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

berri

I'd imagine that the cars ultimately sold at a deep discount as well, so while the MSRP's made the cars look expensive, the out-the-door prices were a lot more reasonable.

Exactly and used carprices reflected it.

I think one of the biggest factors that kept sales of these cars down was Chrysler's impending doom

I liked the looks on those full size Mopars, but quality concerns also hurt Chrysler sales back then.

So how badly are you guys getting snowed on?

andre1969

So how badly are you guys getting snowed on?

So far, not too bad. It's coming down, not really sticking to much yet, although it's accumulating a bit on car windshields, and made the deck kinda slick. I think we might get 1-3 inches. And most of the trees still have a lot of their leaves on, so there's a good chance they might get weighted down, take out power lines, etc.

berri

Looks like you're lucky. ATC not looking pretty at Phillly or NY airports.

lemko

Looks like we got quite a bit in Philly - about 1" 1/2 here. Funny, last week it was beautiful and I was driving my 1989 Cadillac Brougham.

Per the 1979 R-bodies, back in the day, there was this older couple who went to my church who had a really nice beige Fifth Avenue. I always thought that it was a really sharp car.

merckx

I saw a different '57 T-Bird at a local car show. Although the '57 is my favorite of these two-seaters, I really don't care for any of them. This one was baby blue,too, which should have made it much worse. But this car had dog dishes(I've never seen that except in pictures of the special supercharged ones)...and the fender skirts had been taken off...I was really surprised how desireable these two modifications made the car...The owner said he had the chrome wires, wide whites, and skirts back home...

hpmctorque

"So how badly are you guys getting snowed on?"

A few wet flurries, but no accumulation on the roads in southern Montgomery Co. Yet the salt trucks are parked on the shoulders of I-270, ready to spread their poison. It's really overkill, since the weather people said the only accumulation, maybe an inch or two, would be on the lawns. With local, regional and state governments deep in debt, not to mention the environmental impact, we can't afford such overprotection. It p----s me off.

berri

Now that snow in New York City is going to be plastered all over the national news, but Denver already got it last week.

andys120

The standing record for October snowfall is 3" but as of last count there is 14.4" down from this one storm. That's what I call "Indian Winter".

How odd to look out back and seen an unfrozen lake and over a foot of snow!

berri

Light the fireplace - it's brandy and cigar time!

lemko

Light green metallic 1966 Chevrolet Nova sedan with gray primer spots and aftermarket wheels travelling north on Tabor Road near Robbins, light blue metallic 1979 Chevrolet Malibu coupe with matching vinyl top on Bingham Street near Martins Mill Road and a teal blue 1970 Pontiac Firebired convertible with a white top on Robbins Avenue near Tabor Road in NE Philly.

fintail

Been in GA for coming up on a week, got a bit of time left. Cars here age a lot worse than back home, so few pre-90s cars on the road...I've barely seen anything interesting. Some old heaps, not many oldies on the road. Did see a rusty W114 and a few ok looking W123s along with a nice 560SEL, a few downsized GM cars (a couple not donked), thats really it for old cars.

lemko

...kind of rough-looking Buick Grand National being pulled on a trailer on Oxford Avenue near Cottman this morning in NE Philly.

fintail

Saw an obviously restored 914 in the ATL morning commute today. Also remember seeing an unrestored looking 356 cabrio in Savannah, and saw a 64 Fairlane 2 door post on a car hauler.

fintail

Saw two BMW Bavarias today, many miles apart, and at least one was running and driving. That's not common for sure.

Mr_Shiftright

These were not good cars.

omarman

Earlier today spotted a purple 1969 Mustang convertible with black top (top up despite warmer temps today). Seemed to be in very good condition from what I could tell in traffic. Reminded me of an old Hot Wheels Mustang in that same shade of purple.

lemko

...rough looking white 1971 AMC Ambassador sedan with dog dish hubcaps on Bingham Street above Levick in NE Philly.

robr2

Saw one this AM - mid to late 80's RWD behemoth in light blue. I'm guessing it is a retired funeral car.

It Looked Like This

lemko

Not a funeral car, but made by the same folks who build hearses and flower cars for the funeral trade - Hess & Eisenhardt.

robr2

Sorry -I use funeral car as a generic term for hearses.

I wonder if these were ever sold to the general public.

BTW, a funeral home nearby uses a Cadillac CTS wagon and an Escalade pick up thingy for flower duty.

andre1969

I wonder if these were ever sold to the general public.

I think that particular model you posted was sold to the general public, for those few moneyed buyers who wanted a Cadillac station wagon. It was essentially the Sedan DeVille/Fleetwood Brougham 4-door with a station wagon rear grafted on.

A true hearse would be much longer, with most of the additional length in the back doors. It would also have a raised roof. I think hearses were built on the limousine/commercial chassis, which was beefier than what was used for the regular passenger cars.

I wonder what they're going to use as the basis for hearses nowadays, now that cars traditionally used, such as Lincoln Town cars and Cadillac DTSes, have been discontinued?

tjc78

wonder what they're going to use as the basis for hearses nowadays, now that cars traditionally used, such as Lincoln Town cars and Cadillac DTSes, have been discontinued?

I saw a Lincoln MKT hearse the other day, at least that thing is good for something.

lemko

Probably Escalades or Navigators.

robr2

I wonder what they're going to use as the basis for hearses nowadays, now that cars traditionally used, such as Lincoln Town cars and Cadillac DTSes, have been discontinued?

Probably any large vehicle can be modified. I'm sure the upcoming XTS will be a suitable donor. The MKT as noted and the Escalade ar both candidates.

andys120

I'm sitting in an auto repair shop and in rolls a pristine 1956 Olds 88 2 dr H/T red over black with skirts, correct original hubcaps and period correct white walls. Paint and chrome were glossy and perfect. The only sour note was the Continental spare which IMO is overkill. Back in the day those were rarely seen (except on T-Birds) and serve to make a long car a bit too long.

berri

I always thought the 55 and 56 Olds and Buick were beautiful cars (and I never saw one with continental kit in the day either). 55 and 56 weren't as flashy as later in the 50's, but there are a lot of classically designed vehicles that still look cleanly styled today from those two years.

uplanderguy

I remember Ambassadors of that general era advertising standard air-conditioning, which was certainly unusual at that time.

andys120

Yes the Ambassador was a popular priced car and most mid-level cars did not have a/c at least in the Northeast where I grew up. A/c was mostly found on Buicks, Lincolns, Caddys and the like until the late 50s. Perhaps it was different in the Sunbelt, for the obvious reasons.

I got my first car in '65 and it was a VW Beetle which did not offer air or even back windows that went down (they hinged out at the rear). It wasn't 'til 1983 that I got around to getting a/c on a car (my second VW, a Rabbit GTI).

imidazol97

>(and I never saw one with continental kit in the day either

The continental kit addons have ruined many classic cars for me. The only continental kits I recall that were somewhat common were on a Nash or American Motors car in the 50s.

But for some reason the folks owning very nice, completely original cars of the 50s and 60s add those kits thinking they make the cars look nicer. I have a picture of a 1960 Ford convertible with a kit, addon reflectors on the rear bumper, extra hood ornaments on the two front fenders, and probably some other things that I never, never saw on a 1960 Ford in Randolph County, Indiana.

ab348

Don't forget the holes drilled in the A-pillars to add spotlights.

Mr_Shiftright

And the weight on the back and the extended rear overhang just about guarantees a foul-handling car to drive.

A continental kit looks good on a.....Continental.

Mr_Shiftright

Came across a '74 Alfa GTV 2000, disassembled for some odd reason, as the car looked to have been in pretty darn good shape. Also saw two BMW 2002 Tii in a corner, both in disrepair.

andys120

Actually there was one car that was commonly seen with the Conti tire, the 1956 T'Bird and it really messes up the sporty look of Ford's best 1950s styling.>



The car could be ordered without it>



AFAIK the Conti was much rarer in '55 and '57.

andre1969

AFAIK the Conti was much rarer in '55 and '57.

I've noticed that, too. I just looked it up online, and it appears that the continental tire option was only offered from Ford in 1956, so any '55 or '57 models that are sporting it are aftermarket kits.

I think the '55-57 T-birds look really good without fender skirts as well. As do most cars!

hillmanbilly

I saw an old Trabant the other day sitting in a field next to an industrial park. These were communist-era junkers made somewhere in eastern Europe during the cold war. Think of an even shittier version of a Yugo. If i'm not mistaken, some of them were even 2-strokes. I don't know hardly anything about them and if I hadn't visited Poland a few years ago, I wouldn't even have known what it was.

What a pile... ha ha ha.

jljac

A continental kit looks good on a.....Continental.

It seems strange to call them “Contential kits” because I don’t recall seeing them on post-war Continentals. I only saw trunk styling to make it look like a spare tire cover. As a kid of the 1950s I only remember seeing them with any consistency on some T-Birds and Nash/Rambler products. I
would call it a “Nash kit” if it were up to me.

andys120

I think the '55-57 T-birds look really good without fender skirts as well. As do most cars!

Maybe it's because I first became a gearhead in the 50s but I generally like skirts on those cars, even sports cars.

andys120

The outside spare looks silly on an unpretentious car like the Metropolitan but it does serve the purpose of increasing the space in the tiny trunk.

andre1969

I know they're trying to go for a sleeker, streamlined look with those skirts, but I always thought they made the cars look fat and ponderous. Even with that Jag, I think it looks better without them:

berri

I seem to recall that Ford added that continental kit to the 56 T-Bird because of some issue on the 55 regarding either usable trunk or weight balance. I'm not sure which, maybe both? The matter was resolved for 57.

andys120

Actually, I few summers ago I was cruising local roads and I happened to come up behind a Jag 120 which looked very much like that except it was black and had skirts on as well as the disc wheels and a tonneau over the passenger side, I don't think I've seen a better looking car anywhere.

bhill2

It seems strange to call them “Contential kits” because I don’t recall seeing them on post-war Continentals.

IIRC, the "Continental" refers not to the Lincoln model but rather to "the Continent"; i.e. Europe, where they were more common.

andre1969

IIRC, the "Continental" refers not to the Lincoln model but rather to "the Continent"; i.e. Europe, where they were more common.

Well, I think the 1939 Lincoln Continental was what brought that style back, but it was inspired because Edsel Ford had gone to Europe, liked the look, and had a personal car built that incorporated the external tire. And then the Continental took it from there.

I guess "Continental" sounds more elegant than "throwback", since that's essentially what it is. People somehow forgot that once upon a time, the spare tire was externally mounted, strapped to the back of the car. Either that, or strapped to the fender.

fintail

Almost all of them were two-strokes, and the bodies aren't even metal. They are like go-karts with leafblower engines. But they have a cult following and a certain charm with their clangy engine note and blue vapor trail.....rrrrring ding ding ding ding

fintail

Saw a light yellow 63 Chevy II 2 door HT languishing under a carport in a 60s tract house in suburban Atlanta today...must have a story behind it, as the rodders would have snapped it up 20 years ago if they could. Also saw a BMW 8er and tatty bustleback.

berri

Saw a light yellow 63 Chevy II 2 door HT

Those were nice little cars for their time. That light yellow was actually more common than you think on GM cars back then. You'd see it on big cars too like LeSabre and Cadillac coupes and convertibles. It would have gone good with those white bucks and belts guys wore, but I think those outfits came out later.

fintail

I know I have seen similar colors on ~65-70 models, this color appeared just a shade lighter than the period "butternut yellow". A nice period kind of pastel color, and those little HTs were pretty sharp themselves.

uplanderguy

I grew up on sixties Chevys, but I am sick 'til my dying day of 'Butternut Yellow' and 'Marina Blue'!

berri

So what are you going to go with, that poop brown that was popular back then?

uplanderguy

I like Tropic Turquoise, the dark color, and Madeira Maroon. My '66 Stude is a light Seafoam Green metallic that wasn't offered by Stude in '66, with a black vinyl top and black vinyl bucket seats. It was built light metallic blue.