Must make Clue harder, must make clue harder…did I succeed? Probably not. You guys are awesome. Jimal hit the Thing on the first guess. Maybe we’ll at least get to five…six…or?

That Ferdinand Porsche’s Volkswagen Beetle would permute into a highly successful off road capable troop transport vehicle in a matter of one month was one of the more remarkable and successful adaptations in automotive history. And that the first mass-produced light amphibious vehicle was the second adaptation added to the growing reputation of the VW and the Porsches. In almost every way the opposite of the specifically-designed American military Jeep, the battle of the two has never quite ended, and their respective fans still argue as to which was the better vehicle. It’s a bit like comparing a tractor and a sports car: it depends on the job at hand. (Read More…)

Does this Thing ever speak to me. In German, undoubtedly; which may well have something to do with the affinity I feel with it. I’m going to try to not be too chauvinistic, but there is something intrinsically Germanic, brilliant and adaptable in the basic Volkswagen design, which facilitated more permutations than any other car ever. The same basic underpinnings that created the Porsche 356 are here at work in the Type 181, the descendant of the WWII Kübelwagen. Even though you haven’t seen the last two yellow convertibles this week, if I had to choose one from all five, this Thing might well have be the one. Figure it. But where else can you get a four door rag top that will last forever, can go off-roading, and you don’t have to worry about putting up the top when it rains. (Read More…)

It seems obvious that I’m making the CC Clues too easy. So we’re going to do something else here: a replay of a very difficult Mystery Car Identification contest that ran on another site back in the day when they still did such mundane things. And what made me think of it? It ran for several days, and yours truly finally nailed it; my life’s greatest achievement. It gave me the inspiration for the CC Clue a few years later. We’re going to have to use the honor system: if you actually remember it (I doubt you will), please refrain. Because the guesses alone are going to be fun. And we will duly acknowledge said author and web site when the contest ends.

Hint: This is a production scoop, not an aftermarket or custom item.

Update: This car was not necessarily found on the street!

Contest Over: We have a correct guess: Dave Shulze, who said 1954 Fiat 8V. Excellent job!

I realize in retrospect that this may not have been such a brilliant idea given the how easy it is to find everything on Google. Oh well; seemed like a good idea at the time.  BTW, I gave away the Mazda Rotary Kit to the first ever CC Clue winner. Sorry about not having prizes. It’s for the honor!

Here’s the link to my cyber-buddy Murilee Martin’s contest at Jalopnik:

http://jalopnik.com/301258/what-was-that-mystery-car-1954-fiat-8v

Ironically, I thought it was the front facing hood scoop I was identifying; I didn’t realize it also had two smaller rear facing extraction scoops too.

Well, the TR-6 must have been way too easy. Revver had it before my hand fully returned from hitting the “publish” button. I hope this one is going to be a bit more challenging, but you guys are amazing.

It’s yellow convertible week at CC, and I have one too many. And since I have a lovely early sixties VW Cabriolet (un-yellow) in the can, this less desirable early seventies Super Beetle Cabrio gets nudged into the Outtake position.  No hard feelings. (Read More…)

For decades, British roadsters had a spell on Americans. And the rivalry between the MG and Triumph, the two leading exponents of the genre, was legendary. They each had loyal adherents to the respective marques, and the stiff competition kept the improvements coming, even if not exactly at a breakneck pace. But by about the time this TR-6 first appeared in 1969, the race was essentially over: the new MGC was DOA, and the MGB was quickly slipping into its ossification period, while the Triumph reveled in its final incarnation of the classic formula: old school, but with a healthy kick of life in it yet. (Read More…)

It’s yellow! The recent Ford EXP win probably goes to rocketrodeo, who said “Mercury LN7”. Since to the best of my knowledge, the cute little twins shared the same tail light, there would be no way to distinguish. Unless someone raises an objection, it will be so. Stay mellow!

Welcome to yellow convertible week at CC. Intimations of summer are in the air, and what better way to immerse oneself into its mood-enhancing, Vitamin-D generating goodness than in a convertible, especially in a yellow one? We’re going to sample a highly diverse lot, starting with the smallest and ending with the biggest. And for true top-down motoring, its hard to be in something with four much smaller than this Metro. (Read More…)

A fully grown camel weighs up to 700kg (1542 lbs). That makes about a ton and a half for a pair. Which is another testament to the legendary ruggedness of the Peugeot 404 pickup, a vehicle that I would love to own. As the former owner of a slew of Peugeot 404s, including a wagon that this pickup is based on, I can attest to their intrinsic ruggedness. And I’m a notorious overloader too, having once been weighed out with a 3400 lb load of building rocks at a quarry in my half-ton F-100. But still; and how did they get them in there anyway? (Read More…)

Since we’re doing vintage Chevy trucks, let’s not forget that they didn’t look the same in other countries. Brazil had a long tradition of making Chevrolets and other GM vehicles going back to the thirties. And trucks played a big role. The Veraneio was a very popular utility truck built for almost forever. I’m guessing it was probably built on an obsolete chassis that tooling was sent south, as was typical for the era. Similar pickups were obviously on offer too. (Read More…)

Take a good look at this Chevy truck’s bed, if you can: six inches from the front of the bed, there’s a seam. That’s where the extra inches were welded on to make a Longhorn, America’s only 8 1/2 foot long production pickup. Why bother with six extra inches? To make room for one more Hooters girl, obviously. (Read More…)

Here’s a mighty fine example of one of my all-time favorite trucks, hard at work on the job site. It probably won’t come as a great surprise to you that there a dozens of these vintage Chevy trucks still earning their keep hereabouts, but this is a particularly nice one. And for some reason, the first year ’67s aren’t that common. Although I’m quite fond of my ’66 F-100, I’m not very partisan when it comes to American trucks of this vintage: they’re all just about equally attractive, hard working and easy to keep running. I’d take this turquoise beauty in a heartbeat (of America). (Read More…)

Did this old Mack ever bring a smile to my face when it pulled up next to me in traffic at a light. Macks of this vintage were my favorite trucks during my east coast years, as they predominated the truckscape back in the day. This B77 has the bigger radiator. The more common and classic B61 had the more delicate curved radiator that would have looked right at home on a classic car (see below). But my smile got even bigger when the light changed to green and he took of in his utterly un-muffled, un-sanitized hard working Mack, belching the kind of black cloud that used to be ubiquitous in the good old days. Did you know Mack trucks could shoot flames too? (Read More…)

While the car shows are full of hybrids and EVs, big trucks are still indulging in the horsepower race. Scania has seized the crown with its new 730 hp V8 R730. Lets I forget the really big number, here it is: 2,581 ft.lbs of torque (3,500 Nm). Full details here, and high-production value ad after the jump. (Read More…)