Vehicle: Ford Fairmont wagon (I believe it's a 1978, as the '79-on models seem to have amber front parking lamps).

Location: Jaffrey, New Hampshire

It's about 100 feet from where I photographed the International Harvester, Thunderbird, and Model A (not the Model T, that was up the street).

Another one I've been stalking, this car's been in town for years, but I haven't caught it street-parked until now. The rub strips on the doors are in interesting condition, as if they're very lightly but completely surface-rusted. My first impression of it was "wow, Ford couldn't even be bothered to make it look like FAKE wood", as it's a brownish color. It wasn't a standard thing, certainly, as this Google-sourced photo shows, but then, it doesn't have the awful black bumper trim either, so it could be a poorly-chosen aftermarket thing.

The cargo area's got tools and a couple bottles of motor oil inside, indicating that the owner works on the car himself (or herself, I suppose). The interior appears to be in decent shape (and matches the exterior, even!), but I couldn't get that good a shot of it, due to the rain (which was steadily increasing while I was shooting the car).

All four dog-dishes are present and accounted for, though one's got a good-sized dent in it, and the body's mostly straight, with only a few small rust patches and impact marks (right front fender, front edge of the hood, and the damage to the left rear door). The emblems, aside from the Ford lettering on the grille, are well on their way to becoming Ghosts of Emblems Past.

Unless, of course, the cargo includes a waterbed and a a few hundred hards of purple shag carpeting!

That means that plenty of fairly solid 1970s Civics go straight to the boneyard as soon as a $300 problem crops up. I think it's a shame, because most of the Civic's competition back in the day (e.g., Corolla, Pinto, Colt) tended to be several notches below the Civic in the "fun to drive" category, and even Toyota felt a bit threatened by the Honda's reliability. I still recall feeling humiliated, 20 years ago, that my girlfriend's '73 Civic could eat up my '73 MGB-GT in every category from acceleration to braking to electrical-system quality (yeah, the last one is a fish-in-a-barrel deal). Here's one I spotted in a nearby self-service yard a few weeks back.

Is that 97,000 miles... or 397,000 miles? The interior was pretty decent, so I'm guessing the lower number is more likely.

Actually, the Arrow did all right for its time, certainly a more interesting car than most of the other vaguely sporty economy machines of the Middle Malaise Era. We wish more Arrows were on the street today, but most were crushed decades ago. Thanks to Joe Hardrock for the tip!

That's right, a British Leyland product has won the coveted IOE! This 1978 Triumph TR7 just kept going around and around and around, received only one black flag all weekend, and suffered from just two major mechanical problems. 46th place, a really cool trophy, and a cool thousand bucks in nickels. Congratulations, Black Knight Racing!

We're going to fix that problem right now! I've finally found a genuine late-70s Chevy Van with authentic stripes and bubble windows. Let's get in the mood to appreciate this fine vehicle with the appropriate song:


Hmmm... that was actually kind of horrible. I was too young to drive back then, but I'm pretty sure Sammy Johns wouldn't have been my choice for custom-van soundtracks. See, that's what happened with Generation X and our damn cynicism and irony- we couldn't appreciate the simple pleasures of purple shag carpeting and CB radio. Anyway, it's good to see this battered but still recognizable Custom Van Era survivor still moving around under its own power.

At a typical high-turnover self-service junkyard, you might see a 928 every couple years. This one has been thoroughly ransacked for interior electrical system components, but all the drivetrain and suspension components are still there. Sadly, it doesn't have a 5-speed transmission.

Gaze upon this relay/fuse panel and tremble, mere mortals! This is one of the many reasons that 928s get honored by Project Car Hell more often than any other car.
From all the leaves and dirt, it appears that this car was someone's long-abandoned Hell Project for a decade or two before finally getting junked. But hey, the last owner was an optimist- check out the condoms, no doubt stockpiled for the glorious day when the car got back on the street. Yes, the ladies can't resist a man in a 928!

Was the '78 the best Mini built during the first couple of decades of production? Raymond Baxter claims that's the case in this British Leyland dealer-training video, with the "fashionable matte black grille" and backup lights as standard equipment, to name just two improvements. Of course, others had ripped off the Mini's innovative front-drive/transverse-engine design by then, but Baxter shows that the Fiesta and Renault 5 just couldn't compete.

In fact, he's shot so many interesting cars and trucks down on the Newport Beach and Costa Mesa streets that I have no choice but to share some of them. We've seen other Tomsk DOTSBE cars before, and we're sure to see more in the future, since rust-free Orange County is loaded to the gunwales with old iron. First up is this trio of Malaise Detroit Iron, with each of the Big Three represented: a 1978 Buick LeSabre, a 1979 Lincoln Continental Mark V, and a 1974 Plymouth Duster. Technically, a Duster isn't a "Yank Tank," but imagine it parked next to some spindly Renault 5 and it might as well have clanking treads and a guy named "Sarge" at the wheel. Here's what Tomsk has to say about these fine machines:

1974 Plymouth Duster: Everybody loves Dusters, possibly because they attract comely young lasses like Ethel, but also because it was such a clean design. My research seems to suggest this is a '74, though the Mopar fanatics are welcome to correct me if need be. It even has the original "Plymouth Division" dog dishes. Le sigh...

1979 Lincoln Mark V: Picture this: It's 1978, and you need a snazzy, two-door way to get from one of your hoes to the next. Price is no object, as your girls make you more scratch than you know what to do with, nor is size, because you were a mildly successful truck driver before you decided to try your hand at pimping.
What to buy? You could get a Rolls Camargue or a Mercedes 450 SLC, but your father had instilled a strong sense of patriotism and respect for the American worker during those formative years where he beat you to a pulp while you cowered helplessly in your crib.
Okay, so it has to be American. A Cadillac Eldorado? No, because when Daddy wasn't wailing on you while pontificating on the evils of foreign goods, he was wailing on you while pontificating on the evils of front-wheel drive. "ONLY RUST-PRONE, COMMIE-MADE SHITBOXES SHOULD HAVE THAT LAYOUT!!!!" he'd bellow as he pummeled your still quite soft cranium with your favorite rattle.
So, no Caddy for you, then. How about the Chrysler Cordoba? That's a non-starter, too, as the accent of that car's pitchman reminds you of the time you caught your mom and the gardner playing "the game only grownups can play."
That leaves...the Lincoln Continental Mark V. But when you get to the Lincoln-Mercury dealer, you don't order any old Mark V. Oh, no sir; you plunk down the extra cash for the mofuggin' Cartier edition. When your customers see that name on the opera windows, they'll say to themselves, "This guy is the real deal. I should probably pay up, because if I don't, he probably will knock me out, stuff me into a safe, and drop aforementioned safe into the river."

Excellent choice, sir. Excellent choice.

Ford's marketers seemed to have a special focus on pitching the Mustang's transformative powers to the ladies. A dowdy, lab-coated scientist- no doubt cooking up new varieties of napalm to drop on Charlie Cong- becomes an irresistible man-magnet when she grabs the keys to a new '68 Mustang, while an '81 turns your average Jane into the Queen Of The Club Herpes Discothèque. We've got some good examples of this in our Top Ten Mustang Ads (plus a bonus pair of Mustang siblings to round out the selection).

You like the old-timey car ads? Oh, we got us plenty more! When you're done here, you can head over to the Top 20 Vintage Renault Ads, Top 20 Vintage GM ads, Top 20 Vintage Chevrolet Ads, Top 20 Vintage Datsun ads, Top 20 Vintage Toyota ads, and Top 20 Vintage Chrysler ads. Not enough for you? Go to the Top Car Commercials Of The 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.

1981 Mustang	1978 Mustang II Ghia	1985 Mustang
1968 Mustang	1986 Mustang	1979 Mustang
1969 Mustang Mach 1	1968 Shelby Mustang GT	1974 Mustang II
1968 Mustang	1980 Mercury Capri	1968 Mercury Cougar

Back in high school and middle school the wedgie (or as we called it, the wedge) was something you most certainly didn't want, under any circumstance and you definitely didn't appreciate it when it came along. But in car design, the wedge is something you can appreciate.

The beautiful and technical shape was used by many of the top design houses of the seventies and was a signal the future had officially arrived. While not the most aerodynamic form in practice, it certainly looked the part and helped usher in a new era of automotive design. Italian design houses ItalDesign, Bertone and Pininfarina were at the forefront of the movement, but the Japanese, Germans and the U.S. jumped on the bandwagon shortly thereafter

10) 1972 Lotus Esprit M70

First displayed at the Turin Motor Show in 1972, the Lotus Esprit M70 was designed by Giugiaro at Ital Design and was built on a widened and lengthened Europa chassis. After positive reviews from the public Colin Chapman decided to put the Esprit into production. The final design was completed in 1973 with many of the concept cues intact and when the then GM owned Lotus decided to build Peter Stevens redesign in 1987, many of those original cues remained.

Fun fact: that you couldn't call yourself a car guy without knowing already: Roger Moore drove a submersible version in the 1977 James Bond movie, The Spy Who Loved Me.

9) 1989 Vector W8

In 1989, after nearly two decades of development, Gerald Wiegert revealed his Vector W8 to the public. Extensive use of aeronautical building techniques were to be W8s selling point, but shoddy quality and a lack of funding eventually brought down the U.S.-built Lamborghini competitor in the mid-nineties. The W8 drew its inspiration from the 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo and many other wedge cars in our list and is still a beautiful car today and you can pick up one of the few examples for a steal; nearly 20 percent of the original $685,000 asking price.

Fun fact: The Vector W8 was featured briefly in the 1993 movie, Rising Sun.

8) 1972 E25 BMW Turbo

The E25 BMW Turbo was initially built to celebrate the upcoming 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, but was later used as the inspiration for the M1, 8-Series, Z1 and the new M1 Homage concept. BMW built the Turbo concept as a rolling display for new safety and engineering technologies as well as showing that BMW had officially left the difficult 60's behind. Penned by BMW's French head of design, Paul Bracq, the Turbo concept was styled after the most dramatic Italian supercars of the day and featured an advanced radar system that warned the driver of close objects such as curbs and cars.

Fun fact: The Turbo featured two BMW badges on the rear – symbolizing BMW's exceptional quality – a cue that made it onto the production M1 and M1 Homage concept.

7) 1978 Dome Zero

Dome was and still is a race car manufacturer in Japan and in 1978 they gave the world the Dome Zero concept at the Geneva Motor Show. Intended to show Dome's intention of building a homologation special for a new line of sportscars; it was unable to pass Japanese homologation. In 1979, Dome debuted a revised Zero, dubbed the P2, with U.S. market bumpers and safety equipment added to the design. In the same year, a racing effort was launched at Le Mans but the ‘Zero RL' failed to finish the race. Shortly after, investors pulled their funds and the Dome Zero was officially dead.

Fun fact: The Dome Zero was featured in Gran Turismo 4, Auto Modellista on the PS2 and Sega GT on the XBOX.

6) 1970 Lancia Stratos Zero

At the 1970 Turin Motor Show, Bertone showed off a styling exercise called the Lancia Stratos Zero. The Lancia Stratos HF roadcar was based very loosely off of this concept though the similarities are few and far between. The futuristic Zero stood 838mm tall and was so low that conventional doors could not be used and to gain access, drivers would have to raise the windshield and walk into the car.

Fun fact: The Stratos Zero appeared in Michael Jackson's 1988 film, Moonwalker.

5) 1972 Maserati Boomerang

In 1971 the Maserati Boomerang was shown at the Turin Motor Show as a mockup and then in 1972 the Geneva Motor Show saw the debut of the fully realized Maserati Boomerang concept. It sat next to the Lotus Esprit M70 as both were designed by Giugiaro at ItalDesign. At 1070mm high, it's not the shortest wedge in the list, but it did have a 15 degree windshield rake – the steepest rake you could achieve while maintaining visibility, albeit very little. ItalDesign used the Boomerang as inspiration when designing the DMC Delorean (most noticeable in the rear view) in the eighties.

Fun fact: Intended as a showcar, the Boomerang was registered as a roadcar and was actually sold in 1974 to a private collector which brings us to 2005 when it was auctioned at Christie's for a cool $1,000,000.

4) 1969 Holden Hurricane RD001

The Holden Hurricane was an experimental concept built in 1969 and was the first product of the GM Holden Research and Development group. The Hurricane's ultra low 990mm stance would have made ingress and egress difficult with traditional doors, so an electro-mechanical powered canopy was used and swung forward over the front wheels. Also included were power elevated seats that both rose up and out of the way along with the steering column to make exiting the Hurricane easier. When climbing into the car the seats would lower to a semi-reclined position and the roof would close overhead.

Fun fact: A similar canopy design was used on both the Saab Aero X and the Batmobile from the Tim Burton Batman movies.

3) 1970 Ferrari PF Modulo

Painted black for the 1970 Geneva Motor Show and then re-sprayed white for its debut at the 1970 Turin Motor Show; the Paulo Martin penned Pininfarina-Ferrari Modulo concept gained quite a reputation and won numerous international design awards – 22 of them – for a car that almost wasn't produced. The cars release was held for over a year because of an apprehensive Sergio Pininfarina. Developed using the Ferrari 512-S racer as a basis, the 935mm high PF Modulo was built to explore new construction technologies and to show off the raw passion of the Italian design house.

Fun fact: Paulo Martin was sketching a Rolls-Royce Camargue dashboard when the idea struck him to make the first sketch of the Modulo. You could say he was more than a little bored with the Rolls.

2) 1971 Lamborghini Countach

Designed by Gandini for Bertone in 1971, the original Lamborghini Countach concept was the most pure version the public would ever see of this car. The wild scissor doors were first seen on another car in our list (the Alfa Romeo Carabo concept) and were used primarily because of the extremely wide chassis, but we think the real reason is because Gandini knew every rice boy would want them on their econo-hatch some day. The Countach name was derived from the dialect of the Piedmont region in northern Italy, literally meaning astonishment and amazement. The pure design of the concept translated loosely into the production LP400 though it was short lived when splitters, wings and U.S. bumper requirements were added to the mix in the LP400S, LP500 and QV models.

Fun fact: The Countach was featured in the 1981 movie, The Cannonball Run, and is one of the most replicated cars to date.

1) 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo

The 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo is the most significant wedge car and paved the way for many of the cars on this list. Designed by Marcello Gandini of Bertone fame, it was revealed at Porte de Versailles in Paris in 1968 to an absolutely stunned crowd. The Lamborghini Countach concept that arrived 3 years later drew inspiration from the Carabo in its wedge form, wheel house openings and its notoriously cool scissor-doors, though the Countach wasn't the only car that took inspiration from the Carabo. You can see inspired cues from many sports cars and supercars like the Diablo, 4th gen Camaro and Vector. Vector took the inspiration quite literally by duplicating many of the shapes of the front and side profile in its W8. Many wealthy individuals tried to purchase the Carabo including an Arab prince or two, but thankfully Bertone decided to hold on to it and now the Carabo spends its days relaxing inside the Alfa Romeo museum in Arese, Italy.

Fun fact: The unique name "Carabo" and its green paint were derived from the small green beetle, Carabus Olympiae.

Honorable Mentions

Narrowing down our search for the top ten wedge cars was difficult and we couldn't let this list pass without mention of a few other notable wedges. The DMC DeLorean was the hardest to leave off the list based on its cult follow from the Back to the Future films. Another difficult car to omit was the popular Triumph TR7/TR8 which was produced from 1974 to 1981. In the gallery below you'll find the rest of the cars that we thought were worth mentioning. Enjoy!

[via Lotus Esprit Turbo]

It's Truck Monday again, and today that means we'll be checking out a fine stack-equipped example of the Keep On Truckin' Era (aka Malaise Era): a 1978 Dodge Power Wagon pickup.


In 1978, you could boogie down to your friendly Dodge dealer and roar off the lot in a tape-stripe-a-ganza of a special-edition D series pickup. Everyone knows about the Lil' Red Express, which boasted the highest top speed of any Big Three-built vehicle- including the Corvette- during the darkest days of Malaise, but don't forget the Midnite Express, the Warlock, or the Macho Power Wagon! This truck appears to be a sort of junkyard mashup of a regular D series with the Lil' Red Express and the Macho Power Wagon (though it's not quite as macho as this '70). Or were the exhaust stacks a factory option available on any D series truck? Dodge truck experts, any insights?


I found this truck parked just around the corner from the '88 Porsche 924S and a mean-looking Buick Electra we haven't seen yet. Good DOTS neighborhood!

When most of us try to sell a car using an online classified advertisement, we do our best to take a useful photograph or two and write some sort of description laying out the good and bad facts, if only to avoid having to answer the same questions from every single potential buyer. When you're trying to sell a Porsche 911, this becomes way more important, because 911 zealots aficionados want to shoot you in the face with a Luger insist on knowing all the facts about a car for sale. Yes, they pursue their all-consuming obsession hobby with Unabomber-like focus great enthusiasm, so you'll need to craft your Craigslist ad accordingly. However, some sellers don't realize this, and the guy or gal with this 1977 Porsche 911 Targa Turbo (go here if the ad disappears) was a little sparse with the words and images. We've got one photograph of some piles of crap piled in a driveway with a vaguely Porsche-ish shape in the background, apparently shot at midnight, from across the street, using a cellphone camera. But hey, not everyone can figure out this complicated photography thing, so that's where you paint a vivid word picture to compensate for the uninformative image: "Salvage title, Runs, Needs work!!" That's it. Is it a genuine factory turbocharged 930? A super-sanitary aftermarket job? A Rube Goldberg junkyard nightmare involving PVC pipe, duct tape, and six turbochargers hacksawed off Chevy Sprint Turbo engines? We can't say! But it's only $4,500, so head on out to Clackamas County! Thanks to Commodore356 for the tip.

Come on now, we know that a really rabid devoted Porsche stalker buyer needs a factory-correct car, because nobody but the monocle-wearing, riding-crop-brandishing white-coated sadists engineers in Stuttgart know how to build a genuine oversteering death machine performance car. You've got to have a real factory 930 chassis number if you want to go claiming 930 ownership, and that's that! Fortunately, the seller of this 1978 Porsche 911 Turbo understands how that works, and he or she has a stripped-out shell great starting point for a life-destroying really fun restoration project. We don't know what the reserve price might be, but the top bid is under 12 Benjamins. Maybe it will go for $1,500! The seller keeps revising, adding, and deleting description as the auction progresses, so it might be worth checking back later to see if any new facts appear or disappear. It looks like you get the glass, some suspension components, and a reasonably unrusty body. How about putting a WRX engine in that thang? Hey, y'all, watch this!

[eBay Motors], thanks to Mechimike for the tip!

It's not a Sky Bird Esprit, just a plain ol' Firebird. In '78, the price tag on one of these with a Buick V6 was $4,545, which $1,254 less than the Trans Am's price. That's quite a bit of money for a few acres of decals and- we're not kidding here- just 75 additional horsepower over the V6.


I've always liked these Pontiac rally wheels, because they look very similar to the wheels on the old Hot Wheels cars I had as a kid. You can still find them pretty readily at self-service junkyards these days, and the bolt pattern fits plenty of non-Pontiacs.


In California, a vehicle must be 1975 or older to be emissions-test-exempt, so most of these Malaise machines remain un-hot-rodded. Perhaps that means this Pontiac will continue to be its original owner's everyday transportation for additional decades.

Polls are fun! After you look at the gallery, vote on your favorite Alameda DOTS Pontiac.

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First, we must watch the Ricardo Montalban ad that started it all. In Cordoba, I have what I need!


Plastic "gold" Cordoba medallions may be found all over this fine personal luxury automobile. Weighing in at a portly 4,021 pounds and motivated by a thirsty 318 or 360, the Cordoba wasn't quite the ideal machine for a time of fuel-price insecurity. By '78, the stacked rectangular headlights had taken away some of the Ricardoesque appeal, and sales were declining.


Even the taillights had the medallions!


I couldn't get any decent interior shots, so it's hard to ascertain whether this car had the optional Corinthian Leather upholstery. Yes, it was optional, though you have to assume that Cordoba buyers wouldn't have settled for vinyl.

First up is this Firebird, which BZR says lives outdoors at all times:
I drove by this beast pretty much every day, until one day I finally broke down and came around to capturing it via camera. Seeing as it's a baby-blue Firebird, it's pretty hard to miss - and I still remember this post on the limited-edition 'Birds, so I knew I had a sneaking suspicion...

Just as I thought, it's not only a 70s Firebird (apparently any old American tanks are rare around here, minus the errant Dodge Dart I see) but it's one of the nearly-forgotten editions, right down the street from me in Syracuse, New York! How cool is that? I was pretty impressed.

It's always parked in the same spot. I didn't get a chance to encounter the owner, however. It's a damn shame the neat "Sky Bird", er, bird is missing. It's pretty well-preserved other than that. Check out the fuzzy dice! And it's a 1978 based on the grille pattern too, as I discovered.


Now here comes this sharp Galaxie two-door hardtop, which UDMan spotted while roaming the Northeast:
While I was visiting a dealer in Syracuse NY, my right rear tire went flat on the Altima. So, I was at a tire dealer, and a customer came in with this beauty, a 1965 Ford Galaxie 500 XL 2 door hardtop. As you can see, it’s in great shape, but there is a small problem. Apparently the car has an electrical draw because the customer stated that you have to disconnect the negative battery terminal after it’s driven. But look at this car! The details that seem to be lost at today’s car manufacturers, like the tail lamps, the ornamentation, those wheelcovers!


Just to show that Syracuse isn't just about the Detroit iron, Backstept has photographed this very solid-looking early-70s Volvo 1800ES wagon. I think those Draco wheels actually look pretty good on it, correct or not.
I don't know much about this car, but it's apparently a '71-73 Volvo 1800 ES sport wagon. only 8,078 were made.
I'm surprised at the condition, given the climate here in Central New York.