Apollo Newsletter Winter 2010

Winter 2010
Volume Five, Issue One
Gran Turismo
T h e
O f f i c i a l
P u b l i c a t i o n
A p o l l o
O w n e r s
R e g i s t r y
o f
t h e
New Discoveries
Inside this issue:
The New Year Finds Two Previously Lost Apollos
New Discoveries
1
Editor’s Message
2
Monterey Weekend Events
3
Technical Update
4
Market Place
4
New Discoveries cont’d
5
Supplier Showcase
6
Post Script
7
Gran Turismo
Editorial Board
Editor:
R. Northrup
Historical Ed.:
J. Taylor
Assist. Editor:
Milt Brown
Design Analyst:
R. Plescia
Graphic Design:
R. Northrup
E
xciting news comes our
way in 2010, with the discovery of not one, but two
lost Apollos: One a very
early car, part of the first
batch of 3500 GT made
after the first car (no. 1003)
was air freighted to Oakland
and assembled by Milt A very early car, Jack Hedrich’s No. 1004
Brown and crew in JanuaryFebruary, 1963.
later. By then I was driving a
infarina, Zagato, and evenThe other was found in tually Intermeccanica. Light- 1973 Italia roadster and well
Germany, having been ing struck me: An American aware of Intermeccanicaand
locked up in a garage for V8 plus a sleek Italian body the cars it was involved
with.
over 20 years.
– what could possibly be
better! We called them hyBecause of the excitement
That's when the search bebrids
back then.
of the two owners, we’ll let
gan in earnest. I was there in
them tell their own stories
“Along the way I was the Monterey for the Apollo
of discovery:
keeper of a 1957 Dual Ghia, Reunion with my Italia. I
got to meet Milt Brown,
The Discovery of Apollo No. a 1967 Ghia 450SS, the Ron Plescia, Ned Davis, and
1954 Dodge Firearrow II
1004 — By Jack Hedrich
Paula Reisner. Through the
“I've always been a fan of Dream car, an Iso Grifo, Apollo Registry, I knew of
American V8 horsepower and an Excalibur Cobra.
most cars that came up for
since my first car, a 1966
sale in 2005-6. I looked at
GTO-389 w/tri-power. Af- “I saw my first Apollo, a many coupes and a few conter leaving Northern Maine few miles away from my vertibles, and talked with
in 1970 for the sunny skies house, in 1979. It was other owners, as well as Milt
and blue waters of Califor- a basket case and for sale, Brown. All were very grania, I discovered the sexy and too much work. I finally cious. As Wayne Carini says
Italian car bodies being had the pleasure of driving "I love chasing rare cars."
pounded out in tiny car- Harry Hart's beautiful no.
rozzerie such as Ghia, Pin- 1027 twenty seven years
Continued page 3
Gran Turismo
Page Two
From the Editor’s Desk...
All Good Things Must Come
to an End
We’re all familiar with that
old saying, because we’ve all
experienced the end of good
things in our lives. So it is
with my ownership of no.
1003, the first production
Apollo.
The demands of our business coupled with the designing and (soon we hope)
building of a new house (a
recreation of a Craftsmanera bungalow) just made it
impossible to devote the
time and resources to bringing no. 1003 back to life in a
deservedly pristine and original form. That said, I sought
to find a new “steward” for
the car, one with both the
resources and the love and
interest to make a complete
restoration possible. And
that new steward is none
other than the original sales
manager of International
Motor Cars, George Finley.
Over the years, George has
assembled and solid yet
eclectic car collection near
one with a 215 motor, and
no. 1054.
Now the collection will in-
When I picked it up: Yes, a “project” car in anyone’s eyes!
his home in Corpus Christi,
Texas. Nestled among a
Ferrari GT4, a deTomaso
Pantera, Cadillacs, Lincolns,
and other assorted Americana, are two gleaming
Apollos: no. 2001, the first
convertible (and the only
Saying goodbye to No. 1003 as it heads to its new home.
clude the first production
car…
While it was a sad day to
see it go, it was also a time
to reflect on what 1003 had
meant to me:
Rescuing it from being
hacked into a “ranch” car
Intimate knowledge of the
Apollo’s design and construction, allowing me to
compile a treasure trove of
details and minutia
A huge leap in knowledge
and contacts for my book
on the Apollo (looking to
deliver it to a publisher this
year)
Making so many good
friends in the Apollo ranks.
Be assured I’ll remain active
with this august group, and
know that I’m always available for information or advice on your cars.
It’s been a good ride…
Volume Five, Issue One
Page Three
Apollos in Concorso Italiano, Quail Lodge Events
The destination: the fabulous Quail Lodge Concours
d’Elegance.
Denny Paul’s 5000 GT No. 1067, again at The Concorso.
Again,
Apollo was represented in the prestigious
events in Monterey last August.
an official came by and said I
was to be at the bottom of
the hill. I said “thank you”
and stayed put.
Denny Paul, the perennial
exhibitor at the Concorso Italiano was there again with no.
1067:
“ I was visited by Bud
Bourassa, new owner of
Apollo 1005, another desiring buyer as well as a number of spectators happy to
finally see and Apollo, or
curious about my beautiful
car.
“Italiano 2009 was a BIG
improvement over 2008.
The Laguna Hills Country
Club is a really nice venue
and is near Laguna Seca.
Getting in was very smooth.
It felt like there were fewer
cars because the competitive
show Dolce Vita took some
of the Italian cars. However,
most of the vendors seemed
to stick with Italiano. The
golf course is on a hillside so
walking the length of the
show got a little tiring.
“The organizers sent me a
dash card that clearly identified me as a Special Coachworks car, but then, as usual,
the people on the field weren’t quite sure where to put
me. I kind of went where
they pointed, found a nice
tree and set up my easy “up
shade.” A little while later,
“A center of attention was
three of the BAT cars done
by Scaglione, who cleaned
up the Apollo design for
production, and designed the
Apollo Convertible.”
Meanwhile, Terry Smith’s
convertible, fresh out of the
shop, was driven from Oakland to Monterey by the intrepid Milt Brown and yours
truly, surviving a number of
minor mishaps – typical of
any post-restoration excursion – to be presented at The
Quail.
Upon completion, Terry
shipped the Spyder to Milt
Brown in Berkeley, CA to
deliver the car to Monterey.
Surrounded by a fabulously
restored E Type Jag and a
wonderful Bugatti, the
Apollo convertible was in
its element and attracted a
lot of attention. Indeed,
yours truly visited with an
interested Alain deCandenet, former racing driver
and contributor to Classic
and Sportscar Magazine (as
well as Speed Channel correspondent). Yes, he liked
raries that can equal its
ride, handling, and performance, let alone its
looks…
Our thanks to Terry for
entrusting us with his
baby.
By the way, Terry tells us
that he’s been accepted to
exhibit at the Amelia Island Concours. With our
cars achieving such visibility out there, don’t you
think it’s time for an
Apollo reunion on the
East coast?
Milt Brown fuels up Terry Smith’s convertible. Yes, he’s enjoying himself. Wouldn’t you with such a nice car?!
the Apollo!
The niggling little faults we
experienced to and from
Monterey highlighted the
fact that no restoration is
simply “turn key.” Even a
car “with the mechanical
excellence of Buick.” These
are still exotic automobiles
and require a thorough
sorting in order to produce
the perfect piece. Once accomplished, there are few
of the Apollo’s contempo-
What do you say Jack
Triplett, Roy Jaffe, Don
Mann, and maybe Tim
White from Ohio and
George Finley form Texas.
I bet we could put on a
little show that would get
us some press!
Page Four
Gran Turismo
Technical Update
More “details” for Aluminum
Valve Covers
Two
years ago, the editor
introduced a vendor that
could supply original-type “no
name” finned aluminum valve
covers, as per Milt Brown’s
original specs.
Fine and dandy. However,
many of you have invested in
(and prefer) your Offenhauser-script covers. Well,
we’ve got a nice little acces-
your covers: Enameled ground and white for the letApollo-script badges.
ters. Terry, however, opted
for Apollo yellow lettering
and a red background to
match his car. Needless to
say, as these are made to order, the vendor can accommodate about any color combination.
The editor worked with Derron Jones of Pamela David They are not cheap at around
Enamels, our badge supplier $325 a pair (including shipin the UK, to develop an ping but dependent upon exenameled badge that will fit change rates) but they look
into a recessed created when fabulous. “This is what we
machining out the Offen- would have done if the rehauser script. The ones fea- source would have been availtured here were purchased by able to us,” says Milt Brown.
Terry Smith for his recently
restored convertible (and Chassis/VIN Plates
were seen at The Quail Lodge
event last August).
The standard colors are
Apollo yellow for the back-
sory that will add real detail to
The editor still has a supply of 3500 and 5000 reproduction chassis plates.
These are exact down to
the type font and the
manufacturing method.
Contact the editor to order
yours at [email protected].
Italia Reproductions
Touts New Website
Proprietor John Fortney
(former Apollo owner)
recently announced his
Italia Reproductions company has launched a new
website.
Italian Reproductions is
one of our major suppliers
of electrical (switches,
lights, etc.) and trim components.
Market Place
George Finley has three
“1963 Buick Special rear axle
assemblies, complete with
trailing arms and restored.”
.
If anyone is looking for an
original rear axle, contact
George at
[email protected]
Cartoonist Guy Allen’s interpretation of actor Tony Curtis’ encounter with
the Apollo GT, according to International Motor Cars CEO Ned Davis…
(Courtesy James Taylor)
Volume Five, Issue One
Page 5
Long-lost Apollos found
Early 3500, Pasadena 5000 recently uncovered
“In late 2006 I received an
email from Jac McLean of
Cohasset, Massachusetts,
inquiring if I was looking
for an Apollo?
“It turned out to be
no.1004, a very early 1963
Apollo 3500GT and a
three-owner car that resided
first in Arizona, then So Cal
and was eventually purchased by McLean at VIP
Classics in San Diego. Then
it became mine…
“The car is un-restored with
only 25,000 miles and is a
driver at this point. New
leather seats covers were
done a few years ago. Originally red, it's been silver for
many years. It still rolls on
the Borrani wire wheels
with knock off spinners
that were on the car March
17, 1963 when Phil Hall
Buick Company of Hollywood, California first sold
this coupe.
I”'m currently looking for
the chrome trim for the
hood scoop, a period working Blaupunkt AM/FM
radio, and a source for Jaeger gauges.
“I'm proud that I could
help in adding no. 004 to
the Apollo Registry and
filling in a missing number
that had been on the MIA
list for years.”
Andi Graf and his Second
Apollo, No. 1062
Andi lives in southern Germany, and joined our group
a few years ago when he
bought no. 1016 (a 215engined car) from Joop
Stolze in the Netherlands.
While Andi was finishing
the restoration of that car
(soon to be completed), he
received an offer to buy another Apollo. As Andi relates it…
complete interior, even the
windshield and side windows are ruined.
“So if anyone has any of
this stuff, that would be
perfect. I also need a set of
there are more…
Alex Motola Buys James
Taylor’s No. 1058
New member Alex Motola
recently bought James
Taylor’s second Apollo,
Totally unexpected: A previously “missing in action” 5000 GT was found in...Germany by Andi Graf.
Andi owns no. 1016, an early 215-powered car. No. 1062 adds to his Apollo collection.
Borranis.
“Due to my webpage
(www/barchettasportscars.com),
I got a phone call from a
guy in here in Germany; he
has also a Devin Race car,
like me. He came over to
my page to visit the Devin
section. After a while, he
saw that I also restore an
Apollo GT (no. 1016-ed.).
The guy contacted me and
told me that he had no.
1062 in his garage for 20
years now, and he never
restored it.
“He asked me if I know
someone that would be interested in it as he would sell
it. He sent some pictures
and I bought the car right
away.
“The car had burned in the
inside previously and therefore some parts are missing:
“All gauges, all switches, the
“My Dad is helping me a
lot and I still employ a retired man who does all the
coachbuilding work. So we
are perfectly prepared to do
the new Apollo right now.
“As with no. 1016, a lot of
panel work has to be done.
but this time we have the
experience from the first
car and some drawings already made to produce the
side panels, for example.
You can see on the picture.
“Also, visit my web page
http://www.barchettasport
scars.com/62.html. To se
more of this car. Also, chick
out my other Apollo and
other cars.”
With the discovery of no.
1062, that accounts for five
Apollos in Europe. Perhaps
Texas-built no. 1058. He
had been looking for an
Apollo for nearly six
months. The owner of a
Ferrari 365 GTC, he is excited to finally have
“handcrafted Italian coachwork combined with the
mechanical excellence of
Buick.”
We’ll update you as his restoration project moves along.
Bourassa Buys Jack
Woods No. 1005
Bud Bourassa of Scottsdale,
Arizona picked up Jack
Woods car. This is Bud’s
second Apollo; he used to
owned no. 1053, a red
coupe, which he sold to Jack
Wykeham in England and
which is now in the hands
of Swiss enthusiast . “I've
always regretted that sale
and so it's good to be back!”
says Bud.
Volume Five, Issue One
Page 6
Nostalgia Reflections
Jerry Turner
Www.nostalgiareflections.com
509-226-3522
Die struck cloisonné badges for
nose and steering wheel
Robert R. Northrup, Editor
P.O. Box 400
Nauvoo IL 62354
USA
Phone: 940-367-8483
Email: [email protected]
Gran Turismo
T h e
O f f i c i a l
P u b l i c a t i o n
A p o l l o
O w n e r s
R e g i s t r y
Post Script...
As
we’ve witnessed the
turmoil and strife the
Am er ic an aut om o bil e
manufacturers have experienced the last year or so, all
of us can look back over the
last four decades to see an
institution that had lost its
way…
Indeed, an industry that had
lead the world in design,
aesthetics, and innovation
almost since the car’s inception had reduced itself to
providing transportation
that was more “glitter, flash, “Unique: Chevy Citation found in the Texas Panhandle says it all about
and romance” than quality, the status of our auto industry!
innovation and performance.
sentation of that loss of different time, a different
This ”custom” Chevy Cita- direction! Thankfully, our era, when America still built
tion seems a fitting repre- Apollos were created in a great cars...
o f
t h e