QOTD: Guilty Pleasures?
Guilty pleasures. Look, we’ve all got ’em. No, not those. I’m talking about cars and trucks we like … that we’re not supposed to like.
Oddballs? Weirdos? Flat-out strange? Let me give you an example.
As a youth of the ’80s and ’90s, there were no shortage of GM products in our rural town. In fact, one could probably count the number of import nameplates on both hands until the super-affordable but fast-rusting Hyundai Pony appeared at the Hyundai store in Gander.
So it’s natural that my mind is (and remains) filled with American-branded machinery from that era. Great ones did exist. Not-so-great ones abounded. The guiltiest pleasure of them all, though? All those overwrought GM sedans.
That Bonneville SSEi up top is a perfect example. Plenty of plastic, body cladding galore, and some pretty impractical styling decisions. I recall the natty deep-in-a-bucket fog lamps quickly becoming useless once their wells filled with slush in winter months. Those side windows could not be opened just a crack for fresh air since their leading edge would also immediately open an equal amount thanks to that fixed quarter window. This resulted in rain (it perpetually precipitated on our island) flicking in on the driver at highway speed. And let’s not even mention the nine-button power seats that had no memory function. Oy.
Didn’t matter. Still doesn’t. Cars like that Bonneville are my guiltiest of pleasures. I’ll toss in the Grand Prix of that era for good measure. How about you?
[Image: General Motors]
Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.
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Opel GT, Pontiac Fiero and Lotus Europa.
I just spent a week in Northern New England (mostly Vermont) and forgot what a guilty pleasure a Saab was/is. After I spotted about 4 of the last gen 9-5s, I almost thought that they were still being made. In addition, I also spotted at least 1 9-4x amongst all the 9-3 sedans, convertibles, hatches and wagons. It truly is the land of guilty pleasures from Subarus of every generation to all the Saabs with a fair amount of mid 80s to mid 90s GM cars with a nice sprinkling of Volvos and Audis of all generations including a first generation A8.
Well equipped Ford Scorpio (DE-1) with 2.9L engine. It was like a dream car for me.
AMC Gremlin.