Independent Thinking - Distinctive Voices - Fresh Perspectives
Classical names, unfussy camion.[1] Louis Renault’s eponymous work had risen him to the very peak of French industrialism. Rich beyond compare, his family’s wares could be found well beyond the country’s borders. Your author ranks amongst those harbouring sympathy for the man whose factories were then forced to manufacture for a racist, murderous dominion upon Continue reading "[Music] [Applause]"
Hamburg s old town hall is located by the Trostbrücke. And near that is an office where you can try riding in a pater-noster lift. On the other side of the bridge I spotted an old favourite in an unusually high non-sporting trim level. Ford sold 2.5 million of these cars and there seem to be Continue reading "Poskarte Aus Hamburg 1"
The Alfa Spider s second, third and fourth lives. Once the confusion over its name subsided (if indeed it ever fully did), Alfa Romeo s two-seater settled into both its role at the more glamourous end of the 105 Series spectrum, and into its identity—now known simply as the Alfa Spider. In freshly bob-tailed form it entered Continue reading "The Arachnid s Progress"
Feeling the heat: Christopher Butt takes the temperature of Europe s car design studios. With the summer holiday period in full swing, most design studios the world over, China Speed be damned, may be closed right now. But once they fully reopen for business, quite a few of them will need to deal with subjects other Continue reading "Design Briefs — Autumn 2026"
A confluence of influences? Eóin’s recent pieces about the Alfa Romeo 105 Spider rightly point out that it is the successor to the Giulietta Spider that, for a confusing cross-over period, was also sold as the Giulia Spider. This is of course the case, yet was the Duetto design really Pininfarina’s reasoned successor to their Continue reading "A Cluster of Spiders"
Coda, PS, codicil, etc. . . Design education is its own unique form of training the future generation of designers for a career. Transportation Design education is a subset of that particular endeavor, and it is an important element of every designer’s thought process and mindset. Critical thinking is just as important as the ability Continue reading "Never A Dull Moment — Part 38"
Eight owners and counting. With its options severely limited, Willys-Overland was unable to make a fresh start by introducing a new passenger car to make hay in the postwar boom, which was what Ward Canaday really wanted. The only vehicle that Willys-Overland could realistically produce was a civilian version of the Jeep as used in Continue reading "Book of the Dead — Willys (Part 4)"
For work reasons I travelled to Milan. This postcard deals with the second day of the visit. The AX, at the time it was launched, looked utterly unremarkable. The Citroen character had been diluted to homeopathic levels. So, it s something of a turn-about that my eyes almost popped out of my sockets when I caught Continue reading "Cartolino da Milano 2"
Ambling along in the heat and no cheese in sight (until the end) As DTW’s Automobile Flâneur in-Chief, a role becoming more financially denuded by the day, the recent heatwaves really have caused havoc. With the UK basking in temperatures reaching 35° (with regional adjustments to plus or minus 3.3° recurring), pale Northern European skin Continue reading "Wedgie!"
Squeezing the last drops out of your platform. It used to be a routine occurrence where, either halfway or late into the product lifecycle of a motor vehicle, the manufacturer would decide to eek a bit more life out of an ageing platform by adding a new model variant such as an estate or a Continue reading "Last of the Summer Wine"
Duetto? Cuttlefish? Let s just leave it at Spider. It is possible to discern the temperature of a nation s wellbeing by the quality of its culture, most innovative work tending to stem from times of privation and repression. Italy was world-renowned for its cinema—its Cinecittà studios attracting productions from both sides of the Atlantic—and judging by Continue reading "Call Me By My True Name"
[1] Well, a strong liking at least. And it’s turning 30 in October. There are three types of enthusiast. The first chooses the car that they can afford that will give them the best possible lap time round the Nurburgring. The second chooses the car that they can afford that will give them the best Continue reading "Berlingo Berlingo (I’m in Love)"
If there was one. . . Were I asked to select one amongst the many boats that I have had the stimulating pleasure to work upon, I would choose the Outremer 55. For this boat represents what I consider to be a design milestone; the first catamaran that was praised not only for its architectural Continue reading "Taking the Plunge — Episode 7"
Win a war, lose the battle. Two welcome additions to Willys-Overland s management were added through Ward Canaday s efforts in 1939: a seasoned sales executive with lots of previous experience at Chrysler Corporation, Joseph W. Frazer, and a talented engineer that came from Studebaker: Barney Roos. While Frazer s main concern was publicity and a reduction of Continue reading "Book of the Dead —…
Our Y travelogue concludes. All photos by the author. As we wound our way from Vannes to the Channel coast, we visited Mr Hommell’s empire in Lohéac. Michel Hommell, born in 1944, began collecting cars at the age of 17. At that time, he also took part in races for the Renault 8 Gordini Cup. Continue reading "The Rooster Has Arancio Grenada Legs — Part 4"
For professional reasons I journeyed to Milan at the start of July. For those of you who have never visited Milan, I can exclusively reveal that they have a pretty good metro system, some impressive 19th century architecture and an incredible number of over-dressed people whose idea of fun is Instragramming in front of the Continue reading "Cartolina da Milano 1"
Making a little go a long way. Presenting to the world a carefully curated impression of careful, managed evolution, the truth behind Bayerische Motoren Werke s cautious approach to new model development was a more prosaic one—impecuniosity. Having almost lost their shirt through misfiring forays upmarket in the 1950s, the carmaker—having come under the direct control Continue reading "Sharky s…
Engineering in a finer form from the Viking Longship. Marking the Rover 800 s debut, 40 years ago this month, this 2021 retrospective by Andrew Miles receives a second airing. Pity the poor car designer forty years hence. A CAD drove a Jaguar. Engines powered cars, not searches, whilst rivals were (almost) willing to explain their Continue reading "Collaborative Applause"
Part 12 Post-HE Impressions The introduction of the Fireball-head engine in July 1981, for all V12-engined Jaguar Cars products, was a momentous occasion for the company and the engine itself. The arrival of the high efficiency revisions was marked by ‘HE’ designations with conspicuous badging for the XJS , XJ12 and Double-Six. An extensive Continue reading "The Peal of Twelve Bells This Nation s…
Bristowfuller provokes by claiming that the best ever production Lamborghini was released 60 years ago this year — and it s not the Miura. For me, the 350 GT and the 400 GT sit together at the top of the Lamborghini tree. If I tell you that, apart from a passing admiration for the Gallardo, the Continue reading "Downhill From Here"