More than 300 cars turned out for the annual Rolling Sculpture car show, a summer fixture in downtown Ann Arbor, Michigan—and we couldn’t let such a thing happen right under our noses without diving in headfirst. As the event’s name suggests, it celebrates the pretty and the artful. So why did we choose to give our Editor’s Choice award to a 34-year-old economy car? Because, heck, they just don’t make ’em like this anymore.
“Marilyn Hill’s 1983 Mercury Lynx may not be the sort of thing most enthusiasts think of when they say ‘collector car,’ ” explained Car and Driver features editor Jeff Sabatini, “but it was clear from the moment she started talking about her prize possession that she loves that car as much as any of the guys with Corvettes or Mustangs.”
It’s also a time capsule, complete with period car phone. This well-preserved example is even an orphan car, the mildly flashier Mercury-badged version of the Ford Escort, a two-door hatchback that many regarded as throwaway cars at the time. And many still do. But look at it! You can’t buy a new Mercury for love or money, but here’s one that’s as good as new just driving around in traffic. Hill told us she inherited the car and used it as an daily driver only briefly before deciding it was better to preserve it than to use it up.
“We’re a new-car magazine, website, and buyer’s guide,” said Sabatini, “and there was no vintage vehicle parked in downtown Ann Arbor Friday night that looked more like it had just rolled out of the showroom.”
Jeff Sabatini presents our major award to Marilyn Hill, owner of this 1983 Mercury Lynx.
“We were also attracted to the Lynx because it fit in with Car and Driver’s long-running Save the Manuals campaign,” said Sabatini. “It even has a ‘5-Speed’ badge on its decklid.”
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