Name this car....

[Ivan Goriup]

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I've had this car in my image inventory since 2015, when I ran across it at the Pebble Beach Concours. I hadn't seen nor heard of this car prior to my sighting it on the lawn while standing next to Jay Leno, who leaned over and murmured conspiratorially: "do you have any idea what the Hell this thing is ?". Be warned: it is unique, a one-off, one man's dream based on a chassis & drive train of one the car manufacturers building automobiles since the dawn of the 'horseless carriage' days.

Below, the first clue, including the feature that gave the car its name.

JZG

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[stuny]

Let's start with UK late '50s - early '60s.  If UK, perhaps AM drive train.

[Ivan Goriup]

Stuart, the chassis and drive train were purchased new from the manufacturer in the UK in 1948.......and it's not Aston-Martin. If memory serves me correc tly AM was founded just prior tom WW 1, whereas the manufacturer in question of the base portion of this car made it's first automobile in the late 1800hundreds.

To help everyone out and encourage participation through additional guesses, the buyer was a Swiss-based coachbuilder specializing in creating exclusive bodies for top-of-the-line Cadillac, Mercedes, Bentley & Delahayes  who decided to build his 'dream car' on this base.

Below, an additional clue to give everyone a better idea of the general character of this car.

JZG

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[wlaidlaw]

Could it be based on a Daimler DE36 (straight eight) or maybe the shorter DE27 (straight six) Chassis. Lady Docker made some very odd looking creations on these chassis (her husband owned Daimler at the time). 

Wilson

[Ivan Goriup]

Sorry Wilson....no Daimler content in this car.

I thought about this and concluded that this is simply too far of a stretch, what with only one example worldwide, and this being the first public appearance anywhere, therefore I'll just tell all here and now.

It's a 1948 Riley 2 1/2 Litre Walter Kong Transformable Saloon

Quoting directly from the Concours 'Car Guide' brochure.

"Walter Kong was a coachbuilder based in Basel who created bodies on Bentleys, Cadillacs, Mercedes and Delahayes.In 1948 he purchsed a new Riley 2 1/2 litre chassis to serve as the foundation to create his dream car.  The overall shape is Art Deco, the body is made of aluminum using aircraft technology and includes removable roof panels - hence its name, Transformable. Silk panels are also provided ( they are stored in the trunk )to be installed in place of the clear panels when desired.

Kong planned to build a series and exhibited it at the 1949 Geneva Auto Show. Although it attracted much interest the price was too high with all the handmade details. The car remained with Kong and he drove it and enjoyed it until 1976 when it passed to its second owner. The current owner has kept it as it was built and is shown here exactly as it was in 1949."

Thanks for playing, and I apologize for picking one that was simply too obscure.

All images - Leica M9-P/ 35mm Summilux Asph FLE

JZG

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[Ivan Goriup]

....and a rear view. On this side you can see the silk insert directly above the passenger seat. Personally, looking at this car, I see the seeds of the side scvoops which appeared on the Corvette when it was restyled as the 2dn generation models. and I certainly think the idea for the removable 'Targa roof' panels on later Corvettes, Datsuns, and numreous other cars of the '70s & 80's originated here.

JZG

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[wlaidlaw]

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I suspect the reason for the lack of sales was that Walter Kong chose the wrong underpinnings for his exotically bodied car. Whereas the Riley 2.5L is a perfectly worthy car, it is not really special enough. The problem is that by 1948, not many manufacturers offered their cars as a chassis, as had been common pre-war. He might have had more success if he had used something like a Talbot Lago Gran Sport, Delahaye 135S, Alfa Romeo 6C2500 or Bugatti 101 as the basis. 

Wilson

[stuny]

Who would like to go next?

[ramarren]

That "Transformable Saloon" is quite the interesting machine! Thanks for posting that. 

I don't have anything to pose as a next puzzle car just at the moment but I'm enjoying the game.  My body is slowly, slowly healing in the leg and such; the shoulder surgery is all scheduled, the lawyer is on the case. So ... long days of not much to do, due to the weirdnesses of being without my 'good arm' and a leg.

Other than read and deal with miscellaneous business having to do with the injury, I've been mucking around with my 1:43 and 1:18 scale model car collection. I've run out of space in the 56 car 1:43 display, a half a dozen of which cars have been shunted into empty slots in the 1:18 display. But there's still a dozen more 1:43 cars waiting for a slot. So I decided to add a 36 car display (same format and style as the 56) to the game, and focus it on the Mercedes and Lancia models. That gives home to all the currently displayed 1:43 Mercedes and Lancias plus all the ones still in boxes, and leaves half a dozen open spaces to revise the 56 car display. I've also acquired a 1:18 scale model of my current SLK 280 and the 1952 Lancia Aurelia B20GT Mille Miglia car to finish out the 1:18 scale display case. 

This is all going to look so nice once the new case is up and all the cars are laid out.   A 1960 Mercedes 280S sedan was the first car I bought for myself back in 1973, and the 1967 Lancia Fulvia Coupe has been the last, so it all fits with the notions in my head. (I have to give honor to another signal car in my personal history and find another 1970s Alfa Romeo Spider 2000 that I can customize to be the representation of my last and forever Alfa Romeo "FrankenSpider" that I built in 1999-2000. 

 

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FrankenSpider - 1979 chassis, 1982 engine/transmission with injection, lightened bumpers, completely revised/overhauled suspension and drivetrain, 1982 'Star' wheels. A magnificent hodgepodge of Alfa Romeo bits and aftermarket performance stuff to make my final and fun Alfa Romeo type 105 car. 

Onwards, always onwards!  G

[Ivan Goriup]

5 hours ago, stuny said:

Who would like to go next?

I was having a discussion via e-mail with a friend and ex-member of a car owners club we once both belonged to, and in the course of the 'argument' I sent him some images to prove a point. When Stuart asked for volunteers in his post #20888, I thought this presented the perfect opportunity to use these images as the new 'puzzle car', and ask you folks to identify it.

The usual info please, but especially the precise model designation, please.

It'll be a busy weekend, so please forgive me if it takes a little time to reply.

JZG

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[ramarren]

That looks very very familiar but no name comes to mind at the moment. Hmmm. 

G

[Indeepthought]

Skoda

[wlaidlaw]

Cunningham C3? 

Wilson

[Ivan Goriup]

Wilson's the closest to a correct guess - same time period, same carrozzeria.

JZG

[Lelmer]

Lancia Aurelia?

[wlaidlaw]

In that case I would guess Ferrari 195 (possibly the the Anna Magnani car or maybe the Giovanni Agnelli Ferrari 212, also with this body) with the Giovanni Michelotti designed body built by Vignale, where a near identical body was also used on the Cunningham C3. In that all these Ferraris were hand built, it was probably up to the buyer negotiating with Ferrari, as to which of the small block Colombo V12 engines was used (166, 195, 212, 250). If the buyer handed over a really large bundle of notes, they might even be able to get one of the large block Lampredi V12's (340 or 375) installed. The number on these Ferrari engines denotes the individual cylinder swept volume, hence a 250cc x 12 = 3 litre engine or 500 x 4 as on the 1953 Mondial 500 = 2 litres. 

Wilson

[Ivan Goriup]

I don't think there could be a more descriptive & specific description of this car than what Wilson offered above. It is indeed a 1953 Ferrari 212 Inter, #23 of 26 such models produced, and one of four of this particular styling design, and, as correctly guessed by Wilson, sketched by Michelotti and executed by Vignale. The only major deviation from 'stock' on this particular car is that the engine is equipped with three Weber carburetors, instead of the factory standard single carb, preferred by Enzo for its torque and general driving characteristics. Sold new by Luigi Chinetti into Pennsylvania.

I luckily ran across this car at the Monterey Historics in 2011, after it's first 'real', complete nuts & bolts restoration, after many refreshings' by various previous owners, including Briggs Cunningham himself, who used it as personal transportation as well as the 'guide model' for his own entry into the U.S. sports car market, which was closely based on this car styling-wise, but only one was thus constructed, since the combination of a Florida in-house built chassis and Chrysler Hemi power train and then shipping the rolling chassis / car to Italy to complete assembly and mount the body and interior simply raised costs to unsustainable levels and all Cunningham production was moved to the US.

All images - M9-P / 35mm Summicron Version IV

JZG

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[Ivan Goriup]

A 3/4 front view.

JZG

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Hallo,

Look here: Interesting Leica gear

[Ivan Goriup]

.........and the inevitable rear view, the one that prompted me in the first place to begin the argument / discussion with my ex-Ferrari Owners Club friend that Ferrari indeed was capable & guilty of selling some unattractive, if not downright ugly cars during their beginning years.

The car was unfinished at the time of these images; the restorer's crew worked day and night for about 72 hours to get all the details right for the Monterey auction over the following Weekend.

Your turn Wilson and thanks everyone for participating.

JZG

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Edited November 12, 2023 by Ivan Goriup

[wlaidlaw]

As most know due to illness over the last three years, I have no new photos to post, so open to everyone. 

Wilson

PS I think the Vignale bodywork is marginally better on the 212, than on the Cunningham C3, where it looks particularly heavy, often not helped by brown or sludge green paintwork. However this is other than the second heavy rear chrome bumper on the 212. Who on earth thought that was a good idea? It reminds me of the story of Giorgetto Giugiaro looking at the Triumph TR7 along with its proud British Leyland designer, Harris Mann. Giorgetto pointed at the pronounced scallop in the side panels and door and said: " Harry, Harry, please tell me you did not do that on both sides." W