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

Mr_Shiftright

I would say that for that ultra low mileage '78 Mark V with the asking price of $37.9K, that the actual market value would be just a bit south of $20,000---so yeah, about 1/2 the asking price.

If it had normal miles and was pristine, then $12,5K

For the Pucci, or Gucci or Rhinestone Jubilee editions, you can add 10%.

explorerx4

Back when I was in college one of my roommates got the rest of us housemates invited to the debut of the 1978 Mark whatever Bill Blass edition at the best hotel in Burlington VT.
It was pretty funny. Nobody would get near the car until 'Yaz', yes the 'Yaz' walked over put his foot on the bumper and placed his drink on the hood. After that, the car got trashed. It was great. :shades:

fintail

The good thing about that other car, aside from price, is that you could drive it without worrying about mileage or normal wear. Just enjoy it, as one should with a cushy old car.

What would the LeBaron be worth? I wonder if it talks.

Here's a fun driving video I recently found - my grandpa had a new 65 Chrysler and it was maybe his favorite car. This youtube user is an obsolete technology nut, and has a few nice old cars. I originally found his videos when I was looking at ancient TV videos, as I appreciate some old tech too.

Sandman6472

My grandpa used to get a new one every 2 years...for some reason he didn't like Caddy's like my folks did. Loved the oval steering wheels and the push button auto trannys. Overall they were a good looking vehicle and a good alternative to the Caddys and Lincolns though they didn't sell as well as the others did.

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

berri

Saw a 58 or 59 two tone blue and white Chevy Apache today. I always liked those, so it caught my eye. Of course, I also like the more upscale Cameo. I think there are a lot of nice pick ups from the mid thru late 50's. Trucks were starting to get some designer attention. Ford's looked good too. The Dodge was maybe a little plain in comparison to GM and Ford, but clean and modern looking. IH was interesting. Studebaker was maybe getting a little long in the tooth then though. At least that's how I saw them during that era.

lemko

I believe Chuck Jordan designed those beautiful late '50s GM trucks. I consider Jordan as GM's last great designer.

uplanderguy

The Studebaker truck styling was advanced when it came out in mid'48--concealed running boards, lack of rolled edge in the bed, double-walled bed...but it was definitely long-in-the-tooth compared to the far-more-square late fifties Big Three trucks. That said, I still liked the looks, especially with the white, vertical-toothed fiberglass grille they started using in '57.

A lot of people don't like the 1960 and later Champ trucks, mostly due to the Dodge wide bed that was wider than the cab, but I always thought that, width-excepted, the styling of the bed matched the Champ cab more than it did the Dodge cab! You could also get the old-fashioned Stude bed on them, with the fenders outside.

Speaking of trucks...the '48-early '55 Chevy trucks must have sold a zillion and also been pretty rugged. Until maybe 15 years ago, I'd still pretty regularly see them being used as work trucks! I'd see way more of them than later Chevy trucks.

Mr_Shiftright

You could even buy a "Scotsman" pickup truck, a stripped down version of the 1/2 ton. I have never seen one personally.

uplanderguy

Yes, that's right. I've only ever seen one in person. They returned to the old '49-53 grille on that one...in '58! Cheaped down in other ways too. The Scotsman car was a surprise sales success, so I guess they figured they'd try it on the trucks, too.

I spoke one-on-one with the final Chief Body Engineer for Studebaker trucks, about twenty years ago. He was an animated character, and said that the fifties-style Stude cab was tight for room inside in his opinion. He did the Champ and said he was happy the way it came out, considering "they gave me $25" to come up with it! (He was a jokester BTW). They were able to price the Champ lower than any other half-ton in America, and it came with a full-width rear window even on the cheapest model and could be had with a sliding rear-window--an exclusive then. You could also get a 5-speed trans which was an exclusive feature in a pickup then.

Mr_Shiftright

Who made that transmission? In those days, even GMC and Chevy outsourced things like their 4X4s---not done in house.

uplanderguy

A quick "Google" search shows plenty of Champs with that trans, but I couldn't find a source. I posted the question over on the S.D.C. forum. I'll let you know when somebody answers.

uplanderguy

The Champ 5-speeds were made by New Process--direct fourth; overdrive fifth.

Now that I hear and see it, I do remember the name 'New Process'.

Mr_Shiftright

Oh, I think I remember those--they were used in the bigger GMC trucks, etc. Very heavy, clunky unit as I recall, but some guys did put them in 1/2 ton pickups. Not like a 5-speed in a Japanese pickup of course.

ab348

I believe New Process Gear was later bought by Chrysler.

Mr_Shiftright

Wow..A Genuine Simulated Wood-Grain Effect Natural-Looking Imitation WOODY!

fintail

No worse than the boomered out PT Cruisers out there, I guess. I don't know if the accessories make the car worth 100% more than a stock example though.

lemko

Where's the chrome barefoot gas pedal? I always thought the Ford Flex would be a natural for the "woody" treatment.

Mr_Shiftright

As a cultural myth "dilutes" over time, it gets mixed up with other myths, and before you know it, everyone starts "getting it wrong".

You see this at car show, too. People in 30s cars dressing in 20s clothing for instance---straw boaters and flapper dresses. Or "fuzzy dice" on a 70s car.

So, too, with surfer culture, hippie culture, etc. Pretty soon we'll see VW Vans with Elvis as one of the Beatles painted on the side, or a fake woody with a skateboard rather than a surf board on the roof :P

andre1969

Or "fuzzy dice" on a 70s car.

One thing that really sucks about having a Forward Look era Mopar, is that it's kinda hard to hang anything from the rearview mirror!

fintail

There have been Flex woody conversions. Via photoshop, here's the ultimate - a "Flexster" (Truckster) conversion:

Mr_Shiftright

Looks like a 4-wheeled kitchen cabinet :P

fintail

Of course, this is what it is trying to replicate:

Mr_Shiftright

You Can Watch That Episode Here

au1994

"You think you hate it now, wait till you drive it"

andre1969

"You think you hate it now, wait till you drive it"

Funny, I was just thinking that!

Hard to believe that movie's about 30 years old, now. I first remember seeing it over at my grandparents' on cable, when I was maybe 14. By the time it made it to network tv, it had been edited VERY heavily!

For some reason, I remember the line "I'm going steady, and I French kiss", to which Audrey responds "So? Everybody does that!", and then the cousin responding to "Yeah, but Daddy says I'm the best!". That got changed to "But my science teacher thinks I'm the best" for tv. Not like that's much better! :P

fintail

Ha, fun memory. I think that was the first movie I watched on cable TV. I remember it, in 1984 my family moved into a new house, and it had cable - before that we didn't have cable, so it was a big deal. I seem to remember the morning after it was set up, watching Vacation. I was 7 years old in 1984 though :shades:

I remember that line, and I've always liked the Truckster in the driveway scene "Oh, all new cars do that" when it diesels on (lots of malaise cars probably did do that), and "look, an airbag!" (garbage bag). I've always thought the blue AMC Eagle alongside it in the gas station scene was what was supposed to be the "Antarctic Blue Super Sports Wagon".

andre1969

Yeah, back then, my grandparents were the first relatives I can remember having cable, so it was a really big deal. They were early adopters in a lot of respects. First relatives I can remember having a VCR, and a CD player, as well.

One movie I remember watching with my grandparents on cable was "Smokey and the Bandit, Part III". I was a bit naive in those days, and admittedly, didn't know what some of the words meant. For instance, at one point, Buford says to little Enis Burdette, "If you do get my badge, it's gonna be a seven pointed, silver suppository!" I remember asking "Grandmom, what's a suppository?" and her saying well, it's sort of like a pill...

That was an awkward conversation! And a little bit later, Buford says something along the lines of "I've got a maniac ahead of me, a fool in the family, and a giant nymphomaniac on the roof!" Grandmom, what's a nymphomaniac? :P

I have a feeling that they came to regret getting cable, after awhile. And I know us grandkids had to be driving them crazy wanting to watch MTV all the time, rather than going outside to play...

And, as for Dieseling, yeah, it was common with cars of that era. In fact, one of my cars pulled that stunt fairly recently on a fairly hot day. Forget which one though. I think it might have been the '85 Silverado.

lemko

My Dad's 1972 Ford LTD had a nasty habit of dieseling. The part where the Truckster was dieseling was a very familiar experience. Only my Dad would've reponded with a phrase more appropriate for Joe Pesci than Chevy Chase.

fintail

Smokey III was on TV here several weeks ago. I forgot how awful it was. I still watched parts of it though :shades:

I remember our first VCR (Sylvania top loader) and microwave (huge Frigidaire model) - the VCR lasted until around 1996, and the microwave died just a few years ago. Maybe they don't make em like they used to.

My friend's 83 Monte would diesel if you turned it off with the AC/defrost running. Sounds like something my mother's 70s T-Bird would do, but I don't remember it that specifically (I do remember it with the hood up though).

hpmctorque

That movie and that car will always be classics. Both are perfect - masterpieces, even - and can't be topped. And, what what could be more appropriate than to name that car a family truckster? Bullseye!

jljac

Where's the chrome barefoot gas pedal?

Here it is !


Photo taken around 1970 of my 1960 Lark.

fintail

I think it was a Barris creation. A John Hughes trait , kind of a fun mocking of the excesses of American cars of that era. Wood everywhere (on the hood even), gigantic emblems, etc.

I want to say my mother claimed she had a car with a bigfoot gas pedal, maybe the 61 Impala she had long before I was born.

stevedebi

Here is a conversion kit:

Flex Woodie conversion kit

fintail

Tasteful :shades:

Mr_Shiftright

I LOVE the quote from the ad:

"This is not just another...... maintenance intense, “real” wood"..... the outer “Santa Rosa Oak” trim is aproprietary (sic) raised quarter round plastic molding"

OHHHHH, well then, that's "class"...... :shades:

fintail

Plastic and vinyl contact paper, just like the real Truckster!

au1994

Our 1st VCR was an RCA top loader complete with the tethered "remote control" that only allowed you to pause if I recall. It never broke, just got tossed out as it had taken up residence in the down stairs rec room that never got used once my sister and I moved out. It was probably closing in on 15 yrs old at the time.

1st microwave was a huge Kenmore, again never broke in the near 10 years we had it. It went away because we moved to a house with a built in.

Parents had a washer and dryer set that they received as a wedding gift that lasted till I was a senior in HS probably about 20 yrs.

I just moved out of a house that was 8 yrs old and the read outs on the microwave and oven were already missing digits. House came with a refrigerator as a builder incentive and I had to replace the icemaker which had been broken for 2 years. So no, they don't make 'em like they used to!

Sorry, thought this was the Classic Appliance Forum...back to cars...

andre1969

Sorry, thought this was the Classic Appliance Forum...back to cars...

In some ways, old cars and old appliances are similar. Once upon a time, when your tv, fridge, washer, etc broke, you fixed it and kept it going. These days, they're all pretty much throwaway.

Cars are getting to the same point. While they're more reliable than ever (not so sure about appliances though) when something does break, it's often a larger, more expensive repair. There are things that can go bad on a modern car that would total it, that didn't even exist years ago. For instance, one of my relatives ended up junking a 1991 or so Park Avenue back in the early '00's because the whole computer system was dying. Supposedly it was about a $4,000 repair, and the car simply wasn't worth it.

Even with my 2000 Park Ave, I've had things fail that didn't exist on older cars. For example, I recently needed to have two every expensive tensioners replaced. One of them had failed, and when it did so it sent shrapnel everywhere. In the process, it ripped a chunk out of the battery. Unfortunately, the battery wasn't discovered until about a week after it came out of the shop, as it managed to hold a charge for awhile. And the rip was in a spot that was hard to see...I didn't notice it until I pulled the battery out with the intention of swapping in another.

Anyway, older cars didn't have tensioners...they had brackets. Now, I guess those brackets could break from time to time, or the bolts could come loose or strip. But, I've never had a bracket break.

A few months ago, the car needed a MAF sensor and some other emissions crap...stuff that wouldn't have existed years before, when at the most, cars usually just had a simple catalytic converter and a pcv valve.

If the transmission fails on my Buick, it's about $1800 to replace, according to the local shop. If the transmission fails on my '79 New Yorker, it's more like $600-800. I shudder to think what the 6-speed in my new Ram would cost to replace. Or some of these eight-speeds they're coming out with now!

I guess though, once you go back far enough, cars can be needlessly complicated, as well. For instance, the "Total Contact" braking system in my '57 DeSoto, which uses two brake cylinders per wheel up front, is a little overly complex, and probably not cheap to work on. And its transmission, which is a Torqueflite, but I think it's called a 488, would probably be a lot more expensive to rebuild than the later 904 and 727 models. Dunno if it's more complicated necessarily, but probably so far removed from modern times that perhaps it's just not as easy to work on?

fintail

Exactly, some of the engineering mindsets of cars and appliances have evolved similarly (some throwaway models, more difficulty to rebuilt, expense of rebuilt vs replacement, etc), and probably more drivers see their cars as appliances now more than ever.

fintail

Ours had a tethered remote that I think only paused, too. I remember when it was fairly new, my brother put pennies in it, and it had to be taken in for repair. Probably would total a modern piece of equipment. It got used and abused by kids a lot, I think finally just wearing out. Made in Japan, I am sure, which now seems like something exotic and high end. At the same time, my parents had bought an expensive 19" (ha!) TV, it lasted until around 1995-96 - we also had a big console thing, can't remember what happened to it. I remember the microwave was also made in Japan.

My parents had a washer dryer set, bought around I was born, that also lasted until I was maybe 20. I suspect those things are still fairly durable, if you buy the right brand.

I've been in my place for 8 years, was the first resident - nothing has broke, but the washer makes odd sounds sometimes, and I am gentle with my things. My grandmother's house is ~50 years old and still has some original appliances, but she is meticulous.

robr2

I remember our first microwave - must've been around 1978 or so.

Better yet, I helped a friend move (twice - I'm a slow learner) and he had one of these monstrosities:



Freakin' thing weighed about 75 lbs. It was from the early 70's. Knowing him, he still has it.

andre1969

And, once you factor in inflation, and all the features, initial purchase prices have gone down as well for both cars and appliances. At least, electronic appliances...dunno about stuff like refrigerators, washers, etc.

To use one example, in 1972 my grandparents bought a new tv and a new Impala. The tv, a 25" Zenith console with no remote, no stereo, was about $700. The Impala, a 4-door hardtop with a 350/auto, a/c, radio (can't remember if it got FM), crank windows etc, was about $5,000.

Adjusting for inflation, that tv would be $3894 today! The Impala would be $27,814. Just imagine though, what kind of tv $3894 would get you today! Meanwhile, a 2014 Impala starts at $26,725. And, that Impala, even with the base 4-cyl, would probably outperform my grandparent's '72 in just about every respect, with the exception of 6-passenger seating and trailer towing.

Incidentally, a fully-loaded 2014 Impala is around $40,000, which in 1972 dollars would have been around $7190. I imagine if you took a Caprice hardtop sedan and loaded it up with every conceivable option...454, a/c, nice stereo, power everything, etc, it would've been easy to get it to $7190 and beyond.

andre1969

My grandparents had one of those monsters. Ended up giving it to some friends of the family back in the 80's.

lemko

Heck, even small kitchen appliances were built to last back then! I still have a General Electric can opener, (Made in U.S.A.) from either the late 1960s or early 1970s in an ugly avocado green. The front potion is diecast metal and the shell is a heavy plastic. It's so sturdy, I think it would go through the floor if you dropped it. My Mom still has an Oster blender and toaster she got as wedding presents back in 1964.

Mr_Shiftright

"In some ways, old cars and old appliances are similar"

Mr_Shiftright

that was not meant as a put-down----industrial design and car design were very close in concept in the post-war era.

imidazol97

Two pink pictures: car and fridge? Looks like a Nicky Minage website. Yuck! :sick:

Mr_Shiftright

Oh you mean Nicki Minaj? At least I spared you an Amway car.

I always thought the Nash Metro resembled a fridge:

Can't you just picture opening that door and picking yourself out a cool one? :P

lemko

...and appliance manufacturers were often one in the same!

Frigidaire = GM
Philco = Ford
Airtemp = Chrysler
Kelvinator = Nash/AMC
Toyota = Toyota

uplanderguy

Though I wouldn't turn my nose up at a beautifully authentic '62 or '63 Studebaker Hawk, I much-prefer the '64 with the smooth, denuded decklid. Underneath that metal applique on the '62 and '63 is the ribbed decklid that the Hawk began using in '56.