Minneapolis Street Sighting: Oldsmobile Delta 88

As I continue my Oldsmobile spree, I would like to focus on what I think is an odd year for the Delta lineup; this 1969 car is one of the Delta 88s that I am not madly in love with. From the profile, it looks like a generic 1960s car, and it is. 1969 was a weir year for GM's cars; this is just my thoughts, but the only cars that looked good in 1969 were the Cadillacs. All other brands have either mismatched styling, or their cars look...odd. And Oldsmobile is no exception. The Cutlass looks awful, and that styling paired with the wagon body looks atrocious, and even their "halo car", the Delta 88 succumbed to crap styling disease.

Thankfully, by 1972, the Delta 88 would look good again; the odd front fascia would be gone, and like the Cutlass, the front fascia is what bothers me here. I do like that the Oldsmobile family front is instantly recognizable, but those headlamp clusters are also shared with many other GM cars that aren't Chevrolet. Would it be fair to say that Oldsmobile's 1969 lineup comprised of parts-bin specials? Seems a bit sad to say that, but I would say its fairly accurate.

On the surface, this Oldsmobile is a fantastic looking car; the paint and vinyl roof both show some scarring, but they're both original; ditto to the trim (both chrome and non)--every peice of trim, and every badge on this 1969 Delta 88 is straight and unmolested right down to the full-width lettering that graces the decklid. The wheels, while not original, look quite at home here aside from the wretched, afterthought fake spinners wheel nuts.

This is the exact criteria I enjoy shooting, and this one is awesome; this is the first of its generation that I would see, though I fear the fate of this example; with the for sale sign, and it being in a crappy neighborhood, I can only shudder and what might the fate of this poor Olds finally is. Will it succumb to donking, or will it be derbied? Or will an enthusiast buy it and restore it to its past glory?

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Oldsmobile Futuramic 88

Most often, my street sightings in the Minneapolis area that are GM cars hail from two dominant brands--Buick, and Oldsmobile. I have no idea what it is, but these two brands seem to be the most-preserved, or the most looked after here in the rust belt. And quite surprisingly, aside from the muscle-car wars, neither of these brands were touted as enthusiast brands in their heyday. Both of these brands focused on luxury, although Oldsmobile did focus on performance early on.

Motor Trend names an Oldsmobile its very first "Car of the Year" in 1949; that award went to the Oldsmobile 88 lineup of cars, which consisted of the Rocket 88, the Futuramic 88, and the Super 88; according to wikipedia (and multiple car magazines including Motor Trend), it is believed that the first real muscle car was the Oldsmobile 88, as the car had a V8 in a relatively light car for the era; it was far from fast, but I bet with modern tires, its performance could be helped somewhat.

The name 88 would stick around for a very long time, and would be applied to front-wheel-drive vehicles as well as the rear-wheel-drive car featured here; the nameplate signified a luxury vehicle, and into the 1950s, that status was established permanently, as it was affixed to bigger, plusher vehicles in Oldsmobile's lineup. It's a shame that the nameplate had to be affixed to lumbering front-wheel-drive chariot with a V6, but then again, the vehicles that bore the nameplate early one weren't blazingly fast either.

I think this is one of the coolest cars I've shot in quite a while; and to be honest, I am not familiar with pre-1960s cars and this Futuramic 88 helps me learn about cars as I shoot. While on the surface, it looks amazing (and obviously makes for fantastic photos), I can tell some parts are not the stock pieces--and that's okay.

For instance, the wheels are definitely not stock; this Futuramic 88 rolls on replica Chevrolet Rallye wheels likely made by Wheel Vintiques--and they look great! I often don't approve of slapping random wheels from other branches of the car company on a vehicle, but here it works. Oddly enough, the Europeans would call this OEM+. Silly Dubbers.

Inside, this 88 is fairly clean, but I'm not quite sure the seats are the original units; they appear to be too modern for this car--maybe they've just been reupholstered, I don't really know. I would assume that this car would have a flashier place to plop your buttocks down, but then again, I know next to nothing about these cars.

I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed shooting this thing, and I hope to find more pre-1954 GMs in the future.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Chevrolet El Camino

Continuing my Chevrolet theme, I bring readers this El Camino. If that front end looks familiar, there's a reason for it. Like the popular Australian term ute, the same term applies to the El Camino and Ford Ranchero sold in the 'states. Take a midsize passenger car, and build a cargo hold in place of the rear seats, and market it as a car/truck hybrid. There technically were trucks by the EPA, but since they were built on car frames, they are designed to meet crash standards for passenger cars--which in the 1970s and 1980s were fairly low, but still.

The El Camino was in production from 1959 to 1960, then reappeared in 1964 to finish its production run; in 1959-1960, it was based on the same platform as the Chevrolet fullsizers (Brookwood, Impala, Del Ray etc), but then in 1964, it switched to being based on the midsize offerings, where it stood until its 1987 demise; howeve, unlike the Monte Carlo I brought readers yesterday, the El Camino was not revived at a later date--unless said reader lives in Australia, where it is sold as the Holden Ute. I have seen custom jobs based on the W-body Lumina, and its successor the Impala--and even the front-wheel-drive Monte Carlo, but those are one-offs and were not licensed by Chevrolet.

 I like these--and I am not afraid to admit it; I often see these midly riced out, or donked out, so its refreshing to see a stock one--although I have blogged quite a number of them already, they never get old.  I like the stock wheels on this one, and I like the pain silver color; I don't really like two-tone on these, so I'm glad this one isn't two-toned like most of them here.

I dig the stock wheels on these, and I think stock is best here. Sure, people slap horrendous 24s on them, but that looks stupid; leave these alone, thank you.  I can't really say for sure, but I think this might be the one that is now neon yellow that lives on this block. I desperate hope it isn't.

I had fun shooting this truck, and I am glad  shoot it the first time I saw it. Unlike California, and Idaho, these trucklets are fast disappearing here, and I want to document them as best I can.

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Chevrolet Monte Carlo

The name Monte Carlo conjures up different images to different folks; for some, the name invokes images of a treacherous historic rally race, and to others, the name brings about memories of the 1980s G-body and its NASCAR dominance. But Chevrolet's personal luxury coupe wasn't strictly about speed or racing by any stretch.Not by a long-shot.

When the Monte Carlo debuted, it was Chevrolet's answer to the spot between the Ford Thunderbird and Lincoln Mark series; filled with luxury appointments, but at an affordable price. It was the step below reaching anything with Buick-class luxury, but it was bigger than, say, a Chevrolet Chevelle. So it was neatly positioned for people who wanted to be able to buy an opulent vehicle from the same dealer that sold Corvettes; and sell, they did.

The name "Monte Carlo" was instantly recognizable, and just the name itself brings about easy recognition from all walks of life; Chevrolet, as a company, knew this, and that car ran until the rear-wheel-drive G body was dropped in 1988; however, in 1995, the nameplate was bought back--again on a luxury-oriented vehicle, despite being front-wheel-drive. Ultimately, the nameplate was canned after the 2007 model year, and there have been no signs of seeing the nameplate return. Quite a shame, because I think there is room to build a rear-wheel-drive luxury two-door and price it a bit higher than the Camaro.

I really like this one; everything is top-notch here; excellent color combination, and excellent wheels. I love that the paint is not only a neat shade, but the application looks tremendous as well. Normally, I would balk at older cars without much chrome, but here the minimalist approach works very well.
The Chevrolet Rallyes are the best wheels for this car, though I don't think it would look bad on any other set of modern wheels that weren't overly huge.

I especially like that even though this car has a show plate on the front, it does get driven daily in the summer. I have seen it numerous times, and can vouch for that. If you own a muscle car (even if it is geared toward the luxury end of the spectrum, what fun is it if it isn't driven? Apparently this owner thinks those same thoughts, and I applaud him for it.

Minneapolis Chevrolet Nova

In the 1960s, the little Chevrolet Nova became a compact car phenomenon; decades later, the Nova platform would gain ground as a popular hot rodding choice (yes, I realize this is also the name of a magazine). When I was younger, I wanted a Nova, and it was always the '68-'72 models with little to emphasis placed on the earlier--or the later cars. Slowly, my interest in the Nova nameplate has shifted towards the earlier Nova IIs and the later 1970s models that don't really garner much attention.

After its 1975 redesign, the Nova sort of fell off if you will; rather than looking somewhat like a smaller Chevelle, the Nova looked rather bland Sure, it still packed a (rather uninspiring) V8, and there was an SS option, but this generation of Chevrolet's compact car was gear more toward luxury and economy that the muscle car that preceded it. Gone were the Chevrolet Rallyes and bright colors, and in place were generic hubcaps, subdued neutral colors, and a wide variety of psuedo-luxury interior trimmings. The Malaise-era was here, and it took its toll on Chevrolet's baby--and it showed. By 1979, the once-popular Nova was a sight of the past, and a new generation of compact car replaced it that winter.

I have slowly started to warm up to these and I think this one looked perfect; I like what the owner did here--kept it stock, but added a set of period wheels. Normally, I thought the idea of stock plus wheels was kind of a lame approach, but this Nova was done right. The Cragars looked amazing, and were the right size and width as well. No stinkbug stance was had here.

This generation has been overlooked for quite some time, and now they have finally seen the light of day. I have noticed that as of late, more and more of this generation have been getting saved. Kudos to the owner of this car for saving it, and setting it off perfectly. What a great job you've done sir (or mam.)

Minneapolis Street Sighting: Subaru 4WD Wagon

In my searches for finding the right car to blog, I often scour certain streets multiple times per day, to look for vehicles I have seen in the area, but am unsure of where said vehicle resides; that's how I came upon this clean Subaru wagon.

When this car was first introduced, Subaru did not have much of a presence in America; they were a relatively obscure brand with a lineup of vehicles that all looked the same, in different lengths (sort of like Mitsubishi is seen today); there was a three-door, a five-door, and a sedan, and each was available with 2WD and 4WD (like the Impreza is today). But, here in America, the car didn't really have a "name"; it was simply sold as the sedan, hatchback or wagon, whereas it was sold as the Leone all over the world. What does Leone mean? Apparently it means Lion--in Italian; sorry, but the roar from this thing isn't that strong.  Maybe Subaru Lumaca would've been more appropriate? (It means "Snail" by the way).

Nevertheless, this is the car that built Subaru's reputation here in America, and we have this one to thank for the arrival of the Impreza--or did this one evolve into what we would know as the Legacy? Hard to say, really, but this is the car that allowed everthing after it to be sold here--including the much-hated XT6 coupe.

I actually really like this cars; I don't see them around very often, and when I do they're always beat to hell and back--usually from rust; surprisingly, this one was not--at all. I have never seen a pre-1986 Subaru this nice--ever. Probably in my childhood I did, but I am in awe at this one.

The paint is clean, bu shows some fade, and all the trim is intact--and in perfect condition to boot; its even got the factory 4WD badge on the tailgate--something I would've thought surely would have fallen astray by now. The US-spec bumpers are silly, though I do like how there is space for non-US license plates, and that means either Subaru was thinking ahead as to not design specific parts for different markets--or it was cheaper to make one part then adapt said part to each market.

I like the wheels on these; ever since I was a toddlers, I've always liked white multi-spoke wheels, on everything from cars to heavy duty pickups; to me, the white wheels mean business. And not in the "I'll kick your ass" way, but in a "I work hard on the job" way; I fondly remember white wheels on work trucks and fed-ex trucks and box-trucks of my childhood, and it was a rare sight to see them on a passenger car; thus, white wheels re-enforces Subaru's theme of longevity and durability.

I will cherish this find as one of my best finds; I never expected to find something this rare, and this clean here in salt-hell. I hope I can find more clean 1980s Japanese cars that aren't fan favorites.