Cars and Coffee kicks off local car show season
An arbitrary date on the calendar does not signal the arrival of spring. But it does for car fans, for whom spring means an opportunity to bring their cherished cars to Cars and Coffee at Brookline’s Larz Anderson Auto Museum. Over a cup of joe and chit-chat, fans can check out an amazing assortment of collectible cars and talk the nuts and bolts of restoration.
The Larz Anderson museum launched its Cars and Coffee events in 2011. Though the showing was small that year, it was made up of incredibly rare cars, such as a Ferrari 599 GTO and Mercedes-Benz 300SL convertible. This year, with the help of the local enthusiast group Yuppieracing.net and museum organizers, more than 250 cars showed up at last Saturday’s opening meet-up. Some brought cars worthy of museum display.
There were examples of BMW M3s, Audi S4s, and many other European performance machines, all with various levels of modification. There were also Corvettes and Mustangs. That selection made up the majority of the lower grass area. As with many of the car shows hosted by the museum, the most exceptional machines were located in the upper parking lot, in front of the museum entrance.
The all-terrain Pinzgauer was the first car to draw attention. The Pinzgauer is a troop transporter, Austrian in origin, and something you don’t typically see, well, anywhere. Nearby, was a Porsche Carrera GT, the automaker’s second attempt at a supercar, with a 5.7-liter V10 stuffed behind the driver. It was a Carrera GT that “Fast and Furious’’ star Paul Walker was a passenger in when he died. That should be a reminder of the dangerous power and speed these vehicles are capable of.
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Scenes from Cars and Coffee at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum
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Cars and trucks like these are mentioned in online forums but seldom does one see such special vehicles out in the open. Take, for example, the Zenos E10 that looks like nothing else on the road—probably because it was designed for the racetrack. It has no windshield, doors that don’t open, and a five-point harness system instead of seat belts. The lightweight body features fluorescent green panels, under which purrs a 200-horsepower engine sourced from Ford. This, mind you, with a mere weight of 1,430 pounds, which will get from 0 to 60 in just 4.5 seconds. It’s actually a road-legal machine, capable of driving to and from the track.
In order to acquire the coffee at the premiere Cars and Coffee event, show goers needed to step foot inside the museum, and in doing so, they were treated to an even greater automotive surprise. The museum has just opened the exhibit, “Marque of Excellence,’’ which features some of the most important cars from Porsche and BMW motorsport. Both brands have a long and storied career in the racing world, and this collection is a celebration of that history.
A bright red Porsche 959 greets visitors at the museum entrance. To the untrained eye, it may look like a 911, but it is actually Porsche’s first attempt at a supercar (you’ll recall the Carrera GT was the brand’s second). Featuring a twin-turbocharged engine and all-wheel-drive, it was the world’s fastest road legal production car when it came out in 1986.
There’s also a Porsche 962, a pure race car bred for dominance on the track. From the massive rear fixed wing to the “Jagermeister’’ advertisements emblazoned on all sides, it’s clear to see that this vehicle lives on the hot tarmac of a race track, doing battle at places like Le Mans.
Step into the back room, and you’ll find a BMW M1, the automaker’s first foray into supercars. The brand’s only other true supercar, the new BMW i8, joins it. The replica of the i8 is mounted to the wall in an enlightening display, and represents the future of automotive performance. Its lightweight construction and hybrid drivetrain represent the blueprint of what the supercar will be in the decades to come.
“Marque of Excellence’’ runs through Spring of 2017. The next Cars & Coffee at Larz Anderson will be Saturday, June 11, and the Larz Lawn Event season—with events that focus on one specific automaker or genre of vehicle—starts this Sunday (May 15) with Cadillac Day, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
To learn more about these events and others like it, go to www.larzanderson.org.
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