Profiles

1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4S NART Spyder

Luigi Chinetti recognized the viability of sporty open cars in the American market. The 250 GT SWB California Spyder in particular proved itself a resounding success. But whereas the 4-cam’s predecessor — the 275 GTB — offered a Spyder variant, the wind-in-your-hair alternative to the 275 GTB/4 was a 330 […]

1931 Bentley 4½ Litre Supercharged Le Mans

The “Blower” Bentley is one of the most masculine, muscular and sporting motorcars ever built. While some companies hid their superchargers behind the radiator grille, the Bentley wears it right out front, and that statement alone says it all about the car and its creators. First shown at the 1929 […]

1948 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Competizione

Built in the Alfa Corse workshops between 1946 and 1948, this 6C 2500 Competizione, chassis number 920002, was originally sold to Franco Rol of Torino, Italy. An Italian aristocrat turned successful chemical manufacturer, Rol was an avid sportsman who successfully raced a variety of automobiles during the late 1940s and […]

1970 Porsche 914/6

• The ultimate, best-performing Porsche 914 model • Well known in PCA circles; 30 years of single ownership • Excellent older restoration; rare and powerful mid-engine Porsche • Complete with toolkit and owner’s manual

1958 Chevrolet Cameo NAPCO 4×4

This 1958 Chevrolet Apache Cameo Carrier is the rarest of the Cameos, and it was the last year it was produced. Just 1,405 were made for 1958, and only a few were fitted with the NAPCO 4×4 system. This Cameo was treated to an exhaustive, no-expense-spared, frame-off restoration to the […]

1954 Mercedes-Benz W-196 Formula One Racer

With the approach of the new Formula 1 that was due to begin with the 1954 season, Daimler-Benz announced that they would be represented by an entirely new team of Mercedes-Benz racing cars. When these entirely new W-196 cars emerged at Reims, fans recoiled in astonishment. These sleek new silver […]

1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica SWB

As the echoes of World War II austerity faded in Europe, it occurred to Enzo Ferrari that his wealthiest clients were ready for a super-fast, road-going gran turismo. The result was a series of exclusive Ferraris built with especially powerful engines wrapped in elegant bodies from the finest Italian coachbuilders. […]

1953 Austin-Healey 100 Special Test Car

This remarkably well-documented ex-Mille Miglia, ex-Le Mans 24-Hour race Austin-Healey Works car began life as one of the Donald Healey Motor Company’s pre-production competition vehicles — properly referred to as the Special Test Cars — destined for use in International motor races and world-class distance and speed-record attempts. Of the […]

2009 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Coupe

First seen in concept-car form at the Frankfurt Auto Show in 2003, the Alfa Romeo 8C revived a famous name from the Italian company’s illustrious past when it entered production in 2006. The original 8C (8-cylinder) Alfa engine had been designed in 1931 by the legendary Vittorio Jano and was […]

A Boy Racer for the Ages

At first glance, the first-generation BMW M3 looks like a boy racer’s dream. You see a big air dam, a big spoiler and big wheels rolling under big flares.

You have to get into this car, start it and roll it down the road before you know exactly what the E30 (BMW’s internal designation for the car) is all about. In its first four years of production, it won more races and titles than any other BMW ever — and it is still the most successful racing saloon of all time.

The 1988–91 M3 represents a purity of purpose that BMW had not shown before — or since. The car was developed in reverse order of most — if not all — of the production cars of today. BMW first developed the race version of the M3 and then made it into a saleable homologation. Some will argue the M1 also fits this, but the E30 M3 was designed to go racing first, then became a road car. The M1 was developed as a sports car and then as a racer.