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

berri

My, what large trunks these baby's have

kyfdx - 5 years out of a '62 anything without big repairs was pretty good back then I think.

kyfdx

berri said:

My, what large trunks these baby's have

kyfdx - 5 years out of a '62 anything without big repairs was pretty good back then I think.

As a kid, I don't remember the proportions being that far off on the '62. Of course, the '67 fastback was a pretty radical looking car, in it's own right.

Yeah.. the '67 was traded for a '71 Grand Ville, which she hated... .so, that turned into a '72 Lincoln, then a '76 Lincoln.

It's funny, people that lease a car every three years are derided now, but that was basically what a lot of people did in the '60s and '70s. Only, they had 36 month loans, and traded in a paid off car, each time.

uplanderguy

That fuselage Mopar--the Newport Royal was a lower-priced addition to the Newport family--the Royal became the entry-level Chrysler. A Newport Royal was cheaper than a Newport!

ab348

Mr_Shiftright said:

993s--the last of really good "classic" Porsches. Lovely sounds and noises that vibrate in your skull and down your spine. Nothing quite like it from 1999 onwards IMO. I thought the sloppy engineering and cheesy interior of the 996 was a bit disgraceful for Porsche.

I happened to just watch the Wheeler Dealers ep where they did a 993. The show was done in late 2013 and while they started out with a car having a bunch of issues, I was surprised when they finished that they didn't even get £20000 UK for it. I don't remember them mentioning the mileage though so maybe that was why. Seemed like a nice car when they were done with it.

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah, if a Porsche is miled up they can still be a good buy, but you really have to drastically lower the price. The reason is that the Porsche engine rebuild is so ghastly expensive. So if you buy one with say 150K-175K on it, you're kind of skating on thin ice there...suddenly $25K becomes $45K. Some other "exotics" fare even worse. A Ferrari with 60K miles on it is a parts car.

fintail

That always amused me. They even put it in a commercial (production values and humor very much as expected for the era):

https://youtu.be/3vFn2pCe4G4

My grandpa had one of these, which replaced his solid 65 model. The older car was apparently better - I've been told many stories about the new car being hard or impossible to start. But he still kept it several years.

The loop bumper idea was creative. Chrysler had some courage putting that design into production.

uplanderguy said:

That fuselage Mopar--the Newport Royal was a lower-priced addition to the Newport family--the Royal became the entry-level Chrysler. A Newport Royal was cheaper than a Newport!

uplanderguy

That commercial doesn't even mention "Newport", but the cars said "Newport Royal" on them.

I grew up on Chevys and they no doubt had long decklids too, but I don't remember them being so long as the senior Pontiacs, and those Mopars.

Of course my Larks were compacts, but I always liked the stubby rear end styling of my '63. The hood wasn't long, but the decklid was shorter.

imidazol97

fintail said:

The loop bumper idea was creative. Chrysler had some courage putting that design into production.

Somewhat of an Edsel bumper/grill turned 90 deg.

fintail

Edsel bumper, I never thought of it that way. I can see the relationship.

Out for a jog in the damp this morning, saw that Corolla again, and an 86-87 Mazda 626, don't see those too much anymore.

fintail

And in memory of Carrie Fisher, the car I will always associate her with:



With way this year has progressed, I expect nukes to be launched via a twitter squabble by the 31st.

sda

fintail said:

That always amused me. They even put it in a commercial (production values and humor very much as expected for the era):

https://youtu.be/3vFn2pCe4G4

My grandpa had one of these, which replaced his solid 65 model. The older car was apparently better - I've been told many stories about the new car being hard or impossible to start. But he still kept it several years.

The loop bumper idea was creative. Chrysler had some courage putting that design into production.

uplanderguy said:

That fuselage Mopar--the Newport Royal was a lower-priced addition to the Newport family--the Royal became the entry-level Chrysler. A Newport Royal was cheaper than a Newport!

A friend's mom had a similar Newport in dark metallic green, green top and green interior. It was fairly plain, am radio, a/c. I thought the speedometer on Chryslers was pretty cool as the speed indicatior rotated from the top and not the bottom of the horizontal speedometer. I also liked the look of the rocker switches for the wipers, etc.

stever

My wife and her brother took off for El Paso today to tour around and my BIL sent me this Firebird pic from the Border Patrol Museum (I was going but begged off, claiming that work was piling up. I've managed to avoid visiting that museum three times now. )

berri

Although fuselage, being an aircraft term, would lead one to believe a design was sleek and efficient, I kind of thought of Fuselage Mopars as actually looking more gargantuan than they really were for the time (especially the coupe version). They were sure popular in that green.

fintail

My grandpa's car was also green with a green vinyl top and green interior. It was nicknamed "the tank". I doubt the 383, even if a 2 bbl (which I suppose is most likely) was exactly economical.

uplanderguy

I will say, at 58.5, I have enjoyed the stock market since election day; the results of which have not been the conventional wisdom. I am scared some of a market correction.

fintail

Maybe a discussion for the cars and conversation thread, but it does relate to car market. I've enjoyed the markets since about 2009. The past several years have been a good time to increase my contributions.

There's definitely a correction coming, history may not always repeat itself, but it rhymes. Maybe small hiccups here and there, but within a few years I fear another 2008 event, especially if/when the upcoming trickle down nonsense doesn't work, and increased deficit spending raises alarm. As one group of vermin are ready to leave the swamp, another group is lined up to take over.

kyfdx

uplanderguy said:

I will say, at 58.5, I have enjoyed the stock market since election day; the results of which have not been the conventional wisdom. I am scared some of a market correction.

Well, if you live 25-35 more years, it's bound to go up and down, frequently, and with volatility. It's just like it's always been, it just seems scarier at this age. (I'm 58.5 exactly, today!)

sda

kyfdx said:

uplanderguy said:

I will say, at 58.5, I have enjoyed the stock market since election day; the results of which have not been the conventional wisdom. I am scared some of a market correction.

Well, if you live 25-35 more years, it's bound to go up and down, frequently, and with volatility. It's just like it's always been, it just seems scarier at this age. (I'm 58.5 exactly, today!)

I can relate as I'm about a year younger, 57.5 last month. My youngest sister's birthday is today, she is 53.

berri

...or you could lose it all in a depression. Seriously, just decide the right strategy and keep to it while dollar cost averaging and holding unless you have a really good reason to sell. Trading is expensive. Try to use low cost brokers, funds, ETF, etc.

btw - I'm sure all the Wall Street firms have come out with their optimistic 2017 forecasts. Down the road most of them will trade and panic like lemmings. And just like Washington, if anything goes wrong someone else will be blamed

ab348

I know what you all are talking about. Memories of 2008 are still very fresh for me. All of my investments are at their high point right now. The temptation is strong to put them into something super-secure, take close to a zero return for the next while and see what happens over the next year or so.

berri

It is always hard to tell, but the US market may be getting ahead of itself. Might want to consider foreign markets for any new money, particularly while the dollar is strong (down the road if it weakens it helps your local currency return). And there is nothing wrong with parking new money for a bit if it fits your situation. Also nothing wrong taking some profits on investments you think are fully priced and moving to better value potential. Age and when you'll need the money are relevant as well.

kyfdx

ab348 said:

I know what you all are talking about. Memories of 2008 are still very fresh for me. All of my investments are at their high point right now. The temptation is strong to put them into something super-secure, take close to a zero return for the next while and see what happens over the next year or so.

I was pretty bold at the bottom in 2009. Stayed the course and kept plugging the money into equities in my 401K, week after week..

My only regret? Not being bolder.

ab348

kyfdx said:

ab348 said:

I know what you all are talking about. Memories of 2008 are still very fresh for me. All of my investments are at their high point right now. The temptation is strong to put them into something super-secure, take close to a zero return for the next while and see what happens over the next year or so.

I was pretty bold at the bottom in 2009. Stayed the course and kept plugging the money into equities in my 401K, week after week..

My only regret? Not being bolder.

Oh, I know. I did the same then. The issue this time is that we are potentially near the top, not the bottom. Timing that top-out point is tough.

kyfdx

Yeah.. it's hard to put money to work at these levels.

imidazol97

kyfdx said:

I was pretty bold at the bottom in 2009. Stayed the course and kept plugging the money into equities in my 401K, week after week..
My only regret? Not being bolder.

.

jpp75

Saw a 1976 Black Oldsmobile 98 driving back from the holidays. My parents had a silver one when I was young, a good car for the times...but not a good car overall.

berri

The 70's into the 80's were kind of the nadir of American automobiles. But there were some good times then too. I always felt GM never got the recognition deserved for their excellent, and really relatively quick, downsizing in 77 of their full size lineup. For the times, those new reduced dimension designs were amazingly roomy and efficient. Probably went a little too cheap on the subsequent midsize downsizings though.

fintail

The downsized big GM cars are milestone cars for their time, well-designed and they set the path for the market for some time. During that era, the ones to buy were certainly the full size models.

berri

I believe another GM accomplishment during those days was the basic 350 V8 engine. I know each division had their variant of it and car people argue which is best, but fundamentally that engine has to be considered one of the best mass market offerings during it's reign. Personally, I put it right up there with some of the Japanese 4 banger offerings of the time for relative performance, durability and reliability.

fintail

If one was buying a new mass market car around 1978, it would have been hard to go wrong with a Caprice with a 350.

stickguy

not that old, certainly not classic, but rare. A Mercury Montego (the FWD one based on the Ford 500, so mid-2000s?). Never see those. And a Dodge Ramcharger. The one based on the Ram PU.

jwm40517

Speaking of bold kyfdx, my wife worked at Ashland, Inc back in 08 or 09 when their stock dropped under $6 from near $100. A guy she worked with mortgaged his house and bought $145,000 of the stock. She moved some of her 401K around and got quite a bit of the stock, but nothing like the co worker. It went back over $100. a share.

fintail

80s day: saw a ~85 Cavalier, 86 Camry, Marty McFly Toyota Xtra Cab 4x4 (but I think a later one, 87-88).

berri

Speaking of Mercury Montego's, I always thought the ones from the early 70's were kind of under appreciated.

roadburner

Saw a 1969 T-Bird; a bit rough around the edges.

sda

roadburner said:

Saw a 1969 T-Bird; a bit rough around the edges.

Though I normally prefer 2 doors, I did like the suicide 4dr T-birds. In 1970 or so dad looked at a '67 4dr, dark blue with black top and black cloth interior. It already had electrical issues and the a/c didn't work. He bought another Olds.

berri

Some complained that besides going against tradition, the 4 dr T-Birds were a bit chunky. But I agree sda, they stood out and were interesting vehicles for the time.

stever

Thought it was a Tercel but it was a full blown red Toyota Corolla four door sedan, early 80s.

fintail

Saw a 2 door RAV4 today.

kyfdx

Someone help this person out, please.

https://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/44108/ford/x/anyone-know-the-make-of-this-car#latest

explorerx4

A red gen 1 MR2, 2 GMC Envoys with the roof that slid forward from the back, 2 Crosstours.

fintail

Saw a very clean customized Rabbit cabrio, gen 2 MR2, bugeye Integra with a Honda front end conversion but looked stock otherwise.

Mr_Shiftright

Today I went to see a 1989 Porsche 928 "GT"--this model adds 10 more HP, a stick shift, special wheels and some other goodies to the regular 928. Black on black, pretty much pristine--even had a sun roof. You don't see these much anymore--most have fallen into disrepair or immobility due to punishing repair costs. You can drop $2K--$3K on these cars just for routine service.

fintail

GT is quite rare, isn't it? Don't know if I have ever seen one - much more uncommon than an S4 anyway. It seems later GTS prices shot up a bit some time ago, not sure if that kept going, probably not like insane 911 prices.

stickguy

near my house yesterday, on the back of a rollback truck, some version of an Avanti. Brown. Looked to be in nice condition.

sda

A '69 Sedan deVille. It was painted a flat or satin black with black vinyl roof. Also had custom low profile wheels and dual exhausts sticking out on each side. Though I would not have done that if it was my car, it was a very neat job and the car looked and sounded good as it went down the road. Going the opposite direction was a black model A which looked to be in unmodified condition.

texases

A couple: a '75-ish Lemans, looked to be in good shape; and a '72 Charger, rough paint, LOUD (in a rusted out muffler kind of way).

sda

The ragged hole in the muffler sound is a turn off. When I think of a Cadillac I think of quiet refined and a touch of V8 burble and not all out dual exhaust magna flow sound. I will say that the '69 Deville was louder than I prefer, it did sound smooth, muscular and that it was running well.

texases

Saw a very clean MB W126 420SEL at lunch. I had forgotten about the 4.2l V8, guess it was the 'small' one to the 560SEL.

fintail

People were itching to save a few grand. There was a "small" 420-badged (always a funny joke here) variant of the W140, too.