Davestuff

This got cut by about two-thirds to make it into print. Also the editor hated it. If you’re thinking about buying and selling modified cars, it’s handy if you’re either a complete genius, or don’t mind losing money. We suppose you could just be super lucky, but if you have that kind of kismet you’ll be too busy getting banned from casinos in Vegas and fending off lingerie models to have time worry about hotrods. First, ask yourself  if you’re looking for bang for your buck in a car you’d like to drive; or is money on the other end your ultimate goal? They can be the same thing, but it’s much easier to have a single goal in mind. Either way, if you take the complete genius route, then you have a two-pronged plan of attack. Figure out what the next big thing is and buy it; and at the same time use your massive mental powers to make yourself love that car, whatever it is. Even if you have picked the right next hot car, and on top of that successfully predicted that peopl...

This is going to run at work on Friday (the link will not be active until then), but that's a long time to wait for a blog post, especially one it took me all freaking day to assemble. As no one reads this, I can post it here and at least have the satisfaction of seeing it myself. HAM, GEO (GEORGES HAMEL 1900-1972) M.C.F. ( Motor Club de France--ed ) lithograph in colours, printed by Max Courteau, Paris, condition A-; not backed 16 x 12in. (40 x 30cm.) At their May 20 South Kensington sale next week , Christie's is featuring period posters, with dozens of iconic racing and advertising images. These are not from the age of Jimmy's Photoshopped Corvette Posters--these are serious works of art, some closing in on a century old and priced as such. BELIGOND, MICHEL (1927-1973) 24H DU MANS, 1959 lithograph in colours, 1959, printed by Thivillier, condition A-; backed on linen 22 x 16in. (56 x 40cm.) Christie's sale is not as comprehensive as l'art et l'aut...

I got a nice letter today from Ken Gluckman, a DaimlerChrysler Associate General Counsel and vice president, who's been following my exclusive series on the Christie's Auto Union . His email followed by a matter of minutes an off-the-record conversation with Christie's...I'm feeling like a bigshot today: I have been reading your blog for a while and have followed the story of the Auto Union car with great interest. Last year I was lucky enough to visit the Riga auto museum. While there I saw the original Auto Union racer, which I immediately recognized from the photos in the blog. I was told that this original car was sent to Audi some years ago and they helped restore it (and displayed it in their museum for a while). The original restored car was eventually returned to the museum, but while Audi had it, they made a copy, which is the vehicle now on display in their museum. I am attaching a photo of the car -- sorry it isn't better, but we weren't tryin...