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.

Down On The Street

Spotted in the village of Rancho Santa Fe this morning (the same place I shot these cars months ago), was this unassuming Porsche 356.

Get a little closer and the details start to emerge. Like fog lamps integrated into the bodywork:

A beautiful Continental Badge:

And a 1500 SUPER-adorned engine lid 'round back:

It's a 1955 356 1500 Super Coupe. Equipped with Porsche's first true racing motor - 1488ccs with an output of 70 HP. This example underwent a meticulous three year restoration and is perfect in every sense of the word.

"beehive" taillamps

The photos do not do the color justice. A subtle sand beige over red. It's also equipped with a sunroof.

Check out the vintage rally stopwatches on the glovebox  lid.

According to the owner, this car participated in rallies from new, which explains the timepieces and axillary lamps. If I could ever manage to afford a 356, I'd want it to look exactly like this one. Well, I might swap the chromed wheels for a set painted silver or body color.

Just Another Day in Rancho Santa Fe

The Rich Guys Car Club®* was out in full force this morning in Rancho Santa Fe's town square.

 That electric green Porsche? Yep, a $190k GT3RS,

parked behind this out-of-place ragtop Beetle...

 ...which was behind this ≈$190k Mercedes-Benz SLS

 ...which in turn was parked behind another one.

And in front of the brown SLS? An original, black-plate 427 Cobra.

 

 

 

 

Halibrand magnesium knock-offs (w/safety wires) always look good on Cobras

Pity the poor, boring yellow Cayman parked across the street.

 I'll take the E-Type.

A ≈$250k Bentley Brooklands:

 BMW 2002tii:

 Mustang GT350:

 Another GT3RS, I prefer this color:

 

 GT3RS scoop detail

Ferrari 308, Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, 900 Turbo, yawn.

 MG, Aston Martin, another Ferrari (575 Maranello?)

*I don't know what this cars-and-coffee type of meet is really called, that's just my name for it.

Down On The Street

Riding through Rancho Santa Fe this morning, I came across this trailered treat:

Rancho Santa Fe has been a good area to find interesting cars. This one was parked right around the corner from where I spotted the Z8 a few weeks back.
It's a '63 or '64 Jaguar E-Type, an example of what is arguably the most beautiful production car ever made. I spoke with the new owner for a few minutes, he had driven out from Utah to pick up his new purchase. Freshly rescued from a San Diego estate, apparently it hit a guardrail at high speed and spun nearly a quarter century ago.
The impact was hard enough that the steering wheel had a sizable bend in it. Whether that was caused by hitting it with driver's chest or if he was straight-armed is unknown.
The late owner had intended on restoring it, but apparently he never had the time or funds to do so. Unfortunately he passed at 71 years of age, with the car still wearing the California blue plates that expired in September 1988. The new owner is sharing the bounty with a friend of his who is restoring an E-Type in Riverside. Whatever is left over may become a hot rod on down the line. At least this cat will give many precious bits to get another back on the road.
If it was mine - and if someone was covering the costs - I'd rebuild it into a Harold & Maude-style E-Type hearse.
Since this Jaguar will be donating it's silky straight six to the new owner's friend, a new powerplant is in order. And one might as well pop another straight six under the extended bonnet.

I'm thinking a Cummins 6.7l diesel from a 2009 Dodge Ram. 350 HP and 650 lb-ft of torque from an oil burner will give it some scoot and will properly piss off any Jaguar purist who isn't already mortified by the hearse coachwork.

Down On The Street

As found in Rancho Santa Fe on a sleepy Sunday morning, one of my all-time favorite Bavarian beauties.
The BMW Z8 was produced between 1999-2003. I have no idea what year this one is, but I do know that I'd gladly kick the Miata out of the garage in order to accommodate this ravishing roadster.
Styled by Henrik Fisker and meant to evoke the classic BMW 507, the car sold in relatively-low numbers. The $128k price tag probably didn't help sales.
Still, it's a beautiful, rare car and will likely become more desirable in time.