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

bhill2

Michaell said:

I think it's gotta be worth more as its a rare FWD Corvette!

And the conversion is undetectable.

Mr_Shiftright

A Cor-dorado? An Eldorvette?

uplanderguy

andre, thought you'd be interested in this:

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2016/04/01/barn-find-of-the-millennium-entire-production-run-of-1962-de-sotos-found-in-warehouse/

Mr_Shiftright

I don't think he's gonna fall for it Up.

stever

lol, what a story.

Mr_Shiftright

The photo was funny, though.

uplanderguy

I think this is a very nice wagon, although when I was younger I didn't like a station wagon with fender skirts. I wonder what it'll bring. It seems like such an outlier among collector cars, it's a real wild card I think.

https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/SC0516-240685/0/1975-Oldsmobile-Custom-Cruiser-Wagon/Automatic/

stickguy

quite the barge. and certainly a time warp machine. I love the options list, some of the stuff that is optional. My favorite I think on this beast is the $24 "fuel economy meter". Did it even need to bother going into double digits?

I remember a friend in HS family had a clamshell Chevy version of this.

fintail

Clamshells have interest around them, and that option load can't be common. I bet it brings some healthy interest for a car that wasn't worth much not long ago.

berri

Weren't those clam shell tailgates kind of problem plagued?

Mr_Shiftright

crazy low miles, too.

This looks like the same car, which apparently didn't sell yet at $18K

http://www.gertonautosales.com/vehicle-details/1975-oldsmobile-custom-cruiser-9-passenger-wagon-3b81ef6837e14e48a90e8c57d151fdeb/

uplanderguy

I had heard that the power tailgate which slid under the floor could sometimes bind. I don't know if they got that figured out later in the run, like this one, or not.

I remember Chevy used to advertise that you could open the tailgate without unhitching a trailer.

Chevy used to offer a manual tailgate, although the window was always power (of course).

uplanderguy

That is definitely the same car. I wonder if those bumper rub strips are still available--since there's a chunk out of the one in the front. Probably not.

Still, I like the car. Different, and mostly original. And like they say, "they're only original once".

Mr_Shiftright

It is a nice old car. All they have to do to sell it is to price it reasonably, as befits its pedigree.

fintail

What's real world on that, assuming it is as nice as it looks? Low teens, 10-15K?

Mr_Shiftright

Maybe $10K, if it totally checks out. $8500 to be sure of getting out of it alive. It's not really that nice if you look closely at underside and engine bay. It's not much to get excited about either, so you'd really want to have one of these for a curiousity.

ab348

Make sure you have a big garage. That thing is 19 1/2 feet long and over 5000 lbs.

Mr_Shiftright

Don't laugh--that is often a factor in how hard it is to sell a "classic" car. Generally, the bigger it is, the harder the sell.

Or, as Top Gear viewed it: ( I think far too harshly, but he had some good points).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjzpx_jUUA0

stickguy

well, he has a point.

and somewhere, TJC sheds a tear.

ab348

Good thing he was driving the downsized version.

uplanderguy

That chunk out of the bumper rub strip on that Olds, left front corner, just slaps me in the face. I'd bet that's probably unobtainium. Still, what an interesting, original car. I'd take the patina of it being unrestored, over it having been painted underhood, etc. I know a couple low-mileage '60's Pontiac Bonneville wagons we'd discussed here before were both bid well into the 20's, but I know there isn't the love for '70's wagons like that. I couldn't even venture a guess as I can't imagine there's much if any history of such a low-mile Custom Cruiser being sold lately. I'll be interested to look after Mecum to see. Of course, as we always say, the big auctions sometimes bring out stupid prices.

Mr_Shiftright

Whatever Mecum brings, don't forget to deduct 15% auction fees + seller's transport costs. So a $12,000 result is probably $9500 in the seller's pocket.

uplanderguy

Fees are usually spelled out in the auction results.

Mr_Shiftright

But not deducted, unless they list a "hammer price" as well.

uplanderguy

That's right, of course.

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah if you're going to follow the auction, let us know how it turns out. I've seen 60s and early 70s wagons sell for pretty good money at various auctions, but not late 70s. It's all about what's under the hood, you know.

ab348

uplanderguy said:

That chunk out of the bumper rub strip on that Olds, left front corner, just slaps me in the face. I'd bet that's probably unobtainium.

I don't think those were commonly stocked by dealers and GM would have tossed any spares long ago, so I suspect you are looking at a junkyard part at best. If memory serves they are a PITA to replace too, requiring the bumper to be removed, then a whole bunch of fiddly push-on fasteners to be wrestled with. That would be times two (if not more) for the pain of removing it at the junkyard.

omarman

I'm liking the Leno solution: 3D scanner and 3D printer. Leno states that he's currently "scanning a Duesenberg body." I don't suppose he's lending out those tools for restoring old station wagons though.

ab348 said:

uplanderguy said:

That chunk out of the bumper rub strip on that Olds, left front corner, just slaps me in the face. I'd bet that's probably unobtainium.

I don't think those were commonly stocked by dealers and GM would have tossed any spares long ago, so I suspect you are looking at a junkyard part at best. If memory serves they are a PITA to replace too, requiring the bumper to be removed, then a whole bunch of fiddly push-on fasteners to be wrestled with. That would be times two (if not more) for the pain of removing it at the junkyard.

fintail

Out on the road today, saw a first gen Camaro, a ~66 Bonneville 2 door HT, a green Nash Metropolitan convertible, a couple R107 SLs, and a nicely kept 79-83 Toyota 4x4.

stickguy

an early 90s Cavalier. Quite odd seeing one of those around here now, considering not really that old and how many they sold.

man, they look so small now. probably because sit so low with big windows.

fintail

Highlights from the auction (pics from their listings):

This was pretty clean:



A little rough but not rusty:



I kind of liked this thing - they started it and it ran smooth:



That'll buff right out:



This was pretty clean, dash pad was flawless. It's weird to think that Accords are 40 years old:

uplanderguy

I liked those LeSabre coupes back when...and I liked the four-headlight iteration better than the later one with one long rectangular headlight on each side. I even like that car with the aftermarket wheels.

Man, where I live, I have not seen that generation Accord, in that condition, for probably 35 years. That's no joke. They routinely had holes at the top of the fenders.

fintail

Here's a couple more listing pics of the LeSabre - there was an odd "Limited Edition" badge on the bumper:



Interior pics weren't very detailed. 80s version of bordello red, I guess. Indicated 95K and it was well kept for those:



The Accord had the beginnings of rust cropping up at the passenger A-pillar. Terrible place for it, but that speaks to the gentle climate here. The interior wasn't completely decomposed, making me think it is a local car.

tjc78

I've seen that piece on the Town Car, like another poster mentioned he should have driven a 70s model....makes the 86 he was driving seem like a race car.

texases

That Chevy LUV - I don't remember seeing a step side compact pickup before...

stever

kyfdx

'72 TR-6?

kyfdx

I like the LUV stepside. Very cool. And, of course, the Accord!

berri

I like both of those Buick greenhouses Fin.

Up, that black LeSabre reminds me a bit of a T type?

Mr_Shiftright

No, I would say that TR-6 is a 1975, based on the rubber bumpers and the British flag decal and the word "Triumph" now below the bumper. Could also be a '76 for all I know. Can't tell just from one photo.

stever

@kyfdx, beats me, just a Triumph I spotted today (this isn't Mystery Car Pics, lol). Looked like a fun ride and today was a top down day too. I was at a light and it was parked a bit of a ways away across the street, and that's about the best I could do without pulling into the parking lot and getting some interest from the cops.

stickguy

oh man, I want that LUV. Bad. If that is a stick, I would have just bought it and figured out what to do with it later. Can't imagine it went for that much. Do they list sale prices?

so probably a good thing it is 4,000 miles from here!

iluvmysephia1

I'll say the TR-6 is a 1974.

kyfdx

Is that a rubber bumper car? I see the extensions, but those don't look like the 5 mph bumpers from later cars. (I reserve the right to be totally wrong).

fintail

Yep the Luv was a stick. Here's another pic - it apparently sold, it is de-listed now, for whatever reason, the place doesn't list selling prices:

Here's the old listing

And a final run fintail that I should have bought, it was immaculate other than it hadn't run in 25 years and apparently was seized

stickguy

I love that LUV. I would have gone nuts bidding. Even already a "hot rod" since someone dropped in a V6, and real seats. Looks really nice. Dang.

Mr_Shiftright

Could be a '74. I'd need to see more of the car---Steve, get on it.

uplanderguy

When the LUV came out, I thought it was fairly nicely-styled, but even as a teenager I had a hard time getting past the fact that it was an Isuzu! LOL

Maybe this was a subconscious thing at first, but I always thought the slant or slope of the cut the rear of the door window reminded me of Studebaker Champ pickups.

I have a foggy memory of that stepside look being available from Chevy on LUVS, a couple or three years maybe after they were first introduced, but I wouldn't wager a bet on that.

omarman

Taken from online archive of "Commercial news for the foreign service" dated 1977

STEP SIDE CONVERSION KITS FOR MINI-TRUCKS — According
to the manufacturer, the $395 (FOB point of manufacture)
Step Side Pick-up Bed Conversion Kit is a less expensive
replacement than stock pick-up beds for Datsun, Toyota,
Ford, Courier, Chevrolet Luv and 4-cylinder Mazda mini-
trucks. The kit is a simple bolt-on accessory, attaching
directly to the stock bed mounting frame. The bed and
tailgate are heavy-gauge, cold-rolled steel with an integrally
welded, corrugated steel floor and are finished in automotive
primer. Fenders and steps are constructed of high strength
reinforced fiberglass. All mounting hardware and instructions
are provided. The kits are designed for fleet or individual
owners as well as auto customizers, builders and salesmen.
Dealer inquiries are also invited. WRITE: Jerry Nichols,
California Step Side Manufacturing, Inc., Dept. CN, P.O.
Box 60249, Sunnyvale, California 94088 U.S.A.

uplanderguy

I seem to remember a factory or dealer-authorized stepside bed for LUV's, but again, I could be wrong. That pic of the LUV that was posted above appeared to have rear fenders patterned after the full-size Chevy and GMC trucks of the same years.