'66 Chrysler 300, Sanborn, N.Y.

Apparently the owner of this 1966 Chrysler 300 wanted drivers behind him to know it was a 300 — ergo the giant chrome numerals on the trunklid where there originally was a Chrysler script. And then for some reason he/she decided the bumpers would look much better in the same dastardly brown the rest of the car wore. Then why not add a giant hood scoop and sinister-looking wheels and tires to complete the look? To each his own, I say. Saw this one in a Sanborn driveway the other day; I’ve also seen it driving around the Tonawandas in the past. Am I sure it was the same car? Oh, come now!

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'66 Thunderbird Town Landau, North Tonawanda, N.Y.

If you driving through North Tonawanda, you may pass the driveway where I saw this Silver Rose 1966 Ford Thunderbird Town Landau. It has, as the brochure describes it,  a “distinguished new roof covered in tailored vinyl.” If it happens to be backing out of said driveway as you’re passing by, be careful. With that huge blind spot where most cars have a rear side window, the driver just might not see you. Nice car, although I’m not so sure about those hubcaps — they look like they’re from a ’67 — can’t fool me! The 1966 Ford Buyer’s Digest shows a list price of $4551.89 — apparently they were watching every penny back in 1966.

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'36 Cord 810, Wheatfield, N.Y.

I’m gonna go out on a limb here, and say I’ll bet you haven’t seen one of these on the road lately, if ever at all. It’s a 1936 Cord 810, I’m guessing the five-passenger Westchester. Hidden headlamps, full-metal body, no running boards, independent suspension, and front wheel-drive — remember, this is 1936! And styling that was unlike anything else on the road. This beauty was seen yesterday in front of a Wheatfield repair shop. Read all about it here.

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'76 Chevy Monza Town Coupe, Tonawanda, N.Y.

Yesterday we featured an old Vega ad, and alluded to the thinly-veiled car which eventually replaced it in Chevy’s lineup — and here’s one now. It’s the 1976 Chevy Monza (seen recently in Tonawanda), which I think was a much better-looking car than the Vega, at least in this body style. You can really see the similarity between the Vega and the Monza when you look at the Vega Cabriolet which Chevy also offered in 1976 (an odd name as a cabriolet by definition is a car with a roof that folds down). I never cared much for the 2+2 hatchback, as I thought it looked too much like a Hot Wheels car. They also were rather cramped in the back seat due to that sloping roof. A guy I worked with bought a 2+2 when they offered a V-8, which was pretty quick, but the engine bay was so tight it was nearly impossible to change the two rearmost spark plugs. The Monza Town Coupe debuted in 1975, and usually outsold the 2+2. In 1976 it carried a sticker price of $3,359 and Chevy produced 46,375 of them. And I don’t imagine there are very many of them still around. 

Town Coupe brochure art

2+2

Vega Cabriolet (Huh?)

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

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Keller Chevrolet started out in 1953, and they’re still on Genesee Street in Cheektowaga. The 1971 Chevrolet Vega was supposed to be GM’s import fighter, but the nameplate lasted only seven years (10 if you count the Monza, which was a thinly-disguised Vega under the skin). I guess winning Motor Trend’s “Car of the Year Award” is no guarantee of success. Engine problems, followed by premature body rust, doomed the Vega early on and it never recovered. Eventually the even-smaller Chevette came along to fight those darned imports; it sold better but didn’t do much to stem the Asian tide.

(This ad  is from the June 1, 1972 Buffalo Evening News.)

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'67 Chevy Impala sport sedan, Town of Porter, N.Y.

Who growing up in the 1960s didn’t have a few full-size Chevys in the neighborhood? Well, some folks in this Town of Porter neighborhood still have one — this 1967 Chevy Impala sport sedan still looks pretty decent for a 45-year-old car. This is from back when Chevy still had a whole line of big cars, from the cheapie Biscayne, up through the Bel Air, Impala, Impala SS, and Caprice models. Picking one and then trying to choose from 15 exterior colors (with seven two-tone combinations), and interior colors choices of gold, blue, bright blue, black, red, turquoise, plum, parchment, maroon, and medium fawn made for a mind-boggling experience. Throw in five engine and five transmission choices, and myriad other options, and you can see that buying a new Chevy in 1967 wasn’t an in-and-out decision. See them all here. 

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'88 Dodge Ram, Ransomville, N.Y.

Although this 1988 Dodge Ram pickup may look uninteresting, it actually… oh hell, it is uninteresting. But (and I tried to capture it in a photo but it just doesn’t look like anything) the contents of the bed are unusual. It seems that whoever traded it at the Ransomville car dealer where it has sat for a while now, was maybe in the middle of delivering phone books or something similar, and just left them there. To rot. And they are. And then there’s that bush. If you click on the photo you’ll see a bush, also in the bed. Thing is, it’s actually growing up through the bed from the ground. Not only are the old books rotting away, the floor of the bed is largely daylight. Wonder what kind of trade-in value this thing had?

(Thanks to alert YAK blog-follower Greg Taylor for pointing out this relic)

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know

'65 AC Cobra 289

In honor of Carroll Shelby, father of the Cobra who passed away last week, here’s a 1965 AC Cobra 289roadster, which sold at auction in 2009 for $422,500. The car was basically a British AC Bristol with an American Ford 289 V-8 stuffed into the engine bay. Eventually the engines got bigger, and Shelby moved on to Mustangs and Dodges. The original is still my favorite.

the man and his car

— Jim Corbran, You Auto Know