Classic cars

Pacific Coast Dream Machines: All things for all engines

The recent 27th annual Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show occurred exactly as billed. Trailer queens to muscle cars, dragsters to junkers, rarities to one-of-kind machines that looked like they were made for Mad Max movies, were all displayed at the Half Moon Bay Airport, 20 miles south of San Francisco. The all-inclusive event, a charity for an area adult daycare center, works well under the premise of 84-year-old founder Bob Senz, who says: “If it’s a mean matchine, you bring it.” Senz’s description works, albeit with a loose description of the word “mean.” Perhaps better described, about 2,000 vehicles on display were the possessions of passionate owners, whether the “mean machine” was a valuable vintage car or a vehicle of

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Buy a classic car, truck, motorcycle at auction for $25

There’s one day left to buy one or more of 14 classic cars, trucks and a motorcycle for as little as $25 in an online government liquidation auction. Government Liquidation, a Liquidity Services marketplace, is auctioning the vehicles. All of the classic vehicle are all working condition and were manufactured between 1924 and 1994. The auction ends Thursday, June 18 at 5 p.m. EST. The vehicles include: 1948 Lincoln Continental 2-Door Hard Top Coupe; 1960 Willys 4×4 Wagon; 1944 Studebaker M29-C Weasel; 1929 Ford Model A Rumble Seat Sport Coupe; 1994 Argo Conquest Amphibious 8×8; 1980 Ford Model A Shay Roadster; 1965 Ford Mustang Coupe; 1957 Chevy 2 Door Hot Rod; 1966 Ford F100; 1949 Cadillac 4-Door Sedan; 1927 Ford

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Fourteen rare cars, trucks set for online auction

Fourteen rare cars, trucks and a motorcyle, a 1927 Ford Model T Roadster to a 1994 Argo Conquest Amphibious 8×8, all located in Auburn Airpark in Auburn, California, will be auctioned beginning June 16 through the online site, www.GovLiquidation.com. According to the auctioneers, the vehicles are all in working condition. Bidding on each vehicle starts at $25. Here’s the list of vehicles: 1948 Lincoln Continental 2-Door Hard Top Coupe; 1960 Willys 4×4 Wagon; 1944 Studebaker M29-C Weasel; 1929 Ford Model A Rumble Seat Sport Coupe; 1994 Argo Conquest Amphibious 8×8; 1980 Ford Model A Shay Roadster; 1965 Ford Mustang Coupe; 1957 Chevy 2-Door Hot Rod; 1966 Ford F100; 1949 Cadillac 4-Door Sedan; 1927 Ford Model T Roadster Hemi Hot Rod;

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Ten Fun, Affordable Vintage Cars

My father owned a 1962 Corvair Spyder convertible. It was supercharged, had wire-rimmed wheels. And, of course, it was a rear-engine wonder. It was the most unique car my family owned during my youth. We weren’t really a car family. I remember a 1955 Buick, a 1962 Ford Falcon station wagon, a 1964 Ford Galaxie, a 1973 Ford Courier pick-up truck and a 1973 Mercedes-Benz 240D. Somewhere in the mix, we had a Volvo sedan and an AMC Hornet. Nothing fancy. Some good cars, some bad. If given the opportunity, I would own any of them now for nostalgia. Which, of course, is why one reason why vintage cars, rare or otherwise, are a joy. There are plenty of other

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ICONIC CARS: 1957 Chevy Bel Air: One owner beauty

The 1957 Chevy Bel Air is not the fastest nor the best-looking car of its time. But no other car is more iconic than a 1957 Chevy. The 1957 Chevy has been a classic now for years. It’s been in many movies and it’s one of the most popular choices for fanciers of street cars to rebuild. The 1957 Chevy also caught the eye of Grace Braeger. She owned a 1950 Chevy, but seven years later began to shop for a new car. The 1957 Chevy Braeger purchased was a demonstrator model at the local dealership in Milwaukee of the same name. Braeger drove the 1957 Bel Air and wanted it. She traded in her old car, paid $2,250 and

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Kaiser-Darrin, 1954: Sports car the world has been waiting for

The stunning 1954 Kaiser-Darrin DKF-161 sports car is a rare auto that doesn’t look like anything else. It has a long, sleek hood, a small and exquisite “pursed-lips” grille, sliding doors and three-position folding top. The beautifully proportioned two-seater also has tapering rear fenders and large teardrop taillights that smoothly blended with its lines. The grille looks like it “wants to give you a kiss,” one car designer quipped. Laudau irons let the folding soft top be locked in an intermediate position, leaving the rear section erect for open-air driving without rear drafts. The Kaiser-Darrin’s picture was put on U.S. postage stamps several years ago, an honor shared with only a few other classic American sports cars. Most of the

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Barnfinds.com: Auto site for owners and dreamers, Bugatti to Buick

Amid all of the fine automotive sites, Edmunds to Car and Driver, Kelley Blue Book to Motortrend, one new unheralded site has joined best-of-the-best car sites list. It's only slightly more than one-year-old, but it's developed a strong following. It doesn't give tips to find the best prices for a new car or tips for negotiating with salesmen or getting the best insurance prices. Barnfinds.com is the site for anyone who has the same fantasy as car enthusiasts everywhere — finding a classic. Its sub-title is perfect, "Barn Finds, Survivors and Unique Collector Cars For Sale." According the site, based in Wyoming: "Every auto enthusiast knows what a barn find is and we all dream about finding one. Not every

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Mercedes-Benz (Gullwing) 300 Coupe, 1954-1957

Many 1950s American cars still can turn heads, but they do it with such things as flashy paint and tailfins. The 1954-57 Mercedes-Benz 300SL two-seat coupe has a strictly utilitarian design, but still knocks ’em dead if seen on roads, which isn’t often. Only 1,400 300SL coupes were built, and a really nice one is valued at a cool $698,000. Most are in top shape because this auto is one of the most revered sports cars in history and few owners risk driving on public roads. Even a 300SL coupe in average shape is valued at $515,000, says the NADA Classic, Collectible, Exotic and Muscle Car Appraisal Guide & Directory. The 300SL coupe’s flip-up doors may seem gimmicky. But the

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Ferrari 288 GTO 1984-1985 car review

Casual observers might mistake the 1984-85 Ferrari 288 GTO for the 1975-89 Ferrari 308/328 that became nationally known in the popular 1980-88 “Magnum P.I.” television series. However, there’s a world of difference between the ferocious 288 GTO and nice-but-slower 1975-85 308 and near-identical 1986-89 328. The 288 GTO was simply the world’s fastest production car when it arrived. And no wonder. The mid-engine 288 GTO was built for the FISA’s new Group B race series, in which cars such as the super exotic, limited-production Porsche 959 and Jaguar XJ220 were qualified to compete. Cars weren’t eligible to race in the series unless they could be legally used on public roads, with such things as full instrumentation, lighting, decent ground clearance,

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Ford Mustang, 1965 car review

Some argue a collectible car must have been built in fairly small numbers to make it exclusive, and thus more desirable and valuable. So how do they explain why the 1965 Ford Mustang is such a popular collectible? After all, it attracted a staggering 680,989 buyers after its early public introduction at the New York World’s Fair in April, 1964. The 1965 Mustang set an all-time record for first-year sales of any new model. Today’s auto market is too fragmented with different types of cars for a single model to ever get the wildly enthusiastic reception of the first Ford Mustang in America. The top-selling car in 2008, for instance, was the Toyota Camry, with 436,616 buyers. Since its arrival,

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