The Last Really Good Chrysler Product

| On Wed, 20 Oct 2004, James C. Reeves wrote:
|
| > | The AA-body (Spirit, Acclaim, LeBaron sedan, export Saratoga) 1989-1995.
| >
| > If so, one would think that there would still be these models on the
| > road now. I don't see them very often.
|
| I see lots of them, and I'm right in the salt belt (Toronto). Perhaps they
| didn't sell well wherever you are.
|

Could be. Plus, for whatever reason, this marked has become very bad for older
used vehicles. It's possible that those that get put back into the resale
market get shipped elsewhere where they will sell better.

 

| "James C. Reeves" wrote:
|
| >The 300C is the wrong car for the wrong time. Gas will be at $4.00 to $5.00
| >a
| >gallon in a few short years with China (and other "emerging markets")
sucking
| >
| >up oil at a 30%+ per year growth rate with supply channels already at full
| >production. So, most of them will be left parked in the driveway along with
| >the SUVs. Too expensive to drive and no one will want them (so no one will
| >buy
| >them off of you). They may be good...(yet to be seen), but part of being
| >good
| >is that it fits the times. I wouldn't touch one with a 10-foot pole...it
has
| >
| >"loosing your shirt" written all over it!
|
| I guess that is why you are you and the rest of us are glad we aren't.

See you in retirement. Oh, wait, old 300C owners from decades back will be
retired and living in their car by then. (I know, that a little of a
overstatement...maybe) ;-)

However, I lived and drove through both the 70's oil crisis (73 and
79)...waited in 2-3+ hour gas lines, etc. many times. It reinforced the lesson
I already knew watching others. I even knew better back then (not being much
older than a kid at the time)...people with gas guzzlers lost a LOT of money.
They were basically stuck with BIG cars they could no longer afford to drive
and couldn't sell because no one else wanted them either. It's coming
again...the signs are there plain as day (no matter if Kerry or Bush are
elected). The news just today, inventories of distillates (gasoline, fuel oil,
diesel) are well below projected need for the winter with production capacity
still below consumption rates (so inventories will get even worse!) But, hey,
knock yourself out. The only part that actually makes me angry is that I may
have to wait in gas lines just because people buy these unnecessary fuel
wasting vehicles. But I am partly consoled to know that they will be in line
with me.

 

I think they get shipped here.

 

I noticed that when I lived in Michigan -- it was damn near impossible to
find a good, inexpensive used car. You could find good *or* inexpensive
used cars, but NOT both at the same time. The dynamics of the used-car
market are highly variable region-to-region.

DS

 

Put me down as being one of the first in line to buy a used, V8-equipped
LX at a fire sale price!

I can't wait!!!!

--Geoff

 

You can't swing the dipstick from a dead Chevy without whacking into an
AA-body, even here in rust-ravaged Detroit.

....and those cars are what, 9 years old at the newest?

--Geoff

 

I'm sure this isn't his choice but I'll tell you what mine is. My 1984
Horizon 5-speed. Ran like gangbusters for 10 years of road-warrior commuter
duty through Ontario winters. Never needed to be towed. Used very little gas
and cost chicken feed to maintain. Paid off my mortgage. Needed fewer
repairs than the Camries and Accords that my friends were driving at the
same time, and even at the end when the body was rusting out it could blow
the doors off cars with engines twice the size.

Astonishing interior room to boot - helped several people move.

I don't get insulted when I hear people say that Omni/Horizons were bad
cars. I just smile.

 

....and one of them in rust-ravaged Detroit used to be mine. It's a
remarkably clean, unrusted silver '92 LeBaron sedan with big black
European-spec mirrors, glass European-spec headlights, and round
European-spec side turn blinkers just behind each front wheel. Bought it
for $1200 with 125k miles on it, put on an exhaust system, shocks and
struts and a set of brakes, and drove it 45,000 exceptionally dependable,
economical and inexpensive miles before impulsively selling it for $2100.
The new owner didn't know much about cars, but got 15k miles out of it
before failing to tighten the radiator draincock after having loosened it.
The coolant level dropped below the head and the engine cooked.

When I heard about that, I did a search via the Secretary of State,
figuring I might buy it back inexpensively, refurbish it and keep driving
it (or at least snag the Euro-spec lights and mirrors out of whatever yard
it wound up in). Nope, someone had already dropped in a used engine and
sold it on -- its registration is current; it's still driving around, now
probably working on its third hundred thousand miles.

 

The B-bodies were always "really good." A 73 was better than a 77, and a
69 was better than a '73, but even a '78 B-body was better than any GM
A-body, which was its nominal competition.

 

Can I have some of whatever you're smoking?

 

In the first place, I DO see a lot of them around. In the second place,
they probably built about half as many AA-bodies as they did A-bodies
over the years.

And FWIW, I differ from Dan here in that I really never could stand any
of the K-derivative cars. But they were incredibly durable in a
cockroach-and-rat sort of way. At least the ones that didn't have the
Mitsubishi 3.0. :-/

 

| James C. Reeves wrote:
|
| > The 300C is the wrong car for the wrong time. Gas will be at $4.00 to
$5.00 a
| > gallon in a few short years with China (and other "emerging markets")
sucking
| > up oil at a 30%+ per year growth rate with supply channels already at full
| > production. So, most of them will be left parked in the driveway along
with
| > the SUVs. Too expensive to drive and no one will want them (so no one will
buy
| > them off of you). They may be good...(yet to be seen), but part of being
good
| > is that it fits the times. I wouldn't touch one with a 10-foot pole...it
has
| > "loosing your shirt" written all over it!
| >
|
| Can I have some of whatever you're smoking?
|
|

I did live through the 60's and 70's...let me see if I have some left! ;-)

 

| James C. Reeves wrote:
|
| > | > | On Wed, 19 Oct 2004, Ted Azito wrote:
| > |
| > | > But getting back on subject, he was going off on what the last good
| > | > Chrysler product was. I'll post his answer-surprising to me-a little
| > | > later, but I want your opinions first. What was the last good Mopar?
| > |
| > | The AA-body (Spirit, Acclaim, LeBaron sedan, export Saratoga) 1989-1995.
| >
| > If so, one would think that there would still be these models on the road
now.
| > I don't see them very often. The old A bodies you saw frequently on the
road
| > well into the 80's.
|
| In the first place, I DO see a lot of them around. In the second place,
| they probably built about half as many AA-bodies as they did A-bodies
| over the years.
|
| And FWIW, I differ from Dan here in that I really never could stand any
| of the K-derivative cars. But they were incredibly durable in a
| cockroach-and-rat sort of way. At least the ones that didn't have the
| Mitsubishi 3.0. :-/
|
|

My mother in law is still driving a late 80's Aries. Of course she is in her
80's herself, so it fits.

 

|
|
| James C. Reeves wrote:
|
| > Date: Wed, 20 Oct 2004 17:41:28 -0400
| > From: James C. Reeves <>
| > Newsgroups: rec.autos.makers.chrysler
| > Subject: Re: The Last Really Good Chrysler Product
| >
| > The 300C is the wrong car for the wrong time. Gas will be at $4.00 to
$5.00 a
| > gallon in a few short years with China (and other "emerging markets")
sucking
| > up oil at a 30%+ per year growth rate with supply channels already at full
| > production. So, most of them will be left parked in the driveway along
with
| > the SUVs. Too expensive to drive and no one will want them (so no one will
buy
| > them off of you). They may be good...(yet to be seen), but part of being
good
| > is that it fits the times. I wouldn't touch one with a 10-foot pole...it
has
| > "loosing your shirt" written all over it!
|
| Put me down as being one of the first in line to buy a used, V8-equipped
| LX at a fire sale price!
|
| I can't wait!!!!
|
| --Geoff


3-4 years. It will fly by quickly. You'll have plenty of choices too.
History repeats itself from time-to-time, so have faith and hang on!

 

In the early 60's my Dad bought a 1956 Dodge from an old lady on the block for
$100. It a a "Red Ram" engine, a really neat interior with push button
automatic transmission, real vent windows on all for doors, a real oil pressure
gauge, the most comfortable seats I've ever sat in with tons of room, and a pop
up air vent that you moved a big chrome lever under the dash to activate. think
it was white over green. A really fun car.

A friend in high school was given a 68 Charger by his father. I drove in it
once. The one thing that really stuck to me about that car was that it as
"solid" stiff, body. no frills but it felt "strong"

We had a 68 Coronet with a 318. That 318 went like a bat out of hell. It was
just the right hp / weight ratio. Shame it was stolen and few months later.

We had alot of Darts, 64, 70, 74 model years to name a few. The slant six
engines and transmissions were solid but the bodies rotted away. but so did the
Fords and GM products of the same time.

 

He's telling you the truth. We have 3% of the population and use 25% of the
energy. If only India and China come up to 1/10 (one-tenth) of our standard
of living, where's the extra energy going to come from? Anybody got any
ideas? China's economy is growing at about 10% a year or so.

 

|
| | > James C. Reeves wrote:
| >
| > > The 300C is the wrong car for the wrong time. Gas will be at $4.00 to
| $5.00 a
| > > gallon in a few short years with China (and other "emerging markets")
| sucking
| > > up oil at a 30%+ per year growth rate with supply channels already at
| full
| > > production. So, most of them will be left parked in the driveway along
| with
| > > the SUVs. Too expensive to drive and no one will want them (so no one
| will buy
| > > them off of you). They may be good...(yet to be seen), but part of
| being good
| > > is that it fits the times. I wouldn't touch one with a 10-foot
| pole...it has
| > > "loosing your shirt" written all over it!
| > >
| >
| > Can I have some of whatever you're smoking?
| >
|
| He's telling you the truth. We have 3% of the population and use 25% of the
| energy. If only India and China come up to 1/10 (one-tenth) of our standard
| of living, where's the extra energy going to come from? Anybody got any
| ideas? China's economy is growing at about 10% a year or so.
|
|

Thus the reason we, as a people, will always repeat history. We simply refuse
to learn from it...then cry the blues when it does happen (why didn't the
President do something?) when it's all our own fault. Oh well...hang on. Glad
my commute is only 4-miles and I have a telecommute option. I can go over a
month on a tank of gas if I absolutely must. Now the fuel oil to heat my house
is a bigger problem!! :-(

 

And the worst part is, it doesn't have to be this way. We could
simultaneously reduce greenhouse gas emissions, preserve and multiply
American jobs and greatly retard the increase of oil prices.

All we'd have to do is quit buying from China.

 

And have to give up $39 DVD players, $99 DVD/VCRs, and $230 27" TV/DVD/VCR
units?
Not to mention all those fine tools and car parts we would miss out on.
Never happen.

 

Please define "peckerwood". Is it like "redneck"? Or is it like art,
i.e., hard to define, and you just know it when you see it.

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
adddress with the letter 'x')