Chrysler commercials in the mid-1960s would often tell the prospective buyer to “move up to Chrysler,” because in an era of monthly payments, a few extra dollars a month over a lower-priced car could buy one. Those ads were… more»
• For Sale • 6 Comments
Practical Collector Sedan: 1965 Mercury Comet Caliente
Mercury’s marketing team went for broke in 1964 and 1965, sending Comets far and wide to prove their mettle. Comets hit the high banks at Daytona on a high-speed 100,000-mile endurance run. They (mostly) survived the punishing East African… more»
• For Sale • 20 Comments
6,626 Miles: 1969 Chevrolet Corvair 500
It’s not too common on Barn Finds that we get to follow up on a car after twelve years, but this is one of those times: This 1969 Corvair was first featured in 2013 when it was apparently being sold by… more»
• For Sale • 13 Comments
Good Cruiser Condition: 1960 Ford Falcon Ranchero
Ford truly was rife with “Better Ideas” in the 1960s. After beating Chevy to the punch with the Ranchero in 1957, they circled the wagons and downsized it on the Falcon platform in the face of sagging sales in… more»
• For Sale • 20 Comments
47k Miles: 1998 Buick Riviera
When Buick’s styling department, led by the late, great Bill Porter, designed the final generation of the Buick Riviera, large personal-luxury coupes were in big trouble. Though they had lit up the sales charts in the 1970s and even… more»
• For Sale • 26 Comments
Ready To Enjoy: 1951 Mercury Coupe
The beautiful “bathtub” Mercury coupes of 1949-51 represent the cornerstone of custom car culture, so it’s always nice to see one that has been left largely as the factory built it, and aside from a set of exhaust cutouts… more»
• For Sale • 33 Comments
Lawn Ornament Or Custom Hauler? 1955 Ford C-600
The COE, or “Cab Over Engine” truck, is not, to be charitable, the most beautiful or the most well-proportioned rig on the road. But it’s still super cool. This 1955 Ford C-600 is one of those trucks that makes… more»
• For Sale • 7 Comments
Super Solid Three-Row Wagon: 1972 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser
In 1972, about 25,000 Oldsmobile customers walked into their local dealership and said something akin to this: “The Vista Cruiser simply isn’t big enough.” And of those 25,000-odd customers, 18,087 of them decided that they might as well get… more»
• For Sale • 16 Comments
Clean Aerobird: 1984 Ford Thunderbird Elan
As a young child of the 1980s and the son of a Ford man, I hold the Fox-Body Thunderbird in high regard. I watched Bob Glidden vanquish his competition in the NHRA Pro Stock category, and I rooted for… more»
• For Sale • 35 Comments
Working Air: 1959 Lincoln Mark IV Continental
Despite Lincoln’s assertion that “the Lincoln look” of 1959 is one of “classic beauty,” there’s no getting around the car’s reception among some Barn Finds readers. No, many do not find them traditionally beautiful, but they are interesting, and perhaps… more»
• Auctions • 20 Comments
BF Auction: 1985 Chevrolet El Camino
There’s a line in the Barenaked Ladies song “If I Had $1,000,000” that discusses the merits of eating “Kraft Dinner” as a millionaire. The response, “of course we would, we’d just eat more,” mirrors how I feel about car… more»
• For Sale • 26 Comments
55k Miles: 1981 Ford Granada L
When the Granada was introduced for the 1975 model year, it was marketed as a less-expensive Cadillac, or perhaps a less-expensive Mercedes. Yes, I have seen the print ads, and one of them highlighted a middle-aged urban female who… more»
• For Sale • 20 Comments
Tons Of Character: 1968 Volvo 122S
A few blocks away from my house, there’s a church that often has a really nice ’90s Volvo sedan parked in the lot, and it makes me think that we don’t see enough Volvos on the road these days…. more»
• For Sale • 5 Comments
Black Beauty: 1984 Buick Grand National
There’s a Buick-Cadillac-GMC dealership within walking distance of my house, and while I’m a dyed-in-the-wool fan of 1950s and ’60s Buicks, nothing currently on the lot makes me turn around to take another look, as pleasant as those SUVs… more»
• For Sale • 14 Comments
Grandma’s Low-Mileage Ride: 1974 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Regency
Did anybody do luxury better than 1970s Detroit (or Lansing, in this case)? Today, luxury means heated and cooled seats, a large touch screen, and as much connectivity as technology will currently allow. In 1974, however, it meant riding… more»
• For Sale • 16 Comments
A Work Of Art: 1948 Cadillac Sixty Special
Last year, I found an interesting out-of-print book on automotive design at John R. King Used & Rare Books in Detroit. The book was titled The Art of American Car Design: The Profession and Personalities, and the author was… more»
