A complex road tax system forced Japanese manufacturers to focus on small cars as their volume-selling models. Combining that philosophy with an ongoing drive towards high build quality resulted in some excellent cars that proved successful domestically and in… more»
Sedans
43k-Mile Survivor: 1983 Buick Regal
The General Motors G-Body platform is chameleon-like in its adaptability; after all, few other platforms achieved such diversity. For example, in the Buick camp, this sedate Regal V6 is fundamentally the same car as Darth Vader himself, the sinister… more»
Push-Button Tranny! 1964 Dodge Custom 880
Rumor has it Chrysler got wind that Chevrolet was planning to downsize its full-size cars in 1962. As such, their Plymouth and Dodge offerings would be smaller than in 1961. Turns out that this intel was bad, so the… more»
Former Movie Star? 1991 Ford LTD Crown Victoria
For most of the 1980s and beyond, the Ford LTD Crown Victoria was the flagship of the Ford lineup. Along with the Mercury Grand Marquis, these were throwback vehicles in that they were large automobiles still using rear-wheel drive… more»
Older Restoration: 1959 Plymouth Sport Fury
Chrysler was riding high in 1955, breaking its own historical sales records. Unfortunately, Plymouth’s doddering image kept it lagging the pack. To goose the brand, Plymouth introduced the limited-production Fury in 1956 as a sub-model of the Belvedere. The… more»
Mustang Dry Run: 1965 Ford Falcon Sprint
The Sprint was added as an extension of the Ford Falcon Futura in 1963 (mid-season). It was only available as a 2-door hardtop or convertible and brought with it the Falcon’s first V8. To many, the Sprint seemed like… more»
Reasonably Priced: 1948 Dodge Custom
What we have here is a fairly innocuous 1948 Dodge Custom two-door sedan, one of 81K assembled that year. I can remember a time, years ago, when you would encounter Dodges from this era (’46-’48) with surprising regularity but… more»
Colonnade Survivor: 1976 Pontiac LeMans
Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Buick launched “senior” compacts in 1961 to join Chevrolet (Corvair, and later Nova) in the shift to smaller cars. Tempest was the torchbearer for Pontiac, with the LeMans soon joining as an upscale option (the former… more»
1963 Chevrolet Corvair Spyder – 8900 Miles!?
Here’s one often overlooked, a 1963 Chevrolet Corvair turbo-charged Spyder. Actually, the Corvair in general gets bypassed on the collectability and interest scale and that’s a shame. Designing and creating an air-cooled compact tells you that in the late… more»
“Zero Rust”: 1965 Dodge Dart 270
A joke among car enthusiasts (or maybe it’s just one that I’ve heard) is that the last survivors of Apocalyptic Earth will be cockroaches driving Dodge Darts. There may be some truth to that: Between the rugged torsion bar… more»
Only 35K Miles? 1979 Pontiac Grand Prix LJ
A few days ago, I reviewed this 1972 Pontiac Grand Prix and mentioned that it was the last version of Pontiac’s personal luxury coupe that I really appreciated. Yes, I wasn’t thrilled with what followed from ’73 to ’77… more»
Unfinished Business: 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme
The Supreme was added to the mid-size Oldsmobile Cutlass roster in 1966. It would go on to compete in the personal luxury car segment dominated by GM products like the Pontiac Grand Prix and Chevy Monte Carlo. However, it… more»
















