A pair of Bugatti Veyrons up for grabs
Last week's M-B sponsored trip to sunny SoCal (where
PH sampled the magnificent CLS 63 AMG
) terminated at the seaside resort of La Jolla near San Diego. What a place!
A couple of showrooms on the main drag caught our eye as the rest of our party stopped for lunch, and your trusty scribe was forced to forsake another free feed by an overwhelming urge to drool over some precious metal.
La Jolla's portentously named Symbolic Motor Car Company caught our eye first, with an array of supercars glinting in the window. We stumbled inside blinking from the sunshine outside, to be welcomed by a chappie who was pleased to let us browse what turned out to be a cornucopia of exotic machinery - and yes, I did tell him we were skint. Nestling amongst the collection of Lambos, Masers, Ferraris, Porsches and Rolls-Royces was a brace of Bugatti Veyrons - yours in red for a princely $900,000 or blue at a cool $1.2m. There wasn't anyone around to ask, but apart from the colours, the main difference between this pair of Bugs appeared to be that the blue one had an extended warranty - you'd want it, too, I'm thinking.
As well as a wall full of artworks by Ronnie Wood, Symbolic is offering another taste of celebrity with what looks like some sort of IMSA Nissan up for grabs. It was raced by Paul Newman and although US motorsport isn't my area (note to self - must get an 'area'!), this one caught my eye as its wide arches were flared in the manner of an unshelled peanut. It was sponsored by Planters, so hopefully that was an in-joke at the time.
Next door to Symbolic, and set back a little, sits the showroom of Grand Prix Classics. The guys there were warming up a Cooper single-seater on the sidewalk when we arrived, but inside was a real treat for the eyes. A mid-70s legend among 'Vette enthusiasts, otherwise known as the Spirit of Sebring 75.
This little beastie was one of a couple of wide-body Corvettes campaigned in the States against Porsches and BMWs by John Greenwood - with some success, including 11 IMSA pole positions against the German factory teams. The monster 'Vette featured a big block V8 making 700hp, and held various speed records at Sebring and Daytona - at the latter circuit it clocked 236mph, and was set up to four wheel drift through the high banked turns.
The awesome Spirit of Sebring
According to Grand Prix Classics the car - complete with a cardboard box containing all its race history - has just changed hands for an 'undisclosed sum', although it has recently been advertised at something just shy of $700k. The new owner is apparently committed to racing the car at historic events.