balthazar

>>"I wonder how a '67-69 Camaro or '68-72 Nova 2dr would look with a '65-69 Corvair 2dr roof...it was similar to the bubbletop. Insane?"<< Not really- there's a Steve Stanford illustration in the brand new Hot Rod- 1st gen Camaro with a 2nd gen Corvair roofline, '57 Chevy grille bar, '62 Impala bumper stainless... and a few other twisted tricks. Check it out- it works! Another thought :

B-59 SD would- of course, be interesting, but I've stated it before, I REALLY want to see an 'Elky' B-59... tho I would settle for a much longer flower car, too :wink: In general I'm not nuts on the SD thing. >>"The idea of some type of phantom based on a bubbletop is working for me. "<< Now here's something interesting- you could combine a phantom Elky with a bubbletop roof! .... Hm-mmm- getting a single sidelight with a tapered B-pillar would be really tough/impossible.

Seems to me you'd almost do as much work building a 'phantom' as you would building a full-on custom...

My source may be wrong, because this, the '62 Chevy II brochure online http://www.oldcarbrochures.com/main.php?g2_itemId=23315 doesn't show one... Either wrong, or a late-year intro. I tend to believe the book was wrong here. Sorry for what looks like a mislead..

Can't find that pic. No 'O' or 'P' 2-dr wagons... only thing here is the '62 Chevy II 100 & 300 2-dr wagon. (Like Rob said; until the '64 Chevelle...) How much of a project as far as alterations are you looking to do ??

Right? : too many contours. A club member built a stellar '60 tho- looked factory and looked good. {Goes & hunts for pic....}

The '58 Chiivy is a chunky monkey, but it has real solid cut-n-weld possibilities. I completely understand wanting to stay away from Chevys... :wink: I would have to go independant- esp if you were looking to get radical. '59 Pontiacs are best left mild- a LOT of contours to deal with. '60s-'62s lend themselves better to 'alternate visions, IMO. I can't warm much to intermediates- the Falcon is interesting & rare, but there's not much material to work with. That one does look slick tho, moltie.

Chevy : '59-60. Ford : '59-'60. '61-63 (Falcon-based). Stude : '59-60(?) Lark I will caution you thusly- there is a huge difference in GM between '59 & '64 body construction. The later you go, the.... more logically things go together.

In response to a phantom, and in the vein of an Elky :: ever think of an extended-deck coupe with an Elky-esque greenhouse (in size), or a 3-seater 'sports roadster' ?? '58 Biscayne 2-dr, extended deck. It'd be the only one.

'Asian steel' has traditionally been very borderline in quality. The solution here has been common knowledge for 50 years or more, but cost-cutting reigns supreme.

>>"I hear ya, but that means "no sale""<< Wait- you sounded reluctant to work with others.... here's your chance to work solo. :??: >>"I am thinking late 50s - early 60s... "<< ah- HA !!! Come on down! You're the next resto-modder on the World's Quickest '59 Buick !

Oh; I won't be there- I have to work for a livin'! Why do you think the damned thing is still unfinished ??

{pours on the sales pitch} '50s is the era, man! I'm not that far, plus I have a fully-equipped shop (well, no lift; but you won't need that... much). WaWa 2 miles away !

'63 Corvette split window, exc unrestored. '63-67 Corvette roadster, black w/ white top, sidepipes, mint, same driveway as 1st one. '63 Corvette split window, on a flatbed apparently back from paint (no trim or bumpers).

I'v seen your work, Camino- and I asked this before: want something different- how about reassembling a '59 Buick coupe ??

Again :: relevance ??

>>"Even in those eras Japanese design was a derivative. It had no styling trademarks like the German and Americans did. "<< Agreed. Nothing holds up in general... and the few that are mentionable are derivative yet still lack cohesive-ness.

...not that that made it an engaging car to drive.

Not resemblence : square footage. In, like- there's a sh!tload of venting & vent-like grillework on the dash... ALA Pontiac... and saab, 1985. There's nothing wrong with the dash if you crave retro-reguritation. But even mercedes, volvo, bmw, etc, have changed up their interior designs over time. Not here. I will say that the exterior is a notable improvement, but finally stepping into the new millenium surface-treatment-wise may have something to do with that....

Croc - >>"Oh, and I'm pretty sure that Doane has the same right to post as Camino in expressing his annoyance."<< Of course he does, and so he did... but why attempt to bolster one's own opinion with the assumed like opinions of others ? He is free to post whatever he wants, IMO... just questioning that one part; it reads like a vote to suppress... -- -- -- -- -- I do not carry debt, so in that regard I feel I'm one-up on most. I am very resourceful and live relatively minimalistic - I actually wouldn't save anything by cutting back there. I would of course like to see some things move in a positive direction... but so far it really hasn't affected me. I lie : my portfolio took a pretty big hit. :mad: If things don't rebound or just level off, I will do whatever I can think of to gain position/ finances (tho I do that at maybe 65% capacity already). I already had planned to work until death anyway- so that's nothing new. I am working on instilling a defensive mindset into my sons, it'll be far worse for them, it looks from here. I am more concerned there than for my own situation.

That's the same 'right-angle' dash layout, complete w/ Pontiac-esque sq-footage of vents that saab has been twiddling with since the 1980s! Imagine if --say-- Cadillac was still pawning off their 1984 dashes today ! How this escapes widespread comment defies explaination.

"change" and "progress" are seldom the same thing, and that's where the confusion lies.

'Oldsmoboi' - >>"I know what you were talking about.... there are too many things in the future to be worried about. You'll go crazy if you try and cover them all."<< 'Croc' - >>"you can live in constant fear/anxiety of every little unknown on the planet, or you can realize that life is far too variable to predict every little uncertainty, and that being at peace with yourself is far more productive than being constantly vigilant and anxious over the rest of the world."<< True, but you can cover SOME of them, namely; those that are most likely to affect you long-term. Wouldn't that be prudent & responsible ? Why does it have to be 'absolutely everything' or 'just ignore it' ?? And it would likewise be settling to see some indicators that things, even just a few things, are going in a 'right' direction, in order to relieve some of the stress of these & other concerns. I think I know what Camino is talking about. There's nothing wrong with concern as long as it's managable- lack of concern/ viligance is where the problems start & spread. IMO, it's time to do regular 'proximity sweeps' WRT one's self & family... because no one else is going to do it. And for the first time in my life I see the question at hand as a very real possibility. 'Chris_Doane' - >>"...your endless doom and gloom threads around here are getting awfully old. I know I'm not the only one who feels that way."<< Why should this be pertinent? I would tend to think it rare; the scenario where a publically-expressed view generates a particular response in only ONE individual... but don't we strive to recognize free speech & expression here, and everywhere ? Is the advice - 'if you don't like it, you don't have to participate' no longer sage ? "Let the man speak, let the man speak!"

The USPS has no competition (to your mailbox), pays no taxes, raises rates 5% every year (for the last 4) and runs billions in the red /year. First class mail is up 25% in the last 10 years. That's the bottom line of being government-run, IMO : performance. Breaking even should be the goal, but $6B in the red ?? The inevitable early question: does the USPS need 750K employees, esp with volume dropping ?? What's the tab there ?

Fascinating that the wunderCo was running that close to the red, AND interesting to note the relative unpreparedness that resulted in TMC losing more sales than the industry average. Too much focus on hulking, gas-sucking SUVs & crossovers ???