Intermeccanica Apollo GT

By Richardd Adams

“The Apollo handles as well or better than, a 2+2 Ferrari, an Aston Martin DB4, or a Sting Ray Corvette” - Sports and Mechanics magazine 1963.

"Our experience in the Apollo has been both brief and pleasant. The car is quite comfortable (even for extra tall occupants) and well finished. In general, the Apollo is a very appealing automobile” - In November 1963 Road & Track.

"Workmanship is of the highest quality -- panels fit well, doors close with authority and the interiors are comparable to cars costing twice that of the Apollo" Hot Rod Magazine July 1964. 

If you Google the word "Apollo", the results will highlight the spaceship, not the 1962-1965 Apollo GT with an Italian body and an American V8 heartbeat. 
The Apollo GT had a low weight of 2,540 lb (1,150 kg), with excellent handling, a 0-60mph time of 8 seconds and a top speed up to 150 mph, this all added to its appeal.

Back in the early 1960s, Milt Brown, an enthusiastic Northern Californian, armed with an eye for design and an inborn mechanical ability, set about building an American equivalent to Ferrari, Aston-Martin, and Maserati -- a true Gran Turismo. 

Outside of Brown with his 1962-1965 Apollo GT, very few individuals have ever succeeded in designing and producing their own car. Many have tried and most have failed. The stories of such indomitable personalities as Preston Tucker, Malcolm Bricklin, and John DeLorean are just a part of a recurring cycle.

As an engineer, Brown designed the platform that would improve on the performance and handling problems of his predecessors' cars. The prototype's design was by Milt Brown's friend, Ron Plescia but completed by former Bertone stylist Franco Scaglione. Both inspired by the new E-Type Jaguar and Ferrari 250. That’s what’s so good about it, you can see ten of the classic icons in the design, yet it isn’t any of them.

The Apollo is today recognized as a collector's car.

Brown found all the driveline and suspension mechanical components he needed from the GM (Buick & Chevy) parts bin and he had these fitted to his own ladder-type chassis. The GT was designed for Buick's all-new 215-cubic-inch V-8, an engine that would deliver the power necessary for a sports car, yet be compact and light enough (just 318 pounds) to allow the handling characteristics he sought. Brown knew that a lighter-weight engine would produce a more agile car and it did.

The bodies and interiors were produced in Turin, Italy by Carrozzeria Intermeccanica, Each Apollo body was hand-formed in sections over wooden bucks and then welded together. The completed bodies were mounted to the frame, painted, the interior upholstered, and then shipped to Oakland, California, to be mated with the driveline and suspension. A Buick 215 cubic inch, then later a 300 cubic inch V-8 with T-10 4-speed from a Buick Special handled the power, although some bodies were sold off without any engines, these to be fitted by the new owners. The interior also took its look from the Ferrari, and upholstery was hand-sewn leather.  

In all, a total of 88 cars were produced -- 76 coupes, 11 convertibles, and the prototype 2+2 coupe.

The finished car, sold by Brown's International Motorcars of Oakland, was well received and had famous owners, such as Pat Boone. The base price was $6 000 which was later found to be far too low, as the experts around then viewed the Apollo GT as a $10 000 car.

In August 1962, the first production Apollo 3500 GT coupe was delivered and introduced at Spencer Buick, in San Francisco. Following the San Francisco debut, Brown took the car to Hollywood and had a premiere showing at Phil Hall Buick on Sunset Boulevard. When Hall saw the Apollo, he gave Brown an order for the entire first year's production of 25 cars.

Although Apollo was a dismal failure as a company, the 1962-1965 Apollo GT itself was an undisputed success. Despite its uneventful and brief sales, the 1962-1965 Apollo GT was a success in every way except financially. Ironically, the better things became with orders for the Apollo the worse they got for the company. In retrospect, the Apollo could be classed as something of a successful failure.

The Apollo was featured in “Herbie the Love Bug”, a 1969 Disney movie. It was called the "Thorndike Special" in the movie.

                                                                   

       

Want a good one? Budget in around $100 000 to $150 000 and wait for one of the 88 owners to sell…….