We’ve written before that the doomsayers who are declaring the collector car hobby is dying are living on a different planet than we are here at SCM. In addition to Cars & Coffee and marque-specific tours (the Oregon Region of the Porsche Club of America holds two tours per week), […]
I was dropping off the Alfa Romeo Spider S4 at Mac’s Radiator shop to have the A/C compressor replaced. It was a hot day, and I asked about putting A/C in our 1975 Porsche 911S Sportomatic. They quoted me “about $10,000” if it is a factory A/C car with all […]
The place I have been storing some of my cars just sent me a note that my low-power trickle charger overcharged and ruined the new battery in the Lotus Elise. It was suggested to me that you should always put a trickle charger on a timer, so that it only […]
Seaside, OR, is just 78 miles from Portland. The route there, out Highway 26, is a relaxing mix of 60-mph roads traversing the Coast Range and 80-mph straightaways through Tillamook Forest. It is one of my favorite “Sunday drives” and I like to make it as often as I can […]
In August of 1980, we were on our way to Monterey when an ad in Hemmings Motor News caught my eye: “1965 Alfa Romeo Spider. Twin carburetor version. Two owners. Gray with red. $22,000.” This was followed by a Portland phone number. Times being what they were, I waited a […]
“The Submerged Cathedral (La cathédrale engloutie)” was written for piano by Claude Debussy in 1910. It is based on an ancient myth of a cathedral that is submerged off the coast of an island. In the morning it rises up from the water, accompanied by the sounds of chanting priests, […]
Until this weekend, I was unaware that Maserati had built a commercial-grade spin dryer in 1956. That was until SCMer Chris Bright poured me like tube of freshening agent into his replica Maserati 350S and took me on a Friday afternoon blast through downtown Portland and the surrounding hills. During […]
Social media has its plusses and minuses, but a definitive positive is the ability to find out about events you would never hear of otherwise. Late Friday night I was forwarded a notice of the “Discovery Vintage Car Show – Vintage Wheels and Timeless Appeal.” It was being held at […]
Through happenstance, SCMer Chris Bright and I ended up living a floor apart in the same condo. As you wind down through our building’s four levels of underground parking, you see some unusual cars. The most mysterious is covered, but a discerning eye can spot the sensuous lines of a […]
This whole thing started like many of my adventures, behind the wheel of an Alfa. As my stroke-weakened left leg responds to physical therapy, I have begun to be able to drive a manual-shift car again, though in a limited fashion. I took our 1965 Giulia Spider Veloce around the […]