Antique & Classic Cars Blog

Ten years ago, my friend Bill was looking through one of my classics books deciding on the special car he would buy when the time was right.

What grabbed his eye, for better or worse, was the BMW 507, produced in very limited numbers (250-plus) in the late 1950s. He wanted a car that looked like that, but one that was a driver–something he could use whenever and not worry too much about getting stranded somewhere in a vehicle for which parts and service knowledge were at a bare minimum.

The solution was to build a tribute car and power it with modern running gear. A few shots of the car have appeared here.

Last week I got up to the shop doing the work, Vescio’s in Rogers, for a quick look and more photos. Figured I’d post them and another piece, since lots of readers and enthusiasts are building and restoring cars.

The charge was a car that looked like the BMW. It would be possible to commission an exact replica, but that would obviously be a much more elaborate and expensive mission. With an inch-for-inch duplication, you’d have to change every dimension and contour a little or a lot on a donor car, or build large portions of it from scratch.

These photos show both sides of the challenge–how some changes are fairly easy and do a great deal to evoke the 507, and also how other changes present a bigger challenge and would require comprehensive modifications to basic things like how the doors open, how the top functions, etc.

This project began as a motorless 1958 MGA (replacing wood flooring with steel being an obvious early move). The main differences between that and BMW’s little drop-top appear in the nose and tail. The MGA nose lays back, while the 507’s leans forward at the prow.

The headlights, grille area, bumper and turn signals here are pretty close. The edges are a little sharp, yet. What appears here is an all-metal initial rough in. There will be further metal massaging and everything will be smoothed with a skim coat of filler.

To my eye, the profile looks good. It’s sleek, elegant, sexy. Front and rear sit in harmony and the lines hold up. It’s a bit different from a BMW, however. The main difference is that the center of the MGA, longitudinally, is higher. It crests more, whereas the 507 is flatter across the middle.

The effect is to make the BMW look wider and lower. It may in fact be a little wider but the flatness accentuates the difference.

The back of the Bimmer is a bit boxy. Fabricator Mike Jensen approximated the 507’s top quarter-panel line, yet to make the profile identical, without raising the trunk, would create a fin on the reproduction because the more crested center MGA section would be further from the top of the quarter panel. It would be possible to raise the trunk and flatten it some to be more like the BMW but then the more crested front end would not blend as well. It would feel more like the front of one car grafted to the back of another. What Jensen and Vescio’s are doing is a compromised approach, which suits the slightly curvier tribute car. When you undertake your own creation, it should stylistically consistent to itself.

Retaining the MGA’s cockpit allows use of the factory hood frame, top and side windows. Going for exact reproductions of the doors, etc., would necessitate a custom top.

We talked about a good front bumper and reader Gary suggested a Mustang. He wins. I never talked with Vescio’s about it, but they homed in on the same car. What appears here is a Boss 302 bumper with about a foot sectioned out of it.

For power, it’s getting a Chevy V6 and auto-box. The swage line does not appear across the doors yet because Mike is working with the steel portions first, and will then switch over to the aluminum panels–doors, hood, trunk.

The hard copy paper often features profiles of local enthusiasts in a series called Locals in Motion. For a recent such piece I talked to a local scale model company. Lotsa boys back in the ’70s used to build model cars. (I often managed to touch the windshield with a gluey finger. Doh!)

Building cars, even small ones, takes time, so some people who enjoyed that switch over to completed scale models in adulthood. That’s the market this company caters to.

The cool thing for fans of all size cars is how much these things have improved over the years. The photo series here shows two versions of the Yenko Camaro, both by the same company but built 12 years or so apart.

The background really calls out that these are models, but check out the level of detail. The earlier car (on the right in the photos with both cars) has pronounced inaccuracies with respect to the hood hinges, the way the door opens, and its overall roughness (or lack of fineness) compared to the other car.

The recent model is pretty good, though. Check out the details inside, including the inner door panel. The GM sticker on the door edge looks pretty convincing. Seatbelts and buckets look good too, as does the shifter.

And how about the wheel, filler valve included?

A close look at the engine, such as the closed end of the air cleaner, makes clear this is not a real engine…but it’s pretty close! Better, sharper printing, finer machines, and higher expectations of small things have helped make a convincing little model.

The front wheels turn, seats fold down and move back and forth, seat belts are fabric and can be moved…. I’m not a neat enough person for a collection of miniatures–they’d get dusty and I’d have a lot of other stuff on my list ahead of cleaning them off. But they’re pretty cool to look at.One smart little move the company took was to turn damaged returns into model wrecks for restoration. If you had a wrecked Demon and restored it, you just might enjoy a wrecked model too. They say they sell a couple a month.

Part of owning a coveted car is just staring at it and admiring it. With the best cars fetching six- and seven-figure prices, having a smaller version for a tiny, tiny fraction of that price is a cost-effective way of stoking the dream–if you’re a model fan.

How cool is this?

Finding a unique look that’s also appealing is every car maker’s goal. You want the public to know your car from others, so they’ll seek it out; yet you can’t get so off the beaten path that people chicken out and buy something plainer. It’s a spin on the old Hollywood quest: we want something familiar that hasn’t been done before.

This ‘71 D-series wagon turned up in front of Sovereign Grounds, a coffee shop by my house, and just begged for a photo. People were walking around it, staring, smiling and wondering what the heck it was.

Is the aerodynamic styling for everyone? Nope. But Citroen did sell a lot of cars in this series. I especially like the one-spoke steering wheel, though the model’s most innovative feature was its “hydropneumatic” suspension. I’ve read in more than one place the urban legend that you could take one wheel off a car like this and still drive it (albeit carefully and not for the long haul). In station wagon form, seems pretty handy too.

Walking the fairgrounds drooling at cars my friends, neighbors and classmates had in high school–many restored or hopped up way beyond the Bondo-fenders ‘n headers condition of yore–was such a hoot, another day was barely enough.

Everywhere you go, superb muscle cars and street machines are scattered around the fair streets like Hondas on 35W. Engines rumble and race in call and response.

A favorite spot again today was beside the dynomometer for the Power to the Wheels contest. This 2002 Camaro acquitted itself very well, showing 640 HP at the wheels. Yo! Doesn’t even have an induction sculpture suitable for the Walker jutting out the hood. The supercharged 398 ci truck engine looked, sounded and performed great.

One of the best roars of the day came from a light green Chevelle that made 1250 HP on the first pull. Had to cool before the second and the friends I was with wanted to see more cars. Unfortunately I didn’t snap a picture–too busy grinning like a fool. Amazing sounds, though, and very well presented car.

Couldn’t help snapping some oddballs too. Most buyers took the Chevette in econo trim, but check the right boxes and Chevy would build one up for the strip just like this fully stock Chev-Voom. Not.

Another curiosity was this front-engined dune buggy. While it’s the same color as the cartoon Speed Buggy, more or less, Speedy was rear-engined. (Cartoons were the soul food of my youth.)

I generally prefer the stock to the Street Machine look, but this ex-327 Chevy turned out very, very nice. The owner got it from California, where it sat under a tree. Water got into the trunk and rotted it out, so it needed some sheetmetal work despite its California home. The 327 was a 2-bbl automatic, as I recall, in need of a rebuild.

The owners, father and son, did this nice body and paint work (or had it done) and threw a Corvette crate motor into the engine bay, which they hopped up with a few speed goodies. Tremec stick ups the creds in my book. They were from Phoenix and this is a Camaro that would be terrific fun to flatfoot on a desert highway.

Here’s a nice trio of American muscle. You can take in sights like this all day….

A lot of people mention this show among their favorites. Rightly so. It’s a lot more than a buncha parked cars.

John Gallagher, publisher of Car Craft magazine, was looking over events at the Summer Nationals right by the Power to the Wheels dyno test (where I managed to take this cluttered, blurry, lo-res photo of him to prove my street cred as a car guy).

The dyno test is one of the things Gallagher’s excited about in this year’s show. You will be too, if you’re nearby when a car like this 427 Camaro starts singing through dual exhausts at 3500 rpms before they kick in the resistance to measure horsepower and torque.

It’s one of three tests car entrants can put their cars to to show they’re more than driveway showpieces. The others are the Baer Brake Stop Challenge and the QA1 Autocross. Cars competing in all three categories should make for some interesting results. How does a car making 1,000 horsepower do in an autocross, for example? Can you keep the wheels stuck coming out of a turn when the engine’s unleashing that much twist? Time will tell….

Of course, the show is not solely about horsepower, of which there will be a broad range. The 427 Camaro above, owned by John Erdman, made 330-plus horses at the wheels. There are cars on hand making less–and much more.

Take, for example, the replica 1903 Olds at the GM display. It’s not an ordinary ‘03, but a reproduction of Ransom E. Olds’ speed record car, The Pirate. “Replica” is never as exciting as the word “original,” but this isn’t a car made from modern parts. GM wrencher, Jim Guiles, who is working the display, says the car was built with genuine 1903 Olds parts–from a few vehicles–and about 65% of it is period, like the engine, axles and steering box.

This car was modified with electric start mainly because the original was started by flinging the flywheel by hand–something no one wants to do today, especially with that large open drive chain nearby. Most interesting about the early Olds is how similar the pieces are in function, if not look, to a modern car’s. The lobe in the shot above is the camshaft doing its valve work in broad daylight. Back in the speed record days an “oil man” kneeled beside the driver with an oil can lubing parts as the car roared along. Given roads and road manners in that period, this would not be a first-pick occupation for the feint of heart.

Here’s some other random shots of the sorts of vehicles on-hand. They range from highly modified and polished custom jobs, like this stereophile’s chariot . . .

To this mouth-watering ‘55 Chrysler 300. . .

To this rare ‘87 Camaro IROC convertible built by custom house ASA of NY with a factory-fitted Corvette engine.

As for me, I’d be happy to ride in a ‘66 Charger, which a friend had in high school nearly like this one. Excellent interior in the ‘66–very comfortable and nice looking.

Now through Sunday, there will 5,000 cars like these at the fairgrounds for anyone who wants a gander. As Gallagher says, if you love these cars and don’t yet have one, this show is the start of “someday…” dreaming.

With its huge and knowledgeable enthusiast population, and the incomparable venue offered by the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, this event in St. Paul is one of the Car Craft staff’s favorites of the year.

I’ll be there tomorrow and would enjoy meeting any readers who’d like to say hello. There won’t be any sort of booth–only my creditors clamor for my signature–but I will be by the dyno testing a little north of the 4-H building from 11:45 to 12:15 in red cap and black Star Tribune T-shirt if anybody wants to walk up and say hi. I’d love to hear what cars you’re grooving on and to see your own car, if you bring one. (Don’t worry if you don’t know North (Snelling runs N/S)–you’ll hear the dyno tests if they’re going.)

We kvetch here sometimes about driving that is poor, inconsiderate or imcompetent. So time to give credit where due.

I wanted to head up to Vescio’s today to see how the homage BMW 507 was coming. My friend Bill,  for whom the car is being built, sent me some photos but I wanted to see the car myself and study and hear more about the plans. (That post to follow.)

On the way, Maggie, my 40-year-old MGB GT, decided to get sputtery. I feathered the pedal and it alternately pulled then balked and finally settled into a slow stumble at about 30 miles per hour.

A tractor trailer was behind me and as I slowed down, he slowed down. Instead of blowing by he stayed there and put on his flashers, giving me a massive shield against being plowed into. Finally, I pulled over to take apart the carbs and see if one of the pistons was stuck and he went on by. I gave him a wave.

Cool move. Either an MG fan, or maybe just a professional driver who thinks about everyone’s welfare and not just his own. If you come across this–red MGB GT crawling up 494/94 near Maple Grove about 2:15 on July 24th–thanks buddy. I’ll pay it forward next chance I get to help a motorist in trouble.

Dave Garroway was host of NBC’s Today Show and was also a motor sports fan. He bought a Jaguar SS100, fitted an XK120 motor and went racing.

He also, being a celebrity, fitted a very unusual interior–alligator. I’d heard about this car and read about it before I ever saw it.

Classic & Sports Car photographer, James Mann, took these shots of the car for the upcoming book I’m doing on unrestored cars.

What a wild car. The custom interior’s not for everyone, but it’s an eyecatcher. And you gotta love the SS100’s lines. Several different companies made the car in kit form–the highest form of flattery? (Except for those fake Porsche 917s, which never looked or sounded very good.)

I’m doing a little house cleaning lately and have decided that I do not need an Official 30th Anniversary 1983 Corvette in my garage. I never drive it–ever. I don’t think it even has any miles on it.

I’m willing to let it go very, very cheap. For a song maybe. Or less.

In fact, if anyone has an authentic Mickey Mantle baseball card, in exchange for it, I will relinquish to that person all right and title I have to this undriven 30th Anniversary Corvette.

All I ask is that before you agree, you take a quick look on the internet to make sure you like the way the official 1983 model looks. :^)

The hard copy paper today has some stats on electric cars, particularly the Zenn, which we discussed here several months ago. They reveal operating costs, for anyone considering options to pump gas.

The piece mentions a St. Paul resident who drives a Zenn 700 miles a month, which costs him $20 in electricity. The article, by Neal St. Anthony, also puts the Zenn’s cost at $17,500, plus $1500 worth of new batteries every three years.

So, ignoring consumables like tires, brake pads and wiper blades, the Zenn costs the described owner about $740 per year to run for 8,400 miles (12 x $20 + $500/year in battery use).** A gas vehicle averaging 20 miles per gallon would need $1680 in gas at $4/gallon, to cover the same mileage.

The Zenn is cheaper to insure than a typical car, but has a range, according to the article, of about 35 miles. It is thus not a full substitute for a regular vehicle, but a partial one.

**The article indicates that the owner of the Zenn vehicle delivering these figures “tops off” his battery while he’s parked at work. The piece does not clarify whether that electricity figures into the $20/month. If it does not, drivers whose employers don’t have a free electrical hookup will have to pay more. Note too that these vehicles are for use on roads with a speed limit of 35 or less, according to the piece.

As you synch your Palm Pilots and set calendric modulation on your iPhones :^) , don’t forget to slot the Car Craft Summer Nationals into your plans for next (not this) weekend.

That great come-and-play venue, the state fairgrounds, will host the event next Friday, Saturday and Sunday. (Good thing it’s not this weekend, since everyone will be caught up in the Dark Night Batman opening. We’ll just have two things then, the Car Craft show and the new X-Files movie, for next weekend.)

There will be 4,000 muscle cars and street rods on the grounds and enough horsepower to revive the Old West. I’ll be there one of those days–probably being tailed by security if it’s like going to a department store.

As usual, I’ll post a few pics, but you’ll have a lot more fun going in person. Along with the cars will be the Miss Car Craft Summer Nationals contest. Since this is Minnesota and we like to treat folks fair, I’m sure if any of you guys have a nice bathing suit and tan, they’d be happy to expand the contestant pool.  Think of the bragging rights for the guy who takes honors with his street rod and makes the Car Craft calendar.

Car Craft Summer Nationals, Fairgrounds in St. Paul:

Fri July 25th    10-6

Sat. July 26th    9-6

Sun. July 27th    9-4:30

Tix: $8 advance (see website above); $12 at the gate.