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

Mr_Shiftright

Aw, even my car can go 240 (in theory) and it's old....now 300 that takes some guts....shoot, at 220, you might even get passed in California.... :P

Hmmm....I noticed the cruise control light wasn't on....oh, well...

There's no stock W113 in the world that's going to go that fast, not even close...there is absolutely not enough stock horsepower to do that....somebody's cheating big time. A Gullwing can barely do that.

Ditto stock W126...maybe a 500SEC that's been breathed upon could get close....

fintail

I wonder how they'd cheat. The tachs support a high speed. Recalibrating a speedo just for a photo shoot seems like a lot of work.

Maybe someone crammed a 6.3 or a modern engine into that 113

The 126 is a Euro spec 560...I bet it could do it

Mr_Shiftright

Oh I meant by "cheating" that they modify the engines. I doubt a W113 could even go 120 mph. Not enough horsepower. A Euro 560 might do 250 kph if you had enough room. Sometimes I guess they monkey with the speed controls, too on the newer cars, most of which are speed-limited electronically.

lemmer

I saw somebody commuting to work in a slightly ratty blue chromed bumper MGB, and a kid going to high school in a freshly restored old-school Baja Bug.

bumpy

"I wonder how they'd cheat. The tachs support a high speed. Recalibrating a speedo just for a photo shoot seems like a lot of work."

You "recalibrate" the needle in Photoshop.

Mr_Shiftright

Or if you pushed a W113 off a cliff and hooked up the speedo to a wind gauge, that might get you that type of reading.

shipo

Hmmm, I'm thinking that there is another possibility. Thinking back to a trip I took in Europe in 1985, I managed to get a 1985 Fiat Uno Diesel (all of 36 horsepower) up to over 170 kph going down a mountain (and probably wind aided) somewhere near the Swiss-German border. I'm thinking that a W113 could get well into the mid 200 kph range on that same AutoRoute.

Best Regards,
Shipo

Mr_Shiftright

Maybe 120 mph downhill in a vacuum in the moon's gravitational field.....okay, I agree!

andre1969

you can probably get anything up to an obscenely high speed. Case in point...back in 1992 I had a 1991 Civic rental car out in California. It really didn't like going much over 80 mph, because it would just go into overdrive where it didn't have the power to go any faster, but it also wouldn't downshift. Well, if you downshifted and floored it, and got it past that sticking point, you could go faster, as long as there wasn't an uphill grade coming at you. And going downhill, it picked up speed pretty quickly. I got it up to 115 mph (what's that, about 192 kph?) on Cajoun Pass in California. Probably could've gotten it to go faster, but I started getting scared! When 10,000 foot high mountains off on the horizon are going past that quickly, it's time to slow down!

fintail

I don't think it's photoshop. If it is, they did a damn good job at it.

I think an injected fintail will top out at about 110, so maybe a ligher 113 could hit 120. Downhill, tailwind, etc

andre1969

I think this is really cool

I wonder if it would get better fuel economy than my Silverado? :P

fintail

Looks nicely done, if anything

stickguy

that was someone with way too much time on their hands, and money to pee away! I do like it better than a Chevy though (at least the interior, not sure the front end looks right).

Andre, go for it. A nice match to the Lemans. Too bad it was sold, and way too nice for hauling crap to the dump.

I want to see the '79 L'il red express truck he menthions (built on top of a Viper chassis). That could be fun, and will certainly get worse mileage than a Silverado. But, it will be faster!

jrosasmc

I thought this might be of some interest to those who are on the prowl for an old Ford:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Mustang-Ghia-1975-Ford-Mustang-Ghia_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ- categoryZ6057QQitemZ4578172130QQrdZ1

For the price he's asking ($10k), he's got to be out of his mind.

lemmer

I think he accidentally added a zero to his price. What other explanation could there be?

Mr_Shiftright

Even with the low miles, he's about 100% over top dollar all the money. As you can see, 0 bids is the result.

jlawrence01

You would never fall asleep in the car with THAT interior.

andre1969

I think I'd actually be afraid of a car that old with that few miles! Even if it LOOKS brand new, it simply isn't. For instance, a buddy of mine recently bought a '78 Mark V with something ridiculous like 15,000 miles on it. Looked about as "new" as a '78 car could! Well, last week, the a/c compressor siezed up and the belt had to be cut. I know an a/c compressor isn't too big of a deal on a car like that, but I'd just worry about stuff failing from lack of use.

Mr_Shiftright

Age is just as unkind as mileage to a car.

jaserb

Wouldn't that V12 126 have the standard 250 kph speed limiter? Looks like he hit it.

-Jason

fintail

There's no V12 126. There were 500 and 560 series cars that were much more powerful in Euro spec than the versions we saw. I don't know if they even had speed limiters.

jaserb

Oh, OK. I just assumed the 560 meant it had a V12, like in the newer models. MB model numbers don't make any sense to me anyway. I also thought that even most new AMG models still have that 250 kph limiter unless you have it removed by a tuner.

-Jason

imidazol97

Age does to a car's parts what it does to yours.

fintail

Yeah, the model designations are meaning less as time goes on

My C43 has a speed governor at 155mph

I ebt the old Euro AMG cars had nothnig of the sort...it was wide open back then

jrosasmc

If you're still around I've got to ask you- What year was that Thunderbird your father had at one time? I remember you telling us that he had one of the small Fox-body Birds and that he hated it.

I found one for sale on Ebay- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Thunderbird-Town-Landau-1982-Ford-Thunderbird-town-Lan- dau_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6240QQitemZ4577940349QQrdZ1

It's definitely not something you see on a daily basis anymore.

Mr_Shiftright

not very spirited bidding on that puppy.....

lemko

His was a 1981 model. That 255 V-8 was a real dog. The 250 I-6 in his prior 1978 Granada seemed more spirited.

boomchek

We have one that's exactly the same with same color sitting at our compound with the rest of the trade ins that society and wholesalers rejected. :sick:

It has become one with nature :sick: It's been there over two years.

stickguy

Problem is, I can't recall what it was! But something you don't see very oftenanymore.

Mr_Shiftright

we need more hints than that :P

stickguy

I'll have to hire that new car figurer outer service I heard about

boomchek

Car figurer outer service is here

Heard you over from mystery car pix thread :P

Gimme a day, I'll figure out what your oddball is :P

stickguy

It was green. Does that help?

remembered a couple, but not the one I was thinking of:

-a Crossfire convertible (with the top down). This could probably go here or in the new car thread, which is sad!

-a 1966ish Buick 4 door that looked almost new. And big, but it was trimmer than the overdone barges of the early 70's

-a 1954ish Chevy PU, that had been somewhat hotrodded (mags, stacks, etc.

- a mid 70's (big bumper) LTD wagon. Looked like an air craft carrier.

And the green car. I remember that a girl was driving too, if that helps.

andys120

or more likely a Caterham Seven looking impossibly cool on a fine sunny day.

boomchek

lol yeah I know which one you're talking about. Probably that VW Thing lol :P

I actually saw one in white a month ago. Funky looking Thing.

stickguy

not too long ago on I295. 2 door, younger women driving. Sagged nicely in the rear, and appeared to be the original paint (and I don't mean that in a good way!)

fintail

Today I spotted a fairly immaculate looking 78-79 Buick "Aero" sedan, in a less than pretty dark brown with a creme colored vinyl top. I am sure it had a brown and plaid interior or something equally as awful. Aah the 70s

kyfdx

an E-type coupe!! Possibly '67-ish..

Not that a non-running Jag is that hard to find... but, it did appear to get to the break down spot under it's own power....

merckx

Haven't seen one of these on the road in many years. When new, I just couldn't accept any convertable with any overhead structure...today the car looked rather nice in BRG...

stickguy

forgot about that one. Last week, a neighbor had a party, and one of the guest showed up in a red E type. Looked very nicely done. I didn't get too nosy poking my head in to look for flat floors (the top was down), but I think it might have been a series 1? In any case, it was early, and IIRC had a 3.8 badge on the back. ANd a luggage rack (I always hated those).

andys120

The 3.8s were all Series I cars IIRC. Luggage racks were ubiquitous on 60s roadsters cuz it was the only way to carry luggage larger than a shaving kit. :P

fintail

Yesterday I spotted a Checker station wagon. It was an earlier model, pre-DOT bumpers - I bet from the 60s. It was a pastel grey and it looked to be in excellent condition. A real survivor.

fintail

Probably one of the best left, and the price reflects it

Oddball...and it's not even RHD so it can't go back home

Yeajh sure it's rare and kind of cool, but 20K buy it now? Lay off the crackpipe

These made good converts

I wonder if the provenance has documents

A gas-conscious way to have a vintage car

Poor Man's Bugatti

Here's a famous past owner

Buy it now is again too high, but appears to be top of the line and in a wonderful state of preservation

Seldom seen 61 - always liked that A-pillar

BIG

Like new 60 Caddy

Brand new 76 Eldo in bright colors

Lowest mileage one I've seen of these

Say what you will, but it was more daring than what Caddy is doing today

Would you still want one of these Andre?

Now this is my speed...two tone Euro FI fintail with leather, nice colors too

Fintail in my color

Seems like a decent price based on mileage and condition

Old school ambulance

Nicely preserved Olds

Andre mobile

Strippo Andre mobile

kyfdx

Hey... that big Electra is only about ten miles from here... not that I'll be stopping by to look at it...

I like how the listing for the '76 Seville touts, This is a NO Reserve Auction!!

And... the starting bid is a low, low $19,500...

imidazol97

Is it possible that starting bid isn't completely honest in some way??? :grin

I have always been uneasy about EBay the very few times I've ventured to bid/purchase there. Maybe a new discussion about EBay and whether it's safe to buy a car there...

andys120

-I like the '61 LeSabre, too. It's not as pretty as a '62 but close enough.

-The Isabella reminds me that I saw a very straight looking early (small bumper) Karman Ghia coupe recently. The styling has held up nicely IMO.

fintail

I wouldn't touch a car from ebay unless I saw it myself or had a competent person inspect it. Too risky, and I am a picky person. I've bought and sold A LOT of stuff there over the past few years - certainly over 10K - and never had a problem. But with cars, that's just too risky.

The Ghia aged exceptionally well, it's still a pretty car, with a 50 year old design. A while back I saw a very early car, the kind with the small air vent holes in the front.

toomanyfumes

Reminds me of the '76 my Dad had that I learned to drive on. Our's was a four-door, but the interior colors were exactly the same. Unfortunately, it had the 260 V-8 like that stripped Pontiac. An absolute dog of an engine.

fintail

Now HERE are some obscure cars

For Canadians only, unfortunately.

imidazol97

260 v8 in a 76 Cutlass? I don't remember that. I thought the Cutlass was 350 V8 or a v6..