400 miles in 10 years?
All white including white walls and interior?
https://bringatrailer.com/list...e-356a-speedster-37/
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Nice car , but all white is not for me unless you want to have my paw prints everywhere 
But a great car for Florida !
Given that the man had the car built for himself (in a very personal style), it does seem odd that he ended up never driving it.
Still, I bought my Spyder a year ago, and it was 12 years old with only 525 miles on the odometer. It had just been sitting for all those years.
When I first put my Spyder on the road, I put 5,000 miles on it each YEAR for the first few years. Afterward, I averaged 4,000 a year.
Now that I'm retired, I still manage 1000 a year.
Lots of people don't really drive them. I don't understand that.
You really need to embrace the discomfort and quirkiness of the cars. I guess not everyone can or does.
It was nice to see the pre-2013 "standard 1915cc" Vintage Speedster get $55,000 on BaT last week. All it takes is the right two people "in the room".
Re: “embracing the experience”
Quirkiness, yes. Discomfort, respectfully no. If you can’t get comfortable, you won’t drive it.
The longer I go without seat time in my speedster, the more I'm moved to take advantage of the elevated costs and sell mine. But as soon as I drive it, those thoughts quickly vanish.
Kevin, in the city by the bay, it is amazing how the love affair that involves a spirited jaunt through the countryside in one's Speedster ( or Spyder) has such a glorious effect. Works every time.
I think my odo reads near 20,000. Hard to imagine, but there it is.
@Kevin - Bay Area posted:The longer I go without seat time in my speedster, the more I'm moved to take advantage of the elevated costs and sell mine. But as soon as I drive it, those thoughts quickly vanish.
TBH, I've really hated my car at least as much as I've loved it. Every time I think, even on some deeply subconscious level, about selling it -- I'm able to drive it. There's just no replacement.
I'm wrecked.
If you ever get to the Smokies and run wit the boyz, you'll be really, really wrecked.
It was 10 years ago this fall I was last on the west coast in my car. The travelogue (which I just reread to relive the experience) is HERE. (< that's a link) It's worth a read.
Drive em.
In 11 1/2 years of ownership I put about 58k miles on the Speedster. I cannot imagine owning such a fun car and not driving it. Still, like Stan there were plenty of times when I hated it. These cars inspire passion, and when the break, as they often do, that passion can turn to rage. Luckily I never pushed it into a swamp or set fire to it, although I was tempted. Boy was I tempted. 
Yeah, I'd love to have another one.
@Stan Galat posted:Re: “embracing the experience”
Quirkiness, yes. Discomfort, respectfully no. If you can’t get comfortable, you won’t drive it.
I'm certainly comfortable in the seat, and the driving position.
The "discomfort" maybe wasn't worded well.
I accept the manual steering and brakes. I accept it is difficult to get in and out of, depending on the condition of one's back. I accept the glare in the windshield off the painted dash, and reflection of the gauges at night when lit. I accept the noise and wind, etc... these things are what I termed "discomfort".
But too many people buy these cars for the "dream". The reality is not the same as the dream.
I think that is the true reason that mileage is often low.
I agree with all of that, Danny. Every word.
Hear hear.
And thanks for re-upping that epic 2014 road trip thread. It's one of the best on this site.
Just re-read Stan's great 2014 travelogue and was especially interested in his views of I70 west of Denver up into the Rockies. I rode along that route on a bicycle a few years back and it is all he says plus a bag of chips. The bike path runs either beside or beneath road level as a LOT of the time the interstate is elevated through the low spots. The path winds around some of the tunnels for traffic and those spots, on a bike, can often be breath-taking - Like hanging out on the side of a cliff, breath-taking.
You drive for hours along the interstate and have one "WOW!" moment after another. It is a truly amazing trip.
Thanks for re-posting that, Stan!
I've been to both coasts in my car (west coast twice). Looking back on that trip (and the one to Yosemite in 2012), I realized again just how blessed I've been in this life.
So richly blessed.
"I accept the manual steering and brakes. I accept it is difficult to get in and out of, depending on the condition of one's back. I accept the glare in the windshield off the painted dash, and reflection of the gauges at night when lit. I accept the noise and wind, etc... these things are what I termed "discomfort"."
I guess I've lived with this 'discomfort' for sixty years now. I could go through the list of discomfort producing cars I have owned, but they all were convertible two seater sports cars, and the discomfort has added up to a hell of a lot of fun over the years.
I would never have wanted anything different...
Thanks Stan for reposting the link to your cross country adventure. It was a fun read and one I can relate to. Hope to join the group in the Smokies sometime soon. The Subaru Schaubster is almost ready for a long road trip. I just need to get in shape after the knee work and the upcoming hand work.
This is the Colorado I70 Bike Path view. Robb and Jacquie and their US Olympic Women's Bobsled team member, Alyssa, posing beneath the curving I70 up to the left. The thing that looks like a guardrail is the 2-lane highway.
It is a beautifully paved bikepath that goes on like this for miles, following the Colorado River just off to their left.
I've done some really great biking adventures, but Colorado? Just WOW!
BTW, Robb winters in Naples, FL and I sent him the link to that white-on-white Speedster. He needs something like that to tool around in down there...
And the "Maroon Bells", high above Aspen:
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Eh, the bike thing in the Rockies, I'll leave that to you Gordo. Not sure I could have managed that even on my best day. But I have been on the interstate in my old '56 356A, several lifetimes ago. A great ride. Discomfort? Another , eh . . . Only real issue on that trip was having to replace the air correction jets on the Solexs in Denver for the slog up the range. Very easy to do if you can manage not to drop one down the throat.
OK, I gave Stan's travelogue a go, and got most of it. All I can say is I hope he wore a hat. I mentioned having driven I70 for most if not all of the length Stan did on his way out. The year was 1967, In October in my really very rusty 356A, 1600N Coupe. That was my six week sojourn that actually started and ended in Pittsburgh and had a week on the front end up to Montreal for the World Expo 67, with my once and future wife. I left her to her job in Pittsburgh and headed west. I was treating myself to some time off having endured at least 17 continuous academic years of schooling, not counting nursery school, before investing the next 42 years working for "the man". I gave myself about six weeks. So I lived in my 356, camped with a tent and propane stove/heater, hit cheap motels once in a while for a nice shower, stopped along the way to visit with friends and relatives, see some sights (Grand Canyon being one). I figured 500 mi per day was a long day. 3000 rpm was 60 mph more or less and that suited well enough. The highlight of the travel was, as you might imagine, the PCH from SF to LA and even as far south as SandyEggo. 17 Mile Drive, Monterey, Carmel ( i have the same picture of the same wind swept tree the EVERYBODY has). Glorious. As you all well know. And I recall, I had no issues with car or weather other than my last haul east on I10, having left from San Diego. Stayed in Kingman, and Albuquerque. I was weary and anxious to be done with the road for a while. I made it to just west of Lubbock, TX at the end of one day with the idea of taking a hard right turn later the next day in Louisiana to see if I could see NOLA. As the day wore on, with Lubbock Texas in my rearview mirror, I decided against New Orleans , and just wanted to get home. Was out of energy and money. So I pushed on. Getting dark when starting to head northeast in, i guess, TN. Weather getting colder and rainy. Pushing on . . . Decided I would probably stop somewhere short of WV, get something hot to eat, spend the night in a warm motel. Weather getting colder and having snow now. Looking for a motel and finding none. (recall: 1967, no internet, no phone, no GoogleMap) Now pretty much lost in the woods with nary a sight of civilization. More cold, and more snow. Heater boxes on the car not operable from inside the car. -- broke cable or something. They would be set open for summer driving and closed for winter driving from under the car. Pulled over in the wet, dark, cold, snowy forest and tried that. Could not get it done. Was really really tired and really cold. Pulled off the road and tried to nap. Too cold and uncomfortable, gave that up, and pressed on, regardless. Hit WV and sawed my way through interminable hills and curves on a two lane "turnpike". By all rights I should have died that night, but somehow managed not to blink off for very long at any one time and actually made it to Pittsburgh by morning. As I recall, that leg took 26 hrs. Never - EVER -- again. But it was a glorious trip anyway, if we cut that last day+ out. Trip of a lifetime, they say . . . I'd vote for that. Happy to be able to tell the tale.
A few years ago an imaginary internet friend enlisted my help in selling a white/white 911. I was appalled at first but it grew on me. I think it was especially nice once he replaced the standard black background Fuchs with the platinum ones and platinum script. I tried to talk him in to replace the whale tail, but he didn’t want to mess with it
But you can definitely have too much of a good thing. The first thing I’d do with that replica is replace the whitewalls and 8 slot wheels with 4 bolt Vintage 190’s
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It was the 80s, and cocaine was prolific. White on white made sense, easier to hide any powdery residue.
Three cars ago I had a Pontiac Sunbird, blue with a white convertible top and white interior. This thing was nice, in particular on sunny days, when it would still be bearable to sit in.
BTW the car was also my first with working A/C. A revelation.
Oh, your white interior gets dirty? Who tf cares?
@edsnova posted:Three cars ago I had a Pontiac Sunbird, blue with a white convertible top and white interior. This thing was nice, in particular on sunny days, when it would still be bearable to sit in.
BTW the car was also my first with working A/C. A revelation.
Oh, your white interior gets dirty? Who tf cares?
A good friend of mine in HS’ family had a car lot and consequently a lot of cool trade ins. For a while his little sister had a blue/white 75 Grand Ville convertible. I thought it was gorgeous, but she didn’t like it because it was so big. (It was a total Land Yacht, but could fit 6-8 scrawny HS kids, no problem)
One of the issues I helped Chris with was getting the driver’s seat cleaned up. I don’t know if this is universal, but the leather Porsche uses has grain that, in the lighter colors, gets dirt in the cracks that is very hard to remove.
In his case, a good cleaning with Griots leather cleaner/de-ordorizer and a fine brush, followed with a coat of leather dye, and they looked brand new.
eta: I got the name wrong, It’s Griot’s Odor Neutralizing Leather Cleaner and Leather Rejuvenator. (I guess “de-odorizer” implies your leather stinks) 
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@Wulfrik (John) posted:Given that the man had the car built for himself (in a very personal style), it does seem odd that he ended up never driving it.
More than likely, the original owner (it always seems to be a “He”) bought it for his wife or girlfriend. She drove it a few times, but found it too windy, too smelly, too bumpy and too noisy (or too much work, if it was a 4-speed standard) and wouldn’t drive it or ride in it after that. He drove it a few more times (It cost a lot, after all, so yah might as well drive the damn thing) but she wouldn’t go with him so there it sat. 441 miles in ten years is a pity.
Maybe it’s me, but I think it is not only gorgeous, but just about perfect. Not $48K perfect with those huge exhaust pipes, but pretty darn nice, just the same.
It would look very cool pulling up to Valet Parking at the Hyannis Yacht Club restaurant and saying, “How ‘bout I leave it right here off to the side til I come out so I don’t have to bother you guys with it?” 😉
@Gordon Nichols posted:It would look very cool pulling up to Valet Parking at the Hyannis Yacht Club restaurant and saying, “How ‘bout I leave it right here off to the side til I come out so I don’t have to bother you guys with it?” 😉
When I go up to Sundance I tell the parking lot attendant “I’m here to class the joint up a bit” and park right in front of the restaurant/lodge. I go in, grab a hot chocolate, and sit at one of the outside tables and watch the crowds gather.
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