A quick one while he is away

The Aesthete's Fleet

There is just enough on our favorite auction site to justify a mid-week insertion of the Petrolhead Aesthete so here it is. I am off tomorrow to the wild west coast in the Lancia. I know you will all be thinking of me. I will be attending the rally dinner as Enzo Ferrari. A friend has loaned me a good Italian tweed jacket and I will be wearing my niece Eloise's sunglasses. I believe I look very fetching. Pictures next week.

1964 Plymouth Sports Fury. I am a bit indifferent to mid-range Americans, finding interest in the more lurid ends of the automotive spectrum. But here is a compact coupe with one of those lovely folded handkerchief rooflines (I am sure big block Plymouth owners know them as something else but what the heck. I don't write this blog for them). I am sure it would proceed very nicely with 440 cubic inches under its hood and the red and white decor is just right.

For: It looks quite handy.
Against: Fast but floppy in the grand American tradition.
Investment potential. 3/10. It is on here because of the price which is relatively sensible. And it is vinned and warranted.

1969 Alfa Romeo Guilia Super. Not everyone gets these upright Italians, perhaps not realising that the Guilia cuts through the air as efficiently as a Porsche 911. 180KPH from a 1.6 with four wheel discs and a five speed gearbox was unequaled in the 1960s but sounds like the standard specification for a modern car today. Make this your choice here and now, I say. You can own a Kia Sportage at any time of your life.

For: The best small sports saloon of the 1960s, without a doubt.
Against: Its getting rusty so you will need to move fast.
Investment potential. 3/10. It has some rough edges but looks original. Buy with care.

1962 Cadillac Ambulance. Most likely bodied by a classy outfit like Superior Coaches, this little restoration project avails a number of opportunities after being baked in the Texas sun for a couple of decades. I would leave the body as it is, put a bed in the back, grow a long stringy beard and camp on the roadside outside the homes of the rich while distributing pamphlets about Colin Craig's new political party.

For: Oh come on. We like a challenge don't we?
Against: Oh, lots I am sure.
Investment potential. Bwahahahaha

1939 Chevrolet Master 85 Utility. I was talking to a retired media figure recently who said he needed a vehicle to go deep into the wilderness so he could escape from his many admirers and find solitude. Here it is. Coachbuilt in Christchurch, wheel on the correct side and mean as Kim Hill, all for less than a knackered Nissan. Put a camp stretcher and your picnic hamper in the back and your weekend preparations are complete.

For: The national museum should buy it if one of you doesn't.
Against: If you want air conditioning, massaging seats and electric windows in a truck, this is not for you.
Investment potential: 4/10. If you can have it for under 20K, I would say your money was well spent.

1989 Alfa Romeo 164 3.O All big Alfas end up in the doldrums for a while until people begin to realise what fun can be had with a fast, sharp handling and comfortable saloon. Then there are none left because they are all upside down with the wheels off in less desirable parts of Balclutha. This 164 is an import manual with low milage. A better car could not be had for less than 1K.

For: The 1990s are coming back, if they have not gone past with a blast already.
Against: Too much hard grey plastic of a type that looks like Clint Eastwood's neck.
Investment potential. 2/10 but at least you have only paid 1K for it.

Far, far away in a distant land...

 2002 Lancia Thesis 2.0. I can break my no moderns rule if I want to and this Lancia Thesis makes me want to, quite badly in fact. Can a car have too much character? Not in a world that puts up with the maddening devices they add to Citroens. So I say make room for the Italian version, only seen here during the Italian film festival being driven around by sinister Vatican officials bent on world domination.

For: Look at that interior. Oh God...
Against: Yes, I know. I have to get myself sorted out.
Investment potential: -10/10. It will halve in value on the way here.




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