(Found In) Clawson (Oakland, California): 1973 Lincoln Continental 4 Door Sedan

photo 2Much can be said for the foreboding presence that many a vintage domestic luxury sedan exudes. With forty-plus years of changing automotive trends, a premium offering like a 1973 Lincoln Continental perhaps tells even more of a story compared to when they were new.

As a cross between 1960’s restraint and 1970’s isolation, these Continentals struck a Goldilock’s “just right” once you got past the intimidating presentation.

Continue reading “(Found In) Clawson (Oakland, California): 1973 Lincoln Continental 4 Door Sedan”

(Found In) The Dogpatch (San Francisco, California): 1967 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Sports Coupe

image (4)Although late to the heart of the intermediate market, General Motors soon ruled the roost in mid-sized car offerings. Of course, Chevrolet held the reputation of offering a sensible, stylish way to step into new car ownership. Once the segment of the market was discovered, it took no time for Chevrolet to field an entry. No doubt, the Chevelle Malibu Hardtop proved to be a familiar favorite almost from the beginning.

After all, the Chevelle Malibu fit into a size slot vacated by one of the most popular used cars of the early 1960’s: the 1955-56-57 standard Chevrolet. For many a buyer graduating from used cars to their first new cars, the Chevelle proved to be a perfect choice.
Continue reading “(Found In) The Dogpatch (San Francisco, California): 1967 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Sports Coupe”

(Found In) Uptown-Northgate (Oakland, California) 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Convertible

14870503304_33bc4e5b89_h The call to let the sunshine in and dawn the Age of Aquarius was a decade turning herald call. However, the sun was about to set on the American Convertible as the 1970’s plowed on. In the personalization and self-actualization days of the early 1970s, the coddling comforts of Air Conditioning, tinted glass and vinyl roofs conferred more savvy than free in-the-breeze sporty, top down motoring. Sunroofs and too many sunburns lead people away from top down motoring in the way it had been embraced in the past.

As sporting life gave way to laps of luxuries, convertibles fell on their swords one by one. One of the last rousing relative successes of the genre was the burgeoning darling of the middle of the market, the much beloved Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme.
Continue reading “(Found In) Uptown-Northgate (Oakland, California) 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Convertible”

(Found In) Civic Center (San Francisco, California): 1985 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale 4 Door Sedan

imageIn so many ways for the last rear-wheel drive Oldsmobile 88, it was the same at the ending as it was at the beginning. Once the star of the horsepower race, over time the Oldsmobile 88 became your average middle class car for Ordinary People. It wasn’t so much a fall from grace one might expect. Moreso the manifestation was consistent conservatism for Lansing’s biggest bread and butter loaf.

For 35+ years, the 88 gave reliable doses of 6 passenger comfort, smooth rides, quiet operation and a decent surge of V8 power. Soon enough though, the double-eight badging would have little significance as the march of badge engineering acted as a stick of dynamite against the GM Sloan ladder from the 1920s. It continued to splinter and crack under the weight of more profits and more competition for a shrinking class of buyer.

Continue reading “(Found In) Civic Center (San Francisco, California): 1985 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale 4 Door Sedan”