Robert Hall

So what's the correlation between Merrill Lynch and GM?

At some point, there was a refresh of the XJ-S and the NA version started using the flush headlights...around 1990 or so until it's end..

Cool..I got the MC SS today in the mail in an order of Greenlights and Johnny Lightnings from my favorite online vendor (www.milezone.com). It's nicely done, better than JL's previous '80s MC SS effort.

Nahh, the Big 3 are their own worst enemies...Toyota is not to blame. I don't hate Toyota, but I don't really like them either...

I suspect a lot of the numbers are faked.... they probably do a lot of creative accounting.

illness

How about coast to coast in a Camry? Doing a coast-to-coast is a goal of mine also, but in something new or nearly new...a CTS would be great. I have driven from Michigan to Boston and back, Michigan to Baltimore, Michigan to Colorado, N. California to Colorado, Colorado to Arizona (several times), Ohio to Florida, but never coast to coast.

That's what I've heard here and on other forums.... it's going to the $5 rebadge treatment like the G5..

Looks like someone photoshopped a G8 grille onto a Malibu... sort of how the rumoured NG G6 is going to be (badge-engineered from a Malibu).

Husky made one in the early '60s...I have 3 of 'em in my collection, Invicta hardtops.. they are tiny, probably closer to 1/70th scale. Husky was Corgi's Matchbox competitor brand, eventually renamed Corgi Jr.

True, but neither of those were sold in the US. The Jag XJ-S and XJ sedans had round lights throughout the '80s in the US also, IIRC.

I'm pretty sure there were 4 of 'em... what started the thought for this thread is that I saw one of these in a movie last night and it got me thinking..

For Ford, I think it was the Lincoln Mark VI, which had hidden quad round lights through '83...and ironically, was replaced with the Mark VII, which was the first US car with flush composite style lights, IIRC. I think the last from Chrysler may have been the '81-83 Imperial, which had hidden round lights...not sure, though, haven't seen one with the lights exposed in 20+ years...I think the '79-81 New Yorker had hidden round lights.. For GM, the '82 Corvette was probably the last. The 280ZX sounds right, I think the RX-7 had pop-up round lights through it's first gen, which ended in '85...2nd gen went to rectangular popups, I think. At some point in the '80s, BMW switched from regular round sealed beam to composites , not sure when... The Merc SL kept round sealed beam through '89 in the US, IIRC.

I've got that mag...great car...I never knew they made a Formula with the Trans Am hood (required by the SD engine)...it had dog dish hubcaps also.

I do recall seeing quite a few Avensises around the UK in my trips across the pond a few years back, don't recall seeing them in France or Italy though. Did see a few late '90s style Camrys as well.

What were the last models in the US market to be offered with traditional sealed-beam round headlights (single or dual)? By manufacturer? I can think of a few, but am not 100% certain.

Yeah...and even in the Rust Belt, their were some gems. My folks bought a couple in Ohio that way---in 1975, a silver blue '68 Cougar with 15k miles, mint, 302, for $2k. Around 1981, they bought a clean '69 Fairlane 4dr sedan, dark green, 390 4bbl, automatic, a/c, 25k miles, for about $2500.

Yeah, the stock hubcaps look fine...a set of Chevy Rallys would look good also. Something period correct.

Very nice car, though it has a bit of rust and the jack is rusty. For $59k, I'd put a nice down payment (10 or 20%) on a house.

Yes, they may want to retroactively strike.

Nice rust job...gives a patina of authenticity which you loose with a restoration. But seriously, lots of bondo, duct tape, and primer should cover it up fairly well.

It's been going that way since the '80s, when GM switched to FWD generics, Chrysler went to FWD everything, and Ford came out w/ the Taurus...the mass market has moved to FWD, V6 automatic midsize generics. Most people are not car enthusiasts, they just want a reliable, affordable, transportation device to get from point A to point B. Such is life.

Different people, different interests...not everyone has your tastes....something you can't seem to comprehend, but the world doesn't revolve around you.

Not really... exterior dimensions don't measure the utility of a car, which is what the size classifications measure...interior volume is a practical measure, plus factor in the knee room, shoulder room, etc. Judging or categorizing a car simply by exterior dimensions is pointless.

I hope they do a G8 and CTS...