As an American living in the Spanish part of the Basque Country, I have a certain curiosity about classic European cars that locals don't usually share with me. Cars like the Renault 5, Seat/Fiat 600, etc. are not head turners over here, so they're not really appreciated, but when I came across this thing in a small city named Zarautz I knew I'd hit jackpot.

This Citroën Palm Beach convertible was parked in front of a hotel and it had french plates, so its owner must be a French bon vivant who's not afraid of making a road trip with a classic and very rare French car.

For what I've read on the net, this Palm Beach is a model coach built by Henri Chapron, one of 32 made between 1964 and 1971, so it's pretty shocking (and great) that somebody has driven this thing on a long trip, and still managed to keep it in great shape.

As I said, this car was in excellent condition and it seemed to be either restored or obsessively well kept (I guess it was restored because the interior leather looked new).

Press Release:

Vandenbrink Design unveils special coachbuilt GTO

Vandenbrink Design joins the revival of special coachbuilding by presenting their design of the GTO, a tribute to the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO.

The GTO was designed in 2006 by Michiel van den Brink, who founded the Vandenbrink Design company with business partner Robert Koumans in the Netherlands. The worldwide acclaim the artist impressions received exceeded all expectations; TopGear even wrote "Ocular Nirvana: arguably the best-looking car in the world". The overwhelming response put the bar high, but it encouraged Vandenbrink to accept the challenge by preparing the design for production.

The new coachwork will be handcrafted following the classic tradition in aluminium by Dutchman Alwin Hietbrink, who is worldwide known by his excellent aluminium craftsmanship in restoration and rebuilding projects of classic Italian iconic sportscars such as the genuine Ferrari 250 GTO.

Optional interior/upholstery redesign will be performed by the Dutch craftsman Henk van Lith, also worldwide known by his specialization in the making of high quality Italian interiors.

The GTO is technically based on the superb Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano platform.

In cooperation with race engineering expert EDO Competition two versions are offered:
- the 599 GTO (5998 cc / 650 hp / 630 Nm) and
- the high performance 630 GTO (6300 cc / 750 hp / 680 Nm).

Through this unique approach the GTO offers a synthesis of automotive art, craftsmanship and state-of-the-art platform and performance engineering.

Only 5 GTO's will be built for customers, guaranteeing exceptional exclusivity. Customer interest appeared solid; first coachworks have been reserved. Production will start in 2008; delivery to the first owner will be in 2009.

Price of a full-options 630 GTO is 993.000,- euros (excl. base 599 GTB Fiorano, ex taxes).

Vandenbrink Design:

Vandenbrink Design BV is an automotive design company, located in The Netherlands.
It is a privately owned company, founded in 2006 by Michiel van den Brink and Robert Koumans.
The company focus is on special design and coachbuilding for highly exclusive sportscars.

Press release:

DRIVE THE FUTURE WITH FISKER AUTOMOTIVE, A NEW GREEN AMERICAN PREMIUM CAR COMPANY

IRVINE, Calif. Sept.5, 2007: Quantum Technologies and Fisker Coachbuild, LLC announce the launch of a joint venture in Fisker Automotive, Inc. - a green American premium car company. Fisker Automotive will offer a range of environmentally friendly premium cars - with the first production car to make its Worldwide North American debut at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show in January. Initial production is anticipated to be 15,000 vehicles annually with pricing to start under $100,000.

Design and technology development are already underway for the first production car. All models will feature cutting-edge plug-in hybrid technology penned as Quantum Drive, developed by Quantum Technologies exclusively for Fisker Automotive. This all-new plug-in Quantum Drive chassis layout will allow Fisker to design innovative luxury cars with uncompromised proportions.

The Fisker name has attracted and attained worldwide brand recognition, thanks to years of first-class automotive designs. Over his 18 years in the car design business, Henrik Fisker has left his thumbprint on some of the most highly regarded automobiles.

His creations range from the BMW Z8, Aston Martin DB9 & V8 Vantage to his most recent creations - the Tramonto and Latigo CS, designed under the Fisker Coachbuild nameplate. Fisker Automotive will retain the orange and blue logo originated at Fisker
Coachbuild.

"The troubled environment is captivating the attention of the world. Developing a premium luxury green car which also delivers attractive design can make a difference. We are extremely excited to join our automotive design expertise with the plug-in hybrid technology of Quantum in Quantum Drive. This breakthrough chassis development will allow us to deliver a design with dramatic proportions - one which will carry the Fisker badge," expressed Henrik Fisker, CEO of Fisker Automotive, Inc.
"We want people to drive beautiful fast cars that make environmental sense - cars that are eco-chic and will have less of an impact on global warming."

Quantum Technologies has a long history of advancing technology. Benefits in developing an entirely new, from-the-ground-up design for a plug-in hybrid vehicle include optimized fuel efficiency and performance, unchanged gas station infrastructure, home based battery recharging with any 110-volt outlet at a fraction of the cost. A cleaner and a quieter car for local travel...all with the most advanced comforts that are anticipated with a luxury car.

"Our goal here is to deliver the advancement that Quantum Technologies has made in the area of plug-in hybrid technology. By combining our efforts with the renowned design talent of Henrik Fisker, we can produce a car that makes a difference to the environment - without sacrificing the luxury that accompanies the finest automobiles," stated Alan Niedzwiecki, CEO Quantum Technologies.

Fisker Automotive is a privately owned car company, operated by executive management teams of Fisker Coachbuild, LLC and Quantum Technologies with Henrik Fisker as the CEO of Fisker Automotive. Fisker Coachbuild, LLC will be the exclusive design house for Fisker Automotive through the entire range of product development.

Press Release:

CALLAWAY C16 SPEEDSTER
SET TO MAKE WORLD DEBUT AT 2007
PEBBLE BEACH CONCOURS d'ELEGANCE

Flagship Model in C16 Line Offers High-Speed Motoring in its Purest Form, Features Jet-Fighter Styling, 700HP Hand-Built Powerplant, Unrivaled Exclusivity

OLD LYME, CONNECTICUT (July 23, 2007) - Callaway Cars today announced it will unveil the C16 Speedster, the third and flagship model in the C16 lineup, on the concept lawn at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, August 19, 2007.

The made-to-order C16 Speedster represents a pinnacle in American supercar design. The supercharged and intercooled 700 horsepower Callaway exotic produces class leading power, a topless cockpit with twin wind deflectors and extended headrests, exquisite bodywork and race-inspired chassis tuning. Much like its spiritual predecessors, the 1990 Callaway Speedster and 1998 C12 Speedster, the latest C16 Speedster offers a visceral open air driving experience unlike any other.

"This is Callaway Cars' most exquisite vehicle to date," said company founder Reeves Callaway. "The C16 Speedster marks our 20thanniversary with Corvette and 30th year in business, and having this statement of our passion for the automobile featured on the concept lawn at Pebble Beach is a high water mark for us."

The C16 Speedster was penned and modeled by Paul Deutschman, architect of the "Callaway look" and designer of the original 1990 Callaway Speedster. Every body panel has been redesigned to speak to style and aerodynamics, and a hand-tooled German leather interior adds exclusivity. Door sills, the steering wheel and dash area all carry signature Callaway badging. Each Speedster is tailored to the buyer's specifications, including interior and exterior colors and a personalized build plate.

Underneath the car's stunning bodywork lies the heart of a racecar. The Callaway supercharged, intercooled, 6.2L all-alloy hand-built powerplant produces 700hp and 660lb-ft of torque, propelling the Speedster from 0 to 60 in an estimated 3.2 seconds. Maximum velocity of the C16 Speedster is over 210 mph.

Overall handling and road feel is transmitted by a newly developed Callaway/Eibach Multi-Pro coil-over suspension system. This joint development effort produced an advanced spring/damper system, featuring 10-position compression and rebound adjustability, allowing the driver to customize settings for specific road conditions.

A unique element the Speedster shares with its C16 siblings - Coupe and Cabrio - are Callaway/Dymag Carbon wheels that weigh approximately 40-percent less than the lightest aluminum wheels, significantly reducing unsprung weight for improved acceleration, cornering and braking. These TUV- and DOT-tested wheels feature forged magnesium spiders surrounded by carbon fiber rims and measure 19" x 10" front and 20" x 13" rear. Residing behind the wheels is a Callaway / StopTech brake system, which utilizes 6-piston front and 4-piston rear calipers gripping 355mm x 32 mm rotors.

The Callaway C16 Speedster will be available for purchase in the Fall of 2007 and starts at $305,000 USD. Speedster No.1 of the series will be delivered to its new owner at Pebble Beach.

Zagato's retromodern reskin of the Maserati GranSport Spyder, the Maserati GS Zagato, is getting a once-over by crowds at Italy's Villa d'Este Concorso d'Eleganza this weekend. The car was tailor made for Italian custom-kitchen king Paolo Boffi, a fan of the mad-hot 1954 Maserati A6 G Zagato. Zagato's released new fashion shots of the couture coupe at the Villa, along with early design renderings of the GS. Opinion may be split, but whatever you think of it, we really do need more cars that look like this — not fewer. – Mike Spinelli

Related:
Flying Coach: The Maserati GS Zagato [internal]

Another year, another italian motorcar reskinned by Zagato. This time, it's been commissioned by Paolo Boffi, Italian custom-kitchen magnate. He's employed the Zagato team to work up his Maserati GS Spyder. The de rigeur historical antecedent is the Maserati A6 G Zagato of 1954, a car whose period sexiness is likely irreproducible. Still, Zagato is giving its best attempt in the GS, which will debut at the Concours d'Elegance Villa d'Este next week. Will it capture the original magic, or wind up looking like a slick appliance in a Milanese loft building? Stay tuned. – Mike Spinelli

Press Release:

One year after the presentation of the Ferrari 575GTZ, Zagato returns to Villa d'Este with a world preview for fans of Italian sports sedans: the Maserati GS Zagato.

In the most classic traditions of exclusive collections that inspired the creativity of car designers in the '50s and '60s, Paolo Boffi, well-known entrepreneur in the furnishing and luxury design sector, has commissioned from Zagato a customised look for his Maserati GS Spyder. Zagato proposes a line that evoked the historical Maserati A6 G Zagato of 1954: one of the most beautiful Italian sedans ever built, and nowadays at the top of every collector's wish list.

The Maserati GS Zagato, like its celebrated ancestor, has all-aluminium bodywork and bears the Trident on the bonnet and the Z on the wing, expressing eternal Italian excellence in its shape and its content. A winning combination that matches powerful and reliable mechanics, with an elegant and and sports style, both rigorously Made in Italy. For purists of the compact coupe ?, afficionados of the Milano-based brand, it is a two-volume, two-seater, hatchback with a streamlined profile and a neat tail.

The wheelbase is 180mm shorter, a spin-off from the Spyder, provides excellent handling and stability on curves, with extraordinary torsional rigidity. In homage to the tradition of the gentlemen drivers who asked Zagato to transform the bodywork of their cars, modern collectors choose mechanics at the top level of technical evolution and 'dress' them in tailor-made garments that increase in value as time passes. This is the mission of a modern automobile atelier: to create timeless objects that celebrate prestigious models and brands and which, unlike mass produced vehicles, are destined to last for ever. Zagato, born in 1919 as an atelier for automobiles and planes, has put its signature on all the most important mechanics of the last century, earning the opportunity to create, every time, an "instant classic".

Zagato's strengths lie in the concept of sports-style elegance, a functional design that does not bow to momentary fashions but seeks out the excitement and pleasure of driving, and in the precious aluminium bodywork, a value recognised everywhere. The Maserati GS Zagato will be on show at the Concours d'Elegance Villa d'Este, to be held in Cernobbio (Italy) 20 -22 April 2007.

[via Autoblog]

Related:
Geneva Showcase: Zagato Ottovu [internal]

It started out as a 1999 Chrysler Concorde LXi, which was presumably minding its own business. But the guys at DiMora Designs, part of a larger coachworks company, lured the the four-door, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger family sedan into their machinists's lair and had their way with it. The result is the JX Coupe, a two-passenger, El Camino-like glossmobile with a covered bed and a 260-hp, 3.2 liter V6 built by ATK. They fused the rear passenger doors permanently to the body and chopped the factory roof so the rear glass assembly would fit. But don't bother asking the price. The company's only built this one as a show car. But if you ask nicely and wave your checkbook over your head in an attempt at semafore, maybe they'll build one just for you. – Mike Spinelli

[via Autocar]

Related:

Press Release:

The DiMora JX Coupe

At DiMora Designs, a division of DiMora Motorcar, we take pride in thinking outside the box to create unique automobiles, yachts, motorcycles, and even entertainment attractions. Whether the need is for a car with a particular capability or there is a desire to carry a thematic style to its logical conclusion, we conceptualize and deliver remarkable one-off creations.

The JX Concept Coupe was conceived for the movies. Often a movie car is a stripped-down vehicle with a desired look, made to fill a particular role in a movie, and it is never seen again except by the prop man or at a museum. But we decided to build this movie car of steel and quality parts, so that it can be enjoyed on the road long after the ending credits roll at the local multiplex theater. This concept car is meant to be driven, not just admired.

The JX Coupe began its life as a 1999 Chrysler Concorde LXi, a four-door, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger family sedan with lively performance from a 235 HP V6 engine.

In late 2006, we decided to make it into a movie car, a two-passenger coupe with the longest trunk in town. It was to have the utility of an El Camino with an electric, lockable lid on the large trunk, and a boost in performance.

Alfred DiMora also decided to use this car to demonstrate the lost art of American coachbuilding in steel during the late 1930s and 1940s. This echoes the steel coachbuilding work he performed at Clenet Coachworks in the 1970s and 1980s. With hundreds of hours shaping the steel, we would add classic style to this typical mass-market car.

In American English, a coupe is "a closed two-door automobile." Since our word comes from the French verb "couper" meaning "to cut", we started the project by cutting up the Concorde! We sealed the rear passenger doors permanently to the body and then chopped the factory roof to accept the rear glass assembly.

To enhance the design of the rear of the car, we replaced the single-outlet factory muffler with a Camaro Z28 dual-outlet muffler. The rear facia was modified by cutting holes to accommodate the chrome exhaust tips.

We replaced the stock engine with a 260 HP 3.2 liter V6 from ATK, which is backed by a three-year unlimited mileage warranty. We added a "Tornado" vortex component to the air intake. MPG was increased 10% and horsepower grew by 10%. We have not had a dyno test on the engine, but we estimate the engine's horsepower was increased to 260.

The unique grille was designed and hand fabricated by Jim Willis, our Concept Car Project Manager. We freshened up the interior then added plush leather seats.

We swapped out the stock wheels for American Racing Euro-Chrome 18" wheels, surrounded by BF Goodrich 235/50ZR18 tires. We used Intrax lowering springs to drop the car an inch and a half in front and an inch in the rear to help give the car a new profile look.

The JX Coupe was completed to better-than-factory-quality using all steel fabrication. The paint is by House of Kolor in San Diego, California, and is called "Sunrise Pearl". This unique paint gives you the illusion of the color changing with the light at different times of the day or with different lighting conditions.

When Jim Willis drove the completed JX Coupe on the open road for its first time, he couldn't help noticing that people were photographing the car with their cell-phone cameras everywhere he went. When he parked, he drew large crowds and people even got up from their meals at restaurants to go outside and look at the car. People approached Jim everywhere he went, asking "When did they start making these? Where did you buy this thing? How can I get one? How much did it cost?"

Well, there will only be this one JX Coupe. But it has already been photographed extensively for CarVision, the premier automotive publication in the Republic of Korea. It was introduced at the Spring Rod Run in Temecula, California, where it was a true crowd-pleaser. You will soon see it on TV and on the multiplex cinema screen. And if you are lucky, you may see the owner driving this one-of-a-kind car with pride for many years to come.

Related:
Think Bigger: The Super Luxury DiMora Natalia SLS2 [internal]

Egad! Ok, that's the last time we use that joke in a post about German engineering and design firm EDAG, and only because it was a request. But the Mercedes GL-based LUV the company's devised is no laughing matter. It takes itself very seriously, what with Brabus-tuned motor and more teak than in a thousand Scandinavian-designed bookshelves owned by bachelors named D rk. The teak is a reference to expensive yachts, which informed the coachbuilt truck's design theme. A Honda Ridgeline appears to have been involved in some capacity as well. – Mike Spinelli

Related:
EDAG Strikes Again: The LUV Land Yacht Concept [internal]

Zagato let fly with a new set of images of its Diatto Ottovu project, a commemorative plate vehicle signifying 100 years of the Diatto marque. That company was once the builder of royal transport and proto track-day rides. Zagato plans to show off its tribute at the Geneva motor show next week. We'll see how it stands up next to the Fiorvanti Thalia. – Mike Spinelli

[via Virtualcar.it]

Related:Zagato Reveals Diatto Anniversary Project: The Ottovu [internal]

Building slinky sports cars over Corvette running gear is only a new concept if your idea of state-of-the-art couture is wearing pastel shirts under white linen suits. Any gearhead worth his obsession remembers the early seasons of "Miami Vice" were marked by the presence of a faux Ferrari Daytona body atop a C3 platform. Now, coachworks Anteros Marketing is introducing three new models based on the Corvette C6 (or Z06): the XTM Roadster, XTS Targa and XTR Hardtop. The three cars, versions of a body design recalling Brits and Italians in equal measure, feature carbon fiber engine covers, inner fenders, electric bonnet, and a custom leather interior. Anteros's charter is to recreate and interpret classic sportscar coachbuilding, and it would appear they're doing so — by way of late-1970s kit cars (not that there's anything wrong with that). [Gallery] – Mike Spinelli

[via Winding Road]

Related:
Tailfin Magic: The Antas V8 [internal]

The trend toward coachbuilding houses ripping Ferrari product apart and rebuilding them to different spec continues, largely unabated. Well, it will, once Vandenbrink Design of the Netherlands renders their GTO design study in sheetmetal. The company, started by an automotive designer and an entrepreneur who's worked in aerospace engineering, plans to court potential customers who aren't satisfied with the looks of their 599GTB, then have Dutch coachbuilding house Hietbrink do the grunt work. Now all they need is a billionaire with a 599GTB to spare. Who wants to be first?

[Vandenbrink Design via Autoblog.nl]

Related:
Another Billionaire Gets His Bespoke Ferrari On: Peter Kalikow's Scaglietti [internal]

Our beaux fr res over at Le Blog Auto offer up this distinctive machine built by Italian restoration house Faralli & Mazzanti. It's the Antas V8, a design study that shows what might happen if a team of designers from Panoz and Morgan stared too deeply at a Tatra T87 after inhailing an eighth of 150-proof grappa. The V8-powered prototype will make its public debut at the Top Marques event in Monaco this week, where it'll be drooled on by tipsy, southern-European viscounts in scarves that cost more than Manhattan real estate. Tres gauche!

Antas V8 [Le Blog Auto]

Related:
Caparo T1 to Be Unveiled in Monaco [internal]

The kingly Bufori MKIII La Joya could be the only car that's ever made us want to use the word "festooned" in a descriptive sentence. Outfitted with more burled walnut than a Pall Mall club room, and offered with options like Persian carpets and precious stones embedded in the instrument panel, the Bufori could be one of the most accurate examples of traditional haute riche coachbuilding left on the planet. The two-seat coupe is powered by a rear-mid-mounted 2.7-liter quad-cam V6 (engine geeks, any ideas?) with Tiptronic slushbox, and comes with ABS, nav system and front and rear audio-visual parktronic system. They're even available in the US. Consult the parking lot at the Palm Beach Neiman Marcus for details.

2006 Bufori MK III La Joya [BornRich.org]

Related:
Fisker Coachworks Revives Bespoke Body Building [internal]