Car Spotting: Art On Wheels

San Francisco is an amazing city  filled with good food, good people, fun and interesting places, art, and of course, cars. And sometimes those things collide, as seen in the photos above. This vehicle, it appears to be a Volkswagen Van/Deluxe Type, was found on Stockton Street, just outside of San Francisco’s iconic and recognized Pier 39. It it a rolling art show, covered in what appear to be hand made paintings of San Francisco, as well as a massive  tie-dye  Swirl that takes up most of the vehicles front end, apart from the windshield that has been kept clear of any obstructions, paint related or otherwise, due to legal driving conditions. From the quick shots I was able to get of the vehicle as it drove over the hill and through the intersection, it appears to be made of all original parts and pieces. The vibrant and bright paint on the front and sides of the vehicle throws the non painted parts, the hub caps, window lining, bumper and faded  roof, in to sharp relief. There are quite a few  artistic cars in San Francisco, this just happens to be the only one I actually got a shot of last week. And I’m very glad I was able to see it.

Car Spotting: Chevy Custom

We, here at The Big Car Lot are proud to introduce what we hope will be a new series, Car Spotting. This series will consist of photos of cars we ourselves find in real life, along with short to long descriptions of the vehicle. With that out of the way, let’s get into it.

Here we have a gorgeous custom car, that appears to be a custom Chevy. This splendid gem of a Car was found in the sunny little seaside town of Avila Beach in California. From the outside, the car appears to be a restored classic, with a two-tone sparkling orange paint job that glitters I’m the light. However, several details of the car show that is a custom build. First of all, there are no brand markings on the vehicle. Second of all, the interior has, not only a beautiful looking old style dashboard with a modern finish, but it also has the word “Custom” in big silver raised letter scrawled across the bottom right hand corner. The steering wheel, with its multiple colors complements the dashboard set up perfectly,  and the whitish silver of the dashboard looks amazing. And lastly, when the car came down the hill, just across the street from the restaurant window where I was sitting enjoying my calamari, everyone’s heads were turned by the sound of the custom V12 engine.

Plymouth Prowler (1997 - 2002)

Have you ever dreamed of owning a PT Cruiser that had a bastard child with a 1930's Ford Roadster? No? Well fuck you because here it is.

That was basically the marketing for the car that most people refer to as the weirdest car of the 1990's/ When it came out in 1997, nobody knew what to think, exact that Acid and a car designing workshop don't mix very well. With bumpers that looked like over-sized versions of the ones that normally are reserved for go-carts at the mall, and colors so aggressive they made the entire world want  to kill themselves, this car was certainly an interesting direction for Plymouth, a company that, at the time was making boring and bland family cars.

The Plymouth prowler just showed up out of nowhere one day and became the laughingstock of the car community. Nobody really knows what audience the thing was intended for, crack addicts looking for a new fix perhaps? Anyway, the car came with a 3.5 L EGG V6 engine and an 4-Speed 42Le automatic gear box. Unsurprisingly, this car was perfect for modifiers, and mod shops were taking in more of these cars than almost any other hot-rod style car in 1999. Also, the car was loud to begin with, very ;loud. The whole point of a smaller V6 engine as apposed to a bigger V8 was to save space and weight. however, the folks at Plymouth must have liked noise quite a lot as they removed all noise dampening parts from the vehicle and it's engine casing. And that is even before modifications were installed by people who want a bigger kick out of their "road buggy." This was made easier with the slightly larger version of the car being made available starting in late 1999. The slightly  bigger frame of the Late '99 Prowler meant more space for more things. Thus began the modifications that led to the nightmarish and loud V12 Prowler, found in mod shops across the country. The vehicle was so loud when fitted with a V12 engine, that it came close to hitting the noise regulation limit for vehicles in several states. Finally, in 2002, production of the vehicle stopped after America finally came to their senses and opened their eyes to the odd monstrosity that was the Plymouth Prowler.

Toyota Celica GT (1998)

Toyota Corola (2001)

Honda Civic (2001)

Ouch! Sorry, it is just so hard to look at this thing on wheels. Where to start with this nightmare of a shit-box. I have an idea, let's start with the modern Honda civic. Many car buyers, as well as car enthusiasts, will admit that starting in 2015, it became socially acceptable to say to someone "Yes, I just bought the new Honda Civic" and not expect a harsh slap across the face and to be thrown from the building you are in. That is because, in 2016, the Honda Civic started to look good again for the first time since the car's creation. 

Sadly though, we are here today to take a look at the period of time that will be known from now onward as the "Shit Civic" period. This period begins with the 4th generation Civic, 1987, and lasts until the  end of the 9th Generation Civic in 2015. So, with so many years of horrible looking and under performing Civics to choose from how did we end up with 2001? Simple, I pinned about 18 different Civics from the Shit Civic period to a wall and threw a knife at the wall. The knife sunk it's blade into the paper printout of the bland box on wheels that is the 2001 Honda Civic. So, with that said, let us begin.

At this time, let me direct your attention to the horrible lump of metal that is at the top of this article. Yes, this abomination is what I will be talking about. Here we go.

So, I think we can all agree that the vehicle above is ugly beyond belief.. Let's start with the outside of the car. What the hell is going on with those wheel arches? Look at the back wheel,  it looks as if ot has been squished foreword, leaving a space where light shines through big enough that, if I so chose, I could fit my leg through it. However, the front wheels of the car have a noticeably smaller gap. This difference, although small at a glance, causes a drop in the handling, or lack thereof. Then there is the stock wheel plates on the car. Let me put it simply, if it doesn't look good on a Saturn Ion, and nothing looks good on a Saturn Ion, it won't look good on your car either. The car also features a sloping style with a slightly bigger roof than other cars in that style, creating a top heavy vehicle.

Let us take a quick glance at the inside of the 2001 Honda Civic. There were two versions made available. One looked more or less normal for the time, the other looks like it had time put into it, except for a stupid dashboard mounted shift. Thee second version wan canceled shortly after launch. The more common version, the one shown above, is covered in shitty plastic and easily stained cloth  that was known to tear at the slightest movement. The pedals were placed a few inches off from where they are normally located, another differences that, at first looks small, but makes a big and quite off difference. As of right now, a used Honda Civic from 2001 sells for around $580 to $1780. Here's a tip, go buy almost any other vehicle, anything but a 2007 Civic.

Toyota Hilux

There are many types of trucks on the planet today. Most go on the road, some go off the road, some do both. And there are many brands that make those types of trucks.  For the latest pile of crap that is the type of truck that Honda likes to make, to Ford's latest racing Raptor, you have many choices when it comes to buying your workhorse. However, there is one four-wheeled, rugged beast, that rises above the rest. And it comes from a brand that you might not expect. That's right, its a Toyota. Some say that it is just a truck like any other. We say it is the best truck in the world. It also serves as Toyota's apology for their wimpy hunk of junk called the Toyota Prius. Apology more than accepted.

Unlike other companies such as Honda, Toyota's truck, the Hilux, has an amazing history of success. This success started way back with the first model of the truck all the way back in 1968, fifty years ago, in a truck market mostly dominated by the big American brands that were, and still are, Chevy and Ford. It also was illegal in America for a while because of the parts used to make it. It was deemed too powerful and unsafe for the US  market. But that didn't stop pieces for the trucks being sent over the border into the United States and build built HERE. But it is still badass and tough as ever, and, as Top Gear UK and Top Gear USA both proved, completely INDESTRUCTIBLE!