Once again we return to the streets of the Island Of Old Car Survivors, and look at what we've spotted today! Yes, folks, that there car is a Checker Marathon in a color other than yellow.
Some folks grumble about cars that stay the same year after year, but you never heard that complaint aimed at the Marathon.
The Marathon's body remained essentially unchanged from 1960 through 1982, and anyone who can determine the year of this one from these photos is encouraged to let us know.
What did change was the drivetrain; up until '64, a 226-cube six from the Continental Motor Corporation was used, then a choice of Chevrolet powerplants (sixes and small-block V8s) could be had after that. Some Marathons also got Chrysler V8s during the mid-60s.
For many years, the Checker Marathon was the American taxicab. Sturdy, simple, and with a steamer-trunk-ready monster trunk, the Marathon did the job asked of it, and did it well.
This one parks in the wealthy Gold Coast neighborhood of Alameda, where it looks somewhat out of place among the high-end German iron you see parked near it.
The taillight design looks positively industrial, and we mean that in a good way. We want to see a heads-up drag race between this thing and an old Black London Cab.
This might be just the vehicle for a Detroit Diesel Series 60 swap- run it on beef tallow and you'd have the World's Fastest Meat-Powered Car!
Related:
London Hailing: New Version of Iconic Hackney Carriage Taxi Debuts [internal]