Heads up, Larry~! 1930 birthdate for this Packard... 1910 birthdate for the driver....

[vwlarry]

From Meadowbrook Hall

The 1934 Packard in the foreground is a mind-blower. I feel that Packard, as a carmaker peaked in that year. They hadn't yet become a mid-priced mass-producer (not until 1936), and their standards fully lived up to their image as a supreme-quality manufacturer of superior automobiles. Packards, in '34, still had big straight-8 or their peerless V12 power, and they were still mostly handcrafted, although in relatively large numbers. But the best thing about the '34 "11th Series" (Packard did not use model years then, instead referring to a model's "series" number) is their uniformly beautiful design of every bodystyle. They are at or near the peak of the Classic Era's all-time greats, IMO. Everything on them just looks "right".

This is one of the more unique and interesting 1934 11th Series Packards; a car that combines the old-era Classicism at its front, and transitioning, beautifully, into the new era of streamlined design that was taking the world by storm by the mid-thirties. A truly beautiful machine for all time:

[IMG][/IMG]

[TopDown_]

Streamlined indeed

Thanks for that glimpse into the evolving lines of these cars, Larry.

[Blunderbuss]

Even at age 101, she still has the devoted energy of any true car aficionado

“They’re just made out of such fine material,” Ms. Dunning said. “I love the engineering that went into it. There’s just a lot of very, very fine workmanship.”

[mitcompressor]

wow.....

'34 Packard Runabout Roadster

Sleek...

[audifans]

Man.. that runabout is some sculpted car.

[BumpSteer]

Another OT foray, but timely


It seems people call the Meadowbrook Hall/St. John's venue the "Pebble Beach of the Midwest"

Interesting that Pebble Beach is going to do some double takes coming up as some unusual items are going to be showcased.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/24/au....html?_r=1&hpw

The 1959 Fiat Tipo 682/RN-2 transporter, which Gooding & Company will offer at auction as part of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Élégance week in August.

COLLECTING
Supporting Acts Making a Move to Center Stage



MILLION-DOLLAR Duesenbergs and vintage Italian racecars crossing the auction block will hardly be surprising sights at the sales scheduled to take place in conjunction with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Élégance on the Monterey Peninsula of California next month.



Arriving at the Race in Style
But a Fiat Tipo 682 in attendance — a commercial truck, not even a shapely sports car — might ruffle some expectations during the week’s rich menu of classic-car events.

The truck is one of two 1959 Fiat transporters built for the Ferrari factory racing team, carrying championship-winning grand prix and sports cars all over Europe in the ’60s. A conversion done by the coachbuilder Bartoletti of Italy, the truck is equipped with a workshop for the team mechanics and sleeping accommodations for the crew and drivers.

Potentially the crowning addition to the garage of a well-heeled collector who already owns some classic racecars, the truck will be offered at Gooding & Company’s auction with a presale estimated price of $750,000 to $950,000. Presumably, the new owner will not expect it to work as hard to earn its keep as it did a half-century ago.

Purpose-built trucks to carry team racecars to the track started to become common only during the 1950s. Before then, even the biggest factory teams would routinely drive the racecars to the track and back, a standard practice from the dawn of motor racing.

Enzo Ferrari was a pioneer in the use of enclosed transporter trucks in the 1930s. It was a combination of congested roads and cars more suited for driving in competition than in traffic that led him to buy specially adapted heavy trucks made by Lancia to carry the Alfa Romeo racers of his Scuderia Ferrari team to events. He was enterprising, too, in selling advertising space to his sponsors, Pirelli and Memini, on the sides of the trucks, according to a 1990 article in Classic & Sportscar magazine.

Truck collectors, while less numerous than their auto colleagues, are more common than might be imagined. Even so, many of the people who buy and restore retired racecar transporters are not especially interested in trucks.

It is the connection to the heritage of famous marques that has spurred collector interest.

This collecting niche is not an entirely new phenomenon. A 1966 Fiat 643 auto transporter with a documented history of serving the Ferrari racing team sold in as-found condition for $297,000 at a Gooding’s collector car auction in Monterey in August 2007.

Typically the buyers compete in vintage races — and want to reunite the haulers with the racecars they carried when both were new. Bringing vintage racecars to the track on a classic transporter could be the ultimate in racer chic, and a compelling display of automotive history.

Because of their utilitarian roles, many of the transporters that once served racing teams were not preserved as treasures, but scrapped or sold off for less honored vocations.

But it would be reasonable to expect that a company like Mercedes-Benz, a fastidious steward of its historical record, had carefully looked after all the artifacts of its racing triumphs. Not so: the custom-built single-vehicle carrier — perhaps one of the most charismatic transporters ever — built to carry the 300 SLR, a racecar driven by legends like Fangio and Moss in the Mille Miglia rally and Le Mans endurance events, no longer exists.

Surprisingly, once this truck’s useful life was over, it was not stored in a warehouse. Instead, it was broken up for parts in 1967.

A replica of the truck was commissioned by Mercedes-Benz and completed in 2001 using only photographs of the original, as no blueprints of the transporter remained.

Michael Kunz, manager of the Mercedes-Benz Classic Center in Irvine, Calif., offered some perspective on how that came to be.

“It’s an example of how the world view has changed regarding what was seen as a workhorse,” he said. “It was thought that it had done its duty and had finished its reason for being. Now, all things related to history are prized.”

The truck is one of two 1959 Fiat transporters built for use by the Ferrari factory racing team in Europe in the 1960s. A conversion was done by the coachbuilder Bartoletti and features a workshop for the mechanics and sleeping accommodations for the crew and drivers.
Credit: Alejandro Rodriguez/Gooding

As sleek and streamlined as the car it was designed to carry, the transporter also had the same advanced 3-liter, fuel-injected 6-cylinder engine as the 300 SL Gullwing sports car. That powertrain ensured that the Rennstransporter, or race transporter, would carry its load across Europe at factory-stated speeds of over 100 m.p.h., far faster than any standard truck of the mid-’50s.



Arriving at the Race in Style
A private collector who has heard the siren call of the racer’s truck is Don Orosco of Monterey, Calif. He is the owner of the transporter used by the Scarab Team in sports car and Formula One races in the United States and Europe.

The Scarab Team was a project of Lance Reventlow, the son of the Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton. The team was his effort to field an all-American team at the top levels of international racing.

The Scarab transporter began life as a Fiat Series 306/2 Alpine bus chassis, ordered by the Maserati Formula One team and outfitted by Carrozzeria Bartoletti. After Maserati withdrew from racing in 1957, the transporter was bought by Reventlow to carry the Scarab grand prix cars for the 1960 racing season in Europe.

Later the truck was owned by Carroll Shelby, who used it to carry his Cobra Daytona Coupes across Europe. It also had a star turn in the 1971 Steve McQueen racing film, “Le Mans.”

The story of how Mr. Orosco came to own the truck is itself worthy of a movie plot. After its glory days, the truck was in the hands of a member of the American family that owned the U-Haul rental chain — and was caught in the crossfire of a family fight between two brothers, Mr. Orosco said.

For years, there had been rumors about the transporter’s whereabouts, but no one was able to find out exactly where it was or pry it loose from its stubborn owner. A conversation overheard at a vintage car event in England persuaded Mr. Orosco that he had to move quickly — and in a week he had bought it.

The difference was that previously, everyone who had gone after the transporter wanted it for the Shelby connection, a sore point between the brothers. Mr. Orosco, well known as a collector of Scarabs, only mentioned those cars, not Shelby or Cobras. He won his prize — a derelict sitting in the Arizona sun that needed a total restoration.

Restoring the transporter involved hunting down parts and fabricating hundreds of missing pieces. It was worth the effort, Mr. Orosco said: “The payoff was when the truck drove into the paddock at the Monterey Historic Races that year, with the two Formula One Scarabs on it. It was amazing.”

Equally fascinating are those trucks that provided support for the teams, from parts carriers to mobile service vans to hospitality centers.

A particularly characterful example is the British Motor Corporation Works Service Van owned by Wayne Carini, host of the “Chasing Classic Cars” show on the Discovery Channel.

It is one of a pair of such trucks that accompanied teams of Austin-Healeys and Mini Coopers to events across Europe and in the United States. Mr. Carini bought the truck at a collector car auction and has since made it the centerpiece of a traveling show of British racing cars. He envisions using it in a vintage event like the New England 1000 rally, following an Austin-Healey 3000 to provide repairs, parts and refreshments, just as in the old days.

The restored transporter at the Pebble Beach concours in 2008, complete with three Scarab racecars.

[Terandyne]

Here's another look at the previous venue where this was held: Meadowbrook

[TopDown_]

For those of you who are able to attend, St. John's looks like a welcoming setting



Elegant pretty much says it.

Of course, I have no idea how it rates compared to the Meadowbrook Hall setting

[barry2952]

[vwlarry]

wow.....

'34 Packard Runabout Roadster

Sleek...

IMO, the similarly voluptuous Talbot Lago coupes of the mid-late thirties, while undeniably beautiful in their own right, fall short of these equally shapely Packard roadsters from 1934, and for one important reason. The way the Packard's sharply drawn, almost Greco-Roman architectural radiator shell and hoodline so effectively blend, and contrast with the rest of the design's soft, voluptuous shapes provides the kind of tension that makes a more exciting visual experience than the unrelentingly soft and almost amorphous Talbot Lagos. Not to be picking on the T-Ls, but this is something that I've thought about often, and the opening here came up to speak about it, so I just went for it.

Talbot Lago for comparison's sake:

[barry2952]

Seriously? The only thing that falls short on a T-L is that they suck to drive and they tend to catch fire a lot.

[vwlarry]

Yeah, seriously. Put between the 2 cars and standing in judgement, I have to choose the Packard as the victor in the beauty contest. It's close though, if that is any consolation. Like I said, I'm not knocking the Talbot Lago; it's just not quite as "right" as the Packard. Just my O.

[lil' thumper]

Well, I'll let you two hash out the niceties of automotive design and lineage preferences.


My nod goes to the Blue Beauty.

But then I'm just one of the unwashed Proletariat here.



Everyone has their own idea of what resonates with them. And the chiseled nature of the '34 in combination with those sweeping curves works for me quite nicely.

Bold and pulse quickening.

[Blunderbuss]

I think part of the reason that the '34 Runabout really "pops" in those photographs is that the color is just mind boggling and combines with the brilliant wide whitewalls to make that car look positively delicious.

Is that color something that Packard actually used back then? Because that paint sends that car into some other realm of artful expression. They almost look like liquid coats to my eyes. And the fenders flowing like water don't hurt that impression





But I gotta speak up about Barry's Continental.

What a magnificent vehicle, perfect setting and wonderfully composed shot that is.

Kudos and I was actually waiting for Barry to post something like that from Meadowbrook.

Beautiful!

Thanks, Barry!





and, of course, brings to mind this, which begs to be reposted:

[Boxer2100]

I may be coming up for the Concours Sunday as well. Seems like a good way to blow $25.

[a1veedubber]

Man, that blue Packard is absolutely gorgeous from every angle. The red four door convertible next to it looks interesting as well!

[Arsigi]

Streamlined indeed

Thanks for that glimpse into the evolving lines of these cars, Larry.

Man, I've just been staring at these pictures for the last 5 minutes.

[barry2952]

I may be coming up for the Concours Sunday as well. Seems like a good way to blow $25.

Worth every penny.

[barry2952]

But I gotta speak up about Barry's Continental.

[barry2952]

If kids are any indicator, Larry, they follow your train of thought.

This was taken two years ago at Amelia. These were the winners of the Hagerty Junior Judging.

First, Packard dual cowl boattail.

Second, Talbot Lago

Third, our '55 Porsche Continental Cabrio. The kids loved the horn.

[vwlarry]

In many ways, Barry, that photograph of the Porsche, Talbot Lago, and Packard is so representative of the kaleidoscopic variety that composes the world of automobiles. From large and imposing, heavy and powerful, to light and nimble and moderately powered, and those in between, they cover a lot of philosophical, engineering, and technical ground. Those 3 cars represent what I love so much about automobiles. One can study them for one's entire life, and still not get to the end of the story. I like that.

[Powderkeg]

Man, that blue Packard is absolutely gorgeous from every angle. The red four door convertible next to it looks interesting as well!

The red 4 door....fantastic.

[jeff james]

The red 4 door....fantastic.

I'm liking this thread a lot.



So might as well give a first post with a picture of the Sport Phaeton.

That is some sleek beast. Even with the top up

[vwlarry]

Is this really TCL? With all this Packard love?? Well, awright!

[Massive Attack]

Is this really TCL? With all this Packard love?? Well, awright!

Well, it's not a dream, Larry.



couple more shots of the '34 models just for fun.

[Bodacious]

Nothing like a little sunlight to liven the pictures up some.

Another set of cars at the media preview at St. John's

'31 Cadillac with a Cord in the background.

[vwlarry]

I enjoy looking at a photograph of 2 1930s cars such as the one above, and placing myself, mentally, back in the mid-thirties, as a car enthusiast, and absolutely marvelling at the way automobiles, and automotive design, have progressed in just a few short years. Those two cars, just 5 or so years apart, look like they're from different planets. An amazing decade.

[barry2952]

Actually, I'd say the Caddy styling was an anachronism and the Cord was ahead of its time.

[vwlarry]

That's mostly true, but in any case the point still stands. The general population of automobiles largely reflected a similar degree of great progress during those years, on all fronts. For example, all automobiles, from the cheapest to the mightiest, still rolled along on cart-spring suspension systems in 1930 (except for Lancia, of course ), while, by 1935, independent front A-arm/coil spring front suspension was becoming commonplace on GM cars, and other makes, too. Hydraulic braking was mandatory for any contemporary car by '35, except for Henry's cars, of course, and this was a HUGE leap in automotive safety/drivability/comfort/control over the old cable or rod actuated brakes that were prevalent just a few years earlier.

[Sledge]

If only the front wheels were covered to match the back. It would be perfect

[Air and water do mix]

'31 Cadillac with a Cord in the background.

Wait. That's a Hudson in the background.

A+ thread, guys.

[barry2952]

If only the front wheels were covered to match the back. It would be perfect

How would you turn?

[Sledge]

How would you turn?

Well widen the front pontoons a few inches. Do I gotta think of everything around here?

[barry2952]

I guess not.

[Sledge]

I guess not.

x1000