In the late 1960s, Erich Bitter of Schweim, Germany was doing very well making tuning kits, and auto accessories. He was and is a naturally […]
Genuflecting to Gurus
A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, I was but a young padawan vintage gearhead, and I went to a european car […]
Opel Manta A
In the late 1960s, General Motors was looking for a way to compete with the newly introduced German-based Ford Capri in Europe. The Capri was […]
The Simson Saga
Simson was started in the southern portion of East Germany in the Suhl region by two Jewish brothers. The roots go back to the mid-1800s […]
Beginning With An Ending
The BMW 3200CS of the early 1960s was the last of the postwar BMW V8 cars. It was a successor to the very limited 503, […]
The Benz Binge
On a recent trip I was fortunate to be able to visit the Forney museum. It is a museum which celebrates transportation throughout the ages […]
The Kreidler Chronicles
We have shared many posts about companies that met their demise in the immediate postwar era due to the German economy, misjudging the market, sticking […]
The First Un-Porsche
Despite the purity of the Porsche DNA, over time Porsche has entered into joint ventures with others to bring cars to market. The 914 comes […]
Mammoth of a Man
Friedel Munch is mad. March hare mad. And regular readers will know that if there is one thing we like in an entrepreneur or designer […]
Executive Express
Among the German automakers, Mercedes has an interesting history of both performance and luxury. Because of it’s roots (see Happy 125th Benz), it has always […]
Volksmotorrader
What vintage motorcycle hails from Germany, started production in the 1920s, has a flat twin air-cooled motor, is found primarily in black, and has shaft […]
Celebrity Trickledown
In case you have not heard, a 1970 Slate Gray Porsche 911S just sold for $1,375,000 at the RM auction in Monterey, CA. As the […]
Blue Propeller, Red Propeller
So much of the modern auto and motorcycle world evolved from the ashes of WWII, that it was almost like a reset of the industrial […]
The Other Microcar
BMW was not the only German manufacturer with aircraft heritage to produce a Microcar. The Isetta is well known as the bubble car, but the […]
German Immersion
The past few weeks have been good ones around here if you like German cars. And I do. The car show season is packed into […]
True Adventure
This post was already decided upon. It was already partially written. An unusually epic tale befitting an epic journey whereupon a few adventurers travel on […]
More Power Scotty
There is something about classic vehicles that for many is a strange contradiction. On the one hand, a 40 or 50 or 60 year old […]
MuZings
It is gloss black, it is German, it is single cylinder, produced in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and it has an enclosed drivetrain. […]
Air-Cooled Cool
One of my earliest and most formative automotive memories, is standing on the seatbacks of my uncle’s early 60s ragtop Beetle with my torso sticking […]
Only at Oley
Here in the northeast, the two-wheeled season seems to go from dormant to action-packed in no time flat. It is as if the tightly wound […]