cazalea
[Seiko Moderator]
20967
Spotted: Vintage and Variety while Voting
As we are selecting a President in the USA today, my wife asked "How do you choose which cars to photograph?"
Viewers might say "He takes any old thing" but that's not really the case. You should see how much dross we DON'T take photos of. There are plenty of cars here that make a good argument for salting the roads ....
"Pony Cars" or medium/small US models like the Camaro, Firebird, Mustang, Cougar are sporty and were popular enough that many have been cherished. Or if not cherished, at least preserved.
Convertibles and SS or sporty models are even better.
But I like the poor cousins too, the Chevy II, the Falcon, etc.
The pickup versions of these are some of my favorites - the Ranchero from Ford, the El Camino from Chevy, and so forth.
From a distance I thought this was an El Camino but it turned out to be a fairly rare 2-door Malibu Classic, the El Camino's civilian cousin.
Here come the El Caminos now
The progression on any given street is unpredictable. It goes a bit like this: "Wow! a Pontiac Tempest. Around 1964-65 I think. That's cool"
Then we see a Firebird Trans Am. It's ratty but mostly there. Also cool.
When down the block I spot another Pontiac - this time a 1956 (?) station wagon. Also hurting cosmetically and missing the rear window, but hey!
the owner has a Studebaker to take care of too!
and his neighbor has a Rambler.
It's funny how old car guys tend to live in clusters. I guess they find safety in numbers - and fewer hassles from the neighbors.
So by now, any theme I might have had is shot to heck and I have to just keep roaming up/down streets looking. It's only a matter of a few minutes before a new theme emerges. Like sports cars.
Early sports cars, whether Asian or European also appeal to me. Remember these cars are 40+ years old and few survive anywhere. Even here there's rust - see the front of the 240Z
and the sills too. Sadly in SoCal we don't often fix rust. Our body shops are busy enough from us crashing and shooting holes in each other; no time to learn rust repairing
Karmann Ghia
Midget
Big sedans are fine too.
I'm sure you noticed I have a soft spot in my heart for Cadillacs.
Some vehicles are so outrageous you just have to take pictures,
I'm worn out and I am sure you are too. Let's stop with twos - another favorite theme of mine. Two Corvettes - ok, a bit OTT. Two trashy ones - not so good.
Two Volvos in a lifetime - ok. Two at a time, irrational. Two of the same color and body style - ridiculous.
You know car guys think like watch guys - if one (no matter how rough) is good, two is better
and the sills too. Sadly in SoCal we don't often fix rust. Our body shops are busy enough from us crashing and shooting holes in each other; no time to learn rust repairing
Karmann Ghia
Midget
Or muscle cars. Finished, or in progress. Art already has a marker on this one.
Big sedans are fine too.
I'm sure you noticed I have a soft spot in my heart for Cadillacs.
Some vehicles are so outrageous you just have to take pictures,
like this military "NOT FOR HIGHWAY USE" Hummer H1
Or this wanna-be-tough (ok, it is pretty cool) Land Rover Discovery with aquatic exploration kit
Or this monstrous bus just sitting in front of the house with non-profit, teach kids to do woodworking signs all over it
Or this wanna-be-tough (ok, it is pretty cool) Land Rover Discovery with aquatic exploration kit
Or this monstrous bus just sitting in front of the house with non-profit, teach kids to do woodworking signs all over it
I'm worn out and I am sure you are too. Let's stop with twos - another favorite theme of mine. Two Corvettes - ok, a bit OTT. Two trashy ones - not so good.
Two Volvos in a lifetime - ok. Two at a time, irrational. Two of the same color and body style - ridiculous.
You know car guys think like watch guys - if one (no matter how rough) is good, two is better
I guess that's all. And that's how I select the cars I share with you.
Automotive
Explore the 2014 Spa-Classic, where Zenith was Official Timekeeper, featuring 350 historic racing cars and the presentation of an El Primero Chronomaster 1969 watch.
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Spotted: Vintage and Variety while Voting
As we are selecting a President in the USA today, my wife asked "How do you choose which cars to photograph?" Viewers might say "He takes any old thing" but that's not really the case. You should see how much dross we DON'T take photos of. There are plent...
That Firebird T/A was literally the last . . .
. . . of the muscle cars. The only advertised output over 300 horsepower in '73 belonged to the 455 Super Duty Pontiac (at 310 hp, if memory serves correct). Slightly de-tuned in '74 to 290 hp, and then . . . they were all gone. Most realize Pontiac start...
