Spotted during a service call: Checkers, anyone?

[redcarpetdrew]

As I was passing thru the garage to enter the house, I saw this. A 1978 Checker Marathon! All the way from Florida to Nevada.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The lady of the house's daily driver from new. A bit of rust thru here and there but she hopes on of her kids will pity this and restore it...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

She must have been a real looker of a car in her day. Did the best I could to get some pics as the garage was crowded...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The grill that put the fear of God in uncounted New York pedestrians, jaywalkers, other drivers and most likely filled the rear view mirrors of Pedi-Cab drivers as well!

 

[redcarpetdrew]

More...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The dashboard...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

She remembered piling the kids into the back and going for drives. Bought during the period when Checker was starting to shift focus from the cab market that was already looking for more fuel efficient cars to the general public in hopes of selling cars. I was told that 1983 was pretty much the end. The original upholstery color is just killing me!

 

[redcarpetdrew]

A few pics of an American classic, which is still running AND registered!, for you to enjoy.

 

RCD

 

[wayupnorth]

That thing looks great for the age. I always loved how Checker took parts and pieces from the best of other cars and made them into something that was so long lasting. Wonder if it has the 225 slant six Chrysler engine that the taxis had. And that brake pedal looks just like a Ford. And the steering wheel looks like a mid 70's GM.

 

[westingman123]

Whoa, Nellie! Thanks for the posting this, Andy. If the kids don't want it, they should send it Missouri-way.

 

[whirlcool]

I think those are seat covers on the seat. A family down the street from us had a 1975 Checker Marathon bought new. It was white on the outside and had maroon velvet seats. The door panels were the same color as on the car in the photos.
I got to ride in it a few times. You could tell it was a very solid car and was much quieter inside than the Checker Cabs. Plus the owners said it got very good gas mileage.
But even then you never say too many private Checkers on the road, unless they were converted from taxi cabs.

 

[hydralique]

Checker used Chevy sixes and small-block V8s for years along with GM transmissions; if they used any Chrysler powertrain components I don't think it was for long.

 

[rp2813]

I wonder how the leadership at Checker could ever have thought they'd be successful in marketing a quirky sedan with 50's style to the general public circa 1980.  I can appreciate the Checker in some ways, like how it leaves the VW Beetle in its dust when it comes to staying true to the original design, but the original design wasn't all that pretty and the interiors uninspired. 

 

I think the opera windows, already a Detroit has-been treatment by 1978, look both ridiculous and hideous.  Probably the best thing that could have happened to Checkers would have been a shared fanaticism for such cars among enthusiasts into hydraulics and airbrushing.

 

[petek]

I read somewhere that they had an unusual two position hood locking mechanism whereby the hood could be either fully closed or a second position a couple of inches higher which allowed engine heat to escape around the permimeter so as to minimize overheating in all the stop/start city traffic. 

 

[whirlcool]

And if I remember correctly Checkers were rather expensive cars, priced somewhere between Buick, Olds & Cadillac. But for the money you got a lot of car that could easily last 300,000 miles.

 

[cfz2882]

parts for the "big three"

i heard somewhere that checker remained in business producing metal stampings and
other parts for the"big three" after they stopped making cars in mid-'82.

 

[westie2]

I have a lady friend that loves these
Checkers and has bought everyone that she has found for sale as either replacement fo rher car of for parts to her Checker.  They are good big cars.

 

 

[goatfarmer]

The pride of Kalamazoo, MI. Bankrupt in 2009.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Checker_Motors_Corporation

 

[washernoob]

WHAT IS THIS???

I have never in my life seen one of these! Really unique! Wish it had chrome bumpers and a little more retro dash, but otherwise, that is really unique!

 

[Ultramatic]

I remember...

<span style="font-size: medium;">when they were so prevalent here in NYC. Amazingly spacious and comfortable. One note though, when Pedi-cabs came along here, Checkers were long gone from the streets of NYC. </span>

 

<span style="font-size: medium;">And this is the latest incarnation of the NYC Yellow Cab...a damn Nissan!</span>

 

<span style="font-size: medium;">
</span>

 

[Ultramatic]

The original Checker with that body style, 1956 A8

 

[whirlcool]

The Checker came with chrome bumpers until the 1970's I think. Then they just went with silver painted ones.

At one point in time is was pretty difficult to call a taxi in a large city and NOT get a Checker! I remember seeing those horrid last model Chevrolet Caprice's turned into cabs. You'd also see them as police cars too. But it wasn't the same.

Ed Cole was behind Checker in the later years of the company. He was the engineer who designed to Corvair & Vega for Chevrolet as well as the one who put the horsepower behind the Corvette in the 1950's. Quite brilliant actually. But his final iteration of Checker was an idea to buy Volkswagen's that were made in the Pennsylvania and stretch them into limos. But that never happened.

 

[strongenough78]

A limo service here in Fresno has a Checker Cab stretched into a limo. If I find a picture or link to it, I'll post it.

 

[whirlcool]

Coule it be a Checker Aerocab? Those came with the factory with 4 doors on each side of the car. They were used mainly at airports & train stations for large crowds. I think they would seat 12-14 people at a time.

 

[58limited]

There was one of these in Temple, Texas when I lived there in the late 80s through the mid-1990s. I always loved them, and couldn't believe they kept this body style into the eighties.

 

[rp2813]

There's a super-stretched one around here that's presumably used mainly for kid parties.  It elevates the term "hideous" to new heights.

 

 

http://www.artcar.blogspot.com/2008/11/calliope-worlds-hairiest-caterpillar.html

 

[hydralique]

Checker kept the same body pressings for decades because they couldn't afford to do a new car of their own.

 

[strongenough78]

Whirlcool, no it only has four doors, 2 front 2 back. It was a regular Checker Cab that he stretched himself. Here's the link to his site. The owners name is Simon, he's a very cool guy with a thick British accent. He specializes in Jaguar sedans and limos as well. His cars are beautiful.

http://bigcitylimo.com/Big_City_Limo.php

 

[whirlcool]

I never liked the concept of "art cars". We have a huge art car movement here in Houston with an annual parade. To say that most of the people associated with that event are "strange" is an understatement. It's the height of the "artsy-fartsy" movement.

 

[davey7]

Chicago was a big Checker city, you never saw cabs driving anything else. They were even moderately common in some neighborhoods, people would always try to flag them down when they were "civilian" models.