October Auto Spotter

[Robert Hall]

While sitting at a light I saw this clean '66 Ford F100 at a gas station..just out of the picture to the left behind a bus stop was a turquoise '66 Mustang convertible and a primered 1950-ish Chevy panel truck.  Also saw a clean white w/ white interior '74 Pontiac Grand Ville convertible in traffic, rolling top down on this unseasonable 90 degree afternoon...

[balthazar]

Took this hooptie for a ride today. Boss-maro!

[G. David Felt]

Gotta love when companies use old cars as part of floor displays in stores.

[trinacriabob]

18 hours ago, balthazar said:

Took this hooptie for a ride today. Boss-maro!

That is a '74.  Those are easy to tell apart compared to '75 to '77.  They had the much improved canted back front end yet lacked the wraparound rear back lite.

Yesterday morning:

A 1979 to 1983 vintage Cadillac Eldorado - white - white padded landau - burgundy leather interior, on a major bridge, but going about 45 mph when everyone else was doing 60 mph.  I could not see the engine badge but, whatever it had under the hood, it should have been able to do 60 mph.  It was in good condition.

Yesterday afternoon:

Those rare but unremarkable jelly bean Ford Thunderbird coupes from around '86 to '88.  Again, it was white and may also have had a burgundy interior.  A friend of mine in Atlanta had one of these and, while his parents were driving it across Texas, it overheated and warped the head gasket (Ford 3.8 V6 with cast iron block and aluminum heads).  It was cruising along nicely at 65 mph.  It was in fair condition.

Edited October 2, 2019 by trinacriabob

[balthazar]

'39 Plymouth sedan, white, very presentable, parked outside 'classic' auto repair garage.

[G. David Felt]

Have not seen this era of Mustang in a long time. LX Mustang.

[balthazar]

Gorgeous black ‘65 GTO hardtop, rumblin by on residential street.

Saw something go by my house a few days ago, from the backyard; may have been a Lambo Jalpa. Didn’t recognize it for sure.

[G. David Felt]

Just saw another Audi e-tron, they are becoming very common now around here. This one had a guy I figure to be in his 50's and he was not shy about giving it acceleration, it flew. Very cool to see them more than the Tesla X.

[Robert Hall]

Saw this Transit at a light...license plate 'UGHAVAN'... heh-heh.  Also saw a solid yellow w/ white top '74-ish 2dr AMC Hornet w/ vintage red Arizona license plates. 

[Drew Dowdell]

A brand new Volvo S90 with a bashed in grille just about 50 yards past a flattened fawn.  I guess automatic emergency braking wasn't an option he opted for. 

[Robert Hall]

8 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

A brand new Volvo S90 with a bashed in grille just about 50 yards past a flattened fawn.  I guess automatic emergency braking wasn't an option he opted for. 

Ick...always watching out for deer in my neighborhood... lots of woods and lots of deer going through the yards and families of them crossing the street.. 

Here's a video of some deer wandering in my driveway yesterday afternoon...

[trinacriabob]

This morning, I saw a Pontiac Sunfire coupe.  It was in the light bronze color.  If it was sharing colors with the GP back in the day, I'm going to guess this was an '02 or '03.  Maybe older. Except for some small dings on the lower part of the fenders, this thing was in great shape, as was the interior.  It had a sunroof.  And, since the shifter showed D-3-2-1, it appears to have been a 4 speed automatic.  I still see a lot of Aleros, but rarely do I see these strange birds.  I'm thinking power was supplied by either a 2.4 or a 2.2.

[balthazar]

'63 Coupe deVille, black vinyl top over white, solid unrestored shape, at the Midas assumedly for pipes.

[Robert Hall]

On 10/4/2019 at 5:17 PM, dfelt said:

Have not seen this era of Mustang in a long time. LX Mustang.

 

 

Reminds me of my college car, an '86 LX..though mine was gray and didn't have a luggage rack.  Here's a pic of mine along w/ my '87 GT, taken about 30 years ago...

[Robert Hall]

Saw a clean dark blue 90s Buick Roadmaster hearse, padded top w/ a huge light on top, like a Michigan State Police light but yellow.  

[Drew Dowdell]

Vintage VW bus in great shape. Red with a white upper half. 

And a 1977 Dodge Royal Monaco

[Robert Hall]

Saw these at a service plaza on the Ohio Turnpike.  Broncos I suspect going by the shape and size, rear mounted spare. 

[Drew Dowdell]

I would have camped out there for hours waiting.

[Robert Hall]

I was disappointed.  As I was leaving, they uncovered them—3 Wranglers with Michigan Mfgr plates.  But the cowl area was covered over.  And lots of cables inside.  Maybe the diesel or PHEV out being tested?  Or the rumored future straight six? 

[balthazar]

Customer has a '91 300ZX, garaged all it's life, no winter driving, 73K. Super clean, mint interior... but tweed (!!). Non-turbo 6 / 5-spd. For sale in central NJ if anyone interested.

[Drew Dowdell]

How was your week? I took this out for a spin. 

[Robert Hall]

Saw a new Supra in red this weekend....had a long weekend getaway to Ann Arbor, Mi and spent time wandering the U of Michigan campus, the town and the area...seeing what has changed in the 20+ years since I lived there.  Lots of nostalgia..and sunny but cool fall weather.

Saw an eclectic mix of vehicles on Hwy 23 in Michigan south of Ann Arbor--going northbound in about 5 min I saw a white Lexus LF-A, a yellow Lexus LC, and a new Supra in bright red.   On the Ohio Turnpike saw a car hauler with 4 new green Buillitt Mustangs and other new Mustang GTs incl. a red convertible.  Saw a dark green w/ white bumpers and grille '57 Ford F100 style side in good shape on another car hauler. 

Closer to home, I saw a clean dark gray '85-86 Olds 98 4dr parked w/  'FOR SALE' and 'DIESEL' signs..

[Drew Dowdell]

16 Cylinders of Duramax Diesel Power!

[balthazar]

2 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I took this out for a spin. 

What is that?

[Drew Dowdell]

40 minutes ago, balthazar said:

What is that?

2020 Toyota Supra

[balthazar]

That explains the disjointed design.

[G. David Felt]

17 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

How was your week? I took this out for a spin. 

And your feeling on driving this controversial styled Supera is .............

16 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

16 Cylinders of Duramax Diesel Power!

GMC is so much better looking than the Chevrolet. No wonder Chevy is in 3rd place. ?

[trinacriabob]

@Robert Hall I gave you a thumbs up for Ann Arbor.  Had that been Urbana-Champaign, IL, I wouldn't have.

Today I saw a 1979 Cutlass Supreme coupe in a supermarket lot.  It was navy blue.  It had wheel covers and no power convenience options; however, it was air conditioned.  Probably a 3.8 V6 but most likely the small Olds V8.  It was in excellent condition, save a bumper that was bent downward.  The guy, probably the original owner, was already too close to the store and I was getting into my car. 

That sled has done 40 years of motoring.  That's how long the QE2 sailed for Cunard!

[balthazar]

'56 Chevy 210 2-dr sedan, white over Pepto, very presentable, for sale in driveway.

[Robert Hall]

I've driven past the For Sale '84/85 Olds 98 diesel 4dr 4 times this week, really sharp car that will probably be a tough sell.   Dark gray w/ dark gray top. 

[balthazar]

'64 GTO ragtop, white over bright red, Cragers, gleaming, at service station with hood up.

[trinacriabob]

This morning, I was rewarded with a nice sighting to the left of me in the fast lane on the freeway.  It was an all black Chevy SS sedan.  I don't like black vehicles owing to their visibility at night but it looked sharp on this car.  For one, I realized how nice the rear light fascia is when this sport sedan is in motion.

Wouldn't it be a drag if you won a contest and the prize was a brand new Chevy SS ... and then the prize arrives, but the steering wheel is on the "wrong" side?

[balthazar]

• '67 Cutlass sedan, factory A/C, given for free to my buddy.
• Circa '71 Cadillac in Midas.
• This gen Ramcharger used to be all over.
• Flower car had a huge portrait of the deceased on the roof. Never saw that before.
 

[G. David Felt]

@balthazarThe funeral Cadillac, last picture with the picture on top is a very traditional Asian culture thing. There spirit gets a final ride to their resting place by doing this. 

Kinda weird but old folks and superstition. 

[trinacriabob]

@balthazar I'm not chuckling at the hearse, but just chuckling at all the different conversions Cadillacs are subjected to to make hearses out of them.  I believe I may have even seen Cadillac hearses in Europe, IIRC.

@dfelt I believe it.  All the organized religions and their denizens have conventions and traditions at birth, in the teen years, upon marrying, and at death.  We had them growing up.  One convention (not really, just joking) was getting smacked over the knuckles with a ruler by a cantankerous nun.  However, if you're a good student, you get a pass to be a smart aleck every now and then ... and bypass the ruler.  

[Robert Hall]

Beautiful fall day here in Cleveland...saw a sharp gold '72 Cutlass convertible rolling w/ the top down.  

Went out this evening to see Bruce Springsteen's concert film 'Western Stars' (beautiful film, beautiful music) and parked next to a Gladiator Rubicon at the theatre...first I'd seen in the wild.

There was a great Jeep Wrangler ad before the film..

[G. David Felt]

3 deep waiting,  seems to be backlogged at this Fred Meyers Tesla Charging station. This is pretty common here be it Tesla or the generic charging stations. You have a major shop point, variety of food places and other retail. Makes it easy to charge, shop, eat and go.

FYI: Behind these Tesla's are a huge 5000 Apartment complex and many are Tesla Owners, so I am sure this is a major recharge point for them.

[balthazar]

• The Tesla station by me is at a Panera, but the only other anything nearby is Costco & Target... but they're a hike apart. You're not going to get a shopping cart of bulks and wheel it all the way over to your cabled car.

• I don't like that refueling your vehicle 'strongly encourages' you to engage in commerce to avoid boredom.

• Wonder how the potential decade-long rolling blackouts in CA will affect EV sales there, Guess they can always install diesel generators at every station to power the 'chargers. ?

[surreal1272]

46 minutes ago, balthazar said:

• The Tesla station by me is at a Panera, but the only other anything nearby is Costco & Target... but they're a hike apart. You're not going to get a shopping cart of bulks and wheel it all the way over to your cabled car.

• I don't like that refueling your vehicle 'strongly encourages' you to engage in commerce to avoid boredom.

• Wonder how the potential decade-long rolling blackouts in CA will affect EV sales there, Guess they can always install diesel generators at every station to power the 'chargers. ?

To your second statement, isn’t that what convenience stores with gas pumps are selling? Convenience Stores are commerce too so I don’t see how this approach (said charging station) is any different from that approach (convenience stores with gas pumps). 

[balthazar]

When I 'gas up', it takes maybe 5 mins. If I were to leave my vehicle, walking into the store, pick out a snack, pay & walk back, my vehicle is likely refueled & waiting. That means others may well be waiting on me to get my chimmi-chunga back to the vehicle and out of their way.
When one 'watts up', the owner wanders off and has a sit-down meal because they have 20-30-40 mins to waste. There's TIME to shop because there's a long period of inactive boredom to relieve. The 'refueling' time 'encourages' you to pay even more money.

Yes; you are not required to. You can sit in your car, stare at your phone. Or nap if you want/are sleepy. Or you can walk laps of the parking lot. All idle things... because you are WAITING. Or you can open your wallet.

It wouldn't be 'any different' if an EV charged in 5 mins.

[Robert Hall]

I rarely ever go in the store when I get gas... pay at the pump, usually less than 5 minutes.  A quick task.  Recharging an EV at a charging station would be far less convenient.   Now a home charger, I could see that being advantageous.  

And location, location, location...the nearest gas station is maybe 1/2 mile, and I probably have 1/2 dozen more within a mile or two.    The nearest ChargePoint charging station (J1772) is 7 miles, the nearest CHAdeMO station is over 6 miles.  The nearest Telsa Supercharger station is 10 miles.   Not practical in my reality context.

Edited October 21, 2019 by Robert Hall

[surreal1272]

3 hours ago, balthazar said:

When I 'gas up', it takes maybe 5 mins. If I were to leave my vehicle, walking into the store, pick out a snack, pay & walk back, my vehicle is likely refueled & waiting. That means others may well be waiting on me to get my chimmi-chunga back to the vehicle and out of their way.
When one 'watts up', the owner wanders off and has a sit-down meal because they have 20-30-40 mins to waste. There's TIME to shop because there's a long period of inactive boredom to relieve. The 'refueling' time 'encourages' you to pay even more money.

Yes; you are not required to. You can sit in your car, stare at your phone. Or nap if you want/are sleepy. Or you can walk laps of the parking lot. All idle things... because you are WAITING. Or you can open your wallet.

It wouldn't be 'any different' if an EV charged in 5 mins.

Question. Can you fill up your gas tank at home?

 

[G. David Felt]

7 hours ago, balthazar said:

• The Tesla station by me is at a Panera, but the only other anything nearby is Costco & Target... but they're a hike apart. You're not going to get a shopping cart of bulks and wheel it all the way over to your cabled car.

• I don't like that refueling your vehicle 'strongly encourages' you to engage in commerce to avoid boredom.

• Wonder how the potential decade-long rolling blackouts in CA will affect EV sales there, Guess they can always install diesel generators at every station to power the 'chargers. ?

In regards to the third statement, that is why most charging points also have solar power panels. The ability to still work even when brown outs stop allowing gas pumps to operate.

[trinacriabob]

I forgot this one.  Yesterday, in my local Starbucks's parking lot, I saw a new or fairly new Dodge Charger with temporary plates parked there, with the driver on his phone.  It was the lime green, like you'd have in your Hot Wheels collection when you were a kid.  On a Charger, this color works.  The badge on the side said "392" and it was idling, but displayed no weird cam/lifter noise.  It was fairly hushed.  His windows were heavily tinted.  So I pointed it at his sled and gave him the "okay" sign with my hand.  He nodded in appreciation.

Like the one on the left:

 

Edited October 21, 2019 by trinacriabob

[Robert Hall]

Going through Dunkin Donuts this morning I had a yellow Challenger Hellcat Redeye behind me..nice rumble.  Guy w/ white hair and beard, was blasting ZZTop.. 

[balthazar]

11 hours ago, dfelt said:

...most charging points also have solar power panels.

‘Most’ in your area maybe. Not here. 

[Drew Dowdell]

again... people should only be using superchargers when they have less range than it will take them to get home. It is an entirely wrong mindset to unplug your car from your house, go to Mejier or whatever, plug in there, and go shopping.  Even a Leaf with 110 mile range can handle all of the shopping in a single day without having to recharge.

It gets worse if they are paying to recharge (Like most of those Model-3s probably are), it costs more to charge up at a public station than it does to charge up at home. 

The only way I can see having to do this is if you live in an apartment complex and not have access to a charger at home. A friend of mine with a Volt does that, but he has a charger at work, so he charges up until its time for lunch and then goes out and moves his car.  With the ~7 mile commute he has, he almost never uses gasoline in the Volt. 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

again... people should only be using superchargers when they have less range than it will take them to get home. It is an entirely wrong mindset to unplug your car from your house, go to Mejier or whatever, plug in there, and go shopping.  Even a Leaf with 110 mile range can handle all of the shopping in a single day without having to recharge.

It gets worse if they are paying to recharge (Like most of those Model-3s probably are), it costs more to charge up at a public station than it does to charge up at home. 

The only way I can see having to do this is if you live in an apartment complex and not have access to a charger at home. A friend of mine with a Volt does that, but he has a charger at work, so he charges up until its time for lunch and then goes out and moves his car.  With the ~7 mile commute he has, he almost never uses gasoline in the Volt. 

Added an FYI, behind in the picture is a major apartment complex, 5000 units and many Tesla owners, so this charge station is always busy like this.

[balthazar]

Hot.

[Drew Dowdell]

w00t! I got a Camaro convertible for my rental car here in Texas.