Five for the leap year

Cars, girls' names, cocktails and songs.

Another effort to cover all bases this week with a favorite Disney toon. Animator Freddie Moore had a sideline in mildly erotic girlie drawings which were quietly traded out of sight of the studio. Some of this spiciness crept in to their post-war 'adult' oriented productions like Make Mine Music (1946) from where this delightful clip comes. No cocktails of course, just sodas.

1951 Chevrolet Coupe  While I realise the 1955-7 Chevrolets were style leaders, familiarity has reduced their impact. Throw a stick into Trade Me and you will hit twenty Bel Airs with some prices rising past 100K. Earlier models have their charms, particularly the pillarless coupes. The elegant lines and restrained brightwork on this makes me think early Farina and that is the way to my heart. For: Looks. Against: Tedious dynamics.

1975 Auburn Speedster Ready yourself for the Gatsby revival in this Auburn replica, professionally built in 1975 around Ford mechanicals. Some of the details convey this strongly including the modern instruments and wheel but the proportions are good and the whole ensemble probably better on the road than the original. It is attracting strong bids so who knows what the vendor thinks it's worth. For: A fitting garage companion to the Zimmer of a few weeks ago. Against: As my French conservator friend Francois once said about something else, "She is a fake, no?"

1978 Volkswagen Scirocco. Young people today would say this is a cool retro car and they are right. The first part of Giorgetto Guigiaro's prescription for the ailing Volkswagen combine was a sporty coupe based on Golf mechanicals. The Scirocco was launched ahead of the saloon in 1974 and created a genuine sensation. Very few have survived the rust that afflicted almost all European cars of this era and they are a rare site anywhere. For: Great looks and dynamics. Against: Parts are no picnic.

1973 MGB V8 Once again, I am breaking my own rules and writing about MGBs but this one is doubtless entertaining to drive. The light weight alloy Rover V8 was a gift to many small manufacturers and some large ones as well. After the failure of the six cylinder C, MG looked to the V8 conversion that Ken Costello was making and copied it, producing a 125mph B that was visually indistinguishable from the lesser models. What marketing brilliance! For: Quick and good value. Against: Only my unreasonable prejudice stops me wanting it.

1980 Alfa Sud Sprint Another miraculous survivor spared a rusty grave. The most fun that could be had in a small coupe was to be had in a Sud. Lighter than a paper bag and with the bigger 1500cc flat four, they were like a better, faster, prettier Mini Cooper but nothing like the same cost now. 6K is all you need. For: What, you need more than that? Against: Like a paper bag, will not last long outdoors.