Trucks were made to work, but we’d be willing to make an exception for this 1953 Chevrolet 3100 we saw at the Barrett-Jackson 2024 Scottsdale Fall Auction. As part of a 2011 frame-off restoration, it received a handsome two-tone green finish as well as fresh chrome and an oak plank bed floor with matching side rails. There’s more green inside the cab as well as a bench seat reupholstered in two-tone gray vinyl and cloth.

One thing you won’t see in there is the fuel tank because that’s been reinstalled underneath the bed. The 235ci I6 under the hood is connected to a four-speed manual transmission. Maybe the person who won this classic American truck with a bid of $44,000 drives it to local car shows. Or maybe they use it to carry building materials for a home improvement project. What would you do with this 1953 Chevrolet 3100? Tell us in the comments below.

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Today’s AutoHunter Spotlight is this 1967 Mercury Cyclone hardtop. As the sportiest car of the Comet series, the Cyclone came standard with bucket seats and was powered by a 200-horsepower 289, though the GT Performance Group added a 320-horsepower 390 and other equipment. If you wanted something in-between, you could opt for a 390 two-barrel and four-speed manual, which is how this Cyclone was originally built, making it one of 209. A lot has happened since 1967, with this vehicle being the recipient of a fuel-injected 4.6-liter and five-speed manual transmission transplant. Other features include a factory GT hood, Eaton Detroit Locker differential, four-wheel disc brakes, and more. Painted Inverness Green with a black vinyl interior, this updated muscle car comes from the selling dealer with a Deluxe Marti Report and a clear title.

The original color for this Cyclone was Inverness Green, and that’s the color that continues to present itself for your viewing pleasure, though now the front and rear bumpers have been painted black. There’s more black-out happening with the grille, front and rear bezels, and driver-side mirror. Other features include the optional GT fiberglass hood (one of 491 hardtops to be so equipped) and a set of 17-inch American Racing wheels wrapped in 245/50 Nitto radials.

The black vinyl interior features two bucket seats with a Hurst shifter mounted between them. Other cabin characteristics include the factory AM radio, aftermarket Grant steering wheel, power steering, and padded dashboard.

Instrumentation includes AutoMeter 160-mph speedometer and 8,000-rpm tachometer, plus the original coolant temperature and fuel gauges. Additionally, a set of aftermarket gauges reside underneath the dashboard. The odometer currently reads 545 miles though the title reads mileage-exempt.

The original big-block has been replaced by a fuel-injected 4.6-liter “Modular” V8 and five-speed manual sourced from a late-model Mustang GT. A Champion aluminum radiator is a noteworthy addition.

The undercarriage features a nine-inch Ford rear with Eaton Detroit Locker differential housing 3.25 gears. Other features include power four-wheel disc brakes, Mustang II front suspension, four-link rear suspension, and Heidts crossmember.

Cyclones never sold in great numbers, with this 1967 Mercury Cyclone being one of only 2,682 hardtops built (those with the GT package were actually more popular). It has a classic look of the era that, when combined with the nifty GT hood and modern mechanicals, make for a very nice modified muscle car. And, lucky you, it was a modified with a five-speed manual instead of an overdrive automatic! Don’t hesitate—get your trigger finger ready and place a bid because after 12:45 p.m. (PDT) on Thursday, August 21, 2025, this Mercury will have a new owner. Will it be you?

Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery

American trucks are made to complete difficult, demanding jobs. And since they work, technically, that means they can change careers. Our Pick of the Day, a 1978 Chevrolet C10 Silverado Big-10, started out as a workhorse pickup but is now going in a completely different direction. You can find it on ClassicCars.com listed by a dealership in Roseville, California.

Do you remember Nissan‘s Titan XD from a few years ago? Available with a Cummins turbodiesel V8, it was a considered a “heavy half-ton” truck: beefier than a half-ton, but not quite as burly as a Ford F-250 or Ram 2500. Think of the 1978 Chevy Big-10 you see here as a sort of American predecessor to that truck. Chevy’s 1978 truck brochure describes the Big-10 as “the heavy-duty half-ton that’s equipped to handle bigger and tougher jobs than a regular half-tonner” with GVWRs (Gross Vehicle Weight Ratings) of 6,050 or 6,200 pounds. To prepare its ‘tweener truck for countless days at job sites, Chevy installed a Massive Girder Beam independent front suspension with a 3,400-pound capacity and heavy-duty front coil springs, rear leaf springs, and power front disc and rear drum brakes. Engine options ranged from a 250ci six to a four-barrel 454 V8.

This particular Big-10 still has its factory big-block, which is paired with a TH400 three-speed automatic, but now it seems to be a sport truck. Thanks to a professional lowering job, it sits low to the ground on its powder-coated Chevrolet truck Rally wheels and BFGoodrich radials. According to the selling dealer, the original paint was matched, which appears to be a combination of Santa Fe Tan and Buckskin.

Just because this Big-10 was originally designed to be a work rig, that doesn’t mean it’s completely devoid of frills. As a Silverado model, it comes with a full set of gauges and metallic trim, as well as the power locks and windows, and air conditioning that someone was smart enough to add while configuring this truck. One thing it doesn’t have is a lot of miles; the odometer shows approximately 58,500 original miles.

If you buy this 1978 Chevrolet C10 Silverado Big-10 for $49,995, you’ll have a fun job to do: putting bigger numbers on the odometer as you burn up the rear tires.

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

What is the best car of the past half-century? Some Corvette? Prius? Certainly, it will be something that has created reverberations throughout the industry. According to Best Cars of the Year—The New Car World Championships, it’s the Volkswagen Polo.

Polo?! Double-you-tee-eff?

Suspend disbelief and let’s examine this further before throwing expletives: This is a Euro-centric selection we are dealing with, so we should look at it with different eyes. Europeans, of course, have a different market with different needs, different laws, and different roads (never mind the Brits drive on the wrong side of the road).

The Polo, being the Volkswagen that was a notch down in size from the Rabbit/Golf, was never sold in the United States, so it is difficult to fathom from an American point of view why it would be selected. So, who’s doing the crowning here?

Best Cars of the Year is a British non-profit that runs the New Car World Championships. According to its website, “At the heart of the project sits a genuinely unique, hand-picked judging panel that votes for (or against), then announces the latest World Champion vehicles for consumers across the globe.” The international judges are made up of designers, engineers, motorsports legends, journalists, broadcasters, and more. They all work within a democratic system to cast their votes for any car regardless of price or volume.

The team of judges select the New Car World Champion every year, plus several cars in more discrete categories (such as Best Car Line-up, Best Sports Car, and Best Affordable Hybrid). For 2025, the Best Cars of the Year folks decided to ask the judges to determine the Best Cars of the Half Century. The Polo, which was introduced 50 years ago, was their selected winner.

“The 20 million motorists who have been buying Volkswagen Polos since 1975 cannot be wrong,” says Mike Rutherford, founder of the Best Cars of the Year—The New Car World Championships. “It’s the most consistently credible supermini of the past 50 years and has repeatedly hit the sweet spot in terms of understated design, overall dimensions, build quality, competitive retail pricing, efficiency and low standing and running costs. It’s super strong on overall affordability, durability and longevity.”

Since its introduction, the Volkswagen Polo has been among the top 20 best-selling cars in Europe, with worldwide sales of 20 million during its tenure. Interestingly, the Polo was simply a rebadged Audi 50 that was introduced the year before. However, as Audi began to primarily focus on more upmarket vehicles, the 50 was discontinued after 1978.

If we were to focus on the North American market, what do you think the best car of the past half-century would be? Tell us in the Comments section below.

In this installment of the series on the used car market of the 1970s according to Consumer Guide, it’s time for the third and final member of the Mopar trio: Dodge. Before researching and writing this story, I predict that, for the most part, the story on Dodge will be the same as Plymouth’s and close to Chrysler’s.

In most cases, both Dodge and Plymouth shared cars, but with different styling. There’s a few cases where Dodge had a Charger while Plymouth had no such equivalent, but the Charger is still a B-body so there’s a small chance for Dodge’s roster to be different (aside of a particular captive import). That’s my theory.

Am I correct? Let’s see what happens below. Please note the CG rating scale of 5 being Excellent and 1 being Poor.

Dodge
“Management continued to believe the economy car a fad while drivers lined up for miles to get a ration of gasoline during the oil embargo.”

• Aspen: “Replaced the reliable, compact Dart in mid-1976, but proved much less trustworthy … [though] a satisfactory car if you find a good one.” CG rating: 5
• Challenger: “Main detractions are many: laughable rear seat and trunk space, poor outward visibility, feel-less power steering, and a dismal repair record.” CG rating: 1
• Dodge Charger: “Shares the dismal recall records of the 1971-74 Coronet, much of which is traceable to sloppy workmanship.” CG rating: 1-2
• Dodge Charger/Magnum: “Same lackluster repair record as Cordoba, along with rather limited back seat accommodations and spendthrift fuel consumption.” CG rating: 1-2
• Coronet: “Scores well for handling and steering response … willingness to rust means not many examples survive today.” CG rating: 1-2
• Coronet/Monaco (1975-78): “Overall repair record improved to average for all years, except 1977-78 Monaco V8s, which rated below par.” CG rating: 2-3
• Dart: All models offer better-than-average handling and road-holding, good outward vision [save coupes], and a very good repair record.” CG rating: 5
• Diplomat: “It is based on a compact car, but offers the interior room of an intermediate.” CG rating: 4
• Mirada: “About as roomy as before, and somewhat more economical.” CG rating: N/A
• Monaco/Polara: “Dirt-cheap to buy, but not operate … expect costly repairs on electrical servants.” CG rating: 2
• Monaco/Royal Monaco: “Repair record to date rates slightly below average marks [but] to its credit, the big Dodge exhibits good open-road behavior, a comfortable ride, and lots of stretch-out space.” CG rating: 2-3
• Omni: “It is peppy to drive, and handles more like an American car than a European model.” CG rating: 5
• St. Regis: “Despite the weight reductions, car is still rather heavy, even for a late-model full-size, though about as roomy as before.” CG rating: N/A
• Colt (1977-79): “Workmanship generally good … but far behind its front-drive competitors for design efficiency.” CG rating: 4
• Colt (1979-80): “An excellent used-car buy.” CG rating: N/A