Cars

Ferrari Dino 246 GT

When the Porsche 924 arrived in 1976, it hardly sparked enthusiasm with the marque’s faithful. Perhaps the VW-derived four-cylinder engine could have been forgiven, were it not water-cooled and at the ‘wrong’ end of the car. But in the closing days of 1979, Porsche’s racing manager made the announcement that a trio of 924 Carrera GTPs would line up on the grid at the 1980 Le Mans race.

We like to think that this is the car Liberace might have used at the weekend, such is its alarmingly excessive (and rather white) demeanour. It’s loud 'n' proud (and oh, so luxurious) on the inside, too, though admittedly those ‘Tartan Dress’ seat inserts were standard fit – this was a car born in the 70s, after all. 

We all know what Bryan Adams was doing in the summer of ’69. But while the Canadian was taking delivery of his first real six-string, Opel’s new design director George Gallion was settling into the company’s new German studio, penning something that even the coachbuilders located 500 miles south would have been proud of.

Final Edition

Based on current-generation Aston Martin Vanquishes in coupé or Volante form, the cars all include bespoke centre console rotaries fashioned in aluminium taken from heritage models.

One of the highlights of the new event will be the 40 classic road cars paraded along the Grand Avenue ‘catwalk’ – four from each decade of the 20th Century. But for many, the static displays will be just as ‘moving’: as well as a showcase of six Le Mans racing machines with genuine competition history at La Sarthe, tributes to Hall of Fame heroes will be illustrated by displays of their old steeds. As such, visitors will see Nuvolari’s Alfa Romeo P3, Fangio’s V16 BRM and Senna’s Lotus 97T, among others.

Automotive photographer Degler roamed the Caribbean island to find the subjects for his 2015 calendar Carros de Cuba, reasoning that there was nowhere else on earth with a streetscape unchanged since the 1950s, the result of a decades-long ban on importing new cars.