Word came today of the death of John Fitch, age 95, in Connecticut. His influence on the classic cars I admire and the sports car racing I enjoy, cannot be underestimated. We’re a lesser world without him. For Corvair enthusiasts John Fitch took the early…

I’m not upset about the departure of Suzuki from the US market but losing Lancia would hurt. As reported in Hemmings and elsewhere, Lancia’s parent company, Fiat, now wonders aloud whether it cares to continue this manufacturer renown for its engineering excellence. To protect yourself…

Might this storied nameplate join the Leaping Cat and the Green Oval under Tata? That’s the report published yesterday in AM, an online UK resource for automobile dealers. Their report states that the current majority owners, a Kuwaiti investment group, would like to sell their…

When Chevrolet decided that the Corvair, its 1960’s “economy car,” didn’t really fill that niche, it reacted rather quickly. By 1962 the Chevy II appeared and the Corvair variants, such as the station wagon and the black rubber mat-no chrome-underpowered “fleet models,” should disappear. The…

I’m an unapologetic fan of the Citroen 2CV, a simple yet elegantly engineered car that – like many classics – outlived its intended lifespan. The 2CV became Citroen’s answer in post-WW II France to the Renault 4CV, but it many ways, it’s closer to my…

Last week I completed a 715 mile round-trip from Maine to southwestern Connecticut in a 46-year old car notoriously labeled as “Unsafe at Any Speed.” Yes, it’s the little maroon one buried in the snow in this photo. The decision to drive the Corvair on…