All Entries Tagged With: "Sports cars"
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes? Exotics @ Foxwoods
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG Phil Dunphy for ADLX
LET’S see: how to compliment a mostly male gathering of one hundred sports cars at Foxwoods Casino to raise awareness for the ongoing battle against breast cancer?
Well, aside from lunch at the Hard Rock, a crisp autumnal road trip through scenic New London County, Conn. there were some other visual flourishes that added value to the event. Our man Phil catelogues them nicely with his camera.
Decisions, decisions: Lamborghini edge or Ferrari curve?
The rally was set against the world’s largest casino. A colorful backdrop, to be sure.
Models advertising Private Jet Charters were on call that morning.
Apparently, the pain of standing in heels got to more than a few as the morning wore on.
They persevered, nonetheless.
As did the event’s planner, Manolis Christo.
Color coordination was a recurring theme…
…as you might’ve guessed.
For one, Bumble Bee from Transformers blended well in Camaro yellow.
Getting ready to rally.
FerrariChat.com member Lane Baker coordinates route plans. No speeding!
A tall order considering the old rivalries represented here.
But then again, not too tall an order. One hundred cars on Connecticut backroads creates its own special kind of traffic.
Much to some local’s apparent appreciation.
2009 Ferrari California: The Horse Prances Off Style Ranch
By Gunnar Heinrich
FERRARI hasn’t made beautiful cars in some time.
The last gorgeous, stop-me-in-my-tracks-HOT set of equestrian wheels to come from Italy was the F355. Frankly, I’m tired of Maranello’s artistic drought – it seems that all the style has fled from the barn to the lesser stables on the Fiat ranch – principally Alfa Romeo and Maserati.
Let’s prescribe an eye crossing double negative by observing that Ferrari’s latest top-down, pedal down roadster fails to not disappoint. The styling is the offspring of a late 90s Fiat Barchetta that was crossbred with a Lotus Elise (already a strange looking car).
Throw some California and Ferrari badges on it and – voila! – a Ferrari that will likely be priced to appeal to those with more modest means – Porsche drivers, namely.
There was some yabbadabbadooing about reintroducing the “Dino” nameplate*. But that idea just didn’t fly and only Hannah Barbara knows why.
The square lined matrix grille that curves into a rye smile is a plus. But the also-ran five spoke rims are forgettable and stand in awkward contrast to the torch blown undulations of the car’s flamboyant flanks.
Counterpoint – the interior looks as glove soft and sweetly hide bound as a Ferragamo boutique. In cream, it’s tactfully and tacitly well executed.
But back to bitchin’, as one commentator on Jalopnik noted, the electronically retractable hardtop looks German-car complex and far too heavy to befit a lithe Italian sports car.
What happened to the 575 Superamerica’s beauty by simplicity?
I can’t wait for Ferrari to start making beautiful cars again.
[Linked: Autoblog | ADL Archive Post > At Concours, A Ferrari Owner Flips His Lid]
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*Note* – A hallmark of another era of sports cars, the original Dino (1968-1976) was a less expensive model series that founder Enzo Ferrari named in memory of his son Alfredo “Dino” Ferrari who died at a young age.
