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

andre1969 · February 2003

...the one I saw was an '81, and it was the 4-door model. It was already sold, so I didn't see a price listed. Here's the URL though... http://www.bobsclassics.com/81s.htm
It says that it was built on a Grand Prix platform, but the one pictured was on a full-sized B-body platform, such as a Delta 88 or Bonneville.

Mr_Shiftright · February 2003

I think they even built some on a Cadillac chassis for a few years. They called the sedan the "4porte" I think, because as you know if you name something French you can charge more for it in Hollywood.

So it would be a Stutz VI 4Porte, which you could then drive to La Maison de la Casa House Restaurant at Vista Del Mar Oceanview by the Sea Sur Mer.

dgraves1 · February 2003

Wow, what a collection at that site. Some of them may be even worse than the Stutz's:
http://www.bobsclassics.com/88ty.htm. At this level of gawdiness, it becomes hard to rank them.

Mr_Shiftright · February 2003

What a hideous thing....GAKKKK!

I'd love to be a fly on the wall at the Tiffany Owner's Annual.

ndance · February 2003

*that* is cool. That car really needs some sort of 4wd conversion to really hit its peak. It's like something from the Munsters.

porknbeans · February 2003

Wow, I just have this image that every time you honked the horn on that thing "La Cucaracha"(sp) would play.

andre1969 · February 2003

...I have a well-off relative somewhere who had one of those. It's been awhile now, so I can't remember if it was one of my cousins from California or Southern Md. Either way, I never got to see it, thankfully.

I think it's actually more attractive looking than the Stutz, but it loses points for not trying to disguise the Cougar/T-bird interior. And a base Cougar, at that! The nicer models had longer armrests that kicked up at the front, kinda like an old Grand Prix. I'm shocked that the thing only weighs 3800 lb!

idletask · February 2003

A rare sighting by all means on the roads of France. I remember seeing convertibles too, but that was long ago.

Mr_Shiftright · February 2003

The Tiffany's big problem is not that it's a "retro-classic" but that stylistically it is a mess. It has styling cues from about 6 different decades and they collide in a riot of mismatched clumsiness.

The designer, whoever he she or it was, is clueless about the harmony necessary in good design work.

No, I'm not going to blame this one on Exner, relax!

ziglifler · February 2003

Driving south down I-5 today in my truck (frieghtliner) a Yugo blow by me . beware ... it had the little 2 sticker in the window from dmv i guess someone found it somewhere and couldn't get it smogged or something .

also saw peugut? i am spelling that wrong i bet , 405 looked to be mid to late 80's it was squareish . this was going north on 99 is ca

jrosasmc · February 2003

If you saw a 405, it was only imported here from '89 until the very end in '91. That car, designed to be Peugeot's entry-level model in the U.S., was plagued with a lot of quality problems.

idletask · February 2003

A turbo Diesel one. This was my second car. It should be noted that it was the last generation before the 406. The only problem I ever got with this car is the gearbox. Otherwise it ran flawlessly.

Unfortunately there's a very true assessment about French cars in general, which still holds true today: don't ever buy one in its first year of production or you'll get into a lot of problems... The 406 is a rare exception though, but at the time I didn't have the means to buy it instead of the 405.

andre1969 · February 2003

...I'd imagine that the problems over here in the U.S. were compounded by the fact that there weren't that many people who knew how to work on them, the dealer network was scarce, and parts were hard to come by.

Idletask, that first-year-out assessment tends to be true of American cars, as well!

lemko · February 2003

...on Cheltenham Avenue in Philadelphia with about twenty '80s-vintage Peugeots outside. Must be a Peugeot specialist.

magnetophone · February 2003

There used to be this place in town called "The British Mechanic" that also serviced Peugeots, too. We always used to make fun of it...but it was the only place in town where you could mid 70's Rolls-Royces rotting in the back.

ziglifler · February 2003

i start of talking about a yugo and everybody wants to talk about the peugeots (thanks for spelling it right

andys120 · February 2003

It's always amazing to see one that actually runs.

stever · February 2003

I'm reading Kiln People by David Brin and the millionaires in it all ride around in Yugo limousines.

ok, it is science fiction....

Steve, Host

tarik · March 2003

Do you have any information why the Renault Avantime is being discontinued? There are differing reports on whether Renault or Manufacturer Matra pulled the plug. Thinking that the Vel Satis will get the axe too makes me sad. Finally two cars which were not mainstream like too many others...sniff (and I'm serious).

idletask · March 2003

Matra gave up and it's Matra that manufactured the Avantime. It forced Renault to pull the plug on the Avantime.

But the Vel Satis goes on. It's manufactured by Renault in Sandouville, the same factory that builds the Espace and Laguna (all three share the same platform).

magnetophone · March 2003

I bet the Avantime will have a collector's following, sort of like the fiberglass sports car that Renault made in the late 80's.. the Alpine?

PF_Flyer · March 2003

Saw a very cherry Mazda RX-7 this morning! Classic car plates on it. The guy appeared to be afraid to drive it over 25 mph... perhaps he's had his share of tickets in the beast!!

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Mr_Shiftright · March 2003

A nice car and one of my favorites but if it's a "classic" then both Picasso and Godzilla are "artists". They made a gazillion of them and they don't sell for much--hardly a classic nominee. I wish people wouldn't do that. The car is what it is and ain't what it ain't.

</two cents>

tarik · March 2003

Idle, can't you get me an Avantime and store it for a while? A very brave move on Renault's part, as is the Vel Satis. Worth holding on to, I say.

Matt, your post re the Alpine A310 reminded me of an ugly predecessor, the Matra Simca Bagheera. I believe they also had a fiberglass hull, and were equipped with three seats. In one row. Rubbing elbows among, or plenty of space inbetween the driver and the co - depending on your current mood...

tarik · March 2003

And, just for the record, I'd take an Alpine A110 over any of the above in a heartbeat. Please make mine a 1600 in Gordini blue with the Cibies, ahhh...

checkme · March 2003

1. A Suzuki Esteem WAGON. Now that's obscure!

2. The new Maserati coupe. Surprisingly, it looked horrible. It looked like a cross between a Monte Carlo and a 350Z. Yuck! The only things that looked great were the wheels.

andys120 · March 2003

After having to sit on it since it was delivered
11 months late in Dec. due to a fire at the Triumph factory my friend Mark braved the mud and potholes to bring over his brand new Bonneville Anniversary Replica.

It's a real beauty looking every bit like a "real" Bonnie except for required turn signals and such. He says it's the 16th to come out since the fire.

Mr_Shiftright · March 2003

I used to have a Bonneville. Great bike, it could run rings around the Japanese road bikes of the 1970s because it could handle so much better. Now of course I doubt anything but an Italian bike could keep up with the best Japanese superbikes.

PF_Flyer · April 2003

Was behind a Fiat 124 Sport yesterday. I think it was a '75... first time sighting for me in my neighborhood!

tarik · April 2003

...Trabant 601, the former East-German top-seller. It even had its little 2-cycle engine still in place and looked, well, new! All that happened in Magog, QC last week.

magnetophone · April 2003

I saw a mahogany colored Avanti II at Fry's this weekend.

andys120 · April 2003

from the last series (III?) with the four headlights. In almost perfect shape in the tan/gold color that was so common on them in the late 50's and early 60's. There must be a foretune in maintainig that car so well.

IMO the Clouds and the contemporaneous Phantom V limo were the last Rollers to look stately like a proper Rolls.

I haven't seen any in years.

Mr_Shiftright · April 2003

They are expensive to maintain. A brake job will set you back about $8,000, which is about 1/3 to 1/2 the current value of the car. So now you know why you don't see them anymore. The Phantom V wasn't made in very large numbers so you aren't likely to see them even in the UK.

idletask · April 2003

Saw no less than 4 Triump Spitfires on the road during these last two weeks. The weather is exceptionally clement nowadays (it's rare when you get 20+ °C by here and right now this is the case) so all convertibles are on the road again. I didn't know there were so many Spitfires still around.

Also saw a rarity by here, a Fiat Panda 4x4. Moreover it was painted just like a zebra. Fun! The elder man driving it smiled back at me when he saw the huge grin on my face.

Saw two monsters by EU standards: a Ford Explorer and a Chevrolet Blazer.

Never spotted that Toyota Prius again. Too bad.

Also, go figure, now that people have learned that the Avantime was scrapped (and that it was NOT the Vel Satis), they run to Renault dealers and want one (as a collector?). Saw two of them last week, both new (said their license plates).

And finally, saw a rarity, a crossover before the name even existed: a Matra Rancho. I remember dreaming about that one when I was a kid.

jlawrence01 · April 2003

A perfectly restored 1974 Triumph TR-4 located outside of Cincinnati.

Of course, I nearly slugged my neighbor in 1983 for trying to sell me his 1974 ... which was in service maybe 4-6 weeks per year as he was waiting for parts from GB.

lemko · April 2003

...I saw a Mercedes Unimog truck the other week.

idletask · April 2003

No joke, I really saw one, for the first time. License plate was from France. I wonder what the guy bought it for...

Needless to say that it dwarved all cars around it. I've never seen a "car" that huge.

PF_Flyer · April 2003

...in the parking lot at our local Sam's Club, a black 1958 Olds 88 with about a half ton of chrome and WIDE whitewalls. Quite a site!

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andys120 · April 2003

They stopped making TR-4s in '67. My brother had
a '68 TR-250 (TR-5 in Europe)which replaced the TR-4A. The TR-250 was replaced the following year ('69) by the Karmann-bodied TR-6 which is likely the '74 that you saw.

The fugly TR-7/8 replaced the TR-6 IIRC in '77.

Sorry to be so tedious but I'm a former Triumph owner ('66 TR-4A) and co-founder of Triumphs Anynonomous (Tr-A) a self-help organization for those who recognize their addiction and the existence of a higher power (Lucas, the Prince of Darkness).

jaserb · April 2003

Driving down I-70 over the bridge into St Louis. It was red, and that's all I know about it.

-Jason

Mr_Shiftright · April 2003

Probably one of the few mid engine 4-seat V8s you'll ever see. The Urraco to have would be a newer one, the P300, that had a 3.0 liter V8 putting out 265HP. The earlier cars, especially the US models, were choked off with a smaller V8 and solex carbs. With some careful shopping, you could buy one for under $15,000.

magnetophone · April 2003

I keep on seeing the same red Ford Ka driving around my neighborhood with Coahuila license plates. If they sold the Ka, I would trade my car in for one!

oregonboy · April 2003

RX-4 wagon... metallic gold, straight, no smoke. Amazing. I would have thought that all of the early rotarys would have died of seal failure long ago. (I know that my '74 RPU died 12 years ago with less than 100k miles)

-james

magnetophone · April 2003

The local Mazda dealer has one of those in pristine condition in their showroom. I want to say it's called a Cosmo Wagon or some ridiculous name like that. They also had a coupe at one point with a rotary engine. They're apparently the biggest Mazda dealer in volume in the US, so I guess it's from their old days.

Mr_Shiftright · April 2003

I once owned that very car. It was a nice little wagon and it could scoot pretty well. Gas hog, however. I recall that the build quality and accessories were far better than any other Japanese wagon of the time. Probably any old RX-4 you see has had an engine replacement from a specialty rebuilder.

michaellno · April 2003

My folks almost bought one in 1973 (sedan, not the wagon), but ended up with a Toyota Corona. Mud brown, with a bench seat up front and a column shifter. Turns out that has been the last new car my parents have bought. They currently have a '91 Camry they've owned for almost 10 years (nothing obscure about that!).

oregonboy · April 2003

I owned a Mazda Rotary Pickup for many years. It had the same 13b engine as the RX-4, and yes, it was a terrible gas hog.

I lived in Oregon then... no self service gas stations. Several times the gas station attendents freaked out when the pump past the 12 gallon mark. They thought the automatic shutoff must have failed and the gas was pumping onto the ground. Nope. Unlike all of the other import trucks of the period that little sucker had a 20+ gallon tank... and it needed it. I averaged 12 to 14 MPG.

It went like stink though. By far the fastest compact pickup of the era.

-james

Mr_Shiftright · April 2003

Oh, an old RX-2 coupe is a hoot to drive if you can keep it running. I always thought about stuffing a 3rd generation twin turbo motor into one. Not sure I'd have the guts to drive it, though, at any serious speed. Sure would embarass lots of cars at the stoplight though. I bet you could get close to a 5 second car out of it.

orangelebaron · April 2003

Yesterday I spotted a minscule hatchback medium blue car going the other way in East Meadow, NY. It had a rear window that was at an odd upright angle that reminded me of a TV screen. The car looked like a blue washing machine with wheels.
I looked at pictures of the first Civic (1973)...not it... and looked at pics of old datsuns, etc...
I still am convinced it was some old Honda...but it wasn't according to pics I saw online. What was the first year Honda car? Any links?
Could it have been a French car?
Anybody have a link to obscure cars with photos?

bksward · April 2003

I work across the street from the San Diego repair and restoration facility for these guys:

www.symbolicmotors.com

Lots of Ferrarris, Rollers, Bentleys, etc. Quite a few interesting old cars. I've seen a couple of the 30's Alfas that are on the website. Also a Dark Blue Jaguar XJ220...

On the other side of the coin, with Baja California plates I've seen Mercedes A-class, a Nissan Platina (smaller than a Sentra), both the hatchback and the sedan version of VW's next size down from the Golf/Jetta, and some little Metro-sized hatchback that just says "CHEVY" on the back.

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

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