Auto e Moto d'Epoca Showcases Racing Icons and Market Treasures
The Auto e Moto d'Epoca show in Bologna features a special endurance racing exhibition and a vast classic car market.
This weekend, the Auto e Moto d'Epoca event in Bologna presents a major gathering for classic car enthusiasts, featuring a dedicated exhibition on endurance racing and a sprawling market. Separately, a remarkably preserved 1983 Holden Commodore SL offers a glimpse into a defining era of Australian automotive history.
Auto e Moto d'Epoca Exhibition and Market
The Auto e Moto d'Epoca show opened to the public in Bologna, running until Sunday the 25th of October. Its centerpiece is the Icons of Speed exhibition, which focuses on endurance racing history with around a dozen significant cars. The display includes a Gulf-liveried Porsche 917, a Rothmans Porsche 956, the 1989 Le Mans-winning Sauber C9, and the Bentley EXP Speed 8 which finished third at Le Mans in 2001.
The Italian contribution to racing is prominently featured. A Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo, winner of the 1980 Six Hours of Mugello, sits beside the Lancia LC1, chosen as the exhibition's symbol. Other notable machines present are an Alfa Romeo Tipo 33, a Maserati MC12 Corsa (one of just fifteen built), and the Nissan NPT-90 in its iconic red, white, and blue livery. Beyond this curated display, the event's vast market spans fourteen halls with over five thousand vehicles. Attendees can find everything from a 1912 Itala 35/45 HP to modern hypercars like the Pagani Zonda, with a strong emphasis on Ferrari and Porsche models across all decades.
Among the market's many highlights were two particularly rare cars. One was a Ferrari 212/225 by Vignale, described as one of just seven closed berlinettas designed by Giovanni Michelotti. The other was a one-off Fiat 500 Spider by Allemano, also a Michelotti design created for the 1957 Turin Motor Show. The show also caters to fans of two-wheelers and rallying, with numerous race bikes, Vespas, and iconic rally cars like the Lancia Delta, Audi Sport Quattro, and Lancia Stratos on display. The event's scale and variety this year were noted as being even greater than in previous editions.
1983 Holden Commodore SL
This 1983 Holden Commodore SL is an Australian-delivered example showing a believed-genuine 103,356 kilometers. It is powered by a 3.3-liter Blue inline-six engine paired with a three-speed automatic transmission.
The VH Commodore was the third generation of the model, launched in 1981. It was developed from Opel's Rekord and Senator architecture but required significant strengthening for Australian conditions after early prototypes failed dramatically in local testing. Holden's engineers recorded loads 300% above Opel's data, leading to a heavily reinforced body. The model range was reshuffled into SL, SL/X, and SL/E trims, with the luxury SL/E offering a trip computer. The performance-oriented SS variant arrived in 1982, later forming the basis for Peter Brock's highly sought-after HDT special editions.
This specific car has been kept wonderfully original but benefits from a recent respray and new chrome work, moldings, body seals, locks, and window channels. Finished in Oyster Metallic over a Light Oyster vinyl interior, it is equipped with air conditioning. The sale includes the original tools, factory spare tyre, manuals, and several keys. More than 141,000 VH Commodores were built before the model was replaced in 1984.
