Mystery car pix

farley78

I found an old picture from probably around the late 40s or early 50s. Can anyone help identify the car in the photo? Thanks

jwilliams2

Looks like a 1936-37 Dodge 5 window coupe....

andre1969

I'm gonna go with a 1936 Plymouth, maybe?

andre1969

well, a 1956 Buick "super" was 213" long. So, just about the size of a crown vic, right?

and a series 40 was 205". So just a few inches longer than my wife's Odyssey!

Yeah, a Crown Vic is probably around 212" long, give or take.

I looked up theMercury specs, and it looks like the 126" wb Monterrey and Montclair were 217.8 inches long, while the 128" wb Park Lane was 222.8 inches.

A '59 Chrysler 300E was 220.9" long. The '56 300B was actually LONGER, at 222.7"! That came as a shock to me, but it might be a styling trick. The '57-59 Plymouths were actually something like 2" shorter than the '55-56, but they look much bigger. I think the '56 models had bumpers that jutted out more, and peaked a bit in the center, whereas the '57 models were more flat across. Bumpers can easily inflate the overall length of a car, without making it look visually bigger.

Mr_Shiftright

It's a little hard to tell because the picture is so grainy. The Plymouth headlights stood on *vertical* long stems, the Dodge didn't. I can't quite tell if I'm seeing long stems under the headlights, or rather those rectangular deco running lights on the typical Dodge, that sat under the headlights held by *horizontal* stems.

texases

The combination of light mounting and hood ornament make it look like the Dodge:

andre1969

Now I'm leaning towards Dodge, too. The reason I said "Plymouth" in the first place is that I did a google search for various years of 30's Plymouth, and when I got to "1936 Plymouth", I saw one that looked like that. But it may have been a Dodge mislabled as a Plymouth.

andys120

jwilliams2

1968 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible....

andys120

That's correct J, not one of their best years.

michaellno

Wow, nice site! Interesting that when I looked up the ad for the '70 Chevy pickup, it looks almost exactly like the one my dad owns:



Dad's truck:

(oh man, I don't have those pictures anywhere! I posted them to CarSpace, but since that site was decommissioned I can't find them on either my camera or my computer)

lemko

Uh...there's a truck in that picture? Oh, there it is, to the right of the girl.

andys120

imidazol97

This one's going to be good.

I can't wait to see who can name how many of these along with the years. I recognize a few brands but not years without research.

lemko

Wow, almost too many to ID.

The closest row to the viewer appears to be a 1946-48 Kaiser, 1950 Pontiac, and a 1942 Chevrolet Fleetline with blackout trim.

Second row: looks like a 1953 Pontiac, 1942 Buick, ?, ?, ?, 1949 Mercury, ?, 1947 Studebaker, a panel truck, another early 1940s Buick.

ateixeira

like the one my dad owns

If that's your dad's truck, your mom was HOT! LOL

andys120

The closest row to the viewer appears to be a 1946-48 Kaiser, 1950 Pontiac, and a 1942 Chevrolet Fleetline with blackout trim.

I'm not sure how you can be so precise on some of the years. There's very little difference between a '42 Chevy and a '46 or '47 especially from that angle.

Second row: looks like a 1953 Pontiac, 1942 Buick, ?, ?, ?, 1949 Mercury, ?, 1947 Studebaker, a panel truck, another early 1940s Buick.

That's a '50-'52 Poncho isn't it? The '53s had little fins like this one>



The car to the right of the Buick is a prewar-Ford sedan perhaps a '38, between it and the Merc is a late 40s GM, probably a Chevy, and then a late 40s MoPar, I'm not good with those.

I can make out an early 50s Desoto or Chrysler just ahead of the Mercury and another early 50s Pontiac ahead of the tu-tone coupe (those chrome stripes really stood out!)

lemko

What makes me think it's a 1942 Chevrolet is there is no sheen to what should be chrome trim on that car. Chevrolet used sort of a tan for the blackout trim on 1942 models and it corresponds to a light gray in a B&W photo. Contrast it to the shiny trim on the Pontiac in the front row.

andre1969

Could you get hidden headlights on a '68 Bonneville? Or is that just a Bonneville that someone put a Grand Prix front-end on, I wonder? 1968 is probably one of my least favorite Pontiacs, which might sound odd considering '67 is one of my favorites. But even though they're the same basic car, that styling re-do in '68 just killed it for me.

But, with the hidden headlights, I think it's definitely an improvement.

michaellno

If that's your dad's truck, your mom was HOT! LOL

My mom was 32 in 1970, so she was probably a few years older than the model in the ad.

The point I was trying to make ... badly, it seems ... is that my dad's truck is the exact same color combo as the one in the ad. Orange (puce is the color name, I think) with a white roof and dog dish hubcaps over white painted wheels.

My dad spent $5-6K a few years ago to 'refresh' the body ... new paint, new window rubber, new spray-in bedliner. Even though it has lived its entire life just 2 miles from the ocean, there's no rust on it. Starts and runs like a top, though the brakes are a bit touchy (4 wheel drums) now that Dad had them refurbished.

I also think he switched out the standard 2-bbl carb for one with 4 barrels, and updated the exhaust system many many years ago.

andys120

urnews

1960 Chevrolet Biscayne station wagon (obviously).

berri

That baby and the similar vintage Valiant wagon have to win the award for most pieces of glass in a vehicle!

ateixeira

True, and seems to be the opposite of the trends nowadays.

andre1969

1960 Chevrolet Biscayne station wagon (obviously).

It probably does equate to the Biscayne trim level, but didn't Chevy give different names to their wagons back then, like "Kingswood", "Brookwood", "Nomad", "Yeoman", etc? I'm probably mixing and matching eras here. It was before my time, but I remember my grandparents saying they had a Chevy Nomad wagon, but they can't remember if it was a '60 or '61.

Mr_Shiftright

The Biscayne wagon was called a "Brookwood" and the BelAir wagon was called a "Parkwood". I suppose, by extension, had they made an Impala wagon it would be a "Lawnwood"?

lemko

The Impala wagon was actually called a Nomad. The later Caprice wagon would be called a Kingswood Estate.

berri

Those Chevy wagon models got very confusing because I think sometimes a different name meant 6 or 9 passenger. IIRC it went something like this Nomad, Kingswood, Parkwood and Brookwood, but the latter two may have just meant 6 or 9 pass. It was simpler at Ford - Country Squire, Country Sedan and ranch wagon wIth 6 or 9 pass options on the first two.

lemko

It seems Ford always had a woody wagon, (real or otherwise). I don't think there were any non-Ford wagons with wood trim, (real or otherwise) from about 1955 through 1965. I believe Chevy finally had a fake wood sided wagon in 1966, but I can't recall any prior. Same goes for Mopar.

andys120

the blue wagon is a 1960 Chevrolet Parkwood.

Mr_Shiftright

Was there a 1960 Nomad? I didn't think so but ???

lostwrench1

Yes, there was a 1960 Chevy Nomad wagon.

berri

I think Chrysler brought out a woodie T&C wagon for 65. There was a small woodie renaissance in the late 60's when the Big 3 all brought them (well, a vinylized version) back out again in the different brand lines. The "relatively" modern woodie I liked was the downsized early 80's Mercury Colony Park with its chrome surrounds and coach lights.

Thinking back as a kid, woodies were looked on as old fashioned in the 50's and early 60's and inconvenient maintenance hassles. You could buy them relatively cheaply since they tended to sit in the back of the used car lots. I don't think Ford sold a whole lot of Country Squires with woodie applique then, mostly Country Sedan wagons, but that might have been a factor of price differential. I recall the father of a girl I went to school with who lived up the street had a 49 Burgundy Buick Woodie in the mid 50's. He used it as his carpenter car. He drove us to school in it sometimes when it was really bad winter weather. I don't know if the seats were leather or vinyl, but they were quite nice. Weighed a bunch, so it plowed right through the snow. He actually kept it up real well, but used the back storage area for his tools and stuff. Imagine what it would be worth today, maybe around $100K. He eventually got rid of it in the mid 60's because of engine trouble and bought a 59 Chevy wagon for work. It wasn't a Nomad, but it was pretty nice inside so I suppose it was the next step down. He bought those work cars on the cheap, so either someone priced it low, or the 59's depreciated badly.

Mr_Shiftright

Well right you are--there it is on page 95 of my Kelley Blue Book Early Car Edition---fairly valuable if in nice shape. Even the stripper Brookwoods show a decent value---but you know Mr. Kelley is a perennial *optimist*.

Apprently (theoretically) you could get a '60 Impala Nomad with a 348 cid tri-power. Now that would be worth a few bucks.

stickguy

Not far from my house is a mid-60's Falcon woody wagon. Not in bad looking, but quite original shape.

andys120

ateixeira

First thought was Porsche 944, but the edges are more rounded.

Square...square...

Lotus Esprit?

qbrozen

Looks alot like my MR2. Althought I don't believe I have that little extra strip of material between the front of the headlight and the bumper.
But... maybe a later year. And MKII?

edit: well, I just looked at pics of the MR2 all gens, lotus esprit, supra, and bimmer 850. None are a match. MR2 does come the closest, though.

texases

It's not an MR2. Aim higher!! It's a Ferrari 348!

tmart

Toyota Supra, no idea of the year.

michaellno

2nd generation RX-7?

andys120

Wow, lots and lots of good guesses but Texases came the closest.

ateixeira

Is that a 355?

andre1969

Apprently (theoretically) you could get a '60 Impala Nomad with a 348 cid tri-power. Now that would be worth a few bucks.

Yeah, unfortunately I don't think that's the model my grandparents sprung for! :P

Mr_Shiftright

Just as well...the 348 was kind of a woof-woof motor anyway. Better in a truck.

andys120

Is that a 355?

Yup, a 1997 Ferrari F355 Spider.

andys120

wgrafer

I think that's a Singer Gazelle, maybe 1960? When I was a kid working at a truck stop in Mahwah NJ in the late 60s a guy who worked there had one!

fintail

This just drove by my window and I was able to snap a pic...what is it, exactly?

texases

That looks like one of the taxis I took in Peru, lots of small box-cars running around, many used for taxis...some kind of Daihatsu?? :confuse:

Yep, 1998ish Daihatsu Move: