trinacriabob

I'll say that the Subaru Legacy sedan is sort of acceptable while the Outback is not. As for the two Buick/Opel products you've posted, they are substantially more attractive than the Subaru or any Asian brand econoboxes. This stuff is tricky. Business schools teach that stock price stems from a formula more or less discounting future cash flows going to the stockholder. I'm not so sure I believe in the "theory of efficient markets." One day, HPQ (Hewlett Packard), which had been hovering around $ 35 to $ 37, jumps up to $ 41 or $ 42 because an event like Warren Buffett buying some up made it spike. It came right back down and is back in the range it was in before, even before this latest market tumble.

Spotted on Cinco de Mayo. This Sedan de Ville had less than 100,000 miles on it. And, being a 1977, this car is 45 years old! While I appreciate the car, it's not something I'd want. I didn't even crank the key to hear what the engine might sound like. Almost all of the boulevardiers from this era tend to lose the quiet exhaust notes of when they were new(er), which is too bad. The downsizing from 1976 helped this model, but maybe less so for some of the other full-sizes like those by Pontiac This car sure has a balanced profile. I like how they raised up the rear wheel well without putting a skirt on it. It could have used a piece of chrome on the B-pillar. Looking over these sorts of lines and through a hood ornament is a thing of the past. The padded vinyl roofs looked great on almost all GM full-sizes of this era, and some mid-sizes as well. Fairly nice looking dashboard with a protruding center stack and a cowl ridge at the top of it. Circular gauges would have been nice, but that time hadn't yet arrived. This is a view of the interior of the cabin. Cadillac seemed to have ditched some of the really gaudy cloth interior choices from years before to go with simpler mono-color ones like you see here. Cadillac always paid attention to their interior lighting, like the one you see on the rear sail panel. This is some generous legroom in the rear of the cabin. Bottom line: what a majestic vehicle.

In the first few days of the month, I went to get some strawberries on the cheap and saw this in the parking lot ... ... early '90s Ford Tempo coupe in "LL Bean / Eddie Bauer colors" that were popular for cars in that decade ... plastic manual window cranks ... it was nighttime.

Q: Why are Saturday and Sunday the strongest days? A: Because the rest are week days.

So, yesterday I was near a Subaru dealership in a suburb that is salt of the earth and not uptight. So I went inside. (This is sounding like a joke, but it's not.) I wanted to look at their sedans. They didn't have any ... just wagon-CUV type vehicles. I learned that they do NOT have a sense of humor about the tropes and stereotypes. And this is even when said in a manner that was diplomatic and circuitous.

The uplevel sportier model is the one which I believe had this (^) engine. I've rented about 5 of them across 3 or so years, and my rental cars always had the 2.4 liter 4 cylinder. They put out 180 hp. Acceptable but not fantastic for highway fuel economy for a 4 cyl. They are very quiet and smooth riding cars.

Saw this Buick Verano 2 days ago, in the evening, after walking out of a store. These Veranos are now 10 year old cars, are usually kept up, and their owners seem to like them. In a way, the situation reminds me of how compact Olds Aleros are still seen on the road many (~20) years later. And here I thought I'd be cashing in my GM points on whatever the latest rendition of the Verano might be, albeit on some updated platform. I guess that's not going to happen.

This spotting has somewhat of a "deliberate" aspect about it. And BOTH vehicles look "familiar."

Seen the first weekend of April. This dealership seems to have no shortage of new Chargers. However, most of them feature the higher priced trim packages, and higher MSRP prices. The interesting thing is that they won't tell you whereabouts - vis-a-vis MSRP - they will sell you a new one. The prices for used ones a few years old on the lot were absurd. They weren't interested in discussing the topic of prices unless a person was a "here and now" buyer.

Seen on April Fool's Day: After renting several, I've come to have a soft spot for the little Ford Fiesta. It was probably meant to compete with the Chevy Sonic and Spark. The Chevy have some shared accessories, such as switches, with the upline GM models, so that's a nice aspect about them. However, the Fiesta is more fun to drive than either of the Chevy econoboxes, not to mention having a reasonable amount of rear overhang compared to the small Chevys, which seem sheared off toward the rear.

This car has gotten cleaner looking over the years. As a result of C&G members owing one or liking them, I now notice them more. I'm not a 2-seater buyer, but, of this genre, my nod goes to the Saturn Sky, followed by the Pontiac Solstice. Seen in a metallic blue I've not seen before and that works well on this vehicle.

I have seen this situation - the exposed windshield washer fluid bottle - often. Bummer. This photo has a March date.

@oldshurst442 Yes, I know Centre-Ville fairly well from so many trips. I've walked around most of it on foot, thanks to the Metro and bus pass that I typically get. It's a very walkable city. The first time I went, I even took the foot trail from Avenue des Pins, I think, up to the Chalet's Belvedere from Parc Mont-Royal over the city, which was an ascent of almost 1,000 feet. Now, I just drive the rental car to it, or take transit! And, yes, they do clean up and they certainly do a great job of it at the airport. I was nervously watching the weather reports and, yep, it would be snowing upon arriving from Lisbon. But I read that, among major airports, YUL is one of the best in keeping its runways open. Snow drifts and all, the landing was a smooth one, as was going through customs and getting luggage. I much prefer YUL to YYZ, for both the city AND the airport!

And, finally, an unusual way to get home - by changing planes and laying over in snowed upon Montreal. A transit system (STM) Dodge Charger in front of the main bus station (modern and in a nice neighborhood) This looks familiar, except that it's in another country! Just in time. - - - - - All this not too far from @oldshurst442 ... don't they shovel the sidewalks (trottoirs) over there? ... even curbside at the airport ... what little walking around I had to do was no fun!

Wrapping up Lisbon (PT): A funny looking vehicle at the National Palace at Queluz - - - - - An even funnier situation ... who says "lighting doesn't strike twice," so to speak? Seen one evening near the Metro yellow line's Picoas station Seen the following day near the Metro blue line's Laranjeiras station while coming back from my Covid-19 test so I could board the plane home When I got home and looked, it had the same license plate. Amazing coincidence!

In Lisbon (PT): Opel Insignia there ... Buick Regal here. Brochure quality? You tell me. I liked how this photo turned out. It was in an alley behind some condo towers.

Also in northern Portugal: Their Mondeo by Ford ... I wonder what powers it and what sort of gearbox it has. A new type of Smart I haven't seen before. The owner saw me photographing it and we exchanged thumbs up gestures. (In some countries, you DO NOT gesture with a thumbs up or give someone the OK sign.)

Goofy car sighting in northern Portugal: Old school Fiat with an "ancient" squarish black and gold license plate, too.

When in Rome ... ... go Brit (but NOT Brexit) ... you may wonder if these are identical or fraternal twins ... the nod goes to the one on the left, for its grille

I saw this "car" meandering through Rome's main Termini Station for passenger trains ...

Also seen around these same days was an older Lancia Thema that bears no resemblance to the current Chrysler 300. It reminds me more of the jelly bean-like Kia Amanti, which looked like something out of a cartoon.

Was too exhausted to post these upon returning. More sightings from the Adriatic coast: Here's yet another Opel Corsa Here's yet another Ford Ka ... it looks somewhat more normal these days, yet slightly odd when released slightly before 2000 Here's something that I think is considered equivalent to a motorcycle for driving or licensing purposes ... not sure ... And, finally, here's some graffiti on a wall wishing a happy birthday to a (girl)friend or relative named Melania ... or, it could have been put up one April day in reference to that well known individual who hails from a northeasterly direction across the Adriatic.

Happy Earth Day ...

Our Chrysler 300 as seen across the pond near a couple of train stations functioning as a nicer taxi or limo. They call it a Lancia Thema. I did speak to one of the drivers and I think he said it had a 3000 cc (3.0 liter) V6. Again, I don't know who would have supplied that engine, given that the entry-level engine here is the Pentastar 3.6 liter V6. Seen in one city: Seen in another city - namely the port city of Bari, a major hub for ferries to and from Adriatic Greece.

Learned something. The Cadillac sure looks like the CTS of the 2000s. If there are any shared underpinnings, this car looks a little bit nicer because of the curved up beltline while the rear taillamps are slightly obnoxious ... as in overbearing.