Good morning! We’re kicking the week off with a couple of not-so-hot little red numbers. They’re both as rare as rocking-horse poop these days, both manual, and for some reason, both equipped for towing.
I have to congratulate you all for a job spectacularly well done with Friday’s silly scenario. The Olds took home the winning vote count, but at least one person made a compelling case for each car, and some of your ideas were practically fully formed treatments. And I’d watch the hell out of those shows.
I had a TV show kinda half-formed in my mind, with the Olds as the hero car, but honestly, it wasn’t as good as the ones you all came up with, so never mind. But hey, if one of your shows gets picked up by Netflix, just keep in mind where it all started, and who gave you the idea.
Now then: The goal of today’s cars is mainly to make you have the same reaction I had when I saw them: “Holy crap, I haven’t seen one of those in a while!” One of these came from the Underappreciated Survivors group on Facebook; the other is a spot from my buddy Sam Blockhan over at Opposite Lock. Let’s check them out.
1985 Renault Encore – $4,600 Canadian (about $3,300 US)
Engine/drivetrain: 1.7 liter overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada
Odometer reading: 154,000 kilometers
Oeprational status: Runs and drives well
Quick – What do Wisconsin and France have in common? They’re both justifiably proud of their cheese, and they have both been home to Renault factories. As part of Renault’s partnership with AMC in the 1980s, the Alliance and Encore, known as the Renault 9 and 11 in Europe, were produced in AMC’s famous plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
The Alliance and Encore were powered by one of two four-cylinder engines: the old 1.4 liter pushrod engine dating back to the ’50s, or a new 1.7 liter overhead cam four, both with fuel injection. This car has the 1.7, along with a five-speed manual. It’s a one-owner car, with only 154,000 kilometers (about 96,000 miles) to its name. It has British Columbia collector’s plates on it, so it sounds like it has been retired from daily driver status.
Ace AMC designer Dick Teague and Renault’s Robert Opron teamed up on the Alliance and Encore design, and if you are familiar with AMC cars, you’ll immediately see Teague’s influence on the interior of this car, particularly in the seats and door panels. The Encore was a little bit fancier than the Alliance, and this interior looks mighty inviting. There’s a cover on the driver’s seat, but since it’s pulled down in the photos, I have to believe its purpose is to protect the upholstery, not hide it.
Outside, it’s very clean as well, with two-tone paint and vinyl graphics that have held up well over the years. Personally, I’ve always preferred the hatchback Encore to the Alliance sedan. It’s sportier, and of course, more practical.
1988 Buick Skyhawk – $6,500
Engine/drivetrain: 2.0-liter overhead cam inline 4, four-speed manual, FWD
Location: East Longmeadow, MA
Odometer reading: 52,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives, just taken out of storage
When General Motors introduced the J-body compacts in 1982, every major division got their own version except of course GMC. The Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac J2000/Sunbird are the best-known, and the Cadillac Cimarron is probably the most infamous. Oldsmobile’s Firenza and Buick’s Skyhawk are barely remembered.
The Skyhawk and Firenza both ping-ponged back and forth between the “Chevy-style” overhead valve engine and the “Pontiac-style” overhead cam; as far as I can tell, in 1988 the Skyhawk was only available with the overhead cam engine, displacing 2 liters. The Skyhawk also has the distinction of being the last Buick available with a manual transmission until the 2011 Regal Turbo. The seller describes this one as being a “4 speed with overdrive,” which could mean a Getrag five-speed, but it could also mean the older Muncie four-speed, in which fourth gear was an overdrive. Since the rest of the car looks pretty basic, I’m assuming it’s the four-speed.
This car has only 52,000 miles on it, and has just been awakened from a fifteen-year slumber. It seems like it’s in running condition, but we all know that a car is going to need a lot of attention after being parked for that long. The tires will need replacing, for one thing, as will every fluid and every part that holds said fluids in place. Low-mileage long-term-storage cars can be cool “time capsules,” but they can also be a Pandora’s box of pains in the ass.
It’s in really nice condition inside, but the outside has some blemishes, and at least one piece of missing trim. It’s not a big deal, I suppose, but for the kind of money they’re asking for this car, it can’t be just a rare car. It has to be a really clean rare car. Hopefully, there’s some wiggle room in the price to account for the condition.
Cars like these are neat to see, but when it comes down to it, would you really want to see one of them in your driveway every day? That’s a question only you can answer, but for our purposes, you must choose one of them. I’m not letting you off the hook with a “neither” option. So which will it be – the Franco-American tin can, or the Cavalier’s less popular cousin?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
The post It’s Weird That They Both Have Tow Hitches: 1985 Renault Encore vs 1988 Buick Skyhawk appeared first on The Autopian.
