This will take a while … I need to re-size the originals for the purpose of posting them here … so, please bear with me as I put these up one-at-a-time (give-or-take).
Very nice car, Mac. Reminds me of some of the cars at the Edison/Ford Winter Estate in Ft Meyers FL. There are some really nice looking old cars there as well.
Here we have what is called 'Cruisin' The Coast' every year. Last year there was over 8k entrants.
America's Largest Block Party
The board of directors, staff and volunteers of Cruisin’ The Coast thank you all for another record-breaking year! Our official registration number for 2017 is 8,308 from 40 states, Canada, Germany and Puerto Rico. We all had a great time and hope you did, too. A big thanks also goes out to all our sponsors and supporters!
Was at a car show the other day. In one lane there was a 2017 Hellcat, 2016 Charger, 2018 Challenger, 1990 Mustang and a 1955 Bel Air. People couldn't understand why the Bel Air was getting more attention than the new cars.
I do have to admit that I was drooling all over the Bel Air. That is my dream car. When restored properly, it's not loud, it's not fast and it's not flashy (ok when put between a Hellcat, Charger, Mustang and Challenger, it's flashy as hell). It is elegant and a silent show stopper.
This is a exact photo of the 55 Bel Aire 2 door hardtop with continental kit that I owned in the 1980's...This photo is off the internet but I have dozens of photos of mine but they are the ''old fashioned'' photo..no digital photos.
My first car was a 1955 4d light green Buick Special. The one with the two bullets on the front bumper. The ride was as smooth as glass. I loved that car. It looked like this one, only it was a 4d. I cried for weeks when someone stole it. I saw the car for sale on a lot and fell in love with it and that was that. I bought it on the spot.
Indeed they were. Nothing today compares with the cars back then. And in spite of being a V8, it got very good gas mileage. Out on the hwy the ride was like floating on air. I have used that Buick as a comparison for the other cars I have bought since then and nothing seems to meet all the assets of the Buick.
In those days average people could not afford two cars, and cars were made to last for many, many years. That Buick was like a tank when it came to being a very well made car. Noting like the Coors Cans they make today. They are not made to last more than 3-4 years. And some are not owner maintainable, they have to be taken to some dealership for simple things like changing the oil and filter.
Right now I am driving a 1997 Ford Taurus with less that 90,000 miles on it. I have owned it since 1998, and it still runs like a charm. (knock on wood)
It gets me where I need to go and home, and that is all I care about. It may be old, but, it's still got a lot of miles left to go. (smile)
On most home computers, the scanner (if you have one) is usually one of the functions of the printer/copier. When I first learned about that and other computer stuff, I got it, not from Barb but from my daughter (who was 12 at the time). She's 28 now, and is still far more knowledgeable that I could ever hope to be. The young ones are really getting ahead of us. My five year old grandson can already go from a shut down computer to his favorite YouTube video with no help at all other than a little spelling.
Is there an internet cafe with a scanner anywhere in town where you shop? Take your photos and a flash drive (memory stick) with you and scan the photos onto the drive. Fortunately I have an HP all-in-one that copies, prints and scans so the old photos I have posted are scanned from old film camera photos. If you have an editing program that enables you to crop, then you can fill the scanner plate with photos for each scan, and then crop to isolate them individually with your editing program.
Same here, except mine is a Canon, It also has FAX. Not that I use the FAX that much, but, it does come min handy when needed. I love that it makes excellent copies and scanned photos. My unit gets a lot of use.
If we are talking about works of art, then although I did not take this photo, to me, since 1959 I considered this car a work of art, and the car of my dreams. I still think so. It isn't a car for the nouveau riche , not even for the vieux riche, it was a car for royalty, with glove leather seats and solid burled wood trim. 1959 Jaguar Mark IX:
In the summer of 1959 I was working in my father's factory, and he had asked the Jaguar dealer to bring one around so he could try it out. I got into the back seat and sunk into the soft glove leather that had that sweet new car smell, and fell in love. However, my father was not royalty, and wasn't particular about it. Instead he bought a 1960 Cadillac Coupe de Ville that was so long you needed two parking spaces to park it, and my heart was broken.
Okay, in that case I've got some well presented race cars we used to race with along with some nice street cars.
This particular series pitted stick shift cars against one another. No automatics, no electronic or pneumatic driver aids. Each of the cars ran different classes but came together for this stick shift handy cap style touring series. It was the only way to pit a 7 second car vs a 12 second car.
This is one of my favorites. A 1964 Temest GTO. That year GTO was a Tempest option. This car is all iron, all steel with the original 421 engine that meets NHRA C/S rules.
(The rest will be a little later...sorry for the picture quality)
Oh, man, that is one of the best. My best buddy got a Silver Hawk after he sold his '54 Merc.
Very nice car. It had the 289 engine in naturally aspirated form. Note, the Nash/Rambler/Studebaker 289 had nothing to do with the Ford 289. Likewise their 327 had nothing to do with the Chevy 327.
We had one of those Golden Hawks. My Father was working part-time for a Studebaker dealership and he got to have one of the Golden Hawks as his demo. Man that was a nice car. My Mother and I felt like Queens when we drove it. There weren't that many around town at the time so wherever we went people would stare and point at us. People would ask us where we got the car and we would tell them the name of the dealer. So you could say we advertised for them while driving the car for free.
This Roadrunner had a 500 cid B1 motor in it, backed up by a 4 speed clutchless Lenco. The GM cars shown previously ran Jericos, which I am sure you know are Toploader based.
I'm here looking. tried to post picture of my Charger but old computer won't do it
Took my Charger to local show last week and caught up with some old friends. Charger needs A/C fixed again, They have a new control head that was not available when I had A/C put in and I need a heat mat for floor.
In person. this was the most beautiful car in the series. A 1965 GTO, Jerico trans, 500 cid BBC Chevy motor. Last time I talked to him, and this was years ago, he was considering putting it back to showroom condition. The stress of racing was beginning to show some wrinkling is a couple body panels.
Obviously, this one is not the same as originally built. Don't know who worked it over but they did a pretty good job.
This one has never been restored. It is now in the third generation of use as a normal getaround vehicle. While not restored, it has been VERY carefully maintained. When I got these pictures, it was at the garage to get the front end and wheel bearings replaced because they were getting worn. 1931 Model A Ford.
On the bottom photo, check out the small silvery patch on the bottom of the radiator. I never noticed it till now. If the electric starter doesn't work, that's how you would have to start the car.
Definitely could get that way, but you would already be warmed up from the cranking.
When I was a little kid (5, 6, 7) I got to stay up at my grandparents' farm (north of Bay City, MI) for as much as a week at a time. My grandpa had switched over from farming with horses in the year I was born (48) by getting a 1928 Farmall. Of course, no one in 1928 had even thought of putting something as wimpy as an electric starter on a tractor so, even in the winter grandpa had to crank the engine. He had it so well tuned that, in maybe 50 times I saw him do it, he never needed more than one pull on the crank to start the engine. Of course, there was one time that it backfired so that the crank spun backwards and cracked him on the knuckles. I thought that was really cool. It taught me some great words to use when I later became a sailor (unlike mothers, Chief Petty Officers did not wash your mouth out with soap when you used them).
It taught me some great words to use when I later became a sailor (unlike mothers, Chief Petty Officers did not wash your mouth out with soap when you used them).
Here's another. This one (1903 Ford Model A) was rebuilt from the frame up by a neighbor who used to work for GM. The body, which looks like perfectly formed sheet metal, is actually wood. Even close up, you can't tell. Everything is true to the original design except for two things. First, the color is not what Mr. Ford specified (it's actually a GM paint from the 1990's) and the gas tank has been moved from the left rear side (directly over the exhaust, which gets very hot) to the right rear. That way, you can drive farther than a mile without the gas tank blowing up (considered very bad luck among drivers). Actually, I think Ford changed it by the next model year. The problem should have become apparent very quickly.
My Paternal Grandfather used to be a mechanic for the old Model A's and T's, which had to have their own custom made tools to work on their car. The tools only fit the car that they were made for during production, as there was no mass production back then. My Grandfather had a tool set from one of the Model A's he worked on, which would no longer run. Getting a replacement engine back then for one of those cars was not an easy thing. The owner of the car left it with my Grandfather who put it in storage. After he sold his business he junked the Model A and kept the tools for it. He had those tools until the day he died. That first business was his first sole business, and a real learning curve for him as a mechanic.
The fact that the tools would only fit the one car made then even more special, even without the car. Simply because they were made for a Model A added to their specialty as well. I gotta tell ya, for hand made tools they were really well made. Very strong and efficient looking. Whomever crafted them had a very good talent.
This fella, right here, organized and ran the series.
One time he asked me to write an article for one of the events. I didn't drive, I supplied engines and pit maintenance between rounds. So, I agreed.
He loved the article except for one thing. He gave me a lesson in Chevelle vs Malibu. It went something like this: "You Ford boys have got to learn the difference between a Chevelle and a Malibu. A Malibu is what your Mom drove to the store for groceries. A Chevelle is what we are racing out here".
Lesson learned and I remember to this day.
His car was also immaculate. A 1969 Chevelle SS, but powered by a 427 with, IIRC a set of Brodix Track I heads. It could squeak high 9s, a little more consistently than Charles' '64 Tempest GTO.
Last time we spoke he was considering a large bore Merlin block with a 427 crank. Let's see; 4.640 bore by 3.760 stroke = 508 and change.
If/when anyone thinks I should put up a (new) second article … just to make scrolling through easier … I have another 40-50 or more, plus, some other transportation "oldies."
This is a home built '64 Thunderbolt. Windsor small block instead of FE motor. Except for the motor, trans and most of the suspension, he personally fabricated everything about this car.
In this picture it was a mid 8 second car, later he went to a larger displacement Windsor with Don Losito Ultra Pro heads that ran 7.70s. He deserves his own chapter somewhere.
Oh yeahhhhh!!!That is a real beauty. But, I was not fond of convertibles. My Father worked for a Ford dealership later on and was given one of the new "Flip Tops" for his Demo. We were so thrilled to have that new type of car and had a ball driving it around.
However, on day my Mother and I were running some errands and we had the top down. Suddenly it started to rain and when we started to put the top up, it got about half way up and stopped. No matter what we did it would not go either way. So we were getting soaking wet from the rain and drove to dealership. As we drove in the Manager came running out and wanted to know what happened. Like we were some kind of mechanics and know how the stuff worked. My Mother and I got out of the car and handed the keys to the car to Manager. That was the last of the glorious "Flip Tops" for us. And I have seen convertibles that have done the same thing, so I never wanted anything but a hard top.
Apparently we were not the only ones that happened to, and the owner of the dealership had one that did the same thing to him! They didn't make many of them and as I recall, they only made them the one year and moved on to something else. Thinking now it may have been the hydraulic system for the top that locked up at some point and caused the top to lock up. Strange that most all of the events with the top either going up or down seemed to lock up at or close to the same place.
When I had my shop one of my customers had a late model Jag convertible, that would do the same thing. Jag was apparently of the problem and had a reset sequence that would unlock the top and make it work again. You had to push a couple seemingly unrelated buttons, then the top would go through some wacky sequence and then work again.
This fella had just upgraded to new chassis, new body, new engine, and Liberty clutchless 5 speed. A 418 SB Mopar. I am drawing a blank on the cylinder heads. Not P5s or 7s. The early Nascar truck heads. The W architecture...???
Anyhow, it ran 8.20s and I am sure had 8.0s in it once dialed in.
My Brother had a 1948 Oldsmobile Cutless when he was in the 12th grade. It was all white to begin with and he painted it a metal flake medium purple. On the rear finder on each side he painted a replica of the "Little Mohawk" Indian on them, and that is what he named his car.
It looked similar to his one, but, his had the visor on the front windshield. He was very proud of that car, and is was his special baby. Three weeks after he went in the Navy and left home for bootcamp, someone stole the car out of our driveway. It broke my Brother's heart to learn what happened to his pride and joy.
Yeah....and both heart breakers. My Brother spent a lot of tedious time and money putting that car together like he wanted it. I think the person who stole it was someone he knew, as no one ever tried to steal it until he went into the Navy. My Buick was stolen from a Safeway parking lot while I was picking up some stuff for my Mother. They never found any trace of it.
You might check with Buzz about that one. The shape kinda looks like a picture he once put up of a Rolls Royce. His father owned one when he was a kid.
It looks to me like a late 1930s Packard. My dad never owned one, the one I put up a picture of resembled a late 1930s Packard Limo that was parked at a gas station around the corner from where we lived. I was 16 years old, and it was selling for $900. I wanted to buy it but my dad wouldn't let me.
Yeah, dads do that sometimes. Mine told me to go ahead and buy the 62 Galaxie (looked like a total wreck)
Little did he know that the guy who owned it before had removed the original engine and replaced it with a 352 Thunderbird Interceptor engine taken from a Michigan State Police car. Wow, would it move.
Yeah....it looks like a window cooler. We had two of those on our old 1952 Ford when my Mother and I drive across the desert from Ft Worth to San Diego. You fill them up with water and then pull the cord to wet the pad to make the cool air. And if you pull the cord too fast or too hard you will get bathed in water. BTDT. Not only that, but, the person in the back seat behind the person in front will get splashed as well. Ohhhh my what fun.
Looks like we’re closing in on 100 comments! Tomorrow I will post a new discussion with classic cars, and possibly some other vehicles from yesteryear.
Have many more …
Very nice car, Mac. Reminds me of some of the cars at the Edison/Ford Winter Estate in Ft Meyers FL. There are some really nice looking old cars there as well.
One of the cars and a truck on display there.
Love it.
Nice pictures.
#2, '65 Comet?
What is visible looks like it could be one.
We did a stroker motor for a very nice '65 Cyclone Comet some years ago.
Pretty car.
Very cool.
Nice.
Here we have what is called 'Cruisin' The Coast' every year. Last year there was over 8k entrants.
I did a spread on NV once about it.
Very nice … appreciate the addition to the discussion.
Had to laugh at this one.
LOL!! At least they are being honest.
Agree, clean looking cars.
Cars are such great subjects.
Was at a car show the other day. In one lane there was a 2017 Hellcat, 2016 Charger, 2018 Challenger, 1990 Mustang and a 1955 Bel Air. People couldn't understand why the Bel Air was getting more attention than the new cars.
I do have to admit that I was drooling all over the Bel Air. That is my dream car. When restored properly, it's not loud, it's not fast and it's not flashy (ok when put between a Hellcat, Charger, Mustang and Challenger, it's flashy as hell). It is elegant and a silent show stopper.
This is a exact photo of the 55 Bel Aire 2 door hardtop with continental kit that I owned in the 1980's...This photo is off the internet but I have dozens of photos of mine but they are the ''old fashioned'' photo..no digital photos.
My first car was a 1955 4d light green Buick Special. The one with the two bullets on the front bumper. The ride was as smooth as glass. I loved that car. It looked like this one, only it was a 4d. I cried for weeks when someone stole it. I saw the car for sale on a lot and fell in love with it and that was that. I bought it on the spot.
Show stopper right there.
That had the famous "nail head" V8.
Cars were still works of art back then.
Indeed they were. Nothing today compares with the cars back then. And in spite of being a V8, it got very good gas mileage. Out on the hwy the ride was like floating on air. I have used that Buick as a comparison for the other cars I have bought since then and nothing seems to meet all the assets of the Buick.
I imagine so, they were much more than a disposable utensil back then.
I've never been a fan of the continental kits. Just something about them I don't like. But none the less, that's beautiful
Kav, run them through your scanner at the highest DPI level that the machinery will produce. That should give you pretty good digital photos.
In those days average people could not afford two cars, and cars were made to last for many, many years. That Buick was like a tank when it came to being a very well made car. Noting like the Coors Cans they make today. They are not made to last more than 3-4 years. And some are not owner maintainable, they have to be taken to some dealership for simple things like changing the oil and filter.
Right now I am driving a 1997 Ford Taurus with less that 90,000 miles on it. I have owned it since 1998, and it still runs like a charm. (knock on wood)
It gets me where I need to go and home, and that is all I care about. It may be old, but, it's still got a lot of miles left to go. (smile)
LOL, TTGA, I'd have to ask Red how to do that. I don't even know if we have a scanner...
Kavika fanning the fire so I can send some smoke signals.
Oh yes. I know what you are talking about. I once owned an autobody and spray shop. Really, they are disposable cars.
They crumple better for energy absorption in collisions, so maybe that is part of it. But, really, I enjoy the older iron.
I suffer a little bit of hypocrisy along this line. My little project car is a '99 ZX2 MTX Escort. I like the way it drives like a go cart.
On most home computers, the scanner (if you have one) is usually one of the functions of the printer/copier. When I first learned about that and other computer stuff, I got it, not from Barb but from my daughter (who was 12 at the time). She's 28 now, and is still far more knowledgeable that I could ever hope to be. The young ones are really getting ahead of us. My five year old grandson can already go from a shut down computer to his favorite YouTube video with no help at all other than a little spelling.
Is there an internet cafe with a scanner anywhere in town where you shop? Take your photos and a flash drive (memory stick) with you and scan the photos onto the drive. Fortunately I have an HP all-in-one that copies, prints and scans so the old photos I have posted are scanned from old film camera photos. If you have an editing program that enables you to crop, then you can fill the scanner plate with photos for each scan, and then crop to isolate them individually with your editing program.
Same here, except mine is a Canon, It also has FAX. Not that I use the FAX that much, but, it does come min handy when needed. I love that it makes excellent copies and scanned photos. My unit gets a lot of use.
If we are talking about works of art, then although I did not take this photo, to me, since 1959 I considered this car a work of art, and the car of my dreams. I still think so. It isn't a car for the nouveau riche , not even for the vieux riche, it was a car for royalty, with glove leather seats and solid burled wood trim. 1959 Jaguar Mark IX:
In the summer of 1959 I was working in my father's factory, and he had asked the Jaguar dealer to bring one around so he could try it out. I got into the back seat and sunk into the soft glove leather that had that sweet new car smell, and fell in love. However, my father was not royalty, and wasn't particular about it. Instead he bought a 1960 Cadillac Coupe de Ville that was so long you needed two parking spaces to park it, and my heart was broken.
We're rollin'!
Okay, in that case I've got some well presented race cars we used to race with along with some nice street cars.
This particular series pitted stick shift cars against one another. No automatics, no electronic or pneumatic driver aids. Each of the cars ran different classes but came together for this stick shift handy cap style touring series. It was the only way to pit a 7 second car vs a 12 second car.
This is one of my favorites. A 1964 Temest GTO. That year GTO was a Tempest option. This car is all iron, all steel with the original 421 engine that meets NHRA C/S rules.
(The rest will be a little later...sorry for the picture quality)
Love it
This is one of my favorite cars of all time...The Studebaker Golden Hawk.
If I could find one in the shape of the one in the photo, I'd buy it a hot minute. Well if the price was reasonable..LOL
Oh, man, that is one of the best. My best buddy got a Silver Hawk after he sold his '54 Merc.
Very nice car. It had the 289 engine in naturally aspirated form. Note, the Nash/Rambler/Studebaker 289 had nothing to do with the Ford 289. Likewise their 327 had nothing to do with the Chevy 327.
We had one of those Golden Hawks. My Father was working part-time for a Studebaker dealership and he got to have one of the Golden Hawks as his demo. Man that was a nice car. My Mother and I felt like Queens when we drove it. There weren't that many around town at the time so wherever we went people would stare and point at us. People would ask us where we got the car and we would tell them the name of the dealer. So you could say we advertised for them while driving the car for free.
This 1969 SS 396 Camaro is also all iron and original. At the time raced NHRA B/S (Read B/Stock...I know where the mind goes, ha, ha).
Okay, Mopar guys, Charger are you out there?
This Roadrunner had a 500 cid B1 motor in it, backed up by a 4 speed clutchless Lenco. The GM cars shown previously ran Jericos, which I am sure you know are Toploader based.
I'm here looking. tried to post picture of my Charger but old computer won't do it
Took my Charger to local show last week and caught up with some old friends. Charger needs A/C fixed again, They have a new control head that was not available when I had A/C put in and I need a heat mat for floor.
In person. this was the most beautiful car in the series. A 1965 GTO, Jerico trans, 500 cid BBC Chevy motor. Last time I talked to him, and this was years ago, he was considering putting it back to showroom condition. The stress of racing was beginning to show some wrinkling is a couple body panels.
Beautiful car.
Keep 'em comin'!
Here are a couple Mac.
Obviously, this one is not the same as originally built. Don't know who worked it over but they did a pretty good job.
This one has never been restored. It is now in the third generation of use as a normal getaround vehicle. While not restored, it has been VERY carefully maintained. When I got these pictures, it was at the garage to get the front end and wheel bearings replaced because they were getting worn. 1931 Model A Ford.
Both are excellent in their own regard.
I had an uncle who drove a Model T until he could no longer drive. It was pick up style and very nice condition too.
Dave,
On the bottom photo, check out the small silvery patch on the bottom of the radiator. I never noticed it till now. If the electric starter doesn't work, that's how you would have to start the car.
You are going to laugh at me, but that is the very first think I looked for.
I just imagine sub freezing winter mornings and cranking it over. Then if it starts, you still can't warm up.
Definitely could get that way, but you would already be warmed up from the cranking.
When I was a little kid (5, 6, 7) I got to stay up at my grandparents' farm (north of Bay City, MI) for as much as a week at a time. My grandpa had switched over from farming with horses in the year I was born (48) by getting a 1928 Farmall. Of course, no one in 1928 had even thought of putting something as wimpy as an electric starter on a tractor so, even in the winter grandpa had to crank the engine. He had it so well tuned that, in maybe 50 times I saw him do it, he never needed more than one pull on the crank to start the engine. Of course, there was one time that it backfired so that the crank spun backwards and cracked him on the knuckles. I thought that was really cool. It taught me some great words to use when I later became a sailor (unlike mothers, Chief Petty Officers did not wash your mouth out with soap when you used them).
I am not surprised.
Here's another. This one (1903 Ford Model A) was rebuilt from the frame up by a neighbor who used to work for GM. The body, which looks like perfectly formed sheet metal, is actually wood. Even close up, you can't tell. Everything is true to the original design except for two things. First, the color is not what Mr. Ford specified (it's actually a GM paint from the 1990's) and the gas tank has been moved from the left rear side (directly over the exhaust, which gets very hot) to the right rear. That way, you can drive farther than a mile without the gas tank blowing up (considered very bad luck among drivers). Actually, I think Ford changed it by the next model year. The problem should have become apparent very quickly.
What a collectors piece. An ip close inspection would be enlightening.
Have you ever seen a Model T ignition coil? It is fascinating to see how they were developing solutions in the early years.
My Paternal Grandfather used to be a mechanic for the old Model A's and T's, which had to have their own custom made tools to work on their car. The tools only fit the car that they were made for during production, as there was no mass production back then. My Grandfather had a tool set from one of the Model A's he worked on, which would no longer run. Getting a replacement engine back then for one of those cars was not an easy thing. The owner of the car left it with my Grandfather who put it in storage. After he sold his business he junked the Model A and kept the tools for it. He had those tools until the day he died. That first business was his first sole business, and a real learning curve for him as a mechanic.
The fact that the tools would only fit the one car made then even more special, even without the car. Simply because they were made for a Model A added to their specialty as well. I gotta tell ya, for hand made tools they were really well made. Very strong and efficient looking. Whomever crafted them had a very good talent.
This fella, right here, organized and ran the series.
One time he asked me to write an article for one of the events. I didn't drive, I supplied engines and pit maintenance between rounds. So, I agreed.
He loved the article except for one thing. He gave me a lesson in Chevelle vs Malibu. It went something like this: "You Ford boys have got to learn the difference between a Chevelle and a Malibu. A Malibu is what your Mom drove to the store for groceries. A Chevelle is what we are racing out here".
Lesson learned and I remember to this day.
His car was also immaculate. A 1969 Chevelle SS, but powered by a 427 with, IIRC a set of Brodix Track I heads. It could squeak high 9s, a little more consistently than Charles' '64 Tempest GTO.
Last time we spoke he was considering a large bore Merlin block with a 427 crank. Let's see; 4.640 bore by 3.760 stroke = 508 and change.
Anyhow, here is his car at the time:
If/when anyone thinks I should put up a (new) second article … just to make scrolling through easier … I have another 40-50 or more, plus, some other transportation "oldies."
Looking forward to them Mac.
So far the article loads and scrolls okay. My old laptop will probably be one of the first to give up on loading speeds, but so far, so good.
I've got this nice big screen that is difficult to replace by any new offerings without spending an unreasonable cost.
This one has a long story too. I will abbreviate.
This is a home built '64 Thunderbolt. Windsor small block instead of FE motor. Except for the motor, trans and most of the suspension, he personally fabricated everything about this car.
In this picture it was a mid 8 second car, later he went to a larger displacement Windsor with Don Losito Ultra Pro heads that ran 7.70s. He deserves his own chapter somewhere.
When it comes to Buick's, IMO, this is one of the beautiful Buick's ever built.
1957 Buick Roadmaster convertible.
WOW!
Yes, beautiful. Who was that famous Buick designer?
I think of only one, Jock but can't remember his last name. I don't know if he designed this Buick though.
Harley Earl
Oh, that's right. He designed the first Corvette (1953)
That is who I was thinking about.
Oh yeahhhhh!!!That is a real beauty. But, I was not fond of convertibles. My Father worked for a Ford dealership later on and was given one of the new "Flip Tops" for his Demo. We were so thrilled to have that new type of car and had a ball driving it around.
However, on day my Mother and I were running some errands and we had the top down. Suddenly it started to rain and when we started to put the top up, it got about half way up and stopped. No matter what we did it would not go either way. So we were getting soaking wet from the rain and drove to dealership. As we drove in the Manager came running out and wanted to know what happened. Like we were some kind of mechanics and know how the stuff worked. My Mother and I got out of the car and handed the keys to the car to Manager. That was the last of the glorious "Flip Tops" for us. And I have seen convertibles that have done the same thing, so I never wanted anything but a hard top.
Ahhh, wish it worked well.
Oh, well.
Apparently we were not the only ones that happened to, and the owner of the dealership had one that did the same thing to him! They didn't make many of them and as I recall, they only made them the one year and moved on to something else. Thinking now it may have been the hydraulic system for the top that locked up at some point and caused the top to lock up. Strange that most all of the events with the top either going up or down seemed to lock up at or close to the same place.
When I had my shop one of my customers had a late model Jag convertible, that would do the same thing. Jag was apparently of the problem and had a reset sequence that would unlock the top and make it work again. You had to push a couple seemingly unrelated buttons, then the top would go through some wacky sequence and then work again.
This fella had just upgraded to new chassis, new body, new engine, and Liberty clutchless 5 speed. A 418 SB Mopar. I am drawing a blank on the cylinder heads. Not P5s or 7s. The early Nascar truck heads. The W architecture...???
Anyhow, it ran 8.20s and I am sure had 8.0s in it once dialed in.
Got more to show, including a couple of our cars, however, something very important just came up.
My neighbor has a few cold beers he doesn't know what to do with. I need to go over and see if I can figure out how to solve this emergency...
A true Friend indeed..........
LOL, It was a rough job. We needed a 3rd neighbor to reduce the emergency. Looks like we'll have to finish the job on Tuesday.
I mean, what are neighbors for anyway. Good ones are right there and willing to jump in with such emergencies.
I found this one from the yearly block party. I can't remember what it is. Sorry, not the best pick.
Also found this gadget,
My Brother had a 1948 Oldsmobile Cutless when he was in the 12th grade. It was all white to begin with and he painted it a metal flake medium purple. On the rear finder on each side he painted a replica of the "Little Mohawk" Indian on them, and that is what he named his car.
It looked similar to his one, but, his had the visor on the front windshield. He was very proud of that car, and is was his special baby. Three weeks after he went in the Navy and left home for bootcamp, someone stole the car out of our driveway. It broke my Brother's heart to learn what happened to his pride and joy.
GM made some nice fast backs in that era. A shame that Olds was stolen. Same fate as your Buick.
Yeah....and both heart breakers. My Brother spent a lot of tedious time and money putting that car together like he wanted it. I think the person who stole it was someone he knew, as no one ever tried to steal it until he went into the Navy. My Buick was stolen from a Safeway parking lot while I was picking up some stuff for my Mother. They never found any trace of it.
Terrible.
Those would be collectables worth having today.
Is it a Packard?
Not sure. I knew at the time.
Ender,
You might check with Buzz about that one. The shape kinda looks like a picture he once put up of a Rolls Royce. His father owned one when he was a kid.
It looks to me like a late 1930s Packard. My dad never owned one, the one I put up a picture of resembled a late 1930s Packard Limo that was parked at a gas station around the corner from where we lived. I was 16 years old, and it was selling for $900. I wanted to buy it but my dad wouldn't let me.
Will post a Packard later today in new article ... and other images as well.
Yeah, dads do that sometimes. Mine told me to go ahead and buy the 62 Galaxie (looked like a total wreck)
Little did he know that the guy who owned it before had removed the original engine and replaced it with a 352 Thunderbird Interceptor engine taken from a Michigan State Police car. Wow, would it move.
Sometimes you can find a pearl in an ugly oyster.
Air conditioner?
Yep. thats what I was told anyway.
Yeah....it looks like a window cooler. We had two of those on our old 1952 Ford when my Mother and I drive across the desert from Ft Worth to San Diego. You fill them up with water and then pull the cord to wet the pad to make the cool air. And if you pull the cord too fast or too hard you will get bathed in water. BTDT. Not only that, but, the person in the back seat behind the person in front will get splashed as well. Ohhhh my what fun.
Looks like we’re closing in on 100 comments! Tomorrow I will post a new discussion with classic cars, and possibly some other vehicles from yesteryear.
Many thanks to all who participated.
Going to the gym; hopefully, new article by noon EDST.