200% Authentic and Totally Original Authentic. Original. In the world of vintage and historic racing these two words constitute the foundation for the sport's bible; or, perhaps, more accurately the bible for those who see fortunes to be made in the sale of old, obsolete competition vehicles. Never raced though tried repeatedly… In times past, an obsolete racer was an unwanted orphan, not something to be revered. Indeed, most were stripped of useful components, and left to rust, or rot away out back in a field somewhere, their lives over. For those collectors who have written the checks to what they view as works of art, this attitude approaches heresy. Yet, given the fact that for race car builders and manufacturers these cars were tools, it is quite understandable, and reasonable. All in the Family… Dr. Ferry Porsche, who founded with his sisters Louise, the firm that today is considered the most important independent sports car maker on the planet, was once asked what his favorite Porsche of all time was. His reply was equally simple: "The one not yet built." The fact of the matter is that famous companies such as Porsche and Ferrari were forced to concentrate on the present and look towards the future because to do otherwise would spell financial disaster for these firms whose bank accounts were less prestigious than their reputations. Only when the collectors started coming around with checks in hand for what looked at as useless relics, did the car manufacturers pay attention, Even so, most factories cared little about what they were selling other than it produced a negotiable bank instrument that improved their balance numbers. Sure, they made certain what they were selling was what they said it was. Sure, they took plains to note the car's history and condition. But, there was no passion on their part, no sense of loss that a piece of themselves was walking out the door. This may or may not be that chassis number but it is the car… Even today Porsche's museum tends to be casual; about what cars they really have. For example, Porsche sent over to the recent Rennsport Reunion at Daytona a 1973 Carrera RSR that they labeled as that year's Targa Florio winner. The trouble was that the factory car, even in its authentic Martini paint scheme, was not the real Targa winner. That car continued to be developed by Singer & Co. for the rest of the 1973 season and was also in attendance at Rennsport but in the later season look. Perhaps even more embarrassing was the fact that the real factory winner was on hand at Daytona, now owned, and correctly restored by its private owner. Want more? Also on hand at Daytona, similarly restored in its authentic 1970 Salburg paint scheme was 917-023, the car in which Dickie Attwood and Hans Hermann gave Porsche its first overall victory at Le Mans. Of course the factory also has a similar looking 917. The trouble with it is the fact that in reality it is 917-001 - the Geneva show vehicle with no actual competition record to its credit. There are other similar cars in and around the Porsche collection, but you get the message. Now, Ferrari, which hitherto was happy to let owners of its older racers fight among themselves about how credible their automotive toys might or might not be, is starting its own program to " provide a stamp of approval guaranteeing originality for the population of vintage and historic competition Ferraris. And, oh yes can you pay the fee for this service please in Euros? Altered States Have we gone nuts. Have we forgotten the simple truth that by driving one of these vehicles from the past that we can experience in real time what most of us were too young, or too poor to experience when they were new, and let it go at that, Carl Thompson, a former top aide to the late Vasek Polak, and more recently a key player in the vintage scene, took a spare 917 chassis and body, mated them with the correct mechanicals, and created for himself a brand new example of the awesome 12-cylinder racing coupe. Thompson makes no pretenses about its linage. Rather he simply beams when he talks about the fact that he and others can now drive a piece of history, and see how the early folks lived. The thrill of nearly 600 horsepower in a lightweight tubeframe, "flexible flyer" sports racer with less than perfect brakes and only slight better handling might not be all that pleasant, but it is all that memorable. So, who is to say that Thompson's 917 is not just as good a toy as its much older brethren - who, by the why, often come with new frames, new bodies and other newly minted parts to make the "safe" for their drivers Let's stop thinking in terms of art, and more in terms of the tools these vehicles were always intended to be. The summer vintage season is now with us, let's put away the checkbooks and the egos, and enjoy what we've got because our time is short, and the cars will outlast us. |
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