The Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance is an embarassment of riches; no matter where you turn, there are amazing cars as far as the eye can see. The organizers do a good job of providing content for everyone, from early “horseless carriage” cars all the way through contemporary street and race cars. Want the eclectic? You’ll find one-of-a-kind prototypes and concepts alongside multi-million dollar Duesenbergs and Bugattis.
I’m not much of an early car guy, though. I can appreciate them for what they are, but at the end of the day I wouldn’t want one in my garage. Cars (and bikes) are meant to be driven, and vintage vehicles generally don’t handle worth a damn or stop worth a damn. Sure they may be fast in a straight line, but bias ply tires and drum brakes don’t make for track day fun. Some cars, though, make me toss all logic out the window; maybe it’s lust or maybe it’s something deeper.
Despite the fact that there were faster cars, more valuable cars and even sexier cars, the two that I’d most like to see in my garage were the 1967 Corvette Coupe with the big block 427 motor owned by Myles and Amy Douglas and the 1955 300SL owned by Al and Mary Barbour. Why? I’m not sure, but both cars were perhaps the best prepared examples I’ve ever seen. Both looked exactly the same as they had in the dealer’s showroom so many yerars ago, but you got the feeleing that both cars were drivers and not just trailer queens. Anyway, here are my favorites:
1967 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Coupe
By far, the cleanest 1967 ‘Vette I’ve ever seen
Even the carpets looked new, and check out the seats
The business end – 427 cubic inches of attitude
1955 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing
Flawless paint in an unusual shade of gray
Interior, with original luggage, was as new