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I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today! (Archived)
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2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
This was a '72 or '73 in beautiful driver condition with good Lemon Yellow paint and chrome. Don't believe all the Fix It Again Tony jokes, these were teriffic little sports cars that ran as well as any cars from the accursed 1970s. I suspect this one was kept garaged or it would have rusted away long ago, like mine.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
Perhaps this design could revive Lincoln
It's sticking out its tongue at me
Rod with some history
These people like Cougars
Can't be many left like this
Shifty's dad may have sampled one of these
But I suspect he would have preferred this
OK...
The odd woody
This is unusual
Andre or lemko-mobile
Impressive
'61 Pontiac--sure had a lot of work done to it for 13,000 original miles. It would be interesting to see what category in AACA this car won something. There are many categories.
47 Woody -- bids are spot on market correct for fair condition.
Cuckoo Award: '77 Honda Civic for $11,000 USD asking price. Try $1,100. '76 Celica at $5,500 has the same number of bids---that is, ZERO....at least the Celica seller is still on planet earth, even if it is the upper stratosphere.
Also features Spy Fog lamps, white wall tires, with gold pin strip outside, for that classic car look reminiscent of the Roll royce, Dussenberg era!
I'm sure all the Pebble Beach collectors are flocking ot their computers to bid!
You will get the same looks of amazment and awe!
Awe of why anyone would drive such a car.
Aren't you tired of paying top dollar for luxury cars, only to have everyone in your neighborhood purchase the same car weeks later?
Shucks it happens all the time. Weeks after I got my C240, everyone in the 'hood had one!
No expensive oil changes, like you would have with BMW, Mercedes, Jajuar, etc
YEAH! Tell 'em! Especially about Jajuars!
If you want to keep paying extravagent prices for so called luxury cars, only to have them depreciate in value, and have eveyone drive the same car, then pass this ad.
Hmmm, for $60k, a newer MB E55,BMW M5 or a Zimmer.... Bimmer or Zimmer, Bimmer or Zimmer :confuse:
1984 Tiffany! What a classic car! WOW! Check out the timeless interior, it'll make you feel like you went back in time... like back to a 1984 Mercury Cougar!
1977 Civic. A Honda lover like me wouldn't pay more than $3-4k for this car even if I had a ton of money and needed this in my collection for some reason.
1965 Newport: what an unattractive looking car, but cool in it's own way.
1973 Olds: My favourite of the bunch. Perfect for summer cruising.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
In an odd sort of way, that Tiffany doesn't bother me too much. I think that '83-86 era Cougar roofline actually lent itself fairly well to these neoclassic cars, much better than many of the boxier styles did. Still wouldn't touch one though.
And yeah, that Newport's kinda homely looking, but I like it too. But not at that price!
It's funny how every big 1960s Pontiac has the 8-lug wheels, back in the day perhaps one in every 20 cars had them, same thing goes for side pipes on Corvette Stingrays.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
My sister had a '79 Civic like the one posted. I drove it a lot in high school, fun little car to drive with the four-speed. Not fast, but like driving a go-cart.
I'd also imagine that a lot more early 60's Pontiacs have Tri-Power these days, compared to when they were new!
BTW, isn't 318 hp kinda low for a Tri-Power 389? I looked it up in my old car book, and sure enough it's listed as one of the choices, along with a 345 hp version. But still, I'd imagine that they could get more than 318 hp out of a simpler 389-4bbl if they gave it half a shot. I guess the Tri-Power might still breathe better at higher speeds, though, than a 4-bbl?
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link ebay ghia convertibles
Ghia tale
That Ghia is one in a bazillion and we can't establish a market from a car like that.
And I still think it's way overpriced and won't be duplicated anytime soon.
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/car/340231604.html
Saw one of these yesterday:
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
She was a bit inconsistent about the intervals though. Over the course of the conversation, she mentioned that they'd go out every 10,000 miles (which would put the car at 25-26 transmissions), every 25,000 (which would be more like 10-11), every 3 years (not sure how many years she had it). And then she did finally mention that the original transmission made it to 100,000 miles.
She swears up and down that it was some all-new transmission that was under-sized for the car, and that the guy at the transmission shop corroborated this. He said that he made a lot of money off of rebuilding those transmissions, and that it was not possible to refit the car with a more durable transmission.
Anyway, in piecing together this story, my guess is that the original transmission lasted to 100,000 miles, and after that she got stuck with a series of crappy rebuilds where maybe one lasted 10,000 miles, one lasted 25,000 miles, and the rest lasted somewhat longer.
Wouldn't a '72 Vista Cruiser just have a THM350 tranny though, if it had an Olds 350? And a THM400 if it had the 455? And if a THM350 went in where a THM400 should have, wouldn't that just be a direct swap?
What a looker
"LOOK ALIKE" - uh no not quite
This is kind of cool in its own way, but that price...
Neat relic
Celebrity provenance for the French
Well preserved Slobmodel
Not many of these around, and the wheels don't even look bad
Beautiful ponton, I can only fault the upholstery
Decent early fintail with unfortunate body damage
The Italian "Stutz" -- a Stutzo? I wonder what the Italians were thinking while they were assembling this disaster?---"well, itsa job"....must have been painful for workers used to building nice-looking automobiles.
'74 Buick---it's only double retail. Pigs might fly...
1913 Cadillac---fabulous!
79 Seville -- I wouldn't want to even *touch* anything he came near, much less own it....
Ponton--I heard about this car...the dealer's reserve is like $25,000. Ridikkulus.....but I bet the receipts are that much easy....I'd love to have it for about $9,000.
Early Fintail -- the word "dents" seems a bit euphemistic....more like colossal bashes...also it's not the first year made...1959 was the first year made for the 220Sb. I may bid on it for amusement....cheap and cheerful.
It makes me think how some non Italian vehicles designed or assembled in Italy would ultimately not do so well: Allante, Chrysler TC, this Stutz, Daewoos, etc.
Just because it was made in the same country as Ferrari, it does not make that car any special.
Oh, today I saw a early 80s Eldorado convertible in cherry red, in a very nice condition.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Today I saw an older 80s Maserati convertible, and a Toyota Celica from late 70s with a Targa top.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I always like those but I know they are black holes for money.
This is....er....unusual:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260124336544&ru=http://motors.search.ebay.com:80/260124336544_W0QQfromZR40QQfviZ1#ebayphotohosting
Also, an oddity at the local MB dealer. Not a vintage car, but they have a '99 E430, with 28K miles on it. It is very loaded for an early W210, xenon, sunshade, what passed for sport wheels then. It looks brand new, amazing condition. Not many of these are surviving in such condition.
In fact, a 500,000 mile engine that remains untouched and unopened pretty much defies the laws of physics, so in a sense it is a miracle he's claiming.
On the other hand, if you keep pouring money into it, you can run a Yugo for 1,000,000 miles. But that would require 20 or 30 engines I'd presume and who knows what else.
I know you don't believe in the concept of "highway miles", Shifty, but answer me this. Which of the following two situations is going to be rougher on a car (presuming that they're maintained well, fluids not low, etc)?
A: My Mom and stepdad driving 200 miles per day commuting, mostly highway, and at times that usually avoid the worst of rush hour.
B: Me putting 200 miles on a car over the course of 6-7 hours on a busy Friday night, delivering pizzas.
I would imagine that, if a car is driven fairly gently and well-maintained, and the miles are mostly highway-type miles, that it should go a pretty long time. Maybe 500K-1 million miles is pushing it, but who knows?
Personally, the longest running original drivetrain I can vouch for is my Mom's '86 Monte Carlo, 305-4bbl, THM200R4 tranny. She bought it new, gave it to me with 179,000 miles on it, and I got T-boned with 192,000. It was still on the original drivetrain, although stuff like the radiator, water pump, the tubes that pump air into the exhaust manifold, etc had been replaced.
They currently have a 1999 Altima that has about 235,000 miles on its original engine. However, the original tranny bit the dust around 35,000. Tranny #2 seems to be holding up though.
As for me, the two highest-mileage cars I had were a '68 Dart and a '79 Newport. The Dart had 253,000 miles on it when I bought it, and "retired" at 388,000. The previous owner told me he had the V-8 engine rebuilt at 242,000, and a newer, but used, tranny and rear put in soon thereafter. But of course, I can't personally vouch for the first 253,000 miles (or the first 24 years, as I bought the car in 1992). The Newport had about 230,000 miles on it when I bought it in 1996. The transmission was on its last legs and had to be rebuilt within about a month of my putting the car on the road. Now I would presume that it was the original engine/tranny, because I'd imagine that if either went out, the car would've been junked long ago. But I can't vouch for it.
So personally, I don't know of any cars that have made it to anywhere near the 500,000 mile mark on the original drivetrain, let alone 1 million. But I guess it's possible. My driving is well under 10,000 miles per year now, so I know I'll never achieve it in a car!
My only experience of a 'high' mileage car where I would know the mileage was genuine, would be a 1976 Mini 850 which my ex-wife had when it was virtually new, and which she and then I ran for years, clocking up over 90,000 miles on the original clutch, and it was sold at 120,000 miles with the original cylinder head etc intact....
That may not sound much, but the clutch was pretty impressive, as the car spent virtually it's entire life in London, in traffic. Other than that, I did about 90,000 on my last MGB, with a reconditioned engine, without any trouble other than oil consumption steadily increasing, and I had one clutch after about 8000 miles, after which it was still on the replacement when I sold it- and the new owner was still on it two years later when I saw him in traffic, apparently...
We just don't do the miles, here, I suppose...
While this is a MOST interesting conversation, let's not veer off topic (MEA CULPA). Andre, start this up in some other more appropriate place! :P
Item. 1984 Civic 1500 S, bought new in 1984. Traded in 1991 at 288k miles for a new 1991 Integra GS. When traded, the Civic was on its original engine, transmission, and clutch. If I had kept it much longer I'd have had the rings and valve guide seals replaced, the clutch, radiator, and shocks replaced. I replaced the car not because of the cost of this work but because of intense pressure from my wife, also from my aged mother, and because the car was starting to rust around the rear wheel arches.
Item. I traded the '91 Integra in '01 for a used '99 GSR. The '91 then had 415k miles, had rings and valve guides redone at around 315k miles and the clutch replaced at 390k miles. The clutch was fine, but the transmission had to come off zo a leaking rear main seal could be replaced, and as long as it was off replacing the clutch seemed like a good idea. I replaced the car because it was starting to rust at the top of the windshield.
Item. The '99 was stolen in December, '03, when it was at 180k miles. It was going to need a new catalytic converter soon, clutch and oil consumption were fine.
Item. The replacement, a new '04 Civic, is now at 173k miles and so far so good.
Maintenance? By Honda's recommendations, with the exception of oil changes. I change oil twice as often as Honda recommends.
Use? Commuting, mainly. My daily commute has been as long as 200 miles round trip, is now down to around 130. Much of the trip is on superhighways.
I'm no longer a young man with more testosterone than brains, so I drive gently. Not as fast as I used to, either, speed limits are down and congestion is up. On long drivesc according to my GPS my rolling average is, depending on the speed limits, from 70 - 75. In western TX this spring, 85. On the commute, which includes ~ 20 miles of back roads with no passing and, alas, Princeton, NJ, my average is a bit over 55.
Sure, we could talk about high mileage cars and how to prove it here:
Irv's Classic Volvo
Now, back to obscure cars I hope!
Oh, I did see a bunch of old cars at the Ford Nationals in Carlisle PA this past weekend. I'll post some pics when I get around to it. We also saw Huggy Bear there.
The 1956 models had a larger fin tacked on. And it was literally tacked on. I guess it was too expensive to re-tool the low-volume station wagon models for tailfins, so they just used the 1956 rear fender, tacked a tailfin on, and then put a chrome strip over the seam.
Must be kinda rare I'd guess.