It was a valiant effort but never took off I've seen lots of popular vehicles stretched into limos. Lots of Lincoln and Caddys, some Hummers, and Chrysler 300s. There's also been a Viper and Corvette stretch limo. But the one you will never find is a 69 American Motors Ambassador and the subject of this... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 96 VW Golf Harlequin
It was big in Europe. Over here not so much. The family was down in Peoria, IL getting our daughter settled into her new job in Operations at Peoria International. We were driving back from something when I saw this rare VW on I-74. Since I was driving, wifey and kid unit did all the... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: Oscar Mayer’s Wienermobile
Oh, I wish I was an Oscar Meyer Wiener ... What kid growing up in the 1960s doesn't know the Oscar Mayer jingle? Food was fun then and so was Oscar Meyer's Wienermobile, this week's car spot, or is it a truck spot, or RV spot, or food spot? It's sort of all of those... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 59 Edsel
Classic case of the wrong car for the wrong market at the wrong time Growing up in the 50s and 60's it was a big deal when the new models were introduced. I remember, to this day, my dad taking me down to see the new car Ford had come out with, the Edsel. Something... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 81 Chrysler Imperial
The company brings back an all-but forgotten badge Dating way back to 1926 it was the company's top-of-the-line vehicle so it was no surprise when Lee Iaccoco went to the well again in 1981. This newest edition, and this week's spot, combined forward-thinking design elements, out-of-character build quality all in a one-price luxury package. It's a... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 1960 Jeep Surry
The DJ-3A Dispatcher finds another niche It all began at a resort in Acapulco named the Las Brisas, featuring luxury rooms built into the hillside but without elevators. So they needed to get the guests up the winding roads to their room and utilized up to 50 of the DJ-3A Jeeps (flat fender Jeeps) like... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 1965 Plymouth Barracuda
The first barrage in the pony car wars ... Ford and Plymouth were in a race to be the first to enter the pony car era and to get there they were using off-the-shelf stuff. Ford, the Falcon, and Plymouth the tried and true Valiant, Chrysler’s A-body, and while it shared a great majority of... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 1987 Jeep Comanche
A small pickup before they were cool ... I wasn't sure if it was on my dime or Jeep's when I received an email almost five years ago this past week inviting me to a media event in California introducing the new Jeep Gladiator (JT). I was just giddy to find out they were paying... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: 1968 Oldsmobile 442 Mod Rod Concept
A car that fit right in with the movement ... Chances are if you're reading this, like me you remember the late 1960s. It was a time when much of my generation was protesting and trying to find its own way. Not me of course, I was more interested in cars. Car marketers knew that... Continue Reading →
Car Spot: Man with The Golden Gun 74 AMC Hornet
The most famous hatchback built in 1974 Not having the same mega budgets that General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler left scrappy little American Motors scrambling for attention. In 1974, they scrapped together 5 Million bucks for one of the biggest PR coops in automotive history by getting its car placed in the newest Bond film,... Continue Reading →