Journal Classic Cars

It’s hard to believe that vehicles from the late 1980s are old enough that some of them require restoration, but a lot can happen in nearly 40 years. That’s especially true for four-wheel-drive SUVs, many of which rack up loads of miles and/or get extensively modified and beat up off-road. It’s unclear what kind of life our Pick of the Day, a full-size 1989 Chevrolet Blazer V1500, led in the past, but we do know it has been fully restored, according to the dealer in Carrollton, Texas selling it on ClassicCars.com.

By 1989, the “Rounded Line” (aka “Square Body”) generation of the full-size Chevy Blazer was already more than 15 years old. It was also part of the R/V series of trucks and SUVs, which replaced the previous C/K naming structure a few years earlier. As part of a mild refresh, the ’89 Blazer received a redesigned grille, restyled side moldings, and a better paint job thanks to a new base-coat/clear-coat process. This particular Blazer has a new two-tone finish in factory colors, which appear to be Midnight Blue Metallic and Smoke Blue Metallic judging by the brochure. The Rally wheels are also new and come equipped with 31-inch BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A tires, which are the right kind of rubber for such a rugged vehicle.

The most noticeable updates are inside. Behind the aftermarket steering wheel is a set of Dakota Digital gauges, which are surrounded by billet trim; the gas and brake pedals also get the billet treatment. Fresh blue leatherette covers the front buckets and rear bench seat. Cabin conveniences include power steering, power brakes, power locks and windows, air conditioning, and a locking center console with a pair of cup holders.

This full-size Blazer rolled off the production line with fuel injection but, interestingly, someone decided to retrofit its 350ci V8 with a 600-cfm four-barrel carburetor as well as a new exhaust system. That old-school-style power reaches the road or trail through a four-speed automatic and a dual-range transfer case.

If you want a Square Body Blazer, there are three main ways you can get one. You can buy a Blazer that’s been driven into the ground, hunt for a fully original one with low miles, or purchase one that’s already received a ton of work and updates, such as this this 1989 Chevrolet Blazer V1500. If you choose to go that route, the first step in your journey to ownership will be paying the $49,900 asking price.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com

It’s never too late for someone to be reunited with a memorable car from their past. Zachary, a friend from Ohio, recently shared a story on Facebook about how he found, restored and presented a 1958 Chevrolet to his 86-year-old great-grandfather. The special occasion is something I wanted to share with our audience at The Journal.

Zachary gives some backstory: “Poppie (Michael) is my great-grandfather, born in 1939. He married Gram in July 1958, and she passed away from cancer on January 4, 2011. Poppie is my best friend and biggest inspiration in life. He took me in full-time when I was 14. He’s always gone above and beyond for everyone around him – making sacrifice after sacrifice and going out of his way for others. He’s the reason I’m the man I am today and why I’ve been able to succeed in my short 25 years.”

Biscayne Backstory

Regarding the Biscayne, it was a full-sized car produced from 1958 through 1972. Throughout its lifespan of five generations, it shared engineering at one time or another with cars like the Bel Air, Caprice, Del Ray, and Impala. The Biscayne was slotted toward the lower end of the price bracket – especially when it came to full-sized cars. Advertisements for the 1958 Chevrolets said, “You’ll like being looked at in your ’58 Chevrolet. There’s a special kind of glow that goes with owning a new Chevrolet. Behind the wheel, you feel like you’re right where you belong.”

A Man on a Mission

And, as it turns out, the driver’s seat of a Biscayne is exactly where Poppie belongs. The green four-door Biscayne that Zachary fixed up for his great-grandfather went through a comprehensive mechanical and cosmetic overhaul within the last couple of months, and on Wednesday, July 23, the car was presented as a surprise to Poppie.

Zachary narrates: “July 23, 2025, will go down as the happiest day of my life. On what would have been Gram and Poppie’s 67th anniversary, we got to make his dream of owning another 1958 Chevrolet Biscayne come true. In 25 years, this is only the fourth time I’ve ever seen the old man cry. The words ‘This is my favorite ever car,’ couldn’t be truer.”

He continues, “Poppie speaks often about his ‘58 that he loved so dearly. Even in his times of darkness, talks of the ‘58 always brought smiles and laughter. For 10 years I’ve dreamed of making this day a reality, and here it is. We have broken our bodies over the last two months, restoring this Biscayne and getting her running again. She fought us hard, begging to remain in a state of rest; but we had other plans for her. The 283ci V8 got a full overhaul with new valves, lifters and a bigger cam. She got fresh paint and a bundle of love.”

Dreams Come True

Zachary talks about Honda’s famous slogan, “The Power of Dreams.” Being able to give Poppie a 1958 Biscayne was the fulfillment of a long-time dream. He says, “To the memories going forward, the car shows and the Sunday cruises. My heart is full, and my love is absolute.”

Congratulations, Poppie!

Once again, we have a quartet of cars listed for sale on AutoHunter or ClassicCars.com. Specifically, these are from the early-1950s, the moment when Detroit started to produce competitors (Corvette, I’m thinkin’ about you!). Can you tell us what they are?

Post your answers in the Comments section below. If you need a hint, you can click on an image (we won’t tell!).

Click on a photo to reveal each car

You’ll find a new puzzle at The Classic Cars.com Journal every Tuesday. For even more enjoyment, you can play previous games!

The 2025 Boss Nationals are now a memory, but plenty of fun was had by all. How do I know? Because co-organizer Rick Ybarra told me, and who am I to question him? He, along with Finley Ledbetter, have carved out a nice niche event that brings out the crème de la crème of Boss Mustangs and Cougars, and more.

A group of Boss 302 Mustangs drove from Chicagoland to East Moline, Illinois in the heat without air conditioning but, let’s be honest, 3.91 gears can create plenty of ventilation when the windows are open.

If you are curious about the Boss Nationals, you can read more about it here. Rick, who’s the Boss 351 Registrar, tells me this is the rundown of what showed up at the 2025 Boss Nationals:

• 14 1969-70 Boss 429 Mustangs 
• 12 1971 Boss 351 Mustangs
• 22 1970 Boss 302 Mustangs
• 2 Boss 302 1970 Cougar Eliminators
• 2 1967 Shelby GT500s
• 1 1965 Shelby Cobra
• 2 Ford GTs
• 1 1970 Cougar XR-7 convertible packing a 428 SCJ four-speed
• 1 1969 Mustang SportsRoof 428 SCJ four-speed
• 1 1972 351 HO Mustang SportsRoof
• 1 1969 Shelby GT350 (first event after restoration)

This Drag Pack Cougar convertible scored 996 points out of 1000. More for Cougar fans: Eric Peosta won the Boss Nationals Apex award for his special-order-color (Medium Lime metallic) 1970 Cougar Eliminator. In addition, both Steve Anderson’s 1969 Boss 429 and Scott Skalitzky’s 1970 Boss 429 were Super Stallion winners.

Visit www.bossnationals.com to stay abreast of 2026 Boss Nationals scheduling.

Jaguar is in a state of flux right now that has been . . . polarizing, to say the least. If you long for the Jaguar designs of yesteryear or you just want a drop-top to cruise in, check out our AutoHunter Spotlight car: a 1995 Jaguar XJS Convertible finished in Topaz and equipped with a Brown power-operated top over a Cream leather interior. It comes from the private seller in California with loads of original booklets and documentation and a clean CARFAX report; the title is in transit to the current owner.

As a 1995 model, this XJS is from the long-running model’s penultimate year on the market. It benefits from the ’92 facelift that brought restyled front and rear ends, and new upholstery and trim. This particular XJS comes in Topaz, which coordinates well with the power-operated Brown soft top (you can see it in action in the video below).

Other features include bright trim, a glass rear window with a defroster, a flip-up fuel cap, a third brake light on the trunk lid, and dual exhaust outlets. When lowered, the top can be stored under a beige top boot. The 16-inch factory wheels are wrapped in 225/60 Pirelli tires.

Just as you’d expect in a Jaguar, the interior is full of high-end materials. The power front buckets and the rear seats are covered in Cream Connolly leather. Walnut trim highlights the door panels, dashboard, center stack, and center console. Of course, there are plenty of conveniences too, such as power windows, power steering, cruise control, air conditioning, and an AM/FM/cassette radio with a trunk-mounted Alpine six-disc CD changer.

Behind the leather-wrapped steering wheel is a set of gauges that includes a 7,000-rpm tachometer, 160-mph speedometer, and readouts for the voltage, fuel level, oil pressure, and temperature. The odometer shows 129,708 miles, which is a slight increase from the latest figure of 129,540 miles logged on the CARFAX report from November 2023.

This Jag will start purring once you crank up the 4.0-liter inline-six under the hood. It was factory-rated at 237 horsepower and 282 lb-ft of torque. An electronically controlled four-speed automatic and a 3.54:1 rear end turn those on-paper numbers into real-world acceleration. Power four-wheel disc brakes are there to make sure this cat doesn’t lose one of its nine lives when it gets “the zoomies.”

Whether you want to send Jaguar a message that it’s headed in the wrong direction or you have the urge to go to the beach, you can do it in this 1995 Jaguar XJS Convertible. But you have to bid on it first. Do that right now before the auction ends on Friday, August 1 at 11:00 a.m. (PDT).

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

The Mercury Capri has experienced several incarnations during its lifetime. Initially it was a German Ford that played the role of import pony car. Then, it actually became an American pony car as a cousin to the Mustang. Finally, it returned to being a captive import, this time as a two-seat convertible from Australia. Our Pick of the Day was the most popular of the trio, though you would have to try hard to remember the last time you saw one. This 1979 Mercury Capri Turbo RS is listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Greely, Colorado.

The architecture underpinning the Capri was Ford’s Fox platform, which was originally designed to replace the architecture that supported the Ford Falcon and, in more recent years, the Ford Maverick and Granada. In the fall of 1978, Ford introduced an all-new Mustang that also introduced the new Fox platform, which would underpin countless other models that included Mercury and Lincoln variants.

While the Pinto-based Mustang II never had a Mercury equivalent, the 1979 Mustang brought Mercury back to the pony car fold with the Capri. Unlike the Mustang, the Capri was only available as a three-door hatchback, leaving the two-door sedan (and eventually the convertible) for the Mustang.

There were two Capri models: Capri and Capri RS. Mercury wrote in the brochure that the Capri was “European design philosophy at American prices,” attempting to tie-in the previous German import with its “pure joy of driving.” Engine choices began with a 2.3-litre four for all models; optional was a 2.8-litre V6, 5.0-litre V8, or 2.3-litre Turbo 4. All engines featured a two-barrel carburetor. Depending on the engine, a four-speed manual or three-speed automatic were the only choices.

A luxurious package for the base Capri was the Ghia, which added a fancier interior, luxury four-spoke steering wheel, special luxury door appliques including map pockets, front passenger assist handle, driver-side vanity mirror, and more.

For something sportier, the Capri RS added a Radial Sport Suspension with BR78 x 14 tires, rear stabilizer, lower rear spring rates (and increased front spring rates with the V8), upgraded shock absorber tuning, improved control arm bushings, and more. A “power dome” hood and black highlights on all sides gave a more aggressive look, with an optional black lower bodyside paint able to add even more to its looks. Optional Michelin TRX tires increased “roll stiffness without sacrificing ride or harshness control” while working in conjunction with the optional Rally Suspension. Standard interior was high-back buckets in Corinthian vinyl, or Danbury cloth and Corinthian vinyl.

For the early adopters, there also was the Turbo RS, which boasted several upgrades over the basic RS including Deluxe interior trim, low-back bucket seats in Cariban vinyl, 15.3-inch forged aluminum three-spoke wheels, Michelin TRXs, and Rally Suspension.

This 1979 Mercury Capri Turbo RS is one of 110,142 Capris built that year, though we don’t have any statistics how many of those were Turbo RSs. The description from the dealer is lacking, but we can see it is painted in Bright Red with Light Orange/Yellow striping and is equipped with the four-speed manual, console, AM/FM Stereo cassette radio, and three-spoke steering wheel with tilt column.

Nineteen seventy-nine was the beginning of a love affair with Fox-bodied FoMoCo products, culminating with the 1987-93 5.0 Mustangs and respective Capris. However, it all started in 1979 with cars like this Capri. The ad says “Contact Seller” but the dealer’s website says $8,999, which is a low cost of entry for one of the more tech-y cars in the American market at the time.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com

Whether you love them or hate them, the truth is that minivans are a major part of automotive history, particularly Chrysler’s 100 years as a manufacturer. Although they’re not as popular as they used to be in the 1980s and 1990s, they’re still available from five manufacturers in America (if you count the all-electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz). As Brandt Rosenbusch, Manager of Historical Services for Stellantis North America, explains in the video below, Chrysler was the first to offer an upscale minivan.

That doesn’t mean it was the first to market, though. Dodge’s Caravan and Plymouth’s Voyager arrived for the 1984 model year in response to a desire for smaller family transportation that could fit in a regular-sized garage. Chrysler’s Town & Country variant arrived in 1990 with standard leather seating, front and rear air conditioning, and V6 power.

A second-generation model followed shortly afterward.

In 1996, the Town & Country was visually overhauled to match the sleeker, cab forward styling of its sedan counterparts.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Stow N’ Go seating (a product of the fourth-generation Town & Country), which allows the second- and third-row seats to be folded flat into the floor for more cargo space. The subsequent generation was the Town & Country’s last, but not the end of the Chrysler minivan. The Pacifica was introduced as a 2017 model and is still available today as a gas-only model and a plug-in hybrid variant.

I can’t speak for any of you out there, but my perception of the minivan has evolved along with the vehicle itself. When I was little kid, I thought conversion vans were the place to be because they were large and felt special, but that may be because the ones I remember had a TV and VCR in them. I didn’t grow up in a minivan family, so I wasn’t familiar with them.

In my teens and 20s, I thought minivans were lame, boring kid-haulers. That changed in my 30s, when I discovered how convenient, feature-rich, and luxurious models such as the Honda Odyssey Elite and Chrysler Pacifica Pinnacle Hybrid could be. Now a parent myself, I totally get why people buy minivans. I would have no qualms about getting one as my next vehicle, but sorry, Chrysler—I’d go with the Toyota Sienna Platinum.

When you think of the 1977 Pontiac Trans Am, chances are that “Smokey and the Bandit” comes to mind—and for good reason! Behind the Hollywood fame is a muscle car with real substance: killer styling, a functional shaker hood, and a big V8 under the scoop. Nineteen seventy-seven was a record-setting year for the Trans Am, thanks in part to its starring role in “Smokey and the Bandit,” which helped lead to more than 68,000 units being produced. The updated design featured a new slanted front end with quad halogen headlights. This one is a Y82 Special Edition, finished in Starlight Black with gold accents, including the famous “Screaming Chicken” hood decal. Today we’re taking a closer look at one of the most memorable American cars of the ‘70s, which sold at the Barrett-Jackson 2025 Scottsdale Auction for $106,700! 

Make sure to subscribe to the ClassicCars TV YouTube Channel for more Interesting Finds!

Today’s AutoHunter Spotlight is this restored 1953 Packard Caribbean convertible. Introduced in 1953, the Caribbean was a semi-custom halo car to help bring attention to the Packard brand, whose reputation had been slipping due to stale styling and lack of V8. Most noticeable were the fully radiused wheel openings and lack of side trim. Power comes from a 327ci “Thunderbolt” straight-eight backed by a two-speed Ultramatic Drive. Features include continental kit, 15-inch wire wheels, power windows, steering, brakes, and top, driver-side mirror, and more. Painted Sahara Sand with a tan top over blue and white interior, this classic chariot is now offered by the selling dealer with a tonneau cover and clear title.

Sahara Beige was one of several limited colors available for the Caribbean. It is complemented by a tan power convertible top. Other features include a continental kit, driver-side mirror, and bright metal wheel openings and belt moldings. Authentic, 15-inch multi-spoke wheels are wrapped in eight-inch American Classic bias-ply wide whitewalls.

The cabin is furnished in blue and white upholstery—Caribbeans had leather, but best to ask the sell how it was reupholstered. Interior features include a column-mounted automatic shifter, power windows, power steering, pushbutton AM radio, and aftermarket under-dash battery shut-off switch.

The instrument panel consists of three dials consisting of a 110-mph speedometer, clock, and gauges for the coolant temperature and fuel. The odometer shows 57,670, though the title reads mileage-exempt.

Powering this classic Packard is an 8.0:1-compression 327ci straight-eight topped by a four-barrel carburetor. Horsepower was originally rated at 180. It is backed by a two-speed Ultramatic Drive transmission.

The undercarriage features power front drum brakes and a single-exit exhaust system.

Packard built only 750 Caribbean convertibles in 1953, quite a respectable number considering the similar Cadillac Eldorado only achieved 532 units. Plus, the ’53 is the only Caribbean that featured radiused rear wheels, which was quite custom and spectacular at the time. Sounds like something that may be hard to resist? Be poised because the AutoHunter auction for this 1953 Packard Caribbean ends on Thursday, July 31, 2025, at 11:30 a.m. (PDT).

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

Before the Tacoma existed, Toyota trucks were simply called “pickups” aside of some regions outside North America, where they went by the name “Hilux.” Toyota pickups of the 1980s became renowned for their ruggedness, reliability, and versatility. Several years ago, I wrote a story about a man who is dedicated to the hobby of restoring 1980s Toyota trucks—in particular, ones that look like the famous black “Back to the Future” movie icon.

Here’s a silver truck from that same era that looks show (or movie)-ready.

The Pick of the Day is a 1988 Toyota SR5 Pickup listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in Eagle, Idaho.

“If you’re looking for a pristine example of the legendary Toyota pickup, this is it,” the listing begins. “This 1988 Toyota SR5 Xtracab 4WD is a one-owner, garage-kept, accident-free, and unmolested original truck with just 90,000 original miles. The truck has been babied its entire life and is in excellent mechanical and cosmetic condition.”

The Hilux/pickup had its fifth generation between model years 1984-88. There were some significant milestones during those years, one of which had to with powertrains. The first time you could get a V6 engine in the pickup came in 1986. A magazine advertisement from that timeframe said, “At 145 horsepower and 180 lb-ft of torque, the Toyota V6 4×4 makes you the king of the mountain. V6 power plus Hi-Trac independent front suspension lets you take on the meanest real estate. Why settle for anything less?”

Power for this truck comes from that heavily promoted fuel-injected 3.0-liter V6 mated to a five-speed manual transmission and dual-range transfer case. The seller says that the engine runs strong without smoke, the transmission shifts smoothly, and the four-wheel-drive system is fully functional. The truck has reportedly been regularly maintained, with available service records backing that up.

The truck has an enthusiast-owned look to it. Upgrades include a sunroof, a color-matched Leer fiberglass shell, and Yakima bike/ski rack. The listing says, “With its low miles, clean title, original equipment, and desirable extras, this truck is ready for its next adventure—or your collection.”

Toyota SR5 pickups enjoy a strong following among enthusiasts and collectors. Personally, I wish I could time-travel back to the 1980s and buy a brand-new one to outfit with KC auxiliary lights just like Marty McFly had. For now, the next best thing might be finding one like this that’s unmodified and ready for many more on- and off-road adventures.

The asking price is $27,000.

Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com