Mystery car pix

andys120

tjc78

1957 Buick Century Caballero

andys120

Yup!

andys120

jwilliams2

Looks like an early 50's Bentley R-Type.....and a mid-60's Hillman Super Imp?

andys120

Yup, t's a '65 Hillman Super Imp with a 1952 Bentley R-Type.

bhill2

a mid-60's Hillman Super Imp

OK, I'm curious; how do you tell a Super Imp from a regular Imp?

stickguy

The big "S" on it's cape.

bhill2

Oh gosh! I didn't recognize him without his sidekick, the Gremlin.

jwilliams2

Mostly by the false front grille, chrome side mouldings, and wheel trim.

ateixeira

The Butler parked next to the home owner.

magnette

I thought it might be a Singer Chamois - although it looks like the Super Imp, the Chamois had bumper overriders as standard. The later ones had twin headlights, but not until about 1967/8.

andys120

stickguy

new Citroen. I like this. Looks plenty roomy too. Wonder if I could convince the wife to get something like this if it existed over here?

au1994

wow, thats a smart looking wagon.

andys120

Actually, it's not new, it's a 2008 Citroen C5 Estate.

ateixeira

Cute. Not too French, either.

andys120

ateixeira

Fiat Croma (sp)?

Isn't that a clone of the Saab 9-5?

fintail

Same as Saab 9000, 1985+

ateixeira

Mom had a Fiat Uno from that era. Croma looks like a super-sized Uno. Not much design in that thing...

fintail

It was the 80s...all you needed was a ruler.

Now, all you need is one dorky designer to get all weird, and the rest of the lemmings will mimic.

ateixeira

Squeeze in as many swoops as you can, even on flat surfaces.

andys120

Same as Saab 9000, 1985+

The Chroma, along with the Lancia Thema and Alfa 164 all used the same platform as the Saab 9000 but had their own engines, suspensions etc. They were siblings but not twins.

andys120

ateixeira

Audi A .... 7.5? First time I've seen it.

andys120

Audi A .... 7.5? First time I've seen it

Well, mpre like an Audi A4.5 or 4.7. It's a high-roofed version of the A4 Avant that can seat 7

Automobile's Georg Kacher thinks they'll call it trhe A4 SuperAvant (2014?)

ateixeira

That's precisely Audi's problem - they all look the same now. Difference between and A4 and A6 and A8 is basically the position of the LEDs in the taillights. May as well call them Small, Medium, and Large.

Mr_Shiftright

That's probably their intention---it's something that Cadillac should learn to do. I think the idea is that it creates a "ladder" for buyers to climb as they become more prosperous in their lives.

ateixeira

Doesn't the A8 buyer feel like he bought a long-wheelbase A4, though? If I paid that much I'd want something a bit more distinctive.

Mr_Shiftright

Well not if he actually drives it---the A8 is a whole other experience. Besides, Audi buyers are not flashy people as a rule.

Benz is the same way, as is Jaguar and Lexus---these are conservative companies for the most part.

Every now and then they put out a "halo" car but I think companies like this really want the 'genetic code" to be apparent throughout their car lines.

Even when we play "mystery car" very often we make good guesses based on our knowledge of a particular make's genetic code.

fintail

But in that end of the market (say, sub Bentley/Maserati), what is distinctive? LS is 100x more boring, 7er and S aren't particularly exciting, XJ is interesting if you want to roll those dice - and that's it. That's how the segment seems to work: small, medium, and large.

ateixeira

And at the other extreme is the Aston Marton Cygnet.

Which ironically had demand exceeding supply.

fintail

Low supply and a trendy brand made that easy. Heck, simply offer the entire run to the oligarch and embezzler class in China who loves western names, and they'd sell out in a nanosecond.

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah but that takes "brand extension" a bit too far if you ask me. A-M is probably not going to survive, IMO. They are on old platforms, and right now Kuwaiti owners are floating bonds for future financing.

andys120

ateixeira

Did you hear Pam Anderson now owns a race team that will field A-Ms? I'm not sure what to make of it...there's a good punch line in there somewhere, though.

tjc78

That must be the long lost cousin of the Diplomat you posted earlier. Early 80s Plymouth Gran Fury.

I think Andre1969 had one of these.

andys120

Nope, sorry, not a Plymouth.

texases

With that grill it's a Chrysler, '80 LeBaron?

kyfdx

I'll say one thing for A-M... when one passes you, you know it... between the exhaust note and the look.... I'm always stunned...

and.. not tacky like a Lambo...

Mr_Shiftright

Oh it's a very credible sports car (the DB9 I mean) and I have a lot of respect for it.

andys120

Chrysler, '80 LeBaron?

Close it's an '81 Chrysler LeBaron

andys120

These cars have something in common besides the obvious (front engine rwd sports cars), what is it?>

tmart

Knock off wheels. Three have knock off wire wheels. Don't recall seeing knock off mags on #3. Also all have single headlights.

stickguy

I was going to go with they are all British. Until I got to the last one.

I will thus go with they all had the same designer.

andys120

Knock off wheels

You're very observant T-Mart but I was lookin for something else, knock-off wheels and single headlights were nearly universal on Euro two-seaters of that era.

BTW, those are steel wheels on #3, not "mags" or any other type of alloy wheel. These all wore knock-off hubs when they were introduced (which is very germane to what I am looking for-hint)

jwilliams2

Would being introduced in 1962 have anything to do with it? The MGB, Cobra, Elan, GTO all came out that year.

andys120

Would being introduced in 1962 have anything to do with it?

That's it, they are all members of the class of '62, celebrating it's 50th anniversary in 2012. 1962 might have been the best year in history to buy a two-seater sports car. It was the last year for the 300SL, the most technically advanced sports car of the '50s and in addition to the four cars shown you could buy an XKE (introduced 1960), a TR4 (1961), a Alfa Giulietta, Porsche 356B or a Corvette C1 (last year for the C1).

andys120

BIGGER, More cars.