"saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars" (saabstory)
09/22/2013 at 23:38 • Filed to: None
10
24|
"saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars" (saabstory)
09/22/2013 at 23:38 • Filed to: None | 10
| 24 |
Two weeks ago to the day, I visited the Kirkland Concours d'Elegance. I took my camera with me. I took these pictures, and made these observations. You will look at them, and you will read things. Please excuse any and all grammatical and spelling errors, I really don't feel like editing write (ehhh??!!) now.
These are mostly chronologically taken.
One of my favorite cars I saw was the first one I saw. I made sure to park next to the coolest (well, 2nd coolest: my family's '06 9-5 Aero SportCombi is waaaayyyyy cooler) car in the lot. I thought that this Ford Escort RS Cosworth (thanks to LargeEddle for pointing out what this really is. My simple American mind assumed it was a Sierra Cosworth because of the wing) was really sweet.
I found myself wishing I had a white 1st-gen Miata to park next to these two, though. Frowny Face.
Coming up the stairs from the north parking lot, I caught my first glimpse of the concourse fair. I would have snapped a better shot, here, but my dad, who is normally not the gearhead type, was raring to go. He really wanted to see the dark blue 8C in the near corner. I was deeply surprised he knew what it was called... until I remembered he had looked at the Kirkland Concours d'Elegance website that morning, and that that car had won in a past year.
After getting in for $8.50 rather than $85.00 (the entrance lady was still asleep at 8 AM, and she was confused by the iPad carding system), I made a bee-line for what I thought was a Prost-era McLaren. It was an M29-F1, or the car from Prost and McLaren's 1980 campaign. What struck me about this was how obscenely low it was. It really doesn't come through in any pictures I took, but it completely blew me away that we can make something that low. Also, those headers!
Here's another vintage race car, which, if I remember correctly, was also owned by John Goodman. Whoever owned it also brought along the F1 car, a bunch of racing Corvettes, and some special Ferraris, which you'll see in a second. This one is "The '66 Corvette Racer", as was handwritten in Sharpie on its nameplate. I liked its leg burning side exhaust.
Here's a 1959 Corvette racer, along with a more classicly done nameplate, also owned by Mr. Goodman.
Here's one of the aforementioned rather special Ferraris. I believe it to be a 312 PB Can-Am car. It's just a silly car, what with its laughable rear-view mirror. Also note the intakes on the top that resemble the F40's intakes.
And here's its sideways tachometer, complete with worringly scuffed gauge hood. And, I have no pictures of the other Ferrari, and I forget what it was... Frowny Face II.
And here's what I assume is a cooling duct/vent thingy for the brakes.
And there's this Corvette, which raced somewhere... but I don't know where... NASCAR? I don't think so... Frowny Face III. At least it looks cool. This was probably the most chiseled and muscular car we saw.
Here's the obligatory sexy winged lady hood ornament off a Chrysler CG Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton. What a catchy name, Chrysler. Being a product of the late 20th, early 21st centuries, I haven't been exposed to this sort of thing, and so I found it intriguing. "What if I was hit by this while jaywalking?" I asked the owner, a pleasant old man who laughed in my face. I was hurt. Frowny Face IV.
I found the machined metal instrument cluster backing thing very pretty, and assume that the shift knob is aftermarket. I don't remember what this one was, but it was old, American, and red. I think it was a Packard, though.
Here's the awesome brake lamp from the Chrysler CG Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton. Huh, that name is growing on me...
Here's some nice Bugatti rump. Like so many beautiful things, I found its rear attractive, but forgot its name the moment it left my sight. Some Jalop (read every Jalop ) other than me will know what this is.
This little Italian beauty was my favorite, and the judges agreed. It is a 1933 Alfa Romeo (no, really, it is) 6C 1750 Gran Sport. Zagato bodied (for the lightness), supercharged, 1935 Le Mans class winner, and 6th overall finisher, and extensively and meticulously restored from 2008 until 2012. The owner actually rode past this exact car on his way to school when he was a kid in South Africa, and fell in love with it then. After finishing the body-off restoration, he debuted it at the Concorso d'Elegenza Villa d'Este. It won every major award in 2012. When it visited Pebble Beach later that year, it also won several awards. Here are a few more snaps of it.
This is my favorite chrome of the day, courtesy of a Bugatti Type 57 Aravis.
Best Doors of the Day goes to the Kaiser Darrin! Worst Name of the Day goes to... the Kaiser Darrin! They should have called it something like the Kaiser CG Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton. Damn, that name is so great. America, ladies and gentlemen!
It looks so unhappy. But in a happy way, somehow. It looks like it just heard its name was Darrin.
BMW M1? Check. I finally got the appeal of the M1 after seeing one in black in real life. The only times I've seen these are online. And they were orange.
Rumor has it that one night, a Ferrari 250 California and an E-Type Jag knocked boots and made this dark blue beauty, which was named the Apollo 5000 GT. Look at that ass.
And its face ain't too bad, neither.
This little fella is the ironically named Goggomobil Limousine (should have gone with Goggomobil CG Imperial Dua..... ahh, forget it). When the announcer interviewed him, he asked, "Why, of all the cars you could have bought, did you get this ?" I thought that rather rude.
Why would you buy this? I dunno, but that shifter has something to do with it. And that manual.
Ironically, it was one of the only cars whose engine was exposed.
And here's your F40.
And here's your 2000 Michael Schumacher F1 car, graciously donated by someone who wished to remain anonymous... Schumie???
This is a Ferrari California Spyder... and it's not as good looking in real life as I'd hoped. Frowny Face V.
It did have some bangin' vents, though.
This 1970 Dino GT wins the award for being the most tears-of-joy-inducing. The owner of this car bought it way back in 1970 from a dealer in some European country as 1/2 of his honeymoon. He and his wife toured Europe for about a year before returning to Seattle (well, Bellevue, but Bellevue calls itself Seattle a lot because f*** Bellevue), where he used it as his daily driver for awhile. After amassing 35,ooo miles, he decided that it was time to get something less valuable and expensive to maintain as a daily driver. He bought what really is the only thing better than a Ferrari: a 1st-gen Miata (could his have been in the lot next to another white Miata?!!?? What's that you say? He probably drove the Dino GT to the concourse? BALDERDASH.). Now this silver beauty is reserved for leisurely burbles through the evergreen forests of Western Washington. I liked that story a lot.
The winner of the prestigious Ferrari That Looks The Most Like A Guppy Who's Just Visited The Orthodontist, And Bad News: It Got Headgear is, and always will be (hopefully), the 275 GTB/4!
Here's a more flattering angle. I actually thought that this was a very pretty car.
Here's the (very gaudy) steering wheel to a very wine red FF. HOLY BALLS, THE FF IS HUGE. Apparently, this is a daily driver of someone who brought some vintage car as well. But good lord, it was huge. Absolutely massive. None of my pictures can convey how ludicrously large it was. It was huge. Its rims belong on a donk.
This one was part of the Porsche 50 Years of 911 section. It's a 1971 911 that is very orange.
This is obviously a racing 911 with an insane, eat-your-mother-raw whale tail. Any speculations on origins and vintage are welcome. I like to think that it was at the concourse to finish the public service hours it got assigned after it was granted parole. And it went to jail for eating your mother raw. With no garnishes. Thanks to LargeEddle, who points out that this a Brumos (I had that part, thank you very much) 935.
Here's another very orange 911. What's that I see in the background? It can't be....
It is. Porsche of somewhere brought along a 911 50th Anniversary Edition. Hoo-rah. Seeing a new 911 with a manual gearbox was kind of cool, but I wasn't overly enthused. I do like how my camera assumed that the tan-ish, off-white color was white, and made everything kind of sepia-ish, though.
I was excited by this 959 that showed up. It was kind of cool to see two cars I'd seen in the same episode of Top Gear (F40 and 959) show up at the same event. Then the excitement wore off because the 959 looks like a plastic model of a 911 that's been through the wash. Oh, and it's so understeer-y in Forza 4 that I was over it ten seconds after I saw it.
RUF.... RUF.... RUF RUF
Ruff... ruff.... ruff ruff! Seriously, though, how adorable is this little guy?! He proceeded to take a crap right next to that brand new Carrera S.
This 911 had some serious back problems... By now I'd gotten really tired of Porsches. So I walked down Woody Lane. Which is a bunch of woodies... And I don't really find them appealing, either.
This was off a Chrysler Town and Country. Should have named it the Chrysler CG Imperial Dual Cowl Phaeton and Town and Country. AMIRITE?
This 300SL is from the Mercedes-Benz division. Very pretty, and everything, but at the price these go for, only the elderly could buy them, and that door sill looks mighty intimidating, even to a young buck like myself.
I hadn't heard a group of older gents shouting so nervously until they attempted to reposition this 300SL. An accolade soon stolen when...
The same group moved this 500K Roadster... It went fine, it's just a scary thing to be pushing around when it's surrounded by similarly expensive (knock-your-balls-off expensive) automobiles.
I made my way out of the main event down to what I thought was a second holding pen. It turned out to be the Porsche Owners Club's private event. Some dealer or another had brought out a couple of new models for test drives, like the 911 Cabriolet (I was under the impression is was a Turbo, yet another frowny face) and a Panamera GTS. They almost let me drive the 2013 Boxster S, but I'm not 18 yet, so I wasn't cleared for takeoff. Frowny Face VI. In the parking lot, though, was a Testarossa. Which looks so much better than in pictures. I think that this shot I forgot to rotate at all captures its allure more than other pictures. It kind of looks like a prog-rock version of a 355. Note Mr. Fiat lurking in the background, like some kind of sick mocking of Ferrari's unfortunate (debatable) fate. I didn't take any photos in the Porsche Corral because it was just GT3s. They were all used on racetracks a lot, though.
Here are parking lot cars I snapped photos of on my way out.
(DeSoto, I think.)
Want. That. Ass.
I like this photo for some stupid reason...
This was out in the lot, for some reason.
There's a Miata in there somewhere.
And finally: Saab friend!
I hope you guys enjoyed this field report. I know it was long, but I couldn't restrain myself. And I found a bunch more of these that I was looking for, so if there's a car you want to see a picture of, I probably have it. There was also a motorcycle division and a wooden boats division. I have motorcycle pictures. If you want them, I can post them. G'night Oppo!
PRBot II
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/22/2013 at 23:47 |
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Nice Viggen.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/22/2013 at 23:49 |
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Here's a shot of the 500K Roadster that wouldn't upload before. Now it's here, don't worry, everyone. I know. We'll get through it together.
BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/22/2013 at 23:50 |
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Great post and pictures, thanks a lot for sharing! Looks like an awesome show and that you had a great time as well.
Oh yeah, that Corvette is a Greenwood Widebody Corvette, and they ran in several endurance races in the 70's, most notably the 1976 12 hours of Sebring:
The number was a nod to the 200th anniversary of the American Independence.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> PRBot II
09/22/2013 at 23:51 |
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Haha, sadly, that was the most excited I got all day. "We've seen the F40, we've seen the 8C and 6C, BUT HOLY SHIT, THERE'S A VIGGEN." I'm adamant that the most interesting cars at car shows are the ones not in car shows.
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PRBot II
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/22/2013 at 23:56 |
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I would have been the same way. I'd love a Viggen.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
09/22/2013 at 23:57 |
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Sweet facts, man! Yeah, I had a great time, especially considering they had mini hot dogs at the catering booth.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> PRBot II
09/22/2013 at 23:58 |
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Wouldn't we all?
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BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/22/2013 at 23:59 |
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Haha, things can't go wrong with Hot Cars and Hot Dogs, now can they?
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
09/23/2013 at 00:00 |
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I just had an idea for a Coffee & Cars spinoff.
stuttgartobsessed
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/23/2013 at 00:57 |
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I was there too! BUT HOW DID I MISS THE COSWORTH????? AND THE F TYPE???? Hot Damn. And you're right about the most interesting cars being in the parking lots and not in the show.
LargeEddie
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/23/2013 at 01:02 |
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The white Porsche with the big tail is a 935, run by Brumos Racing in the IMSA GT series. It's from 1977 maybe, give or take a year. They got even crazier after that. Google "paul newman hawaiian tropic 935" for more coolness.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> stuttgartobsessed
09/23/2013 at 01:23 |
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They were both in the upper lot, which I think filled up pretty quickly. We all had to get there right as it opened because I had a soccer game in the afternoon. I missed the judging, but I got there before the crowds and heat. So I can live with it.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> LargeEddie
09/23/2013 at 01:24 |
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I always forget which whale-tail is which, even though I hold them up on a pedestal as the craziest, coolest, most batshit GT cars ever.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> LargeEddie
09/23/2013 at 01:25 |
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This one's always been my favorite, even though I have no idea what model it is. Besides a 911.
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stuttgartobsessed
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/23/2013 at 02:00 |
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I was there all day long, but didn't explore the upper lot. I explored the lower lot however. The sun made for some great pictures though, and the judging was great (The MB 500K had a huge backfire) and to get to hear all of the cars start up and drive off was amazing. Also took part in the Porsche test drives (took the Panamera GTS for a spin because I was with friends) but didn't know they had a 911 Turbo? I thaught it was just a 991 911 Cab. Anyway, it was a great day!
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LargeEddie
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/23/2013 at 02:03 |
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I always need Google's help knowing which is which myself. I'm not that much of a Porsche guy really, just an old enough geezer to have seen them racing in their day so I get a little headstart.
That appears to be a 1974 factory Carrera RSR Turbo. And yes, it seems to be a lot of folks' favorite, to the tune of over $3 million dollars for one at Amelia Island last year . But hey, if you keep on getting lucky breaks like you did on the admission to this show...
Excellent photos btw, I forget to say that. Thanks for posting them.
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LargeEddie
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/23/2013 at 02:13 |
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Small correction: That red Cossie is actually an Escort RS Cosworth , which came after the Cosworth Sierras. It's a rally homologation special they built using the Cosworth Sierra chassis and drivetrain but with gen 4 Escort sheet metal hung on it. Really nice seeing that one too.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> LargeEddie
09/23/2013 at 02:25 |
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Huh. You learn something everyday! Thanks, Ed. I would make an edit note, but I don't know how. Ya know, I think I knew it wasn't a Sierra Cossie, but I wasn't sure enough to make that bold statement.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> stuttgartobsessed
09/23/2013 at 02:29 |
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I could have been wrong about the Turbo part. I wasn't with him when he did it, I just assumed that it was a Turbo. I wanted it to be a Turbo.
SpeedSix
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/24/2013 at 02:45 |
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I love how afterthought-y the tailights look on most 1930s-era cars. It was like they just designed a streamlined teardrop shape and stuck some circles on the rear when they realized the forgot to incorporate the lights.
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SpeedSix
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/24/2013 at 02:51 |
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Is that a freaking Lamborghini 350GT/400GT in the background there!?
EDIT: If it's too small to see, scroll up until you find this pic.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> SpeedSix
09/24/2013 at 10:17 |
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Good eyes, there! It was a Lamborghini 400 Interim Superleggera. Check out the instrument cluster!
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SpeedSix
> saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
09/24/2013 at 18:16 |
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I love that tiny chrome driver's rearview mirror.
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saabstory | fixes bikes, breaks cars
> SpeedSix
09/24/2013 at 19:09 |
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I always think those are like the little silver mirror-on-a-stick things dentists use. My favorite thing about this was the interior. The dash is gorgeous, and so is the steering wheel and seats. The best part is the shifter, though.