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

fintail

Was behind a ~1970 Volvo 142 2-door merging onto a highway today. Car looked to be in good condition, but I cringed at the thought of being behind it in an acceleration context. Then I realized that I am in metro Seattle, where people merge at 41 mph. The old timer had no problem keeping up.

Mr_Shiftright

'58 (ish) Rambler American, slammed hot rod. Looked to be in very nice condition, and was moving right along.

berri

Merge at 41 - in Chicago it's more of a stop and floor it when you can merge environment off those expressway ramps. But I just saw Seattle has stepped ahead of Chicago for bad traffic by a couple of spots. The Emerald City is going big time!

bhill2

berri said:

bhill2 your knowledge never ceases to amaze me, seriously. As for mercury, I recall a science teacher showing us how you could meld it in your hand. Oops - but people didn't know way back then.

My mind is a powerful repository of useless information. Did you know that the female East African antelope has blue sweat?

berri

...under a blue moon

Mr_Shiftright

bhill2 said:

berri said:

bhill2 your knowledge never ceases to amaze me, seriously. As for mercury, I recall a science teacher showing us how you could meld it in your hand. Oops - but people didn't know way back then.

My mind is a powerful repository of useless information. Did you know that the female East African antelope has blue sweat?

Sure, everybody knows that...

explorerx4

Looks like a nice old truck
hartford.craigslist.org/cto/5498700219.html

ab348

explorerx4 said:

Looks like a nice old truck
hartford.craigslist.org/cto/5498700219.html

Is that price bonkers or am I just out of touch?

stickguy

looks clean. Seems like a lot for a plain jane Ford, but I am likely out of touch. I know the Chevys from the late 60s went way up.

I saw a real oddball today. Parked outside a cheesy knock-off minimart, a mid-70s LTD (the big one). Looked like it was likely original (meaning, it was real tired). Even rarer, it was a 2-door, with a padded landau roof (complete with the carriage bars). A real throwback, and quite the barge.

fintail

Saw a few things today - 64 Impala convertible speeding down I5, 70s LTD 4 door, a clean "donk" early 80s Caprice, a "donk" 80s Camaro (yes I ventured into the south end), I think a blue 80s IROC hiding in a parking garage, spotted the red with gold wheels Accord LX-i hatch I see at work in the wild, 2 W123 coupes and a W114 coupe parked in the same yard - unsure if they are on the road, and a C215 CL600 freshly bought from an auto broker, I hope they know what to expect.

I went to an estate sale this morning, this was sitting in front of the house next door - a little patina, but not gone yet:

stickguy

at Lowes, and early 60s (before the mid generation refresh) corvair convertible. A bit saggy in the back. If it was restored, it was an older one. So odd to see out and about.

and near that, a Jeep softtop PU. Some type of ex-military I believe.

omarman

Maybe 1987ish Chrysler Conquest Tsi "Starion" thing...was this part of the estate sale? In Ohio-land something like that parked on the street would be a pretty obscure sighting.

fintail said:

I went to an estate sale this morning, this was sitting in front of the house next door - a little patina, but not gone yet:

tjc78

Couldn't tell you the last time I've seen a Starion/Conquest. Loved them as a kid. 

fintail

It was a Starion - had a "turbo" decal on the back glass, I don't know if it was actually a turbo. I will guess 86-87 as it had a factory CHMSL. It wasn't part of the sale, belonged to a neighbor I guess. No visible rust, gotta love this area

I liked those too when I was a kid, not a lot of them out there anymore, but they seem to have a cult behind them now.

omarman said:

Maybe 1987ish Chrysler Conquest Tsi "Starion" thing...was this part of the estate sale? In Ohio-land something like that parked on the street would be a pretty obscure sighting.

texases

Weren't all Starions turbos?

My oddball, far from a classic, but I'd never seen one:

Mr_Shiftright

ab348 said:

explorerx4 said:

Looks like a nice old truck
hartford.craigslist.org/cto/5498700219.html

Is that price bonkers or am I just out of touch?

Fair enough price if it's as nice as he says---the V8 and the AC are both desirable options. What would I advise as an offer? About $8500--$9K. Being "in storage" is always a bit scary.

kyfdx

Yes.. all Starion/Conquests were turbos..

Mercury Marauder passed me on the freeway, yesterday.

Any Mercury is getting to be a rare sighting.

tjc78

Not in my driveway . Don't see too many Maruaders these days, heck didn't see many when they were new!

lemko

andre1969 said:

I got a call from my mechanic about an hour and a half ago. He found enough wrong with my 2000 Park Ave that it's essentially a death sentence. So, I guess it's time to get serious about this replacement car search. Let the games begin!

This is news to me! What happened?

andre1969

lemko said:

andre1969 said:

I got a call from my mechanic about an hour and a half ago. He found enough wrong with my 2000 Park Ave that it's essentially a death sentence. So, I guess it's time to get serious about this replacement car search. Let the games begin!

This is news to me! What happened?

Basically, old age and a bit too much deferred maintenance got to it. For the major repairs, it needs new brake rotors and pads all around, work on the parking brake, new shocks in back (special GM electronic leveling shocks or something like that, and they ain't cheap). Tie rods are going back, bearing hubs going bad. On top of that, it's due for a transmission service, and it's a bit overdue on the cooling system/hoses. And it's about time to get the supercharger oil changed. But, the real icing on the cake is that the fuel lines and brake lines are deteriorating, so the car's a bit of a time bomb. The check engine light has also been coming on intermittently...but luckily, turned off just before it had to go through the last emissions test. It also has some kind of electronic/electrical glitch that will reset the trip computer (but not the radio presets), and make the fuel gauge needle spin all the way around so that it's on the wrong side of the peg by the "E"...Imidazol97 taught me how to use some magnets to get the needle back around, but it happened enough times that I got tired of doing it. And, it died on three separate occasions. The first time was in my yard, so no big deal. The second time was in Northeast DC, but luckily I had one of those portable jumpstart things with me, and that started it up. The third time was at work, but I was able to tap on the battery cables, and it fired up, so it may just be a bad connection/cable.

I picked it up from the mechanic on Friday evening and drove it home. It was kind of a sad feeling...I almost felt like I was taking Old Yeller on one last walk, before shooting him!

I'm not in a huge hurry to get another car just yet, as I do have the Ram. And now that the weather's getting nicer, I'll drive the old cars more (just not to bad neighborhoods in DC!). But, I'll have to get something eventually.

fintail

That minty low miles Lucerne wasn't at the Lexus dealer this morning - looks like it sold.

ab348

fintail said:

That minty low miles Lucerne wasn't at the Lexus dealer this morning - looks like it sold.

Which reminds me - Andre, a Lexus ES350 might be a good candidate for you. It is different from the rest of the Lexus lineup - not sporty, more like a better old-style Buick. Often gently driven by older buyers graduating from a Camry.

sda

Sad news about the Park Avenue. It certainly shows how more modern cars become disposable once repairs, even relatively minor ones are too expensive to address. I think the hubs are a weak point on that platform. On my 2001 Aurora, I had the right front go bad around 60k because the traction control sensor went bad and could not be replaced separate from the hub--it was a integral unit. That same hub went bad about 12k later, started to roar. I took it back to the dealer hoping it would still be under some type of warranty which it wasn't.

andre1969

ab348 said:

Which reminds me - Andre, a Lexus ES350 might be a good candidate for you. It is different from the rest of the Lexus lineup - not sporty, more like a better old-style Buick. Often gently driven by older buyers graduating from a Camry.

One thing I'll say for the ES350, is that it's one of the more tasteful iterations of the '61 Plymouth kick that Lexus has been on lately Actually, I don't mind them at all, although I'd need to sit in one and revisit it. I've only been in them at the auto shows and such. Now, I did sit in an ES330 a couple months ago, and didn't like it at all. Too small inside for my tastes, with seats that seemed under-sized. Really more of a compact car in my opinion, than a midsize. But, the 350 is bigger, so it should be okay I'm guessing.

I have a feeling an ES350 might be more than I'm willing to pay, though.

stickguy

I like the ES350. Every year at the car show, that is one of the most comfortable cars to sit in. Though I am not a fan of the new nose. A bit pricy though, and the don't depreciate much.

A loaded v6 Camry or accord could be a nice option. Plenty of scoot!

texases

The latest ES350 is based off the Avalon, so it should be a bit bigger inside.

lemko

andre1969 said:

ab348 said:

Which reminds me - Andre, a Lexus ES350 might be a good candidate for you. It is different from the rest of the Lexus lineup - not sporty, more like a better old-style Buick. Often gently driven by older buyers graduating from a Camry.

One thing I'll say for the ES350, is that it's one of the more tasteful iterations of the '61 Plymouth kick that Lexus has been on lately Actually, I don't mind them at all, although I'd need to sit in one and revisit it. I've only been in them at the auto shows and such. Now, I did sit in an ES330 a couple months ago, and didn't like it at all. Too small inside for my tastes, with seats that seemed under-sized. Really more of a compact car in my opinion, than a midsize. But, the 350 is bigger, so it should be okay I'm guessing.

I have a feeling an ES350 might be more than I'm willing to pay, though.

How about a certain blue 2005 Buick Lacrosse? ;P I don't know if you're into imports, but a late model Toyota Avalon Limited is a lot of car for little money. You're essentially buying a Lexus and paying a Toyota price.

andre1969

My uncle has a 2013 Camry, and I'm not that crazy about it. Partly because I hit my head on the ceiling once, while driving it! I forget the exact position that did it, but I think I was trying to back up, and I leaned forward and turned my head so I could get a better view. There's also some little things I don't like about it, such as the way the brakes feel. I swear I can actually feel the pads touching the rotors when I brake. And not in that way of having warped rotors, worn-out pads, etc. It just seems like the car's a bit thin in the insulation department or something, so that lets in noises you wouldn't normally hear. It also just doesn't feel all *that* comfortable to me.

I am kinda curious to give an Accord a try. One thing I did notice about the latest Accord, is that they seem to be going that route of putting compact seats in a midsize, to make it feel bigger inside. But, I've only given them a test-sit at the auto shows...I haven't driven one.

I did find a 2008 Altima hybrid for sale locally that, in a stray-dog sort of way, kind of appeals to me. Haven't checked it out yet, though. One thing I remember from that generation of Altima is that legroom seems really great up front, but the seats are a bit low, and again, small-ish. And headroom was a bit tight, although you can always recline the seat a bit.

I do like the Avalon, but I'd want one from the previous generation. Not the current model that's adopted that trend that a lot of makers seem to be going, that seems like a modern update of the 1978 GM "aeroback' look. The latest models are a bit smaller inside, too.

Realistically, I'm probably not going to go too extravagant on price, because I'm in the process of saving up to move. That's a longer-term goal, maybe 4-5 years down the road, but I'm trying to get serious about it now.

Mr_Shiftright

sda said:

Sad news about the Park Avenue. It certainly shows how more modern cars become disposable once repairs, even relatively minor ones are too expensive to address. I think the hubs are a weak point on that platform. On my 2001 Aurora, I had the right front go bad around 60k because the traction control sensor went bad and could not be replaced separate from the hub--it was a integral unit. That same hub went bad about 12k later, started to roar. I took it back to the dealer hoping it would still be under some type of warranty which it wasn't.

Just running the numbers quickly through my head, it sounds like about $2500 worth of work. Of course, some of that could be accomplished DIY, for cost-cutting.

stickguy

Cost effectively, if Andre otherwise likes the car and the major mechanicals are strong, probably cheaper to do all the work and get it refreshed, then use it another year, and then decide. It is worth so little now, that having it fixed up has to have some ROI. And cheaper than a new car depreciation.

Mr_Shiftright

With older cars, the ROI is heavily dependent on the cosmetics. Rebuilding the engine on a $2500 car gives you a $2500 car; but doing paint and interior might double that, or more.

berri

Andre, I understand the frustration. I don't really see much out there that trips my trigger without spending big bucks. Have you checked out the newly revised Malibu. Looks nice, but I haven't driven it. They already appear to be discounting them.

stickguy

A2014 or 2015 slightly used charger would probably fit the bill, without breaking the bank.

iluvmysephia1

The 2016 Charger front end looks vastly better though, IMO.

stickguy

Not my type of car regardless, but I do think the 2015 redesign is much better looking. No clue what else changed, but I assume there were a lot of other upgrades to make sticking with a 15 the way to go.

stevedebi

Andre,
Your repair woes remind me of when I owned an '87 Toyota Corolla FX. Not the "hot" 16 valve, just the basic one that could not get out of your way. I got it free from my mother in law. Got it in 2007, so 20 years old and 70K. Anyway, put around 1K into it over the years, and used it to go the couple of miles per day to work. I was filling it up one day and the gas went on the ground instead into the tank! Turns out the hose had rotted out. I ended up keeping it for a few more years, but eventually it would have taken too much to justify the miles saved on my new car. I think everything went out or was going out, all the small stuff like CV boots. Would have been around 1K again, so I sold it for 300. The engine and transmission were fine, and here in CA the body was in good shape. It is still running, a co-worker bought it, fixed it up, and gave it to a relative.

That car was sloooooow. And my mom in law was offered either power steering or A/C. She took the A/C, but the car was basically impossible to park - unless you were moving, it was a real haul to turn that FWD. Neither of my kids was interested in it, or I would have fixed it up for them. I knew my kids were smart...

andre1969

I've been thinking about a slightly used Charger or 300. With the Charger, I prefer the 2011-2014 grille, but the 2015+ is growing on me. I did see a 2016 Malibu at the liquor store a couple weeks ago. At a quick glance, I kinda liked it.

I'm going to the Nissan dealer this evening with my friend, to drop his 2006 Xterra off for some servicing. While we're there, I might look around their used car lot and see if there's anything that catches my eye.

iluvmysephia1

Apparently I meant the 2015 and/on Charger FE looks better IMO. Just not up on my Mopar products that well. I am, however, showing a hankering for a 1962 Dodge Dart 440 with a slant 6 and automatic selling for $9,950 at MotoExotica in St. Louis right now! Jet black paint. Keep feeling this pull back ta the 60's.

stickguy

PS is for wimps. I had plenty without it, including my first brand new one (1985 Colt). I actually preferred it.

Though I will say, the VW 412 wagon was a chore. For a car with no weight up front, I never figured out how the made the steering so hard.

The 69 Volvo was easy to park. Just keep cranking. But yes, back then you had to know how to park. No stopping and spinning the wheel to flat spot the tires!

stickguy

Andre, I guess the 15 is a bit more aggressive, but also looks a lot more modern. Me, I would decide based on the other changes implemented with the upgrade year.

stevedebi

stickguy said:

PS is for wimps. I had plenty without it, including my first brand new one (1985 Colt). I actually preferred it.

Though I will say, the VW 412 wagon was a chore. For a car with no weight up front, I never figured out how the made the steering so hard.

The 69 Volvo was easy to park. Just keep cranking. But yes, back then you had to know how to park. No stopping and spinning the wheel to flat spot the tires!

I owned a 411 wagon for a couple of years back in the 80's. Euro specs, maybe that made a difference. Never had any problems with steering. I loved it, you could carry huge amounts of stuff. In the winter, I carried 20KG of deer feed over each front wheel - never had any problems in the snow.

iluvmysephia1

1962 Dodge Dart 440

Look at that shine on the paint, man. Sweet. Odd design that sort of grows on you with time. Reminds me of this '16 Scion (not the look, the grow) I was hankering for months ago.

stickguy

I just realized why this model always bothered me. It looks like the center grill is in upside down.

iluvmysephia1

I just realized why this model always bothered me. It looks like the center grill is in upside down.

Oh, the '62 Dart is an odd one - I don't know what ta think when studying it's design. Seems as if the body designers were more interested in Marilyn Monroe around then...or something.

andre1969

That '62 Dart might not be too bad with no power steering. They were fairly lightweight cars, lighter still with the slant six and no a/c. Plus, manual steering had a different ratio from power steering, which helped a lot.

I drove a '68 Dodge Dart 270 with a 318 V-8 and air conditioning for about 40,000 miles, with broken power steering, which is going to be worse than manual steering, because of the different ratio. It was doable.

I always thought the '62 Dodges were kinda cool...weird, but in a daring, far-out sort of way. But, I never liked that year's Plymouth. It didn't seem quite as bold and daring, just kinda ugly.

iluvmysephia1

I always thought the '62 Dodges were kinda cool...weird, but in a daring, far-out sort of way. But, I never liked that year's Plymouth. It didn't seem quite as bold and daring, just kinda ugly.

Now, if you slap some nice wheels on the '62 Dart it's look perks up a lot. Very odd design - it's as if their compass' were going a bit wiggy in the design room around then. You could call it bold and daring, but I've moved past calling it ugly. It would take a strange rush of energy ta actually pull the trigger on one of those. The '68 Datsun 411 speaks stronger to me than one of these, but the Dart is fun to look at. $9,500 seems a bit high, huh?

ab348

stevedebi said:

Andre,
Your repair woes remind me of when I owned an '87 Toyota Corolla FX. Not the "hot" 16 valve, just the basic one that could not get out of your way. I got it free from my mother in law. Got it in 2007, so 20 years old and 70K. Anyway, put around 1K into it over the years, and used it to go the couple of miles per day to work. I was filling it up one day and the gas went on the ground instead into the tank! Turns out the hose had rotted out. I ended up keeping it for a few more years, but eventually it would have taken too much to justify the miles saved on my new car. I think everything went out or was going out, all the small stuff like CV boots. Would have been around 1K again, so I sold it for 300. The engine and transmission were fine, and here in CA the body was in good shape. It is still running, a co-worker bought it, fixed it up, and gave it to a relative.

That car was sloooooow. And my mom in law was offered either power steering or A/C. She took the A/C, but the car was basically impossible to park - unless you were moving, it was a real haul to turn that FWD. Neither of my kids was interested in it, or I would have fixed it up for them. I knew my kids were smart...

That takes me back to the mid-80s. First decent-paying job, living in my own apartment, going out a lot, lots of girls to go with me. My '77 LeMans 2-door was a good car but getting passe, especially among the classier ladies I liked to chase - they saw it as going towards the greasy side a little too much (though I liked some of those kind of girls too! ).

I read all the car magazines and they were just ga-ga over Toyotas of that era. A girl I liked had a boyfriend who had a new Celica and that seemed the way to go. But when I went to the dealer they had a 16-valve Corolla fastback, a similar coupe, and the MR2 as well. I fell in love with the MR2 and ended up with that. But whenever I'd see one of those 16-valve Corolla coupes I would wonder if I shouldn't have gone with that instead, since the MR2, while a gas to drive, was fairly useless for anything resembling normal use like carrying anything in the trunk or more than 1 passenger. For whatever reason Toyota didn't sell the FX version in Canada back then, which I remember all the magazines loved.

texases

I like that '62 Dart. Of course, I grew up with one, so my genes have been altered...

iluvmysephia1

I like that '62 Dart. Of course, I grew up with one, so my genes have been altered...

Reliable slant 6 in this one and a light body, eh?

texases

We had 3 different slant 6 Mopars, all reliable. That Dart, my '72 Duster, and my brother's 72 Dart.

edit - make that 4, I forgot the 68 Valiant...