The Elegance at Hershey auctions Camaro for charity

HERSHEY, Pa. -- Organizers of The Elegance at Hershey, a weekend-long series of vintage and collector charity car events June 8-10 at The Hotel Hershey® has placed a special 2002 Camaro RS Collector car up for auction on eBay, with proceeds to be directed to the Elegance at Hershey charities. The Elegance at Hershey raises funds for JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), the AACA Museum and the AACA Library & Research Center in Hershey.

Donated by famed jewelry designer and American car collector Nicola Bulgari, the 2002 Camaro RS was specially ordered by him. With less than 1,000 miles on the odometer, after multiple alterations and upgrades by SLP Engineering of Toms River, N.J., and Lingenfelter Performance Engineering of Decatur, Ind., the collector car is originally valued at more than $38,000. The car will be sold on eBay with a modest reserve until 10 p.m. EST on June 11. The eBay number is 134432368821.

"We are extremely pleased and grateful that Nicola Bulgari has chosen to donate this special car to The Elegance at Hershey to help raise funds for our beneficiaries," noted Mark Lizewskie, a member of the Elegance at Hershey Board. "This is a special car, from a very special person and no doubt will be successfully bid by another special collector," he said.

Bulgari originally intended to export the Camaro to his Rome, Italy, residence to run down European exotics on the Autostrada, according to Lizewskie. Powered by a L36 3.8 liter V6 engine, it is mated to the MM5 5-speed manual transmission. The car includes such factory options as a power 6-way driver's seat, leather wrapped steering wheel and Ebony leather interior, remote keyless entry, body color body side moldings, rear window defogger, rear performance axle w/ 3.23 ratio, traction control, Monsoon premium speaker & sound system with a 12-disc CD changer, and sales package RS dual labels.

That is where the factory package ends. The Bright Red exterior was custom-ordered by Bulgari in a monochromatic scheme, with red roof and mirrors to match and the factory stripe deleted. The instrumentation is metric due to its original ENEuropean intentions. The car has covered only 955 kilometers (593 miles) since leaving the factory.

"Due to his close ties with General Motors, when Mr. Bulgari orders a vehicle, it is treated with the utmost importance and attention to detail," Lizewskie explained. "For example, when assembly is completed, his cars are pulled from the assembly line and put through rigorous testing on GM's Milford Proving Grounds Test Track, as evidenced by the windshield sticker still affixed to the car," he noted.

After all tests are completed, Bulgari's cars are then brought back to the factory, disassembled and inspected to ensure the vehicle is perfect in every detail. Factory sticker price on the car was $23,446.01 with the sticker and all original paperwork remaining with the vehicle today. As it left the factory, however, work on the car was far from complete.

The Bulgari Camaro RS was then sent to SLP Engineering of Toms River, NJ for multiple performance and appearance upgrades including 17" x 9" ZR1 style wheels shod with B.F. Goodrich g-force 275/40ZR tires and the Rally Sport suspension package for a total added cost of $2514. After their modifications were completed, SLP Performance engineers Reg Harris and Ed Hamburger signed under the hood to identify their work.

Taking delivery of the car on Oct. 15, 2001, through Bennett Chevrolet of Allentown, PA, Mr. Bulgari kept the car for a time in his private collection of prized American-built cars. Plans to export the car to Italy changed, and in 2007 the car was sent to Lingenfelter Performance Engineering of Decatur, Indiana for even more upgrades. Some $12,062 later, the car emerged wearing Baer 4-wheel drilled and ventilated disc brakes, a throaty Corsa exhaust, heavy duty front and rear sway bars with adjustable coil-over suspension and cold-air package. The car was then fully dyno-tested and calibrated to gain the utmost power while still keeping its 50-state emissions package. Total final price tag: $38,022.01.

The 2002 Bulgari Camaro RS will be on display at The Elegance at Hershey events June 8-10 at The Hotel Hershey.

Lincoln 'Official Car' of the event

Lincoln has been named "Official Car of The Elegance at Hershey", following on the heels of the luxury car company's unveiling of the new MKZ sedan at the New York Auto Show. "We are extremely proud and pleased that Lincoln has chosen to be the Title Sponsor for this year's Elegance at Hershey events," noted Steve Moskowitz, a member of The Elegance at Hershey Board.

To celebrate the announcement of Official Car, a grouping of significant vintage Lincoln automobiles are set for display during The Elegance on June 10 at the Hotel Hershey ®. These include:

Also included in the Elegance show field is a unique 1941 Lincoln Continental by Derham. Bought new by industrial designer Raymond Loewy, he hired the Derham Custom Body Company in 1945 to build his re-designed version of the car. The redesign incorporated several unique styling touches: shortened front fenders, redesigned grille and hood, custom bumpers, removable Plexiglas top, opera windows, gold plated dashboard accents, and a fin below the trunk.

Additionally on exhibit will be a very special 1956 Continental Mark II that was specially ordered by Henry Ford II for Mrs. Ford that features many bespoke touches throughout the car. Never officially a Lincoln, the Continental Mark II had a list price of well over $10,000 in 1956.

In keeping with the Lincoln theme, Cynthia and Edsel B. Ford II, the great-grandson of Henry Ford, are Honorary Chairs for The Elegance at Hershey. Locally, Maguire's Ford Lincoln of Palmyra is serving as a special trophy sponsor and will have several Ford and Lincoln models on display throughout the weekend.

Lincoln will have on hand a number of new models to test drive at the Elegance at Hershey events, with a donation made for each test drive made by the company to the Elegance at Hershey main charity, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

French supermodels arriving

A collection of the World's top French automobile supermodels ever created will be on display at The Hotel Hershey® during The Elegance at Hershey's automotive weekend. During the heyday of the 1920s through the 1940s, some of the most beautiful and swoopy custom coachbuilt bodies were designed by various Parisian firms and installed on exotic French chassis such as Delahaye, Delage and Bugatti. Using terms such as Teardrops, French Curves, and Art Deco to describe the flowing lines and flashes of bright chrome, these cars have long been revered as masterpieces in the car collector world.

Featured on The Elegance showfield will be a pair of Delahayes carrying coachwork by the coachbuilders Figoni et Falaschi. The first, a multi-award-winning 1936 135M short-chassis competition coupe from the Patterson Collection was previously owned by 1930s film star Delores del Rio. The second is the previous Pebble Beach Concours Best of Show-winning 1937 135M roadster from Mark Hyman of St. Louis. A third Delahaye gracing the field is the streamlined 1947 135MS coupe with a one-off Swiss body by Langenthal from the Illinois-based Burt Collection.

Fresh from its Best of Show win at the Amelia Island Concours is the 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Aravis drophead coupe bodied by Gangloff from the Off Brothers Collection. One of three surviving examples, this car has a fully documented history and has been winning major awards on the concours circuit since its recent restoration.

Another French beauty to be displayed on The Elegance's showfield is a 1933 Delage D8S coupe with coachwork by the British firm Freestone & Webb. Delage was often considered the most beautiful of the French cars, and this example from Connecticut collector Dennis Nicotra testifies to that claim.

Other highlights

On June 8 and 9, The Elegance presents The Grand Ascent, a revival of the historic Hershey Hill Climb featuring more than 50 vintage race cars roaring up the challenging course behind The Hotel Hershey®. Tickets are just $10 per day with ages 15 and under admitted free.

The Elegance on June 10 features more than 60 of the world's most beautiful, sought-after and rare collector cars arrayed through the formal gardens at The Hotel Hershey. Admission is $25 with ages 15 and under free. Free parking is provided at both events.

To learn more, visit www.THEELEGANCEATHERSHEY.com.