Man, I wish I could have grown up back in the day. You guys are really lucky.
Tom01, you mentioned the kids do not want to learn the basics? That is a big mistake.
I don't know how lucky we were...it was the pits growing up at that time.....sometimes, but we did have access to some pretty neat machinery. Some of my friends at that time had SS396 Chevelles, one had an LS6, GTO's 389's 400's 455's, another had a 440 Roadrunner, another a Hemi RR, one had a Hemi 67 GTX (My favorite car Black, Black and Chrome Cragers SS wheels), another had 440 6 pack Cuda, and yet another had multiple Corvettes (the 67 roadster, Sunfire yellow with black interior and the 427/435...wow what a machine) Any one of these cars would make mincemeat out of mine. The LS6 was a beast, but boy did it need a lot of routine maintenance, adjusting valves, plugs and wires about every 8-10k.
Today, it seems, most kids either think they know it all (Like Junkie refers to and yes they can text like nobodies business), or they just don't think they need the basics and want to head straight for the advanced stuff. I don't know, I try to keep those ideas in check by proving to them they don't know it all and they DO need the basics.
Tom, I had one of those too, except that mine had the old reliable 318 in it. I found, and installed, a tri-power setup for it while I was stationed at Ft. Carson, Colo in 1967. Made a few trips up Pikes Peak with that old girl, and even slept in it on the mountain the night before the Pikes Peak hill climb in 1967. Black with a champagne gold interior, and the bulletproof Torq-Flite transmission. Sold it to my father when I bought the 69 SS396 Chevelle, then he sold it to my cousin when he got tired of it. I loved the ride that you got in that car and would like to have it back. I let my mother use the car while I was in Vietnam, and she made me block off the front and back carbs after she "twisted the wheels" pretty good when she first drove it. Laughin' at THAT memory right now...........
Andy Anderson
Andy, my 500 was a bonafide special car. My moms first cousin was the second owner of this car, the first owner was Chrysler corp...it was a true "Executive car". When he bought it, he had to go to Detroit and pick it up. It had nearly every option you could get on it. Including factory 383 magnum, torqueflite, Black Vinyl top, Factory AM/FM Stereo, Factory Reverberation system, PS, PB and factory Mag 500 wheels with the three wing spinners. These wheels were actually magnesium. It was silver with the black vinyl interior, buckets, floor shift, console. My moms cousin had added AC. It had almost 100K on it when I bought it and he had taken such good care of it, that it looked and drove like new.
Of course I couldn't leave well enough alone, I added air shocks and glass packs, I had to take off those stock mufflers.
I miss that car, wish that I had never sold it. Sold it to buy my 64 Corvette coupe. I fall short of saying I wish I had it back, it's not to be, as the kid I sold it to let his brother take it out one night and he wrapped it around a telephone pole. That absolutely made me physically sick to see it wrapped around that pole. I do wish that I could run across another to restore though.
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otfl
