The first Honda Civics showed up in the United States as 1973 models, and that first generation of Soichiro Honda’s revolutionary subcompact continued to be sold here through 1979. Sales were strong, as no other small car seemed able to match the Civic’s combination of low price, excellent fuel economy, reliability and driving enjoyment, but […]
Junkyard Gem: 1977 Ford Pinto Wagon
1977 is tied with 1964 as the model year in which car shoppers in the United States could choose from the greatest number (47!) of distinct models of station wagon. Ford rightfully called itself the Wagonmaster during the 1970s, with new longroofs boasting Ford badges available in three distinct sizes for 1977 (plus three more […]
Junkyard Gem: 1967 Chevrolet Camaro
The Chevrolet Camaro is in its sixth generation now, with a storied reputation and nearly 6 million built since the first one came off the line in Ohio (or maybe it was California, depending on your definition of “first”) in the fall of 1966. Sadly, American car shoppers no longer love the Camaro as they […]
Junkyard Gem: 1999 Mazda 626 with manual transmission
By the late 1990s, new sedans equipped with three pedals had become very rare in the United States. Some manufacturers still offered manual transmissions in such cars at that time and would continue to do so for many years to come (the final model year for a U.S.-market Toyota Camry with a manual was 2011, […]
Junkyard Gem: 1990 Chrysler LeBaron GT Convertible
When Chrysler sprang back to life under Lee Iacocca and his K-Cars, the flagship of the new front-wheel-drive order was the luxurious new 1982 LeBaron convertible, which shoved aside the drab and antiquated Dodge Diplomat-based 1981 LeBaron. The LeBaron sedan got the axe after 1989, with only sporty coupes and devil-may-care ragtops given LeBaron badges […]
Junkyard Gem: 1993 Plymouth Voyager SE AWD
Under Lee Iacocca’s leadership, Chrysler printed bales of money by designing a small, front-wheel-drive van based on the versatile K platform. Chrysler didn’t invent the minivan, of course, but those first 1984 Dodge Caravans and Plymouth Voyagers instantly put small vans square in the middle of the American vehicle mainstream (and began the long downward spiral […]
Junkyard Gem: 1976 MG Midget
During the middle 1970s, British Leyland offered car shoppers in North America four different two-seat convertible sports cars: the Triumph TR6, the Triumph Spitfire, the MGB and the MG Midget (the convertible version of the Triumph TR7 didn’t go on sale here until the 1979 model year). Of those four, the cheapest was always the […]
Junkyard Gem: 1979 Mercedes-Benz 280E
The most legendary of all the Mercedes-Benz E-Class ancestors—and perhaps of all Mercedes-Benzes, period—is the W123, which was sold in the United States from the 1977 through 1985 model years. The W123 was rugged yet comfortable, and the majority sold here had diesel power. Today’s Junkyard Gem is a harder-to-find gasoline-burner, found in a Colorado […]
Junkyard Gem: 2006 Mercedes-Benz C 280 Luxury Sedan
Mercedes-Benz started using the C-Class designation for the W202, which debuted in 1993 as the successor to the strong-selling W201. For the new century (which officially began in 2001), the second generation of the entry-level Mercedes-Benz, the W203, began to hit showrooms. Today’s Junkyard Gem is one of the later W203 C-Classes, found in a […]
Junkyard Gem: 1963 Ford Econoline Pickup
Volkswagen’s small Type 2 Transporter vans and pickups sold surprisingly well in the United States during the late 1950s; Detroit took note and began working on its own competing designs. The Transporter had a usefully flat floor, achieved by putting a boxer engine in the rear, and General Motors copied this layout with the Chevrolet […]