On March 6 2020, Managing Director of the Cortile, Bernard Martin took a tour of John & Suzanne Campion's Collection of Lancia race cars.  Prior to the pandemic the Macchina of Lancia had been selected as our 2020 Proiettore Macchina but with the cancellation of the 2020 events we have now moved our celebration to 2021.

Six of the eight stunning cars in our video have been offered for sale through London’s Girardo & Co for sale. John Campion is creating an Irish Race team.  But more about that in the video.  As you watch, you'll  quickly realize that these aren’t just any Lancia race cars, they’re some of THE MOST significant Lancia race cars.

Bernie met with Ben Kruidbos of CJJ Motorsports in between the Porsche Werks Reunion Tours that where happening during this years Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.  Little did anyone who attended the Concours suspect that this kick off of the automotive car season would also probably mark the end of the 2020 automotive events. 

Here's the list of cars that covered in our interview below.

• 1981 Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo, Group V
• 1982 Lancia LC1, Group VI
• 1983 Lancia LC2, Group C
• 1988 Lancia Delta HF Integrale 8V, Group A
• 1985 Lancia Delta S4, Group B
• 1984 Lancia 037 Rally Evo, Group B
• 1975 Lancia Stratos HF Works WRX, Group 4
• 1969 Lanica Fulvia 1600 HF "Fanalone" Rally Car
  

Sometimes there is some confusion around what the various racing groups mean and what cars are in them.  Rightly so.  The definition of which cars fit in which group can change over time, and often do! In addition to that, Groups can come and go only to return at a later time.   Below is a qucik summary of the groups that are mentioned in the video.

Group 5 was an FIA motor racing classification which was applied to four distinct categories during the years 1966 to 1982. Initially Group 5 regulations defined a Special Touring Car category and from 1970 to 1971 the classification was applied to limited production Sports Cars restricted to 5 litre engine capacity. The Group 5 Sports Car category was redefined in 1972 to exclude the minimum production requirement and limit engine capacity to 3 litres.

From 1976 to 1982 Group 5 was for Special Production Cars, a liberal silhouette formula based on homologated production vehicles.

4th Generation Group 5 – "Special Production Cars" (1976 to 1982)
For the 1976 season the FIA introduced a new Group 5 "Special Production Car" category, allowing extensive modifications to production based vehicles which were homologated in FIA Groups 1 through 4. These cars would contest the World Championship for Makes series from 1976 through to 1980 and then the World Endurance Championship in 1981 & 1982. The FIA rules restricted the width of the car, therefore cars were built with standard body widths but wide mudguard extensions. The regulation required only the bonnet, roof, doors and rail panel were left unmodified.

The rules however did not mention headlight heights, therefore when Porsche originally were to enter the 935 with the production headlight, they read the rules and discovered the loophole, therefore they raced the 935 with the hallmark flat nose. The category was also mostly associated with the wide boxy wheel arches and extravagant body style. The category would be banished after 1982 in favor of the Group B regulation, but continued to compete in JSPC, IMSA GTX category and other national sports car racing championships for a few more years. The only non-circuit events that used Group 5 cars were in the Giro D'Italia Automobilistico rally.

Group 4
The Group 4 racing class referred to regulations for cars in sportscar racing, GT racing and rallying, as regulated by the FIA. The Group 4 class was replaced by Group B for the 1983 season.

The Group 4 regulations were also used as the basis for the World Rally Championships until they were replaced by the Group B regulations. In mid 1970s to early 1980s rallying, it was necessary to produce 400 identical cars for homologation as a Group 4 rally car. Notable cars included the Ford Escort RS1800, Fiat 131 Abarth, Lancia Stratos HF and the Audi Quattro.

The Killer B's
Group B was a set of regulations introduced in 1982 for competition vehicles in sportscar racing and rallying regulated by the FIA. The Group B regulations fostered some of the fastest, most powerful, and most sophisticated rally cars ever built and is commonly referred to as the golden era of rallying. However, a series of major accidents, some of them fatal, were blamed on their outright speed and lack of crowd control at events. After the death of Henri Toivonen and his co-driver Sergio Cresto in the 1986 Tour de Corse, the FIA disestablished the class, dropped its previous plans to replace it by Group S, and instead replaced it as the top-line formula by Group A. The short-lived Group B era has acquired legendary status among rally fans and automobile enthusiasts in general.

By contrast, Group B had few restrictions on technology, design and the number of cars required for homologation to compete—200, less than other series. Weight was kept as low as possible, high-tech materials were permitted, and there were no restrictions on boost, resulting in the power output of the winning cars increasing from 250 hp in 1981,[2] the year before Group B rules were introduced, to there being at least two cars producing in excess of 500 by 1986, the final year of Group B. In just five years, the power output of rally cars had more than doubled. 

Group VI Two-Seater Racing Cars (1976 to 1982)
In 1976, the FIA reintroduced the Group 6 classification, now officially called “Two- Seater Racing Cars”.

Various production based categories, spearheaded by a new Group 5 for “Special Production Cars”, were now to contest the World Championship of Makes whilst the Group 6 cars were awarded their own title, the World Championship for Sports Cars. Three engine capacity limits were applied to Group 6 cars for the 1976 and 1977 championships:

• 5000cc for cars fitted with engines using a production car block
• 3000cc for cars fitted with naturally aspirated racing engines
• 2140cc for cars fitted with turbocharged racing engines  (capacity equivalence factor of 1.4)

1981 saw the series expanded with an official Drivers’ title awarded by the FIA for the first time and drivers of Group 6 cars were eligible to compete for this. Group 6 was then effectively replaced by the new Group C Sports Car class for 1982 but the FIA granted a concession which allowed the Group 6 cars to compete in the 1982 World Endurance Championship alongside the new cars

Group A
Group A was a set of motorsport regulations introduced by FIA covering production-derived vehicles intended for outright competition in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, the Group A referred to production-derived vehicles limited in terms of power, weight, allowed technology and overall cost. Group A was aimed at ensuring numerous privately owned entries in races.

Group A was introduced by the FIA in 1982 to replace the outgoing Group 2 as "modified touring cars", while Group N would replace Group 1 as "standard touring cars". The FIA continued to promulgate regulations for Group A Touring Cars until at least 1993, and the category survived in domestic championships until 1994. However, Group A is still used as the basis for most rally competitions around the worl

It was with the Fulvia that Lancia went officially back into racing after its withdrawal from Formula 1 in 1955; this time the effort was focused on rallying. In 1965 the company absorbed the HF Squadra Corse, a privateer racing team founded by Lancia enthusiasts which previously received some factory support, which became the works team under the direction of Cesare Fiorio.

The same year the Fulvia Coupé made its racing debut at the Tour de Corse, placing 8th overall. Starting with the lightened and more powerful 1965 Rallye HF, special HF version were put on sale to the general public to homologate improvements for the rally cars. In 1967 the larger displacement Rallye 1.3 HF followed. As the V4 engine had reached the limit of its development, an all-new 1.6-litre V4 engine was developed and installed on the 1967 Rallye 1.6 HF. The car raced as a prototype until August 1969, when it received FIA homologation.

With the exception of 1970, Fulvias won the Italian Rally Championship every year from 1965 to 1973. The Fulvia's rallying career reached its zenith in 1972, when Lancia won the International Championship for Manufacturers two rounds in advance.

First placements at rallies valid for the Championship were three: included Sandro Munari and Mario Mannucci at the famous Monte Carlo Rally, with a 10' 50" margin over the runner up, Larrousse/Perramond on a much more powerful Porsche 911 S,  Lampinen/Andreasson at the Rallye du Maroc, and Ballestrieri/Bernacchini at the Rallye Sanremo.

In 1973 Lancia did not score any podium finishes valid for that year's first-ever World Rally Championship season; though at the hands of Munari the Fulvia won its second European Rally Championship, after the 1969 victory by Harry Källström. During the 1974 season the Lancia Stratos  replaced in rallying the—by then ageing—Fulvia. That year Lancia won its second World Championship, also thanks to points scored by the Fulvia in the first rallies—such as the third place Munari caught in the grueling East African Safari Rally.

Wayne Long, Chief Judge and Founder of the Cortile Cup has announced that he has selected a new Judge for the 2017 Cortile Cup Competition.  Tom Bungay will be joining the judging team for the 2017 annual event at the Pittsburgh Golf Club on Saturday July15. 

Tom has been involved with the collector car business for over 40 years.  From racing in the early Monterey Historics, to judging at many West Coast events, Tom has been active in all facets of the hobby.  

Tom is currently an active participant in Historic racing, driving in events from COTA to Lime Rock.  In addition, he owns and operates a Legacy Motorcoars, a vintage car dealership in Jacksonville, Florida specializing in 50’s and 60’s European sports cars.

A native of Sacramento, California, Tom has been part of the collector car business for over 40 years. Starting with a restoration shop in Sacramento in the late 70’s, Tom moved south to Santa Barbara working with the sales and restoration of Lotus automobiles. This association with Lotus also led to participation in the Monterey Historics for several years. The Monterey Historics, ta premier vintage racing event in the United States, is held yearly at Laguna Seca Raceway in California.

In addition to historic racing, Tom has been active in SCCA road racing since 1970, with a few professional outings, including the Can-Am series in 1981 and Pro Sports 2000. Tom also established Bungay Automobile Appraisals over 25 years ago, a very active company in the collector car market.

Legacy Motorcars, LLC. ​was founded by Tom Bungay, a professional in the collector car business with over 35 years of experience.  At Legacy Motorcars they are experts at finding that special collector car that you’ve always dreamed of – and they may even have it in stock!

Their experience in the collector car market will lead to selecting the finest and most suitable vehicle that meets your needs.

Legacy Motorcars also has a pre-owned buyers service, to help you find the exact contemporary vehicle that you want and need, whether it is a slightly used Ferrari or an inexpensive car for your college-bound son or daughter. 

At the 2017 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance tom's 1961 Maserati 3500GT Vignale Spyder was the winner of “BEST OWNER RESTORED” Trophy. 

by Bernard Martin, Managing Director, Cortile Italian Car Show

The 2017 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance exemplified grace under pressure. With a 100% chance of heavy precipitation forecast for Sunday for the scheduled Concours d'Elegance and a sunshine-filled Saturday in the mix, Bill Warner and his team chose to move Sunday’s award-winning Concours to Saturday.  No small undertaking.
​

As I was having lunch on Friday with several other writers, I noted that I had heard that Warner and his team had come up with a "Plan B" back in 2000 if a weather event caused the the Concours to be moved.  As happenstance would have it, one to the people at the table chimed in "I'm on the Board and THIS is Plan B. We are in it. There isn't a Place C. We'll see if it works"

​It's a momentous task shoehorning a full schedule of Saturday and Sunday events into one day.  The Concours show would now coincide with Saturday’s "Cars & Coffee at the Concours presented by Heacock Classic Insurance".  The entire Cars and Coffee show field had to be relocated to an adjoining field, transport staff had to move up plans for unloading Concours cars by a full day; with cars that where still en route!  It required parking two different cars shows at the same time.   

Warner and his staff, according to rumor, had to make it all happen with 40% less volunteers who where only scheduled for a Sunday event. No small undertaking. It went off gracefully. It was a tremendous show. Warner and his team pulled a rabbit out of their hat while herding cats and looked great doing it!

It also made the task of trying to see over 600+ cars in a short period of time just as daunting.  Nevertheless, I was able to find some very nice examples of rolling Italian art on both the Concours and Cars and Coffee Showfield. 

Easily befitting our 2017 Proiettore Macchina, The Best of Show - Concours de Sport, was a 1939 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Spider from the Dano Davis Collection.

In the 1930s, the 8C 2900 Alfa was not a mere sports car but was the most advanced, modern and compelling sports car money could buy.  Milan's own Carrozzeria Touring patented the "Superleggera" construction which coincided with the birth of Alfa Romeo's masterpiece. 

​Approximately 32 of the 2.9 chassis were made and it is believed only 12 are Touring Spiders, seven of which are the long chassis like this car.  This car's known history starts in 1949.  In February 1949 it was raced in Sao Paulo by amateur driver Mario Tavares Leite who had the car imported from Italy to Brazil.  Mario won races with the car in 1949 and 1950 after which the car disappeared.  

Later it had a Corvette engine installed and the chassis was modified.  It is possible this car traveled to Brazil from Argentina in the mid to late 1950s without the Touring body and with the Corvette V-8 only to be reunited with the original Touring coachwork some four decades later. ​

Alfa Romeo Images courtesy of Nathan Deremer, Lead photographer and owner of Deremer Studios, the official photography studio of the 2017 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

The Bonhams Amelia Island 2017 auction was held Thursday, at the Fernandina Beach Golf Club. It generated nearly $10.2 million in total sales with an 87% sell-through rate. A selection of more than 85 automobiles were offered at Bonhams’ 3rd annual sale. 

​Amongst the auction results, of the cars pictured below, the 1955 Ferrari 250 GT Europa Coupe was the top dollar car sold at the auction for a whopping $2,227,500. Bringing in the 3rd top dollar position was the 1986 Lamborghini Countach LP5000 Quattrovalvole for $335,500 while the 1968 Lamborghini Islero 400 GT, sold for $247,500, the 8th biggest sale of the show.

The Gooding & Company’s East Coast auction showcased at the Omni Amelia Island Plantation, a classic beachfront resort.  Held on Friday before the celebrated Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, Gooding & Company’s auction showcased a curated lineup of cars, invited spirited bidding.  Since debuting at Amelia Island in 2010, Gooding & Company’s prices realized have more than doubled, earning the event its reputation as the premier East Coast collector car auction.

Pictured below are some to of the examples of Italian design that went up on the block.  

The little 1958 Fiat 1200 TV Trasformabile pictured at the beginning of the slide show was a car I first saw at the Concourso Italiano show in 2015 during Monterey car week. It was based upon the Turismo Veloce, or fast touring, version of Fiat’s 1100 series, the limited-production 1100 Spider delivered fine details, a luxurious cockpit with swiveling seats, excellent road manners, and a handsome body designed by Fabio Luigi Rapi. By 1957, larger engines inspired the 1200 TV designation. While more revisions came in 1959, the 1957–58 models captivate today’s collectors. 

Along with a green convertible top, this sporting 1200 TV is presented with the body handsomely painted Gray Beige over upgraded green leather upholstery highlighted by white piping. It includes twin fog lamps, whitewall tires, correct spin-off hubcaps, a discreet modern radio, plus a factory-type steering wheel.  As you can see in the slideshow, we opened the hood to make sure that the olive oil can was still in place.  A rather humorous touch by the previous owner.

One of the marvelous things about the Amelia Island Concours d'Elgecance is the extremely rare cars that you can only find on display at Bill Warner's event.  

As you look through the slide show below, you'll find a one-ff 1930 Alfa Romeo 1750 GS Testa Fissa.  Its the gray colored race car featured at the beginning of the slide show.  It has a very unique body that was recreated on the original chassis.  Just three months after its introduction, a 1750 driven by Giuseppe Campari and Giulio Ramponi would win the 1929 Mille Miglia. Later that year, Marinoni and Benoist won the Belgian 24 Hour Race at Spa. Alfa would take the Targa Florio, too, and one year later, the company won its second Mille Miglia, in addition to a host of other events. In short, Alfa Romeo began the 1930s as it ended the 1920s—utterly dominating Italy’s sports car and competition scene.

The Alfa 3000CM was featured in the Alfa Romeo booth again this year.  If you recall from last years report, it was campaigned at the PVGP back in the early 1980's and is part of the Auriana Collection. 

​When you get to the end of this slide show you'll see a lovely 1933 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300. The 8C 2300 Tipo Le Mans' was the sport version of the '8C 2300' and it had a successful debut in the 1931 Eireann Cup driven by Henry Birkin. It won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1931 (Howe-Birkin); 1932 (Chinetti-Sommer); 1933 (Nuvolari-Sommer) and 1934 (Chinetti-Etancelin).

One of the most interesting vehicles at Cars and Coffee at the Concours was this 1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint Veloce "Confortevole" pictured in the first few slides below.  The production total of the Confortevole (comfortable) variant of the Sprint Veloce (SVC) was 199, the first 50 having aluminum framed windows. An SVC seems to be an SV which falls between the SVAlleggerita (SVA) and the 101 body based SV which began production in early 1958 and upon which 101 mechanical components were gradually phased in until the 750 bits were all used up, sometime in 1960.

​Basically, the Confortevole is an updated version of the race-bred lightweight  "Allegerita" Sprint Veloce but has a more comfortable interior and lacks the aluminum body panels & plastic windows of the lightweight.  It still maintains all of the high-performance mechanical features of the lightweight but in a grand touring version.  

​As a side note, the folks pictured in the lawn chairs behind the red caravan turned out to be from Pittsburgh originally, just like the van which had a pre-insterate Pennsylvania map sitting on the dash.  

We're also very excited to welcome Heacock Classic Insurance to the 2017 Cortile as a sponsor and they will be providing Coffee on both Saturday and Sunday morning July 15-17 during the arrival of the show cars!

​Ralph Gilles is the Head of Design at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Ralph spent some time going through the history of the Alfa Romeo marque,  discusses the development of the 2017 Alfa Romeo Guilia, and finishes up the interview with an thank you to the Alfisti Vintage Racing community for keeping the brand alive in the North America during their 20+ year hiatus by admiring Brandon Adrian's very rare and early 1956 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce Spider 750F.  

This is the actual car that won (1st in Class Winner) at the F.I.A./ARCF 12-Hour 1957 Sebring, Florida International Grand Prix of Endurance for the Amoco Trophy and was 2nd in class in the 1958 Sebring 12-Hour the following year. This is one of if not the most significant Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce Spider's in the world with a early F.I.A. competition history and it was the FIRST Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce Spider with a International racing win at a majior International F.I.A. event in the world. (F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship). This car is the 'Real' and only original 'Sebring' Spider

Below are some close up shot of the new 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia as well as the 1956 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce Spider 750F

On March 12, 2016,at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance, Lamborghini unveiled both it's new restoration service called PoloStorico, and also it's first project, a 1971 Lamborghini Miura SV (Super Veloce), chassis #4846.

An short interview of Stephan Makowski from Restoration & Performance Motorcars about this Ferrari 750 Monza was campaigned by David Piper for race team Garage Francochamps. Stephan has campaigned a 1950 Ferrari 340 America as well as the TVR and an Alfa Romeo at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix.  

Ferrari 750 Monza
1954 saw the introduction of a new four-cylinder sports racer, the 750 Monza. Sporting a three-litre version of the 500 Mondial's engine, the Monza was much more powerful, with 250 hp (186 kW) available, but barely heavier at 760 kg (1675 lb). The new-style body was penned by Pinin Farina and presaged the droop-nose look of the famed 250 GTO, but it was Scaglietti's 750 Monza, with its faired-in headrest suggesting the flowing Testa Rossa that drew attention.

The 2015 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance held March 13-15 featured a unique gathering of 26 cars that where all raced by Sir Stirling Moss. The Italian contingent included the a select group of Moss's racing cars including Ferrari's, a 250 GTO, a 250 GT Speciale ‘Sperimantale’, a 250 TRi/61 and 290 MM and the trident badged Maserati's including a 250F, a 300S, a 450S and a Tipo 61 Birdcage.

Auriana is a well-known and respected collector of classic cars and motorcycles and the owner of a successful historic racing team, Fratelli Auriana Racing. His collection celebrates the superior design of the Italian Automotive Industry. His cars have won a list awards around the world that is so prestigious and long that listing them could take up this entire article. Perhaps one of the most recent and important awards is the Lee Iacocca Award he won at 2014 Amelia Concours d'Elegance.  The Lee Iacocca Award was established to recognize outstanding classic car enthusiasts and is given for "Dedication To Excellence In Perpetuating An American Automotive Tradition". The award celebrates auto enthusiasts on multiple levels, including character, community involvement, integrity and a level of excellent presentation of their vehicle. Larry Auriana certainly embodies all of that.

According to Auriana,

Needless to say, Larry Auriana's words capture the essence of the upcoming Marques of Italy celebration at the 2015 Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix and the very essence of the spirit in which was the Cortile Italian Car show's inception. Drool with us now as you read some of the unique bio's of a small part of the Aurianna Collection below that was on display at Amelia Island

The Alfa Monza,  owned by Auriana , is believed to be the model raced by Tazio Nuvolari in his winning bid in the 1932 Monaco Grand Prix. It later was entered in the 1933 Monaco Grand Prix and French Grand Prix and, in 1934, placed second in the British Empire Trophy Race, when it was driven by Charles Brackenbury.

It was sold and shipped to England and continued racing throughout the mid 30’s. In 1937 it was sold to American Sam Bird, who kept the car in England until the end WWII. After arriving in the U.S., Bird ‘s nephew George Huntoon returned the Monza to competition, entering and winning the inaugural 1949 road race at Bridgehampton, Long Island. It also ran in the 1949 race at Watkins Glen, leading from the start but eventually suffering damage and retiring. Huntoon sold the car in 1953 to Art Roberts who in turn sold it in June 1955 to Norman Andrews, a Sunman, Indiana egg farmer, for $2,100 complete with 13 wheels and tires, the original distributor, a magneto, Monza exhaust header. 2211125 lay unused until 1968 when Andrews sold it to Arthur Jacobs in Mineola, Long Island. 

A decade later in 1978, it was acquired by Paul Grist, who began a comprehensive restoration that emerged mechanically fresh, but with a gently aged patina. It was sold in 1991 to the late Terry Cohn, a consistent competitor and participant in historic events around the world. 

Auriana bought the car in 2002 and it participated in the 2007 Mille Miglia with co-drivers Italian Navy Admiral Giovanni Vitaloni and Joseph Colasacco. 

From 1931 through 1937, Alfa Romeo Monza sports cars dominated road racing. The 8c 2300 featured a 2300 cc in-line eight-cylinder engine and was designed by Vittorio Jano and was crowned a supreme feat of engineering by the foremost drivers of the day — Nuvolari, Borzacchini, Varzi, Campari, Brivio and Trossi — all of whom raced the Monza. The Alfa Romeo 8c 2300 acquired the "Monza" designation after Nuvolari drove the car to his 1932 Italian Grand Prix win in a race in Monza, Italy.
 
Only a handful of the Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 sports cars are known to have survived the gruelling demands of road racing in the mid-20th century. They are among the most highly sought after cars in the world. 

At least four of those racecars were subsequently re-bodied by famous coachbuilders. Boano re-bodied this car in 1954 and one year later, in 1955, Alfa Romeo presented the new sport car to General Juan Peron, president of Argentina. 


In August 1970, noted Alfa Romeo collector H.W. Wessells brought the 6C 3000 CM back to life was when he bought it from Ed Bond of the Vintage Car Store in Nyack, NY. The second revival started after Wessells totaled the Boano Berlinetta racing it in the 1984 Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix. He decided to restore the CM in Italy with Salvatore Diomante of Autocostruzioni S.D. at Nichelino who returned to its original Colli Coupe body design. 

This car was called “Tipo 6C 3000 CM” where CM does not stand for Campionato del Mondo, nor for Competizione Maggiorata, nor Corte Maggiore but stands for “Cilindrata Maggiorata” because of its increased (maggiorata) displacement (cilindrata). 

Mr. Wessells sold this car to current owner, an Italian car collector for whom both the late Phil Hill, son Derek Hill and Joe Colasacco have driven at Monaco, Le Mans, Goodwood and Monterey. 

Read More: The President’s Alfa Romeo: The car with three lives

The Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale is arguably one of the most beautiful cars ever made and one of the rarest too, since the Italian carmaker only built 18 road-going versions of the Tipo 33 racer. Of these, fewer than 10 are known to exist today.  The car takes 5.5 seconds to reach 60 mph (96.6 km/h) from a standing start and has a top speed of 260 km/h (160 mph). In 1968 it was the fastest commercially available car in the standing kilometer with time of 24.0 seconds measured by German Auto, Motor und Sport magazine. Similar performance cars on that time were all using twice the Stradale`s cylinder capacity, the Lamborghini Miura, Ferrari Daytona and Maserati Ghibli.

Fangio had demonstrated that the Lancia-Ferrari D50 was the car to beat at the 1956 German Grand Prix, where Stirling Moss had qualified in fourth place behind the Italian cars in a Maserati 250F, going onto finish in second place in the race behind the great Argentinian. For the Italian Grand Prix, in much the same way that modern Formula 1 teams revise and update cars between races, Maserati produced a car that had been revised considerably. Stirling recalled that Maserati “would have to pull something pretty dramatic out of the bag for Monza” and they did. Two new 250F chassis were built, one for Stirling and one for Jean Behra, with off-set prop-shafts, which allowed the driving position, and therefore the centre of gravity, to be considerably lowered, thus improving the handling.

With 5 laps to go Stirling ran out of fuel. Stirling recalls “I spotted (Luigi) Piotti, the Italian Maserati privateer, coming up behind and gestured frantically for him to use his car to push me to the pits”. Luckily for Stirling he understood and the Maserati’s proceeded to the pits nose to tail, with Stirling’s 250F receiving what would be in modern terms, a splash and dash. Coming out of the pits he went on to record the a fastest lap of the race in a time of 2m 45.4s at a speed of 135.5mph in an effort to catch Musso's Lancia-Ferrari. Stirling's mechanics then had to signal to him to slow down as they could see patches of canvas appearing on his tyres.

With 3 laps to go, fate intervened yet again and the Lancia-Ferrari driver suffered a broken steering arm as the car came off the final banking, coming to a stop sideways and out of control by the pits. Stirling was ahead yet again, on tyres that were down to the canvas casings, depsite this, he went onto win the race by six seconds from a fast closing Fangio in a time of 2 hours 23 minutes 41.3 seconds, at an average speed 129.73mph. Fangio’s second place, gave Stirling's former team mate yet another World Drivers’ Championship.

For Stirling, winning at Monza in an Italian car made up for loosing the 1954 race in the Mercedes streamliner, it also meant a great deal to the “tifosi”, the passionate Italian fans, who rightly viewed this victory as one of Stirling’s finest to date. 

Written by Bernard Martin

I had the unique opportunity to visit The Amelia Island Concour's d' Elegance and witness the unveiling of the new Lamborghini Huracán.  To say that I was very impressed would be an understatement.  Was I impressed by the car? Of course. But that was not what impressed me the most. I'll explain a bit on that later, but first a bit about the Huracán.

Back in 2010  Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A President & CEO Stephan Winkelmann said that the sports car market's top design priorities were "Top speed was number One. Acceleration is number Two and then comes handling," In the future "Handling is going to be number One. Acceleration is Two and Top Speed is number three" I must say that the Huracán appears to be the embodiment of that ethos. 

Huracán is Spanish for hurricane but, as with all Lamborghini car models, this one is inspired by a Spanish fighting bull. According to Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.:
"The fighting bull Huracán of the Spanish Conte de la Patilla breed was known for his outstanding courage and strong sense of attack. He fought in Alicante in August 1879, showing his unrelenting character and remaining defiant and invincible, thus entering into the legend of fighting bulls' history."

What's LP 610-4 stand for?

"LP" stands for "Longitudinale Posteriore," which is a snazzy way of saying that it's a mid engined, longitudinally mounted motor (the crankshaft is oriented along the long axis of the vehicle, front to back). The Huracán motor is a V10, naturally aspirated 5.2 L. It's tuned for 610 PS (449 kW; 602 hp). The Huracán's top speed is over 202 mph (325 km/h). It can accelerate from 0 to  62 mph (100 km/h) in 3.2 seconds and from 0 to 124 mph (200 km/h) in 9.9 seconds. With a dry weight of 3,135 lb  (1,422 kg), it enables a power-to-weight ratio of 5.1 lb (2.33 kg) per horsepower. The Huracán has electronically controlled all-wheel drive, which aims to increase the traction on various surfaces and the overall performance of the car. That "all-wheel drive" part is what that last "-4" means by the way.

As anyone who's met me for the first time near your car, you'll probably recall me asking you to "Tell me about your car" or "What do you like most about this car vs that car?" I've come to the realization that the only way to really know what's good or bad about a car is by what the aficionado's of a particular marque have to say about the macchina. To become a true aficionado, in my view, is to have driven and experienced the marque in detail over many years. (Yet another reason I miss Walt Spak.) So, of course, over the course of the weekend I asked those questions a lot. It was interesting to note that the shifting and handling of the Huracán seemed to be at or near the top of Lamborghini aficionado's first comments. 

What impressed me the most?

Attitude. You can always get a flavor for a company's culture by how that culture is reflected in the employees attitudes and responsiveness.  It was the first time that I had had the opportunity to meet any of the Lamborghini corporate folks. When brands become as famous and world renowned as Lamborghini, I had half expected a bit of an arrogant panache.  That was not at all what I encountered.  I was introduced to numerous people within the company over the course of several days and found that, when chatting, each and every one took the time to answer questions and even find me later to say that they had either found out the answer or wanted to introduce me to the person that has just arrived who could give me the answer. THAT was impressive. 

It's the kind of responsiveness and nimbleness you expect from a small start up company but certainly not from a company who's parent, Audi AG, sold 1.58million cars last year.

Back in 2010 CEO Stephan Winkelmann was asked "What are the key metrics to decide on the future?" He said, "Its about design and performance. These key elements are not going to change" ...as you might have expected, but he also said "We have meetings constantly about the business, it's a constant update even on the strategy because their is nothing fixed. You always have to think again, what you thought six months ago because the world is changing fast." That's the kind of thing that a lieutenant in the German Army who was a paratrooper would say, who understands the importance of speed, responsiveness and adaption to current urgencies. Ironic that Winkelmann was indeed a lieutenant in the German Army who was a paratrooper.

As someone who has spent a career in manufacturing, that sort of attention to detail and responsiveness translates into a great understanding of the market and a customer-to-manufacturing feedback loop that permits big R&D leapfrogs forward in product innovation. …and now, after Winkelmann's comments in 2010, we have the introduction of the Huracán. It may just be one of those very special cars that, one day, 50 years from now, aficionados will marvel at the engineering and handling "of it's day."

Huracán "...thus entering into the legend of fighting bulls' history"

Written by Bernard Martin

Ferrari Club of America is currently celebrating a major milestone, its 50th Anniversary! 

50 Anni di Passione Tour

Under the motto “50 Years of Passion – One Lap of North America”, a specially prepared 599 Ferrari relay car, sponsored by a private donor, is carrying a symbolic “baton” and is visiting all Ferrari Club of America (FCA) regions and chapters, every Ferrari dealer in the U.S. and Canada. This is a year one-year, 20,000-mile relay of North America and it's coming toPittsburgh for it's public stop before the FCA Annual Meeting!

Leading the One Lap of North America will be a specially prepared Ferrari 599 driven by a volunteer FCA member from each chapter. The relay is led by a special, one-off Ferrari 599GTB-HGTE built specially for Passione. This unique Ferrari, the very last North America specification 599 produced, has been made possible by Jim Taylor, FCA member and Patrono Principale of the FCA’s 50th Anniversary, and by Ferrari North America. The 599 has a unique paint scheme and interior design, as well as custom graphics representing the 50-year history of the FCA.