YEOW !!!
black mamba
Registered Users Posts: 8,323 Major grins
I spied this babe from across the fairway. I wasn't sure at first how close I wanted to get to it.....considering its snarling front end and all. Beauty ( or lack thereof ) is open for discussion. Actually, the story behind this jewel is quite interesting.
It's a 1957 Spohn, a company operating out of Ravensburg, Germany. After WW II, the Spohn group purchased U.S. military cars in Europe that were no longer needed. They would use the chassis from these vehicles as a basis for custom cars they manufactured. They would produce exactly what the buyer wanted and specified. This car featured a 1939 Ford chassis, a 1953 Cadillac 331 c.i. V-8, and a Ford 3-speed tranny. Over their history, Spohn produced about 200 cars.....no two that were alike. They folded in, I believe, 1957 so this car was one of their last.
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Awesome car and story, thanks!
www.mind-driftphoto.com
Just a reminder that not everything old is beautiful. That thing is a 1950s nightmare, IMO, so bad it's good. It makes me laugh.
Hard to believe 200 people actually bought one of those. Is that another one behind it in No 3?
http://wernerg.smugmug.com/
As a true car nut, Cristóbal, I've always appreciated folks who produced cars that had real character....folks that had the gumption to be different, if nothing else. I hearby crown this Spohn as the King of the gumption strata.
I hear you, brother. I've got to admit that I emitted a cackle or two when I first spied this thing. " Homely ", as a defining term, hardly does it justice.
Hey, Werner. Yes, that's another Spohn in the background. I was told that the cream-colored one was totally different under the skin. Between the two Spohns, you have a snipet of a view of a car presented in " skeleton " form. That car is actually a Chevrolet test mule used when Chevy was considering developing a mid/rear-engined Corvette years ago. I'll post pictures of that test mule by itself later on.
As vintage auto's go, I'll say that it is interesting, as is the back story, but.... I can't help but thinking that front end looks like some sort of sucker fish or , maybe a catfish. lol
Phil
Luck happens when preparation meets opportunity!
Wha dat...????
The mamba can sure ferret out some interesting stuff...
For clarity.. they manufactured 200 different custom cars during their business life... this is an example of a client who has too much money...
Good grab
Great minds must think alike, Phil. I thought the same thing when I first saw this car.
Hey, Rags. As odd looking as these two Spohns are, their build quality is actually very high.
What a beauty! I truly feel that while it is stationary, it still seems to be speeding!!
Shoot, buddy, if old Spohn had an endorsement like that he might still be in business. I can see the pair of us tooling down California's coastal highway, just carrying on and having a ball.
That would be sweeeeeeet! Come on down over here Tom!
What a spectacular find, indeed!
Thanks for looking in, JonaBeth. I actually run across quite a few unusual cars during my car show ventures. This one here, though, ranks near the top of my finds.
Only you could find a red catfish laying on the grass!!
Lauren Blackwell
www.redleashphoto.com