The 1980s were such a wild time in Japan. Powersports manufacturers were putting turbos on motorcycles, Nissan got weird with retro-style cars, Kei cars got really sporty, and oh yeah, everyone was obsessed with four-wheel-steering. It became such a big deal that even General Motors got into it.
While Japan’s automakers touted 4WS as a sweet handling upgrade, GM thought it could make 4WS a practical thing for land barges and the like. But it also wanted to make sporty cars with 4WS like the Fiero. At least one Chevy Celebrity test car was outfitted with the tech. Sadly, GM didn’t put its tech into any of its production cars in the ’80s. Logan King gives a hilarious comment about it:
GM didn’t bother with the system because they realized a Celebrity crabbing down the interstate was something that would naturally occur anyway.
Also, some of you really didn’t like being reminded that GM really thought of the Celebrity as being something sporty. Der Foo:
I had to re-read that a few times. My family had a Celebrity. “Sporty”? Nope. “Sporting,” as in English “By Jove! That’s not very sporting”? Quite possibly.
It was “supposed to be,” but it wasn’t. The Celebrity had a “Semi-floating” rear axle. Code for basically a solid rear axle. It also had all the body rigidity of a disposable aluminum basting pan. Slap in the Iron Duke and you had “Meh” on a grand scale. The 2.8L at least didn’t suck and was the best part.
Today, Lewin wrote about a Ferrari engine that you can buy on AliExpress, and you all had a ball with it. MALinium Falcon:
That $3 savings from AliExpress will come in handy.
AllCattleNoHat:
Why are you just ignoring the “$3 off any purchase over $29” coupon in the Alibaba ad? $3 is $3 even if it doesn’t go as far as it used to.
Pajamasquid:
“Probably shouldn’t buy?” In a couple weeks it’ll be “You’ll never guess what I shoehorned into the Changli”
Jesus Chrysler drives a Dodge:
MY WIFE IS DUE IN A WEEK AND I HAVE 24 HOURS TO SWAP THIS HOLY GRAIL FERRARI ENGINE INTO MY PICKUP
This morning, Jason wrote a Cold Start about some weird mid-century VW ads. Will the 2050s also be called “mid-century?” Ash78:
Mid-century, just like “turn of the century” are like “Classic Rock” IMO — they cannot move from their current definitions because those eras were so formative and unique for everything that came after. They are not moving targets.
So in 30 years if I’m hearing “mid-century” to refer to current stuff, I’m going to be just as irate as when I hear “Sweet Child O Mine” on the Classic Rock station.
Stop radicalizing people like me!
Is it bad that I’ve always thought of Guns N’ Roses as a classic rock band? Have a great evening, everyone!
Top graphic images: GM; Maryland Public Television/MotorWeek
I’m sort of put off by calling the 2000s turn of the century. At least wait till us 20th century folks are dead. My great grandmother, whose husband was born before the civil war, made the same complaint in the 1950s. Or so I am told. There are 8mm movies of her and me but I was about 3.
If an iron duke is a performance engine, does that make Grumman LLVs sport utility vehicles?
Dr. Feelgood is my favorite classic rock song.
“ I’m going to be just as irate as when I hear “Sweet Child O Mine” on the Classic Rock station.”
Be happy it’s it’s on a Classic Rock station… as opposed to a GOLDEN OLDIES station…
When I was a kid in the 80s there were still stations playing 50s and even older music. It’s wild to me that 90s hip-hop, punk and Metal are now as far removed as that stuff was at the time.
Hey, I had a Celebrity Eurosport, it had sport right in the name! 4 door 112hp carburetor v6, 4 speed auto…oh, I get it now, carry on.
“Is it bad that I’ve always thought of Guns N’ Roses as a classic rock band?”
That’s just because you’re so young.
Damn kids these days 😉
My thoughts exactly!
People calling GNR classic rock is basically the same as them calling me old.
It was about a decade ago that I heard a Muzak version of either Sweet Child of Mine or Enter Sandman wafting gently over a grocery store PA and I realized that OMG, I am now old.
UFTA!
Yeah … unfortunately they’re right. We are old.
A couple of years ago I thought for a hot minute that our local oldies station had switched to modern music. Reading glasses and students saying “you had my mom in class” soon followed.
At what point would 60s-70s rock become the new oldies? If you want to hear Chuck Berry or Buddy Holly today, you won’t hear them on a classic rock station even though they are about as old as rock gets. The classic rock station I usually listen to has gradually phased out The Rolling Stones and others from that era as their primary rotation. They’ll still play Satisfaction or Walk This Way occasionally, but you’ll also hear older stuff from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Stone Temple Pilots now.
This isn’t a bad thing. You can always use satellite radio if you only want to hear songs of a certain era. I like having a radio station that will play something I didn’t expect to hear.
I’ve heard some radio stations call the 60’s and 70’s “Classic Rock” while the 80’s and 90’s is “Retro Rock”.