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Junkyard Gem: 1990 Buick Electra Park Avenue

The Buick Electra may be best-known today as the subject of Sir Mix-a-Lot's My Hooptie, but this big luxury machine was one of The General's signature land yachts for more than 30 years. The final model year for the Electra was 1990, and so this very nice 1990 Electra Park Avenue in a Denver wrecking yard is a significant part of GM history. Just look at that plush interior, all blue velour and glossy fake wood! There are plenty of five-year-old cars on the street today with rougher interiors than this car. Thing is, not many used-car shoppers have much interest in a 28-year-old Buick, no matter how well-preserved. Who knows, the '90 Park Avenue may have been the car Royal D and Richie Rich rapped about in Scrapers. Even though there aren't any Electra badges on this car, the Park Avenue didn't become a separate model until the 1991 model year. GM luxury cars had these "coffin handle" door pulls for much of the 1970s and 1980s. Power, all 165 horsepower of it, came from a 3.8-liter Buick V6 driving the front wheels. This car was built on the same platform as the mid-1980s Cadillac DeVille and Oldsmobile 98. This car has the "Concert Sound II" audio system, complete with auto-reverse-equipped cassette deck. Car CD players were still rare, costly items in 1990. Plenty of Detroit cars got these "wire wheel" hubcaps during this era. Buick was the fifth-most-reliable marque in 1990. Hooray! Here's your address for success: Park Avenue. Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1990 Buick Park Avenue View 19 Photos Auto News Bugatti Automotive History Sedan

Bugatti looking to make elongated electric luxury car

Bugatti has been a one-trick pony for awhile now, but that could be changing in a few years. Car reports that the French supercar maker is working on an electric luxury car, due in 2023. The report claims Bugatti will use an elongated version of the platform Porsche is building the Taycan on. Plenty of changes would be made to make it worthy of the Bugatti name — adding copious amounts of carbon fiber and other lightweight exotic materials wouldn't be out of the question, since Bugatti doesn't have to worry about a price point like Porsche does. It also needs to differentiate itself considerably from others under the Volkswagen umbrella to be taken seriously. Car posits that this luxury barge could bring back the Royale name from the early twentieth century. Solid-state battery tech is not ready for production cars yet, but it's speculated that we could see the tech used as replacement for lithium-ion in this car. With no definitive timeline for solid state battery deployment, we'll maintain a healthy level of skepticism for now. Bugatti CEO Stephan Winkelmann spoke of the potential luxury car to Bloomberg at the Geneva Motor Show, too. He claimed the battery-electric car would be more affordable than the brand's usual fare. "There, I would see us doing a battery electric vehicle," Winkelmann said. "There, the balance between performance and comfort is much more important, and it's about daily usability. This is what I see." We don't see Bugatti axing the Chiron and whatever will replace it sometime down the line, so this next car will mean the brand would finally have two concurrent model offerings. Winkelman said the company's priorities for its future cars are changing, with top speed being much lower on the list of priorities, as well. "In Bugatti's future, maximum speed does not play the leading role any more," Winkelmann said. "From now on, we are going to put an emphasis on ultimate overall vehicle dynamics, lightweight and modern sustainable luxury." We've no doubt Bugatti will be able to find homes for nearly anything it produces. Bugatti told Bloomberg that the average Bugatti customer has 42(!) cars parked in the garages of what we can assume are various homes all around the world. Why should those folks have to commute in a stuffy old Rolls-Royce when they could be in a Bugatti?

Historic cars — and a Spitfire fighter plane — go on sale in Britain

An assortment of somewhat eccentric but ultimately appealing vintage collectors’ machinery, topped by a 1983 Lancia Rally “Evoluzione” and featuring Porsches, Bugattis and even a Spitfire fighter plane from World War II, will go to auction in Britain next month. The event, organized by the Bonham/Cars auction organization and scheduled for September 9-10, is formally called the “Revival Sale,” to be held on the grounds of Goodwood, site of the famous track southwest of London. Cutting to the chase, hereÂ’s a look at some of the highlights noted by BonhamÂ’s that are expected to attract substantial bidsÂ…plus thereÂ’s the airplane as the cherry on top. —1973 3-liter Martini Racing Works Team Porsche Carrera RSR 'R7' Endurance Racing Coupe (estimated bid, $4.7 million to $7.25 million.). ThatÂ’s quite a name for quite a race car and a veteran of the 24 Hours of LeMans in 1973. The carÂ’s background goes back to the previous year, when Porsche launched its new 911 Carrera model with engine capacity raised from 2.4 liters to 2.7. A batch of 500 lightweight-bodied 911s was built to achieve governing-body sporting acceptance (homologation) of the new variant. Three versions were offered – the RS (RennSport), RST (touring) and the ultimate racing RSR, of which this 'R7' is one of only four such works team cars to have survived. ItÂ’s also one of only a few cars to wear the classic Martini Racing livery with its dark-blue and red striping upon a German-silver background.  —1967 Toyota 2000 GT (estimate: $835,000-$1.1 million) in Pegasus White is believed to be first acquired by the owner of Toyota Mozambique and was one of only two cars imported to the East African country. Known for its precise engineering and impeccable quality, this Japanese halo car was one of only 351 built in 1967-1970. Over the years, the GT's exterior and interior have been preserved and an engine rebuild was undertaken. It was awarded "Best in Show" at the London Concours in 2022. — 1986 Aston Martin Virage Coupe Prototype (estimate: $315,000 - $440,000). This is a two-door prototype of the company's mainstream model of the 1990s, the Virage. In 1990, the vendor received factory approval to strip down the chassis and rebuild it to his 6Â’3” height.