Building over it may not be so easy -- the existing structure may not support a second story. Still, it's a big area. Why not save the separate Rotunda, remodel parts of it, and tear down the larger building, building around the saved Rotunda? Save some history and have a new building at the same time!   ... View more

I get it. I rode my daughter on my motorcycle (1980 GS1000... since gone...) a lot since she was six years old. When she was about 9 someone walked by as she was patiently sitting on the bike waiting for me to gas up and said "I bet you really like riding with dad!" She looked at them like they were nuts. What was so special about something she did anywhere from two to six times a week?  ... View more

Calling the load leveling controller a "processor" is a stretch!! It's an analog switch, little more. Probably has a relay or two to power the motor. The motor is really just a spring jack, motor powered instead of manual. I'm not dismissing the ingenuity of the system, especially for the time -- it's simple in concept. Wouldn't have been possible without the Torsion Level suspension, which is an elegant design by itself. ... View more

Much better looking than the current Z car! I agree that the original still looks a bit better. The roof "peaks" right in front of the drivers head then quickly falls off.  A more "rounded" roof like the old one would look better IMHO, not that drastic cut back. ... View more

I've had a trailer for a few years. Still look at the "for sale" ads for an older Class A -- they depreciate like luxury cars. I'm a handyman (by profession since I retired from the USAF, was in Civil Engineering doing base maintenance most of my 24 years) and would like to gut and remodel one. A Class A (or C) just isn't that practical though, as we don't go a lot and then would have to tow a vehicle for most trips, as noted. I have a sewer "caddy", but don't use it for black water, just grey. Using the public toilet on occasion isn't a big deal for me. You'll quickly fill the grey water if using the shower much anyway, takes a while to fill the black -- unless you're staying for more than a few days and only using the RV toilet. Still, it's good for two people on a long weekend even then. An RV can be like a boat -- a hole in the water (in this case in the ground) that you throw money in. Same as a vintage car -- throw money in the parking lot. You have to at least like it a lot, if not love it. The main reason I don't buy an older Class A and remodel is that I couldn't sell it and get my money back. Well, maybe... sans labor. Same thing I tell people about old cars -- don't get it unless you like it, because the only sure way to get your money out of it is to enjoy it for many years. ... View more

For $15K you can get any number of collector cars. AMCs have always been great bang for the buck cars, and you can even find a decent AMX two seater for $15K if you look hard enough. Almost any other AMC in #3 condition will be under $15K, and many will be #2. AMC just isn't appreciated -- it's popularity that drives prices up on the equivalent Big Three models. Want a mid 60s Chevelle hardtop but can't afford it? Consider a 67+ Rambler Rebel. Similar size and power as any small block Chevelle, half the cost for the same condition. Not only that, you will get as much or more attention because you'll likely be the only one at a show. My brother hated that my car got more attention than his when we took my 63 Rambler Classic wagon and his 65 Mustang coupe to Pigeon Forge one year!! ... View more

I am a Nash/Rambler/AMC fan. The 1941 Nash Ambassador 600 has a sliding-pillar front suspension that I had read was inspired by Lancia models. I had no idea which models, but it's easy to see on this one! Of course 1941 was a short model year, and the sliding-pillar suspension didn't return after WWII. Anyone with a 41 Nash 600 has quite a hard time finding parts for that unique front suspension! ... View more

"While the engine itself was reliable, Bricklin’s relationship with AMC wasn’t. " I'm an AMC historian. The Bricklin shared some other AMC parts, namely front suspension components.  Malcom Bricklin was given a tour of the AMC plant during the Bricklin's first year of production. Roy Abernethy, then CEO of AMC, accompanied him. The story from an AMC insider at the time (I can't remember who quoted this story) said that Malcom was quick to point out everything he saw that he thought AMC was doing wrong. By the end of the tour an incensed Abernethey said something like "well, we'll see how well you can make cars without engines!" (not an exact quote) and cut the engine supply off. I'm not so sure that really happened, as the SV-1 continued to use front suspension and a few other small components from AMC (maybe just from AMC outside suppliers though?). More likely it was just that Bricklin wasn't selling enough for AMC to produce more engines than it needed itself. From what I've read about Malcolm, it's possible though... ... View more

The Kasier design "sort of" went to AMC. AMC hired David Potter who had worked on the Kaiser V-8 when they decided to develop their own in-house V-8. This was done because the heads of AMC realized they had no V-8 experience and Geroge Mason (AMC CEO) wanted an in-house V-8 YESTERDAY. The engine went from paper to production in 18 months -- a miracle in slide-rule days!! The only way it happened was because Potter brought much of his work with Kaiser over. The first generation AMC V-8 does have many similarities with the Kaiser prototype (only protos were made), but Potter also made some improvements, along with AMCs design team. ... View more

IKA is "Industries Kaiser Argentina", and did produce the Torino as well as the 65 Rambler Classic (as the Ambassador -- it was the shorter wheelbase Classic body with Ambassador grille and trim). The Classic was made into the early 70s, the Torino through 81. The Torino isn't a restyled 64 American. It's a unique to Argentina car made from the passenger compartment of a Classic combined with the engine and trunk compartments of an American. It's a bit longer and wider than the US built American.   IKA didn't build the Willys Aero in Brazil, Willys do Brasil (Willys of Brazil) did.   One more thing! While Richard Teague is often given credit for the 63 Classic and 64 American designs, they were actually penned by Edmund Anderson. Anderson hired Teague and Teague did do some work on them, but they were penned and approved before Teague joined AMC. Remember, it took a minimum of three years to go from paper to production back then, usually more like five years. Teague did the "tweak" work to update the styling for the 65-66 Classic and Ambassador and the 66 American, but didn't do the initial design. Anderson designed the 64 American to utilize many parts from the 63-64 Classic body -- the doors for example interchange. The outer skins and the window frames (which are removable) are different, but the main door stampings are the same. Anderson gets overlooked way too much, even by AMC! He was head of styling, but AMC refused to make him a vice president -- one reason he retired when he did. It was a slap in the face that they made Teague a vice president shortly after Anderson left. Part of the reason for Anderson not receiving a vice presidency was due to inter company rivalry between styling and engineering -- styling was under the engineering department of all auto companies in the 40s and at least early 50s, all that started to change in the mid 50s and 60s. There were still some powerful people in the AMC engineering department who didn't want that to change, apparently. By the time Teague came along they were probably retired or getting ready to, or didn't mind someone new being equal but didn't want someone who had been under them for so long becoming an equal by heading a new department with it's own vice president. Auto companies have so many "vice presidents"!!  ... View more

I think it was! I remembered a 30s car had them, but not which one until I saw mention of the Cord. On Jay Leno's site he mentions that the Cord was the first (American) car to have hidden headlights. "It had three other features that were firsts in America: the horn ring and, for improved streamlining, a covered gas cap and hidden headlights that the driver unveiled with a hand crank." https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a6738/1936-cord-810-812-the-beautiful-baby-duesenberg-that-never-caught-on/.  Of course Jay could be wrong... but I couldn't find an earlier car. Maybe a show car or custom bodied car had them, but no actual mass production car (mass production is defined as at least 25 identical examples by the FIA, most US clubs and such say 1500 of the same body/construction type... might have different options though). ... View more

They aren't worried about what's good for us! Not enough profit margin in a truck like you describe. That's why they moved all trucks rather upscale. The only "plain Jane" (I should say "plainer Jane"...) you can get now is a fleet only model. Even they have AC standard, at least all I've seen have... ... View more

The D50/Arrow is probably the best of the bunch shown, especially with the 2.6L four.  An 88-05 Toyota extended cab pickup would be what I'd like to see today instead of the larger Tacoma. Those were just under 200" overall. Anything larger just isn't a "compact" truck!! Ford would be good with something like the little Transit Connect made into a truck like the VW Rabbit based truck, or better yet a "uni-frame" like the Jeep Comanche used with a real bed. ... View more

You showed a photo of a Nash Rambler with AC, but failed to mention it's importance! One of the first things to come from the Nash-Kelvinator merger of 1954 (which created American Motors Corporation) was compact under-hood/dash auto air conditioning. Prior to that were the trunk mounted systems. AMC revolutionized auto AC with this system. ... View more

There are always those who want a V8 simply because they want it. It''s ingrained in the old school mind -- got to have a V-8!! Never mind that fact that many modern four cylinder cars will routinely trounce big block V8 muscle cars from the 60s. The ultra low crawl gear eliminate the need for lots of engine "grunt" on the low end, and with seven speeds and a turbo there's plenty power on the upper end. It's about the power and bearing, not the number of cylinders or cubic inches. We're not in the 60s and 70s any more...  The turbo V6 would be a great option for those who just have to have more power though. ... View more

If they put a V-8 in the Wrangler it would be more appropriate to use the smaller 5.7/345 than the 6.4/392. I would expect to see the smaller one in any production units, save maybe a few "special editions" with the larger motor. That still puts it at about 100 hp over the 2.6L V-6.  Those things were never meant for high speeds. Yes, it can be done, even somewhat safely, but a high power Wrangler isn't something just anyone should be driving. ... View more

There is actually a car design magazine that did an interview with Richard Teague, the head of the design department at AMC and the main designer of the Pacer, that mentions the Porsche drawing influence from the Pacer design. "Influence" isn't the same as "looks alike" (doppleganger) though, so I wouldn't have included this one. One similarity isn't enough... ... View more

I agree -- it's a crazy design for road racing! It's a TOUGH design for trucks though. Many automotive front suspensions use a strut rod or radius arm front to back -- even some independent rear suspensions. While the twin-beam axle is a problem for those wanting to lift their trucks, in stock form it will take a lot more abuse than most other designs. There are issues, with little camber adjustment the most notable, but trucks are designed to work more than anything else, not to be thrown around a race course. Many have been modified to produce a lot of power and are driven more like cars, but that's not the manufacturers intended use. ... View more

Those are some really nice BMW coupes....  It might have a Toyota badge, but it's just a re-badged Beemer.  I'm not exactly a Toyota fan, but you'd think a big Japanese company would do more of their own work than just have BMW build something for them. I started to type "to their specs", but it's not even that!! Slightly different body on a Z4 -- doesn't matter how good it is, it's not really a Toyota. ... View more

I agree with Michellehrand , these are all exotics in one way or another, with the possible exception of the little Alfa -- though it is far from common. How about some more affordable fun Italian cars, like the Fiat 850 Spider (and even the little sedan), and of course the well known 128 Spider. Has to be some other mass-market Italian cars that we just don't see over here in the US that would be fun little cars...  ... View more

All great points! It always pains me when someone on a couple of the forums I frequent tells a beginner they need to get a pro to fix something like brakes. Really? Brakes are extremely important, but also not that hard to work on as long as you're careful. I always give advice and encourage them to take the plunge, as some others do. I learned the hard way -- by doing it -- when there was no internet or help a phone call or forum message away!!  The first advice I give is to get a service manual -- the factory one if possible, with a Haynes or Chilton's specifically for your make and model (not the old thick "all makes" books!)... preferably both. The factory manuals goes into a lot more detail, but also assume you're a shop mechanic with a reasonable knowledge of cars in general. The Haynes and Chilton's don't go into as much detail, but do give more complete instructions for doing things. An old auto shop text book around the year of your vehicle is also a very good source for a real beginner -- it assumes you don't know a thing! ... View more

If the Roxor looked and handled anything like the FCA (Jeep) Wrangler models, they might have a leg to stand on. Maybe if Roxor tried to make them street legal they should be concerned. I think that's the real concern -- that they sell enough to consider going through the rigamarole to get street legal certification.  But the Roxor isn't a real competitor to street Jeeps. There is a reason the old CJs were discontinued. Don't get me wrong, as a utility vehicle that can be used on and off road they are great! But people don't use them for that much anymore -- they are more highway vehicles, and the old CJs are NOT real good highway vehicles. Rough riding, noisy, and not real comfortable either. Doesn't matter if you love your CJ enough to put up with all the faults and drive it daily for long commutes -- almost ANY little sedan would be better suited to the task. I know, "but it's not a Jeep!!" "It's a Jeep thing" is real, and I get it. My 57 year old Rambler station wagon, even though it's had many updates to make it a more suitable driver (not restored, obviously), isn't as good a road car as a modern sedan. Jeep CJs go back to the 1940s, and though improved over WWII models, they aren't that far removed from them. ... View more

I pretty much agree -- except a Neon can be good, reliable basic transportation. It's definitely bare-bones in most respects, but gets the job done. My daughter tried to kill hers (unintentionally) by running it down to about a quart of oil in the crankcase at least twice, put water in the oil and drove it a day (only about 100 miles) once, etc.  It was still running strong when she sold it for $1000 (2002 model, sold it just last year -- she got it around 2012, used it mostly around town and back and forth to work).  I was impressed with it drive-train wise, though maybe she is the exception. Except for checking oil between changes and forgetting to change a time or two early on, it was taken good care of (oh, and the water in the wrong place incident....). Just took her 2-3 years to figure out she'd better take care of it!!  ... View more

The 71-77 Suzuki GT750 triple WATER COOLED two-stroke should be on here as well. That was a rocket! I had just got my GS1000G when a local shop had one recently restored. i was over talking to the guy when he showed it to me, then asked me if I wanted to take it for a spin! I got on and drove it like normal. Noticed the light poles seemed to be going by awful fast.... Looked at speedo and I was doing 70 in third gear, two more to go!!! I was still in city limits, in a 45 mph zone, so immediately slowed, but it impressed the heck out of me that I was just shifting like I would have on the GS1000 and it accelerated so darn fast!! He wouldn't trade me even... ... View more

The Honda CA77 305 Dream and the later CB350 (and on/off and off road variations) were so popular because that power/size (displacement) was perfect for an all-around transportation bike -- at least for one adult around 200 pounds. It was powerful enough to cruise the interstate at 65-70 (again, with one!), and scoot out of the way easily in city traffic. Even with two on it you could run around town comfortably. Though I wouldn't want to take a long interstate trip with a rider, you could take hour long trips easy enough.  I had a Honda 175 twin from the early 70s. It was great around town, but struggled to maintain 60 on the interstate -- didn't up any sizeable hill.  Had a 250 and 315 Suzuki two-stroke. The 250 struggled on the interstate over 55 mph like the 175, but it was "well worn" when I got it. The 305 fared a bit better, but was also "well worn". In fact, the 315 became the 250... bottom end was the same, 250 just had smaller bore. When the 315 (Suzuki model was a T350) burned a hole in the piston due to timing being so advanced to get it to run I discovered the advnaced timing was necessary due to cylinder wear -- not much compression until near the top!! You could nearly ring the cylinder like a bell with the piston and rod as clapper! A local bike shop had a wrecked 250 and noted that the bottom end looked the same -- so we did some quick measurements. Low and behold the 250 pistons and jugs bolted right up, and I was back up and running!!  That 250 had some wear on it too though...  Got a Suzuki T-500 two stroke after that -- only stopped running it because the CDI ignition started going out and would be expensive to replace. Plus it needed tires and a new seat! A friend of a friend said I needed to look at the 1980 GS1000 he had parked a few years ago. This was around 1993, and I figured he wanted more than I wanted to put into it at the time. He had a 14 year old that was asking about the bike, knew it needed some work from sitting for 4-5 years, and made me a deal I couldn't refuse!! Got it for half what I thought it was worth. cleaned carbs, rebuilt brakes, drove it until 2015. ... View more

I guess this is what happens when you get nostalgic and have more money than you know what to do with??? I wouldn't give $25K for a 20 year old Honda unless it was an NSX (which I know $25K wouldn't come close to!). Part of that is my generation, of course... I'm 58.  I can see things like this becoming collectible for sure, as the 30 year olds who have money start to want what they couldn't get "back then" but can afford now. But really, this isn't that far removed from a newer Honda. Get a good used one and spend some time and money customizing it!! But then most kids nowadays (kids being about 35 and under to me!!) don't actually wrench on their cars themselves. Yes, there are exceptions, usually those WITHOUT the money to pay someone... ... View more

It's not supposed to be a modern custom! The only thing modern about it is the wheels (on the exterior, not counting engine and chassis, though engine cover does have a late 50s style). It would look more period (late 50s) with the wire wheels he originally used. It certainly looks like something that could have been done by Chrysler circa 1957-59 as a show car -- which was the whole point, at least originally. The new wheels do "freshen" it up a bit, the plaid and leather upholstery looks more late 50s to me than tuck and roll would have...  ... View more

You should own something that's uncommon now, like a Rambler. I've been a Rambler historian since the early 80s, owned one since the summer of 1978. Started researching because there was very easy to find little real info back then. Ended up writing a book on the history of AMC in the early 90s that included some resto info (mostly number decoding). Published a little "fanzine" for about 15 years too. Google "farna rambler" and you'll find me all over the place, so I know my Ramblers. Still have people claiming they were assembled from parts from all other makes, made nothing but bodies themselves. They DID use a handful of parts from others, especially after WWII, but about like most automakers today -- many buy sub assemblies from outside suppliers (often made specifically for them) that are sent to the assembly plant. AMC (company name since 1954, though they used the Rambler brand name exclusively until 1966) used starter/generator/ignition from outside suppliers as well as steering boxes (at least as of the late 50s) and transmissions... and brakes (Bendix or Wagner). Not much else. Engines were built by AMC, though people still claim the 390 V-8 was a Ford and the 232 six was a bored out Chevy 230. They used a total of THREE engines as STOP GAPS until they got there own in 86 years (the 1902 Rambler was the second car to be mass produced in the US -- a year ahead of Ford). The first was the Packard V-8 for two years -- 1955-56 (in the big Nash and Hudson models), then the Audi 2.0L four (though is was assembled by AMC with major castings sent to the US from Germany, smaller parts made over here) in 1977-79, GM 2.5L Iron Duke 1979-83.  If you include Jeep (AMC purchased Jeep in 1970) there will be a few others. That short list DOES NOT include the Buick V-6 -- it was purchased and produced by Kaiser Jeep in the mid 60s so was then a Jeep manufactured engine -- which AMC sold back to GM shortly after buying Jeep. AMC quickly sold off the remaining Buick 350s in 70 (maybe a few into 71), the V-6 and the old F-head four and replaced them with their own straight six and V-8s. The GM 2.8L V-6 was used a few years (84-86), and a Renault turbo-diesel (84-86). Jeep also used the GM 2.5L Iron Duke 79-83. I expect to get some replies with "my dad's/granddad's Rambler definitely had a Ford/Chevy (engine or trans, maybe some other part)" which will most likely be false, unless it's one of the parts I listed. I'm not talking about minor parts like headlight switches and things like that, most bought from outside suppliers even in the 60s, so a "Ford" headlight switch might even be similar to a Chrysler or GM part... could be from the same supplier, though not likely. Most small suppliers couldn't make enough parts to supply two big companies, but they COULD make enough to supply one big one and a smaller one like AMC. ... View more

That engine was designed like a then contemporary aircraft "rotary" engine. Most WWI Allied aircraft were powered by "rotaries", and a few German (like the Fokker Triplane). There is a LOT of torque in one direction due to a heavy cast iron block rotating! Plane could snap roll in one direction, would be sluggish (in comaprison) in the other. Blip the throttle to hard and fast and ground roll one of those powered kites! Take-off and landing could be tricky. I can't imagine one in a car!! Some models of the Sherman tank used them, and there is one in a truck built recently (https://www.motortrend.com/news/airplane-engine-1939-plymouth-pickup-radically-radial/). You can see the packaging problems! The Adams-Farwell was much smaller in diameter and packaged flat -- the crank was vertical instead of horizontal. That helpd, and prevented the roll-over torque. Couldn't have used an aero engine! ... View more

Tucker used a Franklin air cooled helicopter engine, but it was a flat six, not a radial. ... View more