MAR 2 STAR OF THE WEEK: THE “THINGS YOU DON’T SEE MUCH ANYMORE” FILE-M-BODY 5th AVENUE

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MARCH 2 STAR OF THE WEEK: FROM THE “THINGS YOU DON’T SEE MUCH ANYMORE” FILE-M-BODY FIFTH AVENUE

Picking a Star of the Week isn’t like picking the Prom Queen because the best-looking and most popular candidates don’t always win.

Case in point…this Chrysler Fifth Avenue.

These M-body Chryslers were the last conventional rear wheel drive cars that Mopar ever built. They had the bulletproof 318 backed up by the indestructible Torqueflite automatic packaged around a pretty basic platform.

Fifth Avenues were the only answer for Mopar guys who wanted to stay comfortably Mopar yet didn’t want a K-car so they sold a fair number of these luxury barges to older buyers.

Older drivers meant better maintenance and soft miles so many of these Fifth Avenues were alive and well into the late 1990s.

Eventually Father Time caught up with these cars when the original owners (or their estates) sold them to less caring drivers who pummeled them into oblivion.

That’s why this Fifth Ave was unique enough to be the MSCC Star of the Week. The owner was a young guy but the car was still in pretty good shape and this Fifth Ave was still on the road yesterday.

MARCH 1 STAR OF THE DAY: DUSTER POLICE CAR-A BIG, BAD MOPAR TO CLOSE OUT THE WEEK

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March 1st is the end of a week and the start of a month so the time was right for a big, bad Mopar Star of the Day. This Duster was lighting up the tires at the track in June 2011  in pursuit of a win…not a bad guy.

The Duster was the perfect base for building a thumping fast ride because it was so light. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on these A-body Plymouths so the small block 340 ambushed many a non-believer on the street.

This Star of the Day was ambushing them on the track.

FEBRUARY 28 STAR OF THE DAY: 1964 FORD THUNDERBOLT IN MID PROJECT PHASE

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There’s an old axiom with every car project that every car guy knows…it’s never really done.

Case in point-this ’64 Ford Fairlane.

This is a typical project because it’s clearly a Thunderbolt tribute that’s been taken to the point where it’s a driver but it isn’t going to win a show.

This guy is doing what car guys do best…driving a classic. The fenders are mismatched and it’s dented so it needs new paint but last June he was out driving his dream instead of working on it.

That’s a Star of the Day “they’re never really done” moment.

FEBRUARY 27 STAR OF THE DAY: ’54 CHEVY-GREETINGS FROM THE STREETS OF HAVANA 2013

The streets of Havana Cuba are filled 1940s and 50s daily driver cars thanks to the twists and turns of their political biography.

These are the same cars that Ernest Hemingway saw when he lived just outside Havana for a few decades so that makes this place one of the most unique automotive time capsules in the world.

Hemingway may have seen this ’54 Chevy on the streets of Havana when it was showroom new but there’s little doubt that he would have expected to see it in late January 2013 when this picture was taken.

Star of the Day-any car that’s still a daily driver 59 years later.

FEBRUARY 26 STAR OF THE DAY: WILLYS GASSER IN PARADISE-ALOHA FROM HAWAII

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Here’s a car show that would look really good for anyone who’s suffered through a long and very real winter.

It’s down to the back nine of the non-car show season but there are places where the calendar doesn’t matter.

This Willys was at a car show in Hawaii a few weeks ago and this just proves that some car guys are just bit smarter than others because they live where you can drive old iron like this 365 days of the year.

Many thanks to the Paradise Cruisers for showing us winter guys that there are places in the world that really are paradise with sun, fun and this classic MSCC Star of the Day Willys Gasser.

FEBRUARY 25 STAR OF THE DAY: A COUPLE OF CLASSICS AT A SMALL TOWN SHOW

feb13-25imgp6906-001Small town car shows have a built-in appeal simply because they are set in small towns.

There is nothing like a village for a warm and friendly welcome.

The other half of the equation are the cars that make up the show.

These two classic rides were at a show last August in a place with a population of a few hundred people and they underscored the mix of entries at the event.

This car show had something for every automotive taste ranging from ’55 Chevy gassers to a Pebble Beach caliber 40s Packard.

This Ford and Chevy lead sled/rat rod combo made for an easy MSCC Star of the Day pick for two reasons…they were cool and they were part of a great little show.

FEBRUARY 24 STAR OF THE DAY-A 70S DODGE CLUB CAB POINTS TO THE INFANCY OF COMFORTABLE TRUCKS

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The pickup truck hasn’t always been Cadillac comfortable like today’s air conditioned, heated leather seat/offices on 4 wheels.

They were built for working stiffs, blue collar guys, so there was little regard for comfort .

The old trucks were tools of the trade so there no more thought about comfort because they were wheel barrels on 4 wheels.

That started to change in early 70s when Dodge decided that a little extra cab space would be good for the driver because you could cram stuff behind the seat.Te extra cab room was a welcome bonus.

Maybe that’s why this vintage 70s Dodge Club Cab Star of the Day was still on the road and on the job a few days ago…it was all the comfort the driver needed in a truck.

FEBRUARY 23 STAR OF THE DAY: 1955 METEOR NIAGARA-CANUCK TOUGH FOR A CANUCK WINTER

There are more cliches than people in Canada but one of the biggest is that we’re hardy survivors.

You have to be hardy.

Despite the warnings from the global warming guys about impending pineapple crops in Saskatchewan, winters on the Canadian prairies are still cold, long and snowy.

This 1955 Meteor Niagara is so Canadian that it only picks up hockey games on its AM radio but it was still a shock to see this classic out on the road yesterday on a typical Alberta day.

This is the kind of picture that you live for when you love old iron because this is Canada, not Cuba, so ’55 Meteors aren’t all season daily drivers.

Star of the Day honors seem like faint praise when you see something so cool it warmed up a winter day on the prairies.

FEBRUARY 22 STAR OF THE DAY: A VINTAGE FORD BRONCO RIDES THE WINTER RANGE

This Bronco was an unexpected sight on a winter road yesterday but in reality it made sense. Nobody with a sliver of sanity would run a Boss 302 when the streets are anything less than summer ready.

A Bronco is different…

These early Sport Utes were made for the challenge of a sub-arctic climate because they rode high, had a narrow track and short wheelbase. That made the Broncos a little dicey for high speed cornering but perfect for negotiating 3 feet of snow.

This one came out of nowhere yesterday and it was cool enough to make MSCC Star of the Day for best winter classic ride.

FEBRUARY 22 STAR OF THE DAY: 1955 METEOR NIAGARA-CANUCK TOUGH FOR A CANUCK WINTER

There are more cliches than people in Canada but one of the biggest is that we’re hardy survivors.

You have to be hardy.

Despite the warnings from the global warming guys about impending pineapple crops in Saskatchewan, winters on the Canadian prairies are still cold, long and snowy.

This 1955 Meteor Niagara is so Canadian that it only picks up hockey games on its AM radio but it was still a shock to see this classic out on the road yesterday on a typical Alberta day.

This is the kind of picture that you live for when you love old iron because this is Canada, not Cuba, so ’55 Meteors aren’t all season daily drivers.

Star of the Day honors seem like faint praise when you see something so cool it warmed up a winter day on the prairies.

FEBRUARY 21 STAR OF THE DAY: A VW VAN GENERATES HIPPIE NOSTALGIA

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These is nothing bland about a VW Microbus because these vans stand out like a neon sign on the dark side of the moon.

Most of the nostalgia stems from the idyllic version of the Summer of Love in ’67 when people piled in twenty of their closest friends into a VW bus and drove to San Franscisco with flowers in their hair.

The Hippie Express didn’t get to Haight-Ashbury in a hurry but that probably didn’t matter because the amount of smoke pouring out of the windows clearly meant that time was a vague concept.

This Star of the Day VW bus wasn’t in San Francisco circa Summer 1967…it was on the street in Wetaskiwin Alberta circa June 2012.

No smoke, no hippies.

Here’s an MSCC piece from 2009 about a ’65 VW Microbus.

FEBRUARY 20 STAR OF THE DAY: 1971 FORD PINTO-A LOOK AT A FLORIDA CAR SHOW

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There are more than a few guys who would question the nomination of a 1971 Ford Pinto for MSCC Star of the Day.

That’s a little narrow-minded because these cars are 42 years old and nearly extinct so any ’71 Pinto survivor makes a big statement about facing major adversity and pulling off a win.

This little Ford is part of a bigger picture because it’s far from stock plus this Pinto was at a recent Florida car show that had several very cool and diverse cars.

So follow this MSCC link and take a little car guy break from winter in the sunshine state.

FEBRUARY 19 STAR OF THE DAY: THREE MOPARS BRING A LITTLE SUNSHINE TO A SHOW

Despite the heat and lack of rain in some areas last summer, there were other places that dodged raindrops all season.

This was one of them.

The car show season was a weather affected crap shoot in 2012 and this one was no exception so one of the last car guy gatherings played out under threatening skies.

These three Mopars made the difference that night because they added a ray of sunshine to a fall night that would have been a great setting for a Munsters reunion.

That’s all it took to make it as an MSCC Star of the Day.

FEBRUARY 18 STAR OF THE DAY: 1969 CHEVELLE YENKO/SC-CLASSIC 60S CHEVY MUSCLE

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There’s an aura of mystique that surrounds the ’69 Yenko/SC Chevelles. These cars were beasts that were thinly disguised as street machines.

The Yenkos started life as monsters in the form of 427 COPO Chevelles but Yenko tweaked them to get the most out of the big, bad Chevy so these cars were fierce competitors that became awesome competitors.

This one was at a show last year and the best guess is that it was a Yenko tribute car because they are too rare (re:insanely valuable) to tub and modify.

Nevertheless, this MSCC Star of the Day Chevelle is a great example of just how cool these cars were back in ’69.

For a look back at past Stars of the Day, please follow this link.

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