It's a game every car enthusiast has played many times - given all the money in the world, which five cars would you like to own most? In this new series, our writers and guest contributors will be sharing their own five-car fantasy garages. First up - Hannes Oosthuizen
As you will quickly gather from my selection, I'm not one for over-the-top supercars and speed. For me driving enjoyment or, in this instance "owning enjoyment" comes at least equally from the aesthetic pleasure these machines provide. I see cars as rolling works of art, and for me these 5 cars represent the ultimate in that regard.
Citroën DS Convertible
No surprise here - my love for the Goddess is well documented - but of course if I could pick one it would be a Chapron convertible. Citroën built fewer than 1 500 of these, so they command a hefty premium and are leading the charge when it comes to lifting overall DS desirability and values.
It's not surprising that the DS has such amazingly voluptuous curves, yet is so aerodynamically efficient; its designer was Flaminio Bertoni, an Italian sculptor, while aeronautics engineer André Lefèbvre oversaw the engineering.
Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale
Just look at it. Penned by the great Franco Scaglione, only 18 examples of the drop-dead gorgeous 33 Stradale were made and these days they’re almost never traded, so nobody knows what they’re worth (but we can safely assume: lots!). It was built to be a roadgoing version of Alfa Romeo’s 33 racing car, and at the time (the late Sixties), was one of the fastest cars in the world. Circa 1968, it was the world’s most expensive “production car”.
Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray
Is there a car that looks as good when viewed from the top as Chevrolet’s iconic 1963 Corvette Stingray? Designed to resemble the marine creature from which it takes its name, the famous Corvette Stingray had a spine that ran from the edge of the front bonnet to the tip of its backside, necessitating the famous split rear window. It was only produced in this form for 1 year, which makes it even more special and 1 of the coolest cars in the history of muscle cars.
Ferrari 250 GT Lusso
The Ferrari 250 GTO will forever be the classic Ferrari that makes lists of the most expensive, or desirable, or historically significant cars… but there are few Ferraris as cool as the 250 GT Lusso. As the last of the 250-series cars, the Lusso was conceived to be more of a tourer than the racy 250 GT, and was designed by Pininfarina and built by Scaglietti. It is widely regarded as one of the most elegant Ferraris of all time. And guess what? It even looks good in brown. Steve McQueen – arguably the coolest man ever – owned a brown 250 GT Lusso. Enough said.
Talbot-Lago T150 CSS Figoni & Falaschi
I can look at this car's design for hours at a time. The little-known French marque’s cars – the T150 CSS with the spectacularly curvaceous Figoni & Falaschi “teardrop” body, in particular – are highly sought-after at exclusive car auctions, where they fetch suitably stratospheric prices… Only 14 of the T150 CSS were made and it was a high performer, too – a near-showroom stock T150 CSS finishing 3rd at Le Mans in 1938.