Writing about vintage automobiles is great. There are rare cars to cover (โThe Only Oneโ Vintage Roadcar, December 2013), cars once owned by royalty (โFit for a Prince!โ Vintage Roadcar, June 2015), and dream cars (โButterfly or Bee?โ Vintage Roadcar, January 2107). Once in a while, though, thereโs a car that just takes your breath away as soon as you see it. So it was when I walked into the Tampa Bay Automobile Museum (www.tbauto.org) and saw their Panhard Dynamic in person for the first time. It wasnโt the size of the carโit is largeโnor was it the colorโitโs silver, a fairly neutral color. It is just so Art Deco! Its streamlined shape took my breath away. Then, during a closer look, the details that the designers included caused my jaw to drop. The Panhard Dynamic is an incredibly beautiful automobile on the outside and very innovative underneath. I knew I would eventually have to profile that car.
A 1906 Darracq Runabout joins other Brass Era entries under the wing of a WWII-era transport plane. Photo: David Gooley