The summer looks like it will not fade away early this year so what better way to get your hair gently ruffled than in a smart French convertible? Forget metro-sexual. It is way beyond that...
1961 Renault Floride. Renault's Frua-styled boulevardier is an unusual sight now, most having fallen to ruination years ago. Modestly powered by a Dauphine engine housed in the shapely rear, it was just the thing to carry the pony-tailed set down to the beach for frolics in the surf so they rusted more or less spontaneously. Period Cote-d'Azur style for those that hanker for old Jean-Paul Belmondo movies.
For: Tres jolie, n'est pas?
Against: You would not want to be in a hurry with 35 bhp.
Investment potential. 2/10. Those driving lights do not look right so I wonder about the rest of it.
1964 Jaguar Mk10 Limousine. Who would have wanted one of these in the 1960s? If you said Reggie Kray you would probably be on the money as few others in the limo market needed to travel at 120 mph and Jaguar was already making the hilarious Daimler Majestic Major for them. This is a careful recreation with a brass plaque to tell you so. It should still cause sweat to pop on the brow of the other well known aesthete for whom a sliding glass division and cocktail cabinet is the motoring equivalent of the Nike of Samothrace.
For: Metallic grey, red hide with wire wheels.
Against: Can you think of anything?
Investment potential: 4/10. Mk10s are all undervalued anyway and this one is better than many.
1989 Volvo 740 Turbo. Despite having the wind cheating properties of a tilt-slab warehouse these Volvos were serious contenders in saloon racing. Who could forget the fastest estate wagon in the world hurtling around in the British Touring Car Championship in the mid-90s? You have forgotten? Oh well, maybe its just me then. A committed owner (perhaps certifiable is more appropriate) has turned up the wick on this example to recapture those halcyon days. I would ditch all the stripes and aerodynamic addenda for a Baby on Board sticker.
For: Preposterous.
Against: You have to laugh.
Investment potential: 3/10. It probably cost four times the asking price to build.
1939 Ford V8 Tudor. There is no doubt that Ford styling reached a zenith in the late 1930s when the aerodynamic lessons learnt on the V12 Lincoln Zephyr were imposed on the more mundane parts of the range. You can thank the visionary Joop "Jan" Tjaarda van Sterkenburg for that although they re-engineered his rear-engined prototype along typically Ford conservative lines. This one has a stronger Mercury motor and a high ratio top gear for relaxed cruising.
For: The looks, mainly.
Against: Solid front axle harks back to the Model T.
Investment potential: 2/10. There is a glut of these cars as their owners head to the retirement village.
1969 Fiat Cinquecento Giardiniera. 'Very rear' the vendor tells us and indeed it is, this delicious wagon being built on an elongated 500 platform. An Alfa Romeo club member who restored one in Dunedin commented that almost all the panels were unique to the model so it had better be the case that it only has rust in 'three places'. These caveats aside, this would be an excellent restoration project that would reward you in many different ways.
For: So cute...
Against: ...but it looks far gone to these jaded eyes.
Investment potential: 8/10. Worth a substantial markup on a saloon and people want crazy money for those now.
And now for something bright orange...
For: Indecently cheap considering the rubbish on Trade Me for 100K
Against: A bit of use might be warranted.
Investment potential: 7/10. This must make sense for those who can overlook the other Italian exotics.
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