The Aesthete reveals himself

The Aesthete's Fleet

A fellow Alfa Romeo club member kindly sent a picture of the Aesthete in his borrowed Enzo Ferrari rig so I leave it to you to judge if it was an effective impersonation. I will not bore you with any more of my poorly composed pictures of Italian cars at rest on the Latins rally. I suppose it is true that you had to be there.

Donnithone house and studio

I don't normally post houses on the list but I am sure you will all agree that this is a special case. Sadly, the architect and Lancia enthusiast Don Donnithorne is selling his Christchurch property. He designed the house in 1952 and it is documented in a number of sources as a modern building of some significance. It is currently full of his books and the Lancia Flavia Sport is sitting in the garage. It would be wonderful if someone was in the market for a classic house and could keep Don's legacy intact. My informants tell me that the land is undamaged and everything is in good order. Find out about it at at Christchurch Modern or check out the listing on Trademe Property. 

1954 MG ZA Magnette. I have already revealed my weakness for Gerald Palmer's Italianate designs for the MG, Wolseley and Riley range with this Magnette being the most comely of all.  This is the early model so bereft of lurid sports car performance but the modularity of BMC engineering can help you here with an easy 1800 upgrade. This one has a low start bid so the vendor is under no illusions.

For:  Something that your friends can enjoy.
Against: Lots of rust traps and early unitary construction.
Investment potential: 4/10 if the price stays low. Nice ones should fetch better money than they do.

1958 Jaguar 2.4-Litre Saloon. A good match for the MG, this 2.4 manual overdrive Jaguar has very low milage but has suffered from a well meaning but stalled restoration. One hopes that the work is up to scratch as this would be a very fine thing once the few remaining jobs were taken in hand. Any car with full rear spats will do it for me every time, I am afraid.

For: Unappreciated like the Magnette.
Against: My recent experience with platers makes me wince at the potential cost.
Investment potential: 2/10 with MkII prices all over the shop.

1976 Ford Capri Mk 2 John Player Special. I suppose the 33K asking price is more of an impediment than the wildly politically incorrect livery but I am still rather taken with this gauche example of Essex-man status seeking. I expect that you will be now rummaging in that box in the garage for your cream body shirt and tweed flairs.

For: Sexy ladies will dig it, along with walrus moustaches and having smoke blown at them.
Against: Unless you already look like an absolute git I would suggest another car.
Investment potential: 2/10. Now if we were actually somewhere in Essex...

1966 Honda S600. Apart from that Guigiaro-styled Mazda 1000 Coupe the other year, the Aesthete finds it hard to get excited about old Japanese cars. This, however, is a different prospect. The tiny coupe shell houses a jewell of a 600cc OHC roller bearing engine driving the rear wheels by long chains that act as rear suspension members, showing Honda's formula one and motorcycle legacy. They sound like nothing on earth so please note the 10000 RPM rev counter.

For: Completely unique.
Against: Something of a specialised calling.
Investment potential: 6/10. A solid investment in my opinion.

1951 Armstrong Siddeley Whitley. It all looked like it was going well for Armstrong Siddeley after the war. Sleek on the returns from aircraft building and retaining excellent engineers, they were early with a modern car and the slender Whitley four-light saloon was admired on its introduction in 1946. Failure to develop it and relying on the retired Brigadier market caused inevitable ruin.  It is normally a 2.3-litre car so this one may have had an engine swap.

For: Black and silver grey with red trim. Grwwll.
Against: No sports car but then not intended to be.
Investment potential: 3/10. It is a modest enough price given the cost of restoration.

And awaiting your shipping instructions...

1984 Lancia Abarth 037 Stradale. I do not normally go for competition cars, bearing in mind the cruel financial constraints we must all endure but still...  The Aesthete was greatly taken by the 037 replica taken on the Latins rally by the clever people at Carteroni, that central North Island hive of Lancia activity. Here is the more civilised but blindingly quick road version built by Abarth and all yours for a tidy US200K. Or you could import a Monte Carlo shell and get busy with the MIG.

For: You don't expect me to say, do you?
Against: A bit pricey, it has to be said.
Investment potential: 1/10. At 5X a sorted Lancia Delta Integrale?