I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!

fintail

Some obscure spots - the Google Street View car went through my neighborhood last month, these are ones I see nearby or on my jogging route.

This has been there since the first 2007 images - it's a 70s MG:



This is down the street, hasn't moved an inch since I arrived in 2021:



This little Shelby was around for a couple years, was still there last month but vanished a couple weeks ago:



I posted this in the past, big fancy and somewhat rare Pontiac (and the Accord is also obscure these days):



Here it is in 2018 - it appears to be sleeping outside, which while not as damaging as in some areas, probably won't help it:



The Alliance convertible - blocked of course but one can see it, with squarebody for an added "stuck in the 80s" vibe that is not uncommon here:



Very clean Taurinental, I think I have seen this at the local shopping center a couple times too:



This looks mean, showed up a while ago and hasn't moved since:

fintail

uplanderguy said:

RE.: Sitcom dads looking old...

We've discussed this here, but with a few exceptions, I actually prefer the color episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show" to the earlier B&W versions. Can't stand the stupidity of Ernest T. Bass, the Darlings, and even Gomer and Otis could get on my nerves. The laughs became fewer later, but the stories were better IMHO. My favorite episode of the whole series was when Barney came back to town for vacation and a movie starlet from town was back at the same time to debut her new movie in her hometown. Barney dated her in school and of course he felt there were still sparks between them. It was actually poignant, and Knotts won an Emmy for that episode. The epilogue on the front porch was terrific. Season seven I think.

Anyway, if you look at Andy in like the '65-67 color episodes, his face looks like an old catcher's mitt! And he was very early forties.

That made me think of an early Andy Griffith where they show Otis's car:



When I was a kid I liked early V8 Fords, and seeing this wowed me - supposed to be a jalopy then and became a very sought after car.

ab348

I saw a chart on FB the other day, so take it with that caveat, showing life expectancy by country from 1925 and the present day. In '25 I think it claimed you could expect to live to 63. Today it is about 20 years longer.

Frawley was well-known to have a drinking problem. I saw an interview with Barry Livingstone from My Three Sons declaring him an alcoholic and talking about them watching him pound back the booze at lunch. The producers of the show gave the kids the job of getting Frawley out of Nickodells restaurant where they would have lunch every day and back to the studio, though apparently he wasn't much use in the afternoons. I gather he was declared uninsurable by the production company and had to be replaced by William Demarest, and died not long after that.

uplanderguy

I remember that episode with Otis' old mid-thirties Ford V8.

RE.: My Three Sons--my favorite show as a kid. My Mom used to say, "It's about the only show where the kids grow up, get married" but of course in twelve seasons, you should expect that! LOL

I saw "Ernie" talking about William Frawley drinking like a fish at lunch, LOL. I guess Frawley was quite close to "Chip" in those early years....they really hit it off.

I remember seeing a clip online of Frawley in an episode of "The Lucy Show", doing a cameo of a horse trainer. I think it was his last TV appearance. Lucy says to her friend after talking to the character, "That guy looks so familiar to me", LOL.

I think Barry Livingston's book is called "The Importance of Being Ernie", LOL.

I can't say I remember much of 'Bub' on that show, but remember the color episodes much more.

Fred MacMurray aged well I think. Without checking, I think he was born in 1908. I did think he was too old for the Beverly Garland character he married, and she was too old IMHO to have one kid, that "Dodie", who was like seven or something. Fred was over 60 at that point to have a kid that young as a stepdaughter!

The only 'wife' I liked much on that show was 'Katie'. I read her book about a year ago, pretty light entertaining reading.

'Bub' and 'Uncle Charley'--even as a kid, I wondered, "How many old grumpy bachelors are in that family who can cook and clean for the Douglas family?", LOL.

sda

@fintail 1960 Ford for you
https://youtu.be/JLc5kLcbfB4?si=OR2E23KkoIpJaM50

uplanderguy

Always thought this was a cute, clever commercial for "My Three Sons" on MeTV:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiQOfry48F4

benjaminh

Back in 1996 one of my dream cars was a Ford Thunderbird with the optional V-8. I had a Ford credit card at the time that had an accumulated rebate of $3k. On top of that, Thunderbirds weren't selling well and so the discounts were steep and low financing was offered as well. Discount prices were maybe around 19k or so with the V-8 and some other options iirc. Didn't get one, but this 4-minute Motor Week test shows it was actually a pretty good sporty luxury car. But my 2018 TLX is faster, and is more or less my four door Thunderbird equivalent from a different era.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO08wrNhvMU

fintail

sda said:

@fintail 1960 Ford for you

Lots of hoopla for an ordinary midrange Fairlane. Those cars really dress up with wide whites.

The bubble rear window of lower line 60 (59-61 really) Fords has always caught my eye, it had to have cost more than the flat window of Galaxies, and probably cost more to fit as well. Makes me think of lower line fintails that don't have chrome on the rear fender tops/fins, where higher line cars have chrome, apparently it cost more to do the manual bodywork at the fender top than cover it with chrome.

uplanderguy

I always thought the '60 Fords that were not the Galaxie 500--i.e., didn't have the bright piece behind the rear wheel openings--looked like it was bondo around the rear wheel opening, LOL.

I was just maybe a week or so ago telling someone who told me there's a '60 Edsel four-door hardtop for sale down the road from him, about the one-inch-longer wheelbase than Ford and the bubble rear window as opposed to the flat window on the Ford, two things I never knew until I saw them here.

RE.: Those last big Thunderbirds--really, in my mind, like a two-door Crown Vic then. Those had to be the biggest, or among the biggest, two-door cars available then. I want to say I remember they had a 117" wheelbase. Not sure though. But I seem to remember too, they were pretty roomy in the back seat for a coupe. A good thing for sure.

EDIT: Wheelbase was 113"

Michaell

I had one of those bloated 'Birds as a rental in Dallas, one time. Just the V6, but because it was RWD, I remember doing donuts in the hotel parking lot after some rain.

The V8 would have been fun, for sure. The wife and I briefly entertained the idea of one of the retro T-Bird convertibles when they were released.

uplanderguy

I've always liked the 2002 and later retro Birds. I still do. A nice mix of retro and modern cues. When they came out, the dealers near me were gouging on them, adding ADP.

andre1969

It's been ages since I've been in one of those final T-birds. The main thing I remember about the back seat is that it didn't feel all that roomy to me (but to be fair, I'm 6'3"...a lot of cars don't feel roomy to me!) , and that the seat cushion seemed pretty thin. Most likely because it had an independent rear suspension, so the gas tank was under there.

I think just about all cars have the gas tank under the back seat these days, and get by just fine. But considering how low-slung the T-bird was, they probably had to make the cushion thinner, for any semblance of headroom.

Still, most people don't buy coupes for a roomy back seat. And as far as coupes go, it probably was one of the roomiest. FWIW, the specs I found showed 35.8" of legroom in back. For comparison, the downsized GM A/G-body of 1978-88, which I always thought of as a good role model for space efficiency, had 35.1" of rear legroom for the regular coupes (1979 Malibu at least) and, oddly, 36.3" for the personal luxury coupes (1979 Monte Carlo).

In those days it sometimes took me a bit to warm up to a new design, so I wasn't overly wowed with the '89 T-bird, initially. I thought the Cougar was a definite improvement, though. I thought that '87-88 restyle made the Cougar look awkward, but thought the T-bird was nice. But, over time I started liking the '89+, and certainly wouldn't kick one out of the garage.

At the time though, I think they were too new so that, even as used cars, they weren't on my radar because of their price. And by the time I could afford a used one, I had bought my 2000 Intrepid, so the idea of a "new-ish" used car was out of my system.

fintail

uplanderguy said:

I always thought the '60 Fords that were not the Galaxie 500--i.e., didn't have the bright piece behind the rear wheel openings--looked like it was bondo around the rear wheel opening, LOL.

I was just maybe a week or so ago telling someone who told me there's a '60 Edsel four-door hardtop for sale down the road from him, about the one-inch-longer wheelbase than Ford and the bubble rear window as opposed to the flat window on the Ford, two things I never knew until I saw them here.

RE.: Those last big Thunderbirds--really, in my mind, like a two-door Crown Vic then. Those had to be the biggest, or among the biggest, two-door cars available then. I want to say I remember they had a 117" wheelbase. Not sure though. But I seem to remember too, they were pretty roomy in the back seat for a coupe. A good thing for sure.

EDIT: Wheelbase was 113"

You'll see it on the lower line wagons too, no brightwork (I think it was aluminum, I recall it on my dad's Country Sedan) area behind the rear wheels. I suspect on the higher line cars that spot under the trim panel is a bad rust nest. And yep the 60 Edsel 4 door HT had the bubble rear window from a Fairlane, not a Galaxie. Pretty wacky, I guess so people wouldn't say it was just a facelifted Galaxie? All 6 people in the country who lined up for a 60 Edsel 4 door HT that is. Domestic brands had endless funds for such frivolity. On that note, the 60 Galaxie 4 door HT ("Town Victoria") is one I consider to be pretty cool. I think the flat rear window was to relate the higher line cars to Thunderbird styling.

I recall the late run of the last big Birds was considered to be a future collectible by some, and some were driven sparingly because of that. Not a great investment, to be very nice. The retro Bird fared little better, probably a bargain these days for someone who is into it, I like them.

andre1969

It is a bit curious that the Edsel 4dr hardtop had the bubble rear window, while the Galaxie had the flat rear window and thicker, more formal C-pillar. I tend to think of "formal" as "upscale" and more expensive, but the Galaxie 4dr HT was only $2675 base price, while the Edsel was $2770.

But, by 1960 I believe Edsel had been merged completely with Lincoln-Mercury, so that might have made sense then, to use the "cheaper"/"downscale" roofline on the Edsels, so they didn't overlap as much with the Mercury models. Even if Mercury was still on its own body/platform that year, and a noticeably bigger car. Mercury's cheapest hardtop sedan, the Monterey, started at $2845.

Mercury used a wraparound rear window and reverse-slant C-pillar, carried over from 1959. So if they had let the Edsel have the same thick formal C-pillar as the Galaxie, maybe they thought that would confuse buyers, into thinking the cheaper car was more upscale than the pricier one?

uplanderguy

I remember at least one of the car mags was disappointed in that last T-Bird (prior to the 2002) as it came in overweight as to what expectations had been.

The boxy GM RWD midsize coupes were a bastion of good use of space in the rear seat....particularly considering their 108.1 inch wheelbase. I've said this before, but the end of those cars, in the '88 model year, are really the last 'regular' or 'everyday' cars, I like a lot. Still had frameless door glass and some brightwork inside, which was becoming passe by then.

andre1969

I always thought it was odd that the personal luxury coupes had a better legroom measurement in the back seat than the regular coupes. I remember my '80 Malibu being really comfortable in the back seat, but didn't care for Mom's Monte Carlo, or the '82 Cutlass Supreme I had. The Malibu's backrest was more reclined, whereas the personal luxury coupe backrests were too upright. But, I don't see how that would factor into the legroom measurement. I do seem to recall they put the ashtray in the back of the front seat, right where your knee would hit! At least GM's Colonade coupes thoughtfully put them on the trailing edge of the armrest of the front door.

uplanderguy

I always hated on the '78 and later two-doors, with bench seats (i.e., no center armrests), you only got one ashtray in the rear, on the left side of the folding seat.

My Dad hated in his '80 Monte Carlo, the way the ashtray in front flipped down, instead of sliding open. He said that contributed to ashes flying around. His '84 had a sliding ashtray in the same location of the panel, which he preferred. He and I laughed that apparently there had been a meeting about that.

fintail

andre1969 said:

It is a bit curious that the Edsel 4dr hardtop had the bubble rear window, while the Galaxie had the flat rear window and thicker, more formal C-pillar. I tend to think of "formal" as "upscale" and more expensive, but the Galaxie 4dr HT was only $2675 base price, while the Edsel was $2770.

But, by 1960 I believe Edsel had been merged completely with Lincoln-Mercury, so that might have made sense then, to use the "cheaper"/"downscale" roofline on the Edsels, so they didn't overlap as much with the Mercury models. Even if Mercury was still on its own body/platform that year, and a noticeably bigger car. Mercury's cheapest hardtop sedan, the Monterey, started at $2845.

Mercury used a wraparound rear window and reverse-slant C-pillar, carried over from 1959. So if they had let the Edsel have the same thick formal C-pillar as the Galaxie, maybe they thought that would confuse buyers, into thinking the cheaper car was more upscale than the pricier one?

i didn't think of that, maybe not to poach Mercury sales, although I have to imagine by the time production started, the writing was on the wall for Edsel and there was little real cross shopping. I wonder if 60 Edsels sold at deep discounts or if anyone socked them away for future collectible status, even if few people were thinking of that at the time.

I find it interesting that Mercury held on to 59 style design in 60 while Ford and Edsel got newer sheetmetal - the wraparound windshield/dogleg A-pillar became dated in an instant.

Regarding the GM coupes, I recall riding in my friend's 83 and 85 Montes, and the backseat seemed fine for what they are - and I am 6'1". Ingress/egress didn't seem unreasonable, all probably because of the upright design of the roof area.

uplanderguy

To my eyes, the '60 Ford and Edsel looked way better than the '60 Mercury. I remember the goofy taillights on them. Although, I guess I shouldn't be throwing stones as the '60 Edsel's taillights are goofy. But the rest of the body of the car just is so much prettier IMHO than the Mercury.

andre1969

I just read somewhere online that they actually started folding Edsel into Lincoln-Mercury around January of 1958! So they sure didn't give it much of a chance to fly on its own! I'd never really thought about it before, but that would explain why the Mercury-based Edsels were dropped for '59.

Looking through the brochure, it looks like the Edsel 4-doors in both ranges, Ranger and Corsair, and in both body styles (sedan and hardtop) got the "cheaper" Fairlane roofline with the wraparound rear window, rather than the formal Galaxie roof with the thick pillars. So they might have been trying to keep them from looking too upscale even in '59. FWIW, in 1959 the Edsel Corsair 4-door hardtop was $2885, while the cheapest Mercury Monterey 4-door HT was $2918.

I don't know if it's true or not, but I heard that for 1959, while the Mercury got an all-new body, Ford/Edsel just got a hand-me-down '57-58 Mercury body, just with some modifications. I thought the '59 Mercury was a nice looking car, just too big for the times, and fighting for a market that was shrinking fast. But the '60 facelift was not attractive at all in my opinion, and looked old, compared to the new bodies that Ford/Edsel got.

andre1969

One thing that just dawned on me...I don't know if I've ever seen a 1960 Mercury in person at a car show. I do see an occasional 1959 though. Neither one was very popular when new, but with an improving economy for 1960, a slightly lower price point, and Edsel mostly out of the way, I think the '60 outsold the '59 by a slight margin. I think they sold about 149,500 of them for 1959, and maybe 155,000 for 1960.

1960 was a much better year for Mercury as a whole though, because of the Comet, which was probably good for around 115,000 or so.

stickguy

parked at Aldi's, a very nice looking Volvo C30. somebodies' new toy, since it had temp tags on it.

uplanderguy

James Nance, from Packard, then Studebaker-Packard, left to run what became M-E-L at Ford. Edsel was like Packard; junior and senior lines. Supposedly he and McNamara butted heads, and Nance was fired in '59 at some point. He then moved to Cleveland and ran a bank for a number of years.

andre1969

Wow, speak of the Devil...here were are, talking about Edsels and such. I have the tv on, not really paying attention to it. "Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2" is on, and lo and behold, I look over at it just in time to see this...

uplanderguy

Never saw part II, but saw the first one on my college campus, probably the most disturbing flick I can remember.

Although, when I found out Ed Gein was a real life guy upon whom Norman Bates as well as Leatherface were based on, I read everything I could find on him.

fintail

For a 60 Mercury, the winner for me would be a hardtop wagon. I wonder what a 60 Mercury with 60 Ford/Edsel themes could have looked like.

This got me thinking of Dennis the Menace, which featured several 60 Fords (as it was Ford-sponsored), and this fun Edsel pic is on IMCDB - I think the house at background left is Todd and Margo's house from Christmas Vacation:

xwesx

benjaminh said:

Back in 1996 one of my dream cars was a Ford Thunderbird with the optional V-8. I had a Ford credit card at the time that had an accumulated rebate of $3k. On top of that, Thunderbirds weren't selling well and so the discounts were steep and low financing was offered as well. Discount prices were maybe around 19k or so with the V-8 and some other options iirc. Didn't get one, but this 4-minute Motor Week test shows it was actually a pretty good sporty luxury car. But my 2018 TLX is faster, and is more or less my four door Thunderbird equivalent from a different era.

I liked that era of T-bird, just before the terrible attempt at a retro-bird.

gsemike

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17DmVjtm4a/

Nice. Not sure i knew that these existed

tjc78

@benjaminh said:
Back in 1996 one of my dream cars was a Ford Thunderbird with the optional V-8. I had a Ford credit card at the time that had an accumulated rebate of $3k. On top of that, Thunderbirds weren't selling well and so the discounts were steep and low financing was offered as well. Discount prices were maybe around 19k or so with the V-8 and some other options iirc. Didn't get one, but this 4-minute Motor Week test shows it was actually a pretty good sporty luxury car. But my 2018 TLX is faster, and is more or less my four door Thunderbird equivalent from a different era.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO08wrNhvMU

My mom had a 96 Thunderbird it was a V6 but it had a moonroof, auto temp, power everything and nice alloy wheels. Hers was a very 90s Pacific Green over patterned beige cloth.

It was a demo with 5k miles. My Stepdad and I grinded out a deal for $14,700 (why I still remember that I don’t know). They kept that car for 10 years and it had less than 40K. Other than the AC needing a major overhaul and a radiator at some point it was very reliable.

andre1969

fintail said:

For a 60 Mercury, the winner for me would be a hardtop wagon. I wonder what a 60 Mercury with 60 Ford/Edsel themes could have looked like.

This got me thinking of Dennis the Menace, which featured several 60 Fords (as it was Ford-sponsored), and this fun Edsel pic is on IMCDB - I think the house at background left is Todd and Margo's house from Christmas Vacation:

Yep, that is indeed the yuppie house from Christmas Vacation. I forget what its original purpose was, but I think it was built in 1936. It was the Baxter house in "Hazel." Well, the first four seasons, at least. For the 5th season, when they revamped the show and Hazel moved in with the brother Steve and his family, they used the big brick colonial, which would be a few hundred feet to the left in this pic.

That house was also used in "Gidget" (the series, not the movie) and has shown up here and there over the decades. I always used to think that stand-alone garage, which was later the garage for 1164 Morning Glory Circle (Bewitched), seemed kind of odd. But, it turns out, it was actually the garage for that Hazel/Gidget house. There was just a long breezeway that ran between the garage and the house, and it was often obscured by the shrubbery/trees. In the early episodes of Hazel, they use this garage.

When the Bewitched house was finally built (originally for a show called "Our Man Higgins" or something like that), the Hazel house got an attached garage, and a new driveway. I think it was the 4th season of "Dennis the Menace," when you started seeing the Bewitched house in the background.

If Mercury had been put on the Ford/Edsel platform for 1960, I imagine it would have looked much like the 1961 Mercury up front, but like the Edsel, would have used as much '60 Ford sheetmetal as possible, including the gull wing in the back. They would have probably tried to work in a unique taillight though, as Edsel did.

explorerx4

Haven't seen one of these very often.

xwesx

Worst possible angle of it, but I'm thinking that's a Porsche 928?

texases

Yep!

andre1969

Those 928s always make me think of the 1981 movie "Looker," where one ends up in the fountain.
When I was younger, I used to be impressed that they would put a car that expensive through something like that. But, they don't actually show the car going into the fountain, only the aftermath. And I'm sure they had it raised up high enough that it didn't get any water damage.

I haven't seen the movie in ages, but have a feeling that chase scene would be a bit hard to watch nowadays. The guy driving the 928 was trying to run from a Mark IV, of all things. I guess that would require some suspension of disbelief...a Mark IV keeping up with a 928! Although if traffic is bad enough, maybe it's somewhat plausible?

xwesx

Haha! For me, it is Weird Science, but you're so right about that chase in Looker.

stickguy

The car wizard on YouTube just did a video on a 928

explorerx4

How about Risky Business where it Joel, driving a 928, forever to get away from a big 4 door Cadillac?

uplanderguy

andre, I like '61 Mercurys except for one thing.

Wheel opening molding in rear; none in front.

Insert Tim Allen "huhhh?" sound here.

Although I generally dislike '58-60 Lincolns, I like how the '61 Merc adopted that Lincoln taillight treatment, kinda sorta.

I hardly ever saw any '61 Mercs, even as a kid.

texases

explorerx4 said:

How about Risky Business where it Joel, diving a 928, forever to get away from a big 4 door Cadillac?

There needs to be a name for that, given how common it is in movies and TV shows for some sports car to have trouble either catching up to some land yacht or escaping from them.

andre1969

I like the overall shape of the '61 Mercury, but don't care for the front-end. I'm not a fan of the widely spaced headlights, and the way the grille is pinched in the middle. I never noticed that it has wheel well molding trim in the rear but not the front...that is a bit odd. I wonder if that's because that trim spear passed too close to the front wheel opening?

My favorite Mercury of the '61-64 generation is the '62. I think the front is nice and clean, although it makes me think a bit of Buick moreso than Mercury. I actually like the rear treatment too. However, Uplander, after you said what you said about it, I can't un-see it now. Makes me think of when one of my friends used to tell his dog "Put your lipstick away!"

The '63 almost looks like it should have been the model right after '61 though. It looks more like a direct evolution from the '61, whereas the '62 seems a bit of an aberration. The '63 also makes me think a bit of a full-sized '64 Ford up front.

I don't really see '61-63 Mercs much at car shows either, but the '64 seems to show up on occasion. One thing that really sticks out to me with it is how the doors are identical to the Ford doors. They just tacked on some metal along with the trim, to carry that blade that runs from the peaked front fenders all the way to the rear of the car. It might not be obvious from a distance, up close it's noticeable. I wonder if it would trap moisture, and cause premature rusting?


Mercury moved downscale considerably for 1961, when it returned to the Ford body/frame. The most expensive models were the wagons, and I think they topped out just under $3200. Meanwhile back in '60, some of the big Mercurys were topping $4,000. You'd think this would have boosted sales, but they only sold about 118,000 of the big ones that year. Meanwhile, the Comet was really catching on.

I think the economy was starting to slip into recession again, around '61-62. And even if total vehicle sales were up, they were skewed more towards compact cars, and then intermediates, when the Fairlane/Meteor came out. And the once broad middle-priced market was continuing to thin out. Buyers were probably leaning more towards a well-equipped Impala or Galaxie, moreso than a Mercury or, to a lesser degree, a Pontiac/Olds/Buick. Chrysler might have been the one exception, but even there most of its sales were the cheap Newport, which was priced into Dodge/Pontiac territory. Dodge survived mostly by moving down into Plymouth/Chevy/Ford territory with the Dart, for 1960, and then shot themselves in the foot with those shrunken '62s.

I think Mercury really found itself by 1965, when the new big cars really did well with their "Junior Lincoln" aspirations. The '61-64 models might have tried that, to some degree, but I think it was the '65 models, where it really returned to glory.

ab348

The funny thing is that the ‘62 Mercury rear treatment with those popsicle taillights is the one I remember seeing as a kid. The ‘61 and ‘63 rear ends were pretty close in styling at the rear but they weren’t at all memorable to me.

laurasdada

explorerx4 said:

How about Risky Business where it Joel, driving a 928, forever to get away from a big 4 door Cadillac?

Joel, the U-Boat commander. Chased by Guido, The Killer Pimp in the Caddy.
Why do I have absolutely no knowledge that makes me money?

uplanderguy

Andre, sorry you can’t unhear what ‘62 Mercury taillights remind me of, lol !

Michaell

@laurasdada said:
Joel, the U-Boat commander. Chased by Guido, The Killer Pimp in the Caddy.
Why do I have absolutely no knowledge that makes me money?

Same. Wasn’t it $6 for a cup of hot chocolate?

Michaell

I’m not sure where exactly to post this, but this is a FB post from a HS friend of mine. Pretty interesting list.

I was thinking about vehicles I've had over the years and was amazed when I compiled this list. I didn't realize the number and the variety. The first two are childhood cars. The rest I drove, in order. This doesn't include around 10 bikes - I have 6 still - skateboards, rollerskates, or kayaks!. :P The photo is of the 1949 Ford. The asterisks are the ones I still have! Lots of memories. What cars are in your memories?

1956 Pontiac Star Chief
1963 Mercury Comet
1967 Buick Skylark
1969 Plymouth Valiant
1972 Pinto wagon
1975 Mazda Rotary pickup
1968 Ford Country Squire station wagon
1974 Lincoln Continental
1980 Ford Escort
1984 Dodge Aries wagon
1985 Plymouth Grand Voyager minivan
1994 Isuzu Rodeo
*1990 Subaru Legacy Wagon (stick shift)
*1998 Dodge minivan
1949 Ford Fordor sedan (3 speed stick shift, steering column mounted)
*2003 Chrysler Town and Country minivan
*1992 300Q Pinnacle A-Class RV
1984 GMC box truck, 20ft.
*1980 TC25 utility tractor (stick shift, diesel)
*2006 Dodge Ram 3500 Pickup (diesel)
*2005 Dodge Ram 3500 pickup (diesel)
*1975 Suzuki GT500 motorcycle
*1975 MGB Roadster (convertible)
*1994 Lexus LS400
*1951 Ford F-1 pickup
*2012 Honda Insight hybrid
*2007 Nissan Versa (stick shift)

stickguy

I had 2 of his. The ChryCo minivan, and a stick shift Subaru wagon.

explorerx4

Q's list would take up multiple pages.

fintail

andre1969 said:

fintail said:

For a 60 Mercury, the winner for me would be a hardtop wagon. I wonder what a 60 Mercury with 60 Ford/Edsel themes could have looked like.

This got me thinking of Dennis the Menace, which featured several 60 Fords (as it was Ford-sponsored), and this fun Edsel pic is on IMCDB - I think the house at background left is Todd and Margo's house from Christmas Vacation:

Yep, that is indeed the yuppie house from Christmas Vacation. I forget what its original purpose was, but I think it was built in 1936. It was the Baxter house in "Hazel." Well, the first four seasons, at least. For the 5th season, when they revamped the show and Hazel moved in with the brother Steve and his family, they used the big brick colonial, which would be a few hundred feet to the left in this pic.

That house was also used in "Gidget" (the series, not the movie) and has shown up here and there over the decades. I always used to think that stand-alone garage, which was later the garage for 1164 Morning Glory Circle (Bewitched), seemed kind of odd. But, it turns out, it was actually the garage for that Hazel/Gidget house. There was just a long breezeway that ran between the garage and the house, and it was often obscured by the shrubbery/trees. In the early episodes of Hazel, they use this garage.

When the Bewitched house was finally built (originally for a show called "Our Man Higgins" or something like that), the Hazel house got an attached garage, and a new driveway. I think it was the 4th season of "Dennis the Menace," when you started seeing the Bewitched house in the background.

If Mercury had been put on the Ford/Edsel platform for 1960, I imagine it would have looked much like the 1961 Mercury up front, but like the Edsel, would have used as much '60 Ford sheetmetal as possible, including the gull wing in the back. They would have probably tried to work in a unique taillight though, as Edsel did.

I saw on a site a while back where someone found the real life house that apparently inspired the Bewitched house - a virtually identical design. Speaking of that, also seen in Christmas Vacation, as Clark's childhood home. IIRC it is also Randy Quaid's house in the now somewhat forgotten "Moving" starring Richard Pryor .


That Mercury aint bad (rarity might help it) but I'd probably choose a 60 Ford over it.

fintail

xwesx said:

Haha! For me, it is Weird Science, but you're so right about that chase in Looker.

There used to be a good animated gif of this scene online, but apparently it's gone, this will have to do:



On that note, I've always had a thing for the 928, loved them when I was a kid, still recall the first one I saw (red) and I had several diecast models of the car.

fintail

uplanderguy said:

Andre, sorry you can’t unhear what ‘62 Mercury taillights remind me of, lol !

I know this is a rerun - just for you, a scene from Dennis the Menace (IIRC Mr. Wilson (Gale Gordon) and Mrs. Elkins have a minor fender bender: