If you want a Bricklin with a stick, then today's gullwing might just be your plastic fantastic. That is if its price doesn't spoil the fantasy.

Do your remember when you were a kid how much fun it was to play in the big cardboard box that something like an appliance or your dad's new mail-order bride arrived in? I think it's that memory that drives our enthusiasm for boxy old Volvos, especially the longroof editions.

Of course for you, those boxes were free leading to playtime unfettered by concerns about cost. That can't be said for yesterday's wagon, and in fact its price tag proved very concerning, eventually felling it in a 70% Crack Pipe loss.

When the shit goes down the only things left will be cockroaches, Donald Trump's wig, and cars like

I want you to note that - with the notable exception of Tuesday's Gyro, which didn't have a transmission - this week I've given you nothing but stick. Today is no exception.

Malcolm Bricklin once attempted to sell Subaru 360s in the States, a car that looked uncannily like a snail but with even less electric performance. Still, you have Bricklin to thank for bringing Subaru to America, an act that has made Vermonters eternally grateful.

With all that Subaru cash burning a hole in his pocket, Bricklin did what any rational person would and started his own car company. Setting up shop in New Brunswick Canada, Bricklin announced the debut of the SV1 (Safety Vehicle One) for the 1974 model year. Coming at the height of the gas crisis and the economic doldrums here in the States, Bricklin's fiberglass safety car failed to light the sales charts on fire.

In the end, only 2,854 cars left the factory before the company went into receivership in 1976. Of those, the early cars were powered by an AMC 360 and could have been optioned with either a manual or automatic box, while the later cars were auto-only and took on Ford power in the form of a 351 Windsor.

Today's Edmonton, Alberta-located is a mix of both worlds as it has a Ford under its high-top hood AND a manual - a Nash 6-speed stick no less - backing that up. The mill isn't just a 351 either. Yea verily, this car has a romper-stomper 460 Cobra Jet topped with a pair of 650 cfm 4-bbls. For those of you keeping score, that's barrel per pot, and 1300 cubic feet of suck per minute, which according to the seller adds up to 650-bhp.

The engine and transmission are both said to have been rebuilt, and the rest of the car - with a claimed 3,000 miles on the clock - is likewise been restored, albeit back in 1990. The paint still seems to be serviceable although the big black back bumper looks like it's seen some better times.

Air extractors have been added to the front fenders which should aid in cooling the big block. The fiberglass on these cars does not generally hold up all that well, the edges of the hood typically rolling and poking up at the corners. This one's custom cap seems to fit just fine, however.

On the inside things look a bit kit car-ish but that's okay because the Bricklin interior always looked somewhat haphazardly assembled. There's flat seats, cheesy materials, and exposed screw heads where there probably weren't even screws. This one's no worse than any other, although the tall shifter looks a little funky. No word is given in the ad as to the weather tightness of the doors, but that's another area where the SV1 can show its age.

Just like the similarly ill-fated DeLorean, those doors are perhaps the Bricklin's most iconic feature. And it's funny to think that the car's awkward role as a 'safety car' (big bumpers, integrated roll-over bar, no ashtray) was countered by doors that would leave you trapped in a flip-over.

Of course this one's both shiny side up. It also has a price tag of $18,000 and it's now incumbent upon you to say whether that's a deal or not.

What's your take on this big block packing gullwing for that kind of scratch? Does that seem like a fair price based on its presentation in the ad? Or, is that just too much to spread your wings and fly?

You decide!

out of Edmonton, or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to Levdir for the hookup!

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