Classics at Reims
Le Mans-winning Jaguar
Last weekend the third annual Reims festival celebrated the old triangular circuit which held 14 French Grand Prixs. Alongside the old grandstands, demonstrations of competition cars raced on a section of roads which made up the old track.
The Jaguar Heritage Trust brought out many of their important cars including the XJR-9LM which won the 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans. Alongside this were several C-Types, D-Types and numerous Jaguar club cars.
Bonhams hosted ther first ever auction at Reims. The centerpiece Bugatti failed to sell which will likely find an owner since it was Bugatti's personal race car and one of the earliest surviving Bugattis. It is the focus of this week's gallery by Dirk de Jager.
Upcoming Auctions
Forget SLS, We will take this CLK CTR Straßenversion
With a couple fantastic cars coming up for auction, now is a good time to have an extra million. Both a coupe and roadster CLK GTR with delivery mileage be offered by RM Auctions at their London sale on October 18th. The last time one of these was offered, it sold for €733,000 in 2003.
Next weekend Bonhams will sell the first Bugatti race car known as the Type 16 at their auction in Reims. This particular car was personally raced by Ettore Bugatti and is a tremendous part of Bugatti history. We should also mention that Bonhams sold this Aston Martin DBSC prototype last weekend at Goodwood for £320,500
Stateside, Mecum have a bevy of impressive muscle cars from the Richard Ellis Collection. Included is a 1963 Dodge 330 Max Wedge Lightweight and a 1964 Plymouth Savoy 426 Lightweight. They go on sale with 750 other cars in St Charles, IL on October 1-4th.
2009 Goodwood Revival
Start of the Madgwick Cup
Goodwood Revival is without a doubt the best organized historic weekend. A seemingly desperate attempt to relive the past, everything from the tickets to the mini skirts are retrograde at Goodwood and we love it.
While the RAC TT takes center stage, this year was distinguished by the 50th anniversary of the Mini. A complete race was dedicated to the 1963-1967 Cooper S and provided the weekend's best racing. Furthermore, a parade included some of the most important and least important Minis as well as Mr Bean.
Stirling Moss held his 80th birthday at the track. To commemorate his tremendous career, 80 cars which he raced filled a parade. Included were four Aston Martin DBR1s and two DBR2s!
Unlike other classic weekends, Goodwood is eyecandy at every turn. There is no better proof than Dirk de Jager's fantastic Gallery which features all of the sports car classes and more.
Tribute to Elio Zagato
Elio Zagato and his Fiat 8V
With the passing of Elio Zagato last week we thought it would be appropriate to highlight his successful career as an artist, racing driver and businessman.
Perhaps the best tribute would be a look at the Fiat 8V Zagato Berlinetta. Not only was this Elio's favorite car, but one which he raced to success in many Italian events. At this year's Pebble Beach Concours an 8V with massive Weber carburetors was featured the 90th Anniversary class.
Other notable cars in Elio's career include the Aston Martin DB4 Zagato, the Ferrari 250 GTZ and Maserati A6G Zagato . These are all included in the new Giorgio Nada Editore book 'Zagato 1919-2009' which features our photography.
Elio's passing is a great loss the motoring world. He was the father of Andrea Zagato who currently manages the design firm and has several exciting projects on the way.
Frankfurt Motor Show
Reventon Roadster causes a stir
The Frankfurt Auto Show might be the most important auto show this year. No other event will shape Supercars.net more than this one and no car other than the 458 Italia by Ferrari will demand as much attention. This debut will progress into one of our best cars and eventually compete at the top level of motor sports.
Therefore, it might be counterintuitive to say Mercedes-Benz had the best display of show. They filled an entire hall and launched five new cars in front of the international media. This of course included the new Mercedes-Benz SLS and Lewis Hamilton on short leash.
BMW brought out two new MINI concepts for their 50th and the remarkable Efficient Dynamics Concept. The other German powerhouse, Audi had the new e-tron concept which reshaped the R8 into what it should have always looked like.
For the rest of the show, including 82 world premieres and 753 exhibitors, we have our galley which was predominately shot by Dirk de Jager. He found peculiarities like the M6 Competition Edition and a Mercedes-Benz cycle car.
Monterey's Auction Market
Gooding's specular setup
Yet another reason to visit Monterey is the many auctions which support the weekend of events. Now is a good time to review the 2009 sales before Bonhams hosts their upcoming Goodwood auction next week. Overall sales were down last month, but many great cars still found new homes.
Gooding & Company complemented the Pebble Beach Concours and offered only the very best models. They sold the first Bentley Mulsanne for $500,000 USD, but failed to sell the Ghia Streamline X Coupe or this Porsche 356 Carrera Prototype.
Bonhams had many spectacular lots but failed to sell their heavy hitters. This included the fabled Auto Union Typ D, a Siata Berlinetta and a priceless Bugatti Type 57 by Gangloff.
RM Auctions managed to sell one of their title lots. Phil Hill's Jaguar C-Type sold for $2,530,000. Mecum's inaugural California auction also fetched the top sale of weekend with 7.25 million for Cobra Daytona CSX2601.
Mercedes-Benz Gullwings
Did the SLR McLaren just get cheaper?
With the introduction of the SLS, Mercedes have revived their gullwing design and created a logical successor to the legendary 300 SL. What isn't very well known is that the same SLS nameplate was already handed out to cars like this 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLS.
The very first Gullwing was the most successful. It won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and launched a motor sports campaign that would lead to the deadly 300 SLR. Concurrently, Mercedes sold Coupe and Roadster production versions on a taller chassis which became a huge hit internationally.
One of the most saught after of all Gullwings is the Uhlenhaut Coupe. This was the pet project of Rudolf Uhlenhaut, which used the potent Grand Prix chassis like the similarly-styled, Mille Miglia-winning SLR Roadster.
McLaren's new Supercar
Real Formula 1-inspired engineering
Today, McLaren is busy answering questions about their new supercar called the MP4-12C. It's aimed straight at the Ferrari F430 and Lamborghini Gallardo market with slightly better performance. Following the McLaren F1 produced 15 years ago and the Mercedes-Benz SLR, this new car has much to prove.
Unlike the competition, the MP4 uses a one-piece carbon fiber tub and is powered by an all-new twin turbo V8 engine. This construction makes the car slightly more expensive at £160,000, but McLaren hope to sell as many as 4000 units through a new dealer network.
Furthermore, the McLaren uses switchgear and components that were completely designed and constructed in house. It also continues a story that includes 163 Grand Prix victories and eight Constructor's Championships. As a result, the new McLaren uses technologies first developed from F1 including brake steer.
Frankfurt Preview #2
Rolls-Royce Ghost with 575 lb-ft of torque
With the Frankfurt Motor Show (IAA) almost one week away, many of the German manufacturers are working overtime to get everything done. BMW will finally officially show the Rolls-Royce Ghost in its production form after displaying the pre-production prototypes over the last year.
Tuners will have a dedicated hall at Frankfurt. Companies like Hamann, Alpina, Mansory and Brabus will be present under one roof. The latter will display a 750 bhp version of their Mercedes S600 business sedan.
Other new announcements include the Lexus LF-Ch, the Lotus Elise Club Racer and Citroen's new micro-car.
2009 Concorso Italiano
1966 Iso Rivolta GT
Under new ownership, Concorso Italiano was largely improved for 2009. Held at the Laguna Seca Golf Ranch, it was just one stop down from the Historic Races and had the refreshing golf course feel of year's past. If our gallery is any indication, then the Concorso will be a major event in 2010.
This year a highlight display was built around Franco Scaglione design including the three Alfa Romeo BATS and the prototype Alfa Romeo Sprint Speciale. These were joined by a Stanguellini body that was under restoration.
To demonstrate power in numbers, 15 Ferrari 288 GTOs were assembled along with one of the rare Evolution models. Not far from these were some of the best DeTomasos including Elvis Presley's completely original Pantera, still intact with a bullet hole in the steering wheel.
