Sunny So Cal Car Show

Filed in archive on January 16, 2006

Even if Brooklyn Bob hates me, I'm still going to car shows.

Hey, Bob -- it was a little chilly out here in LA yesterday -- 65 degrees -- but the sun was out, the skies were clear and it was time for another Sunday at the Pomona Swap Meet. I dragged my girlfriend out there for her first-ever visit, because I knew that the January meet is usually a biggie. Car collectors and restorers are like all Americans (and Canadians, too, I imagine) -- they overspend at Christmastime, and when the bills come due in January, they're looking for junk to unload. Often, that junk is a pile of parts. Sometimes, that junk is a classic car. We hit paydirt -- there were thousands of cars for sale, and tons and tons of interesting parts.

We always play a little game at these car shows -- it amounts to "which car should I buy for you?" We're very strict about how we play the game -- the car has to actually meet our needs, it has to be cool, and it has to be a bargain. Yesterday, we found ourselves surprised by the bargain prices for VW Bugs -- especially the late 1960's variety. $3,000 can buy you a nicely maintained, semi-restored 1969 Bug that would be good, reliable transportation around town. Hmm, tempting...

The most outrageous sale car I ran into was a 1965(ish?) Chevy Impala wagon that was done up in Lowrider style with a two-tone blue paint job and hydraulic suspension. The interior was devoted to showing off the hydraulics, which were polished to a mirror finish and mounted behind the back seat. The cargo floor was polished aluminum -- totally silly and cool. Price -- a mere $19,000. I don't doubt that somebody put 19,000 hours into this project, so they must have really needed the money.