I have loved these Sevilles since day one. ... View more

Purple??? ... View more

Please note this important spec about this car; Fuel Consumption: Power-assisted rack-and-pinion ... View more

I'm a Corvette guy and have been an owner since 1971 and I know what a big deal it is for a Corvette to have a color change from its original hue. So, it shocks me to read of the change of the color of the 289 Cobra as if it were just a side note and no big deal. Is a color change of no consequence on a Cobra? And speaking of that, how much does it affect any other brands like it does Corvettes? ... View more

I owned a '65 Mustang coupe for 18 years. I just sold it recently. One thing I noticed over the years I owned and displayed that car. Everybody likes Mustangs. They have a classic and pleasant look to them. And everybody has a story about them. I sold it back to the gentleman I bought it from 18 years ago. He was young when I bought it from him. Since then he has gotten married. He has a daughter who is going to shows with him in the Mustang. And he said she has such a great time doing that and just cruising in the Mustang. And she tells her dad to be sure to pick her up at school in the Mustang. I'm really glad the car went back to a family like that. And he has promised he will keep it forever. I am sure he will. ... View more

I watched the auction and I felt Mecum had to manufacture a lot of the excitement in the room. A lot of the audience weren't really as excited as I thought they should be. But the auctioneer did his usual yelling and screaming yet the crowd reaction was far from what I think they hoped it would be. ... View more

I agree 110% about knowing VINs. And along those lines, I will always look at the VIN of a car for sale to be sure it is the correct format for that particular vehicle. I looked at a '75 Corvette once that had the VIN for a '75 Chevrolet Malibu. I knew how the VIN should start for a Corvette and this one didn't start that way. Its title described it as a '75 Chevrolet. Well yeah, it was but not the right kind of '75 Chevrolet. But for me that also applies to auction houses advertising cars they will have for sale in the future. There is one big auction house which always is transparent about its vehicles by displaying the VINs of each one. But then on the other hand, that other big auction house never displays the VINs of their vehicles. I find that to be very unusual. If a car is totally legitimate, why would they mind declaring the VINs? I'm not accusing anyone of anything illegal but it does make me wonder why they don't do this. ... View more

I bought a new Toyota Camry XSE in 2019. This car is amazing. I love it. And it is Pearl White with a Midnight Black roof and what attracted me is that it has bright red (Cockpit Red) interior. It took Toyota to get the other manufacturers to get back in the interior game with colors other than gray, black or tan. I am now a dedicated Toyota fan. ... View more

I was in my mid 20s when these Sevilles arrived. And I LOVED them. I was also a Corvette onwer at the time. So to me, the ultimate group of cars would have been a, new Corvette, a new Seville and an Eldorado Biarritz, all three in WHITE with red interiors.. And here 45 years later, I would still love to have a new Corvette, a '76 Seville and a '78 Eldorado Biarritz, all in white with red interiors. ... View more

I have owned 13 Corvettes ranging from 1955 to 2004 since 1971, 50 years ago! To say I love these cars is an understatement. Before 1984, I had loved every Corvette I had seen. And then the C4 arrived. I knew it was coming. My local Chevrolet dealer even called me when they received their first C4, a white coupe with black interior. I drove over there to see it. They still had it in the wash bay cleaning it up. And I remember what a letdown it was for me. I know the C4 owners reading this will be offended and will extol the virtues of those cars. But I am entitled to my opinion and all I can say is that the C4 was a disappointment for me. And for the first time since I bought my first Corvette in 1971, I was losing interest in America's Sports Car. And during the ensuing years, I ventured into the Street Rod foray. And amazingly, at car shows I attended with my '32 Ford, I saw many of the same people I used to see at Corvette shows. And they all felt the same disappointment I felt for the new C4. So I stuck with the Street Rod scene until my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I attended the Auto Fair at Charlotte Motor Speedway. And a local dealer in vintage/specialty automobiles was there with a new Nassau Blue C5 Corvette coupe. And I thought that was about the best looking Corvette I had ever seen. So, my interest had been revived in Corvettes thanks to the C5. It took some time and the sale of my Street Rod to enable my finances to afford a new C5. But I ordered and took delivery of a 2004 White on Red convertible. And I was back on the Corvette bandwagon and have been ever since. I'm retired now and would love to have a new mid-engine C8 but that is out of the question at this point in my life; both financially and physically. Corvettes are tough to get into and out of as you get older. Oh well, I sure had a great time over the last 50 years with the ones I've had. And that didn't include any C4s. ... View more

NONE of the above! ... View more

I have to question Cadillac being the first with a car alarm in 1973?? I owned a '69 427 Corvette that had a factory alarm on it. It was a $26.35 option and it first appeared on Corvettes in '68. ... View more

From the exotic all-aluminum ZL-1 427 Chevrolet to the Single Overhead Cam (SOHC) 427 Ford, these were the legends of the 60s and still are today! ... View more

427 just has that magical sound for both Chevrolet and Ford fans. Happy 4/27 day! ... View more

As long as there are 1970 and '71 Chevelles, the 1970 and '71 Monte Carlos never will be worth a whole lot. ... View more

I have always loved the 1970-72 Monte Carlos. I know this article is for the '70 and '71 cars due to the SS 454 option but I always liked the grille on the '72 the best of the three years. I worked with a man in the 70s who had a '71 Monte Carlo. We were in our 20s then so he kept that car impeccably clean and neat all the time. I enjoyed riding in that car. It was very quiet and pleasant to ride in. Along those same lines, my dad worked with a man who ordered a Carolina Blue (special order paint color) '71 Monte Carlo new. It had dark blue interior. But the special thing about his car was that he ordered it as a slick top. That looked very odd back then but it kept that car from getting rust under a vinyl top. About three or four years ago, I was at an annual cruise-in they hold in our town once a year. It is a huge event usually attracting around 600 cars. The streets are closed off for cars that are 1972 or older. As I was walking around looking at the cars which were parked before the cruise started, a guy pulled up beside me and spoke. I turned to see who it was. And lo and behold, it was that man who worked with my dad and he was in that Carolina Blue '71 Monte Carlo!!! He still owned that car! And he has had it for close to 50 years now! And it still looked like new. I asked him how many miles it had and he looked and said it had 48k miles on it. Wow! So I guess I have a personal connection to the '70 and '71 Monte Carlos. The closest I ever came to owning one of them was a '73 and a '76 Landau I owned. But they just aren't the same. ... View more

@1964tbird  See my first pair in my list above dooscoop32 ... View more

390~Ford and Cadillac 302~Chevrolet and Ford 427~Chevrolet and Ford 428~Pontiac and Ford 429~Cadillac and Ford 430~Buick and Ford 400~Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Chrysler, Ford 392~Chrysler and International Harvester 455~Buick and Oldsmobile 305~Chevrolet and GMC V6 425~Oldsmobile and Cadillac 307~Chevrolet and Oldsmobile 221~Ford thin-wall V8 and Ford Flathead 303~Oldsmobile and Pontiac and Plymouth 350~Chevrolet, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick, Plymouth 318~Chrysler wide block and Chrysler LA Series 301~Pontiac and Plymouth 326~Pontiac and Dodge 360~Ford, Chrysler and American Motors 255~Ford Windsor and Mercury Flathead 370~Pontiac and Ford 292~Ford Y-Block and Lincoln V12 401~Buick and AMC 331~Cadillac and Chrysler Hemi 426~Chrysler Wedge and Chrysler Hemi ... View more

I remember so well what a guy told me that I sold a car to. He went to Mecum Kissimmee a few years ago looking for a '32 Ford Street Rod. He figured out that what he liked, he couldn't afford. And what he could afford, he didn't like. And so it goes. ... View more

Wow this car is all out of proportion! ... View more

No the 396 was a 396 for 1965 thru 1969. Then in 1970, they increased the 396 to a 402. They kept the 396 moniker because it was such a famous sounding number. SS 402 just doesn't have that same ring. ... View more

Yeah the reason they increased the 396 to 402 was so their smallest big block would be bigger than their biggest small block, which was the 400. This was to avoid confusion and all it did was create more of it. When you saw a 400 emblem on the fender of a Chevrolet product back then, you had to look under the hood to know which engine it really was. ... View more

My reasons for never caring for the Series 1s are that the body is very generic looking to me. Nothing spectacular but nothing unattractive either which reminds me of the Cadillac Allante. Another point is that I never see any color but silver on them. I know the stripes color varies but the main color being silver is not good for me. I hate silver. And then finally, when I was reading about these cars before they had been made, I was shocked and disappointed to see they were to have Oldsmobile engines. Yes, it was, what many thought at the time, the great Northstar engine. But for me Oldsmobile never exactly had the reputation of being a high-performance player and a 4.0 liter version? Were they kidding? 244 cubic inches? These factors caused me to never have any interest in these cars. And my taste in automobiles is eclectic. But not enough to appreciate these. ... View more

Regarding the 2nd version of the 326 Pontiac engine, I checked your math and it doesn't add up. Your figures of 3.71875" for the bore and 3.5625" for the stroke would yield a cubic inch displacement of 309.55. So, it appears you guys are fudging on your engine displacements as well!! LOL However, checking your stats for accuracy, I found that the stroke for the 2nd-design 326 was actually 3.750" and the math equation with those figures equals out to 325.84 cubic inches. ... View more

I still miss Dale 20 years after his death. ... View more

I've always said these would be much more in demand if they had been rear-wheel drive. ... View more

A friend of mine once told me he and his best friend were walking down the street in town one day back in 1979 when they happened to go by the Cadillac dealer's showroom. There on the showroom floor was a brand new, black '79 Eldorado. He said his friend was frozen at the beauty of that car. He said his friend vowed right there on the spot that he was going to start saving some money out of each paycheck until he could afford to buy one of those for himself. And he said, sure enough, his friend did save money to do just that! And he told me it took him 40 years but his dream finally came true! I said, "You mean he bought a brand-new black Cadillac?" He said, "No, he bought a black '79 Eldorado!" ... View more

@acooper529 You wrote: "There is no question that the '58 Impala in the center of the first picture would be my pick. That looks like a somewhat rare stock color and I don't remember the exact name." It is Rio Red. ... View more

The Tucker was the car I immediately thought of because of its cyclops headlight. ... View more

Maximum Bob ... View more

I always liked the "Thunderbird V8" emblem present on the front fenders of the 1956 Ford Fairlanes.   https://www.google.com/search?q=1956+ford+fairlane+fender+emblem&rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS918US918&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi_wb6Yyq_tAhVhx1kKHVQuD7gQ_AUoAnoECBIQBA&biw=1920&bih=937#imgrc=AVV7y6F37Sw3xM ... View more

I have mixed feelings on this.  I fear a lot of these cars will be misrepresented further on down the line as they change hands, either intentionally or because communication breaks down as the car changes hands.    I also have heard guys who had tributes claiming to onlookers that their car is the real deal.  I really don't like when they do that.   Not that they were trying to sell their cars but still misleading onlookers.     But the one good thing I see in them relates to my experience with street rods.  I owned a steel '32 Ford De Luxe Tudor for 20 years.  I didn't care for the fiberglass versions but I realized that because of them, the prices of the steel cars were more affordable.  I probably never could have been able to buy a steel Deuce if only steel cars were available.   And it's the same with tributes. ... View more

The mid-70s Trans Am optional "honeycomb" aluminum wheels. ... View more

The problem for me is that the only versions of these cars I would want are the rare, hi-perf versions and they still command big money.   I've been noticing 50s cars plunging for several years unless they are special for some reason.  And the biggest plunger seems to me to be the 1955-57 Thunderbirds.    And no I don't think Thunderbird is a cooler name than Corvette. ... View more

Amen on Ed Cole! ... View more

How does ceramic coating compare to jet hot coating both endurance-wise and price-wise? ... View more

My favorite weirdo would be the Fiat Multipla from the 50s.  https://www.flickr.com/photos/autohistorian/31567237552 ... View more

@GoFast I agree with you totally.  I've been using Mobil 1 since 1976 in every single engine I've owned including lawn mowers.  It was called Synthesized Engine Lubricant back then. I occasionally purchased Castrol SynTec if it was on sale but those are the only two I've used.    And I have had no problems engine-wise from any of them.   ... View more

I think you are either born a car guy or you aren't.  My dad cared nothing at all and knew nothing about cars.  And didn't want to.  But from the time I was old enough to know what a car was, I LOVED CARS!   I was born in the early 50s so I got to see the golden age of when cars really were restyled each year.  Because of that, I prided myself at a young age of being able to identify the make and year of each car I saw.  I apparently paid attention to commercials to gain my knowledge of the various models, because my parents told me I could identify cars in traffic at a time before I could even read.  And the first words I learned to spell were names of cars.  Plymouth, Oldsmobile, Chevrolet, Lincoln, Chrysler, Thunderbird etc. are impressive words for a first grader to be spelling but I could do it.  Yes, I was a car guy.    I also have always given my dad so much credit for helping me develop this love and knowledge.  Though he cared nothing about it, he took me to see the new cars each fall as they were unveiled.  He took me to each dealer till we had covered them all.  He also took me to see drag races and after we moved to North Carolina, he took me to the local oval short track quite often.     I realize now what all he sacrificed for me in doing that.     Then when I had my own son, he was exposed to my personal vehicles which included Corvettes, street rods and muscle cars.  He seemed to love them but I noticed he never really connected with them like I had.  So I didn't try to force it on him.   Well, I'm guessing that maybe the "car guy gene" skips a generation each time.  And if that's the case, then my two young grandsons will be true car guys!  I sure hope so. ... View more

And then there are times when all your valiant efforts won't get a car running again.  In 1977 at the age of 25, a friend and I headed from our homes in North Carolina to Little Rock, Arkansas.  I was going there to look at and possibly purchase a 1975 Corvette convertible.  This was a 700-mile trek but we were excited to go.   I had recently purchased a 1969 Chevrolet Caprice coupe that had been the demonstrator for the owner of our local Chevy dealer.  And loaded it was!  427, PS, PB, PW, PDL, P Seat, P Trunk, tilt, cruise, rosewood steering wheel, fender skirts, light monitor system, hideaway headlights, Comfortron climate control, and more including the ultra-rare Liquid Tire Chain option which would squirt a chemical substance onto the rear tires to aid traction in icy/snowy weather.  This beast was a true pleasure on a trip like this.   I viewed the Corvette which had been totally mis-represented to me and declined its purchase.  We left immediately on our return trip to NC.  On the way out of Little Rock, I decided to fill up the Caprice.  That 427 loved fuel.  As we rolled up to the pump, the car cut off but just as I was at the pump.  So I fueled up before trying to start her again.  But when I did try, it was  not going to start.  This was Memorial Day weekend and it was Friday and they were packed at this station.  So my friend and I pushed the car off to the side.  Oh, by the way, a '69 Caprice is a VERY heavy car.   After trying several more times, I gave up.  I looked under the hood but saw nothing that looked wrong.  I finally asked the attendant at the service station (this was when they pumped your gas and worked on cars!) to look at it but he said they were so busy he wouldn't have time.  But he offered to call a garage near there to have them come look at it.    The garage arrived with their tow truck.  He tried several things but never got her started.   So, he said he would need to tow it to their facility.  So, there we went.   After a while, he came into the waiting area and gave me the bad news.  My top timing gear (which was nylon) had stripped off.   So, he would need to replace the timing chain and gears to get me going.  Then he said it would be the next day before he could do it though.  So he took us to a nearby motel and we checked in for the night.    He called the next day to say he had gotten it running (the good news).  BUT there was a problem.  When the timing gear stripped off, the valves which were open at that moment were bent by piston interference.    And so it was missing badly.  He asked how far we had to get home.  When I said 700 miles, he said there was no way it would make it that far.  Then he offered to absorb the garage bill and give me $300 cash to get home with.  I was incensed at that and absolutely refused.   By the way, my friend liked his idea, naturally.   He brought her to the motel and she was running rough!   So I paid him for his work and he wished us good luck going home.  I had that nagging feeling as we headed out that we weren't going to make it so I even decided not to turn the car off.   We drove the whole 700 miles straight through and when we stopped for gas, I left her running.  And miracle of miracles, we made the whole trip with no problems.   I ended up having a rebuild done on the 427 after that and once again she ran like new.  Oh, and my mechanic put a steel top timing gear back in there.       ... View more

I love these Grand Prixs too.  In the late 70s I had a neighbor who had a '69 Grand Prix SJ with the 428 engine.  I told him way back then that I believed that particular car would be a valuable collector item someday, partially because of the first year version but mostly because of being an SJ and having the 428 engine.  When the gas crunch hit again in the early 80s he traded that car in on a Ford Escort.  Oh well, I guess he put no faith in my prediction for his car's future value.   On another note, in that same neighborhood, I had an older neighbor who had been "bought out" by GM to take early retirement at age 58.  He was a territorial accounts manager.  As a result of that, he was with a lot of the big shots at GM.  He and I discussed DeLorean (the man) once and he told me he had had traveled extensively with DeLorean on airplane flights and knew him on a first-name basis.  And my neighbor said to me about DeLorean and these are his words, not mine, "That was the most arrogant **bleep** I ever met in my life".   ... View more

All of these cars are great until something goes wrong with them.  Nobody now knows how to diagnose their problems and even if they do, the parts can be difficult if not almost impossible to find.   And EXPENSIVE! I sold a 1991 Cadillac Allante and a '93 Cadillac Sixty Special for just those reasons. ... View more

Although I do love the 1942 DeSoto with its hidden headlights, it definitely was not the first to do so.   What about the 1937 Cord 810/812?  And I'm not even sure it was the first.     http://www.stahlsauto.com/automobiles/1937-cord-812-sportsman/   And a little-known fact about those clam shell headlight doors on the 1965 Buick Riviera is that this whole car was designed as a tribute  to the classic coachbuilders' designs of the 1930s.  And the headlight doors are to mimic the grille of  the '39 LaSalle.    http://hotrodbuildingblocks.blogspot.com/2012/09/1939-lasalle-grill.html https://www.idealclassiccars.net/vehicles/249/1965-buick-riviera                     ... View more

I was amazed when I looked at the window sticker for this GS Stage 1.  The car was sold new in the town next to where I live now.  In fact, the place where it sold new is only about 5 miles from my house.  The dealership has closed down now but the building is still there.    Now, I wonder who in this area bought the car new.  As Arte Johnson used to say, "Verrrrrrry interesting." ... View more

I thought of a couple more reasons myself.  One, of course, should be fuel mileage.  Just be realistic about what you expect from a mechanically fuel injected, solid-lifter cammed 327 with 375 HP.  And gearing in the rear ends was for the most part, lower in the 60s cars.   And of course overdrive transmissions were thought of as old technology.     And I'll just say that I also got sick and tired of the sneers and jeers I got from so many other drivers on the road.      The percentage of people who look  up to vintage cars they see nowadays is dwindling like crazy.  Most people don't even give them a second look anymore.  Times have changed unfortunately.   ... View more

@Pepperalls You wrote:  "57 Chev weren't the best seller (Ford was) and yet 57 Bel Air became a super-aspirational vehicle that arose from the masses rather than being elite to start with"   I always remember what a savvy car collector told me one time.  If it's hot when it's new, it'll be hot when it's old.  Part of the proof there is a used car lot in our area back in the late 50s and thru the mid-60s whose whole front row of cars was all '57 Chevrolets all the time.  All colors, body styles and series.  He bought every one he could get his hands on.  He did this, as I said, for around 10 years.  That should have told people something.  Later on, he did the same thing with '67-72 Chevrolet short-bed pickups. ... View more

So many people love '55, '56 and '57 Chevys.  I always loved '58s, '59s and '60s. ... View more

I have owned Corvettes since 1971.  I have many Corvette friends and acquaintances.  So many of them were negative toward the C8 until they saw it.  One friend sent me a pic of one at a car show and said, "I was wrong about this car before.  Now that I've seen it in person, I LOVE it!"  And I think that speaks for a lot of people.   I've told them all this is the car Chevrolet had to build.  It is intended for a new generation of buyer.  If the traditional Corvette buyers buy it, that's great.  But there are only so many of them who are buying cars like that now.  If the Corvette brand is to survive, it had to evolve.  And whether everyone likes it or not, this is the evolution of one of the greatest cars ever made.   I am proud to say I've owned Corvettes for 49 years.  I hope there is a generation 49 years from now who will say the same thing. ... View more

There is a man in our town who owned the local Buick-Pontiac dealership back in the years when Reattas were in production.  He eventually bought five of them in various years and body styles and kept them, driving each occasionally.   I'm not sure how many he still owns but I see him driving a red convertible and a silver coupe with a black top every now and then.   I sure hope he didn't buy them as investments but I'll bet he did. ... View more

I've had a bunch of different kinds of cars but one I never did get and it still bothers me at age 68 is a '69 Z/28 especially the RS version.  I still love their looks and the sound of that lopey lope 302 solid-lifter camshaft. ... View more