One needs to make the best of a crummy situation. About to go crazy from fighting a fever the last few days, I have regenerated enough vitality to take a stroll through my picture archives and see what should have its moment in the sun.
A truly deserving candidate is this Maserati Quattroporte. Production numbers for this aren’t exactly in Ford F-150 territory. Parts availability isn’t either, as it’s been sitting for at least eighteen months at a repair facility several miles from here and it has license plates that went out of circulation in 2007.
Try as I might, this Quattroporte just hasn’t excited me. Maybe it’s the Malaise Era Brown™ the good folks at Maserati bestowed upon it. This color is the automotive version of bad breath.
If slathered in primer, like this F-250, one could have a blank slate of a Maserati to apply some exotic shade of silver, white, or even beige. Anything but that horrid brown. I don’t want to sound snarky and haughty in saying this; that’s really not my personality. Much to this Maserati’s credit, its color is easy to determine and you won’t have to worry about seeing another one in the Wal-Mart parking lot.
You also won’t easily find the twin to this 1968 Chevrolet Caprice (or is it Impala – does it really matter?). This wonderful specimen provides so many reasons to be visually captivating. Shockingly, this picture was not taken in Eugene, Oregon; perhaps somebody just imported it from Eugene. Moss, lichen, and other barnacle type organisms aside, something tells me this old girl would easily make the drive to Eugene with the air conditioning still working well enough to keep the pickiest penguin happy.
While this Impala doesn’t have patina, it has certainly generated its own unique aura. I rather like it.
If memory serves, that is a 327 badge on the front fender.
Notice its height in comparison to the Hyundai parked next to it. I’m dating myself in saying this, but it doesn’t seem like that long ago when these were relatively thick on the ground.
In reviewing my photo archives, I realized this ’68 Impala had some company.
A ’68 Chevrolet Bel-Air sedan has crossed my path.
And I ran parallel to another ’68 Bel-Air, this time a two-door sedan. For some reason, this one seems like it may be parked in a garage more frequently than the other two ’68s.
If you aren’t fond of the 1968 Chevrolet, I do have this 1969 model. The frontal appearance is quite pleasant on the ’69 but is certainly less ambitious in appearance than its predecessor.
It’s also interesting to note how phraseology has changed over time; nowadays, when you say you are “going green” it means you are intent to conserve resources. Back then, “going green” meant either you had gangrene or your full-size car was painted green. Lots of folks bought such cars, which in a sense was an ecologically astute decision as GM, Ford, and Chrysler didn’t have to spray as much environmentally harmful cleaner through their paint guns when changing paint colors at the factory. In turn, if you were in a fender-bender or your car contracted chloride induced gangrene, every car in the bone yard was the same color as yours, saving the need of painting your replacement parts.
This 1959 Ford Galaxie is another car I have been lucky enough to catch while exercising. I’m still holding out for finding a ’59 Ford for a full CC; surprisingly, we have never done a CC on either a ’59 Ford or a ’68 Chevrolet.
Ford’s such as this were still being manufactured into the early 1960s for sale in Australia while the driver appeared to have been manufactured about twenty years later. He looked to be as happy as a doodle-bug in a sugar bowl.
With mentioning the early ’60s, here is a fine, big-boned duo I found a year or so ago. Other than each being an example of the Low Priced Three, these two don’t easily compare. This copper ’61 Ford is a hardtop, has a V8, and an automatic transmission in a higher trim level.
The ’63 Chevrolet has a six-cylinder engine wrapped in a low-trim two-door sedan body. All that appears to be needed by either is a little air in the tires. While I am tempted to induce some age old Ford vs. Chevrolet debate, I won’t. Nothing about slip-and-slide transmissions or Y-block boat anchors. Doing so would be inappropriate.
This Ford Model T sounded great and was running around 20 mph. One of the front wheels was out of round, likely compromising his ability to steer even at that speed.
The world is a terrific place, with so many things waiting to be discovered. Whether it’s going through unknown towns with well-known names,
or going through memorable sounding intersections (we have a multitude of routes with letters; Wisconsin does similar), there are so many things yearning to be seen. So, in quick order, let’s take a look.
Here is a Mustang SVO for all who enjoy an exotic Fox. I found this the day of the CC meet-up in Iowa City; so many cars, so little time. I do have a full set of pictures for a full CC one of these days, but Paul has beat me to it (CC here).
Most of the time, a Dodge Shadow is as memorable as that bowl of bland vanilla ice cream you had in 1991. Yet like any ice cream, the toppings can make all the difference in the world and this Shadow having a flaccid top certainly sets it apart from the rest of its brethren. It’s another CC hopeful.
A baby Ford LTD, one of my favorite Fox bodies. Even when these were new, when any affinity for four-door automobiles was sneered at by my woefully juvenile classmates, I knew these were special.
The school district purchased a new one in gray. I always hoped it would become the driver’s education car; no such luck. The LTD was kept for the administration and a deal was struck with a local car dealer to provide a new driver’s education car every 2,000 miles – I drove a first-generation Taurus once and it was promptly swapped for a stupid Escort. In every litter of animals, we all know somebody has to partake from the mammary gland in the rear. Despite their obvious Fairmont roots, I thought these were great looking cars for the time.
Another Fox of a more pedestrian variety is this Mustang coupe, powered by the fire-breathing 2.3 liter four-cylinder with atmospheric induction. This car, save the faded red interior, is identical to a Mustang I once had. I routinely obtained 23 to 24 mpg out of that Mustang; when I swapped it off for my 4.6 liter Thunderbird, the nay-sayers in my family were convinced I would be spending a fortune in fuel as I had swapped off that miserly four-pot for a fuel-swilling V8. Nope; the Thunderbird got the same or better gas mileage and made power aplenty, something that Mustang could only dream about. Even better, I never wore out the carpet beneath the accelerator in that Thunderbird.
A later model Vega. Its motivational source remains cloaked in a metallic shroud of mystery.
No action-adventure movie is complete without some gratuitous sex and violence. Similarly, no photo spread would be complete without a gratuitous Panther, here in the form of a Lincoln Town Car. If you look real close, there is a second serving in the background for no extra charge.
I will periodically see this Ford Maverick about town. Seeing it was quite a breath of fresh-air. Hearing it pull itself down Missouri Boulevard reminded me of John Irving’s description of his title character of Owen Meany and how he spoke by screaming through his nose. However, this Maverick wasn’t unique in the parking lot.
This Cougar was parked right behind it and both are on a glorified Falcon chassis. The Cougar sounds great, but it reminded me of Forest Gump telling Lt. Dan: She smelled like cig-retts.
The Maverick also answered the question long burning within the minds of men and women the world over: Which is taller – a Maverick or a Neon? Now we all know.
At least the white Neon hadn’t been repaired with decorator duct tape. I’m more partial to the design with bacon instead of the splattergrams seen here.
Here’s another car that looks equally at home with duct-tape, a Chevrolet Chevette. No! Hold the phone! That’s a Pontiac T-1000. That explains its double dose of halitosis brown paint.
Lest you think I am concluding, there are a few other arresting photographs I have, of cars that by their very nature are unique (not to be confused with desirable) or are desirable (not to be confused with unobtainable). You be the judge on which these are.
Stepping up the Sloan Ladder one creaky rung from a Chevrolet Nova yields a person this Pontiac Ventura.
One has to wonder – did former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura own one of these? Did they sell well in Ventura, California? Did Ventura owners take a pilgrimage on the Ventura Highway? Or did they just listen to the song?
Taking two shaky and wobbly rungs up the Sloan Ladder from the Nova netted a person an Oldsmobile Omega. Were these popular at some fraternity and sorority houses in the 1970s? Was the base price some multiple of 800? Did some wise acre at the Department of Motor Vehicles abbreviate the name down to Ω? How many ohm’s were built into its electrical system?
Earlier I gave you two Lincoln Town Cars. How about two AMC Eagle’s, both in four-wheel drive?
My pictures are still plentiful, but my fingers grow tired from typing. As someone has done with their ’64 Thunderbird, sometimes you just need to find a spot to park it.
My father had a Vega identical to that, his was a ’77. I’m guessing that’s either a ’76 or ’77. The aluminum block was long gone by then, I seem to remember that dad’s was powered by the old Iron Duke. He got it cheap, kept it for a year or so, it served its purpose. Main failing at that point of time is that dad was a full-sized car guy. Every time he got the bright idea of going to a small car (usually for gas mileage), within a year he was disillusioned and went back to an Impala or LeSabre.
The Vega never got the Iron Duke; the later 2300 engines were substantially more durable however.
Oddly enough, the Pontiac Astre did get the Iron Duke for 1977, which was its final year on the market.
The Monza Wagon combined the Vega body with Iron Duke availability.
Yep, I had a ’77, with the aluminum engine. Mine still wasn’t all that durable, though. New factory engine when I bought it at 28,000 miles (for $1,800!). According to the seller, in Arkansas-speak, “the valves were wallered out” in the old engine. New motor actually went to 85k when it REALLY bit the dust.
I meant that strictly in relative terms. 🙂
Jason, I would love to see you write up this latter-day Vega. Aesthetically, the 1971 – ’73 seem to be widely regarded as the best-looking, but I always really liked the 1976 – ’77 restyle – with its unbroken full-width “ribs” in its grille. It was only after reading CC that I learned the amber part of the turn signals were totally fake and non-functioning. Still a great-looking car.
The ’68 Chevy coupe is definitely a Caprice. Or at least the bumper is from a Caprice. Impala’s only had two chromeholes, like on my dad’s ’68 sedan with a 307 v8.
Back in the day you could easily identify most cars just by their chromeholes. That’s how one learned.
Had a neighbor with a similar Caprice Coupe (Opera Classic Coupe IIRC?) and I could never understand the length of that trunk aft of the greenhouse, which seemed ridiculous.
Are you sure about that? I thought that, until sometime after ’70, two tails per side was a Bel Air whereas three per side was an Impala/Caprice.
Impala and Caprice both had three tail lights. That was an Impala trademark since 1958.
Nope it is an Impala both it and the Caprice had 3 tail lights per side. The thing that defines it as an Impala are the ventipanes, ie vent windows, the Caprice had new “full side glass window to give you a better veiw – no ventipanes to interrupt Caprice Coupe’s classic lines” The other big clue is that the Caprice would have had skirts and the rear wheel opening was shaped differently because of that. They were just a simple arc and the lower side trim was different and flowed over the skirt.
That’s what I recall as well – the Caprice wouldn’t have had vent windows.
Wow, I never noticed the “no ventpanes on the Caprice coupe” rule. OK, I have learned something for today. Time to lock my mind up until tomorrow. 🙂
Jason, that’s a fine automotive potpourri you’ve assembled here! I think the most unusual would have to be the Quattroporte (which I rather like despite the unfortunate shade of brown and the very late 70’s-angular styling) or the T. I’ve never seen a Model T being driven on public roads, so that one’s pretty remarkable!
If I had to select one of these vehicles for my personal transportation…the most potential probably lies in the Cougar or the ’61 Galaxie, but if it was a drive it as pictured proposition, that ’59 Ford is certainly looking fine!
Enjoy the inclusion of multiple ’68 Chevys also. My folks owned a ’68 Impala coupe from the mid 70’s to early 80’s, and I suspect it was the car I traveled home from the hospital in. Nice find on the Fox LTD too, good-looking cars and probably underappreciated in comparison to the Taurus.
The Cougar would be my choice as well. I do like the Foxy LTD and agree that they were/are under appreciated as a nice clean and simple design.
Thank you.
As luck would have it, I saw yet another ’68 Chevrolet yesterday and had I photographed it, I would have obtained yet another body style from that year. It was a four-door hardtop – in green, no less.
+1 on the Quattroporte. That series is a bit of a guilty pleasure.
The styling looks dated now, but was dynamite in the 80s. That color doesn’t do it any favors though.
From Giugiaro’s origami period when he penned the Lotus Esprit.
Its styling may be dated, but it’s still attractive. 🙂
Best part: the road signs… “F” “U” is something only a state road commission would ignore. Ha ha!
It’s a shame that I-69 doesn’t go through there too. 🙂
New Mexico renumbered its Highway 666 a few years ago.
I’m told there also used to be a No U-Turn sign on the same sign post.
We don’t use R, X, S, or Q. We use the other 22 letters and will also double them up, like AA, ZZ, etc. Its almost avoided many other pitfalls, but not all.
Is there a problem with drivers falling asleep at the wheel on Highway ZZ? And does Highway AA have more than its share of DWIs? Sorry, but I just wonder these things.
In Wisconsin the letter highways are county roads, The designations are reused in every county. Missouri’s letter highways are state roads, but they’re usually short so many designations are reused throughout the state.
There are several Route PPs in Missouri (go ahead and laugh, kids!), the one I’m familiar with runs through Poplar Bluff.
I once had to deal with a cranky person on Route PP in Butler County; that’s a story for a different website.
Yes, the lettered routes here are all state routes that are generally about 4 to 7 miles in length. Some dead end, some meet up with others, some meet numbered routes. They had been county roads but a political deal in the 1950s brought them into the state system and they have certainly helped allow Missouri to have the 6th largest highway system in the United States.
Impressive collection of finds. Jeez; here I used to think that you guys in the Midwest were so CC deprived. Not so…this looks like a drive through rural Oregon. Maybe it’s time to move CC to the heartland. 🙂
Not!
I loves me some T-Bird, even one that apparently has front tires that are tired of holding up the FE 390’s weight.
For me, the “Malaise Era Brown™” doesn’t detract much from the Maserati Quattroporte. What does is its rather too-flat face. Its low stance and angularity look fresh these days. Even that color is a welcome change from Camry Pewter, Honda Potmetal and BMW Slag, all with Vacuum Cleaner Bag Grey interiors.
I was surprised the Quattroporte wasn’t mentioned in the “Most Beautiful Four-Door Sedan/Hardtop” thread of December 1.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/qotd/qotd-what-is-the-most-beautiful-sedan-in-the-world/
Love those (non-) colour names!
Vacuum Cleaner Bag Grey!!! Love it!!!
I don’t know either. Its styling may be dated to some, but I find it more attractive than anything made today. 🙂
Oh, it’s there alright…
In that Fox LTD, you have found one of the rare 1986 models (see the center high mount brake light), made for only a few months in late 85 until Taurus production came on line. I had it’s Mercury counterpart (the wagon version) and it was shocking how few were made. My wagon was that exact same color of telephone beige.
So many other good things. It’s amazing how in four short years, Ford went from that 59 to your 63. Even that 61 looks ancient in comparison.
And you probably had no idea how musical that Thunderbird was, sitting below those two AMCs. 🙂
The ’68 HT is an Impala Custom Coupe…new for that year. I owned one in 1977…
Hope yours didn’t have its own ecosystem, like the one in the pic.
From here, the first thing I thought when gazing at that Quattroporte was “1984 Crown Vic”. Not exotic enough in retrospect. Can’t remember if it seemed more striking back then, or if it was a close but no cigar type image.
That Quattroporte is just a beautiful thing.
That Omega looks just like a lost puppy looking for a home. I wish I could take it with me… Ah well…
A friend of my mom’s had a Chevy Vega when I was a boy. Hers had a better looking nose than what this Vega had. I used to know a neighbour who had a Ford Maverick. I’ve always preferred the 1969 Chevy Bel Air/Impala more than the 1968. I’ve seen plenty of Ford LTDs. I’ve always preferred the front end (the “face”) of the LTD in the pics above than that of the Taurus that replaced it. Not only was the Taurus front wheel drive, but it had a rather ugly looking face. I found its twin, the Mercury Sable more attractive. I also like the face of the Pontiac T-1000 over the Chevrolet Chevette.
I’ve never seen a Maserati Quattroporte in person before. I’ve seen the two door version, but never a four door. Both are beautiful looking cars.
The nostalgic car for me is that ’59 Galaxie. My buddy in high school’s mom had its twin, minus the fender skirts, in the same turquoise. Only 59,000 miles on it in 1974 or so. Beautiful car. My friend and I spent an afternoon waxing it with actual Johnson’s paste wax, something that I hope to never repeat (especially on a car that big). I hope that old boat is still going somewhere.
That red Impala is very nicely restored, but with way too many decorations. Only a chain of cans and a “Just Married” sign is missing 🙂
Jason,
Loved the pictures. I have a thing for undesirable Maseratis could you contact me offline and let me how I can contact the owner of the Quattroporte.
Thank You
Send an email to the address above; it will be forwarded to me. I can point you in the general direction.
Just read through your post during my morning tea break Jason, loved it! Some fascinating cars in there – my fave is definitely the Quattroporte III, I’ve always loved that shape, despite it lookingly like a squashed Talbot Tagora. Love that colour too (not sure what that says about me!). Never seen one in the metal, but I ogled a Quattroporte IV here a few years ago, and there are quite a few of the gen V around. The gen V is breathtakingly beautiful of course, but the quirkiness of III does it for me!
Some other observations of your observations:
* The “paint” on that Caprice/Impala looked like it’d have quite the texture if touched!
* Is it just me or does that Dodge Shadow actuallly resemble a bowl of ice cream?
* The Maverick’s wheel covers are spectacularly styled versus the rest of the car – are they original?
* CC Effect: there was a Model T wandering around here two weekends ago
* Wow, I can’t believe there’s a town named Frankenstein! (Mind you, I live in a town named Te Awamutu, which would sound equally weird to folks)
* ‘F’ ‘U’ road signs! *schoolboy snigger*
* I like the thing chrome strip around the taillights and number plate on the LTD
* The beduct-taped Neon is easily the best DIY repair I’ve seen this month!
* That dude in the pink jacket and red glasses looks seriously scary, please try to keep him in your wonderful land! 😉
Nicely done good sir!
Scott, to answer some of your questions….
Those are indeed gin-you-wine Ford spec Maverick wheel covers. They tend to have more visual appeal than the Maverick.
Yes, Frankenstein is a real town with loads of folks of German descent. It’s close to the towns of Linn, Bonnet’s Mill, and Chamois. I need to find a website about town names – the State of Missouri has many names of towns of other places. I live 45 minutes from Mexico, which is just south of Paris, have been to Louisiana, Nevada (pronounced Nuh-vay-duh), Houston, Melborne (no “u”), and what looks like Friedham (pronounced Freedom).
The F-U is only for westbound folks; eastbound folks see U-F as Route U goes north and Route F goes south.
I was afraid to touch the Caprice not knowing what might see me as a host organism.
Despite my liking (not love) of most things NOVA, I find myself preferring the AMCs or the LTD. Thats an interesting batch of pictures and if I look at them again I think my preferences are likely to shift to something else. It will be interesting to read whatever you choose to write about.
BTW I think Sloan’s ladder had a few busted rungs when it came to the NOVA clones. Interesting article but like drinking from a fire hose. Think I will have to read it again.
That ’64 Thunderbird practically leaps off the page. I find the 61-69 models so incredibly desirable and can tell most of you do too. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if the values started climbing to the moon.
The other two that jump for me are the ’68 and ’69 Chevys. I believe the ’68 is a Caprice because of the shape of the C-pillar. I prefer the ’69 myself. It reminds me what a great year that was for styling. The ’69 DeVille was a standout as well, the best looking since ’64.
The ’68 Chevy is a “Custom Coupe” (‘formal’ notchback hardtop), as opposed to a “Sports Coupe” (semi-fastback hardtop). The Custom Coupe was a Caprice exclusive in 1966-67, while all Impala hardtops through ’67 were Custom Coupes. The availability of the Custom Coupe was expanded to the Impala series for ’68, however. So while a ’67 with this body style/roofline would have to be a Caprice, a ’68 could be either an Impala or a Caprice.
Doesn’t the Caprice have the headlights that were behind a hinged cover?
Hidden headlamps were certainly available on the ’68 Caprice, but were they standard? I don’t know, I tend to think they were an option.
Great collection. That Maserati is kind of the ultimate Italian old school brougham. Imagine- four Webers feeding an aluminum OHC V8! Rocky Balboa drove one in Rocky II. Quite the Itallian Stallion.
Great pics, I’m drawn to that red Maverick. There’s a young fellow who I frequently meet at the last stoplight before getting on I-85 every morning who has a mint 2 door Mercury version. It even has a vinyl roof. He gets on and runs he gauntlet at 70 to 80 mph with everyone else no problem. Once day I’ll catch him somewhere and get some pictures and the story on the car. It looks too good to be a dead grandma car, he’s put some TLC into it.
Now that my appetite has been whetted by this website, I have noticed that there really are a lot of old Mavericks running around near my home in upstate SC / western NC. They are in good shape too – there is patina, but they are not sh*tboxes. They must have been pretty good cars – rust is not a big deal here so that is not an issue. Were these grandma cars like Valients? I see 5 of these for each Vallient still rolling around but my recollection is they were both very popular cars back in the day.
The Maverick was Ford’s next big hit after the original Mustang. I believe it came out in 1970. It fulfilled the utilitarian transportation niche that had been abandoned by the Mustang earlier. The Maverick wws initally offered as two door coupe with the 200cid six. Later it was available with the 302 v8 and as a sedan. In many ways it was a repeat of the Mustang formula except that it was available as a real stripper.
I’ve always thought the Maverick was supposed to be the 1970s Falcon, a less expensive version of the Mustang, for young families and a driver’s first car.
It was; In fact it slotted directly into the space in the lineup recently vacated by the Falcon.
And yet the Falcon and Comet is sought after today, while the Maverick and Comet is avoided like the plague. Why is that?
The Falcon and Maverick were essentially the same platform, and three of the plants that built Mavericks (Kansas City, San Jose and St. Thomas, ON) had previously run Falcons. That’s where the similarities ended.
The Falcon was built to be inexpensive, but also reliable. It wasn’t so cheap that quality suffered any worse than other Fords. The Maverick was designed and built to a price – $1,995 when they debuted. Rehashing the Falcon’s underpinnings was only part of the cost-cutting. Mavericks were prolific rusters (even by early ’70s Ford standards) which is a huge reason why so few have survived. Other aspects of the assembly process were cheapened to reach Iacocca’s $1,995 target.
Perhaps the most infamous example of the Maverick’s cheapness was the lack of a glove box. The Maverick had to make do with a shelf under the dash for its first few years on the market. Even the cheapest Pinto had one as standard equipment.
Maverick was intro’d in April 1969, and was pushed as a VW Bug competitor, cheap. Then was moved ‘upmarket’ when Pinto came out.
But, was always a ‘beater’ image. Never really was a hit with hot rodders like Nova and Duster in 70s/80s. Ford guys would get an old Mustang to soup up, instead.
Ford USA abandoned the Falcon name, letting it ‘rot’, which is too common practice. But, using a new name on old platform makes people think it’s ‘all new’.
I agree that Mav’s seemed to rust away quick, while some elders kept Falcons going here in Chicagoland.
Nice selection. I’ve been back a few times to see the Quattroporte but I always freak at the lichen Chevy. hehehe
Saw a (very) beater ’68 Impala 4 door hardtop the other day, odd since they’ve been pretty much extinct on northeast Ohio’s roads since the very early Eighties. Really rusty and rough looking and sporting what was left of a rather ghastly bright blue Maaco/Schieb paint job. It was, however, sporting a “396” badge on the fender. Intriguing.
I’m always been a fan of Fox LTD’s, give me an ’84-’86 LTD LX any day of the week. 5.0HO plus the LTD cop car suspension. Fun!
As crazy as it sounds, I’ve always liked the Ford Maverick and Mercury Comet. It may not have been the best car, and it may not be everyone’s favourite, but so what? I like it. It’s a shame that a station wagon version was never offered.
Great eclectic collection of pictures. You’re much braver than I am for getting that close to the Quattrporte without a fire extinguisher…….
Sure is an eclectic group of vehicles in these photos and I like looking at them, thank you. Surprised to see a Northwest type of patina on that 68 Chevy and I am also surprised to see rust on some of these cars. Are the headlights on that SVO even functional? South Carolina even a few years ago was home to a decent variety of Chryslers from the past several decades including P-Bodies. Wonder how that Ventura got from North Dakota, I love seeing old cars from way out of state.