The Aesthete gets on with the job

The Aesthete's Fleet

As far as old cars go, the axiom about getting off the pot if one does not intend to use it applies under most circumstances. The Aesthete has been busy in the shed preparing the new GTV for its paint job and for once, the advice of a specialist was sought and a whole paint system purchased.  The Aesthete's previous practice has been to formulate something using dregs from unlabelled rusty cans. The first coats went on well apart from a few areas where the previous owner had touched in defects with a broom dipped in something green. It was pleasing to discover that the very first Alfetta GTV shown to the world was painted Verde Oliva Metallizzato coda AR 213, suggestive that the car was styled with this hue in mind. The simple tapered shape is defined by crisp folded lines and a metallic finish in a mid tone sets it off well. It is a well known fact that AR 213 appeals to the fairer sex so I expect to be the recipient of more smouldering looks at the Port Chalmers supermarket car park.

1954 Alvis Grey Lady. The matronly looks of this Alvis belie its true nature. The Grey Lady variant was gauranteed to reach 100mph which placed it in the top league of post-war saloons and they appealed to owners for whom a Jaguar was well beyond the pale. Consequently, very few were built with most purchasers deciding on the faster, cheaper and more modern competition from Coventry.

For: Decently quick with a touch of leafy Wimbledon lanes about it.
Against: Like the mock-Tudor house, the wood framed body requires care.
Investment potential: 2/10. 45K is reasonable if it is as good as the vendor suggests.

1964 Rover 3 Litre Coupe. These fine cars tend to languish in the shade of the later V8 variants but the smooth six gives little away on the road. You also get a manual gearbox to play with rather than the automatic that dulled the driving experience. It should be understood that Rovers are for wafting about the place and were created before the appearance of roundabouts on every 600 metres of British roadway. This is what the Aesthete would drive to Queenstown, if he was in any way attracted to that Sodom of the South Island.

For: The most elegant British car of the era, regardless of cost.
Against: Someone should market a decent handling kit. You would drive it every day then.
Investment potential: 3/10. Who would pay 25K for a Ford Zodiac when this is available?

1973 Fiat 124C Sport: Priced to sell the vendor tells us and who would not want this 124 in its distinctive shade of French blue? These used to level peg with Alfa Romeos but you would not get much of a GTV for the start price now, unless you fancy an utter basket case.  The simple lines of these coupes betray any shabbiness in the bodywork and this one looks like a crisply pressed Italian suit.

For: It has Campagnolo wheels. Buy it.
Against: Shiny paint is not always good sign with these cars. Check carefully.
Investment potential: 5/10 if it stays under 10K

1958 DeSoto Fireflite Station Wagon. We have not had a finned behemoth on the list for a while, the Aesthete's palette having become a jaded under the Trademe onslaught of regretted purchases from state-side. This is a different proposition, however. A Canadian built right hand drive DeSoto was the dream of every flush Waikato farmer in the 1950s and being NZ new, has not had the attention of a chop shop before being shipped this way.

For: It has a tow bar for those that intend to put it to work.
Against: The side valve six will not allow any traffic light nonsense.
Investment potential: 1/10 but difficult to value

1967 Toyota 2000 GT. If you have a spare 1.26 million sloshing around, you might wish to join the psychotic whirlwind that surrounds these otherwise rather pleasant cars. This type of  speculation creates its own special market conditions and it has little to do with the properties of the actual vehicle. What is it like to drive? Who on earth cares? At this price it will never be driven again by anyone.  And if the vendor is remotely serious, why not get a photographer and have some decent pictures taken?

For: The 2014 equivalent of tulip bulbs in seventeenth century Holland.
Against: A single tulip bulb was worth ten times the salary of a skilled Dutch tradesman. You do the sums.
Investment potential. Off the scale but sadly in the wrong direction.


On some faraway shore...

1964 Apollo 5000GT. Perhaps a comparison with this bespoke American/Italian GT is timely. With fewer built than Toyota could manage, it has rarity on its side. It is just as good looking and about as quick. And one tenth the price.

For: Am I not making myself clear?
Against: You would buy it because you like it, not to make a fortune on it.
Investment potential: 2/10 given that is needs a freshen up.

The Aesthete monetises the blog

I am frequently approached by hopeful types praising my searing insights, anticipating that I will pay them to spruik this blog to the wider world. I send them to an internet troll I know who grinds their bones with his three rows of teeth. Today, however, I was invited to brunch by the Laird of Excelsior who came down from his pied-à-terre in his red Peugeot 406 Coupe. He reminded me that the blog was initially written with the intention of parting him from his generous severance payment so the least he could do was buy me lunch. Another guest enthralled the table with descriptions of the shape of some of our  leading citizens' generative parts and I returned home happy with my only payment so far.

1984 Lancia Gamma. There are probably more Gamma Coupes in this half alive state than there are on the road which is a great shame. The slightly impersonal road manners are soon left behind and possible only a CX Citroen would deliver you at your destination feeling as refreshed as you might in this last proper Lancia. Stunning modernist Pininfarina looks are a further attractant. Oh, and vale Gianni Lancia who was separated from his company long before departing from this life.

For: A thinking person's GT car.
Against. That beautiful Gamma saloon in Christchurch is down to 5K. Buy that instead.
Investment potential: 2/10. There seems to be little interest even in good ones.

1965 Honda S600. One of the highlights of the recent Dunedin Autospectacular was the Honda 9 Coupe with its air-cooled, dry sumped, four cylinder front wheel drive configuration showing the company's determination not to do as others did. The same weird logic applied to these earlier sportsters that revved like a motor cycle and had chain drive. An MG Midget was as sophisticated as a sack barrow by comparison.

For: If you have run out of room in the shed you could fix it on your knee in the living room.
Against: Not for the large framed driver.
Investment potential:  4/10. Small, economical and the promise of a modest return.

1932 Riley Nine Special. Your Aesthete has long harboured a fantasy of driving a  'thirties special into work on sunny days. Thirty-five horsepower is plenty if the weight is modest and 50 will feel like 150 in your Toyota Enema or whatever terrible thing you commute in. The fibreglass body lets the show down but polished aluminium comes at a price.

For: The only vehicle in which a flying helmet is appropriate head wear.
Against: It only needs a Wilson preselect gearbox to be perfect.
Investment potential: 3/10. It is eighty-two years old so depreciation has done its worst.

1958 Lloyd Alexander. Alec Issigonis claimed much credit for the original thinking behind the Mini but the German Borgward combine was there before him with this cleverly packaged little car. A full four seater with front wheel drive, it was only diminished by its two cylinder engine. Even that is a joy with its motorcycle like character.  These cars were built in Australia, as was the competing Gogomobil, but this is a Bremmen-built example.

For: Oh, come on. Look at its dear little face.
Against: 25 HP will not do much to ruffle your hair.
Investment potential. 2/10 but someone has already spent 20K on it.

1983 Renault 20. The somewhat anodyne replacement for the excellent 16, Renault's luxurious saloon competed in the crowded market with lesser fare from Talbot and other long forgotten marques.  Even the following 25, talking dashboard and all, has vanished into the void into which middling saloons are inexorably drawn, otherwise known as Balclutha. This one is virtually unused so may appeal to one of those hipster types that go about in a state of constant state of irony with their ostentatious facial hair and flannel shirts.

For: Quite pleasant then, almost extinct now.
Against: You will need a sharp stick to sit on so that you stay awake.
Investment potential: 0/10 unless the hipsters get jobs and want wheels to match the beards.


On some faraway shore...

1957 Nash Ambassador Club Coupe. Like most cash strapped American makers, Nash heroically dragged what they could out of their ageing body shells. Nash's final restyle of its Pininfarina designed range added fashionable stacked headlights that looked even more Italianate than the slightly guppy-like earlier version. Rare enough in saloon form, this coupe must be one of the very few to escape the demolition derby.

For: 1957 Chevrolet. Pfaff. And it has a folding bed inside.
Against: Don't hit anything in it.
Investment potential: 1/10. At 39.5K US it is already on the expensive side.

The Aesthete's automotive benevolent institute.

This is where indigent, strange and unwanted cars wait forlornly for rescue and a tender touch to return them to active use.

1971 BMW SL 1800 Cheetah. 'A what's that now?' I hear you ask. It was all part of the opportunities that fell BMW's way when it took over the distressed Glas marque and got its Frua-styled coupes and saloons as well as the OHC motors that powered them. It was a bit much to have overlapping models in the same market as the parent company was aiming at so production was shifted to South Africa and what was then Rhodesia. The airy and attractive Frua lines were carried over to the German neu-classe cars but the Italian shape is more attractive in the Aesthete's view.

For: No-one will have seen one before unless they have spent some time on the dark continent.
Against: Just go and buy a 2002 and save yourself the trouble.
Investment potential: 3/10. The start price is about right.

1954 Riley Pathfinder. Riley's louche four cylinder saloons had a Latin edge to them thanks to designer Gerald Palmer's admiration for Lancias. This one is looking a bit frayed around the edges but the interior is brilliant with Palmer's sculpted modernist dash and right hand gear shift set amongst luxuriant bottle green leather. The knee holes in the seat back make much better sense than drop down picnic tables and other such symbols of bourgeois decadence.  

For: Has anyone made a loud speaker look as good as that?
Against: Mechanical and body woes may outweigh the nice interior.
Investment potential: 3/10 but only because the Aesthete is inordinately fond of these characterful cruisers.

1948 AC Two Litre. 'Please, take me' cries this poor jug-eared AC saloon, doomed to a lonely and miserable existence in the shade of its winsome sports car sisters. Very few survive now as they were ruthlessly broken for parts and it is unusual to find one with the correct vintage AC engine. It requires a lot of finishing off but appears sound in the body which is alloy over a traditional ash frame. If that gives you any violent ideas about cutting it up, please do not act on them.

For: Get past the looks and there is a fine car.
Against: The looks of course.
Investment potential: 1/10. Severely undervalued even in top condition so your reward will come from knowing you have done the right thing.

1990 Lancia Thema Turbo 16V. Unggggraghhha! I... must... not... buy... another... Italian... car! If I possibly could it would be this sad looking Thema, the best and least valued of all the high performance executive saloons produced in Europe during the 1980s. They are huge fun to drive, particularly in this specification which gives away little to the Ferrari 8.32 version. There is enough torque to put a bend in space-time so find a winding road and make your peace with God.

For: Tremendous. The most fun you could have with $1400.
Against: I know, it is a terrible shed.
Investment potential: 10/10. There. I have said it.

1995 Maserati Ghibli II. The autumn offspring of the highly promiscuous Bi-Turbo, the Ghibli was a luxurious and ugly coupe that could run the legs off almost anything mass produced. This one is ex-Japan and – like so many European performance cars that went there – was barely taken out of its box before being dispatched on a ship to the gaijin. The vendor has bought various expensive accessories for it but never a VIN which underscores its toy like qualities.

For: Fast and queer looking. Just the way an Italian car should be.
Against: The lengthy rest indicates some recommissioning is required.
Investment potential: 0/10. With much better Maseratis in terminal price decline, what hope is there here?

On some faraway shore...

1967 Maserati Quattroporte. Speaking of Pietro Frua, here is his fine effort on an Italian gentleman's saloon, the kind of car that Ferrari was too set in his ways to make. Not only is it in my favorite shade of primrose yellow, it has a five speed ZF manual. And look at that interior...

For: A big Italian saloon you might make some money on.
Against: It has sat around for a while. You do not want to incur a 50K engine rebuild so check carefully.
Investment potential: 3/10 These should be worth a lot more but the philistines in charge of the market are unmoved.

 

The Aesthete masters the dark arts of electricity

The Aesthete's Fleet. 

 It began with a call from the builders next door saying that the Lancia's horn had come on while sitting motionless in the driveway. It emits Wagnerian tones when functioning normally so I can only guess what a fifteen minute session was like. They considerately disconnected the battery and I set to diagnosing the fault when I got home. The complex array of electrical contacts are held in place by plastic bezels and rings that have become warped so these were measured and reproduced in ABS plastic on the 3D printer. Lancia precision allows no tolerance between these parts and the car performed another stirring trumpet voluntary as I fitted it all back together. The deranged horn emitted only one random honk on the test drive so the job is almost done.

1936 Riley Kestrel 12/4. I have often said that Rileys are under-valued given that they were the British equivalent of an Alfa Romeo, any 1930s example of which is now worth a bank CEO's settlement. The streamlined Kestrel saloon was a superb sporting car with a pre-select gearbox, sharp handing and an interior that will have you thinking about de Havilland Dragon Rapides. This half finished example has been kept dry, crucially as the bodies were constructed on a timber frame.

For: A 1930s car that you could really use. David Bowie had a Riley Gamecock although I am sure I have told you that already.
Against: You need to be handy with the grease gun.
Investment potential: 3/10 if you can do some of the recommissioning work yourself.

1935 Talbot 75. Even further along the same path we find a half finished Talbot with equally rakish looks but four times the price. The so-called Roesch Talbots were an Anglo-Swiss arrangement that was swept up by the predatory Billy Rootes in a fire sale in 1935. This car is therefore of the cusp of the transformation of Sunbeam-Talbots into prettier and quicker Humbers.

For: A certain snobbish cachet but good old New Zild may not be the right place to sell one quickly.
Against: A bit of work to do yet.
Investment potential. The Aesthete's ready reckoner does not have a scale for Roesch Talbots.

1965 Chrysler 300L. The letter series Chryslers had surrendered the race track for the boulevard by the time they got up to L but this is still a very swank production, particularly in the shade of hot orange metallic featured here. Expect electric seats and all other forms of power assistance so that you just need to raise an indolent finger to be able to control its 413 cubic inches.

For: The wondrous hue, mainly.
Against: If it looks this good, why is it not vinned or WOFed?
Investment potential:  2/10 but who cares?

1951 Renault 4CV. This charming little French egg is a bit of a problem. While the vendor claims it is completely restored, it looks like a shed job with enough rough edges to suggest that you might wish to start over and do things properly. This is a British-built  deluxe version that probably had leather trim and plated seat frames so there is a some way to go yet.

For: These are characterful cars and a lot of fun.
Against: I still bear the scars I received changing the fibre timing gear on one.
Investment potential: 1/10 and you will need to get cosy with a plater and an auto electrician at least.

1982 Lancia Beta HPE 2.0 How much is too much for a Beta Coupe? Surely 15K is more than reasonable when the car appears virtually unused and is carrying fewer than 16 thousand KMs? The automatic might be a drawback but this is not the sort of Beta for flinging around on track day. More a throw some soft bags in the back and drive up to the lakes with a friend. You will both arrive feeling chipper as you make a stylish entrance on Cow Lane.

For: La dolce vita indeed.
Against: Nothing! What could not be right about this?
Investment potential: 2/10. Admittedly it will not be worth any more as time goes by but you do not have to spend anything on it now. Count your blessings.

Back in Blighty.

1965 Lotus Elan IWR GT. This is the sort of thing that makes the Aesthete look again, having become a bit jaded with the usual run of behemoths, buzz bombs and botched restorations. How about a special bodied Elan paneled in alloy by London builders Williams and Pritchard? Only two were constructed and the combination of Gordon Keeble nose and cut off GTO tail is sublime although not as coherent as an Elan FHC. Oh, and the predicted price is 70K £UK so best sell everything you own now if you want to join the bidding.

For: Unrepeatable unless the other one comes on the market.
Against. It is a lot of money for an ugly Elan.
Investment potential: 4/10. Racing pedigree and what else is quite like it?