Throwback: Louisville Concours d\’Elegance 2010 & 2011

2008 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione

In 2006, Alfa Romeo returned to the U.S. after 11 years away from the market. The following year, the first of 500 8C Competizone coupes landed on our shores.

The above example, a 2008 model, was the 84th of 90 total imported to the U.S., bringing with it its Ferrari/Maserati-derived 4.7-liter cross-plane V8. Max power was 444 horses and 354 lb-ft of torque to the rear 20-inch wheels through a six-speed manual transaxle.

Along with the 500 spiders made between 2008 and 2010 (35 of which wound up in the U.S.), the 8C Competizone is a rare sight on the road even today. I was certainly happy to see it in Louisville on a cold, windy October day in 2011.

Ford GT

For three years in the mid-2000s, Ford was the cock of the walk with the GT. Produced between 2004 and 2006 for the 2005 and 2006 model years, a total of 4,038 GTs left Michigan, 3,221 of which stayed in the United States.

And what did new GT owners receive? A mid-engine beast with a 5.4-liter V8 with an Eaton supercharger on top. The combination delivered 550 horses and 500 lb-ft of torque to the rear through a six-speed manual with a helical limited-slip diff. All that power pushed the GT and its two lucky occupants to a top speed of 205 mph.

As the GT was part of Ford\’s 100th anniversary in concept form back in 2002, the production version included a special Easter egg: the headlights were designed so that the left pod read \”100.\” And, like the GT40 before it, the new GT went racing, securing a third-place spot in the 2011 Le Mans 24 in the GTE class.

1966 Ford Mustang

Campaigned by the late NHRA legend Hubert \”Hue-Baby\” Platt, this \’66 Mustang was one of the first funny cars on the scene in the mid-Sixties. Platt started off in the Super Stock class — which would evolve into the Funny Car class within a few short years — tearing it up all over the Southern match-race circuit at his peak.

The gold long-nose Mustang fastback was built for Platt by Holman-Moody, and was the dominate Ford in the U.S. during 1966 through mid-1967. The unblown, fuel-injected, nitro-powered 427 SOHC V8 helped the drag racer win the \’67 NHRA Winternationals in the A/XS class with an E.T. of 8.49 at 171.42 mph, the best performance of this pony\’s career.

Platt left this mortal coil at the age of 83 in 2015 after battling cancer in a Georgia hospice. Yet, his legacy lives on today through the cars he used to build his legend, like this gold \’66 Mustang fastback.