salmson

AN EXPERIENCE NEVER TO FORGET! – 3

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On each rally I might make some mistakes, but the most important is that I learn a lot too, and on this rally it was all about the safety concerns with vintage automobiles and the need for regular checking of the brakes, etc. The experience I gain is a valuable lesson and a reminder for you all, especially when this is all new to you…

Luckily the last day of this magnificent rally was very safe, because Tino and Luca had fixed the brakes as well as possible the evening before. Safe enough to drive across the Simplon pass back to Brig. It is very pleasant to wake up and have the view of an amazing collection of cool bolides with the hills of Lago Maggiore as a backdrop, palm trees, and petrolhead friends already preparing their car for the next tour. And then there is the best part! Roaring engines which are just awakening and excited to hit the road again. The most fun part is… Continue reading

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ROARING STREET PARTY IN THE STREETS OF VAALS-1

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It was a close call, because two days before the rally started my Amilcar was not running so well. Luckily magic does exist. My CGS “Amillion” still needs to run-in as it never really had been driven after its restoration many years ago.

As we arrived in Vaals (NL) I saw next to me a fine CGSs arriving, that had just attended the Mille Miglia, so I felt like this was going to be a fantastic race as well. I parked Amillion in a field and one after the other arrived, in total 60 voiturettes from all over Europe! I am new to this cyclecar world and so is my dad and we were happily surprised with our first impressions. In the hotel we were welcomed by a fine Amilcar boat-tail model and of course by the organizers. After we all gathered there was a fine first event. Some of us, who were too lazy to… Continue reading

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MILLE MIGLIA 2016: IN BOCCA AL LUPO! – 1

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I admit… the last weeks of Februari were nerve-shattering. Would we be allowed to participate or not? Although I was fairly certain about my Alpine 106, which had already taken part in the Mille Miglia twice before, I had dared this time to enter two more cars of mine, which, admittedly, would be driven by friends. These were an Amilcar CGSS from 1927 and Salmson 2300 Sport from 1956. So, a French party. We were overwhelmed when we heard that all three cars had been accepted. But that’s where things really begin!

Everyone who thinks that the Mille Miglia is a luxury tour through Italy will be deceived. You really need to put your foot down those 4 days, from early in the morning until late at night. And all this… Continue reading

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POTW–LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGTHER

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Let me first wish you a HNY, now that we are in 2016! Today I like to share with you a photo I absolutely love… why? It shows a Hispano-Suiza, an Amilcar and a fierce racer which could perhaps be a Mors? This year I will definitely be on the road in a number of rallies with Amillion (my Amilcar CGS), but there is one more thing I wish for this year. I hope my dad will accompany me in his, hopefully finally completed, Hispano ‘Grand Sport’, so that we can both have fun in our prewar beasts, one of which is a small beast ; ) Hispano Senior and Amilcar Junior, or as Simon, one of CHB’s writers told me, Hispano the elder and Amilcar the younger. These terms are used in the art world and as I call vintage and classic cars art as well, the elder and the younger it is! Or as we say in Dutch, like father, like daughter (although it would usually be son instead of daughter, obviously…).

Also a good moment to show my appreciation for my parents for giving me this most incredible name Atalante, and for my dad for passing on this great automotive passion, which is FORMIDABLE! To come back to a question raised by Simon, my dad started at young age with… Continue reading

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MYSTICAL BARN FIND DISCOVERY 

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I must make a confession while it is still 2015. I found something hidden in a church, a church find! Who doesn’t dream about finding a sleeping beauty hidden under dust and behind broken windows. I know you are a barn find junk too, so I need your help. Who can tell me which car this is? I looked for hours at the photo, but I can’t discover what it is.

But let me first tell you a nice and exciting story which will give you so much adrenalin, like I felt that moment. I was doing a prep drive with a friend just before the 100 Miles of Amsterdam when the friend told me about a place he knew with a mass of barn finds… Continue reading 

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IT IS ALL ABOUT THE WORKSHOPS! ONE LIKE YOU HARDLY EVER GET TO SEE! – PART 1

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I discovered something you will LOVE to see and get to know more about! First of all sorry for my radio silence. Being an active petrol head has been a bit overwhelming lately – so much to do and so many visits including something very special, which will be revealed soon! It is just one big delight! : )

Let me start where I stopped after the previous article. I visited a small private workshop of a TRUE Salmsonist. Not just anybody, but a VERY special person, a REAL specialist! This Salmsonist has only recently restored his own Salmson to the finest details and has now embarked on the restoration of an… Continue readinghttp://crankhandleblog.com

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF THE SAMILCAR – YOUR AMBITIOUS BLOGGER ; )

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To give you a personal update, which is also about that surprise I announced before… First of all I am looking for my very first own vintage car! After driving those two GREAT Delahayes, I can’t wait to also have a taste of a fierce little cyclecar-racemonster! Nothing better than driving all different kind of cars! The Bugatti drives made me really excited to acquire a fine and manoeuverable little racer, but a bit less expensive than a Bug… So a ‘poor man’s Bugatti’ it should be! : )

I have already seen quite a few charming cars like the Amilcar, Salmson, Riley and Rally… BNC is also very nice. I don’t mention Bugs, because for now they are unaffordable for me… The first experience was an Amilcar while on our way back home from Martin Waltz’s museum near Freiburg. It was the first time I saw (and drove in) an Amilcar in real life and I was impressed! One thing I kept in mind was to… Continue readinghttp://crankhandleblog.com