JULY 10, 2019

Editor-In-Chief's Note: The passing of auto industry icon Lee Iacocca leaves me with decidedly mixed feelings. If you want to understand the depth and breadth of Iacocca's impact on the auto industry, there have been countless stories delineating his contributions over the last week, many of them gushing with praise. Yes, Iacocca accomplished a great deal in his storied career, including saving Chrysler (in one of the company's nine lives), and his campaign to restore the Statue of Liberty was welcomed and noteworthy. But then again, having worked on the Dodge account (1986-1989) in one of my past advertising lives, I got to see - and hear - more than I cared to about Lido Iacocca. And, needless to say, I don't share the enthusiasm for Iacocca that many others do. I have plenty of Iacocca stories, but suffice to say by the time I arrived on the scene Iacocca had immersed himself into being the big bucks, big ego, larger-than-life CEO who spent money like water and demanded absolute fealty from his executives and assorted minions. And it was a giant bowl of Not Good. To give you a picture of the real Iacocca, a BBDO executive (an Unctuous Prick of the first order who shall remain nameless) was such a reprehensible, loathsome individual that he was kicked out of BBDO's New York office in order to permanently exit him from the building. This lowlife scumbag was given the new assignment of being Iacocca's bag man based out of BBDO Detroit, to the tune of about (choke) $600k a year. The BBDO Detroit office was responsible for 80 percent of BBDO profit worldwide; so catering to Iacocca's whims was priority No. 1. What did that mean, exactly? Said Unctuous Prick became Lido's "best friend" as he was wont to boast, but what that really meant is that Iacocca tolerated him for one reason and one reason only, and that was because this guy - with BBDO's credit card - paid for everything that Iacocca did. The first-class travel to Iacocca's Italian villa, the five-star dinners, the assorted other trips, the luxury shopping for Lido and his various wives, you name it and BBDO paid for it. The Unctuous Prick said that in the entire time he knew Iacocca, Lido paid for exactly one meal for the two of them out of his own pocket, and it was for hot dogs from a street cart vendor in New York. Yes, it was a different time and a a different era, and those kinds of "relationships" between clients and ad agencies are long gone, but make no mistake, Iacocca subsidized his lifestyle with his ad agency's money. Check that, Iacocca lived like a king off of his ad agency and thought nothing of it, because he was entitled to do so, from his point of view. As I said last week, by the time I joined BBDO on the Dodge account, Chrysler was in a decline, and Iacocca was slow to realize it. I distinctly remember presenting creative for a new ad campaign through the blue haze of cigar smoke puffed by Iacocca, Lutz and other executives, and on that day I sensed that Lee was tired and barely had his head in the game. And that proved to be true. Yes, Iacocca accomplished a great deal, but he was a complex guy whose public persona didn't exactly match who he really was. -PMD

(Chevrolet)
The new, mid-engine, 2020 Chevrolet Corvette will make its official debut on the evening of July 18, 2019, in Orange County, California. The event can be viewed via livestream at 7:30 p.m. PDT/10:30 p.m. EDT and can be accessed through media.chevrolet.com/nextgenCorvette. The stream will include Corvette video footage, a hosted preshow and the reveal presentation. Following the reveal, the new Corvette will hit the road for two national dealership tours that will include vehicle specialists and numerous interactive displays. At these events, Chevy dealers will host customers to showcase the new mid-engine supercar, display customizable parts (seats, wheels, accessories, etc.) and teach people how they can personalize their own Corvette. The tours will begin on the East and West Coasts and stop at more than 125 select dealerships across the U.S. starting after the reveal and extending through early 2020. Tour dates and cities will be available starting on July 19.

(BMW)
Editor-In-Chief's Note: BMW insists that its new, all-electric MINI Cooper SE "is Mini to its core." We'll see about that, but in the meantime here are the highlights: It has an electric motor with 181HP (135 kW) and 199 lb-ft of torque (270 Nm) that was developed for the BMW i3. The range is 114 miles, although US EPA estimated range figures are not available as of yet (which means, with that range it's pretty much obsolete before it even arrives in Mini showrooms). The all-electric Mini can be charged at a household 120 volt socket, wall-mounted charger or public charging stations (fast direct-current charging is possible at up to 50 kW). Acceleration is from zero to 62 MPH in 7.3 seconds, with a top speed (limited) of 93 mph. Standard equipment features include LED headlamps, 2-zone automatic air conditioning, heating with heat pump technology, auxiliary heating, electric parking brake and Connected Navigation. Pricing will be revealed closer to its in-market arrival, which is said to be early next year. I say good luck with that, but I wouldn't be surprised if Mini fades out of this market by 2025, if not sooner. -PMD

(Photo copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photo by Mathieu Heurtault.)
One of the cars that Gooding & Company, the official auction house of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®, will auction off at the company’s annual Pebble Beach auctions on August 16 and 17, 2019, is this gorgeous 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Series I Cabriolet. The iconic Series I Cabriolet was the most exclusive, elegant and expensive Ferrari road car of its era. One of only 40 Series I Cabriolets built, chassis 0789 GT is one of just four equipped with the most desirable combination of coachwork details: covered headlights, side vents, and bumperettes. Like all Series I Cabriolets, 0789 GT was handbuilt by Pinin Farina’s custom workshop, where it was finished to the highest standards for one of Ferrari’s VIP clients, the eccentric aristocrat, playboy, and actor, Prince Alessandro “Dado” Ruspoli of Rome. Ruspoli was the ideal buyer for such a Ferrari, both in terms of his social status and glamorous image. Dado was known as a notorious socialite - the inspiration behind Fellini’s film “La Dolce Vita” - and was often seen driving his exotic sports cars around with such iconic figures as Salvador Dalí, Brigitte Bardot, Truman Capote and Pablo Picasso. Prince Ruspoli eventually sold the Series I to continue paying for his lavish lifestyle, and the car remained in the care of devoted Italian enthusiasts throughout the 1970s and ’80s. This Series I Cabriolet then came to the U.S. and was owned by Ron Hein, a notable restorer and collector whose cars have won multiple awards. Hein’s restoration of 0789 GT was extremely well received, with the car taking First in Class at the 1994 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance®, the 1994 Santa Barbara Concours d’Elegance® and the 1994 Newport Beach Concours d’Elegance®. Additionally, it won Best of Show at the 1996 FCA Vintage Concours in Carmel Valley, and the Outstanding GT award at both the 1995 and 1997 Rodeo Drive Concours in Beverly Hills. This exceptional car is beautifully finished in black with a stunning green interior. Interested? Bring boatloads of money, because it is expected to be sold for between $7,000,000 - $8,000,000.

(Bentley images)
Bentley says it is reimagining "The future of Grand Touring" with its Bentley EXP 100 GT concept. The Bentley PR boffins didn't stop there; they went on to say that the EXP 100 GT is "a physical embodiment of the future Bentley brand, it sets the benchmark for sustainable luxury mobility that is autonomous and electric." It features a zero emissions powertrain with a predicted range of up to 700km range. (Sure.) It is set up for fully-autonomous driving as well, in case you get bored with the whole Grand Touring thing. It's still a Bentley, of course, with "luxury craftsmanship with seamless fusion of materials and intelligent curation of technology, and introducing light as a new luxury material," according to Bentley. What does Bentley mean by sustainable? The EXP 100 GT concept uses 5,000-year-old Copper Infused Riverwood; Compass exterior paint made from recycled rice husks; 100% organic leather-like textile from wine making; Cumbrian crystal interfaces; British Farmed Wool carpets and embroidered cotton interior surfaces. So there. You can watch the film here. 

(Emory Motorsports images)
World-renowned Porsche 356 Builder Rod Emory, owner of Emory Motorsports, has created another one-off Porsche: The Emory Outlaw 911K. “This slab-sided Emory Outlaw 911K is unique,” Rod Emory says. “We specialize in 356s, and we did this 1968 911 SWB as a one-time commission for a special client. The inspiration for this car comes from Porsche 908-010, a K-bodied sports prototype once piloted by Vic Elford. The design cues and livery from that car lend themselves beautifully to this build.”

The 911K’s interior includes 908-inspired front seats with fire-retardant Spanish Red Veltex covers and MOMO 5-point competition harnesses. The MOMO influence continues to the Prototipo steering wheel and shift knob for the 901 five-speed transmission. Other custom additions include the removable roll bar, lightweight door panels and pulls, and leather window straps.

Power for the 911K comes from a later 2.5-liter twin-plug 911 engine. The hot-rodded six-cylinder produces 190HP with the help of an MSD brain, Weber 40 IDA 3C carburetors, and 908-style cookie-cutter megaphones. Other details include a 935 “flat” cooling fan and shroud, hand-laid amber fiberglass airboxes, and a full-flow oil system with remote filter and cooler. A Fuel Safe fuel cell with through-fender competition filler feeds the engine. Emory Motorsports upgraded the brakes with 911 S alloy calipers with custom rotors and hats. Grip is courtesy of the Pirelli CN36 tires on custom 15x7 908-inspired 5-spoke wheels by 1552 rotating on Porsche 935 Carrera centerlock hubs. The suspension was chosen with track days in mind: 3-way fully adjustable KW coil-over gas shocks that provide great drivability in a variety of conditions. Every aspect of the car is built for agility and the essential design language of Porsche’s early works prototypes and 911s are retained as an echo of Porsche Motorsports’ competition vehicles from 1960s. This is "a unique and purposeful combination of mechanical parts and a sleek bullet-shaped body which produce the perfect track and rally weapon," according to Emory Motorsports PR minions. The 911K acknowledges its motorsports brethren with distinct cues such as the amber fiberglass dashcap, Porsche Light Ivory paint with signal-yellow accent and hand-painted Mobil Pegasus for that authentic touch  Air horns and auxiliary lights define the car’s rally stance from the front. Other body modifications include mesh intake guards, a twin-grille decklid, R-style deck lid hinges and R-style bumpers.  

AE Favorite Lyrics of the Week:

If I could dig down deep in my heart
Feelings would flood on the page
Would it satisfy ya, would it slide on by ya
Would ya think the boy's insane? He's insane
I said I know it's only rock 'n roll but I like it
I said I know it's only rock'n roll but I like it, like it, yes, I do

- Rolling Stones