A few weeks back we featured a 1985 Volvo 245 DL wagon with 4-speed+OD manual gearbox sold by the original owner for a single bit coin (or $1000). This car was picked up by DT reader Andrew M for his son (who picked the Volvo over a 4X4 Toyota pickup - great kid!) and it looks like another happy tale of cheap motoring for a family man.
The Buick Regal was a G-body coupe from General Motors that introduced the US to turbocharged performance and in 1978 was one of three cars available with a factory turbo; the others were the SAAB 99 and Porsche 911 Turbo. While the 99 and 911 were available with manual transmissions beset with turbo lag, the Regal Grand National was an automatic transmission equipped cruiser that used a low pressure turbo and big displacement to create virtually instant boost response. Find this 1986 Buick Regal Grand National
for sale in Largo, FL currently bidding for $13,788 reserve-not-met with 4 days to go.
The Saturn Ion Redline is the sister car to the factory hot rod Chevrolet Cobalt SS and was first launched in 2004. The Saturn brand was unceremoniously sacked as result of the 2008 global automobile market crash and the only two casualties that anyone should care about from the different kind of car company was the Sky Redline and the Ion Redline. Find this 2004 Saturn Ion Redline SEMA Show & Rally Car
for sale in Lakeland, FL currently bidding for $3,800 no-reserve with 1 day to go.
There are plenty of other sites on the interwebs that spout senseless drivel about automobiles, but the best thing about the Daily Turismo is the capability of the regular commenters/tippers. When an Anonymous Maserati owner (Ed: For crimes against DT's Commenting Commandment II, this commenter will henceforth be known as Persephone) accuses us of just repeating the same old internet chatter about 80s turbo Italian cars being unreliable...well...that's just...err..true? But -- the point is, DT isn't just about spreading malicious misinformation, it is about helping people; as such we are asking our commenters and readers to help Persephone get out of her daily driver Maserati BiTurbo and into something...better. |
| from http://www.productioncars.com/vintage-ads.php/Maserati/Biturbo |
The term Avant Garde means a work of art that is innovative or experimental and in French means "advanced guard." In the art work this means total garbage passed off as art that pointy headed intellectuals rave about the meaning and expressiveness. It is the kind of art that you wouldn't piss on if it were on fire, but you may actually piss on Marcel Duchamp's Fountain because it is actually a urinal. The biggest problem facing most modern art museums around the world is turn over in the janitorial staff because they are always getting sacked for cleaning up messes, graffiti, or piles of barf that later turn out to be part of some exhibit. What does this have to do with Audi's S4 Avant? Absolutely nothing, because the Avant is a magnificent piece of art that is worth more than anything found in any post-impression era art wing (actually, now that you mention it, impressionism is mostly garbage too...to quote Ignatius Reilly from John Kennedy Toole's masterpiece A Confederacy of Dunces “I am at the moment writing a lengthy indictment against our century.
When my brain begins to reel from my literary labors, I make an
occasional cheese dip.”
...but I digress). Find this 2005 Audi S4 Avant offered for $14,500 in the village of Nyack, NY (who knew there were villages in the states...?) via cars.com.
with V8 Archie swap currently bidding for $4,550 reserve not met in Bigfork, Montana (which could be the name of a family-style restaurant in the Midwest) with 4 days to go. Words and tip from DT commenter & contributor slowcarSLOW-MPGlol. 
Madeira is a small picturesque island off the coast of Portugal, known for its natural beauty, tourist attractions, and the variety of fortified wine they originated there. This editor has been kicked in the ass by many a glass of Madeira, which can have a sweet grapey taste that is clearly based on wine but much more potent and complex in flavor. Apparently someone who wanted a BMW M5 Touring (wagon) in 1994 liked the idea of a fortifed E34; based on the regular wagon but much more potent and complex, with a wine-colored paintjob - Madeirashwartz (Madeira black) metallic.This S38B38-powered beast makes a glorious fortified whine at full song - okay, end of bad pun. Find this 
The Chevrolet El Camino is an early hybrid, combining the style and performance of a two-door American muscle car with the usability of a pickup. It was the ultimate example of the American male having his cake and eating it too; a precursor to long hair in the back and short in the front, having wives who have a job and take care of house/kids and promoting world peace while invading Afghanistan at the same time. Somewhere along the way, someone took it too far. Someone wanted the groovy front end of a 1950 bullet-nose Studebaker mated with the utility of a pickup...but I fear he may have gone a bridge too far. Invading a country and overthrowing the regime because its neighbor is harboring a terrorist mastermind is one thing...but this...way too far. Find this 1987 Chevrolet El Camino Custom for sale in Grand Rapids, MI for $8,900 via autotrader. Tip from Dave.
Nine out of ten doctors agree, out of all your internal organs, you brain is likely the most important (doctor number 10 is a urologist and probably a pervert based on his response to DT's scientific outreach survey). Keep your medulla oblongata safe from the oblong teeth of the flesh eating undead with this 1974 Dodge W100 Powerwagon outfitted with city camo and a Zombie Outbreak Response Team logo offered for $5,000 in Temple City, CA via craigslist.
Still laboring under the assumption that only Subaru, Audi and Mitsubishi can make fun/sporty all-wheel-drive family sedans? It is often forgotten that BMW introduced an all-wheel-drive edition of the E30 platform called the 325ix back in 1985. Find this 1991 BMW 325ix for sale in Falmouth, MA for $7,500 via craigslist. Tip from Art C. 
The Triumph Spitfire was a small roadster built in the United Kingdom to compete with the MG Midget, Austin Healey Sprite and to some extent the Fiat 850 Spider. The Spitfire is one of the better looking and handling of the small British sports cars but it held back by a gutless 1.1 4-cyl. This isn't a problem for the well equipped gearhead and many engines have been swapped into Spitfire bodies over the years. Find this 1972 Triumph Spitfire with Ford V6 offered for $3,500 in Tucson, AZ via craigslist.
The Renault R8 was a small sedan for the common man launched in 1962 with boxy styling and a chassis based on the curvy Dauphine platform. The R8 used a Beetle style rear engine / rear drive setup but is an odd car to find on the road today and just odd enough to qualify as cool. Find this 1963 Renault R8 1100
for sale in Mission Hills, CA currently bidding for $2,550 reserve-not-met with 
If you are a regular DT reader not under a restraining order to avoid any and all contact with the Daily Turismo, you may have noticed the recent changes to our commenting rules - specifically the implementation of the Commenting Commandments. A keen eyed reader posted a comment in response to the glut of image conscious cars being sold on ebay and was sure to literally adhere to Commandment I: Is anybody just a poor old broke gearhead any more? The e-Bay write up? Too slick by half. Everyone is copyrighted, has a logo and has ambience and image. I'm sure it's an impressive build as per the "Irvine" Car and Coffee crowd; hell, I'd like to have the thing myself. But, at my gut level, it feels like a poseur. Who is going to end up buying this? Some guy with an "authentic" surf shop down in Orange County who started his (successful) business on dad's money and who, himself, is steeped in ambience and image. Probably will put a "Harvest" bumper sticker in the rear window next August for some real OC street cred...Sorry, mom, I'm a little loaded.
A few weeks ago we featured a 90 mile 1800ES offered on ebay for a whopping $75,000, not because it was a good deal, but because it was such an interesting story. No one will buy that car at such a grandiose price, but the real question is, what would you pay for a car that has 1000 times the miles of the $75k example? Find this 1973 Volvo 1800 ES
for sale in Ventura, CA currently bidding for $12,221 reserve-not-met with a few hours to go.
The Chevy Astro van was built for moms who didn't want to haul six bratty kids to hockey practice - they could haul seven, in rear-wheel drive fashion. With a V8 up front and custom drivetrain in the back, this one has traded PTA meetings for time slips. Find this 1985 GMC Safari for $6,500 in Rochester, MN. Words and tip from DT commenter & contributor slowcarSLOW-MPGlol. 
The Porsche 944 (1982-1991) was a continuation of the 924 platform, but it was equipped from the factory with better engines and wicked fender flares. The 944 will forever be held in contempt by the rear-engined aircooled fanatics, but the Turbo 951 version was just as competent on a race track as any 964, if not better. If you want to further embarrass a 911 on a track, ditch the turbo four and stuff an alloy V8 under the hood. Find this 1988 Porsche 944 with LS1 V8
for sale in Daveport, IA currently bidding for $5,000 reserve-not-met on ebay with 1 day to go.