Hamilton 1883 - Blog » Cars

Little Deuce Coupe

Stephen — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 13:30:52 +0000

I am totally fascinated by this car…maybe even a little obsessed. Produced by a company called Ghia, the Fiat Jolly was a conversion made to a classic Fiat auto-body into a very stylish beach buggy during the 1960′s. This Fiat beach car was marketed to appeal to very wealthy playboys as a runabout for the innumerable beachfront cities and resorts up and down the coasts of Italy. An expensive car for the time, they were mostly used as golf carts, estate runabouts, and land cars for yacht owners. Supposedly Aristotle Onassis owned one, as well as the actor, Yul Brenner.

Painted in bright tropical colors and featuring open sides, striped canvas canopy tops, and wicker seats – these cars are very glamorous beach rides. According to various websites – there are less than 100 Jollys left worldwide. I found one available in Miami (of course!) in all original condition for a mere $43,995…if you buy it, will you let me take it for a spin?

Corvettes & Classics – 1962 Plymouth Fury

Stephen — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:37:12 +0000

Looking for a sweet ride for Summer? Look no further than this 1962 Plymouth Fury from Houston vintage dealer Corvettes & Classics, Inc. Priced at a mere $47,900..this car will definitely get you noticed. One can dream, right?

Here are all the details from the listing:

Sport Fury Convertible! A very low production car with only 1,516 built in 1962. The Sport Fury was announced 4 months after the 62’s were introduced. The Sport Fury was Plymouth’s premium automobile and featured such extras as bucket seats, center front console, all vinyl trim, rear foam seat cushions, deluxe steering wheel. A third tail lamp was added on each side making 6 tail lights, full length beltline extensions and license plate recess trim. Sport Furys were distinguished by their signature script ahead of the front wheel opening, deck lid license plates and Red, White and Blue finished trim with insert dimples. The grille was given a stronger segmented appearance by blacking out the wider division panels. A gorgeous repaint in the correct Factory Cherry Red color. This knockout is powered by a 361 CID /305 HP engine with 4-barrel carb, aluminum torqueflite push button transmission, power brakes, power steering, solex tinted glass, day/night rear view mirror, dashclock, push button Factory radio, left outside rear view mirror, Chrome Wire wheels. This is truly a work of art and is an American Classic!

Just Helping Our Economy

Stephen — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:00:59 +0000

This week I’ve been reading a lot about the current state of our retail climate, with endless interpretations of what consumers want today. Well, I’ll tell you EXACTLY what I want…a Maserati GranTourismo S Automatic. This 4.7 litre, 440-hp V8 engine now comes equipped with a six speed automatic transmission. The GranTourismo has a similar style German made gearbox, like the ones used in the Corvette and Aston Martin DB9, that switches the engine over to manual with just a flip of a switch. With the engine placement right behind the rear axle, the car achieves a 49%-51% perfectly balanced front/rear weight distribution. With a luxurious interior made up of leather, wood, and chrome, this sleekly designed car is a real object of beauty. Speeding from 0 to 60 in 4.5 seconds the car can easily cover a quarter mile in 12.9 seconds at 110.5 mph, and the engine tops out at a lofty 183 mph. With its sticker price of just $139,400, I feel that buying this car is the least someone could do to bolster the economy. I’ll take mine in Blu Nettuno with a Sabbia leather interior. -S.W.

Maserati GranTourismo S Automatic

Built Ford Tough

Stephen — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 10:00:29 +0000

With all the news about the American auto industry collapsing, TARP funds denial, and ‘Cash for Clunkers’, the business of selling cars right now has to be a difficult one. I often think with all this interest in hybrids, green-mobiles, and all sorts of interesting fuel developments, one factor that always seems to be overlooked is the cars basic esthetics. Many of today’s cars seem to promise all kinds of amazing features and mileage, but lets face it, these cars are ugly. Gone are the days of grills, fins, and real American auto style. I was very surprised to see last week- a new Ford Flex on the road. This full size crossover or minivan (what?) seems to have taken all the best parts of an off-road SUV and really updated it in a cool and modern way. I liked this as a new family car a lot, it almost reminds me of a Wagoneer. Did Detroit get this right? What do you think? -S.W.

Out for a Drive

Stephen — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 10:08:31 +0000

Stormy With a Chance of Nissans

Stephen — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:00:02 +0000

From this great state that brought us the contest “Hands on a Hardbody” comes another genius Texan auto marketing concept. On August 8th, if San Jose is hit with a deluge of rain, World Nissan will give you a Free Altima. While wagering on the weather may seem like a risky thing to do, Central Texas has been stricken by a severe drought this year. “People buying a Nissan Altima at World Nissan between July 15 and August 1 will get a full refund of their purchase price if two inches of rain is measured at a nearby airport, according to “Big Al” Ortiz, the dealership’s new car sales manager. The base price for a new Altima is around $20,000. Though he did not provide exact numbers, Big Al said the offer is bringing a lot of people into the dealership, whether they buy an Altima or something else.” With a $1,000,000. insurance policy in place, the risk for the dealer seems pretty low. This might be silly, but it seems to be working. A similar promotion worked for Kansas City Dealer Max Motors, where they gave away a free AK-47′s with every car purchase. Mark Muller called it a resounding success that generated a lot of publicity, and really angered the “liberals”!

While it ain’t no “Last Picture Show”… this is a great doc to add to your Netflix queue:

Trailer Made

Stephen — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:00:55 +0000

Lately we’ve been reminiscing about the loss of The Shady Grove RV Park in Austin, Texas. What was once a great visual landmark is now about to be a commonplace condo complex lacking any type of local character. Lately, forward thinking magazines such as Dwell have been looking into new options for sustainable living, including the possibilities of what trailer living could be. Here is a great example, the recently featured ‘Mini Home” by Architect Andy Thompson.

Out in the California desert of Palm Springs, the cool and stylish hotel chain “The Ace” even has a great old trailer installed on their property to serve as its pool house.

Even Victorinox Swiss Army has gotten into the act to create a special edition trailer with Airstream.

With examples such as these- it only goes to show with some creativity and a little thought, there are new and interesting options that might serve a community better in the long run.

When we get sad thinking about all this, we can find ourselves at the Austin restaurant “The Shady Grove” to wax nostalgic. The landmark restaurant features its own hippie trailer, set up as an outdoor waiting area. On certain Thursday nights the “Unplugged at the Grove” series brings the best of Austin’s renowned live music plus several hundred fans together in its backyard. This weeks performer is Texas’ own “red-dirt romantic” Jimmy LaFave playing there tonight at eight.

Grand Wagonmaster Flash

Stephen — Sun, 31 May 2009 12:00:03 +0000

Introduced in 1978, the Jeep Grand Wagoneer was one of the best looking sport utility vehicles ever designed. After the Texas sized vehicle was discontinued in 1991 many of its loyal fan base went into mourning. None as much as Leon Miller of Kerrville. With his love of the family wagon and a few lucky phone calls, he decided to take on the project of restoring them. What started out as a hobby became a full fledged business, giving Leon the new moniker “The Wagonmaster”.

With over 1,370 vehicles sold and over 17 years in business- it just goes to show, with a little care and craftsmanship, a classic can endure forever.

The Wagonmaster