Being constantly connected to the internet, whether through my phone, my desktop, my laptop, or my Gameboy SP (takes a while to connect…) is as dangerous to my wallet as leaving your unlocked phone around friends is dangerous to your Tinder profile.
Especially since searching and sorting through Craigslist’s C&T For Sale is easier than ever. Here’s the latest stuff that’s caught my wandering eye…
The Fun One – 1981 Fiat X1/9
That’s right, a Fiat. Get all your Fix It Again Tony jokes out of your system now, because this is a car I’m going to talk about a lot more as time goes on. Styling by Bertone, a surprisingly sonorous small displacement four cylinder, and super light weight make this car hard to ignore. This is a later fuel injected example, but has a pre-impact bumper conversion, removing those silly rubber chunks that made all 80’s imports look like the dealer forgot to take the car out of its packaging. Mid-engined, targa-topped, and equipped with flip up headlights; it’s attractive enough that I nearly forget about the last time I went to San Diego, where this is listed, for a car.
The Practical One – 1989 BMW 325i
I know, I know. I always say no more E30s, and then I always go looking for them. My excuse this time is that I’m getting sick and tired of driving my significant other’s Acura Integra when I need more than two seats, and the E30 is just so familiar. Kinda like the ex you keep going back to even though you know it’ll never last (said S.O. hates that analogy), still. Light, RWD sedans with real potential and real aftermarket support are thin on the ground. And the parts the owner is including with this sale make it quite the value proposition.
The ‘Huh, well that looks cool’ One – 1972 Mazda 1800 (Luce) Wagon
This was the first time I’d seen one of these. Even Bring a Trailer, harbinger of classic value appreciation, barely comes across these. Only sold for a few years in the early 70’s, not many made it over to North America. A reality that, according to the seller, is exacerbated by it being sold in the extremely wet Pacific Northwest, leaving them to rust and fade from memory.
This one is worth a second photo, just to show off the styling. Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro, as a whole it has a different flare to any of the other wagons to come from Japan. From the rear, it’s much more reminiscent of the early Peugeot 504 designed by Pininfarina. In my imagination, there’s a version of me with unlimited resources and workspace who would restore the body and slot in some silly, overbuilt, carbureted 13B just for the novelty of it.
The surfing continues!