Welcome back to Mercedes’ Marketplace Madness! As you know, I love picking up dirt-cheap cars and motorcycles and then telling you lovely readers about the dumb things that I do with them. Since I’m shopping all of the time, I always have an evolving list of vehicles I want to buy. Here’s what I’ve been obsessed with lately.
This week, I’m taking a look at vehicles I’d love to add to my fleet if only I stopped spending money on other vehicles I’d add to my fleet. Oh heck, I’d add just about any car to my fleet. Today, we have some Mopar firepower, pretty vintage American iron, and some neat imports.
Here’s what I’m looking at this week!
1999 Mercedes-AMG C43 – $9,000
Here’s an AMG for less than 10 fat stacks! As Car and Driver writes, when the C43 was revealed in 1997, AMG was still an independent firm. A year later, Mercedes-Benz purchased a controlling interest in AMG, eventually renaming it Mercedes-AMG GmbH.
Here’s a little more backstory on AMG:
In 1967, former Mercedes-Benz engineers Hans-Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher opened AMG Motorenbau und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (AMG Engine Production and Development Limited). The German company in those early days was focused on racing engine development.
The company gained fame in 1971 when its AMG 300 SEL 6.8 crossed the finish line of the 24 Hours of Spa in second place, winning its class. The Red Pig, as it was nicknamed, was a big luxury sedan competing in a field of lighter, sportier cars. But the V8 under the hood (originally a 6.3-liter making 250 HP, bored out to 6.8-liters and making 428 HP) allowed it to blow the pack out of the water. You can see the company’s future in the works, here.
For the C43, AMG started with the W202 C-Class, which was launched in 1994. AMG shoehorned in the 4.3-liter V8 from the Mercedes-Benz E430. Each engine was assembled by hand and thanks to better cooling and intakes, the AMG version cranks out 27 more ponies than standard at 302 HP. That called for a 60 mph sprint in under 6 seconds. Despite this being the first time a Mercedes C-Class got a V8, it fell on deaf ears. In a Car and Driver showdown, the C43 arrived dead last behind a BMW M3, Audi S4, and a Saab 9-3 Viggen.
About 1,100 of these made it over stateside and they sold for a starting price of $52,750. Today, these have seemingly been forgotten and could be had for cheap. This one has minor modifications in the form of a lowered suspension. It’s $9,000 or best offer from the seller in Puyallup, Washington with 212,000 miles.
1996 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR – $23,500
As a kid, I adored drifting digital versions of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution in video games. An Evo was always a solid choice in just about any racing game. And beyond gaming, one of the more memorable Top Gear car reviews for me was watching Jeremy Clarkson try to keep up with a Lamborghini while behind the wheel of an Evo VIII. It’s no surprise to see enthusiasts importing these cars to live out their own racer fantasies.
America didn’t get the racer-turned-road car Lancer Evolution until 2003. So, these earlier ones, like the Evo IV here, had to be imported. Here’s what Mitsubishi says about the Evo IV:
The Lancer Evolution’s base model the Lancer compact passenger car underwent a full model change in October 1995 and this led to the Lancer Evolution series moving into its second generation. The rally machine was based on the Lancer Evolution RS model with its functional equipment specification designed to meet the wishes of the WRC Works Team. The Lancer Evolution GSR, meanwhile, was built for sport driving enjoyment and was equipped to allow regular drivers to extract its superior driving dynamics with confidence.
Launched in August 1996, the Lancer Evolution IV used Active Yaw Control (AYC) technology which controls the driving and braking forces between the left and right wheels by judging driving conditions precisely controlling the vehicle’s yaw moment, enhancing cornering performance and braking stability. The 4G63 intercooled turbo engine was modified with a high-speed cam profile, forged pistons and a twin-scroll turbocharger to squeeze out another 10PS and deliver a maximum output of 280PS. Following the full model change of the Lancer base model, the Lancer Evolution IV used a new design multi-link suspension at the rear. The RS trim level was available with a choice of super close ratio transmission (with high or low gearing).
This Evo IV is largely stock, save for a Deatschwerks fuel pump, aftermarket wheels, Tein coilovers, additional gauges, and a few other small modifications. This car also sports an aftermarket U.S. radio. The seller notes that the rear wheels do rub and that the vehicle has been repainted at some point in its life. It’s $23,500 from the seller in Yukon, Oklahoma with 130,000 miles.
1973 Lancia Fulvia Coupé – $25,000
With summer now in swing, it’s the perfect time to get behind the wheel of a classic car. If American iron doesn’t do it for you, perhaps some Italian style will. This Lancia Fulvia looks fantastic inside and outside. The seller calls it an “honest car,” and I take that to mean it has nothing to hide. Sure enough, look in the pictures and you do see imperfections and dirt, stuff you see on a car that’s actually driven.
Here’s what Lancia has to say about what you’re looking at here:
Ownership of Lancia transferred to Carlo Pesenti in 1959, following which the brand’s Technical Director Antonio Fessia successfully ushered in a new era of mass-produced front-wheel drive cars beginning with the Flavia in the early 1960s. A professor at the Polytechnic University of Turin, Fessia was a staunch advocate of this technical solution, which was innovative at the time but would later become the most widely adopted configuration by all car manufacturers to this day.
It was customary for Lancia to launch cars with a larger or smaller sister model, as in the case of the Aprilia/Ardea and Aurelia/Appia. So in 1963 the Flavia was followed by its “little sister” the Fulvia, which combined innovation and tradition in its technical solutions. The Fulvia also adopted the new front-wheel drive setup but with a narrow V 4-cylinder engine in keeping with Lancia convention. Four efficient disc brakes, another rarity for the time, underlined the excellence of the equipment, which borrowed heavily from the Flavia.
The Fulvia Coupé was created two years later from the pen of designer Piero Castagnero. Drawing inspiration from the contours of Riva motorboats, the then manager of the Lancia Style Centre designed an elegant 2+2 sports coupé with a bright interior, featuring large windows and a much more raked windscreen and rear window compared with the saloon version. The first Fulvia Coupé was fitted with a 4-cylinder 1216 cc engine producing 80 hp, which was soon raised to 1.3 litres and subsequently to 1.6 litres.
This Fulvia coupé sports a 1.3-liter narrow bank angle V4 making 89 HP. That drives the front wheels through a manual transmission. It’s $25,000 from the seller in Austin, Texas with 48,000 miles.
1982 Honda GL500 Cafe Racer – $5,500
I don’t often feature vehicles with heavy modifications. In fact, I usually seek out stock versions of everything I find. I’m making an exception here because, in my eye, this build was done so well. This motorcycle started life as a humble Honda Silverwing, now it’s a striking custom.
The origins of the GL500 date back to 1978. Honda designer Shoichiro Irimajiri was responsible for some of Honda’s now coolest historic motorcycles like the GL1000 Gold Wing and the beastly CBX. The CX series featured a longitudinally-mounted V-twin and a few then-noteworthy features like electric-only starting, a shaft drive, liquid-cooling, and Comstar wheels with tubeless tires.
The first bike to come out of the CX series was the CX500, which featured an 80-degree V-twin mounted like Moto Guzzi places its engines. However, the Honda interpretation features an engine with a narrower bank angle.
This motorcycle is a GL500 Silver Wing. Introduced in 1981, this is a variant of the CX500 that’s geared toward touring. GL500s have a similar engine as the CX500, but benefit from a more reliable transistorized ignition. These could be had in naked form or with fairings for a midsize touring experience. This one? Well, it has been stripped down and turned into a cafe racer.
The seller says nothing about the build, but my eyes spot remote reservoir shocks, pod filters, a custom exhaust, and more. Of course, the motorcycle’s frame and body were modified into that classic cafe racer look. It looks well done down to the paint. Power comes from a 497cc V-twin making 50 HP, or at least that’s what it made stock. It’s $5,500 from the seller in Crown Point, Indiana with 37,000 miles.
1957 Lincoln Premiere – Auction
What caught my eye with this classic Lincoln was its striking teal paint. I wish the cars of today were even just a little bit as colorful as the vehicles of decades ago. Aside from the color, this Lincoln Premiere looks like the perfect car for a summer evening cruise.
The Lincoln Premiere launched in 1956 as a model below the Continental Mark II, but above the Capri. The Premiere was offered in two-door and four-door models, both were capable of hauling six occupants. Its competitors included the Imperial Crown Coupe, Packard Patrician, and Cadillac Series 62. One neat feature of the Premiere was its air-conditioning system, which dispensed air through overhead ducts, not unlike an airplane. The Premiere was also known for its plethora of colors, which at one point included 32 two-tone colors. At launch, one could be had for $4,601, or $52,081 in today’s money.
The seller of this 1957 Premiere says it’s painted in Horizon Blue with a white top. It’s just a three-owner vehicle, and the previous owner had it for 56 years. Amazingly, this paint and the vehicle’s interior are said to be original! Power comes from a 368 cubic inch Ford Y-block V8 rated at 300 HP and 415 lb-ft torque. The rear wheels are driven by a Turbo-Drive three-speed automatic.
It’s up for auction on Hemmings by the seller in Wayne, New Jersey. The vehicle has 92,654 miles and bidding is at $10,000 with 11 days left in the auction.
1962 Chrysler New Yorker – $13,500
If teal isn’t your jam, how about a classic car that’s closer to pink? And for $13,500, this 1962 Chrysler New Yorker is almost certainly going to be a far cheaper summer ride.
The Chrysler New Yorker enjoyed a long run. First introduced in 1938 as the New York Special before becoming the New Yorker in 1939, Chrysler kept the name alive in some way until 1996. As Hemmings writes, K.T. Keller was at the helm of Chrysler and the climate wasn’t great. The Airflow, despite its forward-thinking, was a terrible flop. One series launched in response was the C-23, which matched the Imperial with its 125-inch wheelbase. These early cars were a sub-model of the Imperial and shared components with the Imperial. Some highlight features include a six-volt electrical system, illuminated speedometer, powered clock, and hydraulic brakes.
By 1960 the New Yorker remained on the high end of Chrysler’s lineup and gained notable traits like unibody construction. In terms of design, the New Yorker got a recessed grille, but maintained Virgil Exner’s characteristic “Forward Look” massive fins. By 1962, this car’s year, those fins were deleted.
The seller of this car says that it’s a road trip-ready car, but it has had a somewhat rough past. The floorpan had to be replaced and the air-conditioner apparently needs a recharge. That said, the car was repainted in a rose color and given a matching interior. There’s a 413 cubic inch V8 under the hood rated at 340 HP. It’s $13,500 from the seller in Orlando, Florida.
1971 BMW R50/5 – $5,500
Ever since I sold my Triumph Tiger, I’ve been stuck between two strong desires. Should I buy a Triumph Rocket III from the 2000s? Or should I get an old BMW Airhead? I’ve been stuck on this conundrum and have found myself unable to make a decision. I mean, the Rocket is ridiculously huge and quick, but I can’t stop staring at old BMWs. Just look at this 1971 R50/5.
Here’s what BMW has to say about this beauty:
In the mid-1960s, the image of the motorcycle changed completely from a means of transport to a leisure vehicle. In keeping with the spirit of the time, BMW launched the /5 models as a model range that featured lots of innovations and a dynamic styling line: lightweight double-loop frame with bolted rear frame, long-stroke telescopic fork and rear swing arm. The electric starter was supplied as an option for the R 50/5 and was regarded as revolutionary. The BMW R 50/5 was intended as a successor for the BMW R 50/2 used by government agencies. Private customers saw it as the “little” (“kleine”) five hundred cc, which consequently tended to stand in the shadow of its big sisters.
Power comes from a 498cc boxer twin making 32 HP. BMW advertises a top speed of 96 mph for this little guy. The seller notes that this one runs and rides well. It’s $5,500 from the seller in Wautoma, Wisconsin with 24,198 miles.
1971 International Cargostar 1950B – $19,450
Do you have a need to haul some cars or other toys around? This vintage International Cargostar would be a stylish way to do it. International’s Cargostar series launched in 1970, replacing the Loadstar series. The departing Loadstar trucks featured conventional layouts while the Cargostar adopted a cabover configuration. Due to this change, Cargostar trucks boasted better tight space maneuverability.
Power in this truck comes from a 392 cubic inch V8, though it’s unclear what kind of power it’s making. The engine is backed by a four-speed manual transmission and the ramp bed has a 9,000-pound winch. The seller says the truck was owned by an Illinois municipality and has spent most of the past 50 years in storage. It runs and drives but will need new tires. The truck is $19,450 from the seller in Overland Park, Kansas.
2006 Dodge Viper SRT10 – $48,500
The original Viper traces its roots to Chrysler’s Advanced Design Studios, where Bob Lutz expressed interest in reviving the famed AC Cobra. Designer Tom Gale got straight to work on drawing this idea up.
This Viper comes from the super snake’s third-generation. It features a design penned by Osamu Shikado, a man who had experience designing the Toyota Camry and Corolla. The new Viper was a bit more restrained and had features that the original Viper didn’t, like a folding clamshell roof that could be stowed in the vehicle.
Don’t let the softer appearance fool you, this is still a seriously quick car. Power comes from an 8.3-liter V10 making 510 HP and 535 lb-ft torque. That reaches the rear wheels through a Tremec T-56 six-speed manual. That’s good for a 60 mph dash in about four seconds.
It’s $48,500 from the seller in Altamonte Springs, Florida with 32,000 miles.
That’s it for this week, thank you for reading!
What is wrong with me? Something serious I expect. Because…
I would LOVE to own that gorgeous Lancia, the AMG C-class (W202 is my favorite gen of C-Class), the Silverwing-based cafe racer, and the Cargostar… come on… a sensibly sized cabover with a winch to drag stuff onboard? How could I not want that?
Have you seen the ‘back to the 80s’ Youtube video that F9 did on the Silverwing? I was googling around for used ones before I got halfway through. And I did so knowing full well that I’ll probably never use my M1 license as long as I live in LA.
Mercedes, I look forward to your Marketplace Madness and actually made an offer on one of the cars you featured (a 70s diesel Benz). Thanks!
I rebuilt an International 392 motor about a year ago. I was able to find everything I needed, but only with difficulty. The camshaft and the cambearings were the worst of it.
Just FYI
And I understand the IH line of V8s are notorious for poor cam oiling. The cam, lifters and cambearings were what killed my current project vehicle.
I remember that Lincoln color from back in the day. Looked stunning with a black roof.
If the Chrysler AC needs recharging, it has at least one leak. And will it work on currently available refrigerants, or does it really need a complete conversion?
I had a 56 Lincoln for a few years. It’s the better looking one with single headlights. Fun fact: It was styled after a concept car that also inspired the original batmobile. Look at the Batmobile and a 56 Lincoln Premiere and you’ll see it. Also, it can comfortably fit 9 people and a small dog. Can confirm. Finally, with the (powered) vent windows and regular windows down, it would buffetlessly cruise at 50 down the road. It was dreamy. Too bad it filled the entire garage at 18’7” long.
For maximum style make the BMW/5 a toaster tank. If I had money and space, the Lancia riding on the International would be awesome.
Side note the Cargostar cabover and Loadstar conventional ran side by side throughout the 60s and 70s until the Loadstar was replaced by the S series in 1979 and the Cargostar was discontinued. Early Cargostars had a 4 speed column shift, Junkyard Digs resurrected one about a year ago. The 392 doesn’t make a lot of power but will do it forever.
‘Mercedes’ Marketplace Madness’ has quickly become one of my favorite recurring articles to read.
It’s just so fun, and thoughtfully researched.
I really enjoy it.
A real love of all things automotive comes through in the writing.
It’s devoid of snide and refreshing.
Thank you.
I don’t think cars get better than the Fulvia
“I don’t think cars get better than the Fulvia”
For style? Agreed!
*chef’s kiss*
Dat crash safety though…
“What caught my eye with this classic Lincoln was its striking teal paint. I wish the cars of today were even just a little bit as colorful as the vehicles of decades ago.”
Get out of my brain.
Saw the pictures, paused to reflect on any somewhat interesting colored cars I’ve seen all week, then read that.
Yesterday the wife and the me were taking the puppers to the bark park and we passed a purple Beetle with a rainbowed up peace symbol on the hood. She was surprised how much I liked.
She knows I don’t like purple in general, but put it on a car and I will suddenly appreciate it with a smile (not talking to you PT cruiser).
There was a time when roads where flowerbeds, now they are just a bramble.
Sure, you might see a few roses out there, but they pale in comparison to the wildflowers they have replaced.
Paul Niedermeyer did a really good history of the IH medium-duty cabovers a while back. Not to be That Guy but the Loadstar was initially considered a chassis family with two cab styles – conventional and cabover. When International widened the cabover’s cab it was rebranded from “CO Loadstar” to “Cargostar” while the conventional Loadstar continued unchanged – at some point gaining a fiberglass tilt-hood by way of a facelift although the original doughy early ’60s look with a steel butterfly hood was still offered until that line was replaced by the S-Series in ’78.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1963-1969-ih-international-co-loadstar-the-only-truck-cab-to-get-widened-twice/
I can’t imagine someone picking that Lincoln in ’57 over the Cadillac or even the Packard, but the fun color and hardtop if it remained at $10k . . . then I saw the New Yorker and thought, eh, it’s a sedan, thou—no it’s a 4-door hardtop! In hot pink? Yeah, that’s the one I’d check out as an occasional summer cruiser. Though, the Fulvia is definitely more my kind of car.
I can definitely recommend Fulvia Coupes. Don’t buy a rusty one though.
Maybe.
lol FUCK NO. Deatschwerks is fine and reasonable. I like Deatschwerks, and they’re an excellent non-OE replacement part. Aftermarket wheels much less so – on a ’96 GSR? That’s “take minimum $3,000 off the top right the fuck now.” Period. Non-negotiable. Because it is supposed to have 16″ forged alumag OZ Racing F1 wheels.
Tein coilovers? Great, you turned it into junk. The GSR’s magic isn’t just the AYC, it’s a suspension specifically tuned for the AYC and ABS. And Tein is extremely mid to top it off. May as well have thrown Megan junk in it. There’s exactly three suspension suppliers you can upgrade a IV GSR with – Mitsubishi, Ohlins, and Penske.
And the rear wheels rub? Yeah. No. That flat out means this thing has been wrecked hard, rebuilt wrong, and thrashed to death.
Good, cheap, reliable, choose only two.
“No thanks.” – 1970-80’s Honda Motorcycles
If the work is ACTUALLY as good as it looks, this one is a no-brainer from the era of bulletproof Hondas you can fix at home. Where ‘more reliable’ meant ‘we fixed the 1 in 25,000 problem.’ And unlike the 750 motor, the 500 doesn’t have a failure prone cam chain in the engine block between the cylinders.
You already know what I’m gonna say here. It’s a winner. This isn’t a concours level car, but who cares? It’s had body work done, but as long as it’s quality work, who cares? So long as the floors were done right (which is extremely critical,) the paint was done right, and the engine was done right? Then this one’s closer to excellent than fair, making it an outright good deal period.
Be on beyond high alert for rust, because Kansas? Kansas is rustbelt. It is some of the worst of the rust belt by far and away. And these things do not like rust, but boy howdy, does Kansas love to ‘farm truck’ shit up. You cannot ‘farm truck’ a rotted frame on these. However, the good news is it’s just Dayton rims. Not split rims. Big difference.
But this price also feels completely batshit. $19.5k? Finding any sales data on these is hard, there are very few survivors because they were work trucks, and I could not find a single Cargostar of that era that sold over $5k. Not even when I limited to similar condition did they break $5k.
Viper SRT10 base, 32k miles, $50k? Not a screaming deal. Especially not with those godawful wheels. Those are cheap knockoff Copperhead wheels. That is NOT a Copperhead, those are not Copperhead takeoffs. Real Copperhead wheels are high-polish chrome. Also, they built 52 Copperheads. Even more concerning is the fake ZB II hood. This is a ZB I Viper, likely an ’06 continuation car. Also it’s a convertible, not a coupe, so it’s 500HP – not 510HP.
The price there, that’s “go through with seven fine toothed combs before even agreeing to test drive it.” Fake wheels, fake hood, something extremely untoward happened to this car to say the least. Engine fires were decidedly not unknown with ZB I’s, and given the hood was fiberglass, do the math.
Autopian needs to start a recurring series called “Rootwyrm’s Rebuttals”. Like, yesterday.
I’m assuming there are some warts on that Viper’s CarFax because $48,000 seems like an incredible buy at that mileage. I know that these have dipped a bit lately but that seems very cheap for a car that’s so iconic. I recall the third gen Vipers being real darlings with car magazines at the time. I still remember reading an article about one in C&D or Motortrend as an idiot teenager and being blown away by the fact that it stopped from 60 in under 100 feet.
I’d never seen that before that specific moment. Kind of a weird thing to recall but I guess that’s what makes us enthusiasts. Anyway I used to make fun of Vipers for being tiny pee pee compensator mobiles but I’ve come around to understanding why they’re so cool. Part of that is probably due to V10emous and a couple of in depth videos on them I’ve watched. They really are modern Cobra equivalents and something about the “built by your drunk uncle in a barn” energy of pretty much all of them except the fifth gen is just so cool to me.
Viper prices have always been all over the place with exceptions for the truly special ones (SR II RT/10, GTS-R, ACR, ZB I Copperheads, ZB II ACRs, VX I TA and ACR.) This is because Vipers have always been inconsistent from the factory, and ownership is even more inconsistent.
SR I’s have the most inconsistent build quality of the lot for obvious reasons. Also, there is no such thing as an SR I with high mileage and no accident history – just a hidden one. Prices are all over the place because even if it has 6,000 miles you’ve got thousands of dollars of things that must be fixed – like the sail panels at $800 a side.
The SR II’s scattered to the winds in the Great Recession, which led to wildly varying levels of care and feeding. They also were the first ones to truly be ‘abusable’ in that an incompetent driver would not be instantly killed. (This does not mean you can fuck with an SR II. They are still not tame cars.)
ZB I’s were the first ‘tame’ Vipers that mortals could halfway drive, which led to some of the people who buy automatic Corvettes buying them. Only to find out they couldn’t drive stick. So they got parked. Others bought them specifically to track or drag race, and the aftermarket that developed provides parts of shall we say “varied” quality. (See also this one’s knockoff ZB II hood.) Also, they got wrecked a lot anyways.
Again: it’s a 500HP+ RWD car that weighs about 3400lbs at it’s heaviest.
ZB II’s got a new non-Mopar ECU, a new TR6060 gearbox, a new rear axle with a speed-sensing limited slip, new exhaust system, new electronics throughout, new suspension, oh. And landed during the great recession and right in Cerberus ownership. Who spent the entire time shitting all over it, destroying build quality, and cancelling it as soon as they could.
Also by that point the Viper had ballooned from $52,000 (1993) to $90,180 (2008.) Adjusted for inflation to 2008 prices, that’s $77,500 vs $90,000+.
Then FCA came along in 2010, immediately after the dipshits at Cerberus canned it and said “they were idiots, here’s the new Viper coming in 2012.” Which of course, was also stupid, because it’s not like the Great Recession wasn’t used to permanently fuck over the middle class. Which is who was buying Vipers as their bucket list cars.
Sales were so bad as a direct result, they were forced to cut production by over 35% and then to slash prices by $15k+. Which was absolutely futile when a 2013 Viper GTS (base) was now $140,490.
Adjusting 1994, 2008, and 2013 to 2013 inflation? $82k, $98k, $141k. They had nearly doubled the price, as their core demographic’s purchasing power had nearly halved.
And as a result, VX’s almost exclusively went to rich assholes who parked them in bubbles waiting for them to become an appreciating asset. If you look at mileage between generations, you instantly see it. SRs got driven. Not daily, but they got driven. VX’s, you’re pretty much nothing but sub-10k miles, and priced way over the original sticker. Every GTC (true one-of-ones) is asking a quarter million dollars, despite every single one stickering at $145k or below.
This is because those of us who drive ours aren’t looking to sell. Plenty out there with 40-60K miles, and some I know of with more.
$48K is the low end of Gen 3 about now, but not out of line. They’ve pretty much always been the red-headed stepchild of Vipers, which is unfair given their real performance bonafides over a Gen 1 or 2.
There’s a TikTok pinup model that has a 1956 Lincoln Premiere sedan, that she’s currently getting road worthy again. Same color, but the 4-door is certainly not a svelte as the coupe shown here today.
Pinuppixie is her user name. She seems like a wonderful person and her love for all things mid-century makes me feel like not such a weirdo for admiring fins and butterfly roofs the way I do.
Slow start but great finish. The last 5 minus motorcycles are car porn.
The Lancia Fulvia is absolutely beautiful. I’m just afraid I’d I have to also buy the International Cargostar to follow it around.
And what is wrong with that?
Mine has avoided the ride of shame so far! Probably just cursed myself.
The Fulvia is my kind of car. Lean, quick, beautiful, sorta practical.
In my perfect 2 car garage, it’d be one of those and a Buick Electra 225 convertible.
“Lean, quick, beautiful, sorta practical” could also describe one’s partner!
…although, come to think of it, “temperamental” and “high maintenance” could too. 😉
I’m a fan of the 1962 Chryslers, but this poor New Yorker has lost its side trim somewhere along the way. Without the chrome hashes on the rear fender it’s hardly a New Yorker at all.
The 1957 Lincoln is an underappreciated gem that really deserves to be counted among the best of jet-age styling. Stacked headlights and big fins!
Also, that’s the grill from a 300 isn’t it?
Mercedes,
Look for a BMW R65 in Electric Blue.
Won’t win drag races, but will stop. Also sort of light for a BMW. My older kids would sit on it when young and make Vroom noises. Sadly being a new parent (second time) I noticed I had put 68 miles on it in 2 years. Bye Bye BMW, hello VW Cabriolet
There was a sedan version of that Lincoln in my neighborhood when I was a kid. Ah, the memories.
Like the Enfield, that BMW is slow but very pretty. Unlike the Enfield, there are many reasons you can’t just hop on it and enjoy a pleasant ride, starting with that barely-there drum front brake.
I’ll bet the paint on that Chrysler is lovely in person.
That Continental was perfect eye bleach for that horrible butchered Honda..
To each their own.
I liked the Honda, other than the handlebars, and think it warrants a closer look to determine if this is a quality job or a hack job.
It’s not one I’d buy though, because cafe racer bikes put too much pressure on my wrists.
I have absolutely no interest in that Lincoln unless the price indicated is the sale price. I’m not sure what it is about the styling that says “$10k, but no more”, because I usually like big American
land yachtsinterstate cruisers.I’m not in the bike market, but the Honda called to me. As you said, to each their own.
I’ve been into Café racers for about 30 years, all too many are done poorly, either overwrought like this one, or completely missing the brief. More importantly so many are done really really well, I encourage you to GIS “CX500 café racer” and see how good they can be. Factored into my calculus is that a Silverwing will run you $2500, this person wants $3000 for removing items and (yeah, in my opinion) an awful paint scheme.
I too have been staring at and lusting over old 50s-70s BMW motorcycles. They are so classic and simple, wish I could find some local instead of dreaming about the ones on Bring a Trustfund.
For me, it’s either the Lincoln or the Chrysler. I’m a fan of early 60’s models. (I would love to own a 64 Ford Galaxie 500/XL convertible.) Even though it’s a 50’s model, the Lincoln wouldn’t be too out of place compared to later styling. The New Yorker without the fins, looks solidly early 60’s.