How about a 'period' classics pictures thread
Discussion
generationx said:
ivanhoew said:
Probably explains why he slipped the clutch and bumped the bollard/tree/pedestrianBob the Cop said:
Yes a rare car. 27 of the 2+2 were built. Two were in the USA, several in Germany. This one came in for evaluation in 1973, just in time for the fuel crisis!
It was built with either a straight six 2.8 litre or a V8 5.3 litre. Available as a manual or Automatic transmission. This was a V8 Auto. Nice to drive but thirsty, which left me with a problem in finding fuel when during the crisis most garages rationed it at 2 gallons only per customer.
Surprised at thos figures I thought most would be in the USA (assuming that was it's target market?). One of the last designs I ever heard attributed to Scaglione.It was built with either a straight six 2.8 litre or a V8 5.3 litre. Available as a manual or Automatic transmission. This was a V8 Auto. Nice to drive but thirsty, which left me with a problem in finding fuel when during the crisis most garages rationed it at 2 gallons only per customer.
Did it go back to Italy or was it registered here?
(Surprised at thos figures I thought most would be in the USA (assuming that was it's target market?). One of the last designs I ever heard attributed to Scaglione.
Did it go back to Italy or was it registered here?)
Yes this was the last car designed by Scaglione, he invested his own money in this. Intermeccanica closed in 1974 and Scaglione retired.
The story of the Indra is involved and includes Bob Lutz who was with GM at the time. He wanted the car to be modelled on the opel Diplomat, hence the six cylinder engine. Frank Reisner convinced him that the car would stand alone but use numerous Opel Diplomat components. Reisner however also wanted a V8 engine to sell the Indra in America.
Lutz promised Reisner a V8 engine but Opel did not have one to sell. GM America wanted a minimum order of engines which Reisner could not afford. This resulted in a law suit which Reisner lost. Therefore most of the cars had the 6 cylinder Opel engine installed.
The first variant, the Spider was shown at Geneva in 1971 and received 174 orders. (only 60 were built).
Scaglione also designed a 2 seater Coupe of which 40 were built.
In1973 the 2+2, the last design of Scaglione, appeared at the New York motor show, which was the target market for the car. Despite orders only 27 examples were built with some being fitted with the Ford 351 engine.
This Green car came to the UK around October 1973. It had a very unusual finish to the seating which I will not mention yet because I am hoping that someone can identify the car and it's location. The interior will identify it! I believe that the car was never registered in the UK and probably went to Germany. I last saw it in January 1974.
I am aware that two V8 examples made it to the USA, other cars went to the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. They rarely come onto the market, the last I saw was a 6 cylinder Spider advertised at £90.000.
It would be good to know the fate of this car.
Did it go back to Italy or was it registered here?)
Yes this was the last car designed by Scaglione, he invested his own money in this. Intermeccanica closed in 1974 and Scaglione retired.
The story of the Indra is involved and includes Bob Lutz who was with GM at the time. He wanted the car to be modelled on the opel Diplomat, hence the six cylinder engine. Frank Reisner convinced him that the car would stand alone but use numerous Opel Diplomat components. Reisner however also wanted a V8 engine to sell the Indra in America.
Lutz promised Reisner a V8 engine but Opel did not have one to sell. GM America wanted a minimum order of engines which Reisner could not afford. This resulted in a law suit which Reisner lost. Therefore most of the cars had the 6 cylinder Opel engine installed.
The first variant, the Spider was shown at Geneva in 1971 and received 174 orders. (only 60 were built).
Scaglione also designed a 2 seater Coupe of which 40 were built.
In1973 the 2+2, the last design of Scaglione, appeared at the New York motor show, which was the target market for the car. Despite orders only 27 examples were built with some being fitted with the Ford 351 engine.
This Green car came to the UK around October 1973. It had a very unusual finish to the seating which I will not mention yet because I am hoping that someone can identify the car and it's location. The interior will identify it! I believe that the car was never registered in the UK and probably went to Germany. I last saw it in January 1974.
I am aware that two V8 examples made it to the USA, other cars went to the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. They rarely come onto the market, the last I saw was a 6 cylinder Spider advertised at £90.000.
It would be good to know the fate of this car.
Bob the Cop said:
(Surprised at thos figures I thought most would be in the USA (assuming that was it's target market?). One of the last designs I ever heard attributed to Scaglione.
Did it go back to Italy or was it registered here?)
Yes this was the last car designed by Scaglione, he invested his own money in this. Intermeccanica closed in 1974 and Scaglione retired.
The story of the Indra is involved and includes Bob Lutz who was with GM at the time. He wanted the car to be modelled on the opel Diplomat, hence the six cylinder engine. Frank Reisner convinced him that the car would stand alone but use numerous Opel Diplomat components. Reisner however also wanted a V8 engine to sell the Indra in America.
Lutz promised Reisner a V8 engine but Opel did not have one to sell. GM America wanted a minimum order of engines which Reisner could not afford. This resulted in a law suit which Reisner lost. Therefore most of the cars had the 6 cylinder Opel engine installed.
The first variant, the Spider was shown at Geneva in 1971 and received 174 orders. (only 60 were built).
Scaglione also designed a 2 seater Coupe of which 40 were built.
In1973 the 2+2, the last design of Scaglione, appeared at the New York motor show, which was the target market for the car. Despite orders only 27 examples were built with some being fitted with the Ford 351 engine.
This Green car came to the UK around October 1973. It had a very unusual finish to the seating which I will not mention yet because I am hoping that someone can identify the car and it's location. The interior will identify it! I believe that the car was never registered in the UK and probably went to Germany. I last saw it in January 1974.
I am aware that two V8 examples made it to the USA, other cars went to the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. They rarely come onto the market, the last I saw was a 6 cylinder Spider advertised at £90.000.
It would be good to know the fate of this car.
Erich Bitter (of Bitter Cars) was the German importer/ agent for Intermeccanica, and he used to say that it was the Indra that persuaded him to build his own cars. Apparently he lost so much money on warranty claims on each one he sold that he realised there had to be a market for a low volume exotic assembled around volume-built parts for reliability. Hence the Opel-based CD and SC coupes.Did it go back to Italy or was it registered here?)
Yes this was the last car designed by Scaglione, he invested his own money in this. Intermeccanica closed in 1974 and Scaglione retired.
The story of the Indra is involved and includes Bob Lutz who was with GM at the time. He wanted the car to be modelled on the opel Diplomat, hence the six cylinder engine. Frank Reisner convinced him that the car would stand alone but use numerous Opel Diplomat components. Reisner however also wanted a V8 engine to sell the Indra in America.
Lutz promised Reisner a V8 engine but Opel did not have one to sell. GM America wanted a minimum order of engines which Reisner could not afford. This resulted in a law suit which Reisner lost. Therefore most of the cars had the 6 cylinder Opel engine installed.
The first variant, the Spider was shown at Geneva in 1971 and received 174 orders. (only 60 were built).
Scaglione also designed a 2 seater Coupe of which 40 were built.
In1973 the 2+2, the last design of Scaglione, appeared at the New York motor show, which was the target market for the car. Despite orders only 27 examples were built with some being fitted with the Ford 351 engine.
This Green car came to the UK around October 1973. It had a very unusual finish to the seating which I will not mention yet because I am hoping that someone can identify the car and it's location. The interior will identify it! I believe that the car was never registered in the UK and probably went to Germany. I last saw it in January 1974.
I am aware that two V8 examples made it to the USA, other cars went to the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. They rarely come onto the market, the last I saw was a 6 cylinder Spider advertised at £90.000.
It would be good to know the fate of this car.
tog said:
Erich Bitter (of Bitter Cars) was the German importer/ agent for Intermeccanica, and he used to say that it was the Indra that persuaded him to build his own cars. Apparently he lost so much money on warranty claims on each one he sold that he realised there had to be a market for a low volume exotic assembled around volume-built parts for reliability. Hence the Opel-based CD and SC coupes.
Yes you are correct. In the rush to get the assembly started the process was not fully sorted. Opel dealers and customers were also not familiar with the quality control issues which were typical of handbuilt cars. What you have failed to mention is that all of the Opel components that went into this car were purchased through Erich Bitter!! I am sure that the profit he made on these parts compensated him against warranty claims.Bitter, Opel and GM let Reisner down over the supply of V8 engines. They did not have a USA legal engine to sell to enable Intermeccanica to market the car for where it was intended, which was the USA. A V8 engine was needed. (Germany was happy with the six cylinder Opel unit). GM was not happy to see their parts supplied to a car that used someone elses engine, hence they created a supply problem which caused Intermeccanica to look at the Ford engine. It all became irrelevant when the oil crisis hit which killed the market for the V8. I am sure that this assisted Bitter to commence his own production. Reisner and Scaglione had done the hard work for him.
Having driven the V8 2+2 I can say that by the time this car hit the market in 1973 the problems had been sorted.
Bob the Cop said:
Yes you are correct. In the rush to get the assembly started the process was not fully sorted. Opel dealers and customers were not use to the quality control issues which were typical of handbuilt cars. What you have failed to mention is that all of the Opel components that went into this car were purchased through Erich Bitter!! I am sure that the profit he made on these parts compensated him against warranty claims.
That sounds like Erich! He's quite a character.While clearing out my deceased dad's estate I came across some fantastic old slides of my mother's holidays abroad, years before dad or me came along! These are more "street scenes" than particular cars but quite evocative of a bygone era.
San Sebastien, Spain 1959
This one is quite clearly France and must have been taken during the coach ride there or back. Does anyone recognise the square and "Auberge St Michel"? I'd be surprised if it has changed much today.
San Sebastien, Spain 1959
This one is quite clearly France and must have been taken during the coach ride there or back. Does anyone recognise the square and "Auberge St Michel"? I'd be surprised if it has changed much today.
This was in a box marked "Alassio 1961". Nice to see a 500 whizzing about like in some old Grace Kelly film.
Not a car obviously but interesting machinery. What is the airline? Some state owned affair before Alitalia?
I'm quite impressed that my mum and her friends were daring to go on holiday together well before it was the norm in the likes of Kavos. She always loved going abroad, it's a shame the she isn't around any more either to ask about the pictures.
Not a car obviously but interesting machinery. What is the airline? Some state owned affair before Alitalia?
I'm quite impressed that my mum and her friends were daring to go on holiday together well before it was the norm in the likes of Kavos. She always loved going abroad, it's a shame the she isn't around any more either to ask about the pictures.
Edited by Loose_Cannon on Friday 5th May 11:58
Loose_Cannon said:
This was in a box marked "Alassio 1961"...
Not a car obviously but interesting machinery. What is the airline? Some state owned affair before Alitalia?
I'm quite impressed that my mum and her friends were daring to go on holiday together well before it was the norm in the likes of Kavos. She always loved going abroad, it's a shame the she isn't around any more either to ask about the pictures.
The aeroplane is a Douglas DC-6 of Società Aerea Mediterranea, a subsidiary company of Alitalia between 1959 and 1976...Not a car obviously but interesting machinery. What is the airline? Some state owned affair before Alitalia?
I'm quite impressed that my mum and her friends were daring to go on holiday together well before it was the norm in the likes of Kavos. She always loved going abroad, it's a shame the she isn't around any more either to ask about the pictures.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societ%C3%A0_Aerea_M...
Loose_Cannon said:
While clearing out my deceased dad's estate I came across some fantastic old slides of my mother's holidays abroad, years before dad or me came along! These are more "street scenes" than particular cars but quite evocative of a bygone era.
I love old slides, I'm always looking out for them at car boot sales, and have a few 'house clearance' people supposedly keeping an eye out for them, just for stuff like this. And they've always got a particular "look" to them from that era. Great stuff.Gassing Station | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff