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

omarman

Saw a really nice looking '63 Corvette Sting Ray coupe earlier today. (I think Sting Ray was still 2 words in '63 - Vette fans correct me) Very nice chrome and paint, better than new looking. Looked like a factory color called Ember Red, darker than Riverside Red but maybe not as popular.

I wanted to link to a '63 Corvette in Ember Red but only found online examples painted in the Riverside Red shade. Hmm...

Found a really good looking example of the same split window Corvette for sale online finished in Daytona Blue. Not sure why exactly but I love the look of this car with the black side wall tires, factory type hubcaps and that shade of blue.

I'm sure it helps the value for originality, but I'd like to see this car without the thick rocker panel trim - which makes the car look like it's sitting too high from some angles.

Mr_Shiftright

It's nice to see a Corvette that's not all pimped out actually. As for trying to achieve more graceful lines----well, let's face it, this car is a brute inside and out.

stickguy

a nice looking Red TR-6. small bumpers. Very clean. A guy and his teenage kid driving it.

well, when I saw it, it had died at the light at a major intersection, and the kid was about to try and push it across.

Hey, it was a Triumph!

I always had a sweet spot for those cars. Just love the way they look.

Mr_Shiftright

British cars were just helping to develop the exercise craze in America, or as the famous Q&A about British cars goes:

Q: How do I push start my Triumph TR6 in an emergency? (MGB, Jaguar, etc.)

A: You mean there's another way?

explorerx4

i think it was newer, more like this

fintail

Oops, link doesn't work

I take it you mean one of these:



Today's odd sighting - a red 1960 Caddy convertible with the top down. I hope the guy pulled over soon after, it started pouring about 15 mins after I saw it.

explorerx4

saw a pristine early 50's Pontiac, red with white roof.
an all white 62 Corvette, usually the ones i see have contrasting color coves.
a 69 or 70 Cadillac sedan, torquoise and without a vinyl roof.
a butter yellow 50 or so Studebaker coupe.
a mid sixties white Falcon, set up for drag racing. looked nice.
early 60's red Apache pickup, painted faded, but couldn't see any rust.

explorerx4

i shold have checked the link. i tried to post the blue 73 coupe with the driving lights.

fintail

OK I found it, This one

Looks nicer than most, but that paint color can't be original, and it seems a bit over-detailed.

Mr_Shiftright

A very early Saab 900 with a fart can muffler being driven by someone who looked just like Satan in the movies of the 50s----anyway, he put it in gear and bumped into the parking lot flower boxes.

oregonboy

Yeah, Satan hates flowers. :mad:

Mr_Shiftright

Had I known Satan's Saab mechanic I might have kept mine.

boomchek

The Fiat reminds me of when I was 5 or 6 years old and one of my dad's friends came over to our house in one he just bought. Any foreign cars in Poland at the time were rare so this was no exception. His Fiat was loaded with sunroof and power windows - first time I've ever seen power windows in a car! He took us for a ride and I think we topped out at 150-180km/h in it. It was a fond memory, that's why I don't look at these as junkers.

And no, they never built these in Poland.

lemko

That 1934 Packard may have belonged to "an" Al Capone, but probably not "the" Al Capone. The Al Capone went to prison in 1931 for 11 years for income tax evasion. The only way that car could've belonged to the notorious Chicago gangster is if he bought it used after he got out of prison. It's sort of like the 1983 Chrysler Town and Country from "Seinfeld" that was once owned by Jon Voight, (the orthodontist).

lemko

...beautiful maroon 1974 Buick LeSabre convertible fueling-up at the Sunoco at Rhawn and Verree in NE Philly. Also spotted, red 1962 Ford Sunliner with a tan top in North Wales, PA.

Mr_Shiftright

very nice '63 Buick Special 2D HT parked at the beach.

VW Thing under a tarp

34 Ford 2D Victoria, sounded like a flathead V-8 under the hood, very stock looking, nice patina all around.

fintail

Saw a black VW Phaeton today

michaellno

Saw a black VW Phaeton today

Speaking of oddball VW's, somebody at my doctors office drives a Passat W8 wagon .. can't be too many of those out and about.

merckx

I saw one yesterday. I never liked them when new, but they are very appealing to me now....Has anyone here had a chance to drive one?

boomchek

Passat W8 wagon .. can't be too many of those out and about. - yeah maybe like 5 total lol !!

fintail

To see a living nightmare, fast forward to that thing in 10 years.

I remember a W8 4 motion (I think it was) wagon was on local craigslist not too long ago. Dealer tried to make it into some collectible.

kyfdx

I think all the 8-cylinder Passats are 4motion (AWD)..

I don't think the dealer will have to try very hard to make that a collectible.. All he has to do is keep asking too much for it...

michaellno

I always thought the W8 was kind of cool ... a big engine in a not so big car.

dieselone

the W8 itself is kind of cool. Very trick layout.

texases

All those engines based on the VR6 must be some kind of record for engine architecture - VR6, wasn't there a VR5?, W8, W12, W16...any more?

ghulet

Running errands (my car is FINALLY out of the shop), I saw a 450SL with a bad repaint and WHITE WALL tires (blech!), a really nice white 911SC coupe, no spoiler (my favorite configuration) with the graphite alloys, looked very factory, and a silly later '70s Nova sedan with a glossy repaint and oversized wheels (overly wide, mostly, not like 20s or anything garish).

Mr_Shiftright

a very original, unmolested looking 1953 GMC 3/4 ton pickup, 5 window, with a For Sale sign for $7000 (dream on).

If it were $4500 or so, I'd consider buying it.

explorerx4

i knew i was missing something from last weekend.
followed a late 80's/early 90's 911 Targa for 10+ miles last Sunday.
had plenty of time to observe it.
2 people in it and it was leaning over to the right side.
It had no passenger side mirror.
It was a stick, with a bad clutch/operator.
it smelled bad and the engine misfired under when off the gas or at idle.
i think it had 'classic' plates on it.

fintail

Funny thing...I bet back in the malaise days when 450SLs were new, whitewall tires were a typical US-spec feature. I have seen W116s, W114/5s and I think even W123s that wore whitewalls when sold on this side of the pond.

Today's sighting - red BMW 8 series coupe in the pouring rain.

boomchek

Saw a nice black 8 series coupe today. Now that I think about it I see more of these than when they were new.

fintail

I think many original owners drove them sparingly when new, thinking of a future collectible. As only a few of the old sharks are even minor collectibles, it isn't going to hit the more complex and expensive to fix and more boring looking 8er anytime soon - so they are changing hands and being driven.

Today's oddball - Datsun 810 wagon. I commented last week in the ebay pile that they were odd...at least one is still moving along. Also an early NSX, lowered, dumb wheels, tacky.

explorerx4

i little 60's(?) 2 door Datsun on a trailer. it was painted ford blue and tubbed out for drag racing.
a couple of pristine Mopar muscle machines; a white 65 or so mid size with classic plates followed closely by a 70's with one of those chrome surround bumpers.
absolutely immaculate condition. orange with black vinyl roof and strobe stripes, plus dog dish hub caps. pretty meaty sounding.
i purple 70's Camaro with black roof also, loud.
a gold colored 944 at the grocery store. looked well kept, but not shined up.
a white TR-6 turning a ways up the road.
a red 70's Porsche Carrera.

stickguy

'63ish Ford galaxie convertible in white.

Blue big bumper MGB with some rust on it. ratty looking driver.

Nice looking '69 or so Belvedere/road runner (but didn't see the stripes on it,so not sure).

and on Rt. 81 above Scranton, going the other way, something I couldn't place. Want to say it was a Scarab? had to be a kit car, but it looked like a longer, swoopier Cobra. Lot's of angles on it. Weird thing to see on the highway.

stickguy

restored, somewhat customized, 70ish Bronco. Orange, big chrome wheels, being towed on a trailer.

fintail

Today's oddities - Subaru XT6 (running at highway speeds no less), Subaru Brat still with its rear seats, 2x Reatta, pristine 560SEL driven by a "homeboy" type complete with stereotypical driving posture - but he was taking very good care of the old beast, 2x first gen 4 Runner, pristine looking pre-3rd brakelight Dodge Omni.

Mr_Shiftright

It wasn't an obscure car exactly....I was sitting in the back yard talking to a friend on the cell phone, when, flying overhead at a very high rate of speed, I saw, undeniably.....a P-51 Mustang with yellow wing stripes!! :surprise:

He did a wide circle around the house then flew north toward San Francisco along the coast. He was cookin' too, since the other private planes in the area looked like they were stuck to the clouds with double-sided tape.

These babies are worth a LOT of money.

fintail

It's very cool to see old planes in flight. I remember seeing a large "flying fortress" kind of thing some time ago, even from the ground you could instantly tell it was something special.

If I had an unlimited fortune, I'd think of having a vintage style aircraft, but maybe a modern recreation built around updated structural tech. And I think I would have a 'bad guy' plane, maybe a Zero or a Stuka or one of those amazing looking early German jets.

michaellno

one of those amazing looking early German jets.

Me-262, AKA the "Swallow"

fintail

Today I had some free time, and I went to look at that special edition CLS55 AMG being offered by a local highline dealer - the IWC edition, something like 55 units made for worldwide sales. I was not impressed. The car had 40K on it, but could have passed for 140K...tired looking paint - kind of sun baked and dull, and scuffed, smelled weird inside, seats were kind of baggy, and the leather dash was showing signs of coming apart near the bottom of the windshield. The wheels, exclusive to this edition, had poorly repaired curb rash. And to top it off, the dealer was asking over retail book for this thing. I think I'll keep my old W210 and be happy, it is a million times nicer than that CLS.

I then went to my MB specialist to make an appointment for service...there was a beautiful C123 300CD parked there, black on palomino, almost looked new. Also a W108 of some kind, and a C140 S600 coupe, the money pit.

fintail

That's the one, just cool looking. Looks like some repros have already been built...time to win a powerball :shades:

texases

Luckily I live under the flight path for the Addison airport near Dallas, home to the Cavanaugh flight museum. On July 4 and some other days they'll fly some of their collection, and sometimes get visiting aircraft. One day I looked up to see a B-24, pointed it out to 7th-grade boys at a football practice: their reaction? "Oh". Not much interest in WWII planes from the under 20 year olds, I guess!

fintail

As Boeing is in my general area, sometimes old planes are flown around here too. My dad was really into that, and when I was a kid we'd go to see old planes, and I remember walking in some kind of large bomber when I was a kid, but I have no idea what it was. I am not surprised that kids today don't have an interest...those planes aren't in video games.

toomanyfumes

Saw a unusual car coming the other way. As it got closer it was obvious it was a kit car. The plates read " 36 Benz". I could tell from 100 feet away it wasn't a Mercedes.

Mr_Shiftright

Were the 2 VW tailpipes sticking out the back a clue? Or perhaps the 14" wheels and Ford Pinto steering wheel?

imidazol97

Sounds like some here would enjoy a visit to the Air Force Museum near Dayton, Ohio.

texases

Growing up in Cincinnati, we went there every year, sometimes in our 1911 Regal on an old car tour. No better combination on earth!

fintail

When I was a kid and we visited the old plane events, my dad took photos of us kids in front of them. I remember some with a bare metal finish like that. I need to see if my mother has those, if they survived the garage flood of about 10 years ago. I remember one had a pinup-girl style painting near the nose.

We got to visit those places in boring 80s cars...yay! :shades:

fintail

Or the 1" diameter "supercharger" pipes

lemko

I imagine it was one of these tacky creatures - more or less a pimped-out dune buggy.



These must've been cool in the 1970s. I can picture some dude in his powder blue leisure suit driving up to the curb to pick up his bleached blonde disco doll before a night on the town.

Mr_Shiftright

What is especially ghastly and heinous about this one is to see how the "designer" (was he in prison at the time?) mixes up different decades.

This is the part of kit cars that really annoys me---not that it's a "fake" (hey, it's a free country), but that the designs are (sometimes) so AHISTORICAL.

It's like dressing up with a revolutionary war hat, a bow and arrow, a civil war uniform and wingtips. :mad: