(first posted 2/12/2013) To continue on the trajectory of early -’60s Oldsmobiles that continues to haunt me, I present this Dynamic 88, which I first met under the cover of night. While I continue my daytime errand-running drudgery, let’s pause to examine where Oldsmobile was in the early 1960s.
(first posted 11/20/2018) The AC name is, or was, well known. Remember the Cobra? A Ford V8 and a Carroll Shelby designed installation in the compact AC Ace body and chassis, which dated from 1953. The resulting car was billed by some as the fastest car in the world in the early 1960s, albeit with a very different heritage and driving experience to a top European sports car. Perhaps it’s best to think of it as a de Tomaso Pantera for the 1960s, not a Ferrari. But it was still hugely charismatic and appealing, and that endures. Read the rest of this entry »
Lancia’s reputation for making extremely advanced and unconventional cars was well established even in the marque’s early years. If one model really stood above the rest in terms of sophistication, it would have to be the Lambda: not only did it represent a significant leap forward compared to Lancias that preceded it, it was arguably the most advanced automobile of the 1920s.
With Christmas Season approaching, the time has come to pay another visit to the mall. And what better way to do so than in the past, thanks to some vintage images?
While digging around in the depths of my digital photo albums for CC worthy oddities, I rediscovered this custom commissioned 1951 Kenworth I found on display outside of the Whitefish, Montana Amtrak station. I can’t add much beyond rephrasing what is known about this machine from the historical marker, which you can read in full here.
The curious “Bruck” name is less mysterious when you realize it is the words “bus” and “truck” smooshed together. It was used between 1951 and 1972 by the Great Northern Railway to replace a defunct short line railway connecting the small town of Whitefish to the larger town of Kalispell, Montana. After national passenger service was federalized under Amtrak, the Bruck was retired and soon found itself in long term outdoor storage at a train scrapyard.
1978 Pontiac Grand Am image from the web.
It was 1990 and the growing joys and demands of family and work left me little time to pursue any automotive adventures. In the meantime, the ’87 Plymouth Voyager was a competent vehicle and versatile family hauler.
However, the ‘78 Grand Am I had bought for commuting had to be babied since there was no prospect of buying a replacement if it failed. All it had to do was get me back and forth to work and I had no desire or intention at the time to work on vehicles. Besides, the shift to electronic ignition, fuel injection, disc brakes, and front-wheel drive on our family fleet meant my experience was out of date and I would be facing a steep learning curve to tackle any issues involving those systems.
(first posted 2/12/2013) In 1966, the American Motors Corporation (AMC) unveiled a pair of radically styled concept cars called AMX (American Motors eXperimental) in an attempt to better connect with the youth and performance markets. The cars generated a lot of excitement, and in 1968 AMC introduced the production AMX, which was available through the 1970 model year. Throughout the 1970s, AMC was in a long, slow slide as it struggled to remain relevant (and solvent) as one of the last American independent car manufacturers. The AMX name would be applied to a number of AMC cars, including our subject for today: the one-year-only 1977 AMC Hornet AMX.
(first posted 8/1/2018) When I found this LeSabre T-Type on Craigslist, I thought two things. Firstly, this was a surprisingly attractive design for an American GM product from the 1980s. Secondly, didn’t our Jim Klein own one of these? Read the rest of this entry »
Today we’ll take a look at cars around trailers, motor homes, and trailer parks. A short collection of images with some neat looking rides that offer glimpses of what life was like around these mobile homes.
Spotted on a Saturday in September, parked a short distance apart. Two black, third gen Mercedes-Benz Sprinter panel vans. Both powered by a 190 DIN-hp turbodiesel and with an RWD drivetrain. Other full matches are the wheelbase (3.67 m), overall length (5.93 m), and the raised roof. And in both cases, a tridem axle trailer was coupled to the van. So far the similarities.
Today’s title may feel a bit odd, considering that the Crown never quite took off in the US market. But elsewhere, particularly in Asia and South America, early generations of the Crown paved the way for buyers of those regions to consider Toyota as a viable provider of accessible luxury. While the ’64 Corona and ’66 Corolla were the models that brought legions of faithful consumers to the brand, the Crown made a case for Toyota being more than a purveyor of mass-market cars.
In those markets, the Crown showed that Toyota could build a refined vehicle with luxury touches at discount prices, offering a nice alternative to semi-premium European and US brands. An international trajectory that rose on the inroads done by the ’62-’67 Crown S40, and on which the ’67-’70 S50 generation built upon. So, when excluding the US market, we can say mission accomplished.
Last month, my essay featuring a Jaguar XJ6 from the mid-’80s prompted memories of one of the cats in my childhood household, a tiger-striped tom named Chester. In that piece, I had loosely compared that Jaguar to a black cat, and even though Chester didn’t have black fur, many recollections posted from commenters about the cats they had known and loved made me think of Chet. My brother had named him, but it took little time for me to realize how perfectly his name seemed to fit him. He was a Chester. When I think of characterizations of house cats in popular culture, the word “aloof” often comes to mind. I have been around cats for much of my life and have known many that needed to approach you instead of being approached. Chester was not like that at all. He was almost dog-esque in his demonstrative nature, boisterous personality, and loudness, being very capable of projecting his meow.
(first posted 2/14/2013) What is it that makes a car a “chick car?” Put another way, what is it about some cars that appeals to the fairer sex? And why is it so hard to come up with one on purpose?
(first posted 11/19/2018) The Silver Shadow, which arrived in 1965, was the most radically-changed RR ever. It abandoned the classic design language and traditional BOF construction for a very modern unibody sedan that was a full 3.5″ narrower and 7″ shorter than its predecessor, the Silver Cloud. In the US, its size (203.5″ length) made it comparable to domestic mid-size cars, a full 6″ inches shorter than a ’65 Dodge Coronet. A bit compact, for the world’s most prestigious car, eh?
So it was no surprise that a long wheelbase version appeared after a few years, starting in 1969 in the US market. The four inch stretch all went into increased rear leg room, which made it more suitable for the purpose many buyers had in mind for it. R&T tested one from the last year of its initial version; in 1976, the Silver Shadow II appeared, and the lwb version was renamed the Silver Wraith II.
