This guy has a huge collection of, shall we say, the forgottens. Lots of luxo barges in pristine condition esp. from FoMoCo - some of the Mercurys he has are sweet - see dat Colony Park wagon battleship. This has got to be my favorite and one of the best cars from the muscle car heyday, second to probably only the '66-'67 Olds Toronado - muscle car power but with luxo touches:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6Tsk_W_OhU
Sub'd!!
Subscribed - this guy is good. Thanks for the referral.
He is great - well spoken, unassuming, knowledgeable.
The cars are fantastic. Mostly forgotten in the wake of muscle/pony cars, but apparently enough of them still around - he's got an entire warehouse full - looks like 20 cars at least. Very unassuming what with the collection he's put together.
Been waiting for this vid for like a month - ever since he mentioned he had this car. These Fuselage Mopars have always been some of my favorites, and the '72 Lebaraon is peak (look at that front end!):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhQC6Qm5ZwI
Quote from: GoCougs on October 03, 2021, 12:03:27 AM
He is great - well spoken, unassuming, knowledgeable.
The cars are fantastic. Mostly forgotten in the wake of muscle/pony cars, but apparently enough of them still around - he's got an entire warehouse full - looks like 20 cars at least. Very unassuming what with the collection he's put together.
Been waiting for this vid for like a month - ever since he mentioned he had this car. These Fuselage Mopars have always been some of my favorites, and the '72 Lebaraon is peak (look at that front end!):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhQC6Qm5ZwI (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhQC6Qm5ZwI)
Love it - yes, he's really good - broadcast quality fluent narration & knowledge. A good candidate to guest on Jay Leno's channel.
Wimmer needs to see this... oops he's been banned again from FB. All his unfashionable & intemperate views... haha.
Imperial's hide-away headlights - so Mopar! Get a load of this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPIoAnGpzgM
BROWN.
He's like 10 460-powered FoMoCo land yachts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TozhHgimrV8
He says of all his cars, including Cadillacs and Lebarons, the '69 Continental Mark III is overall the highest quality, best built and most luxurious of them all. Good job, FoMoCo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGJE2pkT-I4
A beauty. Great colour.
My preference would be a convertible.
Mercury Colony Park w/460. I love my Fuselage Mopar wagons but the hideaway headlights on the FoMoCo products is a killer touch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRs0oqJ24wg&t=195s
Another Fuselage Mopar. The New Yorker was one (GIANT) step down from the Imperial Lebaron above, including a bit shorter length and wheelbase. It doesn't really compare to the Lebaron, but in the least this has the optional 350 hp 440 V8 (standard in the aforementioned Lebaron). Still very cool.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFI90HWJTsw
Here's a shot of his warehouse. He's featured ~20 cars thus far on his channel that he says he owns, and he's mentioned even more that he has yet to feature. He's said he just periodically picks these cars up for a good deal, and has been doing it for some time. Quite impressive. I have no idea what he does for a living, and he lives in a rather unassuming neighborhood too - not your typical flash-n-splash car channel YouTuber:
(https://i.postimg.cc/T3yBtdVK/cars-cars-cars.png)
I'm starting to wonder if this is secretly Cougs :lol:
I'm an attractive and fairly intelligent man but I don't have his hair and I don't think I'm as well spoken TBH.
He just teased a 1970 4-door Caprice with a 454 V8. Looks awesome.
This dude's collection and love of the craft is legit, and exceedingly interesting in its rarity.
He's so knowledgeable it blows me away - he can speak on camera for hours about these things - no stuttering, no ers & ums. 100% compelling.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-wadecki-phd-5441bb11/
From his talk about the Cimmarron, one nugget, I'd not known, since I was not around in the USA during the 1950s & 60s heydays, was the pecking order of the four mainstream GM divisions. Cadillac was always pretty well differentiated - until the Cimmaron disaster I guess.
https://youtu.be/2n6PyoLCe0s?t=265
So for a given platform.
Chevrolet (base)
Pontiac (bit nicer)
Oldsmobile (nicer still)
Buick. (plush)
GM gradually narrowed the differentiation between the brands until it made no sense any more. Oldsmobile went away in 2004 & Pontiac in 2010.
Oldsmobile (and to some extent Buick) was also often the "experimental" division, where new technologies would be test marketed before being used in Cadillac.
Not sure if the Olds/Buick people would have agreed with that. They were plenty proud folk to be sure. And just in general, the GM management of its divisions is a fascinating story, esp. late '50s to early '70s, peaking in the mid '60s. It was more a loose confederation of medium wattage enemies than a big happy family. More so than either Ford or Mopar (or, more drama and infighting and such).
Once the cars cheapened in the '70s, and the divisions started losing their motors, the differentiation didn't mean so much.
Been waiting for this too. He just bought it - Canadian car. He says it's the quickest of all his fleet, and from the sounds of it and the best driving, esp. steering. He also says it's peak Chevy, even inside. Impressive addition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLYHeV-uOBU
Quote from: GoCougs on November 26, 2021, 12:04:03 AM
Been waiting for this too. He just bought it - Canadian car. He says it's the quickest of all his fleet, and from the sounds of it and the best driving, esp. steering. He also says it's peak Chevy, even inside. Impressive addition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLYHeV-uOBU
Hah - I watched that too last night. Did you pick up on his views at the end about the dreariness of modern cars? I really identified with that, the lack of soul comment.
A few years ago I had to replace our wrecked Merc CLK. We needed something practical (we have to haul our own trash here) and, despite the warnings of 'SPINners here, my spreadsheet brain overruled and I got the CR-V grocery getter. I never liked it. It was dead behind the eyes.
The CX-5 may be a grocery getter too but it has soul & verve.
The Infiniti is fun - especially with the new tires. That will be a difficult car to replace.
Yep, caught that too - the G37 was the last great Japanese car IMO.
HOLY SHIT - he's gonna interview Bob Lutz (will be age 90 next month) for the channel! He says he's known him personally for quite some time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hyk97nSzxms
I'll be watching - this guy's channel is a gem.
He got a mention in Car & Driver. The new editor was writing about how he's now inspired to buy a mid-70s Caddy.
He can't say good enough things about his '66 Pontiac Catalina. In fact, of the 60+ classic cars he owns/owned, he says it is overall the best driving - NVH, ride quality, responsiveness, road feel and just overall driving experience - he likes it even more than his theoretically much more upscale Chryslers, Lincolns and Cadillacs of the era.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-686lLQwSk
Quote from: GoCougs on June 02, 2022, 07:48:31 PM
He can't say good enough things about his '66 Pontiac Catalina. In fact, of the 60+ classic cars he owns/owned, he says it is overall the best driving - NVH, ride quality, responsiveness, road feel and just overall driving experience - he likes it even more than his theoretically much more upscale Chryslers, Lincolns and Cadillacs of the era.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-686lLQwSk
Pontiac made some good cars in the '60s. My favourite was the '63, Parisienne or Catalina.
My notes thus far (or, how I think he would fill these categories):
Best overall driver: '66 Pontiac Catalina.
Best aesthetics/styling: '67 Buick Riviera.
Best quality/luxury: '69 Continental Mark III.
Best overall presence: '72 Imperial LeBaron.
Quickest: 1970 Chevy Caprice 4-door hardtop (w/high compression 454, the engine's first year)
Biggest letdown: '69 Cadillac Eldorado (marginal ride, lots of NVH, cheap-ish interior, so-so performance esp. given the huge stats - 375 hp/525 ft-lb).
He's got some nice iron. Overall, I'm torn between the Riviera and LeBaron, but the former's colors and accoutrements are a bit plain, so I'd probaly go for the Lebaron.
I just love his channel. If you go to a classic car show it's all dime-a-dozen pony cars. The coolness factor of his cars is an order of magnitude greater.
Jesus, he seems to be buying about a car a month. Another one from Facebook Marketplace. He says it needs a major tune, as do 98% of the cars he buys (typically garage queens with ultra low miles whereby the carburetor gets all gummed up). These are epic cool cars - muscle car power but with some style and comfort:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAODQXyB4kY
If you were shooting a movie set in the late-60s/early-70s, this is where you'd go to rent the cars for the sets.
Was this peak GM? I'm in love with this.
(https://i.postimg.cc/G2JZpQ4h/Screen-Shot-2022-06-19-at-07-53-12.png)
https://youtu.be/IdqzifXRBJw (https://youtu.be/IdqzifXRBJw)
Quote from: Morris Minor on June 19, 2022, 05:57:02 AM
Was this peak GM? I'm in love with this.
The '63 Pontiac was always my favourite, mainly because of the taillight (rear end) design.
1963
(https://i.postimg.cc/hGSWV1nh/40bdbc97ac223032f42b9b4092f44fe5.jpg)
vs. 1965
(https://i.postimg.cc/x1phbD6p/82c1e10709b341452aeceaf0951a95fc.jpg)
Quote from: Morris Minor on June 19, 2022, 05:57:02 AM
Was this peak GM? I'm in love with this.
(https://i.postimg.cc/G2JZpQ4h/Screen-Shot-2022-06-19-at-07-53-12.png)
https://youtu.be/IdqzifXRBJw (https://youtu.be/IdqzifXRBJw)
Absolutely. I used to see one every year at the big car show in Columbus Ohio. Gorgeous cars.
Another feature on his '72 Lebaron. Oh, boy, I'd buy this in a heartbeat. Interesting provenance on this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vGWaSvVMuM
Oh boy :wub:
Quote from: GoCougs on July 19, 2022, 01:08:06 PM
Another feature on his '72 Lebaron. Oh, boy, I'd buy this in a heartbeat. Interesting provenance on this one:
Just one of the all time great-looking cars.
Jesus, he bought another one. He gushes, stating it's GM's best styled car ever. Look at that red interior!
His last number of videos has shown his real house - a rather nice McMansion affair. Makes sense, as his car count now has to be 50. The (exceedingly modest) house featured in the earlier videos must be a second home, which appears to be where he does car work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_O2TyPigiCI
I contacted an automobile museum near here suggesting they might host an exhibit of some of his collection. They rotate a lot of stuff through, so crossed fingers.
https://savoymuseum.org/
Super cool - his channel's doing well - up to almost 60k subscribers.
Here's another FoMoCo product he gushes about -the most comfortable car he's ever driven - plus 460 V8 and 3.25:1 limited slip differential, so she scoots good I'm sure. Bought it for $5,500 three years ago WTF:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbOIWXvcbak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK8R-LhM1LM
The LTD cleanup begins:
https://youtu.be/mT3Q1DzclWM (https://youtu.be/mT3Q1DzclWM)
Watched the vids on that car - amazing how much came back. Fantastic styling on these full size cars from 1965 till about 1970.
Saw several comments that he should have claybarred before hitting it with the rubbing compound.
Quote from: Morris Minor on December 13, 2022, 11:44:55 AM
Saw several comments that he should have claybarred before hitting it with the rubbing compound.
Not always necessary, but typically recommended. But on old school, heavily oxidized paint like that...meh, I probably wouldn't bother claybarring unless there were very obvious 3D contaminants like tar or sap or what have you.
Look at these FoMoCo (Mercury) beauties (yes, they're all his - by my figuring, at this point, he owns some 40 cars), and AFAIK they all have the then-largest available engine (390, 410 or 460) which is the case with most of his cars.
His encyclopedic knowledge and flawless delivery are also impressive.
Not from his channel, but inspired by it. BaT has up for auction a 1965 Buick Riviera GS. The first gen Riviera was the beginning (1963) of GM's design dominance that carried on throughout the '60s, and this is peak of the marque. Dual quad 425, 3.42:1 posi and top notch shape (don't think those wheels are stock so I would axe those): 1965 Buick Riviera Gran Sport (https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1965-buick-gran-sport-9/)
(https://bringatrailer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/1965_buick_gran-sport_1965_buick_gran-sport_b9b049c2-772a-4842-81d8-6738dbf5c334-tHWBuY-56736-56737-scaled.jpg?fit=940%2C627)
I like it.
He has another Mercury. He says this is new to the channel:
Beautiful car.
A rare talent: going on camera and, with no script, no stumbles and no hesitations, convey an amazing wealth of knowledge.
One of the keys to good public speaking is knowing your subject backwards, forwards & sideways: this guy definitely has the chops.
His sometimes-guest, Mark/Marc, is no slouch either (he does go sorta too-deep on the design stuff IMO):
Interesting video. While the car was really not that impressive, the engine was. As mentioned by the guy, the engine was extensively used in the UK by Rover. What was not mentioned was that the engine, when modified, became a very serious racing engine, primarily the version by Repco Brabham which managed to win the 1966 Formula 1 championship.
Interesting article...'RB620' V8: Building The 1966 World F1 Champion Engine (https://primotipo.com/2014/08/07/rb620-v8-building-the-1966-world-championship-winning-engine-rodways-repco-recollections-episode-2/)
Yep, there was nothing inherently wrong with the engine. The engine, and the cars it was in, were just way too far ahead (like 20+ years ahead) of the times. Americans were simply not ready for efficiency in weight, size and packaging. Such market changes wouldn't come till the early '80s with the GM A-body (Celebrity, etc.).
The Brits first dropped that engine into the Rover P5, replacing an ancient wheezy heavy iron F-head 3-litre straight-six (https://www.curbsideclassic.com/automotive-histories/automotive-history-the-curious-f-head-engine/#:~:text=Now%20there%20is%20one%20other%20F-head%20engine%20we%20need%20to%20touch%20upon%2C%20the%20very%20curious%20case%20of%20the%20Rover%20engine.).
It was a revelation.
Then they put it in the new & smaller Rover P6, where it became a police force favorite (equivalent now to the Scat Pack Chargers used by state troopers in some jurisdictions)
Then, in 1970, it went into the Range Rover, which had been originally intended for farmers wanting something less bone-shaking then their beaten up Land Rovers, but rapidly became a phenomenal hit with in-town yummy mummies delivering the kids to their private schools.
Quote from: FoMoJo on September 26, 2023, 07:20:46 PMInteresting video. While the car was really not that impressive, the engine was. As mentioned by the guy, the engine was extensively used in the UK by Rover. What was not mentioned was that the engine, when modified, became a very serious racing engine, primarily the version by Repco Brabham which managed to win the 1966 Formula 1 championship.
Interesting article...'RB620' V8: Building The 1966 World F1 Champion Engine (https://primotipo.com/2014/08/07/rb620-v8-building-the-1966-world-championship-winning-engine-rodways-repco-recollections-episode-2/)
It survived in one form or another all the way up to the introduction of the L322 Range Rover in 2003, if memory serves me correct.
Cool car interiors...
When cars were distinctive.
I'd give a vote to the '66-'67 charger (floor shifter AT, full length console, F/R bucket seats, hatchback):
(https://mystarcollectorcar.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/IMG_3402-001-1024x683.jpg)
And of course the '70 Camaro (wrap around dash, symmetrical gauge layout):
(https://photos.classiccars.com/cc-temp/listing/116/5334/14263912-1970-chevrolet-camaro-z28-std.jpg)