North Smithfield Auto Recycling Salvage Yard

1/4/23

David: Originally Sam and I were planning on going to North Providence Auto Salvage to look for more parts, but for some reason the staff didn't want us back there, so we left and went here instead. North Smithfield Auto Recycling was a bit of a hike but worth it. This was a super cool place! Although being deferred from NPAS was a bummer, I did enjoy exploring the wasteland of classics at NSAR. Although, some didn't look that dead compared to most, as Sam will mention throughout this entry. Overall though, NSAR was a huge place to go junkyard diving.

Sam: I agree with David! This place was really cool to stop by and check out. There were lots of sedans and B-bodies in this yard, which you know makes me happy. Some of them didn't appear to be in too terrible of shape, but they'd all seen plenty of better days. There aren't too many of places like this left, so it was nice to find another one close to home.

NSAR '70s Ford Tow Truck

David: This Ford wrecker was at the very main entrance to North Smithfield Auto Recycling. It looked nice from a far, but after seeing this close up photo, it seems to have accumulated some moss. North Providence Auto Salvage also has their own classic tow truck, so I guess its tradition for a salvage yard to have an old tow truck displayed.

"Memory Lane" at NSAR

David: When we first walked in, the yard was super haunting because the fog and cloudy weather had created this ghostly aurora, which showed these classics at the top of the hill in a very obscured manner. I wish I took a photograph of it, but I doubt my iPhone camera wouldn't have captured it well.

Above: 1969 Ford Falcon Futura

David: I'd say out of all the classics here, this was probably the most savable, although some spots did show some concerns. I do think it was my favorite car from today's haul of finds.
Sam: I think the rear-end collision and rust sprouting up everywhere is what took this car off the road. Too bad. It was last tagged in 2019. Someone could probably save this last-gasp Falcon, but they'd their work cut out.

Above: Falcon in Focus

David: As you can see, this Falcon is powered by a straight six. I'm not sure which engine, but if I had to guess, maybe the 200 CI? I could be wrong.

Above: 1970 Pontiac Catalina 400 Sport Sedan

David: This too was mostly complete. Although, it had a fair amount of rot around the rear dog legs. However, there was another '70 Catalina that would've been a great donor for this car. I also really like the green paint and black vinyl top. I'm typically not one to favor green cars, but this looks good.

Above: Catalina Close Ups

David: Seeing these bumper stickers up close, it appears this car spent a fair amount of time down south. It also spent time up north in Quebec, with a bumper sticker on the front bumper reading "I love Hampshire, Quebec." This is truly a driver!

Sam: Seeing the bumper stickers makes me picture the car packed with a family on their way to a vacation in Florida. It's almost sad to see it here. With the wipers stopped mid-wipe, it's almost as if someone plucked it off of the interstate in 1988 and dropped it off at this junkyard in 2023. I would save this car if I had the space.

1970 Pontiac Catalina Sedan

Sam: This is basically the sedan version of the green hardtop. Something must have happened in the interior at one point as there were two tan door panels on the passenger side, while the rest of the interior was black. I checked to see if it was because the doors had been replaced, but they hadn't. They wore the same maroon paint under the gray primer that the rest of the car had. If you bought this car and the green Catalina, you could probably make a whole car, although you'd need some more sheet metal for the quarters and lower fenders. The frame on this one was also rotting out.

Above: 1973 Cadillac Eldorado

Above and Left: 1961 Cadillac Eldorado

David: Although its seen quite better days, this Caddy had an interior as if it were ripped straight from the '60s. Inside, this had shag carpeted seats and deck lid, all in purple and maybe yellow. I say maybe because we really couldn't make out what they used to be colored since the junkyard residue seemed to have gotten the best of the seat covers. Yuck.

Above and Left: 1965 Cadillac Sedan DeVille

David: This Caddy got de-roofed! Sam commented that he thought this was a convertible then realized it was a 4 door. I guess this person wanted the Lincoln Continental experience in a Caddy? A Lincoln this is not, and a convertible this is not.

1990s Ford LTD Crown Victoria

David: This is a fairly recent addition to the yard. If you look closely at the inspection sticker, it says 2022. However, something pretty tragic must've happened to this Ford because it now resides here. I also couldn't open any of the doors except the passenger side door, so who knows.

Above: 1970 Pontiac LeMans Remains

Above: 1970 Cadillac Sedan DeVille

Above: 1952 Chevy Coupe

David: Despite the "54 Chevy" written on the car, this is indeed a '52 Chevy. It can be tough to tell the date on these old Chevys but the trusted bumper identification trick helped me accurately ID this car. This also was the oldest car in Memory Lane.

Above: 1952 Chevy Interior

David: We also decided to include some interior photos of the car, as this was one of the few cars that, one, had a complete dashboard, and two, didn't have car parts filling the interior. We though the aftermarket gauge cluster looked pretty nice too.

Above and Left: GMC Jimmy Sierra Classic Remains

Above and Left: Chevy C-10 Pickup

Above: Chevy K-10 Scottsdale

Above: 1974 Cadillac Eldorado

1975 Cadillac Eldorado Convertible

Above and Left: Early 1980s Chevy Corvette C4 Remains

David: Well here's one C4 that made it out of Cranston... barely.

Above: Pontiac Fiero

David: Among the more modern cars in Memory Lane was this Pontiac Fiero. I'm unsure if it is a 2M4 car though, since that trunk lid looks to be a replacement. I really like the front end shot photo I took of this car. You can see most of the cars we checked out, as well as that '68 Pontiac that I for some reason forgot to photograph. I don't know why I missed on that, because it was a nice car, and reminded us a lot of the Pontiac seen in Goodfellas. On a more comedic note, it looks like the car is taking a selfie with the other cars in Memory Lane.

Above: 1984 GMC C-Series Squarebody Pickup

David: To conclude our adventure at NSAR, we finish off with two classic trucks. First up, we have an '80s GMC Squarebody. I couldn't tell excactly what year this was, but going by forums, I believe this is an '84. I love these style of rims that GM put on the Squarebody trucks. It was also for sale too, which prompted us to check it out. Sam noted it was missing the "M" in in GMC, and then I noticed it had a Chevy tailgate. Truly one of a kind, as they say.

Above and Left: 1989 Dodge Ram 250

David: Our second truck for today is this well aged Dodge Ram. You know I love these old trucks, and this one is no exception. It's got some great patina on it, and the two tone paint looks pretty cool. Keep on truckin' Dodge!

Bonus Content

Lone Buick Wheel

David: Sam had spotted this right before the entrance to Memory Lane. It wasn't even in Memory Lane, it was lying here as you see it before a row of junked modern cars. We both wondered if it belonged to a car in Memory Lane, but as we came to find out, there were no Buicks to be seen. If anyone needs a spare Buick wheel with this style rim, here you go!

"Catalina" Badging from a Not Photographed 1968 Pontiac Catalina

David: For some reason, I only photographed the badging on this '68 Pontiac. I have no idea why I didn't photograph the whole car, but to prove you aren't going crazy, yes there was a '68 Pontiac you saw in the Fiero photo! Perhaps this will give us another reason to come back here.

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