In addition to our many contributors, I also need to acknowledge our appreciation for all of the CC Cohort posters that have been consistently posting their finds at our Cohort Flickr page. I always look forward to taking a virtual walk through cities all over the globe to see what their latest finds are, which never fail to impress me. Here’s some that stood out for me on my latest hunt.
Let’s start with this very handsome Peugeot 504 Coupe, by Pininfarina. It was shot in France by one of our Cohort stalwarts there, Benoît. My paean to the 504 Coupe, which was made from 1969 to 1983, can be found here.
Another one of our most prolific posters is Roshake, who is based in Budapest. One of his finds is this 1995 Opel Campo TD 4×4 double cab pickup. If it looks somewhat familiar, this is of course based on the Isuzu Faster pickup, which was sold in the US as simply the Isuzu Pickup, but not in this double cab version. It was also sold around the world in many other guises, including such brands as Chevrolet, Honda, Holden, Vauxhall, GMC and a raft of Chinese brands. A remnant of the days when GM still had a very large global presence.
It’s not every day one finds a big Tatra 8×8 truck sitting in a driveway. But William Oliver did, and it’s an imposing sight. Tatra trucks are unique in their central tube frame and swing axles, and have proven themselves as the ultimate off-road trucks for going on 80 years or more. They are raced in Dakar events and sought after by those looking to go where no other wheeled vehicle can. Awesome.
The Renault 4CV was of course a pioneering car in the post-war era in France. Designed with some thought to the Volkswagen, it had four doors and a water-cooled 760 cc inline four in the rear, naturally. It was the first in a long line of rear engine Renaults. Tatra87 has our in-depth write up of it here. Crash71100 shot this rather original-looking one.
A bit closer to home, Postcardsfromtherealworld shot and posted this 1963 Chevy Bel Air sedan missing its grille and other trim pieces. Is it being cannibalized or just hoping to be put back together again?
Regular Cohort poster Corey Behrens apparently was in Greece recently as he’s posted several finds from there, including this quite elderly Ford Taunus P5 (1964-1967). It’s quite unusual to see such a well-used survivor in Europe on the street, but Greece does of course have a very favorable climate. Aaron Severson has a write-up of all of the German Ford Taunus cars here.
RiveraNotario is also one of our Cohort stalwarts, with so many finds from South America as well as other parts of the world. This is a Citroen Visa, shot in Santiago, Chile. Once again, Tatra87 has the full Visa story here.
As you all know, I love big trucks just as much as cars. This is a fine little dump truck, a Chevy C70, shot by Hyperpack. Not sure of the exact vintage but it looks to be from the mid-’70s or into the early ’80s.
How about something decidedly less truck-like, as in this splendid Alvis cabriolet. Crash71100 caught it on the go, and I think it’s in St. Tropez, that famous little town on the French Riviera. It was identified as a TF21, although given the single headlights, it may well be a TD21. And once again, Tatra87 has the full story of these delightful cars here.
You all certainly know what this is. OK, in case one or two of you don’t, it’s a 2024 Voyah Dream, found in Budapest by Roshake. Chinese cars are getting quite popular in Europe as in the rest of the world, excepting the US, of course.
Here’s something a bit more familiar, a 1972 Gran Torino, shot by one of our long time Cohort contributors, William Rubano. A very dazzling paint job!
Corey Behrens found this very basic Dodge D100 swb pickup in Boulder Colorado? A slant six under the hood, quite likely. And a former fleet truck, also quite likely.
Roshake posed his Fiat Cinquecento with a Ford Tourneo Courier, a van that I have not seen before. Looks like a successor to the original Transit Connect.
Corey also found and shot this Lancia Delta in Greece. That’s name-appropriate.
I’ve always loved the face on the Renault Estafette, and Benoît captured it most faithfully in this shot. Reminds me of a certain dog I know well.
Corey also found this elderly Fiat 131 in Greece. It was sold in the US as the Brava. We had a post here back in 2015 on a Brava with 559.355 miles on it, with the original engine, although the owner admitted it was smoking some.
Crash71100 identified this is a US-market Toyota Cressida. Well, we did get this generation Cressida in the US, but only the sedan and the wagon, so it must be from elsewhere.
We’ll end this little tour on a slightly humorous note. “Just swap in an LS” was something of an internet meme for quite some time, applied to just about anything on wheels that was deemed to be a bit deficient in the power department. The owner of this ’67 Chevelle convertible wants the world to know he did just that.
That former-military Tatra 815 from Canada (according to its plate) is pure gold. Neatly parked in that driveway, as if it has always been there.
The other day, I came across a few pictures of a brand new Tatra Phoenix 16×16. At first sight I thought AI-generated, but The Thing is as real as it gets. The chassis-cab is heading to Australia.
So many lovelies in nature =8-) .
I’d like to try a Renault 4CV .
I had quite a good little side line buying those ’78 ~ ’80 Dodges, rehabbing them and re selling .
Rather stout for light duty trucks, they had very weak plastic dashboards and still used an ammeter that ran the full charge current through both the gauge and the fuse box, I had to repair about 1/3 of them for these glaring faults .
-Nate
An excellent batch from the cohorts. Thanks for posting, Paul.
I especially like the Tatra military truck, the Gran Torino, and the lowly lonely Dodge pickup.
I saw many Chevy dump trucks from the era shown on the job with my father when I was a kid. Price and performance were key.
Great collection from CC’ers! WOOF to the Tatra Phoenix that Johannes added.
Regarding the white Ford van, it’s a panel/cargo van, which means it’s a Ford Transit Courier. Everything with ‘Tourneo’ in the Ford model designation is the people mover version of the cargo van.
Currently, the Ford Transit Connect (pictured below, positioned above the Transit Courier) is based on the VW Caddy.
CORRECT. That would technically mean that my 2016 Transit Connect is actually a TOURNEO Connect, except the US market doesn’t use that name designation for the passenger versions of the Transit range. A shame really since to me it sounds better (and uses less word length) than “Transit Connect/Courier Wagon”.
The Ford Econoline range DID use the “Club Wagon” name for their passenger model until the end of the 90s when everything was consolidated into a single “E-Series” nameplate, with only the payload designations (150, 250, 350) remaining the key distinction on the model badging. And even the extended-length versions–whether Van OR Wagon–had “Super” added before the main body style at one point in time, but that eventually went away too.
With all that being said, the current iteration of the Transit Courier does in fact look remarkably close in size to the shorter versions of the 1st-AND-2nd-generation Transit Connect, mine included. Very much like how the newer (2008 & later; 2011-19 for North America) Fiesta is nearly the same overall size as the original Focus; the cars that these 2 vans were originally derived from.
Thanks for that, confusing…
Below the current Ford Transit cargo van line-up. From left to right: Transit Custom (the latest VW Transporter is based on that one), the Transit (full-sizer, globally known), Transit Courier, Transit Connect (based on the latest VW Caddy).
Three of the vans in the photo are the BEV versions, the Transit Connect as pictured is a PHEV.
Great variety of photos! I especially like those cars, like the Ford Taunus or that Opel Campo pickup, that I’ve never seen in the flesh.
Just a few random thoughts:
I wonder if the UN Shipping Container in the back of the Tatra is a living quarters? That kind of vehicle makes an EarthRoamer look puny.
I like how the disassembled ’63 Bel Air is parked under a sign saying Parking for Customers Only. What do the other customers drive?
I don’t know how I feel about that Voyah Dream. On one hand, at least it’s not 100% generic like a lot of Chinese cars. But then again, it looks like the offspring of a Nissan Elgrand and one of those BMWs with those huge grilles.
I love the Cressida coupe. I think the sedan was a great-looking car, and the coupe more so. Too bad we didn’t get them in North America. And this one – with its bold blue paint – looks like a Peter Wilding model (I’m pretty sure he’d shown one of these in his articles).
Indeed you’re right, Eric. I’ve shown both the Mark II/Cressida, and its platform-mate Chaser. This blue one of mine is a Chaser (nose and tail job on same basic shell).
I’m so glad I got that right! Terrific model.
Something about that Gran Torino looks off to me from this angle. It’s like the rear end droops down to early, either that or it did not have enough overhang tagged on. But what a paint job! I do think it’s a good looking car from the front anyway.
Well, this is fun..a couple of these are mine, the ’63 Bel Air was parked at an Irish bar called Molloy’s Tavern in Colma CA, a local institution. I wonder if it’s still there…the ’67 Chevelle is in Burlingame CA and has been for a long time, just down the street from the Candy Store private collector’s garage. I don’t think it would get past the bouncer there.
Absolutely love that little AX, looking so woefully sad despite being in such pristine condition.
I have fond memories of adolescent fun in a Fiat 131 Mirafiori, so always a pleaseure to see one and relive those memories…