Together with its predecessor the 500K, the magnificent Mercedes-Benz 540K was arguably the most noteworthy production model offered by the Stuttgart firm during the 1930s. A development of the 500K, whose independently suspended chassis it shared, the 540K was powered by a 5.4-liter supercharged straight-8 engine. The 540K featured the […]
Big changes at GM for 1970 included the end of the corporate edict forbidding engines larger than 400 cubic inches in its intermediate models. Chevrolet’s “big-block” V8 was enlarged to 454 ci and formed the basis of the LS6 option, intended to help Chevrolet wrest control of Super Stock drag […]
The advantages of four-wheel drive had been shown at Indianapolis in 1967, and George Bignotti sought to profit by combining it with the Ford V8 in 1968. He bought a single four-wheel-drive Lola with Ford V8 power for Al Retzlaff, to be driven by Al Unser. It was this car. […]
The 330 GTC debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in 1966 and was intended to fill a gap in Ferrari’s line-up between the four-seat 330 GT 2+2 and the racer-on-the-road 275 GTB. Later that year, the open-top 330 GTS was introduced at the Paris Salon. The 330 GTS features a […]
With development of the second-generation of DB 6-cylinder sports cars nearing its end, Aston Martin turned to the Italian Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, creator of the original DB4 of 1959, for the next model. Touring built a pair of two-seater prototypes, one right- and one left-hand drive (2661R and 2662L, […]
Alfa Romeo’s first all-new offering of the post-war period arrived in 1950. Designed by Dr. Orazio Satta Puliga and intended for volume production, the 1900 was the first Alfa to employ unitary construction and-in keeping with the company’s sporting heritage-was powered by a twin-overhead-camshaft engine. The 4-cylinder unit displaced 1,884 […]
Police return Hallingby’s seized Ferrari; he files a $5 million lawsuit against magazines whose advertisements described it as stolen The December 2008 “Legal Files” reported that 1958 Ferrari 250 PF Cabriolet s/n 0799GT was seized by the Connecticut State Police from the garage of noted car collector and long-time SCMer […]
A three-billion-dollar car business, a garage full of collectible vintage Ferraris, including a 250 GTO, and franchises strung across Europe like stars in Orion’s Belt. This impressive empire was 100 years in the making-but in the last three years, it has come completely apart. Frits Kroymans is the Ferrari and […]
After 1973, Americans had to get used to pressing their faces against the glass and watching the Europeans get all the good stuff, beginning with the Porsche 911 2.7 Carrera RS and BMW 3.0 CSL. Even entertaining cheap stuff like the MG B V8 and Triumph Dolomite were forbidden. It […]
While the original Corvettes of 1953–54 were more suited to stylish cruising, a performance boost quickly followed, thanks to Zora Arkus-Duntov, who skillfully guided the Corvette’s transformation into a potent sports car. The addition of the powerful, small-block 265-ci V8 engine in 1955 was a welcome first step in […]
Sign up for a free weekly insider's report on the collector car market — and get a free gift.