Tag Archives: MimboloveMaserati
I finagled a ticket to the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, in Cernobbio, Italy, where I was privileged to purchase a $35 club sandwich whilst hobnobbing with a much better crowd than I’m used to, and made a few new, fancy friends. (I promised not to name names but we all joked around, testing our esoteric car knowledge, and I finally said, “George, if you don’t have a clue, you’re looney!”) This concorso, started 1929, was held to only about 50 extraordinary cars.
1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 by Scaglietti; 1925 Alfa Romeo RL Normale; 1973 Alpine Renault A110; 1932 Aston Martin; 1951 Pegaso Z-102; 1937 Bentley 4.5 liter; 1958 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud 1 convertible Freestone and Webb; 1962 Facel Vega Facel II; new Rolls Royce; 1954 Maserati A6 GCS Berlinetta by Pinin Farina.
The French Citroën SM, made from 1970 to 1975, was Motor Trend’s 1972 Car of the Year due to high levels of innovation, efficiency, style and performance. It has a surprisingly luxurious ride and sharp handling from a hydro-pneumatic self-leveling suspension unique to Citroën. Powered by a new, and very light (300 lbs) aluminum 2.7 liter Maserati V6 engine of 170 – 180 hp, it will reach 140+ mph thanks to an incredibly low drag coefficient of 0.26. It was the first to have speed-variable steering effort, among other advanced features, including front wheel drive and all disc brakes (front discs are inboard). New U.S. Federal safety rules for 1974 about bumper height could not be met, so the car was no longer imported. Other U.S. laws prohibited the European-style six headlights, and headlights that turned with the steering. I drove one of these in the mid-1970s. Very cool. Link to Motoreum at right.
A highlight of these races, this Maserati has a four cylinder, four valves per cylinder, supercharged engine. Note eight exhaust pipes, two for each cylinder. These cars were successfully raced before and after WWII, including a 1946 GP victory by Tazio Nuvolari, one of the greatest drivers of all time. Also, check out the youtube story of GP race cars from 1924 to 1939, 49 minutes full of race footage and info.
Many, many remarkable cars were at last year’s vintage races at Circuit of the Americas, coming again this year. Unlike the F1 races there, it was not crowded and you could walk through the paddocks and chat with the mechanics, drivers and owners. See link to COTA at right.
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