We’ve come up with the ultimate SCM road trip. We’re combining perhaps the most insignificant collector car with the longest possible trip. Here’s your chance to become a part of it.
We’ve acquired a 1974 Bradley GT. My 9-year-old son is named Bradley; how could I resist? Think how much more interesting my choices would have been if I had named him Enzo.
We’re asking SCMers to take turns driving it across the country. The GT is currently in Miami/Fort Lauderdale, FL. The final destination is Legends of the Autobahn, held in Monterey on Thursday, August 18. The Bradley may have subsequent appearances at Concorso Italiano and at Concours d’LeMons.
A now-forgotten VW-based kit car from the 1970s, most Bradley GTs have melted into the earth by now. Their most distinctive features were their gullwing doors. However, the Bradley is unlikely to be confused with a 300SL.
The flamboyant pianist Liberace was the most famous celebrity owner of a Bradley. His was painted in metalflake gold with silver candelabra emblems on its sides. It resides in the Liberace Garage in Las Vegas.
We found ours on eBay and bought it for $4,625. It was located in Miami. SCMer Mike Iliteras inspected it for us.
He pronounced it to be “about as good as a Bradley GT can be, which, of course, is not all that great.” He had it towed to a VW specialist shop in Fort Lauderdale, and it is being tuned and fitted with new tires for the trip. It’s powered by a 1968 1,500-cc VW flat-four.
Here’s the plan. We’d like the car to get to Monterey by Monday, August 14, in time for Car Week. We really don’t care which route the car follows. In fact, the more states covered, the better.
This kind of road trip is not a first for SCMers. In 2005, we had subscribers drive a 1960 Fiat 2100 from Cleveland, OH, to Portland, OR. Martin Swig and his son David drove it across the ramp at Concorso Italiano in Monterey.
I spoke with David a few days ago about the trip, and he recalled the car as being the “most horrible piece of sh*t” he had ever been in. He remembers the temperature gauge doubling as an altimeter as he drove near Mount Shasta on his way to Portland.
In 2007, SCMers drove a 1968 Mercury Colony Park wagon from Detroit to Portland. Doug Hartman was behind the wheel from Sioux Falls to Portland. He said the car’s handling reminded him of a fat pig wallowing in the mud.
We will make sure the Bradley is tuned, properly licensed and insured. All other expenses are yours. (We will cover repairs, not that any will be necessary — what could possibly go wrong in a 43-year-old home-built car?) We promise some nifty, exclusive “Miami to Monterey in a Gullwing” swag for all participants. Plus, you’ll bask in a moment of fame in SCM.
If you’d like to drive the car for a longer leg — or even the entire way — we’re up for that as well. A direct route is not important. Getting to Monterey by August is what matters.
Auction Editor Garrett Long will coordinate the drivers. Please email him at
[email protected], and he’ll help put together an itinerary.
Let this ultimate SCM road-trip adventure begin. Your Bradley GT is waiting for you.
Submit your 40 Under 40 nominations
There’s still time to nominate your favorite gearhead Millennial for the first SCM 40 Under 40 awards. We want to recognize the key Millennials who are driving the hobby forward.
If you know of someone under 40 involved in any aspect of the collector car world, from buying, selling, auctioning and consigning to restoring, detailing, transporting and more, take a moment and nominate them. Go to
www.sportscarmarket.com/scm40. If you have any questions, contact me directly at
[email protected]. Nominations close May 15, and we will recognize the selected enthusiasts in our October issue. ♦