Columns


  • 1948 Tucker 48

    If I had a wayback machine, I can think of no one I would more like to buy a beer for than Preston Tucker {vsig}2004-7_1223{/vsig} The name Tucker strikes a chord in the heart of every true car enthusiast. One of the final hand-built models to roll off the line, Tucker no. 1043 is probably…

  • 1984 Audi Quattro Sport

    Anyone who’s ever stood in the cold on the side of a dark mountain road waiting for those headlights to come flashing by can understand the desire to own this car. {vsig}2004-7_1224{/vsig} This 1984 Audi Sport Quattro is not only the works car of world champion Hannu Mikkola and Arne Hertz, but is probably the…

  • 1983 Ferrari 400i Spyder Conversion

    Open V12 Ferrari for under $40k. {vsig}2004-7_1205{/vsig} As described by the seller on eBay Motors: Here is your chance to buy a 12-cylinder Ferrari convertible. This is the best looking and performing 400i convertible in the world, a traffic stopper. I just drove the car about 100 miles and people gave me the thumbs up…

  • 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Mk I Volante

    This car was bought over the phone, bringing to mind a favorite jest of one of my good friends: {vsig}2004-7_1219{/vsig} The new Aston Martin DB6 was introduced at the 1965 London Motor Show as a distinctively restyled development of the successful DB4 and DB5 model ranges. The flat transom Kamm-tail topped by an integral spoiler…

  • 1950 Abarth 205A

    Abarth was a master of self-promotion, he knew how to hire talented young people whose work he would later appropriate, and he knew how to make a quick buck. {vsig}2004-7_1221{/vsig} Born in Austria in 1908, Karl Abarth was a European motorcycle champion in the 1930s who fled to Italy during World War II. His firm,…

  • Lucky Drives Again

    It was 18 months ago that SCM Legal Analyst John Draneas and I bought a 1965 three-cylinder, two-stroke Saab 96 on eBay, plucked it out of a barn in Rimini, MT, and tried to drive it home to Portland.Readers may recall that we covered 400 of the 700 miles with little drama aside from a…

  • 1976-1981 Pontiac Trans Am “Bandit”

    1976-1981 Pontiac Trans Am “Bandit”

    The second-generation Pontiac Trans Am was in production for twelve years, from 1970 to 1981, and effectively captured a generation of car enthusiasts in an era when Motor City muscle was in decline. Admittedly, the Trans Am of the mid-1970s was a pale imitation of earlier models, an underpowered, portly beast that nearly fell victim…

  • 1964 Amphicar Convertible

    When you restore one of these, you want to make sure you have found all the holes in the body. {vsig}2004-6_1231{/vsig} There are better cars, and there are better boats, but there is no better way to draw a crowd than with an Amphicar. Designed by Hans Trippel and built in Germany, the Amphicar was…

  • 1938 Lincoln Zephyr Street Rod

    The ringmen worked this sale hard, and at its dramatic conclusion the owners were high-fiving as though they’d just won the lottery {vsig}2004-6_1232{/vsig} The Zephyr Street Rod on offer here is one of the most famous street rods ever created. This custom, all-steel Lincoln Zephyr three-window coupe was nationally selected by Goodguys and judged winner…

  • 1951 Allard J2 Cadillac Le Mans Race Car

    A tech inspector looked at the front suspension of a J2X and said, “Wow! Where’s the ‘crimes against nature’ checkbox on this form?” {vsig}2004-6_1233{/vsig} During the mid-1980s, Glenn Shaffer began a search for an Allard J2 with racing heritage. He found this Allard J2 in Lima, Peru, suspecting it was the “missing” #2 Le Mans…