Vanderbilt Cup Races

P. S. - It was Popular Science in the June 1953 issue, red side-walls (on chrome wires) and all!  It is variously described as a 1951 Coupe Aerodinamica Cúpula and as a 1952 BS 2.5 Cupula Coupe, but always as Cupula, NOT Cupola.  It was shown at the 1953 NYC Auto Show.  I particularly like the BS designation!

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

There were some very hairy Pegasos built but the Cupola sure as HELL ain’t one of ‘em!  I can’t believe Ed Jurist ever gave that hideosity house room!  Nash tub - YES!  ‘49-50 Mercs and Hudsons weren’t much better.  You Lawn Guylanders may enjoy my yarn about my neighbor’s Pegaso at <http://sbiii.com/automot2.html#clasicar> and scroll way down. or at <http://sbiii.com/automot2.html#woodlite> and scroll up two paragraphs, to “Another great ‘modern’ marque was the Spanish Pegaso”.  That event occurred around 1975 in North Shore Acres in Glen Head.

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

Identfy the event for this display and its approximate date. Provide a rationale.

1965 Ford Custom Car Caravan - Mustang ‘Pegasus’ was built in ‘65

Identify the custom car being looked and its designer

“Mustang Pegasus was designed by Jack Florence from Fostoria Styling and Warren Veurink from Holland Auto Trim (upholsterer supreme) created this unique custom Mustang back in 1965 for Gerald Taggart based on a brand new Mustang. Shown at the Cobo Hall, it caught the interest of Ford representatives and subsequently whisked from its appointed display position and made a part of Ford’s impressive Custom Car Caravan display.” It looks like the car is currently being restored.  http://www.ponysite.de/pegasus.htm

Can you identify anything else in the photo?

The rear quarter of your shorty Mustang III on the left!

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Mustang Pegasus and Mustang III on Display at the 1965 Autorama in Detroit

Good luck on your move!

From Searching for the Site of the Long Island Aviation Country Club & the Grandstands Updated 5/3/16

Hi Howard:
Here are my answers and some additional information:

1).  The photo was taken in January 1965 at a display of the Ford Custom Car Caravan—then in its third and final year—at the 13th Annual Autorama in Detroit’s Cobo Hall.  There are plenty of historic photos found in vintage custom car magazines in the early Sixties that show the car.  Cars in all of the three years of the Ford Caravans were regularly covered in custom car magazines—so it’s no surprise that this radically restyled Mustang shows up in the custom car media of the time.

2).  The custom car is the Mustang Pegasus, built and designed by Jack Florence of Fostoria Customs for owner Gerald Taggart.  The interior to the car was designed and built by Warren Veurink of Holland Auto Trim.  ‘

3).  On the left side, some distance from the Pegasus, is seen the Mustang III concept car basically designed at Ford (and refined by Vince Gardner who then worked for Dearborn Steel Tubing). 

The Pegasus was covered in a feature article in Customs Craft and in the October 1965 issue of Rod and Custom.

The car was NOT originally intended for the Ford Caravan, but was “adopted” by Ford when company executives saw the car at the Cobo Hall show. 

I’ll send you, Howard, the images referenced here.

The car survives and is now being restored in California.

Great question about the history of custom cars.

Mark S. Gustavson
Utah

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Mustang Pegasus and Mustang III on Display at the 1965 Autorama in Detroit

Good morning and a Happy Eeaster to all. Great finding Frank. Going to be pretty busy the next two months,making the move to Florida,but it’s going to be well worth it in the long run once we’re settled in. I’ll keep in touch whenever I can

From Searching for the Site of the Long Island Aviation Country Club & the Grandstands Updated 5/3/16

A thousand thanx to Howard and Frank for helping me pinpoint the footprint of the L.I. Country Club Airport clubhouse and double hangar.  Before Frank entered the picture, I had zeroed in on it laterally east and west with the help of a couple of 1950 aerial photos taken slightly from the west of the site.  (It turned out that I was off by between twenty five and forty feet!)  I still had trouble determining the north and south spot, because I wasn’t sure about where the old Motor Parkway had been there and how wide it was.  That would be the logical starting point for my N/S calculations. Howard told me it had been twenty-two feet wide, and with the help of two old close-ups of the hangars taken around 1939,  I was able to calculate that the distance between the south side of the hangar and the north edge of the Parkway as exactly 88 feet.  But I still needed to know the precise location of the north edge of the Parkway!  (88 feet from where today?!)  Some have previously claim that the row of (now somewhat rounded) squares in the lawn between Blacksmith Rd. and Orchid Lane is the Parkway’s footprint.  However, a Google aerial view shows a beat up strip of grass about thirty five feet wide that runs parallel to those squares and continued west on the other side of Crocus Lane.  (By the way, that western strip is gone now, the recent housing construction having wiped it away.)  I wondered if the beat up grass was the result of dirt having been placed atop the old parkway roadway and was then seeded.  If so, there wasn’t a sufficient thickness of good soil for lawn for it to “take” as well as it is everywhere else in that large fenced-in plot.  I didn’t want to simply assume that the center of that strip was the center of the Parkway, and there were other factors and measurements I took that made me skeptical.  (For one thing, why is the beat up grass over thirty feet wide if the Parkway beneath it is only twenty-two feet wide?)  When Howard furnished the almost head-on 1950 aerial photo he found in an estate sale (shown above), Frank and I were on our way.  Frank then performed his overlay magic, as you can also see above.  Again, thanks Howard and Frank!  Now I’ll send the Town of Hempstead my application for an historical marker, which will be accompanied by photos and a write-up of the airport’s history and its significance.  I would like that marker to be the sturdy blue and yellow type, but that will be up to the Landmark Preservation Commission—if they approve the sign in the first place.  If anyone has any tips about making my application, please let me know.  By the way, Charles Lindbergh—a charter member of the airport club—taught his wife, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, how to fly there.  Jackie Kennedy’s father was also a member, according to a membership list shown to me by Paul Manton, Pres. of the Levittown Museum.  (Others who have assisted me thus far are Julia Blum at the Cradle of Aviation Museum and librarian Virginia Carew of the Levittown Public Library.) Thanx again, guys!

From Searching for the Site of the Long Island Aviation Country Club & the Grandstands Updated 5/3/16

The children have complained! - BUT one saw a lot of “innovations” after WWII.  Somewhere in my Archives I think is a Popular Science or Science & Mechanics or Mechanix Illustrated where this car was on the cover. Pegaso had little distribution in the US, the only place then with money, so it couldn’t succeed. As to the restoration - KUDOS of the highest order! A well-deserved award. In fact, if I find my magazine, I will give it to the museum!

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

That’s a Ford Mustang “Pegasus” customized by Jack Florence of Fostoria Styling and Warren Veurink of Holland Auto Trim. It was built for Gerald Taggart in 1965 and as shown in the photo was part of the Ford Custom Car Caravan. Since the car was built in 1965 and the only customizer to participate in the Caravan in 1966 (its last year) was George Barris, the photo must be from 1965, probably around September at the start of the model year. Could that be the rear end of your Mustang III in the left background?

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Mustang Pegasus and Mustang III on Display at the 1965 Autorama in Detroit

Largely a guess with a touch of internet help.

I will gather this is the pre1964 prototype Mustang fastback.  I do not believe it is the 1965 prototype as it is shown here as the Mach 1 fastback, but too many irregularities to be the same year car.  It certainly has an odd looking double drip rail over the driver’s window….and a lot of litter around the car.

http://fordofwestmemphis.blogspot.com/2013/02/1965-ford-mustang-mach-1-prototype.html

It also has a similar front end to the 1963.5 prototype as seen here, save for actually having square headlamps instead of appearing to have square headlamps.

http://www.mustangandfords.com/featured-vehicles/mump-1212-up-close-1963-mustang-2-prototype/photo-gallery/

I notice a set of Cragar S/S wheels on the car to the left while the prototype has wire wheel hubcaps which fooled us all, not really, soon replaced with “turbine” looks.

As for where?  No clue.  I will guess the Detroit car show as….....where else?

In looking at the sign in front of the car it appears to have a similar look to the Thunderbird insignia of earlier days, which seems odd.

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Mustang Pegasus and Mustang III on Display at the 1965 Autorama in Detroit

In answer to Frank Femenias. It’s another move to Florida,much better than where I am now,a lot more activities. It’s The Villages,you should check it out,it’s the place to be,a well liked place to live. We were there for four days just looking to rent,came across a good deal and grabbed it and to top it off it’s a house for about the same price we’re paying now for an apartment,it was now or never,also with the option to renew up to 5yrs. This wasn’t through the real estate,it’s a private owner wanting to move to a bigger house and rent this one and we happened to be there at the right time. What luck was that,never expected it. Move in date is June2. Second move in one year,that’s it for me,I’m staying put now.

From Mystery Foto #12 Solved: A Memorable Moment at Krug's Corner at the 1906 American Elimination Trial

Yes,it’s an ugly car,but it’s different and something out of the ordinary. It looks a little like the jaguars,the long front,maybe even the corvettes,not saying they’re ugly,but the same design as them. It’s a little bit of everything,like a prototype.

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

Ted: Is it VA or FL? I like how you’re checking out all the areas in between. Hope you land where you’d want to stay. i’m thinking the same but don’t know how south to go. Relocating is not easy.

From Mystery Foto #12 Solved: A Memorable Moment at Krug's Corner at the 1906 American Elimination Trial

I can’t stop laughing….....thanx

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

Good catch on the fence. The boy standing on the curve during the elimination race was in the line of fire

From Mystery Foto #12 Solved: A Memorable Moment at Krug's Corner at the 1906 American Elimination Trial

Scott:
March 14, 2016 8:45 pm
If there was ever an uglier car made, I’ve yet to see it. And I’ve seen a lot.

Tim:
March 14, 2016 8:50 pm
I hereby call for mandatory drug testing of all Amelia Island judges…

Howie:
March 15, 2016 11:54 am
How about some vision testing also?

Jay Busse says:
March 14, 2016 9:10 pm
Reading these comments I am reminded of Matthew 7:6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not cast your pearls to swine…”

Peter Atherton
March 14, 2016 9:29 pm
In the early ’60’s the Pegaso was at Edgar Jurist’s Vintage Car Store,in Nyack,NY.The roof had been cut off to create a roadster,it was painted white,and rather seedy looking.Fortunately,the entire top was still with the car.I never knew what had happened to it thereafter,but it’s nice to see it restored!

Joe S.
March 14, 2016 11:39 pm
When will the clowns start bailing out?

gerry
March 15, 2016 7:49 am
My 65 Checker wears that color much better

Sal Pugliese
March 15, 2016 12:52 pm
I have attended every Amelia Island Concours since its inception and it just gets better every year !
Although my favorite show was 3 years ago when Ferrari was the spotlighted brand and 11 GTO’s paraded thru downtown!!
How often do you see $35M cars driving on public streets !!!
Pegasos were one of the highlighted brands this year and of the 84 or so examples produced, this one had to be the ugliest of the litter!!!
How it won an award for anything is beyond me !!!!
There were several gorgeous examples of the brand worthy of a trophy, but to select the “yellow peril” is a mystery to most in attendance !
The side pipes look to be sourced directly from a J.C. Whitney catalog and the roofline is incongruent with any line of the body !!!

adam
March 15, 2016 4:00 pm
The Oscar-Meyer Weinermobile is easier to look at than this thing. Sorry, but mustard paint and ketchup wheels are making me want a hot-dog for lunch!

Howard Munday
March 15, 2016 5:10 pm
Now I finally know where Nash(American Motors) hotshots got their upside down bathtub designs they are so famous for and I always ass/u/med they came from the “camel” design team that was charged with designing a “horse”. I saw a brown one of those on the road once and thought a red tired turd had escaped it’s designer.

I’m a died in the wool classic car guy and live just a ferry ride away from Amelia Island but have never once wasted my time attending the Amelia Island Concours de Elegance, nor do I even bother to look at nor read the Times Union’s daily coverage of the Concours and cars. I will admit having visited the venue via tv with “Chasing Classic Cars”. Usually I don’t bother to watch the whole show when Wayne’s at the Concours, like I usually do the actual chasing episodes.

Looks like my lack of affinity for the Concours has been very much more rewarding than I even realized. Most of the attendees have probably never laid down two long screaming black marks on a rural road or even a dark city street while behind the wheel of a 1965 GTO 0.30 over-bored 428, four barrel Hurst/Muncie 22 “Rock Crusher” four speed.
Whole new world!!!!!!!!!

Sal Pugliese
March 20, 2016 9:56 am
I’ve attended the Amelia Island Concours D’Elegance every year since its inception 20 years ago… I’m also a die hard muscle car collector and have campaigned a 1961 Pontiac Catalina in Nostalgia S/S for years… So much for your theory !!!

Sal Pugliese :
March 20, 2016 10:49 am
It’s quite obvious you’ve never been to the Amelia Concours D’Elegance because muscle cars are, and always have been, a major participant !!
This year, Todd Werner, noted muscle car collector, brought his ORIGINAL #43 Richard Petty Hemi Plymouth Superbird .. He lit up the crowd when called to receive his award and the unmufflered 800 HP Hemi rumbled it’s way to the show stand !!!
 

EdR
March 15, 2016 5:38 pm
Anyone else see the early Nash design similarities????

Vince Wilson:
March 15, 2016 5:48 pm
If I owned an “average”auto at that show, I would be hesitant to bring it before those judges again.
I feel for the other owners of truly fine automobiles.

GabrielS
March 15, 2016 9:39 pm
Being polite, I’d say this design was challenged. How about that huge rear window? Yuck! Must have been conceived after a heavy bout of sangria consumption.

Dan
March 15, 2016 9:41 pm
Usually, the winners of these events are worthy…This is seriously ugly automobile!

Madman
March 15, 2016 10:34 pm
When I publish my dictionary of slang, I will use this photo with the definition of “Ugly As Sin.”

Looks aside, the mechanicals of a DOHC V8 with a 5-speed manual were fairly advanced for 1952. Chevrolets still had dip-cup engine oil lubrication in their flathead 6-cylinder!

John C. Kovalo
March 21, 2016 12:17 am
I think 1950 was the last year for the dippers, as well as babbited rods.

mike
March 16, 2016 1:38 am
The Cupola looks like someone made a car out of one of Ronald McDonalds shoes.

Mike
March 18, 2016 6:19 pm
That exact car complete with red walls, appeared on the cover of a 1953 Popular Science which I remember seeing and reading as a teen. It was billed as the world’s most expensive auto at the time ($29,000 I believe). Also noted was the fact that it was built to drive on the primitive Spanish roads in the heat and not overheat. Ugly today? It seemed to be a real show stopper to me at the time.

Tom Turner
March 19, 2016 8:15 pm
“Design by committee” Is considered a put-down. Designed by a schoolkid would be too. This car was designed by a committee….of schoolkids. I there any surprise it’s so awful?

Dan Haapala
March 20, 2016 2:47 pm
Yes it’s ugly BUT, it’s the coolest ugly car I’ve ever seen (next to a Crosley). It’s unique and as such really appeals to me as it must have to the judges. BTW Madman the 52 Chevy 235-6 was OHV not flathead, just saying:)

From Hemmings Blog: 1952 Pegaso Z-102 Cupola takes Best in Show Concours de Sport at Amelia Island

In 1964 my brother Greg Alger entered N Stock at the drag races in a 1953 Ford 2 door hardtop six cylinder and an automatic transmission that he got from the wrecking yard he worked at we tuned it up really good took it to The track and went home with the N stock trophy that was quite a day we lived about a mile North of the track at the time

From Mystery Foto #37 Solved: Islip Speedway in the 1960s

Wow,what pictures of those cars sliding around that corner. I couldn’t answer this mystery,was having trouble with computer,which affected my iPad. But I would have had some kind of an answer,it’s a well known racing area

From Mystery Foto #12 Solved: A Memorable Moment at Krug's Corner at the 1906 American Elimination Trial

Identify the race and the date of the photo. Note: Previous descriptions of this photo are incorrect!
Um.  Let’s make the race the 1906 Elimination Trial and the date Sept. 22, 1906.

What was surprising and memorable about this moment captured in the photo?
Not really sure except maybe the huge crowd coming out for this pre Cup race.  And the fact that they aren’t on the roadway itself.

Who are the two people in the race car?
Willie K. and race surgeon, Dr. Louis Lanehart.

Identify the race car.  Willie K.‘s “90” 1903 Mercedes.

From Mystery Foto #12 Solved: A Memorable Moment at Krug's Corner at the 1906 American Elimination Trial

Wow!  Looks like 1930’s -50s version of concept cars…

From The Amazing Automobiles of the 2016 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance