On October 24, 1969 Fiat paid one lira (around 0.6cents) to gain outright control of Lancia. That one lira was merely a symbol of course, for Fiat also inherited Lancia’s debts – totally many hundreds of millions of lire. The sudden fall of Turin’s most respected car maker came as a surprise to most people. […]
Lancia’s Camuffo
Denis Jenkinson
Upon discovering Denis Jenkinson – DSJ to the readers – in Motor Sport magazine (you know, the British magazine with the green-cover, edited by WB, William Boddy) in the late 1950s, he instantly became my hero. As Continental Correspondent, DSJ’s Letter From Europe was essential reading. Jenks, wandering around Europe from race circuit to race […]
Carl Borgward and his Marque
Readers of this column undoubtedly know of Borgward, but I suspect most people under the age of 50 have never heard of the marque, let alone acquired any real knowledge of the German cars. Yet, for a short time in the second half of the 1950s, the Borgward star shone brightly, before vanishing almost overnight, […]
Louis Klemantaski
The image is as vivid today as it was 60-years ago when, as a boy, I first saw the photograph and instantly knew that I would always love motor racing. Peter Collins’ head is in darkness, the peak of his flimsy helmet outlined against the sky. His forearms are exposed, his hands covered only by […]
The Motoring Heritage of India
In the forecourt of the Liberty Cinema in Bombay a few years ago, an immaculate Figoni et Falaschi bodied 1936 Delahaye 135 stood in resplendent red, cordoned off by red rope. Passers-by gawked at the car, puzzled by its unfamiliar appearance. Little did they know that this very car, once exchanged by its previous owner […]
Julian Thomson
In 1989, when the Tokyo motor show moved 30km from downtown to Makuhari, the only practicable way from the city (where most of the press and manufacturers stayed) was by train. Which is how I meet Julian Thomson and Simon Cox. As almost the only Caijin on the platform, we struck up a conversation. I […]
Holden’s Stylng Directors
Leo Pruneau, former head of design at Holden, is one of my favourite car people. In the 1990s Leo and I worked together as members of the Wheels magazine Car of the Year judging panel. After the 1994 COTY week, when among much else we discussed Holden design, Leo sent me this photograph of Holden’s […]