It’s a Land Rover alright, but of a very particular kind – it’s called the “half ton lightweight,” although it’s actually not as light as the name or materials used would imply. The story of…
Posts tagged Cars of the 1970s
Good Old Days: 1973 Oldsmobile 98
It could be described as the postwar American car mantra – “longer, lower, wider,” even if the trend arguably began in the 1920s. The proportions of “standard” American cars grew progressively larger and lower-slung after…
Arachnophobia: Fiat 850 Spider
Fiat intentionally designed the 850 Spider to be a “first” sports car for buyers who wanted something cooler than a 600 or 850 sedan, but were still on a tight budget. Being tiny and cheap…
Twists and Turns: Volvo 1800ES
The Volvo 1800 spent most of its life as the attractive coupe made famous by “The Saint,” but in a twist that could characterize only this car, 11 years into its life it got a…
Triumph Stag: The Complicated Web
What became the troubled Triumph Stag started off as a simple request from Giovanni Michelotti to Triumph design chief Harry Webster. Michelotti had strong links to Triumph and wanted a donor car for use in…
Lotus’ New Looks: 1976 Lotus Eclat
In early 1973, the Lotus lineup was familiar – Elan, Elan +2, Europa, Seven. By the time of the Paris Motor Show in October, 1975, it was unrecognizable. For some months, Lotus’ only production car…
Solid Gold: SA22C Mazda RX-7 LS
“An enthusiast’s dream come true,” said one review, and in many ways, Mazda’s original SA22C (later “FB”) RX-7 was exactly that. It was affordable, fast, good looking, well made, and earned praise from all quarters…
O.G. G-Wagen: Mercedes 460-Series Geländewagen
Nobody would have predicted that the military surplus Mercedes Geländewagen would end up a coveted luxury item, but that’s what it’s best known as today. This particularly true in the USA, where the truck’s best-ever…
The 17-year “Stopgap”: Citroën Ami 8
In the late 1950s Citroën sold just two basic designs – the large DS (and its slightly more basic companion, the ID) and the tiny, bare-bones 2CV. The chasm between the two had been the…
Oh What a Feeling!
1981 Toyota Corona
Before Camry, there was Corona. Of course, after Camry, there was still Corona – indeed, the name continued into 2001, but you couldn’t get those later Coronas in the USA. In the early 1970s multiple…
AMC Ambassador: The Unlikely Land Yacht
In hindsight, AMC probably shouldn’t have developed the Circa-1967 Ambassador, but once it arrived, the company kept selling it and made due with it until 1974. The Ambassador continued a name and tradition that originated…
The Lipstick Lincoln: 1976 Continental MkIV
The Lee Iaccoca-created Lincoln Continental MkIII was a smash hit for the brand – it repeatedly bested Cadillac’s Eldorado from 1969-71, and 79,381 MKIIIs were made in all. During the 1969-70 model years, Lincoln’s staff…