Just so you don’t start to think that Hemmings editors are the only ones who get distracted from finishing their long-termcarprojects, let’s catch up with Jonny Smith, the British enthusiast of American cars and host of the Late Brake Show, and his 1964 Chevrolet Impala SS lowrider (yes, a lowrider in the UK), a project that has been ongoing for close to 20 years now thanks to a few instances of hard luck, a lot of time spent away from the garage, and all the other nuisances that keep a project from progressing. But now it appears Jonny’s got some help in finishing the project, so perhaps his lowrider will soon be three-wheeling it around England’s country lanes in style.
Just because the Falcon was a low-priced economy car, that didn’t mean that it wasn’t satisfying to own. Ford referred to the redesigned 1964 and 1965 editions as its “Total Performance” compact.
That philosophy also extended to the larger models and took into account styling, handling, roadability, acceleration, braking, efficiency, and more.Sure, a buyer could’ve gone the bare-bones route in 1964 and become a fuel-savings connoisseur by driving a base Falcon two-door or four-door sedan, featuring the standard beige cloth-and-vinyl interior (more colors for 1965) with a full-width front seat, rubber floor mats, and 144-cu.in. straight-six (170-cu.in. for 1965).
Yet, with the 1964 and 1965 Falcon lineups providing avenues for boosting image, power, and comfort, why stop there?Stepping up in price, the 1964 Futura two- and four-door sedans added full carpeting, chromed horn ring on the steering wheel, courtesy lights, rear armrests and ash trays, lighter, and upgraded color-keyed upholstery choices and exterior trim.
The 1964 Futura hardtop and convertible also had the full-width front seat, but the sport coupe and sport convertible came with buckets and a console. A Thunderbird floating rearview mirror was included, and the droptop had a larger 170-cu.in. straight-six and a power top.
Understandably, it’s hard to put a price on this 1964 Chrysler Turbine for sale on Hemmings.com. Most of the remaining examples now reside in museums and Jay Leno’s not likely to let go of his anytime soon, so this one – chassis number 991231, which for many years the late Frank Kleptz had in his collection – will likely be the only one we’ll see for sale for quite some time.
What’s more, it remains functional and roadworthy, and would steal the show every time it drove in and started up. Just trying to get a ballpark estimate on it would be a challenge – after all, what other recent sales would one compare it to? Whatever it sells for, here’s hoping it does get out and make the round of shows and public appearances. From the seller’s description:
Today all nine of the legendary Chrysler Turbine Cars remain yet only two are in private hands – one in Jay Leno’s Collection and the other chassis number 991231 is offered here for the first time in over 30 years.Chassis number 991231 is the crown jewel of the Kleptz Collection with the distinction of being the only Chrysler Turbine car available on the open market today. As offered it is in exceptionally well-preserved condition finished in its original metallic bronze paintwork with complementing upholstery all original fittings and fixtures and a host of spares documents and technical information. It is believed that 991231 spent much of its service life on the West Coast performing “VIP duties” meaning it was retained by Chrysler and loaned out weekly to executives sales managers award-winning salespeople and anyone else who Chrysler Corporation thought should experience this wholly unique automobile. Allegedly it was initially slated to be one of two cars donated to the Natural History Museum in LA likely to save on shipping costs back to Detroit. William Harrah approached Chrysler requesting one of the Turbine Cars for his museum and the company obliged giving him 991231 along with a spare engine
I’m curious what you think of the compact sedan pictured here, and I’m especially interested if you’re a longtime Studebaker enthusiast. Why? Because this was almost the future of Studebaker cars worldwide. Presenting the almost 1966 Studebaker Bellet, designed by Isuzu— the car that really might have saved the company.
By 1964, Studebaker car production for the U.S. and Canada was centered in Hamilton, Ontario. In 1965, the president of Studebaker Canada, Gordon Grundy, was searching for an import car to supplement the Studebakers his dealers were selling (and, possibly, an import that could be assembled in Canada). Studebaker Canada was already involved with importing foreign cars via a deal with Volkswagen of Canada, which was paying a hefty duty on cars brought in from Germany. With the new Canada/U.S. Auto Pact agreement, Studebaker was allowed to import any foreign car, duty-free. So, Grundy made a deal to import 31,600 VWs at a duty-free savings of $165 per car. These were sold to VW Canada at $150 profit per car, pocketing a net profit of $4.74 million—while VW saved $474,000. It was strictly a paper transaction, and all perfectly legal.
Looking for other ways to generate profits, Grundy met with Nissan in Japan to acquire the rights to sell Datsuns in North America. Some of the Datsuns would be badged as Studebakers, and eventually, even built in Canada. But, in the middle of negotiation, management instructed Grundy to break off talks with Nissan and pursue an arrangement with Toyota. The end result was that neither company wanted to do business with Studebaker. The lawyer behind this unfortunate debacle? Future U.S. president Richard Nixon.
Grundy next looked at the Prince, a Japanese auto they could offer as low as $1,895. Also investigated was the DAF line of cars; several were brought over from Europe for testing. In the end, neither Prince nor DAF were considered viable because they wouldn’t have appealed to enough Canadian drivers. But the next car investigated, the Isuzu Bellet, certainly would have.
CNN.com — A retired salesman in Canada is heading to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, to be reunited with a Ford Mustang he accidentally sold 55 years ago. Ahead of the launch of the Ford Mustang in 1964, car dealerships were sent a preproduction vehicle to display. They weren’t intended to be sold to customers, […]
Yesterday’s post got me thinking about financial responsibility and how we all justify this thing of ours. In most cases, obviously, there just isn’t justification for the money we spend on this stupid old stuff. You can talk about the appreciation of ’32 Fords or the investment side of collecting, but at the end of the day – if you buy or build any old car and then drive it regularly, you aren’t going to come out ahead in the end.
Right?
I’d argue that’s simply not the case. In fact, I know from experience that a very good way to get value out of an old car is to drive the damned thing every single day. Let me explain.
For almost a decade I didn’t own a car made after 1965. Instead, I avoided a car payment by driving whatever old heap I had at the time every single day. The best example I can give is my 1964 Ford F100. I drove it every day for five years
The muscle car world is in a real state of change right now. Can you feel it? We know we can: there’s so much great stuff going on and so many amazing new go-fast goodies being designed and unleashed on our poor, overheated credit cards that we can barely stand it. If you hear anyone say that this ain’t the Glory Days of muscle cars, tell them to come see us and we’ll get ’em some religion.
And what does all that literal tonnage of new speed parts make us want to do? Go find a killer, old carrying case to bolt it all into, of course! So, when we see a kid pull something like this ’64 Ford Galaxie out of a backyard, get a buddy to drag it onto a trailer, get another known accomplice to help, all the while fully-geeked that he actually owns the thing, well, friends…it just warms our little black hearts.
Whoever said that the kids don’t care about old cars is either not hanging out with the right kids or just isn’t paying close attention. In the words of Ricky in American Beauty, “…it’s hard to stay mad when there’s so much beauty in the world.”
Only 50 Greenbrier vans were produced in 1964 with the camper package and that this one also has the aftermarket “Turtle Top” that lifts the roofline when parked to provide 72 inches of standing height.
This unit also has been displayed recently in the Corvette Museum in Glenarm, Illinois.
This solid 1964 Chevrolet Bel Air was pulled out of a barn last week after a 25 year nap. At one time, this was one hot machine, with a serious surprise under that hood. It is for sale here on eBay for $8,500 in Diamond, Ohio.
The stars all appeared to align for Duesenberg’s return in the mid-Sixties: a Duesenberg family member at the helm, an Exner-designed and Ghia-built prototype, confirmed orders for production models, even a factory taking shape. Yet the dream of a de-extinct Duesenberg never came to be, and now that prototype has come up for sale on the open market for the first time in more than 50 years.
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