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The Ferrari Shoot

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Ryan, Jun 18, 2007.

  1. Ryan,you certainly have stirred up the passions with this one.About a year ago (maybe more),there was an article in FORZA magazine about a guy in Oregon who bought a totaled (fuel tank fire)F40 and rebuilt and modified it himself.Not a rich guy,but a gearhead,like so many of us.The article chronicled the build,very interesting read that many would enjoy.;)
     
  2. Appleseed
    Joined: Feb 21, 2005
    Posts: 1,053

    Appleseed
    Member

    You need to find that and post it. Thats rad!
     
  3. I'll try to find it,might be a bit,no scanner at the moment.:rolleyes:
     
  4. Ryan
    Joined: Jan 2, 1995
    Posts: 21,627

    Ryan
    ADMINISTRATOR
    Staff Member

    A bump considering the latest winner of the riddler...
     
  5. hotrodladycrusr
    Joined: Sep 20, 2002
    Posts: 20,765

    hotrodladycrusr
    Member

  6. Ryan
    Joined: Jan 2, 1995
    Posts: 21,627

    Ryan
    ADMINISTRATOR
    Staff Member

    Whatever... big fucking trophy from an indoor car show... yadda, yadda, yadda...
     
  7. TRuss
    Joined: Jan 7, 2007
    Posts: 549

    TRuss
    Member

    I've never seen this article and I think it's great as well. Both the writing and photography. Well done.
     
  8. Chebby belair
    Joined: Apr 17, 2006
    Posts: 849

    Chebby belair
    Member
    from Australia

    Dig this thread. Im going to say nothing, except looking at this pic always gets me happy in the trouser department.
     

    Attached Files:

  9. Stickanddice
    Joined: Jan 22, 2008
    Posts: 34

    Stickanddice
    Member
    from Boston, MA

    Finally a post I can have a little input on!

    I used to be into Italian cars in a big way. Not just very active in the online community but as an owner and overall enthusiast. There is fantastic history in Ferraris and believe it or not even Lamborghinis. The bridge between the two is quite a bit shorter than one would think.

    Remember, as the article stated, Ferrari started essentially as a race shop for Alfa Romeo. Which is why sometimes you'll find some of the prewar Alfas with the Cavallino Rampante shield flanking the sides. His mentality was more hot rodder than the current batch of crap Ferraris. He was driven by racing and only bothered with road cars to fund his racing efforts. Which is why they eventually went belly up and FIAT bought them out. Another great story that one... One that gave birth to one of the best cars out there, the Ford GT40. Instrumental in embarassing Ferrari out of endurance racing for a long long time, and out of prototype racing for good (Porsche had a huge hand in that, but that's yet another great story).

    Lamborghini was started by a guy who wanted something more from a sports car and had the means to build one himself. The initial batch of people he hired were all very young. Giampaolo Dallara, Paolo Stanzani of Maserati fame, Giotto Bizzarini, Bob Wallace. This is a very impressive list of young talent. Dallara for chassis work, Stanzani for making the chassis work with the body, Bizzarini's engine (he built the iconic Ferrari GTO's heart), and Bob Wallace as a test driver. Keep in mind all of these guys were under 30, with wild ideas of what a car should be. Not very different from what a lot of early rodders were like. Difference being they had a kind of a sturctured budget (comparably exponentially bigger) and a factory at their disposal. They had to build a GT car so the first Lamborghini may not appeal to most people, but shortly they were left to their own devices and the world's first supercar, the Miura was born.

    I have also had the pleasure of meeting people instrumental in the modern design of current Ferraris and I think their take on the whole process would really surprise everyone. I toured Pininfarina in Turin when my friend was having a very special one off Enzo built (P4/5) and I myself was very interested in the Birdcage Maserati 75th anniversay car. Still have the contract somewhere in the library lol.

    Unfortunately a lot of the history in the Ferrari and Lamborghini marques are essentially lost. New buyers for the most part are more concerned with what color their brake calipers are and what options will drive their car into rarity than the truly important things. After owning a modern Ferrari and a few modern Lamborghinis I regret to say I'm burnt out of those cars. When going to a Ferrari gathering you will find the true Ferraristi to be in the minority and braggarts abundant. Ditto Lamborghini. As a matter of fact, it seems to be the case with just about any exotic car.

    Even the Bentley club which was quite traditional is being overrun with the new Continental GT etc. Want hot rodder spirit? Look at the original Bentley Boys from the prewar racing days. Amazing stories to be had. My dad is a big Bentley guy, having owned at one point some of the fantastic prewar cars and in total having owned at one point or another over 40 something Bentleys. He refuses to buy any of the new ones. In an effort to reistablish Bentleys as a sporting luxury GT brand (in time for the introduction of the new Arnage model) they built a limited edition "Blue Train" Arnage. They called my dad to see if he wanted one. When my dad asked the caller if he knew anything about the original Blue Train the caller was dumbfounded. This sort of thing is what is diluting these cars to crap.

    I guess in closing this huge wall of text, I'm trying to say that there is a huge rift between the new and the vintage/classic/veteran car scene. There are still people fighting the good fight (Horacio Pagani comes to mind, as do the folks at Pininfarina) but they are up against enormous odds they simply can't realistically overcome. So they compromise. Conspicuous spending is back in vogue and luxury goods providers are only happy to oblige. Many prestigious brands have fallen victim to this and there is a strong argument in their favor, survival and raw numbers, but it's a painful sacrifice to watch.

    Food for thought. When speaking to the lead designer for the Ferrari Enzo, Ken Okuyama, over lunch and dinner in Turin. I commented on how fantastic it must be to be able to design a car from the bottom of his heart and have it presented to the world. "How great that would be" was his response.

    The great marques were all started by great visionaries. Some were lucky in that they were in the right place at the right time (remember Ferrari wanted to be a race car driver, not a manufacturer), other worked themselves into recognition. These pioneers have more in common with the weekend wrencher trying to squeeze every ounce of hp out of a flathead or trying to figure out how to set up a home built chassis, than any modern iteration of the marque they established. I just simply don't see the connection between Enzo Ferrari and the 550/575 or the 612 Scaglietti for that matter, other than marketing.
     
  10. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,822

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Great Blog article and photo work Ryan. The black and white work instead of color is something to behold.

    To quote one of the previous posters.
    "The question remains though - why do some people see the connection and some don't? That's impossible to answer analytically because the tie between the three cars is really more of an emotional one for me... and I suspect the others that liked the article as well."

    All three cars are state of the art in their respective worlds. The 36 honors the classic look of the prewar/early postwar custom and does it so well that those of us who are fans of that style just stand and stare and go "OH Wow". The A-V8 was built by the family with the second and possibly the first most name dropped name in the world of flathead Fords. It is close to perfection in the world of A-V8's.
    The Ferrari is a beautiful and extremely fast road car that one could make a lot of miles dissapear with in a hurry if he so chose. Sure as Stickanddice said, for the most part the days of the sportsman who drove and raced the early Ferrari's is pretty well gone and the Gold chainers have pretty well taken over. The Ferrari forum I participate on does have long discussions on exactly what he mentioned. Differences in the resale value of cars with different colored calipers or different trim on the seats. And woe be it if you put too many miles on it as that may kill the resale. But then there are the others who do drive the cars and take them to the track for exercise on a regular basis.
    The guys here in the PNW just had dyno day and took some of their cars out to play last Saturday. This one isn't an F car but you can't say that it doesn't sound great when it gets a workout. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4HCOCegOBY
     
  11. theHIGHLANDER
    Joined: Jun 3, 2005
    Posts: 10,230

    theHIGHLANDER
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Yeah, I hear ya but it's a bit muffled. A pretty decent guy I've read a lot from once said those shows were a "vanity tool" (paraphrasing), but I digress.

    I think the connection you and many of us can see was indeed right there in steel and aluminum. I didn't get to see it in person as I was 1100 miles south, but I did think of this post/blog subject when I scammed over the 'rama stuff. I'd like to add another fusion of sorts between euro style and American iron.

    Edsel's hot rod was sold at Amelia and brought to mind the influences he strived for with the Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company...influences that in his words were "Continental" in overall looks and proportions. What the craftsmen and stylists were doing to that car was the same thing that has brought fame and notoriety to the custom "heros" of the 50s and 60s. Basically the Zephyr was chopped, sectioned, stretched, and slathered up with several pounds of lead to create the 1st version of the Lincoln Continental. While it wasn't really a great car from every aspect of it's design, the coachwork and the use of the 12cyl motor certainly did make it "Continental" in the prevailing theme. The 40 and 41 versions are just about as sexy as it gets in a pre-war personal luxury car. Certainly not the 1st to do this, the pre-war Packards customized by Darrin were just as striking and followed the same thinking...the same thinking that led to fade-away fenders, chopped tops, and sectioned bodies. As time progresses I'll do my best to post and capture some of these elements for all of us. We just happen to be doing a ground-up on a 41 Continental right now. "Film at 11:00":D
     
  12. Rocknrod
    Joined: Jan 2, 2003
    Posts: 648

    Rocknrod
    Member
    from NC, USA

    Great article.

    Its a dream of mine to run a flat crank, 8 weber carb, 180 degree V8 some day. Just to catch a glimmer of the mind numbing howl that those Ferrari's put out. It gives me goosebumps listening to them. There are things in life that are just "right." That piece pretty well sums it up...
     
  13. indianhead74
    Joined: Mar 3, 2005
    Posts: 159

    indianhead74
    Member

    Rod'nCustom Road'nTrack now my passions make some sense, Thanks
     
  14. Jasonic
    Joined: Feb 21, 2003
    Posts: 259

    Jasonic
    Member

    You know it is kinda cool that this thread has come back up. It was neat reading it when Ryan first wrote it and it is neat going back and reading all the follow up to it.

    My most recent Ferrari encounter was at a friends house. They were selling a car and the guy that was coming to look at it pulls up in a 2001 Ferrari 575. The sound, the lines, the general feel of this car evoked images of what those cars were made to do. Go fast and look damn good while doing it.

    As the potential buyer walked up, we made introductions and started right off into car talk. This guy was a driver and you could tell he just had passion. Whether it was going 200 mph in the Texas Mile or thrashing his Ferrari, because that is how i was meant to be driven. He was just as into hearing about drag racing and what we were all about. It basically just came down to this: three guys sitting in a garage talking about cars, it just happened that one had enough funds to take his passion to the extreme end of the spectrum.

    I think it is impossible to take the human aspect out of it. It is just an impossibility to judge a car without judging the owner and vice versa. You have to take it on an individual basis. It is wrong to just say "I hate guys who own Ferraris". You might all well just say " I don't like people with brown hair". Take it on a case by case basis. Just like everything else in life.

    Ultimately passion is just passion. It has many faces but it is all the same.
     
  15. SinisterCustom
    Joined: Feb 18, 2004
    Posts: 8,277

    SinisterCustom
    Member

    Cool to go back through this thread, as I didn't see Stickanddice's post....great stuff!
     
  16. repoguy
    Joined: Jul 27, 2002
    Posts: 2,085

    repoguy
    Member



    I really don't get it. So, if it isn't an American car built between 1920 and 1963 it has no soul?

    A bit of a limited, rather closed-minded viewpoint if you ask me.

    Does close to a century of pure racing history not mean anything to you? They probably have more passion for racing and speed than any other car company in history. That car represents the culmination of, once again, close to a century of battling it out in some of the most historic events in the sport. That doesn't constitute soul in any way, shape, or form????? Seriously????

    When I read stuff like this it reminds me of all the guys who insist that F1 (with insanely fast open-wheel race cars on actual road courses) "ain't real racin'!!!", and NASCAR (with slower cars driving in a circle) is.

    And just so you know, there are plenty of guys out there who buy expensive sports cars, and then wring the shit out of them. I was one of 'em, and I can tell you from experience that they aren't all "shelf cars".

    I don't understand how anyone could say that they're into hot rods and/or fast cars and not have an appreciation for cars like Ferrari, Porsche, or the like. Even if it isn't what you prefer, you should at least have an appreciation for them and what they have achieved on the track.
     
  17. mcload
    Joined: Apr 20, 2007
    Posts: 539

    mcload
    Member

  18. Vance
    Joined: Jan 3, 2005
    Posts: 2,135

    Vance
    Member
    from N/A

    Ryan's Archive list is actually a doctor prescribed therapy that I have. It's done wonders for my cholesterol and blood pressure...

    Thanks Ryan.

    Vance
     
  19. Ryan
    Joined: Jan 2, 1995
    Posts: 21,627

    Ryan
    ADMINISTRATOR
    Staff Member



    If this car has no soul, well.... then I guess I'm Dean Martin.
     
  20. loudpedal
    Joined: Mar 23, 2004
    Posts: 2,201

    loudpedal
    Member
    from SLC Utah

    As I said over a year ago, if I was rich I would not have a new Ferrari. You can say all you want about history this and F1 that, you will never get me to like a new Ferrari. If I was rich, I could have 5 or 6 other cars with soul for the same price. New car = no soul to me... it always will, I don't care what you think about it.
     
  21. Ryan
    Joined: Jan 2, 1995
    Posts: 21,627

    Ryan
    ADMINISTRATOR
    Staff Member

    Oh yeah!? Well I don't care what you think either! :)
     
  22. 19GMC63
    Joined: Apr 22, 2007
    Posts: 22

    19GMC63
    Member

    Kinda O/T (and a little late) but those shots are amazing. Great work!
     
  23. SakowskiMotors
    Joined: Nov 18, 2006
    Posts: 1,240

    SakowskiMotors
    Member

    I love any piece of fine machinery. Tool, car, bike, or whatnot. I also like figuring out and fixing any of them. Especially ones I have never seen or worked on before.

    I even love and can appreciate any car with " a lot of spirit ", even a Donk.

    Traditional cars do have a special place in my heart though for sure.

    Have fun
    Wil
    www.sakowskimotors.com
     
  24. repoguy
    Joined: Jul 27, 2002
    Posts: 2,085

    repoguy
    Member


    Yeah!

    What he said!
     
  25. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

    I'll have to disagree with that one, every Ferrari is hand built by craftsmen, unlike a lot of cars today that are mass produced,with barely any human input. they have always been unique. I work in a small aircraft plant, and even though we follow prints and specs, every single plane is a little different, every one has a human touch behind it. I think Ferrari builds their cars like this,and thats what makes them so different from almost any car on the road. :) I've had the chance to ride in them before in the past,and after doing so,theres no way to say they don't have soul.
     
  26. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

    you can listen to that go by and close your eyes and just hear a hundred years of racing from the past,back when racing a car was likely to get you killed, and real men still raced in cloth helmets. I hope theres a longer version of that video. any engine guy could appreciate what goes into those. those engines are a work of art.
     
  27. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

  28. Jeem
    Joined: Sep 12, 2002
    Posts: 5,882

    Jeem
    Alliance Vendor

    I can see parallels in those three cars, but a large part of it for me is making my own statement vs. someone else's ...and so, in that respect, the third car doesn't cut the mustard. Factor in any status value and, right or wrong, I back away. Rather limiting, I suppose, but when that OBJECT has such an overly indulgent, self absorbed vibe, all of it's fine engineering and performance suddenly plays second fiddle and it's a lost battle.
    I don't dis-like the car just the majority associated with them, unfortunate? Most assuredly!

    It's amazing how much baggage that little Ferrari can hold.
     
  29. oilslinger53
    Joined: Apr 17, 2007
    Posts: 2,500

    oilslinger53
    Member
    from covina CA

    i can appreciate excellent craftsmanship, and attention to detail on any car was well made.
     
  30. lostforawhile
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,160

    lostforawhile
    Member

    I see your point, but there are quite a few owners who actually drive them,contrary to the stereo type of the traditional ferrari owner, also quite a few of them also race them. I think any kind of fine machine that is hand built will always have a soul.
     

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