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

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Comments

  • berriberri Posts: 8,456
    Oh yeah, Gremlins drive like something you built in your backyard.

    ...and look like a high back tennis shoe - no offense Converse! Come to think about it, maybe it started a styling trend. Later on the Ford Tempo and Mercury Topaz kind of looked like a tennis shoe that someone had stepped on.
  • merckxmerckx Posts: 565
    I saw a mid 80s Marcos at a local...i thought they were just from the early seventies. The owner said it was prepared for the NY auto show with a V8 engine-Wern't most of them sixes?
    not a very attractive car, but it was fun to see. I'd never seen one in the flesh before....
  • hpmctorquehpmctorque Posts: 4,600
    The espenses you list are sunk costs, so those expenses really don't matter to today's buyer. Frankly, I'm surprised anyone would pay as much as $8,500 for a Vega, even a Cosworth, unless it was for the purpose of flipping it with a high probability of making a profit. It's not worth that as an econobox, an there wouldn't be $8,500 worth of pleasure - for me, at least - to display it at car shows. It might be worth that in 35 more years, when it'd be an extremely rare novelty that no car show visitor recalled.
  • lemkolemko Philadelphia, PAPosts: 15,297
    That Volvo ad reminds me of this ad for a lost dog:

    image
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Sonoma, CaliforniaPosts: 60,419
    edited January 2013
    Even then you never know. I know a guy who has the last surviving specimen of a 1920s car---and it's worth no more than a 1920s Buick. Why? Because nobody cares--well, nobody with money cares. A museum cares, but it has no money, so it cannot affect the price. Passion doesn't drive up prices---a checkbook does.

    Sunk costs are, true enough, water over the dam, but with cars you can also have prospective costs.

    Say you own a Ferrari F40. It's fun, it's great--you're out tracking it and you miss a shift----oops, you just spent $75,000 for an engine.

    Unless you own a very VERY blue chip and rare car that everyone lusts after, your "investment" of $8500 can evaporate in the snap of the fingers.

    That's the weird thing about classic cars---North Korea invades South Korea and your Camaro is suddenly worth half. Very bizarre.

    I guess "toys" are very vulnerable to economic conditions.

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  • explorerx4explorerx4 Central CTPosts: 12,488
    Never expected to see one of those, especially as a current driver in the winter.
    Other than a missing left front wheel cover and being covered with salt, looked to be in pretty good shape.
    2017 Ford Fusion SE 2017 Ford F-150 Limited
  • toomanyfumestoomanyfumes S.E. Wisconsin Posts: 1,015
    Haven't seen a X-body in years. Saw a Ford Maverick yesterday, looked like it was ready to be retired.
    2012 Mustang Premium, 2013 Lincoln MKX Elite, 2007 Mitsubishi Outlander.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Kent, OHPosts: 10,281
    I came close to considering an '85 Citation X-11 before I ordered my Celebrity Eurosport, but I figured I'd take a hit on resale value (back when I traded every three years or so). Same car mechanically, even same wheelbase as my Celebrity was. Tom Jumper Chevy in Sandy Springs, GA had several to choose from, when other dealers had none. His lot of new Chevys was so big they drove you around it in a golf cart.
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Crossroads of America I70 & I75 Posts: 21,982
    Saw one a few weeks back. It was traveling the opposite direction and didn't look rusted through. It was the golden brown color that was popular for those. I have no idea what year it was other than a 4-door with sloped back.

    2015 Cruze 2LT, 2014 Malibu 2LT, 2008 Cobalt 2LT

  • berriberri Posts: 8,456
    Years back there was a huge Long Chevrolet in Elmhurst, west of Chicago. You'd spot it coming into O'Hare sometimes. One night, GMAC must have hired every tow truck within 20 miles and cleaned out the lot.
  • fintailfintail Posts: 44,661
    I saw a yellow Citation 4 door a year or so ago, it looked mint. Funniest thing is that it had "Collector" plates. How times moves by.
  • oldbearcatoldbearcat WVPosts: 197
    Years ago I got to ride in a very special Chevy Citation. The car was a GM test mule, and, the performance it had was simply awesome. After the ride, the test engineer popped the hood for me. I was looking at a turbocharged Buick 3.8 V6. Turns out the car had the prototype drivetrain destined for the Buick Grand National.

    Regards:
    Oldbearcat
  • fintailfintail Posts: 44,661
    edited January 2013
    Out in the rain this morning: 87-88 Ciera driven by a 75 year old woman with her 100 year old mother as passenger, early 90s Ciera with back-up damage driven by a man who was probably that woman's father, and a driver quality 59 Cadillac flat top, white with a coral roof.
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Central CTPosts: 12,488
    Front drive turbo v6? I hope you wore your seat belt. :)
    2017 Ford Fusion SE 2017 Ford F-150 Limited
  • berriberri Posts: 8,456
    Once they got the initial kinks out, I thought the Citation was a nicer car than competitive K cars or Tempo and Topaz. More comfortable ride.
  • berriberri Posts: 8,456
    This evening at the gas station I saw a rather pristine 80's Mark VII LSC. It was a white coupe , yet it still looked rather classy to me.
  • oldbearcatoldbearcat WVPosts: 197
    Sure did. The driver punched that beast in our plant parking lot, and, about threw me in the back seat. My son once owned a Citation X-11, and, it didn't have anywhere near the get up and go the test mule did.

    Regards:
    Oldbearcat
  • dieselonedieselone Posts: 5,727
    This evening at the gas station I saw a rather pristine 80's Mark VII LSC. It was a white coupe , yet it still looked rather classy to me.

    That's probably the last Lincoln I've liked. I always thought those were pretty cool in their day. A bit of class and attitude.
  • andre1969andre1969 Posts: 23,148
    Once they got the initial kinks out, I thought the Citation was a nicer car than competitive K cars or Tempo and Topaz. More comfortable ride.

    I agree. They definitely felt roomier inside. I think the K-cars were a bit wider inside (but had paper-thin doors), but the X-bodies had better legroom, while still being wide enough.

    Now, I always thought the Citation looked pretty cheap inside, at least in base form...much more plasticky than a Reliant or Aries. But, the Phoenix, Omega, and Skylark versions, when equipped the right way, could be downright luxurious inside.

    I developed a new-found respect for the K-car though, when I drove my cousin's Dodge 600 one day. Okay, technically, it was an E-car, but it was still the K with a 3 inch stretch in wheelbase. It seemed roomy and comfy enough, and a good alternative to the Chevy Celebrity, Ford LTD, or even the Taurus. However, I didn't like the fact that they were depending on turbo 4's for added power, instead of a good old fashioned V-6. But, my cousin's 600 was a turbo, and decently quick for the time.

    The Tempo and Topaz never seemed like much more than cheap, basic transportation to me.
  • hpmctorquehpmctorque Posts: 4,600
    I think explorerx4 may have been referring to torque steer even more than acceleration. It must have been wild in a FWD car with that much torque, at a time when they hadn't yet mastered the art of controlling FWD torque steer.

    The Buick GN wasn't afflicted with torque steer, of course, since it was RWD.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Posts: 72,587
    The Gentleman's Mustang. I liked 'em too.

    But I also liked the early LS, which even came with a manual.
  • hpmctorquehpmctorque Posts: 4,600
    You made several good points in your comparisons, but didn't that Mopar Turbo 4 have reliability and durability issues?
  • ateixeiraateixeira Posts: 72,587
    I think so.

    I bought an Escort GT and my buddy had a Shadow ES (turbo) at the same time.

    His car was slightly quicker, but by the time I got rid of the Escort he wanted to buy it and ditch his Dodge.
  • andre1969andre1969 Posts: 23,148
    edited January 2013
    didn't that Mopar Turbo 4 have reliability and durability issues?

    Yeah, it did, although sometimes I wonder how much of that could have been from abuse or neglect? My uncle bought a used '88 LeBaron turbo in 1990, and in 1995 sold it to me when I was married. I let the ex have it in the divorce in 1996, and by early 1998 it was total junk.

    However, it was fairly reliable to about 90,000 miles. That was when we had the timing belt replaced (should have been done at 60K...oops!) and the crankshaft and camshaft seals done. It was soon after that repair that we separated. Anyway, the car got stolen and joy-ridden a few times, and impounded a couple times as well. And, the ex didn't have the money to really take care of it, so it started getting really troublesome after we split.

    At the 118,000 mile mark, it was essentially "done". It had blown a head gasket, and had a warped head. My ex and her mother found somebody to put on a new gasket and a used head for $750, but it didn't run right after that. I talked her into letting me take it to my mechanic, and he got it running a lot better for $75...turns out there were a lot of loose/misdirected wires and vacuum hoses, as a result of the head swap. But, he also did a thorough checkover on the car and said don't put another dime into it. The turbo was shot, compression was really low in two cylinders, and a bit off in the other two. By that time the a/c compressor was also shot, the power antenna had broken off, and it had a slow leak in the transmission.

    She drove it maybe another month or so, and then it started belching sweet, white, antifreeze-laced smoke out the exhaust again. I gave her 90 bucks for it, limped it to my grandmother's house, and ultimately sold it for parts. I pulled the radio out of it, thinking I could get it to work in the '79 Newport I had at the time. It would physically fit, but the wiring was all different, so I gave up. I still have that radio, packed away somewhere.

    One last thing to add...I'm sure they made running improvements to the turbo 4 over the years. So the one in my '88 LeBaron was probably more durable than the earlier models.
  • lemkolemko Philadelphia, PAPosts: 15,297
    ...very ratty white 1972 Mustang hardtop with a tattered black vinyl top on the corner of Ripley and Tabor in NE Philly. Looks like the guys there bought another project they'll never finish.
  • fintailfintail Posts: 44,661
    My uncle had a Chrysler "E-class" when I was a kid - maybe the least common K-car variant. I forget what year it was, maybe an 85 or so. It was light yellow with kind of a tan interior, odd colors. It seemed nice, but I remember little else about it other than the plastic/lucite style hood ornament. Oh, and the rear badging was kind of MB-like.

    My brother's first car was an 85 Aries sedan (this was maybe 1998), same colors as that E-class. I drove it once, and that was enough :shades: The old Tempo was still hanging around the family then, and to me, it seemed like a lot newer and more solid than that Aries.
  • tjc78tjc78 JerseyPosts: 6,960
    My uncle had a Chrysler "E-class

    We've probably talked about this before but my Step dad had one too. An 83, white/blue and the Mitsu 2.6. It was a plush little car and it talked to you! I've seen only a few other than his.

    2017 Buick Enclave / 2017 Hyundai Elantra

  • fintailfintail Posts: 44,661
    Chrysler had some fancy interiors then, I remember the button tufted leather in the period small and large NYers. I don't recall my uncle's car talking, maybe it had a digital dash - those were big then too. I can't remember the last time I saw one, although I want to say I have seen a Plymouth Caravelle relatively recently.
  • oldbearcatoldbearcat WVPosts: 197
    I agree with you there. I once souped up a 1980 Ford Fiesta with FWD to the point where I once broke one of the front driveshafts trying to launch it hard. With the increased power, the torque steer became ferocious on that thing.

    Regards:
    Oldbearcat
  • berriberri Posts: 8,456
    I always thought the Chrysler GTS 4 dr fastback was a nice looking vehicle. I actually test drove one, but it was too stiff for me. I had a Dodge Dynasty several times as a rental, but that car seemed too loose and sloppy to me.
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