Maybe half an hour after Daniel Stern’s QOTD went live yesterday, I ran across this at the Greeley-Weld County Airport. We had gone there for an airshow that ended up being rained out, so we looked for the airport diner instead. Around the corner I spotted what apparently passes for lawn art in the area so I stopped for a minute.
The above picture is likely the rear of the vehicle given that it has the registration sticker on the license plate. There is an important clue here – the registration sticker itself. Expiring in May of 1998, this vehicle can’t be any newer manufacture than from May of 1997, comfortably making it a Curbside Classic, unless someone added the plate later…This is how I found it. Maybe this is all way too easy though.
Yes, I was kind enough to take shots from multiple angles so you can determine if it’s a Zephyr, or a Zodiac or a Consul or maybe something completely different.
This is probably the front end. It was absolutely pissing down rain so take that into consideration, although the rain probably makes the paintwork appear showroom fresh. Kids, NEVER buy a car in the rain, you will regret it when it dries up.
I have no idea if it ran when parked. I just know it’s not going anywhere currently…David Saunders could maybe do a little welding magic and put it back together but otherwise I’m not sure.
This final shot gives the scene some more much-needed scale to help you finalize your decisions as to what it is/was. It looks like the size of the car was probably larger than the fire hydrant but smaller than the building. Well, what guess you?
Nissan Cube, with the wrong license plate
VW Beetle. I see a headlight bucket, bumper with rub strip and air cooling louvers.
Agreed. You beat me to it. The headlight bucket and air cooling louvers seal the deal.
And the year?
1969. Without a doubt.
Posted same time you did as I spent time looking at color chips. Peru green could be a close match.
1972-1974 from looking at bumper, bolt/rivet heads or whatever they are and the thinner rubber strip is my guess.
However in the picture what is “this”
looks like the heads up display still works 😉
Christine. That bit of trim just waved goodbye!
Don’t know for sure but it reminds me of Goldfinger’s Lincoln Continental.
Even more notable was when it was dropped into a Falcon-based Ranchero without sagging the rear springs. The Ranchero then took off without breaking a sweat!
Totally – the first thing I thought of when I saw the compacted sheet metal cube.
There is something wrong with the chrome strip on the glovebox lid.
I see what you did there 😉
Nissan Cube design concept.
Bumper style leads me to believe it’s a 71 up Beetle.
Alas, a sad end to a long career delivering pizzas out of the Domino’s in Table Mesa (that’s “table table” to you Philistines). It lived for a while on S 46th in Table Mesa itself, then moved east to Louisville where it fell in with a bad crowd at the now-defunct Pizza Time. Eventually the irony of consuming at least three engines while carrying an “Earth First” bumper sticker overwhelmed the poor Bug, and it gave itself to the Art Muses of Greeley. On a hot summer day, one can still smell the pepperoni.
“Car stall on Hulk for last time! Take THIS, puny unreliable car!”
That will not buff out, nice colour and I see VW pieces so likely the whole thing is/was a beetle
First thing I thought of…
https://youtu.be/Uf-5l2nebRE
A “compacted” compact
Beat me to it Well said!
Isdera Compactadore 112i, the successor of the Commendatore 112i. Like certain GM cars in the ’80s, this was not a successful downsizing.
Where do they crush cars into cubes anymore? Usually in the U.S. they are flattened for transport. Then shredded and materials separated. Just curious.
Back in the ’70’s in Green Bay Wisconsin 2 brothers would exchange a give in unusual ways every year. (I think a pair if jeans?). One of the brothers put the jeans into the glovebox of a junked AMC Gremlin, had it crushed into a cube and delivered to his brother. The other brother had to extricate the present to send back the next year. This made the newspaper there.
Bob.
Crushing is still a popular method in NZ, little blocks that were once cars leave this area frequently by the semi load.
I say an Eastern Bloc car. Or maybe Cuban. I never cared much for 1 box designs.
“Ran when cubed. Needs new tires.”
“Price lowered this weekend only! It’s going to the crusher next week.”
I don’t know what it is, but I’m developing a crush on it.
Remind me to never ever ask for curbside parking at Greeley-Weld County Airport!?
For those still in doubt that this
iswas a VW Beetle, take a look at the third picture where you you can clearly see the chrome trim ring for the right headlight. You can recognize the right front fender was in primer. Look just to the right of the headlight and down just a bit and you can identify the seam of the fender and curved line of the front trunk opening. Finally, looking further to the right under that obviously Beetle bumper, you can recognize the vents in the body work that ran across the front bottom edge of a Super Beetle. Although Paul, authoritatively, has called this a 69, I don’t believe that the Beetles had that “grill” under the bumper, and the Super Beetle didn’t appear till 71 as far as I know.In the attached picture of an uncrushed Beetle, you can see the “grill” I’m on about and then match it to Jim’s third picture
I was kidding about it being a 1969. 🙂
Just the fact that you guys can even tell this blob of metal was once a Beetle is beyond me. Kudos to you all …
What blows my mind is how that license plate escaped being mangled in the crusher. Of course, the guy could’ve ‘registered’ it AFTER the car met its doom. ?