Tag Archives: Coupé

Diamond Jubilee – Austin A40 Somerset Coupé

Financial Stabiliser – Ferrari 250 GT Pinin Farina Coupé #1083GT

In the late 1950’s in order to stabilise the company finances Enzo Ferrari commissioned Pinin Farina to design a coupé suitable for series production.

The 250 GT Pininfarina Coupé was launched at the 1958 Milan Motor Show with the last, featuring a superfast tail being shown at the 1961 London Motor Show.

Ferrari 250 GT Pinin Farina (PF) Coupé boasted 240 hp at 7000 rpm from it’s 3 litre / 183 cui V12 which was connected to a four speed gearbox and a live rear axle with semi elliptic leaf sprung suspension. The 250 GT Coupé was capable of 150 mph and rest to 60 mph in less than 7 seconds.

The independent front suspension comprised double wishbones and coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers. Until 1959 drum brakes were used on all four wheels.

This particular car was one of two delivered from the factory to Tourist Trophy Garages in Farnham Surrey who displayed it at the 1958 London Motor Show at Earls Court.

Tourist Trophy Garages belonged to the Hawthorn family who’s son Mike became the first British World Champion driver, driving for Ferrari, in 1958.

The car seen here was sold to an Irish land owner in 1958 and turned up in a sorry state of repair in the 1980’s at Maranello Concessionaires, which took over the UK Ferrari Franchise after Mike Hawthorn’s death in 1959, who had the car restored. The car has belonged to it’s current owner since 1993.

It is thought just over 350 of these cars were built, most of the steel bodies were fitted at a factory purpose built by Pinin Farina, in Ferrari’s terms going into series production for the first time proved a huge success.

Due to the phenomenal depreciation rates of these cars, many were subsequently cannibalised for parts and some even turned into replica’s of more sought after models, it is thought only half of the production run has survived.

Thanks for joining me on this ‘Financial Stabiliser’ edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be featuring a Lotus 77 Grand Prix car. Don’t forget to come back now !

African Adventurer – Ferrari 340 America #0122A Touring Coupé

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Today’s featured car is the 340 America, seen here at Gooodwood Festival of Speed, a bye product of Ferrari’s Lamperdi V12 powered Grand Prix programme. With the failure of Ferrari’s Colombo designed 1.5 litre / 122 cui supercharged V12 Grand prix cars to make any impression on the pre war Colombo designed straight 8 supercharged 1.5 litre / 122cui Grand Prix cars thanks to poor fuel economy, Enzo Ferrari asked Lamperdi to design what has become known as the all alloy 4.5 litre / 274 cui long block V12 which was to run in Grand Prix racing without a super charger.

The new V12 was first built in a 3.3 litre / 201 cui guise and then in a 4.1 litre / 250 cui configuration before being stretched to a full 4.5 litre / 274 cui specification. No sooner had the new motor been developed into a winner, in the 375 chassis, than it was made redundant for World Championship Grand Prix racing thanks to a lack of competition which led to an immediate rule change.

As the 375 Grand Prix programme was in progress in 1950 Ferrari started to build a series of 23 340 America sports car chassis fitted with the 200 hp 4.1 litre / 250 cui spec motor. Only 2 of these chassis were fitted with a Coupé body by Touring, a model fitted with a Vignale Barchetta body won the 1951 Mille Miglia with Luigi Villoresi at the wheel and Pierro Cassani doing the co driving.

So far as I can establish this car might be chassis #0122A which was sent to the 1951 Brussels Motor Show and sold to a Belgian. I believe this is the same car as entered by Equipe Nationale Belge for Alain de Changy in the 1958 Grand Prix Leopodville now known as Kinshasa in Belgian Congo where it did not finish. Two weeks later the car was entered in the Angolan Grand Prix for Yves Tassin who finished 10th behind a far more modern D type Jaguar, a Riley Special, unspecified Triumph and Austin Healey amongst others.

As seen here at Goodwood Festival of Speed Councour’s d’Elegance the car won the best in show Award.

Thanks for joining me on this ‘African Adventurer’ edition of ‘Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Hot Business – Ford Business Coupé

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Even after an interest in motoring that goes back over 40 years every once in a while I learn about a Ford model I have never heard of before, such is the case with the 1937 Ford Business featured today which I mistook for a De Luxe.

It turns out the Business was a base model range to introduced in 1937 that replaced the Model B and stayed in production only until 1940.

Many of the features apart from the V shape grill of the Business were shared with the Standard and De Luxe models.

The Business Coupé seen here would have originally been fitted with cable operated drum brakes.

Engine options were either 60 hp 2.2 liter / 136 cui or 80 hp 3.6 liter / 221 cui V8’s, the one seen here is listed as fitted with non standard a 5 liter / 305 cui.

The Business was available in Sedan, 8 seat station wagon, Coupé and Convertible versions.

Thanks for joining me on on this ‘Pleasure Business’ edition of ‘Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me for Ferrari Friday tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Special Equipment – Lotus Elan Coupé S/E

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A couple of weeks ago you may remember I attempted my first navigation exercise with Bristol Pegasus Motor Club membership secretary Bob in his ‘daughters’ Mini Cooper. Today I am looking at Bob’s own car his Lotus Elan Coupé S/E otherwise known as an Elan S3 FHC (Type 36).

Like the racing Lotus 26R the Elan Coupé S/E has a fixed hard top unlike the original Lotus 26 Elan’s which were all convertibles.

The first 36 Coupé’s were introduced in September 1965, with a 105 hp version of the Lotus Twin Cam 4 cylinder engine.

An S/E version as seen here became available in July of the following year with a 118hp ‘L Block’ version of the Lotus Twin Cam.

S/E Coupés are distinguished from all earlier Elan models by the repeater lights on the front wings and stainless steel trim on the sides.

Bob’s car was built in 1967 by which time Lotus had won two of an eventual seven Grand Prix constructors titles with the Lotus 25 and Lotus 33.

The Elan S3 body was the first Elan to have a boot lid that extended all the way to the tail of the car.

It is estimated that approximately 1,200 Elan S3 FHC’s were built between 1965 and 1968 when the S4.

My thanks to Bob for his help with this blog.

Thanks for joining me on this ‘Special Equipment’ edition of ‘Getting’ a li’l psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow’. Don’t forget to come back now !

Weekend Racer – Maserati A6G/54 GT Zagato Coupé

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From 1947 to 1956 Maserati built several series of 2 litre / 122 cui sports cars with 6 cylinder motors for racing and road use.

By 1954 the twin cam six cylinder motor was producing 150 hp and the first of a total of 60 A6GCS/54 models were made available.

The A6GCS/54 models were built with Belinetta, Barchetta and Spyder bodies supplied by either Frua, Ghia, Allemano or Zagato.

There are two variations of the Zagato coupé body on the A6G/54 GT chassis, two vehicles were built with double bubble roofs and 20 were built without.

The 1956 vehicle seen in today’s photographs at Silverstone Classic is thought to be the 7th from the non double bubble production run of 20, it is said to have been delivered to Maserati’s concessionaire in Rome, Gugliemo (Mimmo) Dei.

It is also said that this car was raced by gentleman racer Guiseppe Musso brother of Grand Prix driver Luigi Musso, though I have not been able to establish exactly in which, of the many events Guiseppe competed in, he drove this particular car.

Their was an earlier series of the Maserati A6G/54GT Zagato Coupé, known as the Maserati A6G 2000 Zagato Coupé, though so far as I have been able to ascertain the two models are otherwise as idententical as one might expect from a production run of hand built motor cars except the A6G 2000 is said to have been fitted with a less powerful motor.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s Zagato edition of ‘Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

PS Don’t forget …

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Pillarless Coupé – BMW 327/28

Gettin' A Li'l Psycho On Tyres

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Tag Archives: Coupé

Diamond Jubilee – Austin A40 Somerset Coupé

Financial Stabiliser – Ferrari 250 GT Pinin Farina Coupé #1083GT

African Adventurer – Ferrari 340 America #0122A Touring Coupé

Hot Business – Ford Business Coupé

Special Equipment – Lotus Elan Coupé S/E

Weekend Racer – Maserati A6G/54 GT Zagato Coupé

Pillarless Coupé – BMW 327/28