Rare factory"Options"

Ever hear of the "Iraqi taxis"? A special order 81 Chev Malibu made in Canada for export to Iraq. V6 engine, 3 speed floor shift manual trans, air conditioning, a strange car.

Saddam Hussein order 25000 of these beasts. About half were sent to Iraq then they cancelled the order. The rest of them were sold off cheap in Canada.

http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/automotive-history-snapshot-1981-chevrolet-malibu-iraqi-taxi/

 

Then there were the super duper Caprice sedans made in Canada for export to the middle east. Better finished and better equipped than their American counterparts and no emissions junk on the motors - just a Rochester 4 barrel and dual exhausts like God intended.

http://www.curbsideclassic.com/auto-biography/1990-iraqi-9c1-from-canadas-skunkworks/

 

I wish you could still buy a car like those Iraqibus.

 

My 1960 AMC Rambler Cross Country Wagon came with a whole bunch of crazy options from the factory...I even had the original window sticker to prove that they were special ordered. It had the optional "Power Pack" 2 bbl carb instead of the standard 1 bbl...the crazy part about this is back then AMC cast the intake manifold and the cylinder head as one big unit, so you couldnt just bolt a new intake onto the head. It had the "twin grip" limited slip rear differential, and a 3 speed on the column...so I called it a little race wagon since it had some "high performance" options. The 2bbl only gave it something like 8 more HP than the 1bbl, but it was still cool. It had the "twin hide-away" bed, which mean the front and rear bench seats would fold down flat so you had a "mobile motel." It had optional two-tone paint, a clock in the dash, and a luggage rack on the roof. Man I wish I still had that thing...it sure turned heads everywhere I went!

 

I wish I had one of those Saudi Caprices.

 

My Dad ordered a 67 Chevy Wagon with a 283 and a four speed.
Mike

 

That would work too, but I really like standard transmissions.


Dispatched from my 1949 Underwood Master.

 

Chrysler built a special version of the Dodge Magnum wagon for the Middle East. It had the front clip and trim from the Chrysler 300 on the Magnum body. Neat combination, I thought.

 

Since we're getting into the OT realm, I had '77 Olds cutlass with the 260v8 and the 5-speed manual option. Pretty rare package and did damn well on the freeway. As far as more on topic cars, I've had 2 buick specials with the 4-speed manual option- a '54 and a '55. I also had a '64 dodge D100 short bed CSS truck....very limited production.

 

'54 & '55 Buicks with 4-spds -- does not compute. '64 & '65, maybe?

 

You are correct, got ahead of myself. Both 3-speed cars.

 

63 bonneville with factory header dump lever located beside shifter

 

Some '58 Pontiacs had a pull out radio in the dash! Not sure if it was a factory or dealer option...
Buddy of mine in the Navy from Bakersfield had one. Word nowadays is "AMAZING" !

 

And none of them managed to make the Muntz Jet one tenth as appealing as the original Kurtis two-seater.

 

I think I saw this on the hamb before. It's pretty neat http://youtu.be/GHRkQ51ZavU

 

I have a '54 Chevy 210 that has the autronic-eye, sunvisor and Guide prism.

 

I have three 1962 (1/2) Falcons all with =numbers matching factory four-speeds (Dagenham) on the floor. One Ranchero, one Futura (T-Bird roof) and a four-door station wagon. Not the best transmission, but more fun to drive than the automatic.

I also have a 1963 Oldsmobile F-85 (Jetfire) with a factory turbo and four-speed - air as well.

Great thread we have going here. Great stuff and amazing to hear about.

 

I once saw sort of the opposite, it was a '57 Chevy Bel Air convertible with every option available except no radio!

 

Hmm... If it has Windows, there has to be bugs, too...

 

It's called a "Station Wagon"

 

Looks like this one has a one piece rear door which would make it a Sedan Delivery. Is that right 57 guys?

 

I always thought if it had a one piece tailgate it was a delivery and probably did not have a rear seat which can not be seen in the picture.

 

1960 thunderbird had an optional sunroof....Ive never seen one in person

 

Yes, there were a few ''windowed'' '57 sedan deliveries. The U.S. government had a few, someone could chime in on which department. Forestry sticks in my mind but not sure.

 

There have been a few threads here on the HAMB which have explored the "windowed delivery" to great detail. They are legit.

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Sent from the pits of dispair app. Wirelessly, of course.

 

There was one that was on eBay in 2012; black with factory 3-speed. Really cool car but out of my price range.

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Sent from the pits of dispair app. Wirelessly, of course.

 

Bench front seat in my 66 mustang.

 

1941 Packard with factory air conditioning

 

I've actually seen one of these. Bel Air cheapy with a four speed. Not sure what it had in it originally for a motor, but the guy put a 348 in it....