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

Mr_Shiftright

The 504 is about the only really good car Peugeot ever sent over to us.

ghulet

A neighbor of mine (cute, early '20s woman) had a well-used Puegeot 504 in the '80s. It was kinda cute in a way, a kind of olivey green with tan vinyl, had an automatic and a sunroof, IIRC. I do remember it breaking down on a fairly regular basis (though likely not any more often than my family's Fiat).

Re the Maverick/Granada discussion: wasn't the Granada just a rebodied Maverick anyway, which is to say it shouldn't have taken a whole lot of engineering prowess to put that thing on the market quickly? My aunt had one, I learned to drive on it. Hated it--it had a huge hood, a tiny back seat with non-opening windows, a really bad (seats leaned too far back, didn't adjust, no tilt wheel) seating position, a weak six-cylinder engine, typically vague (dead center) Ford steering and hers had no a/c. I never understood the point of that car on any level.

andre1969

if this is true or not, but I heard a story that a lot of people bought Granadas and Monarchs only to discover that they really didn't get any better fuel economy than the big monsters they traded them for. Supposedly, Henry Ford II's home phone # got made public, and people actually called him to gripe about it!

They really were just a rebodied Maverick, riding the same 109.9 inch wheelbase as the Maverick sedan. I've driven a couple of them...had a friend years ago who had a '77 sedan with a 302, and one of the managers, from when I delivered pizzas, had a '78 or '79 sedan with the 250 six. I think Ford tried to "engineer" (a loose sense of the word) a big car ride into them, but somewhere in the translation you ended up with a small car that handled worse than your typical 50's car, and the ride was enough to make you queasy.

Now the one with the 302 wasn't too bad in acceleration, but the 250 was awful. And they were both REALLY sloppy in handling.

My grandparents had a '77 coupe when I was a kid, but I was too young to really remember it well, although I remember the transmission failed on it, but under warranty. After that they had an '81 coupe which was just a facelifted Fairmont, but a much better car in just about every respect.

One of my roommates had a '79 Granada coupe, which was his first car. He says he loved it and would love to get another one sometime. I ask him why?! But then he says the same thing about my '79 New Yorker, so touche, I guess! :P

lemko

...I learned to drive on my Dad's red and white 1978 Ford Granada coupe. I don't remember the car being too bad. The 250 inline 6-cylinder delivered decent power and good fuel economy. It was cheap and easy to service.

kyfdx

An old girlfriend (long time ago.. not really old) had a Mercury Monarch with the 250... Painfully slow... She would turn off the A/C when she had to climb a hill...

I guess it just depends on the vehicle..

Of course, in the late '70s, the standard for acceleration was pretty darn low... They still hadn't worked out the whole fuel management/smog thing..

ghulet

...I don't remember the Granada getting the gas mileage you'd think it would get, versus a larger car. Then again, 25-30 years ago, if your car got 20mpg, you were doing well. They weren't exactly lightweights, though, IIRC, and they did handle badly. I just remember having to constantly move the wheel in order for the car to stay straight, while having to really move the wheel to get it to turn. Of course, I was fifteen or so at the time, so my driving skills weren't the best. Sadly, their other car, a Diplomat with a slant six, was a better car in most respects, though it was no great shakes, either.

fintail

Celebrity ownership means huge asking price

Not really 'THE HOLY GRAIL OF TATRAS' (that would be a 77 IMO), but cool to look at, huge price

Shifty-mobile

Buick wasn't the first to call a car "Lucerne" (but it is more appropriate for that market, unlike "LaCrosse")

I always kind of liked these. Seller has some freakshows hanging around

Someone bothered to bring this over

They all end up on ebay - big money

Long story

Someone apparently went to some trouble for this

Now this is a Buick...what a cool elegant car

Same as above

Max Wedge

Claimed to be a Hitler car...I bet it's just a taxi

Not many survived like this I suppose

These 2 doors seem a lot less common than the 4 doors

This looks pretty nice

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gsemike

No bids on that Lucerne... that's astonishing

Thanks for the posts. There are some unique cars there

kyfdx

A completely restored Dodge Dart wagon... I'm pretty sure it was a '62.. Two-tone.. Red body with white top..

It was stunning!

imidazol97

Large annual car show in the area. About 300 cars with 40 Vettes from the club that helps sponsor at local Chevy dealer. Best of show car for my memory days was a 65 Bonneville with 3 two barrel carbs. A 67 Mustang coupe was close behind. A Corvair Monza ?65? in perfect blue original condition.

chuck1959

a Lincoln Blackwood, it was black...did it come in any other color? The very few I have seen since it came out were black.
Also a fairly decent (for a Yugo) Yugo.

fintail

I saw an oddball today...it was an AMC Concord coupe that had some kind of period aftermarket convertible/targa conversion. It looked very much like a Celica Sunchaser. Anyone else ever see one of these?

chuck1959

Man, I vaguley remember something like that. IIRC it maybe was ASC conversion. Couldn't tell you what year or how long offered....sorry.

andre1969

there are a couple pics of them at http://www.arcticboy.com/Pages/arcticboyseagle2.html about 3/5 of the way down on the page. Looks like they were done by a company called Griffith.

Looks like they started in 1981, but I don't know when they finished. I don't think that AMC offered a 2-door version of the Concorde/Eagle for much after that timeframe...maybe 1982-83 at the latest?

chuck1959

Thanks Andre! That's Exactally what I was thinking of!
I should have known you'd be the one to know what I was thinking about!

Actually it's kind of scary I can remember that and not some of the important things in my life. LOL I guess that makes me a TRUE cat nut huh?

british_rover

I drove my MINI down south to deliver it to the family member I sold it to and on the way I saw...

Over a 100 hotrods most being driven but a few on trailers. Pre-war and post-war every different type you can think off from T-Buckets to three and five window coupes lead sleds and pick up trucks.

There were just very nice clean conservative rods all the way up to very radical probably six plus figure ones that I cannot believe were being driven in the sporadic rain. It was very cool.

I also saw a mustang from every year they were build and a camaro from every year they were built. A ton of vettes a lease a dozen porsches including I think one that looked like a 959. It could not have been a real 959 though it had to have been a clone, didn't it?

Several Ferraris of many different types.

I even followed a 190E in almost this exact color for a little while.



So any idea what was going on some where in PA around the I-81 and I-84 corridors?

kyfdx

Shelby Cobra replica..

Mr_Shiftright

You can build/buy some fiberglass rods for very cheap and they aren't worth much when you're done, so the rain isn't raining on anything special in many cases. The best rods of course are metal bodied using the top of the line components. To bust over $35,000--$40,000 in value, you pretty much have to have a name builder or truly amazing design, high-tech, and workmanship involved. It's a really fun way to lose money.

My favorite rods are '32 Ford classic roadsters, all metal, with the seats molded into the rear deck, no supes or electronic gizmos, just a nice Chevy small block and a 4-speed and clean, clean lines stem to stern.

fintail

I googled the AMC...it was called the "Sundancer". So it doesn't just look like a "Sunchaser".... I wonder how many could have survived...or even produced.

I bet the 959 was a fake...I've never seen a real one on the road anyway. Was the 190E a 2.3-16? Those have a small following.

british_rover

Yeah it was a 2.3-16. I followed it from behind for a couple of miles then blew past it once I had someone in front to draw radar gun fire.

I am sure the 959 was fake just cause there are no real road legal versions US. Almost all of the rods I saw were going the opposite direction as me but a few were going my way and I got a close look. I am sure some were steel bodied as there were just too many too all be fiberglass. I am sure there were some real expensive ones too.

lemmer

Saw an old MG replica today, not my favorite kit car. This one was particularly bizarre as it had Isuzu Impulse wheels. They were the very early wheels that had a pattern of squares across them - very space age, but not so perfect for an MG replica.

Mr_Shiftright

I hate those, I really do. They are SO badly done.

mazda6iguy

I once rented a 1981 Ford Granada wagon from Enterprise, back in the day.

grbeck

This past weekend the National Hot Rod Association held its big eastern show in York, Pa. (just off of I-83, about 30 miles from the Mason-Dixon line). It's one of the biggest events in the world of hot rodding.

The All-Ford Nationals were also held in Carlisle, Pa., which is located where the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I-81 converge. Andre and I were at the Ford Nationals on Saturday.

Both shows are quite large.

lemko

Will I see you guys at the GM show in a few weeks? Is it too late to register my car? I've been pretty busy.

british_rover

That was it then cause I drove right past Carlisle but I was not sure what if anything was going on there.

andre1969

I'm going to be there, Friday-Sunday, with my LeMans. It's still not too late to register. Here's link for it. If you want your car judged, pick the "Original/Unrestored Classes" choice, the $35 one. I always just pick the fun field $25 registration.

Go do it now! :P That show needs more non Chevy cars!

lemko

Thanx! I just filled out the registration for the Original/Unrestored Class for my Brougham. I will have it there provided the weather is good. If not, you will get to see my 1988 Buick Park Ave. Grbeck saw it at the very wet Carlisle Spring Meet.

explorerx4

i could bring my 'GM', but i don't think it would appreciated. It's Great Mustang.

explorerx4

that picture of the TATRA reminds me of SPY vs SPY. :confuse:

fintail

I saw a goodie today...I'm sitting in the gym in my apt building, which looks out at an angle onto a fairly busy street. About 3 blocks down I spot something old and a little swoopy and dashing...I could only see it from the beltline up as traffic was thick. E-Type? Old Italian? Pre-68 Vette? As it got closer I caught a glimpse of the front quarter panel, and then of the whole car, so I easily knew what it was - a ca. 1960 300SL roadster. Silver on red, and beautiful. I'll take one.

Mr_Shiftright

Please deposit $225,000.

grbeck

I will probably sell tickets on Friday and Sunday, but I have a wedding to attend on Saturday, so I don't believe that I will make it to the show on that day.

It shouldn't be too late to register. The GM show hasn't been as popular as the Mopar and Ford shows.

lemko

...you've got to get the new issue of Collectible Automobile currently at Barnes & Noble and Borders. It has a great article on the 1974-78 full-size Chryslers. When I was a kid, I had a neighbor who owned a travel agency who would buy a new Chrysler or Imperial every two or three years. This guy had two of the cars I saw in the article. His last big Chrysler was a white 1978 New Yorker Brougham. After that, he switched to Cadillacs and stayed with them. Unfortunately, he picked the worst year to switch to Cadillac and ended up with a 1981 V-8-6-4 DeVille. Maybe he should've got one of the last R-Bodies instead?

lemko

...sent in my registration yesterday. Hope the weather holds! I imagine the registration is good for all three days. Is it too late to find a hotel room? I was just planning to go out Saturday.

andre1969

Yeah, I got that issue Lemko. I like that style of car, especially the 4-door hardtops and the 2-door hardtops that didn't get the landau roof/opera window treatment. I actually prefer the Furys and Monacos with the quad headlight setup, which I think was only offered in '74-75. I think in '75 the cheap Fury and Monaco still had quad headlights, but the Gran Fury went to that goofy single headlight look, while the Royal Monaco got hidden headlights. And then for '76-77, I think those upper-crust styles permeated to the cheaper models.

I have a friend who used to have a 1978 Newport 4-door hardtop. It got totaled when he t-boned a '90-93 Accord that cut him off. I didn't know him at the time, but he lived in the area where I delivered pizzas, so I used to see that car around all the time, and even saw the scene of the accident.

Oddly enough, my ex-wife's LeBaron got stolen and impounded that same weekend, and ended up at the same towing company/junkyard as the Accord and Newport. I remember talking to the owner about that accident when I saw the crumpled Accord up on the flatbed. He said "yeah, we have the Newport around in back". He let me look at it. Considering that it punched in the Accord about two feet, between the wheels on the passenger side, the Newport wasn't that bad. All the plastic stuff up front was broken and smashed, and the driver's side fender crumpled just enough into the tire to make it un-driveable. And it bent one of the rear axles when it hopped a curb after whacking the Accord.

I actually met the guy who owned the Newport about a year later. I was still delivering, and had a '79 Newport by that time. One friday night during a slow stretch I was standing out in front of the store, and some of the kids who worked there were out in front smoking. This guy comes walking up and I hear him say "Is that a Newport?" Well, I didn't say anything to him because I thought he was asking the kids about their cigarettes and was just trying to bum one off of them!

He started to turn and walk away, when it hit me that he was talking to me. D'oh!

As for an '81 New Yorker versus a DeVille, I don't know which one really would be better? Or worse? There wasn't anything really horrible about the '80-81 R-body, except for the strangulated engines. The '79's were more prone to rusting, and had aluminum bumpers that would corrode and let the chrome peel off.

MT or C&D compared a 1980 Seville with the 368 to a 1980 New Yorker with a 318, and I think the Seville did 0-60 in about 10.6 seconds, while the New Yorker was about 14. That New Yorker had 120 hp and a 2.45:1 rear end, while the Seville had 150 hp and a lot more torque, but a similarly low rear end.

For 1981 the NYer was bumped up slightly to 130 hp. I've seen a 4-bbl 165 hp version listed, but I think it was only a copcar engine. And supposedly, if you knew the right strings to pull, you could still get a 360-4bbl which put out around 185-190 hp. But while the engine was boosted a bit in hp, they went to a taller rear end, 2.26:1 versus 2.45:1. They did change first and second gear in the transmission though, to compensate. So I dunno if an '81 would be better or worse than the 80 in acceleration.

The Caddy 368 was down to 140 hp that year, I think , but still pretty torquey. I'd imagine that as long as it was running right, with no V-8-6-4 problems, it wouldn't have been too bad of a performer? I heard the V-6 version that came out that year did 0-60 in about 21 seconds though!

michaellno

Spotted a Nissan Skyline GT-R yesterday. Don't know if it was the R32, R34 or R36 model .. but it was RHD and driven by a 20-something guy.

andre1969

Lemko, I know hotels fill up pretty quickly for the Mopar show, but it's about twice the size of the GM show, if not more. It probably wouldn't be too hard to find a hotel room, although you might have to go out a few miles.

stickguy

late-60's Ambassador 4 door sedan. Green. Looked fairly original, in decent shape. I think it is some kids daily driver, and for sure not something you see too often.

fintail

This could be a fun little toy

Another neat old heap

I don't think I would use the term "invested"...

I think this is pretty cool in its own way

You'd have to be brave

Fell on hard times in the 70s, apparently

Roller skate

Right before the fun ended

This is really something

Ummm...no

Pretty, but whats it worth

Cool Italian luxobarge

Strange lights...some kind of stupid DOT thing I am sure

Classy

This is some design

I've never seen one of those thermometers before

This is an odd spec...kind of sport-pimp

Only so many cars can get away with pink

Perhaps the strangest fins

If anything, special because of the rare and well preserved velour

Neat highline fintail, but I don't know about that upholstery

XS

Canadian Nova

Uncommon tank

imidazol97

1959 Chrysler Saratoga in pink/white
Tremendous to see that car again. Haven't seen
one in those colors in a long time!

andys120

What a bumper crop today, Fin! You won't be very surprised that the '49 Caddy sedanette, is the one I'd go for.

kyfdx

Have you seen the new X-Men movie?

Captain Picard is driving a late-'60s, early-'70s monster Mercedes sedan in a flashback.... then, later... I think they are in the new S550...

bumpy

I saw (what I think is) a 1970 Monte Carlo, all black, for sale on the side of the road yesterday.

fintail

Yeah that was a good haul...I surfed ebay for like 15 minutes and I was finding interesting suff everywhere. That Caddy is something...is that the original interior?

I haven't seen X-Men...I'll have to keep an eye on IMCDB for any screen caps.

Here's a C43 in an almost unknown color

Today I saw something unusual...it was a 72 T-Bird, the kind with the fake landau bars instead of the opera windows. It was a dark grey-green with a white top, and it was sitting on old style mags and it had a hood scoop. It looked immaculate, and in a strange way quite sinister.

british_rover

Grr why couldn't that have popped up a couple of months sooner or a couple of months later.

Stupid having to buy a house.

british_rover

I saw a ton of Porsches all years and types and all conditions. Saw a nearly perfect late 60s 911 in a dark tan/brown color.

A little while later I about killed a guy in a white 944 turbo. I was in the left hand lane of a 40 mph zone four line street. I was just about to move over into the right hand lane and had started signaling and was checking my mirrors. I didn't see anyone in the side mirrors didn't see anyone in the rearview mirror so I glanced at my blind spot and then started to move over. That is when I saw a flash of white and felt more then heard the fart can exhaust. I got passed by the 944 at at least 90 mph. I didn't see him because he came up on me so fast he wasn't there when I looked before.

If I had moved over a few seconds earlier he would have just run right under the side of me. I was in my disco and the 944 looked lowered so his roof was probably about even with the bottom of my passenger side door. I hate to think what the boxed frame rail of a 4,400 lbs Disco would do to the roof of a 944.

fintail

I dunno what year this Stingray is

Excuse the photo...the dumb phone makes things a few car lengths away look very small

I saw a 968 today too.

"Stupid having to buy a house."

Hey...you didn't have to. Cars are more fun.

stickguy

Driving the FIntail I see.

ANd remember, you can live in your car, but you can't drive your house!

fintail

It was a beautiful day here today...although pics never show it, the fintail really needs some finish renovation. I didn't see many other old cars - a shame on a day like this.

I did see a blue Ferrari 328 - that has to be odd. And a Plymouth GTX like in 'Tommy Boy', but it was a coupe.