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Classic Cars I spotted an (insert obscure car name here) classic car today!
17968 messages, Last post on Nov 30, 2009 at 6:45 AM
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| that 200SX convertible. However, the fact that they don't show it with the top up gives me cause for concern. I always liked that style of 200SX in general. | |
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It's hard to chop a car and get a good looking top to fit tight and right. I have rarely seen this happen. It either looks bad UP or looks bad DOWN. Personally, chopping an 80s Japanese car sounds pretty scary to me. There must be some monstrous scuttle shake on that baby unless they've welded railroad rails to it. Chopping a modern car is very risky business, since it is a unibody. Ever cut one side out of a cardboard box?....there you go... |
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Yeah, those NYers come up every other week. Seems quite a few of them survived, and many of them survived pretty nicely. Maybe, for the time period, they were a decently made car. Or maybe it's just luck... I bet that 200SX looks atrocious with the top up. You find very few aftermarket converts that look right. When I was younger I knew someone who had a Celica Sunchaser, and it was also awkward. On the SX note, today I saw a c.1991 240SX convert, the factory built one...it looked normal. I once had a dream about a Graham Sharknose convert...I have a thing for more outrageous deco cars. I bet that'd be one that really is "rare" |
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I got to drive a 1982 or so Dodge Mirada that had been chopped into a convertible. It was nightwatch blue with a white top and a blue leather interior. It was absolutely stunning with the top down, but looked hideous with it up. For one thing, they got rid of the rear side windows...both the opera windows in the C-pillar AND the fake-me-out hardtop side windows. So basically, with the top up it was all canvas-covered blind spot from the back of the door window all the way to the back of the roof. It did have a little parallelogram-shaped slit on each side though, a lame attempt at improving visiblity. Now that thing shook horribly when driving it. Everything that's bad about chopping a small unitized car like a 200SX is amplified when you do it to a big unitized car like a Mirada! As for being well-built, well, as much as I love the R-body, sadly, I'll be the first to confess that they were anything but! So I can't explain why the 5th Ave seems to have had such a good success rate? Perhaps they were bought mainly by older people with money who babied them more? I think that's one reason why those mammoth late 70's Lincolns seemed to have survived so well, along with late 70's/early 80's Oldsmobiles and Buicks like the Electra and Ninety Eight. I guess the R-body was just typical Chrysler of the time...bulletproof engines and drivelines with iffy electronics and bodies that were heavy and sturdy, yet somewhat slapped together and not rustproofed too well. The passenger-side door on my NYer is so far out of alignment (right from the factory, no doubt) that my legally-blind grandmother can spot it! |
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...one of my aunts had a 200SX of that era (not a convertible), it wasn't a particularly good looking car (at least not now, maybe then, but it hasn't aged well), and was a rattly rust bucket by the time she got rid of it. Minus a solid top, it must be quite a bit worse. Still, if you must have a cheap, likely reliable convertible, I guess that one's OK. Fintail, shame about the condition of that 250S, since it has the factory sunroof, which must be a bit unusual (notice I didn't use the term 'rare'). That 190 is really nice for two thousand bucks, makes me wonder if it's hiding something (other than 50hp on modern roads, which cuts its pool of buyers considerably). I don't think I've ever seen an old Benz with those front fender lights (turn signals), and the passenger side only headrest is interesting. |
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Yeah the sunroof is uncommon...but as I am sure you know a very very nice 6cyl carb 108 is worth 5K on a good day, so that one is far beyond redemption. It's a parts car, and if it is as rusty and weathered as it appears, maybe not even the best parts car. 250S, for all its stately looks, was also the lowest model 108, and the one least likely to be saved. Sad. I can't see much wrong with that fintail, I looked close and I know a little about them. I think those signals were unique to the lowline 4cyl cars like that - not difficult to replace. The trim is all correct. The headrest is an uncommon factory option, and is almost always only seen on the passenger side. They bring $100+ alone. There's some kind of weird market out there for diesel fintails, they always attract attention even though their performance is borderline dangerous. Local MB specialist sold his pristine one on ebay for 12K, and it was a legit sale, I saw the auction and talked to him about it personally. Crazy. |
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I see this almost every day on my daily commute. The car actually looks pretty good, and the guy must take really good care of it because I am sure it is his daily commuter. What really amazes me is how small it looks. It is really narrow and low to the ground. I used to have a '74 Corolla and remember lusting after a Celica. I guess some of them lasted 30 years, but probably not many. |
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| I think about $3,500 is market for a fintail diesel. His selling price is either an incredible freak or...well...never mind. | |
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I just returned from a 10 day road trip to Disneyworld, and as per request by some cohorts on the Mazdamania Tuesday night chats...I kept my eyes peeled. So, here is the list of what I saw, over the last 2 weeks, starting with the trip down...1,028 miles one way... Mustang Cobra R 05 Tundra Altima SE-R 3000 GT VR-4 Triumph TR8 from Quebec 05 GTO H2 with 4-6inch lift kit Porsche GT2 or 3 on trailer w/team livery. SRT-10 Ram Lincoln Blackwood(first I've ever seen!) International Pickup...one of those monsters! Lambo Gallardo 50s Mercedes, low slung w/bubble top shape, in a beautiful creamy tan, very sharp...for you fintail! |
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