1965 Saab 96

Seems like a good time to write my first ever post on Saab, as Saab was in the news recently (although not in a good way).

Made for two decades, the Saab 96 is a curious vehicle with a two-stroke engine, front-wheel drive, column-shifting transmission and a 'freewheel' overrunning clutch, allowing the engine when coasting to reduce its speed to idling, thus requiring only the small lubrication available from the closed, coasting, throttle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So where did the company go? In 1989, (from The Guardian), General Motors, "panic-bought Saab... ­after losing out in bids to acquire Land Rover, Volvo and Jaguar." GM had actually bought 50% of the company at that time, and purchased the remaining 50% in 2000. That year, Saab sold a record 133,000 cars worldwide. Following GM's bankruptcy, it sold Saab to Swedish sports car maker Spyker. That tiny company's attempt to keep Saab going was a failure from day one; and because GM wouldn't allow Spyker to include the GM technology in Saab cars as part of any sale of the company, Saab filed for bankruptcy. 

Saab's assets were then purchased by a Chinese company who announced the brand name National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS). That company's plan was to restart production of the Saab 9-3, first as a gasoline powered car, then switching to electric. Long story short, after producing a handful of electric cars, the NEVS project is over and the company is trying to sell its Saab assets. While in theory the Saab brand could rise from the ashes yet again, it seems unlikely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The logo above represents that Saabs are the cars "born from jets". The car company was started in excess factory space by Saab Aviation.

 

 

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1946 Dodge WF32 1.5 Ton Dump Truck

The 1939-47 Dodge is absolutely my favorite truck. Observations:
* This truck is parked in the same spot I saw an unrestored 1937 Plymouth a while back. This owner must have some interesting stories.
* Also sold as the Fargo in Canada. You may remember the Fargo from Mad Max: Fury Road.
* Trucks sure had tiny cabs back in the day.
* Just open the bottom of the windshield for free air conditioning.

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1995 Jaguar XJ-S convertible. The V-12 Supercar You Can Afford (To Let Sit In Your Garage).

The XJ-S convertible with V-12 engine had an MSRP of $82,550 in 1995; that's just about $150,000 in 2021 dollars. Yet it's no big deal to pick one of these up in good condition for about $15,000. How can that be? Well, Jaguar made some of the most beautiful cars of all time. But they don't exactly have the best reputation when it comes to long-term reliability.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From carbuzz.com: "Even though these cars are cheap to buy, they are notoriously expensive to own. Even the youngest XJS is now a 22-year old car, and parts are going to need to be replaced. If you fancy the idea of owning a gorgeous grand touring car with a V12 engine, here are some issues you should watch out for. Fuel hoses in the engine are known to deteriorate over time, causing engine fires. The upper shock bushing are prone to failure resulting in a rattling noise over bumps. If you do decide to own one of these cars, you'd better be very handy and resourceful or know a very good mechanic. The good news is, the XJS is so plentiful, it isn't too difficult to buy a spare one to use as a parts car."

Uh sure, just buy two of 'em and keep the second one for parts.

From driving.ca: "Where do we even begin with this one? The Jaguar XJ-S and XJ-12 might be the most affordable V12 cars you can buy, but that affordability comes at the expense of reliability. The Jaguar XJ-12 has two radiators fed by two coolant tanks, with two fuel tanks, two fuel pumps and a battery that has its own thermostatically controlled cooling fan. If that isn’t enough to terrify you, these cars are filled with a mind-boggling maze of infamous Lucas wiring, with fuse boxes at seemingly random intervals along the fenders inside the engine bay. And when things do break, engine access is worse than anything except a twin-turbo 300ZX (look it up, it’s spooky!). Opening the hood on a V12 Ferrari reveals gleaming cam covers and polished intake manifolds, whereas the underhood view of a V12 Jaguar is dominated by a mess of vacuum lines and wiring that resembles the Windows “pipes” screensaver. This is not a car for the faint of heart or slim of pocketbook."

 

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A Lot of Land Rovers

There's a stretch of North Aurora that's mostly car dealerships and repair shops. There you'll find the Land Rover guy.

The trucks pictured above are the Type II from the 1960s. They typically had a 2.4 liter gas engine that produced 72 hp. So not exactly a lot of power to get a two-ton vehicle moving, but then the Land Rover was never about getting from point A to point B quickly.

The above is a Type III from the 70s. If it really did drive from Morocco to Cape Town, that's over 11,000 km. Which sounds boring and terrifying at the same time.

Land Rovers from three different eras.

In the 90s, the classic Land Rover was called the Defender. They were only sold briefly in the US before lack of airbags forced them out. The Defender pictured above is right-hand drive and is probably in the country under the rule making it OK to import anything over 25 years old.

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Sucking in the 70s: Three Cars from America's Most Tasteless Decade

Stop by 15th Ave West and Dravus, and you'll find the gas station where the 70s survived. Both cars pictured below were very successful. The Chrysler B-body coupe, pictured here as the 1976 Dodge Charger but also sold as the Chrysler Cordoba, Plymouth Fury and a bunch of other names, was a big hit at a time when the company was staggering toward bankruptcy. And the 1978 Mercury Cougar, which was the same car as that year's Ford Thunderbird, sold an unbelievable 565,000 copies for Ford and Mercury combined.

On the one hand, these cars are remembered as gas-guzzling land yachts from an era when Detroit was increasingly losing market share due to its inability to compete with smaller, more practical, higher quality and less garish-looking cars from Japan. On the other hand, at least these cars tried to add a little artistry to their design, unlike today's world of identical gray SUVs.

The 1974 Maverick pictured below is parked around the corner; I suspect it also belongs to the gas station. Love the vintage stereo receiver in the back seat!

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1958 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia, 1973 Volkswagen 181 Thing

It was not a coincidence that these VWs were parked together; turns out it was a family picnic of VW fans. The Karmann Ghia was built virtually unchanged from 1955 to 1974. I think this is the oldest one I've seen. The 181, known as "The Thing" in the US, was only sold in the US in 1973-4 before safety regulations killed it here.

 

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