I owned a 504 of this vintage in the early 90s, and they were a not uncommon sight back then. However, I haven't seen one on the street here for at least ten years... so why have I found two of them in East Bay self-service junkyards in the last few months? Where are they coming from? Hopeless Hell Projects finally ousted by enraged spouses and/or landlords? This one has plenty of good parts left, from trim pieces to the Problematique transmission, but it seems unlikely that anyone around these parts will claim them. (At this moment, a reader in Senegal is clawing at his computer screen, attempting to will those rust-free Pug parts around the world to his garage.)

Send an email to Murilee Martin, the author of this post, at murilee@jalopnik.com.