The Aesthete signs off for the year

The Aesthete's Fleet

We know that the holiday season is upon us as George Street in Dunedin takes on the look of an abandoned western film set and everybody has run off to their pied-à-terre in Bannockburn. The shops looked like they had been looted by pre-schoolers and so the grandchildren's demands for specific toys were unmet as every three year old had the same idea at the same time and sent their parents into a roiling ruck at the nearest branch of the Warehouse. Finding toys for adults is much easier and the Aesthete's hamper is overflowing this week. So, to misquote the execrable Sting, if you love someone, buy them a car.

1937 Riley Kestrel 15/6. Amongst Riley Kestrels there are special Riley Kestrels and the 15/6 is one of those. The smoother six cylinder twin cam engine gave the capable chassis the power it needed and the Wilson pre-select box enabled gear changes as fast as the driver could stamp on the requisite pedal. 70K is rather high for one of these and the vendor is advertising it through the known world so clearly is not entertaining the sort of offer I would make.

For: I suspect if it were Italian or French you would be paying a great deal more.
Against: It would need to be black with a red interior for me.
Investment potential: 2/10 unless the price deflates.

1982 Ferrari Mondial. It seems that the more modern the Ferrari was, the worse the car fared in the marketplace. This suggests an essential conservatism underlies the whole enterprise and that progress was wasted on a market that wanted a V12 engine in a yacht trailer chassis from the 1950s. The Mondial is still despised but has character and presence for one tenth the price of entry into the upper levels of the game.

For: Much better than almost anyone thinks.
Against: You will still have to sell it one day.
Investment potential: 3/10 but should do better.

1989 Lancia Thema V6. Of the many Italian cars that have passed through the Aesthete's careless hands, the Thema 2.0 i.e. Turbo is one that I really wish I had kept. The most compelling reason is that progress in car design essentially stopped after the introduction of the Thema in 1984 and has been declining since. Electronics and their associated evils make anything more recent with similar capability unrepairable and worthless so take your miserly 1K and invest in the last and best big Fiat ever made.

For: Fast, fine handing, comfortable and as modern as it needs to be.
Against: Sorry for slurring the proud Lancia name but it is a Fiat and best understood as such.
Investment potential: 18/10 but the Aesthete is a bit partial.

1964 Chevrolet Corvair Monza. A flawed but noble exercise, the Corvair was a reminder that there was more than one way to package a car to compete with those pesky imports. The rear mounted engine and swing axle combo was safe enough in a Beetle with thirty odd horsepower but a larger car moving at highway speed was a different proposition. Hobbling it with a two speed automatic almost seemed like a public safety measure.

For: Place in the brave failure category.
Against: I am not selling it very well.
Investment potential: Not the most desirable variant so 2/10.

Lancia Thema 8.32. It would seem that everything on the list this week is pointing towards this, in the Aesthete's view a high point of automotive design with few peers in sight. Purposefully detuned to extend engine life and enhance the driving experience, few could see the point of paying almost twice the price of a Turbo so clearly the marketing department at Fiat had little to do with it and it was an engineer's car through and through. Cut off the restrictive exhaust and find a pimply youth with a laptop to remap the thing and no-one will be able to catch you.

For: Ideal in every way.
Against: Be careful with it.
Investment potential: 8/10

On some faraway beach...

1988 Stutz Bearcat II Convertible. There is another Well Known Aesthete and part time Elvis impersonator in Wellington who will be straining at his bonds to get at this. Lincoln Towncars no longer provide him with the transgressive stimulation he needs and his unrestrained impulses can only lead in one direction. The Sultan of Brunei owned two apparently.

For: Nothing. Unmitigatedly vile in every respect.
Against: How can I begin...
Investment potential: Always a ready market in third world despots.

The Aesthete is running late

... for meetings, projects and blog writing as the end of the year closes in and time runs out. Apart from harrying the GTV in and out of Dunedin daily, there has been little action on the fleet. One brief moment of relief came when the world's most honest exhaust repairers reported that there was nothing wrong with the car and that is was just naturally noisy.

1939 Nash Lafayette. Comfortable and well built, the Nash range appealed to buyers who wanted to cut a dash in the 1930s. Purchased by a pair of peripatetic spinsters who used it for touring, it has enjoyed an easy life,  confirmed by the preservation of its cloth interior. Original down to its six volt electrics, this Nash is ready to take you to the Centennial Exhibition.

For: Buy it for the smell.
Against: A bit somnambulant.
Investment potential: 3/10 but less if you wear it out.

1965 Ford Zodiac MkIII. Pietro Frua's prototype for the MkIII Zephyr range appeared in Dagenham  in 1961 although the British management alloyed their admiration for it and proceeded to tone things down. Frua's striking angled headlights in Lincoln style were dropped for a more conservative treatment but the rest of the car was reproduced faithfully, becoming the sharpest dressed European Ford until the Sierra. Few have seen the prototype so I include it here fyi.

For: The roof, taller screens and extra side windows make all the difference.
Against: No sports car.
Investment potential: 4/10 and rising.

1966 Vanden Plas 4 Litre R. I have often said that the much misunderstood Vanden Plas 4 Litre R is one of the underrated performance saloons of the era. Yes, you read correctly as the 175 horsepower Rolls Royce engine in a Westminster shell wrought an inevitable effect on the dynamics, ably handled by a heavy duty transmission and decent brakes. Find a set of fifteen inch rims and tighten up the handing and you will have what they used to call a Q ship.

For: Stately looks and potentially decadent performance.
Against: Much loved by retired harbour board chairmen .
Investment potential: 8/10

1980 Alfasud Sprint. Guigiaro's wedge looked even better on a smaller car and the details were shaper and better resolved than on the larger GTV. They were put together with even less care, however, and generally horrified their first owners by spontaneously dissolving in front of them. Survivors are notable for their extreme rarity and owning a drivable one is a pleasing prospect.

For: Drive one and find out what the fuss was about.
Against: Keep it dry and under a good quality cover.
Investment potential: 7/10 as the last examples vanish.

1967 Triumph GT6. The vendor points out that sightings of Triumph's six cylinder coupe are rare these days, rust and accidents having cut through the ranks. Doubling the Herald's weedy output and leaving its wayward suspension alone pleased the cost accountants at Canley although customers rued their cheapness as they exited sideways from the roundabouts that were a feature of the new dual carriageways.

For: 7/8 scale E-Type
Against: The directional stability of a garage creeper.
Investment potential: 5/10. Give it a repaint but leave it alone.

On some faraway beach...

1964 Lancia Flavia Zagato Prototipo. Ercole Spada's design for the original Flavia Zagato Coupe was visually challenging and some it its salient features were omitted in their second attempt. Built as a competition prototype and developed by Lancia factory driver Claudio Magioli, this is the ultimate Flavia and would be a sensation at any Italian track day. For sale with no price on Hemmings...

For: We like a heroic failure.
Against: Don't we?
Investment potential: Unknowable.