In 2007, Kevin Morfett chose to capitalise on his 40 years’ experience in the classic car world and established Historika, a business specialising in the trade, restoration, maintenance and race preparation of classic Porsches – a topic for which Kevin’s admits to having more than a penchant (he bought a 911 2.4 S as a teenager and never looked back).
Imagine if Sergio Pininfarina and Enzo Ferrari had never met. Certainly, Italian automotive history would have been written in a fundamentally different way. Since 1951, the illustrious Turinese styling house has designed over 200 cars for Ferrari, the vast majority of which became instant classics. Naturally, Pininfarina’s key personnel were among the first in line for the latest models, ahead of most regular customers.
For those in the market for an interesting mid-level classic, Aguttes’ latest catalogue will spoil for choice. From a humble 1961 Fiat 500 Nuova Transformabile estimated at just 13,000-18,000 euros to a V10-powered Porsche Carrera GT from 2004 expected to garner 500,000-600,000 euros, there is truly special something for everyone on offer.
Wearing hand-made glassfibre bodywork with a backwards-mounted 27-litre Merlin V12 (minus superchargers) driving the rear wheels through a step-up gearbox, the Merlincar is possibly one of the most curious cars you’ll ever see – and for its owner John Dodd, it certainly proved the costliest. The car came into his possession as a rolling chassis after he had helped its then-owner solve the conundrum of which gearbox the Merlin could be twinned with – and once the bodywork was completed, he immediately went about getting the car road-registered.
Video: King Rose Archives
The Diablo GT1 Stradale is everything a Lamborghini should be – a brazen, bright yellow behemoth that qualifies for a space on the bedroom wall of almost any teenager. It was, if you will, Lamborghini’s final flourish before Audi rescued the company from impending financial doom, and went about reinvigorating it in ruthlessly Teutonic fashion.