I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!

fintail · August 2013

There are wheels which were 1984 only, along with many 1984 models having little black plastic kind of bumper guards that I think were a one year thing. The one I saw had the multi spoke wheels which debuted in 85, and lacked the bumper guards. There were also some minor interior differences. 1986 saw the facelift with flush lights etc yes.

Amusingly, there's even a Tempo/Topaz website

Funny about the Red Hat Buick - when my mother was thinking about a new car, I pointed out the Lucerne, then saw one parked, which I showed her. It had a Red Hat sticker on it, which made her reject the idea immediately.

uplanderguy · August 2013

Pretty sure that color combo you saw would make it an '85. I mostly looked at Chevys then, but the majority of the colors across GM divisions were the same. I remember that exact two-tone you mention. Rather sharp IMHO.

andre1969 · August 2013

I think my stepdad's '84 Tempo, a GL coupe, had those alloy wheels that formed sort of an "X" pattern.

My grandmother's cousin, the one who lives next door to me with the beat-up '89 Coupe Deville, runs some of those Red Had meetings. My roommate had seen them on a tv show called "Still Standing", which had Sally Struthers in it as a Red Hat member. Well, he thought it was just something that they made up for the show. Until he looked out the window one day, and amidst the sea of Grand Marquises and assorted Buicks next door, saw a bunch of old ladies dressed in purple, with red hats!

I've thought about a Lucerne from time to time, when it comes time to replace the Park Ave. Every once in awhile, a Northstar model comes up for sale, for what seems a reasonable price. But, I worry about the maintenance/repair costs on the Northstar as it ages. And a car that size just doesn't seem proper with a ~195 hp 3.8, or even the ~227 hp 3.9 that replaced it in the final few years.

andre1969 · August 2013

I'm also thinking that the hood ornament was white "Collector's Edition" version, like what my Grandmother's '85 had. IIRC, the others had the Tri-shield logo, but were see-through.

I would've thought the Collector's Edition would've come with a vinyl roof though, but maybe not? Even by that time, a lot of that stuff was still stand-alone options. This one had the same wire hubcaps that my Grandmother's '85 did. And, they were actually pretty tasteful...for wire hubcaps, that is!

uplanderguy · August 2013

On the RWD cars, I always thought GM's wire wheelcovers trumped Ford's by a wide margin. The spokes were long, the center was small, and there was an appearance of 'depth' in them. Ford's, IMHO, had a large center and short spokes, resembling aftermarket wires.

andre1969 · August 2013

The wire hubcaps on my '79 5th Avenue were pretty low-class looking as well, in my opinion. Especially for something in that price class. I think my 5th Ave was about $12,000. I forget what my grandparents' LeSabre MSRP'ed for, but I remember Granddad saying it was $16,200. I think that was out the door, with tax, tags, everything, but could be wrong.

I guess it's kind of hard to directly compare the two, though. In 1979, a New Yorker 5th Ave Edition was slightly more expensive than an Electra Park Avenue or the top Olds Ninety-Eight. In fact, I think it barely broached into Caddy DeVile territory. A LeSabre would have been nowhere near that level of prestige.

But, by 1985, the LeSabre, with the Limited, at least, was attempting to fill the shoes of the old RWD Electra. In fact, I've heard that the '85 LeSabre Limited even got '84 Electra seats. So, if equipped right, an '85 LeSabre could be quite luxurious.

fintail · August 2013

There were two "X" style wheels - these, which I think are pretty cool:

And these, which aren't:

I've never actually seen the wheels in the first pic, in person, but they are 80s-cool.

Our 1985 Tempo GLX, a fairly loaded car with power everything, aftermarket headlight covers, and also had a late year steering wheel and factory CHMSL, had these wheels, which I think might have been 1985 only, or later 84 GL/GLX and 85 models, but discontinued by 86:

Strange how I can get all specific about a car I couldn't care less about otherwise, but we had one in the family, so I learned the details, as I can for earlier Cieras as we had one, too.

As time goes on, I bet the Camry and Avalon are big Red Hat cars, too. I laughed that my mother rejected the Buick, but ended up with a white Camry, which isn't really any more youthful.

A loaded Lucerne would be the only way to go, but like you mention, as it ages, it might cost a lot to run - and gas isn't going to be any cheaper.

andre1969 · August 2013

I'm thinking that my stepdad's Tempo had the "cooler" X-wheels, but can't remember for sure. And unfortunately, I don't think there are any pics of that car.

It's really a shame that digital cameras weren't around back in the old days. Nowadays, I'll take pics of just about everything, and save everything but the worst pics. But, back in the day, when you had to buy film and it wasn't exactly cheap, people were a lot more picky about what they took pics of.

uplanderguy · August 2013

Interesting list, lemko. Why the Caprice, not a four-door hardtop like the others? Are you a fan of the concave rear window of the coupe? Just wondering.

I think I'm going to hang around this forum some more. The other one I frequent has had rising levels of "Jersey" behavior; I don't know a better way to put it.

uplanderguy · August 2013

In the early and mid-eighties I was already on my own and had bought new '81 and '82 Monte Carlos and ordered a solid plum-colored '85 Celebrity Eurosport 2-door. I saw tons of Tempos and Topazes around here for sure, but the styling never did a thing for me. I think they're a little 'chubby' looking and have a lot of sheetmetal over top of the smallish wheel openings, and the four-doors have thick side pillars.

I do remember the coupes being sold new by dealers around here as loss-leaders...I'm thinking as low as maybe high 8's/low 9's for a strippo? This would be late '80's.

I always thought it was unusual that they restyled the sedans but left the coupes with the old body.

andre1969 · August 2013

I think my stepdad paid about $11,000 for his Tempo, but at that time, they were still a bit new and fresh. Honestly, I hated that car with a passion. I only drove it once, a few years later, when I was 18, and that only made me hate it more.

I think the 4-door sold a lot more than the 2-door, so that's probably why they put more effort into restyling it. I liked the 4-door a bit better, after the restyle, but by then it really seemed like a bargain-basement car. And that cheap-car stigma was only reinforced when the Dad of one of my friends traded his stripper early 70's Comet in for one, and bragged about what a deal he got on it!

In the later years, they shoved the 3.0 Vulcan under the hood of these cars. I've always been curious as to how good of a performer something like that would have been. I guess by that time though, Chevy was putting 3.1's in their Corsicas and Berettas, and Mopar was shoving Mitsubishi 3.0's in their Shadows and Sundances, so Ford had to compete. So maybe it was no great shakes, after all.

andre1969 · August 2013

Funny you'd mention "Jersey". We had an office shuffle at work, and I got an office-mate I can not stand. It's gotten to the point I've had to get supervisors in on this. My immediate supervisor made a comment along the lines of "How much do you wanna bet she's from Jersey?" And, coincidentally, I did hear her mentioning Jersey a couple of times in a personal conversation with what I think was her mother.

Interestingly, everybody I know who's from Jersey is anything BUT that stereotype!

On the subject of that list, I really wish I could narrow it down to just 5 cars that I'd really like. But, one other that I thought of that I wouldn't mind having sometime...a 1972 Impala 4-door hardtop. Mainly, because my grandparents had one when I was a kid, sequoia green with a white vinyl top, and I loved that car.

Even though I've usually been a Pontiac fan, I thought Pontiac started losing it in the later 60's and through the 1970's. For instance, I'd much rather have a '71 Impala or Caprice than a Catalina, Bonneville, or Gran Ville. The Pontiacs just seemed to become a bit of a caricature of their former glory. And they seemed to go way pimpier than the other divisions. Olds was usually understated and conservative, while Buicks seemed gracefully slick. And Chevies were usually pretty good at pulling off a tasteful, luxurious look on a budget, although for some reason I never liked the '73.

I did start liking the big Pontiacs again in 1975 though, when I thought the more squared-off looks suited them pretty well. By that time though, the public had pretty much abandoned them.

tjc78 · August 2013

"Mopar was shoving Mitsubishi 3.0's in their Shadows and Sundances, so Ford had to compete. So maybe it was no great shakes, after all."

My aunt had a Shadow with the 3.0. That was a pretty quick car and would light up the front tires at will.

stickguy · August 2013

better not be dissing Jersey. Otherwise TJC and I will drive down to have a word with you. Maybe even bring Fezo. Though that is all the jersey guys I can think of off the top of my head!

Technically, they should handle it. I am from NY. I just live in Jersey for now.

fintail · August 2013

I am the same about cameras and pics - I can find very few pics of old family cars. I know the Ciera and Tempo have to be in the background of some pics, and I have seen pics with the T-Bird in the background, but many others are just lost, as cameras were not convenient and nobody was sentimental. The Country Sedan, Galaxie, Fairlane that we had in the 90s - I don't know of any pics of either. I didn't take any pics of the fintail until I had it for a year or two.

fintail · August 2013

The Tempo does suffer from the "worn bar of soap look", especially the coupe. They could be had in strippo form for around 9K I think, yes. Our loaded GLX stickered around 13K, IIRC. The same-year S-10 Blazer my dad had was around 16-17K, I think.

andre1969 · August 2013

Actually, I was thinking of you guys as well as I typed that! All of my Jersey friends are kind and generous, the types who'd give you the shirt off their back! So I dunno where the stereotype comes from?! Most of my friends, that I'm thinking of, are from the Neptune/Asbury Park area.

andre1969 · August 2013

The only pics I can find of the '53 DeSoto that Granddad had, from like 1978 to 1986, are when they'd show up in the background, because someone was taking a pic of something else.

Actually, I found a pic somewhere of my Mom sprawled out like a wanna-be model on a 1963 Pontiac. I should scan it in...just not tell her about it! I think the car belonged to a friend of the family, a weatherman named Dick.

I've seen pics of my Mom's '66 Catalina convertible, but don't know where they are anymore. But as far as I know, no pics of her '57 Plymouth or '59 Rambler wagon exist. I did find a pic of our old '68 Impala, with Granddad standing beside it, and you just saw the rear of the car. It was taken when it was fairly new, before Grandmom and Granddad gave it to Mom. I don't think there are any pics of Grandmom and Granddad's '72 Impala, though. I think their '82 Malibu wagon might have shown up in the background of some pics of when my Mom and stepdad got married, as the reception was back at Grandmom and Granddad's house. There are some pics of the '85 LeSabre...mainly because I took them, but by that time it was pretty old!

Somewhere, I have some old pics my Dad gave me, of his old '64 Ford Galaxie XL, his '63 Impala SS 409, and I think even his '65 Impala SS 396. I don't think there are any pics of his '64 GTO though, or the '71 Torino he got when Great-Granddad passed away. There is one pic that I remember, of his '62 Corvette sitting in my grandparents' driveway, bruised and battered, hood up, with a smiley face painted underneath, and me as a toddler standing nearby and pointing at it.

explorerx4 · August 2013

Which one of you has the car with the biggest trunk?

fintail · August 2013

I know there are pics with my grandfather's tank green fuselage Chrysler in the background, and I have seen a few pics with the '70 Mustang my dad had until I was a young child. But cars before that are pretty tough. My mother has a good memory of every car she's ever owned, but didn't think enough of them to snap a pic, I guess...and my dad was never sentimental, so no luck there.

I visited my 81 year old aunt last week (my dad was almost 40 when I was born, so I have some old relatives), and saw a cool early 50s pic of my late uncle, with a period style hot rod 33-34 or so Ford pickup. He always had some kind of old Ford pickup, the last one being a 56.

tjc78 · August 2013

"Which one of you has the car with the biggest trunk?"

Well, I'm sure that's me since I have a Grand Marquis and a Buick.

uplanderguy · August 2013

That's the promo.

Sigh.

uplanderguy · August 2013

"I did start liking the big Pontiacs again in 1975 though, when I thought the more squared-off looks suited them pretty well. By that time though, the public had pretty much abandoned them."

I like the '75 and '76 Bonnevilles myself.

I didn't like the '73 and '74 Grand Villes, with the wood trim inside the doors that had no bright outline, and was carved like an old-time rifle handle. It was a huge piece of trim on those cars.

I do like the '71 and '72 Grand Villes. They were available (but rarely seen) with a Custom interior (replacing the "Brougham" of the previous years) of fluted damask (?) and the four-door had front and rear center armrests.

I think the '71-72 instrument panel is a little plain though. Same panel on a Catalina as on a Grand Ville.

I used to hate '70 full-size Pontiacs, but now I find them interesting merely because they're not seen. I could take a Ventura or Bonneville Brougham.

berri · August 2013

For me, if I wanted a BIG Pontiac it would be a 65 or 66. I thought Pontiac was the nicest looking of the downsized 77's and had a very nice dash. Although I think I liked the Buick dash the best of those. It was just criminal how GM tarted up Pontiac's at the end.

andre1969 · August 2013

I think the last big Pontiac of the 1960's the really turned me on was the 1967. The 1968 restyle did nothing for me. Even though the '67 was getting a bit plump, it still managed to look sleek and futuristic to me. As a little kid, it made me think a bit of the Batmobile. But for '68, it just seemed to turn into an old man's car. I think they were trying to tie in the styling more with the intermediates, but I just didn't think it worked on the bigger cars.

Now 1969 I kinda liked. A bit ugly up front, but with a tough, rugged stance. And I liked the overall shape of the body, and the rear. The 1970 Pontiac is okay, but I tend to associate it with old people as well, I think because when I was a kid, the elderly couple who lived behind my grandparents had a 1970 Executive sedan, in a dark green that wasn't as tasteful as the Sequoia on Grandmom and Granddad's '72 Impala. It may have been that Verduro green, but I can't recall. I just remember the had a big one-eyed sheepdog named Snooky who was sweet as could be, they moved to Pennsylvania around 1981 or so, and I heard the husband is still alive, while the wife just recently passed.

With the 1970, it's mainly that front-end I don't care for. The widely spaced headlights and the horn ports that give it a bit of a "six headlight" look, and the too-narrow grille just don't do it for me. I thought that the 1970 Pontiac sort of kicked off the Neoclassic/retro craze that seemed to pervade for awhile...the cars may have been modern, but they started going for some of those neoclassic curves, vinyl roofs, and all sorts of other luxury touches that, when done wrong, erred on the side of pimpy.

As for 1977, I LOVE the Pontiacs that year, especially the Catalina! I do like the Buick dash for the most part, but never liked the fact that, AFAIK at least, you couldn't get extra gauges (although my 1985 Consumer Guide says you could, but that could be an error on their part). I also didn't care for the silver instrument faces on the earlier models, or the clock. By the time my grandmother got her '85 LeSabre though, the gauges were black-faced, and the clock was integrated into the radio. Oh, and one other nit...the glovebox in the Buicks was really small. The metal door was a nice touch though, in an era when many others were going to plastic.

I guess I tend to go for losers though, because the 1977 Catalina was about the least popular of GM's big cars that year...roughly 60,000 built I think. A big downfall from what, in some years, was the third most popular full-sized nameplate in America. 1977 was a bit of a turning point though, as buyers demanded more luxurious cars. That was the first year the Caprice outsold the Impala, and the Bonneville outsold the Catalina. While the LeSabre and Delta 88 still outsold the Electra and Ninety Eight, which were much more expensive cars rather than just a different trim level, I do believe the nicer trim levels of the LeSabre/Delta were outselling the cheaper lines by a pretty wide margin.

uplanderguy · August 2013

The '65 and '66 (mostly '65) are my absolute favorite Pontiacs of all. To my eyes, there simply isn't a better '60's instrument panel than the '65 Grand Prix or Bonneville with buckets and console--avoid the AC though which puts the center vent in a lump on the top of the dash! LOL

ab348 · August 2013

We had a '67 Pontiac when I was a kid. It was a Parisienne 4-door hardtop, white with a red cloth and vinyl interior. The Parisienne was trimmed like the Catalina, I think, but being a Canadian Pontiac it was built on a Chevy chassis and had the 283 small-block with Powerglide. Ran great, looked sharp. Took a lot of vacations in that car.

Like you I never liked the '68 restyle. I prefer the '70 to the '69 though, although probably not at the time. As time has passed I came to like that neoclassic '70 front end more than the somewhat generic '69. Actually I think all of GM's 1970 big-car refreshes are better than the'69 versions.

The '77 Catalina looked a bit stripped-down compared to what it used to be, and I think that hurt sales. It probably wasn't hard to convince a potential buyer to spend a few dollars more to get that posh-looking Bonneville.

I LOVED the dash on my '79 Park Avenue. It was the favorite part of the car for me. The silver-faced gages (to use GM's spelling) looked really cool, though they weren't easy to read at times. And the big round clock over on the passenger side was a homage to the Buick dashes of the late '40s/early '50s, which I thought was a nice touch.

uplanderguy · August 2013

If you google "Bonneville Brougham" you will most likely come across an image of a maroon '67 4-door with the Custom (I think) wheel covers and cornering lights, that is just beautiful, in and out. Amazingly, it was sold new at the Pontiac dealer (whom also sold Olds) in small Clarion, PA, where I went to college. I absolutely remember them on the outskirts of town...first place I saw a new '78 Grand Prix stashed out back. I was pretty stunned at how tiny it seemed.

I like the '67's cornering lights, but hated how they put louvers over them for '68.

lemko · August 2013

Funny you should say that! My wife's Aunt Silvia belongs to the Red Hat Society and is the person from whom I bought my 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis!

lemko · August 2013

My Uncle Daniel had a 1970 Chevrolet Impala Custom with that cool concave rear window. I really liked that car! That roofline made it more distinctive than the four-door hardtop.

fintail · August 2013

Saw a 70s vintage Wagoneer today, pristine and obviously restored, pretty cool. Also a red Aztek.

tjc78 · August 2013

"2005 Mercury Grand Marquis"

For my own curiousity, does yours have a rear fender mounted antenna or is it in the glass? Pretty sure 05 was the only year to have that and it really makes me wonder what Ford was thinking for one year.

fintail · August 2013

Saved 28 cents per car, so a group of mucky muck middle managers got 50% bonus increases for them and their ineffectual exec bosses. To heck with the cost of lowered brand cachet, long term thinking isn't in my pay grade.

lemko · August 2013

Rear fender mounted antenna.

explorerx4 · August 2013

A white 59 Galaxie with a continental kit. I think it wasa 2 door, maybe even a hard top convertible.
Right after that, a maroon 65/66 Mustang convertible with a black top and after that a black 90's 300ZX twin turbo with the T Tops removed.

berri · August 2013

Growing up as a kid back then, you really didn't see a lot of cars with continental kits, not even convertibles. My memory may be starting to get old, but as I recall FOMOCO brands were the most frequent of the few you'd see back in the 50's though and I think those late 50's Ford convertibles probably carried it off better than a lot of the other cars.

explorerx4 · August 2013

It looked just like this one

hpmctorque · August 2013

I note a lot of styling similarity with the first generation '58-60 T-Bird from the A-post forward. Also, a quick glance reminds me of the '58-'60 Lincoln. A family resemblance is to be expected, but the angle of this photo really highlights the similarity to a greater extent than I'd noticed in the past.

jljac · August 2013

The 1959 Ford is my least favorite Ford of that era with the 1958 and 1960 Fords being my most favorite.

There are three cars of the 1950s where I remember the first time I saw them. . .the 1956 Golden Hawk (a gold and white one in South Bend, Indiana), the 1956 Ford Crown Victoria (my uncle owned one of those) and the 1958 Thunderbird. I was most impressed with the bucket seats and interior on the T-Bird, the instrument panel on the Hawk). In the 1960s I remember the first time I saw an Avanti and a 1968 Dodge Charger, which is the largest car I would like to own.

I confess to liking the first years of the AMC AMX (but needs a better interior) and the Pontiac Fiero (but needs more power). Of the later cars, I liked the Oldsmobile Aurora and the final version of the Mercury Cougar.

fintail · August 2013

Out on the road in the fintail this morning, saw a 56 T-Bird (of course with a continental kit), a ~71 Nova with a jacked up rear end, and there must be a French car meet in the area, as I saw a Citroen Traction Avant and a Panhard.

uplanderguy · August 2013

I also think the original AMX's were beautiful cars, but to my eyes, the interior disappoints. I know it was built to a price, unlike an Avanti for example, but it looks like the interior was carved out of a block of hard plastic, and the seat trim just leaves me cold. That said, I could still enjoy one.

Our Ohio Region Studebaker Drivers' Club threw our annual big meet at Summit Racing's headquarters and huge retail store at Tallmadge, OH, yesterday. We promoted it as a Studebaker-Packard meet but also welcomed other independents. We had 93 Studes, 35 Packards, and a good 20 'other independents'. There was a Facel Vega there, which I had never seen in person--quite attractive.

At the risk of ridicule (!), there were two mid-'70's Matadox X coupes there. I always liked those--low, big quarter windows, fastback roofline...rarely seen today. In one model year the Matador went from being the tallest 2-door body in its class to the lowest.

andre1969 · August 2013

I kinda like those '74+ Matador coupes...they have some ugly features, like the poorly-integrated bumpers and the frenched headlights, but you have to give AMC for trying. One detail I like, although it didn't really matter by then, was that they still offered roll-down rear windows on the coupes. I think if you got the Barcelona, with the landau roof they were stationary, but the base coupe with the larger windows had roll-downs.

A few weeks ago, when I was at the Das Awkscht Fescht car show in Macungie, PA, there was one of those Matador coupes parked right next to my LeMans.

andys120 · August 2013

While I was gassing up a fellow pulled up to the pumps in a dark blaue Mustang convertible, obviiously restored with good paint and chrome and a good top, the plexiglass looked brand new. It wore whitewall tires and the standard hubcaps as well as a "289" engine badge and I noticed a non-stocky Nardi-style wood rim steering wheel that was perhaps not really wood.

All in all a very nice car that looked very good but not over-restored (no super-glossy paint and every concievable option.)

fintail · August 2013

Several days ago, an old friend of the family passed away, someone I had known much of my life. I was sad initially, but as many say, the person wouldn't want everyone to mourn too much. It got me thinking that she had a really varied and unusual taste in cars.

When I was a little kid, she had a Porsche 914, but I don't remember it. I do remember a lovely ~80 Eldorado she drove for many years - two tone blue with grey leather, no vinyl top, and it had wheels rather than wire hubcaps. It was nicely optioned, and such a smooth classy ride, I rode in it numerous times and always enjoyed it. She also had a maybe 84-85 Alfa Spider, in kind of a creamy beige color that for Spiders seems to only exist in that general era. She inherited a fully optioned 81-82 or so K-Car coupe that she used for going to sales (she was an antique dealer friend of my parents) as running costs on the Caddy weren't cheap for such duty. In the 90s she had a late model XJ6 that was troublesome. Then switched to minivans, mostly Chrysler and replaced every few years, but the last one was a Kia. Her and her husband also had a 51 Cadillac convertible for many years, I remember it had wire wheels and wide whites. Their last/current pleasure car was a later run SL320, which was still in their garage when I visited a few months ago. Now that I look back on it, she had pretty diverse tastes for someone living in small town USA.

berri · August 2013

Sorry about the loss, but I would not be sad for the lady either. It sounds like she liked to live life and experience all it had to offer. Too often we can get so wrapped up in stuff that we forget about the importance of that aspect in our lives until it's too late. The thing about this lady is that you will have those memories of her forever since it doesn't sound like they are the kind that will fade away with time.

fintail · August 2013

That's true, someone I won't forget...the cars just add to the memory. Not many people have such a varied garage.

stickguy · August 2013

took a trip to boston this weekend and saw a few oddballs on the road.

on 84 in Connecticut, passed a yellow 69ish Chevelle. Looked like it road a little high (overzized wheels?) but looked nice. had Yenko SC stripes on it, but I think an SS 350 (maybe 396) badge. I assume it was a clone, but who knows?

and shockingly moving under it's own power (quite quickly too, because it passed me in the left lane at 75-80) was a black Porsche 914 2.0.

and running around the burbs up there, I was next to a white AMX 390 (1st generation). 4 speed. Looked nice and clean. I always liked those.

andre1969 · August 2013

She sounds like she was a truly awesome person. Sorry for your loss.

Earlier this year, I had someone pass away, long time friend of the family, who was probably more responsible than anyone else for getting me into cars. He and his wife lived behind my grandparents, and he was always working on cars, fixing them up, hot rodding them, restoring, etc. He helped me paint both of my Darts, gave me advice when I thought about buying a '72 Impala convertible, helped put a leaf spring on my DeSoto, and helped me put the back door to a '79 LeMans on my friend's 1978 Malibu Classic, after he had snagged it on a guardrail.

My Mom was a junior bridesmaid in their wedding, back in 1960 or so. They moved down to Southern Maryland in 1999, and sold the place up here in 2000, and we didn't see them much after that.

After the funeral, there was a reception back at his place, and they had the garage opened up to show off his collection. He'd had tons of interesting cars over the years, but by this time was down to two '62 Impalas: one stock and one hot-rodded, one of those late 80's/early 90's Chevy SS454 pickups, a '65 Chevy pickup, and a modified Model A. He also had an early 80's Chevy pickup, similar to mine but a short bed, sitting outside, primered-up.

I remember seeing old wedding photos, and back then he had a '58 Impala. I think it was a convertible. They also had a '69 Coupe DeVille, first car I can remember seeing that had power windows, when I was a kid. They swapped it for a 1981 Citation, back when such a travesty was common, although that rapidly gave way to an '81 Monte Carlo!

They also had a Chevy II convertible, white with a white/green interior. I remember him painting some metal interior parts one day. I remember saying that color reminded me of a Honda, and he said that's what it was! He couldn't find the original green, but the Honda green was a very close match.

He also had a '63 or '64 Riviera, and then a '66 or '67. And for awhile, he had a butterscotch '62 Coupe DeVille that someone had given him, because the engine had gone bad. I also remember him having a '55 Chevy at one time. And, countless other cars that I'm sure I've forgotten.

He used to put 350's in Vegas and race them. Also used to play around with Corvairs back in the day. And for awhile, he had an old Willy's Jeep with a 350 that he put in. He'd come around after a snowstorm and plow the neighbors' driveways for them.

I think he was 73 when he passed. When I was younger, 73 seemed O-L-D! That's the age my Granddad passed away, and my grandmother. But, now that I'm 43, and my Mom is 64, 73 doesn't seem so far away anymore!

fintail · August 2013

Hah yeah, with that lineup, I can see how they influenced you. The person I know who passed was about the same age. I should see if I can find out what she drove in the 60s, probably some interesting stuff, too. Funny thing her husband always just had a pretty ordinary pickup, nothing too oddball (Explorer sport trac might be it), other than the old Caddy.

I remember when my grandparents were in their mid 60s, they seemed old. Now my mother is that age, doesn't seem the same.

uplanderguy · August 2013

I can remember my grandmother (who lived in our town), on her 56th birthday. My grandfather (step), a character, got her a cake with a big '56' written on it. She seemed like someone in their late seventies today.

That said, she was the oldest of seven kids, helped raise her youngest brother and sisters when her mother died in 1931, and later raised a granddaughter and a niece. She didn't do anything fun for herself.

I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!

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