Italia---- Five and a half year project!.. Fantastic outcome !!!

This is our first public showing at Carbs and Coffee at Spanish Banks , SEPTEMBER 2018.

 After five and a half years into a detailed restoration here we are.  I must thank  my good friend Dave Sanderson,  Henry Reisner and his mom Paula Reisner for their work in getting this restoration done as per factory .  There will be more restoration details and photos to follow.

Gerry

356 Meet-up!

356 Meet Up , first one for our local 356ers,  first two arrivals are both  1958 356A T2 , with Dave Hot Foot leaning on the white sunroof coupe.

9:00 am start from Oakridge roof top parking area, one "early bird" in the group.

Three 356 A's  and  Art K. 's   356 B white sunroof  in the background.

Harry G's  A  cabriolet's baby moon hub caps reflecting back Rick D.'s ( I.M. 911 powered) convertible D  roadster.

Heading out for drive to UBC, Spanish Banks , Yaletown and our picnic/swap meet at Trout Lake.

Spanish Banks beach photo opp !!

Red IM 356A  roadster in the  foreground , that has traveled across Canada , Rogee 's dad's
original unrestored  Bali blue 356 SC cabriolet at Trout Lake park in Vancouver.
We had a good showing of 356ers fan and their cars, weather held out for our drive and picnic.
Planning more 356 Meet Up's ,
keep in touch , keep those 356 driving !!

I'm Baaaaack!

Latest member of the clan , a 1997 Carrera 993 Targa with the first member a 1958 356A sunroof coupe with visiting family friend a 1975 combi VW van.

Little brother '58 porsche 356A Speedster
Family shot with Vancouver's west end skyline for the background.
The "old man" in front of the family.
Little "Bro" with False Creek waterway behind.

356A coupe's full leather interior.
356A coupe with sun roof open.

One aortic dissection later(Feb 6th ,2010)... here is a family shot taken down at Kits Point , summer of 2010.

BMW Bavaria

This red 1972 BMW Bavaria was my wife Linda's first European car. We bought it pre-owned from gentelman who owned a high end men's clothing shop on West Broadway. It had the after market alloy wheels and the driving lights on it and was well cared for.. Now my daughter wishes we kept this car so she could use it! Ha, that was 30 + years ago! we weren't thinking about her driving then.. Wished I kept it for myself! A fun ,sporty four door sedan.

My 356 Speedster and Michael Buble!

This summer I was contacted by the Victoria region Porsche Club of America president because a London music video producer was looking for an early 356 Speedster for an upcoming project. I was excited to learn it was going to be the new video and trailer for Burnaby, BC boy, singer Michael Buble! Filming was done on Kingsway in Burnaby, at night. I got to ride in the tow vehicle as they were filming my black Porsche 356 Speedster (photo above, foreground) on the back of a trailer with Michael Buble "driving" and singing his new song "Hold On." He is quite a down to earth, regular type guy and a big hockey fan! (he is one of the owners of the Vancouver Giants!) His new CD is "Crazy Love" ,great album includes new songs that MB wrote , really enjoy listen to his music, great guy and great music. Big Apple here we come, look out MSG!

Here I am with MB, note Speedster in back ground. Corner of Kingsway and Willington (Crystal Mall sign in back).

MB says "You and Me babie , let's go Kick Ass!" & GS says "What, here in Metrotown, Michael?"

"Nah.... the big apple, babie!"

Second pic: crazy smile on my face. Kind of goofy. Speedster looks "cool!"

SEE THE TRAILER BELOW! The car can be viewed at the 1:55 mark!

Tiger, Tiger, Grrrr.... 6 degrees .......

Sunbeam Tigers had small Ford V8 engines, Sunbeam was sold under the Rootes Motor Corp,
Chrysler bought Rootes and but didn't have a small enough V8 to fit into the Tiger. As a Ford engine would not do in a Chrysler owned model the Tiger was discontinued after 1968.
This is were I came along , a Chrysler dealership in New Westminster , Columbia Dodge had a Rootes Sunbeam Tiger ,left over from the previous owner of this dealership, I made an offer on the new Tiger, they said no then a few weeks latter they called back and wanted me to buy it.
So I sold my first Tiger(a 1965) to my friend Victor and bought the new one a 1966 model year sold and titled as a 1967. BRGreen with black seats and trim, white wall tires and a 3.15 rear axle vs the stock one of 2.73. Better off the line but higher rpm on the highway.
Very interesting "6 degree ish" happenings..... Years later living on Lambeth Drive as the family up the street ,we made very good & strong friendship with the Don Butt jr. family. So cool.... Don Butt senior was the owner of the Columbia Dodge where I bought my 1967 Tiger.
It was more than ten years latter before I met Don jr. and family up on Lambeth Drive.
.....still would have this Tiger..........if I didn't go muscle car..... Corvette...where are you now?

Bottom photo.....Guess who's in the driver's seat now..?... yes Dear....OK..

Also notice that my MG TD can be seen in the carport, this was our family home, we moved there when I was six and a half years old in 1950. Long gone now, replaced by a small
development of nine homes, we had moved to an area of smaller farms with two barns, chicken coups a second small house , a dog run and two large fenced fields for the horses that we had to look after. We had this very neat riding gas powered lawn mower that I would use to cut the front and back lawn. My first drive of anything powered other than with my feet or legs. The front lawn had a bit of a slope to it and this is were I did my first "power slide" , spinning the rear wheels with full power going up the slope at a slight angle so that the rear wheels would spin wildly. After I discovered that , the summer lawn mowing was way more "fun". many years later when my mom decided to sell the family home, I wanted to buy it but since we had not long before moved to our new Lambeth Drive home it seemed to be too much to ask of my family to
move again so soon, besides we loved our Lambeth home too much give it up.
Hey,.....if we had bought the old homestead , I would have had a six car garage plus the barn.......
and power sliding my way around the front lawn................
..kind of miss both those wonderful homes.....lots of fond memories..............

what a classic sports car...Ferrari....seller's remorse.

This was a keeper a 1964 Ferrari 250 GTL (250 GT Lusso), sold it at a weak moment a few

years ago. Was delvered new in Paris, France and imported to California in the 1980's and lightly used before my ownership (37,300 km.) and under went a full restoration in the early 1990's. The resto was completed in the spring of 1994, very bottom myself and Lynn Williams (expert mechanic)

see the bottom three photos was it's first drive after the resto. Top photo was the spring of 2004

just before the Lusso was sold to a banker in Ohio.

In the summer of 1994 I had the car trucked to Hyatt hotel in Monterey for the Ferrai Club of Amercia's national meet (Ferrari's 40th at the Monterey Historic Races). There were seven Lusso's in that class that were being judged at an international level. This was my first national concour event and really didn't know what I was getting into. Never did it again it was too intense for me. After the weekend my very good buddy ,Bryan U. and I drove back home to Vancouver, what a drive home....eh.. Bryan....Loved that car, enjoyed it for ten more years , wish I still owned it. .. ... Seller's remorse.....hit hard......