Arbitrary Oppo Questions

"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile) 01/29/2020 at 10:38 • Filed to: None

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Which looks better from the rear , the ‘73 LeMans, or the ‘74 LeMans?

I’m leaning toward the ‘73 looking better, but it has (arguably) fewer flattering angles (back top being VERY MUCH one of them) .

The altered lights and trunk accentuate the fender line on the ‘74 very well in a rear quarter view in a way I can’t really articulate.

Bonus round: ‘73 vs. ‘74 Safari?

(joke/splitting hairs: apparently they literally only changed the bumper)

Nothing > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:41

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‘73 for sure.

facw > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:44

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‘73 in both cases.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:47

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‘67

Stapleface-Now Hyphenated! > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:48

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I think I prefer the 74.

As for the Safari, that looks quite similar to the 76 Malibu wagon I traveled around in as a child.  Jump seats seemed so cool as a child.  Looking back, they were probably a death trap.  

and 100 more > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:50

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I’m having a hard time, I kinda like both. 73 emphasizes the width ( dat ass ), but like you said, the 74 lights flow into the fender.

I think i lean marginally toward the 74, if only because the taillights don’t look like Camaro leftovers.

Side note: Can you put the 73 bumper on the 74?

phenotyp > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:51

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73 every day and twice on Sunday.

jimz > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:51

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‘73, if only because it doesn’t have the 5 mph battering ram that the ‘74 needed.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > and 100 more 01/29/2020 at 10:51

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‘73 bumper on ‘74 and other mix’n’match ideas were what fueled this, actually. Me wondering if there was a way to combine the lights (not really) and things like a ‘74 trunk on a ‘73 or the bumper swap.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 01/29/2020 at 10:52

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SHUT THE HELL UP YOU NON-QUESTION-ANSWERER

shop-teacher > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:52

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Definitely ‘73.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:52

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I like the 73 more,. Those horizontal tails are cool. 

and 100 more > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:54

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I like the way you’re thinking.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > jimz 01/29/2020 at 10:55

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My own inclination is, “’73 if Sport Coupe, maybe ‘74 if Luxury if I can put on a ‘73 bumper”.

WilliamsSW > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 10:57

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1965.

In high school, a good friend of mine had a 1973 4 door sedan. In beige. And rusting. It was the ugliest car I’d ever seen, and she beat the shit out of it. Those taillights are awful.

Full disclosure- I HATE the colonnade cars, they represented the death of all good things (true hardtops and convertibles).

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Nothing 01/29/2020 at 10:58

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The only problem I have with the ‘73 is that the trunk lid kind of looks like a big blank space from some angles, and doesn’t put the fenders into relief. And yet, the ‘74 Vette does that successfully re: the fenders, and I kind of don’t like it.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > WilliamsSW 01/29/2020 at 11:05

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The ‘65 has a little too much GM Box #2 going on for me in all but the coupe, though I can’t hate it. Kind of wish there was a more fastback-ey option.

Yeah, the ‘73 four door proportions are kind of... drunk, even though I kind of like the lights.

My bird IS the word > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:06

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‘74. The angle really is important there, wow.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:07

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For Sweden > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:08

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1973

It’s not close

I’m offended you would even ask

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:13

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this one

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/29/2020 at 11:17

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Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:17

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The blue one looks terrible. Also,

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > For Sweden 01/29/2020 at 11:17

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Your mom asked

Last night

Trebek

For Sweden > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:18

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She does care for the well being of cancer patients.

WilliamsSW > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:19

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The 64-65 A body sedans aren’t pretty - frankly, from 64-77, only the 66-67 sedans work in my opinion.

I’m biased because my first car was a 65 Cutlass, second was a 65 Skylark, and my first ride in a muscle car was in a 65 GTO ( nightwatch blue, white interior, 4 speed, perfect — and my classmate painted it bright red and swapped the interior to black - in 1984)

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > My bird IS the word 01/29/2020 at 11:19

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Yeah, my take is that the ‘73 gets tantalizingly close to pulling off an E-type style sexybutt but just looks weird at some angles, while the ‘74 is classy, so it’s a hard pick.

Most people going hard for the ‘73 confirms my suspicion that the first impression of the good angle is a “DAYEM” that tends to override any further thought.

jimz > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:20

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it might actually bolt  up, but because they changed the location of the license plate and the shape of the rear panel, it would need a custom made filler to hide the gaps.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:21

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73 looks sportier, the 74 looks a bit more luxury oriented.

Although my favorite of the A-body Colonnade Coupes is probably this particular Malibu Laguna-upgraded pro-touring car by Sean Rich.

I imagine that similar things are possible with all of the various Colonnade coupes, Pontiac, Buick, and Olds, which each had their own interesting styling cues and special trim models.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/29/2020 at 11:22

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The Cutlass hatch annoys me, because it does a lot of things right, but insists on using the ugly square lights, and I don’t like them even on a normal Cutlass.

ranwhenparked > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:23

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Id go with the 73, but the 74 does have one of the best integrations of the 5mph crash bumpers ever done. Especially for being so early after the reg started.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > For Sweden 01/29/2020 at 11:23

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It’s important to know their opinion on ‘73/’74 Pontiacs, just like everyone else.

jimz > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:23

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here’s a no-brainer: ‘73 Thunderbird or ‘74?

“Fuck it, we’ll just use a piece of highway barrier.  But stamp in some “wings” so it looks like we styled it.”

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. 01/29/2020 at 11:25

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This is the kind of sophisticated answer and topic change I was looking for.

WilliamsSW > jimz 01/29/2020 at 11:27

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  The first few years of 5 mph bumpers are an unmitigated shitshow on all cars.

And the 73 T bird is sharp so of course it was ruined ( my grandpa drove a 72 for a long time).

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > jimz 01/29/2020 at 11:27

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“Also, let’s make sure nobody can see the actual fucking sub-marque logo unless an oldster is backing toward them at night. Behold, the emblem in relief of your 5mph geriatric doom”

jimz > WilliamsSW 01/29/2020 at 11:35

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“shitshow” is being generous.

GM, I think, was actually somewhat better across the board. The “corner strike” requirement added in 1974 (a 5 mph angled impact couldn’t damage the lights) really screwed a lot of Fords which had the headlamps all the way on the edge/corner.

Also horribly screwed were a lot of German and Japanese cars.

WilliamsSW > jimz 01/29/2020 at 11:38

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Yeah, when you ask yourself whether the worst of it came from Chrysler, Ford, or GM, you eventually realize that the answer is “ yes, plus all of the German, Japanese, and British imports, as well as all the others).

I occasionally get a twinge of nostalgia for malaise era cars, but really I hate them. 

My bird IS the word > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:40

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Much cooler tail lights but it doesnt match the slope of  the trunk.

Chariotoflove > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 11:47

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Okay, I’m back

I’m sorry, what was the original question?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > My bird IS the word 01/29/2020 at 11:56

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What if you filled in the holes and put on a ‘74 wagon bumper and hatch trim? Or, extended the light line across the “dead spot” of the trunk tang with some kind of trim?

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 12:44

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It’s so peculiar. And no doubt, woefully underpowered. My great uncle Fred had one.

slipperysallylikespenguins > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 13:19

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73 for sure, it has a much smoother look. Looks a bit more european.

I had never seen that top rear view before but damn that looks good. Especially with those little exhaust pipes sticking out.

My bird IS the word > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 01/29/2020 at 13:34

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I think you are going too deep on this... Lol

ranwhenparked > jimz 01/29/2020 at 15:10

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Pretty sure Checker used an actual guardrail piece

jimz > WilliamsSW 01/29/2020 at 15:22

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I dunno, I looked back and it seems like Chrysler fared the best. Yes, their bumpers got bigger in ‘73 and ‘74, but on the whole every single one of them still looks reasonably well integrated.

More I look at them, it’s likely because when they implemented the 5 mph bumpers they also changed the front and rear styling, whereas Ford and others just slapped a new bumper on the existing design.  That’s the only explanation for that horrendous jutting thing on the Comet. 

WilliamsSW > jimz 01/29/2020 at 15:30

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I do agree that Chrysler did better, generally, though the Dart/Valiant was pretty bad. The big Mopars were probably least bad of anything. I’d say that Ford was probably worse than GM overall, too - but GM has so many different cars, it’s a mixed bag.  A few of those were ugly cars even before 5 mph bumpers were slapped on.

Foreign cars were mostly diving boards added as an after thought, like your examples.