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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