Classic Driver Motor Show 1964: The most important cars of the year

Nineteen sixty-four. In the year of Beatlemania and Mary Poppins, some seriously significant cars were launched to the world. We’ve cherry-picked the most important from Geneva, New York, Paris and Turin to star at the hypothetical Classic Driver Motor Show ’64…

Spring awakening in Geneva

The automotive year kicked off in Geneva with a flurry of activity from the Italian manufacturers, all keen to make an impression. Lamborghini debuted its first ever production car, the Touring-bodied 350GT, in a bid to beat Ferrari at its own game. Naturally, Ferrari retaliated, showing its new 330 GT 2+2 and the perhaps contradictory track-honed 250 GT Lusso Competizione. Meanwhile, over on the Pininfarina stand, motor show-goers were treated to a glimpse of the super-exclusive 500 Superfast. One of just 36 produced, not only was (and still is) the Superfast one of the rarest Ferraris ever built, at £10,932 it was also one of the most expensive. Our favourite from the Geneva Salon, though, was the stunning Fiat 2300 S ‘Lausanne’: a distinctly styled special-edition coupé built by the Pininfarina brothers in homage to Switzerland – how appropriate.

Two Ford legends in New York

Although not strictly a motor show, the 1964 New York World’s Fair played host to one of the most popular and influential cars ever made: the Ford Mustang. Within 12 months of the car being introduced at the fair (by Henry Ford II, no less), a staggering 400,000 cars had been produced, over three times what had originally been forecast. Also presented at the World’s Fair was the futuristic Chrysler Turbine Car. The Ghia-penned coupé was designed to do away with the traditional piston engine and could run on pretty much anything: diesel, vegetable oil, even Chanel No.5 if you so desired. The New York Auto Show was held shortly before the fair, where the very first Ford GT prototype was shown to the world.

Porsche, Pininfarina's Pagoda and a special Ferrari in Paris

Later in the year, Paris and Turin were equally eventful; and again, the European manufacturers took centre stage. Renault launched its more powerful 8 Gordini, available exclusively in ‘bleu de France’, while Mercedes-Benz debuted its latest collaboration with Pininfarina, the 230 SL Coupé. Sadly, it wasn’t convincing enough to make production and the tin-topped Pagoda remained a one-off. Porsche had a successful show, too, displaying the production-ready 901 alongside the new 904 Carrera GTS. Soon after Paris, however, Peugeot complained that the model name 901 infringed its copyright and the name was promptly changed… to 911. Ferrari also chose Paris to display its latest car, the 275 GTB, alongside its convertible sister, the GTS. One of the truly great GT designs, the 275 embraced Ferrari’s competition pedigree, encompassing technology pioneered on the racetrack.

Turin visionaries

Come Turin it was, perhaps appropriately, Alfa Romeo’s turn to grab the headlines. The sleek Bertone-designed Canguro (Italian for kangaroo) was a showstopper, while the beautiful 2600 Sprint Zagato was equally well received. Compatriot De Tomaso also tested the Turinese waters with the Vallelunga concept. As we’re sure you’ll agree, our 1964 motor show would be quite a sensation; and judging by the value of many of these cars today, 1964 was a true highlight in automotive history. 

Classic cars from 1964 can be found in the Classic Driver Market.

MOTO SUMISURA INGE

From the land of passion and style it’s no surprise that Italian Franco ” Frank” Augello has customers queuing up to order his take on the ever popular 2-valve BMW. Having worked in the fashion & TV business for over a decade Frank was unable to contain his enthusiasm for custom Beemers and started collecting two wheeled wrecks to restore in his spare time.  In 2013 his heart won over his head and Moto SuMisura was born. (su misura translates as custom-made).

From their base in Milan, Frank and his team (Inge, Fabrizio and Maurizio) follow a mantra of combining travel, fashion and art, aiming to produce customer bikes of the best quality with a design style they hope will be recognisable as their brand.  The Milanese custom bike ‘tifosi’ have not run them out of town yet so Moto SuMisura must be doing something right.

The 1980 R65 you see here was the result of many hours of hand waving, postulating and arguing between Frank and the team’s Technical Director, Inge.  Creative and technical minds are often opposed but Frank also had the challenge of converting his mate and collegue from Harleys to BMWs.  Once a common theme was agreed 400 hrs of blood, sweat and pranzi lunghi followed.

The old Airhead engine was stripped, inspected and parts replaced where necessary before being mated to in-house made stubby, and loud looking, exhausts.  Meshed velocity stacks feed the 32mm Bing carbs and keep the largest debris from undoing Frank’s handywork. The front mudguard has been relocated back to front and attached vertically to the front of the crank case.  The engine will be saved from flying stones whilst Inge is protected by a forcefield of style.

Keeping things local, Borani rims were laced to a drilled and ducted drum brake at the front whilst the rear is a standard drum unit from an earlier model, all wrapped in matching sized vintage Avons.

Up top, a 1960 R27 tank was modded to fit and given a lovely two-tone paint job, leading the passer-by to question their ability to date the donor bike.  A bespoke cross stitched leather solo saddle sorts out the comfort whilst keeping the tail neat.  Handle bars from an R75 sidecar with end-pivot levers and brass clamp nuts give a pre-war look, and a machined ally throttle cable splitter is a reminder that this bike is bang up to date. Refurbished and modified R51 front and rear suspension work their magic in the mountains and hopefully the infamous tram tracks that criss cross Milano.

Moto SuMisura clearly have a passion for BMWs, mixing eras with craftsmanship to give a well poised and balanced looking bike.  If you’re passing why not pop in, Frank has enthusiasm on tap, not to mention a fine looking selection of salami hanging from the workshop rafters.

See more from Moto Sumisura on The Bike Shed and on their Facebook Page.

‘A Contemporary Edge’: Bonhams breaks the barriers between art and design

Paintings, sculptures, photography and modern design – the art world has long since abandoned such specific categorical terms. Now, British auction house Bonhams has announced a new auction series that sees artwork from the likes of Hirst and Banksy offered alongside 20th Century furniture…

A particular highlight of the 4 March auction at Bonhams' Bond Street headquarters is a piece by Damien Hirst, estimated to fetch £60-80,000 and enthusiastically titled ‘Beautiful Intergalactic Fantasmagoria in a Rainbow Big Bang Explosion, Let's Have More Intercourse’. Along with works by other renowned artists such as Banksy, Sam Francis and José Guerrero, the sale also includes some stylistically matching pieces of furniture.

Further information and a lotlist for the 'A Contemporary Edge' auction can be found at bonhams.com.

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