The Aesthete remains in hiding

The Aesthete's Fleet
Bibendum, the angry tyre god, had his turn at smiting last week when the Alfa had to be rescued off the Port Chalmers highway with a shredded tyre. No sooner was it changed than the rear tyre on the other side went down. He will now avoid the glass strewn streets of North Dunedin where the remains of burnt sofas and broken window sashes lie thick in the streets while the pampered offspring of Epsom lawyers and life coaches slouch off to their marketing classes.

1974 Citroen SM. This unusual variant of an already unusual car should get the Francophiles out there rushing to the Société Générale to cash in their pension schemes. A good SM is one of the few things worth emptying the vaults for as no car before it attempted to move the industry so far ahead in a single leap. Citroen was rewarded with a total of 294 sales in the year this one was produced. Now, if a Tesla looked like this instead of a spavined Mazda 6 I would be in the queue.

For: Formidable!
Against: I can think of nothing.
Investment potential: In an ideal world 10/10. In this world 4/10

1966 Prince Gloria B200. One of the earliest signs of what was to come from the Japanese motor industry was the Prince, a smooth and sophisticated six cylinder car with a race pedigree that leads all the way to the current Skyline. The transatlantic styling means there is a lot of bling to restore but a Targa rally version might be able to get away with a dash of aluminium paint for that authentic '60s look.

For: Then as now, an alternative to more mundane cars.
Against: It is begging to be made to go faster.
Investment potential: 3/10 if you get the budget right.

1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia 1600. Or you could save yourself a lot of hard work by stepping straight into this well prepared Giulia racer which should be more than capable of staying with the pack. With only a small weight penalty and better aerodynamics, the saloon stays well on the inside of the lurid prices being asked for step-nose Sprints and GTAs.

For: Genuine track day credibility in a handy bite-sized pack.
Against: Do you expect me to say anything against this?
Investment potential: 5/10 but only if you don't crash it.

1964 Mercedes 300 SE. The numbers and letters are all important in sorting out the Mercedes model range so 300SE usually causes quickened pulses in the admirers of old Teutonic iron. Priced akin to a Bentley but depreciating faster than a V2 rocket, the 300SL engined saloon caused a putsch in the Benz engineering department when owners found themselves with deflated air suspension just when they needed world domination.

For: Hand made and glorious in a flawed sort of way.
Against: Do you really need it when no-one can tell the difference between this and a 190?
Investment potential: You are not listening to me, are you?

1959 Mercury Monterey. Even by the baroque standards of American styling at the end of the 1950s there is something compelling vile about these big Mercurys that draws the Aesthete back for repeat visits.  Perhaps it is the way the glass cuts high into the roofline or the exaggerated shapes drawn on its flanks, the whiskers near the grill or the blizzard of lines collecting towards the rear. The automotive equivalent of a red rubber gimp suit then.

For: A thrilling frisson of sheer awfulness.
Against: Oh, many things I am sure.
Investment potential: Nulla. For the same money you could be in a Buick Riviera.

On some faraway beach

1965 Simca 1000 Coupe. What is this svelte thing that looks like an elongated Fiat 850 Coupe, I hear you asking? While sufficient of the boxy Simca saloons arrived here to arouse dim memories of the brand, Bertone's coupe was rarely seen outside Europe. It was the basis for a hair raising Abarth version so for EUR 9500 and a donor Fiat twin cam you could be in the Aesthete's vision of automotive heaven.

For: Unusual, elegant and cheap.
Against: Only the name.
Investment potential: Oh, I don't know. Limitless.