WOW...There's A Market For Affordable Rear-Drive Sedans?!

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news:4d2dne53U6pnTV3dRVn snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

market

Sure! My Mom used to drive a fake woody '66 Colony Park with a 390 in it. I broke the motor mounts on it doing neutral drops.

The Magnum does look like a wagon, but I think the Pacifica does too. If you look at a lot of SUVs (or whatever they're calling them these days) with those old wagons in mind, they're not that much different looking.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Cobra442Jet,

You'd take one with an Olds 455?! A GM powerplant?! You wouldn't go with a respectable Blue Oval 427, 8 or 9...? Are you feeling well? Have you been forced to listen to Elton John's "Rocket Man" over and over because it got stuck in your 8-track player and it has gotten to yah? Or do we have an imposter posing as Cobra Jet and they slipped up?

Just messin' with ya... but am a little shocked at your choice for motivation of the Checker.

Patrick '93 Cobra '83 LTD

I think the minivan, SUV and station wagon are all merging into the same vehicle. I just hope they don't become something completely hideous like the Pontiac Aztec. I still have a gag reflex when I see one of those things (I wouldn't insult SUV's by calling it one) rolling down the road.

"Patrick" wrote

I think he just wanted to save the good iron and use the bowtie for bashing into things. They make nice paperweights, but put some speed on one and you have a wrecking ball, then a big doorstop once it stops moving. :)

"66 6F HCS" wrote

once it stops moving. :)

And I almost forgot. You hafta push it to get it rollin', hopefully downhill. Reminds me of the carshow I went to tonight. Had to help pushstart a GTO, Sheesh!

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news:MOGdnVb1 snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

LOL! You're right, Michael. I'll tell you though - the Honda Element isn't far behind the Aztec...

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Neither is that new Toyota thing I've seen lately. I cut the Element some slack because Honda wasn't aiming for it to be stylish. It was meant as an ugly but utilitarian and affordable box from the start. I can at least respect that. Honda/Toyota have basically copied the old VW vans of the 60's and 70's. The Pontiac designers of the Aztec thought it was something on the cutting edge of SUV design. The only thing it cut was my poor eyeballs when I saw it for the first time!

The 455 Olds is an undersquare torque beast, and they are just ass-kickers when it comes to moving heavy loads. And, I still have the '70 455 that propelled my '68 4-4-2 into the 12's in the 70's. You know; the one I built myself when I was 20.

Cobra442Jet

Oldsmobiles are Rockets, not Bowties. I am not anti-GM. I'm just not crazy about Chevrolets. Except 55's.

Checkers are an American institution. We could have rammed a fleet of them up Iraq's ass and killed everyone in sight, the way it should have been done in the first place.

Cobra442StarfireJet

I was set to race a GTO one night. The owner did a wild burnout, and then u-turned to go back to the line instead of backing up. He ran into the curb on the opposite side of the street and bent the wheel under. I just don't know about those Poncho guys.

CobraJet

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

What new Toyota thing? Haven't heard about that yet. The Element is a squared off CRV IMO. BTW, have you seen the new Chevy econocar? Forgot the name of it, but it's GM's answer to the Echo. Another POS on the road. The Aztec is what it is; hopefully it will go away soon.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Here's a link to the new Toyota box-on-wheels:

It's their new Scion brand that is supposed to attract younger buyers. I haven't seen the new Chevy. I think they have given the Aztec a face lift and it isn't quite as hideous now.

I have seen a couple of those Scion boxes on the road, I thought they looked like one of those little clown cars that 20 clowns crawl out of at the circus. Then I wonder what kind of drugs the guy was on when he made that purchase. Dennis

It isn't any better looking than the Element, IMO. The only people I 've seen driving them around here are middle aged and not the young market Toyota was targeting. Maybe the ones buying these boxes-on-wheels are reliving their hippie, VW bus days from the early

1970's.

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

Seen a lot of Scions on the roads down here. I actually like the XB - it's kind of neat the way it's totally square, although it makes my wife's MPV look totally streamlined. At least it doesn't have plastic fenders like the Element. Most of the XBs I've seen are lowered with wheels and whatnot driven by teens and early 20s. Seen a few older people (60s-70s) too.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Joe,

Whoa! This is/was one long post. I just snipped it down a bit.

Patrick '93 Cobra '83 LTD

snipped-for-privacy@aol.com (Patrick) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Thanks, Patrick. Sometimes I forget to trim - I just scroll all the way to the bottom and go for it.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC