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

stickguy

not sure what year, but something I have never seen on the road before (and doubt I will again, unless the same dude has it out again!)

A Caterham seven. Red. and tiny. Though with huge CATERHAM graphics down the side. I loved it. My wife thought it looked "impractical", though she did really like her brother's Cobra!

roadburner

Caterhams are the-somewhat-updated version of the old Lotus 7. There are more around than you might think- fitted with everything from old Escort 1600 fours, E46 M3 sixes, Mazda rotaries, etc. A fairly simple and economical kit car to build...

fintail

The fintail has a new garage-mate - something a little younger and a bit longer:

Michaell

 I saw some classic American iron today while out running errands. First was an early 70s Oldsmobile 442 red with white stripes in excellent condition. Next with the 65 El Camino with faded white paint.  and last was when I think as early 60s imperial two door coupe – golden color with some pretty bad rust on the wheel wells 

texases

Saw a '60s Type 2 VW van, nice except it was 'slammed'.

uplanderguy

That's a '66 or '67 Olds Toronado, of course. I used to think the car was too big for that styling, but I've changed my mind. I remember being blown away when I first saw them, about how completely flat the floor is.

jpp75

Stopped by a local car show put on by the area Mopar club. I didn't have much time but got to see everything. Since it was sponsored by the Mopar club a few new Chargers and Challengers were there, but mostly it was a nice mix of older cars and a couple of hot rods.

It was cloudy so I didn't take pictures, but a couple stick in my mind:

1985 Chrysler Fifth Avenue, white/white 65k miles
1954 Studebaker V8, very classy car

Lots of 1960's Fords, a few Bel Airs (convertible, station wagon and sedan), and a 1983 Corvette GLT (or something like that) which was clearly modified.

I can see why the 50's and 60's GM cars are/were attractive. Compared to their Ford and Chrysler counterparts they were much more appealing, even today.

ab348

uplanderguy said:

That's a '66 or '67 Olds Toronado, of course. I used to think the car was too big for that styling, but I've changed my mind. I remember being blown away when I first saw them, about how completely flat the floor is.

Yes, remarkable to think the styling is distinctive enough to be recognized under a cover like that. Good thing it is covered - that passenger door would surely hit the Fintail if opened.

roadburner

The '66 and '67 Toronado and Riviera were just beautiful cars. They were the benchmarks for full-size luxury sport coupes.

imidazol97

Looks like the Toronado is a little wide for the space. It's parked close to the line on the
Fintail's side. Luckily you can park the Fintail over near the wall to keep more roon between
the cars.

ab348

imidazol97 said:

Looks like the Toronado is a little wide for the space. It's parked close to the line on the
Fintail's side. Luckily you can park the Fintail over near the wall to keep more roon between
the cars.

Fin's car is already tight to the wall.

When I got my Cutlass in '93 I lived in a large apartment building with 2 levels of underground parking. The upper level was always full but the lower level had less occupancy. They let me have a space between two empty spaces and never assigned the ones on either side of me for the 4 years I was there. Was great. That garage even had a wash bay at the far end with hot water available. Loved that!

fintail

The Toronado is a 66 - I peeked under the cover, it is wearing year of manufacture plates. It is dark red with a black bucket seat interior. Appears to be in very nice condition.

It is actually parked just fine, the angle of the pic is deceptive. I am sure it could swing the door out and hit my car, but a reasonably careful person should be able to enter without issue. I have plenty of room (but I do park close to the wall). The previous car to park there, a Civic of all things, parked a lot closer, sometimes irritatingly so.

That garage has a number of unusual cars slumbering under covers. It is in a mid rise apartment building with apparently surplus spots, and fair rates. There's also an Avanti II, a Continental 4 door convertible, a 70s Alfa, a 94-96 Impala SS, a Gallardo, an early RR Shadow, an early Lotus Esprit, a 64 Pontiac convertible, and a 56 Chevy 4 door post just showed up. There was a nice ~71or so Toronado there at one time, too - maybe this 66 has the same owner.

imidazol97

Looks like the Toronado is a little wide for the space

fintail said:

The Toronado is a 66 - I peeked under the cover, it is wearing year of manufacture plates. It is dark red with a black bucket seat interior. Appears to be in very nice condition.

It is actually parked just fine, the angle of the pic is deceptive. I am sure it could swing the door out and hit my car, but a reasonably careful person should be able to enter without issue. I have plenty of room (but I do park close to the wall). The previous car to park there, a Civic of all things, parked a lot closer, sometimes irritatingly so.

That garage has a number of unusual cars slumbering under covers. It is in a mid rise apartment building with apparently surplus spots, and fair rates. There's also an Avanti II, a Continental 4 door convertible, a 70s Alfa, a 94-96 Impala SS, a Gallardo, an early RR Shadow, an early Lotus Esprit, a 64 Pontiac convertible, and a 56 Chevy 4 door post just showed up. There was a nice ~71or so Toronado there at one time, too - maybe this 66 has the same owner.

imidazol97

I'd like to see the Continental convertible. That's a car I don't see at cruise ins every day.lol

fintail

It's a 65-66,I am pretty sure. I think it is a similar dark red color to the Toro, haven't seen it in awhile.

Sadly, a lot of the cars appear to never be driven. I am pretty sure the 64 Pontiac hasn't moved in over a year.

imidazol97 said:

I'd like to see the Continental convertible. That's a car I don't see at cruise ins every day.lol

fintail

Forgot to mention, as I was snapping a couple pics of the fintail yesterday, a 2 door Austin A30 drove by - I didn't react fast enough to snap a pic. Not many of those around.

Today I spotted an early RX7 that had apparently been enjoyed.

laurasdada

A white, final-gen Toyota Supra with the giant basket handle on the rear.

fintail

80s day for a minute - immaculate 86-89 Accord sedan with a hatchback showing up under a minute later, before that a Saab 9000 and a 190E passed by,then after those, an early 70s Dart/Valiant sedan.

Not long ago an obviously restored Corvette drove by, white with grey coves, 1961 I am pretty sure.

berri

An old "running" Saab can be a bit of an anomaly

imidazol97

.Saw a great group of mostly Chrysler cars at a car show Saturday. Lots of
dealer owned cars in the show. Not sure I set it up right.
If it requires a password: Chrysler






If a 56 Dodge wagon with the showroom plastic stick on advertising
still on the windows interests you, check out this group.

http://s86.photobucket.com/user/imidazol97/slideshow/Chrysler Show

fintail

Is that wagon a 57? Wires are unusual on one of those.

Today's sightings - 80s Sentra with a large chair or sofa strapped to the roof, kind of moving with traffic, neglected 2nd gen MR2, same 300SD I see now and then. Oh, I saw one of those Mazda 626 HTs the other day, forgot about it.

imidazol97

fintail said:

Is that wagon a 57? Wires are unusual on one of those.

It is a '57. I was wrong.

My favorite from the cars:

berri

That is nice looking. I'm kind of partial to the 55 Dodge and Desoto from that era. And I go ecstatic over the 57 Chrysler 300 or Desoto Adventurer

ab348

imidazol97 said:

.Saw a great group of mostly Chrysler cars at a car show Saturday. Lots of
dealer owned cars in the show. Not sure I set it up right.
If it requires a password: Chrysler






If a 56 Dodge wagon with the showroom plastic stick on advertising
still on the windows interests you, check out this group.

http://s86.photobucket.com/user/imidazol97/slideshow/Chrysler Show

How do you log in? It says "This album is private".

imidazol97

I'm sorry that I messed up the settings on the album.
Try again--it should work. This time I tried it from another computer
instead of the one I was using for Photobucket.

http://s86.photobucket.com/user/imidazol97/slideshow/Chrysler Show

It's now set for public. Originally it had a password of Chrysler.

Try again. There is a nice Tempest convertible in blue and a 1986 or so Chevy pickup
that came in to look at the cars. A guy next to me started talking to the owner of the Chevy
pickup behind the Dodge wagon and pointed out that it was classic.

uplanderguy

I like that white New Yorker. Typically I haven't loved that era Chrysler ('55 and '56) as I thought they looked chubby, but that solid-tone hardtop is gorgeous to my eyes.

imidazol97

They look good in solid black, which many of them are. The survivors tend to
be post sedans. There used to be one in a barnyard near me in black.
A Windsor, I believe, 4-door sedan.

For me, the tail fins are understated and nicely designed.
The solid taillight adds to the simplicity but makes
a bold statement of a heavy luxury vehicle.

andre1969

Good looking batch of cars, thanks for posting! With the '55-56 DeSotos and Chryslers, I think my favorite models are the '56 upper series...Desoto Fireflite and Chrysler New Yorker. I prefer the body-colored, forward thrusting headlight bezels, to the round chrome ones that the Firedome and Windsor used, as well as all the '55 DeSoto/Chrysler models.

I know wire wheels tend to be associated with older cars, like from the 30's and earlier, and by the 50's can be love it or hate it. I think they still look great on the '55-56 models, but the '57's just seem to futuristic to wear them as well.

Oh, as for hardtops, buyers didn't really embrace them at Mopar as quickly as they did at Ford and GM. This could have been a holdover from 1949-54, when Mopars were fairly conservative, even a bit dowdy, so they didn't necessarily attract the more flashy, "with-it" clientele. For 1955-56 that started to change, but the 4-door pillared models were still by far the strongest sellers. In 1956, for example Chrysler sold about 25,000 New Yorker 4-door sedans, 10,800 hardtop coupes (Newport and St. Regis trim levels), only 3599 hardtop sedans, 921 convertibles, and 1070 wagons.

uplanderguy

That New Yorker's taillights remind me in a positive way, of the '54 Mercury's. I think those are some good-looking taillights.

uplanderguy

andre, you've probably seen this, but I ran into it the other day. I'm interested in 20th century presidents--there were other ones besides Kennedy and FDR! LOL. Harry was a true Mopar man and his last car is still at the house. If I were ever in the K.C. area, I'd tour his home and library.

http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/automotive-history-the-cars-of-president-harry-s-truman/

I've visited the Warren G. Harding home in Marion, OH twice in the last year (he's the Rodney Dangerfield of presidents but a little unfairly so IMHO). My goal is to visit several more presidential sites in Ohio.

texases

I remember putting gas into one of those '60s Imperials, with the fancy cover over the gas cap. It swung up? Or to the side? Or down? I guess I don't remember it well

imidazol97

uplanderguy said:

That New Yorker's taillights remind me in a positive way, of the '54 Mercury's. I think those are some good-looking taillights.

That's right. They are similar or copied!

imidazol97

andre1969 said:

Oh, as for hardtops, buyers didn't really embrace them at Mopar as quickly as they did at Ford and GM. This could have been a holdover from 1949-54, when Mopars were fairly conservative, even a bit dowdy, so they didn't necessarily attract the more flashy, "with-it" clientele. For 1955-56 that started to change, but the 4-door pillared models were still by far the strongest sellers. In 1956, for example Chrysler sold about 25,000 New Yorker 4-door sedans, 10,800 hardtop coupes (Newport and St. Regis trim levels), only 3599 hardtop sedans, 921 convertibles, and 1070 wagons.

Interesting. That explains the shortage of hardtops like I expected.

The Chrysler cars in my pictures are kept by the dealer in a building on his property. I took a picture of a foreign car sitting in the building. There were a couple of older vehicles in there that I didn't venture in to photograph. The gentleman who noticed the Chevy pickup drive up and park was telling me all these came from the dealer--no plates. The Dodge wagon still had those showroom stickers on it. I should have checked the odometer if visible.

ab348

Was able to see it now, thanks!

That '67 Imperial convertible is deserving of a proper restoration. Colors are all wrong now and the paint looks tired anyway. It surely wasn't that color originally, given it has a red interior.

The 2 slabside Chrysler convertibles - '67 or '68 - are very nice. I like the blue one. I was always a fan of the fullsize Chryslers from '65 though the fuselage era but recently have revised my opinions of the fuselage cars somewhat. While I have find memories of my dad's '71 Monaco, seeing fuselage cars at shows now, they are always rather shabby looking,. They just don't seem as well-built as the ones from the '65-'68 era.

fintail

This afternoon spotted a clean 87-88 Cougar and a small displacement early 70s looking motorcycle that sounded like it was in 3rd-4th gear by 20mph or so and still wound up.

berri

Great pix. I was a bit surprised about the color of that 57 300, but then there were many of those pastel colors on cars in the mid fifties. I always thought the 60 Chrysler was best looker of that gen, well maybe not that toilet seat on the trunk lid, and starting in 65 they showed the influence of Elwood Engel who was brought in from Ford to replace Virgil Exner. Nice to see that being a GM man you got those Pontiac pix in there too

andre1969

I think the 300C was offered in most, if not all, of the regular Chrysler colors. In contrast, the '57 DeSoto Adventurer was limited to gold/black schemes. I've usually seen them in black with a gold spear/roof, but have seen pics of them in gold with a black spear/roof, and a few that were gold, with either white or black accents, and an occasional white with gold accents. And the Plymouth Fury only came in that pale beige color, with a gold spear.

Years ago, someone in my area had a '57 DeSoto Firedome under a tarp in a barn that was sort of that pinkish/salmon color. I think DeSoto called it "Mandarin Rust"

uplanderguy

Here's a '55 Imperial a dealer has for sale, maybe 25 miles from me.

http://www.motorcarportfolio.com/product.php?id=12037

imidazol97

berri said:

Nice to see that being a GM man you got those Pontiac pix in there too

I appreciate the positive comment on the Pontiac Tempest. I like that era Pontiac before the Tempest grew as the GTO gained fame. Trim. Cleanly styled. But most of all I like that car in the blue. It's a masculine blue color that says breezy and cool for a convertible. And another big factor is the colorful interior that was common on cars of that era looks so much better than the choice of tungsten black, carbon black, basic black, or expensive black that's offered on modern era cars. LOL

There were several other car there I should have pictured. But it's my second car show of the morning. Indeed, I was stunned by the Chrysler stock owned by the dealer that was out there. I had skipped that annual show before expecting a different level of participant car.

uplanderguy

I would love a '62 Pontiac Tempest LeMans coupe, maroon first, other colors OK, with the Buick aluminum V8. I've seen online that only 1-2% of production had that engine, but I like the small details of the Tempest's styling better than the Buick's or Olds'.

A mechanically-inclined friend told me once I'd have to be a masochist to want to own one of those rope-drive cars though.

imidazol97

That paint on the Imperial convertible looked original to me. The red interior did
contrast with it. I couldn't open the trunk and hood to look for spots of any other
color.

andre1969

uplanderguy said:

andre, you've probably seen this, but I ran into it the other day. I'm interested in 20th century presidents--there were other ones besides Kennedy and FDR! LOL. Harry was a true Mopar man and his last car is still at the house. If I were ever in the K.C. area, I'd tour his home and library.

http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/automotive-history-the-cars-of-president-harry-s-truman/

I've visited the Warren G. Harding home in Marion, OH twice in the last year (he's the Rodney Dangerfield of presidents but a little unfairly so IMHO). My goal is to visit several more presidential sites in Ohio.

Thanks for that link, Uplander. Actually, I never knew Truman was a Mopar man!

boomchek

Saw probably one of the nicest Skodas since they sold them here new in the late 80s. They never sold in huge numbers to begin with so to see one in this shape driving under its own power is a rare sight.

fintail

Wow, that's quite a sighting. Those were never sold down here, and I don't think I've ever seen more than one or two in loonieland.

Coincidentally, today I saw something that I have always thought looks very similar, an 81-82 "Corolla Tercel" sedan, in that red-brown kind of rust color that was very common for them at the time:



Today I saw a nice E24, driver gave me a thumbs up as I was in the fintail, also a very clean first gen CRX, a very clean pre-86 Celebrity 2 door with plate frames from a long defunct local dealer, an earlier Saab 9000, and a 280ZX that didn't look babied.

boomchek said:

Saw probably one of the nicest Skodas since they sold them here new in the late 80s. They never sold in huge numbers to begin with so to see one in this shape driving under its own power is a rare sight.

boomchek

Haha, yeah I always thought those Tercels looked very similiar.

fintail

Here's the early (1967) RR Shadow that lives in the garage where I store my fintail, captured with my dashcam. You can also see the early Esprit belonging to the same guy. Car under the cover is a 56 Chevy.

https://youtu.be/nLFF5I_XyzI

stever

Click on my avatar to see my '82 Tercel. Brings back memories, great little car.

kyfdx

stever said:

Click on my avatar to see my '82 Tercel. Brings back memories, great little car.

I thought the "great little car" (GLC) was a Mazda?

boomchek

@fintail - that's cool. Do you ever worry about leaving your dash cam in the car when parked? I don't have one but wouldn't want to leave it because it might be a reason for someone to break in and steal it.

explorerx4

This just showed up in my driveway.
Got to drive it.