For Cars Guys

[Gerry Zagorski]

http://www.youtube.com/embed/bz-nO6WvOYw?rel=0 (http://www.youtube.com/embed/bz-nO6WvOYw?rel=0)

Brings back memories of the late 60s and early 70s muscle car era when I was just coming of age. Some great cars and fond memories back then..In my circle of friends we were all motor heads and would think nothing of swapping out a motor over the weekend right in our own driveways.

My favorite was my 72 Dodge Charger. We took out the smog block 400 and repowered it with a 440 out of an old Chrysler Imperial. This car would pass everything but a gas station.

Craiger and Keystone rims, 60s in the back and 70s up front.

Raw horsepower with 4 barrel carbs, high lift cams, headers and glass packs and a Sun RPM guage you hose clamped to the steering column. Points, plugs, caps and rotor were changed as frequently as the oil. Flushing the engine and swapping out your Prestone every fall. 8 track stereos that usually took a book of matches under them to make them track right and would switch tracks right in the middle of a song.

Used to break down a lot back then and if you got over 70,000 miles on a car you were on borrowed time. Cars certainly have changed for the good but I still look back and lust after those old muscle cars.... I open the hood on my cars now and just scratch my head.

[Wilson]

I had a 1971 Chevelle SS 402 c i d. Like you said you did not pass many gas stations, but Super Shell or Sunoco 260 was only 36.9 per gallon.
I remember filling up for $ 5.00.
Oh yeah it was a babe magnet too;)

[GDubya07]

WOW - Flashback Man - Love you man -

1973 - El Camino - Chevelle Front end - polished and ported heads - upgraded the trans a little - upgraded racing CAM with push rods and lifters - and stock rear -

Oh so much fun - sometimes had to weigh the bed down to get better traction or run with a full tank of gas

It was just fun working on these suckers and going out and racing

Anobody remeber what points are and gapping plugs -

Great Flashback - Jerry - GDubs

[Gerry Zagorski]

Nice ride Wilson.... If I remember correctly, they called the 402 a 396 since it had a more familiar ring to it.

Definately one of the all time iconic muscle cars.

[Eskimo]

That's awesome. the late 1960's and early 70's were definitely a high point for the American muscle car.

I was a motorhead in the 1980's which was a rather dark period for performance cars. We lusted after nothing more than cars and car parts from that earlier time.

Modern cars are probably better in every way than the cars made in the past. Even the most banal Honda Accord can be bought with a 278 horsepower engine. That's more horsepower than the Corvettes produced from 1972 to 1990 (excluding the Callaway Turbos). A new Corvette has a base engine with 430 horsepower with options to go as high as 638! Perhaps we are living in a new 'golden age' right now.

But what the modern cars lack is soul. The provenance of being from a special time and place, the likes of which America will never see again.

[Gerry Zagorski]

G Dub - gapping your points with a feeler guage and a dwell meter. If you didn't have one of them handy, the flap of a book of matches would get you close.

Eskimo - Definately some dark ages in the late 70 early 80s... The Vega, the Pinto and the Mustang II to name a few. The performance cars today are incredable. The old muscle cars we very raw... Great in a straight line and forget about stopping them with rear drum brakes and no ABS. You really had to drive those cars or they'd get away from you in a hurry..

[Wilson]

The performance cars today are incredable. The old muscle cars we very raw... Great in a straight line and forget about stopping them with rear drum brakes and no ABS. You really had to drive those cars or they'd get away from you in a hurry..

Yeah my car was very fast on the open highway, but a terror on wet or snowy roads. My buddy had a Buick GS, same body (mostly) as a Chevelle.
The tag line for the GS was Fast with Class.

Gee I miss those days of screwing around with your car with a few basic tools and a tach and dwell meter. Oh well thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Time to do some work, so I can pay off my $900.00 repair bill on my truck:eek:

[GDubya07]

Good One Gerry --- totally forgot about the matchbook - Getting Old

Eskimo I totally agree - no heart and soul just technology -

I get it with the new cars but there was somethning about building the sucker in your driveway or in my case white trash - on the front lawn or in front of the house on cinder blocks wood -

None of this hey lets get nitrous and over clock and reprogramm our cars CPU - actually it is very cool but not the same

Always talking crap to my wife yeah I will buy a project car and restore rebuild - she said were are you getting the money from fishing -
Well the North American Red Sasquatch was right . Not giving up fishing - SOL - Need new Evil plan

GDubs-:cool:

[jakesdad]

Talk about prices, 1st new car 69 chevelle 350, 1/2 vinyl roof, buckets fiberglass belted tires. Fully loaded $2900.

The old GTO's, 442's, Chargers, and can't forget the orig. Mustang.