1981 Triumph TR8

In 1975 the TR6, a classically styled British roadster, was joined by (and eventually replaced with) the TR7, featuring wedge-shaped styling that was very modern and up-to-date for the Seventies. What was also up-to-date for the Seventies was the lump under the hood: a 2.0L SOHC inline four with a pair of SU carbs that wheezed out 92 horsepower in EPA-compliant trim. It was very Malaise Era.

For the 1980 model year, though, it received that classic automotive heart transplant: a V-8 swap.

Buick's 215 cubic inch all-aluminum V-8 had been designed to power their first compacts in the early Sixties (and was also used in the original Olds and Pontiac compacts) but it had been expensive to produce and was dropped after 1963. The design was purchased by Rover in 1965 and had shown up in MGs and Rovers since and eventually it found its way into Triumph's wedge.

While a few hundred hardtops (or "fixed-head coupes" in Brit-speak) were produced, nearly all TR8s were convertibles like the tatty Pendelican White one in the photos. While 1980 imports in the US mostly were carbureted cars making 133 SAE net horsepower, California cars... and all 1981 models ...got Bosch-Lucas L-Jetronic fuel injection and made 148 ponies, a respectable total at the time for a 2,620-pound roadster.

Other than decals, the only real giveaway that it wasn't a TR7 were the dual exhaust outlets out back. This was a view a lot of cars would see, though. Car and Driver's '81 test car managed an 8.1 zero-to-sixty time and a 16.2 quarter at 87mph, which would handily show its taillights to a 280ZX or 924 or any other car in its price class that wasn't a Corvette. Top speed was 117 miles per hour and the only really disappointing part of the performance envelope was the braking, because the tiny un-vented front discs and rear drums took 228 feet to haul the car down from seventy.

Price as tested was $12,325 in 1981 disco-bucks, which is $43,600 in 2025 dollars.

This one was photographed with a Canon EOS R and an RF 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS zoom lens in July of 2025.

1993 Lincoln Mark VIII

The 1993 model year was the debut of the all-new Lincoln Mark VIII personal luxury coupe. The previous Mark VII, which had been around since 1983, rode on the Fox Platform, originally developed for the midsize Ford Fairmont sedan.

With its live rear axle and pushrod motors, the Fox Platform was getting increasingly hard to pass off as a premium ride in the last decade of the previous century and Ford spent a wad engineering the new MN12 platform for the replacement. The MN12 had a proper independent rear suspension with upper and lower control arms and debuted with the 1988 Ford Thunderbird and Mercury Cougar.

Lincoln's version of the platform, the FN10, appeared with the Mark VIII for 1993 and paired the independent rear suspension with the Intech 4.6L DOHC 32V V-8, part of Ford's new Modular engine family.

The car had 16" wheels, anti-lock brakes, self-leveling air suspension that automatically lowered ride height by nearly an inch at speed, and speed-sensitive power steering that dialed back the assistance at higher speeds for better feel.

The Intech V-8 was rated at 280 SAE net horsepower, enough to launch Car and Driver's 3,811-pound test ride to sixty in only 6.8 seconds, which was pretty brawny for the era. The quarter was dispatched in 15.3 seconds at 94 miles per hour, and the governor didn't shut off the fun until the speedo read a buck thirty. It even circled the skidpad at an un-Lincoln-like 0.79g.

All this fun went for a base price of $38,850, which is about $86,500 in current dollars.

Incidentally, the MN12 platform was considered for the Mustang, but it would have resulted in a car that would have been too heavy and expensive, so the Mustang would gallop into the next millennium with a live rear axle.

The Light Mocha Pearlescent paint marks the one in the photo as a 1993 model, and it was photographed in July of 2025 using an Olympus PEN E-P5 and an M. Zuiko Digital 12-45mm f/4 PRO zoom lens.

1976 Ford Courier

For the 1972 model year, Ford revived the Courier nameplate, last used on late 1950s sedan delivery vehicles, and slapped it on a rebadged Mazda B1600 pickup truck.

Since the Ranchero had moved from the compact Falcon platform to the midsize Torino, Ford had been without a small and economical open bed cargo vehicle. Since light truck imports were subjected to the 25% "Chicken Tax" tariff, the Courier was imported without a bed in the chassis cab configuration and final assembly was performed domestically.

Under the hood was Mazda's 1800cc SOHC four-cylinder, making 75 horsepower, backed with either a four-speed manual or a three-speed automatic. With the increasing emphasis on fuel economy, they proved popular in the Seventies.

1976 model year Couriers, like this Clair Orange example, were the last year of the first generation trucks and can be distinguished at a glance by the cab aft of the windows, which had received a three inch stretch over the original vehicles.

This one was photographed with a Canon EOS 5DS and an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens in Martinsville, Indiana back in September of 2020.

1991 Honda Prelude Si

The third generation of Honda's sporty Prelude coupe debuted for '88 and received a light styling refresh for the 1990 model year.

With Acura split off into its own division, the Prelude was the performance and technology flagship at Honda dealerships and the third gen cars did not disappoint. The cars could be optioned with antilock brakes and active four-wheel steering, which were both still very novel in 1990.

For 1990, you could still get a carbureted 2.0S, but that was dropped for the 1991 model year. The Phoenix Red '91 Prelude Si in the photo would have been powered by Honda's B21A1 inline four, a 2.1L DOHC unit with Honda's PGM-Fi programmed fuel injection.

Making 140 horsepower, it didn't exactly make the 2,689 pound Prelude a bolt of lighting, with zero-to-sixty times in the mid eight second range, but it was widely praised for its polished manners and handling.

This one was photographed with a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV and EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens in June of 2023.

1949 Cadillac Series Sixty-One Coupe

Cadillac styling for the 1948 model year had been all-new and strikingly modern, introducing tail fins allegedly inspired by the Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter of World War Two fame. Under the hood, however, had been the same old 346 cubic inch "Monobloc" flathead V-8 that had been powering Caddies since the late Thirties.

For 1949, however, the all-new postwar styling was joined by an all-new postwar motor. This new overhead valve V-8, dubbed the 331 Series after its displacement in cubic inches, was billed as "America's Newest, Finest Motor Car Engine". It was an oversquare design with a 3.81" bore and a 3.625" stroke and sported hydraulic lifters, a two-barrel Carter carburetor, aluminum pistons, a 7.5:1 compression ratio, and made a claimed 160 SAE gross horsepower at 3,800 RPM.

The Series Sixty-One was the entry-level Cadillac and had previously ridden on a shorter chassis, but for the '48 model year it had been moved to share the same full size C-body chassis as the Series Sixty-Two, so the big differences were in trim and appointments.

The slick lines of the '48-'49 Caddies make them popular starting points for classic hot rod builds, like this striking purple example photographed with a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV and an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens in September of 2022.

1971 Chevrolet Chevelle SS Convertible

Originally only available as the SS396 and then the SS454, for the 1971 model year Chevrolet made the SS package available with any V-8 in the Chevelle lineup except the lowly 307.

That meant you could get the snarly looks and sporty suspension of a Super Sport Chevelle with a Turbo-Fire small block 350 V-8 in L65 245 or L48 270 horsepower form, the Turbo-Jet LS3 400 cube big block rated at 300 ponies, or the snarling LS5 454 cubic inch big block, making 365 cowl-inducted dual exhaust horses.

The lack of "454" designators on the fender badges would indicate this '71 regtop is one of the lesser SS models. Well, maybe it's an SS. A lot of generic midsize GM A-body coupes got "upgraded" to SS, GS, or 442 status during the first muscle car boom in the late '80s via the Year One catalog and some judicious badge engineering.

I seen't it! (A faux GTO was a lot more expensive to gin up from a garden-variety Tempest, since you needed a hood and an Endura nose.)

When Motor Trend tested a 1971 Chevelle SS coupe with the L65 2-barrel 350, they clocked a 9.7 second zero-to-sixty time and a 17.1 second quarter mile at 80mph through the traps. Price as tested was  $4,160, or about $33,000 in 2025 dollars.

This one was photographed in April of 2022 using a Nikon D200 and 17-55mm f/2.8 zoom lens.

1952 Chevrolet 3100 1/2-Ton Truck

The 1952 model year was the sixth of Chevrolet's all-new postwar "Advance Design" trucks. The 3100-series, on a 116" wheelbase, was the light-duty variant, rated for a half-ton payload. It could be had as a pickup truck, a sedan delivery, a bare chassis cab, or as the now-famous Carryall Suburban proto-SUV.

The interior was spartan and the floor of the load bed still consisted of wooden boards. The standard transmission was a column-shifted "three-on-the-tree" Synchro-Mesh gearbox, with an optional four-on-the-floor.

Under the hood could be found a Thriftmaster OHV inline six, the latest version of Chevy's prewar "Stovebolt" motor. Displacing 216 cubic inches, it had a single-barrel carburetor, a 6.6:1 compression ratio, and was rated at 92 SAE gross horsepower.

Although crude, if not downright agricultural, by modern standards, these were considered pretty plush and advanced for a truck in their time. This Forester Green example could have been ordered with luxuries like a radio, forced air ventilation, a cigarette lighter, and even a windshield washer operated by a foot pump.

This one was photographed in March of 2024 using a Canon EOS-1D Mark III and an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens.

2002 Saturn SC2

After the awful quality control and lackluster performance of the Malaise Era and the shellacking they'd taken in the marketplace at the hands of Japanese imports, General Motors stood up a whole new division in the latter half of the Eighties to serve as a sort of testbed for reviving the American auto industry.

Starting from a clean sheet of paper in a brand new factory in Spring Hill, Tennessee, the Saturn division of GM started fresh with everything: new platform, new motors, new sales model, the works.

Initially Saturn offered two basic cars on the proprietary Z-platform: The SL sedan and SC coupe.

One lesson Detroit had learned from Japan was that a proliferation of of submodels and an endless smorgasbord of a la carte options increased manufacturing costs. Thus the sedan and coupe each came in two basic trim levels. Most options only came in packages, limiting the number of configurations that needed to be produced.

For the coupe, these were designated the SC1 and SC2. Cosmetically almost identical, the latter came with more included equipment and a twin-cam version of Saturn's new 1.9L inline four.

The SC went through three generations after its launch as a 1991 model. The first generation was only available as the "SC" to start, with no upscale model. It bifurcated into the SC1 and SC2 starting in '93. 1997 brought the second generation of SC1 and SC2 coupes, which started using the same, longer, wheelbase as the sedan. For 1999, a rearward-opening clamshell half-door was added to the driver's side. Similar to some doors on extended cab pickups, it could only be operated when the driver's door was open, and it gave greater access the rear seat.

The third and final generation, like this Bright Blue Metallic 2002 SC2, remained mechanically the same but featured a complete cosmetic makeover. Under the hood of the SC2 was the Saturn-specific LLO inline-four, a 1.9L DOHC 16V motor making 124 SAE net horsepower. The 15" alloy wheels were standard on the SC2.

Motor Trend's test SC2, a 2000 model with the 5-speed manual ran zero-to-sixty in 8.5 seconds and managed a 16.5 quarter at 84 mph and circled the skidpad at 0.81g. As-tested price was $18,855, or about thirty-five grand in current dollars.

This one was photographed with a Canon EOS R and RF 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS zoom lens in July of 2025.

2004 Mercedes-Benz CLK500 Cabriolet

Over the course of the Nineties and Aughties, it felt like the number of Mercedes-Benz models of which a car nerd needed to keep track completely ballooned off the charts. Where once there had simply been the C-, E-, S-, and SL-classes and the occasional gray market Geländewagen, now there were SLKs, MLs, Rs, an AMG version of everything, and the CLK coupes and convertibles.

Introduced in the late Nineties, the C208 coupe and A208 cabrio CLK replaced the E-series coupe in the Benz catalog. Although it replaced an E-coupe, it was based on the C-class chassis and the C208 rode on a 105.9" wheelbase.

It was replaced with the C209 for 2002 with the A209 ragtop following in 2003. With an inch more wheelbase, they had actual accommodations for four adults in a relatively compact little hardtop coupe or convertible.

It came in two basic flavors. The more mild-mannered version was the CLK320, with the M112 SOHC 18V 3.2L V-6 that made 215 SAE net horsepower. The racier option was the CLK500, like this Pewter Silver Cabriolet. It had the M113 5.0L V-8, which was also a SOHC motor with three valves per cylinder and a 10.0:1 compression ratio, but which belted out 302 horsepower at 5,600rpm. In the heavier Cabriolet, Mercedes claimed a zero-to-sixty time of six seconds flat.

This one was photographed using a Canon EOS R and a 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS zoom lens in July of 2025.

1997 Lexus ES 300

Like Honda and Nissan, when Toyota launched a new luxury marque for the US market, they knew that dealers would need something to sell besides just the flagship luxobarge, so at Lexus stores the all-new 1990 LS 400 rear-wheel-drive V-8 sedan was backstopped by the ES 250, essentially a gussied-up Toyota Camry.

After two model years, the ES 250 was replaced with the ES 300, iterated from the latest version of the Camry. The second generation of the ES 300 launched for the '97 model year and can be told apart from the '92-'96 models externally only by minor details.

The new 1997 XV20 models, like the Diamond White one in the photos, were powered by a transverse 3.0L DOHC 24V 1MZ-FE all-aluminum V-6 that sent its 200 SAE net horsepower to the front wheels through a four-speed automatic transmission.

Motor Trend's test car managed a 7.9 second zero-to-sixty time and ran the quarter in sixteen seconds flat at 87 mph. Base price was $29,900, which is about sixty long in 2025 dollars, although the as-tested price for MT's test ride was $35,592.

This one was photographed with a Pentax K20D and a 16-45mm f/4 zoom lens in July of 2025.

1939 Ford Tudor Sedan

Ford's lineup was revised for 1937 with new, more rounded lines, and the addition of a smaller 136 cubic inch flathead V-8 as a cheaper alternative to the 221 cubic inch original.

Over the next couple years the external changes were mostly cosmetic. The 1939 Fords continued with both standard and Deluxe trims. The Deluxe had lower, chevron-shaped grilles which were different to the taller grilles on the regular cars like the one in the photo.

Behind that grille, the base motor was the 136 cid Flathead Ford V-8. Undersquare, and with a 6.6:1 compression ratio, it was rated at 60 SAE gross horsepower. If you were willing to add a few bucks to the $700ish base price of your 1939 Tudor Sedan, you could spring for the optional 85-horsepower 221 cubic inch motor.

Ford marketing materials of the day heavily touted the compactness of the V-8 relative to the competition's inline six- and eight-cylinder powerplants. They also boasted about the car's big, powerful new hydraulic brakes (the previous year they had touted the cable-operated brakes as having "the safety of steel from pedal to wheel".) The ride was "triple spring" for smoothness and comfort: There were springs in the suspension, shock absorbers, and the seats.

This example was photographed in July of 2022 using a Canon EOS 5D Mark II and an EF 24-105mm f/4L IS zoom lens.

1962 Buick Invicta

Buick used the Invicta nameplate on its middle tier of full-size cars from '59 through '63. Less expensive and slightly sportier than the full-luxe Electra 225, and better appointed than the LeSabre, the Invicta was distinguishable at a glance from the Electra by having only three Ventiports on each front fender rather than the more expensive car's four.

Under the hood, the Invicta had the same Wildcat 445 Nailhead OHV V-8. The engine displaced 401 cubic inches, actually; the "445" in the designation referred to the torque output in pound-feet. With a four-barrel  carburetor and a 10.25:1 compression ratio, the 401 was rated at 325 SAE gross horsepower.

Standard transmission was Buick's Turbine Drive, a dual-stator automatic that delivered a driving experience very similar in feel and soundtrack to a modern CVT. It could even be push-started, which was seen as a plus in those days. The whole engine and transmission sat relatively car forward and, combined with the positioning of the driveshaft, resulted in a negligible transmission and driveline "hump" in the floor, which Buick hyped in its ad materials.

Buick referred to this forward engine placement as "Advance Thrust" design and explained it thusly in brochures:

Where and how a car's engine is mounted has a great deal to do with how that car handles, so the engineers tell us. Buick engineers thought that Buick's already superb handling could be improved upon by a change in engine location. And they were right! (They usually are.) It had been the custom to mount the engine aft of the front-wheel suspension. This year, Buick's engine is mounted slightly over the front-wheel suspension. We've called it "Advanced Thrust." The way the Buick engineers explain it, this movement of the engine toward the front is like putting more weight in the head of an arrow. It makes the arrow (and the Buick) travel truer and straighter with far less susceptibility to veer, drift or sway in strong crosswinds-the kind you encounter in most all high- way driving. Other important benefits of "Advanced Thrust" design include a dramatic reduction in road shock a n d vibration transmitted t o t h e steering wheel as well as a snappier come-back of the wheel after turns. Front-end traction is better, too. It stands t o reason, the more weight on the front wheels, the better they grip. "Advanced Thrust"-only Buick has it!

Sounds kinda understeer-y to me, but I'm not writing the ad copy.

Car Life tested a 1962 Invicta convertible, with the same drivetrain as the Cadet Blue hardtop sedan in these photos, but weighing fifty pounds more (4,390 vs. 4,340) due to the top mechanism and structural stiffening. It managed an 8.5 second run to sixty and put away the quarter mile in 16.7 seconds, hitting the traps at 82.5 mph. Over the course of the test the car returned fuel milage in the 12-15mpg rang, as the Twin Turbine gearbox was not known for its parsimony with the petrol.

This one was photographed with a Pentax K20D and an 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens in June of 2025.

1992 Acura Vigor

All through the Malaise Era, while the US domestic automakers floundered through quality control problems and a crisis of relevancy as the market sought smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, the Japanese automakers gained ground in the American market. By the mid-Eighties, they'd surpassed the domestics in consumer perception of quality and were starting to challenge some of the revered Euro marques.

A Road & Track comparison test of a Benz 190E and a Honda Accord SE-i from 1985

Honda was ready to move upmarket, but knew that the badge-conscious US market wouldn't know how to deal with "luxury Hondas", so they created a new division of the company, Acura. It sold the new Legend, an upscale V6 midsize sedan, and the Integra, a sporty hot hatch derived from Civic genes.

For 1991, Acura dealerships also got the new NSX mid-engine sports car, and then for '92 came the Vigor. Honda had been selling the Vigor, a sportier and more luxurious Accord derivative, at home since the early Eighties, but this new third generation (CC2) version was its first appearance on US shores.

Slightly wider than an Accord, the CC2 Vigor was also stretched forward of the firewall and, unusually for a Honda, featured a longitudinally-mounted engine driving the front wheels. Even more unusually for a Honda, this engine was an inline-five cylinder, the company's G25A1. A SOHC 20V motor with Honda's PGM-FI and a dual-stage induction system, the 2.5L I-5 was rated at 176 SAE net horsepower at 6300 rpm. The Vigor could be had with a standard five-speed manual or an optional four-speed auto with a lockup torque converter.

Car and Driver tested the Vigor in a six-way shootout of sub-$25k sports sedans against the Audi 80, the Mitsubishi Galant VR4, the Nissan Maxima SE, the Subaru Legacy Sport Sedan, and the Infiniti G20.

The Vigor's performance was only moderately...er, vigorous, laying down a 7.7 second zero-to-sixty and a 16.1 quarter mile at 88 mph through the traps (although it did not, notably, proceed to go back in time.) It got dinged on its handling, posting subpar slalom numbers and a second-worst 0.76g skidpad performance, but mostly on its price which, at $23,575, was the highest base sticker in the batch. That's $54k in 2025 bucks, by the way.

In the end, the Vigor finished third in the test, behind the Mitsu VR4 and Nissan's "Four Door Sports Car", and it also finished third in Acura showrooms, behind the plusher Legend and sportier Integra. The Vigor didn't set the world on fire sales-wise, and its tenure on our shores was brief, being discontinued after the '94 model year, making this Cassis Red example a rare sight.

It was photographed in July of 2025 using a Canon EOS R and an RF 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS zoom lens.

1978 Chrysler Cordoba

The Chrysler marque only sold full-size Mopars in the U.S. during the postwar years. While Dodge and Plymouth offered a full range of compact, mid-, and full-size autos, the flagship label only peddled 300s, Newports, New Yorkers and other big C-body cars.

After the first fuel crisis of the Seventies, and with the burgeoning popularity of the personal luxury coupe, however, it was decided to bolster the lineup at Chrysler dealerships with something smaller and more modern. For the 1975 model year the full-size behemoths on the lot were joined by a B-body coupe, kin to the Dodge Charger.

The new luxury two-door was marketed a compact Chrysler, and by the marque's standards it was, riding on its 115" wheelbase and with an overall length about a foot shorter than a Newport coupe. It debuted with a standard 400 cubic inch big block V-8 with a two-barrel carb and single exhaust, rated at 165 SAE net horsepower. There were a variety of optional 2- and 4-barrel small block 318 and 360 V-8s on offer, and a top option of a four-barrel 400 with a dual exhaust making 185 ponies.

The interior could be had with either a 60/40 split bench seat or buckets and a console up front and the dash came with a full set of gauges, with only the tach being optional. The dash trim was baroque, with lots of faux Brazilian rosewood burl plastic wood and weird faux-Aztec motif edging, and of course the ad campaign is famous to this day for Cordoba pitchman Ricardo Montalbán extolling its optional "rich Corinthian leather", a term made up by an ad copywriter out of whole... er, cloth.

The 1978 models, like the Caramel Tan Metallic one in the photo, had a heavily-restyled front end, with stacked quad rectangular headlamps that did nothing for the car's looks. By this time, the 2-barrel 400 had left the lineup and the base motor everywhere but California was a single-exhaust 400 4-bbl making 190 horsepower with an optional 200hp Heavy Duty version at the top of the range.

Sales had been strong, but the homelier snout and the availability of a new, svelter LeBaron coupe on Chrysler lots caused the big B-body Cordoba to get a downsizing after the '79 model year.

This one was snapped in November of 2016 using a Sony NEX-5T and a 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens.