In addition to importing Porsches, Max Hoffman was also the first to introduce the Volkswagen Beetle and Mercedes gullwing to the states, of which a couple examples were displayed in the Circle of Legends. Obviously, we fell in love with the VW.
To save time from having to wait and transfer trains from Manhattan, we decide to rent a car and drive to the event. The inaugural show last year had a nice turnout and gathering of cars, but and as soon as we arrived at de Seversky Mansion we knew DTA 2 was going to be bigger due to the long caravan of Porsche’s still waiting to enter the grounds.
Discussion Panel and Auction Cars
This year’s Driven To America included a live discussion panel hosted by Hagerty with Road & Track editor-in-chief, Larry Webster, Road Scholars owner, Cam Ingram; and Ray Schaffer, Porsche Classic & Delivery Center Manager at PecAtl. Below is a short snippet – sorry for the camera shake – of the panel talking about Max Hoffman.
In addition, there were a couple of cars on display to be auctioned off by RM Sotheby’s the following month, including a completely restored Porsche Tractor Junior and the Paris-Dakar Porsche 959 No. 186 in Rothman’s livery.
Art, Charity and Race Cars
While the DJ was spinning tunes, artist Caleb Nelson Carter applied paint to canvas and created artwork of cars and motors all day. We caught a glimpse of Caleb working on a Porsche 356 Speedster Zagato. Pretty, but what’s a Porsche Zagato? They’re one-off creations by Milan company Zagato; a family owned design house since 1919, which makes unique versions of sports cars that have been destroyed or have completely vanished. Their craftsmanship is renowned and a Porsche Zagato built on an original 356 body will set you back $350K-$500K.Yikes!
Among the classic 356’s and Speedsters were also a few race cars, including Ed Hyman’s white with blue race stripes 356 with a worn-in custom wrapped leather steering wheel, as well as Joe Buzzettas’ 904 Carrera GTS, 906, and 907 which have been carefully tended by David Metz for years. One of them required a little assistance getting to it’s final staging area. How many men does it take to push a vintage race car up a hill?
Meanwhile, on the back lawn, there were plenty of colorful Porsche’s to feast your eyes on, including several S’s and Carrera RS’s. Nestled among these 911’s were two backdated ROCS Motorsports outlaw art-cars. The distressed and hand-painted details on the exteriors and interiors of these cars are amazing; one even has the words “No Piss” stamped on the gas cap. Can’t help but laugh at that one. Also nearby, and going up for auction at a later date, was Magnus Walker’s 911 STR 002.
Attendees also had an opportunity to donate and sign a Porsche 911 for St Jude Children’s Hospital. The red 911 with “Sign Me” painted in white meatballs on the door panels and covered in signatures would be driven to St. Jude where a check, of all monies collected, would be presented.
Other Highlights
Off to the left side of the lawn were some very nice 914’s while to the right was a group of red slant-noses. Further back were rows of water-cooled models including a GT3 with a roof rack and matching color hybrid bike with disc brakes and carbon fiber wheels. Not sure we would add the rack to a GT3, personally, but as avid cyclists and P-car lovers, this guy had a nice ride all-around. And we weren’t the only ones admiring the cars, there were several bees soaking up a little sun on various P-car models including the GT3 bicycle tire.
We had a full day at Driven To America 2 and it exceeded our expectations. We’re eager to see what’s in store for Driven To America 3 so if you’re on the east coast be sure to check out the next show and give DTA a follow.
See you next time!
