Mystery car pix

stickguy

Not sure how much HP the SC model of the 1st gen MR2 had, but should have been plenty to have fun with. I drove a turbo 2nd generation (wish I had found one of them when I was looking that made sense) and that was quite quick.

qbrozen

145hp

Mr_Shiftright

Perhaps I'm remembering it wrong then. I could be confusing it with the later MR2 Spyder, which I'm almost certain was tight for me. The MR2 message board verifies your experience.

I test drove one like this (below) and it was way too tight for me. My knee kept hitting the steering wheel while shifting. Too bad, too. It was very clean, low miles, great price, I would have bought it for sure for summer fun.

stickguy

the MR spyder (no 2 in it actually) was IIRC tighter. And zero storage space.

Mr_Shiftright

As the Miata folks say: "Enough room for a cat and a cantaloupe".

stickguy

the Miata (at least the one I had, I think it was a 2001?) had a decent amount of storage. Trunk was not bad. I never tried to travel with it, but it held my sons oversized baseball gear bag, and would easily fit a couple of duffel bags. Or a weeks worth of groceries.

Mr_Shiftright

It's pretty good for the size of the car--it gets tight if say you wanted to pack for a weekend for two. I always like the Porsche 914---two trunks, both fairly decent size.

stickguy

well, with my wife, the RDX gets tight packing for a weekend for 2. she would have to learn new habits.

Mr_Shiftright

You just have to be creative!

tjc78

stickguy said:

well, with my wife, the RDX gets tight packing for a weekend for 2. she would have to learn new habits.

We filled an Enclave "to the gills" for a week at the shore with two little ones. We also put stuff in my mom's car who was also going with us. Not sure what we would have done if she wasn't coming with us.

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

Perhaps I'm remembering it wrong then. I could be confusing it with the later MR2 Spyder, which I'm almost certain was tight for me. The MR2 message board verifies your experience.

I test drove one like this (below) and it was way too tight for me. My knee kept hitting the steering wheel while shifting. Too bad, too. It was very clean, low miles, great price, I would have bought it for sure for summer fun.

I always really liked the looks of that generation, but never had the chance to try one on. I do remember all the comparisons of the day declaring the Miata the better choice, which was disappointing to me.

Mr_Shiftright

It's the kind of styling one either loves or hates. Unlike similar mid-engined cars like a Fiero, Boxster or Porsche 914, these would just run and run with little fuss for 200K or better.

I think a modern version could chew into Miata's market pretty handily, but as we know the age of the convertible is declining, and I wonder if anyone has successfully produced a retractable hardtop mid-engine car?

I can't think of any offhand, but maybe I'm missing something obvious.

qbrozen

The Ferrari 458, no?

Mr_Shiftright

Oh yeah, the 458 Spider with the aluminum retractable hardtop. I remember they had to redesigned some of the engine hardware to make that work. Now it's called the 488.

I was just checking...retraction takes 14 seconds.

andys120

texases

1955 BMW 501 coupe? No wonder I've never seen one before:

"The company Baur in Stuttgart emerged on the types BMW 501 A or 501 six-cylinder early 1955 a total of 5 coupe. These handmade to order cars were sold via the BMW dealership network. They were among the most exclusive cars in the postwar period."

andys120

Yup, the first BMW pillar-less hardtop, but it isn't a 501, it's a 1955 BMW 502/V8. I don't think they ever did a 501 Coupe but they made a nice convertible>

texases

I guess that 'V8' on the trunk should have been a clue....

But yes, they did make a 501 coupe, by Bauer. Not many, though.

Mr_Shiftright

Something is horribly wrong with this picture: ( you may need to zoom in on it):

Michaell

That's quite the economical parts runner!

tjc78

Is that a Volvo dealer/Parts house driving a Prius. Lol.

Mr_Shiftright

"performance parts" at that--nothing says 'performance' like a Prius.

berri

Funny, but Shifty the latest Prius may even be goofier!

andys120

bhill2

A 61 or 62 Buick Skylark. I can't remember how they differ.

andys120

bhill2 said:

A 61 or 62 Buick Skylark. I can't remember how they differ.

I don't either but the caption sez it's a '62. This one's a '61 and it looks identical>



IIRC it was the Buick Special/Skylark that gave us the Aluminum V8 which became the "go to"
motor for British cars using V8 power in the 1960s and 70s. It powered everything from Morgans to Range Rovers.

Mr_Shiftright

The British strengthened the engine considerably over time. The engine is aluminum but has cast-iron cylinder liners, unlike the dreaded Vega technology of the day. I think it was the Olds version that was most popular in UK and Australia for racing. (different cylinder head fastening and manifold).

tmart

Mr_Shiftright said:

You just have to be creative!

This reminds me of the optional trailer for the Plymouth Prowler.

Mr_Shiftright

Some people take this way too far:

kyfdx

Saw a guy with an MGA, with matching trailer made from the rear end of another MGA.
Had a kegerator rigged up in there.

lostwrench1

bhill2 said:

A 61 or 62 Buick Skylark. I can't remember how they differ.

There is a clue under the hood.
V6 cast iron engine would not be in the '61.

stickguy

never saw that with an MG. Pretty common to do with a PickUp truck though.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

never saw that with an MG. Pretty common to do with a PickUp truck though.

I tried to link a picture. Turns out there are a few of them. But, the website tried to take over my computer, so I had to do an emergency shut down.

Mr_Shiftright

A warm keg, I trust.

andys120

texases

This is Exhibit A on my 'not every old car looks good with wire wheels' list...

Mr_Shiftright

Almost a parody.

andys120

texases said:

This is Exhibit A on my 'not every old car looks good with wire wheels' list...

An odd choice for that car, I suspect they are not original.

Mr_Shiftright

I bought one of these years ago for cheap, cheap, cheap. It was running badly, had no compression in one cylinder, and had some internal upper engine noise. Cosmetically very nice car, however.

I started to disassemble the engine to take off the heads and lo and behold, I found that one of those cheap stamped rocker arms had broken. Quick trip to the wrecker, a few bucks for the part, and a quick flip for a couple thousand dollars. Made my day.

texases

Mr_Shiftright said:

I bought one of these years ago for cheap, cheap, cheap. It was running badly, had no compression in one cylinder, and had some internal upper engine noise. Cosmetically very nice car, however.

I started to disassemble the engine to take off the heads and lo and behold, I found that one of those cheap stamped rocker arms had broken. Quick trip to the wrecker, a few bucks for the part, and a quick flip for a couple thousand dollars. Made my day.

Sounds like some of those episodes of 'Wheeler Dealers' when some potentially major problem is fixed with a fuse or a soldered wire. Wonder how many junkers they've bought that haven't seen the light of day?

andys120

berri

So is that Pontiac coupe a 56? I always have problems distinguishing the 55 from the 56 Pontiac. Nice looking cars for the times. Not as keen on what always seemed to me a hurry up design on the 57.

andys120

Yup, it was a 1956 Pontiac Chieftain. FWIW I don't share your enthusiasm for the Ponchos of that era. We had a '53 and the '56 is a lot closer to that than a '56 Chevy or Buick would be to it's 1953 equivalent.

Bunky Knudsen saved the brand by dropping those passe chrome stripes and otherwise spiffing up the styling for 1957, setting the stage for the brand's revival in the '60s.

Mr_Shiftright

'58 had some flash!

berri

I liked all of the 58 Pontiac designs and am probably a minority, but thought the Bonneville was nicer than the new Impala, especially when you looked into the interior. However, the Impala had a look that became classic and was reflected as such in period movies and TV. My favorite Bunkie Knudsen Pontiac is probably the 61.

Mr_Shiftright

A late 50s Bonneville convertible is very impressive "in person".

andys120

Mr_Shiftright said:

'58 had some flash!

Maybe a little too much flash.

kyfdx

andys120 said:

Don't know, but it looks like a late-60s Euro coupe. Similar to an Alfa (but that's not it).

I like it!

fintail

Iso Rivolta, sometime in the mid 60s.

Michaell

fintail said:

Iso Rivolta, sometime in the mid 60s.

I had a Matchbox version of that car.