Our Cars Week, Redux
It's Car Lust ... but now it's personal! And now ... it's back!
Last March, we ran the first inaugural Our Cars event, in which readers shared their lust for their own cars. The result was amazing--quite possibly the best stretch of content ever to grace this blog, filled with unique cars and touching stories. And now, we're ready for a repeat.
Originally intended to break up my tiresome domination of this blog's content, Our Cars is a feature that showcases readers' cars in their own words. These aren't the unattainable exotics that exist seemingly only on the pages of car magazines; no, these are the cars that are meaningful because they actually exist in a relevant way. They are meaningful for us--the cars that we grew up with, we live with, and that we mourn once they're gone.
So, in the next few weeks--when we start will depend on the response--please feel free to e-mail me a post on a special (or despicable) cars in your life. This can be a car that you own now or have owned previously; or even a car that you drove frequently but didn't own, such as your parents' car or a company car. Regardless, this should be more about one specific car than a type of car--in other words, a beloved gray 1983 Chevy Malibu Wagon, not all 1983 Malibus. Short or long, well-written or not, it doesn't matter as as long as it's from the heart. And if you can submit some photos of the car in question, so much the better.
As before, I can't wait to see what you all come up with.
Update: Of course, I forgot to disclose how you should submit your post. Please e-mail your post and photos to carlustinfo@amazon.com.
--Chris H.
Bill T. on August 24, 2009 at 06:47 PM
My days of memorable cars began in my 30's, when I had 3 convertibles in a row. The first was a '62 Thunderbird. It was great, and I tried to find a cover for the back seat that would emulate the limited edition sports roadster model. The next was a '66 Ford Galaxie 7 Litre convert with the four speed on the floor. The third was a '68 Chrysler 300. It was huge, and a smooth ride. My favorite was the T-Bird (bullet bird). Apparently, Ford hired a stylist from Chrysler and one of his first design was the '61 - '63 birds. In silhouette, the bullet birds were very similar to the Chrysler Turbine
Postmandougie on August 24, 2009 at 07:44 PM
My most memorable ride was my first. She was a 1967 Ford Galaxie XL, robin's egg blue with a black vinyl top and black bucket seat interior. Only a 289 V8, but after driving around my mom's Chevette for four years, it was an epiphany.
I can remember every detail about it in my mind, the smell of the vinyl seats on a hot summers day, the low rumble as I pulled into my parents driveway at night, taking my then-girlfriend, now wife on our first date. It was my first real step towards independence, my means to get around without relying on my parents's vehicular generosity or public transportation. It was an incredible feeling, just being able to cruise aimlessly as long as the gas held out, seeing and doing things according to my own tastes, answerable to no one but myself.
Sadly it went after many happy miles, due to a terminally rusted undercarriage. It was replaced by a '68 Falcon that was equally fun but nowhere near as memorable. A few years ago I saw one almost identical to mine for sale and I was tempted to buy it, but I didn't think it could ever live up to the memories....
Chris Hafner on August 24, 2009 at 09:06 PM
And, of course, I forgot to include the contact information. Post edited.
Chris Hafner on August 25, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Perhaps Papa John's founder John Schnatter should write an Our Cars piece? He just found his beloved 1971 Chevy Camaro - the car he sold in 1983 to keep his business intact.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32553887/ns/business-small_business/
Jon Hantsbarger on August 25, 2009 at 01:40 PM
I work for a classic car restoration shop in Saint Louis Missouri.
We get the chance to see first hand people who truly love their classic vehicle.
Whether it is just a 1950 Ford that their grandparents own or a 1973 Barracuda with a 600 hp engine, they all have their own unique and touching story to them.
It just goes to show that the love of cars is still alive and well in the world today.
That Car Guy on August 25, 2009 at 02:56 PM
Jon, do you know anybody in Festus?
Wira Xtreme on August 26, 2009 at 03:05 AM
My first personal contact with cars was when my father had a second hand Toyota long time ago. He stopped driving because he could not afford high maintenance of the car during economic downturn in the 80's. Now when I becoming grown up, we had our own national car. It is affordable and the spare parts are available across the states but somehow the memories still remain.
kevIN on August 26, 2009 at 12:29 PM
My first car was a $680 red 1968 Firebird '350' with a black vinyl top. It had a 400 engine out of a '74 Lemans, rust in the rear quarters, 4 crappy tires on steelies, a 2-speed Powerglide and was hot as sin with the black vinyl interior. But for a 17yo kid, it was the best things on wheels. I learned plenty about maintaining cars after owning that wreck!
Then after that it was a long love affair with Nissan - having been given some high mileage 80s trucks and Stanzas.
After college, I scraped the cash together to buy a near stock '86 Monte Carlo SS. I replaced the interior, t-top seals, transmission (2500 stall) and installed an engine that I built myself using a book(!). It was a Chevy 355 with a ZZ4 roller cam and Vortec Heads. It was powerful enough to smoke the tires even at a 35mph roll - dangerous stuff with a weak 7.5" rear. Too bad I sold it to help finance a house purchase. Plus it was a little too flashy for my tastes - every kid wanted to race me!
My current car is a brown '95 Buick Roadmaster with the LT1 engine, optional towing package (2.96 rear gears and Posi). It's a fun 4000lb tank of a car that is just fast enough to be fun but slow enough not to do anything stupid - yes, I'm getting middle aged!
iowahawk on August 26, 2009 at 12:54 PM
I have an emotional attachment to every car I've owned. First was this '69 Chevelle; I bought it when I was 14 and added headers, Cragar S/S's, etc. I had my first "meaningful experience" in it.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1033/1379851343_c678db6b8b_o.jpg
Next one was this '67 Pontiac LeMans I got when I was 17. It had a 421 SD TriPower and M21 from a 64 Grand Prix. Would have been the fastest car in my HS if not for my brother's 70 Chevelle SS 454 LS-5.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1344/1380751686_b4563a979f_o.jpg
That was followed by a weak 73 Nova SS, a 71 VW Bug, an 85 Mustang 5.0 and a succession of family guy cars. When my kids were little I had a 69 Karmann Ghia convertible and a '65 Corvair Corsa convertible with the 180hp turbo. When they got a little older I started to get back into my first love, hot rods. I owned this '59 Impala Sport Coupe that was built by a friend...
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/35/67661666_9a65f59f41_o.jpg
As well as this '66 Buick Riviera lowrider and '23 steel model T roadster. With a 300+ hp 350 and at 1400 pounds, the roadster was the scariest car I ever had.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/35/67661659_9796495fe4_o.jpg
In 2005-7 recently a friend and I built my current ride, this '31 Model A coupe, which started out as a rusty barn find. Runs a 389 pontiac.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2427/3859291029_55e6ef68f9.jpg
Currently I am working on this steel '32 Ford 5-window. Motor is a '65 Corvette 327/365 with a M21 4-speed. I have lusted to own a Deuce coupe since I was 8 years old. They will bury me in this car.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2501/3859291035_5e2dfa2bcb.jpg
Mike B on August 26, 2009 at 02:03 PM
My first car was a '79 Camaro I bought when I turned 18 in '83. One time I referred to one of my cars as a "she". My friend asked me if all my vehicles were female. After a minute I replied yes. My truck was a maid, I paid my money and received a service with no emotion involved. My Harley was a mistress; flashy, sexy, and expensive. My Camaro was a wife. She wasn't the hottest thing on the road when I got her and everybody else may think her looks have diminished some in 20+ years, but she still has a strong heart and I can't imagine not having her.
Mark on August 26, 2009 at 02:24 PM
I'm torn. My '95 Maxima has never let me down after 160k miles, some very hard. Lots of dings. Trusty roof rack for my mountain bike. Does everything without complaint.
But.....we don't always think with our head. I have an '02 Carrera C4 Cabriolet. Triple Black. 6-speed. Never thought I would own a car like that. I still stop for a moment once in a while and think...man, that's my car.
Lucygoosey on August 26, 2009 at 02:54 PM
I sent you an email, but JIC, here's the gist of it:
In high school (1960-1964), my junior and senior years, I owned a
black 1948 Nash, that my dad bought for $50. It ran great, although
the upholstery was pretty much shot (did you know they used to line
the seats with the same scratchy wool they used for WWII Army blankets
before they put the leather on?). My dad said he could always tell I
was in school because he only had to drive past, and he could see the
roof of the Nash sticking up above all the other cars. It was taller
than the 50s and 60s Ford pickups (we lived in Texas). One of my
classmates did have a cherry-red-painted Model T, but her dad was rich
and I hated her.
I loved that car. It was built like a tank. You put a key in the
ignition, turned it, and then you had to push a button to start it.
If I had ever hit another car, I would have survived, sorry about the
other guy, but fortunately that never happened.
The worst thing that happened was, on a fairly buzzed trip with
friends back from the liquor stores of Wichita Falls, TX (the summer
before I was to go to college), the electrical system went out and we
didn't have headlights for about fifteen seconds. Trust me, rural
Texas on a moonless night in 1964 was pitch black, like the inside of
a cave. Luckily, in those days, those roads were seldom traveled at
night, and I managed to get stopped (while we were all screaming),
turned off the car, turned it back on again, and got lights. I
confessed (leaving out the illegal liquor purchase, which my dad,
being no fool, probably guessed anyway), and he sold it soon after for
$100. If only he'd known.
I wish I had that car now. I'd either be rich, or I'd still be
hanging on to it.
RebeccaH
Waynesville, OH
Thunda407 on August 26, 2009 at 03:36 PM
Two faves that make no sense to anyone but myself:
1. 1979 International Harvester Scout - stroked 345 V-8 w/4-barrel and Flowmaster dual exhaust, close-ratio 4-speed gearbox, 2-speed transfer case, Dana 44 posis at both ends. With 4WD engaged, I could smoke all four tires in 2nd gear. On the highway, it would pass everything on the road except a gas station. Got me through college for the cost of $1500, but I must have had a million bucks worth of fun in that thing, though. At the insistence of my (then) wife, I sold it for $2500 and used the money to furnish our first house, and I have been kicking myself ever since for doing that.
2. 1984 Mercedes 300D Turbo Diesel. Largely stock except for a minor tweak to the turbocharger and updating the seals and hoses to tolerate biodiesel. There's just something wonderful about this car that I can't really explain. I'd rather drive it than my '02 BMW.
ohkay3 on August 26, 2009 at 05:56 PM
My favorite car was a 1950 Hudson Commodore 8 convertible that I bought in 1952 while a sailor stationed in California.
It was canary yellow with red leather upholstery, electric windows, electric clutch(which I didn't use) and overdrive. The front seat was so big you could seat four people comfortably (well, two sailors and two girls)
Top speed was 101 mph. That was top up, top down, up-wind, down-wind, six people in the car or only one, didn't matter. The problem was the overdrive--if you tried to give it more gas after you were in overdrive and at top speed, the switch under the accelerator would activate "passing gear" (actually third gear) and then the speed would drop down to 96mph.
Believe me I tried many, many times on the five miles from El Centro, California to the turn off to the El Centro Naval Air Station. Five miles of the straightest road you could find anywhere.
Not a dragster by any means but if you wanted to you could get it in overdrive in second gear. It was fun to do this just as the guy you were running beside shifted into third and then point to your gear shift lever stil in second (easily seen from outside since it went way up on the steering column in second)
Probably the reason it is my favorite car is because I was twenty years old without a care in the world and had a great time in that car.
Wacky Hermit on August 26, 2009 at 05:57 PM
I don't lust after my car; we're just "vehicles with benefits". ;)
I drive a 1991 Toyota Previa. It has nearly 400,000 miles on it (its previous owner was a Toyota mechanic). It's not the same old minivan that every other carpool mom is driving; it has character. It's the kind of vehicle that you'll tell stories about: "Back in ought nine, we had this ancient Previa that was older than our marriage..." The kids love that it looks like the space shuttle. They don't care that it was the best thing we could get at a time when we couldn't afford a car payment. It's not a minivan; it's an ADVENTURE!
But the best part about it is that we own it, free and clear. We'll get our six hundred dollars' worth out of it, I'm sure. It's extremely liberating to know that we will never be "upside down" in this vehicle.
netmarcos on August 26, 2009 at 08:33 PM
My fist love was my dad's '64 Impala. Red, 327 2-door hardtop. 4-speed and it just flew. We drove it into Tijuana in '67 and had the boys put red leather with white piping throughout. I nearly cried when dad had to sell her in '73 for economic reasons; Dad did. My first ride of my own was a '69 Chevelle that I bought for $300 in '82. Green with two wide white stripes up the middle. Drove it until the fuel pump and the brakes both went. Now I drive a '93 Miata. Red with a bit over 250K miles on her. New clutch went in a 230K. Timing belt lasted for 200K. The little thing just won't quit.
Rustadiver on August 26, 2009 at 11:05 PM
My car lust started when I broke up from a girl I was engaged to. I was devastated. I had taken a job I did not enjoy, yet paid well to support my new family, or so I thought. In the midst of my despair my mom suggested I do something like buy a car to get my mind off of my misery. I had always liked the look of the corvettes with the ducktail rear ends, and that is all I knew. I was 21 with minimal credit trying to buy a car that was more than 7 years old, which at the time was a difficult thing to finance. After some research I knew I wanted a 68-73 vette with an engine upgrade. 68s had radiator problems, 70s were the least number produced, yet had the highest horse power ratings, etc. I got to know the C-3s quite well, not to mention the nuances of financing a car.
This was the same time the movie Corvette Summer was released and I was truly having my own corvette summer. I finally got approved on a 71 454 LS5 vette. She was beat up, but she was mine if I could find an original air cleaner where by she could be smogged. (California) I only had her a week and she was rear ended by someone with out insurance to the tune of $3500 damage. Then coming home from work she seized a rod bearing and set lifeless in my parent’s driveway. Next I lost my job.
I learned some important lessons in life. One, I could achieve anything I want. The question was what am I willing to give up and how hard am I willing to work to achieve it. I did what I needed to do and enjoyed my beastly vette for 7 years.
Then I went through a mid life crisis at the ripe old age of 28 and sold my baby to finance a career as a scuba instructor. This life lesson from my vette has given me the perseverance to achieve many goals. Now I have my dream vette a 72 LT1 with air, one of only 286 produced and she turns the heads as I let her roar down the street. Thus my car lust is not just a car lust; it is a lust for life.
BobMc on September 01, 2009 at 03:13 AM
My three favorites, in order of age:
Light blue 63 Impala SS 2dr hardtop, 409 ci, 425 hp, black interior with bucket seats, 4 speed. Bought it in 1967 from an old lady (really; I never did quite understand that!), and immediately replaced the desert-gear 308 ring & pinion with a 456 posi unit. I had it tuned, but it was basically stock as far as I know. However, it was one of those factory freaks that ran much better than average, given the 409's mediocre reputation. The only car I ever lost to was a 427 'vette, and that was only by a fender. It (and I) was insane; I still can't believe I never got a single ticket (or worse) in it, despite the temporary lunacy that driving it always seemed to cause. Thank God there were far fewer cars (and cops) on the road back then.
Red 72 Alfa Romeo Spider, 129 ci (2.0 liter), 129 hp, 5 speed. My second Alfa roadster -- the first cars I owned that handled better the faster they were driven. The 72 was simply a dream to drive for the time (mid 70s) -- the car that taught me what on-ramps were really for. It had zero mechanical/electrical issues, the brakes were amazing, handling was excellent, and the manual top could be raised and lowered in a few seconds with one hand while seated. After driving it from Ohio to Denver and back I loved it even more, despite its Italian long-arms, short-legs driving position. And though it was the least powerful of the cars I'm describing, I got more speeding tickets in it than in any of the others. (The first time my girlfriend -- now my wife -- drove it, she got one literally within five minutes.) It was a wonderful driving machine in every way. This is still the one I lust after the most, out of the dozens of cars I've owned over the years. If Vincent van Gogh were a young man in the 1970s, I think he would've driven an Alfa Spider. Viva Italia!
Black 04 SRT-4, 2.4 liters, turbo, 230 hp stock (at the wheels; maybe 275 brake hp), agate interior, 5 speed. Despite its boy-racer look, which doesn't bother me at all by the way, I am passionate about this car because it feels like an old muscle car: gobs of torque in a relatively small, lightweight vehicle. You just have to think of torque steer as fishtailing at the other end. :) Stock it gets over 30 mpg on the highway, and has great brakes and handling. It is simply a blast to drive, and it's given me no problems whatsoever even though I've done some speed mods to it. In my opinion this is one of the most underrated cars around (e.g., the bottom end can handle 450 wheel hp without modification -- not bad for a four-banger). Lots of go-fast parts are available for it, at pretty reasonable prices too, compared to imports. Used models can be bought for around $10,000, though it may be difficult to find a stock one anymore, and many have been driven very, very hard (as it too seems to cause temporary insanity in young men). Some people may sneer at Neons, but this one's on steroids.