Mystery car pix

berri

May not be as sporty, but I think 3 on the tree is easier in stop and go traffic.

Mr_Shiftright

Too much linkage, though. The 3 on the Tree is always getting tangled up.

andys120

I disagree Fin but unlike most people I like to downshift for hills and that's pretty easy with a Steptronic on the console.

andys120

stickguy

Bricklin SV-1. 1975 or so.

SV= Safety Vehicle

bhill2

stickguy said:

Bricklin SV-1. 1975 or so.

SV= Safety Vehicle

Holy blind spots, Batman.

stickguy

but look at those bumpers!

andys120

Yup, 1975 version of Bricklin's folly.

andys120

tmart

54 Ford Sunliner, 56 Ford Country Squire, 60 Thunderbird, 57 Ford Sunliner.

lostwrench1

1955 Olds.

ab348

Pretty sure the Olds is a convertible as well. Would love to have that one today.

fintail

I spy a MB 300SL roadster behind the Olds, I'll take that one.

stickguy

A beetle in front of the olds?

texases

Anyone have a guess on the green car in the front right corner? Not much to go on, but it sure seems distinctive, given the age of the pic. Corvair?

andys120

texases said:

Anyone have a guess on the green car in the front right corner? Not much to go on, but it sure seems distinctive, given the age of the pic. Corvair?

That's a good guess I think.

andys120

tmart said:

54 Ford Sunliner, 56 Ford Country Squire, 60 Thunderbird, 57 Ford Sunliner.

Yep, I missed that distinctive Sunliner roof on the '57 Ford.

ab348

I do not think the green car is a Corvair.

Mr_Shiftright

It might be a Sunbeam Imp.

ab348

I think we are talking late 1950s for this pic, so that will limit the possibilities. My first thought was '58 Chevy or Edsel, but I don't think it is either of those given the lack of bright trim.

Mr_Shiftright

The Imp didn't appear until 1963, so not likely in this photo. The cars in the photo seem to dead-end around 1960, near as one can tell. Sure does look like one, though.

thebean

NSU Ro80 guess on the green car.

Mr_Shiftright

Still too new, bean, for this photo I think.

andys120

thebean said:

NSU Ro80 guess on the green car.

They have a saying about diagnostics in medical schools: "If you hear hoofbeats, don't look for zebras">

Mr_Shiftright

Yes but when you've run out of horses, gazelles, antelopes and water buffalo....

andys120

stickguy

It’s an Italia.

andys120

stickguy said:

It’s an Italia.

Good job Stick, you can read the lettering on the hood. Perhaps someone can tell us when it was made, by whom and what's under that long hood.

stickguy

I got the hard part. I know the rest but won’t tell.

imidazol97

ab348 said:

I do not think the green car is a Corvair.

How about a Studebaker Lark, 1959-1961.

stickguy

I was thinking rambler. They are square.

Mr_Shiftright

Oh, yeah, a 1960 Rambler American maybe.

ab348

stickguy said:

It’s an Italia.

It's a pretty Italia too.

andys120

The Italia was made by Intermeccanica in Turin Italy and styled by Robert Cumberford who does the styling analyses for Automobile magazine. Power was from a Ford 302 V8.

Intermeccanica was founded by a Canadian, Frank Reisner. It's had an interesting history of producing all sorts of cars including the original TVR Griffith, the Buick powered Apollo GT as well as replicas of various Porsches and the VW Kubelwagen . They're still in business now in Canada, making some very cool Porsche 356 replicas

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermeccanica

andys120

Michaell

BMW Zed 8

Mr_Shiftright

I think Steve Jobs had one of those. Very pricey these days.

stickguy

I always liked those

andys120

Yup,that is indeed a 2001 BMW Z8, perhaps the most desirable of 21st Century Bimmers.

I own a 2001 E46 convertible and and a 2003 E39 sedan from the same era which I call the
Pischetsreider/Reitzle era. After Wolfgang Reitzler and Bernd Pichetsreider left the company in the early 2000s BMW changed it's emphasis from Sporty with Luxury to Luxury with a little sport. The change was mostly successful with BMW in a better position to compete for market share with Mercedes, Lexus and others but something was lost and I miss it.

I'll take the old BMWs with spare tires, non-runflat tires and responsive handling over the newer laptops on wheels but, hey, that's just me.

My convertible has a color scheme similar to the Z8 shown, it gets a lot of attention.

andys120

Early roadster>

ab348

1950 166MM Barchetta, Don't ask the price, you can't afford it. Owned by Clive Beecham. Original owner Gianni Agnelli, the Fiat tycoon.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/classic/two-classic-ferraris-steeped-in-history/

Mr_Shiftright

Well they only made 25 of them. Probably $6-7 million. Maybe "celebrity" status will boost it. Problem is, it's not a very nice car to drive, so it'll be garage furniture.

andys120

I've been going to the Scottsdale winter auctions for a decade or so but I've never seen one of these. I've learned that in their own way the early Ferraris with coachwork by Vignale, Touring Superleggera and Zagato are just as beautiful as the later ones with Pininfarina bodies.

It seems that Enzo himself as well as Gianni Agnelli had a keen appreciation for how a car looked. I think that PF got the near exclusive from the 60s onward because he and Battista Pininfarina were close friends.

The Barchetti were pure roadsters, essentially slightly tamed race cars without proper tops, windsield, wipers or side windows.

Mr_Shiftright

The legend is that if you complained to Signore Ferrari about the car's somewhat brutal nature or lack of comforts, he would tell you: "I sold you the engine. You got the body for free".

omarman

"Racing is 90% mental. The other half is physical."

Mr_Shiftright

I agree with that 140% !

andys120

it's a 4-seater but clearly it's impossible for an adult to sit in rear.

ab348

Lamborghini Espada, appears to be a later-run model.

tjc78

That’s a pretty ugly car IMO.  

ab348

tjc78 said:

That’s a pretty ugly car IMO.  

I agree. But it was produced for 10 years and sold over 1200 copies. That is big for them.