You learn something new... - Cars you didn't know existed, until now!

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The standard 2nd gen Copen looks like that, however they also offered a variant called the Copen Cero as @05XR8 pointed out, which is more in line with the looks of the original (and was the basis of the coupe):

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The standard 2nd gen Copen looks like that, however they also offered a variant called the Copen Cero as @05XR8 pointed out, which is more in line with the looks of the original (and was the basis of the coupe):

img_6812-webp.1480376
Gotcha. Saw the post but lacked context/knowledge to connect the dots. It really is much nicer than the standard second generation Copen.
 
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Please tell me it came with a V6.
The green one I posted is a V6.
1999 Toyota v6 Camry

Touring model

5sp Manual

All GTP accessories, including all skirts, rear spoiler risers, decals, front 'gtp' grill, 17inch factory wheels (60% tread), leather and carbon fibre accessories plus GTP embroidered floor mats (x4). i have received a lot of comments about the car with people suprised when they find out it's actually a camry!
 
In Australian Production Car Championship it ran a V6.

It was up for sale years ago.

As it raced at this year’s Bathurst 6H.
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The Bathurst MR2. Not as special as a Bathurst RX-7, but I can’t recall MR2 winning their class, back to back, in the 12H.

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The MR2 ‘Bathurst’ special edition displayed these unique body decals to celebrate its remarkable achievements in the James Hardie 12 Hour.
 
I periodically chuckle at the fact that GMC called its answer to the Chevy Sport Truck a "Street Coupe"--given that it's a half-ton pickup--so it certainly isn't new to me. However, I did recently learn that it stuck around for 1981 and the facelift that GM fullsizes got.

street-coupe.jpg


After 1980, GM wouldn't offer a big block in a half-ton until the 454 SS bowed in 1990, so the top performers in this "sporty" pickup were a 305 or gas 350 V8. The 250 6 and Olds 350 diesel were also available.
 
Brief chat about the Bathurst 6H, the early Bathurst 12H was brought up. I remember learning Saab had raced in the 1992 12H. A 9000 Turbo Finished 3rd outright. There was also a Saab 900i in the same race. Finished 35th of 39 finishers and 16 DNF.

In my Google search for that 900i, I didn’t get much info on that car, but saw this:
During the late-1970s, Swedish rally ace Stig Blomqvist came out to Australia multiple time to contest the legendary Southern Cross Rally in a factory supported 99EMS.

In the early-1990s, a Saab Dealer Team 9000 CSS finished third in the second James Hardie Bathurst 12 Hour shared by Colin Bond and Glenn Seton, while orchestrated by car dealer turned touring car privateer Ken Matthews.

These two motorsport programs came on either side of a special project commissioned by Saab Automobiles Australia based on the Saab 900 Turbo called the Enduro.

Just 12 of the Enduro specials were built, with one believed to be written off by an over exuberant journalist and just five are said to survive today.

An eye-catching exterior featured flared fibreglass wheel arches, front air dam, rear spoiler, Enduro signage, blue stripes, and big turbo decals. Inside extra gauges for oil pressure, battery voltage and an ammeter were mounted in the usual position for the radio.

Matthews’ Sydney prestige car dealership was believed to be commissioned by Saab Automobiles Australia to develop the Enduro by designing and engineering the limited edition model. Australian company Purvis shaped and manufactured the body kit while it was also building its Eureka sports car.

To finish off the exterior, the Enduro was fitted with Simmons P-4 three-piece alloy wheels wrapped in 7.5×15” tyres.

Performance was increased to a claimed 175bhp thanks to the turbo wastegate being set at 17psi or 1.2 bar with water injection standard as the engine was the B201 eight-valve slant-four.

An extremely rare model, none were sent overseas making this a truly Australian rarity and one many enthusiasts have no knowledge of.
 
The Mercury LN7. The forgotten twin of the forgotten Ford EXP. Learned it existed from a Reddit post about extinct cars
40,000 were produced so it’s doubtful they’re actually extinct. I’m sure some diehard somewhere in the upper peninsula of Michigan has one in showroom condition.
 
40,000 were produced so it’s doubtful they’re actually extinct. I’m sure some diehard somewhere in the upper peninsula of Michigan has one in showroom condition.
A quick Google Images search shows plenty of recent looking photos, so they'll still be around.

Looks like some models came with the 'telephone dial' alloys from the european Escort XR3.
 
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Looks like some models came with the 'telephone dial' alloys from the european Escort XR3.
Egg poachers! I brought those up a while back.
Pre-facelift Ford EXPs and Mercury LN7s had a kinda neat optional "egg poacher" wheel design.

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A similar design was available for the European Escort XR3.

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The XR3 units are definitely more attractive, but I like both.

A neighbor many years ago had one of those EXPs that he'd converted to electric--I helped! They were also briefly popular as door slammers due to their compact size and comparatively long nose.

image2.jpg


(Door slammers are tube chassis drag cars that use much of a production body shell--albeit heavily modified, especially in the rear for big ol' meats--with functional doors.)
 
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40,000 were produced so it’s doubtful they’re actually extinct. I’m sure some diehard somewhere in the upper peninsula of Michigan has one in showroom condition.
I think that's reasonable. Note that the Reddit post i found this car from dosen't list the LN7 (or any car for that matter) as the extinct car. It was suggested by someone in the comments, post itself is just the OP asking whether there are Cars that went extinct.
 
40,000 were produced so it’s doubtful they’re actually extinct. I’m sure some diehard somewhere in the upper peninsula of Michigan has one in showroom condition.
Or somewhere in California, it's a museum of all sorts of daily-drivers which are 30-50 years old.

Failing that, mysteriously still running in some small town in a rural part of America with baler wire, super glue, and dogged experience.
 
The Mercury LN7. The forgotten twin of the forgotten Ford EXP. Learned it existed from a Reddit post about extinct cars
I was very familiar with the Mercury because my next door neighbor had one. It must have been a pile because he was working on it most weekends. But what I didn't know was that the EXP had a facelift in '85, using Escort parts. Love how it looks, I'd make that my daily driver.

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