We’ve all seen my American garage; now here, spurred on by last Saturday’s post of the Holland-to-Spain exercise, is its European counterpart. It would be located in, I dunno, maybe the Austrian Alps or somewhere in the Black Forest, wherever I decided to set up a European base.
I excluded all British right-hand drive ones, with regret, because while I’d be okay on a highway, the smaller Euro roads (which I’d surely drive instead) are another story altogether.
Anyway, I limited my European garage to ten cars, as before, and here they are, in no specific order:
1972 Fiat Dino 2400
Are you kidding me? I’ve always loved Fiats, with all their little quirks and niggles, but a Fiat with a Ferrari (Dino) 246 V6 under the hood? [exit, drooling]
1971 BMW 3.0CS
I drove one once, and I would feel comfortable making this my everyday driver, on any continent (okay, Europe or the U.S.). All the power I’d ever need, understated looks, old-time Beemer reliability and performance… I think you get my drift.
1981 Alfa Romeo GTV6
As for Fiat, so with Alfa. I’ve driven this beauty before, from Johannesburg to Durban (about 400 miles) and I can truthfully say that it was the most enthralling drive ever — the old mountain road called Van Reenen’s Pass was a twisty, narrow and stupendous test for any car’s roadholding and handling, and the GTV6 passed with flying colors. (Me? My whole body was shaking with an adrenaline overload.) And yeah, when I eventually stopped to refuel, the door handle came off in my hand. Si bella.
1949 Mercedes-Benz 170S
My oldie choice. Yes, I’d prefer the 1954/55 300 S or SC, but that’s not what they had in stock, the Dutch idiots, so I’d “settle” for the 170. Drive all day, and drink in the admiration from passers-by. My kinda fun.
1977 Jensen Interceptor MK3
My token Anglo-American car in the garage. Who’s going to say no to a spacious sports car with that lovely color scheme, and the brilliant Chrysler 7.2-liter V8 engine purring (okay, roaring) as you get to a nice flat bit of straight road? Not I.
1974 Volkswagen Beetle
For those days I just want to be incognito.
1989 BMW 320i E30
A sentimental choice, this one. I owned a BMW 318i back in the old Racist Republic, and loved it more than perhaps any other car I drove back there. And this E30 model has a stick shift, just as mine did. Hubba hubba.
Porsche 356 Pre-A Roadster
If my European garage is going to contain a Porsche (and of course it should) then this lovely old 356 fills the requirement, more than adequately. And anyway, I don’t care much for the 911 line.
And finally:
1965 Mercedes-Benz 230SL Pagode
Okay, maybe the older 230 SL is a little underpowered by today’s rip-roaring sports car standards; but if we go by my major criterion, i.e. “Will this car make me glad to be alive when I see it in the garage?”, then the little 230 most assuredly qualifies.
Wait… no Ferrari, Kim?
I’m not too impressed by the ones offered, to be honest. And I did pick the Ferrari-powered Fiat 2400, didn’t I?
Oh, I need to answer the question posed in last Saturday’s Amsterdam – Madrid exercise: which one would I pick to make the trip?
None of them — because the rules state that it’s a one-way trip and the car to be sold upon arrival in Madrid. I wouldn’t want that for any of the above. For that reason, this is my pick:
1961 Jaguar MK II
That unbelievable color scheme, a supremely comfortable ride, and pretty much all the power one would need on a European road… if you don’t agree with this choice, I’m quite sure you’ve never been in a Mk II. I have, and that’s all there is to say about that.
One last thing: there is, among all the cars for sale at ER Classics, one that I’d buy and ship back to the U.S., simply because I’d want an SUV that would be more U than S, if you follow me. That’s this one:
1984 Mercedes-Benz 300GD
Excuse me, but that lovely and powerful 3-liter diesel engine (fuck Earth Day) in something that can be driven hard and put away all muddy and dusty, to be driven in the same manner the next day, and the next, and the next, without ever breaking down or even breaking a sweat?
Want.
Would be the Mercedes 230SL for me. And I miss the companion totties. I did a little Googlz and found Hedy Scott, Belgian born (for a little European flair) Playmate of the month in June 1965.
JC
Ok European Garage. Based probably in the UK somewhere.
1980 930 Because Early Porsche Turbo
1970 E-Type The BRG over Tan one
1991 Mini —- Because it’s a real Mini.
The 1963 Bentley Because you Drive a Bentley – Someone drives you in a Rolls of the same vintage.
1987 Citrioen 2CV — Because I can drive it in France and pretend to be a local.
the 1912 Cadilac — It’s a car collection It doesn’t need to be practical
The 1955 Aston Martin DG2
and the 1956 Fiat 1100 Barchetta Because I want to drive in the Mille Maglia Tour and you need a spare for when one of your entry’s breaks. and they are both eligible.
the 1903 Curved Dash Olds Replica So I can participate in the London to Brighton Run. Certainty the stuffed shirts that run this event won’t mind that I’m basically entering a tarted -up Cushman Golf Cart….. Right??
Aston Martin DB7 Vantage — Because in this collection I need at least one more reliable car, after the 930.
A reliable Aston Martin? What is the color of the sun on your planet?
The secret to having a reliable British car of that era and that price bracket – notice the higher survival rates of the premium British marques like Bentley and RR – was to strip out all the crap components and replace them. The thing was, the car manufacturers squeezed their suppliers (notably Lucas) so hard that it was not profitable for them to supply components of sufficient quality, so they supplied crap ones. Replace the crap brake pads, brake disks, spark plugs, etc etc with decent ones and your car stood a chance of lasting. Of course, this added considerable extra expense and would consume many weekends.
Ah, so THAT’S the “Cara Mia” car! I think that post was one of your best pieces of prose though, for some reason, I always find myself reading it in Jeremy Clarkson’s voice.
The 300GD is the ticket. The rest have small seating areas and would be uncomfortable after an hour. They would also be difficult to get in and out of.
Memories of the 89 Porsche 944S that had the factory low end 350 HP race head, cam, turbo, and injectors. Fantastic car to drive but a PIA to get in and out of. I got it cheap, used, with a blown head gasket and a questionable turbo at 5 years old and 50k miles. The low end factory race kit was almost the same price as a new head and turbo. Perfect 50/50 weight balance and at just under 3k pounds the 350HP car would fly. It was my mid life crisis car. I sold the car after 3 years for what I had in it.
I like the Merc 300. I think they made some other really nice off road trucks that are great to haul your gear to the range and such.