Better late than never! And as I’ll be away for November’s Classics in a few weeks time, consider this a bridge to December. Yes, December. Already. And there are only 65 days until Christmas, apparently. Yikes!
This month at Classics saw the usual mix of regular and ‘new’ attendees. Alfa Romeo is my marque of interest this month, for reasons that’ll become clear below.
But first…..
Herbie was here. Love the eyebrows….
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It’s the first time I’d seen a Peugeot RCZ here at Classics, with it’s Zagato-esque double-bubble roof.
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A guy I’ve met recently at Classics emailed me a month or so ago and told me he had a new V4 project going. Naturally, I was thinking Lancia or Saab. I was closer than you think with Saab 🙂
Yes, this camper van has the same V4 engine that powered a lot of older Saab cars. It’s wearing its original paint and insides, and has some fascinating history behind it. I’ll get around to a detailed story on this one at some stage though I must confess, this van’s younger garage-mate will probably be covered first. It’s also powered by a Ford engine, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end 🙂
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Some clown bought this along 🙂
A few less dents and a bit more polish and maybe it could be a future classic.
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What I would have given to see a Devo hat on the front seat!
Whippet.
Whippet good!
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I’m not used to seeing a Triumph in yellow, but I have to say it IS a triumph in yellow.
Wonderful.
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I’ve wanted a Jaguar XJ6 since I was a teenager. I still do, but it’s slipped down the list a bit.
Nowadays I get more and more drawn to predecessor Jags, though. I’ve never driven one or even ridden in one but every time I see one like this, I want to. I’m going to seek out an owner soon and say hello, I think.
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This is one of the first oval-dashboard Porsche 944’s. Known as a 1985.5 model.
I’m still more partial to the 944 shape than to my own (former) 968 shape, to be honest. I think it’s the covered headlamps that do it for me.
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There was a decidedly Italian flavour at Classics this month. I’ll show you three nice Alfas in a minute, but here’s a few of the other Italians in attendance.
Ferrari 308 and a couple of Fiat X19’s. The black one has a bit more pep than your regular X19, courtesy of an engine transplant that sees a Toyota twin-cam 1600 engine amidships. Having driven a similar engine more than a few times in a Corolla at home, I can only imagine how much fun it’d be in this X19.
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Alfa Romeo #1
I’ve featured this Giulietta a few times before. I can’t help but photograph it when it’s there, though, so here are some more…..
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Alfa Romeo #2
We had an Alfa SZ at Classics! I saw my first SZ (in real life) in Sweden back in 2011 and the presence these cars bring to any event is just amazing. Such a pleasure to view.
And there’s one for sale here in Australia right now, too.
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Alfa Romeo #3
Most Alfa’s have a reputation for exciting driving and jaw-dropping beauty. To be honest, though, it’s hard to apply both of those descriptors to the Alfa Romeo 145.
But it was exciting to see the 145 here this month because they weren’t sold here in Australia. This is a rare-as-hens-teeth import that a friend here in Hobart purchased recently.
Even more exciting (for me) is the fact that this is the 16V Boxer-engined model. The 145 was the last car to use Alfa’s beautiful boxer engine – basically an evolution of the engines used in my Alfa 33’s. Later 145’s featured Alfa’s twin-spark engine. The big DTM-style exhaust gave this boxer a very nice note, too.
The word from the owner is that the 145 is actually a very refined drive compared to the 33 but still has wonderful handling that Alfas are known for.
A very unique pick-up, that one.
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That’s all for this month. As mentioned at the top, I’ll miss Classics in November (sadly) but will be back in December.
So is the van’s Ford engined garage-mate a Reliant Scimitar? Oooh I hope so. There was a red one for sale in Moonah a few years back I wanted but wasn’t allowed to have. It got sold and I haven’t seen it since…
The garage-mate is something all together different. It’s a semi-regular at Classics, though.
So the location of the Scimitar remains a mystery…
Alas, yes……
*sigh*
Also, is the Alfa SZ not the same car? The one that is for sale has Tasmanian SI plates, though the photos appear to be in Melbourne.
I don’t think it’s the same one. The one at Classics (IIRC) gets a permit now and then when he needs to drive it to an event as it’s not registered yet. I might be wrong on the details there, but I think that’s the case.
Plus, the seller’s name is different to the name of the guy I talked to at Classics.
Ad says it is the only registered one in Aus, and only 5 in the country. What are the chances of two being in Tasmania? Maybe it has been moved to Victoria as an easier place to sell, and the SI plates were new since Classics?
The ads been up for a little while now. I’m pretty sure I mentioned it to the guy as I was talking to him a few weeks ago.
Don’t hold me to it on threat of death, but I’m pretty sure it’s not the same car.
I did hear, a few years ago, that there was a guy in Tassie who had bought in more than one SZ. Sourced them in Japan, I believe. Both of these may be connected to that guy, perhaps.
Interesting.
Tasmania seems to be a hotbed of interesting autos.
Swade: Can I pose a rhetorical question? How would the Swedish auto industry be doing today if the proposed merger of Volvo (conservative) and Saab (sport) had happened?
Gene in CA
That’s an interesting question, Gene, but you’re going to have to give me a point in time to ask it from?
i.e. merge them in 2000 (when GM took over?) Merge them in 2010 when Spyker took over? Or merge them now?
Actually, the answer is sort of the same but with different players. It’s the same answer today: It all comes down to the money. I guess you could add a discussion about the product mix, which would be a different discussion compared to Mini, etc.
I would think the point would be when neither was in serious distress. Certainly before GM. I don’t know when there was serious merger talk or why it didn’t proceed. Expect there would have been some serious economic fallout, not to mention decrease in workforce. Do you think they could adapt to one marque for (mild) sport and one for (quality-oriented) family? Would there be squabbles? I suspect so. Cheers.
Alternate question: what if Volvo hired many of Saab’s engineers and designers? What if they then took a big leap forward in engine technology and design?
Some signs point in that direction, although it’s hard to tell if the changes at Volvo are through direct hire, or if they are just due to Volvo’s renewed independence and Swedish roots.
It could just be that the new generation at Volvo grew-up around Saabs and was influenced by their philosophy. Just like great Italian engines feel like tuned 2 stroke motors (the kind that any future Italian engineer would have spent endless hours modifying).
Great photos again!
It wasn’t a car show, but I almost drove off the road this last weekend when I saw a restored classic (perhaps a Duesenberg?) waiting to turn out of the local grocery store parking lot on to a street near my home! Unfortunately I did not have time to stop and try and follow it to see where the driver was headed, but I had never seen that car in the area before. There were no local car shows in the area to my knowledge this last weekend, but the state fair is in progress, so maybe it had something to do with that.
Any Bmw”s ? Too bad …. :p