Calling all car "nerds": strangely optioned vehicles you've owned?

[eljefino]

My dad ordered a 1980 Fairmont station wagon without test driving his dream powertrain combo-- 4 speed stick shift and 200-6. Ford gave him the junky Pinto transmission with plastic shift forks and it kept returning to the mechanic until all the forks were replaced with metal units, one at a time.

The powerband of the 6 cyl didn't match well with the transmission and would either scream in 2nd or lug in 3rd when trying to go 25 mph. Because it was a malaise era unleaded gas car it pinged all the time as well.

Pops didn't get AC, of course he didn't. He got "extra comfort" vinyl seats which I guess had more padding than the base model. Got a K-mart radio and butchered the door panels to install speakers. Dad added Sunpro gauges under the glove compartment and admonished me not to kick them. Vacuum, volts, water temp, and something else (not amps or oil pressure.) He also added an air horn with its own special button hidden under the dash. He really hit JC Whitney up!

 

[Zee09]

67 GTO convertible automatic full power with AC.

 

[redbone3]

'73 Nova. Absolutely no options. Window sticker showed base price and final price the same, white paper in between.

 

[GMBoy]

My Fiero is an '88GT and it's unusual because it came without a spoiler. The spoiler was optional on the GT but came standard on the Formula models, but in reality the vast majority of GTs actually did come with the optional spoiler. Not having the spoiler back in 1988 probably seemed cheap but now 30+ years later I really prefer the clean lines of the smooth spoilerless decklid. So do lots of other Fiero owners... I have seen others who removed the spoiler, but mine was the only one I've seen which didn't require filling the holes!

That 88 is the best of the breed too! I always wanted to grab another Fiero V6 one day. Yours is unique!

 

[ammolab]

That is really strange... A v6 and a 5 speed, or a v8 and a Saginaw iron-cased 4 speed... but in '79, what 5 speed would it have been? And what displacement of v8?

My original post error was “Cutlas Supreme”…my car was a Cutlas Salon. Fastback styling on a 2dr that didn’t last long.
I was 4.3 liter V8. 105hp. 0 to 60 was 12+ seconds. The 5 speed stick had a “race” pattern. First was left and back with the next 4 gears in the normal “H”. Not much power, but a nice Highway car. I don’t know the exact maker-model of the transmission.

 

[350Rocket]

I had a 1978 Ford F100 blue and white exterior with a brown interior from the factory. I thought that was really weird but I loved it.

 

[Nick1994]

My '96 Jeep Cherokee was a government vehicle for the Arizona Department of Transportaion. Absolute base model, almost. It's such a base model, it didn't even have rear speakers. Or the wiring for them in the hatch. No tach or temp gauge. No center armrest. No rear wiper. But it did get the 4.0L and locking rear differential.

 

[01rangerxl]

My 1994 Explorer is my unicorn. It's rare in that it's an almost fully loaded 2 door with Eddie Bauer trim. According to the Marti Report, only 97 with that paint/trim combo were made in 1994, which as far as the best selling SUV goes is a pretty low number. It's got a sunroof, JBL stereo, limited slip rear axle, leather, etc. The only things it wasn't optioned with are keyless entry, overhead console, and auto dimming mirror. I've never seen another one like it in person.

 

[OVERKILL]

My E39 M5 had the rear side airbags disabled. I have no idea why, lol.

 

[Cdn17Sport6MT]

My original post error was “Cutlas Supreme”…my car was a Cutlas Salon. Fastback styling on a 2dr that didn’t last long.
I was 4.3 liter V8. 105hp. 0 to 60 was 12+ seconds. The 5 speed stick had a “race” pattern. First was left and back with the next 4 gears in the normal “H”. Not much power, but a nice Highway car. I don’t know the exact maker-model of the transmission.

Cool! I would bet a lot that that's the same five speed as was in the Cosworth Vega. Dog leg shift pattern unit, perhaps reasonable degree of torque rating...

 

[Palut]

I made it a point to order my '18 WRX without Subaru's Eyesight system. I switched from manual to auto for quality of life reasons, but didn't want any nanny systems interfering.

I was surprised they let me order it like that. It also ended up getting me a hand operated parking brake rather than electronic, which is another plus!

 

[eljefino]

My car was a Cutlas Salon. Fastback styling on a 2dr that didn’t last long.
I was 4.3 liter V8. 105hp. 0 to 60 was 12+ seconds. The 5 speed stick had a “race” pattern. First was left and back with the next 4 gears in the normal “H”. Not much power, but a nice Highway car. I don’t know the exact maker-model of the transmission.

I bet anything your pedal assembly and a few other stick shift bits live on in a circle track racer somewhere. The early "metric montes" had several varieties of standard transmissions, all exceptionally rare. And these cars are still going in circles today!

 

[Randy_R]

79 Olds Cutlas Supreme V8 with a 5 speed manual transmission. I believe only 168 were produced that year. My wife worked at the dealership and ordered it for me.

I sold Oldsmobiles from 77-80. A customer ordered a 78 Cutlass Calais, their top of the line sporty trim. It had 260 V8, 5 speed, T-tops, no air.

 

[totegoat]

Ordered a 79 F150 with front quad shocks and posi front and rear. Haven't bought a Ford since.

 

[Cdn17Sport6MT]

Cool! I would bet a lot that that's the same five speed as was in the Cosworth Vega. Dog leg shift pattern unit, perhaps reasonable degree of torque rating...

It's a Borg Warner T-50, a "77mm" transmission, meaning mainshaft and cluster gear shaft spacing is 77mm.

 

[Cdn17Sport6MT]

http://www.britishv8.org/Articles/Borg-Warner-T50-Transmission.htm

 

[Chris142]

My dad bought a 1968 International TravelAll right before the Saudi oil boycott. 304 V8 and 4X4. 4 speed manual. It had a extra fuel tank which came in handy during those times. I don’t know if it was a option or a add on.

If the gas cap was under a rear fender it was stock

 

[joegreen]

Idk how weird it is but i have a 98 ranger xlt. It has no cruise, no power locks, roll up windows but has a/c, cd player, flare side bed, transmission cooler, 4:10 gears, trailer light harness, but has the smaller 7.5in rear end with the larger rear drum brakes but has a dana 35 front axle. Just seems to be a mix of weird parts considering the trim level and towing setup.

 

[FordMan59]

I bought a new '77 Buick Regal that had power locks but no power windows. I always thought that was strange. I think it had every option available except power windows and power seats. It had bucket seats instead of the normal bench seat.

 

[ammolab]

I sold Oldsmobiles from 77-80. A customer ordered a 78 Cutlass Calais, their top of the line sporty trim. It had 260 V8, 5 speed, T-tops, no air.

Houston Texas for me…I checked the box for Air, TWICE!…and then underlined it!