So many car brands have disappeared

We have been recently experiencing what is probably the end of Saab as a car manufacturer. Many have shared this destiny before. Actually there were hundreds of car manufacturers that have seized to exist. Remember Panhard? Many certainly do not. So, here's an ad from 1964 showcasing the then new Panhard Coupé Sport. Panhard even competed in motor sports. And they served the engine for some of the Devins (another brand that doesn't exist anymore). So enjoy the ad and smile ...

Fiat Dino 2400 Spider - classic looks and sound

Between 1967 and 1972 two Fiat Dino Spider models were built - the Fiat Dino Spider 2000 and the Fiat Dino Spider 2400.
In total 1'163 Spider 2000 and 420 Spider 2400 (1969-1972) left the factory. Designed by Pininfarina it shared the engine with the (Ferrari) Dino 206/246 GT. It was built parallel to the Fiat Dino Coupé designed by Bertone.
The two versions Spider 2000 and 2400 were quite different. The later car was heavier, but also had 20 HP more and an independent rear suspension. It was the much better usable every day car than the 2000 model, but at the same time also felt a bit less sporty. The body was very similar, but the 2400 had a ZF transmission that was much better for precise gear changes. The car could seat 2+2 people, weighted 1'240 kg and was able to reach approximately 210 km/h. Four disc brakes provided good stopping power. With 4'134 mm length, 1'710 mm width and 1'270 mm height it was still a fairly compact car. Mine was the 14th. last car built and it was a great car to cruise. The engine sound was unbelievable and I got many thumbs up by people passing me on the road. Compared to a 246 GT the car was much less of a sportscar and very far away from being a competition car, but for a convertible that was okay. In direct comparison the Fiat felt much older than the 246 GT. From a value point of view the Fiat is probably half what the mini Ferrari is, while maintenance cost are almost at the same level. This is one reason why so few Fiat Dino Spiders have survived, besides the fact that at Fiat less Spiders were built than 206/246 GT/GTS at Ferrari.

Audi's second trial - Audi e-tron mk2 could be a winner

Audi is showing its new Audi e-tron mk2 at the Detroit Motor Show. While the first version has been built on top of the R8 the new is smaller, less powerful and much lighter, but a lot closer to reality than the first prototype. Impressive are the 2'650 NM torque that the two engines produce. The car is a bit smaller than an Audi TT and weighs roughly 1'350 kg. It accelerates in less than 6 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h, reaches 200 km/h and has a driving range of approx. 250 km. All of this sounds quite acceptable to me and I could imagine driving one of these assuming it's priced at less than 50k USD. I am not fully convinced about the design, but that's probably due to its relatively small size. And somebody maybe should explain to me why you would need such a monstrous air intake in the front - certainly not for cooling the engine. I wonder whether the aerodynamics really is top notch also.

Should we have Braun or Apple type design principles in car design?

The London Design Museum currently is showing an exhibition showcasing the work and the ideas of Dieter Rams who was the design leader at BRAUN and probably one of the biggest influencers of modern design. He created some 10 simple principles along he used to work, i.e.
Good design is innovative.
Good design makes a product useful.
Good design is aesthetic.
Good design makes a product understandable.
Good design is unobtrusive.
Good design is honest.
Good design is long-lasting.
Good design is thorough down to the last detail.
Good design is environmentally friendly.
Good design is as little design as possible.
The current exhibition is titled "Less and More" which summarizes the principles to some extent. Many of the Braun products were both beautiful to look at and still very functional in the way they could used.
Apple uses some of the same principles and believes, no wonder that Apple's chief designer is a big fan of Rams. When you look at the iPod or some of the other Apple designs it is again both beautiful and simple to use. Reduce to the max, you could say.
Now, this is a car blog, so what on earth do I talk about iPods and 60ies radios?
Well, the question that I am thinking about is, how would an Apple or Braun design applied to cars look like. Do cars really have to look like we have them today? Do car interiors have be so cluttered and complicated? Maybe an "Apple" car wouldn't have pedals to control and a wheel to steer. And maybe this would be better. But different to a radio a car is a dangerous device when used wrongly, therefore continuity in design is needed. The objective is always that people new to a given car can still operate it in a safe way. But even taking this into account there would probably be lots of things that can be improved in today's cars and I would really like to see a car where Rams 10 principles have been applied!

The Alfa Romeo GTV 6 - best post-80ies Alfa soundtrack

The Alfa Romeo GTV had been around for quite some time when they decided to put the 6 cylinder from the Alfa Sei into it. And this totally changed the car and its positioning.
The Alfa Romeo GTV 6 was directly competing with the contemporary smaller Porsches and for example the Renault-Alpine A310. The price point was set at around half the value of a Ferrari 308 GTB, so it was somewhat affordable.
The Alfa Romeo GTV 6 is a car where the engine is (almost) everything. And what an engine this was! In the GTV 6 disguise it developed roughly 160 HP, featured a fuel injection and produced an unbelievable soundtrack. Different to other cars where you need to wind down the windows this soundtrack is always extremely present also in the interior and reason enough, not to order a stereo for this car. Why should you? The rest of the car was okay but not really great. The transmission mounted in transaxle setting was difficult and not exact to operate. Breaks and suspensions were acceptable but not really performance car like. The interior was improved against the older GTVs but still much less attractive than for example what came from the UK at this time or even partially from Germany.

But as a package it was a great car and the reviews from the different car magazines were quite positive, again especially for the engine. Fuel consumption was quite low too, performance with roughly 8 seconds from 0-100 km/h and 220 km/h top speed pretty competitive during the early 80ies. There was a kind of Mark 1 and a Mark 2 (with more plastic and some improvements). It was built between 1981 and 1986. Rust and corrosion were still a topic but less so than for the years before. The car sold quite well.
I haven't yet owned a GTV6, but it's one of the 80ies Alfas to consider and I believe there hasn't been one since then (maybe with the exception of the outrageously expensive 8C) that sounded as well as the GTV6.

The Peugeot SR1 is the best what could happen to Peugeot's design language

Peugeot will show the Peugeot SR1 at the coming Geneva Motor Show. It is supposed to illustrate the new "design language" Peugeot will be using for the coming cars. I have recently seen the sketches for a coming 508 limousine and there are clearly similarities between the prototype SR1 and the 508. And that's good! You have to go quite a long way back until you find a really good looking Peogeot. I would name the 504 Coupé, the 406 Coupé and for example also the 205 (GTI) as good example. What they have in common is the fact that Pininfarina was involved in all these designs. Many of the recent Peugeots were rather ugly in my eyes, at least not really good looking. With the new design language Peugeot can against make a big step forward and I hope that future cars take as many elements as possible of this prototype! Maybe they should try to take away some of the Aston Martin features in the SR1 though.

Milestones - the BMW M1, closer to racing than most other cars

When BMW presented the BMW M1 in 1978 it was the first time for a long period after the BMW 507 that a true supercar was announced. But not all people fully appreciated the concept. The body was fiberglass, the engine had "only" six cylinders, while the price was on Ferrari 512 BB level offering 12 cyclinders and a lot more racing pedigree in comparison. BMWs plan had been to produce a homologation special to compete in international racing. However, due to a regulation change, there wasn't really anymore a good racing series to compete in with the car.
BMW produced 460 cars and then abandoned production due to lack of interest. They created their own racing series - Procar. Formula 1 and other famous racing drivers competed in an all BMW M1 racing series with runs before the formula 1 races. It was spectacular and exciting, but only lasted for two years. Later BMW M1s competed in the German championship, drove in Le Mans and participated in other series as Group 5 cars with some success.
The street car was very close to the racing car in reality. Same engine, same suspensions with slightly different setting, a bit more comfort. It sounded terrific and was actually able to compete with the 512BB in terms of performance despite the lack of engine volume and cylinders. The design done by Giugiaro is somewhat timeless and after a dip BMW M1 have continuously gained in value, reaching roughly 2-3 times their initial price today. There were only few colors and most seem to be either white, red or blue. I would take any of these colors ...

Picture of the Week - starting base of a TVR 3000 M restoration

This must look familiar to many who have started a TVR restoration project. A car that at least partially looks complete and like not too much work. This particular car, an early TVR 3000 M (or potentially a 2500 M) was shown at the probably largest TVR exhibition in Germany last winter. But doesn't the car even in half disassembled state look good?

TVR Taimar - rare but easy to own sportscar

The TVR Taimar was built between 1976 and 1980, a total of 395 cars were produced and sold mainly in the UK. The Taimar was part of the M series TVR and shared the same chassis as well as the same engine (Ford Essex 3 litre). The main difference to the TVR 3000 M was the hatchback door that finally prevented the owners from having to put big luggage through the passenger door. So compared to its brother it was pretty convenient. With its strong chassis, the fiberglass body and all the mass production mechanical components (mainly from Ford and Triumph) it's a really simple car to own and maintain.
Reliability is good especially compared to other British cars of the period. Electrical faults may be something to worry about. And yes, the Taimar tends to suck the exhaust fumes into the car. It makes dogs go sick and passengers too.
Performance is okay with roughly 140 HP and less than 1'000 kg, but not staggering. It was faster than a 3 liter Ford Capri at least. And it could outperform most Limousines from the period.
Mine was a 1978 model in burgundy red. It had been restored once before I took it over and behaved really well under my ownership. It had been equipped with Holley carburetors by one of the previous owners and had a bit of extra power. It was the first TVR I owned, but not the first one I wanted to buy. Actually, I was 16 when I spotted "my" first TVR at a nearby garage, but my father didn't consider a sportscar as a good investment and didn't aprove (and support) the purchase. So I had to wait until I found the burgundy Taimar pictured here. After the Taimar a number of other TVRs followed and I never stopped to appreciate the make.

Is the Eagle Jaguar Speedster good or bad news?

Eagle, a well known Jaguar E-Type specialist in the UK, has presented its Eagle E-Type Speedster. It's based on a vintage E-Type, but obviously has been "upgraded" to make it more fancy and maybe more modern too. This includes a bigger engine and more modern suspension bits and pieces. While the result is a good looking car I do not really like the idea of taking a sought after classic and modernize it to fit the taste of the playstation generation. I would appreciate this car much more if it had been developed based on a new drivetrain and chassis. There are not that many E-Types around and I prefer them in original stage and look&feel. They are icons and worth being preserved as they were built.

Steering Wheels - 100 years of evolution

One of the things that has been there even in the first cars and still is an integral element of any modern car is the Steering Wheel. Funnily enough there are quite a lot of similarities between modern steering wheels and very old ones. Just have a look! In the beginning there were lots of controls in the steering wheel, for example to fine tune the ignition. In the 60ies and 70ies the steering wheels got more and more pure and thinner and thinner, just to become fatter again in the 80ies and later. Today again we have lots of additional control functions in the steering wheel and we can switch radio stations, talk to the car or start the window heater on the push of a button in the steering wheel. In most cases it's still round, though there are exceptions with flattened wheels in Audis and other cars. Material wise we still have mostly leather and wood being used today, the plastic feel of the 60ies and 70ies definitely has gone. So a lot of evolutionary changes over hundred years but no questioning of the initial concept.

The Porsche 993 - the last air cooled true 911

For many Porsche fans the Porsche 993 is the last "real" 911. While being faster, more powerful and better engineered than its predecessors it was still close to the initial engineering and design blueprint, lighter and nimbler than its successors, the 996 model range. And it was air cooled like the 356 and all its successors until the 996. Many if not most people also think it looked much better than the 996, no wonder that the design of the 997 got again closer to what the 993 was.
The 993 was a pretty practical car and also easier to maintain and cheaper to own than any 911 thereafter.
Mine was a 1994 model with the 3.6 liter engine and 272 HP. I took it to Germany and France and did quite a bit of mileage in a short period. I still sold it after less than a year and that was probably a mistake as these cars hold their value actually quite well. And I still like both shape and engine sound. So this is yet another car I could imagine buying again, even if I am not the typical Porsche owner myself.

Lancia - known for its traditional quality

When you look at the tagline of this 1964 advertisement you probably have to smile. Lancia is certainly not known for its quality reputation. Too many things went wrong, specifically in the 80ies. Rust, bad reliability and all kinds of funny things that could happen with a Lancia killed this quality reputation, especially in the UK where the picture it taken. Too bad actually, Lancia was a synonym for advanced engineering in the 50ies and 60ies and we all remember the Lancia Stratos for winning the rallye world championship, the Lancia Fulvia and the 037 Rallye.

Starting the new year with old impressions - Semperit advertisement from 1964

A new year, a new decade! Wet and cold weather conditions. So that's a good moment to clean up the house and the things collected over the last decade. That's when you come across such things as the advertisement pictured here. It's for Semperit, a tyre manufacturer. A happy couple driving in a "virtual" car. In 1964 (or before). With a white plastic steering wheel. Wonderful! And it talks about handling, comfort and safety. You don't see ads like this anymore.

With the best wishes for a happy new motoring year!

Soon 2009 and a whole decade will be gone. Many things we will remember, even more we'll probably have forgotten soon. That's life.

I wish you all a happy new year!

P.S. The picture shown here is my this year's new year "card" ...