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

fintail

That reminds me, the original Focus interior can be kind of rough too, all kinds of harsh angles and slashes. I wonder if it is from the same people as the oval Taurus theme. Time has been pretty kind to the original Taurus, I think.

berri

Well, geometrically ovals and angles are kind of opposite ideas, but your question could still make sense if the designer was a quant head I suppose. Fail, try the opposite!

ab348

It's hard for me to believe that my '68 Cutlass will be 50 years old 2 years from now. It was built in September of 1967. While it lacks almost everything modern cars have, it could still be a decent daily driver. Keeps up with traffic, reasonably nimble, etc. just don't hit anything.

roadburner

My 1975 2002 was a great DD; if it had been equipped with A/C I probably would have upgraded to a rotary compressor and kept it.

stever

Value request:

1957 Chevy Bel-Air

andre1969

ab348 said:

It's hard for me to believe that my '68 Cutlass will be 50 years old 2 years from now. It was built in September of 1967. While it lacks almost everything modern cars have, it could still be a decent daily driver. Keeps up with traffic, reasonably nimble, etc. just don't hit anything.

Looking back through the cars I've had, ranging from 1957 to 2012, it seems to me like the biggest jump towards modern-ness, for lack of a better word, happened around 1969. My '57 DeSoto, '67 Newport, '67 Catalina, and '68/69 Darts all felt like old cars, but somehow, my '69 Bonneville felt like it was a big leap forward in terms of steering feel, handling, etc. I know that GM's '65-70 big cars are all the same basic design, just with a fairly major refresh in '67 and another in '69, but somehow, my Bonneville felt a lot different than the Catalina. Part of it was that the Bonneville was the oldest car I owned with the smaller "modern size" steering wheel, so maybe that was part of it. But, it just felt more responsive, in general. I'm guessing GM did some kind of suspension and steering revisions, as well, between '68 and '69.

stickguy

65 to 75 to me seemed like a huge jump into the modern age.

ab348

stickguy said:

65 to 75 to me seemed like a huge jump into the modern age.

Yes, it seemed that new designs introduced in the early '70s were much more "modern" in terms of design.

stickguy

can narrow that down a bit too. 67-72. compare say a chevelle or Cutlass. particularly the interior. not just the styling. Mechanical too (disk brakes, etc.). maybe it was the dawn of the safety era that did it?

stickguy

browsed the local lot next to the produce store today when I stopped for veggies. lately they have had a few classics mixed in.

one today was a 1972 Chevy C10 PU. Red. rallye wheels. Looked pretty freshly painted, and very clean overall. Pretty much stock looking. sign said it was a 350, with a 3 on the tree. I liked it. Seemed so "petite" compared to a new full sized PU.

ab348

Any price posted on that C10?

Mr_Shiftright

I'm guessin' $15K if she's a reallll nice driver. For a decked-out, cost-no-object show truck, more of course.

fintail

There are time periods with big jumps. For example, 53-58 was huge, 67-72 was big, maybe 83-88 had some evolution too. It's slowed down now, as there is only so much you can do.

Spotted today - Vehicross, and a red W113, probably a 280SL as it had headrests, driver made a questionable left turn into traffic on a busy road.

stickguy

Oh yeah, forgot the price. listed at $18,995, which seemed high to me. Interior looked dead stock. Nothing apparent on the outside that was not just a nice restored stock truck with bright red paint. No clue if the engine was worked or not. No mention on the sign. I dug up the link. looking at the pictures, might be a bit lowered.

http://www.usedcarsmagnolia.com/1972-Chevrolet-C10/Used-ClassicCar/Magnolia,Somerdale,Barrington,Lawnside,Berlin,Camden,Voorhees,CherryHill,Deptford,clementon,-NJ,SouthJersey,PA,DE/5121929/Details.aspx

Michaell

stickguy said:

Oh yeah, forgot the price. listed at $18,995, which seemed high to me. Interior looked dead stock. Nothing apparent on the outside that was not just a nice restored stock truck with bright red paint. No clue if the engine was worked or not. No mention on the sign. I dug up the link. looking at the pictures, might be a bit lowered.

http://www.usedcarsmagnolia.com/1972-Chevrolet-C10/Used-ClassicCar/Magnolia,Somerdale,Barrington,Lawnside,Berlin,Camden,Voorhees,CherryHill,Deptford,clementon,-NJ,SouthJersey,PA,DE/5121929/Details.aspx

Yikes, that's a lot of money. My dad's truck is admittedly not in that kind of condition - there is a bit of rust on the wheel wells (they only live a few miles from the ocean), but otherwise it's in great shape. I figure it's worth $10-12K to the right buyer, but it's staying in the family. Both my son and my nephew want it when the time comes. We shall see.

hpmctorque

Thanks for posting those photos from this year's Carlisle Mopar Show, andre.

I know it's early, but do you plan on displaying any of your cars at the Rockville show in October?

ab348

stickguy said:

Oh yeah, forgot the price. listed at $18,995, which seemed high to me. Interior looked dead stock. Nothing apparent on the outside that was not just a nice restored stock truck with bright red paint. No clue if the engine was worked or not. No mention on the sign. I dug up the link. looking at the pictures, might be a bit lowered.

http://www.usedcarsmagnolia.com/1972-Chevrolet-C10/Used-ClassicCar/Magnolia,Somerdale,Barrington,Lawnside,Berlin,Camden,Voorhees,CherryHill,Deptford,clementon,-NJ,SouthJersey,PA,DE/5121929/Details.aspx

Price might be a bit spendy but it would all depend on a closer look I guess. The changes aren't too outrageous though I would prefer the stock look under the hood instead of all the catalog junk on the engine, and I always prefer the stock '72 grille to that aftermarket one although it is fairly tasteful.

Mr_Shiftright

Looks like a mediocre resto at best. I don't think it's worth much over $10K. Note the damage to the seat, the wavy tailgate, etc., and no photos of the underside.

andre1969

Doesn't look like it has power steering...I bet that's fun, especially with that small-diameter steering wheel.

Mr_Shiftright

If you can't see underneath the car, you really don't know what you have.

fintail

Saw an obviously restored earlier FJ40 Landcruiser today, on wheels with original little dog dish style hubcaps.

Forgot to mention, a few days I saw an Audi 4000CS Quattro, not many of those still on the road.

Mr_Shiftright

FJ restorations is a thriving business in Calif.

explorerx4

A black NSX with working A/C.

explorerx4

How about some VW's?

stickguy

I always liked those cabs. Wanted one with some GTI mods like dash, seats, and wheels. Plus some engine upgrades.

roadburner

I always liked the Vanagon Synchros; the waterboxers were trouble, however...

texases

There's a '72 Mustang fastback in my area now (the 'flatback', don't know how you saw out the rear). Too bad it's been modded some, with black wheels and too-large rear tires, plus a LOUD exhaust.

fintail

Interesting planter.

Spotted a Corsica today, and a 70s 911.

explorerx4 said:

How about some VW's?

berri

I always found it interesting how people view 60/70's pony cars. Lot of different opinions there. Personally, I thought Ford really bloated up the 71 Mustang generation. But maybe bigger car meant bigger sales price? Until that point, I liked Mustangs better than Camaro's, but did a quick flip when the second gen Camaro came out in 70.5 v. the 71 Mustang. Of course the Mopar E cars were very attractive, and I really liked the 70 Challenger. I felt that extra couple of inches in length made it look better than the Barracuda by filling the frame out a bit more (not the same as the 71 Mustang because the Challenger still looked slim like the Barracuda). I always had mixed feelings on the Javelin models and wondered what the Studebaker Hawk might have looked like if it was still in business then since they could be creative on a tight budget. Neat stuff back then.

berri

VW's - the Karman Ghia was attractive to me even if it was essentially just a body shell change. The Beetle convertible was the one that seemed hardest to find on the road back in the 60's and early 70's though. I'll admit that after the Super Beetle came out, I had a hard time telling the difference unless I looked under the (rear) hood.

stever

Spotted a Ford Windstar today. Was in someone's garage but the woman said it was a good runner. She also said that had another one that was a dog and she was upset with her hubby when he traded it on this one a couple of years back. Don't quote me but I think hubby enjoys a stiff snort now and then.

I think it qualifies as a siting here since it was, in theory anyway, running. Right @fezo?

robr2

stever said:

Spotted a Ford Windstar today. Was in someone's garage but the woman said it was a good runner. She also said that had another one that was a dog and she was upset with her hubby when he traded it on this one a couple of years back. Don't quote me but I think hubby enjoys a stiff snort now and then.

I think it qualifies as a siting here since it was, in theory anyway, running. Right @fezo?

Gotcha beat - I drove a Windstar last week. It belongs to my in-laws. 2000 with 130K miles. My FIL babies it and it is in great shape.

Mr_Shiftright

GEEZ...130K on a Windstar? That should be in the Ford Museum!

fintail

I assume it wasn't a 3.8 Windstar.

Saw an immaculate W123 non-turbo driven by an older woman today - she made a U-Turn that I was sure she couldn't pull off, but did it with relative ease. Probable longtime/original owner who knows and loves the car.

robr2

fintail said:

I assume it wasn't a 3.8 Windstar.

As a matter of fact, it is. It's the Limited and it came with the 3.8.

andre1969

Weren't all the Windstars 3.8's. IIRC, they enlarged it slightly to 3.9 when they tried to make customers forget by calling it "Freestar". And I think that's when the Montego deviant, er, I mean, variant, debuted as well?

I think the 4.2 used for a bit in F-150s was also in this engine family. I can't remember if the head gasket problem was fixed with the 3.9 and 4.2 versions or not.

fintail

Original head gaskets?

robr2

fintail said:

Original head gaskets?

Yep. I believe by 2001 Ford had sorted out all the issues with the 3.8.

andre1969

hpmctorque said:

Thanks for posting those photos from this year's Carlisle Mopar Show, andre.

I know it's early, but do you plan on displaying any of your cars at the Rockville show in October?

You're welcome...glad you like them! I hadn't thought about the Rockville show. The last time I had a car in it was 2012 I think. I'm probably not going to be able to make it this year, but if that changes, I'll let you know.

fintail

When were the 3.8 gasket issues solved? My mom had a 93 Taurus with a 3.8. Had it nearly 10 years, but at ~80K the headgasket went, and she just moved on, sadly, as she somehow bonded with the car and liked it.

robr2

Looks like the head gasket issue was resolved after 1995 as the recall was for 1988-1995 models.

fintail

You can tell it is hot here and the locals don't love it - beautiful sunny summer weekend, didn't see a single old car out today, as it is well into the 90s again. I went to an estate sale yesterday and the guy across the street put his 70s style hot rod 56 Chevy 2 door post out for sale, didn't see a price. Not many oldies out.

andre1969

I just ran out to the DeSoto's mechanic on my lunch break to drop off a check, and on the way back, passed by this trifecta...


Not the best photography, I know, but I was in motion at the time. There used to be an '84 or so Cutlass Supreme sedan that sat in that empty spot, but either it moves under its own power, or got junked...

Michaell

I spotted a Noble M12 GTO S3 last night whilst on pizza duty. RHD.

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTaRjI-tLR6Pjra_8GiQCaKYCwDCJpZKSv2OFxRlzoy5gOYm4oqNA

Mr_Shiftright

That's a rare bird. You get a gold spotter's star.

Ford V-6 powered. (turbo X 2). Not worth all that much. Sort of an odd duck of a car.

Michaell said:

I spotted a Noble M12 GTO S3 last night whilst on pizza duty. RHD.

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTaRjI-tLR6Pjra_8GiQCaKYCwDCJpZKSv2OFxRlzoy5gOYm4oqNA

Michaell

Mr_Shiftright said:

That's a rare bird. You get a gold spotter's star.

Ford V-6 powered. (turbo X 2). Not worth all that much. Sort of an odd duck of a car.

Michaell said:

I spotted a Noble M12 GTO S3 last night whilst on pizza duty. RHD.

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTaRjI-tLR6Pjra_8GiQCaKYCwDCJpZKSv2OFxRlzoy5gOYm4oqNA

It pulled out of a side street in front of me, fishtailing in the rain. I really thought the driver was going to wrap it around a pole or a tree.

Mr_Shiftright

perhaps he should.

fintail

A pair of Tempos and a 70s AMC - someone has an eye for full classics!

Recently spotted an early 80s Isuzu pickup, an early 90s Capri, Celebrity Eurosport wagon, Thunderbird SC, ovoid Taurus SHO, 1999 E55 AMG.

andre1969 said:

Not the best photography, I know, but I was in motion at the time. There used to be an '84 or so Cutlass Supreme sedan that sat in that empty spot, but either it moves under its own power, or got junked...

berri

Andre's latest shot could maybe use a few rusted appliances and pieces of old furniture in the carport as accessories

robr2

1981 or so Toyota Celica Supra. Looks like it was a little worn but not beat as one would expect from a 30 year old car.