Jim Koscs: Super-Versatile Automotive Writer
Looking for that perfect piece of Finnish automotive history? The famous Finn Jet art car is apparently for sale. And apparently, folks looking for info have been landing on this blog, because I posted photos last year. I wrote the whole story, too, for my e-newsletter, Wheel People.
FinnJet causing a stir in Palm Beach.
If you can’t buy the Finn Jet, maybe consider one of these instead.
The Avanti’s story is as unique as the design that came out of Raymond Loewy’s studio in Palm Springs, Calif. nearly 50 years ago. Here are some tidbits:
The Studebaker Avanti was a favorite with the rich and famous. Owners included Johnny Carson, Frank Sinatra, Ricky Nelson, Rod Serling, Sandy Koufax and Dick Van Dyke. Superspy James Bond debuted a gadget-laden Aston Martin in the 1965 movie, “Goldfinger,” but Bond’s creator, Ian Fleming, was an Avanti owner. So was Shirley Bassey, who sang the film’s hit theme song. Reggie Mantle drove his uncle’s Avanti in the Archie Comics “Pals’n'Gals” winter 1962-1963 issue.
In its supercharged R2 form, the Avanti was indeed a quick car. In 1962, Road & Track Magazine went zero-to-60 in 7.3 seconds in an R2. Motor Trend’s R2 test car did the quarter-mile in 15.8 seconds at 91 mph. On larger modern tires, an Avanti R2 should be capable of zero-to-60 in about 6.5 seconds — on par with a new Cadillac CTS.
An Avanti could reach 170 mph — the right Avanti in the right hands, that is. The Avanti that set 29 production-car speed records at Bonneville was a rare “R3” model with an engine specially built by Indy racing entrepreneur Andy Granatelli. He also drove the Avanti into the record books. The R3 was technically a “production” model, but just nine were built with this expensive option. Thirty years later, a group of Avanti enthusiasts returned to Bonneville and set a D-Production record of 195.640 mph.
Studebaker dealers Nate Altman and Leo Newman rescued the Avanti in 1965 and built it in low numbers as the Avanti II (usually under 100 per year) in the former Studebaker plant in South Bend, Ind. until 1983. The only key difference was a Chevrolet small block V8 engine in place of the Studebaker V8 (a Corvette-spec 327 or 350 until the early 1970s).
Altman and Newman sold the company to Stephen Blake, whose stewardship ended in bankruptcy in 1986. Real estate developer Michael E. Kelley was next, and he added a convertible to the line. Kelley sold Avanti to John J. Cafaro, who moved the operation to Youngstown, Oh. in 1989. Cafaro added a four-door model based on an original Raymond Loewy design. In its last few years of production, the Avanti was built on a Chevy Monte Carlo chassis. The last car was built in 1991.
Kelley has been back in the news. Since 2008, he has been in prison awaiting trial on federal charges of bilking investors out of over $400 million in a real estate ponzi scheme involving vacation properties in Mexico.
Attempts to resurrect Avanti have come and gone, including one that used re-skinned Pontiac Firebird body shells (320 built from 2001 to 2004) and then the 2005 Ford Mustang (46 built). Tom Kellogg, the sketcher on Loewy’s original Avanti design team, designed those cars. The company appears defunct, although its website is still up.
The Avanti’s Bonneville speed record adventure is documented in a period-kitschy five-minute promotional film. Parts of the soundtrack sound like they were recycled for the 1968 movie, “Planet of the Apes.”
I’ve seen plenty of photos of ’63 Corvettes, and I’ve seen plenty at car shows and occasionally on the road. But seeing the ’63 Sting Ray in the January 2010 issue of Motor Trend (“Archive” feature on last page) for some reason took me back to the day in spring 1975 (I was 11) when my mom took a bullet during a police chase.
The Jersey City (NJ) police had chased a stolen car into Bayonne. The woman driving was doing everything possible to evade capture, including driving on the sidewalk. Bayonne cops joined the chase, which became a wild and dangerous procession down Broadway, busy with cars and pedestrians. The cops tried blocking the crazed driver’s path with Cushman parking patrol scooters, which she plowed through, and then a garbage truck, but she got past it. One of more officers started shooting at the car, trying to hit its tires (as the official story would later say).
My mother was standing outside the Rite Aid, when, startled by all the commotion, she felt a sudden stinging in her thigh. A bullet had pierced her purse but stopped at the skin, causing a nasty bruise. I remember being called to the principle’s office to be told my mom had been shot but was OK, and then getting to leave school early with my sisters.
Walking to school the next day, I saw a few damaged store windows, some piles of auto glass at the curb – and the blown-out right-side window of the white 63 Corvette I walked past every morning. I remember wondering if they still made replacement windows for the car.
The city reimbursed my mother for a new purse, but she was not able to find one like she had been carrying that day. My oldest sister had bought it for her on a trip to Spain as an exchange student. Its heavy leather and many internal pockets are what helped stop the bullet.
Why does Bob Lutz insist on comparing GM vehicles to those of his former employer, BMW? In the Sept. 21 issue of Automotive News, he says this about the new GMC Terrain, a “truckier” looking version of the Chevy Equinox crossover SUV:
“We will run Terrain competitive ads against the BMW X3. We won’t be shy about who we can compete with and beat.”
Quoting Automotive News: “Lutz acknowledges that the Terrain won’t beat BMW’s image but says GMC can beat the X3 on performance and fit and finish for much less money.”
Lutz: “For that extra $10,000, you don’t get anything more with an X3 than you do with a Terrain.”
That’s debatable, of course. I’m sure the Terrain will have some advantages over the older BMW (which has never been one of their best efforts, in any case.)
But a BMW buyer won’t look twice at the Terrain. So what is to be gained by spending marketing dollars money to make that comparison? Why not target all those crossover buyers who think GMC is just big pickups — if they know the brand at all?
Lutz’s fighting words ring familiar. He said virtually the same things about another GM car when he dared journalists to compare it to the BMW 3 Series. That car no longer exists: Pontiac Grand Prix.
The story of how GM went from resisting the government for 50 years to begging it for a $50 billion bailout loan would be a great text book. But for most of us, Paul Wolfe’s 190 words are sufficient.
I hope you got a chance to read about Marty Schorr’s Iso Grifo in the July issue of my Wheel People e-newsletter. One fact I left out of the story that will certainly enhance the car’s provenance: Although Schorr found the car at Malcolm Konner Chevrolet in Paramus, N.J., he had it delivered through Baldwin Chevrolet in Baldwin, N.Y., home to the “Fantastic Five” Chevys that were modified by nearby Motion Performance.
The Grifo went through the Motion prep, including dyno tune, and Motion proprietor Joel Rosen affixed the “Motion” nameplate under the hood. That makes Schorr’s Grifo the world’s only Baldwin-Motion Grifo. Later, Schorr received a new Corvette LT-1 350 from Corvette chief Zora Arkus-Duntov. He had Motion swap that into the Grifo, removing the original Corvette 327.
Enjoy the photos, courtesy of Marty Schorr.
Phil D’Alesandro’s Corvair, featured in the May issue of my Wheel People e-newsletter is really something to see in person. Here, some photos Phil shot on the parking deck of his Bronx, N.Y. apartment building over 40 years ago. I wish GM would offer this blue on the new Camaro.
If you have not read about the FinnJet in my WheelPeople e-newsletter, click on the April 2009 link under “Previous Issues” in the sidebar. Here are the photos in larger format. The detail on this Art Car is amazing. All photos by Elle Schorr.
Two 1980s Mercedes wagons + one 1962 Imperial = FinnJet
FinnJet causing a stir in Palm Beach.
FinnJet seamlessly blends Mercedes and Imperial designs.
86 lights and 36 mirrors. Can you see the harmony?
Check out the jet propulsion unit on top. Alternate fuel, indeed!
Jensen Interceptor (foreground); Jensen FF (background)
The March issue of my Wheel People newsletter profiled an example of brand loyalty that any carmaker might envy. Here’s the story, including larger and additional photos.
Mike Lotwis broke a 35-year streak last year when he purchased his company car, a Chevy Impala. Up until then, he had been a one-brand man, owning nine models from a single carmaker: England’s defunct Jensen. He’s owned five variants of the brand’s most famous car, the Chrysler-powered Interceptor.
Lotwis recently thinned his fleet, keeping only the 1975 Interceptor convertible shown above. I was fortunate enough to have driven it – along with his 1974 Interceptor saloon (not “Coupe” – that was a separate model). Though it weighed over 4,000 pounds, the Interceptor handled like a lighter car, thanks to stout chassis construction and near-50/50 weight distribution.
That drive was 21 years ago, when I was writing a Jensen story for Mopar Action magazine. Lotwis’s convertible had just returned from a restoration and major mechanical upgrade by Jensen Service and Parts in England. It still looks remarkably fresh today. You might catch a glimpse of him touring around North Jersey with his 12-year-old daughter in the passenger seat. And he still takes the car to club track events. (Photo below.)
Lotwis became captivated by the Interceptor in the 1970s while helping to maintain his college roommate’s 1971 model. He bought that car after graduation, and, a few weeks later, drove it in a 1,000-mile road rally. Immersing himself in all things Jensen, Lotwis started a Jensen club and became a tech support source for other owners. He bought up dealers’ parts stocks when the company ended production in 1976 and still has some inventory.
Made from 1966-1976, the mostly hand-built Jensen Interceptor was an Italian-styled, Chrysler-powered, British-built luxury GT. Traditional Brit luxury included Connolly hides and Wilton carpeting. Jensen also boasted a custom coachbuilder pedigree going back to the 1930s.
The company built some 6,400 Interceptors and its variants. Official U.S. importation began in 1970. In 1972, a Series III Interceptor with its Chrysler 440 high-performance V8 retailed for $14,000 — about twice the price of a Cadillac Eldorado.
The convertible arrived in 1974; Jensen built just under 500. In all, fewer than 2,500 Interceptors came to the U.S., according to Lotwis.
An Interceptor variant not officially imported to the States (it was right-hand-drive only) was the FF. Lotwis owned the second-to-last of 315 built (photo, below). Introduced in 1966, the FF was the world’s first production car with full-time four-wheel drive (OK, limited-production). “FF” stood for Ferguson Formula, the car’s pioneering four-wheel drive system. A groundbreaking car, the FF also featured aircraft-derived anti-skid brakes – yes, in 1966!
Jensen FF (1966-1971) was first production car with 4WD and anti-lock brakes.
Lotwis owned another rare Interceptor model, the SP – one of the 13 with left-hand drive, out of 232 built (photo, below) “SP” signified Chrysler’s 440 Six Pack engine (high-performance, three two-barrel carburetors.)
Jensen SP was an Interceptor with the Chrysler 440 Six Pack engine.
Interceptors remain quite accessible. I found a few cars on eBay, ranging from a couple thousand dollars for a “restorable” car to $17,000 for one needing “complete detailing.” Interceptor specialist K&D Enterprises in Snohomish, Wash. is offering a restored convertible for a less accessible $90,000.
Jensen Interceptor, as shown in 1974 factory brochure.
Author’s note: I met the artist Bob Mittenmaier last spring at a relative’s 90th birthday party. Years before that, the relative, my wife’s Uncle Joe, had told me about his friend “who does paintings of Ferraris.” Bob and I finally got to sit down for lunch in January this year. Just a couple of weeks before, I had come up with the idea for my e-newsletter, Wheel People. After that lunch, I knew I had my inaugural story.
275 GTB/4 NART Spyder, Chinetti Motors, New York ... and "Lady"
If you’d like to tour the Ferrari factory, you need to own a Ferrari, or at least be a strong prospect. Bob Mittenmaier’s “Italia,” a Mazda Miata with a Ferrari-esque makeover by Simpson Design, would hardly qualify.
Yet Mittenmaier, from Demarest, N.J., has toured the original Ferrari factory at the invitation of Enzo Ferrari’s trusted lieutenant, Franco Gozzi. The VIP treatment was a thank-you for allowing Enzo to reprint one of Mittenmaier’s paintings in his autobiographical tribute to Ferrari race drivers, Piloti, Che Gente.
The painting, “48 Mille Miglia,” depicted the great Tazio Nuvolari driving a 166C in that race, in the pouring rain and with the car literally coming apart. The acrylic-on-Masonite work is one of about 40 Ferrari paintings that Mittenmaier has completed from his tiny basement studio since the early 1980s.
"48 Mille Miglia"
Painting, though, is not Mittenmaier’s day job. After earning a degree in fine arts from the University of California Berkeley in the 1970s, he went on to work in retail. He painted for his own enjoyment. For some 30 years, he’s been involved in home design. Mittenmaier has sold his paintings through Jacques Vaucher’s l’art et l’automobile gallery – the world’s first gallery devoted to automobile art – since its inception.
From Casino Royalty to Art Royalty
After college, Mittenmaier took a job in Harrah’s casino in Reno. As an employee, he had free entry to Bill Harrah’s amazing car collection. He made his first painted subject Harrah’s Thomas Flyer, the car that won the 22,000-mile New York-to-Paris Great Race in 1908.
Thomas Flyer, Winner of The NY-to-Paris Great Race
Upon moving to the East Coast with his wife, Jeannette, Mittenmaier sought advice from the automotive art master, Peter Helck. When the couple showed up unannounced at Helck’s studio in upstate New York, the acclaimed painter invited them in for tea and at the end of the visit invited Bob to paint in his studio.
Helck later invited Mittenmaier to paint his “Old #16” Locomobile. It was the first American car to win an international race, the Vanderbilt Cup on Long Island in 1908. Helck had used it as a subject himself. At an art exhibition at Lime Rock Park, Paul Newman tried to buy Mittenmaier’s “Old #16” but was too late. A woman who had bought up much of the artist’s early works had beaten him to it.
Picasso and Mittenmaier?
Mittenmaier’s paintings hang on the walls of Ferrari collectors around the world. Anthony Wang, former president of Computer Associates, reportedly owns most or all of Mittenmaier’s “Chinetti Impressions.” The dozen or so paintings in the series – two of which are shown here – depict Luigi Chinetti’s various Ferrari dealership garages in Manhattan.
Chinetti Motors, New York
A Japanese art collector once came to New York and went home with a Picasso … and a Mittenmaier. When Piero Ferrari organized an art exhibit to honor his late father, he invited Mittenmaier to send a painting and attend the opening at a palace in Modena, Italy.
Mittenmaier’s favorite subject, though, might be the scruffy shepherd mix seen in many of his Ferrari paintings. “Lady” was the friendly shop dog at the small Paterson, N.J. garage where he had his Fiat X1/9 maintained. When Lady died, Mittenmaier promised the shop’s owner he would make her famous. He did.
Phil Hill and Olivier Gendebien won the 1958 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Testa Rossa.
