This weekend the fabulous Spa Francorchamps circuit hosted the inaugural Spa Classic. Organised by Peter Auto, of Le Mans Classic and Tour Auto fame, the event had a strong focus on sports cars with the exception of the BOSS GP race for modern single seaters. Headlining the three-day event were a sixty-minute race for Group C cars and two Classic Endurance Racing (CER) races. The former featured no fewer than two Sauber Mercedes C11s and two Nissan R90CKs in addition to the more common Porsches and Spices. Split over two grids the CER field was also a mix of the familiar and the new. One of the most interesting new entries was the recently completed Porsche 935/78 'Moby Dick' using one of the two original chassis constructed in period. The other car was retired to the museum at the end of 1978, so this was the first time a 935/78 'Moby Dick' was driven in anger in over three decades. The packed schedule also included a race for 1970s Touring and GT cars, two races for Italian racers up to 1966 and a two-hour endurance event for 1960s GT cars. The remaining sections of the paddock were filled with cars from the around 500 clubs that were in attendance.
We were among the 10,000 visitors that traveled to the legendary Belgian circuit to get a closer look at the first Spa Classic. Our efforts have been compiled into a detailed report and an action packed 180-shot gallery.

Following the release of a set of shots of a test-mule and preliminary specifications, Mercedes-Benz have now revealed the SLS AMG Roadster in full detail. Based on the highly acclaimed SLS AMG Coupe, Mercedes' new top-of-the-range drop-top will be first shown to the public at Frankfurt's IAA in September. For obvious reasons, the striking gull-wing doors of the coupe have been discarded and replaced by more conventional doors. The metal roof has been replaced by a proper fabric foldaway roof. One of the engineers' biggest challenges while turning a fixed-head car in a convertible is to maintain a balance between chassis rigidity and weight. The men in Stuttgart managed to do that remarkably well; the chassis of the Roadster is only 2 kg heavier and the complete car tips the scale at 1660 kg; just 40 kg more than the Coupe. The two high performance machines share the same V8, which is hand-assembled at AMG. Displacing just over 6.2 litre, the naturally aspirated engine produces a hefty 563 bhp and 650 Nm of torque. This enables the Roadster to accelerate to 100 km/h in under 4 seconds. The top speed is limited at 315 km/h. The latest Mercedes-Benz roadster should become available shortly after its Frankfurt debut.

This weekend two of the world's most prestigious races are run; the Indy 500 and Monaco Grand Prix. To get you further in the mood for these two fabulous events, we have taken a closer look at two former winners; the Maserati 8CTF and the Cooper T60 Climax respectively.
Developed to take on the mighty Silver Arrows in the 1938 Grand Prix season, the Maserati 8CTF did not come into its own until it was handed to privateers to race a year later. One was sold to Mike Boyle and as the 'Boyle Valve Special' it was driven to back-to-back victories in the Indy 500 by Wilbur Shaw. This was the first time a driver won two in a row and Shaw even came close to making it three. Amazingly, one of the Indy winner's sister cars was later driven to two victories in a row in the daunting Pikes Peak hill-climb. Our detailed article is illustrated by a 24-shot gallery of two of three examples constructed. Among the drivers of the Indy-winning example is Bobby Unser, who, just like Shaw, scored three wins in the Indy 500.
After unleashing the rear-engine revolution in Formula 1, Cooper struggled to maintain its championship winning form once the rivaling teams caught on. After the 1960 season victories were very rare. One notable exception was Bruce McLaren's win in the 1962 Monaco Grand Prix with the Cooper T60 Climax. This was the first Cooper developed for the new generation of Climax V8 engines. Unfortunately it would turn out to be Cooper's only victory in the five F1 seasons run under the '1.5 litre' regulations. The Monaco winning car was displayed for several decades in the Donnington Grand Prix Collection from which it was only recently let go. We captured the Cooper T60 at its first outing, which appropriately was the 2010 Monaco Historic Grand Prix.

In the great tradition of the concours d'elegance of old, this weekend's Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este featured several world debuts. These were featured in a special class of the concours for modern concept cars and prototypes. A public referendum on Sunday picked the Aston Martin V12 Zagato as the best of this class. Built to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the legendary DB4 GT Zagato, the latest Aston Martin is built for use on both the road and track. In fact the car displayed at Villa d'Este will take part in a race at the Nurburgring this weekend and should be back next month for the 24 Hours at the 'Ring. The car is based on the potent V12 Vantage platform and sports a design created by Zagato in collaboration with Aston's own styling team. Although not yet officially confirmed, a production run of 19 examples of the V12 Zagato is planned.
As promised last week, we have taken a very close look at the Ferrari Superamerica 45, which also made its public debut at Villa d'Este. Unlike the Aston Martin, this car will remain strictly a one-off. Mr Kalikow himself showed us around the car and demonstrated some of its custom features like the rotating roof and the lovely blue carbon-fibre parts. All this and much more can be seen in our 24-shot gallery of the Superamerica 45.
Although not a participant in the event, the BMW 328 Hommage was also launched at Lake Como. This dramatic show car was built to celebrate the 75th anniversary of one of BMW's most iconic models. The thoroughly modern machine is very light despite featuring a three-litre six cylinder engine.
At last week's Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Berlin for sustainable vehicles, Porsche demonstrated the Boxster E. Based on a standard Boxster, this experimental vehicle uses two electric motors; one for each axle. The combined output is a very impressive 242 bhp and 540 Nm of torque.

A month later than usual, the majestic Villa d'Este hotel on the shores of Lake Como hosted its annual Concorso d'Eleganza this weekend. Considered one of the finest motoring events on the calendar 'Villa d'Este' each year attracts around fifty of the finest classic cars as well as a selection of modern show cars and prototypes. As has become traditional, the show featured several world debuts. This year the Ferrari Superamerica 45, the Aston Martin V12 Zagato Coupe and BMW 328 Hommage were first shown at Villa d'Este. A new part of the program was the first ever auction organised in conjunction with Villa d'Este. Held by RM Auctions, it is planned to be a bi-annual sale, alternating with the company's Monaco auction. Highlights of the inaugural event were a selection of six legendary Bertone show cars as well as several notable machines from the likes of Ferrari, Talbot Lago and Bugatti. The weekend's main attraction of course remained the Concorso d'Eleganza on Saturday, which this year had a strong focus on the 1960s, inspired by the 50th anniversary of the Jaguar E-Type. Described by many as one of the strongest field yet, the Concorso featured a wide variety machines ranging from a Teardrop Talbot to a Jaguar XKSS and the Ford GT40 that placed third at Le Mans in 1966.
As always we made our way to one of Italy's most scenic places to capture the event in its entirety. The result of our labour is this detailed, class by class report, illustrated by no fewer than three galleries with a total of 260 mouthwatering pictures.
In the coming days and weeks you can of course expect detailed features on the finest cars that made it to Villa d'Este this year.

On the eve of the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, Ferrari have released the first images of the one-off Superamerica 45, which is due to be unveiled on Saturday. Like the 612 Kappa that was introduced exactly five years ago, the new custom Ferrari was commissioned by American Ferrari collector Peter S. Kalikow. As inspiration for his latest acquisition served Kalikow's 400 Superamerica S1 Cabriolet, which is finished in the same striking blue colour scheme. It appears that the basis for the open Superamerica 45 is the already spectacular 599 GTB. Over the weekend we will certainly have time to catch up with Mr Kalikow and get all the details of the car and a full set of pictures, which will of course be added to the article shortly after.
Yesterday Honda UK published the first details of the CR-Z Mugen that is currently being developed. Although no specifics were include in the press release, it is believed that the base engine will be upgraded with at least a supercharger. This should lift the CR-Z's performance to the same levels of the most recent Civic Type R.
Especially for the UK market, Nissan have created the 370Z GT Edition. It is inspired by the popular Gran Turismo game and features cosmetic and package upgrades.

This weekend's RM Auctions Villa d'Este sale promises to be one of the most spectacular of the year; the estimates average well into the seven figures in most major denominations. The star lots include a selection of six legendary show cars offered directly from the Bertone collection. Among them is the unique Lamborghini Marzal. Originally launched at the 1967 Geneva Motor Show, it is effectively a four-seater version of the Miura but with more futuristic styling and the only six cylinder engine ever built by Lamborghini. It would go on to inspire the design of the Espada production car, which was introduced a year later and remained in production for a decade. RM estimate that the Marzal could sell for anywhere between 1 and 1.8 million Euro.
Challenging the Talbot Lago Teardrop featured last week for the top seller of the auction will most certainly be this Ferrari 375 MM with a one-off Pinin Farina body. The achingly beautiful machine was restored to the highest standards nearly a decade ago and has since won awards at almost every major show in the world. We captured the fabulous Berlinetta Sport Speciale in great detail back in 2005.
Another interesting lot is the Ford GT Roadster with chassis number GT/111. A veteran of the 1965 Targa Florio and Le Mans Trials, this rare machine was long believed to be lost but its remains finally reappeared in a shed in London during construction work for the upcoming Olympics. The car was meticulously restored and subsequently raced at prestigious events like the Goodwood Revival and Le Mans Classic by the vendor. Our article also includes shots of a sister car, which is one of the most original early Ford GTs remaining today.
A full report from the highly anticipated auction and of course the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este will follow early next week.

Ferdinand Porsche was barely 30 years old when he became the chief engineer at Austro-Daimler in 1906. In addition to developing the Austrian company's first road car independently from Daimler in Germany, he also quickly set his sights to racing, which he felt was the best to proof the quality of a design. The main objective was the daunting Prinz Heinrich Trial, which spanned four days and around 2000 km, and was open to production based cars only. Porsche interpreted the latter as loosely as the rules allowed when he designed Austro-Daimler's 1910 competitor. It featured a sophisticated engine with the highest specific output of all its contemporaries and a slippery body. Ferdinand Porsche himself drove the radical machine to victory, followed home by his works team mates, who finished second and third. Although the race winning machine was developed as a pure competition car, it was still very much suited for use on the road. This was underlined less than a year later when Austro-Daimler launched the 22/86 Prinz Heinrich production car. Apart from a different rear axle, it was virtually identical to Porsche's winning machine. This was unprecedented at the time and in retrospect the Prinz Heinrich can be considered as the first proper sports car. Even more than the trial winning car, the production machine established Porsche as one of the foremost engineers of his era.
Sadly only very few of these early Porsche designs have survived. We were very fortunate to capture one example in great detail at the 2008 Goodwood Festival of Speed. This particular is owned by none other than Ferdinand Porsche's grandson, Ernst Piech.

While most eyes in sports car racing are on the works efforts of Audi, Peugeot and Aston Martin, a fourth major manufacturer will have a presence in the top prototype class at Le Mans this year: Toyota. It will mark the Japanese company's return to the legendary endurance race for the first time since the 1999 edition when the GT-One TS020 finished second. The 2011 campaign is a much lower key effort and entails the supply of engines to the Anglo-Swiss Rebellion team. They will field two Lola B10/60 Toyotas in the 24-hour race. The car can be easily distinguished from the other Lola prototypes by the large headlights that are part of the bespoke front end. We have captured the two B10/60 Toyotas in full detail at the Le Mans Test and last week's Spa 1000 kms.
This week British engineering firm Delta Motorsport officially launched their first complete car; the Delta E-4 Coupe. Constructed predominantly from carbon fibre composites and powered by two electric motors, it could be the car of the future. Each of the two Yas Motors DD500 electric motors produce 120 bhp and a staggering 600 Nm.
Porsche have further expanded the 997 line-up with the Carrera 4 GTS. This must be one of the final iterations before a new generation will be introduced. Like the name suggests, the latest 997 is the four-wheel drive version of the 408 hp GTS unveiled in Paris last year. The Carrera 4 GTS will be available as both a Coupe and Cabriolet.

In less than two weeks time, Canadian auctioneer RM Auctions will hold the first ever Villa d'Este sale. Located at the nearby Villa Erba, the auction very much reflects the exclusive nature of the 'Concorso d'Eleganza'. Only a limited number of lots have been entered with a baffling average pre-sale estimate of around EUR 1 million. One of our favourite cars in the sale is this Ferrari 500 TRC with the chassis number 0670 MDTR. Originally sold to Sicily this 'Testa Rossa' eventually made to the United States where it was meticulously restored to its current, striking finish of red with yellow. We already captured the beautiful machine a few years earlier at various events. In addition to the example heading for auction, we have also added 12 shots of 0696 MDTR, which was shown at Villa d'Este a few years earlier.
One of the most valuable cars on offer is the Talbot Lago T150C SS Teardrop Coupe with chassis number 90112. Having had only a handful of owners, this example was acquired by the current owner halfway through the last decade. It was subsequently restored, preserving a vast majority of the original bits and shown at Pebble Beach in 2009. RM Auctions have posted a hefty EUR 3.1 - 3.8 estimate for the 2010 Meadow Brook Concours best of show winning Talbot. Chassis 90112 is the latest addition to our ever expanding Teardrop page that now features seven of the surviving cars.
Earlier on the same day, Aston Martin and Zagato will reveal the latest of their many collaborations. The Coupe is an homage to the DB4 GT Zagato that made its racing debut exactly fifty years ago. Like its legendary predecessor, the new Zagato Aston will also take to the track.
Over the weekend, Volkswagen Motorsport announced its plans to enter the World Rally Championship (WRC) from 2013 onwards. In addition to confirming the very strong suspicions, Volkswagen also revealed the Polo R WRC. In accordance with the new-for-this-year regulations, it will be powered by a turbocharged, direct-injected, 1.6 litre straight four engine. Naturally the rally-prepared Polo will also feature permanent four-wheel drive.

An unusually sunny and dry Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps was the scene of the joint second round of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup (ILMC) and Le Mans Series (LMS) this weekend. The Spa 1000 km race also served as a final dress-rehearsal for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in just over a month's time. Understandably most eyes were on the head of the 55-car field, which saw the first serious encounter of the brand Audi R18 TDI and the Peugeot 908. Further down the order the eternal rivalry between Ferrari and Porsche continued to rage in the GTE classes.
It would turn out to be a very eventful three days with several big shunts in practice and qualifying, and a tightly-fought race with some surprise results. You can read all about this and a lot more in our detailed report, illustrated by an action-packed 190-shot gallery.

Four months ahead of the official launch at the International Automobil Ausstellung or IAA in Frankfurt, Mercedes-Benz have released the first pictures and details of the SLS AMG Roadster. Like its 'gullwing' coupe counterpart, the open version of the top of the range Mercedes is powered by an AMG-built 571 hp V8 engine. The German engineers have moved mountains to maintain chassis rigidity without adding too much weight. They succeeded remarkably well; with a weight of 243 kg (536 lbs) for the coupe chassis and 245 kg (540 lbs) roadster chassis. Another focus point during the development has been the reduction of noise, vibration and harshness. The roof itself can be lowered at speeds of up to 50 km/h (30 mph). The car pictured is shown during one of its many tests and between now and the official launch in September the prototypes will be subjected to much more testing.

Shortly after Mercedes and Benz had joined forces, the German manufacturer launched the 'S' type. Developed by Dr. Ferdinand Porsche and powered by a straight six engine, it would spawn some of the most formidable cars produced by Mercedes-Benz. In 1927, the competition oriented SS variant was driven to victory in the first ever German Prix at the Nurburgring. The most famous version, however, is the short wheelbase SSK. Available as a road or racing car, it featured a 7.1 litre version of the straight six with an engage-able supercharger. Depending on the state of tune, this massive engine produced between 225 and 300 bhp once the supercharger was engaged, which was accompanied by a legendary, eardrum-splitting howl. Around three dozen examples were built in period and only very few genuine SSKs exist today. A superb example is this Barker Roadster, which was delivered new to the Honourable Dorothy Paget. This was somewhat surprising perhaps, as she also sponsored the exploits of Henry Birkin, who raced against SSKs with his 'Blower' Bentleys. Clothed in a unique body by Barker of London, the car has always been in very caring hands. The current owner acquired it in the late 1980s and he recently gave the car outings at Pebble and Goodwood, which can be seen in our 18-shot gallery.
Not nearly as well known but nonetheless very impressive is this fabulous Delage CO2 Grand Sport. Powered by a potent straight six, the Grand Sport was the top of the range Delage model of the day. This particular example was clothed by the factory with the 'standard' Torpedo body and was sold new to Australia. It remained Down Under until 2004 and currently is one of only two Grand Sports known to have survived. It is seen here at the 2007 Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este.
Of a completely different order are the Coupe and Roadster variants of the Vector WX-3 launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 1993. By the time company founder Gerald Wiegert returned from Switzerland, he had lost control of the company, and in the end only these two prototypes were built. Both cars are still owned by Wiegert and only very rarely seen in public.

At last week's Le Mans Test, we had the first opportunity to see just how the all new cars from Audi and Peugeot stacked up. Whereas Peugeot had already run its 908 at the Sebring 12 Hours in March, Audi's R18 TDI made its much anticipated public debut. The new Audi was already clearly the more unusual looking of the two diesel-engined coupes but further details revealed after the test also show it is the more unconventional under the carbon-fibre panels. It uses a V6 engine with a wide angle and a single turbo with a variable turbine geometry. The turbo is mounted between the cylinder banks, making it a very compact engine. This has allowed for an ultra-low rear body, further accentuated by the tall rear fin that has become mandatory for new cars from this season. At the end of the day, the striking Audi also proved to be the fastest of the two with a very sharp time set by eight-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen. Illustrated by an 18-shot gallery complete with an engine shot, we have taken a closer look at Audi's innovative sports racer.
Also using an Audi sourced diesel V6 is the new Porsche Panamera Diesel. Displacing three litres, the oil-burner produces just under 250 bhp and 550 Nm of torque, which is enough to propel the big Panamera to 100 km/h in less than seven seconds. It is also very frugal, allowing the car to cover more than 1200 km on a single 80 litre tankful of diesel. The Panamera Diesel will be available from August.