Several of my colleagues here regularly post their one-off shots once they accumulate a certain number of them, I imagine the process as being very cathartic and perhaps relieving an imaginary burden as the (self-imposed) pressure to write about our encounters does tend to build up. Looking back through last year I realized I’ve shot a couple of hundred cars, way more than I have time to ever write up, but the bulk have been stationary with a full set of pictures should the mood, opportunity, and time ever strike to share them here. However, this is the perfect opportunity to clear out the accumulation of shots that really only have one or perhaps two shots, usually while in motion or stopped at a light with a few encountered on foot.
So without any further ado, let’s get this show on the road, I already feel my burden lifting off me!
January started off in fine form with this Buick LeSabre T-Type, of which I used to own an example of. They are still seen occasionally but rarely in good condition anymore. This one looks quite good in white.
In February we got inundated with snow, I happened to pull up next to this one down near Idaho Springs and was already getting out to shoot some pictures of a test car. Corvettes are not really uncommon here, however usually they don’t get parked under a blanket of snow and the C4 generation is starting to get a bit thin on the ground.
If it was white it’d probably just be lost until late spring.
A couple of days later back at home the weather had improved quite a bit and this fella was at the Pro Parking section of Lowe’s. His much newer cousin is right next to him, too bad you can’t currently spec a RAM with a red interior (well, besides the Rebel which offers more of a reddish trim/garnish version, not the whole bordello theme pack such as back in the day).
The icicles seem to be weighing him down a bit. I know at least one author here who would be all over this one.
This belongs in the “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should” file. Of course this area was also home to the Land Rover Discovery Limo so it must be something in the water, but the painfully straight lines of a limousine do not do a curvy shape such as a Jaguar S-Type any justice whatsoever.
Jackson Pollock apparently drives a Nissan Rogue and shops at Wal-Mart. Or someone was very bored and inspired. I will say the masking job was superb, there was no extraneous splatter anywhere.
Okay, so this is the second C4 Corvette, this one at the beginning of March. This is the last one that I can recall seeing all year long though. As junky as these are inside, the shape is starting to come into its own for me, just fairly clean and unadorned.
It was good to see a daily driver Suzuki Samurai with what I think is an aftermarket hardtop. Still on the standard wheels, these tend to get hacked up to run the trails around here.
This seems to be the year that the old pickup genre has gotten super popular. If you can’t swing a new one, then an older and more interesting one that you can find is the other option. Bonus points for the orange color on this Ford loaded with a bunch of trash, likely heading for the landfill.
This was a surprising sight back in March, although Eric703 also managed to catch a Sunbird Convertible in this same red later in the year as well and did a stellar job writing it up.
This 1984/1985 Honda Accord Hatchback was spotted down in north Denver, the (crooked) dealer tag is from my local Fort Collins dealer from when it was new. The temp plate indicates it just changed hands again. I see more of these in the junkyard than on the street, although either instance is a rarity.
April brought this lovely (NA) Mazda Miata in red. It looks like it was being driven home from being purchased, the law here lets you purchase a private party car and drive it home or directly to the DMV to get it titled. You don’t get to drive around for any amount of time without at least a temporary plate. The top looks brand new and the wheels are from the second generation (NB) Miata. The paint was exemplary, the red on these tends to fade a bit.
I got a second bite of the apple a few miles down the road when he exited in the same place I did. The front badge indicates that this is at least a 1993 model. I miss mine, everyone should own one, what a great experience.
I was on my front lawn when this Nissan Z-car (280Z?) drove past. I haven’t seen it before nor since. I don’t think these have a bad angle. Except for the 2+2, where all the angles are bad.
This VW DoKa (DoppelKabine), DoubleCab for non-German speakers, was caught running around in my town at the beginning of May. It’s a Syncro, has a full rack over the top and bed, yellow headlights with protectors and the license plate isn’t from a country I recognize offhand. It’s “174-URZ” and I can’t make out the EU country in the blue field. Of course the plate could be a fake plate and the numerals could be what the Colorado issue plate reads on the back. Either way, it looks ex-military(-ish).
Later that same day I came across these two guys in a Corvette Stingray Convertible (C3) apparently having a ball of a time. The ‘Vette was loud, brash, and looked fantastic, these, especially the earlier ones, are starting to hit all of my buttons.
The day then turned into a trifecta day with this Impala passing me later in the afternoon. Later in the year I realized he lives down the street from me. The car is usually spotless but driven regularly.
I’m not really a fan of the Ford Maverick or the Mercury Comet, but this Comet (a ’75?) looked splendid in this key lime pie color while waiting to make a left turn. It’s sporting historic plates so the owner clearly takes care of it.
Later in June this Mercedes S-class appeared up ahead, of course in the oh-so-’70’s copper brown color. These too are just getting better with age when well-preserved. Let’s see if we can get closer.
Well, we did but too close to get a good picture. It is a 280S though and likely a gray market import with those hubcaps. Stately would be the best way to describe its acceleration. The license plate is of a newer series so likely a newer owner.
In late June I was up in Laramie, WY, and came across this on the main street.
It was loud and the guys seemed to be enjoying themselves. Not in the best of condition, but seemed to be running just fine, not an everyday sight, that’s for sure, even up in Laramie.
These twin Barracudas are in the back of a junkyard, I’ve tried a few times to get good enough angles to take a good set of photos and have failed every time due to all of the other stuff in the way.
Still, it’s not often one sees two of them side by side so this is the perfect time to give them some time here. They aren’t going anywhere, but are in no danger of being crushed either, not in this yard.
And yes, that is a Marlin behind them. Someone had a thing for fastbacks, it seems. I think I like the Marlin the best actually although that trunk seems horrifically impractical to use. How is this any better than the slots on many modern sedans?
Back in my own neighborhood on a walk in July, this very rare 1990-1991 Audi Coupe Quattro was parked a few streets away. Finished in pearl white but with an Audi rally-inspired accent motif (the shape and style is correct but not the blue color, it should be brown), these still look good to me with the front being the part that dates it the most.
I used to own one in Tornado Red, there were only 1730 in total ever brought to the US back then, priced at a whopping $30k (almost twice that amount today, for 164hp). All wheel drive but with a normally aspirated 20V 5-cylinder, these are popularly upgraded with the full turbo package from an S4 or S6. Europe of course got an S2 version with all the go-fast goodies already baked in. From this angle it still looks quite contemporary.
For the rest of the year, please select page 2 below.
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In no particular order;
– The BMC something is an MG 1100/1300, chassis code ADO16, One size up from a Mini.
– The LeSabre T-Type really frustratingly, agonizingly, missed its’ market. It would’ve been so easy for GM to build a T-Type sedan but they never did, the sedans were mostly pushed out to dealers with Brougham Era trim that ruined the car’s basic good styling.
– My cousin’s grandparents had a Comet like that one, only theirs was banana-cream-pie colored.
– I have to wonder what sort of effect things are having on the prices of old trucks. Paul could be sitting on a gold mine.
An excellent variety! I agree that those old Ford trucks seem to keep going forever as long as you can keep the rust away – something that’s a problem where I live. That 4th gen truck was often seen hereabouts still working, but with the nose tilted towards the sky due to rusty cab mounts that caused the cowl to sink.
That red roadster looks like a very original and beat up Ford Model A roadster, the way they probably looked in the 40s. Every restorer seems to convert the trunk to a rumble seat on these, so to see the lid with the low handle tells us that nobody has messed with this one. Well, other than with the red paintbrush.
And I remain of the opinion that the 63 Impala was one of the prettiest cars of its era.
The green Ford pickup at the top of the post looks to be a ’65 or ’66 based on the placement and design of the emblem on the front fender.
My Dad had a ’65 F100 shortbed stepside and he had to fabricate new front cab mounts for it as the original mounts had rusted,causing a gap between the lower portion of the front fenders and the doors,which pinched the upper portion of the fenders against the doors and caused the doors to bind up when trying to open them.
The 65 badge was a one year only as was the 66 badge just like the grilles. That badge is 1965.
Wow what a mix. I agree about the Z-car. And they look even better with Lindsay Wagner (The Bionic Woman) behind the wheel. Also with you on the C3 Vette. Never cared all that much for them when they were new but now…make mine a ’69 please! While a 4 door Maverick is like french kissing your own sister, I’m a huge fan of ’70-72 2 door Mavs. I’ve owned two. The double cab VW is cool too, But WHAT is that red jalopy??
I think the roadster is a ’26-27 Ford Model T
The neighbors Chevys are ’63 ( and their LeSabre is ’03-05)
The Dodge is definitely a ’56. Looks like a top of the line Custom Royal
So much good stuff here, but that Dodge pickup is the cat’s meow. It’s a ’91 to ’93 with the last two years having the juiced up Magnum engine if a 318 was chosen; the 360 got Magnumized for ’93.
These Dodge pickups are still very thick on the ground around here, greatly outnumbering their Ford and GM counterparts. It’s all the more remarkable given how relatively few were produced. I’d drive that Dodge all day, every day.
Elsewhere on the pickup front, that both of the ’60s vintage Fords you found were 3/4 tons is quite remarkable. Stout would be the best descriptor for these.
The rest of what you found is pretty good too, but pales in comparison to that Dodge. 🙂
Here in Virginia, in regards to 1980s/90s trucks, it seems that Fords are most numerous (not surprising), but Dodges would be second, and Chevy/GMC a distant third.
Great stuff! I think the roadster is a T body on an A frame. The front fender and wheels are A, body is 26-27 T.
How do you guys get these shots while driving? I’d have to futz with my phone for 10 seconds, by which time it would be too late. Also, what’s the fine for using your phone while driving in Colorado, around here it’s $615 🙁
Texting isn’t allowed here, but talking on it is, although I’m almost always on Bluetooth these days for that (and a surprising amount of cars have the ability to read texts to you and let you respond via speech that it then sends as text without needing a hand.) For photos, the newer iPhones have a camera button on the home screen without needing the password or Face ID so I can hit the right side button to turn it on, then the lower right camera icon and then holding it one-handed without focusing, just general aim, snap off a series of shots, usually one or two are usable. Before posting everything gets straightened and cropped and maybe zoomed. Zooming in motion is impossible to do and I have a great collection of pictures of my knees as well as a “Name That Sunvisor” series almost ready to go…
I think you are right on the roadster. I honed in on the wheels and didn’t bother looking at examples to explain how the top half didn’t look quite right. I was chalking it up to the terrible red paint job. Plus I had not yet had my second cup of coffee.
We had a ’63 Impala wagon when I was little. It was turquoise but glowed violet at dusk. Why is blue so out of fashion?
Great series of finds!
That is one tough kid riding in the back of the Jeep! I’ve ridden in the back of Jeeps and it’s a character-building endeavor even on a warm day. But on a highway in a Colorado winter? Wow! Incidentally, my in-laws have a Jeep Wrangler that doesn’t have a back seat, and when my kids were little they loved riding in it because they could (legally) ride up front.
My favorites in this bunch might be the Cressida and the Comet. Both exceedingly rare, and in intriguing colors.
I’m pretty sure the Jackson Pollack Rogue is a car wrap rather than a paint job.
Now that you mention it, the Audi Coupe Quattro does look very contemporary. Must be a result of the high windowline – I remember sitting in one back in the 1990s and didn’t like it much for that reason.
Great catch with the Sunbird! You get extra point for that one since it has that quintessentially perky ’90s “Sunbird” tape script on the back.
I just saw a similar Accord hatchback earlier this month, though the one I saw was deteriorating out in a field. But at the time I thought “Wow, I haven’t seen one of those in ages.”
Thanks for a great bunch of cars, but that Cressida takes the cake! Toyota knew exactly who they were targeting as customers back then, and it looks like the original driver, wearing a trilby I think, is still plodding away reliably forty years plus later.. From the 70’s Toyota More-Is-More styling playbook, and that color, I’m sure one could order an entire 70’s kitchen, fridge, stove, cupboards, the works, in that fetching shade of green.
87 to 89 LeSabre T-types are rare, and becoming more so. However, many are well kept for exactly that reason. They have a following. online and in reality. Here is my 87.
It is a 280S though and likely a gray market import with those hubcaps. Stately would be the best way to describe its acceleration.
No, not grey market import (note the battle ram bumpers). The 280 S for the US market was equipped with steel wheels and hubcaps as standard. The Bundt alloy wheels were optional extra cost during the 1970s for most models except the 450 SEL 6.9, 450 SL, and 450 SLC in the US.
Re: the DoKa and it’s ex-military appearance – those chrome dog dishes go a long way toward distancing that truck from any military service. But hey, why not? When I was driving the battalion commander’s HMMWV all over South Korea I had JC Whitney ship over some blue dots for the taillights. Not exactly regulation but he could always pick out his vehicle…
That F100 is tan, or beige, or some such color. Mine was originally yellow, but it was a lighter shade, like this one below.
Lot’s of great finds. Love the old Ford Model T/A mashup. That’s the one I’d take.
What a collection to start the new year with! I’ll have the Audi Coupe Quattro. I liked it back then, and I still do after all these years.
A guy on YouTube bought a nearly 30 year old Econoline, a ’92 +/- and got a Quigley style 4X4 conversion at a small shop for about 9 grand. It’s not a route I would have chosen, but at least he was out west where rust wasn’t an issue.