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10 Bizarre Collector Car Stories


Devinda_Z

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Bizarre automotive stories surface from time to time and the best ones just never seem to die. Thanks to the Internet, they keep rolling around the world, to be discovered by a new generation. These will likely ring some bells – maybe your grandfather told them to you?

1. The Most One-Sided/Short-Sighted Car Deal of All Time

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In 1962, Dick Rowe an executive with Decca Records rejected a young music group called the Beatles opining that “groups with guitars are on the way out.” In a blunder of similar magnitude two years later, in 1964, fishing equipment magnate John Shakespeare sold his collection of thirty Bugattis and a horde of rare parts to the infamous Fritz Schlumpf for less than $250,000.

To add insult to injury, the collection included a Royale similar to one that sold just eighteen years later for $8.7 million. Reason for Shakespeare's sale, according to the December, 1964 issue of Sports Car Graphic: “To devote more time to his newest hobbies, skiing and skindiving.”

If Shakespeare had held on to the Bugattis a few more years, he could have bought his own mountain and a tropical island. (Photos copyright Sports Car Graphic, 1964)

2. Hell Hath No Fury Like a Man Scorned by Enzo Ferrari

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Ferruccio Lamborghini was a successful manufacturer of farm equipment and the owner of a Ferrari 250GT with chronic clutch problems. When he sought an audience with the imperious Enzo Ferrari, Ferrari told him to go back to driving tractors as he certainly didn’t have the requisite skill to drive a Ferrari.

As it turned out, Lamborghini solved the problem by installing one of his tractor clutches in the Ferrari. But he vowed to get back at Ferrari by producing his own high dollar GT car. He succeeded with the 350GT and 400GT, cars generally regarded as the equal of contemporary Ferraris.

A few years later, Henry Ford II also sought revenge against Ferrari who backed out of a deal to sell Ferrari to Ford. The GT40 was born to spank Ferrari in international sports car racing.

3. The Most Audacious Fraud, M’lord

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By the late 1980s, English nobleman Lord Brockett had fallen on hard times. He had to rent out his manor home Brockett Hall for weddings and Bar Mitzvahs just to pay his bills. When this source of funds wasn’t enough, Brockett cut up and buried several rare and over-insured Ferraris. He reported them stolen and pocketed a hefty insurance settlement.

After his insurance fraud went undetected, Brockett got cocky. He sold a very convincing fake 250 SWB to an American software billionaire and promptly got caught for both this fraud and the earlier insurance scam. “Jailhouse Brockett” served a long prison sentence and earned himself a permanent place in the pantheon of villains in the old car world. He is now a reality television star. (Photo by David Westing/Getty Images)

4. The Disappearing Death Car

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After appearing in just three films, promising star James Dean was killed near Salinas, California while driving to a race in his new Porsche 550 Spyder on September 30th, 1955.

Although the accident wasn’t Dean’s fault, that didn’t stop the Driver’s Ed establishment ghouls from exhibiting the death car along with road carnage scare flicks like “Blood on the Highway” and “Signal 30”. On one such tour, the remains of Dean’s 550 Spyder simply disappeared. Not so much as the chassis tag has ever turned up.

5. Bill Cosby’s Deadly Supersnake

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Incensed that comedian Bill Cosby had an affinity for European sports cars, Carroll Shelby vowed to build him a twin-supercharged custom Cobra that would go over 200 mph - faster than any car Steve McQueen owned.

The car Shelby built for Cosby, with a reputed 900 bhp was downright scary. In his comedy routine, “200 MPH” Cosby described it this way: “The car was idling, I was in neutral, I hadn’t put my foot and the gas pedal, and already, the car was killing people.”

Ironically, after scaring the hell out of Cosby, it passed into the hands of Tony Maxey, who promptly lost control of the car and launched it into the Pacific Ocean, killing himself. (Photo by Barrett-Jackson)

Edited by Devinda_Z
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CONTINUED

6. Eurotrashed? Two Mystery Men Wreck One Enzo

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In February of 2006, police in Malibu, California responded to reports of a Ferrari Enzo driving in excess of 150 mph on Highway 1. By the time the cops got there, the Enzo had hit a bump, become airborne, hit a telephone pole and literally broken itself in two.

A Swedish national named Bo Stefan Eriksson found inebriated at the scene claimed to be the passenger. The alleged driver whom he identified only as Dietrich, was nowhere to be found. A witness, and friend of Eriksson’s named Karney sailed out of the country on a yacht the night of the accident. A fully loaded Glock 9mm clip was found under the seat of the Ferrari.

Eriksson claimed to be an international anti-terrorism cop. In truth, he had a volunteer position with a division of the LA transit authority devoted to giving free rides to elderly shut-ins and he made up his own title as the “homeland security attaché”.

Eriksson had a shady past in Europe and the car itself had been illegally imported. A Scottish bank claimed that it had a lien on the car and was unaware that it had left the UK. As of this writing, Eriksson was jailed awaiting deportation to Either Sweden or Germany. No word on whether either of those countries will accept him.

7. The Greatest Barn Find That Never Was

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Prior to last summer, Portugal was known mainly to US car people for the lovely Formula One venue at Estoril and perhaps port wine. That was until pictures started circulating on the Internet of a huge collection of dusty cars in a warehouse. Few of the cars were extremely valuable, but most were quite interesting and in sheer numbers and dustiness, very captivating.

So the story went, a New York couple bought their dream farm in Portugal and found a large steel building on the property. The door had been welded shut. When it was opened, the bounty of cars, left by the deceased previous owner of the property met their eyes.

A nice story, but complete nonsense. The property belonged to a dealer who had been stashing less important inventory in the building for years. The photos and the story were nothing more than a giant publicity stunt, as SCM writer Tom Cotter (“The Cobra in the Barn”) pointed out.

8. MGB Sales in Flat Spin

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By the early 1970s, the MGB was coming under increasing pressure from newer and more competent sports cars. British Leyland thought they’d liven things up with a high-flying ad campaign. The cornerstone was a commercial that involved a skydiver pushing an MGB on a pallet out the back door of a freighter airplane and then jumping out after the car. Both their chutes would open and the skydiver would hop in and drive off.

All went according to plan, the skydiver pushed the car out and then jumped after it. The skydiver passed the MG and then opened his chute. Seconds later, the car shot past him heading for the ground at 250 mph, (about 2.5 times its normal top speed), trailing a streamer instead of a chute.

Looking like something out of a Wile E. Coyote cartoon, the MGB hit the ground with a thud and a puff of smoke. The second take went a bit better

9. Eva Braun’s Fantasy Car

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A story that ran in the May, 1974 issue of Motor Trend magazine described what was allegedly a special bodied Mercedes 540K build for Hitler’s mistress Eva Braun. Among the special features of the car were a special seven-speed gearbox and the ability to run up to 175 mph on gasoline or diesel at the flick of a switch. In place of the normal three-pointed star hood ornament, the car sported a swastika and where the coachbuilder’s plate should have been was a blank riveted piece of metal.

It was claimed that the car was built by an unnamed Swiss coachbuilder and that it was imported into the US as a farm implement to fool German customs inspectors. It allegedly arrived in the US with two of Braun’s guards’ Schmeisser machine guns in the trunk.

An engaging story, but utter nonsense. Braun never owned a special-bodied Mercedes, and unlike his pal Mussolini, Hitler was no car guy. He was a dour vegetarian who cared little for automotive bling. His mistress Braun was a simpleton focused only on her beloved Fuehrer. The whole thing was reportedly a publicity stunt. The whereabouts of the car are unknown. (Photos copyright Motor Trend, 1974)

10. The Buried Belvedere

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The Tulsarama! festival of 1957 featured one of the nuttiest promotions of all time. A 1957 Plymouth Belvedere was buried under the law of the Tulsa, Oklahoma courthouse and the person (or his heir) who came closest to guessing the 2007 population of Tulsa could park the nuclear powered flying car that we’d all be driving and motor off in the perfectly preserved 1957 Plymouth when it was unearthed in 2007.

The Belvedere was chosen because it represented “the kind of lasting appeal that was bound to be in style in the twenty-first century”. As it turned out, Plymouth itself was gone by 2007 and very little was left of the buried car that resembled a Plymouth. Over the years, its concrete bunker cracked and the car was drowned by the sprinkler system for the courthouse lawn. Couldn’t they have just locked it in a garage in Bartlesville?

Edited by Devinda_Z
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hey devinda nice one man guess it took a lot of time to make the article ..cool bro ..got to kw alot of stuffliked the 1st article abt selling the bugatis ... man ....what a waste .... <_<
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glad to know some odd bits of automotive trivia n anecdotes are valued :)

The blokes at SCM Mag turn up some interesting tales & has some excellent resources - shame that most of the good content is accessible only through subscription :mellow:

...but that story about "Lil Bastard" had me spooked - faaar to eerie to stomach :(

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  • 2 weeks later...

May 19 2008

A week ago Ferrari threw the covers off its new California roadster.

But yesterday at Maranello one of its predecessors sold for a record breaking $10,894,000 - around £5.5m. And the buyer? None other than Chris Evans.

Evans was apparently smitten by the 1961 250 GT SWB California Spyder at a reception held on Saturday night. And when it came to the auction yesterday he entered the bidding, not stopping until he'd secured it for an apparently record-breaking sum, beating a previous high of $10,756,000 paid for a 250 GTO back in 1990.

GALLERY: Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spyder

So what exactly makes the California Spyder so alluring? Well, if you've ever seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off you'll know all about it, held by many to be one of the most beautiful ever made. And the Evans car also has a Hollywood connection, having been previously owned by film star James Coburn.

A close friend of Steve McQueen, the petrolhead influence obviously rubbed off on Coburn, who is reckoned to have bought the car shortly after starring alongside McQueen in The Great Escape. One of just 56 made, his choice of a California Spyder was an inspired one and kicked off a long obsession with the brand.

Sharing much with the celebrated 250 GTO race cars of the period, the California Spyder was unashamedly dressed more for posing than racing but with a glorious 3-litre V12 with around 280bhp under that elegant bonnet it's no slouch and of all the 250 Ferraris is among the most valued.

Given what he's just paid for it you've got to wonder whether Evans will actually be able to take his new toy out and enjoy driving it. But you can be sure this record-breaking price will only add further to the legend of a car known for casting a spell over anyone lucky enough to get behind the wheel.

check out the pics

http://cars.uk.msn.com/News/car_news_artic...umentid=8330588

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Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina

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This is a man with a lot of money. After pulling up past his Porsche Cayenne and personal gas pump in a Maserati, New York Hedge Fund manager Jim Glicknehaus swaps cars for a Ferrari Enzo-turned retro '60s sports car.

Glickenhaus liked the 330 P3/4-era Ferraris so much that he took his Enzo out to Turin, Italy, to recreate the classic cars based on state-of-the-art technology. The entire upgrade cost $4 million on top of the $1 million sticker price on the Enzo all by its lonesome.

Among the upgrades include a complete overhaul of the body, redesigned and rebuilt by Pininfarina, 20' wheels wrapped in fatter tires, beautiful, custom-made fabric (picked out by his wife? Daughter? I'm not one to judge, I just don't know), and a raised "cut line" to allow for easier access to the monster living underneath the hood.

Ferrari liked the overhaul so much that they approved badging the vehicle as a bona fide Ferrari.

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  • 1 month later...

something courtesy Sports Car Market Magazine....

The Saga of a Stolen Shelby

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Howard Pardee, Registrar of 1965 and 1966 Shelby GT350s for the Shelby American Automobile Club (SAAC), was surfing eBay Motors recently to track market trends, when he ran across a nice 1965 Shelby GT350.

The listing identified the car with Shelby serial number and even gave the Ford serial number, which is not visible on the car unless the Shelby VIN or the fenders are removed. Howard gave the car a routine check in the Shelby American factory records. As Registrar, he is the only person who has these records.

The Shelby American factory records listed a different Ford serial number for this car, so Howard ran the Ford number through all his records. He found that it matched a different Shelby serial number. This Shelby was listed as "stolen/never recovered" in the Shelby American World Registries of 1982, 1987, and 1997.

STOLEN, NEVER RECOVERED The eBay seller had purchased the car in 1980 with a reproduction Shelby serial number tag and had a clean New York title. Apparently, the thief had taken the Shelby serial number from a prior 1976 Shelby registry listing that indicated no owner for that particular car, so he figured he was safe using the number on his repro tag. The eBay seller stated he had no knowledge that the car was stolen. That seemed to be true, as he wouldn't have put the Ford serial number in his eBay auction listing if he had known.

After further research, Howard was able to locate the original owner, who confirmed that his Shelby had been stolen in 1979 and never recovered. He was amazed that the same car was apparently available on eBay, at a current bid of $121,000. He was even more amazed when Howard advised him that, based on the condition seen in the photos on eBay, the Shelby’s current market value was likely $150,000–$175,000.

Here the plot thickens into a “Legal Files” story. The original owner had filed a theft claim with his insurance company in 1979. When it became evident that the Shelby was not going to be recovered, the insurance company paid him $6,500 to settle the claim. Assuming he would be able to get the Shelby back, he notified the insurance company that his car had been found and where it was. He then notified police, who contacted the eBay seller. The Shelby was promptly withdrawn from the auction, and the police impounded it, pending resolution of the ownership.

YOU CAN’T TAKE TITLE FROM A THIEF The eBay seller had paid good money to an apparent accomplice of the thief for the Shelby, unaware that it was stolen. But he’s just plain out of luck here, and can’t keep the car. The strength of his ownership interest in the Shelby comes from his seller. Since his seller had no valid ownership interest in the car at all, as it was stolen, he could not transfer any legitimate ownership interest to anyone else. Further, the “valid” New York title was obtained by fraud, and was easily cancelable.

Miraculously, 26 years later, the original owner was ready to be reunited with his long-lost Shelby. “Not so fast,” says the insurance company. “We paid you $6,500 in 1979 when the car was stolen, and you signed the title over to us as a result. It’s our Shelby now.” And they make a very good point.

While this may seem to be an unfair windfall for the insurance company, most stolen cars that are recovered many years later will usually not have appreciated in value. If this had been a base Mustang, not well cared for and worth $500 when recovered, it would not be fair for the insurance company to give it back to the original owner and demand a $6,000 refund. Likewise, the original owner can’t just refund the $6,500 and take the car back.

DON’T CRY FOR THE ORIGINAL OWNER And, the insurance company would say, don’t cry too hard for the original owner. He got paid a fair amount for the car, and he could easily have used the $6,500 to buy another Shelby GT350 in 1979. If he had chosen to do that, and had kept the Shelby until now, he would have a $150,000–$175,000 automobile. Instead, he chose to use the insurance proceeds in some other way, perhaps even in some other investment that appreciated even more.

The eBay seller is very aware of both sides of this story. He has approached the insurance company and has tried to negotiate the purchase of the Shelby from them, hoping to salvage something from his investment. So far, the insurance company has not decided what it will do. This must be a fun situation for them and a great change of pace from their normal daily routine of writing checks to cover losses. They’re actually going to make some money here, no matter how this turns out.

Word is that the thief has already served terms in prison for other auto thefts and extortion. Although he is clearly guilty and liable here, he may get off the hook. He can’t be prosecuted for a 26-year-old car theft, as the statute of limitations ran out many years ago. Ditto for the title fraud, so he isn’t going to do any jail time for this Shelby.

CAN THE EBAY SELLER SUE? The eBay seller clearly has a civil claim against both the thief and his accomplice, but that will depend on the statute of limitations. Undoubtedly, the statute of limitations for civil fraud is shorter than 26 years. However, the key question is when the statute starts to run.

Most state laws provide that the statute of limitations will not start to run on a claim of concealed fraud until the fraud is discovered, and that didn’t happen until now. If that is the applicable state law, the eBay seller can sue the thief and accomplice to get his money back, likely with interest.

Nonetheless, some states place an outside limit on how long a cause of action can last, even in the case of concealment. In Oregon, for instance, the claim would be barred 10 years after the fraud occurred, even if it is still concealed and undiscovered at that time. If the eBay seller’s state has a similar law, he could be totally out of luck.

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  • 1 month later...

Stolen Ferrari 250 PF Cab, A Timeline

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SCM's Michael Sheehan, along with his worldwide gang of Ferrari spotters, have constructed a timeline for the 1958 Ferrari 250 PF Cabriolet, s/n 0799 GT, which now resides at the heart of a "Who's Car Is It?" controversy that spans the Atlantic. Though reported stolen 15 years ago, collectors in the Ferrari world have known the whereabouts of the car, as the timeline illustrates:

S/N 0799 GT. 250 Series I Cabriolet. 16th of 40 built. Covered headlights and no fender vents. Entered Pininfarina plant on 11/05/57. Pininfarina job #19463. Gearbox #45 C. Rear axle #70 GTC. Built for Dino Fabbri of Italy. Painted MM 11911 black with Connolly VM 3218 natural leather. European Auto Sales Stock #1471.

1957, 31 Oct. - Entered Pininfarina plant.

1958, 1 Feb. - Gearbox assembly completed.

1958, 4 Feb. - Engine tested.

1958, Feb. - First owner Dino Fabbri, Italy.

1962, Mar. - Converted at the factory to disc brakes.

1967 - Sold to Tom Meade.

1967 - Sold by Tom Meade, Modena, Italy, by L. Kitt Tucker, Jacksonville, FL. Car had just been rebuilt by the factory and had 52,000 km on it at that time.

1970 - Sold by Tucker "to a man who lives in Houston, TX."

1970, 11 Sept. - Registered by Peter Bowers, Houston, TX. Registered on Texas plates NTF 852, later 365 VQV. Title no 56560922.

1971-1975 - Listed in the FOCUSA Rosters by Peter A. Bowers, Houston, TX.

1980 - Still owned by Bowers through the 1980s per conversations with Sid Simpson, Ferrari mechanic in Houston.

1989, 03 Apr. - Sold by Bowers for US $680,000 to Michael Sheehan's European Auto Sales and Restoration. Purchase agreement states warranty was as inspected by European Auto staff. $50,000 deposit sent to Bowers with balance due in 15-20 days or sooner.

1989, 6 Apr. - Incoming wire information for European Auto for $120,000 for Andre Zenari, c/o Birkhart Transport AG, Leonhardsstrasse 53, CH 4003, Basel, Switzerland. Deposit on s/n 0799, with full price being $780,000.

1989, 17 Apr. - Notarized handwritten letter to European Auto from Peter Bowers from Texas, stating "I, Peter Bowers, hereby sell Ferrari no. 0799 to European Auto sales Inc. in accordance with the attached contract."

1989, 17 Apr. - $7,000 (1st payment sent by Michael Sheehan's European Auto Sales on finders fee) to Lawrence Diaz.

1989, 17 Apr. - $3,000 (2nd payment sent by Michael Sheehan's European Auto Sales on finders fee) to Lawrence Diaz.

1989, 21 Apr. - Sold by Michael Sheehan's European Auto Sales to Andre Zenari, C/O Birkhart Transport AG, Leonhardsstrasse 53, CH 4003, Basel, Switzerland, for US $780,000. The broker was Werner Schoch.

1989, 15 May - As per European Auto Disbursement request and check for $35,560 payable to W. Schoch Porsche Sales commission on 1958 Ferrari 0799 from Garry Roberts.

1989, May - Sold by Andre Zenari to Dr. Andreas Gerber, Pieterlen, Switzerland. Registered on plates BE 79395.

Owned by Dr. Andreas Gerber of Switzerland until allegedly stolen from his warehouse in Marbella, Spain in 1993.

1993, 07 July - Report of theft regarding Ferrari 250 Pininfarina Cabriolet s/n 0799 GT was filed, Interpol case #216543.

1994, June - For sale by a Mr. Mennino, Bologna, Italy. Allegedly Mennino lost 0799 to the bank.

1994 - The car was sold back to the United States, having been on consignment (along with two other classic Ferraris) at a dealer in Marbella, Spain, and offered via an Italian broker named Gianni Mennino.

1995 - Advertised by Classic Coach, Ltd. of New York and sold to Scott Rosen of Medford, New Jersey.

1995 - Owned 1995 by Scott Rosen, Medford, NJ.

1995, 11 Jan. - As per phone call from Scott Rosen, this car has undergone a complete restoration at Frank Triarsi's shop. Car now has Series II taillights placed horizontally at top of rear fenders.

1997, 12 May - Rosen traded the car to Jeff Schwartz for another 250 GT Cabriolet Series 1, s/n ‘0779 GT’, plus US $225,000 in cash.

2000 - Rosen bought back ‘0799 GT’ for US $525,000 and it was advertised in June 2000 at US $595,000.

2001, January - Sold to Paul “Barney” Hallingby of Sharon, Connecticut, in January 2001.

2001, January - Shown at Cavallino Classic, Florida. The front sheet metal had a "275 GTB" type look. When shown it was missing all its tools and the spare. License plate was Conn. 34234.

2004, 20 June - Shown at the Hartford Concours in Connecticut, silver with dark red leather trim.

2005, 5-6 June - Shown at the Greenwich Concours, Connecticut.

2007 - December issue, Forza magazine, seven page feature on this car and other cars in the Hallingby collection.

2008 - An advertisement was placed in Cavallino magazine calling for information on the whereabouts of the car and its theft on the 7 July, 1993. It's location was hardly a secret.

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In the wake of the recent discovery in Sharon, Connecticut, of a 1958 Ferrari 250 PF Cabriolet that went missing from Spain some 15 years ago, SCM's legal analyst John Draneas attempts to shine some light on where this confusing case may be headed:

The legal analysis begins with the seemingly simple question, “Which law applies?” And with which meaning, Spanish or U.S. law? After all, the Ferrari was stolen in Spain, but it is now in the United States.

If U.S. law applies, it is likely that the European owner can recover the Ferrari without any obligation to the current owner. The current owner would have clear recourse against his seller, and his seller against his seller, etc., until the chain gets all the way back to the thief, who ends up holding the hot potato.

But we do not have any uniform law in the United States. Each state adopts its own laws. Many times their laws are very much the same, but there can be differences. Each of the links in this litigation chain can be controlled by a different state’s laws, depending on where the seller and buyer reside and where the sale took place. There can be different abilities to recover, and different statutes of limitations could apply. The key points are that each link is separately analyzed, and once the chain is broken, there is no way to get back to an earlier link.

The Uniform Commercial Code generally provides that good title passes to a purchaser if he buys the property from a dealer who customarily sells such items of property. But this provision of the UCC has repeatedly been held inapplicable to stolen property. For the rule to apply, the property must be entrusted to the dealer by the owner, and the owner is the fellow in Europe.

Much time has passed here, and it would seem that a statute of limitations might apply. However, statutes of limitations generally run from the time of the discovery of the theft, or the discovery of who has the car. And there is generally no duty of “due diligence” imposed on the owner. That is, he doesn’t have to look very hard, and can generally just wait until the car pops up.

Very similar to a statute of limitations, a legal doctrine known as laches might apply. Generally stated, this legal theory would require that the owner make reasonable efforts to report the theft and locate the car, and if he sits around too long doing nothing, the court might refuse to order the return of the car. But this legal doctrine is very imprecise, and its application is difficult to predict. And if it were applied, it would be applied both ways. The purchaser would have to establish his own innocence, and that he made a reasonable investigation to determine the title of the car before he could expect a court to preclude the owner from recovering the car.

In this case, the same rumors and innuendos that should have helped the owner locate the car might also work to destroy the purchaser’s innocence sufficiently to prevent the application of the laches doctrine

Edited by Devinda_Z
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SHARON - A rare Ferrari reported stolen in Spain 15 years ago was recovered by state police in Sharon on Thursday.

The 1958 Ferrari 250 PF, valued at between $4 million and $5 million by exotic car enthusiasts, was smuggled into the United States and registered in 1994 in New Jersey under a false Vehicle Identification Number.

The vehicle was sold an transferred multiple times in New Jersey. In 2000, the car was sold for $550,000 to an unsuspecting buyer in Sharon who added it to his collection of exotic vehicles, state police said.

State police said they opened an investigation in June 2008 after receiving information that the car was registered in Connectiuct.

The Connecticut State Police to enter and seize the 1958 Ferrari 250 PF Cabriolet, S/N 0799GT, from the premises of long-time Ferrari collector and SCMer Paul "Barney" Hallingby.

The original owner reported the car stolen in 1993, but never accepted the insurance claim. He believed the Ferrari was so rare and valuable that it would eventually turn up, state police said.

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glad to know some odd bits of automotive trivia n anecdotes are valued :)

The blokes at SCM Mag turn up some interesting tales & has some excellent resources - shame that most of the good content is accessible only through subscription :mellow:

...but that story about "Lil Bastard" had me spooked - faaar to eerie to stomach :(

Hi devinda

Super stuff mate and Thanks for taking the time and trouble.

I too agree that we need to subscribe to the car mags and after the kids arrived I had to stop.

Why not a few of us join up and get a few subs done together so that we all do not feel the pinch ? We can pass them around and share ?

I have a load of mags which I can put in a library sort thingy to kick things off........

whatcha think?

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Hi devinda

Super stuff mate and Thanks for taking the time and trouble.

I too agree that we need to subscribe to the car mags and after the kids arrived I had to stop.

Why not a few of us join up and get a few subs done together so that we all do not feel the pinch ? We can pass them around and share ?

I have a load of mags which I can put in a library sort thingy to kick things off........

whatcha think?

quite an interesting idea Pradfred :)

i've found a simpler and more cost effective way of getting Auto news - i've gone n signed up for many of the auto-ezines out there as well as news letters of some car mags.

its true that you won't get detailed info but it certainly keeps you in the loop when it comes to uptodate auto related news.

one of the online Mags thats free and has impressed me the most , especially when it comes to the degree of interactivity is imotor - take a gnader and see and make sure you make use of all the additional features - lotsa fun reading it! :)

http://www.imotormag.co.uk/

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Have you tried Winding Road?

used to be a fan when it was available in PDF format but lost interest after they went in for that dynamic online layout which for some reason i have issues with, both with the browser as well as content loading :(

@ MiniAce - glad you like it :)

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@ MiniAce - glad you like it :)

Of course mate.Took print-outs to read when im away and off duty! You just secured a future part-time job :o ,will get you info soon bro! :) Great effort and superb work.Please fill this thread with equally good stuff.

MINIACE

Edited by miniace
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One-Off Lamborghini Bertone Miura Roadster Emerges After 40 Years

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After more than 40 years spent shuffling from auto shows, to museums, to the often careless hands of private collectors, a stunning one-off Lamborghini Miura Spyder has surfaced for the edification of the classic car-loving public.

Created by Marcello Gandini as a design exercise assigned by Nuccio Bertone himself, this topless Miura was finished in 1967 and proceeded to spend the next decade touring the auto show circuit around the world. Originally finished in a light blue metallic paint with an off-white leather interior, the car was later shipped back to Sant’Agata in a deal with the International Lead and Zinc Research Organization, which was looking for a sort of test bed/show car for various zinc-based components. The ILZRO refinished the Miura in a fetching metallic green, adding a raft of bright work and experimental parts in the process.

The spyder spent three decades moving from collections in the U.S., Japan, and Europe, before being purchased in late 2006 by a New York property developer who recognized the Lamborghini for the historic piece that it was. Read the full story of the Miura Spyder in the press release below, and be sure to enjoy a few choice images of the stunning car in our gallery above.

One-off Lamborghini Miura Spyder re-emerges after 40 years!

Exclusive news from Joe Sackey, Miura expert and author of "The Lamborghini Miura Bible" to be published in November 2008 by Veloce Publishing Ltd.

Purely as a design exercise, aimed at keeping demand for Lamborghini’s Miura on the crest of a wave, Nuccio Bertone assigned Marcello Gandini a styling project to create a Spyder version of the Miura, commencing in the second half of 1967.

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The ‘Lamborghini Bertone Miura Roadster,’ as it was officially christened, was finished in a light metallic blue with an off-white leather interior with red carpeting. The dashboard and steering remained black, and the steering wheel itself was the original avant-garde unit that was also used on the Marzal. This Miura carried chassis number 3498 (which, in accordance with its one-off prototype status, is not even listed in the factory’s original production chassis number register), and P400 engine number 1642 was fitted.

For the January 1968 Salon de L’Automobile Bruxelles, Bertone pulled off another masterstroke when he unveiled this Miura Spyder to a gob-smacked Ferruccio Lamborghini, who, we are told, only saw the show car for the first time at the preview the day before. However, Bertone told Lamborghini to put any ideas of production right out of his mind: “We couldn’t make this car for production because there were untold problems with stress-tolerance issues involving the chassis and the windscreen. It’s purpose was simply that of a showcar,” Bertone confided to a GM stylist years later.

With its Bertone publicity duties completed, the Spyder was sent to Sant’Agata (where it was famously photographed by both Zagari and Coltrin, and it was fettled by the service department with the idea of making it roadworthy to sell as an expensive one-off.

In 1968, International Lead and Zinc Research Organisation (ILZRO) CEO, the late Shrade Radtke, was looking for something radical to showcase the zinc alloys, coating and plating systems the company promoted for the major manufacturers in the Detroit area. It was decided to purchase a standard production Lamborghini Miura Berlinetta and have it specially built using zinc-based components and trim wherever possible.

Onwards then to Sant’Agata, and a meeting with Paolo Stanzani. However, Stanzani was against the idea of modifying a production Miura, and came up with the convenient solution of offering the one-off Miura Roadster, at the time at Sant’Agata for fettling. The offer was accepted on the spot.

In May of 1969, the "ZN75" was completed, now adorned with much extra brightwork and painted metalic green, and Bertone arranged for a private showing at a villa in Turin, attended by the hierachy of the Italian automotive industry. It was a special day, and Bertone, was proudly pictured with the car on that occasion.

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There followed a globe-trotting schedule of International Motor Shows -

August 1969 – Shown in Detroit, Michigan

October 1969 – Shown in Montreal, Canada

November 1969 – Shown in Anaheim, California

January 1970 – Shown in Detroit, Michigan

January 1970 – Shown in Montreal, Canada

February 1970 – Shown in London, England and featured on BBC TV

April 1970 – Shown in Palmerton, Pennsylvania

July 1970 – Shown in Tokyo, Japan

August 1970 – Shown in Sydney, Australia

November 1970 – Shown in Paris, France

After a final showing at the 1978 Detroit Motor Show, in February of 1981, Radtke donated the car to the Boston Museum of Transportation for an estimated $200,000 tax deduction. In the mid-1980s, it was refurbished and its interior upholstery replaced.

In 1989, it was purchased by the Portman group, and has spent its life since then shuttling from auction house to temporary owner, likely because its full history and significance is unknown by most. Auctioned off soon thereafter, it spent a number of years in Japanese collection. In 2002 it returned to the USA for a brief sojourn, before finding another home with a Ferrari collector in France.

In December 2006, the priceless Miura Roadster was finally purchased by a New York property developer who, at huge cost, has had the car returned to its original 1968 Salon de L’Automobile Bruxelles specification. The conversion, by the Bobileff Motorcar Company, was completed in late August 2008.

Source : Seyth Miersma - Nextautos.com

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In addition to :rolleyes:

"7. The Greatest Barn Find That Never Was"

added by devinda_Z sometime back on this forum.. Got this info through an email.

"A New York man retired. He wanted to use his retirement money wisely, so it would last, and decided to buy a home and a few acres in Portugal . The modest farmhouse had been vacant for 15 years.; the owner and wife both had died, and there were no heirs. The house was sold to pay taxes. There had been several lookers, but the large barn had steel doors, and they had been welded shut. Nobody wanted to go to the extra expense to see what was in the barn, and it wasn't complimentary to the property anyway......so, nobody made an offer on the place.

The New York guy bought it at just over half of the property's worth, moved in, and set about to tear in to the barn.......curiosity was killing him.

So, he and his wife bought a generator, and a couple of grinders.......and cut thru the welds."

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contd..

Edited by Lasitha R
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