MY MAYBACH—WELL, ALMOST
I CAME close to owning a Maybach 57, the Millennium’s Über-S-Class of automobiles. In retrospect, maybe not that close. But the tale touches on museum-worthy arts and crafts, mobile superiority and … Continue reading
SCHMID LSR CRACKS 800 KM/H AT BONNEVILLE
VIRTUALLY, THE Land Speed Record car of Leopold F. Schmid has achieved its design goal of 800 km/h, 497 mph or 432 knots. I include this third equivalent unit because … Continue reading
TRANSPORT MEMORABILIA, 1995 (AND TIMELESS)
I LOVE auction catalogs. They contain a wealth of information. Printed on fine stock, they are typically a bibliophile’s delight. Christie’s catalog for a Transport Memorabilia and Models auction is … Continue reading
SCHMID’S LSR
EVER SINCE La Jamias Contente (French for “never satisfied”) set its land speed record of 105.882 km/h (65.792 mph) in 1899, cars designed for breaking speed records have been bizarre … Continue reading
BROOKLANDS AND ITS SILENCERS
APPARENTLY THERE’S not enough noise in Formula 1 this year (see http://wp.me/p2ETap-28h). This got me thinking of the opposite problem: Automobile racing is inherently a very noisy activity and, occasionally, … Continue reading
PITTSBURGH VINTAGE GRAND PRIX 1996
WHEN WE last saw our intrepid vintage racer (yesterday; http://wp.me/p2ETap-298), he and his patron, Jake Jacobson of the Old Spokes Vintage Racing Team, were chasing each other in 1930s sprint … Continue reading
JAKE JACOBSON AND HIS MILLER-FORD
MY VINTAGE racing career, a spirited though brief one, owed a great deal to Jake Jacobson. A fellow member of the Vintage Sports Car Club of America, Jake was the … Continue reading
ROTARY AUTOMOBILES
A CAR’S wheels rotate, they don’t go up and down. Thus, whatever other complications in moving a car, there has to be a basic transformation of reciprocating pistons into rotating … Continue reading
MAZDA MIATA AT QUARTER CENTURY
MAZDA IS celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Miata at the New York International Auto Show, taking place April 18 – 27, 2014. Given my personal involvement with Miatas, it’s … Continue reading
THE HECK, YOU SAY
THE GERMAN term Heckmotor (rear engine) is usually reserved for Porsche and Volkswagen. However, in the 1930s, Mercedes-Benz preceded Volkswagen in offering rear-engine passenger cars to the public. And, as you … Continue reading
