Mystery car pix

lemko

Amazing - a picture of two extinct birds - the Thunderbird and PanAm.

negative

Although you could have argued the merits of the comparison, Ford did right to put the T-Bird in the shadow of the 747. The effect of the plane around then was electrifying -- before people first set foot on them, we were all under the assumption, given the airline propaganda, that we'd all be traveling around the world in flying cocktail lounges. (That's why I'm so skeptical of the hype surrounding the A380.)

And back then, flying was still glamorous, partly because it wasn't that affordable.

negative

seminole_kev

Subaru 360?

andys120

Kev's right, it's definitely a Subie 360 (AKA Bricklin's Folly :P )

negative

Yes, a 1969 Subaru 360. That year, Consumer Reports tested it and issued a scathing report about it. IIRC, they rolled a Chrysler Newport at it to test the bumpers, and that was the end of it. :sick: Thus, a "not acceptable" rating.

magnette

It's cute though... perhaps they should have banned all the Chrysler Newports.....

andys120

Or these>>

imidazol97

1957 Mercury Colony Park

magnette

Apparently this was the year they changed over to double headlights, so early versions of the 57 would have had two, this must be from the later batch.

andys120

1957 Mercury Colony Park

Yep. The change to double h/ls was not good for the aesthetics of the car.

andys120

magnette

1960 Lincoln Continental mark V and (1959) Ford Anglia 105E deluxe - introduced Sep 59, but you always date cars by model year whereas we don't change the models that frequently so the Anglia could be known as a 59, here.

andys120

You're right about the Anglia 105E, for the record that one's a 1962 model.

The 1960 Lincoln Mark V was not a "Continental" as it preceeded the Continental Mark III by eight years and the Continental Mark V wasn't introduced til 1977. :confuse:

As to why the brain trust at Lincoln-Mercury decided to toss a plain ole "Lincoln Mark V" into the middle of the orderly parade of Continetal Marks, your guess is as good as mine. :confuse: :lemon:

andys120

bumpy

Holden Viva, also sold in Europe as the Chevy Lacetti, and both are a rebadged Daewoo Nubira. The sedan version is sold in the US as the Suzuki Forenza.

andre1969

not all states had legalized quad headlights that year, so it was kind of a transition year. Chrysler was progressive enough to design their 1957 models to accept either single or quad headlights. You could get either setup on a Chrysler, Imperial, or the bigger DeSotos. The Plymouths and Dodges had an oversized turn signal/parking lot that gave the car the illusion of having quad headlights. The DeSoto Firesweep, based on the Dodge, only had single headlights that year.

GM didn't make their '57 cars so that they could easily accept single or quad headlights, so for '58 they did a heavy-handed restyle of the Buick/Olds/Caddy models, which had been new for 1957. And the Pontiac/Chevy were moved to the new platform for '58, so they got the quad headlights.

Ford was kind of somewhere in the middle. They made the fenders on Ford wide enough to accept a quad headlight setup, but then just stuck the Fords with an awkward, bug-eyed single headlight that just made the car look desperate. Desperate or not, it still outsold the Chevy in '57. With Mercury, it's like they made the fenders too wide for single headlights, yet too narrow for quads. Most Mercurys only had the single headlight setup which actually doesn't look too bad, as the lights are somewhat recessed and hooded. The result of the car is still heavy-handed, because of that "twin snorkel" bumper that juts out worse than the 5 mph jobs of the 70's. But those quad headlights just make it look hideous.

I think most '57 Mercs that you still see today have the quad headlight setup, because it's mainly the more expensive ones that survived. And the more expensive ones were more likely to have had the quad headlights in the first place, or possibly retrofitted a few years later, once they were legal everywhere.

One thing I could never figure out though, is how they sold Nashes and Lincolns across the country in 1957? These were the only two cars to have quad headlamps STANDARD that year. Yet quads were not yet legal everywhere. So how'd they sell a Lincoln or Nash in an area where they weren't quite legal yet?

On a similar note though, there was one or two year of Ford (1960?) where the cars were 81.5" wide. Most states have an 80" width limit on passenger cars, so Fords were technically illegal in some areas.

andys120

andre1969

a 1955 Packard Carribean?

andys120

Pretty good guess but it's a '56.

andys120

subearu

Man, you need shades for that bright yellow Chevelle (sure looks like a '67). :shades:

-Brian

andys120

Yep, it's a 396 Super Sport.

Try something a little harder?>>

stickguy

Is it a late '60s Fiat varient of the 1500?

andys120

Nope, it's a Fiat but not a late 60's 1500 of any kind...next?

oregonboy

Fiat 850 Coupe... 1967 or so. I thought they were all red. Must be a repaint.

Rear engined. 850cc's of screeming Italian horsepower.

james

andys120

It's definitely a Fiat 850 Coupe and I'm sure it's a '67-'69 model (note fog lamps ) but the website I got it from IDs it as a '61.>>

http://www.dyna.co.za/cars/Fiat_61_Sport_Coupe_850_Green_sf11.jpg

I don't think so, IIRC the 850 Sports came on the scene around '65 or so. :confuse:

andys120

magnette

Wolsley 15/60, 1958-61, as the later 16/60 had shorter tail fins, but there is something different about this car, perhaps it just looks odd in LHD.

andys120

Wolsley 15/60, 1958-61, as the later 16/60 had shorter tail fins, but there is something different about this car, perhaps it just looks odd in LHD.

You're close but what makes this car look different is that it's the Aussie BMC Austin Freeway which was alternatively badged as the Wolseley 24/80.

andys120

bumpy

The type of badge engineering that gave the practice a bad name... a Chevy Cobalt with a Pontiac grille, sold as the Pursuit in Canda and the G4 in Mexico. We'll get our own Pobalt coupe in a year or so.

andys120

Yep, it's the Canadian Pursuit version. It never ceases to amaze me how popular anything with a Poncho badge is in Canada.

andys120

scootertrash

"One thing I could never figure out though, is how they sold Nashes and Lincolns across the country in 1957? These were the only two cars to have quad headlamps STANDARD that year. Yet quads were not yet legal everywhere. So how'd they sell a Lincoln or Nash in an area where they weren't quite legal yet?"

My father worked at a Ford Edsel Lincoln-Mercury dealer in the late 50's / Early '60's. New Jersey had that same law about multiple headlights. It applied to "quad" style lights and also the driving lights in the grille on 64-66 Mustang GT's.

The official solution? Cut the wires.

magnette

I wondered about the 24/80 but I didn't think they made a LHD version. The bonnet would have been slightly longer than the UK car, because of the larger engine so thats what makes it look different.
Perhaps the photo is reversed?

magnette

1982/6 Mitsubishi Tredia, and I would imagine its the 1400GL, because it doesn't have the wheeltrims of the more upmarket versions.

andys120

Bingo! it's the unmemorable Mitsu Tredia.

Try another>>

magnette

1948 Pontiac Streamliner Wagon

andys120

Dat's a right.

andys120

kyfdx

Ferrari.. mid-'80s.. Berlinetta?

All guesses.. except I'm pretty sure about the Ferrari part..

fintail

You're right on the timeframe and maker, but it's a Mondial

andys120

That's right, '83 Ferrari Mondial GTB.

andys120

fintail

AC Aceca, something around 1957 maybe

andys120

You're slipping Fintail, it took you a whole ten minutes to get that one

andys120

fintail

Some kind of early 60s Alfa sedan...maybe around a 2000-2200 or something. It would probably get along with the fintail.

andys120

Well you're in the right area, it is an early 60's Alfa, sort of. Let's see if some knows the wrinkle in the story of this semi-Alfa. :P