This lovely little etceterini is very much more than she seems. This ex-Anna Maria Peduzzi Stanguellini has as good a pedigree as anyone could ask for. This car, chassis CS04075, was delivered to Ms. Peduzzi, perhaps Italy’s best-known female racing driver, who piloted the barchetta through just about every Italian race of any significance: the ‘52 12 Hours Pescara, the ‘53 Mille Miglia, the ‘53 Targa Florio, plus a victory in the 1952 Eifelrennen Nürburgring just to break her in on delivery. The car’s subsequent owner, Paulo Martoglio, took the car on the quick trip from Brescia to Rome and back again for the ‘56 Mille. This car’s history would virtually guarantee entry into even the most selective vintage events.
Today, Marcel Roks Consultants offers the car in Belgium. The car has received a ground up restoration and boasts its original 750cc Twin Cam. Sadly, I’ve never had the experience of hearing the little Stanguellini’s take on a hotted-up Fiat engine, but if it’s anything like my imaginings, it’s certainly an experience worth having. The car looks marvelous, and doesn’t look over-restored or like too much of a garage queen. I would, however, like to take this opportunity to wonder aloud about the photographer for these shots. At what point do you decide this marvelous little car doesn’t deserve to have the plastic furniture moved out of shot? “Nah, just leave that towel draped over that $5 lawn chair. That’ll be fine”. Bah.
I’m sure by now you’ve all read about Stirling Moss’ accident in his home elevator. The one-off carbon fiber elevator made by Williams opened it’s doors improperly, allowing Stirling Moss to enter the empty elevator shaft, tumbling 30 feet and breaking both ankles.
I’d been wondering when we might hear from the man himself, and he’s dispatched an email to various motoring news outlets. I’ve pasted the entirety of the message below:
Greetings!
DEAR ALL OF YOU,
THE LAST FEW DAYS HAVE BEEN QUITE FANTASTIC AND I’D LIKE TO THANK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU FOR YOUR KIND THOUGHTS, MESSAGES AND OTHER PARAPHERNALIA.
ON SATURDAY EVENING, I WAS AT HOME WITH SUSIE, ELLIOT AND HELEN AND ABOUT TO LEAVE FOR A CURRY, FOR WHICH WE WERE RUNNING LATE. I ASKED HELEN TO JOIN ME IN THE LIFT TO GO DOWNSTAIRS, BECAUSE SUSIE AND ELLIOT WERE SMART ENOUGH NOT TO RIDE IN MY LIFT. I OPENED THE DOOR AND STEPPED INTO THE LIFT, WITH HELEN READY TO FOLLOW ME, WHICH SHE NEVER DID. THAT IS BECAUSE THE LIFT HAD STOPPED ON THE FLOOR ABOVE AND INCORRECTLY ALLOWED THE DOOR BENEATH IT TO OPEN.
STILL CHATTING TO HELEN, I STEPPED INTO THE OPEN DOORWAY–AND FELL TO THE BOTTOM OF THE LIFT SHAFT.
THE AMBULANCE WAS CALLED AND ARRIVED AT RACING SPEED, WHEREUPON THEY PUT ME ONTO A SERIES OF ABOUT 10 STRETCHERS! HAVING FINALLY SETTLED ON WHAT MUST HAVE SEEMED A GOOD ONE, I WAS TAKEN, ALONG WITH MY FAMILY TO THE ROYAL LONDON HOSPITAL IN WHITECHAPEL, WHERE THEY USED ANOTHER BATCH OF SIMILAR STRETCHERS!
THEY DID A GOOD JOB OF HELPING ME, BUT WERE UNABLE TO DO THE REQUISITE SURGERY. SO, ON THE SUNDAY, I WAS MOVED TO THE PRINCESS GRACE, WHERE A FANTASTICALLY EFFICIENT, KIND AND AMUSING STAFF DID ALL THE JOBS.
I AM NOW IN A LOVELY ROOM, NUMBER 222, AND WITH THE HELP OF ELLIOT AND THE PORTER, AM FINALLY ON THE EMAIL. THAT DOES NOT MEAN THAT I WILL BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY SEND THIS TO YOU, BUT I WILL TRY!
NOW FOR THE FUTURE… WHICH I CAN SEE WITH SUSIE, HELEN AND ELLIOT AROUND ME, IS GOING TO BE A BLOODY STRUGGLE!
AS SOME OF YOU MAY KNOW, SUSIE AND I ARE BOOKED ON A SEABOURN CRUISE FOR OUR 30TH ANNIVERSARY, NEXT MONTH. I HAVE TO CROSS THE HURDLE OF GETTING THE DOCORS, AND FAMLY HANGERS-ON, TO ALLOW ME TO THIN MY BLOOD, IN ORDER TO AVOID ANY ISSUES INVOLVING DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS.
IT WILL BE SIX TO EIGHT WEEKS FROM SUNDAY BEFORE I WILL ABLE TO PUT ANY LOAD ON MY FEET. THEREFORE I’M FACING MY SIXTH OR SEVENTH REDUCTION TO A WHEELCHAIR (SUSIE SAYS SHE’S STOPPED COUNTING) WHICH I MUST ADMIT, IS RATHER BORING. THE GOOD NEWS IS; THAT I DIDN’T SELL THE WHEELCHAIR AFTER THE LAST SHUNT!
THE WHOLE THING IS A REAL PAIN IN THE ARSE, IF I HAD LOOKED WHERE I WAS GOING, I WOULDN’T BE HERE AT ALL, SO IT’S MY OWN DAMN FAULT.
I HAVE BEEN ABSOLUTELY OVERWHELMED BY YOUR COLLECTIVE CONCERN AND KINDNESS.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT CURRENTLY I’M LYING IN HOSPITAL, TAKING DEEP BREATHS, LIFTING ONE ARM WITH THE OTHER, RAISING MY LEGS (WITH PLASTERS ON THE END) AND DOING ALL I CAN DO TO KEEP MYSELF AS MOBILE AS POSSIBLE, BUT, HAVING SAID THAT, I’M NOT YET WINNING THE BATTLE.
I’M NOT SURE WHEN I’LL BE ABLE TO GO HOME BUT THE LIFT HAS TO WORK, OTHERWISE I’LL NEVER BE ABLE TO GET UPSTAIRS IN MY WHEELCHAIR, MAYBE I’LL GO AND STAY WITH HELEN AND ELLIOT FOR A WHILE…
THIS REALLY HAS OPENED MY EYES TO HOW KIND ALL MY FRIENDS ARE, OVER AN OLD EX-RACING DRIVER, FLOGGING A FADING IMAGE!
Reader Len McCue wrote in to ask, “I have a video of the restoration of my 53 NH Coupe as a racing and touring car. Do you have any interest?”
Did I have any interest? Just one look at the photos of the car competing at the very scenic Pittsburgh Grand Prix had me responding “YES” as fast as my fingers could fly. She’s an absolute beauty, and when you see the condition she started in, I’m sure you’ll join me in thanking Mr. McCue for saving this gorgeous and funky little racecar.
We’d love to feature more readers’ restorations, race cars, and onboard videos. Have something to share? Drop a line to tips@thechicaneblog.com
In this installment of the John McClure archives, the November 7, 1954 running of the Orange Empire National Sportscar Races at March Air Force Base. It is a real treat seeing the racing action ahead of scores of aluminum planes in the background.
Unfortunately, the Briggs Cunningham team that swept the previous year’s race was a no-show. This race, however, was significant for Porschefiles as the first US race run by a 550 Spyder. Sadly, the car crashed and burned in practice with the driver escaping reasonably unscathed. Instead, Ferraris ruled the day, with 7 of the top 10 spots in the featured over-1500cc race. Also in the film is a parade lap of Historic cars (teens and 20s).
Look at this fire breathing beast; this terrifying, gigantic thing.
This is the very aptly named 1923 Fiat “Mefistofele”. This was the car that a very brave Ernest Eldridge attempted to wrangle to a World Land Speed Record in 1924. This mammoth machine—powered by a 350-horsepower, 21 liter airship engine—certainly looks up to the task, and despite it’s truck-like size, which surely is larger than she looks, Eldridge somehow managed to control the mighty Fiat long enough to achieve the record.
Eldridge and Mefistofele topped out a 146.013 mph over a flying kilometer in Arpajon, France. He had earlier piloted Mefistofele to a standing start half-mile record of 23.17 seconds at 77mph. Now a 23 second half mile might not sound like much to the muscle car fans among us, but I imagine that the only way to simulate the experience would be if you ran your ‘Cuda at the drags while strapped to the front bumper.
This, my friends, is a proper racing car: a little scary, a little elegant, a lot purposeful looking. Let me just say again 21 Liter airship engine. Traction control? Automatic shift? Anti-lock brakes? No. Driving this machine must be like trying to tame a dragon. Mefistofele indeed.
Let us all salute this impressive monster, and the man who tamed her as an example of the bravado and determination that so roused our collective passion for motorsport.
A few weeks ago we looked at the Sven Voelker book Go Faster: The Graphic Design of Racing Cars, now Gestalten Video has interviewed Voelker at the Porsche museum about the project. It’s a nice piece of video, combining historic footage, excerpted images from the book, and Voelker’s thoughts on the design, colors, typography, and randomness of some of the most iconic racing cars. Definitely worth a watch.
Sven makes a interesting point on what he considers the high point of racing car design. My natural gut instinct is to long for the national racing colors without corporate sponsorship. Sven argues that the initial years of the late 60s and early 70s, when sponsorship was just entering racing, but there were few sponsors per car, provided the greatest opportunity for graphic design greatness. When you consider the Gold Leaf Lotus, the Gulf Porsches and Fords, and the Jagermeister 911s, it’s hard to argue with him on the point.
While I would have liked the book itself to have more text, it’s still a fun project and definitely worth checking out, available here.
Look at the enthusiasm of the flag waiver in this shot of Jim Clark winning the 1967 US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. I’m sure Jimmy was well pleased to win his 3rd GP of the season, but the flagman here is the real expression of joy in this photo. I’m pretty sure that flagmen aren’t leaping into the air today in their little balcony over the start/finish line.
And don’t you think we should really be reintroducing the laurels to the victors of today’s races? Then again, I suppose that they would cover the sponsor logo patches. Drivers are far more important as walking billboards than they are as athletes or sportsmen. Alas.
I’m no fan of crash porn, but I caught this 356 crash in the Hurry Downs complex at Road America during the SVRA Vintage GT Challenge last year. I was trying to capture the silver 356 of Edmond Ross, which I have a bit of a soft spot for because an image of Edmond’s car was the header image on this site for The Chicane’s first year. The crowd’s reaction caused me pan back in the field to John Winter just as he was losing his car into the wall, apparently a suspension or steering problem according to other spectators. Does anyone know if we’ll see this car on the track this year? It looks like a fair bit of damage, but seemed that the spin only managed to take out one corner of the car’s suspension and steering. Anyone know the status of this car?
You don’t often think of the Porsche 914 as a rally car, but this shot from the 2010 Boucles de Spa rally in Belgium shows it’s versatility yet again. She may among the forgotten and unloved Porsches but I’m always impressed by them at vintage races, where they often participate in 4 or 5 different race groups—another sign of their range. This is, after all, a car that finished sixth overall at the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans, and deserves more props than it gets.
It’s game time, friends. Can you guess the make and model of this famous racing car from her engine sound?
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This lovely little etceterini is very much more than she seems. This ex-Anna Maria Peduzzi Stanguellini has as good a pedigree as anyone could ask for. This car, chassis CS04075, was delivered to Ms. Peduzzi, perhaps Italy’s best-known female racing driver, who piloted the barchetta through just about every Italian race of any significance: the ‘52 12 Hours Pescara, the ‘53 Mille Miglia, the ‘53 Targa Florio, plus a victory in the 1952 Eifelrennen Nürburgring just to break her in on delivery. The car’s subsequent owner, Paulo Martoglio, took the car on the quick trip from Brescia to Rome and back again for the ‘56 Mille. This car’s history would virtually guarantee entry into even the most selective vintage events.
Today, Marcel Roks Consultants offers the car in Belgium. The car has received a ground up restoration and boasts its original 750cc Twin Cam. Sadly, I’ve never had the experience of hearing the little Stanguellini’s take on a hotted-up Fiat engine, but if it’s anything like my imaginings, it’s certainly an experience worth having. The car looks marvelous, and doesn’t look over-restored or like too much of a garage queen. I would, however, like to take this opportunity to wonder aloud about the photographer for these shots. At what point do you decide this marvelous little car doesn’t deserve to have the plastic furniture moved out of shot? “Nah, just leave that towel draped over that $5 lawn chair. That’ll be fine”. Bah.
