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

explorerx4

i think i see the inspiration for the pacer in that '48 packard. interesting doors. the wood was inserted in the metal door.

andys120

I'll take the 62 Pontiac if they just put a 3800 in it for durability. I have nice memory of that car year.

The best thing about the Super Duty Ponchos was the engine, if you haven't got that you ain't got much. Where I come from it';s a sin to display a "421" emblem and have anything else under the hood. :P

fintail

Yeah that Cutlass is in "period colors" as they would say, which isn't a good thing. Shame given its condition. Just imagine it in a nice silver on blue or something.

I don't think the wood in the Packard was really structural. That car will cost a fortune to put back.

chuck1959

Yeaterday I spotted 2 A Porsche 914, Renault 10 not sure what year model though.

fintail

Something that few others than I would notice....today I spotted an absolutely pristine 560SEL. It was a very pretty kind of gunmetal grey, and had factory chrome flat-face wheels. It looked brand new. I do think those 126s are nice looking big cars.

jrosasmc

I also spotted something today that few others would notice as well...an immaculate VW Quantum Syncro wagon. These weren't popular even when new and finding one in any condition in this era is very difficult. Also, as I said the one I saw was mint...most Quantums are likely in the junkyard by now.

kyfdx

I always thought the Quantums were very cool.... and, even better... you could only get the Syncro AWD with a stick...

fintail

Those Quantums had some kind of inherent mechanical defect didn't they? Those things seemed rare even 10 years ago, seems they died fast.

kyfdx

They were basically an Audi clone.. I can't remember anything specific.. but, almost any Audi or BMW from the '80s would have had myriad service/mechanical issues...

lemko

...was always aspiring to own a Quantum. She was the one with the troublesome Jetta. Did they even make the Quantum in the early '90s? When did the Passat debut? One of VW's crappiest cars ever was called the Passat in Germany - the Dasher, or as I liked to call it the "Trasher."

jrosasmc

The Quantum was dropped after the 1988 model year, finally put out of its misery. The Passat debuted in 1990 and continued in that boxy shape until 1998 when the beautiful (for a VW) Audi-based model came to the U.S. The Dasher was sold here from 1974 to 1981. And in its final year only a diesel engine was available- very strange.

andre1969

used to have a Quantum. She was a lawyer. Not a very good one, we used to joke, judging from the car she drove! When we split up, I suggested my ex-wife use her as her lawyer! :P

navigator89

Today I saw two Volvo C70 hardtop coupes, one in orange and the other in blue. The C70 had the highest decrease in sales for 2005 and was #1 on the Forbes list of Automotive Turkeys.

In the meantime I am waiting eagerly for the upcoming C70.

lemmer

Lawyers and accountants have the same problem with cars.

If you drive a really nice car, people think you are ripping them off. If you drive something really plain, people think you must suck so badly at your job that you can't afford anything better.

chuck1959

Where does everyone finds the sales and production numbers, I see mentioned on the boards?

lemko

...traditionally, Buick was the doctor's car. It looked as if he was a good enough doctor to own a decent car, but wasn't ripping off his patients and living lavishly enough to buy a Cadillac. When I was a kid, my doctor had a sharp red 1964 Lincoln Continental that he drove until his death in 1973.

andre1969

one site I go to alot is http://www.aicautosite.com. Down on the left there's a link that goes to sales figures. It's not that up-to-date, though. Last time I checked, they only had sale figures though August.

andre1969

I also used to hear that a Buick was considered a good banker's car. Upscale enough to show that you had "made it", but not flashy and pretentious like a Caddy or Lincoln, which were often associated with flaunting money, but not being particularly wise about investing it. And Chrysler was on the ropes off and on again so many times that buying an Imperial sent the signal that you were risky with money...again not something that people want to associate with when it comes to their bank! Especially back in the day, when the Great Depression was still fresh enough in many people's memories.

fintail

Didn't period Audis have a problem with transmission fluid and oil mixing or something? Maybe the Quantum had that. I remember in high school a teacher had a Quantum sedan, and even at that time (c.1994) it was an odd car.

Today I saw a prev gen MB CLK55 AMG, they are a little uncommon. Looks like the same rear bumper as my C43.

lemko

Oh oh! Mr. Drysdale drove an Imperial on the "Beverly Hillbillies!" I guess Jed and all his clan are living back in Arkansas in a trailer park behind the Wal-Mart!

andre1969

but look at what a buffoon Mr. Drysdale was! I'm sure he would've been living out on the street if Miss Hatheway didn't keep him in line! :P

fintail

Miss Hathaway must have been a fairly well compensated secretary too, she always had a new Dodge convertible IIRC

lemmer

On the Brady Bunch, Mr. Brady always had a nice new car for supporting all of those kids (and a housekeeper) on an architect's salary.

At this point, I fully expect Andre to fully detail every car owned by the Brady family.

andre1969

I'll be happy to oblige. Mr. Brady was a poseur before we even learned the meaning of the word. Just look at his house. It was a small, unassuming split level that backed to the Los Angeles River (the concrete one that's usually mostly dry). Heck, he even hung a fake window on the front of the house's facade to make it look more impressive than it really was! But inside, it was no great shakes. I mean, c'mon, ONE bathroom for 6 kids, and it wasn't even sporting a commode? :confuse:

And when it came to cars, Mr. Brady sure liked to show off himself, but the poor missus had to make do with much less desirable cars. Mr. Brady got a brand-new convertible every year. He must've been sleeping with someone who pulled some rank at Chrysler because one year he was cruising around in a 1972 Barracuda convertible. Normally that wouldn't be a big deal, except that Chrysler stopped making Barracuda and Challenger convertibles after 1971! :P He must've had a good year financially in '72, because that year he also bought a brand-new Impala convertible.

Meanwhile, poor Mrs. Brady was stuck with her station wagons. She only had two of them for the whole run of the show. The first was a 1969 or so Plymouth Satellite, and the newer one was a 1971-72 Satellite. Occasionally, later in the run of the show she could be seen pulling off the street in the '69 Satellite, but then parking next to the astroturf lawn in the newer one! Nifty trick, but evidently not uncommon in Hollywood. On a few occasions, I've seen Mr. Brady turn off the street in the Barracuda, yet show up in front of the garage in the Impala! And years ago, Mr. Cleaver had a nifty habit of pulling up in a 1960 Plymouth, with towering tailfins, but then hopping out of a finless '61! ;-)

Oh, and if y'all haven't noticed, yes, I'm bored. It's late, it's snowing, and I want to go HOME!

lemmer

OK, for bonus points - What would Mr. and Mrs. Brady drive if the show was filmed currently? (Don't assume Chrysler sponsorship)

lemmer

It took me only about two minutes to find this Letterman list that I sort of remembered from 15 years ago.

Top 10 Rejected Model Names for New Cars

10. Pontiac Cyst
9. Dodge Glove
8. Oldsmobile Beiruter
7. Nissan Spleen
6. Chevy Junta
5. Hyundai Accordion
4. Mazda Eczema 500
3. Dodge Johnson
2. Yugo Screw Yourself
1. Ford Gelding

mazda6iguy

Remember he drove a nifty Chevy Camero convertible, and I think his boss drove a Corvette.

chuck1959

Thanks!

chuck1959

I think in the very early shows he drove a Malibu SS convert. Later the Camero. I think Sam had a Impala Convert (?) in the later shows.

I think the boss always had a Corvette.

chuck1959

Correct. Wasn't it a Polara or Coronet?

andre1969

the Bradys really weren't ones to keep up with the times as the 70's wore on. In fact, the last time I saw them, Mr. Brady was driving a really nice looking '72 or so Olds Cutlass convertible. Mrs. Brady was still getting the short end of the automotive stick, though, and driving a nasty brownish-gray Mercury Montego wagon from the 70's. I don't know where they were spending the money that was saved by not buying any new cars for 20+ years, though. When you figure that they nearly lost the house in 1995 because of non-payment of back taxes, I guess they just weren't all that smart when it came to money management!

michaellno

OK, I'll bite.

The family car has to seat 8 (9 if Alice goes with them). Not too many vehicles have that capacity - full size vans and (maybe) SUV's (Sequoia, Expedition, Tahoe).

Mr. Brady could drive a Mustang convertible -- if he's the poseur that Andre says he is, it'll have the V6 and an automatic.

andre1969

of Bewitched, before the Camaro came out, Darrin drove a 2nd-gen Corvair convertible. I think Larry Tate had a Caprice 4-door hardtop...we wouldn't go to Corvettes until he had mid-life Crisis, traded in Louise #1 for Louise #2, and ditched the Caprice for a Corvette.

I do remember seeing a Chevelle convertible too though, so maybe Darrin switched back and forth between that and the Corvair. I also remember a '65 Impala, but can't remember if it was a 'vert or hardtop coupe, that Sam parallel parked using witchcraft.

And the last car I remember on Bewitched was a 1970 full-sized Pontiac...Bonneville, I think. They drove around in it when they visited Salem.

andre1969

I think Miss Hathaway did drive a Polara, back when Chrysler was fielding those shrunken models they were trying to pass off as full-sized. Once the Coronet came out though and the Polara went full-size, I think she stuck with Coronets. I don't think she got a new one every year though. I do remember a '65 Coronet and a '68 Coronet, and also one of those magical changing cars that's accomplished through the use of stock footage, where she jumped back and forth between a '63 and '64 Polara (or something like that).

They should've all taken a few cues from Jed Clampett, though. Despite all his vast millions of $, he held onto that Oldsmobile truck! I guess he was the original Live Below Your Means lifestyler.

chuck1959

All the talk got me nostalgic! I found this on the net.

The Bradys' cars:
During the first two seasons, each of the Brady family's motor vehicles were supplied by Chrysler Corporation: a blue 1968 Plymouth Fury convertible (which Mike drove) and a light brown 1969 Dodge Monaco station wagon. Does anyone remember the 1969 Dodge Monaco station wagon? I was thinking 1969 Plymouth Belvedere. For the 1971-1972 season, the Bradys obtained new vehicles, once again supplied by Chrysler Corporation: a blue 1971 Dodge Challenger convertible and a brown 1971 Dodge Monaco station wagon. Again wrong it was a Plymouth Satellite. The Bradys kept the Dodge station wagon throughout the rest of the series, although Mike kept switching cars, which by the 1972 and 1973 season, were supplied by General Motors. These were as follows: a 1972-1973 A blue 1972 Chevrolet Impala convertible (entire season). Them 1973 and 1974 - A maroon 1973 Chevrolet Caprice Classic convertible with white interior during the first half of the season. Starting with 1974 episode, "The Driver's Seat" and continuing through the remainder of the series, the convertible is a red 1974 Chevrolet Caprice Classic convertible with black interior.
Remember:
The Andy Griffith Show...the new every year Ford Squad cars... Aunt Bees 1956 Ford Convert....Floyd's 1964 (?) Comet convert and Howard's Merc wagon,(can't remember year model) 1960 Comet in back ground along with a Country Squire (64)? How about the Rambler inside the courthouse, remember that?

Green Acres: 1966 Linc convert then a 1969 Merc Marquis.
I guess they had to switch to Mercury Marquis when they canned the Linc convert?

ghulet

They had a bunch of cars, mostly Chevrolets, IIRC. Other than those mentioned, I recall at various times seeing:

66 Chevy Impala wagon (conveniently enough, on the episode where Sam befriends the neighbor kid who has to haul his soapbox derby car to a race; a Caprice wagon is also seen in this episode)
68 Impala convertible
various 68 or 69 Corvettes, driven by Tate and various rich playboy types
70 Impala convertible
70 Pontiac Bonneville convertible, when they're visiting Salem
64 Malibu SS convertible
65 Impala 2-door, in the episode where Paul Lynde (before he played Uncle Arthur) teaches Sam to drive

ghulet

Mostly a strange assortment of wagons, for some reason, including:

two-tone '85-ish Maxima wagon
Red Volvo 850R wagon, with badly faded paint, black steel wheels, a tow hitch and suspension listing to one side; pretty sad
92-ish two-tone white and gray Olds Custom cruiser wagon
running Audi 5000 wagon
a silver current-generation BMW M3, being towed, hit hard behind the RF door, back wheel basically hanging off perilously
early '80s 810/Maxima sedan

boomchek

A 1993 Lada Samara 3 door hatch. Grey in color, and in decent shape for a Lada.

It had the rare rally package consisting of styled steel wheels, a quartz digital clock, 5 ashtrays inside, styled shift knob, and a trip odometer. :P

Ok it had none of that..... :P

andre1969

I don't ever remember them having a full-sized station wagon! I know for the pilot episode, Mr. Brady had a blue '68 Dodge Monaco convertible. This was the one where they locked the dog in it, but then the dog stepped on the power window switch and rolled it down. TVLand made a big to-do about this in one of their "TVLand bloopers" commercials. At first they were asking how Mr. Brady was able to order a car with both power windows AND a hand crank. The crank was actually for the little vent window. Back then, nicer cars usually had a little crank to open the vent, while with cheaper cars you usually just flipped the little latch on the vent window and pushed it open.

Well, enough people (me included) wrote to TVLand explaining that to them, and they actually issued a retraction! But then they asked why Mr. Brady left the key in the ignition, so the window could be rolled down? I (and others, I'm sure) wrote in to them explaining that up until around 1969, power windows were usually "hot wired", just like your headlights, power locks, cigarette lighter, etc, so that you didn't need a key to operate them. So you could leave your kids in the car while you went shopping, and they could entertain themselves by playing with the windows, and either crushing each other's heads and other body parts, or simply running the battery down.

andre1969

my '79 NYer has FIVE ashtrays and FOUR cigarette lighters in it! There's an ashtray and cig lighter on each of the passenger doors, and in the dash there's a big pull-out that has his & hers ashtrays with a lighter in the middle.

Man, people must've smoked like chimneys back then! Funny how times changed! I also remembered that, at one time I considered having a cigarette lighter in the back seat of a car one thing that distinguished a luxury car from the rest! At least, until I learned that Ford was putting them in Crown Vics.

imidazol97

Oddly in earlier years smoking was catered to in a way that we didn't want to offend a smoker.

IIRC: I noticed the Park Avenues in my dealer's showroom have lighters in each rear door when I sat in one before they were discontinued. Probably that is a concession to the age group buying the car at the time.

kyfdx

...that had a round knob to open the vent windows..you turned the knob to open the windows... tres cool....

And.. in this area... they used to call the vent windows, "cozy wings".. :P

lemko

...all have cigarette lighters though nobody's permitted to smoke in them. I occassionally smoke cigars, but wouldn't do it in any of my cars. My Cadillac Brougham has three - one in the front ashtray, and one each in the rear door ashtrays. Ditto for the Park Ave. My Seville only has two - one in the front ashtray one in the back one. My girlfriend's car is totally PC. No cigarette lighters. What was once used for lighters are considered power ports.

lemko

Early '60s six-window Cadillacs had full power windows - four for the regular windows and four for front and rear vent windows. It's funny seeing all those buttons on the driver's armrest for eight windows and two each on the remaining doors plus one each for the locks!

andre1969

in the 70's and early 80's have those knobs you used to open the windows? IIRC, didn't the little vent window part actually roll down, instead of pivoting open?

andre1969

back in college, there was a nearby used car dealer that specialized in imports. Well, somehow they ended up with this gorgeous black '66 Caddy. I think it was the Sixty-Special. It was longer than the regular DeVille, and had a B-pillar. It had full power, for all four windows and all four vents. That sucker had little footrests in the back seat too, and I think it even had little trays that folded down. It was a pretty sweet ride, in really nice shape, and I think they only wanted around $2995 for it.

lemko

...has a gorgeous blue 1967 Sixty-Special similar to the car you described. Geeze, I'd have snapped up that car in a New York second had I been around at that time!

andre1969

I would have snatched it up myself, except for the fact that by that time (1991) I was in college, making a whopping $6.50 per hour part time, and already had two old cars to support...my DeSoto and my '69 Dart GT. When I got the DeSoto, I was able to talk my uncle into helping me build an addition onto the garage for it. I doubt if he would've repeated the favor for this Caddy!

Also back then, we put the DeSoto on my Grandma's insurance policy. It would've run me around $500-600 per year to add it, but I think it only cost her around $100. There's no way I could've talked her into putting this one on her policy as well!

And this sucker was VERY nice. Nice enough that it pretty much demanded to be garage-kept, otherwise it would deteriorate. Oh well, guess it wasn't meant to be.

fintail

What's it worth? $100 in mint condition?

How often do you see a Lada Signet anymore?

Vent/wing windows in cars were a nice touch. The ones in my fintail are also operated by a round knob, and my Galaxie has a little crank.

mazda6iguy

I remember someone on that show driving, or riding in the back of a Chrysler Imperial.