If you’ve not been to one of the big concours d’elegances such as Pebble Beach or Amelia Island, you may not understand just how much automotive overload these events are. You’re assaulted with row after row of cars, each one with a story often interesting enough for a whole book.
And yet we stroll by each one and focus on almost none. As I strolled through this year’s Amelia Island Concours, I decided that the best thing I could do for you, the unfortunate souls who couldn’t be there, would be to pick out strange or interesting details of cars that you’ll never get from that so common front three-quarter shot. I hope you find this minutia as interesting as I do.
1927 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8AS LeBaron
There are plenty of details of note on this gorgeous blue-and-gray phaeton, including that incredibly detailed grille with the lightning bolts. But look closely at the amazingly crystalline headlight lenses, and you’ll see the initials of the company that built this car’s chassis, Isotta Fraschini—the maker of the world’s first production straight-eight.
1930 Rolls Royce Phantom II
Take a look at the swept V-shaped front windshield on this Rolls, which, surrounded by gorgeous exposed metal, leaves the driver exposed to the elements. This, the second body to rest on this chassis, was designed in 1935 and has a fully enclosed cabin for the passengers, lest they be exposed to such indignities as UV light or (heaven forbid) water falling from the sky. But the detail I want you to look at most? The caning on the rear half of the body sides because it was painted by hand. You think sitting in traffic up front would be tough? Imagine doing that artwork.
1932 Auburn 8-100 A Boattail Speedster
I should probably call your attention to the outrageous color scheme and in particular the red edge striping that turns rearward at the tops of the front fenders. Or the red strakes that begin at the flying hood ornament and then merge with the metal windshield supports and continue rearward. Or how the red grille seems to melt, dripping onto the front fascia. But it’s the lights. Oh, those headlights—they are stunning works of art. Imagine what they’d look like as the fixtures outside your front door. Or as a table lamp. (Try making a lamp out of today’s automotive headlights.) Then again, I’m sure a glowworm taped to the front of this thing would give off more forward light. But when you look this good, who cares about practical considerations?
1938 Graham 97 Supercharged Cabriolet by Saoutchik
This very car wooed crowds at last year’s Pebble Beach, not just because of the gorgeous rear fin. And neither the incredible art deco headlight surrounds, nor the forward swept grille, nor the fold-down windshield, nor even the red Supercharged script on the chrome. No, it’s the sliding rear door that led one elegantly dressed spectator standing next to it to call it “batsh*t f*cking crazy.” That’s language you don’t usually hear at a concours, but this gorgeous car earned it.
1938 Mercedes-Benz 540K Special Tourer
Sure, you’ve seen a 540K Special Roadster (30 were built), but only two of these Tourers were made, and this is the only one left. Unlike that impractical two-seat Roadster, this one seats four. Never would I imagine putting a burgundy roof on a champagne car, but this 540K is, like all others, gorgeous beyond description. Of note is the small badge nestled behind the side-mounted spare tire showing that this body was built by Sindelfingen. Many of you driving modern Mercedes will recognize that name, as one of Mercedes’ biggest factories remains in that town.
1938 Phantom Corsair
As if the whole car’s cockroach-meets-art-deco shape isn’t fabulous enough, take a look at the plastic license plate cover, which perfectly follows the contour of that sloping rear end. Oh, and the doors open at the touch of a button—helpful when getting out quickly to provide assistance to the peasants you’ve just reversed over. Sadly, the backup camera hadn’t yet been invented.
1942 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Pininfarina Special
This thing is so gorgeous I can’t even. It was originally a ’42 Alfa 6C, bought by Pininfarina and turned into a show car for the 1946 Paris Auto Show. Because France is full of spiteful French people, Italian and German cars were banned from the show (this was, of course, right after the war), so Pinin Farina drove this car himself to Paris and parked it right outside of the show. Can you imagine the stir it made, ooh la la? (It won Best in Show a year later at the Monte Carlo Concours d’Elegance, so there, France!) Anyway, if you think the exterior is incredible (and it is), look at the dash. The most gorgeous turquoise on the gauge faces ain’t got nuthin’ on the clear Lucite controls or the mirror-finished panels. Oh, and look at the radio dial, too.
1952 Pegaso Z-102
This four-wheeled insane asylum is the only remaining “Cupula”-bodied Pegaso. Look at that rear glass. I mean, what’s to say?
1953 Ferrari 250 Europa Vignale
Yes, just another finned Ferrari, how dreadfully common. And a three-tone one at that, with a mirrored side and red hood and upper fenders. But look how the black paint of the upper section continues onto the fins. It’s stunning. Who thinks of this stuff?
1954 Pegaso Z-102 Touring Berlinetta (green)
If there was one car that was a dime a dozen at Amelia, it was the Pegaso Z-102, but to make sure this one stood out, Look. At. That. Exhaust. Think of the third-degree burns you could inflict with those things. Epic.
1954 Pegaso Z-102 Touring Berlinetta (blue)
Where do you begin? First I thought it would be the crazy inset taillights. Then the recessed rear side markers. Or possibly the triple-chrome grille in the C-pillar. Oh, but then I noticed the C-pillar itself—which is formed as the rear and side glass pinch together and, thanks to careful chrome strips and one chrome plate, are made to form a small point (not unlike the hatch on the Lotus Evora). But this is why Pegaso wins—at that center is a silver brooch of sorts, adorned with a compass on it. Why? I have no idea, but it’s incredible-looking and turns a structurally conventional C-pillar into a spectacular work of art.
1955 Mercedes-Benz 300S Coupe
Rare car, 216 built, paint is from the late 1960s, wow, ooh, ahh. Umm, have a look at those air horns. They’re factory. How hot is that? Just think of what must have been going through the designers’ heads when they decided where to mount them. Remember, OCD medications hadn’t yet been invented, and since the two-tone horns are different lengths, they couldn’t be mounted symmetrically. Oh, the horror of that decision. Do you mount them so the trumpets are symmetrical or so that the bases are? Mercedes made the right choice, I think.
1956 Lincoln Premiere
Sorry about the lack of an overall picture here. I was stunned purple by this thing—the most outrageous and gorgeous mid-century modern you’ll ever see in an automobile. Have a look at that interior—yellow and purple? The horn ring on the steering wheel that fits within the spokes? The metal door handle surround that looks straight outta the Jetsons? And if the yellow window switches aren’t enough, look at the back of the car. The star on the gold badge would make a cool doorbell surround but—what? Are those the exhausts? Mounted right in the bumpers? If you backed into your garage and accidentally touched the wall, you’d light your house on fire. Which is the coolest thing ever.
1958 BMW 507
Pardon the lack of overall photo. I wasn’t going to include the 507 in this piece until I realized that the shifter is fully hidden under the dash. This is clearly before BMW was the Ultimate Driving Machine. This was an MNG: the Manicurist’s Nightmare Generator. Go for a couple-hour back-road drive in this thing, and you’ll leave bloodstains. Wow, ergonomics has come a long way.
1958 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster
If you wanted a 300SL but lived in Winnipeg, you’d get the hardtop, as this car’s original owner did. Wait, a hardtop? Yep, have a good hard look. You don’t usually see 300SL Roadsters shown with their hardtops—and this design is awesome. Just look at the shape of the rear window.
1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz
Taillight. Fin. Most incredibly gorgeous angle of any car ever. Look closely. And wonder why the reviews of the new Cadillac CT6 have been a little unenthusiastic. I could study the details on this car for a day and never tire of it.
1964 Porsche 356C
Yep, this is Janis Joplin’s car, so you’ve probably seen it before. But have you seen the inside of the gas cap? Hint: Don’t look directly at it if you’ve just dropped acid.
1965 Brawner Hawk
This is the car built for Mario Andretti’s Indy 500 debut, but I’m more concerned with those exhaust headers. I know I’ve gotten brake rotors so hot they turned blue, but this is some Smurfy stuff going down over here. I just wonder how long that blue lasts before it burns off. Ten minutes at idle?
1965 Lamborghini 350GT
The 350GT was the first Lamborghini car, made before Lamborghini’s company turned into the maker of outrageous supercars. It is beautiful, simple, and elegant, and it has the most awesome vents you’ve never noticed. Right there, at the base of the windshield, one per side. A vent that looks like a speaker grille with a metal three-blade fan inside. Presumably it’s for the in-car ventilation (though the 350GT does have twin thermostatically controlled radiator cooling fans); I can’t imagine they’d keep water out of the cabin in the rain. But I guess even then, who’d drive a Lamborghini in the rain?
1967 Toyota 2000GT
Oh, those popup headlights and the big driving lights. Something about lighting regulations, blah blah. But the most noteworthy part of the 2000GT is its greenhouse—viewed from the side, I think it’s the most beautifully shaped DLO of all time. But notice how the top and bottom of the windshield arc in equal and opposite measure to a tight pinch at the back. Wanna know why the bottom section kinks up like that? It’s because the rear shock towers are so high the designers didn’t have a choice. When given lemonade by the engineers, make lemon martinis.
1968 Lamborgini Miura
This is just me being silly, but doesn’t it look like the grass died right where the exhausts assaulted it with unburned hydrocarbons and pounds of NOx? What a way to go …
1971 Lamborghini Miura SV
This is the original Geneva show car for the SV, the Miura without the eyelashes. No worries, it’s still the most gorgeous supercar to ever pummel the world’s richest roads. But here’s a detail you don’t often see up close: the grilles on the trailing edges of the doors. I call them the Miura Guillotines because they go through right to the end of the doors. Look in the gap, and you’ll see my finger. I almost lost the tip of a finger once, thanks to this design. You will, too, if you close the door of a Miura and aren’t paying attention.
1975 BMW 2002 Turbo
Forgive me for pointing out what might be the most obvious detail ever, but it seems the people around me at the show didn’t know this. The “2002” and “turbo” on the 2002 Turbo’s front air dam are painted backward so they read correctly in the rearview mirror of cars this little monster is chasing down on the autobahn. Back then, it was seen as brash by people with no sense of humor. Or, as most people call them, Germans. I think it’s awesome, and it always was.
1985 Lancia Delta S4 “Stradale”
I was standing next to a bunch of engine nerds when this thing started and was revved up by its owner. Or someone who was stealing it. Either way, the Stradale makes 550 hp from just 1,759cc of four-cylinder anger thanks to a big turbo and a big supercharger. But the detail you need to know? It sounds just like a rotary. Don’t ask me, because I don’t know why. When it started up, we all went looking for a Mazda. Insane sound, insane pops and bangs from the exhaust. They’re almost as outrageous as the way this car looks. That’s very; this is a car with eight headlights.
1985 Porsche 962
This is a Porsche 962. It needs no explanation. It’s one of those cars that’s so outrageously sensual that it’s hard to imagine the primary goal was to make this thing fast. It’s for that reason that we tend to take in the 962 as a whole, so I call to your attention the tow hook. It’s the sort of beautiful, simple, industrial design that made us all buy Apple products.
1986 Porsche 962
Note this 962’s Coke livery, where the ’85 car’s livery was Coca Cola. 1985 marked the year of “New Coke,” the marketing disaster that infuriated an entire generation of future diabetics. The 962 pissed nobody off, except maybe the owners of the cars it raced against. This one finished the 12 Hours of Sebring at a record average speed of 115.852 mph—crossing the finish line on three wheels. Three wheels, not counting the enormous wheels housed within the turbocharger, which is the size of a serving platter. With a turbo that big breathing down your neck, you’d produce 625 hp from just 2.6 liters, too.
The post 25 Amazing Details You Won’t See Unless You Go to Amelia Island Yourself appeared first on Motor Trend.
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