Rusted Automotive

I'll admit it: 2017 has not been my year. Don't get me wrong, it's had plenty of good moments and surprises, but for the most part, to put it bluntly 2017 sucks. Celebrities gone way too soon, President Trump is a jackass that fooled all of America, tension with North Korea, and natural disasters ravaging the United States coast to coast. Hurricanes were the big natural disaster of emphasis this year, with Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria being the worst. My mom was stuck in Florida during Hurricane Irma, and needless to say I was worried sick. When I saw this 1969 Pontiac GTO Judge suffering the effects from Hurricane Harvey, I felt a similar sick feeling. Find it here at Copart Auctions in College Station, Texas, with a current bid of $24,100 and a little under three days left to bid. Originally intended as a low-buck, stripper Tempest option to compete against Plymouth's Road Runner, the Judge debuted as

Today at the Gildea/Lynch property was a bit somber; another car was sold from our collection: a 1965 Rambler American 330 four-door sedan. Sold to two guys from northern Kentucky, seeing the Rambler go was a bittersweet sight; my family had hoped to build up the car as a daily driver, but that never happened. On the other side of the coin, however, I'm glad somebody will actually give the car the proper attention it deserves. Having said that, I now need a new project car, and vintage Pontiac cars have caught my fancy recently. A bit out of my price range but still cool nonetheless is this 1966 Pontiac Bonneville two-door hardtop, which already has the appearance of a street-racing bruiser. Find it here on Craigslist in West Chester, Pennsylvania, with an asking price of $5,800. After a full redesign in 1965, Pontiac's Bonneville continued with minimal changes for 1966. The Bonneville was the top-trim for Pontiac's full-size

After a few months of hitting one obstacle after another, my brother's 1990 GMC K2500 is finally running and driving. During that time, my dad and my brother began looking at vintage Dodge pickups for sale so my brother could build up a Dodge pickup truck as a nice-weather driver. Vintage Mopar trucks are a rare sight today, and make a nice affordable alternative to the more-common classic GM and Ford trucks. A prime example is this 1949 Dodge B1-B-108 pickup truck, which has earned the apt nickname "Yellow Rose". Find it here on eBay in Northridge, California, with a Buy-It-Now price of $12,499.99. Hailed as the first postwar trucks available from Dodge, the B-series pickup truck was introduced in 1948 to replace Dodge's prewar pickup trucks still being sold at the time. This Dodge B-series is a half-ton B1-B model, and is one of 299,900 built from 1948 to September 1, 1949. Painted white, yellow and gray,

Try saying that title five times fast! I feel like Jerry from Seinfeld when he's describing a woman to George in the "Fix Up" episode . On that note, vintage Camaros are among my favorite classic cars of all time, especially the first generation ones. The problem with first-generation Camaros is finding a clean, unmolested stock one is like trying to find an honest politician. An exception to the previous statement is this 1967 Chevrolet Camaro RS, a V8 model that is unrestored and a true barn find. Find it here on eBay in El Cajon, California, with reserve not met and a little over 14 hours left to bid. After Ford shocked the American automotive market by setting sales records for three years in a row with its Mustang, Chevrolet decided to respond with its own pony car. In previous years, Chevrolet had tried to unsuccessfully market its compact Corvair as its Mustang fighter, but the lack of a factory V8, qui

One of my favorite shows of all time that I will never get sick of is Seinfeld . The amount of times I related to that show is both admirable and disturbing, and the concept of a show about nothing was and still is a brilliant concept. The best part of the show, however, was Newman (played by Wayne Knight) and his USPS Chevrolet P30 step van. My dad owned the exact version of his truck and used his truck to haul his tools around for his contracting business. A little bit older but still a step van is this 1954 Chevrolet Boyertown Merchandiser body, a rare sight in any condition today. Find it here on Craigslist in Richboro, Pennsylvania, with an asking price of $800. Introduced in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the step van (also known as the multi-stop truck) was used for local deliveries for anything from bread to mail. Chevrolet introduced its Step Van beginning in 1935, and in the 1950s mildly updated its Step Van mechanically and vi

One of the most anticipated reveals that has everyone hanging on the edge of their seats is the upcoming Jeep Wrangler pickup truck. It's been roughly 30 years since the last Jeep pickup was produced new, and a Wrangler pickup truck would be a nice competitor to the Chevrolet Colorado and Toyota Tacoma. The truck I'd rather Jeep bring back however is Jeep's Forward Control; this 1964 model is a M677 crew cab model, and looks fairly solid. Find it here on eBay in Fullerton, California, with 13 bids and a little over a day left to bid. Introduced in 1964 as part of Jeep's military lineup, the M677 was the crew-cab version of the civilian FC170 pickup. Intended for the Army, Navy and Marines, the M677 was used to haul soldiers and gear around rough terrain.  All told, only 50 M-Series Forward Control Jeeps are believed to have survive from the Forward Control Jeep's 600-700 production total. This M677 is a 1964 model, and

Though today front-wheel drive cars seem to be a given in terms of automotive transportation, fifty years ago it still was a novelty in the United States. Though gaining steam in Europe, fifty years ago, the last time front-wheel drive was used in an American car was back in the 1930s. Bucking the trend was the Oldsmobile Toronado; this 1967 Deluxe model is resplendent in Bimini Blue and looks fairly clean. Find it here on eBay in Olive Branch, Mississippi, with reserve not met and a Buy-It-Now price of $6,000. Introduced in 1966 to compete against Ford's Thunderbird and Buick's Riviera, the E-body Toronado was the first American front-wheel drive car since the 1937 Cord 810/812. Available exclusively as a two-door hardtop coupe, the Toronado shared a platform design similar to its E-Body corporate cousin Riviera, but used front-wheel drive rather than the traditional rear-wheel drive. This Toronado is a second-year

Today in Riegelsville, Pennsylvania, the annual Fall Roll Out car show took place, marking the end of the car show season in Pennsylvania for the year. With that, the point of emphasis in terms of the automotive scene shifts from the show field to the shop. One vehicle I've been interested in building (on top of all of the projects I already own, no less) is an Advance-Design pickup, and this 1949 Chevrolet 3100 short bed would be a cool project. Find it here on eBay in Cavalier, North Dakota, with a little more than three and a half hours left to bid. After a full redesign in 1947, Chevrolet's full-size pickup trucks (nicknamed Advance Design) received a minor update late in the 1949 model year. The Thriftmaster and Loadmaster names were swapped for numbers based off of cargo capacity: 3100 (half-ton), 3600 (three-quarter ton), and 3800 (one-ton). This 1949 Advance-Design pickup is a 3100 model, and is one of 1,037,600 trucks bu

One of the areas of interests in the automotive scene that has captivated my attention is automotive rally racing. Vintage rally cars have a cool overall vibe about them, especially the ones that one would never think to rally race. A prime example is this 1969 Simca 1204, a factory rally car that had major influences on factory hot hatchbacks. Find it here on eBay in Axton, Virginia, with no bids and under four hours left to bid. Based off of the 1100-series hatchback, this 1204 Ex-Works Rally Car was entered by Chrysler (who owned Simca at the time) in the 1969 rally championship. Driven by Scott Harvey, racing parts include rally headlights, Gislaved studded snow tires, and other racing-exclusive components. Purchased from famed collector Myron Vernis , this Simca 1204 had very little success in rally racing, but later influenced Volkswagen's Rabbit and hot-hatch GTI. There is a bit of rust on the body and the rear b

It's truly hard to believe, but in less than two months, 2017 will draw to a close and 2018 will be welcomed cordially with open arms. With that, cars that were once considered throwaways will now become more and more desirable and collectible. A prime example is this 1990 Chevrolet Beretta GTZ, a rare sight in any condition. Find it here on eBay in Cadillac, Michigan, with reserve not met and a little under four hours left to bid.  Introduced in 1990 as a replacement to the GTU model, the Beretta GTZ was the top-tier model in the Beretta lineup. Featuring a lower-body monochrome body kit with matching monochrome aluminum wheels, the GTZ eschewed subtlety for aggressiveness. This Beretta GTZ is a first-year 1990 model, and is a rare sight in any condition today. Painted in a monochromatic white, this Beretta GTZ looks to be in good, original condition. Stored in a pole barn and rarely driven over the past ten years, the