Down On The Street

Spotted in Rancho Santa Fe during a little Saturday morning road ride was this Italian gem:

It's a 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Speciale in impeccable condition, still sporting Roma license plates:

While the front end and front wheel arches are lovely, my favorite part of this specimen is the fastback rear light and how it effortlessly blends in to the decklid:

Nicely recessed back panel too.

And found on the rear decklid were these badges:

 The simple and clean interior is a speciale place indeed:

Massive wraparound on this windshield.

From what I've read, a nicely restored example such as this are worth about $150k. And for as much as I love the lines of this coupe, I can think of a whole fleet of cars (and bikes) I'd start my collection with before this.

MELT THE GUNS!!

Thirty-plus years old and still poignant.

Programs of violence,

As entertainment, 
Brings the disease into your room. 
We know the germ, 
Which is man-made in metal, 
Is really a key to your own tomb. 

Prevention is better than cure, 
Bad apples affecting the pure, 
You'll gather your senses I'm sure 
Then agree to, 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more to fire them. 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more desire them. 

Children will want them, 
Mothers supply them, 
As long as your killers are heroes. 
And all the media 
Will fiddle while Rome burns, 
Acting like modern-time Neros. 

Prevention is better than cure, 
Bad apples affecting the pure, 
You'll gather your senses I'm sure 
Then agree to, 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more to fire them. 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more desire them. 

I'm speaking to the Justice League of America. 
The you S of A, 
Hey you, 
Yes you in particular! 
When it comes to the judgement day and you're standing at the gates with your weaponry, 
You dead go down on one knee, 
Clasp your hands in prayer and start quoting me, 
'cause we say... 
Our father we've managed to contain the epidemic in one place, now, 
Let's hope they shoot themselves instead of others, 
Help to civilize the race now. 
We've trapped the cause of the plague, 
In the land of the free and the home of the brave. 
If we listen quietly we can hear them shooting from grave to grave. 
You ought to, 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more to fire them. 

Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
Melt the guns, 
And never more desire them.

Rainbow Village, Taichung

A series of quick shots snapped in Taichung this afternoon when I had the cab driver take a slight detour when traveling back to my hotel...

Sorry about the shitty nature of the photos - poor light + iPhone + rushed as I had the cab driver waiting as there was no way that I'd be able to hail a cab from this place.

Down On The Street

What I think is a genuine Porsche Speedster.

It's always difficult to tell with these, as they are frequently reproduced on shortened VW Beetle chassis. And why not - they're quite similar under the bathtub body. And with a VW repop, you get most of the experience for a fraction of the cost. And you won't cry as much if somebody dings it up.

This is the part that leads me to believe that it's a real-deal Speedster:

A Karosseriewerk Reutter badge on the front passenger-side fender. They were one of the original Speedster body producers. This company later evolved into automotive seat (and more) supplier Recaro. 

Real or repop, I'd happily place this in the garage.

Romney vs. Sandy

Fuck you Romney.

BMW Museum, Pt. II

Last time it was the bikes. Now onto the cars (mostly)...

1930 3/15 PS:

In van configuration, only two seats and a cargo area.

This example did duty as the BMW plant's customer service vehicle

Passenger version, basically an Austin Seven, manufactured under license: 

1934 315/1:

 

1936 328:

 

 

 spare wheel, drilled for lightness

1939 328 Superleggera

This example was built to compete in the 1939 24 Hours of LeMans. The car won the two liter class and was an overall winner of the 1940 Mille Miglia.

it appears that they still bring the car out to use in select vintage events

Yet another 1939 328:

Munich Special

 

And now a 327/8 in stock, coupe form:

 

 

 

 hood vent detail

 

 perched taillight

1937 327 Sports Convertible:

 

 

  

And into a (slightly) more modern age. 1955 502 Coupé:

"An opulent vehicle, made for gentlemen"

note the St. Christopher wheel center

 

1956 503 Coupé. Far more sporting than the precedent 502:

  "An elegant vehicle, for the economic miracle"

The iconic 1955 Isetta "bubble car":

 about a bajillion times cooler than a modern smart car

 

 

The always-stunning 1956 507:

Elvis owned one of these beauties

 

fantastic color combo

The awkward-yet-geeky-cool 1964 700:

1965 2000 CS, the Neue Klasse Coupé:

1966 2000 TI racer:

 

 

1966 1600:

...which beget the 2002 and the entire 3-series:

And speaking of the 2002, 1966 Inka Orange 2002TI:

Stunning 1971 3.0 CSi:

Stack o' 70s sedans:

The legendary M1, BMW's first (only?) supercar:

weird wheels, but I love the style

these were relative flops in the day, selling less than 500 examples over the car's lifespan

E28 M5, a sleeper sedan that was powered by the M1's silky smooth straight six engine:

The much-loved E30 M3, this one in top-spec Sport Evolution guise:

 

only 600 Sport Evolutions were made, built with a hotter 2.5l six

E30 325ix wagon, the US sadly never received the E30 wagons:

Another modern BMW never officially imported to the States was the funky Z1 roadster:

note the doors that lower into the bodywork

E24 6-series, the first and the best:

Compare the athletic elegance above with this ugly 1999 Z9 GT show car...

...afflicted with a horrible case of "Bangle-Butt":

Cleanse your pallet from that monstrosity with this:

On to some of the race cars on display:

2006 Sauber F1.06:

Super-wide 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL:

I love how the interior still has many stock elements

it's hard to go wrong w/period-correct BBS "basketweaves"

M-stripes are comprised of light blue for Bavaria, red for racing and purple, blending the two colors

yeah, I was obviously smitten with this one

Almost-as-cool 1977 320:

same spirit, but the 3-series just doesn't look as sinister as the predecessor

Getting back on track (literally and figuratively), an E30 M3 DTM car:

And finishing up with a few more sedans with massive horsepower, a trio of brand-new, 560 HP M5s are about to go out on test drives.

I just wish that I was behind the wheel of one of them.

Overall it's a beautiful and supremely-cool museum. But compared to the two other German automaker museums I've also been to, it comes in third place. Porsche has long been my favorite overall brand, and Mercedes-Benz's history goes back to the dawn of the automotive age. Don't get me wrong, it's a highly-recommended place for any car nut to visit, I just preferred the other two. Plus, BMW's current lineup leaves me cold. I'd spend my money with one of the Stuttgart (or the Ingolstadt one) before the Munich one.