Curbside Classic -

Kurbside Classic: 1983 Grumman KubVan – Tiny, FWD, VW Diesel Powered, And Very Rare

– Posted on April 24, 2024

(first posted 5/4/2013. One of my better finds) The early eighties was the most revolutionary and unique time in the American automobile industry ever. Thanks to exploding oil and fuel prices, and with the expectation that the increases would continue indefinitely, for the only time ever Americans embraced radical downsizing with a fervor. It was as if the US was finally joining the rest of the world. Of course, it didn’t last; as soon as oil prices started dropping, everyone quickly forgot the whole episode, and the truck/SUV boom soon exploded. But for a few short years, it was out with the big, in with the small. The little relics from that era are becoming hard to find: K-Car limousines, Chevy Sprints, Diesel Rabbits. (of course, we’ve found all of those). But there are others that I’d forgotten ever existed, like this tiny FWD diesel KubVan. Read the rest of this entry »

Automotive History: Since The 1975 Granada Was The Worst Malaise-Mobile, What Was The Best (Or Maybe Just Better)?

Jason Shafer

– Posted on April 24, 2024

(first posted 4/24/2018) A while back, Paul wrote a very enlightening article about the 250 six powered 1975 Ford Granada winning the dunce cap award for having Ford Model A levels of power per cubic inch as well as a few other dubious distinctions. Cars with such attributes simply don’t come about every day.

But the premise of Paul’s article prompted me to be curious about the opposite; what was the best of this era? Nothing is as clear-cut for good as the Granada was for ridiculous, and this question could be likened to asking who had the least bothersome case of small pox. Any determination of what is “best” is a dicey proposition.

Let’s break this down by make for better enlightenment, of which there is a considerable amount.

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Curbside Classic: 1985 Renault Alliance Convertible – Ton Camembert à la Open Air

Brendan Saur

– Posted on April 24, 2024

(first posted 4/24/2018) Believe it or not, there was a time when the French automobile industry was the most technologically advanced in the world, the largest producer of automobiles in the world, and the largest exporter of cars to the United States. That of course, was circa-1900, and my, did things change in the ensuing years.

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CC Outtakes: Alfa Romeo Giulia – For The Love Of Alfa!

Rich Baron

– Posted on April 24, 2024

I don’t need to come across an old Alfa Romeo to remind me how much I miss the days when Alfas were a common sight in San Salvador. It’s a feeling that lurks in the back of my brain, dormant, but occasionally pouncing to and pounding my front lobes: Gosh, Alfas! Alfas!… How… I miss them!

And my heart sighs, hoping for that rare encounter. For they are rare.

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Vintage Snapshots: It’s A Corvair Thing! — Corvair People In The ’60s

Rich Baron

– Posted on April 24, 2024

This gallery has a curious mix of people; on some, one can sense the excitement around the unique Corvair. In others, one can feel serious folk, taken with the car’s novel engineering. And in a few, one can notice a sense of whimsy.

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Curbside Classic: 1970 & 1971 Plymouth ‘Cuda – Woulda And Shoulda

Tatra87

– Posted on April 24, 2024

In the pony car wars of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Ford won the first round. Then GM got a bite at the apple a couple of years later with the Camaro and the Firebird. Chrysler fumbled and dithered for a while, but they finally got it right, first with the (rather large) Dodge Charger in 1968, then with the right-sized 1970 Barracuda and the Challenger, just as the pony car fad was waning. Better late than never.

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COAL: Cycles Of A Lifetime — ’77 Harley-Davidson XLCR Part 2 — More Apologies to Willie G.

Jose Delgadillo

– Posted on April 24, 2024

In the previous installment, I had done all these modifications on my ’77 XLCR to make the bike perfect for my third epic ride. A month long trip around the country. Now the bike was comfortable and the gas tank gave it a respectable range of approx. 130 miles.

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Curbside Classic: 1972 Toyota Crown (S60) Deluxe – Sleepy Time Up North

Tatra87

– Posted on April 23, 2024

(first posted 4/23/2018) I recently had to go to Laos for a couple of days, which is always a pleasure. It was one of the first countries I really explored when I came to Asia, and a trip there never fails to perk up the sprit. Lao people are very laid back. The town of Vientiane, on the north bank of the Mekong, is about as peaceful as South-East Asia gets. Alas, as I recalled from my last stay there, the pickings would be slim, CC-wise. Read the rest of this entry »

CC Capsule: 2007-15 Škoda Roomster – Let’s Look Through The Weird Window

William Stopford

– Posted on April 23, 2024

(first posted 4/10/2018) “What the hell is that?!” Brendan Saur exclaimed after I shared with him my latest find. What the hell, indeed. Even in the context of the European market, full of tall-boy wagons like the Renault Scenic and converted vans like the Citroen Berlingo, the Škoda Roomster was a curious creature. Read the rest of this entry »

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Vintage Reviews and Commentary: 1981 Cadillac – The Year Caddy Stopped Firing On All Cylinders – GM’s Deadly Sin #29

– Posted on April 23, 2024

(first posted 4/23/2018) If I were to pinpoint a specific year when the flagship Cadillac Division of General Motors lost its mojo (yet to be recovered), it would have to be 1981. Bad product planning choices and a catastrophic powertrain strategy conspired to deliver the unthinkable: Cadillacs were suddenly underpowered, much less reliable and increasingly out-of-style. The brand that had been a “no-brainer” choice for American status seekers no longer looked as compelling, with rivals closing in from all sides to lure away Cadillac’s customer base. Let’s go back to 1981 with some period reviews of Cadillac and key competitors to dissect how this disaster unfolded.

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Vintage Dealers: Packards In The Showroom – 1951-1953

Rich Baron

– Posted on April 23, 2024

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Curbside Outtake: Ford Festiva – The Festival Is Still Going

Paul Niedermeyer

– Posted on April 23, 2024

I’ve been shooting and posting Festivas since the earliest days of CC, when they had clearly established themselves as the shitbox of choice hereabouts. They were all over the place, like little baby roaches that wouldn’t and couldn’t be killed. The party has slowly wound down these past few years, to the point where seeing this one actually got me to stop. Are there any others still around?

The bright red paint and the owner-added decorations made it even more compelling. This festival will end, one of these days.

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CC Capsule: 1972 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Custom – Green With Envy

Tatra87

– Posted on April 23, 2024

This week, the T87 files will be opened on the “1970s Detroiters” tab. Big hoods, huge engines, garish detailing and vinyl roofs – in glorious overabundance. Let’s start with something not too exaggerated, something relatively modest and restrained, albeit with a dash of style.

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Curbside Musings: 1998 Isuzu Hombre XS – Correct Pronunciation Is Everything

Joseph Dennis

– Posted on April 23, 2024

I’ve written plenty about having grown up in Flint, Michigan and my decades spent in beautiful Chicago, but there are entire chapters in between that were written in the Sunshine State. My first three years of college starting in the early ’90s were spent in Gainesville, Florida (go Gators!), which represented several significant life changes for me at the time. Not only was I no longer under my parents’ roof (that is, before I moved back for one year), but I was also in a different state and part of the United States. For the first time in my life, I felt like so many choices were mine alone to make. I had wanted freedom, and I got it. However, this also meant that I now had added responsibility. It was no longer up to me to simply come up with witty, sarcastic quips about things I was being forced to do and didn’t want to.

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“The Downsizing Decision” (May 5, 1980) – A Deep Dive Into the Turmoil and Decisions That Reshaped the Domestic Auto Industry in the 1970s

Paul Niedermeyer

– Posted on April 22, 2024

(first posted 4/9/2018) I ran into this article in the New Yorker last November, and found it to be an excellent look at the forces re-shaping the auto industry in the mid-late 70s, which were of course rising energy costs, government intervention, greater environmental/social consciousness, foreign competition, and globalization. The massive wave of downsizing that GM undertook starting in 1974 for the 1977-1980 model years, culminating with the FWD X-Cars, was the biggest industrial investment in the US since WW2, totaling over $20 billion (roughly $90 billion adjusted). It propelled GM’s market share and in the process almost bankrupted Ford and Chrysler. And it reshaped the entire industry in the 1980s, for better or for worse.

This article has interviews with the key decision makers, and brings a lot of insight and perspective to what were probably the most challenging years of the industry.

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