Mystery car pix

grahampeters

G'day

Not having ever seen one, I was working mya way through possibles with a niggling feeling of familiarity. Ultimately discovered its ancestry as Renault 25 adapted for America. Put this image and a Renault 25 side by side and the similarity is far more obvious, Windows, main body and crease lines are similar, although the 25 was a hatchback.

I ran a 25 for a couple of months in London, where is was far too large for the city; we referred to it as "The Whale" because of its grey colour and size. It had every electronic goody known to man in 1990, but all driven by French electronics, rarely giving confidence.

Cheers

Graham

andys120

tmart

70 Dodge Challenger.

andys120

70 Dodge Challenger.

That's right, as raced by Sam Posey in the 1970 TransAm for the ChryCo- funded Autodynamics Racing Team. '70 was the most competitive year for that memorable series.

In those days racing cars looked practically stock

andys120

grahampeters

G'day

Possibly one of those odd German manufacturers that popped up post war. The lines actually look nice but the bonnet and grille seem clumsy. Perspective could be odd but it looks like a longish engine bay so might be a six cylinder.

The bonnet pressing reminds me of something Russian from about 1950, but I have no idea what; the names all seem the same to me

There is something about an arm of BMW which fetched up in the Eastern block and used the BMW name and roundel (two blue, two white quarters) with variation. Could the hubcaps be that logo? I cannot tell colour on this image size, but it looks red or brown.

Cheers

Graham

bhill2

There is something about an arm of BMW which fetched up in the Eastern block and used the BMW name and roundel (two blue, two white quarters) with variation.

I was going to hypothesize a relationship to Auto Union. The car is obviously not a DKW, too large for one thing, but there is similarity in the front end and in the configuration of the doors (both front and rear doors hinged on the central pillar.) I don't have a clue what it is, however.

grahampeters

G'day

I should have been working harder, but this has been niggling at me all day.

LJK Setright mentions Dixi, BMW, EMW, Wartburg and Trabant as coming from Eisenach in his story of the first long distance trip by Theodor, Baron von Liebieg in 1894, in a Benz Victoria in Drive On.

The Dixi was a licensed copy of the Austin 7

The Wartburg Fortress where Martin Luther was secreted away by James the Wise, overlooks the town. It was there that he translated the New Testament into German after being excommunicated after the Diet of Worms.

BMW had a factory there pre war and after the second world war, it was in the Soviet zone. The photo is of a BMW 340 (derived from the pre war BMW's) which was later sold as an EMW (Eisenach Motorwerke) after a dispute over the use of the BMW brand.

Please don't inflict Wartburgs upon us!

Cheers

Graham

andys120

BMW had a factory there pre war and after the second world war, it was in the Soviet zone. The photo is of a BMW 340 (derived from the pre war BMW's) which was later sold as an EMW (Eisenach Motorwerke) after a dispute over the use of the BMW brand.

That's it Graham, pretty good summary. I've always found the tale of the East German auto industry fascinating. Wikipedia has a good summary of the company that eventually became VEB Eisenach and eventually became the maker of Wartburgs and Trabants. It survives today as Sachsenring AG, a maker of automobile parts based in Zwickau.

andys120

grahampeters

G'day

I really enjoy these esoteric enquiries. I am not too good on US metal, but have a strong visual memory for European designers, especially from the 1940s forward.

However, don't try me on Korean or Chinese

Good fun

Cheers

Graham

ateixeira

Is that an Olds logo?

Car looks too small, though.

The overall shape seems to whisper Datsun 510/Maxima to me, maybe it's just the boxiness.

andys120

The overall shape seems to whisper Datsun 510/Maxima to me, maybe it's just the boxiness.

You're getting warm.

ateixeira

Cedric/Gloria? That was their biggest car, right?

Small one was the Sunny IIRC, before it was Sentra.

Side note: If Maxima is big, why isn't small Minima? :P

andys120

There you go, it's a late 80s Nissan Cedric, looks close to the Maxima wagon we got around '89 (IIRC) no fake wood on that one I think.

ateixeira

The fake wood and raised roofline throw you off.

andys120

qbrozen

appears to be an FF with a glass roof.

ateixeira

Even though those are awkward looking, at best, they are AWD and the panoramic moonroof makes it a great GT.

Wish they could tweak the styling a tad.

texases

Does the roof open? I hope there's some kind of shade included, looks like a great greenhouse, super hot in the summer...

ateixeira

I don't think so.

Maybe they could do a Benz-like magic tint.

Mr_Shiftright

Oh heavens, no, it's an Italian version of a BMW Z3 Coupe.

(that was a mean thing to say....I'm sorry)

ateixeira

Hey, the Clown Shoe was interesting.

It fell from the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down, but it was still interesting. :shades:

Mr_Shiftright

What's interesting is that no car in automotive history that was deemed "unattractive" or "interesting-looking" by at least half the population has ever been redeemed as 'beautiful" as the years so by. Opinions seem to remain divided forever. Personally, I think the Clown Shoe could make a baby jump out of his stroller, but that's just me. I'd drive one if you gave it to me. I liked the *concept*.

ateixeira

When I see a JDM Miata coupe, Z3 coupe, etc., I always think to myself, that thing would look great as a roadster!

Thing is, a lot of 'em are track cars. Owners want the rigidity, so it gets my respect, even if it's like Julia Roberts hooking up with Lyle Lovitt (sp?).

Mr_Shiftright

But a coupe needn't be unattractive in order to race. Look at the Porsche Cayman for instance--essentially a Boxster with a roof.

ateixeira

That's the exception.

And the funny thing is it costs more than the roadster does, which is counter-intuitive.

You want a better looking coupe? Pay up, sucker!

Mr_Shiftright

Oh I think any number of coupes look better than their convertible counterparts---Saab 900, Porsche 911, Mini Cooper......

ateixeira

Yeah, but for whatever reason not most 2 seat roadsters.

odie6l

Name it, but you guys are so good, you'll have it in no time.....



Odie

grahampeters

G'day

Lamborghini LM 002

One of the odder diversions of an Italian supercar maker, although Lamborghini was originally a tractor manufacturer, so anything is possible.

I think this was mid '80s although the idea derived from some earlier development, possibly a Military Vehicle which was to be sold to the US. This would have pre-dated Hummer development

I know that is was popular in the Middle East, amongst wealth sheikhs because of its sand capabilities. Something about racing camels and falcon hunting, each of which is popular in the Gulf States, hangs in my memory. somewhere I have seen an image of one with a trussed camel in the rear compartment

Cheers

Graham

magnette

The early Jaguar E-Type / XKE looked great as a roadster - but even more so as the coupe

andys120

The early Jaguar E-Type / XKE looked great as a roadster - but even more so as the coupe.

Either ranks among the best looking cars ever made but in 40+ years I've never been able to decide which looks the best. It's interesting to me how they look like different cars even though they're mostly the same.

odie6l

Good call Graham. From what I understand the MPG was alot better than the Hummer too...lol.

Odie

Mr_Shiftright

Well what we could safely say is that the E-Type 2+2 is not in the beauty contest with the coupes and roadsters. Collectors have voted the Series 1 cars the prettiest. Personally I think the series II coupes are something of a bargain right now, presuming you don't get swallowed up in restoration costs.

ateixeira

Old school Urus.

andys120

Collectors have voted the Series 1 cars the prettiest.

As far as I recall S1 and S2 E-types look the same except for the badges on the trunk, the differences were under the hood with the S2s having beautiful all-synchro gearboxes and larger motors (4.4L vs. 3.8L).

A well-maintained '67 Series 2 coupe was the best car I ever drove.

Mr_Shiftright

And yet Series I sells for far more money. I found a Series II coupe, hadn't run in 20 years, needed paint, but was an original owner car, not much rust--all there, all original, good body. Owner had it for sale for $7000 with no takers. If it were a Series I, it would have been gone in 30 seconds for twice that.

andys120

My bad, I made a typo and wrote 4.4L. The Series 2 Jags had 4.2 litres.

Mr_Shiftright

Yep, great engine that Jaguar straight 6. It was in production about as long as the Chevy stovebolt six.

it's ironic that people put Chevy engines in Jaguars, thereby discarding what is probably the best component in the car. Go figure.

andys120

Probably get tired of having to put oil in? :P

andys120

kyfdx

Mazda 6?

andys120

Yup, it's the 2014 rendition of the Mazda 6.

andys120

grahampeters

G'day

Toyota Land cruiser FJ45 four door station wagon, although I cannot recall difference between this and the later FJ55. I think mid 60s.

My father had a fleet o Land cruisers and had a special ordered wagon to a special task. Remarkably long lived vehicle. Many of them still on the road, down under

Cheers

Graham

texases

Those Land Cruisers went a long way to eliminate the 'cheap little car' opinion about Toyotas. Popular in Anchorage, too.

Mr_Shiftright

And now they are highly collectible "classics".

Mr_Shiftright

Mystery Car topic.

I have even harder cars than this up my sleeve....be warned :shades:

andys120

Matra Rancho/Talbot-Matra Rancho,/Matra-Simca Rancho. (1977-84)
aka the French Range Rover.

Keep 'em comin' Shifty.