[DeTomaso] The Vallelunga in the barn....
MikeLDrew at aol.com
MikeLDrew at aol.com
Tue Oct 2 17:53:49 EDT 2012
Hi guys,
So, I had a long trek from San Francisco to New York, then an overnight
flight to Milan. I'm here serving as a seeing-eye dog for Fred Phillips,
owner of the Mangusta Spyder, De Tomaso Competizione Sport 2000, De Tomaso/BRM
1-liter sports prototype, and a two-headlight Mangusta. He wants to go
visit RS Corse and De Tomaso and see what he can pry loose from their
collection, whether it's cars, parts or both, and wanted my help with that project.
He also brought along a guy named Les Burd, who is a big-time Abarth guy.
Fred has a few Abarths and is seeking more, as well as a ton of parts and
stories and memorabelia etc.
Our first stop from Milan on the way to Modena was an Abarth shop about
halfway in between--a guy who is sort of like the Wilkinson or Hall of the
Abarth world. Oddly, he's a Welshman of Italian heritage who moved to Italy in
1979 and never left, so he has a strong English accent yet is totally
'native' Italian.
While checking out his cars and parts, he casually mentioned that one of
his friends in his town (population less than 2000) happened to own a
Vallelunga. Fred's eyes popped out of his head and he reached for his checkbook!
Calls were made, and we drove three blocks to check it out.
We pulled up in front of a large medieval stone house, whose flat front
faces the street with shuttered windows. There was a single archway with a
pair of ancient wood and iron doors, with iron gates behind them. We went
through the gates into a giant courtyard filled with fruit trees. The house
was shaped like a U, with the living quarters facing the street, and one arm
of the U being stables, and the other a barn, all made of stone. Inside
the dimly lit barn were a few motorcycles, a hot-rodded Ferrari 308, a Lotus
Exige, and a Vallelunga, DT0148, very much a driver. It seems to have
original paint, and is mostly stock other than the fact that the stock engine
and exhaust are sitting on a wooden crate (more parts inside), and a Lotus
twin-cam lies nestled between the frame rails.
The paint is crazed and chipped from 45+ years of hard use, but the car is
all there. It has a couple of NACA ducts cut into the sides to feed engine
and trans oil coolers, but otherwise appears completely standard--which is
to say, fantastic.
It definitely needs a full restoration, but if the price is right, Fred
might take the project on. Negotiations have yet to commence, but will soon,
I think....
What are the odds of standing in a little village talking with an Abarth
guy, and finding out that a Vallelunga is lurking in a nearby barn? Not
high, I imagine!
Now in the hotel, and tomorrow going to meet the De Tomasos and get the
latest scoop on the goings-on over here.....
Mike
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