Parking Lot Photo Shoot: 1999 Plymouth Prowler

This was a former DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program car, hence the extra lights on the body.

College Cars: 1954 Kaiser Darrin

This is College Cars, another look into the automobile collection of the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Today we're looking at a 1954 Kaiser Darrin roadster.

I have long had a soft spot for the Kaiser Darrin, a fiberglass roadster that was built in small numbers for only one year and primarily because Henry Kaiser's wife liked the concept. Its claim to fame is the way its doors slide into the front fenders rather than hinge outward. The convertible roof is adjustable to have only its front section slide back like a targa top to let the sun in, or be lowered completely. It's no performance car, a Henry J chassis offering only 90 horsepower from a Willys-built six. But you have to admit it's interesting to look at. Cool fact: the last 100 or so Darrins got Cadillac V8s good for 300-plus horses. Now there's your sports car. Shame it was too little, too late.
Near as I can find, this car was purchased at the RM Auctions 2011 Amelia Island event, for $170,500. If this is in fact that vehicle, it was the 20th car built in a series of 435.

Parking Lot Photo Shoot: 1932 Ford V8 Roadster and 1937 Ford V8 Coupe

College Cars: 1947 Cisitalia 202 Cabriolet

This is College Cars, a recurring feature about the Academy of Art University auto collection. Today we're looking at a 1947 Cisitalia 202 that is believed to have once belonged to Argentinian president Juan Peron and his wife Evita.

The Cisitalia cabriolet is an extremely rare car, with only 34 surviving examples in the world today. It's powered by a tiny 1.1 liter four cylinder engine producing just 55 horsepower. It was styled by Battista 'Pinin' Farina. Considering this car was created in 1947, it's a very modern design.

Side Street Spot: Fiat 124 Sport Spider

The Fiat 124 Spider was a popular import car in the US during the 1970s, so popular that Pininfarina carried on full production to the end of the Malaise Era and distributed them through Malcolm Bricklin's networks. This one is in pretty sad condition, sits alongside an industrial side street unnoticed by most people, and being a small-bumper car, is a good project candidate.

Oddball in Very Small Scale: Zee Toys 1/87 Triumph TR3A

Found this oddball, Tootsietoy-like casting, in roughly 1/87 scale, at my favorite diecast car dealer, More of Everything Racing Collectibles, and was pleasantly surprised to see the logo of one-time major player in the low-priced toy vehicle market Zee Toys, also known as Zylmex, cast into the body.

Zylmex had its beginnings in Hong Kong in the early 1970s, and started out making fairly crude but likable small-scale diecast cars patterned after major brands like Matchbox, Corgi, Tomica and Siku. Their castings were highly popular into the 1980s, with inexpensive and fairly crude but well-made "Dynawheels" selling at 3 for almost the same price as a single Hot Wheels or Matchbox casting, but in the 1990s their popularity waned and the company's toolings were sold off. The Zylmex name and logo are no longer trademarked, but an unknown company (presumably successor company Redbox/Motormax) still holds the rights to the Zee Toys name and logos.

A photo of a full set of Zylmex Mini Wild Cars from the 1980s can be seen below showing a brighter-colored version of this casting. Could this have been a preproduction version of the Mini Wild Cars TR3A?

                                                       Photo (c) ambassador84 on Flickr.

A True American Sports Car: 1993 Panoz Roadster #007

(all photos from seller, wirewheel.com)

While the Chevrolet Corvette may be regarded by many as "America's sports car", many people overlook the Panoz, a high-quality and exclusive sports car made in the state of Georgia. Panoz cars are arguably closer in nature to the likes of Porsche, Aston Martin, Ferrari and Lotus than the Corvette and Dodge/SRT Viper are, yet they are largely unknown outside of enthusiast circles.

With a high-output Ford 302 V8, 5-speed manual transmission, lightweight construction and engineering derived from racing experience, the Panoz Roadster was a great performer, and was no crude glorified kit car like the Consulier. Nor did it have the countless teething problems and excessive complication of the Vector.

This car was the 7th of 44 made before the design was refined into the AIV, has 35 actual miles, was part of a collection since day one, has the optional tonneau cover, original brochure and bill of sale, and may be the lowest-mileage Panoz car in existence.

A video of the Panoz Roadster being tested for drifting is seen here, I will leave it to the reader to make a judgment.

The text of the authenticity letter from the Panoz factory follows:

19^th day of July 2012

This document will authenticate the provenance by the Panoz factory of the Panoz Roadster VIN# 1P9PR2820PB213007 built and shipped to Mr Milan Puskar for his approval on 09/10/1993 and consequent purchase on 3rd November 1993. Mr Puskar was a long time friend and partner of Dr Donald Panoz and he placed this car into storage and full maintenance preservation as a collectable asset, the car was often used for display in various events around Morgantown, the car was never driven for more than a fraction of a mile on any occasion over the years and then only as a pert of its maintenance program as a drivable collectable. The car had been used for display in recent years at a friend of Mr Puskars exotic car dealership for display only.The roadster was returned to its birth place at Panoz Auto Development in Hoschton Georgia in the spring of 2012 and was completely checked out and serviced with new fluids and a full tune up. This was done by the very same staff that had built the car in 1992 and still work at the Panoz factory handling service, maintenance and repair of Panoz vehicles.

Sincerely, John A. Leverett

Director, Sales/marketing

Panoz Auto Development Company

Panoz Automotive Group

Find it here for $32,500 USD at WireWheel in Florida.

Forbidden Fruit: 1998 TVR Griffith 500 Blackpool Edition in the USA

final edit, 2/13/2013: SOLD! Again, we hope we influenced it, and we'd love to hear from the new owner!

edit, 1/18/2013: This car is on hold by the seller. We hope that we helped influence this move.

(all photos from the seller, wirewheel.com)

This rare British roadster, with only 18,000 miles, and a model never sold in the USA, somehow ended up at a British sports car specialist in Florida. While still too new for legal ownership in the US, it just turned 15 years old, so this car can be legally imported and enjoyed by Canadians, it can be repatriated to the UK very easily, and there are many other places that this car can be owned and driven legally. Just 10 more years before it can come to the US, assuming that a politician with protectionist or uberenvironmentalist intents does not overturn the 21/25 exemption in favor of something stricter or no imports at all, or if 21/25 is liberalized into something like what Canada has for private vehicle imports.

The design is unusual but appealing, the engine is a 5.0-liter, 340hp Rover V8 with fuel injection and backed by a 5-speed Tremec manual transmission, it is fully loaded with leather seats, air conditioning, an alarm system and power windows/locks, and being a British car manufactured for Japanese exports, it is right-hand drive. 

$43,900 USD buys this car, but Insomniac Garage does not recommend that an American purchases the car unless they export it to a vacation home or timeshare in Canada or some other place that it is legal, registers it there and does not bring it to the US until it is legal.