These Rusty Monday participants are being consumed by flora and fauna. Plants are feasting on these rusted cars. In damp climes, nothing escapes the moss and Kudzu growing on anything that doesn’t move. As these rusted hulks more often than not find their final resting places in the middle of heavily forested areas, it is inevitable. Mother nature rust slowly consumes them with no possibility of hitting the highways and byways ever again. While we lament the sad end to these rusty road warriors we can also take in the fate of anything that languishes in the damp, swampy zones of the wilderness. 

1955 Dodge station wagon

This is a rather lavishly optioned 1955 Dodge. All of that extra trim, chrome headlight rings, and grille guard identify this as a Custom Royal trim. This was the top of the line Dodge in 1955. This was also the first year for the new Virgil Exner-styled  Chrysler products including Dodge. A fine automobile in its day, it is left to rust and rot in this mossy backwater forest.

1964 Mercury Colony Park wagon

Here’s another top-of-the-line station wagon, this one a 1964 Mercury Colony Park. You can barely make out the fake wood trim under the beltline stainless.

That’s because the moss and foliage have almost completely covered the wagon. It’s hard to say whether there is anything left that makes this restorable.

If the rust worm hasn’t eaten half of the Mercury away it might be worth dragging this out and giving it a shot at restoration.

1978 Ford Pinto Cruising Wagon

In 1977 and 1978 Ford offered what it called the Pinto Cruising Wagon. These were Pinto wagons made into delivery vans with those goofy portholes on each side. The 1977 versions were all silver with graphics but in 1978 you could get an array of paint colors. You can see that the bottom half of this old Pinto has succumbed to the rust. 

1966 Chevy Impala station wagon

Though a bit hard to tell because of the fender damage this is a 1966 Chevy Impala wagon. These Impalas were one notch above the stripper versions of the popular full-size Chevy. You can tell from the trim strip in the middle of the body. By 1966 GM had mostly abandoned fake wood for its wagons. This old wagon is being consumed not by Kudzu but by trees. They’re at all four sides and even through where a 283 ci small block once was housed. 

1934 Chrysler Airflow sedan

Those vents with the chrome trim on the hood sides identify this as at least a 1934 Chrysler Airflow. But, it could be an Imperial version which makes it more desirable and rare. However, it matters not as there isn’t much left of the old sedan. These were ahead of their times and a sales disaster for Chrysler. It finally had to tool up a sedan quickly to help staunch the bleeding. If this is a 1934 Imperial only 106 were produced that year.

Early 1970s Honda Civic

This Honda Civic has just about disintegrated from the rust and Kudzu swallowing it up. The ivy is growing out of it from inside it has become so consumed. We don’t know where this is but we have seen similar sights in and around Hawaii. Give it another year or so and it won’t be recognizable as a car. See you next week for Rusty Monday!