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Special 3363 Classic 6x6

For more infomation >> NEW TAMIYA 3363 CLASSIC SPACE FIRST DRIVE! FANTASTIC RC MODEL 6x6 DRIVE! RC LIVE ACTION - Duration: 10:14.

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Killing Hell Diablo at level 33 (Classic Barbarian) - Duration: 5:06.

For more infomation >> Killing Hell Diablo at level 33 (Classic Barbarian) - Duration: 5:06.

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Tom and Jerry Full Episodes: Under the Big Top (1981) | Cartoons Classics Videos - Duration: 5:48.

Tom And Jerry

Under The Big Top

Subtitles: Lucas Porto Cartoons

Oh. Here you are! You took too long to get dressed.

Now go upstairs and do the public laugh a lot!

And now, ladies and gentlemen. The most magnificent, spectacular, stupendous spectacle of all time!

A 165 meter high dive into a damp sponge!

For more infomation >> Tom and Jerry Full Episodes: Under the Big Top (1981) | Cartoons Classics Videos - Duration: 5:48.

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Fiat Panda 1.2 CLASSIC / airco - Duration: 0:57.

For more infomation >> Fiat Panda 1.2 CLASSIC / airco - Duration: 0:57.

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Mercedes-Benz A-Klasse 180 CDI CLASSIC - Duration: 1:00.

For more infomation >> Mercedes-Benz A-Klasse 180 CDI CLASSIC - Duration: 1:00.

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JSU looks ahead to Southern Heritage Classic - Duration: 1:20.

For more infomation >> JSU looks ahead to Southern Heritage Classic - Duration: 1:20.

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1967 Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 16:48.

1967 Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe Classic Drive

Envision this: You're the editor of Motor Trend. And, naturally, you have lots of friends in automotive journalism. You see them at industry events, major auto shows, and press launches of important new vehicles, typically at exotic locations here in the U.S.

Now imagine inviting those friends to a bar after the first day of the New York auto show in April with these words: "Let's design a dream car." You'll build a driveable version in less than six months, in time to be unveiled on a turntable in Los Angeles in November.

Sound improbable? Of course. But, believe it or not, this scenario transpired 45 years ago. Instead of New York, it was in London, England. The publication was The Daily Telegraph Magazine, and the editor was John Anstey.

The car was a collaboration among auto journalists, Anstey, Jaguar, and the design house of Bertone, and was known as the 1967 Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe. This is that car's improbable story.

The Daily Telegraph Magazine was a newcomer in the competitive U.K. The Daily Telegraph newspaper already had a reputation for doing things in a big way.

In its coverage of the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965, it scooped its competitors in the predigital era by delivering complete color magazine coverage just a day after Churchill's burial.

To do so, Anstey had film flown to West Germany, where millions of copies could be printed — because it promised the best quality — and had the finished product flown back to the U.K.

just in time to be inserted into Sunday's edition, a week ahead of his national competitors.

In March 1967, the increasingly powerful Anstey cooked up another wild scheme to promote his weekend magazine, gathering a group of motoring writers at that year's Geneva motor show and asking them, in effect, "If you could build your dream car, what would it be?" The group of motoring scribes examined what was then the state-of-the-art in automotive design, culling elements from Aston Martin, Ferrari, Jaguar, Lamborghini, Lotus, and Maserati to come up with their ideal 2+2 Grand Touring coupe.

But this was no mere pipe dream. After pushing the magazine's senior management, Anstey actually obtained the budget to push the "dream coupe" vision forward. What's more, he had the audacity to promise delivery of an actual car in just six months.

Armed with an unbelievable budget of 20,000 GBP (nearly $371,000 in today's dollars) provided by The Daily Telegraph's bean counters, Anstey formed an internal design group — himself, picture editor Alexander Low, and art director Geoffrey Axbey — to refine the auto writers' broad strokes.

Less than a month later, in mid-April, the trio had finalized the design. The brief for what would be known as the Telegraph Car depicted a luxury Grand Touring two-seat coupe.

It would be built mostly with off-the-shelf components that were available or would be in the near future, and it would be fully driveable.

According to Anstey, this was, "a fast and comfortable coupe with plenty of leg-, head-, and elbowroom and a modern heating and air-conditioning system of such advanced design and proven efficiency that we could cruise quietly at 100 mph or more — on Continental motorways of course — with the windows closed.".

The next step was to select an engine and chassis, and the three-man Telegraph team (the original journalists by now had scattered to the wind) agreed the logical choice was the Jaguar E-Type because of its well-documented performance and well-demonstrated reliability.

But Anstey wanted more, and specified the use of wide-rim racing wheels — reported to have come from two different Jaguar D-Type race cars in the U.S. and Australia — that would extend the front and rear track.

To ensure a spacious cockpit, the team opted for the E-Type's 2+2 version along with the 4.2-liter straight six. And surprisingly, Jaguar co-founder Sir William Lyons enthusiastically backed the project, agreeing to sell Anstey an E-Type 2+2 chassis.

Who would build the car, and build it fast enough so that it could be unveiled at the Earls Court Motor Show in October? Anstey approached Nuccio Bertone of Carrozzeria Bertone in Turin, Italy.

Like Lyons, Bertone got on board the train, and after the exchange of just two letters each way between London and Turin, an agreement was reached to build the car.

Bertone took it upon himself to name the car Piranha, and, indeed, that's what appears on the fender script. The spelling was later changed to Pirana because Piranha was already in use.

If the car looks familiar, it might be because its stylist, Marcello Gandini, already well-known for his work on the Lamborghini Miura, was also responsible for the Lamborghini Marzal concept car that had just been introduced at the 1967 Geneva auto show.

The Marzal, besides being an inspiration for the Pirana, would serve as a precursor for the bodywork on the Lamborghini Espada 2+2, which would be introduced the following year and enjoye a 10-year production run over three series.

(The Espada itself spawned a one-off, a four-door version called the Faena, seen at the 1978 Turin auto show, styled by Pietro Frua.).

The Earls Court show was now just five months away, and Carrozzeria Bertone went to work to turn the idea car into a reality.

With the overall package determined, the process moved forward with a clay model, which led to a set of full-size drawings from which a full-sized mock-up was constructed in wood and clay to refine critical surface details.

From this buck, the craftsmen at Carrozzeria Bertone hammered out a monocoque by hand, fashioned from a combination of steel and alloy panels. What would become the Pirana took shape in mere weeks.

Because the horizontal rear glass obstructed the view behind, Bertone installed a louvered rear panel he called a "viewing aperture." To provide ventilation to the cabin, the glass behind the panel could be lowered out of sight via an electric motor.

The Pirana was fitted with Britax seatbelts with reminder lamps and audible warnings. There's also a speed-limit warning system with over-limit alarms. Being a prototype, the Pirana was 300 pounds heavier than the E-Type, which resulted in a small performance loss.

Still, with its power-to-weight ratio, the Pirana would feature a top speed of 145 mph, competitive with existing 2+2s from Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Maserati.

The Pirana was completed on deadline and was a certifiable hit of the 1967 Earls Court Motor Show, documented by a British Pathe newsreel (youtube.com/watch?v=5gOfDXh9Eqk) and by the enthusiast motoring publications of the day.

Following its successful unveiling at Earls Court, the Pirana appeared in Turin in 1967 and in New York and Montreal in 1968. After that, it virtually disappeared from view.

Sold by The Daily Telegraph for $16,000 to recoup some of its investment, the Pirana's history from 1968 to 2010 is sketchy. It seems it was owned by a British national who had a second home in Palm Springs.

Apparently around 1980, the car was painted a shade of British Racing Green, a color not well-suited to its angular lines. In fall 2010, the Pirana surfaced in an advertisement for sale on eBay with a starting price of $150,000.

Later, through a brokered deal, current owner Ed Superfon, co-founder of the VIP Toy Store in Los Angeles, bought the car for $350,000.

Knowing the Pirana's provenance, Superfon had the BRG paint stripped and replaced in a shade of silver metallic that very closely approximates the 1967 Earls Court premiere hue.

He replaced the front hides and refurbished all mechanical details — lights, wipers, switches, and the imaginative HVAC that cools down the cockpit as much as can be expected from a 45-year-old system.

The Pirana was displayed publicly at the 2012 Concorso Italiano, the first time in almost 45 years. Superfon allowed me to drive the car after its return from Monterey.

Driving it on secluded two-lane roads in the hills above Los Angeles, I appreciated the uniqueness of this historic one-off concept. The driving position is typically Italian, classic arms-out, as in a then-contemporary Ferrari or Lamborghini.

The first surprise is the three-speed automatic, supplied by Borg-Warner and used on a wide variety of cars from the era.

On twisty canyon roads, the Pirana is tight with few rattles, not all that surprising given that the Pirana's odometer registers just over 16,000 miles. Superfon assumes this to be correct based on his research of the car's history.

Over the past 15 years, I've driven more than a dozen million-dollar manufacturer concept cars, starting in 1998 with the Jeep Jeepster. I can say without equivocation, the Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe drives as well as any and better than most.

I'd have no hesitation in getting behind the wheel and driving it from coast to coast or, say, from London to Rome.

That would be the kind of grand adventure John Anstey had in mind 45 years ago when he envisioned building this truly unique GT — that and, of course, boosting his.

ED SUPERFON has had a lifelong love affair with cars. Growing up in Michigan, he started drag racing his 335-hp 1959 Chevy Impala coupe around the streets of Detroit in 1960.

"One day, I went along with a friend to get his Jaguar E-Type serviced across the river in Canada at Windsor Motors. They were taking delivery of a 1969 Lotus Europa when we arrived.

I fell in love, bought it, and thus began my affair with odd and exotic cars." Other stops along the way included Phoenix, Arizona, where in 1972 he hooked up with the 20-something Harley Cluxton as he opened a new Ferrari dealership called Grand Touring Cars.

The first thing that comes to mind when seeing the Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe is, "I've seen that look before. " The Pirana bears more than a passing resemblance to the 1968-1980 Lamborghini Espada, another car penned by Marcello Gandini.

But if one looks at the Pirana in the context of its time, it's reality the transition step between two Gandini-designed Lamborghinis, the Espada and the Marzal, which premiered at the 1967 Geneva auto show.

It was the Marzal that set in motion John Anstey's quest to design and build the Pirana as The Daily Telegraph Magazine's idea car.

The Marzal's packaging was unique in that Gandini designed a 2+2 GT with half of the Miura's V-12 set transversely behind the back seat.

The 20-liter, 175-hp inline-six makes a great deal of sense when you think about it (no bank of cylinders nestled up against the bulkhead separating the interior from the engine compartment), much more than any V-engine design.

As a concept, the most interesting design element was its gullwing doors, which featured almost 50 square feet of glass glazing.

Strip away the doors and the unusual glazing scheme, and the proportions and especially the sheetmetal forward of the A-pillars clearly influenced both the Pirana and Espada that followed.

A close look at the sheetmetal aft of the doors shows obvious Miura influences. Over the years, like the Pirana, the Marzal kept a relatively low profile.

One appearance was soon after the 1967 Geneva show, when it served as the pace car for the 1967 Monaco Grand Prix, driven by Princess Grace and Prince Rainier.

It next appeared at the 1996 Concorso Italiano, then returned to the Bertone Design Study Museum in Italy. In 2011, it, along with several other Bertone concepts, was offered for sale at the Villa d'Este by RM Auctions.

The Marzal moved on to a new owner for 1.5 million Euros (about $2.1 million at the time). This article originally appeared in the Winter 2012 issue of Motor Trend Classic.

For more infomation >> 1967 Jaguar Bertone Pirana Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 16:48.

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Ford Fiesta 1.3-8V Classic - Duration: 0:59.

For more infomation >> Ford Fiesta 1.3-8V Classic - Duration: 0:59.

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Fiat Punto 1.2 CLASSIC EDIZIONE COOL met airco 109.000 km ! - Duration: 1:00.

For more infomation >> Fiat Punto 1.2 CLASSIC EDIZIONE COOL met airco 109.000 km ! - Duration: 1:00.

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Affordable Classic: 1968 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado - Duration: 7:03.

Affordable Classic: 1968 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado

Bill Mitchell first melded Ferrari and Rolls-Royce styling into the 1963 Buick Riviera. Next came the front-drive 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado. Then the 1967 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado reached for the apex of General Motors style, luxury, and performance.

Like the Toronado, the Eldorado was a front-drive, "personal" two-door luxury hardtop. It shared its basic bodyshell with the Toronado and the rear-drive '66-on Riviera.

The Caddy was gorgeous, with creased, deep-draw body panels and a presence that suggested bold, regal sportiness, the kind of car made for an architect, brain surgeon, or NFL coach.

Cadillac later reused its concave trunklid panel design on the 1999 Evoq concept car. So we come to bringatrailer.com's listing of a showroom-clean 1967 Cadillac Eldorado on eBay, with a $10,250 starting bid and $10,500 buy-it-now.

The seller from Oregon writes that it has 93,248 miles on its original 429-cubic-inch V-8, and is in excellent shape. There's overspray from its Flamenco Red repaint, some minor aging of its white leather upholstery, and no power antenna mast.

It came with most Cadillac options. Referring to John Gunnell's "Standard Catalog of American Cars," I estimate the $6277 base price was optioned up to $8080. That's just 30-percent appreciation over 45 years. But bargain hunters probably can do even better.

"I would imagine you could find one for well under $10,000," says Bret Scott, of Pleasant Ridge, Michigan. He counts the Baroque Gold 1968 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado pictured here among his six collectibles.

Scott paid just $2600 for his in 2004 and drove it from Boulder, Colorado, to Palo Alto, California, where he lived at the time. The car has a couple of blemishes in the seat, but otherwise is without issues.

Face-lift changes to the '68 Eldorado are subtle, but easy to pick out. The front turn signals/parking lights were moved from the lower front bumper to the outer edges of the grille, next to the hideaway headlamps.

The hood cutlines are different because the 1968 has hideaway windshield wipers, which first appeared on '67 Pontiacs. There are round rear side-marker lamps embossed with the Cadillac wreath, and the 340-horsepower, 429-cubic-inch V-8 was upgraded to a 350-hp, 472 V-8.

Launch difficulties got the '67 Eldo off to a slow start, with just 17,930 produced. By '68, that jumped to 24,528, which remained a steady amount through the 500-cubic-inch '70 model. Scott lists two issues with his Eldorado.

In 1968, there was a fire at General Motors in a building where documents were stored, so he hasn't been able to get a build sheet, a problem for any GM from that year.

"All the parts catalogs are goofy," he says, and he invariably gets the wrong part from Cadillac. Other parts vendors are more reliable; and in either case, parts for his car have been easy to find and relatively inexpensive.

An all-new, baroque-styled Eldorado launched for 1971, with a convertible model added to replace the discontinued DeVille ragtop.

In 1976, the last year Cadillac offered a convertible version, sales of the two body styles totaled 49,184, with the downsized '79 Eldorado at 67,436. The first-generation Eldorado is as rare as it is elegant. Why isn't it worth more?.

"That generation of car wasn't the smoothest of Cadillacs," Scott explains. Cadillac described it as a "sport styled" car, and apparently infused a bit of that in the chassis.

What's more, it's not a classic cruiser, because there was no first-generation convertible, and the rear seat isn't capacious, as in a DeVille or Fleetwood Brougham.

At 221 inches long on a 120-inch wheelbase, the 1967-'68 Eldorado is no compact, and a second door handle on the rear of each door armrest makes it easy to get out of the back seat.

Second-generation Eldorado coupes go for about the same money, while "excellent" convertibles tickle the $20,000 range, until you get to the '76 Eldo ragtop, billed at the time as the last American convertible, ever, and worth up to $37,750 today.

The "Black Book" value on Bret Scott's car strikes him as high. "I would expect to find it in perfect condition, for that price. " In any case, it's still quite a bargain.

For more infomation >> Affordable Classic: 1968 Cadillac Fleetwood Eldorado - Duration: 7:03.

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Mercedes-Benz C-Klasse 200 CDI Classic Navigatie Airco - Duration: 0:59.

For more infomation >> Mercedes-Benz C-Klasse 200 CDI Classic Navigatie Airco - Duration: 0:59.

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1970 Rover 3.5 Litre Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 15:16.

1970 Rover 3.5 Litre Coupe Classic Drive

Concord,Massachusetts, served as the Greenwich Village/Haight-Ashbury of the early 19th century, a hotbed of counter-culture intellectualism and free thinking led by one Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Here, in the upstairs back corner room of the house his grandfather built, Emerson evolved his uniquely American writing style while penning the seminal essay "Nature," which laid the foundation for the Transcendentalist movement.

Years before, his grandmother, Phebe Bliss, had anxiously observed the first battle of the Revolutionary War from this same room as it unfolded just beyond her backyard at the North Bridge.

In later times, renter Nathaniel Hawthorne developed his short-story collection, "Mosses from an Old Manse," from that same corner room.

And while we're dropping names, Walden Pond naturalist/carpenter/Transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau planted the quarter-acre garden out front and built Hawthorne's writing desk upstairs.

Our tortured hook to this literary who's who? An examination of Rover's luxurious 1963-1973 Coupe — the first four-door vehicle to be officially badged a coupe, thus transcending traditional notions of body styles and laying the foundation for the current fascination with this body type, which was sparked by the 2006 Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class.

Anyone who's taken high-school French knows coupe is simply the past tense of the verb couper, "to cut." In an automotive context, most such cuts are made to wheelbases and rooflines, as well as to a car's door count and level of stodginess and formality.

Postwar Rovers had those last two qualities in spades.

Press spinmeisters of the day lauded their engineering "for long use and slow styling obsolescence." Road & Track quipped, "Rover owners replace their first model as frequently as they replace the family silver, the need being about as urgent." The company's fourth postwar design (codenamed P4) of 1949-'64 was dubbed Auntie and Cyclops, names that accurately convey its glamour.

Auntie was selling strongly when the company embarked on a plan to add a second model to the lineup. At first, this P5 was conceived to be a smaller, more economical, higher-volume car.

Radically new layouts were considered, including a stub-nosed rear-engine design and even front- or all-wheel drive.

But, as luck would have it, with the company's Land Rover business booming and the Solihull factory filled to brimming, the local government refused permission for Rover to expand on the acres of adjacent land it already owned, an anti-jobs move that seems unthinkable today.

So instead of a high-volume/low-margin car, the company re-aimed the P5 at Jaguar, as a low-volume/high-margin cruiser.

The job of designing the firm's entry to this new market niche was assigned to David Bache, the fresh hire and recent graduate of the Birmingham College of Art who would become Rover's first "stylist." He started with a couple of beautiful head-turners that drew influence from a gorgeous Pinin Farina two-door coupe and convertible Rover had commissioned in 1952, based on the P4.

Company boss Maurice Wilks praised the voluptuous hips and forward-raked grille of Bache's design, then sent him back to the drawing board to deliver something more "discreet.".

But soon Rover decided to "let its hair down," if only a little, by fielding two variants of the P5.

The traditional somber saloon would be joined by a more raffish version in the style of the American pillarless "hardtop" that shared with the sedan everything below the greenhouse.

Bache gave his team orders to sketch up a half-dozen ideas, with a pair of them representing a major stretch: lots of expensive curved glass and so forth. To everyone's shock and delight, management opted for the most radical one.

Development commenced immediately, but engineering couldn't get the frameless glass to seal out British weather satisfactorily, so the car would have to make do with a thin B-pillar and stainless door frames.

Production would also be delayed from the saloon's 1958 Earls Court motor show debut to the fall of 1962 (Americans saw it first at the April 1963 New York show).

Of course, by 1963, the 115-hp F-head (overhead-valve intake/side-valve exhaust) 30-liter I-6 was getting wheezy, so the Weslake cylinder head originally planned for the Coupe got shared across the entire lineup, adding 19 much-needed horsepower, but eliminating the sportier car's performance edge.

The finished product stood 2.5 inches lower than the saloon, added several options as standard equipment, and commanded a price premium of about 9 percent.

The 2006 Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class that revived the four-door coupe craze used E-Class engines, stood 2.3 inches lower, and cost 10.9 percent more than its traditional E-Class sibling, but its restyling extended below the waist.

With just 134 horses on tap, perhaps Rover was hoping to lure Emersonian Americans who believed that driving satisfaction derives from intellectual intuition and reflection and transcends measurable performance.

There weren't many such drivers in the horsepower-hungry U.S., nor even in Europe. Total left-hand-drive exports accounted for just 10 percent of P5 production. Realizing the car needed more power, Chrysler was approached about providing V-8 engines but nothing came of it.

Then, in 1964, director William Martin-Hurst made a fortuitous visit to Mercury Marine, which was interested in marketing Land Rover diesel engines for marine use.

While there, he spotted a diminutive aluminum Buick 215-cubic-inch V-8 on the shop floor and learned that GM had recently stopped producing it and was interested in selling the manufacturing rights.

He talked Mercury's Carl Kiekhaefer into letting him take the engine home to Solihull. It was installed into a mule car and gradually won over a skeptical board of directors.

By 1965, a deal was struck with GM that included myriad drawings and records, 39 new engines, and even a short-term consulting contract with the engine's designer, Joe Turley, who helped fix known problems with the engine and develop British ancillary parts like twin SU carbs and Lucas electrics.

By 1967, the engine was powering the P5B (for Buick) 3.5 Litre saloon and Coupe, as well as the 3500 version of the more modern P6.

As that car had been tailored to better suit American tastes, the 3.5 Litre P5B was never officially exported to the U.S.

Our gorgeous Admiralty Blue 1970 example reportedly started life conveying a British minister around Hong Kong before finding its way to Vancouver, Canada.

Dirk Burrows, patron saint of Rover cars in the U.S., acquired it in May 2007, and immediately undertook a cosmetic restoration (paint, chrome, and the like).

It was finished in time to take first prize in his nearby British Invasion concours. The following spring, Burrows was rear-ended by a diabetic truck driver who had passed out.

This accident collapsed the entire trunk, but left the gorgeous greenhouse and doors unscathed. Burrows managed to restore the Coupe again in time for the next year's concours, and he took home another trophy.

The car has since been hit and restored a third time, so it's with some trepidation I approach my test drive of this star-crossed Rover, hoping the intense spirituality of our location might counter whatever bad juju has plagued it.

Sliding under the large steering wheel and onto the tall driver's throne requires carefully aiming a horizontally kinked lower left leg; once settled, I'm almost as comfy as the incredible thickness of the back and cushion suggest.

A little crank in front adjusts the seat height, the door armrest is also height-adjustable, and the backrest rake is infinitely adjustable from Puritanical upright to Bohemian sleep-in-the-car.

The scent of this leather is more old pub than old car — aromatic and clubby. The V-8 fires readily and settles into a frenetic high idle. A red ignition lamp glows to signal "all's well".

Next to it, a green lamp lights only if the oil pressure plunges — the choice of a color-blind engineer? Engaging Drive in the Borg-Warner automatic sends a shock wave of twist through the car, and we're off.

Inhaling through a well-muffled intake and those twin SU carbs, the engine wuffles along with a note that sounds more Bentley than Buick — the payoff for Rover's $8.4 million investment in tooling, development, and British naturalization of this Flint, Michigan, native?.

The alloy 3.5-liter weighs 200 pounds less than the iron six it replaced, improving the front/rear weight distribution from 59/41 to 50/50 — great for handling, bad for the feel of the laughably light Hydrosteer helm.

Eventually, I try out the left-rear seat, in which all British Prime Ministers from Harold Wilson to Margaret Thatcher rode — yes, even the Iron Lady, who wasn't elected until six years after this model's production ceased.

(The British government bought 100 black P5Bs and stored them to replace cars as they wore out).

My head rubs the Coupe's ceiling, but Dirk admits he fitted saloon seat cushions front and rear, which sit 1.5 inch taller than the Coupe ones.

Having driven a 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550 four-door coupe up to meet its forebear, I am struck by the similarities in the two cars.

Each is considerably more attractive than its sedan counterpart, and the cost and comfort penalty exacted by each is similar — I've bumped my head in the Benz, my knees in the 3.5 Litre — but have been quite happy to do so in pursuit of the admiring glances both cars draw.

Transcendentalism was strongly influenced by German Romanticism, and the romance of the impractically stylish, slant-roofed four-door is undeniable. Long may this movement last.

They were never produced, but they influenced David Bache's P5 design. Then, when the company toyed with a drophead P5 variant, it commissioned Henri Chapron of Paris to build one in early 1962.

The result was stunning, with a low roofline and a top that stowed flush with the bodywork.

Swiss coachbuilder Graber built a convertible to display at the Geneva show in 1963, but it's unclear if it was a private commission or a project to show off its abilities.

The car pictured is the only such period conversion to feature rear quarter windows.

London's FLM Panelcraft (which would go on to build wagon variants of later Rovers) was commissioned by Swedish civil engineer George Hansson, to convert his brand-new #1400 four-speed manual 30 Litre into a ragtop.

The company reinforced the floor, moved the B-pillar 5.9 inches aft, stretched the front doors by the same measure, narrowed the rear seat and moved the fuel tank to accommodate the top mechanism, and devised a fully lined, wood-trimmed manual-folding top.

For more infomation >> 1970 Rover 3.5 Litre Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 15:16.

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Mae Young Classic Round 2 E2 full show (commentary and reactions) - Duration: 43:45.

Alright guys we are back finally

Sorry, I had to do one thing before I could have really gotten in there really taking care of some stuff

Tony but

I'm sorry Tony storm

she's awesome and

This is round two she is taking on Rhea Ripley who is

amazingly attractive like crazy

The second round oh, she think I only see Evans excuse me no Dakota guy is taking on Ripley

From Parris Island, South Carolina can't any more American than that

Drill sergeant, it's the Marines is Lacey Evans. She's probably one of the older

No, I don't want to resume I want a new one I

Mean are we live

What the heck just happened it. Just it's saying that this video is live

But I'm not seeing it on

Anything so I don't know what it's thinking at all

Yes, I'm so confused what just happened it just freaked out

Okay

All right well

Yeah, sorry about that. That was really weird we're back

Myun classic round number two this is the final round two and then we're gonna go right to the quarterfinals and an SMI

side headlock here by

Tony's storm and Lacey Evans the

Crowd loving it so he had a good showing for the first round. I don't know why it did that that was really weird

Lacey Evans gear is awesome

Let's go

Unless she's like. Oh, let's shake hands again. Nope side headlock by Lacey Evans to Tony's storm

Who's like a punk rock chick I guess off the ropes?

Shoulder tackle by Lacey Evans who kind of looks like Lana?

Throw-ups again countered big boot caught

Dropping the NIEM. Oh well there. We go kick some rain the chest anyway. Well that was easy

No here we go the hip attacks saw those in the first round oh

Come on come on come on Oh

No nice roll up - no only a -

Big right hand right to the face. Here's the pin - and only a -

Toni's storm now a front facelock

Now she's gonna drive Tony swarming to the corner here comes

Store him up and over landing on her feet caught

Driving storms face into the top rope and slide through big kick by Lacey Evans

Good trip

Slim Wow flying in nice elbow here's a pin - and only a -

Wow that was awesome

Lacey Evans now hyper extending the arm and driving the knee right into the arm there it is again

Flip it over. Here's a pin - and only a 2

Lacey Evans looks very serious

Driving storms face into the top turnbuckle now forearm

Deformed shimmy and now the hell is this oh man really wrench it on the back of the head there

Spinning around and kick to the midsection. She's very fluid in those spinning moves

caught good trip big punch right to the chest

pin one to

Kick-out

Lacey Evans is definitely getting very aggressive here

Man look at this great submission hold here knee right into the upper part of the spine pulling back on the chin a

very very brutal maneuver

Let's go Tony, let's go Lacey wow man this is

There's been a decent back and forth match. I definitely liked the matches

I don't know. We've seen a lot from both of these girls

I mean I'm seeing a lot more from Lacey Evans in this contest and Tony Storm

But I know a lot more about Tony's harm than Lacey Evans

double feet nice flip through oh

What a backbreaker Oh God oh?

Here we go slapping the hip maybe gonna go for another hip attack

No there it is oh man

Spitting in the face

That was a little sloppy

Drop her right on her head me she might not be in a good spot right now

Trying to do maybe Alabama Slama to the corner Oh Lucy Evans

You go for that lacy lace-up one - only a to

Boot to the midsection

Nice neckbreaker

Flipped over I try and do that elbow but got caught knees into the midsection

Up here we go

Strong the storm zero one two three

Tony Storm advances Lacey Evans is out, but we're not going to see the last Alesi Evans in WWE not by a long shot

So Tony's storm is going to be taking on Piper Nevin

Advancing to the quarterfinals, but she's taking on Piper Nevin who has been shown a lot

An absolutely tremendous amount

Going on to the quarterfinals

Piper Nevin and Tony Storm are gonna. Have a hell of a match

Mia Yemm is taking on on the Ogada. Shyah shyah

Bezler that's her name

All right

Her fight to look I heard match was a little bit

Uh, I don't know I didn't like it really I'll be honest

Did you say all it's gonna take for me to be her is just exist Wow I

Here's me. I am obviously Jade and WWE

Fantastic competitor is me ahem

Is that we're gonna get all of these done today, so

I guess she's still gonna do the eat defeat as a finishing maneuver. That's how she won her match

Last or the first round

So the winner of this contest Mia Hamm and Shia

Bey's ler it will be taking on either

Candice larae who will be be seeing or Nicole Savoye one of the two I

Think really the only we only have two quarterfinal matches already official

We still have three more matches or two more matches actually

Not including this one three including this match

No nonsense is Shia Besler

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Me am has her work. Yeah, she definitely has her work cut out for her. Hey, there's Becky Lynch, Charlotte and Bailey

We're Sasha banks

And there's the other three four horsewomen

so there's the Mme four horsewomen and the wrestling four horsewomen I

Heard speculation that they're trying to plan a eight man tag or an eight woman tag between the two

No shake your hands for them Wow

Um it's not gonna be intimidated. She is the more experienced of the two

Exchanging some kicks hear me am now that understands how?

Serious this matches right now

good blocking and trying to do another one and

Jays are trying not to

Sell or try not to show that the probably heard a little bit

I was trying to go for you to feed mmediately kick right in the

hamstring

Big spinning take nope back kick nope I kicked right to the back of the like again

All right to the spine oh my god right to the chest sounds hard right to the back

Try to do it again. Nope look at the roll-up only a one

Dropkick off

the ropes

Hurricanrana and Shayna Baszler getting out of the ring after the hurricanrana

Shayna Baszler is hurting here is me a him off the ropes suicide dive

This is definitely a more back and forth match up for Shayna Baszler than it was previously

Back in the ring goes Mia Yemm into a pin on Shayna Baszler only a to

Kick to the chest

Again and che bays are trying not to sell these out going 42 feet again. Got caught nice takedown

Grabbing on to the leg and now pulling on thee around the toes so

She's twisting the ankle around that's gonna put a lot more effect on that

Leg lock is awesome

Wow awesome wrestling takedown float over into a deadlift again

Here's the pin

- and only a two

Shayna Baszler definitely needs a little more seasoning but

I

Like the style it's definitely different from what we usually see in WWE she needs some more

Selling that's her big thing for me, and I haven't heard any promos, and there is a tarantula. She's at ruggieri

Cannonball in the room corner by me am

Trying to drag Shanna basil into the middle

Here's a pin to a jackhammer style look at that flow through into a clinch and me am getting into the ropes

Clemmy blows to the back and now these kicks

nice trip

Me a yam clothesline taking down Shayna Baszler again boo right to the chest that was a weird-ass Sal taking her down

Slaps a kick to the knee big knees right to the face spin kick to the midsection

Man, there's a big kick right to the top of that here's the pin - and no only a to

Chant baesler's eating some big kicks

Me again now

For another cannonball no wow my god

Whoa what a knee to the face - and still only a two?

Phase lurk couldn't get that she usually would end the opponent all by now

Trying to go for a suplex nope

What a German into a bridging pin - and no only a - still

Trying to go for it again, but now back into a keylock. Oh really this is an ankle lock man

Trying to get over into the ropes bringing me Liam back into the middle still going after that knee me again has to tap

flipped over big kick to the side ahead

again a third time

Awesome transition into a power bumps it out one two still only two

That was very very very close

The women's wrestling chants are going loud and proud again

Kick right to the face and now Mia. Yeah, maybe gonna go up top for something

Top rope is Mia Yemm

450 what a catch flipped over into a rear naked choke Wow

awesome catch and Mia him

Medium had to tap me ahem had to tap I a quick break hang on

You

I here we go Dakota

Dakota, KY and a real Ripley

This is gonna be an awesome match

She is super tall

Five foot seven well, not as tall as I think she just seems very much taller than she actually is

Not sure if that's good or bad. It could be either or I guess

All right there we go sorry about that double-checking everything

The Kotick eye is just oh my god

So I'm not a hundred percent like she looks so much like um

She looks like Noel Foley

Irena Ripley it does

All right well they're just pandering to the crowd a little bit a

Lot of Australians now twisting the arm around on Dakota Kai

roll through by Kai

tipped up through

Now it was the arm around on arena Ripley

Ripley now twisting the arm on Dakota Kai side headlock

Here we go off the ropes goes Dakota

I'm sorry goes arena

Now go vite Dakota nice roll through by Ripley good arm drag by Dakota Kai

There it is again

Nice dropkick

Snapmare down kick right to the back whoever wins. This is taking on Kyrie sane

just an FYI

More, oh my god. What a running knee right to the face? Here's the pin to only a two?

All right here we go, Dakota Kai

Off the ropes holding on to the ropes here comes Rena rip flee back drop - oh she landed on her feet though

Running kicks to the face no caught oh

Wow that probably did not feel good at all

Right on the apron thrown back in the ring. There's Dakota Kai. Here is the pin one two and only a -

How does she not get a three I probably heard just face first into the apron good lord

Modified curve I hear

On, Dakota Kai

Hit to the midsection

Again, big knee to the face

Twisted back around on the other side kick right to the spine

Off the ropes oh my god, what a dropkick Oh?

Only a - Dakota Kai got the shoulder up oh

My god driven to the corner

Rhea Ripley is very aggressive

Now they're gonna go corner to corner again nope

Counter it up and over landing on her feet roll up with the bridge and only a to

Pop up drop right on a face. Here's the pin again - no still only a -

Amazing this has been a hell of a match

What why does that keep happening

That is like the fourth time that has happened that is so tiring

Anyone that's trying to pop back up

It's it's so weird on why it does that I don't I don't get it. It's super annoying though

it's like oh, we're gonna freak out and then not let you watch him Dominion classic because

kind of an asshole, let's see

Do do

One thing about doing a live show guys is that you gotta have to deal with this at least sometimes

I don't know what the hell is going on. It's like all of a sudden

Okay, yeah, I'm on Episode six I

Have two more matches I have no idea why it did that

Okay there we go Rebecca

Marie has no idea how to win this she's like oh no no no no

Grabbing on to the hair of the Kotick I

Hit no man there's a kick nice

Everybody's back up to her feet they cake to not hit it there's another block spin cake did not hit it again. Oh

my god just

That probably felt fun. Not off the rope there's a dropkick

Kai is

rocking and rolling now

Guys kind of kicked her right in the face oh my god

another

Sister ders is rearranging each other's faces. Here's the pin too and only a two I

Guess if the wrestling doesn't work either one of these chicks could either be my wife or

They can go with the plastic surgery because they're fucking ruining each other's faces with their

They don't even have to go to practice just use your fiend. Just kick the shit out of him until they're pretty there

Turn around kick to the face again died nice Northern Lights good bridge - and no oh

My god I

Am like convinced that they could probably just absolutely kick the shit out of me Dakota guy is definitely not feeling good right now

Kick right to the spine a boo right to the midsection

Australian put up on the top a forum right to the chest again Jesus

Come he blows right to the spine of Dakota Kai up to the very top run with maybe a big time super superplex

Got tripped up hit to the midsection now. They're just gonna go back and forth and each other in the back

For him to the face

Jesus Mandy Stewart is just gonna beat the shit out of each other

Again and again, no multiple forms right to the chest. Oh caught

300 for

Ripley double foot stomp right to the chest. That's it done. I'm sorry you're toast

One two three in there we go oh my god

You

Alright we're coming back and we have Kansas larae

Who is the wife of Johnny gargano good catch, bro?

I'll have to say that taking on Oh God whose kids are we taking on?

Oh, yeah, Anna coy step away. The coal Semele excuse me

So Nicole really showed a lot of stuff, but I mean we're just gonna cook right through it, man

We are just trying to get these done

Khalsa boys dragon suplexes our finisher

Beat rana gonzalez, who is the very very tall chick

Hopefully we will see some more of the suplexes that she does than anything

All right here we go I

Think this is the last matchup this round two which is good because I'm ready to take a nice break here. Oh

Kicking the hand away

That was mean

Nicole Savoy is

definitely playing healing this

Lockup between the two arm twisted around on Candice larae good arm dragged there by

Nicole Savoy

Trying to go for is like a hammer lock submission hold back up to her feet is Candice larae big forearm right to the chest

Again another form right to the chest

Corner to corner

Here comes some void try to hit a clothesline did not hit it

Candice larae second rope facebuster nice move

Here's a pin one

Only a one out of it

Who texted me right now forearm right to the face good job breaker you

Go off the rope note caught

Sigh oh god. She laid too bad. Oh, what a sight? Oh suplex

Looked so bad. Here's the pain - and only a -

Tennis will raise definitely hurt loo this. Oh, there's a nice backdrop little hesitation backdrop at that time

Wow unique submission hold here, it's like a modified surfboard

And now look at this roll through here one two and only a two and now Janice larae has a surfboard of her own

Pulling back on those arms

Only a two trying to do maybe a sleeper hold

Coal's line did not hit it

Big kick right to the face of

Dakota Kai, oh my god cancel ray landed really bad on the ropes

Here's the pin one two and only two still

Nice suplex

Roll through a double underhook suplex again a double underhook suplex and roll through again flipped over

Trying to do a cross armbreaker

but Kansas little ray holding on to her own hand trying to

Not get that full pressure on did you know she'd be a lot of trouble?

Trying to hyperextend that elbow, but cancel already with kicks right to the side ahead fighting out of it she does

Forearms right to the face over and over and over and over

Off the ropes springing over oh my god

caught German nailed it

One two and still only a two

That was not the prettiest of German suplex I've ever seen in my life, but it was what it was I guess

Double underhook suplex possibly no Candice, Lorraine holding on now

Full Nelson go through. Oh my god. Just straight-up kick right to the top of the head right to the dome piece

Candice Luray is looped out

Here we go

What the hell is this Oh an octopus hold here

She's trying to hook it fully, but Nicole Savoy

Definitely keeping her

vertical fireman's carry

Driving Candice larae into the corner

That probably did not feel fun at all

big form right to the chest

corner corner goes, Kansas larae

But I am running for arm again to the chest that probably felt terrible

Runner up to the top rope here big hit to the back for him to the chest

Double underhook trying to do a double unheroic suplex here, but holding on here is

Candice larae he was on the very very top now. This is not good

Tennis Lorraine hits to the midsection hits right to the back

Form kind of trying to do that lower miss low-res wild ride

Headbutt there we go

Here we go got it

One two three Candice larae moves on

And I think that was it for this yes, it was alright guys. Well. We are going to

Take a mini break, and then we're going to go right into the quarter

For more infomation >> Mae Young Classic Round 2 E2 full show (commentary and reactions) - Duration: 43:45.

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1961 Toyopet Crown Custom And 1967 Toyota Corona 1900 Classic Drive - Duration: 18:26.

1961 Toyopet Crown Custom And 1967 Toyota Corona 1900 Classic Drive

Toyota's first Toyopet Crown, the company's flagship, launched with great fanfare in the home market on January 1, 1955.

A large, deluxe sedan, the Crown was the pride of Toyota, "a new, high-performance model that far exceeded the standards of previous domestic passenger cars," according to a book Toyota published on its 50th anniversary in 1987.

Indeed, with its downsized American styling and a wraparound rear window, the Crown also seemed perfect for Eisenhower-era America, where European automakers struggling to rebuild after World War II were making their fortunes with volumes that hardly made a difference to Detroit's Big Three.

And so Toyota brought the Toyopet Crown to the United States. In fact, had Toyota not built a savior eight years later, the company might have disappeared from the U.S.

Prior to World War II, as a means to bolster its industrial base, the Japanese government encouraged companies such as the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works to get into automotive production.

Seeking inspiration — after all, yarn and cars don't exactly have a lot in common — Kiichiro Toyoda, scion of the company's founder, ordered his young engineers to tear apart a 1933 Chevrolet.

When the Toyoda family founded the Toyota Motor Company in 1937 (the revised spelling was far simpler in Japanese), its first car, the Model AA, naturally had much in common with current Chevys and Fords, though it looked like a downsized Chrysler Airflow.

After Emperor Hirohito surrendered in 1945, Toyota Motor also began producing trucks and buses. Postwar Japanese industrial output was one-tenth its prewar level, while "almost all important business leaders were purged," says the Toyota anniversary book.

"The postwar Japanese economy had to start from zero.". British Major Ivan Hirst saved Volkswagen. The Marshall Plan saved Europe's economy. provided Japan with $2.5 billion in foreign aid to kick-start its economy.

Toyota launched its SA compact for the home market in 1947, and in 1948, the Japanese government initiated a five-year plan to get total vehicle production, including Toyota, Nissan, and Isuzu, to 120,000 a year.

After the Korean conflict broke out in June 1950, U.S. military demand for Japanese supplies — mostly textiles and metals — helped spur the country's economic recovery. By the mid-'50s, Japan was booming.

As the Suez Canal Crisis put some urgency on better fuel efficiency — and sparked a worldwide recession — Toyota figured the time was right for a move to America. On October 31, 1957, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.

opened in an ex-Rambler dealership in Hollywood. Actual sales commenced in 1958.

The Toyopet Crown was first. At 173.6 inches long on a 99.6-inch wheelbase, the Crown was almost 5 inches shorter overall than a 1958 Rambler American six and rode on a 0.4-inch-shorter wheelbase.

It had a 1453cc (88.7-cubic-inch), Type R inline-four and a three-speed, column-mounted manual, control-arm independent front suspension, and live-axle three-ply leaf-sprung rear.

The Toyopet Crown Deluxe we tested for the October 1958 issue of Motor Trend listed for $2356, including a $94 AM radio and $75 whitewall tires.

Its base price of $2187 port of entry, including heater and undersealing, was $32 higher than Chevy's most basic four-door, six-cylinder sedan, the Del Ray, and $10 more than the Rambler Rebel V-8 four-door sedan.

The base Toyopet Crown listed for a few hundred dollars less.

"Sound and sensible," we called the Crown in that issue, "one of the sturdiest small imports ever to fall into the hands of Motor Trend's test staff." At 2700 pounds, it also was one of the heaviest.

"The Toyopet is so rigid that jacking up one wheel at the rear bumper quickly lifted the other rear wheel." With a full front bench, the Toyopet will carry six people in comfort, we said, with effective drum brakes, slow steering ("about five turns lock to lock"), and a soft, cushy, Detroit-like ride.

We reported an overall average of 23. 5 mpg for 407 miles of city and highway driving, while Hearst newspaper Chicago's American recorded 34. 6 mpg after a 12-hour nonstop drive within Chicago city limits, including rush hour in the Loop.

Americans were not amused. Two-third-scale Detroit sedan or not, the 88.7-cubic-inch OHV four had just 60 hp to push around 1.35 tons. There was no automatic transmission option. In its first full year, Toyota U.S.

sold just 287 Toyopet Crowns. Total. Oh, and one Landcruiser (later Land Cruiser). It was a bleak debut, indeed.

"The Crown, especially the earliest version, was too 'American' and too conventional for people in the foreign car market then dominated by VW, Renault, and the Brits," says Grand Venusian Jim Hall of 2953 Analytics, guest judge for Motor Trend's 2013 Car of the Year and one-time Crown driver.

"It was too small and too primitive for people looking at entry-level domestics. Plus it was 'Made in Japan,' a phrase that had serious negative connotations at the time.".

For 1959, the base Toyopet Crown started at $1989, and the Crown Deluxe got a price boost to $2329 POE. Sales more than tripled to 967 units, but it was still a dismal showing.

New York auto show literature in April 1960 lists a Crown Custom family sedan and a slightly longer Custom station wagon ($2111 for the two-door, $2211 for the four-door) available from Toyopet.

Even with the added body styles, though, sales fell to 659 Crowns for 1960, the model year marking the onslaught of Detroit's Big Three compacts.

The 1960 Ford Falcon (435,676 produced, sold mostly in the U.S.), Chevrolet Corvair (250,000 sold), and Plymouth Valiant (193,292 built) "made the neither fish-nor-fowl Crown look more out of place," Hall says.

Big Three compacts introduced for 1960 and '61 "killed off all but the sports cars and hardiest imported sedans in the early '60s" according to a two-part import report, "Detroit's Economy Car Gap," in the March and April 1967 issues of Motor Trend.

Yet Toyota soldiered on. Toyota unveiled its new, smaller Toyopet Tiara in the U.S., with the Crown's 1.5-liter, 60-hp engine, so the Crown was upgraded to a new, 1.9-liter OHV four, rated 90 hp.

The '61 Crown was available only in Custom trim, $1795 for the four-door sedan and $2080 for the four-door wagon (no more two-doors). Toyopet sold 225 Crowns that year and 74 in 1962, no doubt all leftovers.

Then an all-new Toyota Crown launched for 1963, dropping the Toyopet name. It was longer, lower, and wider with new single-overhead cam inline-sixes added to the overhead-valve-four in the engine lineup, plus a Chevrolet Powerglide-based two-speed automatic, called Toyoglide.

Sales inched up to 1096 Toyotas (all models) in the States in '63, then 2909 in '64.

By that time, Toyota was working on a new Tiara replacement, designed specifically for the U.S. market. It turned out to be the car that saved the company here.

The 1966 Toyota — not Toyopet — Corona had clean, spare styling with tasteful chrome highlights, a shovel-grille nose housing quad headlamps, and a modern Italianate rear deck and window. A two-door hardtop version could almost be described as sporty-looking.

With the same 115.8-cubic-inch OHV-four as in the '61 Toyopet Crown, it was the largest engine offering among the 10 cars in our two-part review that included everything from the Beetle to the Renault R-10 to the Opel Rallye Kadett.

"Larger displacement is the simplest, most conservative approach to finding the power and torque needed for an automatic, and the Toyota was exceptionally smooth and quiet," we said in April '67.

"It started easily and never balked, even when the engine was cold.".

We noted the slushbox needed more than two gears, and that its PNDLR pattern "conflicts with the standard layout prescribed in federal auto safety legislation." We found the handling "very impressive, especially in view of the live rear axle," and the drum brakes "better than some of the discs we've come across." We recorded 180 mpg in "hard mountain driving," 26.3 mpg in expressway cruising, and 20.8 mpg in the city, making it just about the thirstiest of the 10 tested.

The $1717 manual-only Beetle recorded 28.5/30.7/28.1 mpg.

At 161.8 inches long, the Toyota Corona sedan was about a foot and a half shorter than Detroit "compacts" of the era, though the large, boxy greenhouse and low beltline adds to the feeling of airy spaciousness.

It turned out to be the right car to introduce Americans to the subtle charms of the common Japanese compact.

Toyota's Stateside sales leapt from 6404 in 1965 to 20,908 in 1966, with 14,764 of those Coronas. In 1967, Toyota sold 31,099 Coronas, then 56,617 in 1968 and 79,354 in 1969.

By the end of the Lyndon Johnson administration, you didn't need to go to California or the Eastern Seaboard to find a Toyota on the street. Thanks to the Corona, Toyota had finally arrived.

Drive a 1961 Toyopet Crown Custom and a 1967 Toyota Corona back to back, and you're likely to favor the earlier car just for its novelty, its suicide doors, and three-on-the-tree.

The Toyopet's hood ornament looks like a Tri-Five Chevy's, and the fuel filler hidden under one of the taillamps is like the '56 Chevrolet's. There's 1955-'56 Chevy in the car's headlamp bezels and the chrome letters on the hood.

(The Crown you see in these photos, registered as a '61, comes from the Toyota USA Museum in Torrance, California.). The car's tall, narrow, boxy look must have contributed to its U.S.

If the Holden FJ (MTC, Spring 2011) looks like a 3/4-scale '55 Chevy, the Toyopet Crown looks something like a 3/4-scale Holden FJ, which might have worked well only until the longer, lower, wider 1957 Chryslers knocked GM design on its tuchus.

The interior feels like it wants to be in a big, Detroit sedan, with its brocade cloth and those big, outboard rear seat armrests.

Both Toyotas have floor-button high-beam controls, broom-handle handbrakes, and big car horns, with the half-circle horn rings doubling as turn signal switches. Wheel the ring a click to the left or right.

The Toyopet's interior handles are placed unusually low on the front doors.

The Toyopet is Detroit sedan-cushy, with loads of suspension travel and good ground clearance for Japan's notoriously rough postwar roads. It yaws over heavily, and feels like a handful even at bicycling speeds.

Yes, the car is slow off the line, especially when deliberately negotiating the column-mounted H-pattern. No wonder MT recorded just 23.5 mpg to the American's 34.6.

Six years newer, the Corona is too lacking in drama for its age. Its manual steering feels pretty good for a '67.

Though the Corona also has heavy body roll in the turns, it handles quite nicely, with quicker and more precise steering. It's a much more modern car in faux '60s Fiat or Alfa sedan skin.

While slow off the line, the Corona has enough oomph to merge into modern traffic. As an automotive historical artifact, the Toyopet Crown evokes an era of trying to emulate American sedans.

It does so more faithfully than anything from Europe, and, because of Japan's singular culture and the nature of international communication at the time, it misses the mark completely. The Toyota Corona tackled the challenge of the U.S.

market in a much more rational, much less derivative way, and it opened the floodgates for other modern Japanese imports, eventually transforming our market and knocking the Big Three off their lofty perch.

For more infomation >> 1961 Toyopet Crown Custom And 1967 Toyota Corona 1900 Classic Drive - Duration: 18:26.

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Mae Young Classic Round 2 E1 full show (commentary and reactions) - Duration: 50:35.

We're just waiting for everything to connect hold up just one second

Ladies and gentlemen boys and girls children of all ages my majestic universe

I am Tiger height, and we're coming at ya for the may on classic. This is going to be

round 2

episode 1

So

tonight or today in general it's going to be round 2 round 3

Or the quarterfinals and the semifinals understand do it all today

And we're not gonna be doing Monday Night Raw later tonight

Just because I'd be a lot of wrestling in one day, so let's at least do

The thing that it's really picking up some steam, and that's the myun classic

So that's gonna be all day today is May young classic stuff, which I don't think anybody Minds. Cuz I love this this tournaments awesome

And also I can get it done and relax tonight, which would always be a good thing

But lots of great news coming out of the tournament we have Rachel Evers

And Abby lace

Serena deed is taking on Piper Nevin who that should be a good one actually

Mercedes is taking on presses SIA

And

Bianca bel-air is

Taking on Kyrie saying well

She got to her limit

That's sweet 16 right there. Wow we're gonna do that all in one episode I?

Guess so yeah know that math doesn't make any sense

No, it's two days two days for these because it's eight wrestlers eight wrestlers

So the a lot of people were saying that it looks like cool, it's a glass sculpture. There's a sweet 16 competitors

So I did the previous videos if you guys want to check those out go ahead and do so right now or whenever you can

Or whenever you wish it's been blowing up on here and people are really enjoying it

Because I did every single match, but I did over the span of two days instead of one day

But I'm gonna do it all in one day this time around because it's not fully an hour

It's really close to an earth

It's not close to it's gonna be about the same amount of time as this as it is for Raw for me

So let's just get it all done all at once right?

All right Rachel Evers is going to be taking on a b-list to start off to start us off tonight

So that should be really fun whoa. I don't know what's going on with the stream, but it just froze

Well at least it froze on this let me see hang on

Why does that keep happening these ding errors

Okay there we go, okay. We're good

That was really weird it's a Abby lathe beat that gigantic German woman

But the daughter of

Paul Ellering is going to take her on so the almost two favorites in this entire tournament

Are going to be facing off?

So they did change the end so the one

piece of news is that they changed the ending of the Rachel Evers Marty Bell match I

Think because apparently Marty Bell just did absolutely terrible or they thought she would do a lot better out

Of everybody in the dollhouse faction. She was the weakest just enduring talent. She did not do well

I'm not sure if she wasn't prepared or what was going on there, but she just did not do well

That's probably like my least favorite match out of it

They have a different entrance way for

The call next couple around that up does appear to be huh that's really weird

Hey, there's Cassius oh no

I'm joining some coffee this morning people I

Love it. I like that Rachel Ivers is in the tournament. We've seen her in wrestle in WWE a couple of times before this

Here's a be less

Who is aim a young? Well? She's not directly am a young Protege, but she is a protege of am a young protege?

So she's definitely been trained by some of the best

I'm actually kind of excited about this match this should be actually a really decent

Back and forth match up here a Beall if I really hope she is signed. She is actually a

Decent talent very actually a very good talent

Let's just put it there, but hope I'm wondering if they're gonna do an all-women's

torn them or an all-women's sort of side promotion

Because they are doing this

Or is everybody basically gonna be fed into either an XT or the main roster based on this tournament

That's kind of what I'm looking at right now um

Let me know what you guys think for me personally

I think that they're just gonna feed everybody into the NXT brand instead of doing their own

Side women's promotion because I think that'd be way too many well. I don't know if they sign everybody

But I guess you can make the argument to do all women's pro should good arms right there by a b-list by the way

But would be a very interesting thing to see what they're going to invest in because if they do invest in a women's

promotion they definitely have a lot of

Competition nice throw there by Rachel Evers a power lifter. Oh

Try to do a big spin kick nice trip

Instead take out quick running elbow right to the back of the shoulders nicely done on Rachel Evers

Who's not in a good positioning here now a b-list?

Run it up and nice arm drag by Abby lifts and it Rachel Evers rolling out of the ring

Here it comes Abby. Oh

My god, oh wow

What a suicide dive this. Oh my god. I really wish she went to the finals. I really do I did read spoilers

Here's the pin one two and now only a two

So I know they did this in like a three day

Span so these chicks are probably very tired in this crowd is probably beat to hell

Based on what we've seen already

But we have two episodes for round number two. Oh what a cutter

By Rachel Evers. That was awesome

There's that sent on by ever Evers. Here's the pin on

Listen-only a - oh god this has been heck of a match

They're definitely doing good right now

Rich alivers has graduated from the Lance Storm Academy

Now I begin a lot of chance

What's this?

Nice trip on a b-list. Oh here. We go. Are you that springboard leg drop? She nailed it

One two only a two a b-list still in the fight

Rachel ever is now gonna take heavy-lift corner corner. No bought the ropes

Ducks under the clothesline Rachel ever is holding on to the ropes a beuliss rolling out man. What a boot right to the face?

Rachel Evers is motivated

I mean let's back up and both of them to see each other with bicycle kicks

This has been a match, and I'm telling you this crowd is definitely giving this match

The boost that this tournament really needed cuz I'll just be totally honest with you guys um

Round 1 had some really good stuff, and it had some really bad stuff and everything in between

But so far but round 2 this has been great

Women's wrestling getting a chance I love it for him right to the face

Now a b-list with a forearm to the face of Rachel Evers Rachel Evers with a big right hand

Abby let's really getting in their kicks to the knee kick to the side of the face spin kick right to the chest I

Love it

Rachel Evers now hitting that top rope this chick has a lot of charisma. I like it oh

What a forearm right to the face again

and now

Rachel lever is going up with Abby lifts. What is oh? This is bad?

What is this oh what a t-bone suplex from the second rope one two oh

No

What a bridging kick-out. I don't think I've ever seen that and Rachel Evers is like how the heck did she kick out of that

Abby that this match has been fantastic this is this has been the best match just being honest with um

I'm hoping I'm giving you guys some great value here

Women's wrestling is just looking really good right now off the rope try to hit a big kick good powerbomb then there's a pin

two three and a

b-list advances

That big may young pin and a b-list continues on she will be either facing off

against precious sia or

Mercedes Martinez who that should be a good one and we will be seeing that and you guys will be hearing my commentary on that

later today

Well obviously, I will be doing this episode and maybe the next episode immediately uh depending

I'll probably get some more coffee, and then I'll do it

Then I want to do at least a little bit of a break in between

The two, but I'm definitely gonna get this done before noon at this rate

At least that's kind of what I want to get done a

b-list advances, and I will have to say that was the best match of

the entire

tournament so far

But the close second is

The Kyrie sin and Tessa Blanchard that that one was freaking great

Ambulance is getting into the corner finals

But princesses - hey or Mercedes Martinez both of those women you do not want to mess with at all so

So our next contest it will be Piper Nevin

The size and the amount of work ethic that she has is amazing

Taking on the veteran in Serena Deeb the shaved head Straight Edge Society

Serena who actually had a really good match last time against Oh God who did she face a

Person I never heard of and she was really good actually that was a fun match

Oh, it was um oh god. What was her name damn it? I?

Lost a name but

The spear is gonna be the factor for Serena deep. I just don't know because the big girl in blue that is

Um that is the competitor she's facing and Piper Nevin who's awesome

She's very athletic and I actually say that she took on I think she took on

Santana Garrett, and they had a fun match

She reminds me and so funny Serena Deeb reminds me of one of my

Ex-girlfriends because she's like strength and empowerment in her working stuff like that

All right, here's Piper Nevin who has who a lot of people really like this chick, man

She has gotten a definite

She's gotten a big

Crowd here for her. She's very

Charismatic she did change her gear

I'm not surprised because the other one was coming apart

This is just only 25

All right, here's Serena Deeb who is a favorite as well, okay? She changed your gear, too

Vanessa born that was who she defeated I was a fun match

Syrena deep definitely is a

force to be reckoned with

but at the same time she has a

hell of a challenge with Piper Navin Piper Nevin might absolutely kill her I

love the man classic this has been this has been a fun ass tournament I

Will have to say I'm not as familiar with these ones as they iowa's with a Cruz Oh a classic so there's definitely a

more of a fun dynamic

Let's go Piper so Rena that's gonna be the chant between the two

Lockup between the two Serena is not gonna be overpowering Piper Nevin

Serena getting driven to the corner Piper Nevin has the powerhouse Oh

A little bit of a mocking little jab right to the chin well not like a jab like a push off

Lock up here again between the two oh

My god. Oh, she's though. She's pissed

Coles line did not hit it

Syrena now

Side headlock here on Piper Nevin very violent side headlock trying to do a side headlock takedown, but you're not gonna

There's that weight in the power of Piper Nevin that will not be matched

Jesus, this is a hell of a side headlock - now trying to go for us, Oh

God

Just crushed or - and Serena had to kick out Serena is a pick and Piper never just

Squished her

They will have a Kairos I say matching this video to the pirate princess I

Like how oh my god

I have never seen that Piper Nevin using the hair

To put right around the mouth, so you can't breathe all too

Well that is a smart move by Piper Nevin and using her strength turning her around clothesline miss look at the roll-up here

- no

Side headlock here by Serena Deeb

I'm telling you this side headlock may be taking a lot out of Piper Nevin. I I'm not sure

Hubbs doesn't take it - my whole lot out of her the strength of Piper never know - a backdrop Jesus

very violent

Back up to her feet is Piper Nevin now Nevin off the ropes

There's that splash God 1 2 and

Serena Deeb somehow kicked out that cross buddy splash

by

Piper Nevin is amazing. How are we gonna get this sent on?

No knees to the back

of Piper Nevin

Serena Deeb still has some fight in her, but how much has been taken out of her back into the side headlock

Running up the ropes into a side headlock takedown there we go now

She has more of a vertical base on this side headlock. Maybe a little more

Pressure on the side headlock, here's the pin on Piper Nevin only a one count

Amazing back and forth has lettuce ism' between them a good amount of

Diligence in this oh my god. It's only 9:30. We're killing it today

Backdrop roll through there Piper Nevin getting a jab to the face Serena D. But another jab a third one

big big right hand

Running put up on the top rope to hit a big plumbing blow note form right to the face

Face-first into the middle rope two and three

Are turnbuckles and now

try to oh

Man kind of a sloppy or monkey flip but look how big she is compared

very unique front slam

Serena Deeb is getting the crowd behind her here boot to the midsection

They're all my father's at neckbreaker all that weight right on the shoulder of Serena Deeb

Here's the pin one two no

she has to do the spear if she can get it I

Don't I'm surprised that the me Bagheera is holding up in this. I don't know what she's thinking about doing it's not gonna work, though

Trying to go for a fireman carry but Piper Nevin getting out of it oh

My god oh

my god

I came involved in the corner by Piper Nevin the tricky Serena Deeb

Dead corpse middle of the Ring. Here's the pin -

no still only a -

This has been an absolutely fantastic

Matchup, thank you for inviting me into your home Bunz your smartphone if you're going to work if you're just listening

Thank you very much for choosing majestic production as your source for everything

May young classic on this Labor Day nice counter? Oh?

my god

that was a

Snapmare driver Piper landed on her head - and still only a -

Can these matches does not be so much fun to watch

Let's go Piper Sarina let's go Piper Sarina

And now Serena Deeb waiting for it no big Clemmy blow right to the back

Piper Nevin gonna throw Serena Deeb corner-to-corner chess first Jesus

Violent

Now Piper Nevin going up. Oh this is bad. Oh

my god

One two no what?

How did she kick out of a second rope that was a blow straight up Banzai drop?

And she still kicked how did Sarina deep kick out of that I?

don't

There's a one more time chant do not let the crowd dictate what you're going to do the inexperienced Oh?

No oh

My god

Piper Nevin is going up to the top rope this woman has to be at least a little more than 250

Pounds try to do a big splash, but did not hit it oh

Oh wow there it is

Piper driver one two

Piper Nevin has pin Serena deep she is moving on to the next round she

Piper Nevin will either be taking on Lacey Evans or

Tommy's storm

awesome

amazing matches this is just another just

absolutely spectacular

contest

All the work that she did for that I don't know how she did it

Piper Nevin still pulled out the victory, but man she had to really fight for that

Sit out missin oku, driver call the piper driver set out front slam

Amazing amazing move. I'm telling you both of these two please sign them

Piper Nevin is showing some good stuff. I'll should I like her a lot, man. I really hope they signed Piper Nevin

yep, either Lacey Evans or Tommy storm going into the quarterfinals I

Like her I like her a lot. She's an awesome wrestler

All right the next match will be Mercedes Martinez and press, SC Jorge

Two of the most experienced competitors in this entire

lineup

Well there's definitely big for her career absolutely

Yes, she took on the Chinese girl the very first matchup in her career

And she did relatively well obviously there was a learning curve to that but you know overall it was fun

Princesa princesa soo Hey and

Mercedes Martinez, I really hope WWE signs both. I mean WWE should sign all of them

Well, maybe not all of them

But definitely a lot of them because they're showing some good stuff and this crew mean the crowd is very receptive to everything we've seen

Amazing matches so far and I'm just so excited that I have the opportunity to bring this to you

Whatever you're doing on this Labor Day weekend. Thank you for inviting me into your home

Even if you're watching this as a replay. Thank you very much. It's greatly appreciated

That you've decided to join me here for this

There's kalisto

Is Emily watching princess ooh, hey the only luchador in this entire tournament

Iers princess ooh hey

Princess assume hey excuse me. Well the same thing

She defeated Kaylee Rey who is definitely a favorite in this

I

Hear is Mercedes Martinez

very attitude basis Mercedes Martinez

She defeated zile II like I said we did relatively well

Alright here we go

Both of them are 16-year veterans the two most experienced competitors in the entire tournament right here

And there is the bell

Starting it off here. We go lock up between

Martinez and su hey

good trip by

Martinez right into the side headlock princess assumed a getting out of it princess assumed a is wearing Wonder Woman style gear gold red

blue

Side headlock twisting around on the arm of Mercedes good trip

Rolling through trying to shoot a half a dozen Pierre, but good transition into maybe a some modified crucifix

Very weird

Transitions there like I said both of them are the most experienced competitors in the entire tournament

Twisting the arm around on Mercedes big clothesline taken down Princess s ooh, hey

Back up to raphy wanna slap right to the face

Another slap directly in the face

Uppercut my god whoa

That was gonna knock her head off

Quarter-note close I missed Oh

God

Roll through into the ropes now princesses who they trying to get the crowd behind or like I said these

dunno, how to work a crowd

cannonball like maneuver

Princesses ooh. Hey has worked quite a bit in CMLL the oldest professional wrestling promotion going right now

started in

1932

Where Mercedes Martinez is from the shimmer?

Promotion in the 70s this is when that started and she was a star in the shimmer

Oh, what a slam nice beautiful counter from the head scissor front those face versus princesa to 800 ad no

only a -

Martinez now just trying to get the crowd behind her here

What's this?

snap suplex oh

Look at this

Tribute to Eddie Guerrero does appear to be in a way

Try to go for it again, but now rope hog on Princess Suey into a corkscrew

Ego trip beautiful maneuver. Here's the pin - and no

You can tell that they're experienced because they're so decisive with every movement

They make they don't hesitate they know what they're doing there's good communication

Big forearms and now Mercedes trying to hit a big kick but got caught up

Princess out getting chant here comes princess who Hey codebreaker

Driving or say these Martinez into the corner

Princesa - hey trying to get some feeling back into her body. She's trying to rest up a little bit

Caught up from the top slapped right to the face there. We go slip some taste out of your mouth again

Hit to the chest that time

Gonna try I'm trying to do a superplex here no

Dropping the weight down. That's what she needs to do this to the midsection

princess uh sue hey

so holding on

Whoever's gonna win this is gonna be taking it on a b-list first goes from Mercedes Martinez. Oh

Tornado DDT beautifully done by the luchador a

Fun back-and-forth contest there between the competitors

Roll through trying to get over into a pin here we go one two and still only a two

There's too much time in between the move and the pinfall to have a winner

Princesses whoo hey has the crowd firmly behind her and after this one is gonna be the Bayaka Blair and Kyrie same match

Corkscrew, oh here we go the laravel Elsa no

Mercedes tried to counter, but has it there. It is pull it on the arm. That's gonna be it

She's gonna have to tab man. She cranks on that shit, man

Roll through, but she got out of it

Turned it around

Trying to take her back down for the Lyra of the old saw no

boot to the face of princesses whoo hey

Like hook here. We go fisherman buster. That's it

One two three

Mercedes Martinez

advances

Fisherman Buster so we will have a b-list in

Mercedes Martinez in one of our quarterfinal

matchups

That's going to be awesome that shoulder definitely took a beating from the lab review Elsa

Telling the experience both of them had the experience but

You just know how to counter

Modified food you want my armbar I

Love the Fishman Buster's a great move

Mercedes Martinez winning the match oh and know that arm is hurt

All right

We will have will see that match later

Really are we really gonna be doing a Charlie Caruso thing

We're gonna take a quick break and let this thing still run while we're doing this

You

I were coming back and we are to our main event for tonight

Kyrie sang

taking on Bianca Blair

Lots of things she needs to take off man

sorry about that that was just getting by a final cup of coffee at least for this putt I

Haven't decided if I'm gonna have another one yet. I might Bianca Blair. She has the hair whip

Finisher is called the kiss of death and the obviously Kyrie Saint is

that

freaking amazing elbow drop

One year in the business is Bianca Blair, and she's already. I mean she does need a little more care asthma

Charisma charisma, and she'll be awesome. She'll be amazing because she's already just pretty good

Are we gonna shake hands here

All right there we go shake the hands here we go

Now driving her in the corner big clothesline did not hit it Tyrese ain't backing up. She's like okay hang on

Kyrie just knows man

Bianca Bellaire is definitely a lot stronger than Tyrese sane

Go behind your and now Bianca Blair is a lot of trouble Bianca counters Kyrie Saint driven into the

Ground and still has a waist lock on pirate princess

Side headlock here by Bianca Blair Kyrie Saenz a lot of trouble

Hits the midsection they're off the ropes goes Bianca a shoulder tackle taking down Kyrie sane

Who's obvious is oz just awesomest selling

Cartwheel over another shoulder tackle by Bianca Blair a lot stronger is Bianca Blair

or bel-air

Kyrie back up to her feet

Judging that catching a mocking kiss and stomping all over it ducks under a couple of clotheslines. There's a dropkick by Kyrie Seine

Pin and very fast kick-out

Kyrie getting some chance oh

What a forearm, oh here we go

those forearm shots by

Sail it a big one there. We go knocking down Bianca

Yannick employer is like all right. Let's do it

Go behind here on Bianca. It's trying to try to break out of this

Throw-ups nice move

Woodrow that hurt I heard that

Right to the midsection

And then right to the back

again

another one just whipping

Kyrie say my god

Jesus

That probably did not feel good at all for Kyrie saying this crowd is not liking it

Cross the ring

Clothesline taking down Kyrie pin one two and only a two

Clemmy blow right to the back by bianca Blair or Blair

Kyrie trying to fight back forms to the midsection right to the throat off the ropes

caught

Nope knee to the midsection by Bianca Blair

Standing vertical suplex with a

little bit of a squat

Here's the pin one two no only a two still

Singh will not stay down, man

Modify the Cobra clutch with almost a full nelson to

Try to go for a quick pin and now to a chicken wing beautiful transition

Double chicken wing up

Face-first shades of jazz here's a pen one two no still only a two

Kyrie

Big splash double knees to the midsection

This crowd is very well. There's a couple of fans. I want Bianca Blair to beat Kyrie

The heart slides right to the chest again third time

And these chops over and over and now rapid-fire

Kyrie st. Bianca Blair countered, and there's the flying forearm

Pin

Still only a one but transition right into

Cross arm pulling back on the head

Jakob Larry getting back up to her feet

Good counter taken down Kairi sane

Scooping oh nice slam here's a pin one two Kyrie kicked out again

This has been a match, I can't believe Bianca Blair has only been in the business for a year

She's shown a lot of stuff in his match

Younger Blair is definitely my lab, man

What one claw me blow Bianca Blair managing to take down Kyrie sane, but?

Bianca is definitely wobbly

Big one note turned around

Blair

Spinebuster

Standout stand-up spinebuster now Bianca going up. I don't know what this is I don't like it

This is bad

Top rope with

450 splash oh my god - no

That was a move that was a beautiful 450 splash

little Monza crossed her ring

Like a blare shoulder first into the steel post kick to the back

There's the March running forearm slide through into the corner

But us ping back fit uh-oh here we go

Calling for it hitting the elbow gonna go up top

Here we go elbow drop nailed it

One two got it Kyrie st. Mouzon alright guys well, we're gonna go into

round 2

episode 2

Right now so subscribe if you've enjoyed it and continue watching and watch the other ones if you wanna catch

For more infomation >> Mae Young Classic Round 2 E1 full show (commentary and reactions) - Duration: 50:35.

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1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL W194 00002 Classic Drive - Duration: 18:35.

1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL W194 00002 Classic Drive

To a writer, there's nothing more fun than telling stories that are too good to be true. For example, the late Carroll Shelby claimed that, when demonstrating Cobras to potential clients, he would place a $100 bill on the dashboard.

If the prospective owner could reach forward and grab the cash before the Cobra hit the quarter mile, he could keep it. According to legend, no one ever left a Shelby test drive with more money in his pocket.

A great story, no doubt. The problem with it — and many of Ol' Shel's tall tales — is truthfulness, or lack thereof.

However, adding conventional doors would've meant chopping into and weakening the frame.

A legend was born. "Yes, I've heard this story," says Michael Plag, head of the team that painstakingly restored this car, model W194, chassis number 00002. "I believe it to be true.".

After World War II, Germany, Stuttgart, and Mercedes-Benz lay in tatters.

In the late 1940s, Daimler chairman Wilhelm Haspel decided Mercedes-Benz should return to motorsport, a field in which the company had been particularly dominant before the war with its mighty W125 and W154 Silver Arrow Formula 1 cars.

The W194's chief engineer and noted driver, Rudolph Uhlenhaut, didn't have the resources for that sort of engine in the early 1950s.

Instead, he was forced to use what he did have: a 30-liter inline-six out of the decidedly non-sporting 300 Adenauer sedan.

The use of a sedan engine in a lightweight race car was not without precedent, as the Jaguar XK120 won many races with the 3.4-liter straight-six from the Mark VII sedan.

Since world-beating speed was out of the question, Uhlenhaut focused on other attributes needed in an endurance racer. Three in particular were light weight, aerodynamics, and reliability.

The "SL" in 300SL stands for "sport licht," or light and sporty. Since the engine and transmission were from the 4000-pound-plus Adenauer, there was no possibility for weight savings with either component.

The very same lightweight aluminum and magnesium alloy (not Elektron) that went into the Luftwaffe's infamous Junkers bombers became the skin of the 300SL.

Just as creepily, the Junghans chronometers prominently located in the center of all 10 W194 dashboards were war surplus and, in fact, installed in Junkers and Messerschmitts.

Back to shedding pounds: To further keep the W194s' weight low, all the glass is actually clear plastic.

To achieve the 300SL's remarkable (so Mercedes thought) aerodynamics, Uhlenhaut laid the 30-liter motor down at a 50-degree angle and replaced the oil pan with a dry-sump system. This allowed for a sleek, low hood.

An old photograph shows an early 1951 mule's spaceframe shrouded in standard, though odd-looking, coupe body panels with a hole next to the driver's side headlight. Turns out it's an intake for the slanted engine's triple carbs.

And, because of the spaceframe, there are no doors. The finished W194 design, eerily similar to that of the also-designed-in-Stuttgart 1948 Porsche 356 (engineers from both companies no doubt ate lunch and drank together), is totally free of trim, including side mirrors.

"We found archival records indicating a drag coefficient of 0.25 Cd," Plag informed me.

Mercedes didn't have a wind tunnel at the time (the first car to be designed in such a machine was the Jaguar E-Type), but it did have a small wooden model and the University of Stuttgart's water tank.

I told Plag that 0.25 Cd makes the W194 more slippery than a Toyota Prius. In other words, this is a very hard story to believe.

As it turned out, a January 2012 wind-tunnel test showed this car to have an actual drag coefficient of 0.367, making that particular story too good to be true.

The shape is not world-class, but it is about as sleek as a Citroen DS or a Ferrari Testarossa.

As for reliability, the W194 300SL's 1952 success speaks for itself. On their first outing, a Gullwing finished both second and fourth in the Mille Miglia.

The cars then posted a first- and second-place finish at Bern in Switzerland. Next, Hermann Lang and Fritz Reiss won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the team of Theo Helfrich and Norbert Niedermeier finished second.

The W194s then went on to absolutely remarkable first-, second-, third-, and fourth-place finishes at the Nuerburgring Anniversary Grand Prix.

Said Uhlenhaut of the W194's reliability, "The races run in 1952 have shown that the 300SL with a naturally aspirated engine was at least equal — if not superior — to even the strongest opponent.

However, the opponents' inferior operational reliability and the great endurance of the 300SL generally led to victory for our brand.".

Of course, there was one more race the boys from Benz really wanted to win. In their minds, it was the most important race of the year: Mexico's Carrera Panamericana.

As Plag explained, winning in Europe is one thing. Winning outside of Europe is quite another.

As contemporary journalist Gunter Molter told Plag of the 1952 race that went from Juarez to Chiapas, "If we win this race, the whole world will know Mercedes-Benz is back." Moreover, a win in Mexico would be good for the national spirit.

Continued Plag, "People could for the first time [since the war] stand up and proudly say, 'I'm German.".

As fate would have it, the 300SL driven by Karl Kling and Hans Klenk — the one with metal bars welded onto the windscreen to keep out vultures after a big one crashed through the windscreen and knocked navigator Klenk unconscious (true story!) — won the race.

Another W194 driven by Hermann Lang came in second, and a third Mercedes, driven by American John Fitch, would have finished third had Fitch not allowed a mechanic to look at the car with a day to go, which disqualified him.

Despite that, a one/two finish in Mexico had the desired effect, for this is the win that convinced Max Hoffman to demand a sports car (both coupe and roadster) to pull people into his Frank Lloyd Wright-designed New York showroom, thereby securing a future for Mercedes-Benz in North America.

Before the war, Mercedes sold a total of 41 cars in the U.S. Hoffman is universally credited with saving the brand.

As mentioned, that fourth and X factor that allowed the W194s to be so monumentally successful is comfort. Inside, the original Gullwing feels like a sports car, not a full-blown racing machine.

The plaid racing buckets are comfortable and supportive. The dogleg, fully synchronized four-speed manual shifts normally with medium-length throws. The pedals are tightly spaced, yet positioned in such a way that even my size-13 Converses weren't getting stuck.

Compare this with an Indy car I once greased myself into in which I was able to depress all three pedals simultaneously with one sock-clad foot. The instruments are gorgeous, legible, and positioned exactly where you'd expect them.

The top of the dash is covered in dark blue felt so the bare metal underneath won't blind the driver.

Perhaps best of all, the little pass-throughs in the side windows were sized in such a way that a then-new-to-Germany bottle of Coca-Cola could be handed to Karl Kling (see sidebar), who preferred the soft drink to water during pit stops.

They are also key to ventilating the cockpit, as I discovered on a warm June day. There's just nothing about the W194 that screams "race car!".

Except, of course, the process of climbing in. "How sporting are you?" Herr Plag asked me from the driver's seat moments prior to my first pathetic attempt to flop inside.

He had just fixed the removable wooden steering wheel in place. I believe the word he wanted to use was "flexible." Michael is lean and tall and easily contorted his way inside.

At a, um, big-boned 5 foot 11 with exactly one yoga class under my belt, it was a little bit of a struggle to gently fit through the tiny hatch.

The first three W194 cars (00001, 00002, and 00003) had no door cuts whatsoever.

However, because of the famous Le Mans Start (where racers lined up on the opposite side of the pit lane and sprinted to their vehicles), the waist-high openings were cut down on the subsequent seven 1952 300 SLs, a motif that carried over to the single 1953 W194/11 (see sidebar) and all subsequent W198 production Gullwings.

Getting out of car #2 is even more arduous then getting in, so the Mercedes-Benz Classic center has cobbled up some rubber sheets (covered in the same fabric as the seats) that protect the car from short-inseamed passengers, as well as said passengers' ankles from the very hot side exhaust pipe.

Protecting the car is high on the agenda, as Plag estimated its value to be $15 million. "Not that we would ever sell it, but we located two buyers who would pay that price.".

Right, so, what's it like to drive an essentially priceless car? Stunning, but not for the reasons you might think. In my line of work, I get to drive a good deal of vintage metal.

But never have I driven anything as old that drove so brand-spanking new. Aside from a rational way to enter the car and decent ventilation, you could happily live day in, day out with this 300SL.

The steering is non-assisted, but in such a light car (2497 pounds) it comes across as well-weighted and refreshingly direct. Very much like a mid-engine Acura/Honda NSX, in fact.

The front suspension with its dual aluminum control arms reminds me of a continuation Brock Coupe. Road imperfections are dealt with in a one-and-done manner. That, however, is up front. The rear suspension is an antiquated swing-axle design.

And while I didn't push it hard enough for the W194 to exhibit any bad behavior, Plag sure did. Just like a VW Bug, the rear gets a little squirmy pre-apex.

Laying on the power seemed to be his preferred way of dealing with the back end's squirreliness. The grip is startling.

As for the engine, the hard-revving, tricarbureted 170-hp, 207-lb-ft, 30-liter inline-six moves the car with authority. Mercedes verified these output numbers during the restoration on an AMG engine dyno. With Plag behind the wheel, we were constantly outrunning our G55 photo vehicle.

Even I dared to push the motor up into the 4K range (redline is 5000 rpm, low by contemporary standards), marveling at the mechanical intensity of the hot mill and enjoying the rush of speed that accompanied the roar.

I wish I hadn't been so nervous behind the wheel, because the car seemed happiest when being pushed hardest.

However, as I braked at the end of my final run, I spotted a black cat up ahead on the left, attempting to cross my path.

Not that I'm superstitious in the slightest (ahem), but in second gear I kicked the throttle to the floor, scaring the hell out of the cat while quickly sprinting past it.

Disaster averted, and man, what a rush! The first three W194s made 170 hp. That figure went up to 180 hp in the subsequent seven cars.

Obviously, Plag and his team of workers at the Classic Center did a bang-up job on the restoration, but so did Rudolph Uhlenhaut when he started on this car in February 1952, completing it a month later.

More important for the purposes of history, car 00002 was never raced. In fact, it was the only one of the initial ten W194s that never sat on a starting grid.

Instead, it served as a parts car and driver-training vehicle. Which is why when Plag and his colleagues turned their meticulous attention on it, things weren't as bad as they could have been.

"The body was the hardest part," explained Plag. The shell was about 90 percent there, but had some issues.

He contacted five aluminum experts who all said the weird aluminum/magnesium alloy was too difficult to repair, and that Mercedes should just build a new one.

"But this was the original body! We had to use it." Finally, he found a small Italian firm that specializes in repairing old sports cars. Five months later, the original body was shipshape.

As for the complete restoration, it took from May to December 2011.

"We had to be done by December 15," Plag explained, "because the car had to be shipped to Detroit for the auto show." Once the car was completed, Plag was the only person who drove it, running about 30 kilometers around Mercedes' test track.

Then W194 00002 was crated up and shipped off to the New World.

I consider myself beyond lucky to have been given 30 minutes behind the wheel of what is undoubtedly the most significant Mercedes-Benz of the second half of the 20th century.

For more infomation >> 1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL W194 00002 Classic Drive - Duration: 18:35.

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1985 Bitter SC 3.9 Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 13:20.

1985 Bitter SC 3.9 Coupe Classic Drive

Today's exotic car buyers are spoiled by luxury. Even hard-core performance cars from Porsche, Ferrari, and Lamborghini offer the same amenities found in a Bentley as well as the reliability and ease of driving of your average Audi.

It wasn't always like this. Right up until the turn of the century, buyers had to make choices when selecting their object of lust.

Italian steeds were sexy and fiery, sometimes in both the figurative and literal senses. English coaches exuded class and elegance, but often were enjoyed more by mechanics than owners.

German machines were engineered and built like Swiss watches, offering performance and reliability but shying away from style.

It took the major players in the industry decades to figure out that all these attributes could be combined in cars that drove well and were reliable, but still elicited a primal reaction in drivers.

In the late 1970s, Erich Bitter, a German-born racer and businessman, saw the need for such a car and went to work creating limited-production cars for discerning buyers who weren't satisfied with a rolling compromise.

His first venture, the CD, was on a shortened Opel Diplomat platform with a body built by German manufacturer Bauer. It featured a Chevrolet 327-cubic-inch V-8 with retuned suspension.

Although well received at the 1973 Frankfurt auto show, it began life at exactly the wrong time.

Bitter received orders for 176 CDs at the Frankfurt show alone, but the oil crunch hit shortly thereafter, meaning most orders for the thirsty V-8s were cancelled. Nevertheless, production continued on the CD until 1979.

In total, Bitter built 395 cars and established himself as a real entity in the business.

Bitter's second project, the SC, started in 1977 while the CD was still in production. Opel had decided it would stop production on the Diplomat, and once that happened, no matter how successful Bitter's car was, the platform would disappear.

In 1978, Opel launched a new technologically advanced car, called the Senator. The new Opel was not only lighter, but also powered by a more efficient fuel-injected 30-liter inline six-cylinder engine.

The SC wasn't ready for production until 1981, and by that time, Bauer was busy with other projects and no longer had the capacity to build vehicles for Bitter.

Although other German manufacturers would have been the first choice, the contract was eventually given to the Italian manufacturer OCRA.

After only 79 units, the contract was pulled from OCRA due to quality issues and given to a second Italian builder, Maggiore. The handmade interiors also were sourced from Italy from leather maker SALT.

Until 1983, bodies and interiors were built in Italy and shipped back to Bitter's factory in Schwelm, Germany, for final assembly. Eventually, demand outgrew production capacity.

By 1983, all Bitter's manufacturing was being handled by Steyr-Daimler-Puch in Graz, Austria. Bitter had designed sedan and convertible versions of the SC, and it was determined that outsourcing the final assembly was the only viable option.

All SCs were still delivered to Schwelm for final inspection and test drives, but no manufacturing was being done at the headquarters.

By this point, three to four cars a week were being built, and the SC could certainly be deemed a success.

In 1984, Erich Bitter teamed up with Chicago-based real-estate millionaire Lee Miglin to bring the cars to the United States. This is where our story really picks up.

When we feature a particular car, we generally look for the best example of that car we can find, and then seek out the leading expert to help us with the details.

This time, we were lucky enough to find both in the same place. The car featured on these pages is owned by Michael Gabriel, who has more of a connection to his car than does the average classic car owner.

He ran the West Coast operation for Bitter during its three-year stint in the U.S. By his own description, he was the tech guy, the parts guy, the service guy, and even handled P.R.

Gabriel's car is a 1985 coupe with the larger 3.9-liter I-6 mated to the three-speed turbo hydramatic transmission.

Although both the larger engine and automatic transmission were options, Gabriel tells us most of the cars sold in the United States were configured like his car.

Originally, the Bitter and the Opel Senator it was based on used a 30-liter I-6, but with tougher emissions standards and competition from rivals, a larger engine was deemed necessary.

The engines were built by German tuner Manzel, which used new pistons, connecting rods, and crankshaft to increase the stroke from 2.75 to 3.54 inches for the displacement increase.

The first year of SCs sold in the United States, 1984s, had an emissions system developed by an American third-party federalizer.

After a year of struggling with lost power and melting parts under the hood, Bitter turned to Porsche for answers. The resulting 1985 models had a simpler, oxygen-sensor-equipped system using a higher-quality Porsche catalytic converter.

Both the 30 and 3.9 liter engines use Bosch L-Jetronic electronic fuel injection. Although not rare in cars of the era, it does have peculiarities unique to the Bitter.

The car can throw untrained mechanics a few curveballs — even something as simple as bleeding the cooling system can lead to problems.

(For the curious, you have to bleed the system cold by removing and then filling the reservoir elevated out of the car and bleeding air through bleed screws on top of the radiator with the engine off.).

The engine idles with a bit more lumpiness than expected from an inline-six. The sound is smooth and low; it doesn't sound like a BMW I-6.

It's more muted and sounds more luxurious. Power delivery is smooth, and the transmission shifts without jerking or lagging. It doesn't feel like a modern automatic, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It feels mechanical, not electronic.

The steering has a similar feedback. No electrical buzz is transmitted through the wheel.

Effort is heavier than any modern luxury car would dream of having, but so is communication. Even at low speeds, the driver forms a relationship with the road, with the tires playing the role of matchmaker.

Even with 160,000 miles on the odometer, this SC still feels more planted than some current cars right off the lot.

Although the Opel platform might not have the pedigree of something like a Mercedes or BMW, the Bitter was built to compete with them in specification and price, and getting the basics right in the beginning made it easier for Bitter to create a worthy touring car.

The SC was designed to maximize its suspension travel for a better ride. The rear springs are wound in an egg shape that allows them to collapse onto themselves without binding.

While it never feels like the car is floating, the SC rolls in turns, but still soaks up bumps even on the loaded side. The handling isn't what you would call quick, but it can dispatch sweepers and larger switchbacks with ease.

Turn-in isn't as direct or precise as in a modern car, partly due to a recalculating-ball-type steering box, but also due to the relatively high-profile 60-series tires.

Corners are never a single input event: First turn in, then adjust as needed through the corner. Flinging through canyons isn't what this car is really about, however. It's about the total driving experience, especially over long distances.

While the dynamics are commendable, the interior is what might best set the Bitter apart from rivals. The seats are wide and flat.

The sensation feels similar to sitting in a lounge chair. The structure of the seat is firm, yet the cushions are soft enough to conform to the passenger's shape to evenly spread his weight around.

Even at 27 years old, the leather in Gabriel's car is still supple and comfortable, moreover, it's everywhere you look. The entire dash, the inside of the glovebox, and even the inside of the center console cubby are cloaked in cow.

Both front seats adjust for height, tilt, and fore/aft. What might seem strange are the manual-adjustment knobs and levers on a luxury car, no electric adjust here.

Erich Bitter felt each car is matched to a driver, and that driver is going to adjust his seat once and not have to touch it again.

This driver-centric attitude extends to such issues as the HVAC controls being split on both sides of the steering wheel on the dash.

Also, the SC has a power door lock on the passenger door, but not on the driver's side. So unlocking the driver's door unlocks the passenger door, but not the opposite.

In the back, the seats are more appropriate for something in a sedan. While two 6-foot-tall passengers might not want to sit tandem, you could certainly accommodate a combination of average-size adults in the car.

Inside and out, the Bitter SC exudes luxury without being over the top. The design has aged well, and, while it doesn't look as flashy as the Maseratis or Lamborghinis of the time, it has certainly aged better.

This was Erich Bitter's goal — to create a low-volume car for discerning buyers. He never wanted to be an automotive giant; he just wanted to build the car he always dreamed of.

In the end, he produced an estimated 460 SC Coupes, not bad for a singular vision.

For more infomation >> 1985 Bitter SC 3.9 Coupe Classic Drive - Duration: 13:20.

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Mercedes-Benz A-Klasse 150 CLASSIC / airco. - Duration: 0:57.

For more infomation >> Mercedes-Benz A-Klasse 150 CLASSIC / airco. - Duration: 0:57.

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Chrysler PT Cruiser 2.0i CLASSIC / VAN / 2 PERSONEN - Duration: 0:58.

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1980 BMW M1 Classic Drive - Duration: 15:38.

1980 BMW M1 Classic Drive

Some things happen only once in the automotive world, a spark of brilliance never to be duplicated. The BMW M1 is one of those occurrences.

Never before did BMW have a car like the M1, and it's doubtful it will build such a car again. Essentially a race car made to conform to the road, the M1 is one of the great automotive wonders.

In fact, it's a wonder it ever came to be. The story starts with Jochen Neerpasch, director of the newly formed BMW Motorsports factory racing program.

He campaigned 30 CSLs to good success in European sports car racing, but by the mid-'70s, even the large-winged "Batmobile" 3.5 CSL was looking old-fashioned.

Neerpasch wanted a new car to replace the CSL in the Group 4 racing class, something sleek and mid-engined that could go head to head with the best in the world.

At the time, BMW's R&D facility was focused entirely on its lineup of road cars, which was making serious forays into the American market. The 2002 brought BMW back from the brink and introduced the general consumer to the Bavarian automaker's products.

New cars were coming fast and furious, with the first 3 Series sport coupe, the E21 320i, replacing the aging 2002 in 1976, and the new 5 and 7 Series showing the world that sedans could be both luxurious and sporty.

Group 4 regulations required eligible race cars to be production-based and built in quantities of at least 400. Unfortunately, larger production models kept Munich assembly lines running at capacity, forcing Neerpasch to look to Italy to get the M1 off the ground.

Styling was assigned to Giorgetto Giugiaro's Italdesign firm, which had recently completed the Maserati Bora and Lotus Esprit, while chassis production and development were headed up by a company that happened to know a thing or two about building mid-engine supercars: Lamborghini.

BMW did supply its own powertrain, a 3.5-liter straight-six based on the one in the competition CSL chassis to be mounted longitudinally in the M1's tubular space frame.

With a 24-valve, dual-overhead cam design, the roadgoing M1's engine was to boast 274 hp, fed through a five-speed ZF gearbox.

Soon, Giugiaro had produced a striking exterior form that borrowed heavily from BMW's own 1972 Turbo concept. The Turbo's wild gullwing doors were abandoned, but Giugiaro had retained the same rakish profile that would help define supercars of the era.

Gianpaolo Dallara, then at Lamborghini after stints with Ferrari and Maserati, was in charge of suspension design. A handful of M1 prototypes were built, but major financial troubles reached a head at Lambo's headquarters.

As the popular (albeit unconfirmed) story goes, BMW had to sneak into the government-padlocked Lamborghini workshops in the dead of night to recover its engineering mules and assorted tooling.

In the months that followed, Neerpasch scrambled to find new partnerships to take the M1 from dream to reality.

A deal was struck with Modenese chassis constructor Marchesi to assemble the space frames, while Italian composites maker TIR would lay up the fiberglass body panels.

Italdesign agreed to fix bodies to frames at its headquarters, and German automotive constructor Baur would conduct final assembly and quality control at its Stuttgart plant.

Finally, a year behind schedule, BMW's jaw-dropping supercar officially went on sale in February 1979. The cost was an eye-watering $115,000 after U.S.

federalization, but then, the M1 was never expected to be cheap. Over the rest of that year and the one that followed, BMW built enough road cars to satisfy the FIA's homologation rule.

Then, just over two years after production had started, it was over. In March 1981, the last BMW M1 went through final assembly at Baur; it was one of just 397 M1 road cars ever delivered (450 including race cars).

For decades, the M1 has been something of a curiosity.

With so few produced, seeing one in the flesh is rare indeed, a problem compounded by the fact that many owners purchased their cars only to lock them away in warehouses and museums as low-mileage collector items.

Yet, here I am behind the wheel of a 1980 M1 on a Connecticut highway. This particular example managed to evade the federalization process, starting life as a press demonstrator.

That means it never had 175 pounds added in emissions and safety equipment, including reinforced bumpers and side-impact bars.

Thanks to large door openings, getting into the M1 is easy enough, despite its low profile. The door closes again with a solid thunk even though the car is skinned in fiberglass–a true BMW, this.

The low roofline does cut into headroom, and, as is the case with many period supercars, those taller than six feet will have difficulty fitting in.

Shoulder and thigh room ars generous though, and the seats are supportive but also comfortable for longer trips.

Two interior color options were offered to prospective M1 purchasers, black or tan. The former was far and away the most popular choice, and our car reflects that with its black leather-swathed dash and leather/cloth seats and door panels.

Switchgear and ventilation borrow in part from the period 7 Series. Overall, the interior is really quite plain, far from the futuristic accoutrements to be found in a period Lamborghini Countach or the opulence to be had in an Aston Martin DBS.

In the M1, it's all staid Bavarian business, right down to the plain-looking Becker Mexico radio located in the center console and the simple, three-spoke steering wheel.

It's striking just how easy the car is to drive. That said, there are a few peculiarities.

Wheelwell intrusion means the pedal box is offset quite a bit toward the center of the car, and the clutch pedal is long in travel, causing my ankle to run out of its own travel, often just before the clutch bites.

The transmission has a racing-style dogleg pattern with first gear down and to the left.

The hood falls away out of sight, leaving little indication of where the nose of the car actually is, though the large windshield and thin A-pillars offer very good visibility otherwise.

Most surprising of all is how well this race-inspired chassis is dialed in for the road.

The ride is at once supple and controlled, soaking up bumps without breaking a sweat, yet the car turns in well and there is so little roll that it's almost imperceptible from the driver's seat.

The car feels wide and low, which inspires tremendous confidence, but it never feels too large for the road in the way other supercars often do. The steering is heavy at parking speeds (and the turning circle laughably wide).

It lightens up once the car is properly moving, with the kind of feel and involvement that has tragically ceased to exist in even the best of modern sports cars.

The 12-inch disc brakes, massive for the day, stop the M1 quickly with fairly light action. Drawbacks? The M1 isn't the best place to carry on a conver-sation.

That's not so much because the car is noisy, although it can be (cruising along at 70 mph on the freeway shows the tachometer at over 3000 rpm), but more because the noise is so glorious that every time the M1 accelerates with any gusto, conversation immediately halts to better hear that straight-six symphony.

Never mind that this car has half the cylinder count of its Italian competitors; the engine is one of the world's finest.

Redline is nestled up against 7000 rpm, and the tach needle races to get there, a hard-edged, mechanical crescendo building as it does.

It's more of a hairy-chested growl than a scream, but with a complexity and sophistication to rival the best from Italy.

The noise is so addictive, I can't help but preserve bits of it through the voice recorder I brought along on our two-hour drive to today's photo location.

The old Pirelli tire headquarters in New Haven, Connecticut, was an ultramodern office space when built over 50 years ago, but what remains of our venue is now a vacant architectural curiosity in the parking lot of the New Haven IKEA.

There are so many small details to take in while the car is stationary: the small monochrome roundels on the Tron-esque Campagnolo wheels, for example, and the BMW Motorsports script on the cylinder head.

Then there are the exposed frame tubes that run from the roof to the engine bay behind the rear window. There's no glovebox in the dash, but there is a lockable bin between the two seats.

And don't bother putting any luggage in the front "trunk." It's filled to capacity with the car's radiator and spare tire.

Luggage space in the compartment behind the engine is quite good, though, with plenty of room for a weekend's worth of gear for two practical people.

At the end of the day, there's no forgetting that this car was designed for the track first and the street second.

It's that sensation of driving a car so focused yet so well suited for high-performance running that makes the M1 such a magical experience.

Though too much weight for too little power didn't help the M1's case against period exotic competition, those who seek out an M1 today likely won't care about precious tenths of seconds on the dragstrip.

They'll instead revel in the fact that the M1 is thrilling to pilot at any speed, its driving reality never betraying the fantasy its shape promises.

Though the M1 was designed as a racer from the get-go, it never had much success in motorsport.

It wasn't for lack of power: Group 4-spec M1s produced 470 hp at 9000 rpm, a figure that was competitive with other contenders. The real issue was weight. With the roadgoing car weighing in at just over 3000 pounds (U.S.

federalized cars weighed a couple hundred pounds more due to added safety and smog features), even Perspex windows and a gutted interior couldn't bring the M1 down to Group 4's 2200-pound weight minimum.

While several cars ran at Le Mans in the hands of privateers, the M1 never had much luck there, either. Some cars were built by private teams to even higher spec, boasting over 800 hp from the same basic 3.5-liter engine.

In the end, Neerspasch struck a deal with the managing body of Formula 1 to run a support race with identically prepared Group 4 M1s.

As something of a "gentlemean's racing" series, 15 cars were driven by wealthy would-be racers, while the top-five qualifying F1 drivers for each of the season's races would pilot the remaining cars. The result was the wildly aggressive Procar series.

Drivers like Piquet, Rosberg, and Regazzoni bumped and blitzed Group 4-spec M1s with massive flared fenders and towering wings around world-famous F1 circuits, flames spitting from their exhaust.

BMW finally got what it was seeking all along with the M1: credibility and desire among enthusiasts.