Fair Dinkum: Aussie gov't once considered trading beef for Alfas
Filed under: Car Buying, Time Warp, Government/Legal, Alfa Romeo, Australia, Humor
Studying history can be a tiresome pursuit, but once in a while something comes completely out of left field to make you sit up and pay attention. This is one of those moments. The Australian national archives have released government documents which reveal that, in 1978, the Australian government was prepared to endorse a deal that would have... wait for it... traded beef for cars. Alfa Romeos, to be precise.
To be fair, the deal wasn't to trade sides of beef for actual cars. No, that would come too close to actually, you know... making sense. This deal would have traded 7,000 metric tons of beef and offal (entrails, hooves and whatnot) in exchange for quotas, as in the right to import Alfas into Australia. In the late 70's, apparently, Australia had very tight regulations on the number of cars which could be imported from any particular country, while the European Economic Community had similar quotas on the importation of foreign meat. The deal would have allowed both parties - even though they were the governments themselves (Alfa was state-owned at the time) - to circumvent the trade regulations. Of course the deal didn't go through, which is just as well because the whole ideal was utterly ridiculous.
[Source: Drive.com.au]
Fair Dinkum: Aussie gov't once considered trading beef for Alfas originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read�|�Permalink�|�Email this�|�CommentsSuper Snake for Sale: ASC-McLaren Dodge Viper NAIAS showcar
Filed under: Car Buying, Concept Cars, Coupes, Sports/GTs, Supercars, Dodge
Click above for a gallery of the ASC Diamondback Viper Concept
A McLaren-tuned Dodge Viper? That's some synergy, and it's also what everyone was asking when American Specialty Cars (ASC) unveiled their reworked asp at the Detroit Auto Show back in 2006. But there was a logic to it all: At the time, Chrysler was still in bed with Daimler, which owns Mercedes-Benz, which was tied in with McLaren and produced the SLR supercar. The Diamondback Viper Concept boasted a McLaren-tuned V10, but while the F1 team was running Mercedes mils around the grand prix circuit, this super-snake was created by an entirely different McLaren.
The Diamondback concept featured a host of carbon fiber body panels and an "OmniCarbon" hood to show off the car's 615-horsepower V10 tuned by McLaren Performance Technologies. The American outfit based near Indianapolis was started by the same Bruce McLaren behind the F1 team, but with a focus on preparing his Can-Am racers for competition in North America. Whatever the association with the legendary Kiwi, the Diamondback was a real show-stopper. Unfortunately, only the one example was made, but that show car is now available for a lucky buyer to take home. It cost ASC about $750,000 to build the Viper back in 2006, but only 55 miles later, it's up for grabs for $295k. Follow the link for more details, and be sure to check out the images in the gallery below.
[Source: DodgeVipersForSale.com]
Super Snake for Sale: ASC-McLaren Dodge Viper NAIAS showcar originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 12:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read�|�Permalink�|�Email this�|�CommentsEx-Cowboys' 1991 BMW 850Ci one-off for sale in Texas
Filed under: Convertibles, Coupes, Auction Action, BMW
Long before the retro-licious Z8 and the modern 6 Series, BMW's range-topping sport coupe was the 8-Series. Characterized by its distinctive shark nose and available with a choice of eight- or 12-cylinder engines, the 8-Series was sadly never offered as a convertible. But it would have made a smart-looking roadster, as one customer was evidently determined to discover.
Commissioned by Erik Williams, offensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys back in their glory days, this one-of-a-kind 1991 BMW 850i convertible is now up for sale by a dealer in New Braunfels, Texas. Craftsmanship of the folding soft-top, as you can see from the images in the gallery below, may not be up to world-class standards, but for a unique V12-powered German cabrio, the $25,900 asking price is at least accessible.
[Source: Automaniacs via CarScoop]
Ex-Cowboys' 1991 BMW 850Ci one-off for sale in Texas originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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