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Cars you didn't know existed until very recently.


philibusmo

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On 11/17/2022 at 10:48 AM, barrett said:

To a lesser extent, Kenneth Howe started out in the Loewy Studio's London office before he was hired to design the 1959 Sunbeam Alpine, and after that never styled another car.

I mean, if you're only going to do one car, that's a hell of a car to have walked in, dropped on the world, then wandered off again.

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On 11/24/2022 at 4:53 PM, MiniMinorMk3 said:

I was expecting the name Chapron, but it is not.

Citroën CX Orphée by Deslandes (citroenet.org.uk)

The only Chapron CX I could find was a Landaulet from 1981

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which then led to being reminded of what is a real drop from the glory days, the Chapron Volvo 343 DL

Volvo 343 DL Chapron (1980) - l'Automobile Ancienne (lautomobileancienne.com)

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So the CXs I knew and thought were well known.

But this? I did not know that 343 existed and I could quite happily have lived the rest of my life never contemplating what a truly awful thing that looks like from a once respected coachbuilder.

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9 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Ford Bantam. a South African Ute built in three versions.

1st based on Mk3 Escort Van

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2nd based on Mazda

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3rd based on Mk IV Fiesta

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The fiesta based one lasted long enough to receive the 1.4 TDCI engine

 

And the OEM+ fanatic in myself really wants to lay hands on these clocks and radio to swap into a MK5 Fiesta

2012 Ford Bantam 1.6 XLT car Photos - Manual Transmissions - 100000 km  milage

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Another South African oddity, spotted in the UK and posted by Car Brochure Addict on Twitter, a HILLMAN Vogue.

South Africa's version of the Rootes Arrow, with a Peugeot engine!

Screenshot_20221205-105414_Twitter.thumb.jpg.98f6b7390d1d8145acbcd36ae125474a.jpg

 

https://twitter.com/addict_car/status/1599418246968524801?t=EnY3pSOzAvmMb6I2UpPA0A&s=19

 

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13 hours ago, adw1977 said:

Another South African oddity, spotted in the UK and posted by Car Brochure Addict on Twitter, a HILLMAN Vogue.

South Africa's version of the Rootes Arrow, with a Peugeot engine!

Screenshot_20221205-105414_Twitter.thumb.jpg.98f6b7390d1d8145acbcd36ae125474a.jpg

 

https://twitter.com/addict_car/status/1599418246968524801?t=EnY3pSOzAvmMb6I2UpPA0A&s=19

 

Hope they got decent royalties from Range Rover and Mad Donna.

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6 hours ago, quicksilver said:

I think it's a 263 with the mighty PRV V6.

Indeed, according to a Swedish acquaintance, who also hadn't seen one before, it's a 263 GL, and a unique prototype. According to the retired Volvo designers being interviewed in the vid, they saw SAAB doing 2 door coupe/hatches, and decided they'd have a go.

The one thing I picked up without having to have translated was when they were talking about using the wind-tunnel at MIRA in Nuneaton, during the design of the 740. I'll put the YT link in the appropriate thread...

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image.thumb.png.d770ecf0ebcba7f6be5b8fd23dc617c8.png

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The Microdot from 1976 designed by William Lyons. It was a hybrid with a 450cc petrol engine powering a 3.5kW generator. It sits on a cut down Mini 'chassis'. Later prototypes had a Relaint engine in place of the hybrid combination. Central drivering position!!!

It was a development of the Minissima from 1972. The Minissima had more Mini underneath - cutdown 'chassis' and an A series engine. It was intended as a replacement for the Mini. The design was sold to bicycle makers Elswick who sold it as the Elswick Envoy invalid carriage with access from the rear @LightBulbFun.

image.thumb.png.971b8ef2099cb7a460ca34ad6045a5c5.png

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Minissima.

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Elswick Envoy.

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On 12/5/2022 at 11:02 AM, adw1977 said:

Another South African oddity, spotted in the UK and posted by Car Brochure Addict on Twitter, a HILLMAN Vogue.

South Africa's version of the Rootes Arrow, with a Peugeot engine!

Screenshot_20221205-105414_Twitter.thumb.jpg.98f6b7390d1d8145acbcd36ae125474a.jpg

 

https://twitter.com/addict_car/status/1599418246968524801?t=EnY3pSOzAvmMb6I2UpPA0A&s=19

 

One, presumably that very car appeared on the EBay thread about 5 years ago, looks like a Hunter GLS  but with a 504 engine and those funny taillights.

Rootes had form for mixing up Marques and model names at will on Arrows seemingly on a whim.

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6 hours ago, martc said:

 

 

image.thumb.png.a4327ac05ccf77bc294f08a7093e9165.png

SEAT 850. There's touches of FIAT about it (eg the rear lights) but FIAT's 850 didn't look anything like this at the rear. Have they squared off the back end to make it look more like the contemporary SIMCA or Renault, or is it based on one of these two?

I think the difference in the rear is because Fiat never built 850 4-doors, so SEAT probably played with the shape a bit.

 

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22 minutes ago, Rusty Pelican said:

Well I knew about Studebaker Larks - and the Wagonair estate version - what I didnt know was the roof at the rear retracts into the front half to make a pick up .

How feckin cool is that :) 

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Here's the Matchbox version with sliding roof.

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From 2004 to 2005, GMC revived the retractable roof idea with the GMC Envoy XUV, a stretched-wheelbase Envoy with the aforementioned retractable roof panel, a two-way opening tailgate, and a "Midgate" folding partition between the passenger and cargo area.

An overview of the GMC Envoy XUV can be found here...

https://blog.consumerguide.com/gmc-envoy-xuv/

 

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14 hours ago, martc said:

 

image.thumb.png.d26422212d928ab59ae1c88eb4774169.png

image.thumb.png.a4327ac05ccf77bc294f08a7093e9165.png

SEAT 850. There's touches of FIAT about it (eg the rear lights) but FIAT's 850 didn't look anything like this at the rear. Have they squared off the back end to make it look more like the contemporary SIMCA or Renault, or is it based on one of these two?

 

8 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

I think the difference in the rear is because Fiat never built 850 4-doors, so SEAT probably played with the shape a bit.

 

That is correct

https://www.chatarricas.com/blog/2022/07/versiones-seat-850-ficha-tecnica/

You can purchase on for yourself if you feel inclined.

https://es.wallapop.com/coches-segunda-mano/seat-850

 

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8 hours ago, martc said:

image.thumb.png.719aeae992d1f6013f4fabfcc453c93d.pngimage.thumb.png.ab4d54acf5bae3feb508f10fc0eda69d.png

Sirta. A quick internet search turns up nuffink.

Because it's Siata! This is from the Spanish branch of Siata which is difficult to find information on, but I think it started as a satellite of the Italian Siata company and eventually became an independent entity. They made coachbuilt Seat-based cars - this little van is Seat 600-based. It was produced for quite a long time, later on it was badged as an Ebro-Siata and then just Ebro. I'm not sure if it was the first Ebro product, but certainly an early one. All interesting stuff and difficult to really find much info on.

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