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Comments
I even saw a Pacer last year. Don't think the existence of a few samples is a proof of non-junk.
True, I still see Tempos on a regular occasion. Having had one in the family growing up, I know they were pretty much junk. I'm always stunned a few are still running.
Considering how many of those GM cars were made, a few are bound to be running around somewhere.
Lastly, my trips to Seattle have always been amusement for seeing older metal. Mid 70's Honda Preludes and Civics were quite common as were other oddities like early 80's VW GTi's, Scirocco's. Audi 100's, mid 70's Toyota Celica's, etc. Even saw a Yugo GV last time I was up in Astoria, OR.
Every once in awhile I still see a really nice white Pontiac Phoenix 2-door driving around.
The 4cyl cars in that range must have been awful, too big for that coarse engine.
He had no further comment.
Given it was in MI, I wouldn't' expect to see any older imports, lol.
Of course some cars will survive a long time. Spend enough $$ and almost anything will survive, unless rust destroys the integrity of the frame.
It's great that people do maintain their cars a long time. On the one hand, it's almost always the better financial decision for the owner. On the other, it's not as good for the economy. My philosophy is to drive any car well over 100K miles, and let others build up the economy. :P
I know I'd be a lot better off financially, if I hadn't ever bought a big 3 vehicle.
I understand where Andres is coming from. I bought a new '95 Neon Sport Coupe then traded it in on a '98 Ford SVT Contour. Financially, both were huge mistakes (though I did really enjoy the Contour when it wasn't falling apart). If I would have bought a Civic then an Acura Integra or VW Jetta GLX I wouldn't have lost nearly as much in depreciation and the purchase prices would have been similar.
My Brother bought an '97 Civic EX for around $14k about the same time I paid nearly $23k for my contour. He traded the Civic in 3 years later on a new '00 Frontier and got over $10k, I traded my Contour in on '00 Jetta and got $8k. So yeah, I would have been much better financially to skip the domestic vehicles I chose.
IIRC I paid about $13k for the Neon and 3 years later had a hard time getting $5k for it. A Civic would have been worth double.
I still will buy the domestics I want, but certainly not new. I've been the [non-permissible content removed], time for someone else to be, and I'll let them take the depreciation.
Ex. I can buy a nice 1 - 2 year old Expedition EL or Suburban with under 30k miles for under $30-35k vs. $50k+ new. Around here it's hard to find a new Suburban or Expedition that isn't pushing $60k MSRP. That's nuts. They simply aren't worth that much to me new.
Heh, we're two blocks from Lake Superior and about 550 miles from the Cobo Center.
I should do a survey - I bet just the Buicks alone in this area outnumber Asian cars ten to one.
Premium Motor Cars. Sounds like my kind of town.
>...farther from etroit and still bein Michigan...one block from Lake Michigan.
I was stunned when Steve told how many hours it takes from Ohio border to his home in the UP. Holland and other cities on Lake Michigan are far short of that northern trip to the other Michigan.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
My mom had a 1984 Topaz; driving it was pretty much the textbook definition of Hell.
In contrast, I ran a 1984 T-Bird Turbo Coupe(with three pedals, of course) as my work beater from 1993 to 1998. It was a very nice daily driver.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Back in '92 or so I was taking a summer college class and an older guy in my group drove an '84 T-bird turbo coupe. IIRC he had close to 150k miles and he always talked about how much he liked it. I was always fond of the turbo coupes. I guess those 2.3 turbos could be tough if maintained properly. But Ford quality was definitely hit or miss back then.
Hauling the octogenarians out of town for doc visits does makes me wonder how they'd fare if one of the old cars broke down in the winter. Not a lot of Hertz agencies around. Might be safer if we took their Buick more. Then I could blame their car.
I know you would. And you would find some interesting company there. Speaking of Buicks.
They came from all over the World to the Arctic.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I loved that car!
Some of the 67's had ugly looking rear fender skirts that ruined the look of the car.
Of course, on old cars I can't stand added on skirts or worse yet, continental kits!
A '66 Skylark with those glorious Buick road wheels...a GM high-point of the mid-sixties IMHO.
I detest skirts on most (not all) cars. I think the very first Monte Carlos were one of the only cars to look 'natural' with skirts. Continental kits make me gag! I think one thing I like about the later Stude Larks and Hawks were the big, open rear wheel openings. Lightens up the car IMO.
Surest way to 'hillbilly up' (as a friend would say) a '58 Impala is to put skirts and continental kit on one. Seems like I see more with those things than without!
The '40's Lincoln Continental was beautiful and restrained for the time too--note only rocker trim down the side. I can't see one of those without thinking about Bette Davis driving one in "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?", a movie I love (love scary flicks).
I just don't like ANY car with skirts except maybe a 48 Buick.
Contenental Kits make cars look just hokey.
Blue dot tailights are another thing I detest.
I have seen nice examples of those Continentals for ~30-40K.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
That for me was the pits in cars. It may be the fact that I got big into off-road vehicles. I owned a 1955 Studebaker Commander hardtop. I traded that for a 1956 Ford PU then traded it for a Toyota Land Cruiser in 1964. Pretty much Trucks, Vans and SUVs for me. The two small cars I bought new since were both junk. A 1973 Subaru and a 1978 Honda Accord. I am sure I will NEVER buy another sedan of any kind. Different strokes. At 70 the only vehicle on my list is a diesel SUV. If it is made in USA all the better.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
You weren't born in the 70's;)
Here's what I remember. Dad's '73 Torino was completely rusted out by '79 and puked out blue smoke my a fog machine. He then bought a '79 Caprice wagon that never ran right for the first year or so. I was 8 when he bought it, so I don't remember everything, but I still can here him cussing while going down the road as it would bog and pop. It spent weeks at a time at the dealer. Then he bought a Tempo which doesn't need any explaining.
For me the 80's were a mixed bag. Lots of horrible cars, but at least at the end of the decade performance was returning. But in general there really isn't a car from my childhood I wish I could drive now.
I read the new Grand Cherokee will be offering a 6 cylinder diesel. IIRC, it will be in 2014. I like the GC a lot. Just to small for my needs. I didn't hear about the Durango, I'd love to see a diesel in a 3 row SUV that doesn't cost $70k+.
And Isell, yeah they were about twice the price of a Cadillac. I think the '56 was around $9500, while the '57 was right around $10K. Of course, Cadillac countered with their Eldorado Brougham in '57, which was something like $13,333.
That's sad to me! There are a ton of cars of my youth I'd like to drive or can appreciate looking at, if not own.
I think once you drive something enough, you get used to it, become one with it, so to speak, so that helps offset any deficiencies in the way it handles. So if you're used to a sloppy 70's car, like I am, they don't seem so bad. But, spend enough time in something modern, and then go back to that sloppy 70's car, and suddenly you realize how bad it is. Until you get accustomed to it again.
In my case, the three 70's car I have aren't *too* bad. I think my '76 LeMans handles fairly well, but I also have a feeling that its suspension might have been upgraded a bit. It has a certain harshness/firm feel to it that you don't normally associate with cars of this vintage, and it corners fairly flat. It also has 225/70/R15 tires on it, which are probably a bit oversized and low-profile, compared to the stock size, which was something like L78-R15. And I don't know how to translate one into the other.
Similarly, my two '79 New Yorkers aren't too bad, but they also have a lot of police car heritage in them, which no doubt helps. Plus, they're the old tried and true setup of longitudinal torsion bars up front, leaf springs in the back, which made the old '57 Mopars handle so well for their time. The ride does suffer a bit though, I think, because of the leaf springs in the back, whereas coil springs would probably give a smoother ride.
Mine were mostly pieced together at the wrecking yards I worked at. I was trying to recollect all the cars I owned from 1958- 62 when I bought my first car off of a lot. The 1955 Stude Commander. My first was a 1947 Pontiac convertible that restored would be worth having. I also had a 1953 Mercury two door hardtop with lots of body damage. I cannot think of any of those with real fond memories, though at the time they got me around which was important. I probably owned about 10 beaters before getting a real job at the phone company needing reliable transportation. I do remember a 1948 Caddy 4 door, 1952 Stude 4 door, 53 Studebaker Champion, 1954 Ford 4 door. They all came from the wrecking yard I worked at after school. I would sell them when I got them running, and buy another junker from my boss. A lot of my rich friends had nice cars their folks bought them. My buddy had a 1958 Impala with a 348 engine. That car was something else back then.
I think there is some truth to that... well unless we're talking about something like a early 90's Bonneville SSE-i that had more buttons than the keyboard I'm typing with;)
I place more importance on how the switch gear looks, feels, and operates over where it's placed. I can learn where everything is, I can't learn to like cheap looking and feeling switches and buttons. Or worse yet when they fall off. Been there.
I might be crazy, but the steering wheel controls for the cruise in my Expedition are on the left side of the wheel and the radio controls are on the right. Maybe it's just me, but I think they should be reversed. If my right hand is free to adjust the radio via remote, it's available to simply reach over and use the radio knobs, but not the other way around. The steering controls on my Nissan Pathfinder were reversed and I think it makes more sense.
Not a big deal and not likely something I'd pick one vehicle over another, but it's a minor annoyance to me.