Curbside Classic -

All Those Glamorous Four-Door Hardtops, Part 1: The 1950s

– Posted on March 22, 2025

Given the immediate popularity and glamour of the 2-door hardtop that was first introduced by Cadillac in 1949, it was just a matter of time—five years, precisely—before the first four door hardtops appeared. They spanned the price spectrum from the top-tier luxury brands like Cadillac (top) and Lincoln (bottom) to the low priced brands, even Rambler. But their lifespan in the US was sadly short, with the last one made in 1978. We’re going to look at them all, by decade. So roll down all the windows for a better view.

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Bus Stop Classics: ACF-Brill, Pullman-Standard, and St Louis Car Company Trolleybuses – America’s Second Favorites

Jim Brophy

– Posted on March 22, 2025

1950 St Louis Car Company 48 Pax Trolleybus

In a post several months ago we mentioned how Marmon-Herrington dominated the trolleybus market in the post-war period in North America. But the manufacturers in that market prior to the war were still around and provided another option for transit operators – let’s look at these three. Read the rest of this entry »

My 2017 Renault Sandero Stepway – My First Brand-New, Off-The-Showroom Floor Car

Rafael Fabius

– Posted on March 22, 2025

By October 2016, I decided to trade in our Chery Fulwin. I had also made up my mind that the new car should be something like an SUV or crossover; in short, a taller vehicle. My hips ached, and I wasn’t (and still am not) getting any younger or any slimmer. Around that time, Renault began an advertising campaign that included all the dealers in Montevideo, offering minor price rebates, improved trade-in values, and the opportunity to test-drive any model and version you wished. So, I went to the event and asked to drive two of their cars. They were very easy to get into and out of. The Stepway, being the “SUV” version, had a little more height and was even easier for me. The more expensive versions had tilting steering columns and height-adjustable seats.

On the downside, the car was too noisy—engine, wheels, body—and the steering was heavy. It was a Renault (I’d never been too enthusiastic about them), it was a Sandero (in fact, the lowest-cost car in several countries in Europe), and the ergonomics weren’t great. For example, the window switches were in two pairs: one on the driver’s door and the other on the dashboard.

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Car Show Classic: 1941 Cadillac Series 67–General Motors Asserts Its Dominance in Yet Another Niche

Aaron65

– Posted on March 21, 2025

I’m in the middle of reading Thomas Bonsall’s excellent Cadillac: The American Standard. Published in 1993, it arrived at my local library by interlibrary loan from the Michigan Historical Library in our capital of Lansing, MI. It smells for all the world like a book that has sat on a shelf for years without being opened, a first edition that the late author obviously obsessed over, a labor of love. And although few readers will appreciate his work, its quality is evident. Just like this 1941 Cadillac’s.

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Curbside Classic: 1968 Ford Ranch Wagon – Did Anybody Care?

Jason Shafer

– Posted on March 21, 2025

Louis Gendron! That’s all I could think of when I spied this ’68 Ford Ranch Wagon at a four-way stop down the street.

I’m uncertain whether I ever met the man or not. However, seeing this wagon showered me in a tsunami of a mixture of forgotten, pleasant, and bewildering childhood memories. The subconscious definitely has a way of reminding you who is in charge of your psyche.

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Vintage Snapshots: Trucks In The 1950s-1960s

Rich Baron

– Posted on March 21, 2025

Text by Patrick Bell.

Our feature today is another chapter in our series of trucks. There is a good variety of both pleasure and working units in a nice variety of locales, so let the tour begin.

We will begin with a bruised, one eyed, V8 powered ’55 Ford F-250 with a stake type cage on the bed. It likely was a farmer or rancher’s hard working friend. Other than the cosmetic issues it looks in good shape, sits level, no obvious rust, so it may have lived in a warm climate. The missus was riding along that day.

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Curbside Classic: 1961 Peugeot 403 – Oh, Just One More Thing…

Tatra87

– Posted on March 21, 2025

I thought I’d get the obligatory Columbo reference out of the way in the title. The Peugeot 403 is chiefly associated with that show for a lot of you, I suspect. For those of us who were born on a different continent however, these Pugs are definitely not unkempt two-door cabriolets driven by a guy in a raincoat. Though they can be raincoat beige, as this one probably is under all that grime.

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Curbside Classics: ’65 Toyota Stout And ’70s Dyna – Toyota Workhorses Still Earning A Living

Rich Baron

– Posted on March 21, 2025

In recent days a couple of old hardworking Toyotas have become regulars in my San Salvador neighborhood. From what I see, both still earning a daily living. We’ll start with the more familiar, relatively speaking, to American eyes: A ’64-’66 Stout –Toyota’s light truck entry model, briefly sold in the US from ’64 to ’69.

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Did Air Conditioning Kill The Convertible?

Aaron Severson

– Posted on March 21, 2025

Front 3q view of a white 1964 Pontiac Bonneville with the top up, with whitewall tires and 8-lug wheels

1964 Pontiac Bonneville convertible with factory air / RM Sotheby’s

If you read a lot of automotive histories, you’ll frequently encounter the contention that the growing popularity of factory air conditioning on American cars in the 1960s and early 1970s led to the downfall of the convertible. Was that actually true? The data isn’t so persuasive.

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My 1988 Ford Ranger – The Wee Truck

DougD

– Posted on March 20, 2025

(first posted 7/18/2014) This is a story about a relationship that began and ended with shouting.

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Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! Great Lakes Dragway 1970

Kevin Martin

– Posted on March 20, 2025

(first posted 3/5/2014) It was early June in 1970. I had just graduated from college, with honors no less, and was kinda’ wondering what my next step in life would be. Read the rest of this entry »

Curbside Classic: 1971 Buick Electra 225 – A Texan Socialite

William Stopford

– Posted on March 20, 2025

The skies were grey and the roads were slick. Storms had lashed Brisbane before easing into a mere drizzle and the endless concrete and bitumen of Gympie Road looked dreary and monochromatic under the pallid sky. Then, a flash of colour! In a sea of whites, blacks and greys, a grand, lime green car appeared. Read the rest of this entry »

Vintage Snapshots: What’s In The Driveway? – Cars In The Suburbs 1960s-1970s

Rich Baron

– Posted on March 20, 2025

Text by Patrick Bell.

The calendar says spring is here in the northern hemisphere, so today we are going to cruise around and see what is in some driveways. It is always fun to see how people live, especially in the past, so let’s get right to it.

The first stop is a Ford driveway on a nice summer day. In the foreground is a ’72 Gran Torino 2 door hardtop, the first year both of a restyle and the ‘Gran’ name in front of the ‘Torino’. It has a vinyl roof and what appears to be a Minnesota license plate. In front of it is a ’71 or ’72 Country Squire, one of the more popular people haulers of that era.

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Curbside Classic: 1986 Saleen Ford Mustang

Allan F

– Posted on March 20, 2025

The quad lights and original paint make this a rare one

The Fox is one of the most widely loved Mustang platforms, made up of cars that ran from 1979-1993. In its time there were a number of variants, special editions, body styles, and aftermarket tuners. However, one that I’ve had a soft spot for I spotted a while ago, the Saleen Ford Mustang. With a recent article from the Car and Driver archive showing up on my feed, I decided to look into what really made these Mustangs special.

From the get-go it is clear this isn’t a regular Mustang GT. Equipped with an aggressive aero kit from front to back, a spoiler bordering on scandalous, BBS style aluminum wheels, and a unique paint job it could be spotted from a distance. This particular car is a pre-1987, as shown most easily by the quad headlights that were on the Mustangs from ’79-’86. Starting in ’87 when the car was facelifted, they featured the aerodynamic lenses that Ford started pushing to all of its cars. The model year of 1986 for this particular car was taken from the license plates as this still wears its original California plate.

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Two Dozen Green Cars And Trucks To Mark The Start of Spring

Aaron Severson

– Posted on March 20, 2025

Left side view of a Sassy Grass Green 1970 Plymouth AAR 'Cuda

1970 Plymouth AAR ‘Cuda in Sassy Grass Green / Mecum Auctions

March 20, 2025, is the March equinox, which is the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. With green returning to the landscape (in some parts of the world, at least), CC offers a spring bouquet of two dozen green cars and trucks.

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