- Paris, Rétromobile 2019 and Overview of Artcurial Auction Sale

10 - LAMBORGHINI

The Lamborghini Miura's first public appearance occurred at 1965 Turin Motor Show; there was only a steel monocoque chassis structure with operating components and that is quite unique a fact in car history.

The engine was from the Lamborghini 400 GT, a 4 litre V12 but it was mounted in transverse orientation just in front of the rear axle. This central position was intended to optimize the weight distribution. The 5 speed ZF gearbox was installed under the engine. The position of the engine transmission allowed for a small luggage compartment while maintained a limited overall length. Let us remember that, at the time, only British Motor Corporation adopted such a layout and it was for the Mini sedan launched in 1958 with a small four cylinder engine placed at the front end. The evolotion on the track has always been showing the trends for exclusive GT cars; endurance racing cars with gradual change from front engine rear wheel drive to rear engine rear wheel drive , illustrated by the Ford GT40, have certainly had a clear influence on the layout selected for the Lamborghini Miura.

See Lamborghini Miura 1965 1972 - Lamborghini Miura S 1969 -

11 - Lancia

The Lancia Aprilia Berlinetta Aerodinamica was built at Lancia factory with streamlined body. The car was propelled by a very small narrow angle 1352 cc V4 producing 47 hp. The aerodynamic body had small dimensions yet offering maximum room inside. The revolutionary independant front suspension (sliding-pillar) was adapted from the Lambda and the independant rear suspension by trailing arms , a new synchromesh gearbox (on 2,3,4) and hydrailic brakes were developed. The monocoque (uni-construction) by Ing Falchetto was pillarless which required extreme efforts on torsional stiffness, achieved by special electric welding and cross reinforcements of the car floor.

After World War II Gianni Lancia, the son of founder Vincenzo Lancia, after the death of his father, persuaded his mother Adele Lancia to create state-of-the-art competition cars to participate in international racing. Lancia's genius Vittorio Jano and his brilliant engineer Francesco de Virgilio created the most innovative Competition Department of the Fifties. With Vittorio Jano on board as head of experimentation design, Lancia had sped out of post-war gloom with the superb Aurelia that brimmed with technical advancements- 60° V6, all independant suspension, inboard brakes and transaxle gearbox. This highly advanced production model was naturally well suited to competition and took a succession of impressive results.

For sports car events such as Le Mans, the Mille Miglia or the Carrera Panamericana Lancia prepared the D20, a light competition coupé. Mechanically the car was based on the Aurelia, but the engine was heavily modified including 4 overhead camshafts, twin ignition and increased capacity to 2962 cc developing 217 hp. Some drivers complained about excess heat in the cockpit. Lancia therefore decided to convert the D20 coupe into an open barchetta which was to be called D23.

The D23 proved instantly successful with a 2nd place at the Monaco GP in 1953 (Bonetto at the wheel) and the Copa Dolomiti (Taruffi at the wheel) or a third place in the Carrera Panamericana with Castelloti at the wheel.

The Lancia Aurelia stands out to be one of the significant automobiles of the Fifties. Designed by Vittorio Jano who had developed the legendary Alfa Romeo 8C 2300, the Aurelia caused a sensation when it was introduced at the Turin Motor Show in 1950.

In 1951, the Aurelia B20 GT was introduced, a true Grand Turismo featuring a timelessly beautiful "fastback" Coupé body by Pinin Farina. With the engine increased to 1991 cc, the B20 proved an immensely capable sportscar. It won its class in the 1951 Mille Miglia ahead of all the two-litre Ferrari, and finished second overall behind a 4.1 Litre Ferrari. In the Italian Dolomite race, the Aurelia placed first, second and forth in competition against Ferrari. In 1952, an Aurelia won the two-litre class at Le Mans and finished third in the Mille Miglia, ahead of Caracciola's 3000 SLR Mercedes. The Aurelia took the first 3 places in the Targa Florio, and Maglioli finished fourth in the Panamericana.

At the turn of the 1970s, the great design rivalry between Bertone and Pininfarina reached an all-time high, with both companies seemingly determined to pull out all the stops to outdo one another. Bertone had perhaps opened the hostilities with the Marzal and with the first “wedge-shaped” supercar concept, the mighty Alfa Romeo Carabo. Italdesign had joined the fray with the Bizzarrini Manta and the Alfa Romeo Iguana. Pininfarina had replied using all its Ferrari firepower with the striking P5, the 512S berlinetta and the Modulo. The latter had caused quite a stir at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1970, yet nothing, not even the outlandish Modulo, could really have prepared visitors of the 1970 Turin Motor Show just a few months later to what they were about to see on the Bertone stand. The car was officially labelled “Stratos HF.” Nuccio Bertone had initially wanted to call it “Stratolimite,” as in “limit of the stratosphere,” clearly inspired by its space-age design. But after some time, it came to be known simply by its internal nickname: Zero.

With the Stratos Zero, Bertone transcended the limits of automotive styling and chiselled a shape that appeared as though it were made of a solid block of metal, evoking speed and the sensation of travel. More remarkable still was the fact that the Zero was not only a design statement but a fully functioning prototype. There was a clear continuity of style and intent between the 1968 Carabo, 1970 Stratos and 1971 Countach prototype. The three projects showed a linear progression in formal research, to the extent that, randomly looking at the preliminary sketches done for each car and omitting the dates, it is difficult to tell which of those three projects they were for. The Lancia Stratos Zero was sold for Euros 761.600 at Villa Erba 2013 RM Sotheby Auction Sale. (source RM Sotheby 2013)

The Lancia Stratos started a new era in ralying as it was the first car specifically designed and constructed for this kind of competition and caused a snsation when it was launched to the public as a prototype at Turin Motor Show in 1970. The three leading men behind the entire Lancia rally project were Lancia team manager Cesare Fiorio, British racing driver and engineer Mike Parkes and factory rally driver Sandro Munari.

The striking wedge-shaped fibreglass bodywork was designed by Bertone's head designer Marcello Gandini. The car was unusually short (216 cm wheelbase) and wide. This, in combination with the transversely mid-mounted Ferrari Dino V6 engine, gave the car an excellent traction and agility. The complete car only weighed 980 kg resulting in 0-100 kph (0-62 mph) in 6.8 seconds.

Production of the 500 road cars required for homologation was launched in 1973. In 2014 a Lancia Stratos HF Stradale made in 1974 was sold for US$ 660.000 at Monterey RM Sotheby Auction sale.

The Lancia Stratos started a new era in ralying as it was the first car specifically designed and constructed for this kind of competition and caused a snsation when it was launched to the public as a prototype at Turin Motor Show in 1970. The three leading men behind the entire Lancia rally project were Lancia team manager Cesare Fiorio, British racing driver and engineer Mike Parkes and factory rally driver Sandro Munari.

In 1974, when Mike Parkes took over the technical development, a second phase of the Stratos career began - the Stratos Group 4. Though based on the road version, the Group 4 features a tuned 24 valves 270 horsepower engine, modified gearbox and hugely modified brakes and uniball-suspension, transforming the delicate handling towards an infinitely superior roadholding. Accompanying visual features were a wider body with larger spoilers, wider wheels and a completely modified dashboard.

19 cars were factory team cars, but most of the Group 4 cars were delivered originally as road version and converted to Group 4 specification for various Hill Climb Championships with the complete Group 4 kit supplied by Lancia.

The Lancia Beta Montecarlo in exhibit is one of only 11 works Lancia Beta built. It gained Constructor World Championship in 1980 and 1981. It was driven by Alboreto, Cheever, Patrese and Ghinzani.

After the huge success in the Rally Championship with the Stratos, Lancia decided to build another purpose-built rally car. The Group B regulations required a production run of at least 200 units for the homologation of a car. It was decided to use a slightly modified version of the Lancia Beta Montecarlo race car with its sheet metal centre section and the tubular front and rear. This time it was Pininfarina who was chosen not only for the design , but also for the production run of the 200 units. Abarth, by this time responsible for all competition engines of the FIAT group rexcept for Ferrari, were commissioned to supply the engines. A two litre 4 cylinder 16 V with a Roots supercharger was chosen. Like the Stratos, the Rally 037 had a mid-engine layout but a longer wheelbase for more predictable handling and the gearbox was mounted behind theengine. The latter allowed for a quick change of gear ratios between rally stages.

The synergies between Abarth and Lancia wre strenghtened when FIAT acquired the "House of the Scorpion" which became the racing division serving all the Group's brands. Thanks to this collaboration, marked by the Abarth product abbreviation SE037, the 1980s saw the rise of the Lancia Rally's glorious history.

The model was a prefect mix of Pininfarina bodywork and Abarth mechanics, and was designed to replace the famous-but dated-Fiat 131 Abarth Rally in international rally competitions. Based on the central section of the Lancia Beta Montecarlo, the 037 featured a two litre 16 Valve twin-cam Fiat engine; the street legal version on display (one of 200 manufactured to achieve Group B homologation) reached 205 hp, capable of pushing it over 220 kph at top speed and reaching 100 kph from zero in less than seven seconds.

The end of the Group B area led to the Group A car as being the fastest on the World Rally grid. In this category the cars had to be far closer to their roadgoing derivatives and a minimum production run of 5000 cars per year was required for homologation. The decidion was made to stay with the rather dull Lancia Delta hatchback from their portofolio as a base car, develop a new 4WD system for it and massively increase the power output, hence was born the Delta HF Integrale. This car, which was to become Italy's first production all wheel drive car, was a potent and nimble hot hatchback which dominated the World Rally Championship for six consecutive years from 1987 to 1992. Constant development kept the car competitive over the years until in 1991 sadly and very surprisingly, Lancia retired from its official Rally involvement and gave their cars to the privately-owned Jolly Club Team.

1966 Porsche 906 -

The Porsche 906 or Carrera 6 appeared in 1965 derived from a 904 with flat six engine. The new body was developped in wind tunnel. The chassis was tubular frame. Most models were propulsed by 2 liter flat 6. See Porsche 906 1966 1969

1978 Porsche 935 K3   - Exhibit Girardo & Co

It was not just the Porsche factory who developed the 935 into the potent winning machine it was, as some privateer teams saw opportunities to enhance the cars, with the Kremer brothers in Germany being the most prominent and successful. In 1976, Kremer Racing developed the K1 and, in 1977, the K2, before the K3 appeared at the start of the 1979 season. The K3 went on to win the 1979 Le Mans 24 Hours, with a factory-specification Porsche 935 finishing 2nd.

This twin-turbo Porsche 935 K3 was built by Porsche in 1978 and sold through VW of America and Vasek Polak to the Interscope Racing Team, owned by American media mogul, entrepreneur and film producer Ted Field. Porsche built 24 customer twin-turbo 935s between 1978 and 1979. (Source GIRARDO & Co)

When in October 1967, the FIA set the engine capacity limit for prototypes at three litres (and Sports Cars at five litres), Porsche was fairly well prepared. Previous rumours had hinted at this move and no time had ben lost: as early as July 1967 design was started on a completely new three litre, eight cylinder engine (Type 908) which was to be dropped into a chassis derived from the Type 907, to become the 908 coupé.

Before the 1969 Le Mans race, both the short and long-tail coupés were examined in the wind tunnel. The first 908.02 had been tested in the wind tunnel at the end of 1968. It had the advantage of being about 100 kg (220 lb.) lighter than the long-tail coupé, but it had a higher drag. (Source The Porsche Book by Lothar Boschen and Jürgen Barth 1978)

In 1951 Jaguar developped the road racing sports car C Type with multitubular frame and aluminium body;the engine was a 6 cylinder 3.412 cc derived from the XK120 and produced 200 h.p. at 5.800 rpm originally.The Jaguar C Type won at 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1951 for its first appearance on the track. Further development in 1952 include replacing drum brakes by disc brakes. The Jaguar C Type won again at Le Mans in 1953. See Jaguar C Type 1951 1953

Jaguar Classic granted the Retromobile 2019 event with a World Premiere by lauching the Born Again program of the E- Type Series 1.

related article Car Review Jaguar E Type 1961-1975

The Maserati MC12 GT1 marked the return of one of Italy’s greatest brands to the track and its ascendance to the top step of the podium. Its competition debut came in the highly competitive 2004 FIA GT Championship with the factory-backed AF Corse squad. A year later and the Maserati MC12 GT1 won the FIA GT Manufacturers’ Cup, scoring almost double the championship points of the nearest competitor! The MC12 GT1 was powered by a 6.0-litre, V12, naturally aspirated engine, which, due to regulations, was fitted with a restrictor, resulting in the car producing an impressive 580 bhp.

The MC12 GT1 was a dominant force, and over the next six seasons of racing, it claimed six FIA Teams’ Championships, two FIA GT Constructors’ Championships, six Drivers’ Championships and no less than 40 race victories!

Designed for track use by its most important clientele, the Maserati MC12 Corsa was a direct development of the MC12 GT1. Void of restrictors, the race-derived 6.0-litre, naturally aspirated, V12 engine produced an incredible 745 bhp at 8,000 rpm — over 110 bhp more than the MC12 Stradale and 150 bhp more than the MC12 GT1 race car!

The Maserati MC12 Corsa offered here, chassis 005, was the only car delivered in silver, with a fabulous bordeaux Alcantara interior to complement. With its dark grey wheels and exposed carbon-fibre rear wing and mounts, this MC12 Corsa has a fabulously understated yet unmistakeable presence — it’s purposeful but not flashy.

Maserati produced only 12 of these ultimate track weapons to rival Ferrari’s 30 FXXs. Those 12 clients were offered the car by invitation, at a cost of €1,000,000. For your money, this MC12 Corsa could propel itself from 0 to 200 km/h (0–124 mph) in a mere 6.4 seconds and continue on to a top speed of 326 km/h (202 mph) (Source GIRARDO & Co) FOR FURTHER PHOTOS SEE Maserati MC12

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1920 1933 Hispano Suiza H6B with 6597 cc six cylinder engine

AC Cars built Cobra chassis number CSX2131 at its Thames Ditton factory, especially for drivers Sanderson and Bolton and then Team Manager, Moss to campaign at Le Mans in 1963. The Cobra was fitted with a specially fabricated and removable ‘fast track’ aluminium hard top to handle the aerodynamic requirements of the long Mulsanne Straight, an integral fuel filler, enlarged front and rear bumpers, Dunlop one-piece magnesium wheels, a 37 gallon fuel tank and rear-exiting exhaust, amongst a range of other modifications. Shelby provided AC with a 289 Cobra V8 racing engine with Lucas dynamo. This racing ensemble of car, drivers and team manager, finished off with a sponsorship by the Sunday Times, meant that Shelby could make a ‘back door’ assault on the Le Mans crown without being formally involved. A result of seventh overall and third in class with an average speed of 108 miles per hour was one of the most significant moments of the Cobra story and is credited with paving the way for Ford’s later efforts at Le Mans too. Following Le Mans, the Cobra was purchased by John Willment’s race team and was immediately prepared for the important Tourist Trophy race at Goodwood in March 1964. (Source FISKENS) See AC Cobra 289 1962 1965

Two outstanding competition vehicles recall the glory days of the 1970s in motor sport with two outstanding competition vehicles. A BMW 320 built in accordance with Group 5 regulations is presented in homage to a successful era of the brand in touring-car sport. Front spoilers, rear wings and flared wheel arches with flamboyant styling characterise the competition vehicle developed on the basis of the first generation of the BMW 3 Series. Under the bonnet, the car is powered by a Formula 2 racing engine, which generates an output of 300 hp from a displacement of 2.0 litres. In 1977, BMW competed with the new touring car in the German Racing Championship (DRM). At the same time, this formed the launchpad for a new form of promotion for junior drivers. Eddie Cheever, Marc Surer and Manfred Winkelhock competed in the BMW Junior Team against established, world-class drivers. They became the darlings of the public and collected a bumper harvest of points.

Two years later, drivers lined up at the start of the first races in the Procar Series initiated by BMW. This was an ideal stage to put the racing version of the BMW M1 through its paces. In the Procar Series, Formula 1 pilots and touring-car drivers competed against each other in identically engineered vehicles powered by 470 hp engines. The races were held in 1979 and 1980 as part of the warm-up for the Formula 1 World Championship races in Europe and they developed into a massive success with a big public following. A Procar racer from the collection of BMW Group Classic is being presented at Rétromobile 2019.

See also BMW M1 1978

This LOLA T600 is the first ground effect prototype, foreshadowing the advent of the Group C. It is powered by a Cosworth V8 DFL 3.3 Litre producing 540 hp at 10.200 rpm. It weights 850 kg. Winner of 2 races of the 1981 Endurance World Championship.

1984 Renault Fuego Turbo

From 1969, the duo Gérard Welter and Michel Meunier, both engineers and designers for Peugeot, worked using traditional methods in an intelligent way, to create competition cars powered by a Peugeot engine. The first WM cars used the very basic engine of the Peugeot 204, but in 1976 this was exchanged for the V6 PRV engine from the Peugeot 604, and was used in the WM P76 to take part in the Le Mans 24 Hour Race.

WM cars enlisted for the Le Mans 24 Hour Race every year without interruption until 1988. That year, the main objective for the WM entry was to beat the official top speed record of 391 km/h achieved on the Hunaudières Straight by a Porsche. Heuliez was given the job of creating a more flowing body style. The reduced air intakes prompted much testing in the wind tunnel and on the computer, to allow adequate engine cooling while offering the least wind resistance. Several P88 models were tested in the CSTB Jules Vernes wind tunnel in Nantes.

And so that year, the WM P88 number 51 lined up for the start, equipped with a twin-turbo 3,643cc V6 PRV engine. Three drivers were sharing the car: Roger Dorchy, Claude Haldi, and Jean-Daniel Raulet. According to Le Mans legend, although the WM team had been able to break the 400km/h barrier while testing on the autoroute, they had not been able to achieve the same speeds on the Hunaudiéres straight during the early days of testing.

At 20h46 that day , over the noise of engines roaring down the straight, past the rostrum, and the uneasy silence in the WM paddock every time a car crossed the line at Hunaudières, the crackly and almost inaudible hoped-for message was delivered to the helmets of drivers and track officials : " New Record " ! At that moment, Gérard Welter's eyes shone with the indescribable joy of success mixed with incredulity, emotion, and heartfelt gratitude for his team and all those who had contributed to this spectacular result. Drained by the feat, P88 didn't cross the finish line, and retired, crowned with laurels, during the night. The WM P88 was sold for Euros 118.136 at Classic Le Mans 2012 Artcurial auction sale. (Source Artcurial 2012)

To compete in the 1997 FIA GT Championship, Mercedes-Benz tasked Mercedes-AMG to design a car to win, and the CLK GTR was the result. With its mid-longitudinally mounted, 6.0-litre, naturally aspirated V12, the CLK GTR dominated, claiming victory at six of the 11 races, resulting in Mercedes-AMG winning the GT1 Championship and driver Bernd Schneider winning the GT1 Drivers’ Championship. The CLK GTR was competing against the world’s fastest cars and teams, including the BMW Motorsport-entered McLaren F1 GTR, Porsche-entered 911 GT1 Evo, Panoz GTR-1 and Lotus GT1. The 1997 FIA GT1 Championship was hugely competitive, but the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR was undoubtedly the car to beat!

To enable the CLK GTR to compete in the FIA GT Championship, regulations required Mercedes-Benz to produce 25 road-going versions of their race car. Each of these cars were built by AMG and their specialist group, HWA Engineering, at their Affalterbach factory in Germany between the winter of 1998 and summer of 1999.

For 1998, there was only one way to improve, and that was to win every race, which Mercedes-AMG did! The car, team and drivers dominated. No other competitor stood a chance. Mercedes-AMG scored 146 points, with the nearest competitor, Porsche AG, scoring a mere 49. Mercedes-Benz also decided to return to Le Mans for 1998, changing the engine from a 6.0-litre unit to 5.0 litres to ensure improved reliability for the 24-hour endurance race. The bodywork was also slightly adjusted to increase performance further. The cars debuted at the 1998 Le Mans, claiming pole position ahead of the Le Mans prototype class! For the remainder of the 1998 FIA GT Championship, Mercedes-Benz used the CLK LM and continued to dominate in the same fashion as the CLK GTR, finishing the season with 10 wins from 10 races!(GIRARDO & Co)

See Mercedes CLK GTR and CLK LM 1997 1998

Mercedes Benz CLK GTR 1998 FIA GT World Champion

Founded in 1948, the manufacturer created a stir with the first model in the Dream series of motorcycles. Buoyed by the success of its motorcycle endeavours, Honda started taking an interest in the automobile market in 1963 with the launch of the S500. The Japanese manufacturer quickly established a name for itself by building competition cars, particularly for Formula One. Success came 20 years later when it joined forces with McLaren and Williams. Today, Honda is at the top of the podium when it comes to engine builders. This year, the manufacturer is celebrating the 20th birthday of the Honda S2000, a highperformance sports roadster first unveiled in 1998 to celebrate Honda’s 50th birthday before being commercially launched 1999. The model is being exhibited alongside an NSX GT3 EVO 2019, the latest update to the NSX GT3.

Founded in 1948, the manufacturer created a stir with the first model in the Dream series of motorcycles. Buoyed by the success of its motorcycle endeavours, Honda started taking an interest in the automobile market in 1963 with the launch of the S500. The Japanese manufacturer quickly established a name for itself by building competition cars, particularly for Formula One. Success came 20 years later when it joined forces with McLaren and Williams. Today, Honda is at the top of the podium when it comes to engine builders. This year, the manufacturer is celebrating the 20th birthday of the Honda S2000, a highperformance sports roadster first unveiled in 1998 to celebrate Honda’s 50th birthday before being commercially launched 1999. The model is being exhibited alongside an NSX GT3 EVO 2019, the latest update to the NSX GT3.