CC reader Teddy lives in Portland, and has become one of our most prolific Cohort posters. Well, if you live in Curbsidelandia, CCs are everywhere. Including a second one photobombing your shots. Like this Chevy LUV coming down the street while Teddy was shooting this old Rambler. And I found a second CC in most of the cars he posted.
What’s that little red car looking over the shoulder of this ’63 Buick LeSabre?
It could only be a Datsun 510, a wagon in this case.
There’s a Volvo 240 lurking two cars behind this W123 Benz.
And here’s another one just ahead of this high-roof VW T2.
And a gen1 Acura Integra is sitting on the hood of this fine Dart. Yes, this how it is in Curbsedelandia.
That LUV seems to be in decent shape from what I can see. Bonus points if it would have been a 4X4. Love the Dart too.
Look at how big that “Mini” is compared to the MB.
I sadly deleted the picture of my current Mazda 3 standing next to one at the park & ride I use in Vienna a few times a week – the MB is dainty in comparison. We often discuss the downsizing of US-made cars taking place in the 70s, but since then cars have been growing in size incrementally everywhere, and you can’t avoid noticing it when cars from way back then are parked next to current models. And it’s not just then – I had to positively adjust my driving to allow for the Mazda’s Avoirdupois, it is hardly a “compact” anymore. moreover, it’s not helped by the fact that the current styling makes it very difficult to judge where the car ends – hardly an issue with an airy design like the W123.
The shape of most modern cars makes the larger size even more ridiculous. You cant see out of them and cant even enter or exit easily. I have a few large friends who could get in and out of older cars no problem, but struggle with newer ones.
I want that Dart…
The Dart shows up on Google Maps.
https://www.google.com/maps/@45.5221702,-122.6433872,3a,75y,91.54h,90t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1swO_Ner3mEpbBRtH7rvlx9Q!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en
Now you know where it is.
The grill cover says Plymouth so I assume it is a Valiant.
Oops, just assuming without investigating. Not a good thing, my bad.
The 510 wagon is a very rare bird. Brother in law had a tan 2 door 4 speed while in college which he regrets selling.
However, his replacement was a ’73 Mercury Capri V6 which was just as fun.
I see mostly 4 door and wagon 510’s on the roads now (though not a lot of either). The 2 doors are the real rare birds … perhaps hidden away in collections, or racers only, or crushed after meeting an early demise at the hands of teenage streetracers 30 years ago.
LOVE that 510 wagon, and it looks to be in pretty fantastic shape. I’ve only ever seen one, in Raleigh about 5 years ago, and *man* was it beat.
Wow, with the possible exception of the Benz, seeing one of these in Chicago in any given year would be like seeing a unicorn. Or a Cubs World Series title.
I’m jealous now……
Los Angeles used to be like this .
-Nate
I have fallen way behind in posting my pics to the cohort, but come on down to LA’s beach cities and cc’s like these are still everywhere. They are easy to spot because all the modern stuff is whitesilvergrayblack.
Just so ! .
I just bought a tatty and FILTHY (damned smokers) 1959 VW # 113 DeLuxe Beetle and the rear window has UCLB parking stickers from 1976 ~ 1978 all over the backlight .
THANK YOU GUYS (maybe curse you =8-) ) for igniting the long dormant flame again ~ as I was coaxing this wheezy old relic home (where it promptly died) I was seriously enjoying my self, like I did in 1971….
-Nate
Very cool! We’d love to hear more about it as work progresses. Just getting it back to solid driver shape, or going for a more thorough refresh?
So far all day every day since I bought it making it road worthy and safe again .
Lots of cleaning too .
I doubt I’ll repaint it but new seats and tires etc. are all in my general plan .
I have a thing with photos already written if anyone’s interested. I don’t think this article is the place to post it though .
-Nate
Alameda is kind of like that. Here is a shot of a car storage yard on the old NAS Alameda which is full of 60 and 70’s cars. This is an older shot as I passed by last week when the gate was open. Galaxies, Darts, Bugs, Cougars, Dodges and so forth.
Privately owned collection?
Here in Ontario you’ll spot the occasional old VW camper (summer drivers only) and an old Mercedes isn’t an unusual sight either. Everything else in the article disappeared from our roads a long time ago – Ontario winters aren’t kind to old iron.
The Rambler? Won’t see 1 in northern Florida. The rest of the cars pictured? Oddly (?), you will find them on Craigs or rotting away on the side of the road, but with the exception of the VERY occasional sighting of a vintage M-B on the roads.
Are Volvo 240s scarce out West? When we lived in Lynnwood WA in the mid-90s I worked on Capitol Hill in Seattle and saw them all over. My dad bought a 1990 model 240 in 2009, when after 50 years’ worth of speeding tickets in various vehicles – his last being a turbo’ed SAAB 93 – the judge in Massachusetts told him he wasn’t buying the speedometer failure excuse any longer, even if Dad was 88 at the time. (He was clocked doing his age on I-91 in a 60mph zone.) He was told to buy something more sedate or have his license revoked, and he had to go back to court 30 days later to prove he had done so. (If that judge only knew what that 240 could do…)
I own it now, inherited it after Dad died in 2011. Drove it here to far southwest Florida in May of 2011, a 1400-mile trip during which I averaged 90+ mph. Once you figure out the shift points on the 3spd auto with electric OD, it’s as fast as a stick. Quirky car until you get used to it. We like it now. It shares driveway space with my 1990 Taurus wagon (probably the last Gen1 Taurus wagon on Florida’s highways and byways, love that car!).
Mr. Kerr, c’mon down to Fort Myers and Sanibel area. We have Ramblers all OVER the place. We also have the occasional Packard, Hudson and Studie as well. The weather here is as kind to older cars as it is to older people! 🙂
Love it! I recall two “slow” cars from high school that actually hauled ass. One was a friend’s Volvo 740 turbo wagon, bought because his drums fit inside. The other I drove…my grandmother’s gigantic Chrysler Town & Country station wagon. It wax dark green, with plenty of power options, e HD suspension (tow package)…and with a 365HP 440 TNT under the hood! (Basically…the Charger’s Magnum or the GTX’s Super Commando 375HP engine, but with quiet exhaust and silenced air cleaner.) It even had factory dual exhaust.
Vintage Volvos are becoming rarer in Portland OR which is not surprising since the last 200-series Volvos were built nearly 24 years ago. I usually do not see vintage Volvos during my commute and I usually do not photograph 200-series Volvos because there are still enough around. Also, I have little personal connection with Volvos. Now if a vintage Volvo is from far away (like a 200-series from Arkansas) then I will photograph it.
http://autoweek.com/article/car-life/san-francisco-bay-area-volvo-240s-getting-crushed-depressing-quantities
http://autoweek.com/article/junkyard-treasures/san-francisco-bay-area-volvo-240calypse-continues