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

sda · June 23

The Vega was a nice looking car.

uplanderguy · June 24

I'll be honest--when Ford introduced the Pinto wagon, which I'm thinking was mid'72 model year but not sure, it had a fair amount more cargo space than the Vega Kammback, and had quarter windows that swung out. But I loved the styling of the Vega wagon, along with the attributes most of the car mags then liked about the car; flat cornering mostly I think.

Other than a Cosworth, I'd like a '74-76 GT Kammback with the optional side stripes and white-letter tires.

The '76 had the better engine warranty--"More than Toyota, Datsun, and VW combined" per the ads and brochure.

But of course, by then, they had to.

uplanderguy · June 24

‘76 Vega engine ad

My favorite Vega ad. I remember it 50 years later.

kyfdx · June 24

I bought a new Mustang II in 1977 that came with a one-year warranty.. And, a new '82 Honda that also came with one year.

tjc78 · June 24

@andre1969
Thought you would find this cool.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTjcTMCA9/

fintail · June 24

Pinto wagon is neat in its own way but the Kammback looks better esp with small bumpers.

Recent sightings - the Aurora that lives on the same block as a Topaz now has 4 round wheels again. Alliance convertible is under a full cover - top down, but it is covered.

andre1969 · June 25

tjc78 said:
@andre1969

Thought you would find this cool.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTjcTMCA9/

That almost seems cheap for a Grand Ville, at $5,053! Now that I watched it, that TikTok isn't going to install communism on my computer, is it?

I was under the impression that power windows and locks were standard on a Grand Ville, but I don't see them listed under the standard features. Unless the "And many more!" covers it. Or, maybe that was a year or two later. The Grand Ville was priced higher than the Delta 88 and LeSabre convertibles, as it had loftier, almost wanna-be C-body aspirations.

uplanderguy · June 25

Neither power windows nor locks were standard on a Grand Ville.

I think they were standard on late sixties Bonneville Broughams—at least windows—but I’d have to look at brochures to verify.

EDIT: I was wrong. Just saw a window sticker for a ‘75 Grand Ville convertible and it showed power windows standard.

tjc78 · June 25

If Tiktok wants to spy on my phone... let them. They can pay some of the bills I get and answer my work email too!

There is tons of great car content, I know this group doesn't particularly like TT so I rarely post links.

tjc78 · June 25

uplanderguy said:
Neither power windows nor locks were standard on a Grand Ville.

I think they were standard on late sixties Bonneville Broughams—at least windows—but I’d have to look at brochures to verify.

EDIT: I was wrong. Just saw a window sticker for a ‘75 Grand Ville convertible and it showed power windows standard.

I would have lost that bet... I didn't think much of anything except Lincoln and Caddy had power windows/door locks standard until well into the 80s

kyfdx · June 25

We aren't super fond of posting video links, because that means a moderator has to view it.

tjc78 · June 25

kyfdx said:
We aren't super fond of posting video links, because that means a moderator has to view it.

Seriously?... you have to view every video we post?

Never knew that.

I'll post more now

kyfdx · June 25

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:
We aren't super fond of posting video links, because that means a moderator has to view it.
Seriously?... you have to view every video we post?

Never knew that.

I'll post more now

You can always do whatever you want on your last day.

andre1969 · June 25

I was too lazy to look it up so I asked AI, so take it with a grain of salt. But, apparently power windows became standard on the New Yorker and Ninety Eight in 1972! 1974 for the Grand Ville, and 1975 for the Electra.

Looks like they were standard on the Marquis Brougham, starting in 1971.

ab348 · June 25

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:
We aren't super fond of posting video links, because that means a moderator has to view it.
Seriously?... you have to view every video we post?

Never knew that.

I'll post more now

@kyfdx will soon have an encyclopedic knowledge of teenybopper dance moves.

I avoid anything and everything to do with that site. There is enough mindless rubbish online to waste my time as it is.

ab348 · June 25

andre1969 said:
I was too lazy to look it up so I asked AI, so take it with a grain of salt. But, apparently power windows became standard on the New Yorker and Ninety Eight in 1972! 1974 for the Grand Ville, and 1975 for the Electra.

Looks like they were standard on the Marquis Brougham, starting in 1971.

I just browsed the brochures site and power windows were not mentioned as standard in the '74 brochure but were for its last year of '75. I guess the intelligence truly is artificial.

One thing that I found interesting - it looked to me that the GV 2-door HT had its own slightly more formal roofline. The brochure images of it aren't great and it seems they either didn't sell many 2-doors or very few have survived, because most of the pics I found are either 4-door models or convertibles. This is the best pic I could find.

uplanderguy · June 25

That’s a nice ‘71 coupe. I like the ‘71 and ‘72 Grand Villes best of all the years, and not just because of the bumpers. The ‘73 had some bad woodgrain imho, and a lot of it.

andre1969 · June 25

I always wondered if the hardtop coupe shared its roof structure with the hardtop sedan, for the '71-74 Grand Ville? I remember in one of the brochures, Pontiac bragging about how the back seat of the coupe had as much legroom as the sedan. I think it was around 39". With the "proper" B-bodies (Catalina, Bonneville, as well the Chevy/Olds/Buick models), the hardtop coupe gave up a few inches...something like 35.6" I believe.

kyfdx · June 25

andre1969 said:
I always wondered if the hardtop coupe shared its roof structure with the hardtop sedan, for the '71-74 Grand Ville? I remember in one of the brochures, Pontiac bragging about how the back seat of the coupe had as much legroom as the sedan. I think it was around 39". With the "proper" B-bodies (Catalina, Bonneville, as well the Chevy/Olds/Buick models), the hardtop coupe gave up a few inches...something like 35.6" I believe.

My mother bought a '71 Grand Ville to replace her '67 Bonneville. She hated it. I don't remember exactly why.. But, the next year she bought a Lincoln sedan to replace it.

ab348 · June 25

kyfdx said:

andre1969 said:
I always wondered if the hardtop coupe shared its roof structure with the hardtop sedan, for the '71-74 Grand Ville? I remember in one of the brochures, Pontiac bragging about how the back seat of the coupe had as much legroom as the sedan. I think it was around 39". With the "proper" B-bodies (Catalina, Bonneville, as well the Chevy/Olds/Buick models), the hardtop coupe gave up a few inches...something like 35.6" I believe.
My mother bought a '71 Grand Ville to replace her '67 Bonneville. She hated it. I don't remember exactly why.. But, the next year she bought a Lincoln sedan to replace it.

I always found the GV to be odd. Looking at the interiors, they didn't seem particularly posh to me, though the optional upgrade version was a bit better and more Buick-like. But the dash and door panels just weren't anything special in my mind. That was an odd time for GM generally with increasing commonality of parts and designs in the quest to reduce the costs of manufacturing. It always irked me that an Electra or a 98 or even a Caddy all used those plastic-bottomed door panels, even if they disguised them with carpet on the bottom.

kyfdx · June 25

And, I mis-typed. She bought a Lincoln Coupe.

uplanderguy · June 25

I like the '72 Grand Ville Custom interior, although the rear-seat center armrest was only on the sedan.

I don't like the plastic lower door panels either, but I like them better than screw-on armrests.

1972 Pontiac Grand Ville

uplanderguy · June 25

Here's the entry-level '72 Cadillac Calais--Caddy didn't use the lower plastic door panels.

andre1969 · June 25

That '72 Caddy door panel looks like something that is gorgeous, if you handle it with kid gloves and keep it out of hot, sunny weather. But that pull strap is just waiting to get yanked off, and the lower part, with the integrated armrest, is made of this soft-touch stuff with foam backing, that tends to shrink and crack.

I'm also not a fan of the B-bodies (and Colonades) with the 2-piece door panels where the lower part is a plastic slab, and the upper part is vinyl and/or fabric. But yeah, on the plus side, having an integrated armrest, rather than screw/bolt-on, is one advantage.

For some reason though, those two-piece door panels on the '78+ downsized intermediates didn't bother me. Maybe the build quality was a bit less sloppy?

sda · June 25

@fintail The period music is great.

https://youtu.be/LICZjlpjpZ0?si=HVp3lZM8tOmkAnQ8

fintail · June 25

sda said:
@fintail The period music is great.

Ah yes an "Auto Test". Very German, I can't imagine anything so in-depth and technical today.

That's a first series lowline car, I think the diesel was slightly more expensive than the gas. It became the 200D in the later part of 1965.

fintail · June 25

ab348 said:

andre1969 said:
I was too lazy to look it up so I asked AI, so take it with a grain of salt. But, apparently power windows became standard on the New Yorker and Ninety Eight in 1972! 1974 for the Grand Ville, and 1975 for the Electra.

Looks like they were standard on the Marquis Brougham, starting in 1971.
I just browsed the brochures site and power windows were not mentioned as standard in the '74 brochure but were for its last year of '75. I guess the intelligence truly is artificial.

One thing that I found interesting - it looked to me that the GV 2-door HT had its own slightly more formal roofline. The brochure images of it aren't great and it seems they either didn't sell many 2-doors or very few have survived, because most of the pics I found are either 4-door models or convertibles. This is the best pic I could find.

Every time I see a big 70s Pontiac I think of this:

sda · June 25

@fintail, a better fit, 6 cylinder.

https://youtu.be/N5u5c9nD5sg?si=ix2W2F2tM_8eK_4H

fintail · June 25

sda said:
@fintail, a better fit, 6 cylinder.

And a somewhat unusual one at that. The 230 is a second series fintail, replacing the 220. It has the short nose/single lights (W110) of a 4 cylinder car with a 6 cylinder engine, these are a less common (but not extremely rare) model. The factory test footage is always fun, they held nothing back in testing those cars, knowing some would end up being used in harsh environments.

uplanderguy · June 26

RE.: That Calais door panel--I think it looks nice. I like the Calais; far-rarer and more interesting than the very commonplace deVilles, IMHO. I have a portion that dislikes conventional wisdom and this is probably that, LOL.

The Calais of '71 and '72 had black inserts on the dash in a couple big places, but I really don't think it looks worse than the very-unconvincing fake woodgrain used on deVilles. In fact, I like the Calais door panel because there ISN'T a big fake woodgrain insert up top like on deVilles.

explorerx4 · June 26

I just watched Funeral in Berlin on YT.
It's mid 60's spy thriller staring Michael Cain as Harry Palmer.
Really good confusing story involving the English, German's, Russian's and Isreali's.
So much product placement for the 3 pointed star brand.

I've been to some of the places in the movie like the bombed out church and Checkpoint Charlie.
Actually, earlier than the movie.
I won't post the link so our moderator doesn't have to watch it.

fintail · June 26

Never seen it - looks like some unusual stuff, that 59 Ford is kind of wild:

https://www.imcdb.org/m60437.html

explorerx4 · June 27

Saw a blue RHD NIssan Skyline.

sda · June 28

This picture in the VW customer waiting room brings back great memories of having extended seat time and camping with one very similar. Orange, white top, orange multicolored plaid upholstery. It was a 74 model.

stickguy · June 28

based on the looks of the road, you should have checked the map a bit earlier.

stickguy · June 28

outside our local Midas, an early Citation. 2 door hatch. looks a bit tired. The front bumper was sagging a bit.

uplanderguy · June 29

I saw a couple oddities locally here this weekend, in rusty, crusty NE OH.

Yesterday, an '83 Citation two-door hatch. I know it was an '83 as it was not a "Citation II" but had the new-for-'83 Rally Wheel design. Driven by older couple. It looked good except for paint missing on right rear, rear bumper filler. A light metallic color which I can't even remember now. I often tend to see right through color and pick up on year and model.

This morning we parked next to a '97-03? model year "Cutlass" (copy of that same-era Malibu). I've always detested those cars, but this one looked absolutely new. Champagne-like metallic, chromed factory wheels, perfect exterior condition. I was tempted to take a pic but it was parked in the first space outside the store and didn't want to startle the owner when he/she came out. Ended up being an older lady who was as neat in appearance as the car.

uplanderguy · June 29

My M-I-L called in a tizzy two nights ago. Her '04 Civic, bought new and 112K miles, had the brake lights stuck on.

I went over and looked and drove it and didn't feel like brakes were dragging or anything.

Backed it out of her garage and backed into her driveway. I googled it and immediately five or six things came up, all about the culprit being a small plastic piece under the brake pedal.

Her son (much younger than me) came over the next morning, battery was dead of course. He bought the part for $10 at O'Reilly's. They had them on the shelf next to bulbs and the package says "Honda" on it. The cashier told him that store sells one a week.

He jumped her car, but it wouldn't start yesterday again so maybe the battery's beyond being jumped/charged.

Her son said replacing the broken plastic piece "took 15 mins. or maybe less", so that's good.

Also, on a trip yesterday my old 1.8 Cruze was going to hit 123456 miles. I wanted to get a pic but forgot.

kyfdx · June 29

Helped my M-I-L buy one of those Cutlass models, used, around the turn of the century. Same color. Wasn't a very good car.

sda · June 29

@roadburner , you may have seen this before. Wonderful car that I’ve experienced.

https://youtu.be/oHQxv9jvNH4?si=dPe4HlmNimnHRYGo

roadburner · June 29

sda said:
@roadburner , you may have seen this before. Wonderful car that I’ve experienced. https://youtu.be/oHQxv9jvNH4?si=dPe4HlmNimnHRYGo

I would still like to have another Bavaria 3.0; It was a fun car to drive, and now you can upgrade the A?C with a rotary compressor so it's a true year round driver.

gsemike · July 1

Buick Regal Gran Sport, I'm thinking 88-91

Looked well kept enough but seeing one up close again, all the awkward angles looked blah to me. Its kind of rounded. Kind of upright. Sporty cues tacked on.

I'd defintely be looking for that leftover T Type from 87 if I was shopping then

andre1969 · July 1

I always thought the '88 redesign really turned the Regal into an old people's car. While a lot of old people certainly bought the '87 and earlier models, I tended to think of the preceding generation as sort of a "Mr. Potatohead" of cars. It could be almost anything you wanted it to be. 6-passenger family car, if needed. Somewhat economical transportation that could be affordable, yet not feel cheap. Personal luxury coupe loaded to the gills with all the trappings of opulence. Or musclecar.

The Monte Carlo, Cutlass Supreme, and to a lesser degree Grand Prix, also fit the bill. Although, the GP fell short in the musclecar regard. There was that GP 2+2, but as IIRC, it just used the stock 150 hp Chevy 305. I think it had dual exhaust though, so I would think that would boost the hp a bit. I've seen one or two sources quote 165 hp, but still, it wasn't the same as a Monte Carlo SS!

There's an old saying that you can sell an old person a young person's car, but it's almost impossible to sell a young person an old person's car! And to me, that generation of Regal struck me as an old people's car. The sporty versions of it just seemed like trying to sell an old people's car to someone younger.

Meanwhile, the Grand Prix seemed to focus more on the sporty/performance crowd, and the Cutlass Supreme, I guess, tried to go after the more "sophisticated" import crowd. I wonder if trying to make these cars more unique, and focused on smaller segments, may have been their ultimate downfall.

For instance, from '81-87, my favorite of the bunch is the Grand Prix, style-wise at least. But I would have been happy with a Monte Carlo, Cutlass Supreme, or Regal. For 1988, I actually do like the Cutlass Supreme, but not the Grand Prix so much. And the Regal did nothing for me. Actually, if I was buying a personal luxury coupe in 1988, I probably would've gone for a Cutlass Supreme Classic, or Monte Carlo, both of which survived the first few months of the '88 model year.

For 1989, I probably would have jumped ship to Ford, and gotten a T-bird or Cougar.

uplanderguy · July 1

Had the C8 into the selling dealer, rural Stratton Chevrolet Co. in Beloit, OH, for my free oil change.

From a door peering into the Service Dept., saw a white '66 Impala Sport Coupe, pretty complete and nice with aftermarket wheels (not 22's or anything)....but the rear bumper was off. No idea why.

When I walked into the showroom, the owner was mopping the floor himself. I kidded him about wearing many hats there.

I saw the front third of what I thought was a black '94-96 Impala SS on their used car lot. When I drove away, I saw it was actually that era Caprice wagon, blacked out and with the bigger tires and wheels of the SS--a custom job.

uplanderguy · July 1

For 1989, I probably would have jumped ship to Ford, and gotten a T-bird or Cougar.

Chevy had absolutely nothing in that size class for '89. I bought a new Beretta GT at the beginning of the '89 model year, and my wife a '90 Corsica a year later.

I wished I'd had waited for the Lumina coupe. Probably because its styling is pretty conservative, it's aged better than those other GM-10 coupes IMHO.

andre1969 · July 1

I went with my friend with the 2017 Murano yesterday, to drop it off for servicing. On the used car lot, they had a C8! I looked it up, and here's the listing:
https://direct.sheehynissanglenburnie.com/express/used/1G1YA2D46P5120903?deal_type=finance&deal_down=1500&deal_months=60&payment_frequency=month

It seemed like an odd sort of thing to see on the used car lot at a Nissan dealer.

I also noticed that their lot was packed, in general. Seemed like a combination of plenty of inventory, plus plenty of cars in for servicing. I also noticed, when we went inside, that the sales floor seemed pretty busy. So, while it looked like they had a bit too much inventory on their hands, it also looked like there were a lot of people willing to buy them!

Michaell · July 1

andre1969 said:
I went with my friend with the 2017 Murano yesterday, to drop it off for servicing. On the used car lot, they had a C8! I looked it up, and here's the listing:
https://direct.sheehynissanglenburnie.com/express/used/1G1YA2D46P5120903?deal_type=finance&deal_down=1500&deal_months=60&payment_frequency=month

It seemed like an odd sort of thing to see on the used car lot at a Nissan dealer.

I also noticed that their lot was packed, in general. Seemed like a combination of plenty of inventory, plus plenty of cars in for servicing. I also noticed, when we went inside, that the sales floor seemed pretty busy. So, while it looked like they had a bit too much inventory on their hands, it also looked like there were a lot of people willing to buy them!

My guess is that 50%, or more, of the new inventory at the Nissan dealer are the electric Ariyas.

andre1969 · July 1

Agreed, I definitely think the Lumina aged better than the other three. I'll admit, I still kinda like the Cutlass Supreme coupe, though. And at one of the more recent GM shows in Carlisle, someone had one of those GM-10 Grand Prix coupes, and I'll admit to liking it more now, that it's a rarity, than I did at the time. I think another thing that works in the car's favor though, is that while there's all sorts of hard plastic and mis-matched shapes in the interior, many cars got even worse in more recent years, so suddenly, it doesn't seem so bad!

texases · July 1

I found 3 new 1LT Vettes within 100 miles of me for under $70k. Think I'd go new instead of 2 years old for $61k.

uplanderguy · July 1

The 2LT is the sweet spot IMHO, but no matter if you like the cars or not, hard to beat a new C8 for under $70K.

I think until about 18 mos. ago, people were buying C8's and selling them immediately, as dealers were tacking on ADP. Production hadn't met demand--that has changed by now. I bought mine, even at the little dealer, for sticker plus $73.05 doc fees, which beat huge Crisswell Chevy in MD where I previously had an order--they were selling at sticker plus $499 doc fees. The little dealer got me my car in not quite four months, when Crisswell had me a year out. They're a huge Corvette dealer though.

I prefer new too. I know I take care of it from day one.

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

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