So I pull up to grab some beer at a local convenience store and right next to me is this cool-looking Rolls, or I thought it was until I spotted the Bentley B on it. An image search shows it being a Bentley S1, this week’s car spot.
No doubt here that it’s definitely a Bentley
This is one of just 3,538 produced between 1955 and 1959. Not sure what year since they all look about the same. I wasn’t far off in thinking this was a Rolls because the S1 was derived from the Silver Cloud. Powered by a 4.9 L straight-6 a British magazine was able to get it to go 0-60 in just over 13 seconds and a top speed of 103. Not bad for a car riding on a 123-inch wheelbase. A 4-speed automatic transmission was standard.
Note my Dodge Durango in the background, door still open when I spotted this car in a hurry to grab some pictures before it left.
Back in 1957, the car tested in the speed run cost £6305, $7,223.29 in USD and adjusted for inflation $78,585.34 now. What are they worth? 1955s average from $133.000 to $332,000. In the next two years, they really jump in price. Ones in mint condition have sold at auction anywhere from $1.6M to $1.8M but the average prices are in the mid $60s. That’s pretty wild and plus one ended up here in Wisconsin.
Thanks for stopping by. Be sure to check out my other spots and reviews on our site. Stop back next Friday for another one of my spots and have a great weekend.
Should a car be restored to factory specs or brought back to life as a restomod? I can go either way. This week’s car spot, a 1969 Dodge Charger, is a Resto Mod. I found this at the same car show in Oconto, Wis., where I spotted the earlier Corvair Greenbriar.
Charger was introduced by Dodge in 1966 positioned as an upscale, upsized pony car. It had an uncanny resemblance to American Motors’ Marlin, which debuted one year earlier, just not the extreme fastback. The Marlin however was positioned as a personal car, an emerging market niche at the time.
This is a second-gen Charger which I think looks way cooler. Redesigned for 1968, and Dodge thought they’d only sell 35,000 units but the public loved the redesign and 96,100 Chargers were produced. The second-gen is based on the Chrysler B platform and saw various cosmetic changes to the exterior and interior including an undivided grill, rounded taillights, and hidden headlights.
Available engines were a 225 cu in, 1bbl I6, although why somebody would order that on this car is beyond me; a 318 cu in, 2bbl LA V8; a 383 cu in, 2bbl B V8; a 383 cu in, 4bbl B V8; a 426 cu in, 2×4bbl Hemi V8; and a 440 cu in, 4bbl RB V8.
So what’s something like this worth? I found a bunch of them for anywhere from $90-100K, more than an original restored one with a 383, but that’s way less than the higher horsepower ones, like the 440s. They go for around a buck 50.
Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check back next week for another one of my car spots along with some history behind the find. Have a great weekend.
The Chevy Camaro was second on the scene in the pony car era debuting on Sept. 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year a bit after the Ford Mustang. Four distinct generations of the Camaro have been developed before production ended for the first time in 2002. Chevy brought it back as a concept car that evolved into the current fifth-generation Camaro starting in 2009. What I love about it is that it’s pretty much a blank canvas when it comes to performance mods. This week’s car spot is. a great example, a 2022 Callaway Camaro SC750 I saw near our daughter’s apartment in Monona, WI.
The Callaway Camaro begins life as a ZL1.
Started by former race car driver Reeves Callaway in 1977, Callaway Cars, the company has evolved into a revered specialist manufacturer. It all started when Callaway installed a turbo compression and other components into a BMW 320i. Car & Driver magazine tested the modified BMW and the next thing he knew that PR gave him his start.
For those that can’t handle this power, Callaway makes one with a little bit less, the 630.
Callaway started by making turbo kits for cars made by Audi, BMW, Mercedes Benz, Porsche, and Volkswagen. In 1986 he added the Corvette. In 2017, Callaway took the already powerful ZL1 and raised the power from 650 horsepower and 650 lb.-ft. of torque to 750 horsepower and 739 lb.-ft. of torque, removed the standard blower and replaced it with a Gen III Magnuson TVS 2300 with a triple row intercooler. Callaway also added a high-flow intake system and high-performance exhaust which gave it extra horsepower.
Bet is sounds amazing. Something EVs will never have.
What made the big difference was Callaway’s GenThree Supercharger system matched to the proprietary TripleCooled intercooler setup. It produces more horsepower and torque than any other mass-produced muscle car. With a top speed of 198 mph and 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, it’s no wonder the SC750 is one of the fastest Camaros on the market today doing 0-60 in just 3.3 seconds. That beats the Dodge Challenger Hellcat Redeye by .3 seconds.
So what will all this fun cost an adrenalin junkie? I’m one!
At a reasonable $81,830 that includes the engine upgrades, all kinds of suspension upgrades and either a six-speed manual or 10-speed automatic. By comparison a Redeye is slightly less at $76,430, but that price is going to go way up with the end of the line coming soon for Dodge’s V8 engines.
It’s sad really. Remember back in the late ’60s and early ’70s? It was the golden age for pony cars. The Ford Mustang started it all, the Camero, Pontiac Firebird, Dodge Challenger, Plymouth Barracuda, and AMC Javelin all followed.
Next year Dodge and Chevy are scheduled to end production of the Challenger and Camero. Why? Because of this push for EVs. I am not a fan!
Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check back next week for another spot along with some history. Have a great weekend.
Savage On Wheels 