Tag: 1974

Jason’s Latest Find: 1974 Eldorado

Posted on by

Note: we last heard from Jason while he was working on his gold 1971 Caprice Sport Sedan. But as usual, his favorite car is always “the next one.” Here’s a sneak peek of his next one. -TK

After looking at a million things online and damned near everywhere-I have decided to resurrect another Eldorado. Here’s a 1974 that has been sitting in this spot since around 1995 or so. All of the cars in my friend Dennis’ collection have ran and drove perfectly after basic stuff to get them going again. If you have seen his cars after they have been cleaned-they all look amazing. This one will be no different. Best part? I don’t need to ship it. It’s close……

Continue Reading →

1974 AMC Matador Oleg Cassini Edition: Klassy Kenoshan

Posted on by

American Motors Corporation, like Studebaker, like Packard, like so many other long-gone automobile companies, breaks your heart. Sometimes I drive myself crazy with what-ifs: What if Roy Abernethy never became president of AMC? What if Packard never got tangled up with Studebaker? What if Studebaker hadn’t rolled over for the union and stockholders EVERY SINGLE TIME? But for this, but for that, could any of these marques have survived? By the same token, if different decisions had been made, would they have disappeared even earlier? If AMC hadn’t purchased Kaiser Jeep in 1970, would they have gone out of business in 1971-72? If Studebaker hadn’t suckered Packard into bailing them out and hidden their book cooking, would they have been toast by 1955? Who knows? But one thing is clear in AMC history: The 1974 Matador coupe was a costly mistake.

Continue Reading →

Rare Birdie For Sale: 1974 Monte Carlo With Factory 454 And Sunroof

Posted on by

Here’s one you don’t see everyday. Sure, 1973-77 Monte Cristos were sold in the hundreds of thousands, and while many succumbed to tinworm, there are still survivors out there. But this one is pretty uncommon, as this triple blue Landau was ordered with the vaunted 454 CID V8, power windows, power locks and even the power sunroof.

My friend in Spokane, Jason Bagge, AKA The Brougham Whisperer, found this honey over a year ago and got it up and running. Even found an NOS power sunroof switch and got it working. But he’s found new ’70s rolling stock to occupy him, and this one needs to go, so he’s listed it on eBay this week.

Continue Reading →

1974 Lincoln Continental Town Car and Town Coupé: Broughamtastic ’70s Conveyances

Posted on by

Today, let us discuss the most plush, most elaborate and most Broughamtastic Lincolns available, of the Year of Our Lord 1974.

I’ve always liked the 1974 Lincoln Continentals, Town Cars and Town Coupés. Thanks to the revised bumper standards enacted that year, all non-Mark Lincolns sported a one year only look, front and rear.

Continue Reading →

1974 Volvo 164E: Goteborg Goes Brougham

Posted on by
Good morning, ladies and germs! On this fine day we’re going to delve into one of my favorite classic Ovlovs, the six-cylinder 164. It was the luxury Volvo from 1969 through 1975, and a long line of luxury models succeeded the classic 140-based six-cylinder sedan: 264GL, 760GLE, 940SE, 960, S80, S90. Other than the 1800ES, this one’s my favorite. Well, growing up in the ’80s, these cars were uncommon in my city. So it was always cool to see one on the road or sitting in the service bay at Lundahl Motors, way back when, when they were still in downtown Moline, IL.

There was just something about that grille and that beautiful leather trim. As a fourth grader in about 1989, I knew nor cared one whit about British styling influences on the plushest Volvo. I just knew I liked them. As most of you fine folks know, save a few persistently negative persons of interest, love has little to no basis in rationality.

Continue Reading →

1974 Continental Mark IV: Maize Yellow Yacht

Posted on by

The weekend has barely begun, and here I am ogling vintage ’70s land yachts on CL, via one of my favorite Facebook groups, Finding Future Classic Cars. And it will no doubt come as no surprise to most of you that one, it is a Continental, two, that it is pastel yellow, and three, that it is from the 1970s. The trifecta! So let’s check out this 1974 Continental Mark IV.

As with my Brougham lust for 1971-76 Cadillac Fleetwood Broughams, my equal fascination with the 1972-76 Continental Mark IV is due to my having a little diecast version of one when I was a kid. Also, my grandfather, Bob Klockau, had a triple dark green 1972 model. Also, Cannon is just about my favorite TV show. So every time I see one, I go back in time.

Continue Reading →

1974 Chevrolet Nova: Green Machine

Posted on by

Nova. A memorable Chevrolet from the past. Today, it’s mostly due to the high octane two-door variants: Super Sports, Yenko Deuce, and the like. But the majority of these compact Chevys were garden variety two- and four-door sedans. The 1962 Chevy II was GM’s second, and far more successful attempt, at cashing in on the compact scene of the early ’60s. Sure, we all love the Corvair, but were Ned and Betty Smith of Olathe, Kansas, going to buy one? Surely not. So the II and its tonier Nova version entered stage left, and sold like beer at a baseball game. By 1974, the Nova still was going strong, but was getting a tad long in the tooth, wearing most of its 1968 sheetmetal. But it was still fighting the good fight against the Dart/Valiant and Maverick.

The first-gen 1962-65 Chevy II/Nova and the redesigned 1966-67 version were both very squared off, but the new 1968 model had the same flowing lines and Coke-bottle flanks of the also-new Chevelle line. It was quite an attractive car, both in two- and four-door versions.

For several years in the early Seventies, the Nova was touted similarly to the VW Type I “Beetle,” in that no major changes were made to styling. Refinement, not change for the sake of change, was the watchword. That continued with the facelifted 1973 models, for the most part.

Continue Reading →

1974 Dale: Dollar For Dollar, The Best Car Never Built!

Posted on by

Note: Another post by Tony LaHood. Enjoy. -TK

Sherman, set the way-back machine to 1974—to the wonderful days of seat belt-ignition interlocks, presidential resignations, 55 mph speed limits, and soaring fuel prices.

The OPEC oil embargo in 1973 had a long-term impact on the everyday lives of everyday Americans in a way few other events have. With the specter of gasoline selling for–God forbid–$1.00 per gallon, Americans’ interest in small, economical cars surged, and many Honda and Toyota dealers displayed their characteristic altruism by dressing up new Civics, Coronas and Starlets in $1,000 mud flaps and $2,500 pinstripes in response.

The time was ripe for a new means of personal transport that was cheap to buy, cheap to drive, and cheap to maintain. This is the story of a vehicle that was none of these things, because it existed only in the mind of its creator.

Geraldine Elizabeth Carmichael was 37 years old in 1974. A self-described “Indiana farm girl with five children and widow of a NASA engineer”, she formed the Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation that year, in Encino, CA, and publicly announced its first product, the Dale.

Continue Reading →

1974 Thunderbird

1974 Thunderbird Burgundy Luxury Group: Big Bird

Posted on by

Today, we will be discussing Maximum Thunderbird. The extra value T-Bird, AKA the Thunderbrougham. Long, low and wide-and proud if it. Yes, that’s correct, the 1972-76 Thunderbird, which shared its ample figure with its FoMoCo sibling, the Continental Mark IV.

59 Thunderbird

1959 Thunderbird

This was not the Thunderbird’s first drastic change, of course. Throughout the iconic premium Ford model’s life, it reinvented itself many times. The 1958 Thunderbird, nicknamed the Squarebird for obvious reasons, was totally redone. The trim two-seat luxury sportster was no more. The big news, of course, was the addition of a back seat. Although fans of the ‘Little Bird’ moaned and gnashed their teeth, sales improved drastically. And with its “cow belly” frame it was still substantially lower than contemporary Fairlanes. It ushered in a new type of car, a luxury Ford.

Continue Reading →