Spotted is Globe Drive writer Peter Cheney's weekly feature that takes you behind the scenes of his life as a vehicle and engineering journalist. In coming weeks, we'll also highlight the best of your original photos and short video clips (10 seconds or less), which you should send with a short explanation. E-mail pcheney@globeandmail.com, find him on Twitter @cheneydrive (#spotted), or join him on Facebook (no login required). All photos by Peter Cheney unless otherwise noted.
From Bohemian to Bling
In the 1960s, Toronto’s Yorkville
district was a hippie district where you went to panhandle, smoke pot, and
listen to singers like Neil Young and Gordon Lightfoot. Today, Yorkville is where yuppies show off their expensive
clothes and blinged-out cars. My friend Paul
Hodgson spotted this
chrome-wrapped BMW.
Shine of the Times
Although there doesn’t appear to be a formal schedule, luxury car owners
gather in Yorkville every week, drawn by the
same mysterious forces that tell the birds head south, and drive the lemmings to
the cliffs. If you want to stand out in Yorkville, you need a really expensive car – or
chrome wrap.
Slipping Through Town Unnoticed
My friend Paul also spotted this matte pink Mercedes. If you’re looking for
business ideas, how about opening a car-wrap franchise in Yorkville?
The Yorkville Express
This is an Excalibur, a U.S.-made car designed to look
like a pre-war Mercedes. The Excalibur
car brand was launched in the sixties by designer Brooks Stevens, who also
designed Lawn Boy mowers, Allis-Chalmers tractors and the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile. Excaliburs used fibreglass bodies that concealed
Studebaker and GM running gear. Buyers included Dean Martin, Liberace, and Sonny
and Cher. Had it been equipped with
GPS, the Excalibur would no doubt have come with Yorkville preloaded as a waypoint.
Meanwhile, On the Other Side of Town…
I never cease to be amazed at what car owners can do with duct tape. My
friend Patrick Dell spotted this never-say-die VW convertible near Woodbine and
Danforth in Toronto.
No, That’s Not a Crocodile Skin Roof
Here’s a close-up of that duct-taped VW convertible. It’s definitely a
distinctive look - and it’s cheaper than a new top. (Good thing duct tape comes
in colours other than silver now)
The Fixer-Upper
I saw this crashed Mercedes getting rolled into the shop at Dupont Auto Collision this week. Not exactly
showroom condition. (They’re cutting it up for parts.)
The Sacrificial Car
Despite the massive damage caused by the crash, the Mercedes’ passenger
compartment was nearly intact. It’s amazing how well modern cars can protect the
humans inside – the kinetic energy of a crash is dissipated by the deformation
of the metal structure.
Go Big or Go Home
If you’re going to get a pickup truck, why not make it a big one? And why not
deck it out with camouflage trim, jacked-up suspension and a billet grill? I
spotted this GMC here in downtown Toronto. What better machine could there be
for our city’s tiny parking spots, crowded streets and sky-high fuel prices?
Size Matters
The GMC made my car look like a bug that was about to get stuck in its grill.
Respect.
Duck Dynasty Edition
The GMC had no shortage of camouflage trim. A thought: if you wanted to hide
a truck, shouldn’t you to camouflage the entire thing, instead of just the
mirrors, wheels and fender flares?
Truer Words Were Never Spoken
This looks like a mount point for a snowplow. The name says it all.
The Non-Macho Pickup
My wife and I spotted this Volkswagen Kombi pickup
in a Toronto alley. No camouflage trim or Boss logos on this one.
A Dash of Colour
I’m noticing a lot of bright-coloured wheels lately. This Mazda with
lime-green rims rolled past me last week here in Toronto. The impact of wheel
colour on resale value remains to be seen.
A Trend
I’ve seen at least a dozen cars with unexpected wheel
colours recently. Here’s another lime-green-wheel special – I spotted this one on Queen
St. West in Toronto.
The Refrigerator Motif
If you don’t care for lime green, pink or orange, you can always paint your
wheels to match the rest of your car. I spotted this Amana-esque Golf on Robert St., in downtown
Toronto.