Mecum’s annual Glendale, AZ auction finished on March 22nd this year, with 1,351 car and truck lots crossing the block over five days and 881 selling (65%). Below are six of the 65 eighties vehicles that sold (out of 85 lots) that attracted my eye.
[Lot G109] 1988 Suzuki Samurai JX SUV. White with a white top and brown/black vinyl front bucket seats. G13A 64 bhp 1.3 liter/81 ci inline four with a one-barrel carburetor, a five-speed manual, and 63,000 miles. $12,000 hammer price for a reasonably stock Samurai.
[G117] 1983 Pontiac Parisienne Brougham sedan. Dark Maroon Metallic with a maroon vinyl top and a maroon cloth front seat. LG4 150 bhp 5.0 liter/305 ci V8 with a four-barrel carburetor, a three-speed automatic, and 102,000 miles. $9,000 for this Canadian market car—the speedometer is the giveaway. I covered the US version earlier this month.
[L189] 1981 Chevrolet El Camino pickup truck. Medium Sandstone Metallic with a tan cloth split-back front bench seat. LC3 110 bhp 3.8 liter/229 ci V6, a three-speed automatic, and 23,000 miles. $10,000 for an unmodified eighties El Camino—which is unusual. I finally published a post about the El Camino recently, discussing the 1987.
[T166] 1980 Chrysler New Yorker Fifth Avenue Edition (you can tell by the front fender louvres) sedan. Black with a Black padded Landau roof and a beige leather and vinyl split 60/40 front bench seat. LA 135 bhp 5.9 liter/360 ci V8 with a two-barrel carburetor, a TorqueFlite three-speed automatic, and 16,000 miles. $11,000—how many are left, especially with the “big” V8? Methinks I should write about these cars …
[T168] 1983 Lincoln Continental Mark VI Bill Blass Edition coupe. Midnight Black upper body over French Vanilla over Midnight Black lower body with a Black Cambria carriage roof and French Vanilla Twin Comfort Lounge front seats with leather seating surfaces (Lincoln’s lengthy description). Windsor 150 bhp 4.9 liter/302 ci V8 with fuel injection, a four-speed automatic, and 18,000 miles. $24,000 is solid money for a 1983 Mark VI. I have written about the debut Mark VI coupe.
[F97] 1989 Chevrolet K5 Blazer Silverado SUV. Gray Metallic with a Gray top and Slate Gray Custom vinyl reclining front bucket seats. L05 210 bhp 5.7 liter/250 ci V8 with electronic fuel injection, a four-speed automatic, and 27 miles. Someone bid $112,500 for an essentially brand-new but 34-year-old Blazer (I have written about the 1985 version).
Eighties Cars 
I’d be interested to know what you come up with re: the New Yorker. I hear varying opinions, some folks think they’re really underrated, while others say they are poster-children for the woes of the early 1980s Chrysler Corporation.
That is solid money for the Lincoln to be sure. Makes sense for the mileage, but this is another car that I’ve heard warnings about re: rust and quality (though I personally think they’re a surprisingly good take on downsizing the Mark V).
I’m going to enjoy covering the New Yorker, which I’ll likely do soon. All the truly big Chryslers were gone by 1984, with the rear-wheel-drive line now inhabited by the mid-size M-body. I’ll chalk it up to a combination of overall market conditions, Chrysler’s finances, and some New Yorker-specific challenges. What the balance of those three reasons should be is likely an opinion.
I could never get over how obviously smaller the Mark VI was compared to the Mark V, which had made such an impression on this grade schooler.
Thanks, as always, for your comment.