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All the cars of the monster Baillon Collection barn find are headed to auction [w/video]

Automotive barn finds are exciting for the thrill and surprise of the hunt. Of course, you're far more likely to find a rusting Chevy under a tarp, but there's always that chance to scoop up a forgotten Porsche or Shelby for a song. That aspect makes the massive Roger Baillon Collection so bittersweet. There were so many great classics sitting under an open shed in France, but they were there so long that many of them became just bare husks. Ahead of the February 6 auction in Paris, auction house Artcurial has released descriptions and images of the entire 59-car hoard. While the 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider and 1956 Maserati A6G 2000 Gran Sport Berlinetta Frua remain the stars, there are a few surprises among the bunch. The original announcement makes no mention of several modern Ferraris – at least compared to the rest of the collection – among the lots. They include a thoroughly beat 1982 308 GTSi without headlights and portions of the paint gone. There's also a 1988 Mondial Cabriolet that looks good on the outside, but Artcurial says needs a mechanical overhaul. A rather attractive gray 1978 400 GT is in similar condition. Scroll through the gallery above for the names and price estimates for all of the vehicles in the collection. If there's one you're particularly interested in there are even more photos and full descriptions in Artcurial's auction catalog. Also check out the video below to see what some of these classics looked like before they were hauled out of Baillon's lean-to after years of sitting in decrepitude. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery Roger Baillon Collection Auction View 59 Photos News Source: Artcurial, Artcurial Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan via YouTube Ferrari Maserati Auctions Classics ferrari 250 retromobile artcurial

2017 Maserati Levante First Drive

You can argue all you want about whether or not certain companies should build crossovers. That's what the comments section is for. We'd argue that Maserati should have done it a long time ago, having shown its first crossover concept back in 2011 and only delivering on it now. Porsche blazed that trail with the Cayenne and others have followed suit since, racking up big sales. It's a little odd, then, that after waiting so long to get in the game, the Levante came together in just 22 months. Blame nationalism. The original plan was for the Levante to be based on and built in Detroit alongside the Jeep Grand Cherokee. That changed when Sergio Marchionne decided, in his dictatorial way, that all Maseratis and Alfa Romeos would be designed, engineered, and manufactured in Italy. So the team hit reset, borrowed the Ghibli platform, and went about creating a not-quite-a-crossover, taller-than-a-wagon hatchback with air suspension. Just shy of two years later, we're driving the Levante. In Italy, naturally. The dimensions and stance are what set the Levante apart from the abundance of luxury performance crossovers and emphasize its Italianness. It's longer, wider, and lower than a Porsche Cayenne or the Grand Cherokee it was nearly spawned from. The hood looks impossibly long in person because it is really long. The front end takes inspiration from the Alfieri concept, and there's a refreshing lack of mesh or filler between the grille's thin vertical slats. It can stand to be so open because there is a set of active grille shutters just behind to manage airflow. What would be usable cargo space on a blockier crossover is sacrificed by a rakish hatch, which looks pretty and we're told routes air in a particularly aerodynamic-friendly fashion. Instead of building the boxy version first, Maserati took the gamble and went straight to the fashionable coupe-ish shape. That foresight paid off, as it seems the coupe-like SUV trend is here to stay. For all the scrambling that must have gone on to produce this new model so quickly, it doesn't present like a rush job. Sure, most of the engineering was already done for the Ghibli and Quattroporte, but the Levante actually feels like a more complete effort than those cars. The attention to detail is most felt in the cabin, where the latest corporate infotainment system has been neatly integrated into familiar surroundings.

Fiat/PSA's dominance in small vans hangs up EU's merger approval

BRUSSELS — EU antitrust regulators are concerned about Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot / PSA's combined high market share in small vans and may require concessions to clear their $50 billion merger, people familiar with the matter said. The companies, which are seeking to create the world's fourth biggest carmaker, were told of the European Commission's concerns last week. If Fiat and PSA fail to dispel the European Commission's doubts in the next two days and subsequently decline to offer concessions by Wednesday, the deadline for doing so, the deal would face a four-month-long investigation. The EU competition enforcer, which has set a June 17 deadline for its preliminary review, declined to comment. Fiat was not immediately available for comment while PSA had no immediate comment. Hiving off overlapping businesses, usually a regulatory demand to ensure more competition, could prove tricky for the carmakers because of the technicalities. Fiat and PSA are looking to merge to help offset slowing demand and shoulder the cost of making cleaner vehicles to meet tougher emissions regulations. The deal puts under one roof the Italian carmaker's brands such as Fiat, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Maserati and the French company's Peugeot, Opel and DS. Related Video: Government/Legal Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep Maserati RAM Citroen Opel Peugeot