Parking Lot Sighting: 1972 Mercury Comet GT

Note the rare Dodge Dakota Sport Roadster pickup visible in the background.

The Valet Stand: Ferrari 456M GT

Welcome to The Valet Stand, where we look at some of the best cars I've found parked in front of the lobby at the St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco. Today's feature is a Ferrari 456M GT, photographed in late winter 2011.

The 456 was a family car among Ferraris, a 4-seat grand tourer with a V12 in the front. The 456 enjoyed a long production run from 1992 to 2003. I've always seen it as a more relaxed Ferrari, available with either a six-speed manual or a four-speed automatic. Yes, a Ferrari available with a full automatic transmission. And that same Ferrari could do 188 mph so quit whining. Think about the fact that this was the last Ferrari ever to use pop-up headlights, a feature no longer available on anything. This is a 456M, the post-1998 refresh of the 456 line. Despite being made for another five years, only 1,338 456Ms were built, of which 688 were manual GTs and another 650 were automatic GTAs.

Parking Lot Sighting: 2009 Pontiac G8 GT

This is one of those cars that I photographed because it's a personal dream vehicle of mine. The Pontiac G8 is rare enough by itself, having been produced only for the 2008-09 model years, but my dream G8 is a GT trim in Pacific Slate Metallic (aka Karma Metallic on the Holden Commodore). Pacific Slate was only available in 2009 and accounts for a mere 1748 cars - of which 690 were V6 models, 1063 were GTs and just 45 were GXPs. This one is a GT Sport with the 19-inch wheels.

Classic Ads: 1966 Ford Cortina GT Mk1

If you've ever wanted to know who sold English Fords on the West Coast, now you do. This is the new, 32 mpg Ford compact for you rally fans out there who don't want a Falcon. Just $24.95 for whitewall tires! What a deal. Honestly, this is about the only English Ford I can think of that was desirable in the States in that era.
This ad appeared in the October 8, 1965 issue of Life magazine. It seems odd to run an ad for the 'new' Mk. I Cortina in October when the Mk. II Cortina was already coming out for '66. Apparently the two versions were sold at the same time for a little while.

Classic Ads: 1962 Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk

The Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk is a fascinating study in what can be done with a nearly 10-year-old body and chassis and a limited budget. The GT Hawk was based on the 1956 Hawk, which was in turn based on the 1953 Commander. Brooks Stevens fashioned a "European" body for it and it was marketed as a family sports car. This was fairly unique since at that time a sports car was usually a two-seater with rough suspension, electrical problems and a leaky roof. The GT Hawk was available with a V8, a 4-speed and bucket seats. Perhaps you could call it an early muscle car.

This ad ran in the October 27, 1961 issue of Life magazine.