Porsche 356- an overview

•August 4, 2010 • Comments Off on Porsche 356- an overview

More of this. The Times ran an article (and corresponding owner-penned blog post) recently on the Porsche 356. Old hat for owners of these cars to be sure, but certainly worth a read for anyone with at least a passing interest in either the 356 (either to admire from afar, or with the goal of eventually buying) or Porsches in general.

Many of these charming coupes and convertibles still sell for reasonable prices (when an owner actually decides to part with one), despite a steady trend of rising values. Porsche experts say that a drivable 356 can be found for less than $20,000, and one that looks and feels like new might go for $35,000 to $40,000…

Experts generally agree that the best choice for a first-time collector is a 1961-63 coupe — the 356 B hardtop. The ’61 and later cars include many of Porsche’s most significant refinements in the steering, shifting and suspension, but they are not as expensive as the 1963-65 C models, the last 356 cars. Naturally there are collectors who prefer the design of the earlier 356, informally known as the A, with its lower headlights and bumpers.

In later aircooled 911 terms, sounds to us like the B is somewhat analogous to the 964, with the C in the role of the 993.

Read on

Sideways in the wet

•August 4, 2010 • 1 Comment

A more subdued follow-up to this wild photo.

Via tcl

Nice. Maybe even too nice.

•August 3, 2010 • 1 Comment

Shiny. Gleaming. Only it’s so nice it almost borders on being precious. We think we’d be afraid to drive it hard, which would be a shame. This is why we like cars that are a little rough around the edges— why we prefer cars that are actually driven to Concours queens.

Still, who in their right mind wouldn’t want this? Looks like a small fortune might have been poured into this car, and the results are fairly stunning.

Image: dryheatpanzer

Alfa 75s

•August 3, 2010 • 4 Comments

Mean-looking pair— the black one in particular looks like it’d routinely snack on unsuspecting touristenfahrten traffic. We’d sure as hell move out of its way.

Images: Michael Ward for Auto Italia

Rally Porsche making a proper noise

•August 2, 2010 • 3 Comments

Watch— volume all the way up. There’s nothing more to be said. Wisely, Monsieur Harris seems to agree.

Assorted grab bag of stuff we like

•August 2, 2010 • 10 Comments

No further commentary necessary, so let’s get right to it.

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It Might Get Loud (2008)

•August 1, 2010 • Comments Off on It Might Get Loud (2008)

Taking a quick break from cars. We’re late to the party, but we finally got around to seeing It Might Get Loud, featuring three guitarists we admire, and whose bands’ music we enjoy and (at various parts of our childhood and young adulthood) we grew up with. Ostensibly, they share little in common with one another – generationally (Page reminisces about Skiffle, the Edge about the Jam), geographically, philosophically, stylistically – but as with just about all rock music, you spot the common threads that bind them (however seemingly tenuous or not immediately apparent) and allow you to draw a line (if not exactly on a continuum) from one person to the other— even with someone like White, who in many ways is the antithesis of some of Zep’s and U2’s worst stadium rock tendencies and (in the case of the Edge) painstaking studio perfectionism (that White’s musical heroes include Son House and the Flat Duo Jets should tell you everything you need to know).

Highlights? Page’s unbridled enthusiasm as he walks the filmmaker through Link Wray’s “Rumble,” a song that arguably made an impression on rock history as indelible as any other that came before it or after. White and the Edge clearly impressed by the explosive opening riffs of “Whole Lotta Love” as it’s being played in front of their very eyes by Page. The three of them sliding to “In My Time of Dying.”

Recommended, if you’re into this sort of thing.

Ladies in red: Porsche 924 and Mazda RX-7 (SA)

•July 30, 2010 • 3 Comments

These terrific photos come from Michael Proske of nissansports.de. Though their production years vary slightly (the 924 from 1976-86 (at which point it received the larger 944 engine and became the 924S), the SA RX-7 from 1979-85), it would not have been inconceivable to see the two pitted then as you see them here, especially given that each car in this shoot retains much of its stock look and character.

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E23

•July 30, 2010 • 4 Comments

Nicest we’ve ever seen. Love, absolutely love, the Alpina wheels without the center caps— we wouldn’t have it any other way. Mild lowering springs would complete the look, natch.

Lovely, classy stuff from Bayerische Motoren Werke. They certainly don’t make ’em like they used to.

Via tcl

Renault Clio V6 on a B road somewhere in Britain

•July 29, 2010 • 1 Comment

“In my perfect ten car garage I would definitely have one of these– no question.”

– Jeremy Clarkson

Being on this side of the pond, unfortunately, we’ll likely never even get to sniff one, or two other closely-related Renaultsports for that matter (the stripped-down Megane R26.R and the grandaddy that started it all, the R5 Turbo). Too bad, because as far as we know, all of ’em are supposed to be a hoot.

Image: Ian Eveleigh for Evo magazine