Taking the Tiny Car on the Road

This past weekend the 31st Annual "Southwest Unique Little Car Show" was hosted in Upland, California. The Mister and I loaded up the tiny car on Friday and headed out of town.

So shiny with a fresh wax and polish!

We stayed at the 'event headquarters', and there was lots to see in the parking lot!

This is a Zundapp Janus - it looks the same coming and going, with a door that opens in the front and in the back. The yellow car behind it is a Nash Metropolitan.

On Friday night, after check-in, about 80 participants "cruised" about 2 miles to the home of the couple that organized the event. I was not comfortable driving in Friday rush hour traffic on a busy street, so we drove the pick up and I took some photos as folks were arriving.

The driver of this tiny little Peel Trident had no reservations about driving in So Cal traffic. I guess he was sure that other drivers would see the smoke from his engine and get out of his way!

Doesn't it look like George Jetson's car? Only not flying through the air...

This was the scene on the street in front of the hosts' house on Friday night! (Please ignore the shadow of the photog!)

The flowers on this Subaru van looked like they had been on it since the 70's!

At the show on Saturday, there were about 125 micro cars and mini-cars. The 'rule' is that the engine must be less than 1000cc to enter. And most were from the 50's and 60's, but there were some interesting ones that were newer. No Smart-4-2's this year, though.

One marque that I had not seen before was this Singer! I will have to do a bit of research to see if it is related to my featherweight!

Here we are, parked at one of the main entrances to the show, so we had a lot of folks stop and look. I am not sure what model the blue and white car is. It was in 'survivor' condition and was missing all of the badges.

It was nice that the show was in a commercial setting. There were lots of shops and places to eat. I visited a few antique shops but my souvenirs came from the Upland Sewing and Vacuum Store:

I have been reading about 'that quilt' for a few years. I am not sure I will try to do the whole thing, but if I do, it will be red and white. I am guessing it will take me a long time to finish and red and white never looks old fashioned (well, not to me, anyway...)

We left before the awards ceremony, since it was getting late and we wanted to head home early today. I am pretty sure that we didn't win any trophies, this year. There were about 7 or 8 other Isettas there. Since it was not participant judging, I am pretty sure that others with more original restorations would carry the day.

The weather was nice and we had a great time, though. People who like funny little cars are an interesting bunch!

Unique Little Cars in Arizona

This past weekend, The Mister and I attended the Southwest Unique Little Car Show, in Phoenix, Arizona. It was the 30th anniversary of the show, which alternates mostly between Arizona and California each year. The show does not have strict rules about what qualifies, but generally they hope to attract cars with smaller than 750cc engines, that are, well, unique. They don't have to be vintage. Modern cars that are unique are welcome and there are usually some modern Mini's or Smart cars.

It was a lovely setting! We were in a courtyard of an Embassy Suites, on the grass with lots of big shade trees, just next to the gigantic swimming pool.

My cutie-wootie little car was between a bug-eyed Sprite and a Velorex, across from a Goggomobil!

This is a Goggomobil Dart. About 700 Darts were built in Australia in '59 and '60. It looks like a cartoon car and has a cartoon name!

This is the front of the Goggo. What a goofy face!

This is a Czech car called a Velorex. It has a tubular steel frame, with canvas stretched over it. (No side curtain air bags...) This car is in mid-restoration. It is from 1971, I believe.

This is the interior. (No cup holders, either...)

This is not a vintage car. It is a future car - "The George Jetson Astro Cruiser", or Bug-E. It was built in 2009 and is all electric, built from a kit. Looks fun, don't you think?

This is an unrestored 1956 Fiat. It was so original, you wonder if it has the original air in the tires! Amazing that a car can look that good after 54 years!

We were in a class with about eight other BMW's, seven other Isettas and a BMW 600. The 600 is larger than the Isetta , with a back seat and a side door. (It's referred to as 'the limousine'.)We took third place in the class, much to our delight and surprise!

Surprise, because there are many micro-car enthusiasts who are purists, when it comes to paint colors and interiors. It was participant voting, though, so apparently, lots of folks prefer pure fun, over pure restoration!

It was a lovely day to sit outside and I made progress on some stitcheries.

More on that topic later!

From Small Town, to Uptown!

It is Automotive Industry Week in the city! Last year, my car was an 'attention getter' at AAPEX, the 'Automotive Aftermarket Parts Exhibit'. That is where repair shops find replacement parts. like windshield wipers, air conditioners, etc. Not exciting, but necessary.

The Isetta sat prettily in the Clean Tools booth and we received what is surely a lifetime supply of their products. Most of the family (except the babies) got some form of car cleaning supplies for Christmas, and we still have a lifetime supply!

Several months ago, the agency that handled the arrangement said that they would not need the car. They had decided to bring one of their own. A couple of weeks ago, though, they emailed to ask if it would be available again, and apologised for the last minute request.


The Mister in his usual photo mode -not smiling!

This year, the Isetta is at SEMA! The Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association exhibit! SEMA is the Big Show!

It is where you find all the 'stuff' that they use to make custom cars, fast cars and showy cars.

It is where you find the big stars, the race car drivers and the legends! And this week, my Isetta!

Five days ago, my cutie car was in a small town parade. This week, she is under the bright lights!

I am so proud of her shiny cuteness!

(Dearest Sister shared a video here, last week. I think it was the most fun that I have ever had in the Isetta!)

Blogtober 30 - Hep Cats & Super Hep Cats

Today is my last 'official' Blogtoberfest post, so I will wish everyone a Happy Halloween, or, as we say in Nevada, Happy Nevada Day! Officially, Nevada Day is the last Friday in October, but Nevada Day Parade Day is the Saturday following. Are you following? No? Well then, lets move on...

The Mister and I will be traveling to tiny Beatty, NV for the Beatty Nevada Day celebration, which does include a Halloween element, in that there will be re-enactments of gun fights and old west carryings on (dressing up!).

We have entered the Isetta in the parade, so I hope it will start and that I am not too nervous to drive it in front of a bunch of strangers! There will also be a car show (we are entered in that, as well) and the children of the town have been encouraged to come to the car show and 'trunk or treat' (candy!) I hope I have only good things to report about it, next week, and no driving mis-haps or embarrassments!

But back to today...

I thought I should post something Halloween related, or October related, but I couldn't think of anything.

So, I bring you the Hep Cat Collection from Aunt Martha!


Group A - Hep Cat Designs
I found these at an estate sale some years ago. The owner of the estate had collected many, many transfers and many were unused, but the sale manager had priced them at $3 each, so I had to be a little choosy.


Group B - Hep Cat Designs
Most times, when I come across vintage transfers, I usually have either seen the transfer, before, or, see something embellished with the motif.


Super Hep Cat Designs!
But I had never seen these designs before, and I haven't since. The transfers in the packages are unused, so maybe it wasn't very 'hep' even when they were issued! Some of the slogans seem pretty ... well, awful! I can't imagine anyone wearing a jacket that says "Short, fat and funny", or "Worm lets squirm".

Groups A & B are older, they are marked "The Colonial Company" on the back. The 'Super' designs are marked "Aunt Martha". I think the red, white and blue packaging was used during WWII, (the V for Victory Kitties usually are in the those colors)

And, I guess, in 70 years, some of the designs that seem very 'fun' today might seem pretty lame!

Dearest Sister will be wrapping up our tag-team Blogtoberfest tomorrow, but check back on Sunday to see if you are a winner in the giveaway!

And More!

Celebrity Isettas

Today, the the post brought a letter from Wisest Sister. She enjoys traditional correspondence and it is fun to get mail that you are not expecting.

She included this cartoon, clipped from the Kansas City Star. (Not really funny, but fun, if you know what I mean!) My Isetta is a 1958, but more European styled, than American market style, so Zippy's Isetta looks a lot like mine. (Except for the paint, of course, and the fact that his is a cartoon...)

This is another 'toon whose taste in cars I admire!

I am not positive that Guido is an Isetta, but I claim that he is, because it gets me coolness points with the smalls!

And I need all the cool-ness points I can get!

The Lost Weekend...

Last weekend, The Mister and I went to Mesquite, Nevada for the weekend. It is about an 90 minute drive, so I left work a little early on Friday and we headed North. The occasion was a car show and the entry fee included two nights in one of the casinos there. We took the Isetta and had a very good time showing it to folks who have never seen a micro-car.

We brought home two awards, a "Vehicle of Distinction" award from this car show and we picked up an award from this show - the "Dare To Be Different" award. We had left the show last fall after listening to the presentation of all the awards we thought we might have a shot at. Later, we saw that we had won when we checked the website. Anyway, the shows were sponsored by the same group, so we asked if we could pick it up while we were in Mesquite.

I would show you a photo, but I left my laptop power cord at the hotel in Mesquite. I am using my work laptop at home, which I am allowed to do, but I am not able to load photos on it from the camera. The housekeeping folks said they would hold the cord for me, so perhaps we will take another drive to Mesquite this coming weekend.

Anyway that is one reason that I have not been able to post.

The other, more pressing reason is that The Mister had a "incident" after we got home that required transport to the hospital where he has been (impatiently) for the last several days.

I have gotten quite a bit of knitting and embroidery done while I have been keeping him company, but it will be good to have him home again - hopefully tomorrow!

The Car is the Star!

In Las Vegas, there are many conventions. This week is Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week. There is a huge gathering of car people (mostly men but some women), who are fans of cars and all things automobilia. It is a joint convention of SEMA (Specialty Equipment) and AAPEX (Automotive Aftermarket Products). If you have a car guy (or gal) in your home, then you know that all the famous car people come to these shows to see, be seen, and sell!

At the Expo Center, there are millions of square feet of space devoted to car parts, products etc. Each seller tries to attract attention to their booths.

One booth used my car to attract attention!



The good people of Clean Tools requested the presence of my Isetta to grace their booth! I must say that it looked right at home and very special! I was so proud to see it looking all shiny and cutie-wootie!

At the end of the week, it will come home and leave the glamour life behind. There are no more car shows until spring, so it will have to be content with getting attention from the occasional visitor to the garage!

Adventure to the Middle of America!

We are preparing to start our vacation tomorrow morning. The Mister will be up and three and tapping his foot, waiting for my alarm to go off at five. We hope to be on the road before 6am.

Imagine going on vacation in one of these!

His and Hers - Classic Cars

One of the things that the mister and I do for fun, is take our classic cars to car shows. In fact, a vacation we are starting next week has been developed around a car show in Branson, MO. (the irony of traveling from Las Vegas to Branson has been killing me!)



We will take this car:

This car is The Mister's. I ride in it, of course, but it is his. It is a 1963 Ford Galaxie Convertible - "Tucson Yellow" with a black top. It is a lovely car that always turns heads when we take if for a drive. The Mister did the restoration, one of his first retirement projects. It is not perfect, but we like it very much. Sometimes he wins a trophy with this car. (not best of show, but sometimes a people's choice top whatever percent)

Sometimes we take this car to car shows -

This car is mine. It is a 1958 BMW Isetta. It is painted with DuPont Chromalusion. The color is "Pure Fire". Sometimes we win a trophy with this car (as high as "tied for second" out of four entries!)The Isetta also turns heads, and in fact, gets so much attention, that The Mister does not like to park near my car at car shows.

(You will notice that the Isetta is two cars away from the Gal.)

At this car show, I parked the Isetta next to a very lovely and expensively restored Ford from the early part of the last century. The best thing about it to me, though -

is that it was a perfect mirror for admiring my car!