What cars did you have when ...

...you started driving? Here's a subject that hasn't come up in a while.

67' Triumph Spitfire 4 Mk2 convertable, 1800cc w/ 4 speed and 4 wheel indipendant suspension. This car drove like it was on rails.

68' Camaro 327ci balanced engine - regularly ran the rpm's up to 7,500 or so. had both power glide and TH350 w/ shift kit. Possibly the car I had the most fun in.

68' RS Camaro 350ci, T-10, California car, currently removing the quarter panels for replacement.

69' Plymouth Barracuda coupe, 318ci 2 bbl, 727 trans, and the ugliest car I ever owned. Wish I still had it.

71' Malibu 305ci, TH350, nothing to write home about but a fun car anyway.

72' Malibu 307ci, TH350, same as above.

72' Malibu 307ci, yada yada...

73' Gremlin X 304ci, Super T-10, 4.11:1 rear. Scary faaasst.

74' Buick Apollo hatchback, original 350/auto bit the dust, left a connecting rod on the N.Y. State Quickway Rt.17. Installed 400 out of a 69' Poncho GTO. Tried to kill me twice by breaking the motor mounts.

74' Plymouth Fury Sport, 318 2bbl/auto. You could launch an airplane off of the hood. Huge doors also.

78' Camaro 305ci, Th350... went through about 6 transmissions on this car. The engine was just blessed. Probably the fastest I've ever been was in this car. Speedo was pointed strait down on the 130 mph speedo that came out of an abandoned 2nd Gen RS.

83' Thunderbird Turbo Coupe. Never made it on the road

88' Firebird Formula. 305 TPI/T-5 put away for the winter.

00' Mustang GT convertable. Lots of power, handles ok, but there are a few things that bother me about it.

There's other cars but they don't really count for me.

...Ron

--

68' Camaro RS 88' Firebird Formula 00' Mustang GT Vert
Reply to
RSCamaro
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ALMOST had a '67 Mustang Coupe when I was 16...frame crossmembers let got when I went to pick it up, so I only got 4 hours cruisin' out of it before I went home....without it. :(

Ended up with Dad giving me his old '75 Buick Regal.

After that, '85 Camaro Berlinetta, fresh off the lot. ;) SO far, no "new" cars since. Too damned much $$$ for what you get anymore...

'78 Firebird was a project car, until I found my

'73 Mustang Grande which I sold to get the firebird motor redone. (Yeah, real stupid...why, you ask? 'Cause after I had the motor done up, interior fixed up fine, new brakes/tires all around...I got it totalled by a drunk driver!!! You'd be surprised how far the ass end of a late 70's Camaro/Firebird can crumple when it's hit by a pickup truck with a full frame underneath!)

Found myself an '86 Camaro in good shape, so I snagged that one...then I had some troubles with the '85, so I snagged an '84 Berlinetta as a Parts car.

Got tired of paying out the wazoo for gas, so I picked up an '85 Mexican Corvette..no wait....a Pakistani Ferrari....no wait...it was a 'Vette alright...just add a "Che" on the front. ;)

Now I'm back to just the bike--an '85 Virago 500--and the '85 Berlinetta.

Reply to
ElectroPig

'58 Austin Healey 100-6 had .060 overbore and 270 Isky cam. Used to smoke

351 mustangs in the 1/4 due to the electric overdrive that worked in 3rd as well as 4th. Pissed them to have to go back and tell everybody that they got beat by a 6 CYLINDER!

'67 Impala 2dr with 275 hp 327 and a 'glide. Made it out of 2 wrecked cars. Doors forward was blue, back was gold. At 17 I pulled the engine down & souped it up because 275 wasn't near enough back then, in 1973. Those were the good 'ol days, but then again I'm an old fart.

(strange, the 350 street sleeper I'm putting in the '88 T/A has an Isky cam too...go figure) Couple of pictures are here:

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W.

Reply to
Andy Warren

OK, I'll bite, sounds like fun.

My first "car" was a truck, in 1977 I bought my great-uncle's 1969 Chevy short bed fleetside pickup with a 307 V8, I got it when I was 17, a junior in high school. I overhauled it, took off the Rochester 2bbl and put in a Carter WCFB 4bbl, and put in a new cam to replace the old one with a couple of flat lobes. Three-on-the-tree, would smoke the 11" mud grips in 2nd gear. Lots of fun, had a killer 8-track (for you kids that was what we had before cassette tapes), chrome spoke wheels and a metallic blue paint job I put on myself.

Ok, I've had several cars/trucks since then, but my favorite was the project I had while I had that truck. While driving that truck, my project was a '67 Firebird. I pulled what was left of the old OHC 6 cyl. and PowerGlide and replaced them with a 327 and TH350, both of which I built myself. I bought the 327 from a guy who took it apart and couldn't get it all back together, bought it in several boxes of parts and the guy even threw in a set of Mickey Thompson Super Stock headers with it. $75.00 for the engine and headers. I bought the transmission from a wrecking yard out of a '72 Chevelle, rebuilt it and put pin a shift kit. Dunno how fast it really was, I checked it at 140 once and it was still going a little bit.

I know, this is getting long and boring...

I let my little sister drive that car to high school when I finished it since I figured she'd take it easy. So, with 120 miles on the fresh engine and transmission, she raced a guy in a brand new Z28 and beat him! I tried to be mad at her... It's a wonder she survived, I had second-hand tires and awful brakes.

My daughter has pix of it on her web site, along with her '77 T/A we finished building about 6 months ago (if you ever really finish....) at:

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I don't take any blame or credit for whatever else is on her website, she's a kid!

Hope my reminiscing didn't bore you, but you asked!

Kerry Miller Former owner of a cool (hot?) '67 Firebird Now my daughter's mechanic for a '77 T/A and driver of a stodgy 2004 F-150 pickup.

Reply to
""kmiller"

First car, '73 Camaro bought in '79 from original owner for $2100 US. Still have it. (metalic brown with gold Z-28 stripes, ZZ3, original

350 went into the other '73 Camaro, shoulda kept it for originality purposes, oh well)

'69 Camaro (was metalic green, painted red with black Z-28 stripes,

6cyl.) '70 Firebird (white. transplanted a 400 from a 72 Pontiac Grande Ville) '83 Mazda PU '73 Camaro (another one, red black Z-28 stripes) '80 Porsche 928 (sitting in the garage untill I get around to finishing or selling) '93 Dodge Stealth ES (red, first brand new car, today's daily driver, only 28K miles) '98 Dodge Durango (selling at the end of this week) And company cars '87 Dodge Charger (POS hatchback, lots of room for empty 7-11 cups in passenger seat floor area) '89 Chevy Celebrity wagon (good vehicle, cups kept spilling over to driver side) '93 Dodge Caravan (another good vehicle, and another cup problem) '98 Ford Windstar (under-powered POS)
Reply to
Phil Indablank

1984 Trans Am. First car, bought it when I was 17. Wisconsin winters are slowly returning it to the earth. Still have it. 1971 Trans Am. Bought it when I was 18 and still in high school. Still have it. 1981 Trans Am. Rare 305/4-speed. Bought it to play with and resell. 1973 Trans Am. Bought it because I couldn't pass at the price. Still have it.
Reply to
Dennis Smith
90 Grand Am 2.5....that Iron Duke was not too bad for what it was...small engine for a boring family 4 door

85 Nissan Maxima....Good 'Ole Nissan 3.0 my dad had a 93 and 97 Mercury Villager with the same motor.....I drove it hard, and it never died....but damn, the AC compressor was FIFTEEN HUNDRED BUCKS! (and a 400 dollar alternator LOL)

98 GMC Sonoma....4.3, just a pickup truck

Jason

Reply to
Jason Sobol

Oh yeah....the 86 Trans Am which is in the works right now

J
Reply to
Jason Sobol

C-10?

J
Reply to
Jason Sobol

Does my old Briar Brown 84 Firebird 2.8 that the previous owner hid the fact the brakes were going bad, the radiator was shot, and he twisted the subframe on, that between fix-ups I only got to drive THREE TIMES before offing it to a junkyard and then buying my 86 count?

J
Reply to
Jason Sobol

No it doesn't psycho morron.

BTFW: you wanna-be Don Yenko of S-10's, Putting a big block chevy in a F-bosy will not twist them. Not to mention your too stupid to know if a subframe was twisted. Charles

Reply to
Charles Bendig

First car was an AMC Rebel Machine with a 390 HiPo and 4 speed hurst.... until my dad sold it when I went off to boot camp

Had a 73 Camaro for a bit

and then a 87 GTA 5.7 with T Tops

and now a 80 Firebird

Reply to
BarracudaDesigns

Some of the cars I've known and loved.......

First car: '62 Dodge Dart, 6cyl. push button automatic. I used to get some rubber by revving it up in neutral, then hitting the "D" button. Purchased for $150.

  1. 64 Mercury Comet convertible, purchased in AZ. This car had NO rust, small V8 auto. I drove this car across the country with no problems (some girlfirend problems, but that belongs on another list). I have no idea why I sold this car, it would be worth a lot nowadays. Only Ford hot rod car I ever owned.
  2. '68 Camaro RS, 327 4 speed, hugger orange, black interior. First muscle car I owned, I had more fun with this car than any other in my life! Engine was very fast, responsive. Never failed me. Sold it to a friend because I was getting speeding tickets...I've tried to find this car via the internet, I don't know if it still exists. it was in fantastic condition, even 'smelled' new.
  3. '67 Lemans, 326 auto, cheap but had no rust, great cruiser. I think I sold it for 0!
  4. '68 Camaro SS fully loaded, deluxe interior, midnight blue exterior. Got into some trouble with that car too, car was in mint condition, why did I sell it?? This car was probably a 9 out of 10.
  5. '69 Charger 383, poor condition. I bought it w/o seeing it first from a 'friend', he said it needed a 'good tune-up,' when he delivered it the transmission was sitting in the back seat. Sat in my driveway for a long time, then I sold it.
  6. '69 Camaro Z/28, I have no idea if it was a true Z, had a 396 4 speed, I think it had been raced, engine was bad. I replaced it with a 302, drove it for a couple years, got desperate for $$, sold it.
  7. '66 Barracuda, brown/black interior, small V8, fun car, I was looking for a 440 to put in it, but I soon had the itch for another Camaro...
  8. '68 Camaro, small block, grey primer. I have no idea what color it was, it was always in primer. I fixed the rust, put on fat tires, new engine, drove that car for a long time. Sold it to my girlfriend, her dad was a Chevy mechanic so they worked on it a lot. Lots of good memories in that car, he-he.
  9. '68 GTO expensive to buy at the time (1982?), but a great car. black/black, high performance 400 4 speed, engine was probuilt at a Pontiac dealership in Madison, WI. Had to be sober while driving this car, it was so fast. I was afraid of dying in it, so I sold it to my brother, who almost killed himself in it, ended up going off the road and doing doghnuts in the neighbors lawn late one night... brother sold it to a friend, he gave it the care it deserved. Fastest car I've ever owned.
  10. '72 Gremlin, pea green. Smashed the front end, bought a '71 Hornet, used parts from both and created a "Grem-Net". Lots of cheap fun! Fast 6 cylinder 3 speed manual!
  11. '66 AMC wagon, cheap transportation. I tried to hot rod it, unsuccessfully.
  12. '74 Superbeetle, cheap transportation.
  13. '81 Datsun, cheap transportation.
  14. '88(?) Pontiac Sunbird, cheap transportation.
  15. '90 Chevy Van, 350, black, conversion van, cheap and fun.
  16. '66 VW squareback, I invested a lot of $$ into this car, then sold it cheap.
  17. '86 Ford wood-grain station wagon. For kids and dogs.
  18. '88 Ford Taurus wagon.Good for hauling, terrible otherwise.
  19. '91 Ford Explorer, good for fishing, camping, winter.
  20. and 22. '89 Honda Prelude, fun car and cheap. BTW I also owned a '70s Civic, bought from a dealer. I ran it through the car wash, the white paint washed off it! Soon afterwards the front quarters fell off. Put a LOT of miles on that car, with home-made sheet metal front fenders.
  21. '67 Camaro RS/SS, finally got back into muscle cars. Ran short on cash, panicked, and re-sold it, should have kept it at all costs.
  22. '96 Explorer, another winter vehicle.
  23. '68 Camaro, 383 4 speed, I have invested big bucks in this car, I still own it.
  24. '00 Saturn, wifey car.
  25. '98 Malibu, daughter's car.

Lots of nostalgia! I've owned over 30 cars, I'm forgetting some, that's all I can remember at the moment....

Terry

Reply to
Terry

Kerry, last year you and I emailed back and forth a few times, if you recall I have a daughter about the same age as yours (we live in Wisconsin). I'm glad to hear your daughter and you have (almost) completed your T/A project. I still have my '68 Camaro, but I bought my daughter a '98 Malibu so that she doesn't drive the Camaro too much, I put in a new 383 stroker, too powerful for her. (see my other posting on this topic for the other cars I've owned!)

Take it easy, Terry M.

Reply to
Terry

'62 Impala 2-door 283 Powerglide, headers & glasspacks: $150 + $50 rearend

  • 3 weeks of work after school changing rears. '68 Camaro 327 '70 Chevelle SS 396 smashed & rebuilt front end twice; once after rear-ending cop at light '64 Thunderbird (first & last Ford, except for my tractor) '67 Camaro 350 Convertible: stolen in NYC :( '72ish GREEN Javelin: sounded fast anyway '82 Camaro Z28 Pace Car brand new '72ish Nova 6 cyl Powerglide '87 Dakota '78ish Malibu '84 Grand Wagoneer '93 S-10 Blazer '03 Dakota '68 Camaro 327/325HP

14 cars in 28 years of driving.

Reply to
Bruce Porter

On Wed, 26 Jan 2005 00:52:13 GMT, snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com (RSCamaro) puked:

First car:

1968 Mustang Fastback 289 with a C4. Did the top end bolt-on routine, headers, 302 heads, intake, carb, dual exhaust...

Built with father around the same time:

1930 Ford Model A

Part owner:

1971 Mustang, 351 Cleveland, auto. project car. Intake, cam, exhaust, some embarrassing body work... 1984 Plymouth Voyager (college/rock band) 1987 (?) Mitsubishi Starion 1989 (?) Fullsize Ford Bronco. Great vehicle when it was running. 1992 Cutlass ragtop. Slow FWD, but a lot of fun and more roomy than a Sebring. 1997 Jeep Gran Cherokee Limited 2000 Camaro SS ragtop (currently) 1966 El Camino 327 three speed (currently) project. Replacing it piece by piece, currently on a sheet metal and trim binge. Next big project is redoing the front end bushing & ball joints or positraction rear end...

-- lab~rat >:-) The less you care, the more it doesn't matter.

Reply to
lab~rat

On Wed, 26 Jan 2005 09:30:22 -0600, "Terry" puked:

I saw one of those in the Disney World parking lot that looked like it just rolled off the showroom floor. I wonder what a concours restoration would be worth...

-- lab~rat >:-) The less you care, the more it doesn't matter.

Reply to
lab~rat

I see a gremlin now and then at car shows, usually in the back rows... If you could find a pristine one, it would probably be worth a lot. I recently saw a Vega wagon on Ebay, with only 7,000 miles or something similar. I think they wanted 8K for it, which of course would have bought 4 or 5 of them in the '70s!

BTW, I still have the Gremlin and Hornet emblems from those cars...still haven't found a use for them.

Terry

Reply to
Terry

If the emblems are in good shape. Put them on Ebay. Charles

Reply to
Charles Bendig

Since you said "when you started driving", here are my first few.

In 1973 I bought my first car when I was fifteen. It was a '68 Chevelle Malibu with a 275 hp 327 and powerglide tranny. I paid $1,100 for it. I later traded that car for a '63 Austin Healy Sprite MKII. After that was a '69 VW bug, which I traded in for a '68 Firebird convetible that had a 350 and Hurst 4 speed. (wish I still had that one) I had several more cars before I got my '74 Trans Am in 1980, which I still have today. ...And that brings me to my current work. I recently bought a set of 6X #4 heads that are currently in the machine shop. I plan on pulling my engine, (the original 455 with 69,000 miles on it), and bumping up the hp a bit and also detailing the engine compartment. I am going to replace bearings and rings, and am planning on installing a Competition Cams XE268H cam. I don't plan on boring it unless it needs it. I have Hooker Competition headers on it already, with Flowmaster 2 1/2" dual exhaust. I am also having the TH400 rebuilt, with a 1800-2000 stall converter installed. This isn't nearly the build-up some of this groups members do, but I am trying to keep it streetable and close to stock appearance. Also, money is a big issue. My wife mustn't find out how much I'm spending on it. ;^) HD

Reply to
HoDad

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