Call-back to the original station wagons.
which does not really explain why wooden cars were a thing in the US but never much in europe
(cue in the odd european wooden car (Morgan?))
“I’m sorry Dave but I’m afraid that I cannot open the pod bay doors…”
Maybe the car should be called Hal.
And various coachbuilders up to around the time the use of real wood was discontinued in the US.
but were there mainstream-brands wooden cars in europe? …comparable to Dodge/Chrysler/Ford/ in the USA …
maybe it has to do with abundance of wood in the US (we are talking 1930/40/50ies here) … after all there are still way more wooden-frame houses built in the US than in Europe … (might be completely unrelated, though)
anyone venturing any guesses?
Or the weather.
DKW didn’t give up and continued experimenting with wood. With its streamlined design, the DKW Schwebeklasse sedan that came out in 1936 was a relatively modern car for that era, and it sold quite well in Germany. However, when life started to improve, the Germans began looking at cars with metal bodies, since they were more reliable and in the event of an accident, you still felt safer in a steel drum than in a wooden barrel. Plus there was the fact that the DKW woodies were not very suitable for long-term use – the bodies quickly began to creak, and finally rotted, unable to withstand the extreme European weather conditions. Not surprisingly, only a few dozen wooden DKWs have survived to this day.
So in Europe, wood as an alternative to metal was left as an interesting but unsuccessful attempt to make cars more accessible to the masses, and from the end of World War II to now, iron established its position as the material of choice for car bodies, except for a few woody wagons like the Morris Minor. Wood was a bit more successful in the States, and especially in California, where woody wagons were fairly common on the streets…
thx, good info
Saw an orange itsy-bitsy Eclipse, hardtop, 2005ish
Whoa! The Acura Integra is back! This could be good news…
After a 16 year hiatus, 2007-2022, Honda has brought the Integra back for the 2023 model year. This is the first one I’ve noticed. This is now the Integra’s 5th generation.
The fantastic Integra was one of the best handling sporty car values available through 4 generations, 1985-2006. It was renamed as the Acura RSX for the 4th generation.
I said this ‘could be’ good news because if this 5th-gen is sporty and handles well at a good value, then it does deserve to carry the Integra badge. And from a quick search just now, that looks to be the case, as only 4 days ago Car and Driver magazine rated the Integra Type S as the #1 out of the 12 Best 4-Door Sports Cars. It beat out 11 other cars, including some costing over 2x as much. The Integra Type S costs $53,000, and the Audi RS7, which finished 6th in the test, costs over $130,000.*
Car and Driver also rated it:
◆ #1 in Best Subcompact Luxury Cars
◆ #1 in Best Luxury Sedans Under $60,000 (out of 21 cars tested (!))
➜ Best 4-Door Sports Cars for 2024, Tested
Definitely good news! Welcome back Integra!
* — Costing about $30,000, the 2024 Honda Civic Si finished 4th in this test. That looks to make it an excellent value. Interestingly, it also beat out (but just barely at #5) the 2024 Honda Civic Type R which, at $46,000, costs 50% more than the Si.
Sigh. I sure wish they would make some of these in AWD. Caddy does, but not with the good engines. Really fun colors with the Blackwings!
My next car will most likely be electric, but if I were to buy a new ICE car my top two choices would be the new Integra or the Mazda3. Both are among the few new cars one can still buy with a manual transmission.
A nice white Alfa Romeo Giulia, just now. Nice.
I had one of the earlier versions…& loved that car. if they’re still making it when I’m looking again it will be high on my list.
Also note it’s not a 4-door, it’s a 5-door; it’s that ultra rarest of breed (in the US); a hatchback!
That #9 Corolla GR hatchback is looking good.
I give you the Morris Mini Traveler:
1968 AMC Javelin: the 1st year for the Javelin, this was AMC’s entry into the pony car segment. There were two generations of the Javelins, 1968-1970, and 1971-1974.
A rare sighting. I’m liking the proportions of this first year Javelin.
I spotted a brand new Toyota Crown (16th generation!) sedan today. It caught my eye because the tail end looked different, then I saw the “Crown” name. Not a bad looking car, but typically Toyota bland.
A nicely camo’d Hummer H2.
So I saw my first Tesla Cybertruck in the wild today. I only saw it from kind of far away as it drove down the street while I was waiting in the In-N-Out drive thru line, but it was instantly identifiable. And it looks just as crazy in person as in pictures.
A Checker Marathon, from Checker Motors Corporation out of Kalamazoo, Michigan.
When you hear “Checker cab”, it’s because they drove Checker Marathons. Both the car and the cab company were owned by the same person, Morris Markin, a Russian-born businessman who emigrated at 19 and established himself in business in New York City, then Chicago, then Kalamazoo.
The Checker Marathon was manufactured 1960-1982. The company never had a dealer network. They sold most of its cars for fleet service.
Around here, CMC stands for Christian McCaffrey!
