Dream cars

[twocorgis]

I remember feeling deceived when I found out what was (to me) basically the same car was available under different brand names.

In this case it does seem like there were both Ford and Mercury Capris available at various times, unlike (for example) the Pinto and Bobcat.

It was sold as the Ford Capri in Europe.

Ford Capri - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Guildedagain]

On the street, with only him in the car, he could do wheelies in first gear.

Lil Red wagon

 

[adorshki]

Days of future passed, Zeppelin on wheels

Quite a story.

Dymaxion: How this radical 1930s car changed vehicle design

Fuel-efficient and powered by alcohol, 1933's zeppelin-shaped Dymaxion car was decades ahead of its time.

www.cnn.com

Now that's the original Steely Dan.

 

[adorshki]

I want a SubTropolis Cave Maverick:

"In the early 1970s, Ford Motor Company was producing the Maverick, a compact car marketed as an affordable and efficient vehicle. However, the demand for the Maverick was not as high as Ford had anticipated, and they found themselves with a surplus of unsold cars.

To deal with this surplus, Ford decided to store thousands of unsold Mavericks in the SubTropolis caves located in Kansas City, Missouri. SubTropolis is a man-made underground complex of limestone mines, covering over 55 million square feet, and is home to many businesses that use the caves for storage and other purposes.

Ford leased about 25 acres of the cave complex, which was ideal for storing the cars as the caves are naturally climate-controlled with temperatures ranging between 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. The cars were kept in the caves until they could be sold, which reportedly took several years.

The storage of the Mavericks in the SubTropolis caves became somewhat of a legend in the automotive world, with many car enthusiasts and historians fascinated by the idea of thousands of unsold cars sitting underground for years. Today, the SubTropolis complex is still in use, and while the Mavericks are no longer stored there, the story of their time underground remains a unique piece of automotive history."

And the caves themselves would have doubtless been earmarked for utilization by that visionary of futurological science, Dr. Werner von Strangelove:

 

[twocorgis]

I want aSubTropolis Cave Maverick:

"In the early 1970s, Ford Motor Company was producing the Maverick, a compact car marketed as an affordable and efficient vehicle. However, the demand for the Maverick was not as high as Ford had anticipated, and they found themselves with a surplus of unsold cars.

To deal with this surplus, Ford decided to store thousands of unsold Mavericks in the Subtropolis caves located in Kansas City, Missouri. Subtropolis is a man-made underground complex of limestone mines, covering

over 55 million square feet, and is home to many businesses that use the caves for storage and other purposes.

Ford leased about 25 acres of the cave complex, which was ideal for storing the cars as the caves are naturally climate-controlled with temperatures ranging between 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. The cars were kept in the caves until they could be sold, which reportedly took several years.

The storage of the Mavericks in the Subtropolis caves became somewhat of a legend in the automotive world, with many car enthusiasts and historians fascinated by the idea of thousands of unsold cars sitting underground for years. Today, the Subtropolis complex is still in use, and while the Mavericks are no longer stored there, the story of their time underground remains a unique piece of automotive history."

Ha! My first car was a 1970 Ford Maverick that looks a lot like this one. 170 CI six, automatic, and an absolutely dreadful car. even my next one, a Ford Pinto station wagon with a four speed, was a step up, and that was a POS too.

Pinto looked just like this, minus the whitewalls.

Drove it for 100K, and it had no compression left by then. At least it didn't explode like the sedans and hatchbacks did!

 

[davismanLV]

My mom had a Mercury Capri back in the mid-70's. Nice little car. Built in Germany I believe.

 

[JohnW63]

I had a Pinto "Roundabout" which is what they called their hatchback. Now I can't say that name without Jon Anderson singing in my head.

 

[GGJaguar]

 

[twocorgis]

That photo could give someone a seizure!

 

[davidbeinct]

Must be one of those optical illusions, I don’t see a car.

 

[Guildedagain]

I had a Pinto "Roundabout" which is what they called their hatchback. Know I can't say that name without Jon Anderson singing in my head.

This was fabulous then, fabulous now. It's two songs, the 2nd part really takes off.

 

[Guildedagain]

 

[adorshki]

My mom had a Mercury Capri back in the mid-70's. Nice little car. Built in Germany I believe.

They were actually great cars for the time. Ford's "Cologne" V-6 was highly respected. Block casting was even used to handle the high the high stresses of supercharging the Thunderbird SuperCoupe engine. A classic "bullet-proof" motor.

 

[adorshki]

I had a Pinto "Roundabout" which is what they called their hatchback. Know I can't say that name without Jon Anderson singing in my head.

It was the Runabout, not a "Round"about. Most Americans still have no clue what a roundabout is, even now, 50+ years later.

 

[fronobulax]

It was the Runabout, not a "Round"about. Most Americans still have no clue what a roundabout is, even now, 50+ years later.

I have three or four within 2 miles and plans for at least two more within that same radius.

A nearby town installed a couple and they are somewhat of a laughingstock since the radius is the smallest that would get approved for semi-trailers and that, in practice, is too small. The semis don't respect the curbs even if the driver wants to. It has been suggested, perhaps cynically, that the design decisions were made to support an eventual ban on truck traffic on several streets. The neighbors who have not moved out in the last decade are still annoyed that they have a big box store as a neighbor.

 

[adorshki]

I have three or four within 2 miles and plans for at least two more within that same radius.

A nearby town installed a couple and they are somewhat of a laughingstock since the radius is the smallest that would get approved for semi-trailers and that, in practice, is too small. The semis don't respect the curbs even if the driver wants to. It has been suggested, perhaps cynically, that the design decisions were made to support an eventual ban on truck traffic on several streets. The neighbors who have not moved out in the last decade are still annoyed that they have a big box store as a neighbor.

Yeah, I've seen studies that show they'd improve traffic flow massively in a lot of places, but retro-fitting would raise so many probs it's traditionally been a non-starter.

 

[davismanLV]

So I’m sitting here gambling at a local pub (amazing food) and on Marketplace I see this!!!

 

[davismanLV]

Oh hell!! We gotta another one!!! Wooo hooo!!

 

[GGJaguar]

So I’m sitting here gambling at a local pub (amazing food) and on Marketplace I see this!!!

That's 2 tons of fun right there!

 

[GGJaguar]

Oh hell!! We gotta another one!!! Wooo hooo!!

A Sea Foam Green dream!