When it comes to some of the more famous and high-end car shows people often speak of Pebble Beach California or Amelia Island Florida. However, coming into its 5th year, Audrain Newport Concours and Motor Week has become a can’t miss event for car lovers. Taking place amongst the opulant coastline of Newport, Rhode Island, the show is host to hundreds of cars. Ranging from antique classics, custom coach builds to exclusive supercars, concept cars and race cars, the 3-day show transforms The Breakers at Newport a car lovers dream.
1958 MacMinn Le Mans Coupe
Debuting at Pebble Beach in 2023, the MacMinn underwent a full nut and bolt restoration after the car was found as a body and rusted frame in the California desert. The Le Mans coupe was built and designed for Road & Track Magazine in 1957. The car was designed by Strother MacMinn, who was the head of the California Arts Center at the time. The MacMinn Le Mans Coupe was featured in a series of articles throughout the late 50’s that focused on building a race car to win at Le Mans. Under the hood is a Chevrolet 283ci Small Block V8 with no reported modifications. The car had been crashed and was abandon and hidden away for about 60 years before being restored using the original Road & Track articles as the manual. It took Dennis Kazmerowski and Alan Fudge over 3,000 hours and 20 months to restore the MacMinn. Only 3 chassis were ever made, and this one here is the only running example.
1963 Buick Riviera George Barris Coupe “Villa Riviera”
With GM curious as to how they can make the Buick Riviera truly over-the-top, they gave one to the “king of customizers” George Barris to see what could be done. The result was this “Villa Riviera”. The car came from GM painted in Candy Apple Red with a half landau white top. Barris and team got to work, extending the front by nearly 6 inches, creating a V-shaped wedged grill and hiding the headlights within the bodywork. The rear was also extended 5 inches and saw new white on red lens’. The interior is white leather over walnut and has custom features like an Autostereo music system, a removable 1964 Sony micro television unit, and a two-line phone custom painted in Candy Red and White Pearl.
1965 Ferrari 275 GTB Scaglietti Coupe
This late-production Ferrari 275 GTB Scaglietti made its post-restoration debut at Audrain Concourse. The 275 debuted at the Paris Motor Show in 1964 and was designed in partnership with Carrozzeria Scaglietti and Pininfarina. Ferrari team driver Micheal Perks helped bring the latest rac car innovations. This Ferrari was originally sold to a buyer in Pennsylvania and was in painted Giallo Stemma Ferrari (Ferrari Crest Yellow). The recent extensive restoration by R&R see’s the car back in its original color. A tri-carb V12 engine was rated at 280 horsepower from the factory. In 1965 this Ferrari 275 GTB could have been yours for $13,905, which is the equivalent of about $140,000 USD in 2024. If you were looking to add one to your collection today, the 275 GTB is valued between 2 to 3 million USD.
1976 BMW 3.5 CSL Karman Coupe
Hand built by famed race car mechanic Jack Deren, this 3.5 CSL was fabricated using BMW Motorsport fiberglass panels and parts from original CSL cars. Deren, who was a mechanic on the BMW CSL 3.5 that won 12-hours of Sebring in 1975 and 24-hours of Daytona in 1976. His use of original CSL parts and newer updated race components makes this BMW 3.5 CSL a true one-of-kind car.
1951 Porsche 356SL Gmünd Le Mans
This is one of the most historic Porsche’s on the planet. The 356SL Gmünd Coupe was Porsche’s first purpose race car and the brands first car to not only compete in a race, but it also win it. The race? Le Mans in 1951. Developed and built in Austria by Ferry Porsche along with Erwin Komenda the Gmünd Coupe came to be in just over 3 months. The body was made from hand-beat aluminum and spare VW parts. In the rear of the car sat an 1,086-cc air-cooled Boxer-4 motor. The general layout of the car is what’s used in Porsche sports cars today. Between 1948 and 1949 Porsche produced about 50 Gmünd Coupes. After the factory moved back to Stuttgart, Germany in 1951, the four remaining Gmünd chassis were converted to super-light (SL) spec race cars. Modifications included louvered quarter-window covers, wheel spats, larger fuel tank and a pedestal-mounted shifter. 2 of the 4 cars were prototypes while the other 2 entered the 1951 24-Hour of Le Mans. During the race, 1 of the Gmünd Coupes crashed, while the one shown here finished 11th overall and first in its 1,100-cc class. The car has since been restored by Roy Emory and has appeared on Jay Leno’s Garage.
Follow CarZach on Instagram
Subscribe to CarZach on YouTube