Remember last Monday's BGO 242, the 1750 Zagato Gran Sport? We thought it a shame not to show you these very vintage color photo's that are about 4 years older (!) than Monday's B&W ! Current owner Dermot Johnson writes: "My Grandfather Dermot Johnson bought the car in 1939 from Jack Barclay in London. He went over to buy a blown Frazer Nash but test drove the blown 1750 Alfa and went for it instead. He competed in 1947 Circuit of Ireland rally with my Grandmother navigating and finished 7th. He sold the car in 1950 and the family bought it back in 1980. Still on the road with the occasional rally, autotest, hillclimb and race. It looks very much the same with a small luggage rack." See the car in an Irish street scene (Cork) and in the most perfect rally setting at the top of the Tim Healey Pass. People don't take original Zagato's no longer to lovely places like this. But prove that we are wrong, you are most welcome.. ;-) 

The year: 1905. The place: Circuit des Ardennes at Bastogne. It’s a fine sunny morning and as early as 5 a.m. a huge crowd gathers along the roads of the circuit. By 6 o’clock the marshals are in place, supported by the officials of the Automobile Club and the organiser, Baron Pierre de Crawhez (show-must-go-on.com), who will mastermind the entire event. At precisely 6.30 hrs. the first car, a CGV driven by Behr, makes a disastrous start, breaking its propeller shaft and finishing the race twenty metres from the start… No. 2, Victor Hémery (hartlana.co.uk) on a Darracq, makes a good start at 6.34 hrs. The other cars are waved off at four-minute intervals. Five complete laps of the circuit are to be driven; making a total of almost 600 km. Hémery’s time for the first lap is one hour, five minutes and 44 seconds. He maintains his lead throughout the five laps, with the Belgian, Camille Jenatzy (germancarfans.com), only one minute behind him at the start of the second lap. The front-wheel of the De Dietrich driven by the Frenchman Gabriel collapses and the car rolls over. Driver and mechanic escape with grazes but the car is out of the race. During the final lap an excited crowd amass at the finish line, where after almost six hours of furious driving, Hémery finally flashes past with fifteen minutes lead over his pursuers.
  Read more

Lots of nice parts have been added lately (check), but none as good as this one! Theo Collector Cars Castricum, recently found this cast iron Bugatti head !?! You're welcome to zoom in on the numbers (click) if you like. And check the other side (click). Either you know it, or you have to face a few questions, just like we (and Theo Castricum). 1. From which type of Bugatti did it come (if... from a car). 2. Why don't we see plug holes? Are those in the engine block, or is this head from some sort of Diesel or two stroke (both not very likely). Maye a Bugatti tractor or wartime industrial unit? Mr. Castricum told us that rumour goes that during wartime an amfibious vehicle was left in the North of Holland. That thing had a Bugatti engine. Can you enlighten us in any of these matters? info@prewarcar.com
UPDATES came in from Josef Kubista (CZ), Jan Bruijn (NL) en Jaap Horst (NL) "I would say the head is not a piece of Ettore Bugatti design (looks like OHV, not OHC head) I remember there were mentions that Bugatti factory might produced some military (maybe even amphibious) vehicles for German army (marshal Trippel?) during the WWII." Jan Bruijn added he is sure the engine is a diesel and from an amphibuous vehicle. Jaap Horst does not deny the above options but feels more secure about the Hispano Hercules Diesel that was made by Bugatti much later in the 50-60.... (will be continued probably soon)
UPDATE II(by editor):
based on the information above we found this homepage about the father of amphibious transport: Hans Trippel (go!)
UPDATE III: we receive critical comments from Jaap Horst and Theo Castricum. Theo is not convinved at all that we see a Diesel here. According to him there are no traces for plugholes to have injectors. About Trippel he says, that this man used smaller engines, certainly not the size of this approx. 3-4 litre 4-cylinder head. Jaap Horst still keeps with his belief that this is a 50-60 Hispano Hercules Diesel.
UPDATE IV: Hans-Peter Stolz writes:"the cylinder-head is from a Bugatti Diesel (1962 ??) Hispano-Suiza DOOD >>> Autom. BUGATTI / Service Pieces Detachees Diesel 115, rue de la Republique PUTEAUX (Seine) Tel. LONchamp 03.99
Check the photo he sent us from this parts book . Thank you Hans-Peter !! Case closed. 

The Brits have these sayings which cannot be translated into any language. The Understatement is such a fine instrument. No big words will catch the emotions that come to you when you see, feel touch the 1928 T 35B that was unveiled by Bonhams last Friday at Goodwood FoS: the # 4914 William Grover-Williams car that won the monaco GPO in racing green. Every single stain, scratch and screw whispers history. From whatever angle you look at it, it is honest in the way like Coca Cola once claimed 'The Real Thing'. We understand that the current greyish blue skin is the bleached and oiled factory paintwork that was applied by Molsheim right after the victory. We were as bold to lift the leather straps of the bonnet to see where the decades had taken a lesser toll of the paintwork and found the hazy heavenly blue that is described in places as the truly original Bleu Grand Prix. We better stop and let the pictures do the talking. Go on your knees and check the bottom with racing history . Then check the untouched cockpit (take note of the rounds counter and the sparkplug 'file'). (photos by editor, auction 16 September by Bonhams) 

Current Bugatti president Thomas Bscher (edmunds.com) bought (last Friday at Bonhams/Goodwood) the ex René Dreyfus Bugatti T 59 that came on the market after 55 years. Our congratulations for this magnificent catch ! The bad news for Mr. Bscher is that he will have to start saving again for Bonhams' next sale when an even more original and even more important T 35B will be auctioned by Bonhams... It is chassis # 4914, the first car to win a Monaco GP ever. It is probably the most original, best preserved GP Bugatti still in existence. 

A nice quiet place like this. That must be London on Monday! Rick Ford is cleaning out his archives. Here's a mid fifties shot of Trafalgar Square:"Flat cap Harry has just beaten everyone away from the lights in his 1750 (?) Zagato, BGO 242, and is heading to pass under Admiralty Arch................was he a Motor Trader ?????? Jack Bond? Dan Marguiles?" And more important, what happened to BGO 242 ? Info@PreWarCar.com

UPDATE sent in by Dermot Johnson:"My Grandfather Dermot Johnson bought the car in 1939 from Jack Barclay in London. He went over to buy a blown Frazer Nash but test drove the blown 1750 Alfa and went for it instead. He competed in 1947 Circuit of Ireland rally with my Grandmother navigating and finished 7th. He sold the car in 1950 and the family bought it back in 1980. Still on the road with the occasional rally, autotest, hillclimb and race." 

One of the main attractions in the German town of Friedrichshafen is the Zeppelin museum. The inventor of the Zeppelins, Graf Zeppelin (zeppelin-nt.de), was born in Friedrichshafen and also the factory that still makes them is located there. The city certainly is proud of its history, because not far from the museum, in front of the ‘Rathaus’ (city hall), is a fountain with a group of bronze statues. Among them this Maybach engine completely made of bronze. Of course engines like these were used to propel the Zeppelins. Were they also used in Maybach automobiles? (text and photo's Rutger Booy)
Update I: Mark Dawber writes: ‘I think it would be reasonable to assume that the car and airship engines were quite different. The V12 Maybach car engines were 'only' 7 and 8 litres. I am sure that the Zeppelin power plants would have been several times that size. The only automotive use of an airship engine when new that I know of was Fiat in about 1910 used a 28 litre 4 cyl engine in a one off racer (S76?) which briefly held the world land speed record.’
Update II from Bart Oosterling: ‘The book ‘Die Geschichte der Maybach Automobile / Das Maybach register’ written by Graf Wolff Metternich mentions on page 54 that Karl Maybach visualized the engine of the airship ‘Graf Zeppelin’ as a prototype for a 12-cylinder car named ‘Zeppelin’. However, it is very unlikely that Zeppelin engines were used in Maybach motorcars because due to the Versailles treaty the factory wasn’t allowed to build aeroplane-engines, after which they started on engines for motorcars.’  

It's a parking lot. Give the correct years of the different Billancourt products in the photo.. No worries, that would be an impossible quiz, but it is too nice not to show. Mac McAnlis from Ohio (US) sent in these last weekend's photos 'in preparation of the fathers day car show to be held at Stan Hywet Mansion & Gardens located in Akron Ohio. "The show was a wonderful success! One older gentleman came over to us and said that he had been coming to this show for many years but our entrance was the best he had ever seen. He said that “It was a Grand Slam!” " (click photo for second shot and go to Read More for correct years)  Read more

Now what has gone into the minds of these lovely gals to start molesting this Roadster. Is it just the heat we have these days? Or what? Anyway the disaster is even worse. Click the link and see number three! Christoph Ansermet from Switzerland sent this superb photo of his collection. Of course he is wondering as what went wrong. We found one intriguing detail in the photo - among many others - and maybe that is the key...? Check the sidemounted dragon mystery . Stay in the shade... Your instructions are welcome at Info@PreWarCar.com but answers will be slow due to Goodwood.
UPDATE: Mark Dawber and Bob Swanson responded each naming a different car. Mark says Studebaker, Bob says Gardner. More to folow... 

David Miller reports:"A building burned to the ground Monday night that originally housed the Wayne, then EMF, then Studebaker factories. The building is on Piquette street in Detroit, very close to the Ford factory that built Model T's. Here is a link to the article in the Detroit Free Press.