Lawrence Street Sighting: Plymouth Fury

Lawrence is home to plenty of oddball classic cars--if one knows where to look; fortunately my dad's neighborhood is mostly comprised of college students who drive old cars because they harbor the idea that having an old car will make them cool, and older people who never bothered to trade in their vehicle after the normal six year period is up. Living close to the University of Kansas has its perks, too; cars change on a semester basis, so chance are, if you scout that area in a school year, you have a chance to see four sets of classic cars.

Mopars are an odd thing with me; I love them, but I don't know very much about them in general, save for the obvious race cars and muscle cars. I know the basics, like Darts, Valiants, Challengers, and stuff like that, but I am horrible at identifying anything other than the basic cars.  I do think the styling is cool, and because of this, it is my goal to learn more about old-school Mopars.

The Fury name started in 1957, where it was the star of the book "Christine", and then in 1962 got redesigned to what you see here; apparently, buyers didn't associate the full-size "Fury" name with a smaller car; ironically, this happened nearly twenty years later, when the Chrysler group introduced its famous "Charger" nameplate on a front-wheel-drive hatchback. Sales slipped for the 1962, and it was reintroduced for 1965 as a proper full-size car. Apparently the 1962-1964 Furys are so unloved that most of them look like this one.
 

 This is the first Fury of this vintage I've seen; probably the first Mopar other than a Dart or Valiant that I took notice of, really. I shot this back in 2008 or 2009, and this house seems to go through "project cars" like mad; as of winter 2012/2013, there is a beater yellow fastback Barracuda and a mid 1950s Ford four-door in sorry shape at the residence.

Like most Kansas classics, the poor Fury exhibits no real rust, just shot paint and  chrome that needs a redo; the trim is still there, as are all the badges. Like the white C-10 pickup I posted earlier this week, this Fury would be a great candidate for a restoration--if it were still at this location. I haven't seen the car for a couple years now, so I have no idea what its fate is.

I think this is one of my better spots, even with a crappy camera and even worse photography skills; I would love to find something of this caliber again, but I worry I would be filled with fury and disappointment.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Bentley Turbo R

I can't help it; I love finding rare and off-the-wall stuff. I usually expect to see pre-1960s Bentleys--because, well, they're collector cars more than anything. Post 1980s Bentleys are fairly rare here, unless the Bentley is a Continental or any of its derivatives. Even then, Bentleys are far and few between here. So I was stunned when I spotted this out of the corner of my eye.

I got closer, and realized that not all is what it at first seemed; shiny, the paint was not. Chrome, the trim--again--was not. And not all the centercaps were present, either. Surely, this once-noble motorcar has seen better days--and hopefully it will return to those better days.

As I mentioned above, spotting this one was a real treat; I hardly ever see these, much less in dilapidated condition, but hey--a Bentley is still a Bentley, and I will shoot accordingly. With weathered paint, and dull chrome--and godawful US spec headlights, this Bentley is far from a collector's car; and it has every right to be. Even as an enthusiast of British cars, I think these leave a little to be desired. I'm sure they're great luxury cars, but--like their newer counterparts--the styling doesn't leave anyone filled with very much emotion.

The rolling stock can't decide whether it wants to be sporty or luxurious, either. I'd rather a set of nice (but not generic) 5 spokes than these factory turds; sure, they look period--and I do mean period. This style of fat face and not much spokage was quite popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and even Bentley was immune. I guess shallow spokes and big surface meant classy? I mean, c'mon, in 2003, the Lexus SC430 had that basic style of wheel, and we all know what a classy car that was.

I would gladly drive this thing; first, I'd make sure all the maintenance is up to snuff, and give it a good Sunday wax, but I would still sport it. And for under $30k, an old Turbo R makes for a pretty nice budget Bentley, too.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: The Abandonments

Every so often, when scouting the city, I come across various abandoned vehicles; some are easily dismissed as crap, and I don't shoot them. Others beg me to stop and take a closer gander. This pair of classic American workhorses piqued my interest enough for me to hop off my bike and dig out my camera.
Trucks like this are usually found in Kansas, and not in Minnesota--at least not in the Twin Cities. Parked on Portland and I think 37th or 38th, this pair was sitting there for what seemed like eternity. It seems that this lot is a decaying dumping grounds for anything abandoned; I've seen dead Ford Tempos, a few Pontiac Sunfires, and a mid 1980s Chevrolet S-10, but never anything as lucky as this find--and nothing quite as cool since.














First things first, this is a relatively early Dodge pickup; I used Allpar as a reference site, and I have come up with this one as a 1941 model or thereabouts; this bodystyle was introduced in 1939, and continued through the 1947 model year. The chassis code for these trucks was WC for the basic 1/2 ton models, and WD for full-fledged one ton versions.
Las registered in 1974, this poor truck certainly has seen better days. Being off the road for more than thirty-five years, it looked to be in reasonably decent shape, especially for a Minnesota truck. Sure, it probably has some hidden rust, but what Minnesota truck left to the elements doesn't?
The paint is obviously shot, but the body itself doesn't look to be too far gone. All the emblems are there, and surprisingly, all are in pretty nice shape. Even the interior looks quite nice for its age. I'm no expert, but I'd say this Dodge would probably make a good restoration project if someone hasn't already snapped it up.













Next up is this 1967-1972 GMC pickup; for being nearly thirty years newer than the Dodge, it seems to be worse off; the bedsides are so caked with rust that they'd likely need replacement skins if a future owner wanted to have a functional truck. Amazingly, the rest of the truck looks no worse than trucks found in Kansas or Oklahoma; I guess rustproof hadn't gotten to trucks when this one was built. Aside from the bed, this poor GMC looks like it probably is a good starting point for a project, provided there isn't any hidden rust. It's got current collector plates, so I'm sort of miffed about why its just sitting there; maybe it's going to be restored, along with the Dodge. I base that theory on the fact that both trucks dissappeared about the same time, never to be seen again. I did find a rotten same-era GM cab, and a set of fairly rusty white trailer wheels commonly used on this generation truck so who knows.
This is a one-time, as I've never found anything this cool in that spot since--and believe me, I keep looking. I'm just glad I took out my camera when I did, and documented these two pieces of American history.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Pontiac LeMans 326

When shooting, I often find the best cars tucked slightly out of sight from plain view. In this case, the finding occurred behind a repair shop on Park Avenue, I think it was. Anywhoo, I was riding down Lake, for some reason, I decided to take a left onto a little side street behind Park, and go down a block. I don't think I've shot a car this comprehensively before, and I certainly hope the opportunity arises again soon.
Every once in a blue moon, I come across a neglected muscle car, but its often tucked away on private property, be it in someone's yard, behind a house, sitting in a driveway with a tarp and cinder blocks chocking the wheels, you know, just the casual "urban automotive decay" as I like to call it. This find was a rare breed if there every was one. Not only was it in relatively plain view, the shop it was behind was closed for the day, so no employees harassed me or gave me any sort of hell.
To be honest, I'm not much up on muscle cars, but I do know that this poor LeMans was probably a badass during its heyday. Equipped with a standard bench seat, four on the floor, and a tri-power 326, this sucker meant business. While not quite a "GTO", the LeMans 326 was pretty much a slight step down the Pontiac performance totem-pole, with the anemic 215 slant six-powered cars as the bottom feeders. Don't ask how it handled, or what its skidpad numbers were, because obviously this badass meant to "live life a quarter mile at a time."
I know I usually give my overall critique of the vehicle here, but honestly, I had so much fun shooting this one, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. The paint, as any abandoned car goes, looks pretty forlorn, but at least it's complete save for the rusty and dented rear quarter panel. The trim, too, looks to be in impeccable shape, aside from pitting. And really, when you put into perspective the winters this car probably sees since its sitting out behind a repair shop, it's pretty amazing to think this once-boulevard-bruiser is still alive and trying to kick. Even with Pontiac gone, this poor muscle car seems as its saying "save me".
It's not often I get scared, or get feelings for an abandoned car, but this brute saddened me. How can someone let something so awesome, so big and brash, so menacing just linger in the cold, damp grass? It sickens me that there are people who would rather spend their time churning out half-ass rebuilt wrecks than save a muscle car icon. I know it isn't a GTO, but it still has its place in GM's hertiage-rich history. Here's hoping I'm not the only person to see this poor LeMans this way. Someone save this LeMans 326. Now.