Top 5 Prototypes: Survivors in the Marketplace

Prototypes are the crucial link between a design team’s initial proposal and the final production car, often displaying interesting variations tested as part of the development process. The Classic Driver Marketplace frequently plays host to those which have managed to escape their manufacturers' clutches: here are five noteworthy examples.

---

Panhard PMS


Taking the Panhard Dyna X as a basis, French Citroën dealer and racer Paul Ménissier developed a racing prototype that employed an unusual mid-engined, front-wheel-drive layout. He repeatedly adjusted the ‘PMS’ (Paul Ménissier Spéciale), trialling Panhard, Alfa Romeo and Ford (as now) powerplants and changing the bodywork numerous times. Although it will require a brave soul to take the car under their wing, a full restoration would rescue a classic prototype racing car with no doubt some very unusual dynamic characteristics.

See advert in the Classic Driver Marketplace >>

---

Lancia Stratos


To allow the Stratos to achieve the legendary status it gained through its rally conquests, 500 homologated road cars were built – and this, according to the seller, is one of the pre-production prototypes. The Bertone-styled coupé’s aesthetics are as arresting today as they were in period; it’s perhaps one of the few cars that can pull off the orange paint/gold wheels colour scheme, too.

See advert in the Classic Driver Marketplace >>

---

Range Rover 'Classic' Velar


With the latest Range Rover being rolled out in force across the world, some are looking to previous generations of the original luxury 4x4 as an alternative. They don’t come any more ‘previous’ than this; this is one of the developmental prototypes of the first generation off-roader, and was so secret at the time that it wore red-herring ‘Velar’ badging. The reason behind this, along with more about this curious progenitor, can be seen in our exclusive video. 

See advert in the Classic Driver Marketplace >>

---

Porsche 924-005 GTP (949)


Two prototype Porsches were built in 1981 prior to the launch of the 944 model later that year. An evolution of the three 2-litre, 350HP 924 GTP entries at Le Mans in 1980, the 1981 prototypes had revised bodywork and pure Porsche Type 949 2.5-litre turbocharged engines. Entered by the works team as a ‘Porsche 944 LM’, the sister car to 924-005 (006) carried race number 1 and was driven by Walter Röhrl and Jürgen Barth to 7th place overall that year. For reliability, the 410HP engine was reduced to 370HP for the race but still approached 190mph on the straight. The works 924 driven by Andy Rouse and Manfred Schurti in 1981 looked similar to the 944 LM but it still had the 2-litre turbo engine – bearing race number 36, it finished 11th and won its class.

See advert in the Classic Driver Marketplace >>

---

Aston Martin DB7 Vantage 'DP004'


Found here is one of the prototypes used by Aston Martin to develop the V12-engined DB7. As you might have noticed, it’s been stripped of its badging, interior and windows (perhaps due to not achieving Aston levels of refinement and quality) as part of an agreement with a dealer which saved this, and six other prototype DB7s, from the crusher. Apparently, the others went on to perform a later-life role as donors for privateer racing cars to be built around, but DP004 (the ‘DP’ standing for ‘Developmental Prototype’) has remained true to its original purpose.

See advert in the Classic Driver Marketplace >>

Related Links More prototypes can be found in the Classic Driver Marketplace

Text: Joe Breeze (ClassicDriver)
Photos: Classic Driver dealers

Hennessey Ford GT establishes Texas Mile record by hitting 267.6 mph (430.66 km/h)

Beats previous 263.3 mph (423.7 km/h) record

Hennessey has managed to take down the Texas Mile speed record once again with its modified Ford GT.

In October last year the custom Ford GT established a new speed record at Texas Mile after hitting 263.3 mph (423.7 km/h). On Saturday they came back with the car and were able to reach a top speed of 267.6 mph (430.66 km/h).

They achieved this performance with the same car powered by a 5.4-liter Accufab Racing engine featuring two Precision turbochargers, while MoTeC's Shane Tecklenburg worked on the engine and power management. We are assuming for this latest run they used 117 octane racing gasoline fuel.

As a reminder, the Ford GT by Hennessey is a road-legal car featuring the inspection sticker, power windows, audio system, airbags and an air conditioning system.

Source: Hennessey Performance via WORLDCARFANS

Citroën DS 19 Prototype: The Goddess has landed

It’s the beginning of October, 1955; the Citroën DS is about to be revealed to the world, and subsequently revered for both its technological and aesthetic advances. We’ve unearthed images of ‘The Goddess’ on her maiden journey, just days before the momentous premiere.

The debut of the DS ushers in a new era for the French manufacturer. After 23 years in service, the weary Traction Avant is finally being replaced, and visitors to the Paris show are stunned by how far its successor moves the game on. Soon to float (almost literally) along the boulevards of the world, the streamlined body appears to have been hauled back from the future by designer Flaminio Bertoni, and the technology it boasts is no less of a revelation.
Hydropneumatic suspension makes its first appearance on a production car, oscillating automatically to adapt to road conditions – Mercedes and Rolls-Royce are to license the pioneering technology soon afterwards. Meanwhile, disc brakes and a dual-circuit braking system provide anchorage; a semi-automatic transmission takes power to the front wheels. Interestingly, the horn has two volume settings: city and highway. In 1957, philosopher Roland Barthes remarks that the DS has "obviously fallen from the sky."


The photographs seen here were taken by French photographer Maurice Jarnoux, for Paris Match, not a week before the show. They show a prototype DS 19 undergoing final evaluation in a screened-off section of the Citroën factory; the bird's-eye image perfectly emphasises the Goddess’s teardrop shape. In the same shot, Jarnoux also captures the four-cylinder engine liberated from the obscuring bonnet, while the black, glassfibre-reinforced roof prescribed by co-designer André Lefèbvre reflects the daylight it was about to see fully for the first time.
During the maiden voyage, the prototype stuns soldiers smoking outside their nearby Versailles barracks as it sweeps through rain-slicked bends at 60mph. They're not to know that the driver has the assurance of the revolutionary suspension and other futuristic technologies, while the curved windscreen is providing him with ample vision. The single-spoke steering wheel has also been designed with his welfare in mind, and will collapse should the worst occur. Some later even credit the Goddess for famously saving the life of Charles de Gaulle during an assassination attempt…


President de Gaulle wasn’t the only satisfied customer; the DS was built in numerous variations for 20 years, and remained largely unchanged throughout. The interior was comfortable and spacious, and had room for more than a dozen suitcases – as demonstrated by Gina Lollobrigida.
Though it’s as pretty today as it would have been on that wet autumn day all those years ago, its visual appeal had begun to wane by the 1970s, despite still achieving strong sales. It was joined by the SM before being phased out completely some years later, but such was its impact that it has become one of the archetypal classic cars – its characterful silhouette being the visual equivalent of a ‘household name’.

Related Links A number of classic Citroëns can be found in the Classic Driver Marketplace

Text: Jan Baedeker(ClassicDriver)
Photos: Maurice Jarnoux/Paris Match via Getty Images

Audi Motorrad: here is the first concept on two wheels from the German carmaker

from TWOWHEELSBLOG

Apparently, Audi’s involvement in motorcycling is not going to stop after the much-hyped takeover of Italian legendary brand Ducati. The luxury brand of the Volkswahen Group has just introduced “Audi Motorrad“, a new concept on two wheels created by French designers Thibault and Marc Devauze, with the collaboration of Clement Couvreur who oversaw the construction of the clay model.

The bike comes with pretty futuristic lines and a sleek figure that make it look like a perfect crossbred between a ‘naked’ and a sportsbike, with low handlebars, covered forks, sharp tail and a pretty sophisticated swingarm. The front view is characterized by the two tapered LED headlights and the front damper that can be spotted right in between them. The alloy wheels instead use a design that its pretty reminiscent of the current Ducati production.

The fairings are graced by Audi’s distinctive four-ring logo and seem to conceal an electric engine (please note the absence of an exhaust system). The “Audi Ultra” decal instead indicates that this machine is made of the most advanced alloys that the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer uses for its cars. Does this mean Audi is about to launch its own range of motorcycles? We don’t think so - we would rather foresee the next step of this project coming out with a Ducati logo on it - but you never know. Only time will tell..