Victory!
Back in 2005, Maserati won the FIA GT Championship with its mighty MC12, and to celebrate the achievement, it built 180 GranSport MC Victory special editions. The MC Victory differed to the garden variety GranSport in several ways, not least the carbon-fibre front and rear splitters, extended side skirts, Alcantara-strewn interior, and Italian tricolours recessed in the wings. This immaculate example is one of the few Maserati GranSport MC Victorys that wasn’t painted blue, but rather in beguiling black.
Delightful Delahaye
Towards the end of what is now considered to be the golden era of luxury French coachbuilding, there were still some exceptional cars in production. Take the Philippe Charbonneaux-designed Delahaye 235, for example, the innovative successor to the legendary 135. Ultimately, its eye-watering price and competition meant only 85 were built and clothed by a variety of different coachbuilders. This particular example is the sole convertible Delahaye 235 crafted by Antem and took centre-stage at the 1952 Paris Motor Show. Remarkably, the car wound up in the possession of its creator, Charbonneaux, whose family it would reside with until 2012.
Flawed but fabulous?
Who really cares about structural rigidity when you’re driving something that looks as good as this drop-top 1976 Ferrari 512 Berlinetta Boxer. Numerous small coachbuilders offered cabriolet conversions for Ferraris in the 1970s and ’80s – after all, standing out was everything in the era of excess. This red-over-black example looks to have been done with considerable expertise – we particularly love the motorsport-derived mirrors and wheels. Perhaps Ferrari missed a trick with this one?
Double Black Diamond Extra Bold
Remarkably, Koenigsegg specially developed a unique silver carbon-fibre weave for this CCXR, which was christened the Trevita. Three cars were originally planned for production, but the complexity and time-consuming nature of the new carbon-fibre meant that ultimately just two were completed. A true diamond on wheels, this 1,000bhp, 254mph jewel is currently for sale in Switzerland.
A dream Derelict?
Everybody knows California is kind to old cars. Just look at this 1969 De Tomaso Mangusta, for example, which has been lying dormant in a dry warehouse in the Golden State for 30-odd years. Look past the expected dust, wear and tear, and there’s a structurally sound car waiting to be brought back to life. We’d probably keep it visually tatty but restore the mechanicals – perhaps a trip to Icon is in order?
Photos: Aston Martin of New England, Loris Kessel Auto SA, Sports Classics Geneva, Aguttes, Casting Automobiles Classic
