#Convertibles
Junkyard Find: 1978 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible
Volkswagen sold the air-cooled Beetle in the United States all the way through 1979, amazingly, overlapping Dasher and Rabbit sales by more than you’d have expected. By that time, the only air-cooled VW left standing here was the Beetle convertible (if you want to get nit-picky, that car was really a Super Beetle, since the last year for the original not-so-super Beetle was 1977 here and all the Beetle convertibles were Supers after 1971). I’ve never found a ’79 Beetle in the junkyard, though I’ve tried my best, but here’s the next-best thing: a ’78 in a Denver self-serve yard last year.
Rare Rides: The 1983 Toyota Celica, a Sporting Cabriolet
Today we feature the first Toyota Celica presented in the Rare Rides series. It’s beige, very Eighties, and was converted to a convertible after it arrived in the United States. And the lights flip up!
Rare Rides: The 1927 Locomobile Model 90 Sportif, American East Coast Luxury
Today’s Rare Ride hails from a brand your author hadn’t heard of before this writing. A preeminent luxury car firm in its day, Locomobiles were built for power, longevity, and reliability.
Let’s check out a very rare 90 Sportif.
Rare Rides: The 2008 Rolls-Royce Phantom Hyperion by Pininfarina, Only One Made
We’ve featured exactly two Rolls-Royce creations previously at Rare Rides. The first was the completely bespoke mega-buck Sweptail in 2017, and more recently the Silver Spectre, a shooting brake based upon the Wraith coupe.
Today’s Rare Ride falls somewhere between those two on the cost spectrum. It’s a one-off creation from famed design house Pininfarina.
Buy/Drive/Burn: Three Decades of Halo Convertibles
Today’s B/D/B was suggested by commenter namesakeone, who posited that a couple of the cars featured in the worst halo cars article last week might make an interesting trio for this segment.
I needed to cover one more as a Rare Ride first, which is why we saw that Thunderbird yesterday. Requirement out of the way, it’s time to have our first multi-decade, Rare Rides-sourced Buy/Drive/Burn.
Rare Rides: The 2003 Ford Thunderbird That's Pink and 007 Approved
Today’s Rare Ride was a part of a very limited run of Thunderbirds that coincided with the release of the last Pierce Brosnan era Bond film, Die Another Day.
It’s a car so special it’s probably almost priceless, and should be stored in a heated garage next to a Plymouth Prowler and/or Chevy SSR.
Rare Rides: The 1975 Moretti 126 Minimaxi, More Than a Fiat
Today’s Rare Ride marks the second entry from small Italian car manufacturer Moretti. The first Moretti featured here was a 750 two-door sedan from the early Fifties, which was an original design to the brand.
In contrast, today’s 126 Minimaxi was made long after Moretti stopped creating its own cars.
Rare Rides: The 2008 Spyker C8 Spyder, Dramatically Dutch
Today’s Rare Ride is the premier offering from Spyker Cars, a deceased Dutch firm that was reborn at the turn of the century. Spyker made sure not to cut any corners with their all-new car.
Rare Rides: The Beautiful 1969 AC Frua Cabriolet
Today’s Rare Ride was in production for nine years, but never reached triple-digit figures in its sales.
Let’s check out this hand-crafted British beauty.
Rare Rides: The Very Rare 1972 Intermeccanica Indra Spider
The Intermeccanica marque is a new one to Rare Rides, and even in scouring the obscure vehicles of the internet one does not come across the name often.
Intermeccanica has dabbled in a number of different automotive enterprises since its inception, and the Indra seen here is one of its more successful projects.
Rare Rides: The 1992 Daihatsu Leeza Spider, It's Tearing Me Apart
Oh hi, Mark. Today’s Rare Ride is a very rare version of Daihatsu’s Leeza Kei car. It’s tiny, turbocharged, and one of only 200 made.
No more The Room jokes, I promise.
Rare Rides: The 1988 Cadillac Coupe DeVille, Aftermarket Elegance
Today’s Cadillac is an example of what happens when you combine consumer tastes in places like Miami in the late Eighties with the refusal of some domestic manufacturers to make luxury convertibles.
Presenting a Cadillac coupe that’s custom, cabriolet, and cool DeVille.
Rare Rides: The 1990 Ford Mustang 7UP Edition, Get You a Cold Pop
Today’s Rare Ride hails from the last bit of the Fox-body Mustang era. And while there were only supposed to be a handful of these 7UPs ever made, the special edition ended up with a production figure in the low five digits.
Only one car is lemon, lime, Mustang, and forgotten. Let’s go.
Rare Rides: The 1994 MG RV8 – Small Roadster, Big Engine
Today’s Rare Ride combines a traditional roadster design from the Sixties with updates from the Nineties, and uses an engine from somewhere in between.
Let’s learn more about a hodgepodge which is the very limited production MG RV8.
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