Compo 10,328 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 Ford Edsell; the world's ugliest car? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
FLY2 10,108 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 My all time fav was a De Soto Fireflight, beautiful looking. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
.... 23 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 I used to marvel at some of the old American cars that I used to see still running about in Canada. To be honest many of them were pretty much 'bottom of the totem pole' as regards desirable motors but there were some amazing looking old things. Wrote a blog with a few pics of them here: The Cars are the Stars 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
benjamin1945 16,139 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 Think they look great,would loved to have been at 'High school' America in the 50s,driving one of those,with 'Frankie Lymon and the teenagers' blaring out, 'why do fools fall in love'...................ahh Happy Days' 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limey 242 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 I must admit that I am not a huge fan of the 50's and early 60's American cars - BUT, if a late 50's Cadillac convertible came my way I would not object - the caveat is that it MUST have more metal in the hood (bonnet) than in my entire Ford Focus! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bilbraborn 1,594 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 Years ago when I lived at Wollaton, a neighbor collected American cars. He owned a pink 1950s Caddy convertible ("thank you ma'am"), a huge Plymouth and a two-seater Buick sports car. For everyday use he had a vintage bubble car. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bilbraborn 1,594 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 Limey how old is your Ford Focus. I have a 2002 Ghia 1800 which I bought for 450 quid. It is a lovely car which is economical even on fast runs up the motorway but it needs a new speedo sensor. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
piggy and babs 544 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 a lot of my rock and roll friendsand accquaintences own and show ammerican 50s cars. the good the bad and the ugly and the wow i call them Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 There's a Cadillac at The Johnny Cash Museum that was donated to Johnny years ago...He had a song about an auto worker who smuggled one piece out at a time, but back then they brought out a new model every year...It's quite a funny looking car... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limey 242 Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 It is our second Focus. The first was a 2000 which we sold in 2006, this one is a 2013. It is the 2.0L "Platinum" model (5-speed). I don't think you get this one in the U.K. - and we don't get the diesels here, which is a pity! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
katyjay 5,090 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 I have to admit that a lot of the 50's American cars are ugly, they are chunky, have fins etc, but the ugliest car we've ever seen in the UK has to be the Fiat Multipla. The first time we saw it, we thought it had been designed by a committee, that couldn't agree on putting a top and bottom together that matched, on one car! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mgread1200 141 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 Visited Cuba a few years ago and Havana was full of them from the pre revolution years, god knows how they kept them running. I hear that they could be disappearing though because of some new laws which will be a shame as they are quite a tourist attraction. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
denshaw 2,871 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 #10 Eric over here I think they call them titanium. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisB 150 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 Not exactly American cars but I always remember as you go along Trowell Road just before Balloon Wood Cross Roads, there was someone who kept a couple of Austin Nash Metropolitans on a drive on the right. Quirky looking cars but apparently they'd do 100mph! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limey 242 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 Back in the late 60's, early 70's there was a used car dealer on the south side of Nottingham Road in Chilwell (just Nottingham side of the old railway bridge) that seemed to specialize in Corvettes - there often were several parked in front. I cannot imagine owning a 'Vette in the U.K. - apart from the outrageous fuel consumtion, the old models were not exactly well known for their cornering abilities. That combined with their size would mean you really could not use them very well on British roads! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
taxi ray 170 Posted August 6, 2014 Report Share Posted August 6, 2014 I have to admit that a lot of the 50's American cars are ugly, they are chunky, have fins etc, but the ugliest car we've ever seen in the UK has to be the Fiat Multipla. The first time we saw it, we thought it had been designed by a committee, that couldn't agree on putting a top and bottom together that matched, on one car! I have seen a couple of multiplas with the large name sticker on the side changed to uglitapa. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bilbraborn 1,594 Posted August 8, 2014 Report Share Posted August 8, 2014 The closest I ever got to owning anything like an American car was my Vauxhall Cresta 2.35 litre 6cylinder with column change. Pity it was such a heap of scrap by the time I got it. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
benjamin1945 16,139 Posted August 8, 2014 Report Share Posted August 8, 2014 Similar to me bilbraborn,paid £200 for a two seater yellow 'Capri' humped bonnet you remember/? had it about a month when it 'blew up' nr Newark. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bilbraborn 1,594 Posted August 8, 2014 Report Share Posted August 8, 2014 I loved those old Capris. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Trevor S 2,003 Posted August 8, 2014 Report Share Posted August 8, 2014 I loved them too much!!!! A late Aunt had a Ford Capri in 62, 2 door, light yellow with a white roof. She went into hospital. for a serious operation and the car was stored in one of the incomplete garages at the back of our petrol station in Wollaton while she was away. Naturally the keys were left in the garage office. Temptation was far too much and short drives around the block extended to drives into the City with the boys anytime of the day or night. The day of reckoning ultimately arrived when she got out of hospital and was well enough to start driving her car again.................................................. How did I know that she religiously recorded her mileage figures every time she fuelled up and that she had filled the tank immediately prior to putting the car into storage? She told my father...they both confronted me after the fellow that was employed at our petrol station (their initial suspect) told them that it was me. I thought he was a good mate and he had gone on drives with us as well. No point in denying it and was made to feel real bad about it. That was after my father had tried to inflict GBH on me and chased me around the petrol station a couple of times. I perhaps should not have said I was looking after her interests by giving the car a regular run to keep it in good condition. Perhaps my lack of a driving licence also had something to do with it? Anyway, I was not popular boy for a while after that and it got worse some time later when I took a customer's car for a joyride and he discovered it missing! Still, I liked that Capri........................... 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
littlebro 234 Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 Back in the late 60's, early 70's there was a used car dealer on the south side of Nottingham Road in Chilwell (just Nottingham side of the old railway bridge) that seemed to specialize in Corvettes - there often were several parked in front. I cannot imagine owning a 'Vette in the U.K. - apart from the outrageous fuel consumtion, the old models were not exactly well known for their cornering abilities. That combined with their size would mean you really could not use them very well on British roads! That will have been David Nudd, Highway Garage, he often imported cars from California. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
.... 23 Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 There used to be a business that dealt in second-hand American cars in Redhill at the junction of Mansfield Road and Redhill Road. This was the former site of Hutchinson's VW dealers and is now a car rental business. I once saw the actor, Ken Morley who played the character of Reg Houldsworth in Coronation Street, in the back of a huge chauffeur-driven American car just down the road from there in Springfield Road where he had obviously taken a wrong turning looking for the place. Apparently he had an interest in these kinds of cars. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dgbrit 258 Posted August 9, 2014 Report Share Posted August 9, 2014 I have a Cobra Mustang supercharged at the moment lovely car. Same colour as Littlebo's icon but a hardtop Dodge Ram 1500 5.9 ltr for towing the boat had a 66 Mustang that I restored A Pontiac firebird rs that I drove for about 8 years & never touched it just oil change fluids & go I clocked 180,000 mls on it. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
swe62 334 Posted December 16, 2014 Report Share Posted December 16, 2014 Years ago when I lived at Wollaton, a neighbor collected American cars. He owned a pink 1950s Caddy convertible ("thank you ma'am"), a huge Plymouth and a two-seater Buick sports car. For everyday use he had a vintage bubble car.we used to call him old youngy his name was dave young,sadly died a year or so ago 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Annesleyred1865 137 Posted December 16, 2014 Report Share Posted December 16, 2014 I had a Studebaker (Dinky Toy) car Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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