THE UNOBTANIATE

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November 30, 2009 • 12:30 pm 0

912 Roadster prototype ready

My 912 Roadster project is moving along nicely. I have the prototype done. I also have a 66 912 picked out. It wasn’t much of a picking process really, I walked out into the yard at the sea of 912s and picked what looked like the best candidate. I almost picked the early painted dash 912 but it was just too rusty. I also got an original windshield frame from a 59 Convertible D, one of the early all brass ones. The paint scheme is going to be either white or silver with Martini Livery.
Once the winter really kicks in I should start cutting and welding, look for more updates.

—Adam

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November 28, 2009 • 4:58 am 0

While we are crying…

This shot always chokes me up!

I know guys that would slit their wrists to put the fire out on this 907.

—Adam

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November 27, 2009 • 12:01 am 0

It makes you want to cry!

I dream about places like this, we all do. In this one shot there are at least 4 356s, 2 911s, and 2 300SL Roadsters. I need to get a crystal ball to find out where this picture was taken, because it wasn’t in my yard.

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November 26, 2009 • 3:15 am 1

How to say goodbye to a C coupe

It was time to say goodbye to this sad C Coupe today. But how do you see a once great car onto its final journey, giving up its last parts?
1. Meditate with the car.
2. Talk to your friends about it.
3. Strike your best Shakespheran pose and hope you give the car dignity.

I am not sure which pose gave the most homage to the final huray of this C, but we did out best.

Can we have a moment of silence.

—Adam

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November 25, 2009 • 3:49 am 0

1971 911S found! They are really out there!!!

I love stories like this, even if I am not the one finding the car. This very original 71 S was found not by my friend George, but by his wife Susan. She stumbled across it and figured it would make a great birthday surprise for George (don’t we all want a wife like this!!!). So she rang the doorbell of the house and talked to the owner and his wife who initially said the car was not for sale and that she was not the first person to stop and ask. But Susan convinced them it was time to let the car go to someone who would bring it back to its former glory. It will sit nicely in George’s stable with his Pre-A cab and his Speedster.

George was wowed by the car and did some research on it. It was heavily optioned from the factory with cool accessories like the large gas tank and sport seats. The car had been sitting since 1994. The car came with the tool kit and a lot of the original paperwork.
The car was traded in in 1974 for a VW bus at Algar Porsche Audi, the owner wanted his “cosmic adventure”. The car was than bought at Algar Porsche Audi for $10,000 that same year. The third owner (74-78) was able to provide some great period pictures.
So far George has started pecking around the car, no rust in the floors! Knowing George and his collection this car will re-appear in a few years ready for a Concours d’Elegance, Hilton Head anyone? Maybe when it is done I can talk George into trading cars for the weekend (the shot of me and my Roadster, posing with George.)

This story makes me want to beat the bushes even more, or maybe I should get my wife to! They are still out there!!!!!
—Adam

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November 20, 2009 • 4:53 am 1

Ferdinand Alexander Porsche AKA Butzi

To some of us die hard Porsche people being born into the Porsche family is like being descended from royalty. Of all the children of Porsche, FA “Butzi” Porsche has probably had the most impact through his design work of the original 901 and the 904. While the 901 design was tweaked and changed by other people in the company, the 904 was a pure Butzi design, due in part to the strict time constraints the company had to make the car. The 904 was his Howard Roark moment.
After leaving the Porsche company he went on to start the Porsche Design firm, which is best known for its watches, but has designed lots of other stuff. FA Porsche left the firm in 2005.
Being born into royalty was not enough for this grandson of Porsche, he set out to prove he was a Porsche, and he did it!
—Adam

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November 17, 2009 • 1:17 am 0

Affordable piece of racing history

My man Ed has a cool piece of racing history, a Mercedes-Benz Factory built Formula 1 racecar carrier. He is asking $8600 but is open to offers.

Info that was provided by the seller:
Thank you for the inquiry on the MB Transporter. I have a letter from M. Benz factory that the truck was built in 1968. The story is that the truck was sold to Team Valour in England (it is left hand drive) for use in their racing operations which included the Formula 3 campaign of Eddie Cheever. I have a registration document from British Transport Dept to document this. I do not have any photos of Cheever with the truck. The rear doors now have Ross Cheevers name on them. It was imported to the U.S. in 1968 by a man who deals in used Formula Fords. he bought 6 or 8 Formula Fords in England and used it as a shipping container in 1968. I have letters from U.S. DOT approving importation and letters from the Shipping Insurance Company. It was driven to the Harrisburg Pa area from the Baltimore Port. The truck was used for a short period of time. It was then parked and a “restoration was planned”. The rear doors were removed in preparation for the installation of a tailgate lift which was not completed. The truck was partially dismantled and they were overtaken by inertia.
The cab has rust and will need a lot of cutting and welding to make repairs. The crew cabin, behind the drivers compartment, still have the closets, gas stove and the stainless sink in place. The rear side panels on the box came loose and flapped in the wind. They are flat sheet and can be replaced more economically than straightened. The chassis looks good. There are no signs of accident damage to the truck. We have had the engine running and it sounds decent.
The invoice that I have when the truck was sold to John Gerhart of Middletown Pa is from Valour Racing Ltd, Tower Industrial Estate, Wrotham Hill, Near Sevenoaks, Kent. Their phone # 0732 822144
When I was doing research I also found the Valour Racing in New Zealand. The Valour Racing in Kent seems to have closed. I did not find much info on the Web about them and the phone number did not go through. I suppose a conversation with Eddie Cheever would be helpful but he has not responded to Email and I am told he is not a “chatty” kind of guy.
I have a telex from Mercedes Benz Truck co dated Jan 21, 1986 stating that the truck was delivered ex factory Woerth, Oct 1968.
I have a clear Pa title.
Contact me with any questions.

Ed Anspach
Anspach Autos
717 576 1155 cell

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November 15, 2009 • 4:56 pm 1

Auto e Moto d’epoca Show Italy October 2009

This is one that would have been fun to attend. A friend in Italy sent me pictures. It is billed as one of the largest events of its kind in Italy with 60,000 visitors from all over the world. There was a bunch of really cool Porsches. Maybe I will make it next year.

http://www.autoemotodepoca.com
/

—Adam

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November 10, 2009 • 4:33 am 0

Swiss Junkyard Graveyard auctioned off

Many of us have seen these pics and wished we could stumble through the woods onto something like this. The story is that a parts dealer collected all of these cars but than retired some time in the 80s, and the cars have just gone back to nature. This place is similar to the mill in CT we found the two 356s in, all kinds of cool cars, but all in bad shape.
UPDATE: After reading this months issue of our very own 356 Registry magazine I see the cars sold for:
1957 A Coupe $15,800
1954 Pre-A Coupe $16,000
1956 A Coupe $13,000

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That mill had everything from Porsche to Mercedes to even having a Goliath, when was the last time you saw one of those.
The Swiss yard has crazy cars, everything from Porsches to Ferraris to Maseratis to even some strange stuff like NSU.
They held a no reserve auction with a huge turnout. But something tells me some of those cars would not be coming out in one piece, or even two. But it would have been a fun way to spend a Saturday!