Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
The gorgeous Velvet Red 1989 Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet we featured last month remains up for sale. Pricing remains the same at $59,500 so all of that beauty won’t come cheaply, but for fans of the Cabriolet and classic 911 design this final year model of the 3.2 Carrera should make for a very promising addition to any stable.
Two weeks ago I took a look at a rare AC Schnitzer ACS3 Silhouette 3.0, the car that predicted the E36 M3 in many ways. Schnitzer has always been a bit left field compared to the more popular Alpina, but their products are generally very tasteful and seem to be sought with equal aplomb as their arguably more famous competitors. In many ways, the same things can be said of the E86 Z4 M Coupe. It’s got all the right components to make a stellar package, but seems to be generally overlooked as a potential classic at this point. Perhaps it’s because it’s too new, or the styling is polarizing? News flash: the styling on the Z3 was pretty polarizing not that long ago, too. Just like the end of the run Z3 M Coupes, the better driving Z4 M Coupes are stylish, different, and absolutely great to drive. Couple the two of these offbeats up and you should have a great combo, right? Well…..
In the annals of S-class history, the W116 of the 1970s doesn’t get too much respect, with exception of the mighty 6.9, one of the largest engines ever to find a home in a post-World War II Mercedes-Benz. If you’re not after one of these thirsty beasts, perhaps target one of the lesser engined variants, if you could consider the 450SE “lesser” engined. This short-wheelbase 1974 example for sale in The Netherlands spent most of its life in France. Looking resplendent in Silver-green metallic over a rich and inviting velour interior, I think it’s about time we start taking this seventies S-class a bit more seriously.
One of the things I enjoy most about Porsches – beyond their brilliant mechanical abilities – is the possibilities available to buyers. Porsche is happy to provide its customers with just about any color combination or pattern, along with a host of options, through Porsche Exclusive. Granted, there typically is significant cost to those options, but as someone principally eyeing the second-hand market all of that variability keeps things interesting. One of my favorite options has been seat inserts. In some cases these are fairly standard solid colors that provide contrast with the rest of the interior. But Porsche has also offered other choices. My favorite is houndstooth, which we mostly see on early 911s, though it was revived most recently on the 50th Anniversary 911. That interior is spectacular. For those who desire something even more eye-catching, Porsche has also offered a variety of tartan seat inserts. If memory serves, I’ve only seen these on Porsches from the ’70s. They certainly won’t appeal to everyone and I’ll admit some of them don’t work, but in a few cases they look great and provide for an interior that has a lot more going on than the standard monochrome we typically see. The example we see here came with just such an interior: a Black 1976 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0, located in Texas, with around 94,000 miles on it.
There are some (quite a large number, in fact) who claim you can’t have fun on a race track in a front wheel drive car. I know quite a few of them. And in the wrong front driver, they’re likely right. Take a 1976 Cadillac Eldorado with its 8.2 liter V8 channeled through one front tire at any time and enough body roll to mimic a rowboat during Katrina and the recipe might be humorous, but doubtfully fun. However, 1976 also saw the introduction of a revolution in front drive platforms – the very first Golf GTi. Consider, for a moment, that GM’s replacement in 1977 for the thirsty 8.2 V8 was a every-so-slightly less thirsty 7.0 liter V8 (it was, after all, fuel crisis time….). That cast iron monster produced a heady 180 horsepower. Volkswagen engineers took a inline-4 with only 1.6 liters and twisted 110 horsepower out of it in a car that weighed about the same as the motor in the Cadillac. That was the magic of the GTi and it’s why it started the trend of hot front wheel drive cars that still is running arguably stronger than ever today. With clever transmissions, electronics and differentials, perceived weaknesses in the design have been nearly eliminated and most of the really trick nose FWD cars are as quick – if not quicker in some cases – than their rear-drive counterparts around a track. Therefore racing FWD cars is still a popular past time as today’s quite successful GTi is a testament to:
