Saturday, December 25, 2010

Simply Simca: 1971 1204 3 door

More than two years ago I ran across this car in a three-car parcel of Simcas for sale. The cars had been purchased by a church parish for use by their rectory and were being offered by a small town motorcycle repair shop. Now it is for sale again on Craigslist. There was a yellow car and a light blue car as well, and I believe the current seller also acquired those. This was the roughest of the three, but with its racing stripes it was also the most intriguing.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/wcl/cto/2126857517.html

Simcas in the U.S. are pretty rare. Though critically acclaimed by the motoring press, they were a huge flop in America. The cars themselves were pretty interesting, with 62hp four cylinder, front wheel drive powerplants. Lots of headroom and a quirky French ergonomics. They were sold by Chrysler dealerships in the early 1970's. What could go wrong with that plan?!

This car was relatively solid for a Simca in The Rust Belt. The seller has the right idea...this would be an interesting car for the 24 Hours of Lemons (which is essentially an enduro for sub-$500 cars). Or a true Francophile could outfit the car to mimic one of the factory 1204 Rally cars. At the $300 asking price, you will have more money tied up in your time and effort to get her home.

1 comment:

  1. please tell me what happened to these...

    I need a simca.



    tSoG
    dead_rabbit_society@yahoo.com

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