In this meandering journey looking at Craigslist classifieds from around the United States, let’s journey way east to that little hamlet of Boston, Massachusetts. With a population of 663,000, it’s roughly 75% the size of Indianapolis but the Boston Metro area has 4.6 million, making it the tenth largest metro area in this country.
Naturally there are many more automotive pickings in Boston than in Indianapolis, such as this 1971 Rolls Royce. Go figure.
One can almost see this Rolls sweeping some old-moneyed Bostonian around the Beacon Hill area, stopping at the high-end grocery to get some Grey Poupon.
For those who need to be exposed to this bit of marketing genius, here’s what I’m referring to.
We all know that Rolls Royce is not a volume manufacturer, focusing on quality over quantity. In that vein, here’s something likely even more rare….
A 1962 Mercury Monterey S-55 convertible.
Fresh out of a thirty year storage, this Mercury is one of 1,315 made and it’s almost ready to do a Paul Revere and blast through the Massachusetts countryside – or what’s left of it. It isn’t perfect, but who is?
If that Mercury is still too common, here’s a 1975 Bricklin. Like the Mercury, it’s powered by a Ford V8.
Years ago, I remember seeing a Bricklin routinely parked on Bloomfield Road in my birthplace of Cape Girardeau, Missouri. I never knew what it was at the time, but it was so different from all the Olds Cutlass Supremes floating around that it left a distinct impression.
Scanning these ads is admittedly a snapshot in time. However, so many of the cars I keep finding in Boston are cars you will never have to worry about seeing its twin in the grocery store parking lot.
Case in point is this 1984 Dodge Rampage, specifically a Dodge California Shelby Rampage. Does this sound strange or look like it’s concocted from a regular L-body Shelby Charger of the era?
Such a thing is legitimate and only 218 were made; from the information I found, this trucklet is the real deal Shelby Rampage. Sold only through a few Southern California Dodge dealers, these mini-pickups are also sometimes referred to as Direct Connection trucks.
Claimed to be even more scarce than the Shelby Rampage is this 1989 Maserati Zagota Spyder, with only 138 imported.
Swoon if you will, but this Maserati leaves me cold. Perhaps that is due to the last Maserati I saw was a Quattroporte that had sat languishing outside a repair shop for at least three years. Maybe I’m just partial to simplicity and being as subtle as a sledgehammer on the forehead. Speaking of…
This 1990 Mazda RX7 convertible fits that description. Somebody shit-canned its rotary engine for something that might have less finesse but is certainly capable of its intended mission.
It’s powered by a Chevrolet 350. Is there anything that has never been powered by a 350???
Moving back toward, but still a long way from, being as common as rain water is a somewhat challenged 1964 Chrysler 300 K, arguably the first of the Chrysler K-cars. Keeping with the rare theme, Ma Mopar made 3,022 of these.
No joking, but some 1980s era K-car derivatives were even more rare.
Perhaps equally challenged, and surprisingly more interesting, is this 1925 Studebaker Special 6. Outside of a bullet nose Studebaker in Colorado that has appeared everywhere (even on the Craigslist UK site), this is the first Studebaker I’ve found. And it’s a good one too, not some run-of-the-mill Lark.
If the side seems generic, the front isn’t.
While it’s been called many things, the front of a ’58 Edsel isn’t generic, either. Advertised as still being on the road, this Edsel was simply too good to not include as it falls in line with my methodology – under $6500, older than 1990, unusual to see, actually located in the area, and preferably still on the road.
Long may she live.
Winning the award for Best Subliminal Messaging is this 1985 BMW 325e. Overall the car looks to be in reasonable to good condition with 160,000 miles. But this is the lead picture. It simply makes me think: If somebody doesn’t buy it, I’m shoving the S.O.B. into this lake.
But I’ve been wrong before.
One I’m fairly confident isn’t wrong is saying a 3/4 ton Jeep is a rarity. This is a 1980 J20, which the owner suspects was purchased new by the military.
Likely a car not purchased new by the military is this 1976 Pontiac Can Am. While I’m not a fan of many of GM’s Colonnade cars, this one really turns my crank in a good way.
Sadly, it really looks like a New England car. While production was meager, at least most parts interchanged with the LeMans which is beneficial as this one needs a lot of love. This had been a great looking car.
This last car puts us at finding one in three cities out of four.
1986 Merkur XR4TI, anyone? This one is the best looking one yet.
Boston has definitely been the most eclectic, so perhaps I need to aim for a bigger city and one down south so rust isn’t an issue. What do you think – Dallas, Houston, or Atlanta?
That Jeep truck with the utility box gets my vote!!!
It’s neat, but the fact that you can see the road from the driver’ side floorboard is kind of a concern.
“See road conditions at a glance! Better than an in-car thermometer!”
The military was buying Dodge and GM trucks c.1980. The M715 Jeep trucks were few and far between by that time. The one pictured was very likely a Fire Dept. vehicle from day one. Military M715s had different roofs and grills.
Lots of CC material in Atlanta. We never have time to stop for pics when I head South, unfortunately.
Lots to like in this bunch. The Roller would be an eye-catcher around here, but likely expensive to run. The Jeep tickles my farming fancy. The Stude would be my pick for a project car. We ended up with an ’89 Honda Civic, but seriously considered a Merkur of this vintage – might be fun to finally see how it is to own and drive.
Sign me up for that Mercury! I love the 62 and a rare S-55 convertible makes it practically a unicorn today. While I am not a huge fan of the baby blue, sometimes you just have to take what you can get.
I have seen that Stude on one of my periodic searches of the Bay of E. That one is a little early to get my juices flowing and it looks like more of a kit than a car. I don’t really perk up until the Big Six from a little later.
And does every stupid city you have surveyed have an XR4Ti? It is funny that you have found more of them than you have Dodge Rampages.
There’s another city on tap for tomorrow. It’s a place that none of us contributors live and I know you’ve been there.
While I didn’t find a Merkur of any stripe, I did find a trifecta of sorts plus a few other surprises. How’s that for a teaser?
Glad you listed Metro Boston population. It’s “yuge”.
The “low miles” in the Maserati Biturbo ad makes me laugh. Has anyone ever seen one with high miles?
I’d be tempted by that Rolls – apparently rust free and a nice, attractive colour.
There’s something particularly sad about a neglected Maserati from that era. Not reliable enough to become a beater, no worn-but-dignified look like the old Rolls; they just seem to collapse in despair. I hope somebody manages to save this one.
Just needs an sbc! 🙂
Even rarer than a high mile Biturbo would be one that hasn’t had an electrical fire. 😉
I love that the ad says “good investment potential biturbo escalating in price”
I can’t think of too many things that are worse investments than an 80’s Maserati.
I’d hazard a guess that the prices on 80s Maseratis have been at rock bottom for a solid 20 years now, so they have nowhere to go but up.
I remember seeing them in the newspaper ads 20 years ago for $2500.
While I’m tempted to pick up a Merkur in every town just for the sake of completeness (or spare parts), something about that old Rolls-Royce is extremely tempting. Heart-stopping when the repair bills start coming in, but tempting now.
Does the Jeep have a 24-volt electrical system?
I know the K-Blazers sold to the military had 24-volt systems.
Have always liked and wanted a Bricklin. Same with the very rare Pontiac Can Am. Had a nice 1964 Chrysler 300-K years ago, so I’m kinda partial to all the rare, old, genuine Letter Cars. And, have always wanted a little Dodge Rampage, ever since they first came out. Especially one with the Shelby ground effects kit. And, even the Maseratis and Merkurs have long appealed to me. If only I had ample money for all they would need.
And, you can believe it or not, but I currently have a jar of Grey Poupon in my refrigerator right now. Seriously. Nevertheless, I could really dig the old Rolls.
I was just reading an old Hemmings buyers’ guide to vintage Rolls vehicles, and they included a jar of Grey Poupon in the parts price list. 😉
Almost makes me want to move to “Bahhhston” ! I’d take a OTR car hauler and load just about all these. Studebaker and Can Am excepted as well as the Edsel. Looks like a lot of work needed there. The Rolls and the Jeep leave me cold. Would love to take a spin in the 350 Mazda! And since I’m wealthy enough (snicker..?) I’d take the Maserati as well. Probably a huge money pit, much like a trophy wife, but damn they both make you look good!
Anyone who has seen Wayne’s World will remember the hilarious parody of the Grey Poupon commercial!
Hilarious??? Really??
Indeed there are some interesting Craigslist finds here in Massachusetts. I browse from time to time.
Brendan, I was waiting for your weigh-in!
Merc of course. I could pahk it in my yahd.
First choice is the ‘62 Mercury. If that’s gone, I’ll go for the ‘64 Chrysler 300K instead. Surprised a lot of these old cars haven’t rusted away by now.
Despite the rust-free setting, I think you’ll be surprised at the relatively slim pickings of pre-1980 vehicles in DFW and Houston, other than pickups. Both metros have nearly tripled in population since then, so there isn’t the stock of older vehicles that long-established Northern cities like Boston have.
Would have loved to see the asking prices to make a more informed decision., but give me the Merc any time of day!
All are under $6500, the arbitrary amount I chose for this series of exercises. What the Mercury is I don’t know, but hopefully the links are still to an active page.
Never seen that Grey Poupon ad before, but the actors played the UK Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary (head of the Civil Service) in a great and very funny TV sitcom in the 1980s.
But I’d still go for the Edsel.
If they played those roles, then they must be well skilled in lampooning. There were a series of these ads here and while they all played on the same theme, most seemed to have one person handing the jar off to the other. This one had a delightful twist.
The Sir in the black Rolls is Paul Eddington, delightfully skilled comic actor who played Jim Hacker, MP, in Yes, Minister (and after his promotion, Yes, Prime Minister) from 1979 through till about 1988. The show lampooned politics and government with great wit and sophistication. It was, and remains, one of the greatest TV shows ever made, very funny and clever with it. It is the bible of how politics works, referred to to this day by journalists and politicians; the English PM Thatcher used to leave cabinet meetings early to watch it when in power. Apart from sets and some antiquated tech issues, it has not dated at all.
Mr Silver Roller is Ian Richardson, (it was Nigel Hawthorne you’re thinking of, Roger), who played Sir Francis Urqhardt in the original British House of Cards, which was greatly superior to US Kevin Spacey remake (unusual these days, as for 15 years or more now, the US has made the best dramas).
Sadly, they are both deceased now. I have the box set of the Yes Minister/Prime Minister series visible on my shelf as I type this.
The ad is very droll, apt for the doubtlessly expensive product with the appropriately absurd name. I shall look for more of them online. Thanks for this, an unforseeable CC effect.
It seems like just last week I considered Merkurs to be rare — now we’ve seen one for sale in each of our three Cornucopia cities. Sure enough, I checked my local Craigslist, and there’s 2 Merkurs for sale, though neither of them run. I guess the world’s remaining XR4Ti’s are all just waiting for us on Craigslist.
Alright, I kind of like the Maserati. I know, right? But it’d be a complete project car, pretty much just as it was when new off the line. Stylewise I think it’s fantastic, especially in this two door cabrio form. Kind of like a BMW E30 series but even better.
This is probably the perfect car that could use a 350 or some sort of LS motor transplant, just don’t even bother messing with the stock engine. It’s got the stick shift, so good there, someone needs to make a flange that would make it mount up. Then some kind of stand-along engine management system.
ONLY use it on nice days with the top down. That way you only have to get the top to fold down once, don’t need to worry about door locks, maybe have the windows permanently down and then forget it and never worry about the electric parts on all of that. Obviously needs a garage. Or even better a corner of a pole barn. With a lift.
The fact that the shroud for the instrument binnacle has been removed and is sitting on the dash absolutely frightens me. But maybe it’s just that the trip meter isn’t working right…
Since Merkur XR4Ti’s seem to be a dime a dozen (or at least a triple every quad), why don’t you challenge yourself and set your sights on its rarer big brother, the Scorpio? Maybe use that as the starting point, i.e. find THAT somewhere, then let’s see what else that city is sporting…
I’ve seen a lone Scorpio tooling around the DC area in the past year. Looked to be in pretty good shape, all things considered.
Interesting thought on the Scorpio. A quickie search on CL revealed as many V6 powered ’76 LeSabres as Scorpios. You could count them on one hand with about five fingers left over.
You read my mind on putting a 350 in the Maserati. Hell, put a 350 in that old Studebaker, for that matter.
Bartender! SBCs for everyone!
his is probably the perfect car that could use a 350 or some sort of LS motor transplant
Ha! I just said the same thing a couple of comments up. It’s just begging for one.
Someone has put an engine from a Lexus LS400 in one which I guess works if you have a spare LS400 hanging around…The car is easily findable via Google and was even sold on BaT a while back as well.
But really, the easy part is finding a Maserati in generally good condition from a body and interior standpoint. The other easy part is the 350 or LS etc. Then figure out how to marry them. And voila! A very attractive body with a sumptuous interior that goes like stink.
There are companies that specialize in these kinds of swaps. Standalone engine systems exist, in fact, you can buy them directly from GM along with your choice of LSx and auto trans.
If I were to do this, I would do a complete drivetrain swap, using the kit from GM. You’d need some additional drivetrain work to get a driveshaft and once you got the Delphi electronics to speak to the Italian electronics (so you have gauges and etc.), you should be good to go…
That Can Am is about the only thing that really moves me. Well, the Shelpage, too.
But that Can Am looks like a parts car. Bummer. I’d buy it just for the unobtanium rear spoiler…
Agreed, Geozinger – the Can Am is definitely my pick. I certainly hope it’s not a parts car, though you could be right. I’ve seen two of these up close in show-car condition, and they are beautiful to behold.
(Another great assortment, Jason!)
The Le Mans Can Am is a 1977 only model, not a ’76. But close.
Only built 1100-ish of these, and more were ordered. But model was cut with excuse of “the die broke for spoiler”. Some say Pontiac wanted more ’77 Grand Prix sales, and cut Can Am, since it used the same dashboard. There was a rush to get the “last biggie” GP before downsized ’78.
That J20 has been on there a LONG time.
The 325 driftah prohject has potential. ” The light bar is brighter than my future” according to the ad.
A little more about the Bricklin SV-1. The creator and owner of the company, Malcolm Bricklin was born in 1939, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is still alive. He got his start in the auto business in the mid to late 1960s by importing the Subaru 360 micro car. It weighed under 1000 lbs. Had a 356cc motor with a 3-speed manual transmission, and had a 60mph top speed. And it was smaller than a VW Beetle.
His own SV-1 was intended as a high-performance safety car, though the car’s weight compromised the performance. Seems Mr. Bricklin was something of an early social activist in that the SV-1 had no cigarette lighter nor ashtrays in order to discourage smoking. They were only made for three years. The first year, 1974, the car used an AMC 360 cu. in. engine. In 9175 and 1976, it used a Ford 351 cu.in. engine. Less than 2,000 were built and sold.
I gave a little bit of the Bricklin history for those who are not as old as (some of us) on here. I remember them, as I also remember the Ford Pantera, which was sold at Lincoln-Mercury dealers. So, essentially, the Bricklin preceded the DeLorean by more than a few years. Probably the only reason so many people know what a DeLorean is is because of Back To The Future.
Yup, we’ve covered it a few times:
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/bricklin-sv-1-the-ultimate-turkey-of-the-seventies/
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-bricklin-sv-1/
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/vintage-review/vintage-rt-review-the-bricklin-great-new-car-or-same-old-stuff/
Oh, and I clicked on the Edsel link, too. It reportedly only has 62K miles on it. And, it sure is in fairly decent shape for it’s age. And, the fact that it’s sitting outside.
Going OT for a minute:
“Boston, Massachusetts…With a population of 663,000, it’s roughly 75% the size of Indianapolis…”
We always hear about how the Boston sports teams are big-market teams with unlimited supplies of money. The Indianapolis sports teams must have even more money than that! When are the Pacers and Colts going to start throwing that dough around and buy themselves a bunch of championships? And can you believe that MLB and the NHL don’t even have teams in Indianapolis? I mean, they wouldn’t consider not having teams in Boston, would they? And Boston’s practically a small town next to Indianapolis!
“…but the Boston Metro area has 4.6 million, making it the tenth largest metro area in this country.”
And in the 2010 U.S. Census, metro Indianapolis had a population of 1.9 million, less than half of metro Boston, and ranking as the 34th largest metropolitan area in the country, twenty-four notches behind Boston.
O.K., scratch what I said earlier about the sports teams.
Why is this so?
Without getting into a lengthy dissertation on the topic, in many eastern states it is very difficult for cities to annex territory. Consequently, many cities have boundaries that are the same or similar to the ones they had decades ago. Boston has had only one significant annexation since the 1870s (and that one was in the 1910s). As a result, Boston has a land area of only 48.3 square miles. Of the 40 largest cities in the U.S., the only others that are remotely close to being that small in land area are San Francisco (46.9 sq. mi., so slightly smaller than Boston) and Washington, D.C. (61.1 square miles).
Meanwhile, in 1970 Indianapolis consolidated with the county it is located in, Marion County, annexing most of the rest of the county. Again, without getting too deep into the weeds of how the resulting “Unigov” works, the upshot is that the city of Indianapolis has a land area of 361.9 square miles (out of 403 square miles in Marion County as a whole). That is approximately seven and a half times the land area that Boston covers.
Because Boston covers so little land, the vast majority of its metro population lives outside its city limits, making the population living inside the city limits deceptively small. If Boston were allowed to expand by annexing nearby areas (Cambridge, Newton, Brookline, etc.) until it covered the same amount of land as Indianapolis does, I’m sure its population would be well over a million.
Yep, that’s exactly what it is; similar is the case in St. Louis. It has a population of 311,000 with a metro area population of 2.9 million. It, too, is landlocked like Boston due to being surrounded by municipalities.
Sorry that you guys in Boston and St.Louis don’t live in cities that had the foresight to locate in a spot with nothing but cornfields for 75 miles in every direction. Location, location, location.
That’s exactly why I’m partial to Kansas City. My only offspring was born there, so I must have some affinity for it!
Meh, that’s what forced amalgamation is for. 😛
St. Louis City removed themselves from St. Louis County in 1870’s. Thinking, “no one lives out there and we don’t want to pay for that area.”
Now, they are desperate to re-annex the County, but no such luck.
Chicago did a large annexation in 1890, and was able to grow until the 1940’s, but still somewhat bigger than other Midwestern cities proper.
My city of Richmond is in a similar situation re: land–it’s only 62 square miles, and 2.7 of those square miles are water. It’s fully landlocked by suburbs that are larger in both land area and, in some cases, population, resulting in a city of 233,000 with a much larger metro area of 1.3 million (in 2009, certainly larger now).
The whole annexation issue would be made even stranger by the fact that many cities in Virginia are self-contained entities that are not part of any county. So it could seem like a hostile takeover, depending on the viewpoint. It has happened, but not recently.
Lots of interesting vehicles here.
This the car I think of when I think Roller, and I’ve always toyed with getting one for a while.
The Edsel is another on the list that it would be cool to have one just to say I did.
The Merc would also be a fun thing to have.
Whether you prefer your Colonnades sporty or are just a Poncho fan the Can-AM is the Colonnade to have.
The Mazda could be fun and thanks to the age I could actually title and register it despite the fact it is wearing a carb, however I’d be more interested if it had EFI.
I wonder how difficult the Roller would really be to live with – that engine has got to be fairly basic, the tranny is a GM THM400, and the suspension is Citroen Hydropneumatic which sounds a bit scary but is probably fairly well understood/documented, right?
You’re probably right about the underlying components, but the Rolls restoration page I checked out makes everything else sound like a maintenance nightmare. Replacing the shocks takes a special Rolls-Royce tool and takes forever. Rear brake rotors? Also a special tool. Vent buttons? Controlled by dedicated and expensive servo motors. And on and on. The cars are worth the trouble, certainly, but they take a long–suffering owner.
The other issue is that RR has a redundant system, which usually breaks at the same time as the main one. Both end up being fixed or replaced. They say that you should stay away from low mileage ones, as that means maintenance and replacements have been deferred, and because of that, a high mileage but maintained one is a better option. This would probably be the most expensive to drive cheap car you ever owned.
The Roller. Built in Britain, designed on a small budget, practically handmade, which is not a good thing; it means no money to thoroughly engineer the things on mass-made cars that make them easy to repair. We are used to cars where taking apart, say, a door to fix dud electrics, is predictable and stuff is relatively interchangeable. Not these babies, thus everything is bespoke and hugely expensive and quite possibly like something from the 1940’s in the details. The redundant systems example from JFrank is a good one, like the famous description of the invention of the column change manual – a very complicated way of doing a very simple task! Keep in mind too the mentality (the type that can’t be told) that actually thought it was making the best car in the world, and then drive one to experience the reality.
They were cars for the very well off, (and badge snobs at that). If you want one that works, they still are.
The interior is beautiful, and the ride is good if there are no corners at all.
In a strange twist of the CC effect when I was out tonight I was sitting at a stop light when I heard the sound of a lightly muffled V8 with a lumpy cam. When it came into view it was one of this era RX-7 though not a convertible.
Comments on the the selections: That Studebaker has been plastered across the craigslist sites in cities across the US, I’m surprised it took you this long to run across it. I’d avoid just for that reason, even tho’ I’m the guy who’d want it.
Knew the Bricklins in Philadelphia — their daughter was the same age as me. he used to picked her up from High School in one. Wish I’d seen him come in a Subaru 360!
I’d have to go with the ’64 K-car or the Rolls, just because I missed out on a $3000 ’72 Citroen DS on the DC-area craigslist last week! That a Rolls like that can go for $5000, while a Messerschmitt, VW Bus or other micro-car in similar condition goes for three-to-four times that now continues to truly amaze me.
At least the featured RX-7 will have a decent exhaust note. I’ve sometimes wondered about an RR with an SBC, aftermarket wiring harness, etc. In short, replace everything expensive with cheap, easy to obtain/repair off items. Doable?
Hah, I have had exactly that thought before! Some time ago, a mate had custody of a Shadow, in really good order. It was joke of a thing as an actual car, literally feeling like trying to guide a waterbed down the road (while getting 8mpg), but I don’t mind the styling and the interior and driving position are pretty irresistable. So yes, get one where something big has broken – it always does – and instead of spending $20k repairing whatever the broken bit was (it’s always $20K, as my mate found out), replace it with lesser (read: likely better) ordinary parts. Keep a quiet exhaust, and presto, daily driver. So, yes, doable.
I mean, ofcourse, you do it….
The J-truck is cool, especially since my first pickup WAS an anvil-tough Jeep J-20. But others say it’s rusty (ad was pulled before I saw it), and many Fire Dept. vehicles see hard use and minimal care.
The 300 Letter Series is cooler, but I have to give the nod to weirdness: that Merkur. Turbo four power for the win!