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

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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    I've kept a pretty good record of the Ram's fuel economy and such from the day I bought it. Last time I filled up, it was at 55,243 miles, and my average economy at that point has been 15.29. It was rated at 14/20 on the window sticker. I can break 20 mpg on a good highway run pretty easily. There have also been times though, where I've gotten as bad as 12-13 mpg on a tank, especially in the winter time. It's also spent much of its life as a second vehicle. And from 2012-2018, my commute to work was only around 2.5 miles. When I moved in 2018, the commute did stretch to about 18 miles, but by then I was mainly using my Dad's '03 Regal. And now, for the past 11 months, my "commute" to work involves rotating the chair I'm currently sitting in about 90 degrees, so that I'm facing the work computer instead of my home computer :p So, needless to say, the Ram isn't getting driven much.

    I have a feeling that if it lived a more "normal" life, its economy would be better. It does show though, how far vehicles have come, with regards to fuel economy and performance advancements.
  • sdasda Member Posts: 6,936
    edited February 2021
    My first car bought in 77 was a 62 Galaxie, 3 on the tree, manual steering, brakes, 292 V8. No rocket the 292. It would get 12-13 in general driving, 18-19 on the road, driving no faster than 60. The speed limit then was 55. If you valued your wallet you didn't speed in VA!

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    A friend sent me this from Hot Rod's blog of 2/15, because he knows I've always liked '62 Bel Air Sport Coupes ('bubbletops'), although I bemoan that it seems like every single one made has been converted to a 409 with dog-dish caps.

    This wins my award for biggest "fake news" ever seen from an automotive author.

    They're saying they had to use up 100 leftover 1961 Chevy bubbletop roofs.

    Guess they also had a bunch of leftover glass and hardware, and made special-for-'62 interior trim pieces specific to this roofline too. Sheesh. From my friend:

    (Now let me get this straight: According to these geniuses, fewer than 100 1962 Bel-Air Sport Coupes were made to "use up" "leftover" 1961 roofs. Is that stupid or what? My Standard Catalog of American Cars, 4th edition, says 1962 Chevrolet production figures are not broken down by series, only body style. They say 323,427 1962 full-size Chevrolet sport coupes were made, Impalas and Bel-Airs combined, and we are to believe that fewer than 100 of them were Bel-Airs? Talk about an urban legend...what morons...):

    https://www.hotrod.com/articles/bubble-love-1962-bel-air-better-resto/?wc_mid=4035:20827&wc_rid=4035:1076571&_wcsid=5F38EB4024F1A1746EB5C7420A94B3AB760D306D2D37CEEA
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  • sdasda Member Posts: 6,936
    I like and prefer keeping cars original as possible but beyond a point, they need to be repainted, redone in general. Nice looking interior in the Bel Air, paint please. Don't care for the color either, but would probably keep the original color to maintain history.

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  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 19,251
    1 of 2 Hemi 4 door post Coronet's.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JagfFhONxpY
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    edited February 2021
    My Consumer Guide auto encyclopedia doesn't break out individual body style production, but for 1962 they're showing 365,000 Bel Airs and 704,900 Impalas, total. Oh, and another 160,000 Biscaynes. And that didn't include wagon production...that was another 187,600 across all three series. So yeah, I'm sure there were more than 100 Bel Air bubble-tops built!

    I googled around, and found this interesting chat thread: https://www.chevytalk.org/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/24871/

    Of course, like most things on the internet, take it with a grain of salt. But someone mentioned that in the US, there were about 9600 Bel Air bubbletops built, and Canada had maybe another 12-15% of that figure. Supposedly 602 of them had the 409.

    I didn't realize they were that rare. But now that I think about it, I can't remember the last time I saw one.

    Also, if you do a google image search for "1962 Bel Air Bubble Top", an awful lot of pictures come up. And you have to scroll pretty far down the list, before incorrect matches start popping up. Many of the pictures are different shots of the same car, but I'm sure you could probably find more than 100 unique cars just doing an image search.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    ....and every one is a 409!

    A few years back, I remember seeing online a light green metallic six-cylinder Bel Air bubbletop for '62, full wheelcovers and whitewalls. I liked it for its honesty. :)

    But where do people come up with this stuff? I believe the author totally made it up for the story, sheesh.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    It is a shame that Chevy didn't offer that bubble-top as an option, at least through the end of the run of that design for '64. Although, with the '63-64 models a bit more crisp and angular in their style, it might not have worked as well. The '62 still had just enough curviness about it, I think, to look good with either roof.

    Now that I think about it, did the '63 Grand Prix and Starfire use the same roof? I know it's modified from the typical B-body hardtop coupe roof, and the Starfire has that little kick-forward in the rear window area at the base of the C-pillar. But, the rear window looks like it might be shared.
  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    andre1969 said:


    Now that I think about it, did the '63 Grand Prix and Starfire use the same roof? I know it's modified from the typical B-body hardtop coupe roof, and the Starfire has that little kick-forward in the rear window area at the base of the C-pillar. But, the rear window looks like it might be shared.

    They look like they could be the same stamping except, as you note, for the small area at the base of the C-pillar.

    Today, of course, GM would just put a black plastic triangle on the Olds in that spot and call it done. :s

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    I could tolerate the Bel Air's blander interior for that bubbletop in '62. At least it did have carpeting.

    I'd buy a 327 with Powerglide, whitewalls, wheelcovers, tinted glass with that big blue band, padded dash, day-night mirror, power steering and brakes, radio, floor mats, and rear-seat speaker. Not sure what color.

    I sincerely believe there are no such cars like that extant.
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  • roadburnerroadburner Member Posts: 17,312
    While picking up parts for our cars(during my misspent street racing youth in the late '70s) a friend of mine and I would drive past a house that had two bubbletops sitting in the side yard. One night that same friend and I decided we should check them out and buy them. We drove over the next day and they were gone- sold for scrap.

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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    edited February 2021

    I'd buy a 327 with Powerglide, whitewalls, wheelcovers, tinted glass with that big blue band, padded dash, day-night mirror, power steering and brakes, radio, floor mats, and rear-seat speaker. Not sure what color.

    Whenever I think of a '62 Chevy, for some reason I always picture it in a nice shade of blue, like this...


    I think this one might be called "Twilight Turquoise Poly." Another one that seemed really common, and nice, was simply "Silver Blue Poly."

    As for the low-rent interiors of the more basic trim levels, I don't mind the Bel Air, either. I think GM tended to do a pretty good job dressing up their cars in those days, so even a cheap car didn't have to be something to be ashamed of.

  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    From the 1962 brochure:

    image

    The interior seems quite acceptable but I wonder how much more it cost to move up to an Impala at the time. Of course you would be losing the '61 2-door roofline if you did, but presumably get more in the way of standard equipment.

    I remember reading a complaint from the general manager of Olds in the '60s saying that Chevy's interiors were too nice for the class they were supposed to be selling in, which was hurting the other GM brands.

    One of the things I did not like about the '62 was that hard, sharp-edged hood over the instrument cluster. I don't know if they offered a padded version of that (and the right side of the dash too) as an option. I've seen some current-day pics but am wondering if they are an aftermarket addition as I don't recall ever seeing one in earlier years.

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    edited February 2021
    I think padded dash was optional. I like the instrument panel with the center glovebox. I'd have to have the bubbletop for '62 as for a Chevy, they are certainly unusual. I love the pic andre posted, with the wheelcovers and whitewalls. I see it's a 409. I'm not joking when I say I think virtually every one out there, no matter what engine it came with, has been converted by now to a 409 as for some reason people love the combo of rare bubbletop and 409. I guess it's not hard to understand.

    Growing up Chevy, and looking back, I think Chevy was great about putting its money where the customer could see it. Impala interiors were, to my eyes, often plusher than Catalina/88/LeSabres, particularly in seating and interior door panels and armrests, although Chevy's instrument panels were oftentimes plainer (but not always). An Impala sometimes had exterior moldings standard that cost extra on a Catalina or LeSabre. But then, they used small V8s in their big cars and Powerglide, for way too long IMHO, I guess to keep the price down. But of course John Q. Customer doesn't SEE the Powerglide or 307, but they see that nice Impala interior! LOL Sometimes the Caprice interiors were too frilly for me (e.g., panty cloth) and I actually prefer an Impala.

    Even the Bel Air's seating into the early '70's was to me comparable to a Catalina, but of course the Pontiac had a much nicer instrument panel.

    As I'm older I appreciate lower-production numbers in general, more, but really, very few GM products could be called low-production, LOL. I'm not talking particular engines or COPO cars; just models in general. So I probably wouldn't be compelled to choose a Pontiac, Olds, or Buick over a similar Chevy due to exclusivity or rarity, if I really didn't think it looked nicer. Of course, some I do think look nicer!

    That said, a '62 Bel Air bubbletop strikes me as rare to see today, compared to an Impala Sport Coupe.
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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    andre, I would be ECSTATIC to own a '62 Bel Air Sport Coupe just like the one you pictured, particularly if it were a 327. That way it'd still have the flags on the front fenders, LOL.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    In '62, the Bel Air hardtop coupe started at $2561 for a 6-cyl, $2668 for the V8. In contrast, the Impala was $2669 for the 6-cyl, $2776 for the V8. So, the Impala was about $108 more.

    Over at the competition, Ford's cheapest big hardtop was the Galaxie 500 Victoria, at $2674. This book doesn't break out 6/V8 statistics for Ford that year, like it did for Chevy, so they just printed the 6-cyl price. They also list a Galaxie 500 XL Victoria at $2268, but that's obviously a typo. Judging by the price differential between the 500 and the 500 XL in convertibles, I'd guess it was really $3268. I think the XL was Ford's response to the Chevy SS, just with the difference being it was a separate series for Ford, but an option package for Chevy, so maybe that's why Chevy didn't break out production figures?

    That $108 difference is probably around $900 these days, adjusting for inflation, so that probably wasn't a huge deal for this type of car buyer. And, when you figure all the extra-cost stuff in those days, like a radio, heater, automatic, power steering/brakes, and so on, that $108 was a pretty small portion of the overall price of the car.

    I wonder too, if buyers at the time thought that bubbletop roof was looking old fashioned? Looking at it through modern eyes, I think it looks great. But, at the same time, it doesn't look that different from the roofline of a '57 Ford or Plymouth, so some buyers at the time might have thought it was a step back, style wise.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    The '62 is still a big car, but I love what to me are the clean lines and airy roofline of the bubbletop.

    I hate losing the third light on each side in the back though, LOL.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    On my way home from the dentist the other day, I saw something that made me think of you, Uplander...




    I wanted to try and get in front of it, and sort of score a picture of it through the side view mirror, but traffic didn't cooperate. I haven't seen a Chevy Uplander, or any of its siblings, in ages now, so it was kinda cool to see one that looked like it had been well taken care of. Judging from the plastic wheelcovers, it looks like it was a low end model, too, the type of vehicle I'd expect to end up as rental fleet fodder, or just used up and discarded, in some other fashion.

  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    edited February 2021
    When I bought our '05, it had the aluminum wheels and I think, bigger tires. I thought it looked a tad sportier with those than other minivans. The front end redesign was good I thought. The view from the rear just totally gave away its Venture origins I think--the worst angle. We'd had two Ventures before it. I will say the Uplander rode worse than the Venture, despite bigger wheels and tires. I think some of that is the body was stiffened for safety purposes. We had ours for just under 100K miles. It took about a $6K hit when it was a year old (kid pulled into the side of my wife) and I always cringed at a car after that. Ours was maroon metallic with saddle interior. Big mistake--unlike our two previous Ventures, we didn't get the center-row captain's chairs. What we had were like two jump seats with no armrests on either side. If you didn't have a belt on, you'd fall out of them on a corner.
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  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    When did the Venture become the Uplander?

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  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027

    ....and every one is a 409!

    Every one I see pictures of these days seems to be the same car. Red, dog dish hubcaps, and a 409.

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    '05 was the first Uplander. That's what ours was. In 2006, the aluminum wheels all of a sudden had a six-bolt pattern instead of five, which I'll assume was due to some problem with the '05 but I never figured that out.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    In 2006 they started offering the 3.9 on the Uplander, according to Wikipedia at least. Could that have had any bearing on the bolt pattern? I wouldn't think so, but you never know.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    Maybe. I'm foggy on that. But then of course it wasn't a vehicle I was particularly excited about, LOL.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    Here's an auction for a '78 Cutlass Salon 4-door that recently ended.
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/1978-Oldsmobile-Cutlass-/284174171564

    As much as I'm don't like the Aerobacks, for some reason, I find myself liking this one, a lot. Maybe because it looks like it's in nice shape, except for that B-pillar interior trim. It's an attractive color, and looks very well equipped. It would be really cool if it had the color-keyed Rally wheels. And while a 305 would have been more desireable, at least the 260 was durable enough.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    edited February 2021
    I'd like it a lot more as a coupe, obviously, but somebody had sent me this ad several days ago and it's a great color and nicely-equipped car for sure, and it seems like it was bought well. I wonder who if anyone could repair the broken cable to the LR vent window?

    I read not long ago that although the 260 is slow, it's a reliable engine. In a hobby car I could live with 'slow'.

    I'm far-more intrigued with this car (bad pun) than the same-year Cutlass Supreme, as an example. These aeros are almost never seen.
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  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,092
    That's only about 30 miles from me. Are those stock wire wheel covers? Pretty loaded car.

    I remember around 1990, when my dad bought the 60 Ford, he needed a piece of red carpet for it, and in the local junkyard there was a red Aeroback just like that, in pretty decent shape (I think it was wrecked). He bought the carpet out of it.
    andre1969 said:

    Here's an auction for a '78 Cutlass Salon 4-door that recently ended.
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/1978-Oldsmobile-Cutlass-/284174171564

    As much as I'm don't like the Aerobacks, for some reason, I find myself liking this one, a lot. Maybe because it looks like it's in nice shape, except for that B-pillar interior trim. It's an attractive color, and looks very well equipped. It would be really cool if it had the color-keyed Rally wheels. And while a 305 would have been more desireable, at least the 260 was durable enough.

  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    edited February 2021
    Funny thing on that B-pillar trim - when I bought my '78 Delta in 1997 it's B-pillar (also in red) had the same kind of cracking and breakage as that one. I guess GM cheaped out on that part. I found one in a junkyard back then and replaced it, but good luck finding one now. I imagine a junkyard would also be where you'd need to look for that vent cable, which might be even tougher to snag nowadays. At least with it coming out of Idaho it shouldn't be too rusty underneath.

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    edited February 2021
    I think (believe) those wire caps are factory for the car.

    Tiny thing, but I don't remember the "Cutlass Salon" nameplates inside of the rear door panels like this one has. That seems odd, but not a deal breaker.

    UPDATE: The silver car andre posted previously has those nameplates in the same spot as well, so they must be factory.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    I tried to look at the sales brochure, but the way they had the interior shots staged, you couldn't see the recessed areas of the rear doors. I do remember though, that Olds used to be criticized for being a bit too proud of their cars, and slathering their names and logos pretty generously all over the cars.

    On Collectible Automobile's facebook page, they'll occasionally do these "Ten slowest cars of 19XX" articles, showing cars that Consumer Guide had tested, and I've seen Cutlasses with the 260 pop up on occasion, with a 0-60 time of around 18 seconds. I think it was a sedan in '81, and a coupe in '82. I know they were slow, but I have trouble believing they were THAT slow!

    But, then again, I think a 2.29:1 axle was standard on the 260, so geared like that, it wouldn't be all that fast even if it was a more powerful engine. A friend of mine had an '82 Cutlass Supreme sedan with a 260. This was in the late 90's, around the same time as I had my '86 Monte Carlo, with a 305. His car was obviously slower than mine, but in those young-and-dumb days, we drag raced one night out on US 301. While he couldn't keep up with me, he still did better than I thought he would.

    I have a feeling the 260 would be horrible, compared to the modern, faster cars we've all become accustomed to over the years. So as a daily driver it might be annoying if you had to do a lot of highway merging with short on ramps. But, as an offbeat collector car, I think I could live with it.
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,132
    The 260 in my 80 Cutlass was geared with a long rear end. Much too weak. And the 3-speed automatic didn't have low enough gearing in lower gears to help.

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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    Good LORD these things are getting expensive!
    1958 DeSoto Firesweep convertible on Barnfinds.com

    I think I might have seen this car at the Mopar show in Carlisle PA last summer. The ad says the car is in Lancaster (or "Lank-ister" as they say in those parts :p ) which isn't far from Carlisle. Here's a pic I took of it...



    The two-toning in my pic looks more like a deep red, where it looks more pinkish in the Barnfinds (and eBay) pics. But that could just be lighting, camera quality, etc. I'm guessing it's the same car. Heck, the ad says there's only 12 left, so how many of them would have those wire wheels, and that particular two-toning?

  • sdasda Member Posts: 6,936
    edited February 2021
    “Lank-ister” is how the locals pronounce the county where I live and largest town in the county of the same name, Lancaster, SC. Much debate too, that Andrew Jackson was born here. There is the Andrew Jackson park about 10 miles south but east a couple of miles is Waxhaw, NC, named after the Waxhaw Indians. Waxhaw also claims Andrew Jackson was born there.

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  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,188
    sda said:

    “Lank-ister” is how the locals pronounce the county where I live and largest town in the county of the same name, Lancaster, SC. Much debate too, that Andrew Jackson was born here. There is the Andrew Jackson park about 10 miles south but east a couple of miles is Waxhaw, NC, named after the Waxhaw Indians. Waxhaw also claims Andrew Jackson was born there.

    Same pronunciation for Lancaster, KY.

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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    edited February 2021
    Years back, I remember a gold and white '58 DeSoto convertible in the show at Hershey; not sure of the model but it wasn't one with the Dodge front fenders (or at least, wheel openings) like the one you posted. I want to say it was some super-duper engine option. Beautifully restored car.

    I was admiring a black '57 Golden Hawk next to it, talking to the owner, who had restored my '63 Lark, when the owner of the DeSoto asked me to move away from his car. I hadn't brushed against it (nor would I), but he thought I was standing too close, LOL.
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  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,132
    edited February 2021
    Tuning through the non-news channels and looking for something on TV.
    First hit Wendy Williams. Ain't happening.
    Next channel was The View. Ain't happening.
    Next was The Price Is Right. Since it had been shown here in pictures, I
    thought I'd watch. Sure enough the car was a Mirage.

    But now the model waving hands and showing the car
    is a guy in a nice sweater with a nicely trimmed beard.
    Somehow things just ain't the same...

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  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,092
    Yeah TPiR has some male models now. Not like the days of Janice and Holly, names I clearly recall from when I was 4 or 5 years old. I haven't watched but a few episodes in years - other than on special event shows ,most cars are economy rental car grade, it's exciting if they have something as fancy as a Malibu or Sonata.

    Youtube is great for when nothing is on TV, or like me, have cut the cable cord.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    For the first time in eons, I watched a nighttime "The Price Is Right" maybe a month or so ago. It was excruciating. I turned it off in about ten minutes.
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  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    edited February 2021

    Years back, I remember a gold and white '58 DeSoto convertible in the show at Hershey; not sure of the model but it wasn't one with the Dodge front fenders (or at least, wheel openings) like the one you posted. I want to say it was some super-duper engine option. Beautifully restored car.

    I was admiring a black '57 Golden Hawk next to it, talking to the owner, who had restored my '63 Lark, when the owner of the DeSoto asked me to move away from his car. I hadn't brushed against it (nor would I), but he thought I was standing too close, LOL.

    I think I might have seen the car you were talking about, way back in 2002 at Hershey. Was it sort of a darkish gold, that might even seem to have a hint of green in the right lighting, with an off-white/light-creme spear? Like this?


    The one I'm thinking of was a 1958 Adventurer convertible, equipped with the optional ~$600 Bendix fuel injection, and one of the very few that wasn't converted back to dual quads.

    Here's the auction ad for the one I got that pic from: https://www.mecum.com/lots/CA0810-96539/1958-desoto-adventurer-convertible/

    It says there were only 5 Adventurer convertibles built with the fuel injection, and they were all converted to dual quads within a year, but it sounds someone saved the original fuel injection setup for this one, and at some point converted it back. So, who knows, this could very well be the same car I saw.

    There were only 82 Adventurer convertibles, built total, so it was a rare car, to begin with.

    Funny thing, when I saw this car at Hershey, I got hollered at, too. I was standing with a friend looking at it, and we were talking about it. Someone on the other side of the car wanted to take a picture of it. We weren't blocking the view of the car, but apparently he didn't even want anybody in the background of the picture. He was actually quite nasty about it the way he hollered, too. He was probably a good 30 feet from us, on the other side of the car as well, so it took me awhile to realize he was actually hollering at us, so that might be why he was getting belligerent by that time I actually heard him. I almost hollered back, but my friend is a bit more civil than me and persuaded me not to.

    Hey, it just clicked with me. Was it 2002 that you went to Hershey and saw this car? Maybe our paths crossed that day, even though we didn't even know each other yet! I remember it was a dreary day with off/on rain, although it somewhat broke up late in the day and you could finally see some blue sky. Funny the things you remember.
  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    fintail said:

    Yeah TPiR has some male models now. Not like the days of Janice and Holly, names I clearly recall from when I was 4 or 5 years old. I haven't watched but a few episodes in years - other than on special event shows ,most cars are economy rental car grade, it's exciting if they have something as fancy as a Malibu or Sonata.

    Youtube is great for when nothing is on TV, or like me, have cut the cable cord.

    I almost never watch daytime TV but earlier this week I had it on for some reason and started flipping through the channels. I came across TPIR about halfway through and watched it until the end. I got out of the habit in the latter Bob Barker years and didn't care for Drew Carey when he first took over.After not seeing hm in years he looks somewhat different now, a little thinner and with a different hair color. He seemed smoother in his delivery than I remembered and I didn't mind him now.

    Apparently this was a special big money week and I saw a lady win $210K playing Cliff Hangers, the mountain climber game. Never saw a prize that huge before. It was a double bust for both contestants in the showcases, one of which had a Hyundai Accent in its booty.

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  • omarmanomarman Member Posts: 2,702
    kyfdx said:

    sda said:

    “Lank-ister” is how the locals pronounce the county where I live and largest town in the county of the same name, Lancaster, SC. Much debate too, that Andrew Jackson was born here. There is the Andrew Jackson park about 10 miles south but east a couple of miles is Waxhaw, NC, named after the Waxhaw Indians. Waxhaw also claims Andrew Jackson was born there.

    Same pronunciation for Lancaster, KY.
    Same for Lancaster Ohio. Used to cringe when the local Columbus TV news would bring in a new guy to call it "Lan-CAST-er." Always nice to get local news from a tourist.
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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    That is definitely the DeSoto I saw. I remember the "Fuel Injection" emblems. I was most likely there in 2002!
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  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,188
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,652
    That's a '72 Chevy, but I can't tell if it's a Biscayne, Bel Air, or Impala. Definitely NOT a Caprice, as they had a slightly different grille texture. The dog dish hubcaps would make me think more of a Biscayne or Bel Air, but those are easy to swap.
  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    My best guess is that is a '72 Bel Air.

    It has wheel opening trim which was optional even on an Impala sedan and also the lower models, although rarely ever seen on a Biscayne or Bel Air. But more importantly, I think I see a nameplate on the front fender. Impalas and Caprices had the nameplate up on the C-pillar. I think I see two capital letters which would indicate Bel Air.
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  • uplanderguyuplanderguy Member Posts: 16,055
    Now that I look closer, I think I see side window reveal moldings, standard on Impala and Caprice and virtually never seen optionally on the lower models. Those, and the wheel opening trim, are making me think "Impala" now, with some aftermarket or half-***** nameplate slapped on the front fender which shouldn't be there.
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  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,188
    It would help if you posted in that discussion. The OP won't see your replies, here.

    Thanks!

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  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 57,092
    Yeah, I think it took Carey about a decade to warm up to it. Big shoes to fill, but maybe I was just less entertained with the modern version (which still has many old games, to be fair). Even if flipping through YT for background noise, I generally won't pick one from after Y2K. Probably some nostalgia and maybe more interesting cars, even the cheaper cars, make the old episodes more entertaining. I was really into the show when I was a little kid, had to watch it whenever I was home and free/not at school.
    ab348 said:



    I almost never watch daytime TV but earlier this week I had it on for some reason and started flipping through the channels. I came across TPIR about halfway through and watched it until the end. I got out of the habit in the latter Bob Barker years and didn't care for Drew Carey when he first took over.After not seeing hm in years he looks somewhat different now, a little thinner and with a different hair color. He seemed smoother in his delivery than I remembered and I didn't mind him now.

    Apparently this was a special big money week and I saw a lady win $210K playing Cliff Hangers, the mountain climber game. Never saw a prize that huge before. It was a double bust for both contestants in the showcases, one of which had a Hyundai Accent in its booty.

  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 19,027
    fintail said:

    Yeah, I think it took Carey about a decade to warm up to it. Big shoes to fill, but maybe I was just less entertained with the modern version (which still has many old games, to be fair). Even if flipping through YT for background noise, I generally won't pick one from after Y2K. Probably some nostalgia and maybe more interesting cars, even the cheaper cars, make the old episodes more entertaining. I was really into the show when I was a little kid, had to watch it whenever I was home and free/not at school.

    One of the things that struck me seeing the one I watched this week was how much smaller the audience area was compared to the old ones which seemed to be made in a much larger facility. I saw in the credits that the new one is shot in the Bob Barker Studio at Television City, which would have you think it was the same studio, but the seating area looked to be maybe 1/4 of the size of the old one.

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  • stickguystickguy Member Posts: 50,435
    it is the same studio. They just don't have an audience. The contestants are now up on the corner of the stage instead of down on the floor. Definitely different, but you get used to it!

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