…I don’t think much needs to be said about the W111 coupé that hasn’t been said by others. So I’m going to let the pictures do most of the talking in this post. Much like the Mustang we saw a couple days ago, I reckon this is one of those cars that ticks all my boxes: early model, Euro headlights, manual transmission and, crucially, dressed in black.
(first posted 12/14/2018) At least I think so. This was just a chance encounter on a quiet back street of inner Melbourne, not far from a 1962 Ford Falcon survivor that I posted a few months ago. I spotted the distinctive fins of a 1959 Chevrolet, which can’t be a common sight anywhere these days, and then soon realised it was even more unusual than that – an El Camino!
Time for fleet maintenance. When you have 10 cars there is always something that needs looking after. In this case it’s the family daily drivers with the Ambassador thrown in for good measure. First up the wife’s 2018 Mazda 3. Read the rest of this entry »
hyperpak posted these shots of a pristine ’82 (or so) Buick Skylark parked at Spitz Auto Parts in North Huntington, PA with this comment: “Awaiting crushing or parting out?” At first I thought maybe it was a customer’s car, but there’s no plates on it and obviously it’s been there since before that snowfall. Could this little gem of an X-car really be awaiting the crusher or being dismembered?
Ford Taunus 17M P3, 1960-1964 / Ford Motor Company
Although it was never officially offered in the U.S., the 1961 German Ford Taunus 17M — nicknamed “the Bathtub Taunus” for its oval-shaped aerodynamic styling and peaked fenders — made a big splash in Europe, and it also attracted some attention from curious American journalists. In January 1961, Sports Cars Illustrated (soon to be renamed Car and Driver) offered a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse of the development of the Taunus 17M P3, the first German Ford actually designed in Germany.
What exactly was a Lancia? A driver’s car like the Alfa Romeo? A luxury car that could still entertain its driver, like a Jaguar? An overly complex car like the Citroen? A symbol of engineering excellence like a Mercedes?
Was a Lancia something of all four? Read the rest of this entry »
(first posted 12/9/2018)
Other’s opinions and collector resale value have no impact on me; I buy, build and drive what I like. And I like Chevy Malibu sedans. While a 1969 Dodge Charger is a car that is pretty much universally loved and revered in the car-worshipping world, no one gives a flying fig about a Malibu sedan; they fly under car guy’s radars and most have been relegated to scrapyards or have become parts cars to similar year Malibu coupes. Even the wagons are somewhat desirable, but the sedans; its more like, do they have good fenders and chrome?
So why a Malibu? Any why one with 4 doors for Petes sake?
(first posted 6/4/2011. It’s still as relevant as ever; more so, actually)
The fact that men, particularly blue collar workers, have suffered disproportionately in America’s changing economy of the past few decades is hard to argue against. And nowhere is it more apparent than in the external symbols of virility that truck manufacturers apparently feel men need in order to compensate for their reduced status, real or imagined. Fifty years ago, men were apparently secure enough in their manhood to drive what has to be the most feminine and lowest of RWD trucks ever. And today? Read the rest of this entry »
For Part 6 (links to previous entries at the bottom) we will be taking a trip in the venerable Dodge Aspen Wagon (The “Disco Wagon” as I lovingly refer to it as.) We hopefully locate and purchase some special Slant Six Bits on this trip that “do not exist.” Along the way, my daughter and I will make some memories camping on the shores of Lake Erie and towing the back half of a 1962 Valiant that I call the “ValianTrailer” over 700 miles from western Pennsylvania past Detroit Michigan, and back.
What were the key ingredients that really defined the new cars of the 1980s: Compact. Front wheel drive, Diesel. Import brands. Four cylinders. Compact trucks and SUVs. Fuel efficient. Unibody. Innovative. Light weight. Got some more to add?
So what car best encapsulates all of them? Why it’s totally obvious: the VW Diesel Pickup. It encompasses them all, and then some. Like: A bridge too far. Cultish. Indestructible. Eugene-mobile. Fahrvergnügen. It was the ultimate automotive Swiss Army knife.
The other question is: What’s the only vehicle could replace all four of mine? You’re looking at it.
This week, let’s set the wayback machine for mid-1999 and Gothenburg, Sweden, for one more look behind the curtain during the development of the second-generation Volvo S40. As the sole North American member of the P1X project team, I represented the only major market with no experience in selling Volvo’s small cars.
As a product planning/marketing guy, that put me in the unique position of helping to develop a new car without any reliable previous reference point. That turned out to be a bit of a challenge.
To “exit stage left” is an expression adapted from theater that colloquially means to leave in an uneventful and inconspicuous manner. That’s exactly what the Chevrolet Corvair did after a decade of production and only 6,000 examples produced for final-year ’69. Over its two generations, split evenly between the 1960 – ’64 models and the redesigned 1965 – ’69s, around 1.8 million were sold. My earliest memories of the Corvair, sight unseen, were of hearing my grandmother recalling to other adults in her expressive voice about what a “dangerous” car it was. I was a young kid at the time and the only other car I had heard referred to as a deathtrap was the Ford Pinto. I had no idea what a Corvair looked like, but I imagined that any Chevrolet that shared the first four letters of its name with the Corvette probably looked really cool.
(first posted 12/14/2018) CC Cohort Owen Smith has found a unicorn, a very wide one at that. In the early 70s, Superior sold these widened Chevy vans, which kept the dash and steering wheel in their original position, primarily for ambulance and shuttle-bus use. I’ve never seen the camper version, and neither has Google. So feast your eyes on one of the best finds ever here at CC, even if it’s not exactly the most attractive. And note the non-widened track, front and rear.
(first posted 12/9/2018) tbm3fan posted a couple of shots of this survivor, which is showing the ravages of time. Looks like some red tape or plastic wrap is being employed on the roof, and some duct tape to keep the vinyl half-roof from flapping in the wind to badly. But here it, still chugging along. And no obvious rust. It was shot at the former NAS Alameda, in the Bay Area.
And just like that, it’s ‘60s Coupé Week in Tokyo, by T87 decree. Tyrannical, isn’t it? Well, I do have a few choice two-doors to share with the CCommunity – quite a bunch, in fact. Classic car owners here tend to appreciate that body style, it seems. Don’t we all? Hopefully, the same agreement can be reached about the 1965 Mustang Fastback.
