One can always expect to see a few diverse cars lined up for service at the Sports Car Shop. But this one was a bit more eclectic than average, and worth of a shot or two. Isn’t that Keith Thelen’s Jag there? That’s going to be expensive.
Sports Car Shop Outtake: Europeans All Lined Up
– Posted on February 1, 2014
OMG , they even have a black cab!
It’s Keith’s ride home
Nah, I drove myself home… in the truck I towed it there with 😀
Strange that another one of the same color should appear in the span of a week. But I suppose it helps knowing where best to look!
Nice line up…. my kind of shop. Seeing this in the Northeast has gone the way of the Dodo bird.
Forget that E-type by the garage, I want the Amazon. The first time I saw one I thought it was a 55 Chrysler that shrunk in the wash.
I have to agree. I’ve looked at these pics for the last few moments, and the elegance and character of that Volvo is unmistakable. When placed together like this, it has great presence in good company.
I was just about to say the Amazon’s the one I’d choose. But seeing as you got in first, I guess I’ll have to settle for the E-Type.
So what dollar amount is higher? Scrap value for the lot? Cost of repairs for the lot? Or actual resale value for the lot? 😛
I, being weird, instantly eyeballed the GTI. I don’t like that front end as I had once owned a 91 8-valver with the round headlights and auxiliary lights in the grille. It had been donated to Goodwill with light front end damage so I picked out up for a few hundred dollars with the intention of making an autocrosser out of it. That never happened but I had a ball with it on our old, country back roads. Despite the shot tires and shocks, it would tenaciously grip around the tightest curves and even fling its tail out if you cranked in a little more steering. It was tons of fun for the price and definitely one of the best handling front-drivers I’ve ever experienced.
I like the GTI as well, as I had an ’86 8valve 1800 with the CIS-E injection for 14 years…it was a one-year engine (a bit more power than ’85) and though it had some mismatched body panels due to a fender bender I’d repaired but never repainted, it ran just fine. When I sold it after having bought my current car, I had lots of people interested in it, ended up selling it to a local VW mechanic who drove up in his wife’s ’92 Jetta…he had a long commute to the city I lived in and wanted something like the GTI to make it in…I felt it went to a good home.
The thing that stands out about the GTI is that it’s both in good condition and visually completely stock, including the generally-unloved composite headlight front.
I once bought a 1984 GTI with a blown motor for $100. Without laying a wrench to it I sold it for $300. Best VeeDub I’ve ever owned.
That’s the best kind to have!
The old black Merc is what I’d have!
+1
I’d go for the GTI myself, the MG & Triumph will break your heart and wallet. Come to think of it, so will the GTI. 🙂
what is that white car in the top corner next to the red taurus? Is it a mini or a current Fiat 500?
I would take the Volvo, most reliable in the group(and that includes the Tercel in the back which is known for having leaking valve seals (the 3E engine was not Toyota’s finest)
The red car is a Jag S-Type. And as hard as it may be to believe, that white “car” is actually an aftermarket fiberglass hardtop on a red TR-4.
Give me that black Mercedes and I will go quietly into the night. Hopefully it is a 4.5.
This motley crew took me right back to the late seventies in Heidelberg. The Gen2 Golf notwithstanding.
I helped a friend working on the S-type in his garage. We met Jaguar’s Technical Representative for Southern Germany and he was invited to many parties.
As much as I love Amazons (and GTIs) in that row I only have eyes for the Spitfire. You never forget your first … and mine was a Triumph.
Great line-up of cars – I can understand all of them being at the shop with the exception of the Volvo Amazon – if ever there was an easy car to wrench yourself, this was it (and its predecessor 544) – and as has been noted, a stout car it is and didn’t require a lot of wrenching……..
I guess the college professor owner prefers not to get his hands dirty…..
I’m curious about the green coupe parked in the shop. It looks Seventies Japanese, can anyone I.D. it?
isn’t that an E-Type Jag?
Oh, looking closer it is! Thanks for that.
What’s the dark green car in the far back of the first pic? Scion xB? Oh, wait, that’s the dumpster. 🙂