If the car show had me, lemko, andre, and fintail you'd get 4 glances.
Actually I like those big '71-72 LTD's with the "poke through" center section grille, courtesy of Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen. I'd rather have a '71-72 Impala or Caprice, but I still like those Fords.
I really don't care so much for the '73-78 models, though. One thing I didn't like was the overall cheapening by doing away with the pillarless models, although to be fair, GM and Chrysler started doing that, too. You could still get a true 4-door hardtop big Ford or Mercury in '73-74. They didn't make many, though, and they're hard to spot, because at a quick glance they look just like the regular sedan, which had frameless windows and a thin B-pillar. With GM and Chrysler, the hardtop sedans actually used a different roof than the pillared sedans.
When I was in Bellingham someone local had a Euro Escort RS, late 90s vintage - the type with a two tiered rear spoiler. I saw it a few times. Someone also had an Audi A3 - the Euro 2 door style from around 2000. I wonder how they hell they got those in.
It's not something for the high society types at Pebble Beach, but at the annual Podunk County Show 'n Shine, a nice example would probably get a few looks, especially if it was a big block.
Not my cup of tea really either...but I can appreciate value simply as a curiosity, something once common that's almost gone now.
I think the coupe debuted in 66, yeah. I swear I have seen 65 Caprice sedans but I am probably mistaken. I have never cared for that Caprice coupe, too formal.
I like the curve to the rear roofline on 66 Galaxie hardtops (which was my first car), kind of borrowed from a flying buttress. The wagons based on those were relatively sharp, I agree. Stacked lights are usually a nice feature too.
Speaking of the 383...my memory fails me, but I want to say my grandfather replaced that 65 with a fuselage NYer with a 383 that had endless problems - I have heard stories of it stalling and flooding out, unable to be restarted, at the worst times, like when going to the airport or hospital. I think my grandmother hated that car. She always had midrange Oldsmobiles that had few problems.
It's not something for the high society types at Pebble Beach, but at the annual Podunk County Show 'n Shine, a nice example would probably get a few looks, especially if it was a big block.
Ooh, that reminds me, the local cruise-ins should be starting up soon!
It's a car that's worth maybe 3 grand in pristine condition, but as a nostalgia object it's more than worthless. It's from the slight detuning right before malaise completely upended the domestic auto industry. A harmless Sunday driver hobby car.
We have so few of those. Any informal gatherings here are usually model/make specific, or all hot rods. It'd be cool to have a gathering of everyday 50s-70s cars, like you guys seem to have out there. My fintail wouldn't be as out of place there as it would be in a lot of MGs or Mustangs or endless fake 32 Fords and customized 55 Chevys.
I went to one cruise in last year - in my E55. It was for C208 CLKs (1998-2003). A few other MB showed up, but not many.
Hey, that looks like my '82 Cutlass Supreme's Rally wheel stuffed under there!
That sucker actually looks salvageable to me, but I guess the fact that it's in that junkyard, and nothing has been pulled off of it, is a good indication of how desireable '73 LTD parts are!
I wonder if that sucker still runs. I think a car like that would be fun to drive around in, and scare people with. :shades:
I wonder if they'd let you take a Fintail or other Benz product to the Carlisle Mopar Nationals these days? Once it became Daimler-Chrysler, I did see an occasional Benz pop up at that show. Alas, with the way Chrysler got raided and then tossed like a crumpled Coors can, it might not be a good idea to bring a Benz to that show anymore. :sick:
I'm really curious to see how the attendance is at the Carlisle shows this year. The first one of the year, "Spring Carlisle" is in two weeks. I'm really looking forward to taking my '67 Catalina to the GM show in June. I took the LeMans the past four years, so the Catalina will be a nice change of pace. As long as it doesn't rain all weekend or anything.
You don't want one and neither does anyone else. No, I'm not offended by it. I'm not "anything" by it in fact, which is the problem. I'm so little interested in it I'm surprised I can even see it.
Oh, I wouldn't take that white whale if someone gave it to me for free. I have no place to put it and I would never yearn to drive it. But I bet if someone gave it to andre or boomchek for free, they'd take it :P
I'd want one....well, if it was free, and had some sentimental value attached to it. Say, if it was my grandma's or something like that.
But then again, maybe not, even in that case. After all, I did get Grandma's '85 LeSabre after she quit driving back in 1999. My Granddad (Dad's side, not her husband) quit driving in 2004, when he turned 90. Offered to give me his '94 Taurus, but I really didn't see any need for it, so one of my cousins ended up getting it. Still, has it, too. I think Granddad only had around 40,000 miles on it when he gave it up. It's up to around 77,000 now. I saw it on Easter Sunday, and it still looks good, except for the passenger side mirror, which is broken and hanging loose. My cousin mentioned how gutless the car is, and how it smells of antifreeze, and how he'll keep on driving it as a beater until something major breaks on it. I told him that the car smelled of antifreeze back when Granddad still had it, so if whatever was doing it hasn't totally failed yet, it probably won't! :P
But I bet if someone gave it to andre or boomchek for free, they'd take it
Yeah, free definitely works! :shades: Actually, if I happened to see something like that at a car show, and it grabbed me for some reason...say, just the right color, right options, etc, and I had the space for it, I'd be tempted. I think that's the key with a lot of those bad 70's cars for me...they have to be just the right configuration to "grab" me. For instance, back in 2001 there was a '76 LeMans coupe for sale near me. It was kind of a piece...looked good from a distance, but kinda rusty. It was also light brown, base model, and just had a Chevy 250-6 cyl under the hood. $1200. It was at a park and sell lot, and when I went through the paperwork in the glovebox, I found out that the lot actually owned it, and paid all of $200 for it!
Maybe I should've offered them $250? :P Still, even then, it would have been a car that I like, but not in a very desireable configuration, and I probably would have gotten irritated with it in time. But then, when my burgundy '76 Grand LeMans, well optioned and with a 350-4bbl, came up on eBay, I jumped on it!
I can't imagine they'd have a lot of offers on a malaise disco coupe with the most gutless engine imaginable. $201 should have been more than enough :P
If I wanted a GM coupe from that era, I'd pick a T-top Grand Prix with the largest engine and all options.
If I wanted a GM coupe from that era, I'd pick a T-top Grand Prix with the largest engine and all options.
Those Grand Prixes could be pretty nice. I'd imagine the best choice would be a '76 with the 455. I think it put out a whopping 205 hp that year, but was plenty torquey.
It's funny looking back now, how redundant some of those engine choices were. For instance, I think the '76 Pontiac intermediate lineup was something like this:
250-6cyl: 105-110 hp 260 Olds V-8: 105-110 hp 305 Chevy V-8: 140-150 hp (although this might have been Canada-only) 350 Pontiac 2-bbl: 160 hp 350 Pontiac 4-bbl: 165-170 hp 400 Pontiac 4-bbl: ~180 hp 455 Pontiac 4-bbl: 200-205 hp.
To this day, I STILL don't understand the concept of having a 6-cyl and V-8, of similar displacement and hp. Wouldn't the 6-cyl actually be a bit quicker, since it would most likely be a bit lighter?
I guess having the Chevy 305 made sense, to compare to the likes of the Ford 302 and Mopar 318. It would still move the car with some sense of dignity, while returning not-too-horrible fuel economy.
But then, the 350-2bbl/4-bbl and 400-4bbl just seem too close together in terms of output. I guess it doesn't take that much effort though, to offer the same engine in 2 and 4-bbl versions. And the 350, 400, and 455 were all the same basic engine, anyway, so maybe it really didn't cost them THAT much to offer that many variations.
When I was in Bellingham someone local had a Euro Escort RS, late 90s vintage - the type with a two tiered rear spoiler. I saw it a few times. Someone also had an Audi A3 - the Euro 2 door style from around 2000. I wonder how they hell they got those in.
I went to the SiR (Seattle Raceway) for import drag races back in either 99 or 2000, well about 9-10 years ago. I saw both cars that you were talking about. I believe the Escort was black or dark in color. The cars were both owned by an aftermarket tuning company based in Washington, either H&R springs, or another company, but I know exactly what you're talking about.
Maybe they got them in under "r&d" or promotional disguise.
I swear I remember the Escort as being silver - but the H&R thing really seems familiar, like it had a decal on the window of the car. Maybe they had more than one. I want to say the Audi was silver or grey too. I saw both cars several times in normal traffic over a few year period. I want to say the Audi even had a German plate on the front...but of course those can easily be bought online.
A local high end dealer here has a couple of Skylines registered with some kind of demonstrator plates.
And indeed, you'll take it all. I have a few odd brochures hanging around, I'll have to give them to you sometime.
The 455 would be the way to go, with the full load of goofy period options - fancy wheels, t-tops, 8 track, maybe a hidden CB, etc.
Another thing that makes sense to me is that the engines were used in so many other applications, it couldn't have cost much to offer them in yet another.
I think the coupe debuted in 66, yeah. I swear I have seen 65 Caprice sedans but I am probably mistaken. I have never cared for that Caprice coupe, too formal.
I checked and you're right it was a mid 65 Impala option upgrade available only in 4DR hdtp. Primarily an interior upgrade. They made around 37K of them for the 65 model. In 66 it became a full model line. In the Chicago area where I grew up it really didn't seem to get much advertising until the 66 which emphasized the formal coupe. But Chicago was a huge GM dominated market back then so I suppose advertising wasn't all that critical and a lot of it back then was dealer rather than manufacturer focused like the "backwards K" Nickey Chevrolet or Arnie Nussam Chevy "I'd like to give 'em away but the wife won't let me!". My favorite though was Mr. Norm's Grand Spalding Dodge radio spots with fast paced announcers emphasizing their performance cars on WLS or WCFL.
As for the follow up 383, I know Mopar started getting heavy into engine electronics around then and it wasn't always pretty! Then again, the new EPA regs made a lot of cars balky and troublesome initially, particularly starting around 73.
I know I have a big brochure for the 08 CTS buried under a pile of junk on my desk. Packed away somewhere I should have a few items from around 2001-03 too...I hope so anyway, unless they got recycled when I moved, It's all US market stuff, so you probably don't have any of it.
Speaking of those troublesome mid 70s engines, my mom had a big T-Bird with a 460 from then until I was little, and my dad always complained it had problems with the PCV valve and he changed it out many times. The good old days weren't always so good.
Heck, when you drive those older cars you realize how far we've come. If only they could add some exterior zoom to the new cars - we need Bill Mitchell back!
"Heck, when you drive those older cars you realize how far we've come. If only they could add some exterior zoom to the new cars - we need Bill Mitchell back! "
Watched one of those televised auctions last few days - there was a nice '57 or so T-Bird resto-rod that went for not too much, since it wasn't 'original'. I think that would be the way to go! Get rid of the troublesome stuff, put in modern running gear, get to enjoy the styling.
After all, I did get Grandma's '85 LeSabre after she quit driving back in 1999.
Now this may not be cool or politically correct, but I think those were amazing cars, really! My boss back then had one. Tons of room, great ride and comfort and no problem getting low 30's on the Interstate. Very reliable as well.
And in nice shape, it's not the worst thing in the world...just another big old tank.
I was in the Army and I swear the tank drove better. My parents had a 73 Galaxie - what a pile! Horrific braking and steering, an engine that would rev into high idle with no warning while driving, black goo oozing out of the door areas in hot weather, fragile and probably undersized tranny, and a Windsor 351 prone to cracked blocks or heads.
Heck, when you drive those older cars you realize how far we've come. If only they could add some exterior zoom to the new cars - we need Bill Mitchell back!
Actually, when they're running properly, sometimes they're not too bad. The only problem is, often they don't run properly for long! For the most part, the biggest problem with my old cars is the first start, after sitting for awhile. For instance, yesterday when I drove my '67 Catalina, it took 3 tries to get it started. And then, once it started, it died after a few seconds. Started right up again, but I had to feather the gas pedal a bit once I put it in gear, to back it out of the garage, to keep it from stalling. It had been sitting for about 8 days, and admittedly, it was only 28 degrees yesterday morning!
Today, I drove my '85 Silverado. It was cold and wet this morning, but around 40 degrees. Last time the truck had been driven was Sunday, so it sat for 2 days. 2-3 pumps of the gas pedal, turn the key, and it fired right up. I might've let it warm up for 20-30 seconds, and then took off. While warming up, it'll balk a bit if I have to accelerate hard, so I try not to do that. But even with my fuel-injected Intrepid, I'll try to go gentle on it for the first couple minutes, until it's warmed up a bit.
I wonder how hard it would be to convert my older cars over to some kind of fuel injection system? I guess it would probably be pretty expensive.
When one of my friends was a kid, his Mom had a '73 LTD. It refused to start on a regular basis, leaving them stranded at home and other places. The kids nicknamed the thing "Mommy's Hunk O'Junk".
She got rid of it and replaced it with a '77 Volare station wagon It got totaled when it got hit by a delivery truck hauling, of all things, toilets. I guess that's Karma's way of saying the Volare belongs in the crapper, but he said it actually wasn't a bad car. I think they got a Reliant after that. :lemon:
> it took 3 tries to get it started. And then, once it started, it died after a few seconds. Started right up again, but I had to feather the gas pedal a bit once I put it in gear,
Drainback or evaporation of fuel. Choke adjustment and vacuum pulloff settings IIRC. Really tough to get them suitable.
Drainback or evaporation of fuel. Choke adjustment and vacuum pulloff settings IIRC. Really tough to get them suitable.
Yeah, my mechanic did say that the carb and choke would probably need adjusting. He lives somewhat near me, so he said he'd actually come by and make a housecall sometime! I'm kinda afraid to mess with it myself, for fear of making it worse! I used to know how to adjust it on my Dart, with a 318-2bbl. Carter, I believe. But the Rochester Quadrajet on the Catalina scares me!
That's what I like about my fintail - FI. It lives in an attached garage, so it doesn't get below freezing or anything....but I can let it sit for 4-6 weeks, and it will start up on the first turn of the key almost every time.
I recently drove a '70 Chevelle "pro touring", meaning it had a completely modernized suspension system and braking system (all wheel disk brakes, adjustable A-arms, lowering springs, adjustable shocks, radials, poly bushings, quick-ratio power steering box, lightweight wheels, wide tires).
The car drove great, brakes were spot on, good handling, no nose dive. If anything, the front end was too tight. Not sure I'd enjoy this car on a washboard or rutted road!
Engine was fuel-injected, coupled to a Tremec 5-speed manual transmission, super sound system, vintage AC, custom dash with full gauge array, custom console, power top, custom seating to give the look of front and rear buckets, halogen lighting, portable NAV.
Pretty nice, the best of everything. It was done up as a blue on white SS, engine dynos at 525 HP.
What did THAT all cost? I have no idea, but you could buy a similar car for around $50,000 no problem--that is, if you want the "best" of everything and a car that really looks restored.
Does that era have the electrically heated choke spring for quicker pulloff? That was the pollution control of the "day." Those were difficult to get right. IIRC the Quadrajet had dual choke pulloffs operating in sequence and settings measured in thousandths. But each car had its own personality.
Behind me on I-70 and I couldn't decide if it were some kind of Vette. My son in shotgun said it was a Vette.
Black Camaro SS. Beautiful. Brought back thrills of the good old days. It evoked a different reaction than the Challenger in Orange that I see around. It was classy; the Challenger is racy.
Michigan plates, but went downtown rather than north on I-75 toward MI.
Does that era have the electrically heated choke spring for quicker pulloff? That was the pollution control of the "day." Those were difficult to get right.
Nah, nothing electric about it...at least I don't think so. It's just the little spring in the manifold with a rod attached to it, that attaches to the flap for the primaries.
Overall it's a good running car, once it's warmed up. But the first start of the day has never been that car's strong suit, especially after it's been sitting for awhile.
No. I don't know who that is. I just stumbled across the picture and thought it was a good representation of NE Philly homes in their heyday. The car is a nice period touch.
Oh yeah - the so called "pillared hardtop!" Talk about an oxymoron!
I think what really kills the '73s looks is that cowcatcher bumper slung across the front. It got worse in 1974 when they hung a chrome railroad tie to the back end of the car as well. GM handled the whole 5-mph bumper mandate a lot better than other manufacturers. Ford resorted to chrome logs and Chrysler's answer was big rubber blocks stuck on the existing bumpers. The worst by far, was MG with the ugly rubberized bumper/grille combo. The 5-mph mandate really ruined the looks of the once-beautiful Jaguar XK-E.
Not an oddball car... a newer balck Mercedes ML, but the fact that is was a taxi cab. :surprise: Had the normal taxi cab signage on it.
I'm thinking either a cab driver struck it rich and bought himself a fancy ride, or someone bought an ML and lost their job and now needs to somehow make the payments. :sick:
Yeah, I saw a new looking Lincoln Town Car with a Domino's sign on the roof, in my neighborhood the other evening.... and my neighborhood isn't THAT nice.....
All I could think, was "Poor B*std - it takes a lot of tips to make a Town Car payment". It made me appreciate my job a little more.
Funny that people are waxing nostalgic about those early 1970s Ford LTDs. My Dad had one and it was an awful car. It was a 1972 Ford LTD Country Squire wagon with a 400 V-8 engine with 4bbl carb. It had a interior made out of thick dark green vinyl.
The car was a super gas hog. That might not have been a problem in 1972 when regular was 31.9 cents a gallon, but Dad was masochistic enough to go through both 1970s fuel crisises with this beast. I recall Dad cursing up a storm in 1974 filling up with Texaco Fire Chief gasoline at a downtown gas station.
Dad didn't even have the car a week before the electric rear window failed due to a short circuit somewhere in the wiring harness. The Ford dealer had to rip out the seats and carpet to locate it. Two years later, my Dad was taking my Mom out to dinner when the beast refused to start. Dad's out front wearing his good suit, the hood of the car is raised, and he's spewing a string of profanity that would make Tony Soprano blush. Finally, Dad gave up and borrowed Grandpop's ultra-reliable 1974 Chevrolet Impala. Ignition problems plagued this car foir the remainder of the time we had it. I remember Dad getting frustrated and throwing a wrench that hit one of the battery terminal sending out a shower of sparks.
The car had cooling system problems. I recall it unexpectedly blowing a lower radiator hose when we went to pick up Mom who was grocery shopping at the local IGA, (remember those?) Dad changed the water pump at least twice and the car blew a soft plug at some point.
By 1981, the dashpad cracked to the point it looked like somebody took a machete to it.
Oh, and RUST!!! That car rusted with a VENGEANCE!!! My Dad spent two nice summer days in July 1979 Bondo'ing this beast with the help of my younger brother and I who were dumb enough to stop and ask what he was doing with the car in my Uncle Daniel's garage. By 1981, all of our work was undone by the lousy northeast winters and the car looked like mice ran through the coachwork.
FINALLY, Dad gave up on it in September 1981 and sold it to some unsuspecting kid for the princely sum of $150.
It looked exactly like the car pictured below when he first bought it. I wouldn't park that car near any marine environment as the boating couple below:
Very fitting for that thing to be parked by other boats.
I want to say the period T-Bird my mother had blew a soft plug too...I remember once my dad rattled off the list of maladies that car had. He and my mother both have told a story of when that car was new, the cruise control would stick and be hard to disengage, which would make my mother panic. That car was maybe a 74-75ish, and I know by the time we got rid of it around 1984 it was looking a little down on its luck...and by 1985 it had some kind of malfunction - maybe a transmission - and was dead behind the house of its new owner (a family friend my dad gave it to for very little). 11 years from a nice new car to dead...I see many 11 year old cars today that don't look very old and have lots of life left.
This must be why Ford stressed "quality" so much in the 80s...it had some issues in the 70s.
I remember in the early 90s when my dad rescued a 60 Ford wagon and put it back on the road, it had some significant rear end noise...so he found a junked 70 Squire wagon and pulled the 9" rear, and put it in the older car.
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Actually I like those big '71-72 LTD's with the "poke through" center section grille, courtesy of Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen. I'd rather have a '71-72 Impala or Caprice, but I still like those Fords.
I really don't care so much for the '73-78 models, though. One thing I didn't like was the overall cheapening by doing away with the pillarless models, although to be fair, GM and Chrysler started doing that, too. You could still get a true 4-door hardtop big Ford or Mercury in '73-74. They didn't make many, though, and they're hard to spot, because at a quick glance they look just like the regular sedan, which had frameless windows and a thin B-pillar. With GM and Chrysler, the hardtop sedans actually used a different roof than the pillared sedans.
Not my cup of tea really either...but I can appreciate value simply as a curiosity, something once common that's almost gone now.
I like the curve to the rear roofline on 66 Galaxie hardtops (which was my first car), kind of borrowed from a flying buttress. The wagons based on those were relatively sharp, I agree. Stacked lights are usually a nice feature too.
Speaking of the 383...my memory fails me, but I want to say my grandfather replaced that 65 with a fuselage NYer with a 383 that had endless problems - I have heard stories of it stalling and flooding out, unable to be restarted, at the worst times, like when going to the airport or hospital. I think my grandmother hated that car. She always had midrange Oldsmobiles that had few problems.
Ooh, that reminds me, the local cruise-ins should be starting up soon!
It's just too pathetic even to make fun of anymore...
It's a car that's worth maybe 3 grand in pristine condition, but as a nostalgia object it's more than worthless. It's from the slight detuning right before malaise completely upended the domestic auto industry. A harmless Sunday driver hobby car.
I went to one cruise in last year - in my E55. It was for C208 CLKs (1998-2003). A few other MB showed up, but not many.
And in nice shape, it's not the worst thing in the world...just another big old tank.
I don't want one, but I'm not offended by it.
Interesting looking junkyard there btw
That sucker actually looks salvageable to me, but I guess the fact that it's in that junkyard, and nothing has been pulled off of it, is a good indication of how desireable '73 LTD parts are!
I wonder if that sucker still runs. I think a car like that would be fun to drive around in, and scare people with. :shades:
I'm really curious to see how the attendance is at the Carlisle shows this year. The first one of the year, "Spring Carlisle" is in two weeks. I'm really looking forward to taking my '67 Catalina to the GM show in June. I took the LeMans the past four years, so the Catalina will be a nice change of pace. As long as it doesn't rain all weekend or anything.
I think car shows should be OK in the bad economy, cheap entertainment.
But then again, maybe not, even in that case. After all, I did get Grandma's '85 LeSabre after she quit driving back in 1999. My Granddad (Dad's side, not her husband) quit driving in 2004, when he turned 90. Offered to give me his '94 Taurus, but I really didn't see any need for it, so one of my cousins ended up getting it. Still, has it, too. I think Granddad only had around 40,000 miles on it when he gave it up. It's up to around 77,000 now. I saw it on Easter Sunday, and it still looks good, except for the passenger side mirror, which is broken and hanging loose. My cousin mentioned how gutless the car is, and how it smells of antifreeze, and how he'll keep on driving it as a beater until something major breaks on it. I told him that the car smelled of antifreeze back when Granddad still had it, so if whatever was doing it hasn't totally failed yet, it probably won't! :P
Yeah, free definitely works! :shades: Actually, if I happened to see something like that at a car show, and it grabbed me for some reason...say, just the right color, right options, etc, and I had the space for it, I'd be tempted. I think that's the key with a lot of those bad 70's cars for me...they have to be just the right configuration to "grab" me. For instance, back in 2001 there was a '76 LeMans coupe for sale near me. It was kind of a piece...looked good from a distance, but kinda rusty. It was also light brown, base model, and just had a Chevy 250-6 cyl under the hood. $1200. It was at a park and sell lot, and when I went through the paperwork in the glovebox, I found out that the lot actually owned it, and paid all of $200 for it!
Maybe I should've offered them $250? :P Still, even then, it would have been a car that I like, but not in a very desireable configuration, and I probably would have gotten irritated with it in time. But then, when my burgundy '76 Grand LeMans, well optioned and with a 350-4bbl, came up on eBay, I jumped on it!
If I wanted a GM coupe from that era, I'd pick a T-top Grand Prix with the largest engine and all options.
Those Grand Prixes could be pretty nice. I'd imagine the best choice would be a '76 with the 455. I think it put out a whopping 205 hp that year, but was plenty torquey.
It's funny looking back now, how redundant some of those engine choices were. For instance, I think the '76 Pontiac intermediate lineup was something like this:
250-6cyl: 105-110 hp
260 Olds V-8: 105-110 hp
305 Chevy V-8: 140-150 hp (although this might have been Canada-only)
350 Pontiac 2-bbl: 160 hp
350 Pontiac 4-bbl: 165-170 hp
400 Pontiac 4-bbl: ~180 hp
455 Pontiac 4-bbl: 200-205 hp.
To this day, I STILL don't understand the concept of having a 6-cyl and V-8, of similar displacement and hp. Wouldn't the 6-cyl actually be a bit quicker, since it would most likely be a bit lighter?
I guess having the Chevy 305 made sense, to compare to the likes of the Ford 302 and Mopar 318. It would still move the car with some sense of dignity, while returning not-too-horrible fuel economy.
But then, the 350-2bbl/4-bbl and 400-4bbl just seem too close together in terms of output. I guess it doesn't take that much effort though, to offer the same engine in 2 and 4-bbl versions. And the 350, 400, and 455 were all the same basic engine, anyway, so maybe it really didn't cost them THAT much to offer that many variations.
I went to the SiR (Seattle Raceway) for import drag races back in either 99 or 2000, well about 9-10 years ago. I saw both cars that you were talking about. I believe the Escort was black or dark in color. The cars were both owned by an aftermarket tuning company based in Washington, either H&R springs, or another company, but I know exactly what you're talking about.
Maybe they got them in under "r&d" or promotional disguise.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
A local high end dealer here has a couple of Skylines registered with some kind of demonstrator plates.
And indeed, you'll take it all. I have a few odd brochures hanging around, I'll have to give them to you sometime.
Another thing that makes sense to me is that the engines were used in so many other applications, it couldn't have cost much to offer them in yet another.
Thanks ahead for the brochures! I will appreciate them.
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I checked and you're right it was a mid 65 Impala option upgrade available only in 4DR hdtp. Primarily an interior upgrade. They made around 37K of them for the 65 model. In 66 it became a full model line. In the Chicago area where I grew up it really didn't seem to get much advertising until the 66 which emphasized the formal coupe. But Chicago was a huge GM dominated market back then so I suppose advertising wasn't all that critical and a lot of it back then was dealer rather than manufacturer focused like the "backwards K" Nickey Chevrolet or Arnie Nussam Chevy "I'd like to give 'em away but the wife won't let me!". My favorite though was Mr. Norm's Grand Spalding Dodge radio spots with fast paced announcers emphasizing their performance cars on WLS or WCFL.
As for the follow up 383, I know Mopar started getting heavy into engine electronics around then and it wasn't always pretty! Then again, the new EPA regs made a lot of cars balky and troublesome initially, particularly starting around 73.
Watched one of those televised auctions last few days - there was a nice '57 or so T-Bird resto-rod that went for not too much, since it wasn't 'original'. I think that would be the way to go! Get rid of the troublesome stuff, put in modern running gear, get to enjoy the styling.
Now this may not be cool or politically correct, but I think those were amazing cars, really! My boss back then had one. Tons of room, great ride and comfort and no problem getting low 30's on the Interstate. Very reliable as well.
And in nice shape, it's not the worst thing in the world...just another big old tank.
I was in the Army and I swear the tank drove better. My parents had a 73 Galaxie - what a pile! Horrific braking and steering, an engine that would rev into high idle with no warning while driving, black goo oozing out of the door areas in hot weather, fragile and probably undersized tranny, and a Windsor 351 prone to cracked blocks or heads.
Actually, when they're running properly, sometimes they're not too bad. The only problem is, often they don't run properly for long! For the most part, the biggest problem with my old cars is the first start, after sitting for awhile. For instance, yesterday when I drove my '67 Catalina, it took 3 tries to get it started. And then, once it started, it died after a few seconds. Started right up again, but I had to feather the gas pedal a bit once I put it in gear, to back it out of the garage, to keep it from stalling. It had been sitting for about 8 days, and admittedly, it was only 28 degrees yesterday morning!
Today, I drove my '85 Silverado. It was cold and wet this morning, but around 40 degrees. Last time the truck had been driven was Sunday, so it sat for 2 days. 2-3 pumps of the gas pedal, turn the key, and it fired right up. I might've let it warm up for 20-30 seconds, and then took off. While warming up, it'll balk a bit if I have to accelerate hard, so I try not to do that. But even with my fuel-injected Intrepid, I'll try to go gentle on it for the first couple minutes, until it's warmed up a bit.
I wonder how hard it would be to convert my older cars over to some kind of fuel injection system? I guess it would probably be pretty expensive.
She got rid of it and replaced it with a '77 Volare station wagon It got totaled when it got hit by a delivery truck hauling, of all things, toilets. I guess that's Karma's way of saying the Volare belongs in the crapper, but he said it actually wasn't a bad car. I think they got a Reliant after that. :lemon:
Drainback or evaporation of fuel. Choke adjustment and vacuum pulloff settings IIRC. Really tough to get them suitable.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Yeah, my mechanic did say that the carb and choke would probably need adjusting. He lives somewhat near me, so he said he'd actually come by and make a housecall sometime! I'm kinda afraid to mess with it myself, for fear of making it worse! I used to know how to adjust it on my Dart, with a 318-2bbl. Carter, I believe. But the Rochester Quadrajet on the Catalina scares me!
The car drove great, brakes were spot on, good handling, no nose dive. If anything, the front end was too tight. Not sure I'd enjoy this car on a washboard or rutted road!
Engine was fuel-injected, coupled to a Tremec 5-speed manual transmission, super sound system, vintage AC, custom dash with full gauge array, custom console, power top, custom seating to give the look of front and rear buckets, halogen lighting, portable NAV.
Pretty nice, the best of everything. It was done up as a blue on white SS, engine dynos at 525 HP.
What did THAT all cost? I have no idea, but you could buy a similar car for around $50,000 no problem--that is, if you want the "best" of everything and a car that really looks restored.
But for 50K, probably more fun than a new Corvette and most new cars in that price range.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Behind me on I-70 and I couldn't decide if it were some kind of Vette. My son in shotgun said it was a Vette.
Black Camaro SS. Beautiful. Brought back thrills of the good old days. It evoked a different reaction than the Challenger in Orange that I see around. It was classy; the Challenger is racy.
Michigan plates, but went downtown rather than north on I-75 toward MI.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Nah, nothing electric about it...at least I don't think so. It's just the little spring in the manifold with a rod attached to it, that attaches to the flap for the primaries.
Overall it's a good running car, once it's warmed up. But the first start of the day has never been that car's strong suit, especially after it's been sitting for awhile.
I think what really kills the '73s looks is that cowcatcher bumper slung across the front. It got worse in 1974 when they hung a chrome railroad tie to the back end of the car as well. GM handled the whole 5-mph bumper mandate a lot better than other manufacturers. Ford resorted to chrome logs and Chrysler's answer was big rubber blocks stuck on the existing bumpers. The worst by far, was MG with the ugly rubberized bumper/grille combo. The 5-mph mandate really ruined the looks of the once-beautiful Jaguar XK-E.
I'm thinking either a cab driver struck it rich and bought himself a fancy ride, or someone bought an ML and lost their job and now needs to somehow make the payments. :sick:
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
All I could think, was "Poor B*std - it takes a lot of tips to make a Town Car payment". It made me appreciate my job a little more.
The car was a super gas hog. That might not have been a problem in 1972 when regular was 31.9 cents a gallon, but Dad was masochistic enough to go through both 1970s fuel crisises with this beast. I recall Dad cursing up a storm in 1974 filling up with Texaco Fire Chief gasoline at a downtown gas station.
Dad didn't even have the car a week before the electric rear window failed due to a short circuit somewhere in the wiring harness. The Ford dealer had to rip out the seats and carpet to locate it. Two years later, my Dad was taking my Mom out to dinner when the beast refused to start. Dad's out front wearing his good suit, the hood of the car is raised, and he's spewing a string of profanity that would make Tony Soprano blush. Finally, Dad gave up and borrowed Grandpop's ultra-reliable 1974 Chevrolet Impala. Ignition problems plagued this car foir the remainder of the time we had it. I remember Dad getting frustrated and throwing a wrench that hit one of the battery terminal sending out a shower of sparks.
The car had cooling system problems. I recall it unexpectedly blowing a lower radiator hose when we went to pick up Mom who was grocery shopping at the local IGA, (remember those?) Dad changed the water pump at least twice and the car blew a soft plug at some point.
By 1981, the dashpad cracked to the point it looked like somebody took a machete to it.
Oh, and RUST!!! That car rusted with a VENGEANCE!!! My Dad spent two nice summer days in July 1979 Bondo'ing this beast with the help of my younger brother and I who were dumb enough to stop and ask what he was doing with the car in my Uncle Daniel's garage. By 1981, all of our work was undone by the lousy northeast winters and the car looked like mice ran through the coachwork.
FINALLY, Dad gave up on it in September 1981 and sold it to some unsuspecting kid for the princely sum of $150.
It looked exactly like the car pictured below when he first bought it. I wouldn't park that car near any marine environment as the boating couple below:
I want to say the period T-Bird my mother had blew a soft plug too...I remember once my dad rattled off the list of maladies that car had. He and my mother both have told a story of when that car was new, the cruise control would stick and be hard to disengage, which would make my mother panic. That car was maybe a 74-75ish, and I know by the time we got rid of it around 1984 it was looking a little down on its luck...and by 1985 it had some kind of malfunction - maybe a transmission - and was dead behind the house of its new owner (a family friend my dad gave it to for very little). 11 years from a nice new car to dead...I see many 11 year old cars today that don't look very old and have lots of life left.
This must be why Ford stressed "quality" so much in the 80s...it had some issues in the 70s.
I remember in the early 90s when my dad rescued a 60 Ford wagon and put it back on the road, it had some significant rear end noise...so he found a junked 70 Squire wagon and pulled the 9" rear, and put it in the older car.