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In Reply to: RE: Car in Movies- Roll 'Em! posted by Bambi B on February 19, 2010 at 10:27:25
Speaking of which, I really liked the 420G that was featured in the movie The Krays (about twin British gangsters).
Follow Ups:
PHOTOS: Jaguar C-Type at the Pebble Beach Concours and below an XKSSLarry I,
Thanks- I've long been a Jaguar enthusiast and had that XK140 for 22 years. I bought that car when I passed up a basket case actual C-Type racing car for $12,000- the worst car mistake I ever made. The C-Type was the most beautiful racing car ever -and they're $2,000,000 now. Well, actually I made another error as I passed up a Ferrari Lusso- only 50 made- for $41,000 too,... I drove the XK140 to the Pebble Beach car weekend twice and drove it around Laguna Seca the years Jaguar was featured. My dream car after the C-Type has been a 1957 XKSS, but as there were only 16 made before a factory fire Ihave to settle for a replica. I saw Steve McQueen's XKSS at Laguna Seca once. My brother is a Jag fan too- he had an XKE for high school graduation- which he rolled and was replaced by a Ford, then a 96 XJ6- which used to cost him $400/month to maintain, still has a 2004 XJ8 and recently bought an XKR coupe. He said the XKR would be only for "special occasions", but since he's had it, I think he sleeps in it!
I somehow missed the movie about the Krays so missed the 420G. Those seemed at the time to be immensely large cars, but just fantastic interiors- like a Bentley.
The Krays: When I lived in London in the 70's there was a neighbour- who was a restaurant owner with 11 Rolls-Royces that he hired out as a side line. These cars often sat a long time without moving and I once gave a Silver Cloud a jump start with my 1952 Morris Minor. This fellow had known the Krays in the 60's, but never would talk about them even though both had been sent to prison a couple of years before- they still had "reach". The Krays were so terrifyingly violent that ordinary Londoners who knew anything about them were reluctant to even mention their names as though saying their name would cause them to appear. This neighbour, by the way, was found murdered in his office in 1976, but of course the Krays had nothing to do with it- and I didn't hear a thing and would never associate them with that.
I'll have to look into the Krays' movie- I'll bet it's very relaxing.
Cheers,Bambi B
Edits: 02/19/10
fictionalized screen stories that are as bad or worse and the story-telling and acting don't elevate the film above the mundane. The Pusher trilogy is far better.... excellent, actually.
You should know that!
Share a bowl of grits with someone you love tonight.
PHOTO: Another of my favourite race cars forms- a 1949 Ferrari 166MM Barchetta. Notice the 1930 Alfa Romeo 1750 in the background too- another shapely Italian. Below: The 166MM had the gearshift wonderfully marked in Roman Numerals !
mr. g,
That is indeed another great one- and it was an elegant design inside as well as outside- the structure really is like a bird cage- as designed by Frank Gehry. I always thought the Birdcage was an odd fish- they're extrmely modern- the stucture and the outside form was quite advanced in 1959 in that they had about 3-Litre engines that were four cylinder- as though it was a 1914 Stutz Bearcat. Three Litre Ferrari engines in 1959 were V-12's- they had made V-12's that were only 1.5's. Engine designers knew that more pistons meant greater valves surface and also better thermodynamic behaviour- large cylinders don't have as efficient ignition. The Birdcage engine make a really odd sound too- thumpy and pulsating like Offenhausers as compared to the whine of V-12's. I'll bet you can buy recordings of those engines- and I cold listen all night! A really striking design the Tipo 61. There was a legend about the birdcage that they were incredibly fatal cars in crashes- the driver would get skewered with all those angular structural components compressed into your body. And, it was said that this awareness of the danger that made the drivers extra keen on avoiding walls!
Speaking of Maserati race cars, I was at the local used Ferrari / Maserati lot in Calabasas, CA a few months ago and they had this amazing polished Aluminium Maserati prototype from 1953. It was just beautiful- and tiny. Even though this one had had a serious racing life- all slightly tweaked - it was sleekly catlike and powerfully muscular at the same time- an Aluminium Leopard. And, those old Maserati engines were like watches. The Italians have no concept of what electrons do, but they make mechanical things an art. This dealer had the new Maserati series- the soupe, roaster and Quattroporte and the new look is even stronger than the the last one- nicely refined.
Another 50's race car I think it an absolute stunner is the Ferrari 166MM "Barchetta" -or "little boat"(photo above). These were almost miniature cars with 2-Litre V-12's that made that ripping canvas sound. Can you imagine allthose parts for 2-Litres! The bodies were just perfect, pure form and all the curves resolved into each other- fantastic. Still, the thing that I found the most delightful is the gearshift knob with the gears marked in Roman Numerals!
Those Italians- Mama mia !
Cheers,
Bambi B
P.S. The only Italian car out of 35 I ever had was a 1974 Fiat 124 "TC" - which was the boxy four door but with the engine from the 124 Spider sports car. It really was fun- like a larger, squarer Mini Cooper- vertical steering column and all. The short wheelbase, wheels at the corner, neat and fast 4-Speed shift, and high revving Spider engine made it fun- even sounded rorty- ripping sound on the overrun. Of course, all the electrical switches fell apart and it ate alternators for breakfast, but a lot of fun. I gave it to my girlfriend of the time, she drove it for three years and gave it back- she needed a larger car- and I sold it for what I paid- a lot of fun for $0.00.
The original Tipo 60 "Birdcage" Maserati was introduced in 1959 and used a 2 litre / 122 ci 4 cyl motor. It was designed to be a customer car, robust and easy to repair in the field. The Tipo 61 (next model) used a slightly larger versions of the same motor; 2.5 L and 2.9 L. These cars dominated US Sports Car racing in 59-60-61. By the early 60's Maserati, like Ferrari had changed to rear engined cars. The Tipo 63 was the 1st rear engined Birdcage and initially used the existing 4 cyl engines. A later version used a 2.5 L 12 Cyl engine derived from the motor used in the 250F Grand Prix car from 1957. Later versions also used a derrivative of the 4.5 L V-8 from the 450s and a larger 8 cyl motor derrived from the original Quatroporte sedan.
Beautiful cars that in their day were among the best racing cars in the world.
Best,
Ross
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