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I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today! (Archived)
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What about:
Last Gen M5
Maserati Quattrone
Bentley Continental GT
Late 50s Caddy
I know that this is a debate that can never be decided. Before we know it, we'll have the Ford Fairmont crowd weighing in.
As for the Ford Fairmont, I think the later models, and higher trim levels with the quad headlights were okay looking cars. Nothing to have a wet dream over, but nothing really offensive, either. Just kinda there. Generic looking for the time, but now they tend to stick out a bit more simply because they're not that common anymore.
Yeah, "good-looking" is supposed to be a subjective point of view, although I don't think it is entirely subjective. The more one studies design principles of proportion, function and reference to the world around the object, the more coherent the criticisms one might make on the subject.
I guess I better shut up, then.. :surprise:
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What about:
Last Gen M5
Maserati Quattrone
Bentley Continental GT
Late 50s Caddy
Last Gen M5
One of my all-time favorite cars.. they make me drool.. but, not just because of the looks.. Still like the Alfa
Maserati
Nah.. Doesn't do it for me.. That sort of shape should be a coupe, anyway.
Bentley Continental GT
Is that a 4-door? I thought the GTs were coupes..
Late 50s Caddy
I'm just not a big fan of cars pre-'62.. Probably just an age-related thing...
Okay, now I'll shut up..
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The previous 5er (M5) included is a very balanced and harmonious design. Beautiful? I don't know...but there's little room to improve it.
I don't get turned on by the Maser...the Bentley Sedan is the "Flying Spur" (I saw one on my commute home today) and it is very cool...but I don't see any beauty, more like clout.
And then my bias can show through...I find the MB 108/109 sedans and coupes to be quite timeless and really just about beautiful for their market position (luxobarge). I also love the looks of 126 sedans and coupes, although I wouldn't call them beautiful...I think they are pretty perfect. The 124 is up there too.
I'd say the '59 Caddy is anything BUT beautiful, but then its coolness and desireability lies in its overdone-ness, so it doesn't NEED to be beautiful! But then the '60, which is the same car just with lower fins and less chrome, seems boring to me.
My favorite Caddies from that timeframe are probably the '61-62 models. They're almost sporty and nimble looking for a car that size, and cleanly styled. Even though the '61 Lincolns came out at the same time, I wonder if they had some influence on the '61-62 Caddy? Not as a direct copy job, but at least some influence in making it look cleaner, and sportier?
I saw a fairly new Bentley the other week. It was behind me. I'm not up on my Bentel terminology, but it was a smallish, but still heavy looking coupe. From dead-on in the front it actually looked pretty goofy...like it had a crosseyed look to it.
On the road, a 1970s vintage "eyebrow" Ford F150. I always thought they looked goofy with the grill that curved up in front of the hood lip, with the parking lights (I guess) above the headlights. At least around me, you don't see many left from that vintage.
Oh, I think the older (50s) bently Conts. came in 2 or 4 door styles.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
My ex-wife's father lives in Washington State, and he always swore by Fords. I remember when we went out there on our honeymoon, he had two old 70's Ford pickups. And one of his daughters had the OJ-generation Bronco. His two Fords were beat-up, because he put them to hard work with hauling firewood, but they still seemed pretty solid.
He said he'd NEVER buy a GMC, because that's also the initials of his mother! Gladys Marie Christian, or something like that. I don't know if he had a particular hatred for Chevies, though.
The 240s and 740s just have lots of body roll---they are very American-feeling in that respect, with rolling and no feedback through the steering wheel. But they are easy to drive as long as you don't push them and you can stand the ten piece percussion orchestra under your rear suspension. They remind me a lot of the 300D Mercedes diesels.
These critters?
I still see them around in decent numbers. The GMs might seem more common because they had practically the same body for 15 years, so you have to look for some pretty subtle features to distinguish the '73-79s from the '80-87s.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Wasn't 1981 the first year they lowered the front fenders and hood a bit? I'm almost positive my 1985 Silverado has a hood that slopes a bit more than the one I posted above.
That '73 interior looks like it should be driven by some guy with giant sideburns, several gold chains, and a half-smoked cigar. Hard to believe GM went from this to this in less than a decade.
Anyway, I remember Grandma taking a tape measure to the Sierra's seat cushion, and also to the '85 Silverado, and saying that it WAS narrower. I wonder if the fact that the Sierra was a crew cab, with a fixed seatback, compared to the Silverado, with its seatback that folded forward, made any difference? Seems to me that it shouldn't. Or, maybe at some point they just rounded off the seat cushion, or reshaped it to make entry/exit easier?
As for those interior pics, I can't tell a difference in the redesigned dash of the later models, except that they got rid of that tacky plood.
Totally cool look. It gave the car a whole new ambience...
Today I spotted a beautiful 560SEC driven by an older guy...the car was black/dark grey and looked new. The real nice ones are getting harder to find.
for my birthday i got speed channel. there is a barrett-jackson show on at times. i can't believe people are paying a 120k for made up chrysler cars with 'hemi added'. just crazy.
Still, even with all these qualifiers, basically that 120K car is just a Dodge taxi cab with a different engine in it.
Nice trail
These had a low survival rate
Why???
That steering wheel looks unsafe
Better than it ending up like this
Seville of a different kind
Now this is a Buick
"classic american icon"
Elvis would have liked it
Low mileage Seville
Wow
Wow again
Fins on trucks = cool, this one is apparently unique too
Not terribly unusual, but the "Kuhlmeister" sticker is very cool
XS or excess
- I can't beleive that there are 8 people in the world interested in a Renault Alliance limo
- With the Town & Country, what is he selling? It's so rusty, that it's not even a pile of parts. You get the plate off it, but what can you do with that?
- The rear window on that Toro is just weird
Good pics this week. Thanks.
That XS Toro....god if I had the money. I love those! That "weird" top is what makes that a gem.
I like that Toro XS, too. I always thought that wraparound rear window was the coolest thing.
First, a mint looking yellow Chevelle SS396. Maybe a '68 ish, but I'm never sure of the years on tht vintage.
THen, parked outside the bowling alley, a nice but not restored looking '70ish Chevelle SS454, with a 4 speed! My favorite domestic muscle body style was always the '70-'72 Chevelle, and the 4 speed really made me want this one!
Then, a decent looking rubber bumper MG-B, with the worst replacement top I have ever seen. Light tan (on a red car), poor fit, and an oversized rear window that was all wavy. Looked more like Saran wrap!
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Also saw a mid 70's Z28 in fire engine red with a 4 inch cowl hood and massive drag radials explode past me. Had to have been mini-tubbed at the very least.
GIven where it was, and how rare they are, wouldn't surprise me if it was a clone, but I was driving past so I didn't have a chance to get close enough to tell. In any case, I liked it!
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I also saw a mint c. 86 Ciera, some kind of highline model with a dopey period bodykit and lacy wheels, followed by a same period Buick Century which was in similar condition. I remember back in the day when that platform was everywhere...around 1985, there were like 4 of em on my block alone. Then came the Camcords...
IIRC, all versions (except the Buick one), offered some sort of "sport" package that tightened up the suspension, added a few pieces of body work and included alloy wheels.
I remember looking at an '87 Camry back when they first came out -- pretty nice car for the money, even though it was smaller than what was offered by the US manufactueres at the time. Of course, in the late 80's I was living in Southern California, where everybody, it seemed, bought imports and the domestics were looked down upon.
i think the 'elinor' was a made for a movie car, not a production model. either way, still a convertible with rumble!
So there's probably more than you ever wanted to know about twenty year-old sedans.
We had a 84 Ciera, I think it was a 'Brougham'...it had some kind of badge on the B-pillar, I think that's what it said. It was pretty plush inside, and had dopey rattly fake wire wheelcovers that somehow were a step above the Olds style plain wheels. It had the 3.0. It was decently equipped, but was some kind of leftover car my dad found for a good price, so it had an AM radio only - even as a little kid I found this kind of odd. It had a persistent "cricket" chirp in the dash that was never cured. The early Taurus that replaced it seemed like a car of the future.
I actually almost took it to the drag strip one day but as I was checking the car out that afternoon I noticed a strange noise.
I got out my mechanics stethescope and with the help of a friend we figured out I had broken the timing chain tensinor. I wasn't going to go drag racing and risk breaking the chain.
Replacing the timing chain turned into about a month long affair because the first crank seal I got had a nick in it so it leaked oil every where. I took everything apart but as I was pulling the water pump off I broke a bolt off in the timing chain cover. I had to get a new one of those and as long as I had the whole passenger side of the motor apart I went ahead and repalced all the sensors on that side too.
I pulled the oil pan and cleaned out all the gunk from in the engine and put on a new oil pick up tube and stranier.
By the time I was done that motor ran like it was brand new instead of having 130,000 miles on it.
I sold it to a friend of a guy that worked for me right before I moved up to CT. I sold it to hime for 600 bucks and last time I talked to him it was still running strong.
This has some elegance
I don't see why people go so nuts for this kind of thing
It could be the sole survivor...good luck finding parts
Early model Nissan Armada
This is cool, but wow the price
The best looking 60 Edsel, and it's still odd, especially from behind
Buick truck
Interesting "new" car
So much weirdness for one car
"Grip King"
Not many of these left that haven't been used as 70s police cars in movies
Little freakshow
Nice pics this week. Thanks.
I was wondering the same about the Buick Wagon, why wasn't it driven.
I suspect that yellow Dodge is a period custom rather than a real prototype...but it was made when I was 2, so I could be wrong.