These are not the kind of cars that normally get me to pull over and shoot, but something about them called to me. I came up with three reasons to justify their occupying memory space in my camera. One: their sloping roofs, clean noses and high tails suggest excellent aerodynamics. Sure enough, with a Cd of .33 for the Monte Carlo and a .30 for the Intrepid, they’re definitely on the slippery side of average. Read More >
When my other son Will was a toddler, he loved to put on my size thirteen shoes and shuffle around the house with them. He called it Shook. This Samurai brings that memory back very vividly. Read More >
This Legacy wagon is ready for snow (how do they do that?), if only there were any, here or in Vancouver. While the East is inundated, we’ve had the warmest January on record, and Stephanie is out planting in the garden. But its good to be ready, even for the unexpected: Read More >
Is there a clinical definition for the compulsion to fit every possible exterior accessory to one’s car? J C Whitney Syndrome?
No, there’s no Mark III, V or VI to be found here, at least for now. Just as well. But I’ve been sitting on this Mark VII for almost a year, from the looks of the daffodils blooming (and they are, hereabouts). But the Mark VII was a different animal altogether. Quite the radical break, but then Ford had more than hit the end of the road with the ugly, boxy wallowing stuff they’d been pushing out the door for decades. Their near-brush with bankruptcy in 1980 resulted in a whole new regime and approach: headed by the pragmatic but car enthusiast Donald Petersen. But development money was tight, so the Town Car became immortal. But a relatively low-budget solution to the dead-end Mark VI was handy in the form of the new aero-Thunderbird. Read More >
Here’s some Saturday morning pictorial randomness to start out the day. Shall we have a thetruthaboutbuses theme today? I’m very fond of them. These folks living in this lot have a pretty wide variety of transportation options ready to roll, right down to the Cozy Coupe. They’re probably off riding their gas powered skateboard.
We can get ourselves in a tizzy about the defects and quality issues in new cars, but it’s sometimes good to have a little perspective. How would like to try to keep this Maserati Quattroporte stretch limo running? No e-pedals on this baby, but look at that bank of Webers to keep tuned and synchronized. Read More >
“Pedalgate” has kept me a bit busy, at the expense of Curbside Classics. But that and the “lawyergate” story kept our servers running as hot as the flames on this Cutlass, and we smashed TTAC’s recent page view record yesterday, with 114k page views. And the NY Times is using our pictures of pedal guts. Well, I’m getting a little tired of looking at pedal insides; how about a whole, (or almost whole) car? And to keep on the theme, how about one that broke records as well as jumps, literally. Read More >
Now here’s a well-preserved flash from the past. VW kits of every possible permutation were the rage in the seventies and into the eighties. The Beetle’s construction lent itself superbly to the task. A few bolts released the body from the platform, which could also be quite easily cut and shortened. The resulting short bed pickup variation makes the perfect little hauler, like this one. Ride and handling? Don’t ask. Although this profile shows off its best side, there’s a bonus or two or even three in the other shots: Read More >
In Eugene, you learn to expect the unexpected; anywhere, any time. Like this bicycle-RV, for instance: no biggie. We have lots of pedal-powered delivery bikes and trikes in town, including rural organic farmers who pedal their produce into town regularly on trikes like this. And they’re even made here in a small factory in Eugene, so that they can be delivered by pedal-power to their pedaling buyers. OK; this RV is different, and it really is kind of big for a bike; 800 lbs, to be precise. And it’s grown over time; I saw it a year or so ago, before it sprouted the rear upper-level addition. And the owner actually takes this on the road, having recently made the trip back from an extended visit to Portland (110 miles away). I tried to get more information from him about details, and the solar-assisted electric motor, but I forgot one important thing: Read More >
It’s time to use up some of the leftover shots from the recent trip to the Bay Area (not that I’m running low; no worries). I admit that the ’68 Chevy truck caught my attention first, although I have several of that vintage and they’ll be coming soon to TTAT. But then I noticed the white coupe hiding behind the truck wasn’t just any old boring Beretta, but a pretty hot little piece… Read More >
Do you remember this car? I didn’t. I don’t mean the vehicle in general, but this variation of it. This doesn’t happen often, but it’s humbling to know there are gaps, and I’m thankful to come across the opportunity to refresh the memory banks. Read More >
At TTAC we take the “fair and balanced” slogan seriously; just not necessarily in any given post. I do tend to go a bit off the deep end, especially after a long week. We’ve had three small cars and one big one this week; the Camaro is in a special category of its own. So we need some serious counterbalancing at the last minute, lest we offend some of our more “big iron” oriented readers (it seems like I’ve managed to offend pretty much every camp this week). Folks; CC is meant (hopefully) to have a modicum of entertainment value, so don’t take anything I say too seriously, ever. Here’s my peace offering: an ex-military machine with a cryptic symbol on the door. Does anyone know what it stands for? Are chicks attracted to it? Read More >
I’ve just returned from one of the most fruitful CC hunting trips ever; nabbed some awesome vintage finds. But I’m always scanning the road for anything of interest, increasing the likelihood that I’ll eventually rear-end someone. Would anyone else find interest in these three cars parked by the U of O? But repeated patterns like this somehow grab me: same maker, similar vintage, all of them spoiled. Am I losing it? My wife wants to know, because she has her doubts. Read More >
If the stereotypical driver of a red Grand Am is a blond beautician who lives in a trailer with an unemployed boyfriend sporting a mullet, what is the stereotypical profession of the drivers of Sunfire and Cavalier coupes? Hint: what’s that behind the fence? Read More >
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