Missing cars

The0retical wrote:

Chadeux wrote: My thought on the Neons is that the auto trans probably died on most of them. But somebody in this part of Kentucky has definitely made a cloning machine and only uses it for 90s FWD GM sedans.

It's probably like Rochester NY. I'm pretty sure there's at least one breeding pair of Pontiac Aztecs hidden away up there. They seemed like they were everywhere.

I still see them fairly frequently in northern Wisconsin/Upper Peninsula Michigan, and occasionally here in Chicago. Everyone I know who has had them has loved them to a fault; they were extremely well thought out and capable vehicles. Little things, like the stereo being fully operable while wearing winter gloves, or the fact that it could hold a full sheet of plywood (or so I've heard).

In reply to Advan046:

The Big "3" brings to mind the meme of chrome and Firefox fighting and I.E. on the side eating glue.

Poor Chrysler, they try.

It's been awhile since I've seen a 1st gen Murano. They used to be pretty thick on the ground around here

I call this "affordable fixability" Factory support (or lack of) kills a lot. Mercury Mystique (Contour, Cougar)had a poor design on an electrical part that burned out and was replaced, with the same bad part, under warranty the first time but usually needed it again once the warranty expires. It happens about the bottom of the depreciation curve. Sometimes it is a big repair like a transmission where it will cost $1400 to fix a $1200 car. Crusher time to the majority of cars. Even my little daily driver, 1991 Escort, may hit a stopper soon. Turn indicator/headlight multi-switch wore out and was replaced with a junkyard part. The plastic turns into hard cheese after a while. Soon car is sidelined due to a problem with no solution. Parts for my 69 Mustang are easier to find than parts for my 96 Mustang for some parts.

Bruce

A few I notice missing because I like them.
SN95 Mustangs, even new Edge has virtually vanished.
NB Miata's. You see more NA's than NB's probably because everyone took the better engine from the FUGLY NB's and retrofitted them to the pretty NA's
3rd gen (M180) Toyota 4Runners. Yes, stop the press, Adrian is saying nice things about a Toyota. I love those. My wife's cousin has one in Chicago that is starting to nickle and dime him on repairs. I half consider trying to pry it from him for cheap.
YJ Jeeps seem to have vanished. There used to be lots, but I think rot has killed them off here in the rust belt. My brain thinks TJ's are new Jeeps, but they've been out for over 20 years now so I guess not.

Edit. I originally stated a 'couple' but four is now a couple of couples so I amended it to 'a few'

I parked in between a Citation X-11 and a Paseo at the grocery store yesterday. I have a neighbor who is not a car enthusiast that daily drives a 78 Nova Liftback. Yesterday I saw 6 separate 80's toyota vans, you know the boxy ones.

Some extinct cars in my corner of Massachusetts:

-1983-88 and MN12 Chassis Thunderbirds and Cougars. I haven't seen a 1987 Cougar XR7 since I sold my last one 17 years ago! The streets used to be littered with carriage top Bostonian Edition Cougars, and I haven't even seen one of them in a good 10 years.

-2nd and 3rd generation Nissan Maximas. They are all gone. They used to be everywhere too.

-Mazdas prior to around 2002-03. Only time I see any of them is in the local junkyard, and they have all been there for 10+ years sitting there. For instance, last time I saw a 90's 626 was my cousin's old one and that was at least 10 years ago.

-2nd Gen Dodge/Plymouth Neons. I occasionally see a 1st gen roaching about, devoid of most of its paint, but the 2nd gens are gonzo. That leads me to my next one...

-Dodge Neon SRT-4 in running condition. While I see them pop up on Craigslist as non-running projects here and there, I haven't seen one in over a year on the road. Last one I saw was in really bad shape and the kid was beating it within an inch of its life. I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't survive the rest of that day, let alone until now.

-Mitsubishi Evo 8/9. All of them have disappeared. Haven't seen one in probably 3 years.

I think anything from the late eighties to early nineties is one problem from going to the junk yard. When I was younger you could fix engines and trannys yourself for not a lot of money. Cars have gotten a lot more complex and things like a tranny will cost you several thousand. Not worth it for a $1500 dollar car.

In reply to Adrian_Thompson:

The Mustangs have all come to Hartland/Highland area to be beaters.

I do still see the occasional 1st gen neon on the road. I bought a 96 two door in 2003 with just under a 100k. That car now has 170k, has gone through two teenage boys and has been one of the most trouble free used cars I've ever owned. My oldest (28) has now come full circle and we are getting it ready to be his autocross car this year.

D2W wrote: I think anything from the late eighties to early nineties is one problem from going to the junk yard. When I was younger you could fix engines and trannys yourself for not a lot of money. Cars have gotten a lot more complex and things like a tranny will cost you several thousand. Not worth it for a $1500 dollar car.

But the average age of vehicles on the road keeps going up and up and up. there are more older cars than even. in the late 70's the average age of cars was something like 7 or 8 years, now it's over 11 years and climbing year after year which debunks that a bit.

Adrian_Thompson wrote:

D2W wrote: I think anything from the late eighties to early nineties is one problem from going to the junk yard. When I was younger you could fix engines and trannys yourself for not a lot of money. Cars have gotten a lot more complex and things like a tranny will cost you several thousand. Not worth it for a $1500 dollar car.

But the average age of vehicles on the road keeps going up and up and up. there are more older cars than even. in the late 70's the average age of cars was something like 7 or 8 years, now it's over 11 years and climbing year after year which debunks that a bit.

I agree with you and that illustrates how much better cars have been getting over the years. However we are talking here about cars that are around 20 years old. In 1991 I bought a rebuilt TH350 to put in my 78 chev pickup (23 years old) for $350 dollars. I don't know if you can even buy a junkyard tranny for a first gen neon for that price. Was that an anomaly that it was still on the road, yes. But it was extremely cheap and easy to keep on the road.

Brian wrote: In reply to Advan046: The Big "3" brings to mind the meme of chrome and Firefox fighting and I.E. on the side eating glue. Poor Chrysler, they try.

Yes but I think it is cool that a company that small relative to its siblings can have some prestigious moments and put in a good fight:

Three year Champs

I actually saw a Del Sol today and did a double take. There was an Aerobird on my running route last week. First time I've seen one in a long time. I haven't seen a riviera in forever.

D2W wrote: I agree with you and that illustrates how much better cars have been getting over the years. However we are talking here about cars that are around 20 years old. In 1991 I bought a rebuilt TH350 to put in my 78 chev pickup (23 years old) for $350 dollars. I don't know if you can even buy a junkyard tranny for a first gen neon for that price. Was that an anomaly that it was still on the road, yes. But it was extremely cheap and easy to keep on the road.

Looking at car-part.com, for a 1996 Neon, almost everything is $call but the closest one is $150 and none over 300, for an automatic. Manual, everything that isn't $call is $150 with some $225ish. Distances are a lot longer for manual trans, though.

I never paid more than $200 for an RX-7 transmission. I've gone through... a few. (My car is kind of the Hannibal Lecter of transmissions)

Advan046 wrote: Yes but I think it is cool that a company that small relative to its siblings can have some prestigious moments and put in a good fight:

I like to say that Chrysler has some innovative engineers that are hamstrung by even more innovative management.

When's the last time you've seen a Dodge Intrepid?

I actually equate the 1st gen neon to the NA miata. Both have dominating racing presence, ruled their classes. Both had successful spec series. So both have a high attrition rate of bodies being lost to modification and racing.

The difference comes in at key places.

Most new Miata buyers had them as second cars and thus kept them well, at least early on. The other Miata buyers went straight to competition. Also Mazda has been big in supporting them. The dealers still have trim and other odd parts in stock now.

Neon buyers were looking for general basic transport and so the attrition was very high. Those that raced probably led better lives. Then the largest impact was probably the on and off support of Chrysler. Some parts became simply unavailable after 12 years.

Appleseed wrote: When's the last time you've seen a Dodge Intrepid?

Saturday.

Advan046 wrote:

Appleseed wrote: When's the last time you've seen a Dodge Intrepid?

Saturday.

I had an early Eagle Vision tailgate me last night.

Also the old Ford Taurus/mercury sable are dying out, I see one periodically but they are going away.

The chrysler sebring are disappearing.

Mercedes 116 gassers, see diesels but no gassers.

Resurrecting this thread, because earlier this week, I saw a Pontiac Grand Am and realized I didn’t remember the last time I’d seen one.  Even a year or two ago, they were extremely common around here.  Must have hit a tipping point for whether or not they’re worth maintaining.  I checked CL, and there are quite a few for sale, but I’m not seeing them on the road much anymore.

funny enough I see a lot of Neons around here.. and Saturns. The Plastic GMs are still thick on the roads around here, they have taken the niche the Cavaliers used to inhabit as the Roachs of the automotive world.

I actually know of 4 running Discos in the area besides my own.

Good discussion, glad it was revived.

Here in East Central Florida, I rarely see box Panthers or Caprices/full size Buicks, Oldsmobiles, etc.

I guess we don't have a lot of donks here. 

The cars don't really rust, unless they're on the beach side, but they age out and aren't worth fixing. Plus, the people that bought those cars new are no longer driving in many cases, or may not even be around anymore.

The other thing that's disappeared, and this is no surprise to anyone, is a domestic station wagon of any brand or age. Sales dropped off as they lost popularity so there were never that many old ones to begin with, and there's almost no new ones on the market. As for imported wagons, a pretty clean Volvo 240 comes through my neighborhood regularly, it's the only one I see frequently.

I almost never see another one on the road, although I still drive one.

D2W said:

Adrian_Thompson wrote:

D2W wrote: I think anything from the late eighties to early nineties is one problem from going to the junk yard. When I was younger you could fix engines and trannys yourself for not a lot of money. Cars have gotten a lot more complex and things like a tranny will cost you several thousand. Not worth it for a $1500 dollar car.

But the average age of vehicles on the road keeps going up and up and up. there are more older cars than even. in the late 70's the average age of cars was something like 7 or 8 years, now it's over 11 years and climbing year after year which debunks that a bit.

I agree with you and that illustrates how much better cars have been getting over the years. However we are talking here about cars that are around 20 years old. In 1991 I bought a rebuilt TH350 to put in my 78 chev pickup (23 years old) for $350 dollars. I don't know if you can even buy a junkyard tranny for a first gen neon for that price. Was that an anomaly that it was still on the road, yes. But it was extremely cheap and easy to keep on the road.

$350 in 1991 is approximately $650 today, and in 1991 a 1978 was only 13 years old. That would be a 2005 MY in todays world. 

Not to sidetrack the conversation, but does anybody else kind of loop the 2000's and 2010's together in their head? I still think of the 90's as only 10 years ago, but a kid born in 2000 is old enough to vote now. And if they were to start a "That 90's show" a la "That 70's show" they would have had to start it last year to get the same time delta.

EDIT: Didn't realize this was a revived thread.