Is this the oldest Mercedes-Benz 220 SEb in Switzerland?

Bruno von Rotz
07/31/2018

Mercedes-Benz 220 SEb Coupé von 1961

A reader approached us and said that his Mercedes-Benz 220 SEb Coupé from 1961 was probably the earliest example in Switzerland. However, he was not sure and wanted to know whether there might be an earlier car of the same type in his country.

The chassis number is: 111 021 100 174 13.

Cockpit des Mercedes-Benz 220 SEb Coupé von 1961

If anyone actually has an earlier W111 220 SEb, then perhaps they can leave a comment or write a support/contact e-mail to Zwischengas. We will then be happy to pass it on.

Share this article with your friends!

Motorcycle faster than sports car?

Bruno von Rotz
07/30/2018

BMW R 100 RS gegen Porsche Carrera im Jahr 1977 (© Sport Auto)

It's a fairly old question that was already hotly debated at regulars' tables and among experts in the 1970s: Is a motorcycle faster than a sports car?

A good 40 years ago, the magazine "Sport Auto " took out a stopwatch and pitted one of the fastest motorcycles of the time against a sports car.

Tracking ability, wagging, slalom, handling and times on the small Hockenheim circuit were compared, as well as braking deceleration.

And although the BMW R 100 RS (with two-cylinder boxer engine) with 70 hp developed only a third of the power of the Porsche 911 Carrera 3 Liter with 200 hp, it was ahead in acceleration up to 180 km/h. The motorcycle took 4.6 seconds to reach 100 km/h, while the Porsche needed 6.3 seconds. Up to 160 km/h, it was 12.6 seconds for the two-wheeler and 16.2 seconds for the rear-wheel-drive Porsche. However, the top speed then went in favor of the car, 235 km/h versus 200 km/h. The motorcycle was also faster when weaving, and the same was true for the slalom. However, the tide turned on the handling course and on the small circuit of the Hockenheimring, where the Porsche was able to distance itself from the BMW RS to some extent, by around 2.2 seconds on the circuit.

The braking test was exciting, which the Porsche initially seemed to win with 8.0 m/s2, mainly because the bike started to lurch badly. Interestingly, however, when concentrating only on the front brake, the bike increased to 8.85 m/s2. On the third attempt, again with front and rear brakes, the rider was thrown off the bike. This shows that a motorcycle may be faster and better than a car in many disciplines, but it is not easy to ride.

In addition to the pure performance comparisons, the difference in price and weight should also be noted: the BMW R 100 RS cost DM 11,210 in 1977, while the Porsche cost DM 46,350. The weight comparison was 230 kg versus 1120 kg.

Since then, the battle between motorcycles and cars has continued, and today it is increasingly being fought on YouTube, but car magazines are also taking up the topic again and again, such as " Auto Bild" in 2017, exactly 40 years after the test summarized above.

Once again, it was a BMW motorcycle and a Porsche sports car. However, customers and manufacturers had become more demanding in the meantime. A BMW S 1000 RR with 199 hp was pitted against a Porsche 918 Spyder with 887 hp. The DM 11,210 of 1977 had become EUR 17,400 for the motorcycle, while the price of the car had climbed from DM 46,350 to an astronomical EUR 768,026. So the Porsche no longer cost four times as much as the motorcycle, as it did 40 years ago, but 44 times as much. And it not only had four driven wheels, but also a dual-clutch gearbox, electric motors and various electronic aids on board.

As a result, it got off the starting blocks better and reached 100 km/h in just 2.6 seconds, while the BMW took 3 seconds (four tenths more). The 918 needed a meagre 4.9 seconds to reach 160 km/h, while the RR reduced the gap slightly and reached 160 km/h in 5.2 seconds. By 200 km/h, the tide had turned and the bike needed one tenth less to accelerate to this speed from a standstill. And the bike then maintained its lead up to 280 km/h, only to have to capitulate at 300 km/h because the gear ratio was too short. The two-wheeler and four-wheeler completed the standing kilometer in the same time of 17.99 seconds, compared to the 25.3 seconds (BMW R 100 RS) and 26.4 seconds (Porsche Carrera) of 40 years earlier.

But even in the modern era, the motorcycle was the much more difficult machine to drive, so a professional driver was put in the saddle and she also had a lot to do to keep the two-wheeler on the ground.

So the car may be able to make better use of its advantages today, but in terms of performance per euro, the motorcycle will probably always be ahead, perhaps even more so today than back then, especially as the increase in weight of the two-wheeler was marginal at best, whereas even hyper sports cars today can weigh over 1.5 tons.

Share this article with your friends!

Almost like a two-year-old used car

Bruno von Rotz
07/29/2018

Jaguar E-Type Series 1 3.8 Coupé von 1962 (© Bonhams)

It is the dream of many classic car enthusiasts, the Jaguar E-Type. Most of them are now restored or in a sad state, as the oldest ones are 57 years old. And they were not built to last forever.

So the likelihood of coming across an unrestored car with low mileage that looks like it has been used for two years is actually zero.

Heck des Jaguar E-Type Series 1 3.8 Coupé von 1962 (© Bonhams)

But Bonhams can actually offer a 1962 Jaguar E-Type Coupé with 12,418 miles on the clock at the annual Quail Lodge auction in the vicinity of the Pebble Beach Concours, which is in excellent condition according to the photos.

Chassis 886489 (engine R6162-9) was completed on July 30, 1962 and delivered to the States as a left-hand drive car. It was probably no coincidence that the color choice corresponded exactly to the car that was presented on the Jaguar stand at the 1961 New York Auto Show.

Interieur des Jaguar E-Type Series 1 3.8 Coupé von 1962 (© Bonhams)

With just three owners, who obviously took great care of the coupé, the history is clear for a car that is almost 60 years old. And with an estimated price of USD 150,000 to 200,000 (60 to 80 times the original price at the time), Bonhams is probably being rather cautious with the unrestored E-Type, as it could very well be that a collector would be prepared to pay significantly more for it. But it doesn't have to be, because the Jaguar is even offered without a reserve price. Which could make it a veritable bargain.

Whether you would then want to continue driving on the first tires that have been fitted since 1962, however, is another question ...

We have documented what else is for sale at Bonhams on August 24, 2018 in our announcement( with over 150 pictures).

Share this article with your friends!

When cars increase in value fiftyfold

Bruno von Rotz
07/28/2018

Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider 1600 von 1962

When people talk about sensational increases in value in the classic car environment, examples such as the Ferrari 250 GTO or Mercedes-Benz 300 SL usually come to mind. However, there are also much more "normal" cars that have experienced an impressive increase in value over the last few decades. As an example, we show here the value development curve for an Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider 1600 from 1962. The data for this comes from used car listings from Auto Motor und Sport and the market valuations from Classic Data.

Preisentwicklung Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider 1962 bis 2018

The new price at the time was around DM 12,000, depending on the year, after which the value of the open-top sports car fell, as with other cars. Towards the end of the sixties, used car prices for a nearly ten-year-old example were under DM 1000.

At some point after that, more buyers began to show an interest in the chic convertible and prices rose slightly. We have to rely a little on speculation here, as there are not many reliable values available from that time. Even in the used car pages of magazines, they rarely appeared. Towards the end of the 1980s, however, the Giulia Spider again reached prices of over DM 30,000, also benefiting from the boom in Ferrari sports cars. In contrast to the latter, however, the Spider did not suffer a complete slump in the 1990s, but basically remained at a plateau until the euro replaced the DM and the Alfa classic with the jubilant four-cylinder engine also achieved an impressive increase in value. Between 2004 and 2017 alone, the price of a well-preserved Giulia Spider rose by a factor of around 2.8. And even if prices have fallen again slightly in recent months, the open-top Alfa Romeo costs over 50 times as much today as it did in 1968, 50 years ago.

However, we are always talking about condition 2 when we talk about classic car prices, i.e. the car looks like a one- or two-year-old used car with no major signs of ageing. To keep a Giulia Spider like this, a user would have to invest a lot in care and maintenance, even overhaul the engine once in a while and put a lot into rust prevention or rust removal. The paintwork is also unlikely to have survived the years without being repainted. So tens of thousands of euros would have quickly flowed into the pretty convertible, perhaps even more money than the car is worth today.

At most, a perfectly preserved car, stored in a perfectly dry shed, might have cost less over time. But if you were to calculate 100 euros per month for the space, then in 50 years it would be worth EUR 60,000.

So leaving it standing wasn't a particularly good option either. What's more, the Alfa is a joy to drive, as our recently published report (including sound samples) shows .

Share this article with your friends!

A day with two straight six-cylinder engines - a little puzzle for people with good eyes/ears

Bruno von Rotz
07/27/2018

Reihensechszylinder-Motor 1

They are becoming increasingly rare, the six-cylinder engines, those with cylinders in a row anyway. It used to be different. Almost every manufacturer of more or less fast cars had an in-line six in their range. After all, they were almost unbeatable in terms of smooth running and performance.

Yesterday we had the opportunity to enjoy two of these gourmet pieces. The first (pictured above) was a magnificent 2963 cm3 engine which, thanks to fuel injection and a relatively high compression ratio of 9.4:1, produced around 180 DIN horsepower at 5800 rpm. It sounded something like this:

Inline six-cylinder 1

Click for Start/Stop

The second car was a little older, but its six cylinders were also nicely lined up. A displacement of 2494 cm3 was enough to produce 150 hp at 6000 rpm with two downdraft register carburetors and a compression ratio of 9:1.

Reihensechszylinder-Motor 2

And it sounded something like this:

Inline six-cylinder 2

Click for Start/Stop

Well, we don't want to solve the little mystery surrounding the two six-cylinder engines quite yet, but we would be interested to know whether this information is enough for our readers to correctly identify the two engines. Anyone who has a guess can simply add it as a comment below the short article.

We will definitely solve the mystery in the next few weeks, at the latest when we publish the reports on the two cars.

Share this article with your friends!

The sports car of tomorrow?

Bruno von Rotz
07/26/2018

Porsche Rennwagenstudie von 1978

It was a somewhat gimmicky title that Auto Motor und Sport printed on issue 16/1978 : The car of tomorrow.

The editors were not quite able to keep their promise, but interesting aspects of Porsche 's research and development activities were revealed . For example, the engineers were working on the four-valve engine at the time, developing engine encapsulations to reduce noise and designing rescue vehicles, which, however, had little in common with the company's own model range. However, the aerodynamic study that graced the cover was barely mentioned in the article.

Titelblatt AMS 16/1978

The fact that Porsche did indeed have a keen sense of the future was demonstrated by a number of statements made by Porsche's Head of Development Helmut Bott:

"However, it is quite possible that there will be certain shifts within this range, for example from the sporty area to the comfortable area. As a smaller producer, we see the opportunity here to be able to react more quickly to the special wishes of the public. Even if the sports car has a completely different character in ten years' time, it will still remain a vehicle that is clearly different from the mass of other cars."
When asked if he saw any alternatives to the gasoline engine, Bott said:

"We don't see any alternatives to the reciprocating piston engine, which offers us the possibility of still achieving a great deal in the future with lean-burn or stratified charging. It is also possible to convert the reciprocating engine to other fuels, such as methanol, without any problems. We should also not forget the development lead that the reciprocating piston engine has in cars. Of course, the development of the turbocharged diesel engine is also not uninteresting. However, the question of solid emissions and the proportion of nitrogen oxide in the exhaust gas still needs to be clarified."

However, he was able to reassure the "classic" sports car fans: "Of course, the Porsche of tomorrow will also be a sports car," Bott assured, and was probably not quite right, after all, the Zuffenhausen-based company now builds more four-door cars than two-door cars.

Share this article with your friends!

When people still painted instead of glued

Bruno von Rotz
07/25/2018

VW-Stand auf dem Pariser Autosalon von 1972 - noch wird gemalt

In the age of large-format "all-in-one printers" and huge LCD screens, it's hard to imagine how "car shows used to be done".

But in 1972, the stand designers actually still took a paintbrush in their hands and painted their (pop art) motifs on the exhibition stand with a single stroke. The picture was taken in Paris in 1972, the day before the Motor Show opened.

Only slightly more advanced than the VW stand was the Peugeot stand, where the stand designers still had a lot of work to do.

Autosalon Paris 1972 - Peugeot-Stand vor der Eröffnung

Share this article with your friends!

The little friend - Renault 5 tested again

Bruno von Rotz
07/24/2018

Renault 5 GTL von 1979 (© Renault SA)

From time to time, Auto Motor und Sport magazine takes a classic and - with a wink - pushes it through the modern test routine. In the current issue, this is the Renault 5 GTL.

The compact French car, which measures just 3.531 m in length and is certainly parking garage-friendly at 1.525 m in width, actually receives five stars.

Of course, the driving performance is also measured. The 35-year-old R5 with the 45 hp engine achieves 0 to 100 km/h in 20.1 seconds, and a top speed of 135 km/h is recorded. However, the braking distance of 51.3 m for deceleration from 100 to 0 km/h is extremely long.

The fuel consumption figures are interesting. The five-door car consumes 4.8 liters of petrol per 100 km on the Eco route, a commuter fills up with 5.9 liters per 100 km and a sports driver consumes 7.2 liters. According to the current methodology, this results in 5.9 liters per 100 km or 137 g CO2 per km. The range of 644 km is impressive. The good aerodynamics (cw 0.35) are certainly one of the reasons for the low fuel consumption.

In any case, the AMS testers see the R5 in a very positive light: "Of course, five stars for the Renault 5, which shows how progressively efficient, clever, pretty, enjoyable and sensible the past was. A car like a friend who has always known you."

Perhaps a few car managers of the present will read this test and do a little soul-searching?

And yes, we almost forgot. The model tested cost DM 12,550 at the time, the equivalent of around EUR 6400. You can't get one for that today, at least not in perfect collector's condition.

Share this article with your friends!

High reliability requirements for classic cars/youngtimers (question of the week)

Bruno von Rotz
07/23/2018

Frage der Woche 113

Modern cars are becoming increasingly reliable. Unwinding thousands of kilometers for a whole year without ever looking under the hood? No problem with a new car.

You get used to this level of comfort and perhaps even expect something similar from a classic or vintage car.

How trouble-free should the old car run? We wanted to find out and explicitly asked the "question of the week ": How reliable should a classic/young car be?

Just over 72 percent consider a maximum of one breakdown per year to be acceptable. Of these, half, i.e. 36 percent in absolute terms, can cope with one breakdown per season, while an equally high proportion expect the same level of reliability as an everyday car, i.e. would like it to break down significantly less than once a year.

Just over 22 percent are prepared to intervene more than once due to technical problems, 8 percent think that 2 to 3 breakdowns would be acceptable, 14 percent do not see breakdowns as problems and simply make the car work again if it breaks down. And if necessary, this can even happen on every major outing.

Incidentally, only one participant in the survey would sell their classic car as soon as it breaks down for the first time, while 15 respondents did not agree with any of the options given. A total of 363 Zwischengas readers took part in the survey.

It can certainly be assumed that classic car owners become more breakdown-tolerant the older the vehicles get. Anyone who drives a brass car, for example, will generally be able to deal with breakdowns, which were not so frequent back then. On the other side of the spectrum, those who drive a youthful luxury sedan will hardly be prepared to get the tools out of the trunk every few miles.

On the whole, however, the demands on freedom from breakdowns appear to be very high, after all, cars that are now 30 or 50 years old (albeit with higher annual mileages) are very likely to have had an average of one breakdown per year.

The graphical representation of the survey thus looks as follows:

Frage der Woche 113 - Ergebnis

We have already proposed a new question of the week. This time we want to know how the Zwischengas readers' (own) offspring are doing, i.e. whether children, grandchildren, grandchildren and so on are interested in the old cars.

And, of course, you can still check out the results of all the previous questions of the week in the dedicated topic channel.

Share this article with your friends!

Elective affinities - car and motorcycle

Bruno von Rotz
07/22/2018

Ausschnitt aus dem Titelblatt von Sport Auto 1/1977

Just over 41 years ago, the magazine "Sport Auto" posed the question of which cars go well with which motorcycles, or rather what the driver of a particular car should own as a motorcycle.

The suggested pairings were

Alfa Romeo (Alfetta GT) and Yamaha XS 750
Audi (100) and Suzuki GT 750, the one with the two-stroke three-cylinder!
BMW (320, four-cylinder) and Kawasaki Z 1000
BMW (633, six-cylinder) and Honda GL 1000 Gold Wing
Citroën (CX) and Van Veen OCR 1000 (with rotary engine)
Fiat (X 1/9) and Laverda SF 3
Ford (Capri) and Yamaha XT 500
Mercedes-Benz (450 SLC) and BMW R 100 RS
Opel (Commodore GS/E) and Moto Guzzi 850 Le Mans
Porsche (924, four-cylinder) and Ducati 900 Super Sport Desmo
Porsche (911, six-cylinder) and MV Agusta 900 S
VW (Scirocco) and Honda CB 750 Four-in-One
Volvo (264) and Harley-Davidson FLH 1200

So far so good. Whether you agree with these car-motorcycle partnerships or not depends on your personal taste. In any case, the motorcycle page has certainly mentioned some highly attractive two-wheelers that many people would still like to have in their garage today.

Nevertheless, one naturally wonders what they might look like today in retrospect. And what other interesting pairings would have been conceivable, e.g. Morgan (+4 )and Honda XBR 500 S?

If you have an idea, then write a comment and tell us your favorite pairings!

Share this article with your friends!

Zwischengas has been publishing a daily blog post here since 2010

For more entries, please use the navigation by year and month.