Upper Middle Petrol Head:

It's confession time!  There's a possibility - slim, admittedly - that my tastes are maturing.   Broadening, at least.   My preference has always been for Japanese hardtops, coupes and other sporty variants from the 1970s, along with Italian marques from the late 1950s to the mid-'80s.  I also like modded cars; engine upgrades, rortier exhausts, tightened suspension and aftermarket wheels all do it for me.   This is unlikely to change substantially. So why do I find this circa 1966 Nissan Cedric Custom Six so damned appealing?  It's certainly not down to the model's name!  Cedric, FFS!  (Apologies to Uncle Ced!)  What other monikers were they considering?  The  Nigel ?  The Algernon ??     It's unlikely to be because of the car's performance, either; an archaic 2.0 litre six coupled to a sludge-box is not going to set the world on fire.  Handling probably isn't up to much, nor can I imagine that its braking ...

To my mind, the second generation E20 series Corollas are the best looking, most desirable to ever wear one of Toyota's longest-running nameplates.  And this example - recently fully rebuilt by Tasmanian mechanic Kevin - is as good as any you're ever likely to see, having had countless hours and not insignificant cash lavished upon every aspect of its comprehensive multi-year restoration.     The beautifully stanced body is finished in flawless orange duco with matching bolt-on flares covering 13" x 9" Simmons wheels.  A JDM grille - with Levin badging - graces the nose, nicely complementing the dead-straight, ultra-shiny chrome of the bumper.  The inside's also immaculate, featuring faithfully recreated, era-correct front and rear seats - complete with embossed motifs on the headrests - made in New Zealand but sourced from Canada.  A Momo Corse steering wheel and red-accented gear knob complete the look, with the latter tying in with the seats' r...

  This classically 1950s' designed car - replete with chromed over-riders and bumpers, a big grille and super-sized fins - is not an American offering, even if it does also pack a V8 engine.  It's not an Aussie or British marque, nor is it an obscure Soviet-era vehicle, either.  So what is it ... ? Would you believe that this 2.4 litre V8-engined machine is actually French?  It's a circa 1959 Simca Vedette , to be precise, and it very likely owes its American styling to the fact that Chrysler had a hand in the company, with Simca eventually becoming a subsidiary of their European arm in 1970 (Wikipedia:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simca , accessed 05 JUN 22).   Our Vedette very, very nearly took out June, 2022's, Classics by the Beach Car of the Day but was just pipped by another extremely interesting and super-rare automobile that we'll get to in a minute .... .  Mind you, it's not because the '50s' Simca was a little bit beaten up; the UMPH t...