Retromotive

03/19/2026

The Land Cruiser 70 Series quietly proves that idea still works.

Visually, it feels like two eras colliding. Retro round LED lights, but the same boxy shape and slightly awkward bonnet that sometimes moves at speed. Underneath, it is pure old school. Frame, solid axles, low range, simple 4x4 system. And that is exactly why people still buy it.

The 70 Series is officially sold in many regions where reliability matters more than refinement: Australia, Japan (back since 2023), Middle East, Africa, South America. In total, around 140. Europe and the US are excluded due to emissions and safety regulations. Engines depend on the market. A 2.8 diesel with an automatic is now available, while Australia still gets the 4.5 V8 diesel. There is also a petrol V6 in some regions. The newer drivetrain works well, but lacks the character of the bigger engines.

Inside, things get interesting. Part 1980s utility vehicle, part modern Toyota. You get manual sliders for ventilation next to buttons for safety systems. Classic shapes, simple materials, and then suddenly a digital display trying to not look nostalgic. Cars like this no longer make sense on paper. Expensive, inefficient, outdated. Most buyers will never need what it offers. But take it far enough from the city, and everything changes. Because when things go wrong, simplicity matters more than technology. And this is where the Land Cruiser still wins.

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03/18/2026

The Iso Rivolta A3/C is already an unusual machine. A 1960s Italian racer powered by a big Chevrolet V8, designed with performance and reliability in mind. But what makes this example even more interesting is not the engine or the results. It is the body.

You can see every panel, every line, every rivet. The famous “mille chiodi” look is not styling. It is how the car was actually built. And it feels… different. A bit rough. But also more real than most restored classics today. Set against the architecture of Abbazia di Staffarda, the mix of brick, stone and shadow adds texture and contrast, reinforcing the car’s raw, unfinished character.

There are small details that make it even more interesting. The engine sits so far back that some parts can be reached from inside the cabin. Italian design on the outside, and American V8 pragmatism underneath.

It is a slightly chaotic idea that somehow worked well enough to win its class at Le Mans. But more importantly, it shows how these cars were actually built, not how we prefer to remember them today.

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03/18/2026

You get the new i3. Not the old quirky city car, but an electric version of the 3 Series. The car BMW quietly depends on more than anything else. And surprisingly, it looks right. The proportions are clean. Low, balanced, properly BMW. No design drama for the sake of attention. Which, in today’s EV world, already feels like a small victory.

Underneath, things get more serious. Dual motors, around 460 horsepower, and up to 560 miles of range. That number sounds almost unrealistic, and probably depends heavily on conditions and optimism. Still, it shows how far battery tech has moved. Charging is equally ambitious. BMW claims up to 250 miles in 10 minutes, assuming you can actually find a charger powerful enough. That part of the future is still catching up.

Inside, the story becomes more complicated. There is a lot of tech. Screens, projections across the windscreen, AI systems, multiple control layers. BMW calls it progress. Some will call it distraction. The classic simplicity of older 3 Series interiors is clearly gone. And that might be the real issue.

For decades, the 3 Series was about driving. Balance, feedback, connection. Now it is about software, range figures and digital ecosystems. Faster, smarter, more efficient. But maybe also a bit more distant. The new i3 could be BMW’s most important electric car yet. The question is whether it still feels like a 3 Series.

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03/17/2026

Sounds wrong. But in 1978, Mercedes actually did it with the C111-III. Instead of chasing power, they chased efficiency. The car used a 3.0 litre turbo diesel with just 230 hp. Nothing special on paper. But the shape was extreme. Long tail, covered wheels, almost no drag. Just 0.183 Cd.

The result was 325 km/h at Nardò and nine world records. Inside, it was all business. One seat. No comfort. Just data, airflow and focus. Still, it was never meant to be a real car. It took time to reach top speed, needed perfect conditions and existed mainly to prove a point.

Today diesel is slowly disappearing from the performance conversation. Yet decades ago, Mercedes proved it could be fast. Really fast.

Maybe the real limitation was never the fuel🤔

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03/16/2026

That was the story of the Maserati Bora Group 4.

In the early 1970s, French importer Jean Thepenier convinced Maserati to build two racing versions of the Bora. The factory agreed, but only as a private project. Early testing was promising. The car was quick. In some cases quicker than rivals like the Ferrari Daytona, the De Tomaso Pantera and even certain racing versions of the Porsche 911. Drivers also praised its strong brakes and balanced handling.

But motorsport politics stepped in. Alejandro de Tomaso pointed out that Maserati had not built the 500 road cars required for Group 4 homologation. The rules were suddenly enforced and the Bora project was stopped before it could properly compete. A strange twist followed. Only a few years later De Tomaso himself would end up owning Maserati. Proof that sometimes the cars are ready. It is the rules that are not.

🔑&📷: .be ◾️

03/16/2026

Apparently you get Tokyo. For the first time the well known air cooled Porsche gathering arrived in Japan, taking over the former KK Line expressway in central Tokyo. Around 11,600 visitors came to see roughly 220 cars displayed along the two kilometre elevated road that had served the city for more than six decades before being decommissioned in 2025.

The location itself is arguably the real star. The KK Line once carried traffic between Kyobashi and Shimbashi. Today it waits to become a future green space. For one evening it instead became a stage for classic Porsches and carefully curated car culture photography. Events like Luftgekühlt always promise storytelling rather than just a car show. And to be fair, the cars on display were impressive. Historic race machines such as the Porsche 910 shared space with rare road cars including several examples of the ultra limited 964 N GT, sometimes called the Macau 964.

Still, there is something slightly ironic about events like this. The air cooled Porsche era originally represented simplicity, engineering purity and cars built to be driven hard. Today many of these machines live under museum lights, surrounded by merchandise stands and perfectly composed Instagram angles. None of this makes the cars less interesting. But it does make you wonder whether the culture around them has changed more than the machines themselves. Then again, an empty Tokyo expressway filled with air cooled Porsches is not the worst way to spend an evening. And yes, this unusual gathering was part of the latest Luftgekühlt exhibition in Tokyo.

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03/15/2026

In 2010, for a brief moment, the automotive world stopped arguing about horsepower, hybrid systems, and Nürburgring lap times. The only number that mattered was speed. The record belonged to the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. Bugatti celebrated the achievement with the Veyron Super Sport World Record Edition, finished in exposed carbon fibre and the now famous Bugatti orange. It looked dramatic and unapologetic. Subtlety was clearly not part of the brief.

Recently Bugatti restored a pre series development car connected to that project through its heritage program called La Maison Pur Sang. This particular car had travelled more than 70,000 kilometres during development work, media tours and demonstrations around the world before returning to Molsheim for a six month refurbishment.

Interior leather restored. Carbon fibre refinished. Electronics and cooling systems updated to production specification. The enormous quad turbo W16 engine and gearbox remain original. Still, the whole story raises a slightly uncomfortable question.

The Veyron was once the symbol of engineering excess. Four turbochargers, 16 cylinders and a development budget rumoured to be close to absurd. Today that philosophy feels both legendary and slightly outdated. The industry has shifted toward electrification, efficiency and software defined performance. And yet cars like the Veyron remind us of a different era. One where engineers were simply asked a dangerous question.

How fast can we go if money is not the problem? The answer, at least in 2010, was 431 km/h.

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03/14/2026

Architecture and automobiles often follow the same rules: proportion, balance, and restraint.
messner ’s Maserati 2.24v II, featured in Retromotive Volume 24, reflects exactly that philosophy. Designed within the Biturbo era and refined by Marcello Gandini, the compact Maserati hides its character behind a discreet silhouette. Until the road opens and the twin turbo V6 begins to work.

Finished in a rare Bleu Ischia metallizzato over Verde micalizzato bicolore, this example still wears its original paint and has already travelled thousands of kilometres through Alpine roads since joining David’s garage. A quiet coupe with a mischievous personality once the wastegates wake up.

Read the full story in Retromotive Volume 24📚
Available in digital and printed editions, with worldwide shipping.

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03/14/2026

When it debuted in 1990, it surprised even Mercedes fans. Massive fender extensions, aggressive bumpers and one of the most outrageous rear wings ever fitted to a road car. For a brand known for restrained executive sedans, it almost felt rebellious. The reason was simple. Racing. The Evo II was built to homologate the W201 platform for Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft competition. To qualify, Mercedes had to build at least 500 road cars. In typical German fashion they built 502 just to be safe.

All were finished in Blue Black Metallic and powered by a high revving 2.5 litre four cylinder producing 235 horsepower. Closely related to the DTM racing unit, the engine would later produce well over 350 hp in competition. Top speed reached 250 km/h, impressive for a compact sedan of the early 1990s. Aerodynamics were key. The large rear wing was adjustable and developed in the wind tunnel to stabilise the car at speed.

The Evo II was never meant to be a comfortable daily Mercedes. It was expensive, firm riding and its high revving engine demanded commitment. Yet that is exactly what made it unforgettable. Today it remains one of the boldest homologation sedans Stuttgart ever built. One example of the Evo II, chassis number 222, is currently part of the Youngtimer display at the

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03/13/2026

A forgotten EV in an impound yard just sold for $100,000. Not because it was rare. Because it was never meant to exist anymore. The car was a GM EV1, one of the most controversial vehicles in modern automotive history. Introduced in 1997, it was the first purpose built electric car from a major manufacturer in the modern era. Not a converted petrol car, not a concept. A real production EV designed from the ground up.

Technically, the EV1 was decades ahead of its time. It pioneered regenerative braking logic, heat pump climate systems and electronic drive by wire controls that are now common in modern EVs. Its aluminum space frame also foreshadowed lightweight structures later used in sports cars like the Corvette.

But the story has always been complicated. The EV1 was never sold. Customers could only lease it. When the program ended, GM recalled almost every example and destroyed most of them. Only a handful survived in museums and universities. For years the EV1 became less a car and more a symbol of a future that briefly appeared, then vanished.

Recently one surviving EV1 surfaced in an impound lot in Georgia. A private collector bought it and, together with the YouTube channel Questionable Garage, launched an ambitious restoration called Project V212. Even more surprising, GM itself stepped in to help the project with parts and technical support.

Thirty years later, the EV1 remains a strange chapter in automotive history.

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03/12/2026

Looking back at a fantastic few days at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival.

Our cars taking to the streets of Adelaide were part of an important moment for us, the introduction of Rennen Plus to the community.

From the sound of engines through the city circuit to the conversations in the paddock, it was great to share our cars and our new platform with so many passionate enthusiasts.

A big thank you to the partners who supported the launch:
Rennen ITBs by JSR, Fabspeed Motorsport, Perma Tune, TECHART, and TracTive Suspension.

We’re proud to have these brands working alongside us as Rennen Plus begins its journey in Australia.

Looking back at a fantastic few days at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival.Our cars taking to the streets of Adelaide were part of an important moment for us, ...

03/12/2026

The new Amalfi Spider is the open version of the grand tourer that replaced the Roma. Visually little has changed below the beltline. The proportions remain clean and muscular, now paired with a soft fabric roof that opens in 13.5 seconds. Power comes from the same twin turbo 3.9 litre V8 producing 631 horsepower, sent to the rear wheels through an eight speed dual clutch gearbox. Ferrari claims 0 to 62 mph in 3.3 seconds and a top speed close to 199 mph.

The Spider does carry compromises. It weighs almost 200 pounds more than the coupe and the rear seats remain largely decorative. Fabric roofs also rarely match the refinement of a hard top. Still, removing the roof brings one undeniable benefit. More of the Ferrari V8 soundtrack.

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