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

fintail · June 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDcBG1x9X7Q

dieselone · June 2010

Thanks Fintail, I laughed my a## off watching that clip.

andre1969 · June 2010

oops, after seeing that clip, I guess my memory's fading.

Diablo sandwich instead of two diablo dogs. I do remember though, that on tv they substituted "golddang" for that other word, just like they substituted "scum-bum" for "sum-bit##"

dieselone · June 2010

Andre, I am impressed you remembered that line as well as you did.

fintail · June 2010

And that's the semi-clean version...has "crap" after hush puppies instead of the harsher term :shades:

au1994 · June 2010

Best. Movie. Ever. Ok that might be a slight overstatement. My dad took me to see that when I was 6. I remember trying to stand up in my chair and cheer for the Bandit as he eluded Buford T, much to my dad's embarrasment!!

andre1969 · June 2010

My Dad took me to see Smokey and the Bandit in the theaters too; I was 7 at the time. I still remember that day. There was some Herbie the Love Bug movie out that I wanted to see, but Dad said I'd love Smokey and the Bandit. Well, I thought it was about Smokey the Bear, so I didn't want to see it! I'm glad Dad had the final say that day, though!

I remember we walked in the theater towards the end of the previous showing, about the point where they were making the final run to the Atlanta Fairgrounds on the narrow two-lane roads. Now usually, when you see the end of the movie first, it spoils the whole thing, but I think Smokey and the Bandit is a fun enough ride through the whole picture that it doesn't matter. Besides, you pretty much know a movie like this is going to end up on a happy note. It's not like it's going to leave you with a cliffhanger, with the Snowman encased in carbonite, the shocking revelation that Buford is the Bandit's father, and that Frog and the Bandit are really brother and sister...which would be really nasty, since she got the Bandit to take his hat off, and he takes his hat off for one thing, and one thing only! (At the time, when I was 7, I didn't know what that meant, and I thought it meant when he takes a shower!)

I think Smokey and the Bandit is also the main reason why I like the '76-77 LeMans so much.

lemko · June 2010

Was Miss Hathaway's red 1965 Dodge Coronet convertible also at this show?

andre1969 · June 2010

I think it's amazing that a car can manage to be ugly, yet so beautiful all at the same time! I remember when I saw pictures of these things in antique car books as a kid, I thought they were disgusting. But, once I started seeing them at old car shows, I thought they were really cool.

I think my favorite Imperial from the whole 1957-66 generation was the 1960:
I do think the fins are a little overdone, but I love that grille!

lemko · June 2010

You should've seen what Chrysler originally had in mind for the 1960 Imperial - hidden headlights as seen on the 1958 Imperial d'Elegance show car:

fintail · June 2010

Hmm...I see the 1960 Valiant greenhouse there.

d'Elegance...lol...it's very cartoonish-spaceshippy anyway.

fintail · June 2010

Even the generation of my friends and I, who were born around the time the first Bandit film debuted, grew up loving those films. They are a part of culture, in a way. No doubt the only real reason the TAs from that era are sought after, too.

There are two scenes briefly showing a fintail in the first film, too.

imidazol97 · June 2010

>1965 Dodge Coronet convertible

I didn't see it but probably 150 cars come and go throughout the evening. I'll watch for it when I'm there again.

imidazol97 · June 2010

>ugly, yet so beautiful all at the same time!

Chrysler was a style setter of the time. They did things that others wouldn't try.

The artfulness of their designs, sometimes, were outstanding.

berri · June 2010

That Imperial prototype would have probably been like the wrap around 4 dr HT 59/60 GM cars - people would have been interested in the modern space age look back then, but bought something more conservative. Interesting pix, I hadn't seen that one.

berri · June 2010

The mid fifties Mopars were nice cars, but a bit crowded out because GM and Ford had nice lookers then too. I'm partial to the 55 DeSoto and Dodge. 55-57 were nice years for auto styling.

andys120 · June 2010

-A mid-late 80s Olds wagon configured as a hearse, black with a plate that read DEATH, parked near a funeral parlor.

-1969 Mustang Mach 1 fastback in very clean straight condition, slotted factory disc wheels. The color was a light pastel blue offset w black stripes, seemed more 1950s than '69 (except the stripes).

fintail · July 2010

I'm down in podunk visiting family, spotted this little oddity for sale not far from here:

texases · July 2010

Good one for mystery pics - I didn't know there was an 850 coupe.

andys120 · July 2010

There was an 850 Coupe but that's not it. It looked like this>

Fin's photo is of a late 850 Spider with an aftermarket removable h/t.

texases · July 2010

Here's another one, looks pretty permanent for a hardtop:
850RacerHardtopforsale

And here's more info about them, they are pretty rare Bertone hartops:
More on the 850 "racer"

andys120 · July 2010

I stand corrected. I don't think I've ever seen that variant before. Removable hardtops were common add-ons to various roadsters of that era and usually had the contrasting vinyl grain finish.

fintail · July 2010

I was thinking it might be an aftermarket top too...but it fits so clean, and I didn't want to get out and look at it, and risk being seen by the seller, who would then give me a sales pitch. It was in very clean condition...odd to see it out here, I can't imagine any local shop being able or willing to work on that, as it isn't a lifted 4 door diesel pickup.

Seen a few oddballs today, out in the lesser developed part of the world where the automotive fleet seems to be 10 years older than in the city, I think Tempos come here to live their final years...also saw 2 Cimarrons today, a 66 T-Bird, a few El Caminos, a 38 Plymouth, a nice original looking 41-ish Dodge pickup, Datsun roadster.

michaellno · July 2010

In my little town - a mint condition early 90's Suzuki Swift GT. Pretty much stock, as far as I could tell.

I really wanted one of those when they were new - even though it was "only" 100 HP, the low curb weight made it a pretty quick machine.

kyfdx · July 2010

On the interstate in North Carolina... Really nice original condition.. Cars like that would rust away here in the salt/snow belt..

andre1969 · July 2010

Here's the pics I took at theGM Nationals in Carlisle PA last week...GM Nationals

And, it's been a long time coming, but here's the pics I took at the 2009 Mopar Nationals. I must not have been in much of a picture taking mood that time, as I'd usually get more than 53! Well, the next show is coming up July 9-11, so hopefully I'll be in more of a mood!

fintail · July 2010

Saw a mint looking Grand National on I5 today...didn't see much else other than idiots in RVs.

I drove my own obscure car about half on the interstate, the other on city streets and rural highways, not bad mileage for a ~3750lb/360hp car. I had one spurt past 100 and a couple others past 80.

bumpy · July 2010

That's the same mpg my dad would get in his E320. I suppose the AMG cruises at 1500 rpm at legal speeds, and IIRC those cars were actually fairly aerodynamic for a brick.

stickguy · July 2010

upstate (not city).

2 TR-6s (pre 73). One outside a shop in tuxedo, the other on the NY thruway (amazing).

and today, in 90+ heat, a fintail. Pretty sure it said SE (must have been a 300). also on the thruway.

a few other oddites or oldies. A '65 impala convertible today locally.

fintail · July 2010

It does surprisingly well for an aging brick, yeah. It's also a torque monster, so it doesn't have to do much work to mope along in normal traffic...although it's not averse to revving. It drinks a bit in congested city traffic though, probably due to engine size and maybe gearing...15mpg is as good as it gets there.

Regarding the SE fintail, it would be either a 220 or a 300...probably fun on a hot day as a small fraction of the cars had AC (all aftermarket) and probably a minority of those still work.

stickguy · July 2010

maybe a 220. It was 2 lanes over (slow lane, figure) and I thought it said 200. That's why I figured it was a 300, but could be a 220.

and based on the open windows, no AC!

stickguy · July 2010

an early land rover. 2 door, soft top. Bopping along on the thruway, which was surprising. Certainly not it's normal element!

michaellno · July 2010

Cars like that would rust away here in the salt/snow belt..

Huh. There is a Chinese restaurant that does delivery here in town ... one of their drivers uses a Gen I MR2. What's amazing is that there is a dealer tag on the rear indicating that the car originally came from Jersey City, NJ.

Two observations:

1) I'm surprised it's lasted this long
2) OMG, somebody had to drive it from NJ to CO!

lemko · July 2010

...red 1967 Camaro convertible on Bingham Street between Ripley and Rhawn in NE Philly.

tjc78 · July 2010

Saw a mint looking all black 73 or 74 Lincoln Mark IV this morning on the way to work.

Mr_Shiftright · July 2010

well *my* fintail had AC and *it* worked....

Of course, I had an office right next to the Mercedes Benz Technical School at the time :P

They loved to tinker with my car (it was "old" even then). The rumor was, from the previous owner who was an MB instructor, that the car was originally owned by the captain of the submarine Nautilus. So I figure just that rumor alone would make it worth $50,000.

But no.....

fintail · July 2010

But was it 10 years old or 50 years old? :shades:

I wonder if those old Kuhlmeister etc systems, which I think had American made parts, were any good.

What happened to that car anyway?

Mr_Shiftright · July 2010

Let's see...the car was about 13 years old or so at the time.

I sold that fintail to my brother and he decided he wanted an SE model in a nicer color (mine was carb-ed, and in white). Naturally, he sold off a perfectly *great* car for a troublesome one that never ran half as good as mine did. I used to commute from NY to NJ every single day for years in that car---never let me down. Had AC and sunroof, super clean--tan interior.

Of course, *he* also owned a tail-finned MG Magnette (remember those?), a Renault Dauphine, a Fitch Corvair, etc----so looking for trouble was his middle name.

fintail · July 2010

The SE is usually the most sought after as you know, but a sunroof fintail would be pretty cool too, and a tan interior is good with white. Sounds like a nice car.

Farina Magnette, a British fintail:

boomchek · July 2010

Saw some interesting vehicles, including this bird:

See more Car Pictures at CarSpace.com

On the way back we saw a old W113 Mercedes SL in white with a hard top in really good shape on the highway. Looks like the older couple were enjoying the drive.

We went with some friends of ours who drive their Mercedes GL450. They also have an infant son that's about same age as ours. Once there, we took a few daytrips in their GL, and surprisingly there was enough room for 4 of us adults, plus two car seats for out babies, plus two mid size strollers, plus other junk.

texases · July 2010

Speaking of SLs, I saw an R107 280SL this weekend. Wouldn't that have to be a Euro with the 280? But it had round headlights... :confuse:

And another question - what's the origin of the Rxxx numbering scheme at MB? Why that in addition to the Wxxx numbers?

fintail · July 2010

Yep, a 280SL is a grey market car...probably federalized in more detail than some others, as it seems not all grey market cars were converted to full NA spec.

The R vs W subject is something that is still kind of a mystery for me. Up until the 107, "W" was used for everything, then sometime in the 70s R came out of nowhere. I've thought "R" could stand for "renn/en" (race) and I have read it could also mean "reihe" (series). I have always assumed W stands for "wagen".

kyfdx · July 2010

I was shopping for a car around 1987, and ran into a W113...it had the euro lamps, just like the one in your picture... Red.. not nearly as nice as that one.. I think the asking price was around $9K-$10K... Not sure on the year... maybe a '68?

Repair costs scared me off.... plus, it wasn't that great of a drive..

boomchek · July 2010

Sorry, the photo is just off google as an example. It was THAT body style and color, but may have had different trim/lights etc. Anyways it was rare seeing one on the road.

explorerx4 · July 2010

passing in the opposite direction, a white Subaru Justy. looked ok except leaning a bit on one side in the front.
10 seconds later, i spotted a brick colored F430.
both rare sightings.

fintail · July 2010

Crazy that these were made so late

Downsized green

Or a period alternative

This or a 450SL...we know what the market chose

The 80s

Andre-mobile

Surprised this wasn't a pile of iron oxide dust 25 years ago

Surf's up

Big engine

Pretty and pricey

Just like the one from Andre's backyard

Keep trying

They all end up on ebay

See above

Doc Brown approves

Amusing mpg claim

Patina and plastics

This guy must own a time machine

Go on a safari...if you dare

70s domestic chic

70s domestic excess

"A BEAUTIFUL NEO-CLASSIC"...must be ironic quotations

Today's oddities on the road - yellow VehiCross, 65 Galaxie 2 door HT

euphonium · July 2010

You got to me with the '42 Olds 98 Hydramatic with the bustle trunk. It was the car my father couldn't afford, but we still dreamed. The mohair interior wore like iron. Warm in Winter and cool in the Summers. Body by Fisher with the Turret top. Thanks for locating it.

imidazol97 · July 2010

>Packard 1958. What were they thinking when they designed this rear end?

tjc78 · July 2010

I love the Olds 98. The only thing is on a car of this quality shouldn't all four tires match? The rears have a thicker white wall. Little details like that drive me nuts.

Also for you GM guys there is a switch next to the cruise labeled "night watch" or something along those lines. What is that?

lemko · July 2010

I believe "Nightwatch" is the same thing as the "Twilight Sentinel" on Cadillacs.

Twilight Sentinel is a device on GM cars that senses outside light and turns the headlights on and off depending on lighting conditions. In addition, Twilight Sentinel also allows the driver to set a timer (located with the headlight switch) that delays shutting off the headlights for a specified time period, usually up to three minutes. The driver can park his/her vehicle, shut off the car's engine and exit the automobile after dark, then use the headlights to light his/her path into a nearby building, such as a house, before the system shuts the headlights off automatically.

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

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