Recent searches
Search options
#weirdcarmastodon
One-week countdown to two-week #vacation incl. a day trip to Cambridge via B roads in this "luxury supermini" via Turo #weirdcarmastodon
Neither the Innocenti Mini nor the Austin/Rover Metro, both recently featured here, ended up replacing the 1959 Mini. That honour eventually fell to this, the first BMW Mini, launched in 2001, which went on to be a big success. Snapped at the British Motor Museum at Gaydon in 2023.
I didn’t realize DeTomaso made cars all the way till the 90s. The Pantera 90 Si was a completely new Marcello Gandini design with a tubular frame instead of a monocoque, and I am in LOVE with it.
The 90 Si was also the first DeTomaso with a fuel-injected Ford V8 engine (this one was retromodded with a carbureted unit). The interior was largely the same design they’ve always used from the 70s, with better switches and an A/C panel taken from Maserati (which DeTomaso owned at the time). Check out that vertically-mounted radio. Hilarious.
There were only 41 cars made, of which two were crash-tested for certification, and one was kept by the DeTomaso company. So realistically, 38 undamaged cars are in circulation.
#DeTomaso #Pantera #cars #supercars #WeirdCarMastodon
https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/seldom-seen-de-tomaso-pantera-90-si-could-be-yours/
Chapter One - Badly Built
Renault 14 1977 - 1983
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_14
Boring to drive and an electrical system prone to fires 
Chapter One - Badly Built
Peugeot 604 1975 - 1986
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peugeot_604
Thirsty engine and an interior that fell to bits, it was a popular choice for Parisian taxi drivers.
Chapter One - Badly Built
Morris Marina 1970 - 1981
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_Marina
Rust, collapsing suspension, leaky interiors and terrible handling.
Chapter One - Badly Built
Mazda 626 Montrose 1978 - 1982
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazda_Capella
Solid mechanically but panels prone to rusting.
Chapter One - Badly Built
Lotus Elite/Eclat 1974 - 1991
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_Elite
Coolant leaks leading to warped heads and headlights with corrosion leading to one headlight up, one down. Yet admits they have a cult following. 
This Stunningly Life-Like RC Car Cost $7,000 to Build From Scratch
The massive RC Audi boasts a custom-made clutch disc and pressure plate, axles, differential, brakes, and an engine that absolutely rips.
https://www.thedrive.com/news/this-stunningly-life-like-rc-car-cost-7000-to-build-from-scratch
Only the prettiest Audi design ever too
The E39 BMW 5 Series Could’ve Looked Much Different, Early Sketches Show
A BMW designer penned a vision for the E39 5 Series that is barely recognizable from the iconic sedan we've come to know.
https://www.thedrive.com/news/the-e39-bmw-5-series-couldve-looked-much-different-early-sketches-show
My friend in Italy went to the Pistra 500, the test track on top of Fiat's old factory in Turin.
https://www.iguzzini.com/projects/project-gallery/the-pista-500/
Anyway, some of the steel I was welding this new frame *to* in the area rearwards of the wheel arch was very thin where it wasn't just hole, so I did the worst possible job welding that in just to get it in position. Much of that will have to be cut out and replaced.
This was the battery box side; the other wasn't any better despite never seeing battery acid. So this side quest now has a side quest! Yay!
Back of the car is off the rotisserie. Slowly inching its way to being back to sitting on its wheels again.
Despite the weather trying its best to stop this happening (MIG welding in the wind isn't a good idea and neither is using equipment whose primary job is making violent electric arcs), I now have a hole in the boot floor, with 1" steel box around it.
All of this is definitely WAY more rigid than the floppy old boot floor was. Remember, every time you put a gusset into a corner, @chris smiles down at you, like the baby-sun in the Teletubbies.
#RadRide at auction today! Here's one we haven't featured in literal years: A 97 Isuzu Vehicross! Yep, Japan got these two years before us and the 4WD systems provided by BorgWarner were computer-controlled. Way way ahead of the time wrapped in all that style! Plus this model was intentionally limited to just 5800. This color is perfect and it's in impossibly good shape to boot! DM for interest or to bid! #JDM #weirdcarmastodon
Song San Summer, 2025. Chinese specialist car maker Song San Motors celebrated its 20th anniversary at the Shanghai Auto Show with several 50's-inspired new models including the 8-door Summer minivan that borrows heavily from the VW Type 2 Transporter style book. It's powered by a 1.5 litre PHEV drivetrain with a combined output of 329hp. Volkswagen may want to have a word... #conceptcar #weirdcarmastodon Source #carsthatnevermadeitetc@tumblr.com
In 1994, the Rover Metro featured yesterday received a further round of tweaks and was renamed as the Rover 100 series. This car at the British Motor Museum at Gaydon was the last off the line at the Longbridge factory in 1997, ending production of the Metro family after seventeen years. As per tradition, this car was signed by members of the workforce. Meanwhile, the 1959 Mini, the car the Metro was supposed to replace, was still in production.
