S.FL84 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 Does anyone think Crockett's Daytona Spider was a more realistic car the Crockett character to have owned than the over the top Testarossa? I mean the premise was that Crockett bought car from the county at a police auction of seized property and the older Daytona Spider was IMO much more believable. Its almost metaphoric how the Testarossa marked the extreme commercialism of show and the start of the decline w/ the show being a victim of it's own success. In 1986 a freakin' Testarossa would have stuck out like a sore thumb even in Miami while the Spider would have blended right in. Once Mann and Hammer left the show was doomed to failure. If they had kept the character and his clothes/cars/hair more low key and realistic and focused more realism and less flash I think the show wouldn't lasted alot longer. It was like the band RATT. After the first and maybe even the second album to an extent they were cool...then they started to get too flashy and glam then they died. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dadrian Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 It was always implied (and stated) that Crockett didn’t own either of the cars, boats, or even his clothes. Regardless, like many great things, yes, the show self-destructed. I never linked the Testarossa to being apart of that, though. If anything, I always thought it was a step forward in that it was an actual Ferrari, regardless of which car was better. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 58 minutes ago, S.FL84 said: Does anyone think Crockett's Daytona Spider was a more realistic car the Crockett character to have owned than the over the top Testarossa? I mean the premise was that Crockett bought car from the county at a police auction of seized property and the older Daytona Spider was IMO much more believable. Its almost metaphoric how the Testarossa marked the extreme commercialism of show and the start of the decline w/ the show being a victim of it's own success. In 1986 a freakin' Testarossa would have stuck out like a sore thumb even in Miami while the Spider would have blended right in. Once Mann and Hammer left the show was doomed to failure. If they had kept the character and his clothes/cars/hair more low key and realistic and focused more realism and less flash I think the show wouldn't lasted alot longer. It was like the band RATT. After the first and maybe even the second album to an extent they were cool...then they started to get too flashy and glam then they died. I agree the Daytona was much more concealed, a classic looking car with the right color as well. The Testa is an awesome car but it was over the top, it is basically a watered down formula 1 car. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daytona74 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 (edited) Same thing I've been saying for years (decades?). The Testarossa was way too ostentatious even for two pretend drug dealers in Miami. And I think the scene where Miami Vice jumped the shark for me was when they pulled up to a high school in the Testa, and in full designer suit gear, in season 3, I forget the episode name. That's where my suspension of disbelief really stopped for the first time because it just seemed too absurd. The Daytona was a sleek, nimble car that almost looked like it could fit in the pockets of Crockett's deconstructed blazers. The Testarossa on the other hand was kind of a real monstrosity. And especially in a line of work as vice undercover cops, I would imagine the key was to look like you had money so you would blend in with the other cocaine cowboys, but not to act in a way that would make you the talk of the town and then be exposed by any back alley snitch who saw you take somebody down while on duty. Also, one thing that I always wondered, whenever they did nighttime stakeouts in the Testarossa... a bright white car of any kind surely isn't your best choice if you are doing surveillance and closely tracking one of your suspects after dark. They should have just given Crockett a black and tan 328 GTS after S2. Tried and true color scheme, and the 328 was a car that was a million times less conspicuous than the Testarossa, while at the same time it still made you look like you had both the money and a sense of style. Enzo Ferrari obviously wanted to make a statement when he handed the producers the Testas, but to me, this marketing move was not quite as cunning as he probably thought. Edited May 16, 2019 by Daytona74 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicegirl85 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 1 hour ago, S.FL84 said: Does anyone think Crockett's Daytona Spider was a more realistic car the Crockett character to have owned than the over the top Testarossa? I mean the premise was that Crockett bought car from the county at a police auction of seized property and the older Daytona Spider was IMO much more believable. (snipped) I agree, the Spyder was more believable as well as less ostentatious and a better vehicle for night time stakeouts. As someone else said, Crockett never owned either car; he was issued them to use for his cover identity from seized property. I remember reading somewhere that the Testarossa was painted white so that it would be more easily visible on TV during night scenes, of which there were always plenty during the show's run. "Testarossa" means redhead in Italian and I have read that the model was originally red. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 1 minute ago, vicegirl85 said: I agree, the Spyder was more believable as well as less ostentatious and a better vehicle for night time stakeouts. As someone else said, Crockett never owned either car; he was issued them to use for his cover identity from seized property. I remember reading somewhere that the Testarossa was painted white so that it would be more easily visible on TV during night scenes, of which there were always plenty during the show's run. "Testarossa" means redhead in Italian and I have read that the model was originally red. We never had a problem seeing the Daytona at night did we? I thought it was perfectly clear watching "Dutch Oven" "OWTBDR" "Calderone's Return p1 etc. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 (edited) 25 minutes ago, Daytona74 said: Same thing I've been saying for years (decades?). The Testarossa was way too ostentatious even for two pretend drug dealers in Miami. And I think the scene where Miami Vice jumped the shark for me was when they pulled up to a high school in the Testa, and in full designer suit gear, in season 3, I forget the episode name. That's where my suspension of disbelief really stopped for the first time because it just seemed too absurd. The Daytona was a sleek, nimble car that almost looked like it could fit in the pockets of Crockett's deconstructed blazers. The Testarossa on the other hand was kind of a real monstrosity. And especially in a line of work as vice undercover cops, I would imagine the key was to look like you had money so you would blend in with the other cocaine cowboys, but not to act in a way that would make you the talk of the town and then be exposed by any back alley snitch who saw you take somebody down while on duty. Also, one thing that I always wondered, whenever they did nighttime stakeouts in the Testarossa... a bright white car of any kind surely isn't your best choice if you are doing surveillance and closely tracking one of your suspects after dark. They should have just given Crockett a black and tan 328 GTS after S2. Tried and true color scheme, and the 328 was a car that was a million times less conspicuous than the Testarossa, while at the same time it still made you look like you had both the money and a sense of style. Enzo Ferrari obviously wanted to make a statement when he handed the producers the Testas, but to me, this marketing move was not quite as cunning as he probably thought. Yeah was he really annoyed that they made a replica Ferrari or was it an excuse to promote the Testarossa on the show? I heard he gave away 4. If it was a case of annoyance than the producers should have had options for the right type of car. Edited May 16, 2019 by RedDragon86 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 1 hour ago, Daytona74 said: Same thing I've been saying for years (decades?). The Testarossa was way too ostentatious even for two pretend drug dealers in Miami. And I think the scene where Miami Vice jumped the shark for me was when they pulled up to a high school in the Testa, and in full designer suit gear, in season 3, I forget the episode name. That's where my suspension of disbelief really stopped for the first time because it just seemed too absurd. The Daytona was a sleek, nimble car that almost looked like it could fit in the pockets of Crockett's deconstructed blazers. The Testarossa on the other hand was kind of a real monstrosity. And especially in a line of work as vice undercover cops, I would imagine the key was to look like you had money so you would blend in with the other cocaine cowboys, but not to act in a way that would make you the talk of the town and then be exposed by any back alley snitch who saw you take somebody down while on duty. Also, one thing that I always wondered, whenever they did nighttime stakeouts in the Testarossa... a bright white car of any kind surely isn't your best choice if you are doing surveillance and closely tracking one of your suspects after dark. They should have just given Crockett a black and tan 328 GTS after S2. Tried and true color scheme, and the 328 was a car that was a million times less conspicuous than the Testarossa, while at the same time it still made you look like you had both the money and a sense of style. Enzo Ferrari obviously wanted to make a statement when he handed the producers the Testas, but to me, this marketing move was not quite as cunning as he probably thought. I never thought of this, but you are so right!! The Testarossa was way too pretentious! I love how you put this: "The Daytona was a sleek, nimble car that almost looked like it could fit in the pockets of Crockett's deconstructed blazers." Perfect description! Well, I'm sold!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 (edited) Here's a great article on the subject of MV's Cars! Very interesting!! https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a8095/miami-vice-66-1-roa0814/ Enjoy!! Edited May 16, 2019 by mjcmmv 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daytona74 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 vor 35 Minuten schrieb RedDragon86: Yeah was he really annoyed that they made a replica Ferrari or was it an excuse to promote the Testarossa on the show? I heard he gave away 4. If it was a case of annoyance than the producers should have had options for the right type of car. Well Ferrari could have had them by the gonads for trademark infringement for passing the fake Daytona off as the real thing. So to just have two brand new Testarossas dropped in their laps for free by Enzo was an offer the producers couldn't refuse But yeah, I am not sure where Enzo Ferrari thought he was going with it, marketing wise. Obviously the show's core audience wasn't going to go out and buy a Testarossa, and aside from a few real-life drug dealers who were reportedly big fans of the show, the people who had that kind of money to spend probably didn't need a stylish TV cop show to convince them that that was the car they wanted. What he did achieve was that Miami Vice is still today a part of the Testarossa's life story. It's kind of impossible to write an article in a classic car magazine about it and not mention the fact that it was on the show. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 Explains a lot! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daytona74 Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 (edited) hm that's a stock ferrari instrument cluster in the video. Didn't the hero car have a Corvette cluster? I think you can see it at the beginning of No Exit, for example... Edited May 16, 2019 by Daytona74 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 9 minutes ago, Daytona74 said: hm that's a stock ferrari instrument cluster in the video. Didn't the hero car have a Corvette cluster? I think you can see it at the beginning of No Exit, for example... That question is over my head! Anyone out there able to answer it? I'd like to know, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dadrian Posted May 16, 2019 Report Share Posted May 16, 2019 12 minutes ago, Daytona74 said: hm that's a stock ferrari instrument cluster in the video. Didn't the hero car have a Corvette cluster? I think you can see it at the beginning of No Exit, for example... @volobrian @Sonny-Burnett @CameraDaytona Someone take this one 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, mjcmmv said: Explains a lot! They said initially the Ferrari symbol was a little higher on the car than it should be, but how comes it was in the right place in the pilot. I am confused because it clearly in the correct spot seen below. Edited May 17, 2019 by RedDragon86 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) 4 minutes ago, RedDragon86 said: They said initially the Ferrari symbol was a little higher on the car than it should be, but how comes it was in the right place in the pilot. I am confused because it clearly in the correct spot seen below. Good catch! I get the feeling that this placement in the pilot was incorrect. We have the holes to prove where it used to be and then, the correction when they caught the mistake. Edited May 17, 2019 by mjcmmv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 4 minutes ago, mjcmmv said: Good catch! I get the feeling that this placement in the pilot was incorrect. We have the holes to prove where it used to be and then, the correction when they caught the mistake. So they had it right initially but made the mistake by putting slightly higher after the pilot? Here it is seen in the wrong place in "Calderone's Return P1" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 Just now, RedDragon86 said: So they had it right initially but made the mistake by putting slightly higher after the pilot? Here it is seen in the wrong place in "Calderone's Return P1" Man, I don't know how that happened. It's amazing that anyone even noticed. Eagle-eyed MV Fans won't let them get away with anything! Love it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mvice8489 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 They definitely had the Ferrari emblem on the Daytona in the incorrect place for a while. It was up too far on the hood then they lowered it later on. Crocketts Daytona replica definitely had the Corvette dash in it. Also, you will noticed that the boot on the car was black in the first season and tanned in the second season. And I totally agree that the Daytona was a much better “undercover” car. A very stately and elegant yet muscle looking car. Even in the mid-80s a 1972 Ferrari Daytona spider was considered very cool and quite valuable. Crockett even referenced the car being worth $300,000 after it got blown up . As far as a testarossa, we do have to remember that this car showed up on MV during the last three years of the 1980s. Everything was going crazy back then. The stock market was on fire, yuppies were all the rage, cocaine sales in Miami were going through the roof and EVERYTHING was ostentatious. The car perfectly fit that era. I just received the Testarossa that I bought about a week ago. Let me tell you, that car is really really difficult to drive in the city! No power steering. Almost impossible to steer from a dead stop or at a slow pace. No way that would have made a good car driving around the busy streets of Miami . They Daytona is known to be just as difficult if not more in steering. A super heavy car. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 2 minutes ago, mjcmmv said: Man, I don't know how that happened. It's amazing that anyone even noticed. Eagle-eyed MV Fans won't let them get away with anything! Love it!!! Just looked at all of the screenshot's in season 1 of the Daytona, in the pilot the Ferrari symbol is in the correct place, after that its moved up incorrectly. They finally got it right again in "Lombard" shown here below. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Mvice8489 said: They definitely had the Ferrari emblem on the Daytona in the incorrect place for a while. It was up too far on the hood then they lowered it later on. Crocketts Daytona replica definitely had the Corvette dash in it. Also, you will noticed that the boot on the car was black in the first season and tanned in the second season. And I totally agree that the Daytona was a much better “undercover” car. A very stately and elegant yet muscle looking car. Even in the mid-80s a 1972 Ferrari Daytona spider was considered very cool and quite valuable. Crockett even referenced the car being worth $300,000 after it got blown up . As far as a testarossa, we do have to remember that this car showed up on MV during the last three years of the 1980s. Everything was going crazy back then. The stock market was on fire, yuppies were all the rage, cocaine sales in Miami were going through the roof and EVERYTHING was ostentatious. The car perfectly fit that era. I just received the Testarossa that I bought about a week ago. Let me tell you, that car is really really difficult to drive in the city! No power steering. Almost impossible to steer from a dead stop or at a slow pace. No way that would have made a good car driving around the busy streets of Miami . They Daytona is known to be just as difficult if not more in steering. A super heavy car. This is so interesting! OK, the Daytona was difficult to drive ? I want to believe DJ was really driving this car through some of the more difficult maneuvers throughout the first few season. DJ was an excellent driver of cars as well as speedboats, so I can accept that. Still, it shakes me a little to think the car was difficult to steer! How on earth can we believe some of the chase scenes and stunts we saw were real after we hear this? Edited May 17, 2019 by mjcmmv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedDragon86 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) 13 minutes ago, mjcmmv said: This is so interesting! OK, the Daytona was difficult to drive ? I want to believe DJ was really driving this car through some of the more difficult maneuvers throughout the first few season. DJ was an excellent driver of cars as well as speedboats, so I can accept that. Still, it shakes me a little to think the car was difficult to steer! How on earth can we believe some of the chase scenes and stunts we saw were real after we hear this? I believe he was driving at high speeds in the Daytona, there is a clear shot of him in Lombard on the highway chasing the merc and he is also very noticeable when he is driving pretty fast in Florence Italy, almost out of control. I know he has his own stunt double but in these moments it was him for sure. Not sure about him chasing at high speeds in the Testa though. Edited May 17, 2019 by RedDragon86 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjcmmv Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) 8 minutes ago, RedDragon86 said: I believe he was driving at high speeds in the Daytona, there is a clear shot of him in Lombard on the highway chasing the merc and he is also very noticeable when he is driving pretty fast in Florence Italy, almost out of control. I know he has his own stunt double but in these moments it was him for sure. Not sure about him chasing at high speeds in the Testa though. To be honest, I'm amazed they let him drive with all this danger and high speed,. Talent or not, he had to be heavily insured. If he was injured or, God forbid, they lost him, it would have been financially disastrous for the insurance companies! Edited May 17, 2019 by mjcmmv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mvice8489 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 Keep in mind that it was not a real Daytona of course. It was just a Corvette. Much easier steering on a Corvette that a Daytona. As far as the testarossa, it is only difficult to steer it very low speed. Or if you are trying to maneuver in and out of angled driveway for example Once you get it going the momentum helps and there are no steering issues. There were three testarossa’s used on that show. Two of them were real and one was a stunt car. The stunt car was built out of a Pantera. A lot of the chase scenes used that car. You can tell which car is because it is much lower to the ground and does not have stock wheels. The wheels on the Pantera were much bigger than stock TR wheels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mvice8489 Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 Here are pictures of the Pantera stunt car. Notice how the wheels look different then a real testarossa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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