DOTS: B-R-O-W-N Edition (Value Pack!)

"Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available" (whoistheleader2)
05/20/2020 at 22:06 • Filed to: Dots

Yes, there is much brown in today’s DOTS. There is more that isn’t brown but I had a hard time coming up with a unifying theme.

To keep things sensible let’s start with the brown.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen a Lebaron at all, much less one in this good of condition. It had some character marks all around and the interior is a bit scuffed, but it really is remarkable. The odometer showed 30,000 hard miles but I would guess it is somewhere more around 130,000 careful miles. I mean look at those wire wheels. They have never once met a curb!

While we’re there, this body style of Mustang has never appealed to me or really that many others for that matter. I never see these on the road.

I’ve never noticed this shop before but I am also pushing the boundaries of easy dog walking distance in all directions. Turk was very happy to get such a long walk.

I’ve been meaning to check out this slammed Merc but I got the chance today. That is one mean looking executive saloon. Just look at that wheel tuck!

I am really tempted to just gloss over the Skyline, so I will. I’ve featured it before. Yes, it is a four door.

Since I was just walking by, I peeked through the fence into the back lot at Koru Works, where I saw that illegal Silvia a few days ago.

That is some JDM goodness right there. I haven’t seen the gray S13 Silvia before and I think that is an S110 Silvia behind it in blue. No idea about the red car. There was also a chopped up VW Cabrio for some reason.

Who needs to steer anyways? Not I. Considering the number of large bumps and railroad level crossings around, I can see why the tires are worn so bad on the outer lip where they rub against the flares. Great color though. This is a custom paint, right?

Just some big old barges hanging out. I think I’ve seen the Chonk Donk before (I made this up but that should totally be an actual name for a donk).

The world’s loudest Ford Bronco. I’ve seen it three times in as many days so I should know. It goes beyond loud. Even beyond ear bleeding. The sound enters through your ear and goes straight to your soul, rending it apart without mercy and forcing you to submit to the terrible number of decibels rapidly filling every inch of your body. You can’t even hear the sound anymore, just the intense throbbing pain of your ear drums. And that is when it is the next street over.

Some miscellaneous.

This building is ripe for a crashin’.

How has Oppo been? Whew that was a lot of DOTS. I even had to cut out the doggo.

Since there is a lot of it, how about you choose the car you would most like to drive.

DISCUSSION (13)

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/20/2020 at 22:22

MB W109 could be slammed - that’s actually a thing with old MB sedans, could also be failed air suspension. These cars had air suspension from the factory, which I guess makes them easy to slam intentionally or otherwise.

The Lincoln Town Coupe beside the donk Crown Vic is pretty rare, only MY 1980-81 I think , peak malaise.

K-Car cabrios are amusing things, they got a lot of mileage out of that platform. Used in a fe w 80s movies, too.

WilliamsSW > fintail
05/20/2020 at 22:28

Came here to suggest the W109 might just be a failed air suspension.

Also that K car is an early one- by 1986 or so, they gained a rear quarter window.

fintail > WilliamsSW
05/20/2020 at 22:32

That sounds right, maybe even by like 85. They make me think of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (I think that one was an 86). People seem to have embraced them, just several years after it was believed American convertibles were dead.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
05/20/2020 at 22:51

The Lebaron top was only in so so condition and I imagine replacements are hard to find.

Oh yeah I forgot that even the early ones had air suspension. Very advanced for the era. Maybe that’s why it has been sitting in front of a shop. It did look pretty cool though.

That’s the second town car coupe I’ve seen this week. The shape is familiar you almost overlook the two door shape. Kind of like the two door non Solara Camry.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/20/2020 at 23:10

I suspect one would might have to get a custom made top for the LeBaron. Maybe not too difficult, probably a necessity for many older cars.

Those MBs were indeed high tech when new - disc brakes, fuel injected V8 etc, but high running costs, and the suspension was finicky. That led many to be neglected, but as a hobby car, they can be workable. That one one looks decent save from the ride height. MB a ir suspension was introduced with the W112 fintail in 1961.

There was a Town Coupe in the 70s too, looked mildly similar. The downsized one was offered for short period, then Lincoln coupes were Continental-only, a very angular design, before going aero for 84. Kind of a shame mainstream coupes (like a Camry) went away, but they aren’t too practical, I don’t desire one.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
05/20/2020 at 23:14

The personal luxury coupe seemed to die off with a generation. I wonder if two doors will ever come back? They aren't too practical, especially compared to crossover SUVs and CUVs, but there have been ebbs and flows in the popularity of less practical cars. Then again, most people don't need practicality.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/20/2020 at 23:16

The generation (maybe like my mom’s demographic, women now in their 70s who eventually wanted something more practical too - she once had a Thunderbird she loved) indeed moved on.

Modern equivalents might be the 4-door “coupes”, and especially the derpy CUV fastback “ coupes” .

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
05/20/2020 at 23:26

Haha yes people are buying different sorts of impractical cars. My brothers girlfriend bought a new Toyota CHR for something like $16 ,000 (under MSRP i think) which if you think about it, that is a whole lot of style for the money. Not a style I buy into, but style. That and fuel efficiency is less dependent on light weight might have an effect on it.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/20/2020 at 23:31

CHR might be the ultimate equivalent. And for 16K, a bargain - it is an aesthetic disaster, but for a new Toyota CUV, even one like that, deal. That thing is effectively a modern mass market coupe. Things like the X4/X6 and GLC/GLE coupes are up there too.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
05/20/2020 at 23:41

Ever sat in the back of one? It feels like you are peeping out of a basement window from the back seat. It was a good deal but I despise the car. I can’t believe BMW sells enough of those to justify two sizes of the crossover fastbacks (ha) more based on how much I dislike them than how many I see around. A freshman at my high school was picked up every day in a bright blue BMW X6 M (not even M sport) with California plates, in Georgia. I can’t deny that it was “cool” but I would never buy one.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/21/2020 at 00:12

Never been in one, don’t plan on it. But they are something I might give a wide berth to while on the road, due to their huge blind spots, and maybe attracting a driving demographic not loaded with wherewithal. I am sure it will be reliable, anyway.

The unsightly premium CUV coupe is maybe also the ultimate expression of German niche-chasing. BMW and MB these days are money see-monkey do, one copies the other, back and forth, forever. I doubt turn signals were even optional in an X6M :)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
05/21/2020 at 00:24

Blind spot implies there is visibility in a different direction. There isn’t. Anywhere. Curiously she said she couldn’t see out of Corolla hmmmmm.

Goodnight.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
05/21/2020 at 00:31

I’m glad I live some distance from her :)

‘night