Tag Archives: Chrysler

Car Spots, Fun Stuff

Car Spot: Classic CJ-7

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One of the many AMC cars found in my driveway growing up ,,,

For those of you that don’t follow this blog regularly, I have a fondness for the vehicles built by American Motors, mostly because my dad worked for the company from 1963 to 1989. 1970 was a special year because AMC swung for the fences and bought Jeep from Kaiser Automotive. It was a huge risk that ended up paying off big for the company and most likely saved it for another 17 years. It’s also the reason Chrysler bought AMC in 1987.

AMC Jeep rain jacket my dad got while working for the company. Mine now and it’s not for sale!

Yet from hanging out on some Jeep forums I know there are AMC haters that say the firm messed up Jeep and maybe there were some areas, like the use of plastic in interiors, that were not wins. But overall AMC took the Jeep brand to the next level transforming it from a smallish firm engaged mainly in military and overseas vehicle business into a bigger, company with some of the hottest-selling sport-utility vehicles in the world .

That includes this week’s spot that I found at the Chicago Auto Show in February, a CJ-7. This is the CJ-5’s big brother being 10 inches longer.

Upgrading the Jeep lineup was a smart move and another beneficiary of the AMC purchase as the brand now had access to AMC’s dealer network. In 1970 that consisted of just more than 250,000 dealers, whereas when Kaiser owned Jeep it was tiny and its profits came from selling Jeeps to the military and via civilian contracts, which had become a money-loser by the time AMC bought it.

RELATED Spot: See its bigger brother the M715

CJ-7 spot in Jeep exhibit at the 2023 Chicago Auto Show

Step one for AMC was getting their engines into the entire Jeep lineup. The very old F-head four was an easy cut, but many have questioned dropping the popular Buick-based 225 V6. However, the AMC inline 6 cylinders, 232 and 258 ci, had advantages in their smoothness. The 232 also made roughly the same net power as the V6.

The tooling was sold back to GM, and it had a long life back in the GM stable. The longer-stroke AMC 258 would be the middle option, and the top dog was AMC’s new 304ci V8, a first for Jeep.

This one featured the 304 V8.

AMC kept making improvements to the brand. A dealer-installed radio became available in 1973, and air conditioning became available via dealerships in 1975. Electronic, breaker-less distributors replaced breaker-point Delco distributors for the full engine lineup.

AMC kept the same basic interior for a while then later adding the plastic.

In 1975, the tub and frame were modified from earlier versions. The windshield frame and windshield angle were also changed. Another change was going from a Dana 44 to an AMC-manufactured model 20 that had a larger-diameter ring gear but used a two-piece axle shaft/hub assembly instead of the one-piece design used in the Dana. The CJ-7 featured an optional new automatic all-wheel-drive system called Quadra-Trac.

A lot of aftermarket items were added to this CJ.

For 1977. Power disc brakes were an option as well as the “Golden Eagle” package, which included a tachometer, clock, and air conditioning among the many new options. Other trim packages included the Renegade, Golden Hawk, and Laredo.

In addition, there were Special Editions, the Limited (2,500 units limited edition luxury models), and the Jamboree Commemorative Edition (630 numbered units built for the 30th anniversary of the Rubicon Trail). It is the rarest CJ-7 and one of the rarest Jeeps of all time, placing it in the same rarity class as the 1971 CJ-5 Renegade-II. It is the most heavily optioned CJ ever built and it was the Rubicon of its day. Like the 1970 AMX, all units are uniquely numbered via a dash plaque. There was even a Levi’s Edition. Ultimately CJ-7s were in production for 11 model years from 1976-1986 and 379,299 were built.

AMC branding everywhere.

But 1983 was really the end of the line for the CJs. AMC was still tight on cash and needed to do upgrades because of much publicized rollovers. The decision, AMC killed the CJ name and renamed the Jeep the Wrangler. Boom, gone were the lawsuits.

With CJ gone it was the last in a line of civilian Jeeps dating back to 1945. Having experienced them, they were a blast to drive. Too bad the lawyers got to that original design.

This one’s even been “duck duck jeeped”

What are they worth now? According to Hagerty, a 1980 Renegade with a 304 can sell for as much as $44,500. An ’81 is worth slightly more at $50,000. Even the rare ones I mentioned above are not selling for what most might think. Why? Well, maybe one reason is that they’ve looked about the same. I would love to own one but, well, you know how it goes.

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check back next week for another one of my spots along with some of the history behind it. Have a great weekend.

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When they were new

So that’s a Matador

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AMC’s entry into the personal luxury market.

American Motors almost always had to swing for the fence when it came to introducing new products because they didn’t have the big budgets to work with like GM, Ford, and Chrysler did. The same went for their marketing.

Enter the second generation Matador in 1974 and with the Ambassador being dropped became AMC’s largest car. With its second generation, the Matador became AMC’s largest automobile after the discontinuation of the Ambassador. A lot of effort went into this entry in the personal luxury market, one which AMC was looking to cash into. Premium trim levels of the second generation Matador coupe were marketed as the Barcelona and Oleg Cassini.

One of the many AMC ads I’ve collected over the years.

The Barcelona edition was loaded with a 360 V8, auto transmission, tilt steering, air conditioning, 8-track player, matching vinyl landau roof, rear opera windows along with unique interior markings and seats your butt could get lost in.

There was a love-it-or-hate-it mentality regarding the Matador coupe even among AMC geeks. I liked it. It beat the coffin-nose front end that the Matador adopted when it replaced the Rebel in 1971. My first car was a 70 Rebel SST with the one year only aluminum side molding.

My first car. Had a 360 V8.

The coupe, designed by Richard Teague, sold well the first couple of years, outselling the four-door by nearly 25,000 units in 1974 but dropped to less than 10,000 in 1978 just over 2,000 and the company pulled the plug. It had a claim to fame being featured in the James Bond movie Man with the Golden Gun where it flew.

The last Matador. Photos: BAT

These don’t sell for a lot of money. According to Classic.com an average of just short of $20,000 which makes this one sold on Bring A Trailer for $41,000. An eye-popping price even for me. That’s quite a return on a car that listed for around 7 grand. This is the kind of money that first-gen AMX’s sell for!

What makes this one so special? According to the listing it was built for its designer, Teague, and was the last one off the line. It went up for sale with only 7,000 miles and the original window sticker. Like most of the ones ordered, this one two was well equipped and lived in Minnesota. Check out that interior. Those seats were pure butt vacuums. Love the license plate. Hope it found a good home.

Diecast cars

Die-cast: Auto World 1977 Dodge Warlock

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Blingy Warlock pickup stirred our love of custom trucks …

I have to admit that when I heard Auto World was releasing the 1977 Dodge Warlock I was confused. I’d never heard of it, and I pride myself in being a pretty heady car guy.

Of course, it’s a truck.

Still, in 1977 I was just out of school, just married and my vehicle tastes were fuel-efficient small cars that didn’t cost much, think Mazda GLC, Datsun B210, Honda Civic, and Plymouth Horizon. OK, I was smart enough to avoid the later.

So I did a little digging on the Warlock, a name that no doubt would be nixed by any marketing person today. Seems Dodge was ahead of the curve with factory-produced custom pickups. Now any pickup, custom or not, is hotter than a Kardashian’s bikini photo. Continue reading Die-cast: Auto World 1977 Dodge Warlock →

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Die-cast: Autoart’s 2017 Dodge Viper GTS-R ACR

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Striking Viper GTS-R ACR is a ‘super’ car, in scale …

I consider myself lucky that as part of my gig of driving and reviewing new cars for newspapers and websites I’ve crushed the gas pedal on several Dodge Vipers, but not the Viper GTS-R ACR. That’s the racy version that put the cap on the Viper run from 1991 to 2017, not all inclusive.

That’s right, whether you remember or not, Viper took a few years off as sales lagged and insurance companies questioned their wisdom of covering these rocket sleds being driven on public roads.

I can tell you the various V10 engines that Dodge packed under Viper’s long muscular hood were all among the most powerful cars I’ve ever driven, some new Hellcats being the most recent exceptions. The Viper was a beast! Continue reading Die-cast: Autoart’s 2017 Dodge Viper GTS-R ACR →

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Diecast: NEO’s 1956 DeSoto Firedome

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Pink DeSoto Firedome will light up a display case …

Pink was a hot color in the 1950s. Think Florida, think flamingos, think the Latin influence of Cuba and Desi and Lucy. Two-tone cars also were all the rage as the nation climbed out of the gloomy war years into the bustling 1950s.

So, a two-tone pink and metallic rosy dark pink 1956 DeSoto Firedome 4-door Seville seems to perfectly reflect the mid-1950s’ look and feel in the automotive world. To that end, NEO has cranked out a beautifully finished and detailed 1/43 model of the DeSoto, aglitter with chrome trim. Continue reading Diecast: NEO’s 1956 DeSoto Firedome →

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Die-cast: Whitebox’s Valiant Acapulco

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1960s Valiant Acapulco a simple car, no matter the year …Valiant Acapulco

We all have our first car stories, but in 1963 my dad brought home our first new car, at least in my lifetime. It was a white 1963 Plymouth Valiant convertible with black soft top and red vinyl interior and a push-button automatic transmission.

It was nothing fancy, but to have a convertible was certainly exotic. Plus the car’s slant-6 engine was solid and the car ran like a top for 7 years.

So there’s a certain nostalgia I felt when WhiteBox’s red Chrysler Valiant Acapulco arrived for review. The 1/43 scale model is a nice reproduction of a mainline car that a lot of folks owned, and only a slight change from that ’63 model of which I was so fond. In fact, more than 225,000 Valiants were sold in 1963, its record year.

The Chrysler Valiant was a rebadged Plymouth Valiant sold in Mexico, hence the Acapulco model designation. Dodge also had a similar model, the Dart. There’s a bit of confusion with the labeling here in that the Acapulco was sold in Mexico starting in 1967 and the review car’s license is a 1967 Oklahoma plate. I confirmed with American-Excellence, who had sent the car, that it’s mislabeled as a 1965 model.  It is in fact a 1967 Valiant.

The History

Valiant was Plymouth’s compact car entry and was remodeled in 1963 to be less radical looking. It appeared slim and trim with a slightly longer hood than trunk. The fake spare tire on the trunk lid from earlier models was abandoned. Continue reading Die-cast: Whitebox’s Valiant Acapulco →

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Die-cast: NEO’s 1935 Stout Scarab

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1935 Stout Scarab, the first minivan … NEO 1935 Stout Scarab

I’ve seen two Stout Scarabs in my life, one up close and personal, one in a museum. Both were amazing.

The Scarab was a minivan before anyone even thought of minivans. It’s a rounded aerodynamic bug of a car, before the world was aware of the VW Beetle, although it may have already been on Ferdinand Porsche’s drawing board in the 1930s. It’s light before automakers were thinking of weight reduction.

Now NEO creates a beautiful 1/43 scale 1935 Stout Scarab in silver and it’s an eye-catcher that’s smartly executed.

The History

The Scarab came from Stout Engineering Laboratories, later Stout Motor Car Co. in Detroit and was designed in 1932 by William Bushnell Stout, an aviation and car engineer. He believed in strong lightweight bodies, so created a unitized body structure from aluminum aircraft metal with the help of designer John Tjarrda. The result was a car that would seat at least six and weighed less than 3,000 lbs.

In back they dropped a Ford V8 and with that rear-end placement, eliminated the weighty driveshaft found in other cars. Unlike most cars in the 1930s, the Scarab had no running boards and used coil springs and independent suspension at all four corners for a better ride. Seating inside could be reconfigured too to face backward or forward.   Continue reading Die-cast: NEO’s 1935 Stout Scarab →

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Die-cast: BoS-Models 1957 Imperial Crown Southampton

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Imperial Crown Southampton: When styling still mattered … 1957 Imperial Crown Southampton

As a kid I, like many folks at the time, liked cars with jet-like fins. Plus I’ve always been a sucker for the cool fake spare tire molded into the trunk lid. So Imperials, Chrysler’s luxury brand, were, and are, a favorite.

Few Imperials were more impressive than the 1957 Crown Southampton, a monster of a car, but dripping with style. Its nose with twin dual headlights favored Cadillac styling, but its slightly outward leaning tail fins and aircraft-like pointed taillights set it apart from the more staid luxury models of the day.

BoS-Models now creates a beautiful 1957 Southampton in a stunning bronze paint scheme with a cream-colored roof and enough chrome to blind an army of car show onlookers on a sunny day. This is in 1/18 scale and the body is cast resin.

The History

Imperial became its own brand, like Cadillac for GM and Lincoln for Ford, in 1955. The second generation Imperials debuted in 1957 and had their own distinct platforms, something that lasted until 1966.1957 Imperial Crown Southampton

These brutes were big and strong, so sturdy in fact that they were banned from most demolition derbies as being too tough to knock out of competition. Much of the reason was the Imperial’s full perimeter frame with box cross sections forming an “X” for strength. Meanwhile most cars were moving to lighter unibody construction.

The Imperials of 1957, which were part of Chrysler designer Virgil Exner’s “forward look” styling, also featured Torsion-Aire suspensions that used an indirect-acting torsion bar system up front. It lowered the car’s center of gravity and moved it rearward to improve handling. Continue reading Die-cast: BoS-Models 1957 Imperial Crown Southampton →

Car Reviews

2017 Toyota Corolla XSE

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Toyota Corolla still running strong 50 years on …2017 Toyota Corolla

Like Energizer’s bunny, Toyota’s Corolla just keeps on running through the generations and has succeeded like no other car model. It’s now 50-year run has resulted in more than 40 million Corollas being sold, most of any model.

That’s more than the VW Beetle, the other long-term, low-cost people’s car. Corolla really owns that title now. Everyone has either owned one, or had a kid that owned one, or an aunt, uncle, step-child or, well, a family member that has owned one.

Full disclosure, our family bought a new Corolla in 1983 when we had a 2-year-old and a second child on the way. It was reliable (we wisely decided against a Chrysler K car and Renault Alliance), economical, came with a stick-shift to help us save fuel and had a big enough trunk to hold a highchair and loads of diapers for trips to the grandparents.

Today’s new Corolla furthers that high value statement while remaining highly reliable and actually a bit more stylish than in years past. Toyota has put some effort into styling the last few years and so the 2017 Corolla is more than just an econobox. It looks good and drives well while remaining affordable and economical to run.2017 Toyota Corolla

Let’s start with price. That’s what most of us think of as relating to value.

A base Corolla L starts at $19,365 and the tested top-level XSE lists at $22,680, plus $865 delivery. A few other brands have similarly priced models that drive a bit sportier, but Corolla comes with most everything a buyer would want, plus is laden with the latest safety equipment. Continue reading 2017 Toyota Corolla XSE →

SUV/Truck Reviews

2015 Dodge Durango R/T Blacktop AWD

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Durango R/T is SUV that looks like a racy minivandurango profile

            Dodge generally doesn’t try to blend in as a brand, favoring bolder styling than most competitors. That’s what some of us like about Dodge.

Dodge’s Durango though is a bit different in that it stands out from other large SUVs, especially with its wide full-body width taillights. Yet, in its own way, Durango blends in with Dodge’s own minivan styling. Several people asked me if this was a new Dodge minivan, when, to me at least, it seemed obvious the Durango is an SUV.

First, it looks bigger than a minivan, and to be honest, Dodge did its best to distinguish the bright red (Redline Pearl) SUV from anything on the road. The test ute was the R/T version, which means there’s a HEMI under the hood, and this also was the Blacktop edition. Who doesn’t like the sound of that?durango front

Blacktop means the red ute has gloss black aluminum wheels, gloss black Durango badges and an equally gloss black grille and outside mirrors. All that glossy black costs just $295 extra and actually makes this big ol’ SUV look pretty darned sporty, like a ute with attitude!

Naturally putting Chrysler’s muscle-bound HEMI V8, all 5.7 liters worth, under the hood gives it some rumble power. The V8 cranks 360 horsepower and a monster 390 ft.-lbs. of torque. Tromp the gas pedal and Durango R/T gallops to life. That’s no small deal for a 5,531-lb. SUV with all-wheel-drive. But this one feels energetic right from the get-go. Continue reading 2015 Dodge Durango R/T Blacktop AWD →