Previously: “I guess we took that corner too fast…”

The Edsel’s most memorable design feature was its trademark “horsecollar” or toilet seat grille, which was quite distinct from other cars of the period. According to a popular joke at the time, the Edsel “resembled an Oldsmobile sucking a lemon”. Some have speculated that the car failed to sell because its grille resembled a vulva.

I walk to work everyday, which means my Vespa ends up seeing very little action during the week. But when I get to Spear St, I’m enticed by a block-long row of parked motorcycles and scooters, of all shapes and sizes. I have no plans to get another two-wheeled means of personal conveyance (anytime soon), but that doesn’t keep me from wanting one. Perhaps in a future life.

You may recall that I posted some pictures of the Triumph Bonneville here before (see: Vintage racers and Vespa is a gateway drug…), so I decided to check out their 2009 model. They made a few design changes which make this cool bike even cooler. And which make me want it even more.

In particular I really dig the shorter front mudguards and the shape of the exhaust pipes. I still love the black engine components, and I like that they went with a painted Triumph badge, rather than a glued-on piece of chrome—though I’d just as soon prefer a clean tank without any branding. The only thing I don’t like are the new, modern-looking cast wheels. They’re not bad, I just prefer the old-school spoked wheels. I’m sure they could be come by, as spoked wheels are standard issue on the Bonneville T100.

I’m not sure what type of car this is, I’m assuming a 1970s-era Dodge.

Update: I desaturated the background of this photo (a similar effect I’ve applied in some other car photos: Pink VW Cabrio on Pine Street, I ♥ 500, The Karmann Ghia) to accentuate the illusion that the car is hovering.

Which reminds me of this patch:

I remember seeing one of these on the messenger bag of some dude on a motorcycle riding alongside me down Lombard, back when I used to scoot over the bridge to Sausalito every day. Seeing the “Death Monsters Ahead” stencil graffiti made me think of it again.