CC Outtakes: T87’s Singles Collection (October-December 2024) – Part 4: More Foreign Cars (Italian & American)

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– Posted on January 8, 2025

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Onwards and updwards through the Tokyo finds of the final quarter of 2024! I’m pairing the Italian and the American marques together for no other reason than the number of photos in each category, in an attempt to keep all five parts roughly equal. But nothing is equally beautiful to an Alfa Giulietta Spider out in the wild.

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Encountering one red Junior Z may be regarded as a stroke of fortune. To find two looks like blissfulness.

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Plenty of Bertone GTVs as per usual. It’s getting to the point that I’m confused as to which one I’ve seen before. Pretty sure this one has never made the Singles Collection yet.

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Late model 2000s from the mid-‘70s are less common, but just as lovely as older GTVs from the ‘60s.

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Spider-wise, the most widespread variant is the ‘70s coda tronca. I much prefer the earlier round-tailed ones, but they’re very few and far between.

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And as luck would have it, one did turn up! It didn’t stop, but at least I got a couple nice pics of it. Just plain gorgeous.

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I’ve now scored both the coupé and the convertible version of the polarizing SZ, so we can expect to see a post about this highly unusual car sometime in the near future. This yellow one was an unexpected addition.

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Here’s one I hadn’t seen in Tokyo up to now: the 146 saloon, made between 1995 and 2001. This is the LWB 5-door version of the 145. The very first cars still had boxer engines inherited from the Alfasud and the 33, but this 1997-99 Ti badged example has a 150hp 2-litre twin spark straight-4.

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A friend of mine recently remarked how good-looking the 156 was in wagon form. I hadn’t seen one in a little while, then (CC effect) happened upon this superb mid-2000s (3rd series) example, and I must agree. For a ‘90s design, this Alfa wagon is very attractive.

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Fiat made a lot more front-engined Dinos than Ferrari did mid-engined ones, yet because I’m seeing them left, right and centre.

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Well, they are sexy beasts. Not that the Fiat Dino is ugly (especially in coupé form), but those curves are something else.

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Hard to resist taking a couple photos, isn’t it?

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Well, seeing as we’re there, let’s see what we have in the Ferrari file. It’s fairly thin, just a 328 GTB and…

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…a whole bunch of F355s! I was finding it hard to focus on just the one, so I didn’t. They were more impressive en masse, really.

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Well, there was this blue spider that did warrant a closer inspection. Great colour!

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Just one Lamborghini to report, in the shape of a needlessly uglified late-model (1999-2001) Diablo. The shot of that 6-litre V12 was worth the price of the Visine.

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This highly (but tastefully) modified Fiat 500D was quite eye-catching.

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Of course, if said mods were made by Abarth, the question of appropriateness or originality becomes moot.

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Abarth certainly weren’t shy about putting their badge and/or script on the little 500, but this one takes it to the nth degree. I counted 15 “Abarth” scripts and a half dozen six scorpions on this one.

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I rarely find motorcycle design interesting, but this Series 1 (1976-78) Moto Guzzi Le Mans looked pretty unique – not beautiful, but distinctive.

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Two Maseratis were caught, both pretty impressive, despite being very different. This Quattroporte IV is a final edition “Evoluzione,” one of 320 cars made in 1998-2001 with the V8.

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A curious car in a strange colour, but I have to admit the interior seems quite a plush place to be. Apparently, a lot of the “evolution” took place in there and in the suspensions – the QP’s external appearance and engines were largely unaffected.

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I recently wrote up a 1967 Maserati Mistral, and some opined that the Ghibli looked much better. So here we have it, a 1968 Ghibli. And the verdict is in: yes, the Ghibli is a magnificent car and is more beautiful than its older stablemate. No question.

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Here’s hoping this gorgeous machine will deign to park on that street one Sunday in 2025 so I can better ogle it from every angle, hopefully without stepping on my own tongue in the process.

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It was a banner end-of-the-year for Lancias, I can tell you! The usual suspects were present, of course, in the squarish shape of the Delta Integrale.

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This one was in full rallying regalia – quite nifty, but altogether too perfect and clean to seem real.

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As far as I’m aware, this was my first IRL sighting of the famous Ferrari-powered Thema 8.32 — this one being a Series II car (1988-91). Absolutely awesome.

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That Stratos was in a hurry to go somewhere, but I still managed a couple of decent shots. Amazing machine, though not my favourite Lancia racer (I find the 037 looks more impressive and the B20 Aurelia more handsome, but that’s just me).

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Auto-CC Effect: I recently wrote up a Lancia Lambda that had been languishing in my files for months, and the very next weekend, what do I see rolling down the road at my usual Sunday hangout?

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Jim Klein and I saw this little gem and gawked in unison. It was a ’68 model, if memory serves, and a near flawless one at that. I did notice it had a small “Iniezione” script on the tail, which seemed odd. The owner soon showed us what the deal was…

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Looks like a pair of Webers, but it’s actually a British fuel injection system made specifically for classics. The narrow V4 being canted to the side makes this innovative contraption take centre stage.

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We enter the second half of this Italo-American CC bonanza via the Mopar end of the spectrum. Being a native of the other side of the pond, it took me a little effort to ID this badge-less coupe as a 1971 Dodge Demon.

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This one was a lot easier to suss out. An interesting (and rare, for me) nighttime find in an open parking garage that housed at least three or four other interesting cars.

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One of the Charger’s parking-mates was a stunning ’66 Mustang, for instance. We’ll see another one tomorrow, but for now let’s stay with Fords.

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And with early Mustangs as well, because who doesn’t love a nice 2+2 Fastback?

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That ’69 Mach 1 came out of the blue and I missed the front end. Which is fine, because those have a nicer rear anyway.

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Ford vans are in a clear minority here, compared to Chevy and Dodge, that I can’t help but notice them when I see one.

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Same with the bigger RVs – Chevy is king, Ford’s way in the distance. But every once in a blue oval, they do show up.

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Panther Lincolns don’t show up too often, either, but when they do, they come in bunches. Here’s one…

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…here’s a second one, in limo form, with a gaggle of rich (probably Chinese) ladies being posing in front of it…

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…and finally… well, a ride to die for.

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“WFT is that doing here?” I hear you cry. There are quite a few Teslas in Tokyo (but few outside it), but this is the first Tesla taxi I’ve seen in Japan. The taxi market here is roughly 90% Toyota, 9% Nissan and 0.999% other JDM players. I think I’ve seen exactly three imports used as taxis here so far: a Volvo, a Mercedes and this Tesla.

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Ladies and gentlemen, the only Tesla that might be considered a CC. I think it’s the first Roadster I’ve seen in the plastic. With only 2500 units made and most of those sold in the US, that’s not a huge surprise.

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American cars in Japan can mean the odd Ford or Dodge, but it mostly means GM. They’re the ones who really dominate the (admittedly small) segment.

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How do you prefer your Buick wagon? Huge and RWD or a bit less huge and FWD? You’ll get the woodgrain and standup hood ornament either way.

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The sold Pontiac sighting was a black Firebird. The two main GM marques seen here are always Chevy and Cadillac. Let’s look at the second one first.

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Another CC-special! Question for US-based CCommentors: is this a purely Japanese affectation, or do chunky “Classic Cadillac” grilles hail from your side of the Pacific?

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A far more dignified 1991 Brougham, featuring the obligatory (for Japan) amber turn signals.

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Good things, like comedy, comes in threes. So did the finfamous ’59 in the latter months of last year in Tokyo.

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Hope this one is back in action by now. But if any Tokyo garage knows these cars, it’s this one. They have one in residence that must belong to the chief mechanic.

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Here it is, on a rare evening outing. I’ve had mixed experiences with nighttime photography, but these came out the way I wanted for once.

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I don’t know if GM tried to sell SSRs in Japan at the time or if this is a later import. If they didn’t, that was a major strategic mistake, as the local infatuation for all things bubbly and retro could have made this into a (minor) hit.

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The one they definitely did import was the HHR. Going by empirical evidence, these sold poorly here compared to the PT Cruiser they were so clearly and desperately trying to emulate.

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It was a good season for whale-watching, too. Now that I’m aware how few of these were made, seeing one in the wild had become more of an event. But the wagons seem to have had more takers here than the sedans anyway.

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I did see a sedan though – probably the first one I found here.

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It’s getting ever more difficult to find Chevrolets that haven’t been turned into clown cars. This Monte Carlo deserved better.

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The stock of ‘80s El Caminos is still plentiful and healthy. Probably the most common non-van Chevrolet of that decade seen curbside in this city.

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This Caprice wagon was looking mighty tired, but it wouldn’t take much to get it mack into shape.

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The interior is in extremely good condition and most of the body seems to be there. I’m a glass-half-full type of guy.

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We’ve seen this one before – in the previous T87 Singles Collection edition, as a matter of fact, but I ran into it again in heavy morning traffic. Another one of those cars that never seems to just stop for a quick photo shoot.

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So it’s come to this – the gen1 Camaro section. Well, they may be at every Cars & Coffee event in your neck of the woods, but they’re pretty rare here. Certainly much less popular than Mustangs.

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A fine piece of GM design, that first Camaro. Pity so many of them are subsequently shod like this.

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Not that I’m against all resto-mods per se. This one, for example, was done with a lot of care, originality and attention to detail.

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Plus it was on a base (mid-‘60s C10 Pickup) that is relatively rare in these parts. T87 approves.

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Last, but certainly not least, the oldest GM car I think I’ve ever seen in Tokyo to date: a 1947 or 48 Chevrolet Fleetline Aero Sedan.

 

See you for the final part of this marathon run (i.e. chiefly the British iron) not tomorrow, but in a couple of days – I’m running a little late!

 

 

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