All posts by Francis Mitterrand

News

1951 Ferrari 212 Inter owned by one owner for 71 years

At the 1951 Brussels Motor Show Ferrari presented one of its most expensive cars, the successor to the Ferrari 166 Inter and Ferrari 195 Inter, the Ferrari 212 Inter. It was a sports car for the road that could also win international races, and until 1952 only 82 units were produced in four body types: Vignale, Pininfarina, Ghia and Carrozzeria Touring.

This Ferrari spent 71 years with the same owner, which is a rarity for a collector’s car. It looks almost as good as the day it was bought. It is completely original, except that it was completely painted once, and the carpets were replaced in the early 70s. It was produced in three different versions: the 212 F1 for Formula 1 and Formula 2 races, as well as the 212 MM (Mille Miglia). All three versions were powered by the same 2.6-liter Colombo V12 engine, which delivered between 148 hp (110 kW) or 163 hp (121 kW), depending on the carburetor setup. The engine is paired with a five-speed manual transmission that sends power to the rear wheels. This Ferrari 212 Inter has an original engine that has never been opened.

The owner of the car passed away in 2022, and his son stated that the car had been serviced regularly for seven decades, exactly according to the instructions the owner received from Ferrari mechanics when purchasing it.

The Ferrari 212 Inter looks amazing and runs flawlessly. The interior is the only part that shows significant signs of wear. Light brown leather covers the seats, door panels and dashboard with matching color carpets, adorning the interior of the car. The steering wheel is placed on the right side.

Source: Jay Leno’s Garage

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1951 Ferrari 212 Inter owned by one owner for 71 years
News

Volkswagen ID.7 Vizzion is 57.4% cheaper in China than in EU

The new electric sedan Volkswagen ID.7 Vizzion is coming to the Chinese market, and the most attention is attracted by the price of the car, which is 57.4 percent cheaper than in Germany. Why is this so, whether and in what way the Chinese authorities help manufacturers to be more competitive on the market?

The Chinese authorities subsidize domestic car manufacturers in various ways, through loans from state-owned banks, capital reserves from state investment funds or lower electricity fees. A few years ago, the Chinese government gave about one billion euros to Nio to save it from bankruptcy. However, it was not just financial support, because with that money the government bought a 24 percent stake in the company. After that, there was another financial injection from an unnamed state banking house in the amount of 1.5 billion euros. Now the government is helping Nio with 32,000 euros per car.

In order to be more competitive in China, VW reduced car prices last month, which turned out to be good, when it comes to sales. However, growth was achieved primarily through the sale of low-cost cars such as the Lavida sedan (13,345 euros), putting VW in second place with 1.56 million vehicles sold. BYD was first with 1.79 million vehicles sold, and Toyota was third with 1.24 million cars.

What may worry VW and its Chinese partners is the problem of low demand for their battery vehicles, as the company is sold 92,332 units. Compared to the biggest competitor, BYD (893,754 vehicles), the problem seems even bigger. Also, Tesla managed to sell five times more electric vehicles (433,729).

Another reason why cars made in China are cheaper compared to the rest of the world is cheap labor. A manufacturing worker there earns about a third of what an American or European auto worker earns annually. Also, Reuters recently wrote about an unnamed employee of the Changan Automobile Factory in Che-fei, who experienced a reduction in income and left his job in July, because his salary in May and June was only four thousand yuan a month (about 512 euros ), instead of 900 euros as he expected.

How the rest of the world, primarily Europe and the USA, will react to the increasing pressure that Chinese manufacturers are putting on the global market remains to be seen.

Source: VW, Reuters, NYT

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Volkswagen ID.7 Vizzion is 57.4% cheaper in China than in EU
Auctions

1988 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe is for sale

At the 1974 Paris Auto Show Porsche presented the top-of-the-range 911 model and the fastest production car available in Germany at the time, the Porsche 930 Turbo. It was produced until 1989, and 18,770 units left the production line. One of them, a 1988 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe is for sale.

This 911 930 Turbo is powered by a turbocharged 3.3-liter flat-six engine with factory output of 282 hp (207 kW) and 278 lb-ft (377 Nm) of torque. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. The car is mounted on 16″ Fuchs alloy wheels wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza Sport tires.

The car is finished in Venetian Blue Metallic, properly maintained, it is in good condition, and it should be noted that it spent 22 years with a single registered owner before it was bought by the current owner. It is equipped with black stone guards ahead of the rear wheels, a rear window wiper, a sunroof, fog lights, a tea tray rear spoiler, dual exhaust outlets, four-wheel cross-drilled and ventilated discs. At the beginning of the year, a service was performed, which included replacing the air filter, distributor cap, spark plugs, ignition wires, engine belts, valve cover gaskets, vacuum hoses, and intercooler seals.

Inside, the seats are upholstered in Marine Blue leather, which also covers the door panels and dashboard. There’s also a four-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel behind which is a six-digit odometer showing 59,752 miles. Additional equipment includes air conditioning, an analog clock, an alarm system, an aftermarket radio, a trunk-mounted amplifier, and power windows.

The car has a clean Carfax report that shows no accidents or other damage. It comes with a Porsche Production Specifications sheet, a window sticker, a stamped maintenance log, records, and a clean Florida title.

The auction ends on October 17 and the highest bid at the time of writing was $127,000 USD.

Source: Bring a Trailer

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1988 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe is for sale