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

uplanderguy · March 2020

I know this group is a number of different ages and tastes, but let's list what 1976 cars we'd like to own (if any). No reasons required.

uplanderguy · March 2020

Gotta say ab348, I like that Firebird's interior. I was a big fan, then and now, of GM's white vinyl interiors with contrasting instrument panels, carpets and seat belts.

uplanderguy · March 2020

'76--for me, probably that blue Cosworth Vega most. Then, probably a Monte Carlo with Rally Wheels and the Custom (corduroy) interior with recliner on the passenger side. Then, probably a Monza 2+2 305 with automatic. Then a Buick Century fastback coupe with the big triangle quarter window, Buick road wheels, wheel opening moldings, and notchback front seat with center armrest. And probably a "Seville by Cadillac", now that I think about it.

kyfdx · March 2020

andre1969 said:

kyfdx said:
Read 'em and weep, all you foreign-is-better nuts,

Where do they think Cosworth engines originate?
Just curious, did the whole engine come from the UK, or just the head? According to Wikipedia, GM designed the engine, and Cosworth Engineering did the head. I wonder which part was more troublesome...the block or the head?

I think @uplanderguy answered that, here:
https://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/comment/5876540/#Comment_5876540

fintail · March 2020

A few i like from that year:

Price no object? I suppose a Corniche, another guilty pleasure:

The 2+2 Pininfarina Ferraris were new then, polarizing style but I like them:

The Ferrari Boxers were also new then, always liked these:

Probably terrible to live with, but actually from 1976:

A lot of Euros would need to be grey market, much easier then. For MB I've heard the gassers can be finicky, and I know the diesels are slow, but they should be durable. Any of them sorted out would be a good car, maybe get a Euro, federalize it, then accidentally remove the emissions controls

For Japan, this Mazda Cosmo was sold here for a short time, always liked that weird pillar trim:

For domestics, maybe a nice Seville?

I also like Mustang II fastbacks, might as well get all the bric a brac:

Could be fun to cruise around in:

tjc78 · March 2020

I wouldn’t throw this out of the driveway if I had to have a ‘76

https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/cars-for-sale/buick/electra-225/2361410.html#&gid=1&pid=35

Michaell · March 2020

This wouldn't be too bad:

https://images.app.goo.gl/zYVASevrzL92QPvg9

fintail · March 2020

6.9s were in production in 76, but not sold in the US officially until MY 1977. However, that was the era of simple grey market imports, so if you had the money, you could bring one in. IIRC they cost around 50K then, and will do ~150 mph, a big number for a big barge at the time.

omarman · March 2020

About 4 years ago I clicked on a seller's ad for this 1976 PONTIAC FIREBIRD FORMULA 400 VIN: 2U87Z6N605913 was for sale at $9000. Normally it's not easy for me to like green, but this Formula Firebird looked really clean and well kept. Apparently sold long time ago.

Another 1976 Pontiac I always liked was the Grand Prix. Last year for the 455/200hp V8.

A friend in HS bought a new !976 Feather Duster - his first new car. He had buyer's remorse right away. Everybody else was buying V8 muscle and turned out that's really what he wanted too. He put it the Duster up for sale at $2,700 before graduation. Couple years later with the next gas crunch he may have wished he kept it.

I was driving a '71 Mustang in 1976. Little did I know that '76 would be my last chance to buy a brand new version of my driver's ed car: Ford Elite.

tjc78 · March 2020

My dad had a Grand Prix like the one above, in a similar (maybe the same) green as the Firebird.

fintail · March 2020

I like that style Grand Prix, makes me think of Carrie Fisher in Blues Brothers.

Kind of a fun game with this extra time to think about it. Other years could be good too, maybe 1966 or 1986? Loads of good choices for either.

roadburner · March 2020

1966?
Tri Power GTO
GT350
2000CS
275 GTB
E-Type Series 1 FHC
Miura P400

1986?
635CSi
M635CSi(Gray Market)
900 Turbo 16 S
Countach
Camaro IROC Z28
Mark VII LSC
Mustang LX 5.0 Coupe

fintail · March 2020

So many good choices in either year - in 1966 the big 3 all had some appealing cars.

For MBs, a 230SL or 300SE are top notch rides, and you could still get fintails then even though the design was passe. I'd pick a 230S.

1986, anything in the MB range would be a fine car, that was when the brand was perhaps at its relative peak. I suppose a blue 560 SEC or an AMG car would be as good as it gets.

stickguy · March 2020

76? I like that Mustang II up above. A cos Vega. Trans Am 4 speed. 340 (or by then 360) Duster. Chevy short bed 4x4 step side pickup. Z28. Datsun 280z

in the fantasy area, Porsche 911 Turbo.

xwesx · March 2020

I don't have many likes from 76. I could go for a Ford F250 Highboy with a 390 and NP205 transfer case. BMW 2002. I have always had a soft spot for the Trans Am, but I have a feeling I would have less fun actually owning one then just remembering them fondly. I like the look of the LeMans, but I've never had any in-person experience with them. Pontiac styling was actually pretty decent in those years, though.

bhill2 · March 2020

Let's face it. 1976 was not a great year for performance. We were deep in the territory of land yachts and bling. I want to embrace it. Give me a a Cadillac Fleetwood Talisman and let me be 'oozing down the street' in unparalleled luxury.

andre1969 · March 2020

tjc78 said:
I wouldn’t throw this out of the driveway if I had to have a ‘76

https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/cars-for-sale/buick/electra-225/2361410.html#&gid=1&pid=35

That Electra is nice. I think among full-sized cars that year, the Electra would be one of my top choices. They had a smooth, tasteful look to them...not as conservative as an Olds, but not as attention-grabbing as a Cadillac. This is one of those instances though, where I think the 4-door version would be nicer. It was still a true hardtop. One other detail I didn't like about these fixed-pillar coupes, is how the beltline, or what semblance there is of one, doesn't line up at the B-pillar. I think if the bottom of the rear quarter window was lower, or at least the lower edge of the vinyl padding, it would blend together a bit better. But, who knows, maybe that would make the rear window/landau roof treatment look too bulky?

GM's '73-77 Colonade intermediates got around that issue by making the rear edge of the front doors kick up a bit. I don't know if that trick would have worked on a '75-76 Electra though, as these were less curvy and more straight-rigged.

tjc78 · March 2020

66
Continental Convertible
Fleetwood Brougham
Mustang GT350
GTO Convertible
Toronado

86
Grand National
Mark VII LSC
Dodge Shelby Charger
Trans Am GTA
Town Car Cartier
Mercedes 560 SEL
300 ZX Turbo

ab348 · March 2020

I tried to start this exact conversation over in Chronic Car Buyers last week as a way to pass time since nobody is buying cars, but that was the wrong forum apparently. I thought a good place to start was with the 1964 model year, which strikes me as a challenging year to make a selection - GM, Ford and Chrysler all came out with all-new models for '65, and the Mustang wasn't introduced until partway through the model year so that would be off the table if you were buying a new car in the first half of the '64 model year. Many if not most '64 models still have engineering going well back into the 1950s. What would be an available choice that could hold its own once the new '65 models were introduced?

uplanderguy · March 2020

You know me--I'd have most-definitely bought a series of 1964 Studebakers--Gran Turismo Hawk with blower and disc brakes, Daytona Hardtop with blower and disc brakes, Avanti with blower and disc brakes, Champ pickup with sliding rear window, and big Diesel truck. Most of the cars would have the Powershift (PRND21) transmission. I really don't care in general for Big Three cars of that year, even growing up Chevy.

'65 is a different story!

Love the Impala, love the Bonneville and Grand Prix! And the all-new Corvair, with waaayyy-upgraded suspension and styling.

Studebaker was mostly out of the U.S. market after mid-year '64, but even though, they did long-hood/short-deck when most of the Big Three was still doing the opposite.

uplanderguy · March 2020

1986 is my personal 'malaise' era. For cars I'd actually consider buying, it'd only be a Monte Carlo LS with the checkerboard wheels, like this one (ignore that the line says "Willys Jeep"):

https://classiccars.com/listings/view/998185/1949-willys-jeepster-for-sale-in-canton-ohio-44702

I remember hearing about the center high-mounted stop light coming for '86, which at the time struck me as ugly-ugly-ugly. One reason I made sure to order my car near the end of the '85 ordering period. Now, of course, I do think it does make you much-more visible. But I detested on cars like the Camaro, Firebird, and Corvette, the light was on top of the rear window, outside.

stickguy · March 2020

tjc78 said:
66
Continental Convertible
Fleetwood Brougham
Mustang GT350
GTO Convertible
Toronado

86
Grand National
Mark VII LSC
Dodge Shelby Charger
Trans Am GTA
Town Car Cartier
Mercedes 560 SEL
300 ZX Turbo

I like a few of your 86 choices. Might not surprise you, I would take the Lincolns off the list! And add a Celica (Supra or GTS) - the outgoing style. I was never a big fan of the more bulbous 1986+ redesign Supra. Throw a GTI in there too.

can I cheat a little and pick the 323 GTX? Was in Europe for 1986, but did not come to the US until 1988!

oh, there was also a 626 Turbo. I test drove one of those in that time frame. Just a bit pricey. red over red, I loved it.

tjc78 · March 2020

I’m all over the board with my lists but that’s no different than today.

uplanderguy · March 2020

For '66, much-easier for me to pick cars I'd have actually bought. I own a '66 Studebaker Cruiser already.

First and foremost for me would be a '66 Corvair Corsa coupe, "Poor Man's Porsche" as some have called them:

http://www.oldcarmanualproject.com/brochures/Chev/1966/Corvair/1966CorvairBrochure/Corvair66_03.html

Then, a couple barges, not typically my type but to me the last of the truly great Imperials and the last of the truly great Cadillacs:

https://www.hemmings.com/blog/2018/11/07/hemmings-find-of-the-day-1966-imperial-lebaron/

For Cadillac, for me, it's the Fleetwood Brougham, or Eldorado convertible. Truly magnificent seating, real wood, instrument panel before everything had to be safety-padded most everywhere, etc.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/leftcoastclassics/2755546318

Probably lastly, I'd think seriously about buying a '66 Pontiac Star Chief Executive two-door hardtop, because it's so-rarely-seen in a field of Catalinas, Bonnevilles, and Grand Prixs, and it's the last of a line of Pontiacs with the "Star Chief" name. I'd be specific about colors and I'd have to have whatever they called their top-of-the-line wheelcovers that year.

stickguy · March 2020

I always have liked the later redesigned Corvair. Handsome car

sda · March 2020

I agree, 64 is pretty much a year of last year models. I like fully optioned cars w/ac.

Olds 442 convertible, 4sp...actually a new model, dark metallic blue, white interior
Imperial Crown Coupe, black, red leather.
Ford Galaxie XL 500 fastback. Red on red.
Nova SS convertible, 327, white, blue int
Sedan de Ville, w/new Turbo-hydramatic, Turquoise, turquoise leather

andre1969 · March 2020

I agree...'64 is kind of an odd year. There's a lot that I like from that year, but nothing that really grabs me. With GM cars, style-wise I think the Buick and Olds appeal to me the most. Normally, I do tend to go for Pontiacs, but there's just something a little too "flat-faced" about the '64. I much prefer the '63 and the '65, where the stacked headlights had more of a forward thrust to them. The '64 Chevy's not bad, but I just prefer the '62, of that 3-year style. With their midsized cars, think I like the Tempest line the best.

On the Mopar front, the compacts were too weirdly styled for my tastes. The midsized cars were a bit better. But strangely, while I find the weirdness of the '62 Dodge to be appealing, it's like the more mainstream they tried to make it, the less I liked it. I don't think the '63 or '64 models are as cool. The '64 Fury isn't bad looking in my opinion, although it makes me think of a '63 Impala shrunk to midsized dimensions, and redesigned by Ford. I never really cared for the '63-64 Chryslers, but actually have a bit of a soft spot for the Dodge 880.

With the Fords, I think the full-sized '64 Ford lineup is pretty cool. The Fairlane is okay. But with both the mid and full sized cars, I liked the '63 versions better.

I remember an issue of Consumer Reports from 1965, that was griping about how initial build quality was way down in 1965, across the board, compared to 1964. That might have been a symptom of it being a high volume year though, and the cars getting slapped together more quickly.

uplanderguy · March 2020

I've long-been interested in the JFK assassination for the mysteries involved, and also that I have faint memories of it at the time and it was the biggest international single story in my lifetime up until 9/11. It's amazing to me how many things in the U.S. seemed to change shortly after that--Studebaker in the U.S. closed down just a few weeks later after 111 years in South Bend (it's been said the Board in NYC took advantage of this timing when attention was down), the Beatles came in Feb., the Mustang came out in April, '65 car styling was dramatically different across-the-board (although I realize this would have begun a couple years beforehand), clothing and hairstyles changed, etc.

In my mind, from, say, 1964 to 1965, there is a real dividing line in U.S. culture, period.

uplanderguy · March 2020

RE.: JFK assassination--for all the books I've read about it over the years, I'm convinced Oswald did it and had that fateful, one lucky shot (for him). I don't doubt there were others interested in doing away with JFK who Oswald might have known, but every single action he took after the shooting is typical of someone fleeing. I follow a page on FB about it, and some of the comments there are astonishing. You know, armchair experts, exhausting. The dumbest claim is that the limo driver did the shooting. Hello, watch the Zapruder film!

Has anybody here been to Dealey Plaza? If there were more than one gunman, I can't think of where'd be a better place for that to have happened. I remember a fence that came up to my neck, and trees that hung down from the top, for about a half a block at the top of the Grassy Knoll.

I'd like to get back, as the Sixth Floor Museum is very cool and respectful IMHO. Wife wants to go see the Chip and Joanna Gaines' thingy "Magnolia" in nearby Waco I think it is...if she does that, I'll be at Dealey Plaza again for the first time in about 25 years.

uplanderguy · March 2020

Nova SS convertible, 327, white, blue int

No such thing built by the factory. Chevy II's didn't get a V8 until '64, but it was the 283.

You could get the 327 in '65, but the convertible was gone.

sda · March 2020

uplanderguy said:
Nova SS convertible, 327, white, blue int

No such thing built by the factory. Chevy II's didn't get a V8 until '64, but it was the 283.

You could get the 327 in '65, but the convertible was gone.

My bad, I should have looked it up. The 283 would have been fine.

ab348 · March 2020

sda said:
I agree, 64 is pretty much a year of last year models. I like fully optioned cars w/ac.

Olds 442 convertible, 4sp...actually a new model, dark metallic blue, white interior
Imperial Crown Coupe, black, red leather.
Ford Galaxie XL 500 fastback. Red on red.
Nova SS convertible, 327, white, blue int
Sedan de Ville, w/new Turbo-hydramatic, Turquoise, turquoise leather

You hit what I was thinking about. Among the full-sizers, my favorites that year were Ford and Mercury, unusual for me. GM's offerings were either unattractive (Chevy and Pontiac) or rather old-looking (Buick and Olds) in '64. But GM did introduce the A-bodies that year and some of those were very appealing. I'll take a GTO.

uplanderguy · March 2020

CORRECTION: So much for relying on memory, although I breathed, slept, ate, and died the Chevy brochures as a kid.

Chevy never made a V8 Chevy II convertible.

When Chevelle came out in '64, there was no longer a Chevy II convertible or two-door hardtop. The hardtop was reintroduced later in the '64 model year.

In '63, last year for Chevy II convert, nothing bigger than a six was offered...even in the SS model.

My in-laws got a new '62 Nova convertible as a wedding gift from the groom's parents. The father had selected a Bel Air sedan but they showed him a Nova convert wasn't more expensive, LOL. It was a robin's egg blue/turquoise color I've heard.

Of that first-style, there are subtle little things I like about the '65 Chevy II the best.

I have a Stude friend who wrenched on all makes in the sixties. He despises Chevy II's. He's one of those guys who always says "If you had it up on a rack and looked underneath you'd see what I'm talking about". He also says that about a '65 Impala versus a '64--he prefers the '64. I sure as hell don't, LOL!

uplanderguy · March 2020

ab mentions the '64 GTO. I like those too and they seem totally overshadowed by the '65-67 as far as media attention.

When I was a kid, a lady near my grandparents had the salmon-colored (I think Pontiac called it 'Sunfire Red') '64 GTO two-door post, with mag-looking wheelcovers--not sure if they were correct to the car or not. But that car always turned my head. I liked the subtle rear-end styling.

I guess another Pontiac I could like is the '64 Catalina 2+2 hardtop, in that same salmon color, white painted top, and their wheelcovers that mimicked chrome-reverse wheels. I don't like the Grand Prix that year, with the taillights moved out of the "boomerangs", and the Bonneville with its huge "space ship emblem" ahead of the front wheels.

andre1969 · March 2020

Wow, I had never really paid that much attention...I never realized that the Chevy II was such an early adopter in dropping convertibles. Or that the hardtop coupe was dropped briefly. I guess I just figured that the convertible version hung on through '67, like the hardtop, and then were dropped to make more room for the Camaro.

I always liked the '62-67 Chevy II, in general. From a functional standpoint I prefer the Valiant and Dart/Lancer, as they had more legroom and earlier adoption of 3-speed automatics. But, I thought the Chevy II was much more stylish.

sda · March 2020

Yep, that’s the danger from relying on memory. Blew that one. When I was in high school a friend bought a well used 63 Chevy II sedan. I don’t recall what 6 it had. The power glide would shift to 2nd under full throttle around 45 and it was none too quick. It did ride well. He didn’t drive it long as the frame around the rear axle cracked and that was that. This was around 77-78. I just looked it up in the Old Car Brochures site. It was the Chevy II 300 with the 194 six. It had a 25.5 Cu ft trunk! That’s larger than most large cars, then and now.

omarman · March 2020

I don't have many likes from 76. I could go for a Ford F250 Highboy with a 390 and NP205 transfer case.

I don't think that Ford ever put a 390 FE block in the Highboy with NP205. The 360 FE was the biggest engine available for any 4x4 F series pickup until 1977.

I believe 1977 was the last year for the Highboy and Ford offered the 351M/400 V8 engines that year to replace the aging FE block engines.

But if including trucks on the "cars I like from 1976" then I'll add the '76 Bronco to my list.
Ranger package and first color choice would be chrome yellow! Or second choice mecca gold.

xwesx · March 2020

omarman said:
I don't have many likes from 76. I could go for a Ford F250 Highboy with a 390 and NP205 transfer case.

I don't think that Ford ever put a 390 FE block in the Highboy with NP205. The 360 FE was the biggest engine available for any 4x4 F series pickup until 1977.

I believe 1977 was the last year for the Highboy and Ford offered the 351M/400 V8 engines that year to replace the aging FE block engines.

But if including trucks on the "cars I like from 1976" then I'll add the '76 Bronco to my list.
Ranger package and first color choice would be chrome yellow! Or second choice mecca gold.

Hey, I didn't say I wanted it original.

jwm40517 · March 2020

Changing spark plugs on V-8 62-67 Chevy II's was a problem due the shock towers creating a very compact space. I spent most of a day the first time on my 66 327. After a few times and gathering the correct combination of sockets, extensions, and a sawed off open end wrench I could change a set in about 30 minutes.

roadburner · March 2020

omarman said:
I don't have many likes from 76. I could go for a Ford F250 Highboy with a 390 and NP205 transfer case.

I don't think that Ford ever put a 390 FE block in the Highboy with NP205. The 360 FE was the biggest engine available for any 4x4 F series pickup until 1977.

I believe 1977 was the last year for the Highboy and Ford offered the 351M/400 V8 engines that year to replace the aging FE block engines.

But if including trucks on the "cars I like from 1976" then I'll add the '76 Bronco to my list.
Ranger package and first color choice would be chrome yellow! Or second choice mecca gold.

I had a bright yellow 1973 Bronco V8- I inherited it from my father. I absolutely hated it. My TJ is 100% better in any performance category you want to name.

uplanderguy · March 2020

I sort-of liked Scouts better than concurrent Jeeps or Broncos. I know that they are considered rust buckets though.

benjaminh · March 2020

If it's a valid choice, I'd pick two cars from 1964/65. For luxury I might go for a Buick Electra, and for having fun while driving a BMW 1800 if that was available in North America....

roadburner · March 2020

benjaminh said:
If it's a valid choice, I'd pick two cars from 1964/65. For luxury I might go for a Buick Electra, and for having fun while driving a BMW 1800 if that was available in North America....

You definitely want an 1800 TI/SA; they are a four star hoot. I can't think of a 1964 domestic I'd want- maybe another Goat.

fintail · March 2020

One cool thing about olden times, especially as far back as 1964, is that if it wasn't offered here, you could pretty much just bring it over yourself.

1964 had 7 different fintails in the lineup, IIRC. The biggest change from MY 1964 to 65 for MB was the change from wide whitewalls to narrow whitewalls on US spec cars. For something that would stand the test of time, one might pick a W111/112 coupe/cabrio or a W113 SL - both of these styles were made until MY 1971, and are both regarded as timeless. 1964 models pictured:

benjaminh · March 2020

I wonder how much a fintail with a few options would sticker for back in 64/65? I think I might rather have that as a luxury/sport option over the Electra. Although for luxury an Olds 98 is also a possibility....

fintail · March 2020

The lower line 4cyl fintails were around 4K, IIRC. 220 series 6cyl models were in the 5K range. The big 300SE fintails, top of the line, were maybe 8-10K. SLs started around 8K I think, coupes and cabrios closer to 10K, and a 300SE coupe/cabrio maybe around 12K.

For fintails, the factory options list was small - automatic was probably the most significant feature. Power accessories weren't available. AC was dealer installed, along with radio.

benjaminh said:
I wonder how much a fintail with a few options would sticker for back in 64/65? I think I might rather have that as a luxury/sport option over the Electra. Although for luxury an Olds 98 is also a possibility....

uplanderguy · March 2020

Two '64 Electra 225 six-window (pillared) sedans were used in my favorite movie, "Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte" (Bette Davis, Agnes Moorehead, Bruce Dern, Olivia deHavilland, Joseph Cotten). Perfect for the scenes IMHO. Yes, that's "Melanie" from "Gone With The Wind" acting like this!

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

benjaminh · March 2020

How are the manuals to shift? Anyway, I think I'd go for a 220 6 cylinder. Maybe something like this one? This looks like a more expensive car though, but since price isn't an issue at the moment....

omarman · March 2020

1964 car shopping:

I think these shipped to Shelby with silver painted wire wheels in 1964 but all I can find today are pics with chrome wires. But still sells today for crazy money sitting on any wheels - or none at all!

fintail · March 2020

All 4 on the tree, no floor shift fintails until late 1965 I think. If that's your kind of thing, I haven't heard they are bad to drive. The automatics are solid, if not a little harsh compared to American models. Fintails had MB's first in-house automatic.

A 220S (dual carb) might have been just shy of 5K base, add maybe 500 for an SE (fuel injected). No external differences save for the trunklid model badge. The FI systems are pretty solid (my car is an SE), I'd have paid the extra for better driveability and performance.

benjaminh said:
How are the manuals to shift? Anyway, I think I'd go for a 220 6 cylinder. Maybe something like this one? This looks like a more expensive car though, but since price isn't an issue at the moment....

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

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles