I’d like to start following my own advice.

When someone tells me they have acquired a new classic car, one of the first things I say to them is to just leave it alone.

Attend to any basic running and safety issues and have the car inspected. (My 1967 Duetto’s brakes failed 30 miles after I bought the car. This happened while I was descending a curved section of a parking garage exit ramp. It created some excitement.)

But don’t Read More

It’s not as formal as a concours, but more upscale than a cars and coffee.

This was my third year as emcee of the European Auto Festival in Greenville, SC.

Held on a golf course adjacent to an Embassy Suites hotel, the Euro Auto Festival is a delightful event.

The mix of cars is eclectic, ranging from air-cooled Porsche SCs to Jaguar E-types all the way to surprise cars, such as this year’s barn-find Renault Le Car and three Opel Read More

“I thought you were shooting a gun at me.”

That’s what the police officer said when he pulled us over in Coos Bay, OR.

We were an unlikely group of adventurers. Me, co-conspirator Richard Lincoln (of Bradley GT and Autozam fame), my son Bradley — and Carrera, Richard’s cockapoo dog.

I decided a couple of months ago that I really needed to own a Ferrari 308 GT4. Maybe it was the changing of the seasons, maybe it was the Keto Read More

There was a new Ferrari Lusso waiting for me at the Petersen Automotive Museum. Silver and red, like the exterior of the museum, the 4-seat rocket was sleek and menacing.

It was a museum-themed weekend for me in Los Angeles. The Petersen was having its annual gala — and celebrating 70 years of Porsche at the same time.

The gala, with its rooftop tent erected just for this occasion, was a sold-out success. Wolfgang Porsche was presented the 2018 Icon Read More

Suddenly we have more cars than we have parking spaces. It’s those darn “accidental purchases” catching up with me.

So our 911 has to go.

It’s a 2003 996 6-speed coupe with sunroof. It’s an unusual and attractive seal gray with a light gray interior. The wheels have been powder-coated a dark gray. The VIN of the Porsche is WP0AA29973S620903.

We bought it about a year ago, and it’s been a delightful car. Read what I had to say about it Read More

There is one element of a concours that is beyond our control: the weather.

We can spend years restoring our cars and attending to every little detail. Likewise, months of preparation can precede the one day of glory that concours anticipate.

But mother nature can have her own ideas.

This was the 22^nd annual Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance. Concours organizers Thomas Ross and Mike Tilson had prepared an activity-filled weekend, and despite the rain, the enthusiasts who attended saw Read More

It was an all-Alfa weekend.

Last Thursday, the Alfa Romeo Club of Oregon hosted its annual “Red Duetto Tour.”

The brainchild of Fred and Lisa McNabb, the entry rules are simple. To participate, you must have a red “long-tail” Alfa spider, built between 1966-69.

Long-tail spiders were Alfa’s in-your-face response to impending safety regulations and larger bumpers. The Pininfarina-designed cars have impossibly delicate sloping front and rear ends. The slightest touch by another car when they are parked leaves a Read More

The 1964 Shelby Daytona Coupe. The 1966 Ford GT40 Mk II. The 1970 Porsche 917LH. The 1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 B MM.

These are some of the greatest racing cars of all time.

They are four of the 65 world-class racing cars in the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum in Philadelphia, PA.

Dr. Fred Simeone is a retired neurosurgeon who began building his collection in 1972, when his father died and left him with $8,000 and four cars.

He Read More

We were sitting outside a Porta Potty near Tenmile, Oregon. Our unlikely four-car caravan had traveled about 200 miles from Portland before our first catastrophic failure.

Our group included a 1966 Citroën DS-21 décapotable (cabriolet) owned by Greg Long from Seattle, a 1972 Alfa Berlina that belonged to Brad Miller and his wife Nancy from Portland (and Paris), the SCM 1967 Giulia Super with me driving and son Bradley as my companion, and the SCM 1992 Autozam – a 660-cc, turbocharged Read More

Editor’s note: Keith Martin invited SCMers Luke Chennell and Richard Lincoln to come along on SCM’s Caravan to Concorso. Last week, Luke took over Keith’s Blog and wrote about the SCM Autozam blowing a head gasket. In this installment, Chennell takes us to California’s Lost Coast with a failing master cylinder:

I believe that fun is something that should be delivered good and hard. To do that requires hard work. It requires participation, kindred spirits and a commitment to goals.

Read More