"quittywhip" (quittywhip)
12/02/2013 at 18:10 • Filed to: Down on the Street, San Francisco, project car hell, the land that rust forgot, california, carport
7
8|
"quittywhip" (quittywhip)
12/02/2013 at 18:10 • Filed to: Down on the Street, San Francisco, project car hell, the land that rust forgot, california, carport | 7
| 8 |
I can't believe how wonderful the cars are here! Sure, I've been to CA and other western states before. I've driven down to Florida and gawked at the mini trucks and low riders and other donked-out monstrosities.
I'm used to being stuck on the highway in a sea of beige-washed luxury SUVs, leased Acuras and Infinitis, or near the bar where some NJ guidofolk step out of white 3 series and C-Classes sporting LV & Prada wares with their warmup pants.
So forgive me if I blow this out of proportion, but even after a few weeks I'm not used to seeing 70s & 80s Japanese cars still scrambling around the hills of this city. While I contemplate whether I have the dedication or ability to consistently articulate my thoughts on the cars here regularly, enjoy this quick post with some low-quality photos of what I've seen here over the past two weeks
I stepped out of the moving van down in the Mission district, and the first car to pass me is a perfect FD RX7!
Across the street was a pretty nice Ford Econoline (which I later found was serving as an interim home for someone-more on that later)
I went over to the storage unit to unload the rest of said moving truck and found this rather unremarkable but quirky Infiniti M30 convertible.
According to the plate, this X19 was owned by "A DZINER"
I keep seeing a lot of older Datsun, Mazda and Toyota pickups around.
300zxs are aplenty here in the bay. I see at least one of these daily!
...and a Fiat 500 thrown in for good measure!
Not one, but two Dakar Yellow E36 M3's spotted within a few blocks of each other!
I know you might say this Integra isn't special, but in NJ, we can't park these anywhere without having them stolen (so it seems).
A gorgeous E24 sits on Harrison St most weekdays
Quick shot of an early SR5 Corolla while it was pulling away from a light
A near perfect 80's Landcruiser parked on 17th and Folsom
A Brat parked in the Mission all alone
A driver revs his Datsun at a traffic light, getting my attention
A classic Celica trails a sun-baked blue Beetle down Harrison St
A FJ40 sits behind a gate in a utility company's lot.
The sheer amount of CRXs that still populate the streets around here amazes me, so I figure this Si deserved mention as well.
A regal, and somehow modest fin tail Mercedes sits parked on 17th & Treat
Vintage Datsun and Nissans dot the streets as well. This minty red one is a great example.
It wouldn't be California without the regular Beetle sighting. (No, I don't recall what the owner was asking for it.)
A 912 crosses 17th and heads north on Harrison St
San Francisco is the year round home to many burning man buses, many of which are also year round homes.
A 1981 Civic parked next to me at the auto parts store but I didn't find the owner.
An Alfa Spider with a hardtop that I didn't know existed
SF is also home to many old Toyota vans, both Previas and the preceding 80's minivans.
A Vanagon Synchro parked outside my front door.
The old, the rare, and the strange cars that still roam around this city are constantly grabbing my attention.
Every single day, I see at least a few cars that simply do not exist any longer in the Northeast. I think that the existence of some of these old cars in a state where emissions and registration fees make it hard to justify owning older, but not "vintage" cars, says something about the northeast (specifically NJ/NYC where I had lived for my entire life). The brand-conscious idea of having the latest and greatest triggers many drivers in the northeast to lease or often trade in their entry level (think C Class, 3 Series, A4, etc) often to try and 1-up their neighbor/adversaries/coworkers. This is also present in the voracious rates of acquisition of luxury SUVs among the 'real housewives' segment in NJ as well.
I digress.
What I meant to say is that, out in SF, at least in the city, the rat race of 'who's going to be the first high school student with the new CLA' is less present. Instead, hipsters, burners, a large hispanic population, and others lend to the idea that there is a certain virtue in keeping these old and strange cars around.
I can't wait to get settled in here, because I know I'll be coming home with a set of keys to an awesome project car hell soon.
also: Prius drivers don't understand my enthusiasm.
|
quittywhip
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 18:13 |
|
Also: Karman Ghia!
phenotyp
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 18:15 |
|
Defintely the most interesting collection of cars in the states. My studio is actually right down the road from that X1/9. There's also a white E30 M3 around the corner from there pretty often, as well as a pristine silver 300ZX.
|
quittywhip
> phenotyp
12/02/2013 at 18:18 |
|
Yeah, I'm staying on Harrison & Mariposa for the moment, so we're in the same locale.
Stef Schrader
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 18:26 |
|
Ha! Awesome license plate is awesome.
CCC (formerly CyclistCarCoexist)
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 18:47 |
|
It's the retirement place for cars that make them still feel like they just came out of the showroom.
mannytranny
> phenotyp
12/02/2013 at 19:11 |
|
my buddy Niels and I have been photo'ing interesting cars on the streets of San Francisco for awhile just for fun. google search "mannytranny" and we will pop up on facebook and elsewhere. EG: This beater #original #Mustang convertible has been for sale on Portola for a couple of years now
TheJWT
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 19:24 |
|
Very cool, I love finding quirky old cars like these! To 99% of people they're just "some old car", but they're all special to me.
thebigbossyboss
> quittywhip
12/02/2013 at 22:32 |
|
Wow wow. Here in Ontario, it's kinda like NJ. All new suv's and camry's. Enough to make you want to die. Those are great looking cars!! I should move somewhere nicer!