Minneapolis Street Sighting: Saab 9-5 Aero Turbo6 XWD

I have a thing for Swedish cars; really, I am a newbie at most Swedish cars, especially Saabs. Sure, I know of the 900, and the 99, but I know next to nothing about the earlier cars. Unfortunately, the Saabs I'm most familiar with are the ones slapped together by GM and burdened with a price-tag that doesn't quite match the build quality.

Many Saab enthusiasts will agree that even the Viggen wasn't quite what a Saab should, and their place in the luxury car market was an odd one; were the cars focused on luxury or were they focused on sportiness? No one really knows, as Saabs weren't quite BMW luxury, nor did they have the panache expected with a $35,000 car.

After a decade of morbidly underwhelming cars, GM looked to revitalize Saab in the later half of the 2000s, by offering them deals with Subaru (the 9-2X), and then Cadillac and Opel. Unfortunately, GM handled Saab the exact same way they handled Isuzu--horribly. GM purposely gave Saab shitty, underclassed vehicles as starting points, and ultimately drove Saab to its death.  At least the final farewell was a great car.

The previous 9-5 was a bit of a dud; it wasn't a fast car, it wasn't a sports car, and it wasn't overly expensive; it was an alternative to Volvo's cars, which do hold a specific place in today's evergrowing luxury car market. What Volvo had that Saab didn't is dealers; for every Saab dealer, there were two Volvo dealers. In my home-base-state of Kansas, there were a few Volvo dealers when I was little, but only one Saab dealer.

The Saab 9-5 is a striking car, if not only for its rarity; in this color, it looks great. Stunning wouldn't be far off, to be honest. It's a far cry from the Saabs of old, but  this example is by far prettier than than anything else churned out by GM.  The lines flow, and although the car looks relatively bland with the base wheels on it, these 19" turbine wheels look amazing, and enhance the car's presence--dramatically.

While I dislike the Opel-esque cutline in the lower flanks, the execution here looks considerably better than the approach taken on the Opel Isignia/Buick Regal. Another area of concern, stylingwise anyway, is the lack of any sort of front or rear bumper. Yes, the slim "bumper"-area looks good, but because my state requires front license plates, the front plates look tacked on--and they are.

Overall this is a very cohesive design that was only plagued by lower-level wheel choices. On the bright side, Saab (and GM) realized that even on base model, hubcaps are pretty stupid at this price point.

I am glad I shot this as these are very scarce in my area. Quite a pretty end to a very storied automobile marque. What it lacks in overall quirkiness, it makes up for in rarity--just like any Trollhattan automobile.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV

Minneapolis Street Sighting: International 1110 pickup

Orphan makes always intrigue--and always will. Over the past few years, I am slowly developing an interest for non-big-three American vehicles, and since I have always been a pickup enthusiast, I am starting to look at non-big-three pickups in a new light. There is, however, a slight problem; trucks not made by mainstream marques are not very common.

My interest in International vehicles is starting to bloom quite a bit more than it has in past years; oddly enough, I am beginning to like the "favorite orphan" from the car side as well--AMC. My favorite International product right now is the Scout, but I am slowly learning about the makers' other offerings, including the pickups like this one.

I know almost nothing about the non-Scouts, so this find is a learning experience for me; and a good one at that. From what I gather, this truck is a 1972 or 1973 example, because it has the split grille and the 1110 designation; that designation also implies that this is heavy-duty model, and that it might have the precursor to ABS-braking. Sweet, and probably pretty should this one drive around in winter. Unfortunately, like most Internationals, this one seems to have been forgotten, as I see it still sitting in front of this house, with three flat tires.

Curiously, while this example does have its fair share of exposed rust, a rather hefty amount of bondo graces it, too. That would suggest that the owner does attempt to care for the vehicle, but its far too gone for him or her to save. Normally, I would scoff at such pitiful attempts to save a vehicle from rustitis, but not here. I am glad the owner is at least trying to put up a fight against cancer.

Unfortunately, it seems that the owner is losing; I see this truck biweekly, with even more bondo, and now with most of the "International" tailgate lettering turned almost all brown, and the tailgate itself looking ready to fall off at the next speed bump. At least the bumpers are still intact.

I wish the owner would try to save this one more, but it appears that this old International may be best as a parts candidate--at least interiorwise.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Plymouth Fury III

While out shooting, I see hoards and hoards of GM products, and a slightly lower number of Ford products; for whatever reason, a vast majority of the Mopar products I see often seem to be around when I do not have a camera present. To be perfectly fair, I haven't really tried to shoot many Mopars because more often than not, they're Diplomats or Gran Furys, and the occasional Fifth Avenue--honestly, those cars, while I do like them, aren't quite what I'm looking for under the Mopar banner.

I am aware of the multitude of Mopar muscle cars--I quite like them, but honestly I don't see them around--at least outside of shows. Heck, even the more common Barracudas, Coronets, and Chargers are even rare spots here. What I do see are the big cruisers, and the luxury-oriented vehicles. That's where the Fury lineup fits in. According to wikipedia, the base model (so-to-speak) Fury I was marketed at fleets, rental agencies, taxi drivers, and police officers. As the number designation climbed, the vehicle became nicer, with the Fury III being the top of the line.

Apparently, this was the answer to vehicles like the Pontiac Bonneville, and Buick Electra, and Ford Galaxie? Not an overly expensive vehicle, and not quite up to Imperial, Cadillac, or Lincoln standards, but still, a very nice vehicle aimed at people who had more than average money to drop on a new car. I would equate to a Chrysler 300C or Cadillac CTS of today?

First off, I don't see many Mopars around here so this is a nice change; second of all, this is a very clean car, especially considering where it lives. I see this car now once or twice a day, shopping at the SuperAmerica just down the block from where I spotted it for these pictures.

Yes, it really is this immaculate. The paint is absolutely stunning, and if original, this Fury sure is holding up well. I don't think I can recall seeing any this nice, even in Lawrence; not only is the paint in awesome shape but the chrome bumpers are as well. Ditto the hubcaps.

I am impressed with this well-kept Fury III, and being a fairly upscale domestic car when it was new probably sealed its fate as a keeper. I doubt a base model (Fury I) would ever be saved, much less kept in this condition.  I applaud the owner for keeping such a wonderful piece of non-muscle Mopar history alive and well.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Pontiac GTO

As an enthusiast, I can't help but love muscle cars; there's some debate about what really was the first muscle car, but its hard to argue that the introduction of Pontiac's GTO ended up playing a major role in this genre of Americana. By model year 1964, Pontiac would decide to shove bigger and beefier engines into the LeMans and Tempest two-door post coupes (or would those be sedans), and convertibles; the idea behind this move is to create quick cars that are mildly affordable, and cars that also have massive aftermarket appeal.

This particular car is a second generation model, and this one is an example of the first year this bodystyle was made; 1968. How do I know?  Logo turn signals/side markers, the vent windows, and hideaway headlights. And this example also has the chrome bumper, which I don't quite like. I do admit that this one looks tons better than the 1971-1972 cars, and that's ironic, coming from someone who likes the 1971-1972 Chevelles and Cutlass' a whole lot more than their 1968 counterparts.

While I am a huge fan of classic Pontiacs, I do feel that the GTO is a tad overhyped, as it (along with the Firebird and Trans Am) is the cliche "sweet" Pontiac. 

This GTO is what I would call a good "nice-weather  driver"; it isn't perfect and it doesn't intend to be so. The paint is clean, and the trim is fairly clean as well. However, the paint intself is a bit faded, and the red hue doesn't quite make the car; it seems rather drab--and totally un-muscle-car-like. I know I am nit-picking here, but I am not quite sure I like the idea of a chrome rear bumper with the plastic "Endura" nose; yes, I realize its factory, but it just looks a bit silly.

The main thing that really bothers me about this otherwise-nice example is the damned wheels. I used to adore everything from Colorado Customs and their ilk, but looking back on it, those wheels--for the most part-- are tacky and have horrible patterns--and these are no exception. While I do admit that I rather hate these wheels, there are certainly worse choices--like say Bonspeed wheels or about ninety percent of Lexani's entire product range--so yeah, the wheel choice could be worse.

Overall, I am glad I did shoot this; I think 1968 is my favorite year for the GTO, along with a variety of other Pontiacs, and I have never spotted another one on the street. Hopefully, this summer will change that, but for now this is the best I've got.