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

fintail

The Fiesta I saw was pretty cool...it screamed "future rally car" as it was driven by a young guy. Not a great car, but for it's day it could have been worse.

A while back I saw an ad in the Seattle paper for a 1983 Monte Carlo diesel. I can't imagine how rare something like that must be...what kind of psycho would have opted for that engine in that car?

I must be weird in that I actually don't mind the bustleback Sevilles, if tastefully kept...same for period Eldos. They can't have a carriage roof or fake RR grille or continental kit, though. The Seville before that one is also a decent design, and it must have been strikingly elegant when launched, so clean compared to other American luxo cars.

ateixeira

Haven't seen an Enzo in person, but I think it's the ugliest Ferrari ever. Sure, it's F1 inspired, in an era where even raised-nose F1 cars are the ugliest ever.

Just my opinion, of course.

THIS is bizarre, I saw a 3rd Maserati coupe on the way home, another coupe, different color so it's not the same as the 1st. Wild day.

-juice

logic1

So many of the buff mag run ups on the Enzo just drool over the looks of the car. From the photos at least, I just do not see it. Ferrari has always been about sensuous, but gosh awful fast looks. The Enzo is almost uncomfortable to look at.

andys120

any of the ultra exotic top-level performance Ferraris. Starting with the 288 GTO they've all had this stark, racecar aero look. For what they are it's perfect.

I think I'll like the Enzo when I see one.

Juice I agree that modern F1 cars are ugly but then I long for the wheeled torpedo look of the pre-wing early to mid 60s. I have a diecast Lotus 49 and I wish somebody would make a Ferrari 156 "shark nose".

jaserb

While it's not a "pretty" car like a 456GT it is simply stunning. I'm not sure how to explain it, either. The styling is as over the top as anything ever made but somehow it just seems right on this car.

'Course, Ferrari probably doesn't much care what we think of it, since they sold every one they made and still turned down people waving huge wads of cash at them.

-Jason

magnetophone

I saw an Enzo and it looked hideous to me. I've never liked how Ferraris past 1980 looked.

fintail

I agree with that one. Ferrart styling used to have much better proportion and less exaggeration. I don't mind the 456 and the old Berlinetta Boxer had something going for it...but it's hard to top something like a 62-64 250GT Berlinetta Lusso, one of my all time faves

On the topic of obscure cars...today I was out and about finishing some work on my fintail...so apart from seeing a fintail, I saw a clean but in need of TLC 64 Bonneville wagon in a pretty metallic blue, and about a 1914 Caddy keeping up with traffic at 35-40mph

andre1969

but an obscure engine combination...yesterday at a car show I saw a '76 Buick LeSabre 4-door sedan, with a 231 V-6! Now this was the last year of the truly mammoth LeSabres: 124" wheelbase, about 226" long overall, and weighing in at around 4200 lb totally stripped.

Now for the most part, GM saw fit to install a 350, at minimum, into cars of this bulk back then (although Chevy started putting 305s in its big cars in '76). I can only imagine what one of these things, with all of 110 hp, could do 0-60, quarter mile, etc. I think the typical 350 would've done 0-60 in about 12-13 seconds, depending on how emissions-strangulated it was. I once saw a road test of a '77 Cutlass Sedan, with a 260 hp V-8. It weighed about 4000 lb, and did 0-60 in about 20.6 seconds. I don't think it made it to the quarter mile ;-)

andre1969

I think the end of the world is near. Yesterday at the classic car show, we saw a Mustang II. I think that's an omen. Be afraid. Be very afraid!!

stickguy

for sale on the side of the road, a red Lancia. I'm a little fuzzu on the models, but I think it was a Beta?? It was the model with the black hoop/roll bar, and I think the back half of the roof folded back. I would have stopped to investigate if I had been on the right side of the road (and my wife wasn't in the car).

stickguy

did a quick search, and it was a mid 70's Beta spider.

Isn't this internet just a wonderful invention? I think it may catch on.

andys120

the Lusso is my all-time favorite. I still remember the first one I saw and decided right then and there that it was the most beautiful car I'd ever seen. That hasn't changed in 39 years. I wouldn't expect the Enzo to Change that opinion but then again I wouldn't expect anything to look better than a 250GT Lusso Berlinetta.

Speaking of beautiful exotics, I went to an classic car show at NHIS today and saw a pair of 4.9 Ferrari Superfasts, both owned by Lee Herrington of the Herrington's catalog.

The PF bodied Superfast was the top-of the line street-performance Ferrari with a big Lampredi-designed long block V12 and featured American-inspired body work with tailfins and wraparound windshields. It's very rare to see one, let alone two in the same place.

fintail

I can't say I have ever seen one, save for in print. That would be something to see I know of the car though, with the fins. And of course there is the 2nd generation Superfast from the mid 60s, again the top of the line Ferrari, with that nice muted 60's sport styling as seen on the Lusso.

I didn't see anything unusual today. I did forget to mention something unusual I saw yesterday though...I went to the crummy local auto auction, and they had an early Mercedes W126 380SEL, grey market version. Almost no documentation, but I could see that it was delivered new in November of 81 and shipped to NA in 85. The unusual part is that it was an ABS and airbag equipped car, dating from the very beginning of Mercedes offering those items. The oldest example of those features I have seen anyway. The car was well worn, with a Euro velour interior and German gauges. I don't know how it was mechanically, I had to resist temptation and walk away.

checkme

Cadillac CTS with carriage roof.

And...never seen anything like this...1987 Camaro with carriage roof!

fintail

Wow, a Camaro with one...never seen one of those either. Sure adds class to that vehicle...LOL

Around here there's a late 80s Mercury Topaz with a carriage roof. I don't know what the story behind that could be...maybe a pimp who was a little down on his luck or something.

andre1969

with the carriage roof. I think pimps know better, but these were more likely foisted on senior citizens who wanted a Grand Marquis or a Cougar or Town Car with a carriage roof, but couldn't afford one, so the dealer suckered them into taking a Topaz with one!

fintail

Good point...I didn't think of that. Bad taste knows no boundaries. Any continental kits for the CTS yet?

andys120

you see Topazes w carriage roofs because they had some leftovers at the dealer from doing all those Lincolns. ?:^)

jlawrence01

I used to see a lot of those "souped up" Topazes in Cleveland and Detroit.

We used to call them the "Think I Can" cars ....

andre1969

has a road test of an '85 Topaz in it. 0-60 in 15.9 seconds. I wonder how much the weight of a carriage roof would've hurt that time?

fintail

Another few seconds for sure. Old car buying guides are a blast. I found a Consumer Guide to 1981 cars a while back...I read it from cover to cover. Very interesting...boy have cars improved.

Speaking of the Topaz, I wonder if a diesel Tempo is rare. I remember seeing one a couple years ago. 0-60 on a calendar, I am sure.

ateixeira

Even the 360 Modena's front end looks like a bird's beak. The 308/328 and even 348 were all better looking.

Problem is the wind tunnel is dictating design, and not the designers.

I saw the Enzo at a car show. To me, it simply looks ridiculous. You could put a positive spin and call it Bold, Adventurous, Gawk-inducing, but it can't escape being ridiculous.

-juice

lemko

...1980-82 Ford Thunderbird at lunch today. They used to be as common as dirt, but are quite scarce today. My Dad had a beige 1981 Thunderbird Town Landau - all 94hp from its 252 cid V-8!

andys120

compared to what? The Enzo looks like what it is a brutal, purposeful all-out performance machine.

I'm not crazy about the front end of the 360 but the rest of the car is just fantastic. I give it an 8.

ateixeira

Compared to a flowing Jaguar XJ220, the Enzo was beaten with the ugly stick pretty severely.

The MacLaren F1 looks more purposeful yet it still manages to look clean.

Those are among the better styled super cars of late.

-juice

Mr_Shiftright

You want to see a real red-blooded Lancia, check out Google for the "Stratos". You'll probably never see one in real life.

bksward

Living in Southern California you see a lot more odd cars. At the local Ralph's shopping center I saw an F-40...

Where else do people take a Ferrari grocery shopping? (I'll see various low-end Ferraris at least 2-3 times a month, 308, 328, 355, 360...)

I've seen 3 different colored Cayannes on the road in the last month.

Also a fleet of a half dozen Crossfires about a month ago for some test drive event.

On the way home today a 911 GT3, and a 635csi... so a pretty boring drive for the day.

ghulet

....a guy a couple of blocks away owns a BMW 320i, an '80s Saab 900 (non-S, non-turbo) and an orange Mustang II hatchback. Talk about being a glutton for punishment....I can't imagine which of those is actually his 'daily driver'. Here's hoping he takes CTA to work.

andys120

Those guys in the backwoods of New England with 5 or 6 old cars and trucks in the yard. Chances are one will start in the winter.

Who needs CTA?

vikd

...saw a '03 Maserati Coupe downtown Portland yesterday afternoon... That is one beautiful vehicle!

I say 'rare' instead 'cause 'obscure' tends to have a negative connotation...not much negative about that Maserati...!

Regards... Vikd

ateixeira

Beat 3 Maseratis in a day!

Too bad those were sightings, and not test drives! :-)

Saw a BMW Z8 yesterday.

-juice

checkme

Where do you live? I live in Pasadena, and when we visit my in-laws in Monterey Park, I sometimes see an F40 parked at the Ralph's on Atlantic. I've seen it twice, and the first time, I was going into the store to get some orange juice, glanced at it, and did a double-take as I realized that someone was using it as the proverbial "grocery getter."

logic1

arbitration.

I will have to keep my open for these shopping cart Ferraris. Only in LA.

vikd

...about a year ago, I saw a Lambo Murcielago in Hacienda Heights adorned with various company logo graphics...!!! I can understand marketing, but on a Murcielago??? ...sickening...!!!

juice--yup, can't beat THAT!

Regards... Vikd

fintail

I've seen 3 Isuzu I-Marks this week

idletask

Convertibles are out of the garage this summer... I saw many rare things: Triumph TR4 and TR7, Morgan Plus 8 (three of them, two being licensed in England), Caterham Super Seven (two of them), Smart Coupe, Peugeot 504 convertible, Ford StreetKa, and of course a lot of 206 CCs.

magnetophone

idletask, well, when it hits 40 degrees in Paris, what do you expect?

My relatives in Milton Keynes took a few weeks off of vacation and have been hanging out at places like Newquay and Blackpool. Sheesh, being affluent in America is nothing compared to being affluent in Europe!

auerbach

Spotted a very British looking convertible two-seater yesterday - right hand drive, leather interior, formal-type upright grill, round headlights. I looked for a nameplate or something to identify it - only got a quick glimpse of part of the name on the hood/grill _ I believe it began with SIM.

Couldn't look too long because my wife was asking me why I was drifting out of our lane. DOH!

Any ideas??

ajvdh

...but two Peugot 505s on the Garden State Pkwy Saturday within 10 minutes. They both looked about what you'd expect from a 20+ year old car with no dealer network.

What made me feel bad about myself is I id'ed them well before I was close enough to read the badges. My mom was riding with me, and she started ranting when I pointed them out to her (she had a *very* bad experience with the 504 we used to own).

andys120

I spotted a Morris Minor convertible moving thru traffic. It was top down, light gray with decent bodywork (small dent). The Minor ca. 1954-'60 was a smallish car that preceeded the Mini with conventional front engine rear drive and a small in-line 4. Few were sold in the US where it was one of many tiny euro sedans that attempted but failed to compete with the VW Bug.

Seen from a distance they looked vaguely like a VW
and were about the same size. The came in sedan, convertible and wagon body styles.

They are a rare sight in the US but given the British propensity for preserving old cars there are probably thousands left in the UK.

http://www.cars-on-line.com/62morris8471.html

auerbach

Maybe this will help identify what I saw:

http://www.vipclassics.com/stk1894485.phtml

I'm fairly certain it had something that began with SIM on the top of the radiator.

fintail

The Morris Minor was made up until about 1970 I believe, and sold in massive quantities in GB. A very beloved car, and still pretty common there even today.

I am stumped on this mystery old school British looking car. The only "SIM" car that rings a bell from that period is a Simca...and they didn't look like what you described, not to mention being French. All I can think of is the Jaguar ancestor "SS"

andys120

shown in the link is very similar to an MG-TC or TD. Unless you saw a fiat 850-based Siata Spring
which affected the old British style on a rear-engined chassis to no great effect.

I'm guessing that because of the first two letters (SI_). Could this be it....?

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=www.romeguide.it/FILES/COMMERC/frate/spider_verde.gif&imgrefurl=http/www.romeguide.it/FILES/COMMERC/frate/auto.html&h=301&w=442&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsiata%2Bspring%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DG

If the link doesn't work go to Google and type in "siata spring" and click on images.

bksward

This was the Ralph's just outside of Del Mar.

My manager at work mentioned that the first time he saw a BMW 330 convertible it had 4 students from Torrey Pines High School in it going to lunch. (In the same parking lot).

auerbach

getting close - but not quite.

Maybe I was just delirious after sitting in traffic for three hours.

auerbach

Spotted my first Chrysler Crossfire today.

Interesting looking to say the least - not sure I like the way the tail just drops off.

Maybe it will grow on me.

lemko

1955 DeSoto Firedome convertible:

http://autoweek.com/cat_content.mv?port_code=autoweek&cat_cod- e=thecar&loc_code=index&content_code=05285651

andys120

SINger!

http://www.singercars.com/profiles/sm.html

Singer made a line of British sports and touring cars before and shortlt after WWII. They aren't a common sight over here but I did see one @ a classic ar show recently.

It does look much like an MG-TC/TD, mostly came in RHD and starts with SI. Let me know if that might be what you saw.

auerbach

I think you might be right.

I think I saw a 4A Roadster.

It's pictured here:

http://www.singercars.com/profiles/4a.html

Like I said - it was red, right-hand drive, tan interior, toodling along on very skinny tires.

andys120

I love solving these obscure car mysteries.