Curbside Classic -

My 1978 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham – Finally, I Get To Experience Cadillac Style

– Posted on November 2, 2024

This article is dedicated to Doctor Myron Porter.

He served his country in the Naval Reserve. He was stationed in Southeast Asia for two years and then spent another 20 years in the reserves. A wonderful husband, father, brother, son, and generally compassionate man. You are missed every day.

Over the past several months, as I’ve been writing different articles, there has been a common denominator that maybe some of you have gleaned. That would be my overwhelming desire to own and drive a Cadillac. So, allow me to bring you up to how I truly became interested in the brand.

I recently wrote an entry about my dad’s first Cadillac experience, with a 1970 Calais. If you read that piece, you’ll recount with me that back in those days people talked about wanting to own a Cadillac someday. And back then, you always had a product line that was “… the Cadillac of this or the Cadillac of that…”, just stating that you instantly recognized it as the best of the best.

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COALers Needed

Rich Baron

– Posted on November 1, 2024

We may be heading towards the end of the year, but something that never ceases at CC is our want to hear new car stories. There’s no ending to that.

So, it’s that time again to find new contributors for our Cars Of A Lifetime (COAL) section. In other words, your chance to join CC and tell your car experiences to a wider audience; from the purchases and drives you made to the breakdowns and joys attached to them.

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Cohort Classic: 1970 Dodge Charger R/T – Magnum Patina

Paul Niedermeyer

– Posted on November 1, 2024

(first posted 6/6/2013) This has to be one of the best CC Cohort finds ever, by ActuallyMike. I’ve lived in hope of just finding any street-side Charger of this vintage, never mind an R/T. And with such a superbly developed case of patinitis acute. I can just imagine Mike seeing this, getting out of his car, walking towards it, and realizing what he’s found. Read the rest of this entry »

Curbside Classic: Mercedes MB 100D – Grandson Of The DKW Schnellaster

Peter N

– Posted on November 1, 2024

(Paul N. co-authored this post)

(first posted 10/31/2018) Tatra87 recently gave us the full back story of how Mercedes came to have a FWD van (L306D “Harburger”) in its stable of commercial vehicles. Mercedes was firmly in the RWD camp until fairly recently, and still generally prefers RWD for its vans. It came about when Mercedes bought Hanomag, which had been building FWD vans that it had taken over from Matador. It was renamed the Mercedes L306, and was built until 1977.

But that wasn’t the first and last Mercedes FWD van. In 1987, Mercedes started selling the MB100D van in Germany, the boxy FWD van you see here. And like the L306, it too had origins going way back, in this case to the 1949 DKW Schnellaster; Paul made a strong case for it being the mother of all modern FWD compact vans. The MB100D also found its way into Mercedes’ lineup through acquisitions, but in a much more complicated way, via Spain, where these were built.

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Cohort Classic: 2003 Kia Rio Cinco – No Pride

Gerardo Solis

– Posted on November 1, 2024

(first posted 11/1/2018) Pride may be a destructive force, especially in such quantities that it turns into hubris. For Kia, though, Pride was just an example of one of the things they had always done, take an existing design (Mazda 121 / Ford Festiva), rebadge, move some things about for the enjoyment of potential customers and away you go. This began to change in 1992 with the release of the Sephia, Kia’s first in-house design as well as the first Kia to officially make it into American Soil. In 2001, the second completely in-house developed vehicle by them arrived on these shores. Let’s take a look at what it had to offer.

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Vintage Review: 1965 Plymouth Sport Fury 426 V8 And Belvedere Slant Six – Fast and Furious Meets Slow and Placid

Paul Niedermeyer

– Posted on November 1, 2024

In 1965, the truly big Plymouth Fury returned after a three-year hiatus, which started in 1962 with the controversial downsizing. But the former “full size” wasn’t ditched; it was now renamed Belvedere and positioned as a mid-size car, although in reality it was a bit larger and roomier than Ford and GM’s mid-sized cars.

Motor Trend decided to test both, in versions representing the very different ends of the mid-full size spectrum. The big Sport Fury was packing the 365 hp 426 Wedge V8 and was loaded. The bottom-trim Belvedere I had the 145 hp 225 slant six. Both came with the optional Torqueflite automatics, but that and the optional heater and seat belts was about it for the Belvedere. A taxi cab, in other words, and a very popular one at that.

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Curbside Classic: 1947 International KB5 – Prop Hauler

Gray Walters

– Posted on November 1, 2024

Even the most popular vehicles of the immediately post-war period tend to be much harder to find in the wild than the always-popular mid-60s favorites such as the first generation Ford Mustang. For example, cars such as this lovely stock Ford Sedan, potentially a 1948, is old enough to be a rare sight on the streets even as a weekend cruiser.

But one of the most difficult types of vehicles to spot in the open is the antique commercial vehicle. One of the most surreal moments of car spotting I have ever encountered was accidentally stepping back in time by discovering a public street prepped for a period film shoot. Here, we see Walton Street in downtown Atlanta transformed into a version of itself straight out of 1949. Most of the vehicle props that had not been removed by the time I wandered up and were of the especially elusive heavy-duty truck variety.

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Curbside Classic: 1972 Buick Riviera – Theory Meets Practice

Tatra87

– Posted on November 1, 2024

Pity the poor Boattail Riv. Growing up, so far from the land of Buicks, I always admired it from a distance. To a teenage T87, the 1971-72 Riviera was (and to a great extent remains) extremely pleasant to the eye, if for no other reason that it looks utterly distinctive. But there are other reasons for my appreciation of this design, too. And many folks who will disagree and that’s ok, it’s the kind of the theme I was going for this week…

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Curtis Perry Outtake: 1962 Falcon – Gothmobile

Paul Niedermeyer

– Posted on October 31, 2024

(first posted 10/27/2018) Curtis Perry has uploaded some new shots at the Cohort, and I’ll start with this one. I was going to title it something like “Classic Hipstermobile”, but then I noticed the young woman all in black as well as the skeleton in black behind her. The composition has a Goth feel to it, although I’m not sure that’s still much of a thing anymore. But the Falcon still is, as it long ago developed a cult following with a certain slice of the population, one that has a particularly strong presence in Portland.

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Halloween Outtake: 1968 Plymouth Fury Suburban Hearse – Final Destistation Wagon

Johannes Dutch

– Posted on October 31, 2024

(first posted 10/31/2018) Once upon a time in the Low Countries, hearses based on American iron were the norm. As a matter of fact, many of them are still rumbling along just fine. It was quite a surprise though to meet a classic Mopar C-body in the flesh, as the hearses of yore were usually based on GM and FoMoCo products. The subject, a 1968 Plymouth Fury Suburban, also happened to be in an immaculate condition, still very much alive and kicking.

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CC Capsule: 1974 Volkswagen Super Beetle – It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Joseph Dennis

– Posted on October 31, 2024

(first posted 10/31/2018) Some things will always seem timeless to me, including any of the original Peanuts holiday specials and the Volkswagen Type 1 (Beetle) in any configuration. I don’t care what else is on TV when I get home from work and one of those specials is on. Around any given holiday season, watching Charlie Brown and his friends (and frenemies, like that perennial witch, Lucy) beats pretty much anything else I had planned to watch, and so it’s almost a given that I’ll be tuning in and switching my phone to “silent” or “vibrate” mode.

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Vintage Dealers: ’73-’74 AMC Gremlin & Javelin AMX In The Showroom

Rich Baron

– Posted on October 31, 2024

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CC Yard Art: Happy Halloween — Spooky MoPar Scenes!

slant six

– Posted on October 31, 2024

In the last 5-10 years many folks around my area now have elaborate outdoor decorations for Halloween. Some of the families around the local neighborhoods seem to decorate the outside of their homes for Halloween just as much (or more) as they do for Christmas. Fortunately for me, I have an old car addiction to keep my pocketbook and free time lean so as not to care about such things. But I thought, maybe I could participate in my own way with some “meticulously curated” Halloween “yard art”? Read on to see how this turns out.

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Curbside Classic: 1996 Chevrolet Impala SS – Three Reasons Darth Vader Was A Winner (M.E.SS #2)

Jon Stephenson

– Posted on October 31, 2024

The 1994-96 Impala SS has long been a legit cult classic and probably the quintessential example of Chevrolet’s Modern Era Super Sport (M.E.SS) models. It’s popular with enthusiasts and even the general public, which is a little surprising when one stops to think about it. On paper, it should have been a big fat “Meh”. The styling modifications on the staid Caprice are superficial. The drivetrain is the exact same as in the Caprice. Oh, and there’s the minor detail of its being a four door sedan! So what accounts for the widespread love for this M.E.SS? I would say at least three things.

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Curbside Classic: 1989 Maserati Biturbo (AM331) 222 E – Plastic Trident

Tatra87

– Posted on October 31, 2024

Ah! We meet at last, Biturbo coupé. You embody everything that went so wrong during the dreaded De Tomaso era, even if you’re not the ugliest of the bunch (Ghibli II, anybody?)… I have already spilled much bile and ink on you, but always by way of a proxy. And now, here you are, in your slightly improved (but still quite horrid) two-door 222 variant. My Italian nemesis. Oh, I think I’m going to enjoy this.

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