American

1961 Ford Ranchero

Posted by The Professor

One of the most tragic byproducts of the evolution in car design has been the elimination of two-tone paintwork from the automotive color palette. Not that this Ranchero is the poster child of two-tone application: cream and light brown render perhaps too much of a resemblance to an oversized vanilla fudge sundae, but still: a massive improvement over a hypothetical solely-cream-colored Ranchero, which would just look like a slab of vanilla popsicle.

Just as two flavors are always better than one; so too are two car colors. Also, California should totally bring black the blue plates from the ’70s and early ’80s like this Ranchero has: they’re much more visually interesting than the drab blue-lettering-on-white-background plate that they haven’t changed since about 1993.

Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA

Photographed August 2017

2017 Tesla Model 3

Posted by The Professor

No, we’re not turning into a new-car blog. But our primary focus is rare cars found on the street (or, in this case, in a driveway), and at this point in time the Tesla Model 3 still counts. Why?

Well, it turns out Elon Musk had his sights set a little too high when he predicted back in July that Tesla would be producing 20,000 Model 3s a month by the end of the year. Hampered by “glitches” at Tesla’s Gigafactory and other various manufacturing issues, Tesla’s fourth-quarter production output totaled to just 2,425, which certainly counts as rare in my book. Up until about a week ago, I actually hadn’t seen a single one on the road, but in the days since then, I’ve noticed more and more of them popping up, which culminated in my finally finding one at a standstill.

It remains to be seen whether the Model 3 will follow through on Musk’s grand promises. I imagine they will proliferate in the coming months, but to what extent? This is the biggest challenge Tesla has ever faced, and it’s not entirely certain that they will make it through in one piece. Only time can tell.

Glendale, CA

Photographed December 2017

1964 Rambler Classic 550

Posted by The Professor

I just realized that even though this blog is called “Roadside Rambler,” we had not, until now, featured an actual Rambler in any of our posts. So, to assuage any concerns of false advertising, the oversight has been remedied in the form of this car.

This particular Rambler is a base-model 550, equipped with AMC’s 232 cubic inch straight-six engine, the second year for an engine that lasted until 1979. Its parent family of engines is one of the more well-regarded designs in motoring history: introduced in 1964 in the Rambler American, it continued on until 2006 and included one of the most iconic American motors of all-time, the Jeep 4.0L straight-six. This particular example is finished in the lovely shade of Woodside Green.

But one of the most interesting parts of this car is its scandal-ridden salmon license plate. The situation went like this: Oregonians who spent an extra $30 (initially, plus every two years to renew the plate) were assured that this money was being used to fund salmon conservancy efforts: a worthy cause. However, in a shocking example of a severe public funds misappropriation, half of the money raised was actually being funneled to the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, paying for, among other things, staff salaries and a website improvement project. The total misallocated funds ranged into the millions of dollars, prompting an understandable scandal and a hasty vote by the Oregon legislature to fix the issue.

Lesson learned: always double-check where your money is actually going.

Portland, OR

Photographed August 2011

1988 Buick Reatta

Posted by The Professor

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Though Buick intended to shift 20,000 Reattas per year, only 21,751 were produced in a four-year production run from 1988-1991. This car features Buick’s “Electronic Control Center,” which contained radio and climate controls on a touch-sensitive CRT screen. The screen, first introduced in the 1986 Riviera, proved unpopular and unreliable, and was dropped for the 1990 model year. In retrospect, though, it was far ahead of its time.

Santa Monica, CA

Photographed June 2015

1970 Buick Electra 225

Posted by The Professor

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New for the 1970 Electra model was a 455 cubic inch V8 pumping out 370 horsepower, making it the most powerful Electra ever. The newly redesigned 1971 models would keep the same engine, but, due to a lower compression ratio, see their output drop to 315 horses.

1970 was also the last year of the Electra “Coke bottle” design first introduced in 1965; the ’71 models would ditch the sleek lines for more slab-sided styling.

The Electra name soldiered on until 1990, by which time the name was but a shadow of its former glory, saddled with a 3.8L (232 cubic inch) V6 and a FWD chassis.

Sawtelle, Los Angeles, CA

Photographed June 2015

1942 Lincoln Continental

Posted by The Professor

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This Continental is powered by the Lincoln-Zephyr V12, notorious for various engine maladies – sludge buildup and overheating were two common problems. Nevertheless, it remains a striking and enthralling design, and rare to find in such superb condition.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Photographed August 2012