Good Old Valves

Do you remember those good old valves? A car, a design, an engine. Some things are just not meant to be forgotten. This is a collection of vintage motoring and motorsport moments for the last 100 years or so. If your blood type is 5W-40, this is your place.

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This is the end.

My only friend, the end.

After giving it some thought over the past few weeks (you probably noticed it), it saddens me to tell you that Good Old Valves is coming to an end.

I've had very little time for the blog and my petrolheaded life, which is now maybe less than 1% of my life. I want to write each post feeling like I actually want to write it, take some pleasure out of it, and this hasn't happened for quite a while - it has become sort of an obligation.

So, about three and something years later, this is it. I won't shut down the blog, I still think there's some awesome content in the archives (yes, modesty is one of my qualities, clearly) to be explored. Also, I'll still be around Tumblr; creeping on your posts and nagging you when you least expect it :) so it's not like I'm going away.

Hopefully I'll return to being active around here, maybe with something related with wheels, maybe not. Meanwhile, you can follow me on my other *almost personal* Tumblr, Sessions of Light.

To everyone I've met around here, thank you for everything. I've learned so much, met many wonderful people. 

Next week I'll be around Copenhagen (Denmark) and Malmo (Sweden), so drop me a message if you're nearby (or just to tell me where I should go!)

See you soon.

Ricardo Magalhães.

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1972 Buick Riviera promo shot.

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What not to do to a Buick.

(unsure of the model, but I think this is a '58 Buick)

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Ford Mustang / Shelby GT350 (1965)

So, when are we leaving?

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Mercedes-Benz 280SL Pagoda (1971)

Desgined by Paul Bracq & Bela Barenyi. The Pagoda name comes from the style of the hard-top roof, which is visibily concave.

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Mick Jagger on a Morgan Plus 8, possibly around the very early 70's.

Why? Because god gave him everything he wanted (ah, bet you didn't see that coming. Kudos to Silodrome for the find!)

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Citroen GS Basalte (1975)

Quoting Ran When Parked:

"To keep the public interested in the GS until its replacement was ready to take the torch, Citroën started working on the first special edition of the model, dubbed the Basalte.

The starting point for the GS Basalte was the GS Club, which was powered by a 1,220cc air-cooled flat-four rated at 65 horsepower and 67 lb-ft of torque.  No modifications were made to the engine, and it was still bolted to a four-speed manual transmission.

On the outside, the body was painted in a glossy shade of black, and it wore specific red decorative bands on the side.  A “Basalte” sticker was found on the hood, right above the driver’s side headlight, and another one was on the trunk lid.  Interestingly enough, buyers could order the car with their initials affixed next to the exterior handle on the driver’s door."

Cool!

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Renault 17 Gordini (1975)

Do you have any idea how hard it is to find decent pictures of the R17?

Very. And for the sake of my life, I can't figure out why: look at it. It's a Renault, in Gordini trim, mad from every possible angle, eager to make every head turn and ask what the hell is that; it couldn't possibly be a Renault.

The Gordini version evolved from the previous TS, now fitted with a 1.7 liter engine. It even won a few rally stages out of the blue, at the hands of Jean Luc Therier himself.

And if you're still not convinced, here's one in yellow.

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Opel Rekord Caravan PII (1960)

The sexiest/happiest Caravan Opel has ever made. Alright, it isn't saying much.

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Nelson Piquet / Brabham BT52

Spa, 1983.

The BT52 was powered by the BMW M12, and could, in qualifying mode, reach about 850bhp, perhaps the highest power output of that same season.

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The gorgeous Eagle Weslake Mark I (1966), at Mexico.

Dan Gurney was a very lucky man.

Photo by the Cahier Archive.

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Alfa Romeo Alfasud 1.2 (1971)

I love it so much I hate it, because I love it.

Ignoring all the problems we know it has today (those which survived), the fact is that the Alfasud was once a really successful move from Alfa Romeo in the early 70's, mainly due to its very appealing design from Giugiaro's Italdesign and the rather peppy engines, which ranged from the original 1.2 liter to the 1.7 introduced in late 1987.

(from)

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AC Ace Bristol (1957)

(on SportsCarDigest)

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You know what's about to happen. 

Colin Chapman prepares for another 'hat trick' as Mario Andretti takes first place during the 1978 Belgian Grand Prix (Zolder) with the Lotus 79.

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Jim Clark / Colin Chapman (1965)

Celebrating the Lotus win at the Nurburgring, which would give Clark his second world champion title.

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Chevrolet Corvette (1966)

American muscle on American background. This is apparently one of the best 66 Corvettes you could ever buy, since it was given the top rating by the Corvette Restorers Society.

Plus, there's something particularly cool about driving in a baby blue V8.

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Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso (1963)

There's something deeply poetic about the sight of cars with a lot of history / pedigree in a museum, all sparkling clean and standing in the very same position for years in a row.

This Lusso was one of the few intended for actual racing, not road cruising, and yet, there it is, in its own form of casket.