Minneapolis Street Sighting: Buick Le Sabre

Cars of the 1960s are a growing fascination of mine. I'll be honest, though; aside from Mustangs, Camaros, Corvettes and other common cars, I know very little about 1960s-era vehicles. I'm slowly learning, though, because each time I find a new example a car from this era, it intrigues me.
The Buick LeSabre is a vehicle I am familiar with, not because I necessarily know a whole lot about the car itself, but it seems to be the most common Buick nameplate in Minnesota besides the new cars; every day, I encounter various post-1985 models in all sorts of condition, decaying pristine. Never ever have I seen one that was a pre-1970s model parked on the street--until now.














From what I can gather, this is a 1965 car judging by the front grillework and the rear fascia; from the front and rear ends, it looks amazing; the interior, too, looks to be in incredible shape. The fascias are mar-free, and the chrome is excellent. Inside, this classy Buick stays true to its heritage; minimal trim, and material abound adorn this proud classic. If I only saw the bottom picture, I'd assume it was taken almost forty years ago; not two weeks ago.
Unfortunately, all cars have flaws--that what gives them character, and this Le Sabre is no different. Gladly, though, this example has minimal rust, and its in the usual places. It almost seem like with a new pair of front fenders, this Buick would be ready to take its owner to church again without hassle.
I hardly ever see vehicles this old in my state, and when I do, they're often donked. Thankfully, this Buick has lived over forty-five years of unmodified history, but with a for sale sign placed in the windows, that might change. I sure hope it doesn't; I quite liked this finding, and its surely not an easy one.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale

I already showed off the red Centurion, and I featured a blue Delta 88 a couple days ago--now let's get back to some formal colors for GM's personal luxury convertibles. I know these cars from about a block away--and my hunches were right.
I spotted this one just off France, in a neighborhood I've never really though to check out. In an area littered with Prius', Highlander Hybrids, and the occasional Honda Civic, this classic Olds was the only thing that stood out. And for good reason-- aside from being the only older vehicle in that area, it was also the only domestic in a four or five block radius. Was a cliche sighting for me? Maybe--these Deltas aren't exactly rare birds perse, but I still love them all the same. I know that these shots were rushed, as the composition isn't great, but it was nearing 100*; not quite what I'd call habitable temperatures, much less outside.










By now, readers should be aware of my fascination with GM's forgotten cars--I don't like the Caprice convertibles as much as I like these--and I have no idea why, either. Black is probably one of the better colors for these cars; not only does it make this big GM appear more upscale that it already is, it hides the length fairly well. Though I wouldn't call these "long", they do have presence. Wire wheel covers, minimal chrome, and a color coded roof certainly make this Delta look the business.
While I'm used to seeing blue with navy blue, red with white interior, and silver with gray interior, the black with maroon interior is probably the classiest combination I've seen; I didn't get a good look inside as I was a bit nervous to do so, but black over maroon is probably the combination for these; luxurious, classy, and not over-the-top; I love it!
Despite the run-down looking appearance, with a coat of polish this big Olds should be as good as new; I'd clean out the interior as well, then I'd drop the top and cruise. After all, what's the point of having a big convertible if you're not a cruiser. That's what this Delta 88 is all about, and that's what it needs to be doing instead of lingering outside someone's house.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Buick Electra 225 Limited

How do I find all of my spottings outside of uptown? Well, sometimes I ride around, and get lucky--other times, I explore new tools in aiding in my car search. Ever since googlemaps came out a few years ago, I have been using as a tool to find and scout out new and unfamiliar areas; although google last visited Minneapolis' poorer areas in 2008, I tried my luck in seeing if any of my internet spottings were still there. Fortunately, out of maybe fifty cars spotted, only seven or eight were there; this Buick Electra is the only car on the street that remains; all the other google spottings from this street are gone--either crushed, or donked.
I previously featured an Electra that I shot much closer to home--and that one was in much better condition. This one, though, doesn't look all that bad... until you get up close.













I'm not quite sure what to make of the front grille treatment; it is not at all stock, but surprisingly aside from the dual Buick badges (wtf?), the chrome-capped fascia doesn't look awful. It doesn't look right, but it could be a whole lot worse. Turning my attention to the side, I noticed a bit of tinworm on the lower fenders, but honestly that's to be expected--it's a Minnesota car for crying out loud, it isn't going to be perfect. The color suits it well; it's a period color, and it honestly looks okay with the Buick rallyes--this color I think would look better on a Cadillac or maybe a Pontiac. The vynil roof looks to be in pretty good shape, too. I find that extremely satisfying because that means that there's likely no serious roof rust.
What I find the most interesting is the continental kit, or the appearance of one, anyway; I've never seen a fullsize Buick with one, and it honestly just looks weird.
I do appreciate the fact this big Buick is in respectable shape, and could easily be saved if the owner wanted; I don't whether this big barge even runs, considering the old-style license plates, but I'm sure it could be made to do so--that is, unless it's been sitting ever since google spotted it in August 2007. That might be a problem. One can only hope its not the case, but I suppose being dead is better than being donked--maybe.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale

As I've written numerous times before, these Oldsmobile Deltas and midsize Buicks have quickly become my favorite 1970s GM boats. I see the Delta 88 convertibles represented quite well in my area, but that doesn't mean I shoot every single one I can find; more often than not, the Minneapolis examples I find are in terrible condition and need extensive work to be roadworthy--and even more often than that, they're infected with bling. Sometimes, I catch one that's not quite a beater, but not in pristine shape, either.
I was patrolling a well-frequented neighborhood, and having zero luck. For whatever reason, I decided to turn the corner onto Grand from 31st, and lo and behold, I found something awesome. Sitting all alone with the exception of an Audi A3, this Delta was baking in the hot Minnesota sun; I stopped to investigate, and no sooner than I hopped off my bike was I approached by the owner--I honestly got scared, and tried to make up a witty excuse to not piss him off. Turns out, the guy's a car enthusiast who bought this from his son, who was going to "make it look dumb with those huge wheels and funny colored paint jobs." Hats off to you, for rescuing it.
The car is a 1974 (I think), and has been in his family since new; when the owner's father died, the Delta was given to the third generation (the son of the current owner), who promptly began scrawling up plans to have this featured in RIDES magazine. Thankfully, the owner thought that idea was ludicrous, and destined to buy it back.
He's had it for three years, and plans to fix all the mishaps, including getting a new convertible top, and redo all the plastic/compounds including the entire front fascia.












Normally, I would whine and bitch about how this car could be better, but its clear the owner has plans to restore it to its former glory; as it sits, it's honestly not in too bad of shape--it just needs minor work here and there. The fascia is cracked and warped, and that's on the to-do list; those silly half-chrome headlight eyebrows are next to go, as they "simply aren't needed--they blind traffic as well." Good idea to remove them, then.
One of the owner's biggest planned changes is the wheels. No, not gigantic 26s or even 30s, but a set of Oldsmobile Cutlass wheels from a G-Body 442 painted to match the car's color. The original hubcaps will be polished and then only used at shows or where originality is necessary--good plan, I say.
As for the car itself, I've always liked these; only recently did I discover that yes, they did come in other colors besides formal colors. The Delta 88 has been one of my favorite Oldsmobile lines for awhile now, and I don't see that changing. Kudos to the owner for keeping this one on the road for as long as he can.

Colin's Toybox: Tomica Honda CR-Z

There are certain cars I have an odd fascination with, and there are those cars that I adore in small sizes and hate in real life; the Honda CR-Z is one of those. Supposedly this is Honda's idea of a new CRX, but I don't see it; hybrid technology, a $20k+ sticker, and its neither lightweight, nor very fast, nor does it handle very well. So why was this on my want list, exactly?
Truth is, I like it for the mere fact that its a diecast car someone can't obtain in the 'states. Tomicas are only marketed so far at Toys R Us', and the last two I went to had a horrible selection; when my aunt and uncle went to Japan, and they asked what I wanted, the answer was clear--TOMICAS! LOTS AND LOTS!
Like the Nissan Juke, this little Honda is really well done in small scale; the color is accurate, and unfortunately, the front overhang is correctly replicated. Somehow, Tomica has trasformed an ugly-duckling into a cute little car. With its correctly detailed headlights and taillights, the CR-Z is spruced up from "boring" to "not bad" fairly easily. About the only thing missing here is the occasional "Hybrid" badging that is often plastered on the rear glass of the real thing. But for the car enthusiast in me, there is another version missing.
In the UK, Honda' Mugen team built one with a proper Civic Type R drivetrain, and festooned it with all the latest aero bits from their catalog; for the Honda geek in me, that's a must-have if its ever made.
I love Tomica's rendition of Honda's newest hybrid, and aside from the quirky french, this will like be the only alt-propulsion vehicle I have represented in my collection--with for good reason.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Buick Centurion

When I found my first Oldsmobile Delta 88 convertible, I thought I found love at first sight--for 1970s barges at least; I've grown to love them, almost to the point of shooting every single one I see parked. But lately, I've been exposed to the Delta's corporation twin, the Buick Centurion. The first one I saw was a complete rustbucket, but I loved it--almost enough to replace the Oldsmobile counterpart as my favorite GM big boat from the 1970s.
Sadly, here in the rustbelt, these cars fall into two distinct categories--vehicles that need various repairs to make them nice again, or top-notch cars in stunning condition with nearly-new everything. It seems that most of the Deltas and Buick convertibles I find are in the latter, with a few examples making it into the former category.
I don't see many Centurions--or any Buick convertibles for that matter, so spottings are cherished--I often stay excited for days on end after spotting one, much less shooting one.








I first spotted this one cruising Lyndale, and I was stunned to see it actually moving--not because it's in slighty-worse-off for shape, but I've never actually seen a red Buick vert; most of the Buicks I see are formal colors--black, white, navy blue, etc. Red seems like a non-typical choice for these cars, but I have to say it looks good--even with the slight patina shown here.
With its black interior and rallye wheels, this example would look amazing cleaned up; even as it stands, it's got presence; something most Buicks--certainly the ones of today (and the last ten years) lack.
I'm often sad about cars in decaying condition, but this Centurion makes me happy; this is the only time I've seen it parked, and I've seen it driving numerous times, in all seasons, which can only mean one thing--the owner loves it. And that's what owning a classic car is all about. The owner is old enough, though, that this Centurion could very well be "just a car"--and that's what makes this one so special. I certainly don't see this very often, and I definitely can't shoot or don't feel comfortable shooting the ones I see driving; this one was a big bonus for me, and is possibly one of my favorite GM cars I've blogged this year.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Chevrolet Lumina APV

In the dawn of the 1980s, a new mode of transportation was quickly replacing the venerable station wagon as the choice for families small and large--the same could be said of small businesses replacing huge full-size vans too. In 1984, Chrysler launched the Dodge Caravan, and Plymouth Voyager, and competitors were quickly left scrambling to catch up; in 1985, GM brought out its initial competitor to the newfound mode of transportation. The vehicle was badged as the Chevrolet Astro, and GMC Safari. Unlike Chrysler's minivans, the GM twins were rear-wheel-drive. Ford, too, saw interest in the minivan game; in 1986, the "revolutionary" Aerostar was launched, and like the GM twins, it too was rear-wheel-drive.
Being based on trucks, these vans offered dismal gas mileage, and had semi-decent towing capacities. But, since they were based on trucks, step in was fairly high, and all-weather traction wasn't any better than the two-wheel-drive pickup trucks sold at the same dealers.
GM finally did enter the front-wheel-drive MPV/van market--with awful results; unlike the Chrysler vans, the GM "dustbuster"--so aptly named--were horrendous to drive, they had a very long and far-reaching dashboard, and despite the appearance of a full-glassed front cockpit, room inside was just adequate. For being based on a contemporary car, fuel mileage was incredibly dismal; I remember reading about how Car and Driver barely got 19 MPG with 4 people on board-on the highway.
These vans lingered on through 1996, when they were replaced by the Venture/Transport/Silhouette triplets. Again, they were replaced in 200 or 2008 by even worse vans; I'm not sure what's worse; the fact that GM could never really compete in this segment, or the fact every single van they sold was plagued with numerous problems from the get-go. In 2009, after twenty years of minivan production, GM finally gave up--and ironically, so did Ford; the plug on the Freestar was pulled in 2007 after three years of horrible sales. As of 2012, Chrysler still reigns supreme in the minivan market. Their product does sort of suck, but at least Chrysler didn't back down, and is still reaping in big profits from the whole genre they started.











I hardly ever see these "dustbusters" anymore; I would've liked to have shot a more interesting specimen like a Transport GT or some such, but this will do; what we have here is a base Lumina APV with aluminum wheels found on the Lumina Z34 and Euro. Finished in two tone paint, this example of the "forgotten people mover" really could pass for something sold in Europe in the mid-to-late-1980s. The design says European, the paint colors scream European, and those wheels even look like something Vauxhall would adorn their vehicles with. Perhaps this should've been called the Lumina Euro instead?
It's not every day that I see dustbusters, and it's even less of an occurrence that said dustbuster is free from either rust or crash damage; aside from the numerous bumper stickers plastering the rear-end, this APV looks fairly nice, especially for Minnesota standards. One of the things I do like about these is the door handles--yes, they're unusual, and yes, they would normally look out of place, but the styling on these is supposed to be futuristic---and to that extent, the odd door handles work. What I'm not keen on is the badging; I do realize that this was a Lumina variant, but it really should say so somewhere on the vehicle. Heck, even in small letters on the tailgate would've been fine.
I don't adore these, but they're a part of my childhood; I never had one in my family, but I knew several people who did. I always liked the wheels on the Pontiac version, and I always wondered why Chevrolet didn't make their own sporty version. After all, there was a sporting version of damn near everything else in the lineup at the time. Do I miss these? To be honest, sort of; I've always kind of liked these, and I still get a tad bit delighted when I see these on the road.