Car Chat

[cawimmer430]

Yep, a 40 Ford. Some say the most beautiful Ford ever made.

Thanks!

Most beautiful Ford ever? Hands down this!   

[shp4man]

Thanks!

Most beautiful Ford ever? Hands down this!   

[SJ_GTI]

[MX793]

By the way, spotted this today! 1940 model?

Link: https://www.carspin.club/index.php?topic=977.new#new

My grandfather had one, in black, in show condition.  Beautiful car.  Also had a black '38 Lincoln Zephyr (V12) coupe in show condition.

[FoMoJo]

My grandfather had one, in black, in show condition.  Beautiful car.  Also had a black '38 Lincoln Zephyr (V12) coupe in show condition.

Your grandfather had good taste.

Even the Ford pickups of that era were gorgeous.

[AutobahnSHO]

+1

[cawimmer430]

No love for the 1981 Ford LTD!?!? The hell is wrong with you guys? Where's your patriotism? 

[SJ_GTI]

No love for the 1981 Ford LTD!?!? The hell is wrong with you guys? Where's your patriotism? 

My patriotism with with actual good looking cars. 

[cawimmer430]

My patriotism with with actual good looking cars. 

It does look good - well to me. 

[GoCougs]

Actually, malaise-era cars outside the Camaros and Trans Ams are becoming a collector thing, esp. the personal and luxury 2-doors - Torino, Chevelle, Monte Carlo, Riviera, Grand Prix. I think a lot of is the novelty - pretty much all other eras have been collectorized at this point, so why the hell not?

And really, save for the motors the cars themselves were better that what came before when it came to suspension, options and comfort (and modding a motor is easier and more interesting than modding suspension or adding options like power accessories).

A '74 Chevelle Laguna 454 could be pretty nifty:

[veeman]

I remember well a '77 Ford Granada Coupe my parents had.  It was my Mom's daily driver and my sibling and I were shuttled around to just about everywhere locally in it.  Damn comfortable and huge.  Never drove it as they got rid of it before I turned 16.

Looked like this except it was grey and maroon:

https://www.classic.com/veh/1977-ford-granada-ghia-7w84f164865-vnKG8xn/

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

I remember well a '77 Ford Granada Coupe my parents had.  It was my Mom's daily driver and my sibling and I were shuttled around to just about everywhere locally in it.  Damn comfortable and huge.  Never drove it as they got rid of it before I turned 16.

Looked like this except it was grey and maroon:

https://www.classic.com/veh/1977-ford-granada-ghia-7w84f164865-vnKG8xn/

My mom had a four door in tan! It was the Mercury Monarch version tho.....

[dazzleman]

I remember well a '77 Ford Granada Coupe my parents had.  It was my Mom's daily driver and my sibling and I were shuttled around to just about everywhere locally in it.  Damn comfortable and huge.  Never drove it as they got rid of it before I turned 16.

Looked like this except it was grey and maroon:

https://www.classic.com/veh/1977-ford-granada-ghia-7w84f164865-vnKG8xn/

I remember those cars.  My uncle and aunt had a Mercury Monarch, which I think was the same car.  I think their car was a 1976.

[veeman]

My mom had a four door in tan! It was the Mercury Monarch version tho.....

I remember those cars.  My uncle and aunt had a Mercury Monarch, which I think was the same car.  I think their car was a 1976.

Yeah Mercury sold the same car with slightly different styling.  Basically that's all I remember Mercury ever did

I loved riding in that Ford Granada.  When we went on family vacations, my Dad would never take it though and instead drove everyone in his Ford Pinto or later his Chevy Celebrity.  He said the Granada took too much gas.  From us kids' perspective, we didn't get air conditioning because the small 4 cylinder cars would overheat driving 10 hours a day in the hot sun if the air conditioning was on.  My sister had long hair and it would whip in her face and she would be so pissed off 

[dazzleman]

Yeah Mercury sold the same car with slightly different styling.  Basically that's all I remember Mercury ever did

I loved riding in that Ford Granada.  When we went on family vacations, my Dad would never take it though and instead drove everyone in his Ford Pinto or later his Chevy Celebrity.  He said the Granada took too much gas.  From us kids' perspective, we didn't get air conditioning because the small 4 cylinder cars would overheat driving 10 hours a day in the hot sun if the air conditioning was on.  My sister had long hair and it would whip in her face and she would be so pissed off 

I can't believe your dad took the family on vacation in a Pinto when he had a Granada at his disposal.  The Pinto was miserable and was never meant for extended driving or driving a whole family in it.

None of the cars we had when I was a kid had air conditioning.  We had a Ford Torino station wagon, and in the summer, we kept all the windows open so the car was a total wind chamber.  My mom smoked in the front passenger seat (or driver's seat if she was driving) and when she flicked the ashes from the cigarette out the window, they sometimes blew back in the back window and landed in my eyes.  That was a great feeling.  One time she lit the wrong end of the cigarette by mistake and the smell was so bad that my dad started screaming and cursing.  Those car rides were really a lot of fun...

[veeman]

My Dad is very weird about gas money and toll money.  Always has been.  He'll drive an extra hour to save $5 in toll.  And whenever he visits he tells me to fuel up in New Jersey because they have the cheapest gas (New Jersey is an hour from me).  I dunno what it is. Sort of an obsessive compulsive thing which was annoying 20 plus years ago but humorous now that he's close to 80 years old.

[Laconian]

My Dad is very weird about gas money and toll money.  Always has been.  He'll drive an extra hour to save $5 in toll.  And whenever he visits he tells me to fuel up in New Jersey because they have the cheapest gas (New Jersey is an hour from me).  I dunno what it is. Sort of an obsessive compulsive thing which was annoying 20 plus years ago but humorous now that he's close to 80 years old.

Ditto for my parents and Costco, which is thirty minutes out of town for them. My mom drives a Prius so it's not even like the discount is even worth much to them anymore. Me asking "what's your time worth?" goes absolutely nowhere.

[cawimmer430]

So my dad and I exchanged cars for almost two weeks. Today I drove down to Mühldorf to pick up my beloved Priscilla. Man, I missed her. 

My dad's B200 is pleasing to drive but kinda boring and very soft. It's really a car for older people who want no thrills. It's not slow by any means, but that 1.33-l 4-cylinder turbo engine (while incredibly smooth) just lacks the instant and brutal acceleration which I just love in my A250.

[cawimmer430]

Actually, malaise-era cars outside the Camaros and Trans Ams are becoming a collector thing, esp. the personal and luxury 2-doors - Torino, Chevelle, Monte Carlo, Riviera, Grand Prix. I think a lot of is the novelty - pretty much all other eras have been collectorized at this point, so why the hell not?

And really, save for the motors the cars themselves were better that what came before when it came to suspension, options and comfort (and modding a motor is easier and more interesting than modding suspension or adding options like power accessories).

A '74 Chevelle Laguna 454 could be pretty nifty:

To me the Malaise Era stuff is all about the design. Many of those cars still look good. I don't expect top notch quality of performance, but one can appreciate the design, right?

[Laconian]

To me the Malaise Era stuff is all about the design. Many of those cars still look good. I don't expect top notch quality of performance, but one can appreciate the design, right?

I suppose, but calling it a "design" feels a bit generous with these cars. They do have an "aesthetic" though.

[cawimmer430]

I suppose, but calling it a "design" feels a bit generous with these cars. They do have an "aesthetic" though.

As I've said many times before, I "grew up" with these cars on the movie screen. Being born in 1982, I grew up on 1970s and 1980s movies where these days were the stars in movies. It's a nostalgia thing I guess.

But seriously - I do think a 1974 Dodge Monaco or 1976 Plymouth Volare are kinda hot...

[SJ_GTI]

As I've said many times before, I "grew up" with these cars on the movie screen. Being born in 1982, I grew up on 1970s and 1980s movies where these days were the stars in movies. It's a nostalgia thing I guess.

But seriously - I do think a 1974 Dodge Monaco or 1976 Plymouth Volare are kinda hot...

I grew up at the same period but have no nostalgic feelings for those cars. Before I bought my own crappy first car (a 1984 Buick Skyhawk) I had to drive my dad's 1970's era Ford LTD. All I remember about it was how freaking gigantic the front end was on this monstrosity. Parking it (as a teenager) was always a struggle. In fact, the mental scars from driving that thing is probably why I still prefer small cars to this day. 

[Laconian]

We had a 70's Pontiac Safari station wagon whose gigantic smogged V8 would always stall when you needed it most. Utter total POS, just absolute shite.

My worst memories were from the summer... sticky vinyl seats and chrome branding irons for seatbelt receptacles.

[MX793]

We had a 70's Pontiac Safari station wagon whose gigantic smogged V8 would always stall when you needed it most. Utter total POS, just absolute shite.

My worst memories were from the summer... sticky vinyl seats and chrome branding irons for seatbelt receptacles.

Easy way to tell a GM family from a Ford family.  Just look at whose logo was branded into their hand.

[SJ_GTI]

Easy way to tell a GM family from a Ford family.  Just look at whose logo was branded into their hand.

Its funny cause its true. 

[Laconian]

Easy way to tell a GM family from a Ford family.  Just look at whose logo was branded into their hand.

More like waistline! Shirtless kids wearing shorts or swimtrunks are immediately branded with the Mark of the Beast Excellence.

[Laconian]

Also, the whole family went from GM to Japanese cars and never looked back.

[cawimmer430]

I grew up at the same period but have no nostalgic feelings for those cars. Before I bought my own crappy first car (a 1984 Buick Skyhawk) I had to drive my dad's 1970's era Ford LTD. All I remember about it was how freaking gigantic the front end was on this monstrosity. Parking it (as a teenager) was always a struggle. In fact, the mental scars from driving that thing is probably why I still prefer small cars to this day. 

You had first-hand experience with these cars, I didn't. Like I said, I love their design - which is a subjective issue. 

We had a 70's Pontiac Safari station wagon whose gigantic smogged V8 would always stall when you needed it most. Utter total POS, just absolute shite.

My worst memories were from the summer... sticky vinyl seats and chrome branding irons for seatbelt receptacles.

Are you sure you didn't drive a Chrysler product with the Lean-Burn system? 



Maybe it's the kinky German side in me but I like get sexually aroused by stuff like this... 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwUVsFbT4b4

[dazzleman]

As I've said many times before, I "grew up" with these cars on the movie screen. Being born in 1982, I grew up on 1970s and 1980s movies where these days were the stars in movies. It's a nostalgia thing I guess.

But seriously - I do think a 1974 Dodge Monaco or 1976 Plymouth Volare are kinda hot...

The malaise era cars are much better on the screen than they were to own or drive.  I love classic cars but I would totally skip over that era and go back to the 1960s if I were to get one.  Cars from the 70s were crap in so many ways that the only way to really like one is to never have owned or driven one.

[MX793]

I guess I can understand how orderly straight lines and sharp angles would appeal to stereotypically German sensibilities.