Let the Eagle soar!

LET THE BROWN EAGLE SOAR

I was poking around the furthest backwaters of Central Pennsylvania near a nuclear power plant when I passed by what seemed to be an forgotten old gas station of repair shop still stocked with vehicles. I parked very conspicuously in an attempt to not come across as a vandal and started exploring. Stuck in the side of a tree was this old brown dog:

This is a 1979 Jeep SJ Cherokee in Alpaca Brown Poly with the Golden Eagle trim package. Rough and abandoned as it is I bet you could get this running with a battery, some gas, and 20 minutes tinkering. This is a utilitarian beast!

The Cherokee was the 2 door version of the Jeep Wagoneer which debuted as an instant classic in 1964. Both the Wagoneer and Cherokee shared most components and were produced in tandem from the Cherokee launch in '74 through '83 when the models separated.

This beast is loaded to the gills with late '70s Malaise-era styling cues: big decals with both lettering and imagery, square headlights, not to mention it's brown as can be!

Look at this vaguely tribal Golden Eagle on the hood like an off-road version of the Firebird from Pontiac! Motion lines surround the outer edge in '70s colors. I was snooping pretty hard in the parking lot of a long-closed repair shop by a busy country road otherwise I would've held those branches back for a better view. I was half expecting to be run off the property any second.

AMC had a penchant for using lower case letters in this gentle font. Even the Gremlin had only a capital G when most automakers either use all caps or frilly script. I'm afraid golden eagle has seen its fair share of salty winter roads from the tattered rocker panels.

Oh yeah that's it; LAST CALL for this wheel well which is poised to become an open door to the inside any second. Those '70s Wagon Wheels are great for rugged off-road trucks of this era.

Inside it's not really discernible but the upholstery is tan Levi's denim along the lines of the Levi's Gremlin I posted recently. To the right of the3 radio you can see a small black rectangle which is the clock. Below that is the large centrally-located glove compartment. 

The tailgate's either been replaced or spray painted over as it's missing its wicked striping. That chrome ball sticking out of the drivers side rear was likely a CB antenna which was all the rage in the late '70s.

The cardboard headliner is crying out for some good old fashioned duct tape.
We'll leave this eagle in its nest at the top of a mountain in PA. Old Jeeps are like the original VW Beetles; they rot away to smithereens given half the chance but chances are you could get this thing fired up and drive it away if you wanted to. This era of larger 4x4 hasn't really taken off in the collector market yet so there are bargains to be had. The mechanicals are identical to trillions of AMC products spanning several years so keeping one going would be a piece of cake. Find a decent frame & body and you're off!
Oh and by the way you're very welcome

Greenwood box coupe

GREENWOOD BOX COUPE

I was recently walking past the mighty Greenwood Cemetery when I saw this boxy beauty.

This is a 1979 Chevrolet Impala in original two-tone Carmine over Red (with a single Dark Blue fender of course). 

This generation of Impala replaced the massive yachts produced through '76. When this scale arrived in '77 it heralded the direction Domestic cars were headed for the '80s. The 1977 Caprice/Impala line received the Motor Trend Car of the Year award.

This somewhat flimsy looking grill is a surefire way to identify a '79. '78 had only 3 chrome horizontal bars within the surround. In 1980 the entire car was different even though at first glance they look similar.

Drivetrain combinations were many from a baseline 6 cylinder through 305 and 350 V8s. There was even a much maligned Oldsmobile diesel engine for anyone who wanted that sort of thing.

The 2 door coupes from 1977-'79 had this angled rear window foreshadowing the Monte Carlo Aerocoupe of the mid-'80s. Overall I think the design has aged remarkably well. With those huge forward-leaning wheel openings it retains a pretty aggressive stance too.

Two tone wasn't something common in this era of domestic cars but they pushed it in the literature for this generation Caprice & Impala. The brochure shows a very '80s dark red over silver combo.

Boxy was the new look for the decade to come and Chevy got it right on time. The huge federally mandated safety bumpers look alright on such a big slab.

That rear window really makes for a great profile on this ride.

For many years the way to discern an Impala from a lower trim offering was that the Impala had three taillights on each side while the Bel Air or Caprice had two. In '79 each model of this mid-size range had three openings. However Impala had the revers lights in the center of the center lenses while the Caprice had separate rectangular lenses below the taillight cluster.

I really dig the subtle way the rear panel has a crease 1/3rd of the way up where it angles back. The concavity of the tops of the taillights highlight this small detail well.

Purple tint & multiple 6x9s on the back deck mean this is owned and operated by pretty much exactly the sort of dude you're picturing.

Bench seat, crank windows, plain-ass steering wheel with a column shifter; no frills people! The interior is in great shape. I can just about smell that little tree from here.

Nothing like a set of Cragar SS wheels to make your ride look tough.

The orange slotted side marker light is Impala-only as well; Caprice had a wrap-around lens on the corner of the grill surround. The Caprice also had a stand-up hood ornament while the Impala has the bow tie logo in the grill center.

Well that's where we'll leave this Brooklyn tough guy. The 2 years previous to this one are my favorite for the later Impala, if only due to the slightly cleaner grill. Still this era looks great today especially in the 2 door coupe version. The 1980 model year would truly usher in the Box Chevy era which is hugely popular in some circles. This basic design lasted all the way up until the infamous and bulbous "Shamu" or Bubble Chevys of the '90s. Parts couldn't be easier to locate and the usability on a daily basis is great. If you're looking for a cheap way to get into car shows and drive a classic with a full compliment of creature comforts like reliable heat this might be the best bet out there.

Show Car Sunday denied! Ugliest vehicle of 2016 awaits

BACK TO THE TERRIBLE BASICS

I originally started this blog because I couldn't believe how far people would let their cars go while still driving them. The city is a bubble where you can limp these things around in horrific condition without challenge by the police. Try to drive the following truck through Scarsdale and see how long before you're providing license & registration even if your inspection sticker's valid!

Ugh. This was once a Toyota Hilux pickup truck from around 1990 in one of the 4 shades of Black they offered that year. Years in the city at the hands of a cruel owner have allowed it to devolve into something else. There are garbage trucks like the kind that pick up your garbage and then there are garbage trucks. This truck is garbage.

Somehow the chrome on the grill retains some dignity amidst the horror. The bumper and hood are dusted with cocoa powder and one eye is ridden with cataracts, but the cracked grill still offers a bit of glint. But wait a minute; did you notice that nameplate?!

Ladies and gentleman this is something I have never seen! The original Toyota name has been replaced with a cut-out section of a Toyota hubcap! I was standing in front of this thing laughing out loud for reals!

At highway speeds I don't know if I'd trust this bit of stretched out bubble gum to hold, but then again the next time this reaches highway speeds will be on the back of a truck carrying crushed vehicles to the afterlife.

Every bit of this little punk is dented, scraped, or both. It looks like this truck is constantly trying to wiggle through spaces not quite big enough for it. I can only imagine the trail of mysteriously scuffed vehicles this thing has left in its wake. Nice chrome mirror though! Wicked sporty bra.

I suppose it's earning its keep as the back had some contructionish trash in it. Gas door is long gone but would you want to siphon from a vehicle this beat?
The Toyota small truck is officially known as the Hilux. Production has never ceased since its introduction in 1968. Now in its eighth generation it continues its worldwide dominance by being offered and celebrated in most countries on Earth (noticeable exceptions being Japan and North America where it was replaced by the Tacoma in 1995).

Mysterious dadaist messages were crafted out of bags and placed in the back window.

We know this is a 2 wheel drive version as the 4wd trucks got rear fender flares to accommodate larger wheels and tires. I'd like to give a big shout-out to the rear bumper for still looking so damn good!

The drivers door is kinds open, turn signal smashed, and Bondo cracking off the body in sheets. I nominate this as the ugliest ride of 2016.

The bottom of the door is really rusted out. I have a feeling this truck is gutted with rot but probably had some quick fix Bondo/spray paint moments in its history.

Well there we have it; a terrible example of the most rugged vehicle ever built. As much as I've been bagging on this heap it really is a testament to the extreme reliability and durability of the Toyota truck. These things can go hundreds of thousands of miles without needing much in the way of repairs. The fact that so many have been built means parts are as available as can be. A 2wd version with a manual transmission should easily give you 30-35mpg too.
I drove the doppelganger to this truck when it was brand new for 2 days while attempting to sell fish door-to-door (that's right I did!). The job went predictably horribly the first day and I tried to quit. When my boss said "just give it one more day" I picked up my buddy Pete and we drove all over Connecticut with a freezer box full of fish on the back without knocking on a single door.
Hats off I guess to the sadistic owner of this poor little gimp for making it continue to serve its master years after it earned a white flag.

Classic case of Monumentalism

CLASSIC CASE OF MONUMENTALISM

Brash! Bold! Dashing! Tucked alongside a country road in rural PA was this mammoth testament to executive power. Thanks to Sarah from Everywhere for this luxurious submission. Now please rise. . .

What we have here is an ocean liner otherwise known as the 1968 Chrysler Imperial LeBaron dressed in Formal Black with a Polar White vinyl roof. This is the end of an era in American automotive design. The Imperial would continue on as the Chrysler flagship after '68 but the severe formality of this vintage would be tempered by the Fuselage style to come.
Check out that War of the Worlds looking single orange eye at the center of the windshield base. That is the Twilight Sentinel feature which was available from '67-'75. It would notice oncoming headlights and automatically dim your brights. 

Look into the relaxed eyes of a vehicle that knows it's at the top of the food chain. Whoever hung that LOST IN THE 60'S license plate on this beauty ought to be escorted out of their office by a guard ("we'll send your things along to the address on file. Please leave now").
Everything about this car is solid. You know just by looking at it that the grill and hood are made from heavy gauge metal crafted with great care. This is a 48 year old car sitting by the side of the road but every panel fits perfectly and the chrome refuses to dull.
This is how Chrysler itself chose to advertise the '68 Imperial:

Here it is having emerged from the depths of the ocean after feeding on shipwrecks and getting stronger. The grill has the look of baleen. The brochure for this ride is 100% superlatives and declarations of awesomeness.

The scale of this is undeniable but so is the level of quality. Imperials are still legendary for holding up beautifully. No expense was spared at any point in creating this beast. Fun fact: Imperials are the only car universally barred from entering demolition derbies because they would nonchalantly destroy everything else on the track without breaking a sweat. It wasn't even a fair fight!
The LeBaron series was the top-of-the-heap above the Crown and base models. Appointments were bordering on excess. Those tiny vent windows in the front doors are power operated. The air conditioning is actually 2 separate systems; one for the front and one for the rear.

The door panels are currently removed most likely for electronics repair. Power windows, vent windows, and locks are joined by a courtesy light at the bottom (out of view). All of this makes for a mighty complicated door! *Incidentally each door had its own glove compartment as well; the armrest lifts up exposing a generous and hidden storage area.
The dashboard is very sleek with "antiqued bronze" featured heavily for the full width of the car. The radio is kept hidden behind a lift-up panel that you can make out in the open position here. Options were few as the LeBaron Imperial came almost fully equipped as-is. The parking brake automatically disengages when the car is put in gear, the climate control allows you to set a temperature and it will use a/c or heat depending on what's needed, and cruise control is included. Leather seating in this pattern was LeBaron only, this example in Red.

Alright Chrysler isn't even playing it cool in this image! The rear seat is tryst-ready as shown by this comely lass laying languorously on the champagne-colored leather bench. A tiger rug? Cattails in a vase? The message is clear! Buy the Imperial and harvest lunchtime secretaries from the lower floors of your office daily!

I love the severity of the full-width chrome-hidden taillights on this beast. That center circle is the gas filler door which consists of a cast metal eagle! You'll be using this door often as the only engine available was the 440 TNT V8. Despite its size the Imperial was known as the luxury car for drivers because it accelerated, handled, and stopped much like a smaller, sportier car.

Well that's it for this car but I'll close out with a personal anecdote. When I was a kid living in Paradise California my stepfather Cliff had a 1962 Imperial that he loved. One day he got into a heated argument with some guy who claimed his new Toyota pickup was stronger than an old Chrysler. Cliff came home to get the Imperial and grabbed myself and my best friend Dan to sit in the backseat for added traction. We drove to a Safeway parking lot where the guy with the truck was waiting (with a fresh pile of gravel in the truck bed for his own traction).

They hooked the two vehicles up back to back with a chain connecting the rear axles and inched them forward until the chain was tight. At that moment Cliff leaned over the seat and told us to get down because "if that chain snaps it's coming through the window and might take your heads off".

Somebody must've given the signal and both men stomped the gas to the floor. After a brief screaming of tires there was a loud sound and we were moving forward. We stopped and got out to see that the Imperial had torn the rear axle off of the truck completely which was now slumped on it's haunches, gravel spilling out onto the pavement. We drove home victorious with Cliff saying what an idiot the guy was for overloading the truck bed with ballast. True story!

First generation American with dual citizenship

A CADDY BY ANY OTHER NAME

Today I'm featuring another selection from my Oregon heatwave visit from last year. Here we have a first generation American whose parents are from Germany. Who would've guessed this ride is as American as it gets?

What we have here is a 1981-1983 Volkswagen Rabbit Pickup Truck LX in Cashmere White.
VW introduced this spinoff of their popular Rabbit in 1980. In only that first year the turn signals were located within the bumpers. Starting in '84 the headlights were more flush with the grill rather than inset so we know it's in the '81-'83 range.
From the moment these little trucks were introduced they were built in a Pennsylvania factory making this the first foreign car built in the U.S.

Just like the AMC Gremlin this ride is a doppelganger of another vehicle from the doors forward. However where the Gremlin was a car chopped in half this one grew an additional 9 inches in length. The bed was 6 feet from cab to tailgate which was pretty good for a mini truck.
This looks so plain-Jane but it actually is the mildly upgraded LX edition. The only way we can tell (since the original tailgate with its badging is missing) is by the bumpers being chrome.

To see one of these so rust-free is astounding to any East-Coaster!
The VW Rabbit Truck spread to other continents and was known in the rest of the world as the VW Caddy. This fits the VW mantra as the Rabbit was always labeled  Golf outside of the States.
Production of the Caddy lives on to this day elsewhere in the world currently only in its 3rd generation (though face lifted several times). The 2016 Caddy has some amazingly-named versions such as Caddy Life and Caddy Maxi Tramper.

Even though the tailgate has been changed there is an excellent chance that this is a diesel. Most of the first generation trucks were diesel with a 5 speed manual. Interestingly the 5th gear was labeled E for Economy. If you wanted the automatic you had to choose the gasoline engine. None of these combinations (5 speed included) were quick but the truck proved very capable at small tasks. That same legendary diesel engine propelled Rabbits of the era to 300,000 mile lifespans, something that was absolutely unprecedented in its day.

Well there we have it; a small, cute, capable little donkey that just wants to work and please its owner. I remember as a kid riding in a friends moms Rabbit that they bragged was the cheapest version available. It had black rubber mats in lieu of carpet and no radio (it was the most yellow car I've seen to this day!). Finding a stripped-down truck to drive around in today would be great as reliability and parts availability are both top-notch. With a small camper fitted to the back it might be the ultimate road trip vehicle. Hats off Caddy!

Get ready to smile people. This car's ridiculous!

WHAT DO SAN FRANCISCO & KENOSHA WISCONSIN HAVE IN COMMON?

Sarah from Everywhere sent in this following submission discovered hidden in the backwaters of the Poconos. The moment it lit up my phone I was grinning ear to ear. A freaking Gremlin!

This is a 1976 AMC Gremlin in Brilliant Blue with sweet hockey stick stripes on the side. This example also has a very rare white vinyl roof which you never see on a Gremlin! To compound the coolness this is a special Levi's edition (yes like the jeans). Try to find a more hilarious car!

Awww look at this sad frumpy bulldog face! The Gremlin was introduced by American Motors Corporation in 1970 to a startled public. Emotions upon its unveiling ranged from glee and laughter to disgust and mockery. To be fair the design was first sketched out on an air sickness bag (true story - legendary automotive designer Dick Teague was discussing a smaller compact for AMC while flying with a colleague).
One detail that's unexpected the first time you encounter a Gremlin is that the glass window lifts up but not the entire rear end. It seems like this ought to be a hatchback but it's not quite. You can hurt your back leaning in and lifting items with any weight out from the trunk floor which is at the same level as the bumper.

If you're looking at the back end of this car wondering where the rest is it's because this is literally an AMC Hornet with the back chopped off. Both cars are identical from the doors forward. The "swept end" of the Gremlin made for great aerodynamics though. These could be ordered with a 304 V8 from the factory (!) which allowed you to smoke the tires in every gear.
This little beauty has 3 of its 4 original hubcaps which are of typically bonkers AMC design. That little red decal in front of the door says it all though; LEVI'S! It was the '70s and AMC went all-in with crazy special editions from fashion designers (the Pierre Cardin & Oleg Cassini edition Matadors have mind blowing interiors).

The Levi edition was relatively tame but did indeed call for the interior to be done up in classic blue Levi's denim; stitching, rivets and all. In reality the upholstery was a vinyl that looked and felt like denim as the real thing would have been difficult to clean and keep up. The seat backs on this ride retain their look pretty well.

The easiest way to identify the year of a Gremlin is the grill. In '75 and '77 the turn signals were rectangular making this a guaranteed '76.
AMC was truly the little car company that could. While the Big Three were located in Detroit little AMC was based in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Their designs were totally original throughout the '70s and their cars were all modest hits. The Hornet, Matador, Pacer, Eagle, and Gremlin were all bankrolled by the fact that AMC owned Jeep. Renault bought a major share before Chrysler took the company over, ending the company as a stand-alone name. To this day you'd be hard pressed to find more quirky classics to roll in though. If you hit up a car show in a Levi's Gremlin I guarantee it would be more swarmed with admirers than any Shelby Mustang worth 20 times the price.

Mystery Mopar gets a piggyback through Brooklyn.

ABOVE THE ROAD NOT RUNNING AT ALL

Sometimes a vehicle passes by my shop in Brooklyn and by the time I recognize what I'm seeing it's long gone. Other times people are stuck in traffic. This vision presented itself the other day:

 Sweet Mopar relic! What we have here is a 1973/1974 Plymouth Satellite, Sebring, Road Runner, or GTX in what looks to be the color Hemi Orange. I realize that's a wide array of possibilities but this is a beater rolling by on the back of a flatbed! 

One detail that ought to be helpful in identifying but isn't is the Power Dome Hood. This was the standard hood for both the Road Runner & GTX but very well might've been an extra option for the pedestrian Satellite. That should be a '74 if that hood is vented, '73 if not (assuming it's wearing its original clothing).

You have to admit that it's a great silhouette. It's still athletic at this point where as the mid '70s would extend the hoods and shorten the trunks for most 2 doors.

The color looks so Mopar and perfectly faded that I'm inclined to believe it's original or a very old repaint. Regardless none of the identifying decals or stripes muscle cars of this era are so famous for are present so it could be a base model Satellite with optional hood.

The guy in the drivers seat of the truck said "it's for sale; 4 grand" when he saw me taking pics.
I asked "is it a 440 or a 383?"
He checked with is passenger and said "383".
Then I did some research and it looks like the 383 was last available in 1972 so I guess we were both wrong!

Just a quick pass by but the car looked complete and at least had a drivetrain in it. If most of the rarest parts such as interior are present this is a fine project and worth every cent of that $4,000. For now I was just happy to have an interesting ride cruising by that was snarled in enough traffic that I could catch up with it.