One Lap of the Web: The fabulous Lockheed Buick Electra, and how to change a tire

Years later, Buick would build an Electra that was seemingly the same size as Lockheed's. Photo by Wikimedia Commons


February 24, 2014


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-- Did you know Zagato once designed some concept cars for Volvo? Ah, there's nothing more romantic than that blend of Italian passion and Swedish melancholic efficiency. The first car came about in 1969 and was named the GTZ, and its obscurity might owe to being hidden in favor of more popular Zagato GTZs. (Like, all of them.) But no, the Volvo GTZ ended up resembling something like a rational Iso Grifo, or maybe a Bristol 411; it disappeared after the Turin show, and it might have even been sold, before vanishing. The GTZ 3000 came next, and looked every way like a Zagato GTZ but with a drooping nose and a Volvo grille. So '70s. So spooky. It's currently awaiting restoration in Sweden, where it will undoubtedly come alive and attempt to kill James Brolin.

-- Want to look like Amelia Earhart? You can start by buying her jacket, resurrected by the Phoenix Project and looking cool enough for automobile duty. Earhart gave her name to a fashion line shortly after her transatlantic flight, the fruits of which were sold at Macy's and comprised mostly coats and windbreakers. They were "reasonably priced," it must be noted, a reflection of Earhart's Great Depression years. At $1,795, the suede flight jacket by the Phoenix Project -- which also makes clothes inspired by the 20th century's greatest icons -- is more handsome than it is Steinbeck-esque frugal. But it's a lot cheaper than the $1.2 million the Museum of Flight raised for a Lockheed Model 10-E Electra, the plane that Earhart was flying when she disappeared. That's right, just call us "Airplaneweek" over here. No idea if Hilary Swank will be sighted by TMZ piranhas walking out of Cycle House on La Cienega and Melrose wearing one of these cute suede numbers.

-- How do you swap a tire at home? Jp Magazine has some tips, some even useful. Step one: wear your Nike cap backwards. Step two: find a lady. (We hear they're out there somewhere.) Step three: you'll need an impact gun, a torque wrench, a pair of tire irons, a flathead screwdriver, a Hi-Lift jack, a 1997-2006 Jeep Wrangler with big bumpers, a miter saw, a ball-peen hammer, a can of PB Blaster, a six-pack of Shiner Bock, something called "Euro Paste," a pool noodle, a rubber chicken, a box of fish sticks, a copy of Samuel Beckett's "Endgame," and a Skeletor mask. Oh, and another tire. Assembly, as we all know, is the reverse of disassembly. And just to reiterate: step two is crucial. Good luck.

Image via Wikimedia Commons.