What is your Favorite Classic?

[Ultra]

What is your favorite vintage ride?

I'll go with the black 1963 Lincoln Continental convertible, well represented in the opening montage from HBO's program Entourage.

You?

[Jagman]

Gotta go with my E-Type, after all..............

[Otto Puzzell]

Too many to chose - I still have a huge interest in getting a big Healey or an AMX.

[Arthur Dent]

I'd have a real hard time picking just one - for now I'm going with a Lotus Elan with yellow.

[Rich]

For me, this is a hard one, not because there are so many choices but because I've been spoiled by the performance and quality available in even the most pedestrian of vehicles these days.  A while back I read a comparison of the muscle cars of the sixties vs. contemporary sedans, a comparison in which the contemporary sedans outperformed many of the iconic "legends" handily.  Up until only recently, I wanted a split-window 'Vette most intensely...then I drove one.  A friend of mine in California had a mid fifties Ferrari I drove a couple of times and was underwhelmed by the experience.  I had another opportunity in Cali to drive a Coddington rod and felt like I was in a circus wagon the whole ride.  I didn't mind the E-type I sat for in Washington, but found it finicky to say the least (part of its "charm" its owner informed me).

So...the choice for me re- "Classic" favorite comes down to simple styling, and nothing says it better than Rambler Rebel.

[D-type]

If I won the lottery there's only one choice for me - A Jaguar XKSS, the road equipped version of the Le Mans winning D-type

[MG]

Well, D-Type is certain a man of discernment. There are any number of Jags that qualify - even some SEE-Dans. But despite my lifelong passion for Jags, I think the Blower Bentley that John Steed drove in The Avengers has GOT to qualify as one of the world's great all time automobiles.  Along with the Auburn Boattail Speedster, of course. And just about any Deusenberg you care to name. How's that for straddling the fence?   

[Tifosi]

I guess I'd have to go with a Citroen Deux Chevaux, Iso or BMW Isetta or maybe a VW Beetle Convertible.  The first two are solutions to specific challenges that had they not been overcome, the motoring world would not be the same as it is today.  The Beetle, while originally a propeganda tool, was much the same thing as the others...if it didn't exist, there would be a lot more people who wouldn't have been able to enjoy the motoring experience we all take for granted.

Somehow, these cars represent character in the face of adversity.  They're elegant solutions to potentially serious situations.  The resiliency of the human spirit through ingenuity is championed in all of them.

I guess I could add the original Mini to this list, and probably others as well, but these three stand out for me.

And, I could buy all three [or four] for less than most "conventional" classics...



Dan

[otto]

This is my favorite Classic car. It's a 1932 Peerless prototype. This is a last gasp from Peerless and it is a tour de force in elegant design. Note the bright work on the fenders. The fenders are aluminum so the painter held the paint back from the edge bead and polished the bead for bright work. Nice. The chassis, engine, body, and all else is aluminum. The car went over 100 MPH at Murock Dry Lake. That was quite an achievement in those days for a big car like this. The design is imo the best of this era.

look here.   http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&rls=GWYF,GWYF:2006-44,GWYF:en&sa=N&resnum=0&q=1932%20peerless%20prototype&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&tab=wi


otto

[vwlarry]

Hello all.  This is my first post here; I was referred to this site by a colleague over at a site called "The Car Lounge", which is part of VWVortex, if anyone here is familiar with it.  So then, what's my favorite classic automobile?  Well, I've already bored thousands of members into near-comas with my soliloquies about my beloved Cord 810/812, so now it's your turn.   Gordon Buehrig's hand was guided by the Almighty, as far as I'm concerned, when he imagined, conceived, designed, and guided into production the single most beautiful automobile yet created (IMO, natch ).  From the day my dad took me, in the middle sixties, to a musty old warehouse/shop in Indiana Harbor, IN to show me "an interesting old car", which turned out to be a decrepit, dust-choked, but whole and complete '36 Westchester sedan, and the old man sitting in the back of the shop invited me (13 at the time) to "get in and turn that little crank on the end of the dashboard, and watch the front fender", I've been head-over-heels in love with this singular automobile.   I'll never own one, but that doesn't matter; I'll never own the Venus de Milo or the Mona Lisa or a Van Gogh either.   Cords, just like thousands of other wonderful and beautiful automobiles from everywhere in the world, are mine right up here in my noodle.  I own them all all long as I can visualize them and think about them and talk about them with other people who truly love great automobiles. 

[Boxer2500]

Great to see you here, Larry. I never tire of looking at Cord photos.

I'll be back in Ohio in a couple of weeks and I'm planning a pilgrimage up to the Auburn Cord Deusenberg museum. I only recently learned of its existence and I just don't think I can call myself a car guy if I don't make the short trip at least once.

[Ultra]

Hello all.  This is my first post here; I was referred to this site by a colleague over at a site called "The Car Lounge", which is part of VWVortex, if anyone here is familiar with it.  So then, what's my favorite classic automobile?  Well, I've already bored thousands of members into near-comas with my soliloquies about my beloved Cord 810/812, so now it's your turn.   Gordon Buehrig's hand was guided by the Almighty, as far as I'm concerned, when he imagined, conceived, designed, and guided into production the single most beautiful automobile yet created (IMO, natch ).  From the day my dad took me, in the middle sixties, to a musty old warehouse/shop in Indiana Harbor, IN to show me "an interesting old car", which turned out to be a decrepit, dust-choked, but whole and complete '36 Westchester sedan, and the old man sitting in the back of the shop invited me (13 at the time) to "get in and turn that little crank on the end of the dashboard, and watch the front fender", I've been head-over-heels in love with this singular automobile.   I'll never own one, but that doesn't matter; I'll never own the Venus de Milo or the Mona Lisa or a Van Gogh either.   Cords, just like thousands of other wonderful and beautiful automobiles from everywhere in the world, are mine right up here in my noodle.  I own them all all long as I can visualize them and think about them and talk about them with other people who truly love great automobiles. 

Larry, check out some of the beautiful automobiles that we feature as puzzles.  I think you will enjoy them.

[Otto Puzzell]

Great to see you here, Larry. I never tire of looking at Cord photos.

I'll be back in Ohio in a couple of weeks and I'm planning a pilgrimage up to the Auburn Cord Deusenberg museum. I only recently learned of its existence and I just don't think I can call myself a car guy if I don't make the short trip at least once.

The Studebaker museum is not too far from there.....about a 2 hour drive.

[Tifosi]

And, it's only a couple hours south to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway museun, as well...lots of famous race cars there, not all Indy and NASCAR types.



Dan

[lynxd67]

No contest. Steve McQueen was a man of taste and a true connoisseur.

[barry2952]

I would agree with the first two posters. The E-type and the slab sides are both very elegant cars and at the top of my list, but I like this one the best.

[Otto Puzzell]

Welcome, Barry! I like your taste in cars. 

[barry2952]

Thank you. I do like toys. Want to see my toybox?

[porridgehead]

Please yes. We like sharing.

[barry2952]

This is my 1951 Royal Spartanette travel trailer that I've converted into a car hauler and air-conditioned lounge.

This site has the complete build documented. Warning: not for dial up users.

http://cardomain.com/ride/340096/5

[porridgehead]

 

That is one hell of a build, destroy, rebuild write up Barry. Very impressive work.

[Ultra]

Very nice, Barry. 

[barry2952]

I'm thinking about putting the trailer up for sale. Any takers?

[porridgehead]

After all that? I fear you won't come even close to breaking even on the rig. Besides, what could you possibly follow that with?

That said, how much are you think of asking? Not for me, but I have some friends who might be interested.

[barry2952]

It's insured and appraised for $150,000. I've got about $80,000 in it excluding my labor. I'm thinking about Barrett-Jackson or an R-M auction.