By Antti Kautonen
Welcome to another Weekend Edition. This weekend, on my part, is dedicated to the Sportscar Breakfast Club, taking part on selected Saturdays in Sipoo near Helsinki. The event is all about taking your cherished hobby car for a nice Saturday morning ride, and parking it at a cafe where you can chat with other petrolheads. And if you happen to own an exotic sports car, the better.
The event is arranged by Arttu, a 968 owner and a work colleague. He likes his sunny Saturdays filled with banter and exhaust rumble, and he’s kinda got it right. These posts this weekend display the cars I saw at this summer’s first Sportscar Breakfast Club event.
Let me be clear, right from the start. The happening isn’t an elitist event: it’s not about driving there in your brand new Ferrari and discussing the kind of shoelaces you have on your driving shoes. It’s about going for a croissant and a cup of coffee in good company, and if your car is more of the diminutive kind, you’re absolutely welcome.
That said, all the humdrum everyday cars are directed to a separate parking lot, like my 5-series was. The café’s parking is for sports cars only.
Some people bring their buddies, some bring their wives or girlfriends. This guy had a child seat in his 850 Coupé. A nice way to bring them up right from the beginning.
I’m very, very partial to Biturbos and a convertible one is really something. The dudes in the background are friends of mine, scholars and gentlemen.
This one was very well preserved, and the cabin was in almost as-new condition. The clock was in its rightful place.
I do think the rear seat cushions are almost NSFW.
I do like the four-seat Ferraris too, even if this was an automatic car. You’re free to guess what the last three digits on the plate were.
From one Ferrari to another. The perfect Testarossa? I’d have mine in white, for obvious reasons.
But a 308 needs to be red, no question. The perfect Ferrari shape, even if my dream 308 is a GTB.
“Could you guys give me a hand? You know I can’t see the damnedest thing from here, and I don’t want to scrape this against the black thing.”
“Thanks very much, see you next time!”
The more modern Italian cars show up, too. The GTV looks a bit dumpy after all the sleeker cars, even if there’s nothing wrong with it.
Another shot of the burgundy Pantera. It’s just so right.
[Images: Copyright 2013 Hooniverse/Antti Kautonen]
Where in Sipoo, Antti? I'll head out for the next one from Kerava with my 2000 170 SLK!
Moottorikahvila in Nikkilä. See the schedule at http://www.sportscarbreakfast.com/
Thanks! Hope to see you there!
Is the Smart roadster considered a sportscar up there ?
Well, it's a bit of a grey area. I do think it's one, as it's got a lot of the principles right. Even if the semi-auto is the work of the devil, as I've heard said.
As a head honcho of the SBC, I'm with Antti here. Smart Roadster is light, nimble, agile little roadster, and both examples were Brabus versions. With 110 or so hp's on tap this 840 kg roadster will really fly on winding roads. After the semi-auto box has tangled through it's gear shift pattern, that is.
I'd take that 850 over a 308 any day. Pantera looks excellent in burgundy.
Q: What would win in a race, the Maserati Biturbo or its American parallel, the Cadillac Allante?
A: Depends on the year of the Allante, With the old 4.5 V8, the Maser would win hands down. But if the Caddy has a northstar, then I think its owner would want to run away even faster than the guy stuck with the Biturbo.
Somehow, the Chrysler's TC by Maserati completes the trifecta.
true, but it's not much of a race if you throw in the TC, which would win by a landslide: i.e., the kind of thing that the second you catch sight of it causes you to run screaming in the other direction.
Hey KC Hoons (I know there are a few of you). UNICO is hosting an Italian car show tomorrow at Festa Italia in Zona Rosa from 11-3. I plan to go, if only to see what a decent Italian car looks like. If you spot a very hung over (I'm about to head out to an annual beginning of summer bash) middle aged not-Italian looking guy with a yellow Alfa Spider in very daily driver condition, say "hey". It could be me.
Okay, granted I'm pretty weird, but I think I'd rather have a Ferrari 400, albeit with a proper stickshift, than a Daytona. Then again I love the Fiat 130 coupe. And the X1/9. And about 11,479 other cars.
I'm with you on that. A 412, in Grigio, ranks very high on my Ferrari want list.
After seeing Daft Punk's 412, in black, it became much more of a priority for me.
<img src="http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/wp-content/uploads//2011/04/daftpunkferrari.jpg">
That car made me a Todd Rundgren fan.
Being the owner of the abovementioned 850 Coupe I thought I'd thank for this great post/story. Having had the same misfortune of being directed to the "humdrum everyday cars'" parking area I still think this is a fun event. And of course, despite the muscles you need for steering, my Fiat is not a sports car. 0-100 km/h in 17.6 (?) seconds hardly qualifies.
The Pantera is simply one of the best car designs ever. Makes my eyeballs salivate.