My father was normally calm and laid back. It seemed nothing rattled him. But if my siblings and I pushed him too far, watch out! Apparently, Bill Oesterle has a similar temperament. Oesterle, one of the co-founders of Angie’s List, is a longtime car collector. At his apex, he had […]

The wheels of justice grind slowly, but they eventually get there. This month we have a collection of stories — updates on two old cases, plus a trio of new ones, in brief. C-type-replica litigation “Legal Files” reported in May 2021 that Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) was garnering a lot […]

Publisher Martin called and said, “You’ve got to talk to our friend ‘Mark.’ You won’t believe what he’s gotten into now!” Martin had made a huge impression on Mark, telling him how his Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG was the best thing since sliced bread. So Mark started digging around on the […]

The 2023 auction season kicked off with big January sales in Florida and Arizona. We counted a total of 5,394 collector cars sold by Barrett-Jackson, Bonhams, MAG Auctions, Mecum Auctions and RM Sotheby’s. (We’ll have full results and analysis in next month’s issue.) What struck me as we watched all […]

Ahead of the upcoming driving season, “Steve” took his 1958 Porsche 356 “Outlaw” coupe to his favorite local Porsche repair shop for some needed work. Once completed, a short test drive was necessary for the mechanic to verify that everything was working properly. As the mechanic came to a nearby […]

The Dillon County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina announced that a 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B Lungo Spyder, valued at $23 million, was stolen during the early morning hours of July 25, 2022. Detective Sara Albarri said that the 8C was inside a 2009 Haulmark trailer pulled by a white […]

Readers often ask where I find “Legal Files” column ideas. Many times, they come from suggestions from SCMers, so if you spot something interesting, feel free to email a tip. This story came from my first and most loyal reader, Publisher Martin. Not usually a man of few words, his […]

A 1938 Talbot-Lago T150C-SS Goutte d’Eau Coupé “Teardrop Coupe,” serial number 90108, one of 16 believed to be made, is at the center of a complicated case that recently took a new turn. In June, the purported mastermind of its 2001 theft, Chris Gardner, was extradited from Switzerland. The car […]

Longtime client “Pete” called recently with a problem. He was selling his boat, and what he thought was a simple deal had started to go sideways. The situation resembled some scary car deals we’ve seen over the years. Pete had found a buyer who was willing to buy both his […]

Al and Deb Poller enjoyed driving their 1931 Chevrolet in vintage-car events, but it showed its age. It was time to restore it, so the New Jersey residents searched for a restoration shop. They settled on Okoboji Classic Cars LLC (OCC) in Iowa. In 2013, Mrs. Poller sent an email […]