Focus

Eugenio Castellotti at the wheel of the Lancia-Ferrari D50 with a look of intense focus. One of the fastest drivers of his day, he was tragically killed at the age of 27 testing a Ferrari 801 at Modena less than a year later.

Pebble Beach 2011 Gallery is Up!

For all 175 photos over 3 gallery pages click HERE

The featured themes this year were the Ferrari 250 GTO (roughly 20 of them in attendance!), prewar Mercedes-Benz, and Stutz automobiles. Best in Show was won by Peter Mullin's incredible Voisin.

Look for cameos by Stirling Moss, Gordon Murray, Jay Leno, Ed Welburn, Ian Callum and Jason Castriota!

Concorso Italiano 2011

Concorso Italiano, which was begun in the early 1990s, has become one of the top events in the Pebble Beach weekend. Compared to the rarified air at the Quail and Pebble Beach Concours D'elegance, the Concorso feels a lot more inclusive and down to Earth.  Its physical location is a lot closer to Laguna Seca than Carmel, and this is fitting as the event seems to straddle the line between the hardcore gearheads and the straw hat and blazer types. It feels more like a typical regional car show where owners sit by their cars (most actually drive their cars in rather than trailering them!) and chat and have a good time. Unlike a regional show, however, the scale of the Concorso is huge, and the array of machinery on display is a vast survey of mostly postwar Italian vehicles. And true to the inclusive spirit of the show, they even added a category for non-Italian cars!  We had a great time at the Concorso, which has the cars well organized by marque and model. It's really cool, for example, to see a perfectly aligned row of Maserati Boras or DeTomaso Panteras. These are cars that you'd be lucky to see once in a blue moon on the street, yet at the Concorso, you get to see a whole family reunion.  It's just fantastic. In addition to the more common Italian cars, there is all sorts of wonderful, obscure stuff in attendance. Have you ever seen an Intermeccanica, for example?? How about an Iso Lele? I certainly saw a few cars I had absolutely never laid eyes on before, so the show was very educational. Click HERE for the 2 page Mega Gallery!

Lancia Delta HF Integrale for sale -- In NYC!

I'm filing this baby under "objects of desire."  Whoever takes this car home is in for a lot of TLC and some degree of aggravation finding parts because the car definitely needs some work. But boy is this ever a cool car, hyper rare to see in North America. The next owner is going to have an absolute blast once this thing is sorted!  Along with the GTV6, the Delta Integrale it is the quintessential 80s Italian "Muscle Car."  Unlike the GTV6, though, the Lancia has a staggering record of Rally championships to give it ultimate cachet. The car is available here on ebay. Currrent bid is 13K with the reserve unmet. Not bad for legally titled car you can't get anywhere. These photos appear to have been taken in TriBeca.

Stratos Zero Moment of Zen

I love the Lancia Stratos Zero Prototipo. Designed by Marcello Gandini at Bertone, it's still probably one of the most futuristic cars ever designed. Here's a great abstract view of it that you don't see very often.