European – Page 3 – CARS-YDSE.com

Qvale Mangusta ~ 2001

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

The name of this site is Cars You Don’t See Everyday and this car certainly qualifies, although it’s the newest car on the site. From what I can gather, there were only 270-272 cars made with this logo. I had never heard of the car and looked it up on Google. There is a Wikipedia entry for it but it is really sparse but it does tell you how to pronounce the brand name.. Click Here for Wikipedia Entry

A little poking around and I did find some interesting items, like the first Qvale crash aftermath. Click Here to View

1974 Citroën SM

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

Apparently, this car design was started in 1961 and was designed by Citroen’s head style designer, Robert Opron. It was based on the DS which was Citroen’s basic sedan but was clearly targeted at the luxury buyer. It was first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in 1971 as a concept car. The car had advanced styling and suspension as well as a Maserati power-plant and drive train.

Many of the details reflect Opron’s American background, notably the vestiges of ‘fins’ at the rear. Opron worked on aircraft body design and aerodynamics while in the USA, and the SM benefited from this experience. It was unusually aerodynamic for its era[2], with a very low drag coefficient of 0.26[3]. The SM was one of the first production cars to benefit from extensive wind tunnel testing during its design phase[citation needed], and as a result aerodynamic efficiency influenced the final design of many details including the shape of the side mirror, the method of windshield sealing, and the underbelly of the car which featured active aerodynamics, effectively sucking the car to the road at high speed. Even the ventilation intake is located in a “neutral” area on the hood, which makes the ventilator fan regulate the interior ventilation at all road speeds.

More Information on the SM, click here
[2] More Information, click here

1985 Maserati 228 – Cash For Clunkers?

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

All right, so it’s a cliche’ now but, I ask you; when was the last time you saw one of these cars on the street? It was touted as a luxury sports coupe and did perform pretty well. It did the quarter mile in about 15 sec at 85 mph. Not bad for a drive in the country. It had a double turbo V6 engine and would be outclassed by today’s luxury sedans. I found this article recently.

Man trades in Maserati as ‘clunker’
GOLDEN, Colo., Aug. 16 (UPI) — A Colorado car dealer got a shock when a man drove in with a trade in the cash-for- clunkers program, a 1985 Maserati BiTurbo.

The car is in almost pristine condition, KUSA-TV, Denver, reported. There are only 18,480 miles on the odometer.

While the Italian sports car stands out among the battered trucks and SUVs other people have brought to Go Subaru in Golden, it qualified under the program. The owner got a $3,500 rebate on a new Subaru Impreza.

Wes Guthrie said the owner complained the Maserati would need work after being driven for 10 minutes. He had been trying to sell it for months and finding no takers.

However impressive it looks, the Maserati is destined for the same place as the other clunkers traded in to Go Subaru. Since the goal of the federal program is to remove gas-guzzling older cars from the roads, the engine will be disabled and the car crushed.

“Its one of those cars where you go, ‘Wow, I wish it didn’t have to be crushed, but unfortunately it does,'” Guthrie said.

More Information, click here

1972 or 73 Karmann Ghia Type 14

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

This car was photographed in April 2001 while walking to work. I believe it is a 1972 or 73 based on the lights and the bumper. This car was in very good condition.

In 1970 larger tail lights integrated the reverse lights and larger wrap-around turn signals in contrast to the earlier “bullet” style lights. VW models of this era have earned the slang nickname fat chicks[9]. Larger and wider taillights in 1972 increased side visibility. For the USA model only, NHTSA mandated 1973 modifications included larger energy-absorbing bumpers. Also, there was the provision of a package shelf in lieu of the modest rear seat.

More Information, click here

1971 Mercedes-Benz W114 – 2 Door

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

According to the logo on the front of this car, it is related to Argentina. Either it came from South America or the owner did. They did not make many of these two door sedans and this one is in great shape. I think it’s a 1971.

A coupé variant of this model was introduced in 1969 with a ‘C’ designated after the model number. Where the saloon would just have ‘280E’ written on the boot lid, the coupé would have ‘280CE’. The exclusivity of the coupé was reflected by a longer boot hood, and the 250C was fitted with a 2.8 litre 6-cylinder engine, whereas the saloon was fitted with the 2.5. It is considered by some to be one of the finest classics of the 60’s and 70’s, although this is not reflected in the prices of these cars which is generally less than its more popular contemporaries the Mercedes SL R107/C107 roadster and coupe (1971–1989), and a fraction of price commanded by the Pagoda models[7] (1963–1971). While a ‘hard-top’ unlike the fully convertible SL, the pillarless design allowed all the windows could be wound completely away for “summer motoring”. Only 67,048 coupés were made from 1969 to 1976 against 1.852,008 saloons. Of these 24,669 were “280C”, “280CE” (top of the range) and 42,379 “250C” and “250CE”.
[edit]

More Information on the Mercedes, click here

1968 Citroen DS21 or so.

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

It’s timeless, at least within decades. I think this car is a 1968-71 but I really can not tell. The interesting thing is that it really does not matter that much as the engineering for this car took about thirteen years to evolve.

I found this information about Citroen DS21s.

The Citroën DS21 Pallas

An Automotive Anomaly

Late in 1956, CU tested one of the first front-wheel-drive Citroën DS sedans to come over from France. We remarked at the time: “To say that a car is new and different is only to say that it is interesting, not necessarily that it is good. … The Citroën DSl9 is essentially a connoisseur’s item.” Thirteen years later, some 27,000 Citroëns having since crossed the Atlantic, we tested a 1969 DS21 Pallas sedan. (The 1970 Citroëns won’t come on the U.S. market until spring.) It’s not new (it differs only subtly from the 1956 car), but it’s still interesting – as much an automotive anomaly as ever. Its major advantage – very comfortable seats, a very good ride, good handling in normal driving and good fuel economy – come at a fairly high price, at least in the model tested. And to judge by our test car, problems of repair and upkeep may constitute a major headache for Citroën owners.

More Information, click here

Alfa Romeo Milano 75, 1985

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

This blog has been going for about six months now and there are over fifty cars listed on the it. By far, the most popular car is the Alfa Romeo Giulia 1300. I really don’t know why, but the Giulia usually gets many hits every day. So I found another great looking Alfa in my collection. It is an Alfa Romeo Milano 75. I think it is a 1985. The 75 refers to the 75th anniversary of the Alfa motorcar.

Have a look at the original posting.
More Information on the Giulia, click here

I found this information about the Milano 75.

Introduced in May 1985, the Alfa 75 (or Milano in the USA), named to celebrate 75 years of Alfa Romeo, was developed as a successor to the Giulietta/Alfetta. A mid size saloon the Alfa 75 continued the unusual Alfa Romeo design of having the engine at the front and the gearbox at the rear to provide a good distribution of the weight.

At launch, the engines were as follows : 1600 (1570cc, 110 bhp), and 2000 (1962cc,148 bhp) four cylinder units with carburetors, and a 2.4 turbo diesel (1995cc, 110 bhp).

More Information, click here

1959 Sunbeam Alpine Series I

Click on the picture to Z O O M in.

From what I can tell, this is a very early Sunbeam Alpine British sports car. The car was manufactured from 1959 through 1968. For a production car it was fairy inexpensive compared to the Jaguar and Corvettes of the day and it was also an economical car to drive.

The Alpine name, previously used by Sunbeam on an earlier car, was revived for this all new sports car launched in 1959. Based on a Hillman Husky floorpan, and using the 1494cc 4-cylinder engine from the Sunbeam Rapier, this new medium sized and attractive sports car was welcomed by the buying public who were at the time were not spoilt for choice in this area of the market.

More Information, click here

1974 BMW Bavaria

Click on pictures to Z O O M in.

OK, I’m going to use a cliche’, but it really isn’t. This car is a classic. It still looks great after over 30 years. The car was basically a 2500 sedan with a 2800 motor. The car was only made for export to the U.S.

The Most Famous BMW Bavaria

The late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’ favorite car, a 1974 green BMW Bavaria, which shuttled Caroline and John F. Kennedy Jr. from New York City to their New Jersey horse farm, was sold for $57,100 on eBay, December 11, 2000.

More Information, click here

’67 Morris Minor Traveller Woody Wagon

Click on the picture to Z O O M in.

Click on the picture to Z O O M in.
During the early 2000s I worked in an industrial part of San Francisco at a dot.com. I walked the twenty or so blocks to work most days and started to carry my camera. I passed this car on the way to work many times. I never met the owner but loved the car.

Over 1050 ’67 Minors made it to these shores (U.S.A) before BMC was forced to pull the plug again. This time, the 1968 EPA (smog) and DOT (safety) regulations would require all auto manufactures to re-engineer their products to comply and BMC decided to drop the importation of the Minor and put their efforts into the MG 1100/1300 sedan and the Austin America. The Minor continued in various forms overseas until mid-1971. Over 1.5 million were built by the end of production. In total, 65,000 were imported to the US between !949 and 1967.

More Information, click here