Posted on 05/10/2006 4:48:01 PM PDT by Responsibility2nd
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Jabari Bryant didn't go to a car dealership to buy his new car last fall. The 28-year-old went to a retirement community in Tybee Island, Ga., where for $2,000 he bought a navy blue 1988 Chevrolet Caprice Classic Brougham from a man who was "at least 83."
The seller said "his eyesight was going and he had no use for the car," recalls Mr. Bryant, an automobile glass installer from Savannah.
Young people today don't want their father's Oldsmobile -- they want their grandfather's. Some of the hippest wheels for under-30 drivers today are models commonly identified with seniors: Oldsmobiles, Buicks, Chevrolets and Cadillacs from the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s.
From Collins Ave. in Miami Beach's South Beach neighborhood to International Blvd. in Oakland, Calif., teens and young adults are cruising in "grandpa" and "grandma" cars that they have painted bright colors like lime green, outfitted with fancy sound systems and propped up on monster-truck-style wheels. They're sweet-talking their grandparents into giving up old cars and offering to buy them on the spot from strangers.
Television shows, such as MTV's "Pimp My Ride," and rappers, including Snoop Dogg, are helping to drive the craze. There's even a new magazine, Donk, Box & Bubble, dedicated to the tricked-out-oldie-car culture.
For U.S. car makers, struggling to lift sales, it's a painful irony that the models striking a chord with young buyers aren't those rolling off the assembly lines today but rather ones made decades ago. Detroit's marketers are trying to figure out how to ride the trend without ruining it.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
And yes, the car gets a lot of looks, especially from the kids.
You got that right
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Backseats were for amateurs....the real deal was a 63 Rambler Classic with the split bench front seast that folded back flat with the back seat....instant queen-size bed.
Also explains the Dodge revival.
Well heck, I want your Cobra too. Nice car, to say the least. Man, I want one of those.
Wow, I thought I was the only one who'd noticed that similarity.
It'd be great for your guys to get into Cobra Fever the way I did.
It'd be great for your guys to get into Cobra Fever the way I did.
"Cars a few decades ago had personality."
So true! When I was little, I thought each car had a "face" -- front and back! Edsels scared me. With those slanted rear lights, they looked E-V-I-L!
Oops, forgot to mention. 1967 Ford Custom, 289 2 bbl. commonly seen as a police cruiser. :) I miss that car.
It's the car my husband has always wanted. It would be fun to get into once the kids are through school.
I've saved your post 153. Thanks.
Newsflash to Detroit WE WANTED OUR FATHERS OLDS!
The newer cars were a disaster. Saying "this is not your father's olds" was like saying we eliminated the cool.
Sigh, then again I like musclecars.
When men were men, cars were cars, and women were grateful.
My wifes Roadmaster with the 350 LT engine gets an honest 26 MPG on the Highway. My math is fine thank You. I dont smoke anything either. perhaps it is your own math that sucks.
Mr Gasket sold a special U-joint just for that purpose.
WD-40 on the hood hinges every oil change prevents that problem.
It's a '99 and it is a bit "pimped out" but then I enjoy working on it and mostly interior/sound system work and a wee bit of performance enhancements to get it up to 420hp.
I know the feeling. Y'all might want to think of building it in stages. Building the engine and attaching the tranny could be the first step with least amount of intrusion on garage space. I'ts when you get the rolling pallet (the most expensive part) that one garage bay is dedicated.
Regardless, your hubby may want to get the Ford Racing SVO, Edelbrock, and other catalogs and begin the engine component planning.
Let me know if you need any ideas, or suggestions.
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