Check out the lovelies as the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance hit the home stretch in downtown Carmel, kicking off our pre-Pebble weekend activities. We caught it from the streetside vantage point where we strolled amongst car collectors and the general public, in what was the most crowd-friendly of the Pebble Beach hub bub. Of course, parking on these streets prove a more exclusive activity, but the cars made it worth it the congestion. Name that hood ornament — we saw Packard, Bugatti, Bentley, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, Delage, Duisenberg and Porsche among the flock of rare gems. It’s one thing to gaze upon a classic, but to see a pre-1950 authentic rolling down the street is another entirely. The phrase “Keeping up with the Jones’s” was illuminated by this kind of fanfare, no doubt. More rare gems after the jump.
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My grandfather is 98-years old, on the heels of 99. When he was born, the assembly line wasn’t yet invented. (That happened in 1914.) It was before Prohibition and World War I. The Titantic hadn’t yet set sail. Needless to sya, he provides personal context for what is true vintage. In other fine, mature news, Bentley Motors turned 90 last week. And they’re not showing any sign of slowing down, here’s another money shot of the new Bentley-in-the-works.
“The reason I bought a Bentley was because of its exceptional performance in all respects on the road. Such features…leave nothing to be desired.” A memorable quote from Noel Van Raalte, W.O. Bentley’s first customer, mostly because he said it in October 1921. Imagine the heady decadence of driving in 1921. It was certainly long before the days of the average family two car garage. At that time there were over 1800 automobile factories in the United States alone and Henry Ford’s workers were churning out Model Ts in Michigan. Meanwhile, W.O Bentley was refining the bespoke automobile distinguished by personal performance in the quaint English countryside. In some ways, Bentley is still operating along the same parameters –unhurried in the desire to make a refined automobile. They’ve planted the seed with their new teaser of the flagship vehicle to secede the Arnage for a new generation of motoring — a detail of handcrafted eloquence. We await final word from Crewe.
When Bentley calls, we answer. The iconic driving machine also known as automobile is always a surefire hit. Add Northern California wine country to the equation, and you’re a few clicks away from paradise. So when it came time to lock down plans, we called for back up — namely my 6-month old son and mother. This would be a three-generation Bentley GTC convertible excursion. That’s Speed like no other.
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While most of the auto show buzz centered on the despairing economy and the crippled auto sales, there’s enough sexy contours to ease the stress. These cars remind that there’s still swagger in the car game.
For seduction powner no further than the Audi Sportback. This foxy 5-door winner nabbed prizes from Eyes on Design.
Also scoring oohs and ahhs is the Cadillac Converj.
As Michael Strahan awaits delivery of his Fisker Karma, the S Sunset convertible sees daylight for it’s debut in Detroit.
Of course, the smooth finesse of the Bentley GTC Speed is the stuff of dreams, and Engineering chief Ulrich Eichhorn tells me this version rolls along with even more aptitude.
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And Suburu devotees are going crazy for the Legacy concept. We like it, too.
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