Concours D'Elegance 2013

Did You Know? - The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car by the Chevrolet division of General Motors (GM) that has been produced in seven generations. The first model, a convertible, was designed by Harley Earl and introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car.

Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after the type of small, maneuverable warship called a corvette. Originally built in Flint, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri, the Corvette is currently manufactured in Bowling Green, Kentucky and is the official sports car of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Did You Know? - Dalmatians are perhaps best known for their role as fire-fighting apparatus escorts and firehouse mascots. Since Dalmatians and horses are very compatible, the dogs were easily trained to run in front of the carriages to help clear a path and quickly guide the horses and firefighters to the fires.

Dalmatians are often considered to make good watchdogs, and they may have been useful to fire brigades as guard dogs to protect a firehouse and its equipment. Fire engines used to be drawn by fast and powerful horses, a tempting target for thieves, so Dalmatians were kept in the firehouse as deterrence to theft.

Did You Know? - Hot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another possible origin includes modifications to or replacement of the camshaft(s), sometimes known as a "stick" or "rod".

A camshaft designed to produce more power is sometimes called a "hot stick" or a "hot rod". Roadsters were the cars of choice because they were light. The term became commonplace in the 1930s or 1940s as the name of a car that had been "hopped up" by modifying the engine in various ways to achieve higher performance.

Did You Know? - Gull-wing door (German: Flügeltüren) is an automotive industry term describing car doors that are hinged at the roof rather than the side, as pioneered by the 1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL race car (W194) and its road-legal version (W198) introduced in 1954.

Opening upwards, the doors evoke the image of a seagull's wings. In French they are portes papillon (butterfly doors). The papillon door, slightly different in its architecture from a gullwing door – which Jean Bugatti designed in 1939, fourteen years before Mercedes-Benz produced its similar, famous 300SL gullwing door – is a pre-cursor, but is often overlooked when discussing "Gull-wing" design. Conventional car doors are typically hinged at the front-facing edge of the door and the door swings outward in a horizontal plane.

Did You Know? - All 1,690 regular-production Skylarks built in 1953 (and all in 1954) were convertibles .

Did You Know? - Playboy Motor Car Corporation was a Buffalo, New York-based automobile company, established in 1947. The company only produced 97 cars before going bankrupt in 1951.

The Playboy had a 40 hp (30 kW) Continental four-cylinder sidevalve engine driving a three-speed manual transmission. It would get 35 mpg-US (6.7 L/100 km; 42 mpg-imp). It would accelerate from 0-30 mph (48 km/h) in six seconds, and 0-50 mph (80 km/h) in 17 seconds. Advertised top speed was 75 mph (121 km/h).

With a 90-inch (2,300 mm) wheelbase (10" {250 mm} less than the Rambler American), the Playboy measured 156 inches (4,000 mm) overall, and was priced at just US $985. It ran on 12 in (30 cm) rims, and weighed 1,900 lb (860 kg). It was offered as a three-passenger convertible with a folding steel top. (A station wagon was planned, but never built.)

Under-capitalized, Playboy could not compete with better-financed companies offering more conventional cars.

Did You Know? - The Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud was the core model of the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars range from April 1955 until March 1966. It replaced the Silver Dawn and was, in turn, replaced by the Silver Shadow. They made 7,372 between 1955 and 1966.

Did You Know? - A phaeton is a style of open car or carriage without weather protection. It is an automotive development of the fast, lightweight phaeton carriage. Originally meant to denote a faster and lighter vehicle than a touring car, the two terms eventually became interchangeable. A popular style of phaeton was the dual cowl phaeton, with a cowl separating the rear passengers from the driver and front passenger.

Phaetons fell from favour when closed cars and convertibles became widely available in the 1930s. Convertibles and pillarless hardtops were marketed as "phaetons" after actual phaetons were phased out.

The term phaeton had earlier referred to a light, open four-wheeled carriage, which again referred to the disastrous ride of the mythical Phaëton, son of Helios, who set the earth on fire while attempting to drive the chariot of the sun.

Did You Know? - Lincoln quickly became one of America's top selling luxury in 1902 brands alongside Cadillac and Packard and in 1927, Lincoln adopted the greyhound as the emblem to be featured as their hood ornament, symbolising stamina, speed and beauty.

Did You Know? - Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 – June 29, 1933) was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. Starting at the Selig Polyscope Company he eventually moved to Keystone Studios where he worked with Mabel Normand and Harold Lloyd. He mentored Charlie Chaplin and discovered Buster Keaton and Bob Hope.

Arbuckle was one of the most popular silent stars of the 1910s, and soon became one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood, signing a contract in 1921 with Paramount Pictures for an unprecedented US$1 million.

Did You Know? - A running board is a narrow step fitted under the side doors of a car or truck. It aids entry, especially into high vehicles, and is typical of vintage cars, which had much higher ground clearances than today's vehicles. It is also used as a fashion statement on vehicles that would not otherwise require it.

Running boards may also be used to stand on while the vehicle is moving. The name running board is also given to safety appliances for walking on rail cars.

Gangsters in the early 20th century used running boards to get a good aim at police officers, and rival gangsters. They stood on them while the getaway car was moving at high speed.

Did You Know? - The Studebaker Avanti was a personal luxury coupé built by the Studebaker Corporation between June 1962 and December 1963. Studebaker itself referred to the Avanti as "America's Only 4 Passenger High-Performance Personal Car!" in its sales literature. The Avanti was developed at the direction of the automaker's president, Sherwood Egbert.

Did You Know? - A hatstand (UK spelling), hatrack (US spelling) or hall tree is a device used to store hats and often coats on, and umbrellas within. Some upscale catalogues in Europe markets it as a portmanteau.

The front hall was the introduction to the house, and as such was an important part of the Victorian home. Furnishings were selected not only to make it a useful place to hang a hat and coat, store an umbrella and leave a calling card, but also to show family wealth, social position and knowledge of current styles. A hall stand or a hatrack was the most important piece of furniture.