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Look Upon My Works, Ye Mighty, And Despair: The Moloney Coupe
| posts about #1976moloneycoupe more → |
Look Upon My Works, Ye Mighty, And Despair: The Moloney Coupe |
04/27/09
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04/26/09
04/26/09
Also, this 1976 was the last of the large C bodies that started in model year 1971. Introduced a few years before the so called "Malaise era".
No, the years 1970-72 and first 1/2 of 1973 were NOT malaise era. That started with Oil crisis I, Oct. of '73. Some young people assume that the ENTIRE decade was all disco, fuel crisis, and luxo-boats. I'll see postings such as "Vega/Pinto were Detroit's answer to the 70's fuel crisis" or "Muscle Cars died due to Fuel Crisis" and want to throw a brick at the PC.
04/26/09
04/26/09
As to what constitutes the "malaise era" in the auto industry, that strikes me as open to debate. If you don't like government regulation, then tightening emissions standards and the infamous five-mile-per-hour bumper standards are reasonable benchmarks. I'm not knowledgeable enough to pinpoint a year when emissions standards became overly onerous, but the bumpers were required an almost all cars beginning in 1974.
The Pinto/Vega/Gremlin were a response to a dramatic increase in import sales in the late 1960s -- which were further enhanced by a recession in 1970. That recession -- and soaring car insurance rates -- knocked the wind out of "muscle car" sales in 1970-71. Might sales have rebounded in the absence of tighter emissions standards and the first oil embargo of 1973? Possibly. But let's also remember that muscle cars were the 1960's version of SUVs -- they were a fad that would inevitably fall back down to earth.
The reason: A typical muscle car wasn't a terribly good daily driver even for most gearheads.
04/26/09
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Also, I see all the stylistic geegaws displayed here as trademarks of Malaise- and this car is really just a minor tweaking of the horrors already being perpetrated by the big 3 by '71-'72 or so.
04/27/09
04/26/09
Bonus points for double portholes. And it is wonderfully preserved. It will taste sweet to the crusher.
04/26/09
I hope to god he enters an MN12/FN10 in LeMons.
04/26/09
04/26/09
I have to confess that we had a terrible secret in our family. A pimp--no kidding--got shot in Baltimore and never picked up his customization. Which wound up at the race track--horses that is, we're talking Baltimore and pimps, right?--with a for sale sign. The custom job was a diesel Tornado,nice warm brown, with the full fake convertible top in a lighter beige, and a Lincoln late 70s gold plated grille, chrome spokes--not the kind that came on the Tornado, but much, much worse. My old man bought it. Love at first sight, because it was special. Different. It sure attracted attention. Mercifully the GM diesel self-destructed.
So this Caddy? Not a problem. There are guys on the golf course who wouldn't look twice if it glided up.
04/26/09
But we're on the interwebs so I have to say...PICS OR DIDN'T HAPPEN (besides I just want to see it).
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Please don't hate me.
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04/27/09
From 1992 through 1994, many dealers turned the more dignified Topaz and added vinyl roofs with excessive chrome trim and "coat of arms" badges. Ford Motor Company themselves acknowledged the popularity of the vinyl top Topaz and made a rare, limited production version of the Topaz GS Sedan called the Premier.
The only true loss was the lack of opera windows. Synthetic vinyl tops, excessive amounts of chrome, coat of arms badges, all this was to be had through custom dealer creations of the Tempo and Topaz.
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Busted!
Or:-
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04/26/09
Also, authorize this guy's account, postehaste- that was an outstanding DOTSBE writeup.
04/26/09