Wednesday, January 31, 2018

BMW Spicup Concept



In the 1960’s which saw the evolution of pop culture and free thinking in the western world, BMW wanted to showcase its latest invention albeit with an abstract design. That’s when showcase engineer Enzo Congolani was called in to show his skills, and he developed this Bertone Spicup (Spider Coupe), whose retractable roof became went to become an inspiration for many to follow.

Though this car never went into full fledged production, but came to be known at multiple prestigious motor events such as 1969 Geneva Saloon, 1969 Concorso de Eleganza, and also the same year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, where it gained significant notary. Amongst its many attractive features other than the multiple tone green colour of body and leather upholstery, it boasted of a 2.5-liter straight 6 cylinder engine which packed in a decent punch to engine. This particular vehicle later changed a few hands including a dealer in the Netherlands, until there came a time when it had lost all its former charm.

The car was a daily driver for it’s Dutch owner for 10 years before it was auctioned and sold for 460,000 Euros in recent years.
Images; In auto news

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Sunday, January 21, 2018

ISO Rivolta Varedo


Today we are featuring yet another unusual and very rare car. In fact there is only one of these in the world and it resides at the ISO museum.
Renzo Rivolta was born in 1908. His father was in the wood milling industry and owned many properties in Italy and abroad. While looking for a business with a more secure future he came across a little company close to Genua specialized in the production of refrigerators and heaters. This little but modern factory was called Isothermos and Renzo managed to buy it in 1939. During the war he was forced to move the factory to Bresso, because of the bombardments in the Genua area. In Bresso he found an old villa with a large piece of land which was perfect for his needs. He was able to fool the German’s for a long time and kept the factory running during the war.
Piero Rivolta took over the Iso Company after his father passed away in 1966. One of the first things he did was the introduction of a new version of the Grifo, the Targa, and of a whole new car, the Iso S4.
After Iso closed in 1974 he went to America and formed the Rivolta Group. He surprised the automotive press with the introduction of the Grifo 90 in 1992 but it remained a one-off. Today the Rivolta Group is busy in many areas, yachts & boats, design in cooperation with Zagato Italy, architecture & project developing etc. and the Isigo microcar.
In the late sixties and early seventies mid engined sports cars were a hype and Piero Rivolta decided that Iso should built one too. It was going to be called the Iso Varedo after its place of birth.
It was a reasonably light car with a body of fibreglass (75% fiberglass and 25% polyester). They used this material because it was cheaper and lighter than steel or aluminium. It was a car for those who asked for speed, handling and stunning looks. This was not a sporty coupé, this was a beast. An image-builder. Inside it was simple and basic, like a race car.
The car was not intended to replace the Grifo like some thought but to generate publicity for Iso and their other products.
It was designed by Ercole Spada (Zagato) and Piero Rivolta and even today it looks up to date.
Power came from Ford, the 5.7 ltr. Ford 351 Cleveland engine with 325 hp combined with a 5-speed from ZF. With a weight of around 1000kg it is a spectacular car to drive let down only by the heavy clutch and impossible gear change:
First: up-left, Second: right-down and 3/4/5 are also where they should not be and where you don’t expect them to be.
Iso only completed one Varedo and that is a real shame. In 1973 Piero Rivolta sold the company to Dr. Ivo Pera and that was the end for the Varedo. He didn’t want a new model and left the car in a corner of the factory were Piero Rivolta found it later, damaged and in pieces, after Iso had to close its doors in December 1974 due to the oil-crisis. He bought the car and had it restored to its present perfect condition. It can be seen at the Iso Museum in Sarasota FL USA.
When will we ever see another new Iso sportscar? Many are talking about it and some even claim to have seen glimpse of it.
Source; Top Speed.

A closer look video of this car here.


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Thursday, January 18, 2018

Maserati Tipo 26


The Maserati Tipo 26 M was a model of Grand Prix race car produced by Maserati in Bologna. Only a total of 13 cars were produced, between 1930 and 1932.

Before the 26, the original 8-cylinder Tipo 26/8C 1500 from 1926 had evolved into version such as 26B, 26C/8C 2100 and 26R.

Based on these, the 26M was designed in 1930 as mostly a single seater race car (M meaning monoposto) and also referred to as 8C 2500 (8 cylinder, 2500 cc).

Six of the 26M were made into 26M Sport for long endurance purposes. Special two seater cars for road use, were the 26M Grand Sport by Carrozzeria Castagna, and the Sport Tipo 1000 Miglia by Ugo Zagato. Two four-seaters were later referred to as the company’s first attempt at non-racing cars.

The 26M/8C 2500 dominated the 1930 Grand Prix season having its début at VI Premio Reale di Roma (Luigi Arcangeli won, 25 May 1930), IV Coppa Ciano (Luigi Fagioli won, 21 July 1930), VI Coppa Acerbo (Achille Varzi won, Ernesto Maserati second, 17 August 1930), III Gran Premio di Monza (Varzi won, Arcangeli second, 7 September 1930) and VII Gran Premio de España (Varzi won, Aymo Maggi second, 5 October 1930).

In the first half of the 1931 Grand Prix season it lost to Alfa Romeo 8C and Bugatti T51. A higher bore and carburettors from Edoardo Weber of Bologna, made it the 26M/8C 2800 that won at the IV Gran Premio di Monza (Luigi Fagioli, 6 September 1931) and I Mountains Championship at Brooklands (Tim Birkin, 17 October 1931).

Other drivers of 26M this year were Clemente Biondetti, Luigi Parenti, George Eyston, Pietro Ghersi, Umberto Klinger and René Dreyfus.

Later victories were with Tim Birkin’s 26M, III Mountains Championship (Whitney Straight, 21 October 1933) and as an 8C at Circuit d’Albi GP (Buddy Featherstonhaugh, 22 July 1934).

A little bit of history on Maserati race cars video here.

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Monday, January 15, 2018

Ferrari 250 GTO "Breadvan"


The “Breadvan” as it is famously known for is a bit of “eye sore” according to some, specially as it is based on a short wheel based 250GTO. The car was not built for looks. It was built to beat the Ferrari giant on the race track. Here is the story of the car.
Enzo Ferrari is best known for the cars that bear his name, but his fall-outs with employees and customers are also well documented. One of the most dramatic of these happened in the winter of 1961/1962 when a large number of key personnel left. Among them were engineers Carlo Chiti and Giotto Bizzarrini, and 1961 Formula 1 world champion Phil Hill. Shortly after their departure the rogue group set up their own company, ATS (Automobili Turismo Sport), to take on their former employer in single seater and sports car racing.
One of the final projects the team was working on at Ferrari was the 250 GTO racer, which was eventually completed by a young Mauro Forghieri. Among the first ones in line to acquire an example for the 1962 season was Count Giovanni Volpi di Misurata for his Scuderia Serenissima Republica di Venezia (SSR) to campaign. When Enzo Ferrari found out Count Volpi was one of the financial backers of the ATS team, he understandably refused to deliver a GTO. Through some friends he did eventually get an example, but he wanted more for his assault at Le Mans that year.
In his stable the Count had a very fast ‘SEFAC Hot Rod’ spec 250 GT SWB (s/n 2819 GT), which had shown its potential in the 1961 Tour de France in the hands of Olivier Gendebien. Unable to obtain a second GTO, Volpi decided to have his SWB brought up to GTO specs and who better to hire for that than Giotto Bizzarrini? More than happy to oblige, the talented engineer set out to turn 2819 GT into an even more extreme racer than the GTO already was. The car was transferred to Piero Drogo’s workshop and upgraded by Bizzarrini in an incredibly short period of time.
His first objective was to mount the engine as far back and as low as possible to obtain an ideal centre of gravity. The V12 was fitted completely behind the front axle; 12 cm further back than in the GTO. A dry-sump lubrication system was fitted to allow the engine to be mounted considerably lower. Similar to the GTO a six Weber carb set-up was fitted boosting the power to 300 bhp. The only item missing compared to Ferrari’s GTO was a five speed gearbox, so the hybrid GTO had to make do with the old SWB four speeder. To round things off GTO wheels and tires were fitted.
Although the technical changes greatly improved the car’s performance, it is not what the Count’s GTO hybrid would become famous for. That was all due to the aerodynamic body Bizzarrini had designed for it. At first it might look similar in design to the GTO body, but closer inspection reveals that it is even lower and features a much sharper nose. It was so low that a plastic cover was required to shield the Webers that pierced through the bonnet. The roof line carried on all the way to the rear end where it was sharply cut-off to create an extreme Kamm style tale.
Upon completion the Count was rightfully impressed with his new racer that was 100 kg lighter than a GTO, more aerodynamically efficient and equally powerful. It was part of a three car entry for Le Mans together with the GTO and a Ferrari 250 TR/61. Soon after its arrival Bizzarrini’s unusual rear-end design earned it the nickname ‘camionette’, French for little truck, or most commonly ‘Breadvan’ in English. Under pressure from Ferrari the organizers placed the ‘Breadvan’ in the prototype class, instead of the GT class with the GTOs. In the race it outpaced all other GTs in the first hours, but a broken drive shaft meant the end of the race.
It was campaigned four times more in the season scoring two GT class victories and a class track record. It was obvious that the ‘Breadvan’ could easily match the competition’s pace, but the limited resources and time available for proper development prevented it from attaining Ferrari’s incredible reliability. After SSR was disbanded in 1963, the Count frequently used the car on the road before he loaned it to Fiat supremo Gianni Agnelli. He had his butler paint it black as a joke because he thought it looked like a hearse. Volpi eventually sold it in 1965 after which it changed hands a few time before finding long time ownership in the United States in 1986.
Source; Wouter Melissen

Video of the car at a classic race here.

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