyce. There, the car received a revolutionary body for the time, very streamlined with its boat-tail rear end, torpedo-shaped running boards, incorporating many aspects of aircraft construction. Still, before delivery to the first

1928 Mercedes-Benz 680S Boat Tail Roadster Coachwork

by Barker, owned

by Bruce R. McCaw, WA, USA. Winner of the 2018 Concours of Elegance at Hampton Court Palace (GB).

42 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

owner, through Mercedes-Benz in London, it was mechanically updated to the latest, more powerful, SS specification. All these works were performed upon request by future Le Mans winner (1931) and co-founder of the BRDC (British Racing Drivers’ Club), Francis Richard Henry Penn Curzon, 5th Earl Howe, as testified by the finish in ‘Curzon’ blue, a trademark of many of his cars. Back then, Earl Howe was the owner of one of the world’s most extensive racing and sports car collections. The car was originally delivered to Captain Miller on behalf of Earl Howe, who gave the car its competition debut and was raced in period by

both gentlemen. In 1933 it was sold to another enthusiast, H.E. Rohl, of London, and re-painted in dark maroon. After the war, the 680 S ended up in the US and entered the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum collection, re-painted in white and stored unseen for about 50 years, before being sold to Charles Bronson, of Boulevard Motor Company in Camarillo, CA, who showed it, as it was, at Pebble Beach.

In 2012, after five years spent researching the car’s history and ready to start the restoration of the mostly original car, even if sporting a very different tail and doors, Bronson sold the Mercedes to its current owner, Bruce McCaw, who asked him to perform the most attentive restoration to return the car to its former glory.

“I love to keep cars unrestored”, he declared, “but this one really deserved to return to its original magnificence”. Bruce McCaw, ranked

by The Key magazine in 2018 as the world’s 16th most important collector, is famous for his collection of Ferraris and pre-war, mostly racing or very sporty cars. His collection includes the 1952 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL W194 Coupe that won the 1952 24 hours of Le Mans.

1929 Duesenberg JSJ Convertible, Coachwork by Murphy, updated

by Bohman and Schwartz, owned

by Harry Yeaggy, OH, USA. Winner of the 2018 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance (USA).

Harry Yeaggy and his beloved Duesenbergs Extraordinarily held on Saturday to avoid the heavy rain forecast for Sunday, the 23rd Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance named as its Best in Show the 1929 Duesenberg J-SJ, chassis #J-240, equipped with a Convertible Coachwork by Murphy and modified in period

by Bohman and Schwartz. The supercharged Duesenberg SJs were among the finest American cars of the period and were often equipped with a custom body. #J-240 began life as a Model J, equipped with a 420-cu.in., double-overhead camshaft straight-eight engine, developing 276 horsepower and capable of propelling the roadster to a top speed of 119 mph. At some point in the car’s life, the engine received an upgrade to supercharged SJ specifications, and in this configuration was capable of producing 320hp, raising its top speed to roughly 140 mph. Very rare, as only 481 SJs were manufactured, it sports a

Walter M. Murphy Company, of Pasadena, CA, Convertible body. Murphy, probably the preferred coachbuilder for Duesenbergs, opened in 1922 and closed in 1932, the very same year Fred Duesenberg died in a car accident.

Already stunning and amazingly modern with its original body, in 1937 the car’s coachwork was modified by Bohman & Schwarz, two former employees of Murphy’s who set up their own business, once more in Pasadena after Murphy closed shop. Styling changes included a full-length hood, a long flowing back body, special skirted fenders, external exhaust, and full-face bumpers, while the original lights and grille were retained. Little is known of the early history of the car, but one of the early owners was Edward Beale McLean, owner and publisher of The Washington Post newspaper, inherited from his grandfather, owner of the Cincinnati Enquirer as well, and owner of the allegedly cursed 45,55 carat Hope Diamond he purchased from Pierre Cartier in 1912.

His granddaughter Mamie Spears Reynolds

married Luigi Chinetti in 1963, only to divorce him in 1965. In 1994, the car became part of the collection of Harry Yeaggy, listed as the world’s 27th most important collector in the 2018 The Key magazine and famous for his collection of Duesenbergs, including the 1935 SJ Mormon Meteor, and Ferraris, the latter enriched a few years ago after the purchase of the 1958 250 Testarossa ex-Ecurie Francorchamps.

And the Best of the Best is... // 43

1933 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster, Coachwork by Jean Bugatti, owned by Robert Bishop, FL, USA. Winner of the 2018 Salon Privé (GB).

Robert Bishop, Jean’s Bugatti Winner of the 2018 edition of the Salon Privé is this 1933 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster chassis #55234, one of only 13 built and equipped with a coachwork designed by Jean Bugatti. When, in 1924, Bugatti entered his Type 35 Grand Prix at the Grand Prix de Lyon, it created a stir and marked the beginning of a new era for racing and for sports cars. In 1927, after over 2,000 victories of the Type 35, Bugatti, greatly inspired by the American Miller racing car, launched the twin cam Type 51 Grand Prix, and went on winning with it during the 1930s. The Type 55, strictly derived from the 44 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Type 51, is the result of the request of a few wealthy sportsmen, willing to have a racing car to use on the road. It was so special that the talented and skilled Jean Bugatti himself did the design of the Roadster body, of which today only five are known to survive with the original body. Chassis no. 55234, with only 50,000 km covered from new, still with its original engine number 34, front axle number 34, gearbox number 34, rear axle number 35 and frame number 48, is considered the most original example in existence and the only one that remains unrestored except for a respray and new leather upholstery for the seats.

Delivered new to a Mr. Mercy in France, Count Georges d’Arnoux owned 55234 from 1936 to 1939 and sold it to “Le Commissaire,” owner of the “Unis Sport” Bicycle Club who fitted the car with flag poles, in use when he patrolled the local Paris bicycle races. Miles Warbaugh, head of the Paris Morgan bank, owned the car from 1952 but struggled to use the car as his wife was expecting a baby. As a result, he

advertised the car for sale in the New York Times in 1953, which is where Bugatti collector Miles Coverdale from New York discovered the car, flew to Paris and bought the car, with 26,869 km on the clock. He kept it for the following 35 years, until 1989, when the clock showed 42,588 km. Coverdale was the one who discovered the original red under the yellow paint, and he did have to replace the leather seat cushions as these were damaged and torn, keeping the rest well maintained but unrestored. In 1998, it was sold to Bob Rubin, a European collector, and in 2017, it was offered for sale by the dealer Lucas Hüni and purchased by its current American owner.

Robert Bishop is one of the only two owners of a car selected for the Best of the Best 2018 not listed in the Top 100 Collectors in the 2018 The Key Magazine. In his collection, which mainly focuses on sports cars, he owns a 1966 ford GT 40 Mk II, a 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 and a 1957 250 Ferrari California Spyder, cars that he loves to show at elegance competitions.

David & Ginny Sydorick and the “Schoene Frau” Alfa Romeo The 2018 Pebble Beach winner is based on the most refined and mystical mechanics ever used in road legal Alfa Romeos, with its 8 cylinders and a supercharger paired with an enlarged 2.9-liter engine. The 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Berlinetta built on a Lungo chassis, #412020, is the first 8C Touring Berlinetta (Touring body #2029) which heralded the beginning of the Superleggera concept. First shown at the 1937 Paris Salon, followed by the Milan Salon and the 1938 Berlin international Show (18th February to 6th March 1938, with 739,000 visitors attending), it also received a visit from Adolf Hitler, together with Ferdinand Porsche, then in charge of the government-backed Volkswagen project. It was subsequently used for the 8C 2900 sales brochure, easy to recognize as the front end is quite different from the following model, having a raked aerodynamic front grille and no running boards, where it was described as Coupé Leggero (light coupe), and featured in several magazines. It was sold in 1938 to its

first owner, Willi Meineke of Gmund, Germany.

It isn’t a stretch of the imagination to envisage a link between the Alfa’s new owner and Ferdinand Porsche: Gmund, which is very close to the Porsche family’s property of Zell, was the site of the very first “Porsche” headquarters, an Austrian village that became part of Germany in 1938 because of the Anschluss of 13th March 1938. Here, in 1944, Porsche bought the Werk Karnerau facility from Berlin-based lumber industrialist Willi Meineke, the very same first owner of the Alfa, which went on to become the famous “sawmill” where the very first Porsches were to be manufactured. In 1940, the car was sold in Dresden and, in 1945, was registered under the name of British Lt. Col. G.C. Reeves, then stationed in Germany. He kept the car for ten years and then sold it to an American military Colonel who shipped it back to the US. In 1956, the car received its first American plate, imported by Ed Hancock, and it remained in the US until 1971, when it was sold abroad.

Since then, under several different ownerships, the car has been part of collections across the world, from Italy to Hong Kong, before return-

ing to the US in 2015, when it was bought by Sydorick. The car, restored for the first time in the 1990s, was shown at Pebble just after a second restoration, performed by RX Autoworks, a Canadian firm based in Vancouver, British Columbia. David Sydorick, listed as the world’s 29th most important collector in the 2018 The Key magazine, is famous for his collection of Alfa Romeos, Fiats and Ferraris and for having what is considered the to be most important collection of Zagato-bodied cars on earth. He is the only collector in 2018 with two of his cars selected as finalists at the Best of the Best.

1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Berlinetta, Coachwork by Carrozzeria Touring Milano, owned by David and Ginny Sydorick, CA, USA. Winner of the 2018 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance (USA).

And the Best of the Best is... // 45

Anne and Bob Lee’s magical jet The 1953 Lancia Aurelia PF200 C Spider by Pinin Farina, from the Lee Collection of Reno (NV) was selected for the Best of the Best for its success at The Quail. The car, chassis #B521052, is an almost unique Pinin Farina concept car based on the very rare Aurelia B52 rolling chassis, and it was originally shown at the 1953 Geneva and Turin car shows. The PF200, of which eight in total are believed to have been built, each one differing slightly from the others, is a perfect example of the “jet age” of car design. This particular car is thought to be the second of only three opentop examples built, and it features a more extensive use of chrome details, a two-position windscreen and no side windows. As often happens with these special cars, the PF200 was modified between shows, and after its appearances in Geneva and Turin, it was painted a different color and equipped with a new windshield, shaped to better protect the driver’s side. It was then shown at the Stresa International Concours d’Elegance

1953 Lancia Aurelia PF200C Spider, Coachwork

by Pinin Farina, owned by Anne Brockinton Lee, NV, USA. Winner of the 2018 The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering (USA).

46 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

in September 1953, where it won a Grand Prize honor. Still today, it has a plaque on the dashboard commemorating that success.

After the Stresa show, it was registered to a private owner and given a Milan registration plate. In the 1960s, it was exported to the US where, after spending some time in California, it was sold to William Borrusch, an automotive engineer from Michigan. This was the start of a 30-year ownership, during which Borrusch moved to Florida, taking the car with him and having it professionally restored to a high standard. The original engine, found to be beyond repair during the restoration, was replaced with a block from a PF200 Coupé. The restoration work took around ten years. Thanks to this excellent work, in 2013 the car enjoyed an amazing run of successes, winning its class at almost every car show it entered, including Villa d’Este and Amelia Island and it is featured in the much-acclaimed book Transatlantic Style by Donald Osborne, universally considered the leading Lancia expert in the US. Anne Brockington Lee, listed as the world’s 14th most important

collector in the 2018 The Key magazine, keeps the collection she established with her late husband, Bob Lee, alive and running. The collection is famous for the Rolls-Royces (both pre and post-war), Bentleys, Hispano-Suizas and Ferraris, the latter featuring several oneoffs, including one bought new by Bob Lee in his early 20s from Enzo Ferrari himself, and the 1949 166 Spyder winner of the Mille Miglia and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

1956 Ferrari 250 GT Coupé, Coachwork by Carrozzeria Zagato, owned by David and Ginny Sydorick, CA, USA. Winner of the 2018 Cavallino Classic (USA).

David & Ginny Sydorick and Zagato’s Prancing Horse For a Ferrari owner, to win the Cavallino is a double score: it is one of the most respected shows in the world and, as a Ferrarista, you can’t achieve anything better. To win it, you need something really special such as this 1956 Ferrari 250 GT Coupé Zagato, chassis # 0515, the first of a series of five cars built by Carrozzeria La Zagato on the Ferrari 250 chassis.

The car is the symbol of the long friendship between Enzo Ferrari and founder Ugo Zagato that started in the late 1920s when the racing department of Alfa Romeo was using Zagato bodies. Today, it is recognized by Andrea Zagato (current custodian of the family company and tradition) as one of the most representative models ever built by the coachbuilder, because of its extra light, aerodynamic body, its trademark double bubble on the roof and its Kamm tail. The fourth Ferrari dressed by Zagato, the 250 #0515, was built upon request of Vladimiro

Galluzzi, one of Zagato’s best customers, and a gentleman driver under the Milanese Scuderia Sant’Ambroeus flag. The chassis, bought by Galluzzi directly from Maranello on 9th April 1956, was immediately sent to the Zagato body shop in Milano, where the bill, which included the cost of the body, finished with various refined chrome and details that are more common on a luxury road car than on a racer, added up to 900,000 Lire, When the car was completed, it was painted Blu Cobalto with Panna roof (Cobalt Blue and Cream), after a quick visit to Maranello for the final tuning and to be admired, it was registered with the Milan 312234 number plate in July 1956, and shown at the Cortina d’Ampezzo Concours d’Elegance on 30th July before going on to race successfully. It immediately finished second in class at the 1956 Coppa delle Dolomiti, when driven by Galluzzi and Elio Zagato. At the end of the 1956 racing season, the car was registered under the name of Scuderia Sant’Ambroeus on 22nd February 1957, and, in July 1957, it was sold to

Orlando Palanga, the Ferrari dealer in Genoa, and received new number plates, GE 100136, on behalf of its racing driver customer Paolo Lena.

Soon after, the 250, now re-registered with new plates IM18618, was sold to gentleman driver Luigi Taramazzo, who raced it during the 1957 season and brought home some good results, finishing first at the Garessio–San Bernardo hill climb, second at the Pontedecimo-Giovi Hillclimb, and third at the Monza Coppa Intereuropa race in September 1957. At the end of 1957, most likely still at Zagato, the car was resprayed in white and never used again to race, but as an everyday GT. After changing several owners and being exported to the US, it eventually returned to Europe and, finally, after passages in Japan and Mexico, and undergoing a restoration in the US in the early 1980s, in 1999 the Berlinetta became the most significant item in David Sydorick’s beautiful collection.

And the Best of the Best is... // 47

1958 Ferrari 335 S Spyder, Coachwork by Carrozzeria Scaglietti, owned

by Andreas Mohringer.

Winner of the 2018 Villa d’Este Concours d’Elegance (I).

Andreas Mohringer, scent of Maranello Voted as winner of the 2018 BMW Group Trophy, a prize assigned solely by the judges of the Villa d’Este Concours, a team of people with an excellent sense of style led by legendary car designer Lorenzo Ramaciotti, the 1958 Ferrari 335 S Scaglietti, chassis #0764, is the last of only four made. The 335 S is celebrated amongst the high-level Ferrari collectors, because of its rarity (only three cars survive) and amazing racing pedigree, with three chassis being successfully raced in the works team. It is the pinnacle of the f ront engine sports Ferraris, with its four-liter, four-cam V12 engine capable of 430hp at 8000 rpm, reaching a top speed of more than 300 km/h. Chassis #0764 is the last of the four 335 Ss made.

Enzo Ferrari ended its production in 1957 after making only three cars. The following year, however, he bowed to pressure f rom 48 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

American importer Luigi Chinetti, who was determined to have one. Hence, in December 1958, this fourth car was shipped to the US. The car was originally meant to be for a certain Louise Bryden-Baden (NY), but she never took delivery of it. After being displayed at the Chinetti stand at the New York Auto Show of April 1959, in September that year it was sold to Alan Connell of Fort Worth, Texas, and immediately used for racing. After making its debut in the Road America race at Elkhart Lake (WI) on 13th September (second OA and second IC) and going on to compete in an additional nine competitions, winning three times (including the SCCA Race at Daytona in November), in May 1960 the car suffered a major engine failure on the Virginia International Raceway in Danville (VA) and was immediately shipped back to Italy, through Chinetti, for repairs. In April 1962, due to a prohibitively expensive repair estimate f rom Ferrari, and an expiring export visa,

the car, still unrepaired, was shipped back to New York, where it was left unclaimed at the customs facilities. A whole year elapsed before the car was purchased by Gordon Tatum (MD) for the price of the custom charges and the dock fee (about 1,000 USD). Soon afterwards, the engine was sold separately f rom the chassis, which received another Ferrari unit. Subsequently, both the car and its original engine changed hands several times, until 1978 when they were f inally reunited. After a stint in a Japanese collection, the car was returned to the US where, in December 2013, it was bought

by Andreas Mohringer, who asked the Russell and Company’s shop in Essex (MA) to carry out a comprehensive restoration.

Andreas Mohringer, listed as the world’s 39th most important collector in the 2018 The Key magazine, is famous for his collection of sports Ferraris and Maseratis – cars he loves to drive and keep as original and unrestored as possible.

Colin Mullan. Joining the all-stars with Monteverdi Peter Monteverdi, the most famous Swiss car manufacturer, wanted to build a fast, comfortable and luxury GT, and to do so he paired the most powerful American V8 mechanics, usually Chrysler, with some glamorous European bodies by Carrozzeria Fissore of Turin (Italy), mostly built or designed following his own sketches. His company opened in 1967 and ceased operations in 1984. Its first proposal was the 375 which for years was its volume model, named after the SAE output of the engine in horsepower. The 375s were partially built by Carrozzeria Fissore in Turin and then sent to Monteverdi’s premises in Basel for final assembly. The 1972 375 L High Speed winner of Goodwood, chassis #2056, was originally sold to Mr. George McCullough Bell whose family owned a paper company in Chicago, USA, who at the time had been living in Europe since the early 1960s and was famous for being sponsor to the legendary Sidecar World Champion, Helmut Fath. He always loved fast

and loud cars and made sure his 375 L was always visible. He bought it through the UK concessionaires for 10,259 GBP (about four times the price of a new Jaguar e-Type). After McCullough sold it in 1972, the car entered the garage of the second and current owner, Mr. Colin Mullan, a British mechanic and also a successful dragster racer with his self-built Firenza “Invader”, as well as being the personal friend and racing partner of Derek Bell. “I still remember the first time I saw it because I was deeply impressed,” Mullan says. “It looked so much better than any Ferrari I had ever seen.”

Back then, he installed a special Keith Black Chrysler 8.3-liter racing engine, an aero kit and a bigger tank, so the car’s performance was astonishing, even if, to increase the drag effect, they had to reduce the rear ratio. The High Speed 375 is no garage queen and if often used by Mullan, including towing his dragster trailer or going on a touring holiday in Europe with his wife. He still drives it to contests, too. Today, the 375, one of perhaps just 50 built (Monteverdi never disclosed the production figures) is back to its original

configuration, with its correct 7.2-liter engine, bought back and restored by Mullan.

He painted it, too, including an emergency respray of the rear wing few days before the Concours, after a scratch appeared on it. The cabin upholstery, restitched by Mullan himself, is still original. This car is the only finalist of the 2018 edition of Best of the Best to be restored by its owner and one of only two cars owned by a collector not listed in the Top 100 Collectors in the 2018 The Key Magazine. Colin Mullan does not have the usual large collection of classic cars, but having owned this 375 L since 1972, he thoroughly deserves to be recognized as a car lover and enthusiast.

1972 Monteverdi 375L High Speed, Coachwork by Fissore, owned

by Colin Mullan (UK).

Winner of the 2018 Goodwood Cartier Style et Luxe Concours d’Elegance (GB).

And the Best of the Best is... // 49

Top 100 Coll With our ranking of the global top 100 collectors we want to honour the efforts of great collectors around the world and establish a podium of recognition for them. At the same time we hope, that this ranking will become a valuable reference point for collecting in general.

Looking at the very top of the ranking you can see many truly wonderful top world-class collections, each different from the other and each 50 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

reflecting the personal taste and perspective of the collector. The top 5 collectors in the world, Fred Simeone, Miles Collier, Evert Louwman, Peter Mullin, and Ralph Lauren are all very close in our scoring and the changes at the top are minimal.

In 2019 Fred Simeone tops the list of our world‘s most important 100 classic car collectors thanks to the heritage of his Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum and his ambi-

tion and public activities to preserve and promote automotive history. We already had a fairly well-grounded database for our first ranking list in 2018 and we have developed a sophisticated scoring system to take into account value, historic importance, awards won, reputation, and the contribution of a collector to the classic car community.

The new 2019 ranking reflects our progress enhancing the database.

ectors 2019 In addition to verifying all the publicly available data our team had valuable support from experts around the world and spent time understanding the values of collections and which cars were sold and bought. In this context we are particularly grateful to those collectors who opend their private garages and shared their treasures and personal stories with us. All this was and will be tremendously helpful as we con-

stantly seek to improve the database and make the ranking accurate and close to reality.

Thanks to the enhanced database and our efforts over the past 12 months we were able to take 19 new collectors into our 2019 top 100 list and adjust some of the 2018 ranking positions. Today the top 100 collectors together own cars worth an estimated US$ 10 bn, an increase of some 20 percent over 2018, and the

average age of the top 100 collectors around the world is 71.

We were very pleased with the comments about the 2018 ranking which ranged from the satisfaction of being part of the top 100 to acceptance of being one of the first but not the first. We are encouraged to continue our work and are grateful for all the support which helps to constantly improve our work to honour those people who deserve it.

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 51

1

Fred Simeone American | Age: 83 | Score: 83.58

Top piece: 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900A | Top awards: 2007 Amelia Island Continental Historic Racing Association, 2007 The Quail Best of Show, 2013 Octane Publication of the Year, 2014 Octane Car of the Year, 2017 Octane Awards - Museum of the Year

Fred Simeone

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Born in Pennsylvania, Fred Simeone is a retired neurosurgeon who fell in love with cars in early childhood. His father not only aroused his son’s interest in cars, taking him along on visits to promising junkyards, but also gave him his first car: an Alfa Romeo. An outstanding feature of Fred Simeone’s collection, probably the only one of its kind in the US, is the originality and preserved state of the cars. It comprises some of the rarest and most significant racecars ever built, including exceptional brands such as Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, Ferrari, and many others. Fred does not consider his collection exclusively a hobby, but rather as “representatives of certain times and places of history.” With this perspective he has made his remarkable collection accessible to the wider public by donating it to the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum, which revolves around an interesting theme, “The Spirit of Competition,” which is also the name of an annual award to honor the greatest contributors to the world of motorsports.

Miles Collier

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American | Age: 72 | Score: 83.40

Top piece: 1955 Jaguar D-type Longnose | Top awards: 2005 Amelia Island Best of Show Sport, 2013 RRDC’s 2012 Bob Akin Award, 2013 Lime Rock Best of Show Born into an American family of car enthusiasts, Miles Collier grew up in the automobile milieu. His father and his uncle introduced sports car racing to the United States. In the late 1980s he acquired the Cunningham Museum Collection, known today as the Collier Collection, which grew over the following decade as Miles purchased some of the finest and most original examples of sports cars and ephemera. Recognition for collector and collection grew apace, not least on account of his innovative aesthetic approach to conservation.

Today the Collier Collection includes remarkable racecars and exclusive prototypes with unique racing history. It is also considered one of the best Porsche collections worldwide, given Miles’s particular predilection for the brand.

Collier’s approach to collecting transcends the pleasures of a mere hobby, since he considers it his responsibility to “present historic objects in a way that maximizes their documentary value, that is, as exemplars of their most representative configuration in period.”

52 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Evert Louwman Dutch | Age: 79 | Score: 83.12

Top piece: 1953 Lancia D23 Spider Pininfarina | Top awards: 2004 Paleis Het Loo Best of Show, 2012 Paleis Het Loo Best of Show, 2015 Chantilly Concourse Best of Show, 2016 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport

Miles Collier

Evert Louwman

Evert Louwman’s father was professionally involved in in the automobile sector, founding a car dealership and later collecting classic cars as well. When Evert took over the business, he expanded the collection, his chosen automobiles including the most important European and international cars.

A singular feature of the collection is the fact that almost all the vehicles are preserved in original condition. He emphasizes that “it is about a heritage that deserves to be conserved, which is why some vehicles remain in their original state with the honest patina of a century of use.” Evert wants to preserve not only the condition of the cars, but also their history. He would like his collection to be open to the public for at least 200 more years, even if the cars of the future look very different. “At least the Louwman Collection will give people an idea of how we used to get around in the past,” he says.

4

Arturo Keller American | Age: 79 | Score: 83.00

Top piece: 1930 Mercedes Benz SS Erdmann & Rossi | Top awards: 1986 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2001 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2007 Best of Show Villa Erba, 2008 Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este, 2014 Hampton Court Concours Best of Show “He wouldn’t say this because he’s a modest person, but I can assure you that Arturo’s is probably among the top three private collections in the world,” declares Michael Kadoorie.

“Ask anybody who has seen it.” Arturo Keller is indeed a highly reserved, private man who shuns the spotlight, probably one of the key figures in the world of classic car collectors.

His collection is extremely private and not open to the public. Apart from owning the world’s best and rarest collection of Mercedes, over the years Arturo has also acquired some extremely rare pieces, such as the 1937 Alfa Romeo 2.9 Touring Spider or the wonderful 1931 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Flying Star. Arturo has twice won Pebble Beach awards, and at Villa d’Este he received the Coppa d’Oro in 2008. Thanks to his unique taste for elegance and beauty, he is rightly considered a true master among collectors.

Ralph Lauren

5

Ralph Lauren American | Age: 80 | Score: 82.50

Top piece: 1930 Mercedes Benz SSK ”Count Trossi” | Top awards: 1990 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 1993 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2007 Villa d’Este Best of Show, 2013 Villa d’Este Coppa d’Oro, 2013 Villa d’Este Best of Show

Arturo Keller and his wife Deborah

Ralph Lauren is not only a world-class fashion designer and successful businessman, but also an ardent classic car collector. “Cars say as much about you as your clothes do,” he declares. “For me, they are like artworks crafted not only for speed but also for style and beauty.” The broad spectrum of remarkable vehicles in his collection speaks eloquently for this conviction: from the brilliant, unique designs of classic cars to iconic automobiles and high-end racing cars, the group is the real car enthusiast’s dream come true. Although Ralph Lauren would seem to have a particular predilection for Ferrari and Bugatti, every single item in his collection could easily be someone’s favorite car. Guests at the show he staged in his private garage during New York Fashion Week were able to get a glimpse of the glorious vehicles that are part of his stupendous collection. Luckily for him, he bought most of his more expensive cars in the 70s and 80s, before the classic-car-buying craze really hit its stride. As he points out, “the real beauty of owning a rare and magnificently designed car is the fact that you can use it. You can look at it, enjoy its visual qualities, as with a painting, but you can also get inside and drive it.”

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 53

Peter Mullin

6

Peter Mullin

Sam Walton is an American businessman and renowned car collector. He was the Chairman of Walmart from 1992 to 2015, the largest retailer in the world. Passionately involved in racing on track, he has built up a collection featuring the greatest 1950s and 1960s sports and racing vehicles: mostly Ferraris, Maseratis, and Porsches.

He is a frequent driver at the Monterey Historic Races in California and owns two original Ferrari 250 GTOs, which are the stars of his collection.

In 2018, he was awarded the Peninsula Best of the Best Award for the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, co-owned with Peter Mullin.

American | Age: 79 | Score: 71.80

Top piece: 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic | Top awards: 2006 and 2008 Best of Show Villa Erba, 2011 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2014 and 2017 Chantilly Concours d’Elegance Best of Show, 2017 Peninsula Best of the Best Award Peter W. Mullin is an ardent American businessman and philanthropist. His affinity for cars, especially French cars, started long before his business career, when a neighbor brought home a Delage. It was love at first sight, sowing the seeds for what was to become one of the best French car collections worldwide. For those who appreciate French classic cars, there is nothing to miss in Peter Mullin’s collection, which comprises the finest, most exclusive automobiles ever made in France, from Delage to Talbot and Delahaye to Bugatti. It’s not just the engines that have always excited Peter, but also the overall design, shape, and beauty of his cars.

To display them in due splendor, he founded the Mullin Automotive Museum. Little wonder that in 2015 Peter Mullin was elected Man of the Year by the Automobile Magazine.

7

Samuel Robson Walton American | Age: 75 | Score: 70.02

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 1998 Designer’s Choice Trophy Meadow Brook Concours, 2014 Chantilly Concours d’Elegance Best of Show, 2017 Peninsula Best of the Best Award, 2018 Peninsula Best of the Best Award, Concours d’Elegance Best of Show 54 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

John Mozart

8

John Mozart American | Age: 77 | Score: 69.36

9

Albert Spiess Swiss | Age: 69 | Score: 66.80

Top piece: 1967 Lamborghini Marzal | Top awards: 2014 Villa d’Este Best of Show, 2017 Best of the Best Lamborghini Concorso Neuchatel, 2018 Villa d’Este Coppa d’Oro Over the past 40 years Albert Spiess has quietly amassed one of the most spectacular collections of automobiles in the world. Collecting was originally a spare time activity, since Albert was also busy managing his family business, which in time has become an international name. His collection consists of prototypes, concept cars, one-off vehicles, and limited-edition models crafted by the most famous designers and manufacturers. He nurtures a particular love for Lamborghini, collecting pretty much all the concept cars and 001 chassis made by the factory in St. Agata Bolognese. The star attractions in what is undoubtedly the best Lambo collection in existence are the Marzal and Bravo prototypes and the only Miura Roadster ever built. Yet Albert is not just an avid collector of cars: he has also acquired many original automotive documents and archives, as well as pre-production chassis of major car brands. He won the best of show award at Villa d’Este.

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 1988 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 1998 Pebble Beach Best of Show John Mozart is an American entrepreneur who successfully sold his first business to an international business leader in the same field to focus on real estate. Passionate about classic cars and everything else related to the automotive sector, John began his own collection many years ago. Today this stunning lineup of aerodynamic sports cars and racing vehicles as well as wonderful pre-war American automobiles is housed in a private museum that is occasionally open to the public. Naturally it includes John’s absolute favorite brands, in particular Bugatti and Ferrari, as well as Alfa Romeo and Cadillac, and other marques guaranteed to get the car enthusiast’s pulse racing.

John wants the cars to be enjoyed, so he plans to give some of them to charity on his death, so that “someone else can enjoy them.”

Albert and Rita Spiess

10

Lawrence Auriana American | Age: 75 | Score: 66.20

Top piece: 1929 Maserati V4 Sport 16 Cylinder Zagato | Top awards: 2014 IACC Business and Culture Award, 2014 Santa Fe Concorso Best of Show - Sport, 2014 Lee Iacocca Award - Amelia Island, 2017 Most Historically Significatn Post-War Race Car, Amelia Island During his professional career, Lawrence Auriana worked as a financial specialist and held various executive positions. He acquired his first car at the tender age of 12, and today owns what is arguably the most important Maserati collection worldwide, including the only 16 cylinder Maserati ever built, as well as a number of amazing Alfa Romeos and Ferraris. He is drawn by cars that embody living history, and his collection celebrates the superior design of the Italian automotive industry. Lawrence thinks of his cars as “a tribute to the group of Italians who made an important contribution to the automotive industry of the 20th century: great designers, engineers, and the sportsmen who raced these cars.” The huge Lawrence Auriana Car Collection is never exclusively confined within a museum, however, since Lawrence makes sure his cars feature regularly on racetracks and show circuits.

11

American | Age: 70 | Score: 66.00

Top piece: 1959 Ferrari 250 TR59/60 Fantuzzi Spider | Top awards: 1999 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2003 The Quail Best of Show

William “Chip” Connor

13

Anne Brockinton Lee American | Score: 61.36

Top piece: 1949 Ferrari 166 MM Touring Barchetta Lusso | Top awards: 2006 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2009 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2014 Amelia Island Best of Show - Elegance, 2018 The Quail Best of Show

William “Chip” Connor

William E. “Chip” Connor is an American businessperson who was born and raised in Tokyo. He is the Chairman and CEO of one of the world’s largest merchandise sourcing companies. Besides his business career, he is also a passionate vintage car enthusiast and one of the world’s leading collectors of classic cars. His collection comprises a wide range of beautiful vintage vehicles from the 1950s and 1960s, as well as sports and racing cars from the 1970s. They include Alfa Romeos, post-war Porsches, and a Ferrari that competed at Le Mans. Each car is packed with history, and is ready to be driven in vintage races or simply enjoyed on tour through lovely landscapes.

as brands like Porsche, Jaguar, and Maserati.

He has a personal predilection for Alfa Romeo and Ferrari, and enjoys racing his beloved automobiles in famous events and rallies all over the world. He sums up his own philosophy regarding vintage vehicles as follows: “They are cars. They are meant to be driven. They are not meant to sit around.” One of his most impressive achievements was the restoration of his Ferrari Daytona NART (now sold), which he accomplished on his own. It came in third at Pebble Beach.

Jon A. Shirley

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Jon A. Shirley American | Age: 81 | Score: 63.78

Top piece: 1954 Ferrari 375 MM | Top awards: 1990 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2008 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2009 Best of Show Villa d’Este, 2009 Best of Show Villa Erba, 2009 Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este, 2012 Windsor Castle Best of Show, 2012 Windsor Castle Best of Show, 2014 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2016 Chantilly Best of Show Jon A. Shirley is a hugely successful American sales and business expert who became president of the Microsoft Corporation. Yet he is not only a major name in the world of computer technology, but also among car enthusiasts. Any discussion of outstanding classic car collectors is bound to involve Jon Shirley. His impressive collection of classic cars includes several vintage Ferraris, as well

The great passion with which Anne Lee has given continuity to Robert Lee’s magnificent collection is hugely positive for the world of collecting. It shows that women can be real players in events and at the same time contribute to the preservation of the heritage that is now in their hands. Lee’s cars won the coveted “Best of Show” award at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®, the world’s premier automobile competition, first in 2006, with her 1931 Daimler Double-Six 50 Corsica Drophead Coupe, and again in 2009, with an in-house restoration of his 1937 Horch 853 Voll & Ruhrbeck Sport Cabriolet.

Anne Brockinton Lee

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 55

14

Anthony Wang

17

American / Chinese | Age: 76 | Score: 60.40

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 1991 First in Class FCA National Concours Washington Anthony “Tony” Wang is the former president of Computer Associates International Inc., also known as CA Technologies. CA Technologies was founded by Anthony’s brother Charles Wang in 1976, when he was just 31 years old. Today it is one of the world’s largest independent software companies and the first ever to achieve $1 billion in annual sales. The Wangs were both born in Shanghai in the early 1940s, at a time when the city was under Japanese occupation. The family moved to Queens, New York and eventually to Long Island. Anthony owns one of the most spectacular Ferrari collections in the world, with two GTOs and several other incredible pieces. He has sponsored McLaren in F1 and together with his wife, Lulu, he often races on track. Wang has been an ardent supporter of vintage racing since the early 1990s.

16

Bruce McCaw American | Age: 71 | Score: 56.60

Top piece: 1952 Mercedes Benz Type 194 Coupe | Top awards: 2007 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport, 2013 St James Concourse Best of Show, 2017 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2018 Hampton Court Best of Show Les Wexner

15

Les Wexner American | Age: 82 | Score: 59.00

Top piece: 1956 Ferrari 290 MM Spider Scaglietti | Top awards: 2014 Pebble Beach First in Class, 2014 The Phil Hill Cup, 2015 The Phil Hill Cup Leslie Wexner is an eminent businessman who founded a highly successful fashion group that includes the famous Victoria’s Secret label. Alongside his remarkable business career Leslie also owns a spectacular collection of classic cars with an exclusive focus on the world’s rarest and finest Ferraris. A real aficionado of the Cavallino, Leslie has managed to collect some super special models, such as the 1956 Ferrari 290 MM Spider Scaglietti. Packed with amazing racing history, many of his cars are limited editions. Leslie is always on the lookout for what is truly matchless – the run of the mill is not for him.

56 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Bruce R. McCaw is the oldest of the four McCaw brothers, all of whom have devoted time in recent years to collecting the greatest cars ever produced. Bruce’s taste is truly unique, spanning from one-off prewar models to 50s and 60s models. He has a special love for Mercedes, owning the Type 194 Coupe that won Le Mans in 1952. He is also a fan of British cars, having acquired and restored the splendid 1930 Bentley Speed 6 Coupe “Blue Train” built by Gurney Nutting. But he is not just a collector, because he is also a skilled pilot: “I was always interested in racing and high performance cars. Now I drive in vintage Formula One and CanAm.”

Bruce McCaw and Arturo Keller

Jack Nethercutt American | Age: 83 | Score: 55.80

Top piece: 1931 Bugatti Type 51 Dubos Coupe | Top awards: 1979 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2004 The Quail Best of Show, 2005, 2007, 2011 and 2013 Amelia Island Best of Show - Elegance, 2007 Kirkland Concourse Best of Show, 2008 LA Concourse d’Elegance Best of Show, 2008 Pebble Beach Best of Show - Nominee, 2012 Pebble Beach Best of Show - Nominee Great-nephew of Merle Norman, Jack Nethercutt was born in Santa Monica, CA in 1936.

Jack recalls as a child sweeping floors and stirring sulfur baths for his great-aunt’s growing company. He inherited his father’s love of cars and, following graduation from the University of Southern California, had a successful racing career throughout the 1950s and into the 1960s. Founded by Jack’s parents J.B. and Dorothy Nethercutt, the Nethercutt Collection is a family-owned museum featuring over 250 rare collectible cars, where they continue to restore museum-quality vehicles that win at virtually every concourse in which they take part. They are current record-holders for the Best of Show award at Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance with six wins. Pebble Beach now also includes the “Nethercutt Most Elegant Closed Vehicle of the Show”, in recognition of their achievement.

18

Sir Michael Kadoorie Hong Kong | Age: 78 | Score: 55.18

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 250 TR 58 | Top awards: 2017 Chantilly Concours d’Elegance Best of Show Born in Hong Kong, the Hon. Sir Michael Kadoorie is a real car enthusiast. Since the mid-60s he has focused his interests on the vintage and early veteran period and is now caretaker of an eclectic collection spanning the period from 1903 to the present day. Many of these cars have won awards at prestigious contests, for instance, the original Ferrari TR 58 that won Le Mans with Phil Hill.

Sir Michael greatly enjoys rallying and takes

part in competitive historic events. Among his many activities, Michael is Chairman of China Light & Power Holdings Limited, which his family founded in 1890 and in which they still hold a 35 percent stake, and The Hongkong & Shanghai Hotels, Limited – owners of the prestigious Peninsula Hotels, Quail Lodge, and the Quail Event. He has received a number of international decorations in recognition of his business achievements and charitable work. He was a member of the Council of the University of Hong Kong and, in 2000, the Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building opened at the University. In addition, he is one of the founders of the eminent Peninsula Best of the Best award.

19

21

Tom Price American | Age: 75 | Score: 52.76

Top piece: 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Spider | Top awards: 2014 The Quail Best of Show

Sir Michael Kadoorie

John McCaw Jr. American | Age: 68 | Score: 55.00

Top piece: 1957 Ferrari 315 S | Top awards: 2017 Best of Show Nominee Pebble beach The youngest of the four McCaw brothers, John E. McCaw shares the family passion for classic cars. An avid collector of special automobiles, he has built up his collection with a focus on the best racing Ferraris of all time. In 2017, he was among the Best of Show nominees at Pebble Beach, at though it was his brother Bruce who won in the end. Apart from Ferraris, he has a passion for pre-war English cars, mainly Bentleys. Today he is a prominent name in the American collectors’ scene.

20

Tom Price is a Northern California car dealership mogul who worked his way through the University of Colorado and then got a job with Ford for eight years. He acquired his first dealership in 1976. Today Price Family Dealerships own and operate Volvo, Toyota, Land Rover, Aston Martin, Infinity, and Jaguar dealerships in upscale Marin County. Tom also owns dealerships in Sacramento and Sunnyvale. His spectacular automobile collection features sports and racing cars from the 1950s through to the 2000s. The theme of his collection is cars with a strong racing pedigree. He races his cars frequently on track: “I’ve raced the 250 Testa Rossa probably 80 times in the last 25 years. I’ve done 180 races in the GTO. For me it’s all about having fun with the cars. If it’s a race car I want to race it. If it’s a street car I want to drive it.

Some of them do both. I have a 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C Spider that I’m racing, and I’ve done a lot of tours in that. It’s exciting to get these cars out on the road.”

Bruce Meyer American | Age: 78 | Score: 52.96

Top piece: 1979 Porsche 953 K3 | Top awards: 2008 The Quail Best of Show, 2015 Enthusiast of the Year - Concours d’Elegance of America

Bruce Meyer

Bruce Meyer is a world-class classic car collector with a passion for special racing cars. He likes automobiles that have had extraordinary owners and a significant racing history. In other words, his cars all tell stories. Bruce is the founding chairman of the Petersen Automobile Museum in Los Angeles, California, where he serves as vice chairman . Bruce is also on the Board of Directors of the Henry Ford Museum, Mullin Automotive Museum, and the Nethercutt Collection, and the Steering Committee for the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. He is also a member of the Bonneville 200MPH Club, where he piloted a record run. He was awarded the prestigious Lee lacocca Award for his dedication to American automotive tradition, the Meguiar’s Award for Collector Car Person of the Year, the Automotive Icon Award by the Petersen Museum, and has been inducted into three different prestigious automotive Halls of Fame for his tireless dedication to promoting awareness and recognition of American hot rodding and automotive innovation. Bruce has also won eight awards at Pebble Beach. He owns five Le Mans winners and the Petersen Museum has a section dedicated solely to his cars. In addition, Mattel created a “Hot Wheels” special edition of his cars. His favorite car? The first Shelby Cobra ever made.

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 57

Anthony P. Bamford

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Anthony P. Bamford British | Age: 74 | Score: 51.84

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO Anthony Paul Bamford, Baron Bamford, is an English businessman. He succeeded his father, Joseph Cyril Bamford, as chairman and managing director of JCB in 1975, at the age of 30. He was knighted in 1990 at the age of 45. His collection of wonderful automobiles is widely regarded as one of the most special in the world. He owns two original Ferrari 250 GTOs, but also loves British cars, especially Bentleys and Rolls Royces. He is not just a collector, but also a frequent racer, driving his own cars on the world’s foremost circuits.

In England, he is a point of reference for all classic car collectors.

Harry Yeaggy has a fantastic automobile collection that includes the car that saved the Corvette from bankruptcy: the ’56 Corvette, the first ever to win a race, the car that showed the world that Corvette had racing spirit. Yeaggy shuns the spotlight and his garage is a private realm. However, he shows his cars at the American Concours d’Elegance, winning several Best of Shows in recent years. Most notably, he won the most coveted award at Pebble Beach with his incredible Duesenberg SJ Marmon Meteor in 2007. He also became a name on everyone’s lips when he acquired at auction the ex James Bond Aston Martin DB5. His collection is an amazing accomplishment, especially when you realize that as a kid his own family was so poor they couldn’t afford a car.

25

Charles E. Nearburg American | Age: 69 | Score: 50.82

Top piece: 1969 Porsche 917K Charlie Nearburg became a successful entrepreneur thanks to his Dallas-based oil and gas exploration company, Nearburg Exploration.

Yet the oil and gas business was just a means to an end, because Charlie had always dreamed of being a racing driver. And that’s what he became, racing for many years in many professional competitions and leagues. He retired from professional racing in 2004 after a respectable career. He has a special love for Ferraris, but also for Porsche and Lancia. He is also widely known for having set various speed records.

Corrado Lopresto

24

Corrado Lopresto Italian | Age: 63 | Score: 50.88

Top piece: 1931 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Sport Aprile Spider Corsa | Top awards: 2006, 2011, and 2014 Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este, 2008 Paleis Het Loo Best of Show, 2014 and 2017 Best of Show Villa Erba, 2016 UNESCO FIVA Preservation Award, 2016 Most Elegant Closed Car, Pebble Beach Concourse, 2017 Best of Show Villa d’Este, 2017 Personal Achievement of the Year - Octane Awards Harry Yeaggy

23

Harry Yeaggy American | Age: 73 | Score: 51.40

Top piece: 1935 Duesenberg SJ ”Marmon Meteor” | Top awards: 2007 Pebble Beach Best of Show, 2011 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport, 2018 Amelia Island Elegance Best of Show 58 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Corrado is an architect with a special taste for beauty and design. All of his cars are strictly Italian prototypes, one-offs, 001 chassis numbers, and masterpieces crafted by Italian manufacturers from all eras: some of the most original and best preserved cars in the world. He began collecting at the age of 18, and is the only person ever to have won four Gold Cups at Villa d’Este (and one Best of Show). In 20 years, he has garnered more than 250 awards (with 60 Best of Shows) at international concourses, with 7 awards at Pebble Beach. The success of his cars lies in the perfect balance of their historical significance and immaculate restoration. In 2016 UNESCO awarded him the preservation FIVA prize at Villa d’Este for the restoration of the Alfa Romeo Coda Tronca prototype. Lopresto’s cars amazed a wider public when they were displayed in Piazza della Signoria in Florence. He owns the most complete Isotta Fraschini collection in the world, with the first ever made, the last ever made, and also the 1990s prototypes designed by Giugiaro and Tjaarda.

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Nick Mason British | Age: 75 | Score: 50.80

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 2009 Octane Awards Greatest Racing Car Ever, 2013 Pebble Beach Road & Track Trophy, 2013 Pebble Beach Enzo Ferrari Trophy, 2013 Pebble Beach 3rd in Class Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason is a real car enthusiast. The passion began at an early age, well before the days of the highly successful rock band, because his dad loved cars and enjoyed showing his son how sophisticated and refined they could be. Today Nick’s classic car collection is truly outstanding. The focus is sports cars with a unique history, and although most of them are Ferraris, Nick describes his collection as “just a curious muddle of cars.” Nick is also a keen car racer, taking part in competitive events such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Little wonder that all of his cars are kept in prime racing condition. Nick has also made a film about his favorite hobby, “Life Could Be a Dream.” Moreover, his book “Into the Red” gives further insights into his exclusive collection of classic cars, vehicles that shaped a century of motorsport.

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Nick Mason

David Sydorick American | Age: 73 | Score: 50.10

Top piece: 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Touring | Top awards: 2015 Best of Show Villa d’Este, 2015 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport, 2018 Best of Show Pebble Beach, 2018 Cavallino Elegance Best of Show, 2019 Villa d’Este Best of Show Retired American investment banker David Sydorick is a member of the board of directors of the Petersen Museum as well as the Mullin Automotive Museum. Although his own classic car collection is not large, it includes some highly exclusive models and is considered one of the finest Zagato collections worldwide. His wife Ginny is also a car enthusiast with a special passion for Zagato designs. Not surprisingly, David Sydorick is a close friend of Andrea Zagato, with whom he collaborates on different projects.

Lawrence Stroll

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Lawrence Stroll Canadian | Age: 60 | Score: 50.00

Top piece: 1967 Ferrari 330 P4 Spider | Top awards: 2001 Cavallino Classic Gold, 2016 Pebble Beach Gran Turismo Trophy

David Sydorick

Lawrence Stroll is a major name in the fashion sector, having developed some of the most successful fashion brands and companies. He is probably also the most prominent classic car collector worldwide. Stroll’s collection of classic cars largely consists of fabulous Ferraris, which he also loves to drive. In fact he owns the Mont-Tremblant circuit in Quebec. On track Lawrence likes to get everything he can out of his stunning Ferraris, but when he’s simply driving on regular roads for pleasure he’s more cautious. “If conditions and laws permit, I try to feel the sensations that a Ferrari can give you both on and off the track”, he explains.

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 59

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Peter Sachs American | Age: 80 | Score: 49.14

Top piece: 1961 Ferrari 250 TRI/61 | Top awards: 2006 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance - Sport, 2008 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport, 2013 Bob Akin Award from the Road Racing Drivers Club

pre- and post-war. He has a special passion for Alfa Romeos and Ferraris, but he also collects wonderful pre-war Duesenbergs and Bentleys.

He takes part every year at Pebble Beach, and is one of the most significant American collectors of our time.

Peter Sachs’s grandfather Samuel Sachs was the “Sachs” of “Goldman Sachs.” After studying at Harvard and NYU, Peter started working at Goldman Sachs, where he spent 37 years before retiring as a director. In the 1960s he began collecting and racing cars, making a name for himself in SCCA, IMSA, USRRC and vintage car events. Peter acquired his 250 GTO in 1981 by trading his 275 GTB Speciale for the GTO then owned by the Chicago-based company Joe Marchetti’s International Auto Ltd. It is one of the three Series I models and was re-bodied as a Series II in 1964. He drove his first actual race at Silverstone (England) in 1960 in a Turner 950 and continued racing until 2007. In 1963 he was the SCCA national champion in F Modified, driving a Lotus 23.

He won an SCCA divisional title in 1964 with a Brabham BT5, setting a lap record at Lime Rock Park (Conn.). Sachs also raced in IMSA Firehawk, Grand-Am Cup, and vintage series.

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Craig McCaw American | Age: 70 | Score: 49.02

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 2014 Amelia Island Best in Class, 2015 Amelia Island Concours Class Award, 2016 Montecito Motor Classics Best in Class, 2017 Montecito Motor Classics First in Class Craig McCaw is an extremely forward-thinking business person. After graduating from Stanford, he entered the family broadcasting/cable business. By the early 1980s he had turned the company into the 20th largest cable carrier in the US. Craig has exquisite taste in classic cars, acquiring in 2015 an original Ferrari 250 GTO for what was then the highest price ever paid for a car at auction. His collection features exclusive, elegant, high-end sports cars, both 60 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Ed Davies

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Ed Davies American | Score: 47.66

Top piece: 1956 Ferrari 290 MM Spider Scaglietti | Top awards: 1994 III. Cavallino Classic The Judges Cup, 1995 FCA National Concours Luigi Chinetti Memorial Award, 2014 Cavallino Classic Best in Class Though Ed Davies tends to avoid the limelight, he owns one of the most spectacular collections of Ferraris around, with cars that have made the Cavallino one of the most admired brands of all time, including an all-original 250 GTO. Disinclined to show his cars at every Concours d’Elegance, he prefers to drive them or race them on track. You may have seen him racing at Monaco Historic GP, Spa Classics, or Moroso Track Days. As a racing driver, he has won several competitions, including the FCA National Concours in 1995.

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Though Ed Davies tends to avoid the limelight, he owns one of the most spectacular collections of Ferraris around, with cars that have made the Cavallino one of the most admired brands of all time, including an all-original 250 GTO. Disinclined to show his cars at every Concours d’Elegance, he prefers to drive them or race them on track. You may have seen him racing at Monaco Historic GP, Spa Classics, or Moroso Track Days. As a racing driver, he has won several competitions, including the FCA National Concours in 1995.

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Andreas Mohringer Austrian | Age: 74 | Score: 47.24

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 335 S Spider Scaglietti | Top awards: 2011 1st in Class Villa d’Este, 2013 Amelia Island Sports and GT Cars Postwar to 1955, 2014 Cavallino Classic Preservation Platino, 2014 Cavallino Classic Owners Best Representing the Spirit of Track and Concorso, 2016 the Quail Best of Show, 2016 Pebble Beach The Phil Hill Cup, 2017 1st in Class Villa d’Este, 2018 Villa d’Este Best of Show Austrian pharmaceuticals magnate Andreas Mohringer has built up a remarkable car collection with exclusive sports and racing models, as well as various prototypes of unique historical interest. Andreas has taken part in various rallies, including Gaisbergrennen and Italia Classics. Moreover, his cars have won important awards at events like Villa d’Este and Cavallino Classic.

Oscar Davis American | Score: 47.60

Top piece: 1938 Talbot Lago T150C SS Teardrop Coupé ”Goute d’Eau””Figoni & Falaschi” | Top awards: 2000 Amelia Island Best of Show, 2010 Villa d’Este Best of Show, 2010 Villa Erba Best of Show

Andreas Mohringer

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Bernie Ecclestone UK | Age: 89 | Score: 45.70

Top piece: 1937 Auto Union Typ C

Bernie Ecclestone

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Giorgio Perfetti Italian | Age: 72 | Score: 47.20

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 250 TR Spider Scaglietti, ”Lucybelle II” | Top awards: 1989 FCA Concours Lake Lanier Island 1st in Class, 1992 I. Cavallino Classic 2nd in Class, 1993 FCA Concours Lake Lanier Island 3rd in Class Giorgio Perfetti is an Italian candy tycoon and entrepreneur living in Switzerland, whose company distributes its products in over 130 countries worldwide. His collection is unique in its own way, as it comprises the most complete Ferrari collection in the world. Although it is a distinctly private collection, car enthusiasts can glean exclusive information regarding Giorgio’s Ferraris from the 16 stunning books that make up the Cavalleria series. Giorgio only owns and collects Ferraris, but he also has a soft spot for Porsche.

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The name of Bernie Ecclestone needs no introduction. After buying the Connaught team in 1957 and the Brabham team in 1972, in 1974 he founded the FOCA (Formula One Championship Association) and became the manager of the financial side of Formula 1. During his involvement the sport grew in size and importance, and since the mid ’80s has been the most important part of car racing. His agreement with sponsors and track owners brought the company to be valued at $6.9 billion at the time of sale, in 2016. A life inside the F1 world has led to a striking collection of F1 cars, including the McLaren MP4 with which Ayrton Senna won at the 1993 Monaco GP and the Ferrari 375 F1 that won the British, German, and Italian GPs in the 1951 F1 Championship, driven by Ascari and Taruffi.

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Robert Ingram American | Age: 77 | Score: 44.64

Top piece: 1961 Porsche Type 356B 1600 Carrera GTL Abarth Coupe | Top awards: 2013 Ault Park Esprit de Sport Award, 2013 Palmetto Award, 2017 Pebble Beach Best in Class Robert Ingram’s highly successful career in the pharmaceutical business has led him to hold numerous key positions in company boards and research centers. As a child he used to nurture his nascent interest in the amazing world of cars by riding his bicycle past a car dealership to see the latest models. A trip to the Historic Automobile races in Monterrey got Bob thinking about creating a collection of his own. He and his wife chose to focus on the history of the sports cars made by Porsche.

Today the collection is considered to be one of the best Porsche collections worldwide.

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David McNeil American | Age: 59 | Score: 44.04

Top piece: 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO McNeil became a buzzword in the car collecting world in May 2018, when he bought the most expensive car ever sold by private agreement. For an “undisclosed” sum of $70 million he bought the best Ferrari 250 GTO on the planet. He is THE car guy. After working as vice president for AMG in the States, he set up “on ingenuity and hard work” the WeatherTech company in 1989,creating floor mats and now covering a wide range of car accessories. Aside from owning a racing team, his company is the main sponsor of the IMSA racing championship and of the well-known Laguna Seca circuit. McNeil also raced for many years, even competing in the 12 Hours of Sebring. Moreover, he has a top-level Airline Transport Pilot certificate.

Carlos Monteverde Swiss/Brazilian | Score: 47.06

Top piece: 1970 Porsche 917 | Top awards: 2008 Madgwick Cup – Goodwood Revival, 2010 Cavallino Classic Coppa 4 Cilindri Born and raised in America, Carlos Monteverde is a racing driver who has won awards in various competitions, such as the famous Le Mans Classic, Monterey Historics, and many others, including the 2008 Madgwick Cup – Goodwood Revival. Carlos is also a keen collector of highly exclusive classic cars, among them the most phenomenal classic racing cars ever made. His collection comprises a number of stunning Ferraris and Jaguars.

Carlos Monteverde

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 61

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Peter Kalikow American | Age: 77 | Score: 43.80

Top piece: 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider | Top awards: 2005 Best of the Best International Greenwich Concourse, 2005 Best of Show International Greenwich Concourse, 2006 Best of Show Villa d’Este, 2014 FCA National meeting Best of Show, 2017 Best of Show Gran Turismo - Cavallino Classic Peter Kalikow is a highly successful American businessman in the New York real estate sector.

Apart from his involvement in the firm his family founded two generations ago, Peter is also an automobile enthusiast who has built up an exclusive collection of special Ferraris, including Superamerica models. With their particular focus on design rather than racing history, Peter’s stunning automobiles have won numerous important prizes, including several Best of Show awards. The cars in his collection mean so much to him that he never sells them. He did it once, and so regretted it that he bought the vehicle in question back. “I own the cars purely for the pleasure of owning cars and not for any monetary reasons,” he declares.

41 William “Bill” Pope

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William “Bill” Pope American | Age: 61 | Score: 43.50

Top piece: 1953 Aston Martin DB2 4 Bertone Roadster | Top awards: 2010 Pebble Beach 2nd in Class, 2011 Desert Classic Concours d’Elegance The Most Significant Open Car Award, 2014 Amelia Island 100th Anniversary of Maserati Racing William ‘Bill’ Pope is real estate developer in Scottsdale, Arizona, with a special passion for vintage racecars. He started out with a 1955 Lancia B24 Spider, and gradually built up one of the finest vintage racing car collections, with a particular focus on Maserati and OSCA, and various unique prototypes and one-off designs from both the pre, and post-war period.

His Aston Martin DB2 Bertone concept car is a case in point. Bill considers himself more a custodian and caretaker of these gems than just a normal collector. He is certainly an institution in the American collectors’ scene.

62 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

A. Dano Davis American | Age: 74 | Score: 43.40

Top piece: 1914 Peugeot L45 Grand Prix Two Seater - chassis n. 1 | Top awards: 2009 and 2017 Amelia Island Best of Show - Sport Andrew Dano Davis is the former owner of the legendary Brumos Car Dealership, which he bought in 1990 and then sold a few years ago.

His primary love is Porsche, and he owns some very rare items, including the 1970 Porsche 917. Dano also bought the ex-Sam Mann Alfa Romeo 8C 2.9 Spider Touring, which won Best of Show at Amelia Island in 2017, a triumph that he also enjoyed in 2009, with a Miller Special.

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Friedhelm Loh German | Age: 73 | Score: 42.70

Top piece: 1964 Ferrari 275/330P | Top awards: 2009 Pebble Beach 3rd in Class Friedhelm Loh is a German entrepreneur who developed the firm founded by his father into a major manufacturing and services group.

Apart from his skill as a businessman, he is also renowned for his collection of classic cars, which largely consists of remarkable Mercedes and Ferraris, many of which have won awards at events such as Pebble Beach.

Sam Mann

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Sam Mann American | Age: 83 | Score: 42.56

Top piece: 1937 Delage D8-120 S Pourtout Aéro Coupe | Top awards: 1991, 1996, 2002, and 2005 Pebble Beach Best of Show Sam Mann is a successful industrial designer whose innumerable patented designs contribute to the quality of everyday life. However Mann is also a worldwide name in the classic automobile world. The concept of design is naturally central to his collection, which spans all eras, even if his favorite cars are from the pre-war period. It’s a unique line-up, as the best pieces are one-off or concept cars manufactured by the most innovative brands of all time.

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Jim Patterson American | Age: 86 | Score: 42.26

Top piece: 1936 Delahaye 135M Figoni & Falaschi | Top awards: 2007 Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este, 2010 and 2015 Pebble Beach Best of Show Jim Patterson is an American collector from Louisville, Kentucky. He studied at the University of Louisville, majoring in marketing. He also participated in the Air Force ROTC program, and worked throughout his education. He bought and remodeled an old restaurant which he reopened as Jerry’s. Within eight years, he opened two additional Jerry’s. He is the founder of Long John Silver’s, which has over 1300 franchised locations, and more than 8400 workers. He became a Wendy’s franchisee and formed Western Restaurants Inc. which operated 47

Wendy’s. As a collector, he twice won the Best of Show at Pebble Beach with two stunning pre-war automobiles. Limited edition, one-off and Art Deco French cars are his favorites, but he also likes Ferraris and 1950s sport cars. Jim Patterson is a prominent name at Pebble Beach and the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.

Maine. With a collection of 60 plus cars, he has a special predilection for Duesenbergs, Packards, Stutz Bearcats, Tucker, Thomas Flyer, and other rare collectibles. He is notorious for chasing after a mere rumor of a car’s possible whereabouts, or pursuing an owner who won’t sell. “Some guys chase broads,” he says. “I chase cars.”

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Joseph Cassini American | Age: 68 | Score: 41.68

Top piece: 1927 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A Fleetwood Roadster | Top awards: 2004 and 2013 Pebble Beach Best of Show

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Robert Bishop American | Age: 61 | Score: 40.48

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 250 LWB California Prototype | Top awards: 2012 Cavallino Classic Silver, 2018 Salon Prive Best of Show Robert Bishop is a name that is widely known in the world of Concours d’Elegance around the world. He particularly likes to collect custom bodied Italian cars. Among his gems, the 1958 Ferrari 250 California Spider Prototype is surely one of the most appreciated pieces.

Robert has won both the Cavallino Classic Concourse, in 2012, and Salon Prive in 2018.

Shiro Kosaka

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Shiro Kosaka Japanese | Age: 78 | Score: 42.24

Top piece: 1964 Alfa Romeo Canguro | Top awards: 2005 Best of Show Villa d’Este Shiro Kosaka is a name to remember. His collection includes one of the most important lineups of Abarths, as well as some of the best Alfa Romeo and Ferrari prototypes ever built.

Clearly Italian design and style is dear to him.

There’s an interesting story behind his purchase of one particular Abarth: apparently he was keen to acquire it, but Fiat refused to sell it unless he was willing to open a museum.

The outcome is the Gallery Abarth near Yamanaka Lake, just under Mount Fuji in Japan.

Now that’s a tradeoff we can all appreciate.

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Bob Bahre American | Age: 76 | Score: 41.96

Top piece: 1938 Alfa 8C 2900B Touring Spider Bob Bahre is former owner of the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Once a year he and his wife Sandra generously open the garages for public viewing of their Bahre Car Collection, with a small donation requested to benefit the public library in the small town of Paris,

Joseph Cassini is a retired American attorney and former state superior court judge who is also a passionate collector of classic cars. His collection consists of pre-war models, most of them American exclusive limited series or even one-offs. Among his favorite car brands are Stutz and Packard, but his collection is actually much broader, including Duesenbergs, Chryslers, as well as Isotta Fraschini. He sums up his approach to cars and collecting as follows: “I am fortunate to be able to do what I do. I do not have the wherewithal to own all the great cars of the world at once, but I do have the ability to own some of the greatest cars in the world, one at a time.”

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Chris Cox American | Age: 66 | Score: 41.00

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO | Top awards: 2007 FCA International Meet & Concours Best of Show, 2012 Classic Sports Sunday Personal Favorite Award, 2012 Cavallino Classic Best in Class, 2016 Ferrari Coupe Cup Chris Cox is a private investor and philanthropist who lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with his wife Ann. He acquired his 250 GTO in June 2005 for an undisclosed price. The car was originally red, but was repainted blue and yellow in homage to a Swedish driver who raced the car in the 70s. He has won several awards, including the 2012 Cavallino Classic Best in Class.

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Mario Righini Italian | Age: 86 | Score: 40.10

Top piece: 1940 Auto Avio AAC 815 Mario Righini’s collection of cars is probably one of the most interesting in the world.

While working in the family’s auto wrecking business, over the years he managed to save a number of interesting pieces. Thanks to his taste and knowledge, he has collected outstanding, unique pieces that represent fundamental chapters of automotive history: for instance, the first car ever built by Enzo Ferrari, the 1940 Auto Avio AAC 815, and the ex Nuvolari 1933 Alfa Romeo 2300 Monza that won the Targa Florio. Most of his cars are in exceptional, untouched condition, and the whole collection is kept in a Castle near Modena, surely a magical location for special cars.

Mario Righini

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 63

51

Jay Leno American | Age: 69 | Score: 39.72

Top piece: 1939 Delahaye Type 165 Cabriolet

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Brian Ross American | Score: 39.12

Top piece: 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti Spider

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Brandon Wang British | Age: 74 | Score: 38.92

Top piece: 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Stieger Family Swiss | Score: 35.88

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Gregory Whitten American | Score: 35.68

Top piece: 1957 Aston Martin DBR-2

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John Bookout American | Age: 97 | Score: 35.10

Top piece: 1955 Maserati A6G/54 2000 GT Zagato Coupe

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Matteo Panini Italian | Age: 49 | Score: 34.62

Top piece: 1953 Maserati A6GCS 53 Berlinetta Pinin Farina

Lee Harrington American | Score: 35.36

Top piece: 1956 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina Speciale

Antonius Meijer 1936 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900A Botticella Spider

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Antonius Meijer American | Age: 50 | Score: 39.72

Top piece: 1936 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900A Botticella Spider

64 Brandon Wang 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Roger Willbanks American | Age: 85 | Score: 38.84

Top piece: 1948 Delahaye 135 MS Figoni & Falaschi Narval Cabriolet

55

English | Age: 75 | Score: 34.48

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Andrew Pisker British | Age: 59 | Score: 35.20

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 500 TRC Spider Scaglietti

Carlo Voegele Swiss | Score: 38.80 Jim Glickenhaus 1967 Ferrari 412 P Competizione

Top piece: 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2600

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Paul Vestey

Johann Peter Rupert

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South African | Age: 68 | Score: 36.36

Top piece: 1982 Porsche 956C

64 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Johann Peter Rupert 1982 Porsche 956C

Jim Glickenhaus American | Age: 69 | Score: 34.38

Top piece: 1967 Ferrari 412 P Competizione

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Ray Scherr American | Score: 34.28

Top piece: 1911 Simplex 50HP Holbrook Toy Tonneau

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Giuseppe Lucchini Italian | Age: 67 | Score: 34.24

Top piece: 958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

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Silvia Nicolis Italian | Age: 46 | Score: 34.20

Top piece: 1925 Alfa Romeo RM

Silvia Nicolis 1925 Alfa Romeo RM

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William Lyon American | Age: 96 | Score: 33.00

Top piece: 1936 Mercedes Benz 540K Spezial Roadster

74 J. Willard Marriott Jr. 1938 Talbot Lago T150C SS Cabriolet

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J. Willard Marriott Jr. American | Age: 87 | Score: 33.96

Top piece: 1938 Talbot Lago T150C SS Cabriolet

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American | Score: 31.72

Top piece: 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB 4 NART Spider

German | Age: 44 | Score: 32.46

Top piece: 1954 Maserati A6 GCS Berlinetta Pininfarina

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Cameron Healy American | Age: 67 | Score: 31.78

Top piece: 1968 Porsche 908K Prototype

Larry H. Miller

Richard Workman 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB 4 NART Spider

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American | Score: 33.48

Michael Leventhal American | Score: 30.94

Top piece: 1953 Ferrari 340 MM Vignale Spider

Jack Croul American | Age: 95 | Score: 33.40

Top piece: 1954 Ferrari 250 Monza Scaglietti Pontoon Spider

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Richard Workman

Timm Bergold

Top piece: 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe

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James Jaeger American | Score: 33.36

Top piece: 967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 N.A.R.T. Spider

Roland D’Ieteren 1939 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B Pescara

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Roland D’Ieteren Belgian | Age: 77 | Score: 31.74

Top piece: 1939 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B Pescara

Michael Leventhal 1953 Ferrari 340 MM Vignale Spider

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 65

79

Martin Viessmann German | Age: 66 | Score: 30.72

Top piece: 1923 Mercedes-Benz Indianapolis

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Fritz Kaiser Liechtenstein | Age: 64 | Score: 30.50

Top piece: The 1968 Lamborghini Miura from “The Italian Job” Movie

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Nicola Bulgari Italian | Age: 78 | Score: 30.40

Top piece: 1933 Marmon V16 Victoria

Martin Viessmann 1923 Mercedes-Benz Indianapolis

84

Charles Wegner American | Score: 29.58

Top piece: 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/C

85 Joseph M. Barone 1961 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Joseph M. Barone American | Score: 30.20

Top piece: 1961 Ferrari 250 GTO

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Larry Carter American | Score: 29.88

Top piece: 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB 4 NART Spider

88

Donald Murray American | Score: 28.90

Top piece: 1955 Porsche 550 Spider

Hartmut Ibing German | Score: 29.18

Top piece: 1957 Maserati 250F

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Jean Pierre Slavic Swiss | Age: 70 | Score: 29.16

Top piece: 1961 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato

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Daniel Sielecki Argentinian | Age: 61 | Score: 28.98

Top piece: Bugatti Type 57SC Atalante

Wolfgang Friedrichs 1962 Aston Martin DP212

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Wolfgang Friedrichs German | Score: 28.90

Top piece: 1962 Aston Martin DP212

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Roald Goethe German | Score: 28.84

Top piece: 1971 Porsche 917K

91 Larry Carter 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB 4 NART Spider

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Roald Goethe 1971 Porsche 917K

Axel Marx Swiss | Score: 28.80

Top piece: 1954 Alfa Romeo 2000 Sportiva

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Jan De Reu Dutch | Score: 27.82

Top piece: 1954 Fiat 8V Coupe Zagato

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German | Age: 55 | Score: 26.34

Top piece: 1936 Bentley Pacey Hassan

99 Curtis Gordinier 1958 Ferrari 250 TR Spider Scaglietti

Andreas Pohl

Martin Gruss American | Age: 76 | Score: 25.96

Top piece: 1931 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster

Curtis Gordinier American | Score: 39.72

Top piece: 1958 Ferrari 250 TR Spider Scaglietti

Jan De Reu 1954 Fiat 8V Coupe Zagato

Martin Gruss 1931 Bugatti Type 55 Roadster

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Jack E. Thomas American | Score: 25.76

Top piece: 1955 Ferrari 375 America Coupé Speciale

Christophe d’Ansembourg 1970 Porsche 917K

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Christophe d’Ansembourg Belgian | Age: 56 | Score: 28.44

Top piece: 1970 Porsche 917K

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Bernard Carl American | Score: 27.64

Top piece: 1962 Ferrari 248 SP

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Guy Berryman English | Age: 41 | Score: 27.10

Top piece: 1954 Porsche 550 Spider

97 Arnold Meier 1969 Ferrari 312 P Berlinetta

Arnold Meier Swiss | Age: 80 | Score: 26.56

Top piece: 1969 Ferrari 312 P Berlinetta

Risen in rank

Stable

Fallen in rank

New

Top 100 Collectors 2019 // 67

This picture tells where the passion of Charles March, 11th Duke of Richmond, known by everyone as Lord March, comes from the hooded boy portrayed at Goodwood in 1963, when the F1 GPs were still held there, is none other than Charles himself at eight. Behind him, World Champion Graham Hill in his car, just before the start of the race: the child seems to be looking at the image of himself as an adult sitting in a single seater.

Next to him, a vigilant Frederick Gordon Lennox, Charles’s grandfather and 9th Duke of Richmond.

Reading love was that made him start the most extraordinary postwar motoring events: the Festival of Speed at the Richmond Estate and the Goodwood Revival at the Goodwood Circuit.

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Great things are born of dreams Charles March has been consumed by the love for cars since he was young, as you can discover in this historic image. And wanting to share that burning passion, he now lavishes his wits and family estates on fellow enthusiasts.

by Rob Widows

Great things are born of dreams // 69

F

or the last 25 years, it has been tough to bag a space in his diary. In 1993 he created the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Five years later came the Revival and, in 2014, he added a Members Meeting to the international motorsport calendar.

Charles March, now the 11th Duke of Richmond and Gordon, has had a huge influence on both the classic car world and the sport of historic racing. For those who love their classics, he has created a “Cathedral of Cars” where worshippers come from all over the world to wander among works of art on wheels.

Much has been written about this dynamic and entrepreneurial aristocrat. Here, we discover that it all began as a childhood dream. You cannot take the boy out of the businessman.

In his office at Goodwood House, Charles is surrounded by models of his favourite automobiles, helmets, steering wheels, and photographs signed by champions from Stirling Moss to nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen. Model cars jostle for space on his desk with phones, laptops, and files.

His garage reveals a small but wonderfully eclectic collection. Here, we find a March-bodied AC 16/80 tourer designed by his grandfather, a Lancia Aurelia, a Kellison 905 (bought in what he calls a “mad moment” at Bonneville), a Porsche GT2 RS and a Ducati 888 SP4. Fast and understated describes all but one.

Charles’s love of cars goes back to his childhood and was nurtured by his grandfather Freddie March, who worked as an apprentice at Bentley, designed both cars and aeroplanes, won the Brooklands Double 12 in a C-Type MG Midget in 1931 and built the Goodwood Motor Circuit in 1948.

Taking time out from yet more meetings with Goodwood’s partners, among them the world’s major car manufacturers, he takes a book from the shelves that cover one wall of his office.

termined that I should have a shared interest with my grandfather, so she would find these books, and he would send them to me at school. I fell in love with these pictures, the first ever double-page spreads of cars in a book.

“ The Automobile Book by Ralph Stein,” he smiles, leafing through the fabulous photographs. “ This is what started it all for me when I was nine years old. My grandmother was de-

Here is the Delahaye Type 145 V12, and a Bugatti 35 B, possibly the car I covet above all others. I would spend hours drawing these beautiful sculptural things. As a teen-

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ager, I became immersed in these books and magazines which opened my eyes to all these absolutely gorgeous automobiles. I’d go racing at the circuit with my grandfather; we’d watch from his little caravan parked next to the chicane. I loved the speed, the fact that these cars were built with a single purpose - to go as fast as possible. I got to know the drivers, pestered them for autographs.

I remember Graham Hill holding court at a

The Jaguar D-Type in the Le Mans winning livery of the Ecourie Ecosse, the Vanwall F1 with that yellow touch on the most classic of British liveries, the Italian red, the green on which the historical front of the Aston Martin is depicted, and then the yellow of the Equipe National Belge. In one single image taken at the Goodwood Estate, the memory of the unforgettable glory days that come back to life each year.

Photo copyright

by Paul Lund paullund.com

cocktail party before the Easter Monday races, lying stretched out on one of the 17th-century benches in the house.

Later, with my hands on my own cars, I loved the speed, the sheer ability to go fast in a machine built for ultimate performance.

“ Cars are not only about performance but also about design and engineering, the form and the function, the look and the feel. Not so much the facts and figures. For me, it was more about the beauty of the whole mechanical, and sculptural, thing.

Growing up, I was drawn to photography, and this became my business for many years before returning to Goodwood to take over the estate from my father. What I learnt about imagery, the importance of detail, was to have a lasting impact on the events that we

have created. The commercial photography provided the means to buy my first Porsche, the 924 Carrera GT, a red rocket that took me very rapidly between Goodwood and London.

The cars from Stuttgart have continued to thrill me with both their design and detail. The 911 is a wonderful mix of form and function, a design that has been continually developed over time, and that’s its defining factor. I’ve owned a few and driven some of their greatest Great things are born of dreams // 71

The striking starting grid of one of the many Goodwood Revival races, taking place every year in September.

cars at the Festival of Speed. The 908/3, which won the Targa Florio, is probably my favourite, just such a compact little car and perfect for the hill climb. You sit very far forward, that glorious Flat 6 growling away behind your head and your feet sticking out over the front axle. Then there are those terrific graphics, the Gulf colours, the blue, and the orange, with that big orange arrow pointing ahead at the front. I was in awe of Porsche’s 917/30 CanAm car... Derek Bell told me to be careful with the power, or I’d find myself facing back the way I had come. Coming out of the corners, I was nervously waiting for those massive turbos to bite me.

You get in these cars, like, say the D-Type Jaguar, and you realise they are such good cars. It is just such a treat to be able to actually drive them rather than dream about them.

I have always loved Lancias too, and again, there is a connection to my grandfather.

He won a Lancia Car Club Hillclimb here at Goodwood in his Aprilia, and he was driv72 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

en round Monaco by Tazio Nuvolari in an Augusta. He said the great man never used the clutch...imagine. That’s why I have the Aurelia, it’s the ultimate piece of modernist design, built in 1955, so it’s the same age as me. The overall package is fantastic, the first V6, the first independent suspension, and a glorious understated interior with lovely grey cloth seats, wonderful Bakelite detailing, white instruments with black figures. It’s an important car in so many ways, but very expensive to make and it ruined Lancia. The racing drivers loved it, Fangio used one to travel between races in Europe. The car was ahead of its time and, if you look at the Bentley Continental GT, it looks like someone has taken an Aurelia and pumped it up into what we see today.

I remember lying in bed at school, dreaming about the cars I had seen, and now to have them all here at our events, to see them in the paddocks and on the track, is just amazing. If you love these cars, the most exciting thing is bringing them all together, the people and the cars, making them available to the fans,

and seeing how much pleasure they give. It’s not just a business, it’s a passion, and for me it’s been important to bring all this to Goodwood, to see that the place still means so much to people.”

Charles’s love of cars, in particular racing cars, is all-consuming and has stayed with him since poring over those pictures as a child.

Combining this passion with his working life has been a thrilling journey. To watch the world’s greatest drivers taking their cars up the hill past his home at Goodwood still gets his heart thumping. At the first Festival of Speed, in the summer of 1993, he recalls looking out of his bedroom window and seeing the queues of people waiting at the gates.

It was clear, even then, that Goodwood still meant something to the fans three decades after the famous circuit had closed.

Time is up, more meetings fill the day ahead, but he admits there are still cars that should be in that garage.

The show of people and passion of the Festival of Speed at the Richmond Estate grounds.

“I should have bought the Rob Walker Ferrari 250 SWB in which Stirling Moss won the Tourist Trophy here. That car looks so good in dark blue with the white noseband. It’s a very important Ferrari and surely one of the great Goodwood cars. It really ought to be in my garage. Then there’s the Eagle-Weslake, Dan Gurney’s Grand Prix car, and for me the most beautiful Formula One car ever. I missed that, too when it came up for sale, but maybe that wasn’t such a practical idea.”

Here is a man whose passion has brought the joys of great automobiles to a vastly wider audience, a man for whom cars have cast their spell. What began as a boyhood dream has brought millions of like-minded folk that much closer to the everlasting allure of the truly classic car. 

Charles March,  aware of the importance of becoming passionate about cars since childhood, has thought of organizing heated races among youngsters.

Great things are born of dreams // 73

Cars, Architects, and Designers The ideas of famous architects, such as Le Corbusier, Gio Ponti, and Frank Lloyd Wright, have also enriched the world of automobiles. Roberto Giolito, the former Fiat Group head of design whose achievements include the Fiat 500 and the Multipla, tells The Key about his approach to car design and how it differs from architectural design. Between the lines, he also provides fascinating insights into distinctive collecting.

by Roberto Giolito

74 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Roberto Giolito, today Head of Division Heritage FCA Italy, responsible for directing the activities of a dedicated team to protect the heritage of all the Group’s classic cars, has also been Head of Design for Fiat Group, and for FCA. In his career, he has always pursued prototype studies as well as mass-production models. His designs include some of the most famous world cars, such as the 2007 Fiat 500, which was named Car of the Year 2008, and others that were even more successful in Europe and South America, including the Fiat Multipla, the new Fiat Uno, and the Fiat Palio.

Diamond Line - The making of the model prototype

Cars, Architects, and Designers // 75

B

ased on my practical experience, I be-

lieve that automotive design has never received the recognition it deserves

as a noble design concept, since it is usually

relegated to the sphere of product styling or re-design. In the microcosm of automotive design, there is a clear distinction between

designers and stylists. The former focus on interior design and general layout, shaping

the external volume at a later stage, while the latter directly approach the concept of the

 Linea Diamante and Fiat Multipla: head proximity and pillar section.

external shape, which in practice constitutes the most distinctive aspect of automotive design.

This distinction is now likely to fade as new

forms of mobility take shape, impacting on the

passenger compartment and its packaging, and

including interaction with the on-board experience. Nevertheless, in the automotive sector, the two disciplines of interior and exterior design survive well separated, due to the inherent

complexity of car project development and to

the operational and methodological peculiarities that characterize the individual sectors.

Parallel to the car design microcosm, the

world of architecture is known to be one of

the fields of study and application most active in defining new scenarios and identifying the coordinates of new urban settings and social

life in general. Advanced design departments

have been operational since the 1970s to create something similar in the automotive sector.

They were specifically established to create

the scenarios and prototypes suited to shape

the future vision of a company and to grant

greater freedom to designers to produce ideas without the constraint of guaranteeing full

feasibility according to current standards. That

is why, in these environments, creation has been more visionary and individual designers have

been able to range from the study of exteriors

eminent architects the world over. Historically,

the atrocities of World War II. Although the

tain aspects of over a century of recent history

themselves from torpedo shapes and the

however, architects have tended to ignore cer-

in which speed and movement have been highly influential. Indeed, the history of transporta-

tion has experienced moments that have redefined the car paradigm itself. Cars have also

considerably remodeled our cities and our culture, making streets wider, transforming plots of land and forests into car parks, and even making the air unbreathable. New definitions

of the car paradigm now also involve the shape of our homes and the objects they contain, all of which could radically change our space in

coming years. It now seems extraordinary that such insights, with their closer focus on the

development of technologies and components, did not gain ground earlier.

or interiors to conceptualizing a whole vehicle.

Linea Diamante

Advanced design has been my sector of choice

Studying Giò Ponti and Alberto Rosselli’s 1952

car design. I had the opportunity to establish

identifying with their intent to come up with a

since the beginning of my career in the field of the Advanced Design Centre in 2001 in what was then the Fiat Group, conducting research for

all the company brands. This is also a sector in

which work methods and interconnections tend

designs for the Diamante recently had me

car full of ideas and innovative solutions, but still aimed at industrial production and the typical evolution of mid-size vehicles.

to resemble those of architectural design firms.

The 1950s encouraged the development of

occasions for exchange and collaboration with

a new modern lifestyle far removed from

In my specific case, there have been many

76 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

new product strategies and the definition of

Americans had already started distancing

separation between body and fender, in the 1950s their cars became much larger and

heavier than in previous decades. When in

1955 Citroen launched the DS in France, the highly innovative Traction Avant became a

total revolution, although it was still based on the saloon type with the trunk bonnet

separate from the passenger compartment. In

reference to car bodies, Ponti commented on

“... the major incongruity of bulky bulges and

absurd internal voids...”, and traced with great ease the lines of a slender volume, made of

clear dihedrals, decomposing the various parts into intersecting volumes. I believe that the Diamante’s bold break with tradition cen-

tered on the less inclined slender side panel section that allowed the designer to imagine

a very low waistline, resizing the proportions of the windows from horizontal to vertical.

It also eliminated the so-called shoulder

on the waistline, a side-window feature of many cars of the day intended to convey

strength and side-impact protection. In doing so, Ponti invested the lines of the doors and other hanging parts with graphic value. As in a Mondrian Tableau, there are clear propor-

tions in the divisions drawn on the nearly flat surfaces by the decomposition lines, and the

eye does not err toward the lights positioned

cost-effective car that is easy to assemble is a

on what Ponti described as “bulging” shapes.

useful exercise because it can open up vistas

Yet it was these that continued to dictate the

and lead to new concepts regarding manufac-

law of the market. The sensuality of the forms was clearly enticing. Even the bonnet of the

ture, assembly, and the end product. The de-

from the driver’s seat. Through a spine along

2CV are useful cases in point in the way they

Diamante angles sleeps to enhance visibility

signs for the Voiture Minimum and the Citroen

the middle line, the two sides slope down-

refer to approaches typical of architecture and product design. In fact, an analysis of their

wards toward the ground. Moreover, the entire

usability can lead us back to the principles

bonnet is carved on the bodywork by a hori-

applied by their designers in creating them.

zontally developed perimeter line that carries

a small portion of the fender with it, thus becoming one of the first “clamshell” bonnets in history (at least on paper), 20 years ahead of

at extending the passenger action space. What

body made up of disunited shapes was a dras-

and sales was the relationship between the exte-

the Fiat 127 or the Saab 99. This concept of a

made the project less attractive for production

tic break with respect to the standard of the

rior dimensions and the passenger compartment

made a fleeting appearance at the end of the

volume to generate the highest number of seats

industry and, although hatchbacks had already 1930s on the Citroen Traction Avant Special,

it was not until the mid-sixties that a similar

solution became available on popular models.

My own thoughts about form, function, and

usability have drawn inspiration from architecture and studies of living environments,

albeit in movement. The divide between pure

experimentation and production reflects that of concept and standard product. What fol-

lows is an entirely personal selection, underpinned by what I consider to be the heritage of creative thought for mass-produced cars.

usability, which failed to exploit the available

on-board with respect to the footprint The first

offspring of the drop-shaped car design was the 1956 Fiat 600 Multipla: a brilliant reconfiguration of the constituent parts of a “normal” 600 saloon to create a highly versatile multi-pur-

pose vehicle that accommodated six passengers in just over 3.5 meters. The Fiat 600 Multipla became the first mass-produced “rocket-car”

in history, the perfect embodiment of what the ads described as a “dual-purpose car”. With

its futuristic aircraft fuselage shape, it blended iconicity and usability in keeping with the requirements of the day.

Pure form in movement.

Minimalist vehicles

I would like to start with what is considered to

The subject of minimalism often comes

in aerodynamic terms: the drop-shape. Many

with architects. Simplification is a

be the purest form, and performance excellence engineers and coachbuilders had dabbled with the tapered shape of a drop of water to make

enveloping bodies, such as the 1914 Alfa Romeo 40-60 HP Aerodinamica, in which the mechanics were encased to propel the car beyond its

previous peak ratings. Yet it was an architect, or rather a visionary, Buckminster Fuller, who devised a real car based on an aircraft fuselage.

This combined the heritage of the Alfa 40-60 HP and a single box cabin half occupied, or rather invaded, by the mechanics and the engine.

However, the Dymaxion shaped a plausible idea of package reconfiguration, namely the orga-

nization of the available volume, with the seats and the positioning of the mechanics aimed

With respect to the Voiture Minimum designed

by Le Corbusier in 1936, the esthetic impact

of the Citroen 2CV is certainly distinctive. Le

Corbusier’s approach was, first and foremost, to

retrieve the right-angle intersection between the sides and floor. This is essential to the con-

cept of livable space, with no ridges or steps between the floor and the openings, thereby

creating a smooth surface on which to position

and secure the seats. The coverage, obtained by bending a flat surface of a waterproof canvas, is reminiscent of a camp tent, and the absence of stiffening ribs makes the arch-shaped con-

struction of the supporting sides even more evident. Once again, comparison of the side views of the Voiture Minimum and the 2CV highlights the efficient exploitation of the volume, show-

ing how the small Citroen managed to arrange four seats in the cabin by placing the engine under the bonnet.

The Fiat Downtown: facilitated egress. 

up when discussing automotive design keyword in the quest for reducing waste in manufacture without compromising on product quality.

For cars, the stakes continue to rise on account of

the requirements for safety and compatibility

with continu-

ously updated standards.

So thinking about a

Cars, Architects, and Designers // 77

The “efficient” approach.

The “architect’s approach” to car design in-

volves defining the minimal essential conditions for describing the passenger compartment as architecture in motion. How should the living space, whether static or in move-

ment, be conceived? There are certain features that apply to all living environments: ingress and egress conditions and the creation of a flat, stepless floor plan with no obstacles to hinder movement inside.

During the years in which I headed the first Advanced Design Centre of the Fiat Group,

from 2002 to 2006, I happened to meet many

personalities from the world of furniture de-

The Dymaxion and the Fiat 600 Multipla: proportion of engine dimensions and livablespace. 

sign and architecture, such as Rodolfo Bonet-

to, Isao Hosoe, Richard Sapper, Michele De Lucchi, and Jean Nouvel. On occasions, we also

worked on real automotive meta-projects. This experience made me think about the future

of cars, and the need for improved usability and livability, including interaction among

the passengers, external visibility from every seat, and a reduction of on-board barriers.

Moreover, recent developments in on-board

infotainment systems lead users to perform

operations requiring considerable cognitive

load, and this calls for a driving experience freed of the many disruptions arising from the movement of the car itself.

Fiat Downtown In 1990, I was working on the layout concept of a micro electric car (the Fiat Downtown

- Geneva 1993), deciding on a three-seater

solution with the driving seat in the middle.

Given the minimum size of the car, it made no sense to decentralize the driver to one

side, which also avoided the need for producing left- and right-hand drive versions. Easy access for the driver was achieved by incorporating a portion of the totally flat floor, so that the driver could put a foot on the

ground before even budging from the driving seat or taking his hands off the steering

wheel. In practice, this was the application on a real vehicle of the “standing entry” concept I had devised a few years earlier to avoid

unnecessary contortions when getting into the car. The subject was also topical, given the

a greenhouse volume that allowed three

with the purchasing power to buy cars.

access without effort or contortions, and to

aging population and the average age of those

Fiat Multipla (Paris 1996 - Geneva 1998) The car is based on a bent steel section space

frame completely assembled on reference jigs

for both the platform and the body structures.  Le Corbusier, Voiture Minimum, and Citroen 2CV: proportions between the engine dimensions and livable space.

78 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

I’m not claiming that the 1998 Fiat Multipla

can be regarded as a perfect combination of

technological innovation and architecture. Yet studies of the Fiat C-segment minivan did

put into practice a coherent set of concepts:

passengers sitting beside each other to gain move and relate without obstacles. With its

launch, the Multipla changed the traditional

structure of multi-purpose vehicles (with pairs of seats arranged in three rows) by fitting six individual and identical seats, arranged in

two rows. Furthermore, it is also the only car in its segment to offer six seats and a large

luggage compartment (430 liters, extendible to 1300 with the rear seats folded) in an

overall length of just 4 meters. The floor is

flat and high enough to accommodate beneath the natural gas components of the low-envi-

ronmental-impact versions.

The new crowning glory: selling mobility Today, the car world is undergoing a rather sudden change due to the modification of

also respond to this trend, preparing them-

mass-production models. His designs include

mood as well as taste.

the 2007 Fiat 500, which was named Car of

selves in our preferred manner, in response to

some of the most famous world cars, such as he Year 2008, and others that were more suc-

habits introduced by digital networks, includ-

We will be able to choose a car according to

cessful in Europe and South America, includ-

workstation or shopping. Even visiting a des-

its paintwork, and our chosen vehicle will be

the Fiat Palio.

ing new aspects linked to the concept of the

tination now involves programming the route,

which is established in real time as a function of various aspects, such as traffic conditions,

our preferences, starting from the color of

particularly responsive in its soft content and

Future driving experience and the journey

from satellites in space to the mobile phone in

ship to use, exploiting the full potential of the

our pockets.

Cars are increasingly less “demanding”, allowing the driver and passengers to enjoy tech-

nological performance with enhanced features or services that were previously relegated to a single portable device.

Likewise, the concept of comfort has also

evolved. In the past, it largely regarded the seats, climate control, and soundproofing,

whereas today it concerns the interface relationship we experience with the software on our computers — a far cry from the “luxury

lounge” effect of aspiring high-end vehicles of a few years back. Over the next few years, the great revolution in car design will allow us

to configure many of our favorite conditions simply by passing in front of detectors from

one environment to another, and our cars will



as well as its hard components.

the weather, or the availability of interlocutors, in a network which exchanges data non-stop,

ing the Fiat Multipla, the new Fiat Uno, and

Old and new cockpits. 

itself will switch the focus from car owner-

new technological frontier of miniaturization

and of digital control of matter. Indeed, cars are likely to transcend the sphere of living

architecture and professional life on account

of their greater flexibility, the fruit of designs for target customers willing to experiment with new combinations.

Roberto Giolito, today Head of Division

Heritage FCA Italy, responsible for directing the activities of a dedicated team to protect the heritage of all the Group’s classic

 New vehicle experiences.

cars, has also been Head of Design for Fiat Group, and for FCA. In his career, he has always pursued

prototype studies as well as

 Telematic surfing, comfortable car (inside and out), tailor-made sharing.

Cars, Architects, and Designers // 79

Democracy?

No, thank you

A survey that reveals the secret behind the passion for classic cars: everyone’s dream garage is different, and for a number of interesting reasons. Twenty-seven world leaders in the sector choose a number of unexpected models, which suggests that the market has surprises in store for the future as well.

by Antonio Ghini

80 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

The Lamborghini Miura is the overall favorite car in the dream garage of the 27 personalities interviewed by The Key. On this page, the P400 that is featured in the film “The Italian Job” of 1969.

The car, chassis # 3586, is now part of the Kaiser Collection.

Democracy? No, thank you // 81

Lamborghini Miura

Mitja Borkert German, Chief Designer at Lamborghini S.P.A.

Renault 5 Turbo

1 Porsche 917

6 Lamborghini Miura

2 Lamborghini Countach

7 Lamborghini Terzo Millennio

3 Ford GT 40

8 Lamborghini Sesto Elemento

4 Ford GT

9 Ford GT (2005)

5 Porsche 911 GT3RS

10 Porsche 935

Carlo Borromeo Italian, Chief Designer and owner of Borromeo Da Silva design company.

Duesemberg Model J Murphy Disappearing TOP Roadster

1 Automobili Amos Futurista

6 Ferrari Enzo

2 Porsche Singer DLS

7 Mercedes 190e AMG Evo 2

3 Eagle E-Type Low Drag GT

8 Nissan 280z

4 Renault 5 Turbo

9 Hummer H1

5 BMW M3 E46 CLS

10 McLaren F1

Sandra Button American, CEO of Pebble Beach Concourse D’Elegance.

T

he Key recently ran a survey among 27 eminent international experts and collectors, who were invited to list the cars they would most like to have in their dream garage. And the results turned out to be very different from what they would have been a decade ago. While in the past many of those interviewed would have included iconic models considered the “supreme gods” of the collector’s pantheon, today we have a very different picture. The 250 chosen automobiles include 181 different cars. and that’s not all: the 82 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

1 60HP Mercedes 1904

6 Bugatti Type 35

2 Blower Bentley (n° 1 - Birkin Le Mans Winner)

7 Duesemberg Model J Murphy Disappearing TOP Roadster

3 Alfa 8C 2.9 Touring Open

8 Jaguar XKSS

4 Bugatti Type 49

9 Rolls Royce 1912

5 Marmon 16 cil Roadster

10 Ferrari 250 TR Pontoon Fender

models with the greatest appeal tend to be relative outsiders. For example, the Lamborghini Miura, which was chosen by eight of the people invited to take part in the survey.

That’s almost a third of the total. Remarkable if you consider that only two or three years ago, the Miuras on the market fetched less than a million euros. Proof, if any were needed, that the historic, aesthetic, and technical characteristics of any given model are not necessarily in sync with its market value. It’s an interesting development as it means that the world of

collecting is no longer shaped by established price lists, but by supply and demand. In other words, prices are formed following the market, and there is nothing to stop an open-minded person gaining huge satisfaction from opting for cars that are still relatively underrated. It’s a bit like buying the right artists at the right time on the art market.

In assessing the collected data, it’s interesting to note that the people we interviewed included ten famous designers and

Andrea De Adamich

Ferrari 456 cabriolet carrozzeria Straman USA

Italian, former F1 Driver who raced with Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and McLaren.

1 Ferrari 365 GTB4 Scaglietti

6 Alfa Stelvio QV 2019

2 Ferrari 365gtc4 Lusso 12

7 Maserati Levante GS

3 Alfa GTA stradale 1.6 1965

8 Maserati Quattroporte 2019

4 Alfa TZ2 stradale 1965

9 Ferrari Maranello 575 barchetta

5 Alfa Giulia TI super quadrifoglio 1964

10 Ferrari 456 cabriolet carrozzeria Straman USA

Louis De Fabribeckers

Corvette Stingray Split Window

Belgian, Chief Designer at Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera S.P.A. 1 Lamborghini Miura

6 Porsche 964 Turbo

2 Lancia Flaminia Touring Convertibile

7 Lotus Esprit “bianca James Bond”

3 Corvette Stingray Split Window

8 Ford GT 2004

4 Messerschmitt kr 200

9 Citroen DS 21

5 Jaguar D-Type

10 Lancia Stratos

Mauro Forghieri

330P4 Ferrari

Italian, engineer and former Scuderia Ferrari Technical Director in the 70s and 80s.

1 Ferrari 330P4

6 Lancia B24 Spider America

2 Ferrari 275 GTB2

7 Lexus SUV

3 Aston Martin top range

8 Jaguar E-Type

4 BMW 220 Touring

9 Any electric vehicles for the city

5 Ferrari 246 Dino

coach-builders, whose opinions provide insights into future development. In alphabetical order, they include Mitja Borkert, Louis de Fabribeckers, Roberto Giolito, Nori Harada, Flavio Manzoni, Shiro Nakamura, Paolo Pininfarina, Lorenzo Ramaciotti, Michael Robinson and Andrea Zagato.

What is true for the Lamborghini Miura also applies to the Lancia Stratos, which was chosen by six interviewees, as well as the Jaguar D and E models, which both scored four. Giv-

en the magical balance between style and engineering, it’s hardly surprising to learn that the favorite Ferrari is the 250 Berlinetta Passo Corto, known in the english-speaking world as the SWB and the 250 TR Ponton.

What is relevant for individual models is less true for brands, however. There are, of course, marques that feature on hoods or radiators, investing the collection with unquestionable added value. It goes without saying that any dream garage requires at least one Ferrari.

Only six in the survey did not include one.

Others, such as Nick Mason, the famous Pink Floyd drummer, and his wife Holly, couldn’t resist lining up 37 Ferraris and four Dinos, which are essentially also Ferraris. The second star in the dream garage constellation is Alfa Romeo, still a winner on account of its amazing past. And here another interesting aspect came to the fore: we also asked our interviewees for a list of 10 cars chosen by a young member of the family. Around half of them replied, revealing that the younger generation Democracy? No, thank you // 83

1932 Ford V-8 Period Hot Rod

Ed Gilbertson American, former President of the Jury at Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance.

Fiat 600 Multipla

1 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe

6 Alfa Romeo 8c2900

2 Ferrari 250 GTO

7 Jaguar XKSS

3 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa

8 Bugatti Type 35

4 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

9 Alfa Romeo 6C1750 Touring Spyder

5 Ferrari 250GT SWB Alloy Spyder California

10 Ford V-8 Period Hot Rod (1932)

Roberto Giolito Italian Designer, now Head of FCA Heritage.

Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale

1 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint

6 Fiat 600 Multipla

2 Ferrari 250 GT 2+2

7 Lancia Flaminia Sport Zagato

3 Abarth 205 Vignale

8 Fiat 131 Abarth Rally

4 Land Rover 109 V8 Stage One

9 Porsche 356 B GS Carrera 2

5 Fiat 500 D

10 Jeep Wagoneer (1966)

Nori Harada Japanese, Chief Designer at Zagato S.P.A.

does not nurture the same esteem for Alfa, which plummeted in their dream lists. This reveals to what extent memory plays a part in establishing value and maintaining focus since the glorious, fiery days of Alfa Romeo are indeed enveloped in the mists of time. Other brands that did consistently well are Porsche, Mercedes, Jaguar, and Lancia, while Bugatti came in much lower than expected with just 9 mentions, four of which were for the Atlantic.

What is certainly striking is the number of strange, diverse, and curious models included.

84 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

1 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale 4 fari Museo

6 Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ2

2 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale 4 fari Giapponese

7 Fiat 1100 Zagato

3 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale 2 fari

8 Citroen Maserati SM

4 Lamborghini Countach 1 Serie

9 Porsche 917

5 Alfa Romeo Giulia TZ

10 Alfa Romeo TZ3

The Americans interviewed revealed a degree of nostalgia for quirky vehicles: Bruce Meyer included the Corvette prepared by Cunningham for Le Mans, while Ed Gilbertson chose another hot rod, the Ford 1932. On a different level, Sandra Button dreamed of owning the magnificent Blower Bentley that won at Le Mans, while Donald Osborne proved to be more European in his tastes, opting for the Citroen SM that mounted a Maserati engine.

Hardly surprisingly, the racing drivers were especially drawn by the track: Emanuele Pirro,

who has won several times at Le Mans, could not resist the Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo Gr.5 Martini from 1981.

Mauro Forghieri, the most famous of the Maranello engineers, felt that he could not do without the BMW 2002 Touring, while Andrea De Adamich seemed to have turned his back on the track in choosing a Ferrari 456 Roadster transformed by Starman in the USA. Giovanna Mazzocchi, publisher of Quattroruote and Ruote Classiche, announced that she wanted

Fritz Kaiser

Fiat Spiaggina Pininfarina Concept

Liechtenstein businessman and entrepreneur, Founder of The Classic Car Trust.

1 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale

6 Lamborghini Miura

2 Aston Martin DB4 GT

7 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider America

3 BMW 507

8 Fiat 500 Spiaggina

4 Ferrari 250 GT Spider California

9 Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing

5 Jaguar XKSS

10 Porsche 550 Spider

Flavio Manzoni

Citroen Maserati

Italian, Senior Vice President of Design at Ferrari.

1 Ferrari 330 P3/4

6 Ferrari FXX K

2 Ferrari 350 Can-Am

7 Ferrari Monza SP1

3 Ferrari 250 Berlinetta

8 Citroen Maserati

4 Ferrari Dino 246

9 Lancia Stratos

5 Lamborghini Miura

10 Lancia Fulvia Coupe (2003)

Nick Mason

1994 McLaren F1/GTR

English world-famous Rockstar, former drummer of the Pink Floyd band.

1 Ferrari 250 GTO (1962)

6 Mercedes 300 SLR The Moss MM winner (1955)

2 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Pontoon body (1957)

7 Jaguar XKSS (1957)

3 Alfa Romeo 8C Birkin Le Mans Winner (1931)

8 Porsche 935 LM Winner (1979)

4 McLaren F1/GTR (1994)

9 Bugatti T59 (1934)

5 Bugatti SC57 Atlantique (1936)

10 Aston Martin Zagato or Project 214 215

Giovanna Mazzocchi

Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing

Italian, President of Editoriale Domus, Quattroruote and Ruoteclassiche publisher.

1 Alfa 1750

6 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7

2 Ferrari 275

7 Jaguar E-Type

3 Lancia Aurelia B20

8 Fiat Balilla Mille Miglia

4 Maserati 3500 GT

9 Alpine A 110

5 Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing

10 Isotta Fraschini 8 AS

Democracy? No, thank you // 85

Reventlow Scarab

Bruce Meyer American, businessman, founding chairman of Petersen Museum.

Ferrari 360 barchetta one off

1 289 Ford Cobra or Daytona Coupe4

6 Porsche 935 K3

2 Reventlow Scarab

7 Cunningham Le Mans Corvette (1960)

3 Bizzarrini A3C

8 RUF Yellowbird CTR

4 Ferrari 250 SWB SEFAC

9 Mercedes Gullwing

5 Ferrari TRC Testa Rossa

10 Bentley 4.5 Blower

Luca di Montezemolo Italian, businessman, entrepreneur, former President of Ferrari S.p.a.

1968 Ford GT 40 Mk1

1 Fiat 500 N (1960)

6 Lancia Aurelia B 24 spider America

2 Land Rover Defender

7 Ford Mustang Fastback (1965)

3 Ferrari 360 barchetta one off Agnelli

8 Lancia Fulvia HF

4 Renault 4

9 Citroen DS

5 Fiat Panda 4x4 prima serie

10 Maserati Quattroporte (2003)

Shiro Nakamura Japanese, Car Designer, former Senior Vice President of Nissan.

an Alpine A110 in her garage, our publisher, Fritz Kaiser, declared the Fiat Spiaggina to be a must, and Adolfo Orsi, heir to the Maserati dynasty, knew that he had to have the magnificent Birdcage in his dream collection.

Poles apart were the models chosen by Patrick Rollet in relation to those desired by Peter Read and Christian Philippsen. Patrick’s garage included the Messerschmitt airplane-like cabin scooter designed by Fritz Fend, while the other two went for the Bentley 86 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

1 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Spider Touring (1939)

6 Ferrari 330 P3 (1966)

2 Maserati 6GCS/53 Berlinetta (1953)

7 Alfa Romeo 33 stradale (1967)

3 Alfa Romeo Canguro (1964)

8 Ford GT 40 Mk1 (1968)

4 Cobra Daytona coupe (1964)

9 Lancia Stratos prototipo (1970)

5 Porsche 906 (1966)

10 Corvette (Aerovette) 4Rotor (1973)

4.5 Blower and the Mercer Raceabout that was invincible in the first decade of the 20th century. Lastly, car historian Paolo Tumminelli chose the Mercedes Pagoda 230 SL Shooting Brake by Frua and the De Tomaso Ghia Competizione, while designer Carlo Borromeo included the Renault 5 Turbo by Gandini. Luca di Montezemolo, the man who brought Ferrari back to the top after Enzo’s passing, opted for cars that reveal an element of romanticism and nostalgia: the little 500 Fiat he raced as a young man, the Ferrari 360 Barchetta, a one-

off given to him by his uncle, Giovanni Agnelli, the Lancia Aurelia B24 America and the Ford Mustang of 1960s cult films.

Our survey did not involve enough young people to allow us to make broad generalizations, yet it is interesting to note that certain models would seem to prevail even among the junior members of classic car families. These cars tend to be more relevant to the young and better suited to their lifestyle. Foremost among them is

Adolfo Orsi

1960 Maserati Tipo 61 “Birdcage”

Italian, International classic car expert, judge and publisher of the Classic Car Auction Yearbook.

1 Maserati Tipo 61 “Birdcage” (1960)

6 Cord 810 Beverly Sedan (1936)

2 Maserati 250F (1957)

7 Ferrari 250GT Berlinetta Lusso “passo corto” (1959)

3 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300B Berlinetta MM Touring (1937)

8 Maserati 300S (1955)

4 Citroen DS 19 (1955)

9 Italdesign Boomerang (1972)

5 Morris Mini Minor (1959)

10 Bugatti T 35 (1924)

Donald Osborne

Fiat 8V Rapi

American, classic car expert and advisor, consultant and judge at international events.

1 Delahaye 145 coupe

6 Lincoln Continental Mark II

2 Fiat 8V Rapi

7 Citroen SM

3 Fiat 508 Berlinetta Aerodinamica

8 Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ

4 Maserati Quattroporte

9 Alfa Romeo 6C 2300 Pescara

5 Lancia Lambda corsaro spider

10 Fiat 1100 ES Zagato

Christian Philippsen

Alfa Romeo TZ2 ‘Canguro’ Coupé Bertone

Belgian, internationally famous classic car expert and consultant, he is the former organizer of the Bagatelle Concourse d’Elegance.

1 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR ‘Uhlenhaut’ Coupé

6 Mercer Raceabout

2 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 Spyder Touring

7 Peugeot a Litre ‘Indianapolis’

3 Bugatti 57S Atlantic

8 Ferrari 330 P4

4 Ferrari 375 Plus Cabriolet Pinin Farine (# 0488)

9 Porsche 908/3 ‘Targa Florio’

5 Alfa Romeo TZ2 ‘Canguro Coupé Bertone

10 Lotus 25

Ferrari, with models that include the GTO, the F40, the California Spider and the 330 P3/4. Well-represented models included the Mercedes Gullwing, Fort GT40, Maserati MC12, Lamborghini Aventador, Dodge Viper, and various Porsche models, including the 935 Moby Dick, the 917K and the 718 Boxster.

Then there’s also the sphere that comprises the Mini Cooper S, the Golf GTI, the Porsche A Coupé, the VW Beetle, the A112 Abarth and in a couple of cases the Tesla Model S, which should not come as a complete surprise.

The demarcation line between younger and older generations probably has much to do with types of use. For the young, the chosen cars range from legendary items that could even feature in video games to automobiles for potential everyday use, including roleplaying. For adults, on the other hand, there is a more evident element of desire for the unexpected, with efforts to identify forgotten or underrated vehicles that could grow in market value in the future. Something rather special seems to prevail throughout; howev-

er: the dream garage is a highly individual place. In opting for this or that car, everyone projects his or her own culture, passion, curiosity, irony, memories, and dreams. That’s simply exceptional. Our panel of experts has borne witness to the lasting appeal of the entire sphere of automobile collecting. At the grand shows and important auctions, there will always be at least one car that will trigger an “I must have that” reaction. And this is reassuring because it means the world of collecting is destined to prosper.  Democracy? No, thank you // 87

Cisitalia 202

Paolo Pininfarina Italian, engineer and businessman, President of Pininfarina S.p.a.

Lancia Beta Montecarlo turbo Gr.5 Martini 1981

1 Cisitalia 202

6 Pininfarina Battista

2 Ferrari 275 GTB

7 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider America

3 Ferrari Dino 246 GT

8 Fiat 124 Spider

4 Ferrari FF

9 Jaguar E-Type

5 Ferrari Sergio

10 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (1953)

Emanuele Pirro Italian, professional racing driver, 5 times Le Mans winner.

Cisitalia 202 Coupé aerodinamica Savonuzzi

1 Audi R8 Le Mans winner

6 BMW M3 E30 DTM

2 Ferrari 250 SWB

7 McLaren MP4/4 Honda

3 Lancia Beta Montecarlo turbo Gr.5 Martini (1981)

8 March 842 BMW F2

4 Jaguar E-Type “lightweight” 4WPD

9 Lamborghini Miura

5 Lancia Stratos racing version

10 WW2 Willy’s Jeep

Lorenzo Ramaciotti Italian Designer, former Chief Designer at Pininfarina, president of Villa D’este Jury.

Bentley Blower

1 Abarth Simca 1300

6 Ferrari F40

2 Alfa Romeo 2300 MM Touring

7 Iso Rivolta Grifo

3 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale

8 Lamborghini Miura

4 Cisitalia 202 Coupé aerodinamica Savonuzzi

9 Lancia Stratos

5 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta (SWB)

10 Maserati A6 GCS 54 Pininfarina

Peter Read English, President of the Royal Automobile Club.

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1 Bentley Blower

6 Ferrari F40

2 Jaguar D-type

7 Lamborghini Miura SV

3 Bugatti Type 57 SC Atlantic

8 Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing

4 Bentley Continental GT Zagato

9 McLaren F1

5 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina Cabriolet Series 1

10 Pagani Zonda Roadster

Michael Robinson

Alfa Romeo Pandion concept 2010 Bertone

American designer, CEO of ED Design and Former Head of Design at Bertone.

1 Lancia Stratos Zero (1970)

6 Alfa Romeo Giulietta SS prototype (1957)

2 Lancia Stratos HF Gruppo 4

7 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale Marazzi (1967)

3 Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale

8 Alfa Romeo Pandion concept (2010)

4 Lamborghini Miura (1966)

9 Porsche Mission E concept (2015)

5 Lamborghini Countach LP500 concept (1971)

10 Lancia Dialogos (1998)

Patrick Rollet

Meeserschmitt KR200

French, President of FIVA (Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens).

1 Aston Martin DB4

6 Morgan Super Sports Three Wheeler

2 AC Ace Bristol

7 Lagonda M45

3 Bugatti 35B

8 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport

4 Morgan Super Sports Three Wheeler

9 Delahaye 135MS Saoutchik

5 Meeserschmitt KR200

10 Delage D8 Chapron

Paolo Tumminelli

Frua Mercedes Benz 230 SL Shooting Brake

Italian, Director of the Goodbrands Institute, Professor at TH Koln University.

1 Frua Mercedes Benz 230 SL Shooting Brake, (1964)

6 Pininfarina Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Speciale (1969)

2 Ghia De Tomaso 2000 Competizione (1966)

7 M2-1028 Street Competition Roadster (1994)

3 Citroen Mehari 4x4 (1970s)

8 Automobili Amos Delta Futurista (2019)

4 Rolls Royce Mulliner Park Ward Two-Door Sedan (1967)

9 Lincoln Continental Convertible, “SS-100-X” (1961)

5 Honda City Turbo II + Honda Motocompo NCZ 50 (1980s)

10 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ55 „Iron Pig“ (1970s)

Andrea Zagato

Bentley Bluetrain 1929

Italian, owner and CEO of Carrozzeria Zagato.

1 Bugatti Type 35 (1927)

6 Porsche 550 RS (1956)

2 Mercedes SSK (1928)

7 Ferrari 250 GTZ MM (1956)

3 Bentley Bluetrain (1929)

8 Lamborghini Marzal (1967)

4 Lancia Lambda Sport (1929)

9 Aston Martin Lagonda (1976)

5 Alfa Romeo 8C Lungo (1931)

10 BMW Z8 (2000)

Democracy? No, thank you // 89

Racing the History The perfect brake at the Tertre Rouge chicane in the middle of the night, full throttle on the endless Mulsanne straight, the looming arc of the Dunlop Bridge, the overtakings, the fatigue that stuns.

And all this at the wheels of cars that made the history of the 24 Hours. Once an impossible dream, with Le Mans Classic, it has now come true.

by Mark Dixon

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Saturday, June 10, 1961, 4 p.m. sharp: the famous start of the 24 Hours in a memorable picture. The racing driver who lunges forward most effectively to reach his Aston Martin DBR1 is Jim Clark. Right in front of his face, beyond the track, the Ferrari TR/61 number 10 that, in the hands of Gendebien and Hill, will win the race. The photograph is courtesy of: https://www. speedbirdphotovintage.com

Racing the History // 91

Two Le Mans symbols together during the Classic commemoration: the Jaguar D-Type, renowned for its fin and often protagonist, and the famous Dunlop Bridge, historic landmark of the French circuit.

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“S

eeing the tail-fins of the D-types on the Mulsanne Straight at dusk leaves a lasting impression… A lap of Le Mans is like playing cat-and-mouse, given the performance differences between them and my Lotus 15. The sheer power and torque of the Jaguars makes them seem effortless and they have an incredible sound as they accelerate away, but the Lotus has better brakes and handling.”

Not the words of Graham Hill, racing a Lotus 15 at Le Mans in 1959, but those of “gentlewoman racer” Quirina Louwman in 2019, describing to The Key what it’s like to dice with Jaguar D-types in the Le Mans Classic – an event she has contested five times. And while competing in the Le Mans 24 Hours must remain a dream for all but a relative handful of professional drivers, anyone with a National or International race licence, and a bit of spare cash for the entry fee, can share with Quirina the unique thrill of racing at the La Sarthe circuit.

Le Mans Classic is the brilliant brainchild of Patrick and Silviane Peter, who 29 years ago re-invented the famous Tour de France Automobile rally as Tour Auto. First held in 2002 and run every two years since, Le Mans Classic is a distillation of all the best bits from the 24 Hours’ long history, open to cars that competed there from its start in 1923 and which are grouped into six categories, or grids. But there’s much more to it than that: separate races for classic Jaguars and Group C cars, track cavalcades, an 8500-car display by car clubs – it is a festival as much as a racing event, much like the 24 Hours itself.

At the heart of Le Mans Classic are the six grids of 600 historic racing cars, each of which is allowed three sessions, including at least one during the night. Such a punishing schedule over the Friday-Sunday long weekend of Le Mans Classic means that they have to be managed with military precision, and so each session is nominally allocated an hour, of which 43 minutes is devoted to racing. This is the biggest difference between the 24 Hours and the Classic, the latter’s short sessions minimising wear and tear on the older cars and their (frequently older) drivers. Back in the day, the sheer effort of competing in the 24 Hours

could permanently maim a driver: 1959 winner Roy Salvadori said that his toenails never recovered after being burnt by the hot exhaust pipe that was routed under the floorpan of his Aston Martin DBR1.

In the Classic, keeping each session under an hour allows as many drivers as possible to get track-time and provides for a huge variety of cars, with everything from a Ford Model T to a GT40 able to race in grids that are broadly period-correct. That said, there’s no doubt that some entrants, like Jaguar C-type amateur driver Nigel Webb – who has competed at every Classic since 2004 – would wish for more: “It takes a little time to get into the rhythm of the circuit, and the last 20-25 minutes are when you really start to enjoy it and trust that you’re getting it right. You don’t feel the least bit tired at the end of a session and I think they could easily be longer.”

Nigel also owns a D-type, which has been raced at the Classic twice by former professional driver Andy Wallace. Last time out, Andy won his grid with the D – but we should also mention that he won the 24 Hours in 1988 with a Jaguar XJR-9, and came second in 1990, driving a Jaguar XJR-12. Andy doesn’t see the length of each session as a drawback: “Le Mans is one of the finest circuits in the world and it’s still a thrill to drive it in a competitive car at high speed – it’s just fantastic!” Having raced in the 24 Hours no fewer than 21 times, Andy does have the advantage of knowing the circuit intimately and reckons that he can remember every bump in the road within the first couple of laps.

Andy’s experience of driving relatively modern Le Mans racers – his most recent outing was in an RML Lola, which finished third overall in 2010 – also gives him a unique perspective on how such machines compare with the legendary racers from 50 or 60 years ago.

“Historic race-car drivers often claim that their cars are much more physically demanding to drive than modern machines, that Le Mans drivers were ‘real men’ back in the day, but what they don’t tell you is that, in a modern race car, you just have no time when something goes wrong. It happens in a minuscule Racing the History // 93

Among the regular participants in the Le Mans Classic, many lady drivers: Quirina Louwman with her Lotus Eleven from her own museum, photographed during a break and whilst racing.

fraction of a second, whereas in an old car you have more time to sort things out before the accident happens. That said, the crash in an old car will probably be much worse when you do finally hit something!”

“The operating window of a modern car is also comparatively narrow. You have to get it to the point where tyres, brakes, everything is working at its optimum, or you’re just going to be flailing about in no-man’s land. With a historic car, the amount of grip you get at the first corner is all you’re ever going to get…”

“And then there’s the fact that, in a modern closed car, your visibility and, therefore, your awareness of what’s happening around you is also severely restricted, which is way worse than any extra physical burden you get from 94 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

driving an old open-cockpit car. The D-type’s mirrors are not fantastic, so it’s really useful to be able to glance over your shoulder and instantly check the position of other cars.

Most of the competitors at Le Mans Classic are not professionals and, while that certainly doesn’t mean they are bad drivers, and, of course, they have as much right to be on track as anyone, it does introduce an element of unpredictability.”

“In the 24 Hours, you can be reasonably sure that your fellow drivers are going to stick to a line when entering a corner, but that’s not always the case in the Classic. I’ve had a couple of instances, particularly when approaching the first chicane from Tertre Rouge in the dark, where the car in front has swapped lanes at the last moment. That gives you a

problem because in an older race car you can’t instantly brake and change direction.

But you just have to be aware of it and deal with it accordingly.”

One of the bedrock features of the Le Mans Classic is that competing cars must run in period specification, right down to the type of bulbs used in the headlights. That’s a far from trivial point when you remember that each grid includes at least one night-time session.

Even on today’s version of the circuit, with the chicanes that were installed in 1990 on the Mulsanne Straight, a 1950s race car such as the D-type can reach 170mph or more, and it does so with a fraction of the illumination provided for modern racers. Although things weren’t much better on the Jaguar XJR-9 of the late-1980s, says Andy Wallace.

“Jaguar, of course, was a pioneer of disc brakes and they gave the C- and D-types a huge advantage at Le Mans in the early/mid-1950s.

They’re still very useful at the Classic, although they have to be treated with respect.” Andy Wallace again: “The D-type is prone to locking up its rear brakes as weight shifts to the front under braking, and that gets progressively worse during a race as fuel is used up and the rear tank gets lighter. You can, of course, plumb in a brake-pipe restrictor so that the rear brakes do less work, but that can bring its own problems in that the restrictor also makes them slower to release.”

Speed isn’t everything, therefore. Quirina Louwman, whose words opened this feature, is no stranger to D-types and has had plenty of wheel-time in the actual car, chassis XKD606, which won Le Mans in 1957 and which is now part of the world-class Louwman Museum collection. But she loves her Lotus 15, the car she regularly uses for Le Mans Classic. “Its four-cylinder, two-litre engine is very effective in a 500kg car and it reaches over 160mph several times during a lap.”

Win or lose, as far as Le Mans Classic is concerned, it surely is the taking part that counts.

Motoring journalist Robert Coucher, writing about his shared drive in a 1929 Chrysler 75 at the 2004 Classic, summed up why racing at Le Mans is such a unique experience. “A flat-out drag with a Bugatti down the most famous straight in the world is a significant notch on the headboard of life; a memory I will cherish forever.”

Start getting your race licence in order now, and your car prepared, and you could find out what he means for yourself on 3-5 July, 2020. 

For more information on the 2020 running of the Le Mans Classic, and on previous editions, see: www.lemansclassic.com

The entrants are divided into homogenous classes to carry out the races, both in daylight and at night.

Here, a Pre-war group gets ready to access the track.

Although with safety in mind, the rite of the flying start, with the cars lined up and the drivers running towards them, is maintained. At the start, there are some tough sticks, just like the Ferrari 250 SWB number 8.

Racing the History // 95

Miles Collier, Sr. at the wheel of the MG PA/ PB “Leonidis”, with which he took part in the 1939 Le Mans 24 Hours.

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Collier collection.

More than a family passion The races and the engines are part of the life of Miles’ grandparents and of his father Miles Collier, Sr. The rare collection, based in Naples, Florida, is a showcase of the commitment that Miles and his wife Parker have for car culture. The Revs Institute is proof of this.

by John Lamm

Collier collection. More than a family passion // 97

A look at just a portion of the Miles Collier Collections’ Porsches. In the foreground is the 1966 906 Carrera 6, then the 1967 910/6, the 1968 907, the unrestored 1971 917 and, in the background, the 1971 908/3.

“W

hen people ask how I got interested in cars, my response is always designer genes. My family has been involved with automobiles not for two generations, but for three.”

“On my mother’s side, my grandfather was an early investor both in the aviation and automotive industries. There is a family story he invested money with the Duryea brothers when they were getting their car business going in Springfield, Massachusetts.”

“On my father’s side, my grandmother, Juliet, was an early automobile enthusiast at a time when generally being a woman and an automobile enthusiast was considered a rather suspect combination. She passed that interest on primarily to two of her sons, Sam and Miles” “My grandfather and grandmother had a house in Baden-Baden, Germany. They’d go

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there in the summertime bringing the kids.

Somehow, in their European summer sojourns they were exposed to sports cars, sports car racing and never looked back.”

“Contaminated in Europe, the boys brought it back to the US. They began with boyish recreations of great international races like the Targa Florio, with what today would be Briggs and Stratton-powered go karts. They progressed into MGs and cars of that nature and started inviting family and friends to come participate in these motor racing games.

“This turned into more serious motor racing and then into the Overlook Automobile Racing Club, which became the Automobile Racing Club of America.”

Sam and Miles Collier raced in Europe before the war and were also the first importers of MGs into the country. However, the postwar

years were tragic for the pair. Sam was killed at Watkins Glen in 1950, driving the first race Ferrari imported to the U.S. – a 1948 166 Spyder Corsa – owned by family friend Briggs Cunningham. His brother promised his mother he would no longer race, a vow he fudged on a bit, driving under the name of ARCA friend John Marshall and even thinking of driving in some Formula 1 events, before passing away with aggressive bulbar polio in 1954.

Yet, he had set the automotive hook with his son. “He took me into New York and we went to FAO Schwarz and he bought me an electric train set,” Collier recalls, “Then we went down to Inskip and he picked up his Jaguar XK120. We drove back out to Greenwich, Connecticut in the brand new XK120, pretty heady cool stuff.”

A year or so after this father’s passing, young Miles had a “Road to Damascus” moment.

“I was going to elementary school in Manhattan. We had an apartment in New York and there was a box of my dad’s Road & Track magazines. I was in the fourth grade or fifth grade, so that would have made me about nine. I hadn’t really thought about cars much since those experiences with my dad, but I picked my dad’s old magazines out of the box.

At that point I had this really clear thought in my mind – like there was another voice – and it said, it’s about time you got interested in cars. I read every one of those magazines back-to-front and memorized everything in them. I’ve never looked back. All through secondary school, I read every Road & Track and other car magazines I could get my hands on.”

“As a graduation present from secondary school my mom said, ‘I want to buy you a car.

What would you like?’ Having been born with a champagne taste, I had no problem saying, ‘Gee, a Porsche 356 would be kinda nice.’ My choice was really between a Fiat Abarth 1000 Monomille and a 356, but my more practical

side went for the Porsche. Emotionally, I’ve always loved Abarth.”

He got the car in June 1965 and another hook was set. Porsche. “I still own that car. It has 40,000 original miles, smells like new, drives like new, looks like new. And I still get a rush out of sitting in that car. You can’t believe how little acceleration and grip it has, but what a nifty little car.”

Collier was off to Yale for his formal education, but got something of an informal education working weekends and summers at a foreign car repair shop. When he was 21 and could race, he took to the track in 1957 Porsche 1600 Super in the E Production class in the northeast. Come 1973, he had moved to Florida, had stopped racing and had decided to collect cars.

“Being a relatively unadventurous and logical person, the only marque I knew anything about was Porsche. I’m a subscriber to a Porsche Panorama so maybe I should collect

Porsches. And look at this. There’s an ad from (Chuck) Stoddard automobiles, and there’s a Porsche 904.” It is still in his collection.

By the mid-1980s, Collier’s Porsche collection was impressive and, he explains, “I really didn’t feel any great need to fill in the blanks anymore, so what’s going to be next? Well, how about long distance American racing cars?

That sounds interesting, right? Chaparrals.

Ford GT40s. Briggs Cunningham’s race cars.”

Collier was having work done on some cars in Southern California with Dick Troutman. While there, he’d often visit the Briggs Cunningham Museum in Costa Mesa. “I never really got to see much of the cars,” Collier continues, “because I was always immediately closeted with Briggs, talking about his life, his times. I had this great relationship with Briggs.”

One of the men Collier worked with in California was Jim Toensing, a consulting engineer at the Cunningham Museum.

Mary Wennerstrom, Event Chairman of the Greenwich Concours, presents a trophy for the 1952 Cunningham C-4R from the Miles Collier Collections. Driving the Cunningham is Dave Klym, who works with the Revs Institute.

Collier collection. More than a family passion // 99

a gigantic Bugatti Royale. Seventy-five automobiles, including the 1948 Ferrari 166 Spyder Corsa in which his uncle, Sam, had died.

Tony Brooks draws a crowd with the collection 1958 Vanwall Formula 1 car at the Goodwood Revival.

Beyond Brooks is Sir Jackie Stewart in a 250F Maserati.

Collier relates: “One day I said to Jim, ‘So you think Mr. Cunningham would entertain an offer for me to buy the Cunningham racing cars from him?’ He said, ‘Well, you never know, give it a whirl.’ So I ran the proposition by Mr. Cunningham asking, ‘Sir, would you be interested in selling me your Cunningham racing cars because that’s an area of great interest of mine. The deal would be as follows. I would pay you now and you would keep the cars as long as you choose.”

However, if you would like to buy the whole collection, we could do that.’”

“He said, ‘That’s a handsome offer. Let me think.”

As luck would have it, Collier explains, “About six months before that call, we had had a major family liquidity event. So, all of a sudden, I actually had the money to be able to buy the whole collection from Briggs Cunningham, which, if this liquidity event had not happened, would have been completely impossible.” It also so happened that the capital gains tax rate was changing for 1986, so the deal had to be done in just a few months.

“About three weeks later, the phone rings at my shop in west Palm Beach and I pick it up.

‘Hello, this is Briggs Cunningham.’

‘Oh, Mr. Cunningham, how are you sir?’

“And he said, ‘You know, I’ve been thinking about your offer. And after much consideration, I don’t think I want to accept your offer.

Acquiring the collection from Costa Mesa included the likes of not just the Cunningham-built race cars, but also Maserati Birdcage, Jaguar D- and E-Type, as well as 1913 Peugeot and 1914 Mercedes race cars.

A Delage Grand Prix car. Seven Bentleys. A diminutive 1912 Hispano-Suiza Alfonso XIII and

During a Symposium, the Revs Institute’s vice president, Scott George (left) and RM Sotheby’s David Swig describe the Lance Reventlow-built, anti-Ferrari 1958 Scarab.

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Not surprisingly, there were cars in the collection in which Collier was not interested. He explained to the Cunningham’s, “I’ll pay you x amount for the collection as it stands, with the understanding that I’m going to be selling some cars to be determined. You will get 25 percent of those proceeds.”

Of the 115 cars in the Collier Collections at the Revs Institute in Naples today, 51 are from the Cunningham collection. For a comprehensive look at the Collier Collections, go to www.revsinstitute.org.

There you will get a look at the automobiles and a sense, of all that’s behind the Revs Institue from the extensive digital library to the many added exhibits.

Collier explains: “Buying the Cunningham collection forced me to understand a much broader variety of cars in an intensive way that never would have been possible if I didn’t now own the cars. I never would have gotten that kind of breadth of understanding. The big challenge over the first couple of or three years of owning those cars was one of understanding, to allow the cars to speak to me in a way that I can understand.”

It’s an understanding that continues to expand: “The nature of my curiosity is somewhat intellectual and interested in understanding how and why things came into being. I’m not satisfied to admire some artifact in and of itself. If I really admire something, I want to know what caused it to happen? What was its environment? Who was the artist or the craftsman who applied that to cars?”

“The greatest cars are worthy of being studied. I want to understand what the thinking was of the engineer that evolved from his earliest attempts to his latest attempts.” An accomplished artist himself, Collier adds, “I’d love to identify the technical footprint of each automobile engine designer in the same way we can distinguish the styles of painters from their paintings.”

“I maintain that a study of Vittorio Janos’ engines, for example, would show they are as idiosyncratic as what Ettore Bugatti and Ferdinand Porsche created. Through difference analysis, we could come up with the f ingerprints of what a Jano engine is according to his personal style in applying engineering principles. That, to me, would be a signif icant contribution to the intellectual history of automobiles. I’m dying to do that project, which is considered way too hobby-oriented for the academic f ield and way too academic for the hobby f ield. So, it’s perfect for me.”

Miles Collier’s vision for elevating the status of the automobile as a cultural icon and agent of change and human progress was formed in the late 1980s and ref ined into the 1990s. He began to host symposia that brought together experts on preservation and well-known automobile collectors.

His thinking was further formalized in 2008 with the founding of Revs Institute. Now he could bring together the vehicles in the Miles Collier Collections and a huge archive of photographs, books and other ephemera in a state-of-the-art facility in Naples, Florida. The people of Revs Institute, critically, continue to make those resources available to both experts and the public.

Now, a f ifth of the way through the 21st century, Miles Collier’s approach has intensif ied, because he believes the meaningful-car world is under threat.

Collier explains: “The automobile is one of the most important technological artifacts of the 20th Century. Yet, with cars now treated as utilities, with the increase in regulation and the loss of skills and knowledge as artisans and craftsmen pass away, we are not far f rom the day when we may not be able to care for, or work on, or use, our cars.”

“My wife, Parker, and I remain committed to the sharing of cultural and practical knowledge around meaningful cars. It is vital that knowledge of the historical role of vehicles, and sheer appreciation of cars, is carried into the future.”

“Selling the great, glamorous Duesenberg SSJ in August 2018 was, for us, a visible and painful step forward. It was intended to rally a like-minded group of leaders to join us in preserving the past of automobiles into the future.”

“Think of this as a call to action. The sale symbolizes something of a stake in the ground.

This is a significant car. Selling it is a significant statement.”

“The sale will support a profit/not-for-profit ‘ecosystem’ to benefit meaningful cars. We anticipate that this - along with more conventional funding sources and appeals - will ensure the long-term health of the meaningful-car community. With our colleagues, we want to create a geographically distributed information hub, preserving knowledge for the meaningful-car world, past, present and future.”

An element of getting the message to the public involves taking cars from the collection out into the world: to concours like Pebble Beach and Amelia Island; for vintage races such as the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion or the Lime Rock Park Historic Festival; overseas to Goodwood in England or to Retromobile in France; to auto exhibitions. It isn’t unusual to find a vacant spot in Revs Institute’s displays — another car out for show.

Miles Collier making a presentation to the many collectors and automotive experts who attend one of the Revs Institute Symposiums.

“I think that’s an obligation that comes with owning the kind of automobiles that have been accumulated here,” Collier continues.

“These cars are going to easily outlast me and are some of the shining stars of human achievement in the field of personal mobility.

It is an obligation to share them with other people. I have as much interest in a shiny car contest as flying to the moon. But getting the cars to Pebble Beach, Amelia Island and other concours is important. We need to do that.”

“We sent the Delage for six months of traveling around Europe to assist people who are trying to preserve history. Now we’re going to send the 1919 Ballot off, give it a kiss goodbye and it’s going to be traveling around for some months. To have such an important car is a fabulous thing and then to be able to share those kinds of artifacts just thrills me to my core.” 

A peek at the archive stacks at the Revs Institute. In there are more than 24,000 books, 200,000 magazine and journal issues and 100 archival collections.

Archivist Mark Vargas checks out pages of an issue of The Car that is more that 100 years old.

Collier collection. More than a family passion // 101

British Mystique

You need to have the right spanners and be aware of the type of thread of your screws to understand why British cars are different. Stefano Pasini knows this very well as he’s the owner of a glorious Bristol that with all its adorable quirks takes up a good and pleasant part of his spare time.

by Stefano Pasini

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Not only the size of the spanner but even the screw threads on an English car are different from their European counterparts. This is where you can appreciate the authentic spirit of Her Majesty’s automobiles.

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Stefano Pasini, who divides his talent between cars and the medical world, in which he is an esteemed eye specialist, is particularly fond of his Bristol 403. To share his impressive knowledge of this historical brand and model, Pasini has just published an enjoyable and interesting book: Aerodynes: the history of the early aerodynamic Bristols.

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W

hen you talk about your favorite classic car, do you think in centimeter or in inches? Do your petrol tanks contain liters or gallons of fuel? Is an engine that reaches a pressure of 15 pounds per foot at 3000 revs with the temperature gauge reading 203 Fahrenheit about to explode or will it get you safely to London? Pointless questions for classic car enthusiasts who see their cars as if they were elderly aristocratic ladies with right-hand drive. Clearly not Lancias.

The once glorious British automobile industry now languishes in a state of ill health. This is, of course, a euphemism. In actual fact, it has been induced to commit suicide, with the same nonchalance that characterised the demise of the British motorbike industry several years earlier. Yet those brands, at least the best of them, survive in virtue of their intrinsic mystique. They have an allure that is undeniable, to the extent that their ruins have been, albeit partially, reconstructed to some degree and new life has been breathed into their mortal remains by their new owners from the ex-colonies (Jaguar, Land Rover), or erstwhile war enemies (Bentley, Mini, Rolls-Royce). And precisely because the pre-suicide models have such an appeal that is invested in all categories of classic British cars, of all ages and price categories. There’s nothing strange in this: by definition, what is old appeals not because it is functional, efficient, or ergonomic, but because it emanates charm. Thus British cars, which often tend not to be functional, efficient, or ergonomic, rarely fail to be enticing, even in the lower segment of the market. It’s a question of transcending the constraints of the object as such, of simply ignoring reliability, durability, and other plebeian physiological requirements, and releasing oneself from the grim mechanical ritual of the others. An Armstrong Siddeley or a Frazer Nash may or may not choose to work properly, revealing a degree of superior detachment from their supposed duties, which seem utilitarian and therefore petty, as if the whole wretched business of doing what they’re supposed to do is somehow beneath them. Thus the automobile comes across as more animated, able to relate on equal terms to the human frailties of its owner. As Stephen Bayley so aptly put it: “Machines have life. Ask any Bristol owner”.

There are plenty of interesting stories behind the huge radiators or the aerodynamic bonnets of the most delightful English cars. Some are eccentric, and others surprising. Moreover, they generally involve a touch of madness, or at least an insouciant disregard for reliability and for the durability of mechanics, apparently. That said if the mechanics are conceived without due heed for electrics, the wiring, or the tightness of the gaskets, and linings, there is at least a good chance of effecting an ad hoc approach favoring roadside maintenance instead. A ‘stiff upper lip old chap, keep calm and carry on. are all that’s required. How different in character from the two other members of the favorite classic car triad: Italian cars, oozing passion mixed with blood, guts, and enthusiasm; or those produced by the cold, technological Germans, that keep going for decades and continue to do what they’re supposed to do decades later, even if this actually means losing some of the ephemeral charm of vintage objects.

There’s also a touch of unexpected democracy in English cars: their genetic characters, virtues, and defects impinge on them all, regardless of power and price. By contrast, the appeal of a Bugatti ‘Type 43’ or a Duesenberg ‘SJ’ has nothing in common with the rest of Italian French or German American cars. Most aficionados start their classic car experience with an old MG, or perhaps a Triumph, proceeding step by step towards loftier possessions: perhaps a savage Italian thoroughbred or a product from the German missile workshops. But always keeping an indisputable admiration that never wanes for certain archaic power trains clad in sinuous bodyworks, often strangely lacking in specific authorship. How different from the Italian designers, who placed their signatures on their masterpieces with the conviction of a Michelangelo: Touring, Bertone, Pininfarina, Vignale, which mean Revelli di Beaumont, Scaglione, Michelotti, Giugiaro, Fioravanti, Ramaciotti. To find out who designed certain English masterpieces you have to dig deep into history: Dudley Hobbs for the Bristol ‘Aerodyne’, Frank Feeley for the first post-war Aston Martins, John Blatchley for the Bentley R-Type ‘Continental,’ and so on. But then William Towns and Harris Mann might well British Mystique // 105

desire oblivion in the hope that the world might forget that they were responsible for the Austin ‘Allegro,’ the Aston Martin ‘Bulldog,’ the Austin ‘Princess’...

Not that this matters. What counts is the appeal that the best high-end English cars embody, the alluring fact that they are elegant drawing rooms on wheels. The magnificence of certain briarwood veneers or rosewood dashboards is good for the heart, like the scented Connolly Vaumol leather upholstery in House of Lords red. Likewise, the cabinetry applied to a 1953 Bentley Continental, the inlay in certain Rolls-Royces, the very size of the wooden dashboard of the Jaguar Mark VII are bound to elicit a smile. All that wood with lacquered or waxed finishes, dotted with black bakelite nobs or chromed levers, and interspersed with gauges that can be

One must constantly work to maintain a reliability that is not always guaranteed… This is part of the allure of a classic British automobile.

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round, or square, or even shaped into ‘Squircles,’ as on certain Filton products. The fact that most of these instruments, sooner or later, indicate dangerous anomalies of pressure, temperature, or electrical efficiency is neither here nor there and seemingly of little importance. For those enjoying the comforts of such sumptuous drawing rooms, the real question is: Why do the Germans and Italians seem to pay so little attention to the furnishings inside their lovely cars?

English classic cars often have oil leaks (‘often’ is a touching understatement). However, the loving collector does not worry too much about the expanding oil puddle on the garage floor underneath his 1949 Morris. In fact, he’d be more upset if there were no leakage: it might mean there’s no more oil in the engine. As for the reliability of the wiring, it has

The ‘rosewood  dashboard,’ buttons and instruments galore of the Bristol 403.

On the right: The painstaking search for the correctly-sized nuts and bolts.

induced owners to attribute a special saying about Lucas, “Get home before dark” – apocryphal but an effective warning.

The reality of a looming catastrophe is an integral part of the mechanical instruments on English vehicles. This is what makes each journey a true accomplishment. Will I get back home independently, on or the back of a tow truck? This is something that no-one driving a classic Porsche can really understand. By contrast, setting off on a long journey in an Alvis 3 is full of exciting possibilities, ranging from getting there on foot to safely arriving en voiture with or without on-theway problems. All this makes reaching one’s destination so much more gratifying. Arriving at the Passo Bernina in a Porsche 356 simply involves a transfer, devoid of surprise. But if you get there in a Bristol 403, you’re justified in feeling a bit like Sir Edmund Hillary when he planted a flag on the top of Everest. Anyone whose automobile car toolbox comprises wrenches and contains more spanners in imperial measurements than metric will know what I mean. Imperial thread indeed: “Fog on the Channel – Europe cut off”, one of the typical headlines that could be applied to the Thunderer, which was also how the splendidly heliocentric Times was nicknamed once declared during the golden age of the

British Empire, when, as a famous writer once pointed out, “The map of the world was mostly pink”. The Whitworth thread came into being for military requirements when the British Empire stretched across much of the globe. It was the first attempt to unify the nuts and bolts of an England that had grown enormously during the industrial revolution.

But connoisseurs of English cars also know that there are other threads with strange acronyms (BSF, BSC, BSW...) as well as British cars with imperial measurement threaded bolts and a metric head! Try explaining that to someone in Germany!

The British are famously traditional, which is why they continued to use imperial measurements for the threaded bolts in their cars, plainly ignoring the fact that being interchangeable meant reducing costs in the manufacturing of any object, which they could have achieved by going metric. When, for instance, Bristol decided to start manufacturing cars, it adopted all the mechanics from the BMW 328, an excellent vehicle that had been hugely successful through to the outbreak of the Second World War. But Bristol still decided to change all the bolts on the BMW mechanics, which meant that the spares for the BMW couldn’t be used for the Bristol. Lunacy? No, just British propriety.

To add to which women, who have always been sensitive to beauty, can’t keep their eyes off English classic cars. Even if the beauty of the dual-cam/twin-cam engine under the hood of a Jaguar XK says nothing to them, they unfailingly turn to admire the coachwork.

A man might probably reserve such an encomium for a passing Ferrari 599 or perhaps a Mercedes Gullwing. All enthusiasts would like to have in their garage one of the first Minis, the legendary Box of Tricks designed by Alec Issigonis, or a Jaguar E, described by Enzo Ferrari as “the most beautiful car in the world.”

To say nothing of a first series Corniche or an Aston Martin DB5: objects of such beauty that they don’t need to show their technical description spec sheet to be desirable. That’s natural English elegance for you. 

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Young Judges: Mainstays for the Future

The current generation of international judges should prepare the way for newcomers by passing on the necessary skills and ethical guidelines. The aim of the Young Judges project is to guarantee the heritage of passion and expertise essential to the world of Classic Cars. The importance of the project is explained by Duccio Lopresto, who works with the The Classic Car Trust, comes from a family of collectors, and has just returned from a field study in the USA.

by Duccio Lopresto

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T

he judges at the grand Concours all dress the same way and are clearly recognizable. They stand for important symbolic and objective values and, in their aura of authoritative expertise, they somewhat resemble the magistrates in a law court. Yet, since ancient times, to become a magistrate you have needed to study law and passed a number of exams, which is not the case for those who judge automobiles in a Concours, assign awards and thereby indirectly influence the value of the cars taking part. The international judges in today’s juries are largely there on account of their passion for classic cars and the time they have spent studying the history and restoration techniques of these vehicles.

All this is certainly reassuring. This precious legacy will need progressive and well-managed support from younger generations over time. Those who have the experience could teach the judges of future years how to appraise the automobiles that compete at the great Concours d’Elegance. And this is not all. The younger generation needs to realize how important this role will be in keeping the passion alive and ensuring that authenticity and originality continue to be the benchmark features of the cars presented at such events.

In other words, the education and training of new generations of judges will be an important driver to achieve a bright, balanced future for classic cars. Once they have completed their training, those interested will have to work alongside experienced judges, to learn from the latter’s insight and knowledge of the subject in order to fine-tune their own perceptions. Serious, professional know-how is essential for such a delicate job, since awards or their absence inevitably contribute to establishing the value of different cars.

Duccio Lopresto, candidate of the Young Judges program, drives the 1901 Isotta Fraschini Chassis 001 at Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance.

I was recently contacted by an important judge from the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California regarding a new project aimed at training new generations of judges for the future. I come from a family of collectors and vintage car buffs, so I find the subject especially relevant and am happy to engage in this initial stage of the project. I’ve always taken part in the main concours, along with my father Corrado. In fact, I’ve personally prepared and presented cars at Villa d’Este and Pebble Beach, and have even won some Young Judges: Mainstays for the Future // 109

Judges at work.

The meticolous research for every single detail is an example for the young people who need to learn.

important awards. So, I appreciate how delicate and valuable the work of the judges is in these circumstances. Competition among those who take part in the events urges everyone towards the utmost degree of perfection: restoring one’s car according to the best standards of originality, delving into the history of the car in an almost obsessive fashion in the hope of winning a trophy and achieving historical recognition for the vehicle, and all this while maintaining the right balance between cultural and financial values.

So, when I was invited to get involved, there were various questions that came to mind.

If I were asked to become a judge, what difficulties would I have to face? Why is it so important to have judges at the Concours d’Elegance? In coming years, will young people’s interest in classic cars be strong enough to make them want to be judges? Finding answers to these delicate questions suggested to me that it might be interesting to describe 110 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

what is taking place in order to turn what we call the Young Judges project into reality.

I hope that this contribution on the part of a “young” car aficionado may help alert the younger generation to the professional opportunities, as well as the knowledge and enthusiasm, that are part of the classic car world.

The idea for the Young Judges project originally came from Hagerty, the insurance company involved in efforts to promote the passion for classic cars, and ICJAG, the international association whose chartered membership includes concourse chief judges from various countries. Their combined proposal wished to address the need for preserving and passing down expertise in appraisal to young people. Previous efforts at getting the younger generation involved had never gone beyond one-off events, whereas what Hagerty and the ICJAG had in mind was the creation of a training platform for young people interested in the job of

judging classic cars. The project is still being fine-tuned, and it should be ready for launch in 2020. So far we know, there will be a Summer Academy offering a 3-month course in various locations in the United States. Different universities will provide the operative base for the courses, but students will also be able to attend lessons and conferences in museums and important private collections.

The project also incorporates an essential digital component, with on-line courses, recommended reading lists, study resources and much more.

The selection criteria for those wishing to attend the courses have still to be established. For the moment, however, the training process will be articulated as follows: knowledge of marques and models, with particular reference to periods and vehicles of greater or lesser interest for collectors; specific subjects regarding how to judge; and field experience alongside professional judges.

Already this year, there will be test runs at various events organized by Chris Current, the ICJAG Education Director. Other people playing an essential role in the project are Mark Gessler, one of the founders of the Historic Vehicle Association (HVA), who deals with the university connection, and Nigel Matthews, one of the Hagerty marketing directors who has always supported efforts to involve young people in the promotion and conservation of automobile culture. Nigel’s mentorships for young judges are already a feature of the La Jolla Concours in San Diego, a reality that will become part of the Hagerty Young Judges project. Then there is McKeel Hagerty, CEO of the company, who has devoted endless time and energy to the world of classic cars. Without his ideas and actions, the Young Judges project would never have got off the ground.

The training platform will largely resemble that of a university. To assess the students’ performance, there will be exams at the end of each course. If the outcome is positive, the student will receive an official diploma drawn up by Hagerty, the ICJAG and the universities involved. To date, these are McPherson College, which was one of the first to offer programs entirely devoted to classic cars, with a particular focus on restoration, the Pennsylvania College of Technology and the College of Charleston, famous the world over for its excellent history, archeology and preservation courses. At this latter institution, they have recently introduced a course on Automotive Preservation, in other words, an entire program devoted to the restoration and conservation of vintage vehicles. The contribution of these colleges and universities is of huge importance, because it is the most direct way of encouraging the younger generation to get involved.

framework. Each defect the judge identifies in a given car implies a minus point or half point, according to the gravity of the flaw. For example, if one of the lights doesn’t work, the car is docked half a point, but if the engine doesn’t start... it’s better to go home!

There’s a real risk that, in the future, when cars will be like elevators in which you simply press a button to reach your destination, the passion for automobiles may come to an end. So it will be up to classic cars to provide the thrill and sensations that contemporary vehicles no longer embody. This is also true from the point of view of style and beauty: classic cars are works of art in movement, and will continue to be so if the relevant passion, culture and history are passed down to future generations.

However, my own experience suggests that the passion for classic cars is still very much alive. In 2017 we presented three Isotta Fraschinis at Pebble Beach as part of the brand’s centenary celebrations. After the Best of Show announcement, I drove the oldest

of the three vehicles, the Isotta Fraschini chassis # 0001 of 1901, onto the green. It was little more than a chassis, with two seats and practically no bodywork. The reaction of the people there, especially the young, was incredible. Masses of spectators photographed our little car, instead of focusing on the magnificent Mercedes Barker that won the Best of Show! People were fascinated by the fact that this strange vehicle was so far from their idea of a car. We had a similar experience at the London to Brighton run, an event that has made a feature out of showing cars you would never normally see in action.

Data collected by Hagerty has revealed that, in 2018, Millennials showed particular interest in classic cars, engaging in events and asking for further information. Hagerty and the ICJAG are doing their best to raise awareness of the importance of classic cars for culture and modern society, and the education and training of tomorrow’s concours judges is key to this development. The Classic Car Trust fully supports all the players in such an important program. 

Don’t be too fascinated by the beauty of a car.

The judge must always base his judgment on strict parameters.

Impartiality, objectivity and rationality are essential values in appraising and selecting the best cars. That is why it is so important to include mentoring in the Young Judges program. If young people are able to act as “shadow judges” alongside the experts, they will naturally absorb appropriate attitudes and approaches. The ICJAG points system at Pebble Beach, for instance, is a well-defined Young Judges: Mainstays for the Future // 111

Lucky to have been there The cars belonging to grandpa, Count Giovanni Lurani, gentleman driver and journalist, and his garage, where all his champion friends penned their signatures on the walls, going to all events and Mille Miglias with mum and dad: Federico Göttsche’s life is suffused with the scent of very special and romantic automobiles. He’s living proof that youth is not a hindrance to passion. On the contrary…

by Rob Scorah

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Lucky to have been there // 113

Federico Göttsche inherited a great love for classic cars. He drives them in various events and tries to spread interest among his friends.

F

ederico Göttsche Bebert has more reason than most to have a passion for classic cars; they have been part of his life for as long as he can remember. Indeed, they were woven into the fabric of his family’s life many years before he was born. His grandfather on his mother’s side was Count Giovanni “Johnny” Lurani, a gentleman driver from an aristocratic Milanese family who raced from the Twenties to the Fifties. His car collection stayed with the family and was campaigned in classic events such as the reborn Mille Miglia by Federico’s own mother and father.”I was raised with oil and exhaust fumes in my blood,” smiles Federico, who now lives in London. “We would do rallies in a pre-war car. I would sit in the middle, between my parents, wearing my grandfather’s racing

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helmet. After the race, we would simply drive the car home. I would snuggle down in the footwell and fall asleep, lulled by the sound of the engine. Federico’s parents competed in some 20 Mille Miglias, often in a 1924 Alfa Romeo TF RL restored by his grandfather. And that style of driving and the cars of the prewar era had a huge influence on how he came to perceive classic cars, and what owning and driving them was all about. ‘As a result (of my childhood), my personal taste is 100 percent pre-war cars,” he confirms. “Postwar cars I just see as transport.” ’He was certainly given the best chance to compare – his first car was a Subaru Impreza; “gold wheels and all, tuned to 400bhp,” he remembers. But the experience failed to lure Federico away from his beloved pre-wars. So what does he find so

special about the experience? “It’s far more gritty,” he explains. “Wrestling the steering, double de-clutching, pushing the brake pedal as hard as you can. Being splattered with oil.”

His hands grip an imaginary steering wheel as he speaks and his foot pushes forward.

“I’m very tactile – I like clutching a thick wood or Bakelite steering wheel, sitting on ‘real’ leather seats – touching the dashboard St. Christopher before you set off. Didn’t 400bhp performance hold any attraction? He shrugs.

“It doesn’t really matter if you’re doing 28mph or 100mph -in the older cars, you really feel it, and there’s a sense of achievement in going fast. But do many younger people get to experience the pre-war machines? Many young people in the classic car world – especially the pre-war cars – grew up with these cars. It’s

not so much about the aesthetics as a matter of feel. Probably as much as 70 percent of younger pre-war owners have these cars in their background – parents in the VSCC perhaps. They’re people who’ve had the privilege to test out these things. The rest of his peers, he observes, follow a more “conventional” classic ownership route. Unless they’ve inherited the high-end cars, it’s still a matter of funding. Guys tend to buy, say, Seventies Porsche 911s, Alfa Giuliettas – or maybe a MkI VW Golf.

If they enjoy rallying, it’s usually something like a Ford Escort MkII. Aesthetics alone, he observes, have driven a different sphere of interest, often centered upon over-restored machines and the more seductive designs of the Sixties and Seventies; the bias being definitely more “lifestyle.” He contrasts the more “hands-on” attitude of enthusiast drivers with a new generation of owners (of all ages) who are often more interested in posting images on Instagram of their current Audemars or Hublots against a classic car steering wheel.

Though the “posing” goes much further...

“You see them turn up to the top Concours,” he says with a mischievous smile. “There’ll be a bright yellow (modern) Ferrari followed by a huge truck – color-coded with the car. The owner will get out and watch his classic being unloaded by his crew.” Not unduly impressed by the emphasis on value and status, Federico and his father took a somewhat different approach when taking a very unique machine – his grandfather’s 1935 Lurani Nibbo land speed record car – to the 2017 Villa D’Este Concorso D’Eleganza. “We had done all our paperwork and sent off our entry application,” he recalls. “We heard back the next day, and that is when the long restoration began...that is, we gave it a clean, refreshed the oil and put fuel in it. Then we test drove it. It has no brakes, by the way. In contrast to the big transport rigs of some attendees, the Göttsche-Beberts took a different approach to bringing a one-off classic to an event...”

We called the local roadside assistance,” Federico grins. The Nibbo turned up to one of the world’s most prestigious Concours on a flatbed trailer, towed by a yellow van.

It went on to win the Coppa d’Oro (best of show by public vote) at the event. He sees a similar “lifestyle” evolution in driving events

and contrasts it with his own experiences both as a youngster and a competitor. The last Mille Miglia I did was 2008,” he says. “You used to sit in the square in Brescia, with the hay bails around you, waiting for scrutineering. You were hot, the car was hot, but you did it because you loved the driving. Now it seems to be all sponsors and VIP areas. And in the old days, you did repairs in sheds – places where people lived over the workshop.

Mama would be cooking pasta at 2:00 a.m. for you, while the guys were working on your car downstairs. Now you seem to have a big service rig. It’s very expensive and not easy for young people to get into these events. By contrast with the rising costs of entering and maintaining a car in a classic event, Federico has seen a shift in the pre-war car market.

From two years ago, values are down across that market, but I see people moving towards these cars. They’re more interesting for young people because they’re more extreme – and they’re more affordable. So I’m seeing more of them come into it. However, there is still the cost of getting into the sport. But, for this, Federico is hoping to orchestrate a solution. I want to build on my grandfather’s racing heritage,” he explains. “In 1936, he set up Scuderia Ambrosiana(with Franco Cortese and Georgio Vilanese). It was a team made up of friends who came together to race, to support each other and to give others a springboard into motor racing. Federico sees it as a way of getting young people into classic motorsport. We will be asking high membership fees, but the

club will offer a lot of support to its members – to share the costs of getting into the sport; help with maintenance, insurance, entry fees.

And advice. We will offer economies of scale.

Scuderia Ambrosiana will be to promote passion and curiosity – not envy (no watch on steering wheel Instagram shots). We need the younger generation to fall in love with the feel and smells of classic motorsport. It will be “oily rag grass-roots racing.”

Without that love of the sport and the cars themselves carrying on through further generations, he sees classic cars disappearing from our roads. “My biggest fear is that they (classic cars) will be banned on environmental grounds,” he confesses. “If we as an industry don’t speak out, this could easily happen.” He points out that the cars’ sometimes stereotypical portrayal as highly polluting vehicles is way in excess of their real impact. He also cites the classic industry’s worth. It’s a £7.1 billion industry (in the UK alone),” he points out.“It employs around 2.5 million people.

Within that group, he sees room for young people to get into the traditional skills the classic car world desperately needs. Higher rates of pay will promote the crafts. It’s not ‘just’ about being a metalworker, a carpenter, a mechanic; it’s a niche – an art. It’s better than being just another cog in the corporate machine. At all levels, Federico sees the classic car world as the realm of the true individual.

I want to see a return to real authenticity and personal passion.” 

The passion of his mother Cica Lurani Cernuschi and his father Michele, famous advertising creative director, shows that it is up to the parents to transmit to their children the love for the family collection.

Lucky to have been there // 115

Count Giovanni “Johnny” Lurani “My biggest regret is not to have met him at a more mature age,” reflects Federico, talking about the man who had a profound effect on the generations following him. “He was certainly revered, almost feared by everyone. I used to watch Formala One with him on the television when I was small.” Lurani brought the world of motorsport very much into the family home.

Federico’s mother would relate how it was absolutely normal for her to come down in the morning to find Wolfgang Von Tripps – ”Uncle Wolfy” – having breakfast. Indeed, one wall in a room in the house often used for racing gatherings was covered in autographed signatures; everyone from Nuvolari to Schumacher.

“When he was young, my grandfather was absolutely forbidden to race,” relates Federico.

“He first encountered motorsport – a hillclimb – on a skiing holiday in 1914 (aged nine), and was immediately fascinated. When he was at high school, he would sneak off to the newly-built Monza circuit to watch the races. Soon after, Lurani would begin his own racing career in a stripped-down Citroen 5HP. Moving through Derby cycle cars and onto MGs and Maseratis, he achieved class wins in many major events.

During all this time, he was also a much-respected writer and journalist. I’ve been going through all his letters,” explains Federico. “He took the time to reply to everyone who wrote to him. I think what comes through most of all is his wit and intellect.”

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The Nibbio, yesterday and today. Above, in 1936 when Count Giovannino Lurani Cernuschi, renowned journalist and gentleman driver, Federico Göttsche’s grandfather, broke world speed records using a tiny 500 cc 2-cylinder Guzzi engine. In 2016, the Nibbio that won the Villa d’Este Coppa d’Oro. In the driving seat, Lurani’s grandson, Federico Göttsche.

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A Bugatti in Your Garage?

Ten good reasons for having one.

by Antonio Ghini

This picture, by French photographer Bernard Canonne, is able to transmit at first glance the true Bugatti spirit. The image is available in eight large size specimens, signed by the author: www.bernardcanonne.com

A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 119

A

ll things considered, the marques that collectors get most excited about have a lot to do with the people who designed them. Bugatti, with Ettore, is a perfect case in point. A true eclectic of artistic temperament, he combined engineering brilliance with romantic spirit. Another telling example is Ferrari and the personality of Enzo, who was over-the-top and even cynical. It also applies to McLaren, born of the passion of a driver who died developing one of his own vehicles. Even Porsche falls into the same category on account of the brilliant symbiosis between Ferdinand and Ferry. Although all these men lived a good way back, they continue to imbue the cars that bear their names with historic value. After Ferdinand and Ferry Porsche, it was Ferdinand Piëch who took up the role of developing and defending the original sporting spirit behind the marque. For Bruce McLaren, it was Ron Dennis, after Teddy 120 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Mayer left at the founder’s death, who made employees and partners proud of the McLaren name and took up the small British manufacturer among the big players. Likewise, Ferrari, without Enzo’s guidance, seemed to have lost its way until it was taken in hand by Luca di Montezemolo, who managed to bring back the ambition and principles of the founder, leading Ferrari to the top of Formula 1 once again, with a previously unthinkable return in terms of commercial success.

In all these cases, the Brand averted the potential dangers of discontinuity. In fact, the effort to preserve the founders’ spirit and vision – and individually, they were very different – always took place in companies that were very much alive and active.

So what Romano Artioli managed to achieve is even more admirable. He breathed new life

into Bugatti, a company that was orphaned of its founder on 11 August 1939, when, Jean Bugatti, the oldest son of Ettore, died in an accident on the road between Molsheim and Strasbourg while testing a Type 57 race car. That day, after which Germany declared war, Alsace suffered the effects of contrasting French claims on the region and Bugatti lost his “factory of perfection,” seemed to herald the death of the most fascinating and admired automobile manufacturer of the first half of the 20th century. Ettore died on 21 August 1947, after visiting the location of his son Jean’s fatal accident, but before learning that the factory of his dreams and successes had been released from confiscation and restored to him. Bugatti as a name and marque did not perish on that day, however.

Ettore’s second son Rolando – or Roland as he was known in France – was just seventeen when his brother died, and twenty-four when

 Ettore Bugatti, Italian genius and visionary, French in his aristocratic trait, 27 years old at the wheel of what is probably a Deutz, ca.

1908, next to the 57G, Le Mans winner, but also tragically linked to the death of his beloved son Jean.

Ettore Bugatti image copyright

by The Bugatti Trust.

The only example  of the 1998 18/3 Chiron. The car, with a W18 engine, the first produced under Audi’s ownership, perfectly harks back to the 57G spirit, coupling to the front end style even some details taken from the Atlantic.

he unsuccessfully tried to get the company back on its feet. With the war, everything had changed – not only the world, but also the value of the very concept behind the vision his father had nurtured for magnificently aristocratic vehicles between the two wars. It was Ettore’s widow who sold the company to Hispano Suiza, a French state-owned group involved in aviation engine and components that had once focused on automotive engineering. And this was truly the end of the original Bugatti.

Two dates stand out: 1963, when Bugatti ceased production; and 1991, with the grand launch ceremony at La Défense in Paris under the auspices of Archduke Otto von Habsburg, whose fervent pro-European convictions meant that the Alsace dispute was truly a thing of the past. A gap of almost thirty years, long enough to make any kind of revival seem

impossible. And yet here again there was someone who knew how to revive the principles that had stimulated Ettore’s imagination to create his cars. This was another Italian, Romano Artioli, who was born near Mantua but grew up in Bolzano: a man with a deep passion for automobiles and an even deeper admiration for Bugatti and its history.

At a recent encounter, Romano Artioli spent several hours telling us his story, with its many episodes of courage, joy and disappointment.

Throughout this tale, the constant thread was the legend of Ettore: “I couldn’t accept that Bugatti had died forever, so I struggled to get the resources together for buying the brand and starting anew.” In the following pages, you can read the most significant excerpts from his account. It is a singularly interesting memoir of years that begin with the grand unveiling of the EB 110, one hundred and ten years after the birth of Ettore, and continues

through to the year the company folded. It was that same year that the four-door EB 112 was launched, a jewel of a car that seemed destined to be hugely successful. Elegantly shaped by Giorgetto Giugiaro, it was slightly reminiscent of the glorious Atlantic.

The EB 112 was a four-door super sports car that heralded by several years what other famous constructors later put into practice, Porsche first and foremost. Happily for posterity, Artioli’s enormous efforts were not in vain.

Audi was able to put the technical and conceptual experience to excellent use with the Chiron, an automobile that certainly stands up to comparison with the most enthralling Bugattis of the pre-war period. So heartfelt thanks are due to the man who replaced the romanticism of historians with the courage of an entrepreneur who fully believed in the dreams and achievements of Ettore Bugatti.

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1

Much more than an engineer or an artist...

Ettore Bugatti’s life was a mixture of inspiration, vision, culture, narcissism, unconventionality and tenacity that together helped forge forms of creativity and success that fate did not reward. This is sad, yet Ettore remains the personification of automotive brilliance during the Belle Époque and the years of Futurism, Art Deco and Rationalism.

Ettore’s roots went deep into highly fertile soils. The magnificent furniture designed and built by his father Carlo, his brother Rembrandt’s artistic talent as a sculptor, the great international exhibitions (in 1901, when he was 20, he was awarded with the Grand Prix at the Milan automotive show): these were all circumstances that indirectly contributed to Ettore’s success. He embraced challenges with courage, moving to Alsace at the age of 29, when the region was still part of Germany, ultimately founding a company of his own there to manufacture automobiles. Such was the inception of the Bugatti marque. Ettore patented over nine hundred designs. His ideas started out as sketches that helped him “see in real terms” the concepts that came to mind in effortless succession. The principles behind his cars were a strange combination of the highly innovative and the stubborn-

Ettore put no limit to his imagination: perfectly functioning Baby-Bugattis for lucky children, who will have always remained tied to the marque, and bold interpretations of aerodynamics, like on the 1923 Type 32 Tank.

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ly conservative. He was able to conjure up creative solutions for a wide range of forms of transport, from cars to airplanes, boats to trains. In a word, he was truly an engineer honoris causa. Only an entrepreneur who followed his own dreams could invent, in the 1920s, a small sports car streamlined like a military vehicle: the 32 Tank, as it was rightly called. Likewise remarkable was the Type 25, which became the archetype for racecars. Or indeed, in the 1930s, his designs for the first high-speed train that was produced in around eighty units. Magnificent for its modernity and performance, it was designed to house the huge engine originally devised for the Royale, a luxury conveyance that was not easy to sell during the years of the great depression.

Ettore lived in the sumptuous Chateau St. Jean, a stone’s throw from the Molsheim factory. He dressed with eccentric refinement and set great store by hospitality, to the extent that the team and visitors’ tents at races were even fitted with showers. All these aspects contributed to the unique overall image of Bugatti cars. Yet all this came to a sudden, terrible end in 1939, the annus horribilis for Ettore.

His son and heir Jean, who had designed the Le Mans-winning Type 57 and the amazing Atlantic, died in an accident. Just 19 days later, Germany declared war. The magnificent dream was interrupted by a brutal awakening.

Anyone with a Bugatti in the garage should recognize – merely by looking at the car, but far more by driving it – that it was born of the creative brilliance of a true artist.

2

Baby...

With no visual references to show that it is exactly half the size of a real Type 35, the Bugatti Baby could fool just about anyone when seen in a photograph. just about anyone when seen in a photograph. A toy for fortunate children, the Baby was created in 1927 by Ettore for his son Roland, who was five at the time. Equipped with an electric engine of the sort used as a starting motor for the Royale, it is powered by a 12 Volt battery that allows the car to reach more than 12 miles an hour.

The beauty of the model encouraged Ettore to put it into production, each unit with its individual chassis number, just like the adult versions. We do not know exactly how many were produced, but experts surmise that over 300 left the factory, some with a lengthened wheelbase to suit slightly older children. Given its potential performance, it was even used for mini-races that might nurture the passion for cars among the very young. Since the price was fully in line with that of a Bugatti 35 racing vehicle, the Bugatti Baby (the name Type 32 was never officially endorsed) delighted the junior members of various royal families, including Prince Ranier of Monaco and Baudouin, the future king of Belgium, as well as becoming a favorite plaything of the Agnelli children at their hillside residence near Turin.

that lowered the vehicle’s center of gravity as far as possible. The outcome was the car built for the Paris-Madrid road race. However, it was so low-slung and conceptually advanced with respect to the vehicles of the other daredevil participants that it was disqualified by the organizers, who considered it dangerous! Before long, the cars produced by the different manufacturers began to develop a particular look that made them identifiable. Even the famous Marne Taxis used by the French army to ferry soldiers out to the front line to stop the German advance are immediately recognizable as Renaults on account of the two characteristic radiators on either side of the engine.

Even Mussolini, the Italian Dux, owned two of them: the one given to his son Vittorio is still in the hands of an Italian collector. Children were so enthusiastic about the Bugatti Baby that special races were organized, particularly in Argentina, where they became regular events in the public gardens of Buenos Aires.

Today, perfectly preserved authentic models (as opposed to the various replicas that are still produced here and there) fetch prices ranging from 30,000 to 50,000 dollars, and in a recent auction bidding increased to 75,000 dollars.

The immaculate state of such items suggests that their original little owners weren’t particularly interested in cars and racing! To safeguard such luxury toys and their value, a special register has been set up.

3

The brand archetype

Of all industrial products, none equals the automobile in its power to capitalize on the concept of brand. When Ettore Bugatti, at the age of just sixteen, began designing a tricycle with an engine for Prinetti & Stucchi, he immediately realized that the horse-drawn coach would not be the right point of reference for the construction of the new forms of transport he had in mind. Only a few years later, in 1903, he introduced a tubular steel chassis

The typical Bugatti grille through the years. Ettore, drawing it, didn’t take inspiration from a horseshoe, as many think, but from one of the arches of the municipal hall in Molsheim , where he founded his company.

Yet technical solutions were soon not enough to distinguish the growing number of new auto brands that appeared on the market. As well as the name, a crest or a particular color, what was required was something that stood out, an unmistakable signature that spoke for the marque. An artist at heart, Ettore realised that the right solution had to coincide with what people focus on when looking at a car: the nose. And that is how the emblematic Bugatti radiator came into being: a horseshoe-like feature of universally acclaimed refinement. The reassuringly harmonious shape of that deeply arched grille derives from one of the two arches supporting the steps leading up to the entrance of the Town Hall in Molsheim, the town where Bugatti vehicles were constructed. This leads us to a couple of considerations, the first of which concerns the strength of the image conjured up by the product. Bugatti was the epitome of prestige and excellence, and it came more naturally to adopt a thoroughbred horseshoe than an Alsace-style arch. By the same token, over the years other manufacturers have also made good use of powerful emblems: the Parthenon for Rolls Royce, the clover leaf for Alfa Romeo, the quadrants of the BMW, even the Porsche logo – in different periods they have all conveyed the relative marque’s message in incredibly eloquent terms, becoming emblems with that clients are happy to identify.

One of the great strengths of Bugatti has always been its skill in communicating through design details. The Bugatti nose is a case in point: an unmistakable feature that never loses its power to fascinate.

A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 123

The Bugatti Atlantic, magnificent in its style and much sought after for its rarity, witnesses the talent of Ettore’s son, the unlucky Jean.

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A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 125

4

Multifaceted like Leonardo...

In his work, Ettore Bugatti communicated a deep personal delight in perfection. He was like a Renaissance prince, almost an alchemist, a man devoted to directing the workshop of his ideas. His cars reveal countless details that speak for his remarkable personality, taste and originality. The fact that he had studied art and came from a family of artists would

the 1921 Italian Grand Prix, the last edition before the event was transferred to Monza, the Type 35 of 1924 Bugatti was the first constructor to mount light, eight-spoke cast aluminum wheels. Although they initially required meticulous tooling, they overcame the earlier need for laborious centering. Moreover, in racing they allowed for greater efficiency in what would now be called the pit stop, because the integral brake drums permitted faster replacement. It was a solution that became a symbol of the victorious Bugattis: like many of Ettore’s ideas, it also heralded future developments.

The Type 59 featured piano wire wheels that were a perfect combination of aesthetics

Bugatti was the leader in using wheel spokes and alloy wheels, useful also in a pit stop during a race.

not have been sufficient without his natural genius for mechanics. Take his approach to wheels, for example: Bugatti realized that the handling of his cars was an essential aspect of performance. In this, he was way ahead of his time, since it was not until the post-war period that automobile construction began to focus on the efficiency of transmitting power to the ground and on good handling for the driver.

Weight reduction of the non-suspended parts, especially wheels, wheel rims and brake drums, made a huge contribution to improved handling. Following the multi-spoke wheels of the Brescia Type 13, which won at 126 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

and function, with metal segments carefully mounted inline, just like on a piano.

5

The racing parabola

The sons of great men have a weighty heritage to shoulder. This is especially so if the scion is only 24 and intends to breathe new life

into a great marque following the devastation of the war by seeking to recover the precious machine tools created to produce excellence.

Such was the steadfast aim of Roland, Ettore’s second son, when the Molsheim factory was returned to his father. By that time, Ettore’s health was so bad that he couldn’t even be informed of the change in circumstances, and Roland had to handle everything alone.

He could not have foreseen that in 1966, following the collapse of an audacious effort at relaunching the marque, his step-mother, Geneviève Delcuze, Ettore’s second wife and the mother of Thérèse and Michel, would sell what remained of Bugatti, trademark and all, to Hispano Suiza, the company that during the war years had commissioned Bugatti to produce mechanical parts for its engines.

All this was still to come, however, when Roland and Pierre Marco, the loyal factory director and driver, began to think about new projects. Jean Pierre Wimille’s victory at the wheel of the Type 50 at the 1946 Grand Prix de la Libération in Paris suggested that designing road vehicles to bring the famous marque back to life could be a valid project. Yet the Type 73, presented in 1947, and the Type 101, based on the Type 57 and launched in 1951, turned out to be utter failures, despite the fact that a few models, including Geneviève’s with its Antem bodywork, were indisputably magnificent. Times had changed, and with them technology as well, and the world was heading toward mass motorization and production.

Wishing to prevail in terms of technology, Roland played his last card with racing, the activity that had brought Bugatti such widespread fame. There was a new Formula 1 rule for the World Championship that involved 2500 cc engines. It was an audacious decision: in 1954 Mercedes had entered its W 198 coupé, a car that was technologically so highly advanced that it practically obscured all the other teams, including Ferrari, as well as Maserati, BRM and Vanwall. Bugatti went for an interesting solution: instead of the models with front-mounted engines entered by its competitors, it opted for a single-seater with a centrally mounted rear transverse engine. In true Bugatti style, it had an 8-cylinder engine, but in V configuration. The quality of this engine, designed

by the acclaimed Italian engineer Gioacchino Colombo, was later to be ratified by the 1500 cc 4-cylinder version (cut in half, longitudinally), mounted on the last Bugatti to be built, the Sport Type 252.

Clearly, the engine is not everything in a single-seater. The car appeared only once on the racetrack, as number 28 in the French Grand Prix of 1956, driven by Maurice Trintignant, and it did not come up to expectation. It was thirdlast in departure position, 18” from pole position, and it withdrew after 18 rounds because of a problem with the accelerator. It was a pity, because the car seemed to have potential for

from sales. Alas, this was no longer the case, and this sealed its fate.

6

Respect and awe...

It was Romano Artioli and Ferruccio Lamborghini who negotiated with SNECMA, the French State-owned aerospace engineering company that had taken over Hispano

ation of the original firm; whereas Ferruccio, who was less familiar with the history, values and symbols of a company that in those years was largely forgotten, was hoping to redeem his own experience as the erstwhile creator of a brand that was no longer his. Artioli recalls how they signed the agreement in Paris under the auspices of the Ministry of Industry of the first Rocard government, thereby acquiring ownership of the trademark, and then headed for Italy, stopping off in Mulhouse to visit the Museum that housed the magnificent collection of Bugattis put together by the Schlumpf brothers. Artioli had piloted his own airplane to Grenoble, and it is easy to imagine

The Formula 1 Bugatti 151 at the 1956 French Grand Prix, the only one it ever took part in. Even if it anticipated the revolution of rear-mounted engines, the cars and relative financing were not adequate.

That’s how the dream of Ettore’s son Roland of re-launching the brand ended.

Ferruccio Lamborghini backed Romano Artioli in the relaunch of Bugatti. He was tempted to come back to the automotive scene, but the task soon appeared to be too arduous.

growth and the rear-mounted central engine was promising, as Cooper proved just one year later. But as a challenge, it was simply too demanding and expensive.

Efforts to create a small sports car with the Type 252, designed for racing driver customers, also came to nothing despite the undeniable qualities of the vehicle. All in all, the relaunch effort of the post-war period Bugatti produced less than twenty road and racing vehicles. In the glorious pre-war years, the marque had enjoyed not only the support of wealthy driver customers, but also income

Suiza, with the aim of buying back Bugatti to relaunch the brand. Lamborghini had sold his own company in 1972, relinquishing his last shares in the firm that bore his name in 1974.

Yet he had never entirely given up the idea of returning to the world of luxury sports vehicles, and by 1980 he was ready to get involved in Artioli’s project, which he found enticing.

They created a partnership and began by purchasing the brand. Various observers, both direct and indirect, suggest that the two had different goals in mind. Artioli, who cultivated an absolute passion for Bugatti, wanted to create a company that was the true continu-

their different states of mind once the deal was done and it was time to act. At the sight of all those magnificent models, racecars and luxury road vehicles, Lamborghini realized that his own name was bound to fade beside that of Bugatti. There seemed to be no point in continuing, and he thus decided to abandon the project. Ferruccio Lamborghini was a man who had made his fortune by himself, and he was realistic enough to understand that the huge investment required and the powerful partners involved would have made it impossible for him to act according to his own instinct.

That day, he left the car world for good.

A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 127

come to light. For instance, although he was born in Mantua, Artioli’s parents originally came from an area south of the city, near Carpi, the Emilia region. It was here, a land of strong people, courageous in facing challenges and of unbounded ambitions, that he built the factory to launch Bugatti anew, and that both Enzo Ferrari and Ferruccio Lamborghini founded their magnificent enterprises.

“

Ettore was very much the Futurist man, convinced that speed was an integral part of what was new. In fact, he invented everything to create his automobiles, without referring back to horse-drawn carriages. He had the vision to see beyond...,

”

Romano Artioli, who, with the power of true passion and despite the painful ordeal he put himself through, was able to instill new life into the Bugatti.

7

The ambition and courage of Romano and Ettore...

Romano Artioli’s energy and lucidity belie his age. Although he is almost 85, when he talks about the progressive success of his professional life, he remains astoundingly cool. No feelings come into the account, not even when he reaches the chapter regarding what seemed like an impossible mission, even for a man of his wealth and experience: reviving Bugatti. Likewise, there is no hint of the grief and humiliation he suffered when his dream collapsed and “his” Bugatti project filed for bankruptcy on 29 September 1995.

Our encounter with Artioli takes place many years later, on 17 December 2018, in a private salon at the Hotel Mandarin in Milan. Certain interesting details about his life immediately 128 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Artioli declares with emphasis, oblivious to the waiter’s offer of toothsome delicacies. He then recalls the sixteen-year-old Bugatti’s words during the period he was working for Prinetti & Stucchi, the tests he carried out using people as weights on a wooden chassis to establish its strength and other facts that have become part of history. There is so much passion in the tale that there is indeed little room for distraction, regardless of appetite. “Ettore had been to art school, like his brother Rembrandt, the one who created the little elephant on the Royale. But Ettore realized that he would never reach his brother’s level as an artist and decided to focus on his passion for mechanics.”

Artioli gratifies the waiter with a frugal order before continuing to talk incessantly about Bugatti. It’s a subject that so engrosses him that there is no space for questions. When he reaches the moment of Ettore’s decision to produce his own automobiles, he relates how he “found a weaving mill that had been closed down... they all began with the mills....” He then mentions in passing James Watt and the steam engine he invented in 1769 to power the looms, the evolution of English steam ships, the cannons that were moved to Waterloo with steam engines taking Napoleon by surprise. There’s a logical thread connecting these examples: just as the garages of Silicon Valley housed the birth of the digital revolu-

tion, so the second industrial revolution that centered on the automobile started off, in the case of Bugatti, in an abandoned weaving mill.

“Bugatti had worked in Alsace with German, French and Italian engineers, heralding Otto von Habsburg’s vision of a united Europe with Strasburg in the center, no longer a city that stood for division.”

But where does your passion for Bugatti come from, and how did it grow so strong that you wanted to bring the marque back to life? “I was little more than twenty when I first started thinking about Bugatti. That was back in 1952, and I wanted to race motorbikes and was working on my own bike and those of my friends.

Things were going well, and I thought it would be better to drop the racing, so I bought a garage in Bolzano. It was called Mille Miglia and was located behind a mountain of rubble. I had discovered and loved engines as a kid, when I used to play around with war surplus and debris. A cousin had given me a copy of a book

by Ernesto Tron on how to get a license for driving diesel-fueled vehicles, and that’s how I discovered the wonders of the combustion engine.” Artioli was still young when he heard that Bugatti had closed down. His passion for cars had spurred him to buy all sorts of books, and that is how he knew all about the Italian designer and constructor who had set up his automobile works in Alsace. “For me the news about Bugatti closing came as a real shock, because each and every Bugatti was a complete work of art. Ettore had invented the overhead valve, had filed dozens of patents and had created the first high-speed train with an anti-derailing system using the Royale engine. In the mid-1930s, it could travel at 100 mph when cars could only reach 50 to 60 mph.”

Artioli was certainly a wealthy man. But there’s a major difference between relative prosperity and the money and energy required to bring Bugatti back to life. This energy does not seem to have dwindled over time, however.

“My Mille Miglia Garage had a well-equipped workshop. We had bought an engine-testing bench from Beretta, because the company was no longer allowed to produce firearms just after the war. We used it for servicing our cars and balancing the crankshafts. It was a highly successful enterprise.” It was indeed,

given that Artioli had come up with the idea of posting the company’s number near the phone of every bar in the city. “In those days, cars often broke down, and despairing drivers headed to the nearest bar, where they found our number. Help was at hand!”

Granted, this early form of direct marketing was clearly not the only ingredient in Artioli’s success with the garage. Bolzano was close to the border with Austria and Germany, and this gave him the chance to import Opels, especially the Kadett, and then Suzukis. Before long, he had created a network of 135 dealers throughout Italy. “We took part in the Paris-Dakar rally with 16 cars at the starting line, and 16 at the finish!” Artioli also began importing Subarus, and business was good. At this point, he had become a major player in the automobile sector, a name to be reckoned with.

Naturally enough, he still often thinks about Bugatti. “Nuvolari created a team with those Bugattis, and Achille Varzi drove them to victory.” This perhaps explains why Artioli focused on marques that made their name on the racetrack: Abarth, for which he provided customer support and service, and Ferrari.

“I had been handling customer support and servicing for some time, but then when Ferrari decided to produce the 8-cylinder in the early 1970s, I got involved with them too. The market was very slow, and there were cars in stock. I agreed to take the unsold models and once, when Niki Lauda was on his way north via Bolzano, I took advantage of the situation and organized an event, inviting my best customers to come along. It was a great success. I sold twenty Ferraris that same day!”

That is how he also put in a successful bid for the dealership in Stuttgart, which considerably strengthened his ties with Ferrari. By the time Artioli announced that he intended to revive Bugatti, Ferrari had been bought out by Fiat, who already had a 90% stake in the business when Enzo Ferrari died in 1988.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Fiat reacted to Artioli’s declared plan by severing the dealership agreements. In recalling that moment, Artioli reveals how that decision irritated him, making him even more determined to resuscitate the excellence of Bugatti and get to a level unreachable for Ferrari.

Ant. Empos nulpa nonseque pratet et as aliquis

Two iterations of the 1991 EB110: above, one of the three test prototypes in Marcello Gandini’s sketch.

Below, the same car with modified front and rear

by Giampaolo Benedini under Artioli’s supervision just before its launch.

A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 129

The factory at Campogalliano, just outside Modena, was a beautiful building, full of light and perfect in every detail. In this, it reflected the historic Molsheim premises. Moreover, computer technology was an integral part of the plant, unlike the situation in the neighboring factories of his competitors. It was all very impressive. Yet Artioli now reflects that “perhaps it was an error to build the works right there.” Be this as it may, the first automobile they produced there was certainly a car to be reckoned with: the EB 110, with the body in carbon fiber, four-wheel drive, a 550 hp 4 turbo V12 and a top speed of 212 mph. Artioli has generally steered clear of the subject of his relationship with competitors, whose sense of fair play he has sometimes doubted. But with its focus on automobiles and collectors, The Key believes that what counts is the fact that he had the courage to breathe new life into a marque that seemed to be finished, despite the incredible creative verve and innovation it had embodied from the Belle Époque through to the end of the 1930s.

The fact that today the EB 110s of those years are now becoming collectors’ items calls for no further comment. Artioli’s efforts and achievement have become part of history.

The wonderful W18 engine, made compact by the use of three banks of six cylinders each forming a double V. The power unit, manufactured by Audi with Ferdinand Piech’s support, was mounted on the EB 18/3 Chiron and was destined also for the Quattro Porte saloon. Today, the unit that is fitted to the car is still perfectly functioning after the thorough restoration that was carried out by the owner of the 18/3 Chiron, Swiss collector Albert Spiess.

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8

EB 110: 137 units plus 4 secret prototypes designed

by Gandini...

If you line them up, you really appreciate how similar they are, and yet also how different.

The first four EB 110s were the prototypes tested in 1991. They had chassis numbered A35 A2/3/4/5 and the Marcello Gandini hallmark for body design. This was such a marked feature that Romano Artioli actually feared that some people might consider them too similar in style to the Lamborghini Countach and Diablo. The Key does not intend to get involved in this debate, but it is clear that all four cars largely resembled each other, with only minor differences: for example, the first, the A2, had the NACA air inlets on the front that were later abandoned.

Same look, both in running order, but with totally different performances: the splendid, latest Chiron and its twin made with more than a million of Lego bricks. Bugatti’s myth continues.

What was missing, though, was something totally distinctive: the brand signature. The nose of the cars did not feature the Bugatti horseshoe grille, and while rational enough, it lacked any historical reference. Although the launch was scheduled for a few months later, on 14 September to be precise, Artioli felt that the cars needed a special look of their own.

Gandini was not available at the time, and so he turned to the architect Giampaolo Benedini, who had designed the Bugatti factory at Campogalliano. The shape of the car was rounded slightly at the front and rear, and a small symbolic arched element was added to the front air inlet. At the launch, Gandini did not feature as the designer, but the absolute modernity of the vehicle was hugely eloquent, and is still valid. All in all, 141 units of the EB 110 were produced, including the prototypes and special models.

9

The 18-cylinder effect...

Who would ever have thought of breathing new life into Bugatti with an 18-cylinder engine? Only Ferdinand Piëch. This was after the sad demise of the Campogalliano factory and the purchase of the historic marque by the Volkswagen Group, which believed

a brand that had become legend had to continue its path strewn with unexpected and extraordinary things, like a powerful, compact engine featuring three six-cylinder banks. The idea was to mount this engine on classic sports models, such as the 18/3 Chiron, and on majestic four-door saloons like the EB 118 and the EB 218. All this seemed ready to take shape between 1998 and 1999. Thanks to a previous contact by Romano Artioli with Italdesign, which had designed the unborn yet very interesting four-door EB 112, Piëch engaged Giorgetto Giugiaro to develop the idea, but sadly, the four-door models never went beyond the prototype stage. In 1999, a lovely, small, two-seater saloon was presented at the Frankfurt Car Show: the 18/3 Chiron.

Thanks to the passion of Swiss collector Albert Spiess, this very car is still in immaculate condition, with the W18 engine that still performs to perfection, the only existing example of its kind in working order. It was indeed for fear of its excessive complexity that Volks­wagen abandoned this technical solution.

The equally awe-inspiring alternative is the actual quad-turbocharged W16 of the Veyron.

Despite being a one-off, the 18/3 Chiron is the forefather of the Bugattis of the new generation. Not only did it put the focus back, in a saloon model, on the modern take of the original Bugatti front end and suggested the style of the new models, it also honored the name of the great Monégasque driver Louis Chiron, whose glories were interwoven with those of Bugatti.

10

Like a Lysippos copy...

Imperial Rome, Renaissance Italy and the neoclassicism of the 19th and 20th centuries all turned to ancient Greece for inspiration, faithfully reproducing the sculptures of Polyclitus, Praxiteles and Lysippos. To modern eyes, these reproductions seem to bear witness to deep-felt respect for forms of excellence considered to be insuperable. At the 2018 Italian Grand Prix in Monza a Bugatti Chiron made of over a million Lego bricks was unveiled. It had taken a year to build – more than 13,000 hours – and was received by spectators as a great homage to the genius of Ettore Bugatti. Granted, the Chiron is very much a contemporary car, the fruit of a historic marque revived, but it is also the product of Audi’s vision and the efforts the people involved at the historic Bugatti headquarters at Molsheim to prove that the formal harmony and values of the original trademark still matter. The fact that the contemporary version unveiled at Monza could actually be driven around the track thanks to the 2300 or so tiny Lego electric engines connected by a chain of 4000 cogs and gears eloquently expressed the respect that Bugatti still elicits. In other words, a form of reverence, as with the copies of ancient sculptures.  A Bugatti in Your Garage? // 131

D on D

Dino e Dallara. Two automotive engineers steer us through 60 years of the history of engines, designs, ideas, and inventions. A story that brings together the dreams of Dino, Ferrari’s first son who died prematurely in 1955, and the experience of Giampaolo Dallara, who started out from Maranello in his own quest for success. In discussing a rare document from the TCCT archive, written by Dino regarding the future of cars, Giampaolo explains why certain things happened, and others didn’t.

by Antonio Ghini

132 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Andrea de Adamich’s Formula 2 Dino is flying, almost representing the successes of the small V6 60° that was suggested by Enzo Ferrari’s eldest son, who died at a young age. This power unit was used on tracks, for rallies and also on road cars very different from each other.

Photo courtesy of Gabriela Noris Archive. gabrielanoris@ virgilio.it

D on D // 133

V

elocità is the name of a magazine created in Bologna by racing driver Cesare Perdisa. The second issue was published in April 1955, proudly announcing the collaboration of Alfredo Ferrari, affectionately known as Dino, Enzo’s eldest son, who first suggested the V6 65° angle engine that bears his name and contributed so much to defining Ferrari’s history. Dino writes an interesting, in-depth article on construction trends in racecars, which sadly turns out to be a one-off contribution. The brilliant young engineer suffered from an incurable hereditary illness, and died three months later, on 30th June 1956, at the age of just twenty-four. Having unearthed this practically unknown document, The Key discusses its contents with Giampaolo Dallara, the famous 134 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

engineer and now also constructor who began his successful career at Ferrari, a few years after Dino’s death.

First working at Maranello, and then with Maserati, Dallara acquired considerable track experience first-hand. Then at Lamborghini, he designed the Miura, later working for De Tomaso in the Formula 1 years. All this culminated the foundation of his own company.

It’s fair to say he knows all the inner secrets of racing cars. Today Dallara manufactures Indy car single-seaters, Haas Formula 1 cars, and Formula 2 and Formula 3 single-seater vehicles. Indeed, this examination reveals a great deal about the evolution of cars both road and racing vehicles, since Dallara now also produces the Dallara Stradale, a highly distinctive Gran Turismo.

“He’s talking about the Modena approach to car design and engineering. This is clear from what he writes. Dino was brought up on bread and motors,” says Giampaolo Dal-

lara sitting at the desk of his office in Varano del Melegari. From the window you can see a flying saucer of sorts, all lit up.

It’s the new company Museum, where they hold seminars and courses for engineers in collaboration with Parma University. “The point is that Italian automobile engineering and design owe a great deal to Officine Reggiane which, during the war years produced the magnificent RE2000 fighter aircraft. The company generated a number of engineers who made a name for themselves in automobile design in the post-war period, including Lampredi, Salvarani, and Rocchi.”

The Reggiane factory was located just a few miles from Modena, where Ferrari and Maserati, as well as Stanguellini, a much smaller firm, had helped breathe new life into the sports car sector. “Enzo Ferrari produced

Giampaolo Dallara, who engineered the Miura and other famous winning single seaters, first and foremost the Formula Indy ones, analyses for The Key the interesting but unknown article that Dino Ferrari wrote in 1956 for the magazine ‘Velocità,’ only a few weeks before he died.

cars that raced in all categories: Formula 1, World Constructors’ Championship with the Sports series, Indianapolis, Formula 2. The same principle prevailed throughout: it was only the engine that really mattered. The chassis was made from robust tubular steel, and as Ferrari himself liked to say, the engine was up front, like the oxen that draw a cart.

Dino had absorbed this culture. What’s more, Ferrari made everything in-house, they had their own foundry, and everything was built on the spot, starting from the engines.”

Yet it’s surprising to discover that Dino’s article for Velocità begins with a discussion of Turbine engines, which he did not exclude for the future of automobiles. “Fair enough, he was right to think about their possible use in the future. There was a similar illusion about the Wankel engine and the Hewland experiment with the 3-cylinder sleeve-valve engine. But it wasn’t to be, and for two reasons: internal combustion engines had enjoyed a major evolution, and the turbine was not suitable for use in automobiles.

Cars are different from airplanes, where the

Two wonderful creatures with Dino engines: the 246 and the Lancia Stratos.

rotation is constant. With cars, you need to be able to accelerate and to brake, and the turbine doesn’t lend itself to this.” Yet Dino was naturally interested in what was going on in the sector, where there was a certain buzz in the air: Fiat and Renault had produced record-making vehicles, and in 1954, GM had presented the futuristic Firebird with that engine. “It took time to see the advantages of the progress made in metallurgy and the new potential of the turbo,” Dallara recalls. And indeed, there were other attempts made in the same direction, such as those of Lotus and Andy Granatelli’s team at Indianapolis, or Rover at Le Mans, and even in Formula 1 with the ill-fated Lotus 56 of 1971.

Pointing out how Ferrari was both traditionalist and courageously innovative, Dallara also recalls how it experimented with something different toward the end of the 1970s, working with the Brown Boveri supercharging system. Just one test in race conditions on the track at Long Beach in 1981 was all it took, and the choice turned definitively toward the turbo.

Dino also talks about desmodromic valves, pointing out that “it’s worth bearing in mind that in those days things were slower than they are today. They were times in which there was no data analysis aimed at optimizing results because everyone relied on experience. If something worked, it continued to be used until a better idea came along. The desmodromic valve system was interesting, but if no one adopted it, except Ducati, there must have been a reason! On the other hand, Dino’s considerations on fractioning the engine displacement are interesting: Ferrari had won two Formula 1 World Titles in 1952 and 1953 with a small, light 4 cylinder engine.

At the time the regulations imposed a maximum capacity of 2000cc, so this was the right choice. In actual fact, Enzo had tested all the possibilities, including a two-cylinder engine for Formula 1.” That curious engine designed

by Lampredi still exists and is part of Lord George Bamford’s collection. “With the increase in displacement introduced by the new World Championship regulations, Dino duly believed that the most suitable engine was the 12 cylinder with its smaller units because it D on D // 135

1958 Dino 256 F1

allowed for much higher revs. Ferrari was right in acting accordingly, and in time this decision became a Ferrari hallmark.”

1963 Dino 206 SP

1967 Dino Fiat Spider

1967 Dino 206 GT

There is a short silence, as Dallara continues to read the long article in Velocità, his glasses poised on his forehead. “See, he also had doubts about the injection system, and for a good reason because in those years injection was mechanical, which is very different to what it later became. He then goes on to embrace a wider perspective: that of the differences between the Italian, the English, and the German approach. “The Germans won and left. They used all possible technology to dominate, and that was it. The English followed a different route. Apart from BRM, which did everything in-house, the trend was to build cars starting out from components made by specialists. Here in Italy, we had specialists too, for instance, Colotti for gearboxes and Weber for the carburetors. But the English used engines such as the Climax and Hewland transmissions, as well as other components available on their market, disk brakes included. They were thus able to concentrate on the chassis, focusing on lightness and aerodynamic qualities. Ferrari and Maserati were completely different because they made everything, they really specialized”. There is a telling counterexample that indirectly proves how appropriate the Italian decision was. 1960 saw the entry of the all-American Scarab with its front-mounted engine, a car based on obsolete mechanics that were simply not competitive. The constructor and pilot was the son of the American billionaires Barbara Hutton, a fact that was understandably not widely publicized, and no further developments were made.

patched Piero Taruffi to study the behavior of vehicles with rear-mounted engines at the German Grand Prix. The following year the combination of English construction principles and a Ferrari engine made an unbeatable World Champion out of the 156 F1, known as the Shark Nose”.

The real revolution was still to come, however. It centered around the understanding that air was not an enemy that needed to be penetrated with zealous efficiency, but rather a precious potential ally. “The importance of ground effect had been discovered by General Motors in America, by a team of engineers working on solutions to road safety problems.

Ralph Nader, a respected author for his outspoken views, had judged the road holding of the Chevrolet Corvair to be unreliable. Instead of trying to defend the status quo, GM had set up a team that grasped the importance of the downforce obtained by removing resistance to the air that passes under the vehicle.

The results persuaded Jim Hall, who built the Chapparal racecars, to work on a highly advanced vehicle for the Can-Am Champion-

1978 Brabham BT46 with an Alfa Romeo engine.

1978 Lancia Sibilo

136 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Although this American experience was not successful, it was the Americans who really turned the page in racecar progress. “The English actually took the first step by placing the engine behind the driver. As Carlo Chiti pointed out when he was the technical director at Ferrari, this lowered the center of gravity and meant that the driver was semi-recumbent. It also reduced the front surface of the single-seater vehicles and allowed for a 55-58% distribution of overall weight onto the back wheels, which was a considerable advantage.

Ferrari felt this made sense and even dis-

ships”. After experimenting with the advantages of a movable spoiler on the Chapparal 2F of 1967, Hall applied the principles of downforce to the 2J of 1970, introducing a pair of rear-mounted fans driven by a dedicated engine. These sucked the air out from under the car, making it much more efficient on any type of bend. In 1978 the same solution was adopted by Brabham in Formula 1 at the Swedish Grand Prix, where Niki Lauda drove his BT46B to a brilliant victory. Mirroring the American Federation’s ruling on the Chap-

1970 Chaparral 2J Can Am

paral, the FIA also immediately banned this technique on safety grounds. But the point is that automobile design had already undergone a radical change. With the Lotus 78, Colin Chapman understood how to achieve similar results without incurring a ban: he adopted flexible rubber-build side skirts that sealed the car to the ground, making it much more efficient for bends and braking.

analyzed, and changes are made in relation to scientific feedback rather than the intuition of test drivers.” Even after his death, Dino continued to be present at Ferrari. It wasn’t only the photo in Enzo’s office, but also the way people continued to talk about him with great respect. They were shocked by the tragedy that had struck the young man’s father». Dallara notes that Dino’s article was published in Velocità only shortly before his death. He sighs as he realizes that Dino’s fate was unavoidable at the time he wrote it. Since he must have been aware of this, we can’t help wondering whether the article might have been intended as a message. Not a testament, exactly, but the remarkable insight of a trained engineer – which his father was not – who could have worked alongside his brother Piero on guiding Ferrari towards its future developments. But Fate, as we are all painfully aware, had decreed otherwise. 

Engine Dino V6 65° – 26 different vehicles: Single-seaters.

1957 Dino 156 F2 1498,35cc 1958 Dino 256 F1 2417,33cc 1958 Dino 325 MI (Monza.Italia) 3210,12 cc 1959 256 F1 2474,54 cc 1960 246 P F1 2417,33 cc 1960 156 F2 1476,60 cc 1961 156 F1 1496,43 cc 1966 246 F1 66 2404,74 cc 1967 Dino 166 F2 1596,25 cc 1968 Dino246 Tasmania 2404,74 cc Sport/Prototypes 1958 Dino 196 S 1983,72cc 1958 Dino 296 S 2962,08cc 1960 Dino 246 S 2417,33 cc 1961 246 SP 2417,33 CC 1963 Dino 166 P 1592,57 cc 1963 Dino 206 SP 1986,60 cc 1966 Dino 206 S 1986,60 cc GT 1967 Dino 206 GT 1986,60 cc 1967 Dino Fiat Spider 1986,60 cc 1967 Dino Fiat Coupé 1986 cc

“We began with Dino, and we’ve reached the cars of today when every item of data is

1969 Dino 246 GT 2419,20 cc 1969 Dino Fiat Spider 2.4 2419,20 cc 1969 Dino Fiat Coupé 2,4 2419,20 cc 1972 Dino 246 GTS 2419,20 cc 1972 Lancia Stratos HF 2419,20 cc 1978 Lancia Sibilo 2419,20 cc

 In the Fifties, turbine engines are a popular subject: the Année Automobile magazine dedicates its cover to these models. Dino imagines their development.

Amongst the topics, the use of air in the car dynamics and the first experiments – immediately banned – with extractor fans on the Chaparral 2J Can Am and Brabham BT46.

D on D // 137

138 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Japanese peoplE and their subtle love for collecting Japan counts quite a few collectors. The most famous at the international level is Shiro Kosaka, who occupies a significant place in the Ranking of The Key. However, there are other important ones.

Please meet Kotaro Maruyama, Katsu Kubota and Hidetomo Kimura.

by Jun Nishikawa

The Fiat Abarth Scorpione Pininfarina, one of the most beautiful specimens of Shiro Kosaka’s collection, in the vicinity of Mount Fuji, in Japan.

Japanese peoplE and their subtle love for collecting // 139

140 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

J

apanese culture transforms the passion for collecting cars into something special and intimate. To Japanese people, collecting is by no means a way to show off, but rather a joyous chance to preserve and use cars that belong to history. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. A nation with such a refined taste, and innovation in design and fashion, but also tied to its tradition, knows very well how to choose its passions. The most internationally renowned Japanese collector is Shiro Kosaka, but there are many other devotees of the cult of the car in Japan. Many don’t wish to appear, while others are very discreet about it. For the first time, The Key is going to present you with three of them: Kotaro Maruyama, Katsu Kubota and Hidetomo Kimura.

We are sure, though, that there will be a lot more pages dedicated to this fascinating country in the future.

 Hidetomo Kimura, an aquarium artist whose works present the beauty of live fish in creative contexts, is a great buff of collectible cars.

The 1953 OSCA 1500 cc Sport with American livery, as well as the splendid Maserati 3500 that belonged to Elisabeth Taylor, belong in his fantastic garage.

Between passion and work, Kimura organises the Kyoto Concours of Elegance, which is becoming one of the most sought after yearly events in the world.

Maserati, My Love A world-famous aquarium artist, Hidetomo Kimura is also the organiser of vintage car events, including the international Kyoto Concours of Elegance.

In his car collections, the two most important specimens that Hidetomo cherishes are the Maseratis that represent the GTs and racing cars: elegance and racing, these are Maserati’s pure essence.

One is the 1962 3500 GT Touring: champagne gold with metal plated details, which create a wonderful chromatic contrast. It is in perfect condition. This is the car that famous singer and actor of the 50s Eddie Fisher gave to the world-famous actress Elizabeth Taylor.

The other is an MT4 Frua Spider (# 1135) produced by OSCA in 1953. In fact, after WWII, the Maserati brothers, having sold their company to the Orsi family, were manufacturing their cars under the OSCA name (standing for Officina Specializzata Costruzione Automobili). The OSCA is one of the only two existing examples bodied by Frua. Originally, it raced in the United States and won various times with driver Bill David. This car was restored in Italy with Corrado Lopresto’s help after the 2018 Mille Miglia and, afterwards, it was exhibited at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

Japanese peoplE and their subtle love for collecting // 141

Magnificent. And Always Full Throttle Katsu Kubota, born in 1961, is the first Japanese driver to have waved the Hinomaru national flag in Monaco at the FIA Masters Historic Formula 1 Championship. In 2014, with his Lotus 72E, he beautifully conquered the highest step of the podium. Katsu always performs at the top with his F1 and Group C classic racers. No matter the value of the car he drives, it’s as if he wants to become part of its glorious racing history. With him, the challenge is always on. In fact, his 40-piece collection is mostly made of racing cars, especially Lotuses and Nissans, two brands he particularly loves. His collection of Lotus Formula One cars is impressive: he owns the 88B (twin chassis), the 91 and the 97T, plus the 72E that won in Monaco. He has a particular admiration for Ronnie Peterson, the race driver who won six times with the 72E. Katsu also owns the March 761 with which Ronnie won the Monza GP in 1976. In Katsu’s collection, there are also many Group C cars such as a Porsche 962C and five Nissans, including a R390. Just decorating is boring. That’s how Kubota lives with his historical cars: throttle always fully open.

Collection F1 Lotus 72E I (6 victories with Ronnie Peterson) Lotus 88B (twin chassis wing car that could not debut in real GP) Lotus 91 (Elio de Angelis won the last link on A1 link) Lotus 97T (de Angelis car) Match 761 (Ronnie Peterson won in Monza in 1976) Collection Formula Cars Lotus 20; Lotus 22; Lotus 51; Brabham BT 21; Layton House 90b; March 721 Collection Sports Cars Lotus 23B; Lotus 26R; Lotus 30; Lotus 47 GT; Lotus Cortina;Lotus Cortina (ex. Jacky Ickx) His collection also comprises numerous rally-specific or development or special vehicles including a Ferrari F40 and a Porsche 962C.

142 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

 Katsu Kubota, very satisfied after the roaring success obtained with one of his single seaters in the very difficult Grand Prix Historique at Montecarlo.

Katsu is constantly one of the favourite drivers, both when he uses the March M761 and when he uses one of the numerous, beautiful Lotuses in his collection.

Japanese peoplE and their subtle love for collecting // 143

144 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Everlasting Excellence

He inherited a magnificent collection, which includes, among others, the splendid Shelby Cobra chassis 2602, protagonist in the main races of the 1965 World Manufacturers Championship.

He is Kotaro Maruyama, one of the youngest Japanese collectors and custodian of a substantial heritage of automobile culture. His Moretti 750 Zagato has recently won its class at the international Kyoto Concours. 

Not surprisingly, Kotaro Maruyama owes his passion for the world of historic cars to the influence of his father, Kazuo. Born in 1976, Kotaro is one of the youngest Japanese collectors of classic automobiles. His family owns about 45 of them, including a ‘65 Iso Rivolta A3C and a ‘65 Shelby Cobra 427 competition.

But Kotaro’s favourite is the ‘65 Shelby Daytona Cobra (CSX 2602) that has a glorious past, having raced in Daytona, Sebring, Spa, Monza, Nürburgring and Le Mans in 1965. Another car that he’s particularly fond of is the ‘67 Ferrari 275GTB/4: since his father Kazuo bought it 45 years ago, when he was only 23, the car has remained in the hands of the Maruyama family.

Apparently, it was the only 275GTB/4 imported to Japan at that time. “I keep the cars I buy as long as possible,” says Kotaro, “as I love to cherish their history and their bond to my family.”

Of course, sometimes, he also takes pleasure in driving the cars in their collection.  The Main Collection: 1965 Shelby Daytona Coupe 1965 Isorivolta A3C 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB / 4 1965 Shelby Cobra 427 Competition 1965 Austin Healey Le Mans Prototype 1965 Alfa Romeo TZ 1962 Shelby King Cobra / Lang Cooper 1960 Panhard HBR 4 Le Mans Prototype 1967 Nomad MK 1 Ford 1962 Abarth Simca 1300 GT Corsa 1967 Ford Cortina MK 2 Works 1954 Moretti 750 Zagato

Japanese peoplE and their subtle love for collecting // 145

Cockpit 2019 An insightful and analytical view on the top end of the classic car market with a special focus on the top 100 global collectors and their cars.

The Cockpit section of The Key provides a detailed overview of the top end of the classic car world. This effort aims to provide analytical support to all interested parties and stakeholders in the classic car world.

Thanks to refined and new data gathered by our research team and thanks to private visits to collectors that opened their garages, we were able to substantially update the Cockpit in 2019. Compared to last year, nineteen new collectors entered the Top 100 Ranking 2019 which significantly affects the analysis

146 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

compared to the previous year and increased the combined value of the top 100 collections by 20% to US$ 10 billion. All car values in the database have been adjusted according to current market values.

The analysis of the market would not be complete without insights on the market of collectible cars sold. Hence, the Cockpit offers this year an additional section with 2018 information and analytics from the key players in the auction market.

Since our last edition of The Key, The Classic Car Trust has conducted a special international market research study to understand preferences for classic cars of older vs. younger generations. Our team has interviewed 500 people at classic car shows in London, Stuttgart, Los Angeles, Padua and Paris to receive a representative opinion on the difference in preferences for classic cars comparing younger (below 30 years old) and older (above 55) people. To our knowledge, this is the first ever global study done professionally on this topic.

A closer look at the top 100 collectors The Cockpit 2019 offers a bird‘s eye view on this market segment with analytical data from the world of the most important collectors around the globe.

100 people own cars worth 10 billion. 67% thereof are in the US

9958

60% of the top 100 collectors are American

6635

2890

UK

Italy

Hong Kong

Switzerland

Belgium Japan

Germany

Argentina

Liechtenstein

Austria

Netherlands Canada

The biggest classic car treasures of the top 100 collectors are in the US. The US collectors from our top 100 ranking own together classic car treasures worth 6.6 billion or 67% of this top end collector market niche. 2.9 billion in car values or 29% are in Europe, and only 5 % are distributed in the rest of the world.

South Africa

Thanks to our increased research efforts, and with the help of experts and collectors, we were able to add many important collections to our database; 19 of them we included in our 2019 ranking. The new collectors in our ranking are from North and South America, Europe, Asia, and South Africa.

Most of the important collections are in the United States of America.

The majority of the top 100 Collectors is 70-80 years old

6%

er ic a th So u

or N USA

57

Am

Af ric a

As ia

Eu ro pe

71

th

Am

To t

er ic a

al

305

2.9 billion top collector car values are in Europe

2890

766

694

547

401

302

88

67

25

7%

6% 7%

26%

2018

2019 62%

>70

60 - 70

28%

50 - 60

58%

29% of 10 billion in car values of the top 100 collectors in the world are in 8 different European countries. Switzerland leads the European value ranking with 7 Swiss collectors who are in the top 100 collections in the world.

40 - 50

The most important collections in the world are in the hands of people who are 70-80 years old. The have spent a life full of passion to build their collections. The 19 newcomers have changed the average age of the top 100 only minimal from 72 to 71 years. The topic of ownership succession for the most important cars in the world is an important issue for this market.

Cockpit 2019 // 147

Top 100 collectors own 4.000 cars Our top 100 collectors represent ownership of a total of 3.921 cars. 50% of them are in the US and 46% in Europe. Only 4 % or some 150 cars of these collectors are in Asia, South America and Africa.

Cars of the top 100 - where they are

1804 1964 97

31

25

Africa

Asia

Europe

North America

South America

> 200

4

Characteristics of Collectors

Age 76

72

69

5 Value 201

109

Number 87

7

0

10 10

36 50

100 Top 20

53

22 150

200

Top 21 - 50

250

300

350

Top 51 - 100

23 18 59

1 - 20

21 - 50

51 - 100

4

101 - 200

Top 100 collectors - number of cars owned

60

2019

2018

The total number of cars of the top 100 collectors increased with the 19 new collectors in the ranking by 269 cars from 3.652 to a total of 3.921 cars in 2019. The chart above shows how many cars collectors own on average and the changes in the different groups compared to 2018.

148 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

The characteristics of collectors and their cars in the Top 100 are dependent on their position in the ranking. In general, the older the collectors the greater their age of the collection. Also, the older the individual, the more valuable the collection of cars owned is. Another noteworthy aspect is the fact that the Top collectors also own some of the biggest collections in the world. Younger collectors are on average positioned lower in the ranking and own smaller collections, both in terms of value and quantity of cars owned. In the histograms above we can see the differences of age, value of collections and number of cars owned between the Top 20, Top 50 and Top 100 collectors. All values are average values.

Top 100 – Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and Porsche are the top 3 brands

Top 100 – the love for Italian brands is still strong

190

164 38

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As to n

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Ja

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M

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140

22

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43

Top 20

Top 21-50

Top 51-100

There was no surprise for us, that Ferrari tops the chart in all sub-categories of the ranking groups (Top 20, Top 21-50 and Top 51 – 100). People want to be owners of the brand that made the history of motor racing. Its “mother” Alfa Romeo comes second and in third position we see Porsche.

Top collectors own pre-war cars, followed by 50s and 60s beauties 550 500 450

There is nothing like owning a Ferrari. According to our study on the most collected brands worldwide, the”Cavallino Rampante” dominates among our Top 100 collectors. Again, Alfa Romeo comes second and Porsche comes in third position. This chart focuses on the aggregate number of cars owned by collectors for each brand, without splitting it in different the sub-categories.

400 139

350 300

176 182

102

250

123

200 150

111

38

100

54

50

d

20

00

&

be yo n

46

19

80

35

19

19

70

50

19

60

148

19

50

207

19

-4

0

254

30

20

122

19

10

00 19 pr e

82

19

75

0

90

42

50

Top 20

Top 21-50

Top 51 -100

The Top 20 collectors almost entirely own pre-war cars. The beauties from the 1950s and 60s are represented in all the subgroups of Top 20, Top 21-50 and Top 51-100. The Top 51-100 collectors tend to collect also newer cars - those from the 70s and hypercars from the 2000s.

Cockpit 2019 // 149

RM Sotheby’s is the Classic Car Auction Champion 2018 Global Auction Houses sold 2018 cars worth US$ 1.64 billion.

We had a closer look at these sales by analyzing published figures from major auction houses. We wanted to understand market shares across major global auction houses, how each auction house performed in 2018 by number and value of cars and what their position across the top 4 marques Ferrari, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and Aston Martin was in 2018.

Gooding & Co.

Market Share in the top sales segment

Barrett-Jackson

RM Sotheby's

6.00%

23.00%

H & H Classics

Russo and Steele

Dorotheum

Artcurial Motorcars

COYS

Worldwide Auctioneers

GAA Classic Cars

Bonhams

Silverstone Auctions

Mecum

Leake

46.00%

25.00%

RM Sotheby's

Bonhams

Gooding & Co.

Artcurial

Market Share of Auction Houses Market Split by Value of Cars (total sales) 5.62%

2.01% 2.41%

7.00%

3.21%

4.00%

25.48%

34.00% 12.34%

20.00%

12.94%

18.00%

17.00%

22.17%

<$100K

13.84%

$100K-$250K

$250K-$1M

$1M-$5M

$5M-$10M

$10M+

RM Sotheby's Gooding & Co

Mecum

Barrett-Jackson

Artcurial Motorcars GAA Classic Cars

150 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Bonhams

Worldwide Auctioneers Others

Cars sold below 50k account for 69% of cars sold but only 19% of total sales. Cars sold for more than 250k account for 4% of cars sold but 49% of total sales.

Monterey, 25th August 2018: history was made.

RM Sotheby’s sells the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 3413, for $ 48,405,000.

The most expensive car sold at auction.

Competition Positioning Across the Top 4 Marques

8

20 22

14

1

8

20

1

14

13

7 8 129

129

13

22

7

13

14

27

8 63

13

6

63

62

43

Bonhams Artcurial

Bonhams Mecum

Artcurial Coys

Other Coys

Mecum

2

5

1 3

2

1

5

1

34

34

8

13

Gooding

3

1

25

62

RM Sotheby's RM Sotheby's Gooding

27

6

8 25

14

RM Sotheby's RM Sotheby's Gooding Bonhams

Bonhams Mecum

Other Barrett-Jackson Barrett-Jackson Artcurial Other

Other

43

Gooding Mecum Artcurial

13

30 17

17

14

30

14

RM Sotheby's RM Sotheby's Gooding Bonhams

Bonhams Mecum

Barrett-Jackson Barrett-Jackson Artcurial Other

Other

Gooding Mecum Artcurial

Bonhams

Bonhams RM Sotheby's RM Sotheby's

Gooding

Gooding Coys

Coys

Silverstone Silverstone Mecum Other

Mecum

Other

Cockpit 2019 // 151

An unusual and fascinating view of the car most loved by collectors of all ages.

152 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Cockpit 2019 // 153

Under 30 – Over 55 The Classic Car Trust presents the first survey comparing the tastes and opinions of the younger and older age categories What follows is the outcome of the first international survey involving a significant cross-section of 500 individuals interviewed within the framework of five major international events devoted to classic car collecting: Retromobile in Paris, Retro Classic in Stuttgart, The London Classic Car Show, the LA Classic Car Show and the Auto e moto d’epoca in Padova. Devised at the behest of The Classic Car Trust, the aim of the study is to establish to what extent the older and new generations of collectors differ in their interests and focus regarding models and marques, and what this could mean for the future of collecting. The interviewees were divided into two sub-samples, each comprising 250 individuals: the first were young people up to the age of 30; and the second, people belonging to the over-55 category. The generational leap was deliberately introduced in order to understand more clearly the evolution of ideas and tastes.

The comments regarding the following graphs explain the highly enlightening nature of the results achieved. The data gathered, along with a constant flow of information from other sources, constitutes a new contribution to the heritage handled by The Classic Car Trust for its own Market Intelligence sector. Naturally this brief introduction cannot convey the true wealth of the survey. A complete picture of the results calls for careful examination of the data collected from the questionnaires and the related comments. That said, right from the outset it is clear that between the younger and the older generations there is a real difference in the perceived appeal of models and marques. This difference, however, does not apply to a select number of rare models that transcend all taste barriers attributable to age: Mercedes 300SL, Lamborghini Miura and Aston Martin DB5 are central to the dreams and desires of all generations. This is quite unlike what happens for most of the other vehicles, where deep-rooted differences reveal how interests change in relation to age. The survey also brings to light the fact that pre-war cars would seem to have lost ground. This is actually somewhat misleading, since the more cars are perceived as cultural messages – and this certainly comes across in the answers provided by the younger generation – the more the vehicles produced in the early 1900s are likely to gain in prominence and value. Moving from models to brands, Ferrari maintains its absolute leadership, along with Porsche and other names with a glorious past, such as Alfa Romeo.

Lastly, a consideration regarding the vintage auto passion among young people and the future of Classic Cars: the young are much more passionate about them than the old tend to think, and all of them – the aged and the youthful – are confident about the future role of collecting, and indeed are prepared to promote the preservation and appreciation of our four-wheel heritage, as the present-day world of collecting clearly reveals.

154 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

1

The thirty best-loved cars – It’s immediately

evident that there are two different kinds of cars: those whose appeal transcends all age barriers; and the vehicles that plainly represent the difference in tastes and perceived allure between the younger and the older generation.

The former unquestionably comprise the Mercedes 300 SL, the famous Gullwing that garners top marks even among the young, despite being a product of the 1950s. This invests the 300 SL with a symbolic role as the 20th century dream car. Something similar occurs with the Lamborghini Miura, but for the opposite reason: it comes in third among the young, which is hardly surprising since it’s a product of the late 1960s; but it also takes third place with the over-55s, which means that iconic models are hugely desirable for all ages. The same is true for the Aston Martin DB5, James Bond’s famous car, which is second among the older group and fourth among their junior counterparts.

The models belonging to the second category illustrate how preferences are distinctly age-related. The most evident case in point is the Porsche Carrera RS of the 1970s, which is a top-rater for young people and only comes in 17th among older interviewees: a delta difference of 15. The data reveals that older people prefer the Porsches of the 1950s and 1960s, underlining the correlation between appeal and memory.

The differences in tastes between the younger and older participants are also evident in the Lamborghini Countach (1974), which rates 17 notches higher among young people. Likewise with the Lancia Delta integrale of the ’90s and the BMW 2002 Turbo, both of which account for a 12-point delta. The reverse situation is equally telling: the cars that rate highest among the older generation are the Mercedes Pagoda of the 1960s, where there’s a 24-point delta with respect to what appeals to the young, and the Corvette and Jaguar E type of the 1950s, which do not elicit the same enthusiasm among the young.

Before letting the numbers speak for themselves, there are two further observations to be made: there are no Ferraris at the top of the list. For young people the 1980s Testarossa is the first to feature, but it only comes in seventh, while for older interviewees the first is the 275 GTB of the 1970s, which only rates ninth. This apparently low positioning of Ferrari is somewhat misleading however, as the answers to question 3 reveal: the many different models made by Ferrari tends to scatter preferences. Similarly revealing is the second observation, which regards the fact that pre-war cars play a marginal role in the top 30 at both ends of the age spectrum. Only the Bugatti Tipo 35 features among the first 30 cars in both sample panels, with older people choosing only 4 pre-war models in their top 30.

Top 30 favorite cars – choosen from a panel of 72 cars divided from pre-war to 1990 Under 30 Rank

Over 55 Year

Year

1

Mercedes Benz 300SL

Model

1950

1950

Mercedes Benz 300SL

Model

Rank 1

2

Porsche Carrera RS touring

1970

1960

Aston Martin DB5

2

3

Lamborghini Miura

1966

1966

Lamborghini Miura

3

4

Aston Martin DB5

1960

1950

Chevrolet Corvette

4

5

Lamborghini Countach

1987

1950

Jaguar E-Type

5

6

BMW 2002 turbo

1970

1960

Mercedes Benz Pagoda

6

7

Ferrari Testarossa

1980

1965

Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA

7

8

Ford Mustang

1950

1930

Bugatti T35

8

9

Lancia Delta integrale

1990

1960

Ferrari 275GTB

9

10

Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA

1965

1940

Jaguar XK120

10

11

Bugatti EB110

1991

1950

Ford Mustang

11

12

Jaguar E-Type

1950

1950

Maserati A6G 2000

12

13

Porsche Carrera 4

1990

1960

Porsche 356

13

14

Chevrolet Corvette

1950

1960

Porsche 356

14

15

Chevrolet Stingray 27

1960

1950

Ferrari 250GT California

15

16

Bugatti T35

1930

1960

Alpine Renault A110

16

17

Dodge Viper

1980

1970

Porsche Carrera RS Touring

17

18

Porsche 356

1960

1970

BMW 2002 turbo

18

19

Alpine Renault A110

1960

1954

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint

19

20

Lancia Stratos

1970

1930

Jaguar SS

20

21

BMW M1

1980

1990

Lancia Delta integrale

21

22

Porsche 930 turbo

1980

1981

Lamborghini Countach

22

23

BMW Z3

1990

1980

Ferrari Testarossa

23

24

Ferrari 250GT California

1950

1960

Austin Healey 3000

24

25

Peugeot 205 Turbo 16

1983

1950

BMW 507

25

26

Chevrolet Corvette

1970

1970

Ferrari Daytona

26

27

Ferrari 275GTB

1960

1938

BMW 328

27

28

Ford Mustang

1980

1960

Chevrolet Stingray 27

28

29

Maserati A6G 2000

1950

1980

Ford Mustang

29

30

Mercedes Benz Pagoda

1960

1980

Porsche 930 turbo

30

Cars choosen only by age under 30

Prefered by +55 Age over -30 Age

Cars choosen only by age over 55

Prefered by -30 Age over +55 Age Each decade has its color

Cockpit 2019 // 155

2

3

Brands to invest in – Which brands are on the rise, or represent a promising future for investment, and which are less convincing? Ferrari proves to be a top choice for older and for younger people. And so does Porsche. Mercedes, on the other hand, would seem to be less persuasive, due to the fact that only the 300SL is perceived as a recognized model of symbolic excellence. Alfa Romeo is climbing back up, followed by Aston Martin, Jaguar and Lamborghini.

answers distributed on a 1–5 point rating scale reveal that people’s reasons for loving classic cars are different: for young people, classic cars bear witness to a cultural heritage to discover and preserve; for older people, they represent memories, the pleasures of driving and taking part in events.

Other brands elicit different reactions in relation to age. Bugatti and Maserati are part of the top ten for older people, while Ford (USA models) and BMW feature among the top ten for young people.

This being the case, the data provides clear answers for each question: For the over 55s, classic cars represent first and foremost memories of youth (69%), along with the pleasure of driving real cars without all the automatic devices of today’s vehicles (44%), and the chance to have fun at events and rallies (27%).

All agree that Fiat is unlikely to become a must for collectors – despite the magnificent 8V. Young people do not have much time for French commercial brands either, while their older counterparts are disinclined to include American models and Rolls Royce. Even Ferrari comes in for some criticism, given the steep acceleration of market prices and the auctions for models manufactured in considerable numbers.

38% 33%

What’s behind the passion – As a whole, the

Other positive considerations embrace the cultural dimension with its style and technical content, and the focus on years perceived as different from the present.

For the under 30s, the values are inverted: first and foremost classic cars bear witness to the evolution of technology and style (42%), speaking for what are perceived as happier years (17%). The pleasure of driving real cars takes second place. Moreover, for young people ownership of a non-contemporary car is seen as a way of being different, of getting out of the mainstream (23%).

36% 24% 24%

21%

20%

18%

17%

17%

32% 22.5% 30% 26% 27%

Built to last longer

11% 17%

15% 27%

Pleasure of maintenance

0% 0%

27% 23%

Symbol of variety of design and manufacturing

16% 0%

19% 22%

Opportunity to have fun

11%

156 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

44%

Investment

0%

Under 30

33%

Standing out from the crowd

17%

15

38 17%

Real driving pleasure because of less automatism

19% 14%

10

42% 38%

Testimony of different eras

17%

5

69%

Symbol of evolution of style & taste

18%

0

30%

Childhood memory

17%

20

25 Over 55

30

35

40

45

0

27% 10

20

Under 30

30

40

Over 55

50

60

70

80

5

Evident correlation between age of interviewees and age of preferred models –

Analysis of the average duration of manufacture of the cars chosen by both age categories reveals that young people definitely prefer more recent cars. The average age of the first ten cars they chose is 15 years lower than that of the cars chosen by the over-55s.

This value contracts when the field is expanded: with 20 cars, the age drops to 13 years; and with 30, it slides down to 11. Further analysis of the data collected illustrates other aspects of the correlation between age and vehicle type, thereby explaining the growing interest for what are now called Young Timers.

1968 1953

1953

1966

1967

Top 30

The question of whether or not such vehicles can continue to be driven does not seem to be a particular worry. Likewise few think there is a real possibility that classic cars will be penalized because they pollute the air, or are considered too dangerous, or because there will be no fuel left to run them on. By the same token, the prospect of classic cars being exclusively relegated to museums is also seen as unlikely. Clearly most of those involved harbor the secret hope that the feared restrictive measures will never come into being. After all, for the younger generation, classic cars are considered status symbols and style icons.

Top 10

as these, when the entire automobile world is undergoing profound changes, it is not easy to predict the future for classic cars. This emerges clearly from the replies to a range of today’s topical questions, and it’s interesting to note that the answers provided by both generations coincide. Age is thus not decisive in appraisal of the future of car collecting. All are convinced of the role of classic cars in preserving a historic heritage and the way collecting expresses a true passion for automobiles. Another common consideration is the fact that the more cars become self-driving, the greater the appeal of driving the “real” cars of yesteryear will be. Moreover, everyone agrees that the value of classic cars is bound to increase.

Top 20

4

Optimists or pessimists? – In moments such

1958 1945

1950

1955 Under 30

In conclusion, the answers reveal that classic car enthusiasts are optimistic about the future, and are prepared to engage in the defense of a heritage that transcends measures that come in the wake of technological evolution and worries regarding the environment and safety.

Under 30 Over 55 Cars will be more difficult to use

3.2

3.3

The owner will be valued as a preserver of a piece of history

4.2

4.2

The more autonomous cars, the more people will love classic cars

3.8

3.8

There will be no more gasoline in the future

2.5

2.4

Classic cars will be testimony of the real passion for cars

4.3

4.5

They’ll be only in museums

2.1

2.1

They will be no more accepted because of pollution

2.7

2.5

Their value will grow up

4.4

4.2

They will be considered dangerous

2.3

2.2

They will be a status symbol

3.6

3.3

They will become icons for new generations

3.6

3.5

6

1960

1965

1970

1975

Over 55

Young people love them – The question

aimed at ascertaining whether or not young people really do love classic cars reveals to what extent fashionable stereotypes and convictions are out of line with reality: in percentage, the young people interviewed did not hesitate to affirm their passion for such vehicles, establishing a rating of 67%. Although their older counterparts were strangely less confident, they still came up with 54%. So ultimately it would not appear to be true that young people are indifferent to the subject of classic cars, but rather that they need to be involved first hand in events that tie in with their expectations and language.

Clearly the idiom changes from one generation to the next, while the underlying desires and dreams remain as solid and lively as ever.

6.5

5.4

Under 30

Over 55

Cockpit 2019 // 157

Art and cars can live together: the world-class Greek and Roman collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Image © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

158 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

The collectors who foresaw the future A very quick view into the history of auto collecting

by Donald Osborne

The collectors who foresaw the future // 159

Why care about the roots of auto collecting?

I

consider us all very fortunate at this point in time. Since you are holding this publication in your hands, you are clearly someone, like myself, who has an enthusiasm – no, a passion – for motor vehicles. Please understand that this article can, and will, only scratch the surface of this topic. How did automotive collecting begin, by whom was it started and how has it evolved?

We are fortunate because not very many years ago a handful of astoundingly prescient people decided that something most saw as a useful tool at best was deserving of preservation, and indeed, veneration. The best of these pioneers also had a discerning eye, and the passage of time has shown that while they may not have had today’s criteria in mind, they did choose amazingly well. So how can the roots of automobile collecting show us anything about why and how we collect today? It can sometimes be tempting to see long-term trends or meaningful patterns in looking at the past 20 years in the collector-car market. And, by “collector car,” I mean all types of motor vehicles.

Human nature seeks answers and understanding through analysis – the more rapidly, the better, at times. A look at the proliferation of financial news is a good example: across the world, hundreds, if not thousands, of “experts” provide on-the-spot explanations as to why millions of people and institutions have made billions of transactions in equities, bonds and commodities. That the answers might be so readily available to these chosen few begs the question, “If they knew, why didn’t they make the deals earlier and retire as billionaires before midday?” But, that’s not really my point. What I seek to explore here is something more basic – the nature of collecting and how the fundamental aspects of the activity in the collector-car arena defy many attempts to clearly analyze it.

A very young endeavor Key to the challenge is the fact that car collecting as we know and understand it is quite young. Accepting that the first “motor car” 160 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

was the 1886 Benz Patent Motorwagen, it was not until after the end of World War II, 60 years later, that a more widely recognized habit of looking to assemble meaningful numbers of obsolete working vehicles began. Compare this with the lengthy history of collecting fine art which dates back to the Roman Empire when leading citizens proved their erudition and cemented their social standing by collecting items of antique Greek art. Noted Rutgers University history professor James Delbourgo, PhD, writing a review in The Atlantic of Erin Thompson’s book, Possession, states: “Collectors have long been pegged as creatures of passion if not perversion...”

Delbourgo speaks of both the Roman love for Greek art and of the next major wave of collecting frenzy: the 18th-century British, and later 19th- and 20th-century Americans, on their “Grand Tour,” in which they were compelled to acquire great swathes of classical paintings, sculpture and antique furniture to improve the artistic quality of their lives. It took a very particular type of passion to reach the conclusion that a tool was worthy of rescue and indeed of veneration. Of course, collectors of art have always been known to seek out objects created by past masters as well as to acquire and live with those created by their contemporaries.

The gathering of contemporary vehicles for reasons other than their intended utility, however, will not be an important part of this story – but does play a part.

The dawn of collecting pioneers The first “collections” of motor vehicles most often arose in the stables, garages and warehouses of the wealthy families who were the first customers for automobile manufacturers. From the invention and first marketing of the motor vehicle, it was an expensive and exotic plaything. As such, the owners of the early automobile consider selling one when a newer, more powerful, more comfortable and more advanced model was created. With no need for cash to purchase another, the unused car most often found itself parked in storage, under a sheet to protect it from dust.

Thus, up until World War I and sometimes beyond, it was not terribly unusual to find that

George Waterman, Jr., and Kirk Gibson, Sr., sitting in his deDion car.

a family had retained all the cars they had purchased. This was a boon for one particular pair of gentlemen who are largely recognized as among the first, if not the first to actively seek out obsolete vehicles for the purpose of preservation, study and display. They were George Waterman, Jr., and Kirk Gibson, Sr. In the 1920s, these friends had begun to seek out examples of old vehicles they felt deserved to be saved from the oblivion to which they had been relegated as no longer useful. For them, the products of the dawn of motoring, immediately before and after the turn of the 20th century, were worthy of preservation.

As few others shared their thoughts – their method of hunting down their prey was remarkable in both its simplicity and effectiveness. They printed a postcard, which they left in rural and suburban locations mostly in the New England region of the United States, which seemed to be a likely place to be hiding unused motor vehicles. Their success rate was astonishing. Together the partners, co-founders of the Veteran Motor Car Club of America, found and saved remarkable cars.

Among their treasures caught was the 1866 Dudgeon Steam Wagon, one of the earliest self-propelled vehicles built in the United States. Another was a 1907 Renault Racing Roadster, one of ten ordered by William K. Vanderbilt and one of the few survivors. It was purchased in 1928 by Gibson and remained in his family for 89 years. Evidence that Waterman especially had a discerning eye can be seen in his ownership as well of an 1896

Duryea, a 1908 Benz, a 191 Fiat Tipo S-74, a 1904 Napier and a 1908 Isotta-Fraschini. Gibson and Waterman had great success in their searches and at one point in the 1930s, according to an interview given in 2014 by Kirk Gibson III, had over 100 cars packed into an empty auto showroom in Boston, Massachusetts.

Collecting enters a new phase While it wasn’t until the late 1940s when auto collecting came into its own, there was a surprising amount of activity in the decades before World War II. In the USA, one name stands out above several others. D. Cameron Peck was born in 1912 in Chicago, Illinois. Peck was a voracious collector who, through the years until the time of his death in 1990, is said to have owned more than 1,500 cars from some of the earliest to contemporary examples. He began collecting in the 1930s, starting with a 1908 International Truck that had been abandoned behind a gasoline station. By 1947, Peck had a collection of well over 100 cars displayed in a former new car showroom in Illinois. The attached service area became a restoration shop. By the time he had his first big collection sell-off, prompted by health issues, in 1952, his staff estimated that more than 600 cars had passed through his hands from 1936 until then.

Among the buyers at that historic auction sale were a number of other now very well known early collectors. They included noted American

The magnificent 1930 Rolls Royce owned by Cameron Peck.

operatic tenor James Melton, Henry Austin Clark, Jr., and legendary sportsman Briggs Cunningham. All three would amass collections that still, to this day, inspire enthusiasts for both their breadth and quality. It is interesting to note that Henry Austin Clark, Jr., was a wealthy heir who spent his time indulging in his twin passions of cars and music, specifically jazz. His first antique car was a Ford Model T that he bought when he was 11 years old. Like his fellow American collector James Melton, Clark opened a museum to allow the public to become more familiar with antique cars – once his collection had grown too large to be housed at his own home. When his Long Island Automotive Museum opened in Southampton, New York, outside of New York City in 1948, it contained approximately 50 vehicles, from the late 19th century through

Henry Austin Clark and his friends in front of the Long Island Automotive Museum.

 An old advertisement of the Long Island Automotive Museum.

the 1930s. In addition to cars, it also included trucks, buses and vintage fire vehicles. As Clark also enjoyed using the vehicles on tours, they were all kept in running condition.

Unlike Waterman and Gibson in the 1920s, who could count on finding antiques that were more or less complete, many of the cars Clark bought had to be rescued from salvage yards. It was fairly easy for Clark to find mechanics who could work on the cars as many were not yet that old.

However, most repairs and maintenance were done by habit in the manner in which a vehicle might have been serviced when new – not with an eye for “pure” originality when an “improvement” might be perceived as better in order to make a car easier to use or more reliable. The same year as the Long Island museum was opened, James Melton was also launching a 20,000,sq ft. museum in nearby Norwalk, Connecticut, to showcase his collection of antique and modern cars to the public. The collection was an eclectic one, ranging from a 1910 Locomobile to one of the infamous Docker Daimlers – the 1949 Green Goddess. Once again, some very important cars were to be found within the crowd of vehicles, including the 1911 Mercedes driven by Ralph DePalma in that year’s Vanderbilt Cup race.

Only a few years later, in 1953, Melton decided to move his collection to larger and more glamorous quarters in Hypoluxo, Florida, near The collectors who foresaw the future // 161

James Melton in his Locomobile.

Palm Beach. Called “Melton’s Autorama” it opened with a flourish – many of the museum’s cars were driven down from Connecticut to Florida, creating a moving show on the route. The displays were designed to show the cars in period settings and the museum became a major tourist attraction for a time.

But, with no plans made for its support, the museum was forced to close in 1961 after Melton died.

Henry Austin Clark Jr.’s museum lasted rather longer, but the costs and falling attendance had forced the sale of several hundred cars from the collection. It finally closed in 1980. It was clear that a different level of both strategic planning and financing would be necessary to sustain such enterprises.

The 1914 Dodge Model 30 Touring from the Louwman Collection.

An international affair Of course, activity to secure the future of the past was not just a phenomenon occurring in the United States. In 1934, Pieter Louwman, the importer of Dodge automobiles for The Netherlands, bought a 1914 Dodge for display in his new car showroom. It was the start of what would become the impressive and beautifully curated Louwman Museum collection – but that could hardly have been imagined at the time.

Pieter Louwman’s motivation was driven by a desire to save the interesting older cars that his customers brought in as trades for new cars. Few would have thought that their “used” vehicles would have much interest

to anyone other than the scrap man. But Louwman had a different view. Sharing his collection with the public was always an important part of why he collected, but it was usually either a few old models related to the marque he sold, or as the collection grew larger through acquisitions it became open to visitors by arrangement. In Italy, the home to the birth of collecting, it’s rather more difficult to find traces of activity in the 1920s and ‘30s.

It is likely because the nation had lower per capita automobile ownership than the USA or Britain and because there was less pressure to scrap cars that were past their useful life. However, one of the major collections in Italy traces its roots back to the 1940s. Mario Righini is one

Mario Righini, next to his Alfa Romeo 8C once raced by Tazio Nuvolari and the Alfa Romeo 6C Villa d’Este.

of the last of the old-time collectors. His father began to build a collection from among the more interesting and sometimes important cars that were brought to their family demolition yard near Modena by the Italian government for scrapping after their registrations were cancelled. With a keen eye for beauty and historical importance, the Righinis tucked the best of the cars into buildings in their 15th-century castle to preserve for the future.

After a period, Mario began to seek out other cars of the types they were being brought and were able to acquire some of the most important Italian cars built – examples of all the nation’s marques. Many cars, now desirable as collectors’ items, were purchased new in the 1970s and ‘80s by Righini. In the fashion of the pioneers, the collection is open

162 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

by reservation only and visitors experience the vehicles in a presentation that owes more to a storage aesthetic than to a display one.

But this in no way implies that the collection is not maintained and valued and gives it a particular historic charm. In France of course the Schlumpf brothers must be included in any list of pioneering collectors.

They began their acquisitions much later than the others here, starting in the late 1950s. Fritz and Hans Schlumpf were Swiss nationals who owned textile mills in Alsace, France. Inspired by the activities of Bugatti in the region, they began their collection around 1960 with the purchase of ten Bugattis, along with a handful of other cars. Entranced by the Bugattis, they then performed a variation on the Waterman & Gibson shopping card and sent a letter to every owner listed in the 1962 Bugatti Registry, offering to buy every car they owned. As a result of the letters it is said they were able to buy 50 additional cars.

Still on the hunt, they managed to do a deal in 1964 with an American businessman in the Midwest, who had a collection of 30 Bugattis, to buy them all. John Shakespeare was very much a collector in the old manner. Somewhat of a hoarder and a tinkerer, many of his cars were parked fender to fender in warehouse buildings, many partially disassembled for repairs. The Schlumpfs never finished restoring all the cars they had bought from Shakespeare by the time they escaped Alsace and returned to Switzerland to avoid prose-

Schlumpf Museum 1930 Bugatti T41-Coupe Napoleon.

cution for misappropriation of business funds connected to the liquidation and closing of some mills while they were buying cars for their collection. For the brothers, it was about the acquisition and display of the vehicles, not sharing or using them as the primary goal.

A not-so-missing link Perhaps the bridge between the collectors of the 1920s through the ‘50s and those of the early 21st century might be Bill Harrah, a casino magnate from Reno, Nevada. William F. Harrah, universally known as “Bill,” is arguably the first example of the exercise of modern standards of collecting, while still rooted in the methodology of the pioneers. Harrah set out in 1969 to build the largest collection possible;

Bill Harrah

some have said he wanted to own one of every car made. Whether that was true or not, he did end up with an immense group of cars – somewhere between 1,400 and 1,800 at the time of his death at 68 years old in 1978. Once

Cars from the Harrah Collection.

again, his collection had – in common with the pioneers – a wide range of vehicles, including a 1892 Philion steam car, Frank Sinatra’s 1961 Ghia L6.4, a 1901 De Dion-Bouton, a Tucker 48, the 1938 Phantom Corsair and the Bugatti Type 41 Royale Coupé de Ville Binder. However, unlike them, he was the first to combine an in-house maintenance and restoration staff, tasked with research and study, to confirm that the cars were being maintained in a manner to preserve originality or restored to correct standards. Of course, the level of both of these have progressed tremendously in the decades since the Harrah Collection was disbanded at auction in the 1980s.

Nevertheless, the Harrah Collection set a pattern that is now required in collecting around the world. The combination of those standards and the keen and discerning eye of the pioneer collectors are what add market value to the association of a vehicle with a particular collection. Simply amassing a certain number of cars in a group of garages, barns, warehouses or even a showroom or museum under a single name does not guarantee a lift in the long-term market value of a vehicle. However, even today, cars that have the provenance of having been in the collections mentioned in this story still have an added appeal – having caught the eye of a connoisseur when no one else seemed to notice it existed.

NOTE: The author, Donald Osborne, is working on his second book, the subject of which is the history of the rise of automobile collecting – the personalities and the prizes.  The collectors who foresaw the future // 163

Secrets arou

Every private or public museum hides interesting and rare museum, we’ve provided contacts to organize your visit

by Massimo Delbo

38 - Louwman Museum

42 - British Motor Museum 43 - Brooklands 44 - Coventry transport museum 45 - Haynes International Motor Museum 46 - National Motor Museum

07 - Cité de l’Automobile, Musée National de l’Automobile, Collection Schlumpf 08 - Conservatoire Citroën 09 - Musée de l’Aventure Peugeot 10 - Musèe du 24 Heures du Mans 11 - Reims Automobile Museum

03 - Canadian Automotive Museum

37 - The Cars Collection of H.S.H. the Prince of Monaco

47 - America Packard Museum 48 - America’s Car Museum 49 - Antique Automobile Club of America Museum 50 - GM Heritage Centre 51 - Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum 52 - Lane Motor Museum 53 - Larz Anderson Motor Museum 54 - Le May Family Collection at Marimount 55 - Mullin Automotive Museum 56 - National Automobile Museum 57 - National Corvette Museum 58 - Penske Racing Museum 59 - Petersen Automotive Museum 60 - Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum 61 - The Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow museum 62 - The Henry Ford Museum 63 - The Nethercutt Collection 64 - The Revs Institute 65 - Toyota Experience Centre 66 - Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum 164 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

22 - Collezione Umberto Panini 23 - Dallara Accademy 24 - Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari 25 - Museo Ferrari 26 - Museo Ferruccio Lamborghini 27 - Museo Lamborghini 28 - Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile 29 - Museo Nicolis 30 - Museo Storico Alfa Romeo 31 - Parco e Museo del volo di Volandia

01

- Museo Juan-Manuel Fangio

nd the world

cars. We’ve uncovered many all around the world. For each

Skoda Museum - 06

Audi Museum Mobile -

Automuseum Dr. Karl Benz -

BMW Museum -

Mercedes-Benz Museum -

Museum for Historical Maybach Vehicle - Porsche Museum -

Technik Museum Sinsheim -

Saab Museum -

Volvo Museum -

39 40

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

32 - Motor Car Museum of Japan 33 - Nissan Heritage 34 - Toyota Automobile Museum

RR Museum -

02

The National Car Museum of Iran -

20

Beijing Auto Museum -

Heritage Motor Museum -

Kuwait Car Museum -

Shanghai Auto Museum -

19

35

The Open Museum Tefen -

21

04 05

Malta Classic Cars Collection -

The Swiss Museum of Transport -

41

36

Secrets around the world // 165

Cité de l’Automobile, Musée National de l’Automobile, Collection Schlumpf, Mulhouse, France

Argentina 1 Museo Juan-Manuel Fangio - Dedicated to the 5-times Formula 1 world champion. Spread out over six floors with different themes. Of note, the racing cars driven by Fangio during his Formula 1 career, including the Maserati 250F and two Mercedes W196 - a faired model and an open wheel one.

Balcarce (BA) www.museofangio.com

Austria 2 Rolls-Royce Museum - Privately owned, with some 60 cars on display on a semi-permanent rotation basis. Among those visited, this is the largest collection of Rolls-Royce automobiles in the world. Highlights include a reconstruction of Royce’s Cooke St factory in Manchester and a hall of fame showcasing vintage rollers that once belonged to the likes of Queen Elizabeth, Franco and George V. Stay for tea in the ever-so-British rosewood tearoom.

Dornbirn www.rolls-royce-automobilmuseum.at

Canada 3 Canadian Automotive Museum - A collection of about 60 cars with particular attention to cars produced in Canada. Two iconic cars: an Alfa Romeo 1750 Gran Sport Zagato of 1931 and the Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost of 1912 that belonged to Lady Eaton.

Oshawa (ON) www.canadianautomotivemuseum.com

China 4 Beijing Auto Museum - It has about 80 vintage cars on display, produced both in China and abroad. One of the most interesting cars is the first model, the CA58 by Hongqi “Red Flag” from 1978, destined to become the preferred model of party leaders. There are 3 main thematic areas: Innovation, Development, Future.

Beijing www.automuseum.bjft.gov.cn 166 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

5 Shanghai Auto Museum - With about 70 cars on display, as well as international historical models from different periods, this museum showcases Chinese cars, offering a comparison with the current automotive development of this rapidly growing country.

Anting (Shanghai) www.shautomuseum.gov.en

Czech Republic 6 Skoda Museum - Skoda showcases more than a century of its history in this beautifully renovated museum. Over 100 years and 340 cars displayed in rotation in 3 main areas: evolution, from bicycles and motor-cycles to cars, complete with current restorations on full display.

Mlada Boleslav

www.museum.skoda-auto.com

France 7 Cité de l’Automobile, Musée National de l’Automobile, Collection Schlumpf Home to the world’s largest Bugatti collection, including 2 Bugatti Royales and a replica of a third. Also on display are numerous important cars of other brands such as the Mercedes Kompressor and the W125 Grand Prix of 1937, the Maserati 250F, and the Lotus 33 of 1963 and 1923.

Mulhouse www.citedelautomobile.com 8 Conservatoire Citroën - This collection encompasses more than 400 cars, and is the most important in the world, all in perfect condition. The cars are divided by decade (from 1919 to 2000) and also by theme: Sport, Adventure, Compact, Concept cars and Prototypes, Special Vehicles.

Aulnay-sous-Bois www.laventurepeugeotcitroends.fr 9 Musée de l’Aventure Peugeot - A collection of all the industrial adventures of the Peugeot family. It allows us to learn the history of the development of cars in general, as Peugeot is the world’s second-oldest car manufacturer. The space dedicated to racing

cars is beautiful and includes ones that set speed records, the 205 Grand Raids of the 80s and the Sports cars of the 2000s.

Sochaux www.museepeugeot.com 10 Musèe du 24 Heures du Mans - Founded in 1961 and fully renovated in the early 1990s, it hosts 120 racing cars, allowing visitors to follow the evolution of racing cars throughout history. Many of the cars on display have participated in the classic French race.

Le Mans www.lemans-musee24h.com 11 Reims Automobile Museum - It houses the collection of the designer Philippe Charbonneaux and showcases 230 mainly French cars - many of them from the pre-war era. It gives the opportunity to discover little-known manufacturers that are no longer in business.

The oldest car of the collection is the very rare SCAR Torpedo of 1908, but there are also: De Dion-Bouton, Delage, Delahaye, Panhard, Amilcar, CIME and Chenard-Walcker.

Reims www.musee-automobile-reims champagne.com

Germany 12 Audi Museum Mobile - The opportunity to discover how very different brands gave rise to AUDI. The museum is divided into 4 areas, DKW, NSU, Horch, and Auto Union (that includes some Grand Prix models), which converge into the common Audi area.

There are also important race models and prototypes, such as the 1991 Avus.

Ingolstadt www.audi-museum-mobile.com

14 BMW Museum - BMW Welt is located in the immediate vicinity of the main BMW factory. BMW Welt is a place full of stories in a place full of history. 120 cars and motorcycles that have characterized the history of BMW. Production and racing cars are showcased along with the magnificent cars painted by famous modern and contemporary artists of the art-car collection on rotation.

Munich www.bmw-welt.com

15 Mercedes-Benz Museum - The monumental Mercedes-Benz Museum tells the story of the automobile, from 1896, when Benz patented the Patent Motorwagen. The exhibit is housed in a crossed DNA shape building that intertwines exhibits in chronological order with those based on themes, allowing visitors to have a double visit. Do not miss the magnificent Motorpsort and 30s sections that will take your breath away.

Stuttgart www.mercedes-benz.com/museum 16 Museum for Historical Maybach Vehicle Opened in 2009, it is dedicated to cars produced by the engineer, Maybach. It showcases 20 of the 160 Maybachs surveyed worldwide. It allows you to follow the stylistic and mechanical evolution of Maybach cars, produced from 1921 to 1941.

Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz www.automuseum-maybach.de

17 Porsche Museum - A spectacular architecture that allows you to visit the entire history and the Porsche models including the 917 and 962 - winners of the great endurance races on different levels without noticing it. The “upside down” 962 is spectacular and illustrates just how important aerodynamic load at high speed is.

Zuffenhausen (Stuttgart) www.porsche.com/museum

18 Technik Museum Sinsheim - The Sinsheim Technik Museum wows visitors with the number and quality of cars on display: 16 Mercedes Kompressors, one of the largest Maybach collections in the world, and one of the largest American car collections in Europe. Also, there is a large space dedicated to planes including a retired Concorde.

Sinsheim www.sinsheim.technik-museum.de

India 19 Heritage Motor Museum - Indian transport Museum, tells the development of transportation means in India. There are 75 cars on display, not only locally produced, including the 1951 Hudson Hornet 4-door Sedan. A dedicated section describes the use of cars in Bollywood films.

Gurgaon (Haryana) www.heritagetransportmuseum.org

BMW Museum, Munich, Germany

13 Automuseum Dr. Karl Benz - Founded in 1984, it is inside one of the buildings used in 1908 by C. Benz & Sohne to produce cars. A blast from the past that showcases a cross-section of the history of Benz and Daimler, in the years before and immediately following the merger. Among the cars on permanent display, a Benz from 1898.

Ladenburg www.automuseum-ladenburg.de Secrets around the world // 167

Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari, Modena, Italy

Iran 20 The National Car Museum of Iran One of the most incredible and least known museums in the world. It includes the collection of about 50 cars of the Shah of Persia that remained in Iran after the Islamic regime took power. The display includes the complete series of Rolls-Royce Phantoms, the Lamborghini Countach, with just over 1,000 kilometers on the clock, donated to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi by her aunt when she got her license! The Mercedes 540K Autobahn-kurier that is one of just 2 ever produced and that today is unfortunately equipped with a V8 engine of US origin.

Karaj www.sadmu.ir/detail/925

Israel 21 The Open Museum Tefen - About 40 cars belonging to largest Israeli private collection are on display, including a ’67 Dodge Charger 383, a Lancia Delta Integrale, and a Porsche 928. The large space dedicated to Israeli production is interesting and presents the story of the Sussita Sport, of which only a few hundred models were produced in the mid-60s.

Tefen www.omuseum.org.il 168 // TOP OF THE CLASSIC CAR WORLD

Italy 22 Collezione Umberto Panini - It could be called the Maserati Museum because it showcases some of the most historically important road and racing cars of the Modenese manufacturer.

These include the A6GCS/53 Berlinetta Pinin Farina and the A6C/34 driven by Tazio Nuvolari. The 420M Eldorado used by Stirling Moss in the 500 KM of Monza of 1958 is truly exceptional.

Modena www.paninimotormuseum.it 23 Dallara Accademy - It showcases the most important cars in the life of the engineer Giampaolo Dallara, the man who has won the most car competitions to date. In addition to single-seaters, the museum also offers the Fiat X1/9 Dallara, the Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo, world endurance champion in 1980 and 1981, and the Lamborghini Miura P400 #3165 from 1967 that Gian Paolo Dallara designed in 1966 and was a gift for his 80th birthday.

Varano de Melegari (Pc) www.dallara.it 24 Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari - A unique location that combines the birthplace of Enzo Ferrari, the adjacent workshop that belonged to his father and a building of great architecture inspired by the hoods of the racing cars of

the 1950s. In the workshops the Ferrari engine museum is a must-see. In the pavilion, in addition to cars, an exciting movie on Enzo’s life is projected on the big screen.

Modena www.museomodena.ferrari.com 25 Museo Ferrari - Located between the most famous factory in the world and the Fiorano track, it always offers interesting thematic exhibitions featuring the most unique cars, owned by collectors. The amphitheater dedicated to the main single-seaters in the history of the Cavallino is a must-see.

Modena www.museomodena.ferrari.com 26 Museo Ferruccio Lamborghini - The story of the founder of Lamborghini, from the production of tractors to supercars, as seen by the Lamborghini family who owns the museum. In addition to tractors and cars belonging to Ferruccio, here you may find interesting materials and documents in addition to the famous helicopter which Ferruccio so badly wanted but was never manufactured.

Cento (Fe) www.museolamborghini.com 27 Museo Lamborghini - The history of Lamborghini, from its beginnings to the present,

30 Museo Storico Alfa Romeo - The entire history of Alfa Romeo with the complete series of Alfa 33 road prototypes, the 2 and 3-liter 33 models and the 159 Alfetta single-seater that won the first two Formula 1 championships driven by Nino Farina and Manuel Fangio among other jewels. and then the pre-war RL and RS in addition to the legendary compressor model.

through its most significant cars. In fact, Lamborghini showcases the entire collection of its models. this gives completeness to a museum that is not big but perfect to understand what the Lamborghini phenomenon actually is.

Sant’Agata Bolognese (Bo) www.lamborghini.com/museum 28 Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile Many models, not only Italian. The Peugeot Type 3 from 1892, the first car on the streets of Italy, the Itala used by count Scipione Borghese to win the Beijing-Paris race in 1907 and the splendid Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR nr.8, the most original and fully-preserved example in the world, should be on our must-see list. Due to the breadth and richness of the themes, the visit requires at least two hours.

Torino www.museoauto.it

Arese (MI) www.museoalfaromeo.com

31 Parco e Museo del volo di Volandia Located inside the historic Caproni factory, this museum showcases the Bertone collection, created by Nuccio Bertone and once exhibited inside the Bertone factories. It features the Lamborghini Miura S and the Lancia Stratos, as well as dozens of style prototypes, including Lamborghini Genesis, Ferrari 308 GT4 Rainbow, BMW Birusa, and Porsche Karisma.

Somma Lombardo (Va) www.volandia.it

Japan 32 Motor Car Museum of Japan - Discover the world of Japanese cars: there are over 500 cars on display, mostly Japanese including commercial vehicles. An interesting mix of special and everyday cars. Among the non-Japanese vehicles on display, the 1989 Rolls-Royce Silver Spur II, used

by Lady Diana during her official visit to Japan.

Komatsu City (Ishikawa) www.mmj-car.com

33 Nissan Heritage - The heritage section of the Japanese car company, with more than 450 cars from the 30s, including the Datsun, Prince and Nissan brands. On display are one of the rare Datsun Fairlady Z 432 models with a Skyline GT-R engine, and the one-off Nissan R390 GTL, in road version, designed to be taken to the le Mans race.

Oppama (Yokohama) www.nissan-global.com/EN/Heritage

34 Toyota Automobile Museum - Unexpectedly, but with a message of great vision, it presents the history of the car through 140 vehicles, from the whole world. There are not very many Toyota cars displayed in the three floors, yet the museum is home to some magnificent pieces such as the 1894 Benz Velo, the 1938 Bugatti Atalante 57C and the 1930 Alfa Romeo 1750 GS. Nagakute City (Aichi) www.toyota.co.jp/Museum/english

Kuwait 35 Kuwait Historical Car Museum - 4 thematic areas: Sedans used by the government of Kuwait; Sedans used by other States or royalty; Aston Martin cars used in the James Bond movies; historically important cars.

Among the latter, the one-cylinder Minerva A from 1904, the first car to be used on the streets of Kuwait.

Shuwaich www.kuwaitcarmuseum.com.kw

Kuwait Historical Car Museum, Shuwaich, Kuwait

29 Museo Nicolis - A fantastic keepsake of the collector Luciano Nicolis that is perfectly managed by his daughter Silvia. Over 100 cars on display. You cannot miss the Lancia Astura MM Colli from 1938, three pre-war Alfa Romeos (RL, RM, and 6C 1750 GTC), a Benz 8/20 PS from 1914 and a Maserati A6 1500 from 1947, the second model ever built, with Pinin Farina bodywork.

Villafranca di Verona (Vr) www.museonicolis.com Secrets around the world // 169

Malta 36 Malta Classic Cars Collection - 40 cars on permanent display, produced mainly between the 40s and the 60s. Most of the sports or open cars are made by Italian and English manufacturers, with notable exceptions for American and German cars.

Qawran www.classiccarsmalta.com

Monaco 37 The Cars Collection of H.S.H. the Prince of Monaco - The Museum of the Ranieri princes, showcasing about a hundred cars, many of which belonged to the Family including RollsRoyce and Hispano-Suiza. You cannot miss the De Dion Bouton of 1903 and many cars that have participated in the Monte-Carlo rally or Grand Prix. Among these, the 1989 Ferrari F1.

Monaco www.mtcc.mc

Netherlands 38 Louwman Museum - It is the testimony of the passion of its creator, Evert Louwman. Magnificent racing cars such as the Fiat 8V “Démon Rouge”, the Aston Martin DB3 S and a series of 6 and 8-cylinder Mercedes-Benz Kompressor, and pre-war Alfa Romeos. It also showcases the largest collection of Spyker cars and largest collection of toyota cars in Europe including the 1938 aa, which

Louwman Museum, The Hague, Netherlands

is considered the only only to have survived.

Den Haag www.louwmanmuseum.nl

Sweden 39 Saab Museum - The Saab Museum showcases the development and history of Saab cars, starting from 1947, with the presentation of the first prototype of what would later become the SaaB 92 which entered production in 1949. Followed by the 93, 99, and 900 models up to the 9000 series.

Trollhattan www.saabcarmuseum.se 40 Volvo Museum - The Volvo Museum tells the whole story of Volvo cars, Penta trucks, construction equipment, and marine engines.

The oldest car is an ÖV 4 from 1927.

Gothenburg www.volvomuseum.com

Switzerland 41 The Swiss Museum of Transport - This museum takes a fascinating, interactive look at the development of transport and mobility on the road. On display, there are more than 3,000 objects, simulators, multimedia shows and interactive exhibits occupying an area that is 20,000m2 in size. In the automotive section, classic cars from international collections are shown in rotating exhibitions that

change twice a year. Opened in 1959, it is now the most-visited museum in Switzerland.

Lucerne www.verkehrshaus.ch

United Kingdom 42 British Motor Museum - Dedicated to the history of English cars, it has 5 main areas.

Time Road; Design&Concept with the most famous car prototypes; Sports Cars including Mclaren and Aston-Martin; Jaguar (including the Le Mans winning XJR9); Land Rover including the first Range Rover ever produced, and the one that crossed the Dairen Gap. Gaydon (Warwickshire) www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk 43 Brooklands - Built in the space of what was once the first racetrack, the Brooklands museum is located, in perfect English style, in the old garages. You cannot miss some of the cars that have contributed towards creating the legend of Brooklands, its races and drivers. Among them, the Sunbeam 1000 HP and the 24-liter Napier Railton.

Weybridge (Surrey) www.brooklandsmuseum.com 44 Coventry transport museum - Coventry is the city of English motoring. There are over 150 cars on display, mainly British in origin. One section is dedicated to Jaguars (17 cars) and speed record cars. The 1935 Daimler Limousine used as a parade car by Queen Mary is also on display.

Coventry www.transport-museum.com 45 Haynes International Motor Museum The largest automotive museum in Great Britain, divided into 13 main sections and featuring 400 cars including the first models dated 1885. The most valuable car is the 1931 Duesenberg Model J, one of the 8 produced, which belonged to Mrs. Payne Whitney.

Sparkford Yeovil (Somerset) www.haynesmotormuseum.com 46 National Motor Museum - The home of English historic motor sports, founded by Lord Montagu in 1952. There are over 280 cars on display, from Formula 1 to those used for speed

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Petersen Automotive Museum, Los Angeles, United States

records whose dedicated section is of considerable interest. There are 18 cars from before 1905 which is not surprising in the country of the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. Beaulieau (Hampshire) www.beaulieau.co.uk

United States 47 America Packard Museum - In the original and evocative venue that was, in 1917, a Packard dealership, this museum hosts the largest collection of Packard cars and documentation in the world. There are over 50 cars on display.

Dayton (OH) www.americaspackardmuseum.com 48 America’s Car Museum - The America’s Car Museum celebrates America’s love for its cars. Large, modern, and beautiful from an architectural point of view, it contains about 250 cars on permanent display. These include the Lincoln Model l custom, the town car, and the 1958 Chevrolet Impala Special Sport coupe.

Tacoma (WA) www.americascarmuseum.org 49 Antique Automobile Club of America Museum - The AACA museum presents the world’s most complete Tucker exhibition ranging from the first Tucker 48 produced, to engines and documentation on the turbulent closure of this company. Among the more than 90 vehicles on display, there is the 1896 Chicago Benton Harbor which, by all accounts,

was the first car built in America that wasn’t derived from a carriage.

Hershey (PA) www.aacamuseum.org 50 GM Heritage Centre - This museum tells the history of General Motors through the 165 perfectly preserved cars on display. The exhibition of racing cars is stunning and the section of prototypes and show cars is simply spectacular, including the complete series of 3 Firebirds (1954- ’56-’58) and the 1961 Corvette Mako Shark.

Sterling Heights (MI) www.gmheritagecenter.com 51 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Founded in 1947, this museum exhibits the racing cars that have raced on the world’s most famous oval track. Among them, there are 25 cars that won the Indy 500. These include the 1911 Marmon Wasp, the first car to win the world’s oldest major automobile race.

Indianapolis (IN) www.indyracingmuseum.org 52 Lane Motor Museum - considered the largest collection of European cars in the USA, it includes about 450 vehicles, including road cars, prototypes, and racing cars. The star of the permanent exhibition is the truly unique 1932 Helicron model.

Nashville (TN)

www.lanemotormuseum.org 53 Larz Anderson Motor Museum - Open since 1899, this is considered the oldest col-

lection of cars in America. Among the cars on display, there is the Winton 4-HP from 1899, bought new by Larz Anderson and possibly the only one-owner car from the 1800s in existence. The same could easily be said for the following 14 (out of 31) cars that were bought over the subsequent years. There are, of course, more recent examples on display, especially up to 1950. Among the most “modern” are a Porsche 930 and a Tesla.

Brookline (MA) www.larzanderson.org 54 Le May Family Collection at Marimount The Le May Family Museum is surprising in every aspect: the location in an ancient convent, and the cars, all 1,500 of them, predominantly American, some still as new while others cry out for some attention. There are cars everywhere, including what used to be a swimming pool.

Tacoma (WA) www.lemaymarimount.org 55 Mullin Automotive Museum - A magnificent dive into the French cars of the art-deco period. Founded in 2010 by the refined collector Peter W. the Mullin contains the largest collection of Bugatti cars in the world, second only to the French national Museum.

In addition to the Delahaye Type 135 GP from 1936 and the Delage D8-120 from 1939. Still immersed in a dedicated tank, the Bugatti Type 22 Brescia recovered from the bottom of Lake Maggiore in 2010.

Oxnard (CA) www.mullinautomotivemuseum.com Secrets around the world // 171

56 National Automobile Museum - 200 cars, many extraordinary and unique, divided into 4 thematic galleries: among the cars on display, the 1973 Cadillac Eldorado owned by Elvis Presley, the 1962 Lincoln continental assigned to John F. Kennedy, the 1949 Mercury Eight used by James Dean in the movie “Rebel Without a Cause”, one of only three 24-carat gold-plated DeLorean DMC-12 built for American Express, and the only surviving specimen of the Dymaxion.

Reno (NV) www.automuseum.org 57 National Corvette Museum - The world of the sports car that has been the icon of America since 1953. In this collection, you will find some unique examples, such as the only Corvette produced as Model Year 1983, the millionth car produced, and racing models or cars used as Pace-cars.

Bowling Green (KY) www.corvettemuseum.org 58 Penske Racing Museum - This museum represents the life of Roger Penske seen through cars and races. The cars that have won the most famous races, including the Indy 500 (17 victories by a Penske team car), as well as those of the many victories in the Nascar series are on display.

Phoenix (AZ) www.teampenske.com 59 Petersen Automotive Museum - One of the world’s most important automotive museums. The Petersen has about 400 cars, over half of which are showcased: racing cars and hot-rods, rare models from the 1920s and 30s including the Rolls-Royce Phantom I “Jonckheere” coupe from 1925 and the Bugatti 57 SC Van Vooren cabriolet “Shah of Persia” of 1939.

Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum, Philadelphia, United States

Make sure you see the thematic exhibitions that include almost always very rare cars.

Los Angeles (CA) www.petersen.org

60 Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum - Founded by the famous collector Fred Simeone, this is one of the most spectacular museums in the world. The “Victory circle”, featuring Alfa Romeo, Mercedes-Benz, Aston Martin and Bugatti cars that have conquered the most important victories, and the Le Mans “pit lane” with cars that participated in the 24 hour-race simply cannot be missed. The Cobra Daytona Coupè that claimed the Bonneville speed record and the first Ferrari 250 Testarossa sold in 1958 to a private individual are also showcased.

Philadelphia (PA) www.simeonemuseum.org 61 The Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow museum - Inside a disused Mack factory, there are several cars made by Pierce-Arrows which was an automobile company founded in Buffalo in 1901 and active up until 1938.

There is also a Thomas-Flyer, another Buffalo car manufacturer.

Buffalo (NY) www.pierce-arrow.com 62 The Henry Ford Museum - Run by the Ford family, this museum celebrates the American industrial innovation and development.

A lot of space is devoted to cars - Ford models linked to its important history are showcased.

The Mercury 8 Town Sedan of 1939 – chassis #1 and the Ford Model A from 1928, with special bodywork, donated by Henry Ford to his friend and inventor Thomas Edison are showcased.

Dearborn (MI) www.thehenryford.org

63 The Nethercutt Collection - The Nethercutt exhibits mostly large American-made limousines from the 1920s to the 1970s. Four main themes: Antique (up to 1915), Vintage (1916-1924), Classic (1925-1938) and Post-war (1945-70).

Sylmar (CA) www.nethercuttcollection.org

64 The Revs Institute - The Collier Collection presents over 100 cars of great interest and an unparalleled archive with documents and photos. A Mercedes W154 Grand Prix from 1939, the first production Porsche 550, # 550-001, a Duesenberg SSJ from 1935 which belonged to Gary Cooper, Maserati Birdcage, Lancia D50, Ferrari 166 Spyder Corsa #016-1 from 1948, Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 B MM and 8C 2300, in addition to the collection of racing Cunninghams are just some of the examples on display.

Naples (FL) www.revsinstitute.org 65 Toyota Experience Centre - Transferred to Texas, near the company’s headquarters, it includes 140 Toyota cars, prototypes and production and racing cars that tell the story of the Japanese manufacturer over the last 60 years.

Plano (TX) www.toyota-experience-center.com 66 Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum Famous for housing the cars and materials that once belonged to the Hudson Museum, this museum focuses on American cars produced between the 1920s and the 1960s.

Among them, there are Tucker, Kaiser Frazer, Corvair, and Apex-Motors cars.

Ypsilanti (MI) www.ypsiautoheritage.org

The Secret Archives of The Classic Car Trust One-Off Pininfarina Archive

We discover the first customer of each “one off” ordered from Pininfarina since 1930. A document that has never been published that allows us to know, among others, which great figures and crowned heads wanted to stand out by ordering unique cars.

The Tradition for Tomorrow The amazing history of Pininfarina, the famous Turin coachbuilders, as told by the one-offs made for important customers the world over. An enthralling tale told by hitherto unpublished material from the company archives. Building made-to-measure cars for a particular client is still a highly

specialized activity that involves the end user in active participation. Alongside this Pininfarina also carries out and certifies restoration of its own classic vehicles at the Cambiano plant, where the requisite facilities and historic documents guarantee a perfect job.

Pininfarina - Creation, Expertise and a Great Track Record One-Offs Cars built at the behest of individual customers are part of the Pininfarina identity. “From the beginning, in 1930, Pininfarina dedicated itself to the design and manufacturing of special one-off cars for royals and VIPs in Europe and overseas.

The natural vocation to realize the dreams of our customers has been in our DNA since the beginning.

The ability to understand not only their needs but also their desires. Today and tomorrow. And to tailor unique experiences, made of elegance and craftsmanship.”

All the most advanced methods regarding creativity, design and manufacture are placed at the customer’s disposal, along with the opportunity to actually be present as a highly individual car is born. This means being part of a process that starts with the designer’s ideas, and continues with the creation of the virtual model that – once perfected – will give rise to the prototype ready for testing in the wind tunnel. Pininfarina’s vast experience in composites allows it to reconcile original forms with the lightness typical of carbon fibers. Whether the end product is a sedan or a roadster, the customization of the exterior, along with the design and upholstery of the interiors, reflects the desires of the client, who takes part in the on-road test.

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Certified Restoration “Pininfarina – Certified Restoration” involves a different process but much the same method. It comprises total restoration of the chassis, bodywork and all systems; general coordination of restoration, with chassis/mechanics farmed out, and all bodywork in house; and a Certification of Origin service, based on the original documents and images sourced from the Pininfarina historical archives. The authenticity certificate will guarantee that the car perfectly matches with the criteria of the Pininfarina experts. Here again, the customer can follow the entire process on the spot.

As with the one-offs, Pininfarina’s approach to restoration embodies a valid conviction: “Pininfarina Legends is not only a service offered to collectors, but also a way for Pininfarina to preserve its wealth of experience and its style and craft skills. We have made the history of car design and production. We want to be the guardians of our precious past.” e-mail: s.appendino@pininfarina.it

Courtesy of the Lopresto Collection Archive

The illustration of the Fiat Balilla drawn for Count Trossi, the racing driver who was an important Pininfarina customer. According to the archives, the car was never actually built. 

Reproduction or use without prior approval strictly prohibited

PININFARINA_175

Courtesy of the Lopresto Collection Archive

Reproduction or use without prior approval strictly prohibited

 One of the fantastic illustrations produced

by Pinin Farina, a Rolls Royce of 1932. Following his involvement in the Stabilimenti Farina, in 1930 Battista Farina, known as Pinin, signed the cars he built as Pinin Farina. The Pininfarina of the current logo was introduced in 1961.

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LANCIA DILAMBDA CABRIOLET D’ORSAY, 1930 | First owner: Mr. Ronald Barker This is the first official Pininfarina specially made for a client on the prestigious Dilambda frame. Simple classical line. Four-door, four-seater. Beam lights and drop windscreen.

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FIAT 525 SS COUPÉ SPIDER, 1931 | First owner: Prince Don Alighieri Giovannelli Lively interpretation with two-tone paintwork of the sports coupé in line with the Fiat style of the period.

Concours d’Elegance Rome 1931, 1st prize.

Lovely very smart “carriage style” coupé with two-tone paintwork. The proportions between passenger compartment and the car body, the lack of a running board and the shape of the boot underline the lightness of this creation. Mahogany woodwork, trim in Connolly leather.

CADILLAC V16, 1931 Maharaja of Orchha | First ovner: Maharaja of Orchha (India)

ISOTTA FRASCHINI 8A, GUIDA INTERNA VICTORIA, 1930 | First owner: Count Carlo Felice Trossi, Gaglianico Car built for Carlo Felice Trossi, Gaglianico. Lovely front shape, perfect mass balancing, high-class body.

The four-door, V16 Cadillac was Battista “Pinin” Farina’s first commission on a foreign chassis. This one-off roadster was originally commissioned by the Maharaja of Orchha for the princely pursuit of tiger hunting.

LANCIA ASTURA COUPÉ VICTORIA, 1933 | First owner: Mr. Oscar Fuorges Car characterized by a lack of waistline and continuous side windows with almost invisible uprights. This flowing plastic line is emphasized by the single-tone paintwork. Concours d’Elegance Nervi 1933: Special Cup.

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6 MERCEDES BENZ 500 SS CABRIOLET, 1932 | First owner: Count Carlo Felice Trossi, Gaglianico The Carrozzeria Pininfarina’s version of a model that already had marked characteristics at its origin. The aggressive front and the exhausts outside the engine bonnet have been maintained.

But the lines and the proportions are typical of the Turin Bodybuilder.

Introduced at the Milan Motor Show 1932. Concours d’Elegance Turin 1932.

9 PACKARD BERLINA, 1934 | First owner: Mr. Germano Bonetti, Ticinese Canton, Switzerland

HISPANO-SUIZA COUPÉ GRAND SPORT, 1931 | First owner: Count Carlo Felice Trossi, Gaglianico

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ALFA ROMEO 8C 2300 CABRIOLET, 1933 | First owner: Baroness Maud von Thyssen On the powerful sports frame 8C 2300 of Alfa Romeo, a body of classical line. Bent radiator grill and slits on the side members. Concours d’Elegance Montecarlo 1933, Cannes 1933. Grand Prix Cernobbio Villa d’Este 1933.

Pinin Farina has redesigned the entire body on this imposing Packard frame, keeping the original radiator grill.

Concours d’Elegance Turin 1934, 2nd prize “closed cars” category.

10 LANCIA ASTURA AERODINAMICA GUIDA INTERNA, 1934 | First owner: Mr. Achille Varzi (famous racing driver) Pinin Farina breaks with the tradition and launches out on new ideas where aerodynamics are used in the drop volumes. All the body lines converge towards the lower rear part. Gray paint, dark red disk-shaped wheel covers.

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ALFA ROMEO 6C 2300 PESCARA COUPÉ AERODINAMICO, 1935 | First owner: Mr. Cristoforo Crespi, Milan

LANCIA APRILIA CABRIOLET, 1938 | First owner: Marquis Ghiara Medici del Vascello, Genoa

Great coupé, on 6C 2300 frame by Alfa Romeo, aerodynamic shape.

Silver metallic color.

Concours d ’Elegance Monte-Carlo 1935, 1st prize “aerodynamic car” category. Cernobbio, Villa D’Este 1935.

Interesting from a design viewpoint with pop-up headlights, with hand control. This makes it possible to extend the area of the mudguards and to give the radiator grill a very sharp V-shaped look, like a ship’s bow.

No other decoration on the sides.

12 LANCIA ASTURA III SERIE COUPÉ VICTORIA, 1936 | First owner: Mr. Ramseier Austere but very elegant car, especially in the back where the rear joins up with the roof panel and the semi-streamlined back mudguards. Light chrome-plated edge on the waistline.

LANCIA ASTURA COUPÉ VICTORIA, 1937 | First owner: Mr. Sella, Vercelli.

Aerodynamic “Victoria” version on body deriving from the “Bocca Type” Cabriolet Series November 1936. The large chrome-plated decorations emphasize the importance of the masses.

The main point of the composition is the rearboot. Ogival mudguards; the rear mudguards are completely streamlined.

Guilloché side decoration. Concours d’Elegance Turin, 1937.

14 ALFA ROMEO 6C 2300 PESCARA COUPÉ AERODINAMICO, 1937 | First owner: Major Emilio Leoncini Aerodynamic style for the whole roof panel, which is wider on the top than the waistline.

Twentieth-century style circles on the bonnet sides. Concours d’Elegance Turin 1937.

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LANCIA APRILIA CABRIOLET, 1940 | First owner: Doctor Giraudi, Turin

FIAT 2800 BERLINA 4 PORTE, 1938 | First owner: Count Giancarlo Incisa di Camerana, Turin

ALFA ROMEO 8C 2900 CABRIOLET AERODINAMICO, 1939 | First owner: Count Giuseppe Salvi del Pero

LANCIA ASTURA IV SERIE LIMOUSINE, 1938 | First owner: Great Officer Giovanni Stringer Return to the classical sharp-cornered lines.

The back part of the roof panel recalls the British body shapes (Mulliner). Two external sides spare wheels.

Exhibition of Autarky, Rome 1938.

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Variation of the 1938-39 version of the Pininfarina Cabriolets on Aprilia frame, with the unusual design of the radiator grill and decorations on its sides.

Highly innovatory model with newly designed radiator grill, windscreen with chrome-plated frame, cover on rear wheels, unusual-shaped roof panel.

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A refined version with aerodynamic shape typical of the period on the Alfa Romeo competizione frame.

In particular, the entire front make the volumes look more slender. Pop-up headlights. Influenced by the aerodynamic Mercedes-Benz. Functionally designed radiator grill without badge. Attractive design of the completely foldaway roof, which can also be half opened (Mylord type). Running board connected to the front mudguard. Concours d’Elegance Turin 1939, 1st prize.

20 LANCIA ASTURA CABRIOLET SPECIALE, 1946 | First owner: Mr. Huriburn, USA Unusual styling experiment with foreign influence on the Pininfarina research. Side similar to the previous Alfa Romeo Cabriolets, front with American-style radiator grill on a design by Mario Revelli de Beaumont.

Foldable windscreen.

Seats in leather with central armrest.

Courtesy of the Lopresto Collection Archive

Reproduction or use without prior approval strictly prohibited

These car  designs of the 1930s (Packard and Rolls Royce) clearly differ considerably from the illustrations on the previous pages. They were intended as way of presenting a future model to the customer, and thus preceded the real technical drawings and designs.

Reproduction or use without prior approval strictly prohibited

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Courtesy of the Lopresto Collection Archive

Reproduction or use without prior approval strictly prohibited

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Illustration made for Count Trossi of the Isotta Fraschini 8A SS guida interna sport, made in 1930. 

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ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 S CABRIOLET SPECIALE, 1946 | First owner: Mrs. Cuccioli “Square” design, solid sides with covers on the rear wheels and American-style decorations.

Heavy front with lots of chrome. Nautical-style air inlet on the bonnet.

22 ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 SS CABRIOLET, 1947 | First owner: Crown Prince of Sweden

24 LANCIA APRILIA 537 SPIDER SPECIALE, 1948 First owner: Mr. Gino Bartali, Florence (Famous cycling champion) Similar to the Alfa Romeo Spider and other previous Spiders. Also like the Jaguar XK120 of the same year. In the Pininfarina archives, the artist’s sketch features “Idea by Gianni Lancia.” Very elegant one-off model.

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The finishing point for the series of compact plain shapes already seen on the Delahaye Type 135 coupé and on the Maserati A6 coupé.

Sliding roof in Plexiglas. Metal light-blue paintwork.

ALFA ROMEO 1900 BERLINETTA, 1951 | First owner: King Faruk of Egypt

The very best in absolute elegance of the shapes already seen in 1948-49. The slender line of the roof panel is made lighter on the sides by the curved rear window. Graceful, simple radiator grill.

Very roomy. Paris Motor Show 1950.

Model built on the Alfa Romeo 1900 L floor pan.

Typical Pininfarina style of the period.

29 ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 S BERLINETTA, 1951 First owner: Mr. Farsura

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Derived from the Pininfarina Bentley models, with special emphasis on the Rolls-Royce radiator grill and lights. A truly elegant car. Turin Motor Show 1951.

A Berlinetta similar to the Aurelia B20, but with an innovative design of the front. Unusual Alfa Romeo badge with wings.

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FERRARI 342 AMERICA CABRIOLET, 1953 | First owner: King Leopold of Belgium The entire front section underlines the power of the vehicle (4101 cc and around 200 HP). A model was built for King Leopold of Belgium, characterized by a harmonious and aggressive bonnet.

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30 ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 T CABRIOLET, 1952 | First owner: King of Cambodia

23 ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 SS COUPÉ SPORT, 1947 | First owner: Mr. Franco Rol

ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 T BERLINA, 1950 | First owner: King Faruk of Egypt

ROLLS-ROYCE SILVER DAWN BERLINA 2 PORTE, 1951 | First owner: Mr. Luigi Bressani, Milan

Another research job on the cabriolet theme. A compact car with short frame (wheelbase 2700 mm).

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ALFA ROMEO 6C 2500 SS CABRIOLET SPECIALE, 1950 | First owner: Aga Khan Special car for Aga Khan with paired headlights, aquamarine paintwork. Molding underlining the roundness of the car body and the elegance of the hood.

Built from the Alfa Romeo 1900 C Cabriolet, of which it curiously has the typical three-lobed radiator grill.

FERRARI 166 MM/53.

Berlinetta-Coupé, 1953 First owner: Mr. Kurt Zeller, Germany, racing driver The latest Ferrari 166 MM/53 frame was built

by Pininfarina for the German driver Kurt

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Zeller. With compact body characterized by front with backward positioned grill and roof panel with rounded rear window. Two-tone paintwork. Aggressive bonnet.

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This is the only model built by Pininfarina on the 250 Europa frame.

The very simple shape reflects the lines of the 212. Separate front bumpers. Metal gray paintwork with green leather upholstery and dark green cloth hood. Motor Show New York, 1954.

It has an aggressive and sporty look, but featuring at the same time a deluxe trim. Turin Motor Show 1955.

FERRARI 375 MM SPIDER, 1954 | First owner: Emperor Bao Dai of Annam Interesting from a design view point with pop-up headlights, with hand control. This makes it possible to extend the area of the mudguards and to give the radiator grill a very sharp V-shaped look , like a ship’s bow.

No other decoration on the sides.

33 FERRARI 250 EUROPA CABRIOLET, 1954 | First owner: Marion Ariowitch, USA

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35 CADILLAC CABRIOLET SPECIALE, 1954 | First owner: Mr. Norman Granz, USA Another body derived from the study of the PF200. Long and streamlined with a lovely radiator grill (look at the perfectly integrated “V” badge). Air inlet on bonnet. Long rear due to frame size. Metallic gray paintwork.

38 FERRARI 375 MM BERLINETTA SPECIALE, 1954 | First owner: Mr. Roberto Rossellini, Rome, dedicated to Ingrid Bergman This fully functioning dream car, denominated “Berlinetta Aerodinamica Speciale” was exhibited at the 1954 Paris Motor Show. It featured for the first time the low, narrow and wide radiator grill and the dorsal fins. The vertical inset rear window later would become the hallmark of the Dinos and of the dynasty of mid-engined Ferraris.

Painted in light blue.

FIAT 8V BERLINETTA, 1955 | First owner: Mr. Giovanni Nasi Characterized by a little roof panel with slender pillars, painted in black to contrast with the ivorycolored vehicle body. It has an aggressive and sporty look, but featuring at the same time a deluxe trim.

Turin Motor Show 1955.

37 JAGUAR XK120 COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1955 | First owner: Mr. Max Hoffman, Austrian, New York based An interesting car that cleverly combines the classical streamlined Pininfarina style with the aggressive characteristic one of the original mass-produced models, preserving the brand identity. The roof panel in a different color gives a hard-top effect. Green and beige paintwork. Geneva Motor Show, 1955.

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FERRARI 375 MM COUPÉ COMPETIZIONE, 1955 | First owner: Mr. Inico Bernabei, Rome Characterized by a little roof panel with slender pillars, painted in black to contrast with the ivory-colored vehicle body.

40 FERRARI 375 AMERICA COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1955 | First owner: Avv. Giovanni Agnelli.

The car adopts an original recessed radiator grill, with a vertical form and a distinctive overall look incorporating eclectic stylistic elements merged with great skill. The rear window positioning, near-vertical at the root of the rear fender fins, allows the unusual opening of the window by means of a crank mechanism. The interior is brightened by a clear plastic roof.

Painted in dark green with Bordeaux roof panel and black leather upholstery. Turin Motor Show 1955.

The original  drawings of the magnificent Ferrari 375 MM that film director Roberto Rossellini had built for the actress Ingrid Bergman.

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 One of the Ferraris built as a one-off for Giovanni Agnelli in 1955. The vertical radiator is a distinctly unusual feature.

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41 FERRARI 375 AMERICA PLUS CABRIOLET, 1955 | First owner: King Leopold of Belgium Car built for the King of Belgium. With perfect proportions and a clear simple cut, this is one of the loveliest Ferraris. Elliptic radiator grill perfectly connected to the bonnet and to the headlamps.

contemporary US taste evident in the rear fins. Foreshadowing of the 275 GTB. Paris Motor Show 1955 model.

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46 FIAT 600 CAMPAGNOLA, 1956 | First owner: Mr. Embiricos, Athens Free time car for hunting with Fiat 600 mechanics. White paintwork.

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JAGUAR MARK VII COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1956 | First owner: Mr. Embiricos, Athens Elaborated front, with well-proportioned car body. Two-tone paintwork. Featuring a radiator grill closed within a broad projecting frame.

45 42 FERRARI 250 GT BERLINETTA SPECIALE, 1955 | First owner: Mr. John Murray

FERRARI 250 GT BERLINETTA SPECIALE 1955 | First owner: Mr. Dubonnet, Paris The essential features of a style destined to become famous through the series of competition berlinettas built

by Scaglietti in 1957 are evident in this oneoff car. The least-enduring styling feature is the concession to

Yet another exploit on the frame of the 250 GT, the car is characterized by a long bonnet starting with a rounded radiator grill emphasized by the bumpers, which bend to adapt to the shape.

Metal gray color.

FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1956 | First owner: Commendator Ferrario, Rome A less sporty car, characterized by a rounded rear window. Elliptic radiator grill including two fog lamps and a central car supporting the Prancing Horse badge. Metallic gray paintwork, upholstery in natural leather.

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48 FERRARI 410 SA SUPERFAST COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1956 | First owner: Mr. William Dohemy, USA The first Superfast coupé is very nearly a dream car. The styling innovations were not stillborn: the markedly oval nose and the greenhouse point to many later Ferraris. In addition to the showy tail fins, very interesting is the two-tone paint scheme with a separation at the hip line, giving the impression that the body is made in two horizontal split halves. This idea later became a standard feature of the Ferraris. Other noteworthy details are the double bumper guards, the larger Ferrari emblem and the wide groove leading into the air scoop on the hood.

One-off model, painted in ivory and blue. Paris Motor Show 1956.

MERCEDES-BENZ 300S COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1956 | First owner: Mr. Pastor One-off model for a private client. Very smart simple coupé with a touch of originality in the streamlining of the beams and in the rear lights.

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FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1958 | First owner: Prince Bertil, Sweden A further step in the direction of the production coupé was taken with this special body, incorporating exclusive motifs like the belt line, kick-up over the rear fenders, the small quarter window and the tail. Painted in light blue, upholstered in Connolly leather.

FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1957 | First owner: Prince Barnard of the Netherlands Style setting out similar to the contemporary spiders. The side vents, spanned by thin bars and placed rather high, take on a new ornamental role. Painted in black, upholstered with green leather.

50 FERRARI 410 SA COUPÉ, 1957 | First owner: Mr. Jan de Vroom A special model known as the Superfast, like the 410 SA Superfast Coupé Speciale of 1956, from which it takes several stylistic characteristics.

Rounded lines and no rear fins. The side air exits on the front wings have a horizontal grilling.

The two-tone color scheme (light blue for the lower part and light gray for the roof) gives the car the appearance of being even more streamlined.

The inside is finished in natural leather. Paris Motor Show 1957; Turin 1957.

51 FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1958 | First owner: Princess Liliane de Réthy, Bruxelles This special model has various features in common with the previous 250 GT 1957 Coupé, especially the front and central part of the body, whereas the rear has a long straight fin tail, double front bumper guards and vent windows on the sides.

The car on the whole is a combination of uniqueness and simplicity. Gray paintwork, natural leather trim.

53 FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1958 | First owner: Mr. J.C. Russell The gradually emerging production coupé configuration begins to make itself felt in the front section of this special design exercise, with which it probably shared some of the actual wooden templates. By contrast, the subtly interrupted belt line and exceptionally luminous greenhouse, fitted with a huge panoramic rear window, are exclusive to this car. The front air scoop is still present here but perhaps is no longer strictly indispensable. Painted in night blue, upholstery in blue leather.

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FERRARI 400 SA COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1959 | First owner: Avv. Giovanni Agnelli

54 FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1959 | First owner: Mr. Emanuele Nasi A body very similar to that of the type 410 Coupé was used for a special 250 GT, with a one-off engine.

Characterized by the forward-mounted headlights stretching the fenders, the absence of the air scoop on the hood is more restful to the eye. The bumper over-riders give the car a “finished” appearance, while the tail is manifestly derived from the production Coupé. Geneva Motor Show 1959.

A one-off model presented at the Turin Motor Show in 1959, the chassis of which was the prototype of a new series: the engine was practically a double V6 sport engine, though retaining the original model number. The frame is also new, having a wheelbase of 2.42 m. This car, with an unusual styling and a transparent roof, was built for Avv. Agnelli. Later it was slightly modified by eliminating the curved grilling on the front wing and applying a full front bumper.

Turin Motor Show 1959.

Ferrari 250 GT Coupé Speciale This illustration was presented to Prince Bernard of Holland in the mid-1950s, and the vehicle, a one-off, was delivered in 1957. 

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This Fiat 8V  Berlinetta of 1955 was built at the behest of Giovanni Nasi, a member of the grand Agnelli family. Many aspects of the car were inspired by the 375 MM commissioned by Rossellini.

 The 375 MM Coupé Competizione was a one-off built in 1955 that introduced certain style elements that later also featured in the famous Berlinetta Tour de France.

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56 FERRARI 250 GT SPECIALE, 1960 | First owner: Mr. Villard This aluminum Spider with hard top has an almost identical body to the one used for the little group of type 400 SA cabriolets, which are specially mounted on a 250 GT frame with reduced wheelbase. It has a deluxe trim; big Plexiglas windows at the top of the hard top are combined with details typical of racing cars, such as the air intakes on the front for cooling of the front brakes. The radiator grill is unusually without the traditional rectangular grid. The paintwork is in metallic light blue with upholstery in ivory Connolly leather.

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LANCIA FLAMINIA PRESIDENZIALE, 1961 | First owner: President of the Italian Republic

FERRARI 275 GTB Berlinetta, 1965 | Car specially built for Battista (Pinin) Farina

Pininfarina built this deluxe car on the chassis of the Flaminia with an extended wheelbase for the President of the Italian Republic. It was also used that same year by the British Royal Family during their official visit for the celebrations of the Centenary of the Italian Unification. A few units were manufactured.

Another masterpiece by Pininfarina, this Berlinetta was built originally as Pinin’s own car. This one-off model, in metallic light green paintwork, was subsequently mass-produced with slight modifications to the details.

Frankfurt Motor Show 1965.

FERRARI 410 SA COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1961 | First owner: Prince Bernard of Holland One of the Ferraris built for Prince Bernard of Holland on the chassis of the first Superfast series, but with a more traditional front and external, not streamlined, headlamps. One-off model, dark green paintwork and upholstery in natural Connolly leather.

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58 FERRARI 250 GT COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1961 | First owner: Mr. Mason A special bodywork for a one-off model where the formal elements of the 250 GT 2+2 blended in the rear, a bit like the aggressive 400 Superfasts. Metallic light blue paintwork, interior in blue Connolly leather. Motor Show London, 1961.

FERRARI 250 GT BERLINETTA SPECIALE, 1963 | Car specially built for Battista (Pinin) Farina Variation on the theme of the Ferrari 250 Berlinetta short wheelbase, with changes on the bonnet and on the rear (more emphasized spoiler). One-off model, metallic gray paintwork, built as Pinin’s own car.

Paris Motor Show 1963.

tions with much more fluid lines. Paris Motor Show 1966.

63 BENTLEY T COUPÉ SPECIALE, 1968 | First owner: Mr. James E. Hanson, UK

62 FERRARI 365P BERLINETTA SPECIALE, 1966 | Two twin cars satisfy two VIP customers: Avv. Giovanni Agnelli and Mr. Luigi Chinetti The cars were also quite exceptional: longitudinal center-mounted 12-cylinder engine, frame of racing derivation, three-seat interior with central drive. A racing car in road-car clothing , for the driver and two companions of adventure.

The bodywork showed the same stylistic base as the 1965 Dino prototype, from which the 1967 production car descended directly, but developed on different, much larger propor-

Smart coupé with a sports line. The traditional radiator grill has a new design, with wide upper band. There are two rectangular sets of headlights with big chrome-plated rims.

One-off model, dark green, black upholstery and champagne-colored carpeting. Turin Motor Show 1968.

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The classic drawing with the four views of the vehicle was an operative paradigm for all models. Here it regards the Dino Berlinetta Speciale of 1965 designed

by Aldo Brovarone.

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color blue, natural beige leather interior.

Presented at the 2006 Villa d’Este Concours d‘Elegance.

FERRARI 360 MODENA BARCHETTA, 2000 | Commissioned by Giovanni Agnelli for Luca di Montezemolo

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A Special “Barchetta” version of the Ferrari 360 Modena, the car was a wedding gift from Giovanni Agnelli to Luca di Montezemolo.

Silver-gray paintwork, cream-colored leather interior.

ROLLS-ROYCE HYPERION, 2008 | One-off realized for Mr. Roland Hall, UK

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Built on the RollsRoyce Drophead Coupé, it is a car of important dimensions, featuring a carbon fiber body and a style reminiscent of luxury boats. Exterior color light blue, cream-colored leather interior. Presented at the 2008 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

65 FERRARI P4/5, 2006 | One-off realized for Mr. James Glickenhaus – USA Central engine coupé realized on the Ferrari Enzo basis, commissioned

by Mr. James Glickenhaus. It is inspired by the mythical Ferrari Prototipo of the 1960s, in particular by the F330 P3/4. The car, in race red color, was presented at the 2006 Pebble Beach Concours d ’Elegance.

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FERRARI 612 SCAGLIETTI “K,” 2006 | One-off realized for Mr. Peter Kalikow – USA Coupé based on the series Ferrari 612, featuring an air intake on the bonnet, fins at the rear window sides and liquid crystal transparent roof, incorporating fuel cells. Exterior

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SP 12 EC, 2012 | One-off realized for Mr. Eric Clapton Central engine coupé built on the basis of the Ferrari 458 Italia.

Inspired by the Ferrari 512 BB, the car features a subdivision of the body in two shells; the upper part is painted in metallic red and the lower one in black.

In 2006,  Pininfarina designed and built this Ferrari, the lines of which hark back to the famous 330 P3/P4 of the late 1960s.

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The 2008 RollsRoyce Pininfarina Hyperion, named after one of the Titans of Greek mythology, to underline its architectural and figurative power.

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