When it comes to the Bergen County Cars and Caffe meet held twice a year at the truly enormous Garden State Plaza shopping mall (home to a crowded IKEA with 30% screaming children and 60% exasperated parents), muscle cars are typically under-represented. Those that do show, however, are very strong examples as per the rest of the field for the day. This fully-prepped Charger was running around the outside perimeter, and being a Mopar addict, I just had to shoot it. The black paint, fetching chrome wheels, and evil exhaust note brought this sleek beauty to life around the mall.
Yet more JDM fun, but this time from the cloudy shores of the Philadelphia Navy Yard. This is a Toyota Soarer, in its second generation, shown at RADwood Philly. The third generation model we know as the Lexus SC, but it was never marketed in the USA until that point. Enjoy the photos of this Japanese grand tourer. Continue reading Toyota Soarer at RADwood Philly 2018→
Hershey’s AACA Fall Meet is a truly unpredictable beast. While it’s a great place to view pre-war and muscle cars alike, sometimes a JDM oddity shows up. Exhibit A is this very cool Mazda Sentia sedan, the RHD version of the 929 that Mazda sold in America during the early Nineties. The custom wheels set off the lines rather nicely. Continue reading Mazda Sentia at the 2018 AACA Fall Meet→
Back in the Seventies, Ford boldy advertised a number of self-determined similarities between the Mercedes W124 E-Class sedan with their newly-launched Granada sedan. While it didn’t exactly draw buyers to the showrooms away from the three-pointed star to the Blue Oval, it certainly got people talking at the time and was unconventional for the time. 40 years later though, I think Mercedes may have won the war. Take a look and tell me–do you see a difference? I can see it, but after a few whiskey sours, maybe I can be convinced that the Granada and the 230-E are the same car. Continue reading Is it a Ford? Or is it a Mercedes? That infamous advertisement, 40 years on.→
The Lamborghini Countach was the pinup queen of 1980s cars. Low, powerful, and bursting with sex appeal, this angular Italian stallion captured hearts and minds of the very rich throughout the decade until it was replaced by the Diablo in 1990. In many ways, the excessive lines and ostentatious body kit fitted to later models reflected those who had the means to buy these incredible machines. This white example was on display for all to see at the Scarsdale Concours last fall and caught my eye with little to no effort. Continue reading Cocaine White Countach LP5000 QV at the 2018 Scarsdale Concours→
Hellcats are not cars to be taken lightly. Nor are they for the faint of heart, mind, or soul. With 707 hp on tap, one hit of the gas is enough to change your life–much like drinking grain alcohol all night long. This color scheme from 2018’s Scarsdale Concours looks like a Starbucks drink, with off-white paint and brown stripes. I’m a fan of this finish, especially with the dark alloy rims characteristic of the Hellcat. Enjoy the photos of this white-chocolate mocha latte Hellcat. It’s Cars…and Coffee! Continue reading “Mocha Latte” Dodge Charger Hellcat at the 2018 Scarsdale Concours→
To the untrained eye, this is just a Cadillac DeVille from the Malaise Era. But to someone with a trained eye, this is a Malaise Era unicorn. Today, cylinder deactivation, or variable displacement, is much more commonplace and considered to be a reliable, smooth way for a large engine to achieve the fuel economy of a smaller one and still retain its performance potential. The theory was there as early as 1980 but the transister technology and computer control technology was simply not up to the task. Cadillac tried to use this feature on the V8-6-4 engine in most of their 1981 models but the system proved to be mostly unreliable to the point of exasperating its well-heeled and high-income clientele. The system would be pulled for 1982 in favor of the new HT4100 V8, which was even less well-recieved thanks to its lack of horsepower. Continue reading 1981 Cadillac V8-6-4 in the AACA Hershey Car Corral→
When Saturday is at Hershey and Sunday is at Radwood, you’re gauranteed to see some American Motors product in the flesh, whether it’s a little Gremlin, a gorgeous Rebel Machine, or even a late-model Jeep Grand Wagoneer. Luckily for my star-studded eyes, it was all there to see in all its glory. Enjoy the photos of some American Motors, from 1970 to 1987. Continue reading American Motors at Radwood and AACA Hershey→
Plymouth’s Win-You-Over Beat Goes On, they said. The year was 1970. The muscle car era was at its peak, and Plymouth had an ace in the hole with the Superbird. They took the Road Runner and put a nose cone on it, along with a giant rear wing, to homologate the super-slippery, aerodynamic bodyshape for NASCAR. Unfortunately, they were not able to sell them all immediately due to the unusual front end styling. This yellow example stole my eye for a good amount of time at Hershey’s AACA meet this fall and I couldn’t stop staring at it. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading Yellow Superbird at the 2018 Hershey AACA Fall Meet→
Here we have a bit of a Malaise Mopar Unicorn. While everyone knew the Chrysler Cordoba, the Dodge twin of it was always less common during the period. The Mirada, produced only from 1980-1983, is the final iteration of the RWD Dodge personal coupe, and was the last four-seat 2 door RWD domestically produced vehicle under the brand name until the Challenger came out in 2008. This was one of the most well-preserved examples I’ve seen in a very long time, and ran quiet as a church mouse. Enjoy the photos of this rarely-seen Mopar classic. Continue reading Dodge Mirada at the AACA Fall Meet, Hershey→
Once upon a time, Dodge made a great car called the Challenger. Then, in the late 1970s, they had their first stab at bringing the great name back. But, reality was hard on the new Challenger. It was based on a dowdy Mitsubishi Galant Lambda, and its Plymouth counterpart shown here, the Sapporo, wasn’t exactly a paragon of technology, speed, or style. But, someone brought this example to Radwood, and I had to say I was impressed. It’s not perfect, but Plymouth’s desire to bring a small, sporty coupe with Japanese dynamics and American style (or some of it) to the market is clear through this black-and-silver Technica. I don’t think I’ll see another one of these anytime soon, so I took in as much as I could. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading Plymouth Sapporo Technica at Radwood Philly→
Range Rovers may be great when they’re new, but buy a used one, and the phrase “buyer beware” takes on a new and very sinister meaning. Here, Tyler Hoover, aka “Hoovie” of Hoovie’s Garage gives us the quick and dirty reasons why you should run away as fast as possible from old Range Rovers unless you know what you’re doing.
Mind Over Motor 