Is it possible to choose one Ferrari that epitomized the marque in its classic era? Selecting a “top five” would be hard enough. Yet, when you consider that Ferrari road cars remained closely related to its GT racers for the first 15 years or so of the marque’s history, there is one that leaps forward: the 1959-1962 250 GT Berlinetta SWB.
The early results of automotive streamlining were nothing less than art, which is why the Portland Art Museum is celebrating the era with a special exhibit. Featuring 19 rare streamlined vehicles,The Shape of Speed: Streamlined Automobiles and Motorcycles, 1930-1942, opened June 16 and runs until September 16.
Every vintage racecar has a story. Some of the more compelling ones are those intrinsically linked to a marque’s formative years. “The Admiral’s Ferrari,” a 1955 Series II Mondial, is one. This August, after 58 years in one owner’s hands, the car will go in search of a new steward at the Gooding & Company auction in Monterey.
In a market overflowing with 600-horsepower sports cars and sedans, it can get a little too easy to forget how much fun 120 horsepower can be. Take your pick, convertible coupe with a true “landau” roof or the rakish roadster with side curtains. Either way, can you see yourself cruising along the Coast in the Pebble Beach Motoring Classic in these time machines?