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European Brands 1970s Archive
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CC Twofer: 1982 Citroën 2CV 6 Charleston & 1976 Citroën 2CV AKS Fourgonnette – Fraternal Flat-Twins
Posted on January 6, 2021 | 14 CommentsAll hail the immortal tin snail! We’ve covered the 2CV pretty extensively on CC already – I’ve even written one of these up myself. My recent jaunt back to France […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1978 Ford Fiesta Ghia – Ford’s First Go At Selling The Fiesta In The US
Posted on November 9, 2020 | 41 CommentsBy that headline, I’m not saying that the Fiesta Mk1 was an abject failure in the US, but it was something of a marginal player, and Ford decided to not […] -
R&T Vintage Review: Mercedes 6.9 – “The Most Sensational Sedan In The World” in 1977 For 165k In 2020 Dollars
Posted on November 7, 2020 | 52 CommentsThe Mercedes 6.9 almost didn’t make it to the US, due to the energy crisis and issues with federalizing it. But the demand was great in the US, especially from […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1972 Dino 246 GT – “Ferrari’s Version Of The 6-Cylinder Business Coupe”
Posted on November 1, 2020 | 16 CommentsThe Dino 206246 GTs are of course legends and icons. And now very expensive; the blue one in the pictures below sold in 2019 for $400k. Well, they are junior […] -
Vintage R&T Comparison: 1972 Mazda RX-2, Alfa Romeo 1750 Berlina and BMW 2002tii – Can The Cheaper Japanese Rotary Compete?
Posted on October 20, 2020 | 27 CommentsThe rotary engine Mazda RX-2 made quite an impact in the US. It was one of the first Japanese sedans/coupes available here that had genuine sporty ambitions. The Datsun […] -
Road & Track Takes On Ralph Nader: “Nader VS. Volkswagen – A R&T Report” – A Forceful Rebuttal (and Apparent Exoneration)
Posted on October 17, 2020 | 56 CommentsHaving made his mark with “Unsafe At Any Speed”, the highly influential book that instigated the government’s safety regulations, Ralph Nader took on a number of other consumer-related subjects. “Unsafe” […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1972 Capri 2600 V6 – “Our Enthusiasm For This Engine Is Almost Unbounded”
Posted on October 11, 2020 | 25 CommentsIt’s easy to forget what an impact the Capri made in the US, never mind the huge one in Europe. It filled a perfect hole, an affordable European sporty coupe […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1972 Lotus Elan Sprint – The Best Elan Yet, And The Last One
Posted on October 10, 2020 | 10 CommentsWe’ve yet to do a proper CC on the Elan, but this review by R&T goes some distance to help put the Elan in perspective. This Sprint version was the […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1972 Volvo 1800ES – A Successful Butt Lift
Posted on October 9, 2020 | 19 CommentsThe Volvo P1800 was already stylistically outdated when it finally went into production in 1961, having been designed back in 1957. Yet it soldiered on all through the sixties, with […] -
Vintage R&T Review: Saab 99E 1.85 – Better, But Still A Ways To Go
Posted on October 4, 2020 | 22 CommentsIt’s interesting to read this review of a Saab 99, from a time before it morphed into the more mature 900. The 99 had a lot of positives: a roomy […] -
Vintage R&T Review: Opel Diplomat V8 – “Something That GM Could, And Should, Build In The US”
Posted on October 3, 2020 | 20 CommentsNow that’s an interesting line, as this Diplomat was actually seriously considered as the basis of the 1976 Cadillac Seville. As the story goes, the big Opel’s body tolerances were […] -
Vintage R&T Review: The (Almost) New Jaguar XJ6 – “A strange and wondrous car”
Posted on September 27, 2020 | 35 CommentsWe’ve never taken a closer look at the XJ6 Series 1 here. I did find an early XJ12 a block from my house, back in 2009 or so, and wrote […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1972 Volvo 164E – Now Fuel Injected, Depending On Where You Live
Posted on September 23, 2020 | 10 CommentsWe’ve had a lot of Volvos in our current Saturday COAL series, but how about a vintage review of the newly fuel injected 1972 164E? Like so many cars of […] -
Vintage R&T Analysis (1972): Citroen GS – “‘Remarkable’ Would Be An Understatement”
Posted on September 22, 2020 | 34 CommentsI’ve started scanning another box of the vintage R&T’s sent to me by CC reader Lee J., these going back further to 1972. I still have a loooong way to […] -
Vintage R&T Review: 1978 Volvo 262C – “There Simply Is Not Enough Headroom”
Posted on June 26, 2020 | 22 CommentsGiven today’s high beltlines and gunslit windows, the Volvo 262C doesn’t look all that odd. It was just forty years ahead of its time. But it raised eyebrows pretty consistently […]