classicaldrive

Choose Your Favorite Mercury. The Line is Dead

Filed in archive Ford on June 3, 2010

1939 Mercury

Detroit has done it again. Killed another historic brand and in so doing destroyed the faith of many who purchased and loved one in the past. This time it's Mercury which, since 1939, bridged the gap between Ford and Lincoln, offering a touch of luxury for less than luxury car prices. Of course the demise of Mercury is no surprise; during the past few years the corporation failed to support it with automobiles unique to the brand. As a result it only accounts for 0.8 percent of Ford Motor Company's overall market share. Mercury will be discontinued in the fourth quarter of this year, joining Pontiac and Plymouth on the scrap heap of autos ignored or forgotten by executives too busy playing marketing games to understand what really motivates car owners.

So what was your favorite Mercury? Or do you have one? I sometimes wonder if the brand ever did register with the North American public as more than an overcooked Ford or an underdone Lincoln. How often did you hear someone say "I'm a Mercury man?" Personally I've never owned a Mercury, its sole connection being the make in which I first gathered the courage to lay a hand on a young lady's bosom. Choosing a favorite, however, I'd go for the original Cougar, which bowed as a longer, sleeker version of the Mustang. Or maybe the very first Mercury, from 1939. Determined to make it different from lower-price Fords, the designers successfully blended streamlining with art deco character.

Mercury Breezeway

I would not, however, vote for the Mercs of the mid-60's (above). While the Breezeway reverse-slant rear windows made them distinctive enough, they were giant-size barges in the worst Detroit tradition. No, wait... I take that back. During a brief stint as a Ford p.r. person I borrowed one of those big Mercs from the company fleet in order to attend a cousin's wedding. On arrival I almost stole the show as everyone ignored the bride to see the car. If ever an automobile created a positive image for me, that was it. Mercury fans, your cars have just moved up a notch in the collector car hierarchy.

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Great Auto Art on a Grand Scale

Filed in archive Automotive Art on May 27, 2010

Silver Arrows Mural

This is the work of an artist who likes to paint big. Really big. In fact the Silver Arrows mural, commissioned by Audi USA in 1994, is one of his smaller works at a mere 10 x 24 feet. John Gable also created The History of the Automobile for the Automotive Hall of Fame in Dearborn, Michigan. At 12 x 65 feet is the largest since Diego Rivera's famous "Detroit Industry" in 1933.

Specializing in painting murals and large canvases of the automobile and its effect on society, John offers his work through Car Art, Inc., where owner Peter Aylett says that "new artists are a rarity here. Almost 450 from 36 countries have applied but we only accept the best. Ideally, each one brings something distinctively different to our stable."

Style and Design Mural

Unfortunately the vast size of these murals means that a blog page can't possibly do them credit. The Age of Style and Design, above, created for Clyde's Restaurant in Chevy Chase, Maryland, is a good example at 8 x 120 feet. Thus I've only shown a small portion of this stunning artwork. You can see it in full along with more of former car designer John Gable's work by clicking here. For additional info call Peter Aylett at 949-443-0500.

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The Opel GT, Gone Like a Shooting Star

Filed in archive General Motors , German Cars , Rare Europeans on May 20, 2010

Opel GT ad

During a few glamorous years as a London creative ad honcho (think Mad Men) one of my colleagues had an Opel GT coupe. If they were relatively scarce in America, Opel GTs were all but invisible in the UK, thus his car attracted attention wherever it went. Curiously, I never thought it looked like a downsized Corvette, as contemporary reviews suggest, because the GTs production years, 1968-1973, coincided with my time overseas. During that period I never saw a Corvette nor, for that matter, did I think of it.

Though designed and manufactured in Germany (except the bodies, which were made in France) the Opel GT was largely aimed at the North American market. It was sold by Buick dealers who, at the time, were merchandising Opels in order to have an economy car on their showroom floors. That was like asking your maiden aunt to monitor a room full of rambunctious 5-year-olds; confused and distraught, after a while she simply gave up.

Which was too bad, for Opels were generally good cars and in the right hands might have created a permanent niche in North America. The GT was an excellent "halo" car, being attractive and affordable, and it qualified as a genuine sports car. It was suitable for road racing, as well, and could have been developed into a small-class contender.

Underneath that pretty skin, the GT had the bones of an Opel Kadett sedan but hey, many a fine sports car made use of parts from the bins of family automobiles. A 67 hp 1.1-liter unit was standard and performed well considering the car's low weight. But most buyers went for the overhead-cam 102 hp 1.9-liter engine, partly because it could better cope with the optional 3-speed auto. The 4-speed manual, of course, offered the best performance.

More than 100,000 were sold worldwide and amazingly those US Buick dealers accounted for 70% of the total. Thus the Opel GT can rightly be considered a success story. Too bad its life was so short, for who knows what might have happened next? An Opel GT convertible, perhaps? For more on the Opel GT, you might want to see this article in Automobile magazine.

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Cadillac Allanté: Transatlantic Tragedy

Filed in archive Cadillac on May 13, 2010

Cadillac Allante

Mercedes, BMW, Porsche and Jaguar had sexy-looking 2-seat roadsters in their stables at the start of the 80s; profitable image makers that were the envy of other manufacturers; none more than Cadillac. Concerned over a diminishing perception of its vehicles, Cadillac management turned to market research. The results showed that the division needed a low volume high-tech "halo" car. Did anyone happen to notice that all those Europeans came with rear-wheel-drive? Or that buyers of such automobiles believed excellence in handling could only be had when the rear wheels provide the propulsion? Regardless, the only available platform utilised front-wheel-drive.

What happened next would fill a book, or at least a very long magazine article... too long for a blog. In essence, it was decided that GM, in spite of its size and wealth, could not cope with a highly-specialised low volume vehicle. Thus the design and production of Cadillac Allanté bodies went overseas, to the renowned house of Pininfarina. An efficiency expert would have collapsed with laughter had he or she been asked to analyse the production system. Bodies were built in Italy, flown to Detroit in specially-equipped 747s that carried as many as 56 Allanté bodyshells, then moved to the Hamtramck, Michigan plant in a fleet of trucks. There the bodies were joined to engines and suspensions and the finished car was given a 25-mile test drive.

The aluminum block 4.1 liter V-8 may have seemed adequate, but 0-60 times of around ten seconds were not. The dohc Northstar V-8, introduced in 1993, was the engine the Allanté really needed. The car could then reach 60 in less than seven seconds. But the sad part of this tale is that the Allanté had already been cancelled, so it was only used as a test bed for the Northstar before the engine was fitted to mainstream Cadillacs. Other problems included a manual top that was difficult to lower and raise (a power top was added later) and a price that was too high vs. proven competition.

At the time of its introduction the Allanté was praised by dealers, enthusiast drivers, and the automotive press. The design was much admired, the driving dynamics equal to its rear-wheel-drive competitors. But it took Cadillac five years to iron out the kinks and by the time the Allanté was truly refined, GM pulled the plug. As it did with the Pontiac ohc inline six, the Tempest transaxle, the Buick aluminum V-8 sold to Rover, the Vega (yes, the engine problems were finally solved), the 2nd-Gen Corvair, the 2nd-Gen Fiero, etc.

If there's any good news in this it's that not many Cadillac Allantés were built (a little over 21,000), and thus the car enjoys excellent prospects as a future collectible.

Link here to reach the Allanté owner's club]

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Record Sale Prices at Monaco Auction Mock the Recession

Filed in archive As We See Things , Auctions , Ferrari on May 6, 2010

Record-Breaking Ferrari


If you're feeling sorry for the rich guys due to the recession stop right here. RM Auctions' inaugural Sporting Classics of Monaco has just achieved $45,101,139 in total sales, matching the highest-dollar single-day collector car auction in history, which was also produced by RM. (A little flag waving from this north-of-the-49th blogger, folks, as RM is a remarkably successful Canadian firm.)

The event's top seller was a rare 1962 Ferrari 400 Superamerica Cabriolet SWB by Pininfarina, which achieved a new world record for a Superamerica when it sold for $3,799,600.

Other record-breaking highlights included a stunning 1938 Delahaye 135 MS Competition Cabriolet, achieving $2,431,744; an historic 1963 Shelby 289 Cobra Le Mans Racer, going under the gavel for $1,010,694; and a very famous 1934 Rolls-Royce 40/50 hp Phantom II All Weather Cabriolet known as The Star of India. The latter went for a mere $873,908.

Most intriguing was story behind the sale's cover car, the 1937 BMW 328 MM "Buegelfalte," considered one of the world's most significant pre-war sports racing cars. It had reached a high bid of $5,835,100 but staggering though that may be, it wasn't enough to meet the owner's minimum. And yet the car exchanged hands less than 24 hours later for a confidential sum. Oh, to have been a fly upon the wall when that happened!

Following the sale the crowd took to their reserved grandstand seats to watch the Monaco vintage Grand Prix, then returned to their villas to await the 2010 F1 race on the 16th. Okay, perhaps they didn't, but that's what I would have done if I were among the wealthy. Only then would I drive my Star of India to the docks in Marseilles for shipment back to Canada.

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