Danville Street Sighting - 1972 Triumph GT6 Mk 3

There's something wonderful about a well kept vintage European sports car. The Continent produced so many classic and beautiful shapes from the postwar years leading up to the early '70s. They seemed to lose the plot a bit around that time, brought on by American laws for lights and bumpers. I've always liked the Triumph Spitfire roadster, but it's easy to forget that a fastback coupe version exists.

Santa Cruz Street Sighting - 1972 Buick Skylark Convertible

We find ourselves once again in the holiday season, a time when stores finally stop stocking Christmas and Halloween products side by side and instead stock Christmas and Valentine's Day. Casual readers may be confused as to why I would do a holiday special series when I haven't posted anything on this blog for most of the year. I can't blame that on COVID either. I admit I've had many other priorities, ranging from an increased work schedule to a rekindled interest in combing junkyards. The latter of which may inspire a new series of features in the future. But in any case, it's Christmastime. And like every Christmas season, there's one song you have likely heard.

All I Want For Christmas Is "U."

I blame the documentary I watched the other day on the history of the PBS TV show "Sesame Street", with episodes 'brought to you by the letter __". Basically my gimmick is that all vehicles featured this month have the letter U in their brand name. First up, BUICK. Enjoy.

Danville Street Sighting - 1972 Ford Mustang Mach 1

Today marks the eighth day of the fabled countdown to Christmas.

On the eighth day of Christmas my archive gave to thee:
Jade Mach 1 Mustang,
'77 Lincoln,
Suede Studebaker,
Fine Nomad bling,
Ford Thunderbird,
Beige French shed,
Tuned Chevy LUV,
and a Park Lane down on the street.

Admittedly some of my adaptations of the original 12 Days of Christmas are rather forced. While Ford did offer a color called Black Jade on the Mustang in 1969 and 1970, this is not it. No, this car wears the hue creatively named "Dark Green". But Dark Green doesn't rhyme with "eight", does it? Forget it, I'm not apologizing for anything.

Danville Street Sighting - 1972 Mercury Cougar XR-7 Convertible

This week we're celebrating Independence Day a little differently from how we usually do it at California Streets. Instead of featuring cars from defunct independent American manufacturers, I'm featuring defunct mainstream American brands in red, white and blue. Representing the color white today is this 1972 Mercury Cougar XR-7 convertible.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 Toyota Corona Mark II 1900 Automatic Wagon

For every model of car that someone values and keeps in great condition, there is someone else who beats up on theirs. Such is the case with the Toyota Corona Mark II station wagon that I posted earlier this week. The Corona isn't a terribly valuable vehicle but it is rather rare in the US. This has an upside and a downside: rarity makes them interesting, but it also makes parts hard to find. The guy who owns the red Corona 4x4 trail rig basically has a hacked-up Toyota body on top of a truck chassis. The car probably reached the point where the body panels were too damaged to justify repairing and he just decided to have fun with it. Then there's this Corona Mark II, basically identical except one or two years newer. But my goodness, what a difference in terms of condition.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 Jeep Wagoneer

Alright, alright, I know. This is Independents' Week. So why a Jeep? Jeep is part of Chrysler, hardly an independent automaker. (One could argue that Chrysler is pretty darn dependent nowadays, seeing as Fiat's calling the shots, but that's another story.) Well, Jeep used to be independent or at least was produced by a series of independent companies.

Danville Street Sighting - 1972 Chevrolet C-20 Custom Camper

I've been a big fan of the 1967-'72 GM pickups since I convinced my dad to purchase a '71 GMC stepside when I was a kid. Most of them around here are either restored customs or tired work trucks now, so a clean stock truck is a great find. This one is a 1972 Chevy C-20 3/4 ton Custom Camper fleetside longbed, and I really like it.

Santa Clara Street Sighting - 1972 Datsun 510

UrbanDictionary defines dropping a dime as snitching on someone, ratting them out. It's a reference to the old practice of putting a coin into a pay phone to make a 10-cent call. I contend this could be an alternate definition of the term. A Datsun 510 is also often known as a Dime in the owners' community, and this one definitely looks like it's been dropped.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1972 International Harvester 1210 Travelette Pickup

I've heard a number of jokes about International Harvester trucks and rust. And I know that a lot of them really did succumb to rust. The 1970s IHC pickups are rare enough to start with, even before factoring in attrition from hard work and road salt and moisture. International always was kind of a niche player in the light-duty truck market, doing most of their business with heavy commercial trucks and the Scout SUV. Despite this, the Light Line pickups were offered in a wide range of styles, drivetrains and bed lengths.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 Volvo 1800ES

I'm still a fan of Volvo 1800ES wagons, in no small part because I'm a sucker for station wagons in general and two-door wagons in particular. The 1800ES was a rare bird even when new, as the final evolution of the P1800 sports coupe first seen in 1961. Only 8,077 ES wagons were ever built, and they remain a cool curiosity today.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 Dino 246 GT

Let's start the new year off right, shall we?

One of my favorite events each year in San Francisco is Fleet Week, the second week in October when the U.S. Navy brings in an assortment of ships and the Blue Angels aerobatic team performs above the Bay for thousands of thrilled spectators. This latest Fleet Week air show fell on October 12, Columbus Day. North Beach has a large Italian population and the city holds an Italian Heritage parade on Columbus Day. When leaving the city after the air show, my friend and I spotted this dark red Dino 246 GT parked on Columbus Avenue. Incidentally, my friend is a huge fan of 246 GTs, so it was a perfect find for both of us.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser

A lot of people are familiar with the Wagon Queen Family Truckster from National Lampoon's Vacation. Anyone remember what Clark Griswold traded in at Lou Glutz Motors when he got the Truckster? It was an Olds Vista Cruiser wagon. Unlike the Griswold car, though, this '72 model hasn't been crushed flat by an unscrupulous car dealer bent on selling a badly-modified Country Squire.

Oakland Street Sighting - 1972 Fiat 850 Sport Spider

The Fiat 850 is a rather interesting car. A lot of older Italian family cars feature expanded lineups with several unique products on the same chassis, and the 850 is a great example of this. It was offered as a two-door Berlina sedan, two-door Familiare wagon, Furgonata small van, coupe and Spider roadster. Two versions of certain models were available, the mainstream Normale and higher-performance Super. Coupe and Spider models received a special engine tuned for even greater power (47 horsepower instead of the Normale's 34 and Super's 37). All models came with a four-speed stick, rear engine and rear-wheel drive. American 850s got a smaller-displacement, 49.8 cubic inch engine to evade federal emissions regulations applying to engines of 50 ci and larger -- pretty sneaky.

Pleasanton Street Sighting - 1972 Ford Galaxie 500 Coupe

It's taken a long time, but here it is. Street Sighting number 500. To celebrate, I picked a car with that number in its name. Here's a 1972 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1972 Porsche 914

When I was a kid I spent a lot of time playing Need For Speed: Porsche Unleashed. For some reason I painted all of the Porsches in my collection yellow with red and black rocker stripe decals. I was pretty poor at driving digital 911s with their interesting rear-heavy weight balance, but I loved the 914.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1972 Jeep Commando

A few years ago we looked at a 1972 Jeep Commando, hurriedly photographed on a rainy day in San Francisco. It was almost all factory stock and in very good condition, but I didn't have the time to do it justice. For this one, I had better weather and more time.

San Francisco Street Sighting - 1972 AM General M35A2C

It's Memorial Day in the United States, a day to honor those who have died while serving in the U.S. armed forces. So today we look at a favorite workhorse of the U.S. military (and many others around the world), an AM General M35 2-1/2 ton cargo truck. Specifically, a 1972 M35A2C.

San Ramon Street Sighting - 1972 GMC C1500 Stepside Pickup

The 1967-72 GMC stepside pickup truck has a special significance to me, because my father owns one. His is a 1971 1500 Custom with a 307 small block V8. This one is a far cry from that, but the two pickups have crossed paths on the road before.

Berkeley Street Sighting - 1972 Alfa Romeo 2000 Berlina

One of my rules for shooting cars is that nothing is worth risking your life over. Running across the Pacific Coast Highway at rush hour on a blind curve to photograph a ridiculously clean International Scout might not have been wise. But the streets of Berkeley are rarely dangerous, aside from maybe the odd rented Zipcar Prius piloted by some millenial who hates driving because it interferes with their texting. I passed by this 1972 Alfa Romeo 2000 Berlina while searching for a mid-'50s Buick that I believed lived in the area. I pulled into a driveway to turn around, and while reversing I was forced to jam the car back in gear and gun it to avoid being slammed by a Honda that had crested the hill and was sailing downhill toward me without paying attention. Close calls are scary, and it would have really ruined my day to get my Focus written off over some pictures of an old Alfa.

Alameda Street Sighting - 1972 Cadillac Superior Crown Landaulet Funeral Coach

Second in my Halloween hearse double-feature is a 1972 Cadillac Funeral Coach, which looks to be a Superior Crown Landaulet. Unlike the 1970 Superior hearse featured previously, this one has the half-roof bordered by a stainless roof band. Interestingly, it appears that the roof is not covered in vinyl as I initially thought, but it is actually a textured finish called a crinkle top. It's a 3-way hearse, meaning a casket can be loaded via the rear door or either of the rear-hinged suicide doors on the sides. It is in remarkably good condition and clearly shows pride of ownership. In fact, it's owned by a lady known as Miss Lynda, described by Grimrides.com as "hearse owner and burlesque star" and "Grim Rides Poster Girl". The site gives her credit for doing everything right in finding the perfect hearse, and it shows.