Jalopnik: gm a body

1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass

Murilee Martin — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 09:00:00 EDT

Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. Here's a classic that just needs a little TLC!

The alley next to Lee Auto Supply is technically a street (it has a name), so it's fair DOTS game when a Lee employee buys a parts car while on the job and leaves it in the alley for the day.

I'm positive that this is a Cutlass, and I'm 90% sure it's a '71. It appears to have been hit pretty hard on the right front, prior to being gutted, but it might yet be the basis for a project Olds. We've been so short on Cutlasses in this series (so far just this '69 convertible and this '67 Vista Cruiser) that even one as rough as this makes the DOTS cut!

First 400 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

1969 Buick Skylark Custom

Murilee Martin — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 08:59:59 EDT

Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. Even though we had a GM A-Body here just last week, I liked the look of this Skylark so much that I just can't wait to share it. This could mean that Chrysler A-Body fans might feel slighted (yes, nearly a month has gone by since our last one), but not to worry- there's a Valiant in the queue now!

When you go to car shows full of Detroit machinery, you'll probably see more of the Buick GS than you will of the regular Skylark, much as you do with the GTO-versus-LeMans situation. Here's a Skylark owner who took the best-looking feature of the GS (the hood) and kept the rest of the Skylark badging and trim, which I think works pretty well. This car isn't perfect by any means- in fact, it's a little battered- but it's in excellent shape for what it is: a nearly 40-year-old car that parks in a busy downtown urban area and sees regular street service.

The standard '69 Skylark engine was a 230 horsepower, 10 billion foot-pounds torque (slight exaggeration) 350-cubic-inch V8. If you got the GS 350, your engine was a higher-compression 350 with280 horsepower; GS 400 buyers got the monster 340-horse 400 engine. There's no telling what's in this car; by this time it might have a junkyard 455 or even a Pontiac or Olds powerplant.

First 350 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo

Murilee Martin — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:00:00 EDT

It seems impossible, but we're on the 286th street-parked Alameda vehicle in this series and only now are we seeing a Chevrolet Monte Carlo. How could that be? The first generation of Monte Carlo sold like crazy, yet you rarely see them (in any condition) these days- gone without leaving much trace. While I do have some photos of Alameda's Malaise Montes, I figured this example of the Monte Carlo's very first year should go first.

Though the Monte Carlo was based on the Chevelle, the fenders got these distinctive bulges. The factory rally wheels and center caps look good on this car, and I think the lowered front suspension works as well.

The Monte Carlo was about 150 pounds heavier and 300 bucks costlier than a 307-powered Chevelle coupe, but you got a 250-horse 350 engine as standard equipment. Give the Chevy salesman an extra $420.25 and you could get the SS package, which included a 454 churning out 360 horsepower (though for some reason you couldn't get a four-speed manual with the 454-powered Monte).

The question here is: do the later G-body Monte Carlos belong in this series? Say, the '82s and '83s?

Jalopnik: gm a body

1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass

First 400 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

1969 Buick Skylark Custom

First 350 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ

1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo

DOTS 1-200 • DOTS 201-250