Mystery car pix

andys120

Yep it's a Canadian model 1988 Pontiac Tempest one of many Chevy models to be rebadged as Pontiacs for the Canadian market over the years. I wonder if they still do that.

bumpy

I wonder if they still do that.

Yup.

andys120

Thanks Bumpy, I don't know what they call that rebadged Impala but IIRC the red car (Cobalt based) is called the Pontiac Pursuit.

michaellno

Uh, wait.

The red car is the Pontiac Wave, which is the rebadged Chevy Aveo.

The black car is the Pursuit.

And, there's a reason why Pontiac gets rebadged Chevys, but for the life of me I can't remember at the moment. Something to do with the combined Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealerships in Canada.

andys120

Thanks Michaell for correcting me on that. I'm under the impression that unlike the US, Chevrolet is small potatoes compared to Pontiac in Canada.

andys120

Extra pointsa if you can recall what tires came on this car, which wears the original-style wheel/tire combo.

michaellno

Ford Mustang .. .Michelin TRX tires (metric sizes)

ateixeira

I'll guess 1980, by those headlights.

andys120

I'm not letting you off that easy, how 'bout taking a stab at the model year?

andys120

'll guess 1980, by those headlights.

Nope there was no Mustagng convertible in 1980, in fact there wasn't one for about a decade (hint).

michaellno

I didn't think that the TRX tires were used for so long on the Mustang ... but, I'm thinking that the convertible is about an '87 or so.

The TRX tires were first used on the Mustang SVO in 1984 or so .. I remember that because I was living in Phoenix at the time and remember the debate about how expensive it would be to replace the tires when they were worn.

Hard to believe that it's been close to 25 years .. Ford really had a pretty decent lineup of cars at that time .. the Mustang, the 'jelly bean' T-bird, the first generation Taurus.

andre1969

Does Pontiac offer a rebadged Impala on the Canadian market? Seems to me that would be redundant, since the Grand Prix fills basically the same niche.

Back in the 50's and 60's and perhaps early 70's, Pontiac was seen more as an equal to Chevrolet in Canada, rather than a step up. GM's dealer network in Canada was sort of like how Mopar did Chrysler-Plymouth down here. They paired Chevy with a more upscale division (Olds I think), and also paired Pontiac with the other (Buick I think, although I might have these reversed).

Sometime in the late 60's though, they started shipping Bonnevilles to Canada, and these were REAL Pontiacs, not Chevies with Pontiac sheetmetal. As the 70's wore on, the big Pontiacs became more like their US counterparts. Canada used to put a heavy tax on cars that were imported, as well as components that were shipped in, so that's why they tried to assemble the Pontiacs using as much in-house material as possible. With Buicks and Oldsmobiles though, people would be more wililng to pay the higher tax.

Now that Olds is gone, and it seems like Pontiac/Buick/GMC have pretty much been combined in the US, I have no idea what the hierarchy is like in Canada these days. Plus, I guess at some point, that tax problem got eliminated.

texases

This would be about an '83-'85 Mustang, much newer and the headlights change.

Also, isn't Michelin doing something like the TRX tire with some run-flats now (odd metric rim size)? Or is it Pirelli?

kyfdx

Michelin runflats are the PAX system... On Honda Odysseys...

BMW M5s came with TRX metric sizes, as well.. Gen I and II.. Most people have dumped those for 17" wheels..

lemko

For a while, Canadian Fords and Mercuries were known as Meteors and Monarchs respectively. There was a Mercury truck available in Canada as well. Don't know when they stopped this practice.

Of course, I'm sure you know about the "Plodges" which were Plymouths with Dodge front ends and the Dodge trucks were called Fargo.

fintail

The factory production Mustang convert came back in 83...but the top on that one looks awfully bulky and there might not be room for the small window behind the doors...so I will guess it is some kind of aftermarket conversion, ASC or the like.

andys120

It's a stock 1983 Mustang GLX. The top stack was fairly high on those and IIRC the tops were farmed out to ASC. The rear windows were a very thin sliver of glass, they almost shouldn't have bothered and eliminated them as they did on some pre-'83 aftermarket conversions.

I owned an '86 GT convertible which was similar except it had a small slot in place of the eggcrate grille and didn't have the TRX wheels which only lasted until '84 IIRC.


More here.

andys120

fintail

Some kind of replacement for the VW Sharan?

andys120

Some kind of replacement for the VW Sharan?

How'd you guess?

Anybody got a name and/or what car it's based on?

ateixeira

Routan, yet another dumb name from VW.

Touareg, Phaeton, Routan, Tiguan, what the?

Link:

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/02/05/chicago-2008-preview-volkswagen-routan-leaks-- out/

texases

I can't wait - one vehicle combining the quality of a Chrysler and the customer service of a VW... :sick:

andys120

LOL!

At least VW's names are better than the Alphabet soup at Lincoln and Cadillac.

andys120

imidazol97

The TRX tires were used in 1979 on the Mustang.

ateixeira

Scary thought!

andys120

I figured Magnette would get my "Tu-Tone" (#15164) last night but he must've been down at the pub.

As you can probably tell, it's British, mid-60's and like most saloons of that era, a marvel of badge engineering.....Anyone?

magnette

Actually, I wasn't down the pub last night - but it would have been after midnight here before you posted this, I think, and even I need my beauty sleep.

This is a Singer Vogue - they made them from about 1961-67, but they were face lifted with a new roof line in about 1965, so this is one of the earlier ones - for some strange reason, I regularly see about three of these still in daily use, but the originally far more common Hillman Super Minx which is the same car without the extra trim is vitually extinct. The Singer did tend to sell to an older market, lots would have been bought by middle class retired types, so I suppose more would have survived as little-used classics....

andys120

....little used classics

Surely that is tongue and cheek "(that's American for you're spoofing with us). :shades:

magnette

Well - I expect that the owner of that one thinks it's a classic...
The Vogue was a reasonably well specified mass-produced saloon, for it's day, but not in any way exciting, although I suppose the fact that it has chrome, vestigial fins, and leather seats means it is at least something of a head-turner in everyday traffic - most cars at British classic car events are actually relatively stodgy old things, really, ie Morris Minors, Triumph Heralds, old Austins, etc - (even MG Magnettes)...
In the photo you posted which was presumably taken at a classic car gathering the car next to the Vogue is a BMC 1100/1300 !

andys120

From Oliver Stone's The Doors:



In addition to naming the cars, can you spot the "goof" in this scene?

lemko

The blue car behind the red 1965-66 Mustang convertible missing hubcaps is a 1948 Packard. The two-tone salmon and white car is a 1955 Oldsmobile. The yellow car behind the olds is a 1947-48 Chevrolet. The dark green car in the lower right hand corner is a 1963 Chrysler. I also see a beige VW Bug in the lower left hand corner. The yellow or light green car in the garage is either a 1967 or 1968 Mustang.

andys120

Good job Lemko, I didn't even notice the Mustang in the garageway.

Now given that the scene represents a 1967 (or later) street scene, what's the "goof"?

stever

The Jim Morrison character is drinking Miller Genuine Draft in the Mustang, which was not available until the late 80s.

IOW, beats me (that was a real goof in the movie, but it happened in a bar scene).

guss

I would say the goof is that there are too many cars from the 1940's still around(and in beautiful shape) if it is 1967.

andys120

That's it Guss, by '67 most 1940's Iron was long gone, 20 year old cars didn't hold up as well as today.

guss

this while looking for a picture of another car.

guss

the other, a similar one was at the Philly car show last night and my first thought was to post it here.

magnette

Subaru 360 - not sure of the year, but they made these through the late 50's to the end of the 60's, (maybe even later) in one form or another.

guss

You are correct sir, it is a 1970 Subaru 360.

I had never seen one until last night.

lemko

Hmmm! What kind of cars were on my street back then? When I was very young in the late 1960s my Dad had a 1961 Chevrolet Biscayne, the neighbor down the street had another 1961 Chevrolet Biscayne, above us was a 1959 Pontiac, across the street was a 1957 Oldsmobile, my Grandpop had a 1967 Chevrolet Bel Air and my Grandmom had a 1964 Chevrolet Biscayne. My Dad's friend who came around from time to time had a 1964 Chevrolet Impala, my Uncle Charlie had a 1965 Chevrolet Impala, and my Uncle Daniel had a 1968 AMC Rebel SST. A very faded memory tells me a former boyfriend of my Aunt Linda actually had a red 1968 Oldsmobile 442!

Flash forward to about 1970 and a new and better neighborhood, my memory gets better. My Dad had a 1968 AMC Javelin, down the block is a 1970 Buick Skylark and a 1970 Ford LTD. Up the block is a 1970 Chrysler Town and Country wagon and a 1970 Ford XL convertible. Across the street is a 1962 Ford Galaxie, a 1967 Ford Custom 500, a 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass, a 1963 Chevrolet Bel Air and a 1970 Chevrolet Malibu.

texases

Similar recollections - I think in the 60s, 70s and 80s it was unusual to see anything much more that 10 years old, not that people were rich and could buy new cars, rather, many just didn't last much more than 10 years!

Also, regarding the picture, if there were some old cars in that neighborhood, they'd be junkers, not show cars :P

kyfdx

In the late '60s, you almost never saw a car from pre-1960... (I was born in '58)..

But, starting with about 1965.. those cars from '65-'73 hung around for a pretty long time... I think it was partly the ugliness of the 5MPH bumpers that started in '74, that made people hang on to them....

Anything from '74-'89, though... after 10 years, they pretty much disappeared..

But, I see plenty of early '90s cars now.... Those are 15-18 years old..

andys120

Extra points if you can ID the silver car in back as well as the white over blue car>

kyfdx

'76 Lincoln Mark V..

Cartier or Bill Blass edition?

Looks like some sort of Jag in the background..

magnette

The blue car is certainly a Lincoln Continental but I would bow to kyfdx as to year and Mk.

The Jag is a Mark X (or a 420G, although I can't remember if they sold the latter in US, as we only had it for about 12 months).

bumpy

Ute version of a Subaru microvan circa 1980. This is what people in Japan drive instead of F-150s.

magnette

Here too - several Japanese firms import small vans and pick-ups in the sub-1000cc category, ie Daihatsu and particularly Suzuki. We've even had badge engineered versions of one sold as a Bedford Rascal, a few years ago. One of our plumbers used to have one. It was about ten foot long, four foot wide and five foot high, and he could park it anywhere - it rusted quickly though !

texases

it rusted quickly though !

That makes me wonder - what is it with the Bristish Isles and rust? Climate? No salt on the roads, though, correct? Has it gone away with newer cars? I just hear about it a lot. :confuse:

bumpy