My Facetruck thread.

[davischevy]

In the summer of 1969 we were living in Illinois, just south east of St Louis.

The little redhead I was dating had a sister dating a guy with a new Shelby GT500 four speed.

One day the girls and I drove the Mustang over to St Louis airport to pick somebody up. Rather than park they had me circle the loading lane. In order to do that I had to merge on to the main highway and go down about a mile, than exit back in to the airport.

I had to do that circle several times before the plane landed and they picked up luggage. Of course that was fine with me.

I have blue bowties for blood cells, but I had never driven a big block anything before. That was the total experience for a 17 year old kid.

You know I think that was the only Ford I have ever driven.

[davischevy]

In the summer of 69 I worked at E M Weigmann electric boxes in Freeburg, IL.

There were some cool cars in that parking lot.

WE lived about 8 miles south of Freeburg, and the road was a straight line. The guy that lived across the street and I shared rides.

In the spring of 69 he bought a leftover 68 428 Cobra Jet that the Ford dealer had still on the lot.

Once we left the city limits, and headed north, Gary would open that thing up and we literally flew to work.

To this day, that was the fastest I have ever ridden on the street.

On belted tires, no less.

[Steeveedee]

Crazy speed stories should probably be a thread of their own. I had a '66 Le Mans with a Stage III 400 in it, (not properly rebuilt- just a ring and hone, with new shells, though I did not know it at the time) by one of my younger brothers. I was driving past many people in the Nevada desert between Las Vegas and Tonopah, Nevada (national speed limit was 55 at the time) in '75, and ran it up to 6800 RPM, which I discovered the hard way when the needle on the tach popped off the adjustable red line (set at 5500 RPM) when we bottomed out in a dip, and the headers lost quite a bit of material. That RPM translates to 143 MPH. When I got slowed down to about 80 MPH, I could hear the rods knocking. Then it started blowing steam like a tea kettle, and I coasted to the side of the road. All those people I had passed just cruised right on by! I had some big 11" retreads that had tubes in them on the rear, and am lucky that they didn't just explode at that speed. Lucky to be alive, to be honest. We started walking towards Goldfield, and some guy with his son took pity on us and let us ride in the bed of his truck.

[special-K]

I remember riding in the back seat of a purple w/white interior 340 Duster owned by my buddy's sister's boyfriend's buddy (follow all those 's?) back around 71/72. I95 was being built and the little country road Rt216 turned into a 6 lane dual hwy about a mile before the I95 bridge and about the same back down into Main St. Laurel, MD. A good couple miles of runway in the middle of nowhere...ending in town. I remember John wringing it out and looking at the speedometer reading 140. She was wound tight alright! What a sound? I remember both things like it was yesterday...even John's name!

[davischevy]

I dropped in at a car show for an hour or so Saturday downtown. These pictures of my Chevelle turned up on FB, so I lifted them.

[Steeveedee]

Hot ziggity zog, that's a nice looking Malibu! I worked for a Chevrolet dealer when those came out. The 454 was far more popular, after they went to net HP ratings. Those were SO fun to drive.

[Steeveedee]

Originally Posted by special-K

I remember riding in the back seat of a purple w/white interior 340 Duster owned by my buddy's sister's boyfriend's buddy (follow all those 's?) back around 71/72. I95 was being built and the little country road Rt216 turned into a 6 lane dual hwy about a mile before the I95 bridge and about the same back down into Main St. Laurel, MD. A good couple miles of runway in the middle of nowhere...ending in town. I remember John wringing it out and looking at the speedometer reading 140. She was wound tight alright! What a sound? I remember both things like it was yesterday...even John's name!

Bolding mine. The sound of THREE 500 CFM Holleys, wide open...YEE HAW! I never had one, but have heard them go by.

[davischevy]

I have owned the car thirty years and a friend of mine bought it new.

When he bought this car, I had a 70 SS 396 that would blow the doors off of it. This was the biggest dog I had ever seen.

I rebuilt the engine about 25 years ago and it was still a dog.

Last year the accelerator pump failed and I sent the carb to The Carburetor Man in NJ and had it rebuilt and restored.

Now when you punch it you better have the front wheels straight and be ready to drive it.

I can't believe it was the carb all along.

[davischevy]

In the fifties it was not at all unusual for young people to leave here for Wichita or Kansas City for work. They would come back to visit and it was not unusual to see them driving some kind of factory hot rod.

One weekend ole John Ross came into town sporting a new 440 Six Pack, 4 speed, Road Runner.

John, Donnie and Lindel spent most of the afternoon drinking so by 10 PM they didn't have a worry in the world. Law enforcement was pretty sparce around here back then. They would intentionally find a local cop or deputy and then out run him. they did that for hours one Saturday night, and never got apprehended. The cops finally just gave up and went up to John's mothers house Sunday Morning. They figured it was safer for everybody.

[special-K]

Did you get permission to use someone else's pictures? Nice car fr sure. Great color. I think I'll paint my GMC that color. Goes well with Saddle interior.

[Boog]

Larry I bet you wish you still had that 70 SS. Man, I loved those cars.
Being a kid in high school I couldn't buy a new one and my dad knew me so he wouldn't buy me one. Well graduation, service, marriage, kids came along and I never did get one. I got to drive my friends cars back then though.

[davischevy]

I would love to have that car back. It went through a couple of collector car auctions and ended up around New York City. All the original paperwork was still in the glove box. The current owner used to call me once in a while.

I have a low mileage, matching number, red w/black stripe and black interior, cowl induction, gauges, posi, factory air, stereo, tilt, bucket seat 70 Chevelle that I have had since 1980. I can't explain why I haven't restored it. I have the original alternator, water pump, carb etc.

The kid that owned it spun a rod bearing and borrowed his dad's truck, and was killed in 1978 when he ran the truck off a hillside at St Joe.

It took me two years to buy it. It has been in storage ever since.

Man, I need to get busy.

[Steeveedee]

Originally Posted by davischevy

I would love to have that car back. It went through a couple of collector car auctions and ended up around New York City. All the original paperwork was still in the glove box. The current owner used to call me once in a while.

I have a low mileage, matching number, red w/black stripe and black interior, cowl induction, gauges, posi, factory air, stereo, tilt, bucket seat 70 Chevelle that I have had since 1980. I can't explain why I haven't restored it. I have the original alternator, water pump, carb etc.

The kid that owned it spun a rod bearing and borrowed his dad's truck, and was killed in 1978 when he ran the truck off a hillside at St Joe.

It took me two years to buy it. It has been in storage ever since.

Man, I need to get busy.

396SS? I love those cars. I worked for 3 Chevy dealers on and off from '70-'72. Dug driving those critters!

[Dustmaker65]

You guys keep talking about old cars that you have/had/wanted....and I will sit here at work and read away and eat my Tillamook cheese and crackers! Oh, whole wheat crackers...

[Boog]

My bud Paul had a 64 or 5 Vette back around 70 or so. 327 4 spd warmed up a little bit. I never saw him do it but some guys said it would lift the front wheels on launch. That was not a big tired car since we didn't have big tires back then.
He wouldn't open the hood for anyone either. There was a local semi pro drag racer who had a garage who did his tuning.

[davischevy]

Originally Posted by Dustmaker65

You guys keep talking about old cars that you have/had/wanted....and I will sit here at work and read away and eat my Tillamook cheese and crackers! Oh, whole wheat crackers...

I thought you were told to get friends that that couldn't afford Tillamook cheese.

I'm guessing everybody paid the rent this month.

[Dustmaker65]

Originally Posted by davischevy

I thought you were told to get friends that that couldn't afford Tillamook cheese.

I'm guessing everybody paid the rent this month.

LOL...she found it cheaper! Said it was only 50 cents more than the regular stuff.

And no, went to collect rent on a house and it was empty! Their phones are shut off too.... the life of a land lord.

[davischevy]

In the summer of 69 I was living in Illinois. There was a little dragstrip in a cornfield just west of Nashville, IL.

It was a pretty basic operation, and on any given Sunday thirty cars was a good day.

There was a cute, feisty, little blond in a mini skirt that would show up in a really nice 66 Mustang, 390 , four speed, Word was her daddy had some bucks. She had a couple wrenches that came with her.

She ran slicks. She would pull up to the light, rev that thing to about four thousand RPM's and when the light changed she would just slip her foot off the clutch. It would pull the wheel off a couple inches and I don't think she touched the clutch to shift.

One day she pulled the wheels off and when she hit second parts flew everywhere. That Mustang exploded.

Now nobody had been able to look under the hood before, but in the excitement, they popped the hood and that 390 turned out to be some kind of exotic 427.

It was getting close to the end of summer and that was my last trip to that dragstrip. I have always wondered what ever became of her and the car.

[davischevy]

Originally Posted by Dustmaker65

LOL...she found it cheaper! Said it was only 50 cents more than the regular stuff.

And no, went to collect rent on a house and it was empty! Their phones are shut off too.... the life of a land lord.

I make them bring the rent to me. I have a pretty good bunch right now.

[Dustmaker65]

There was a little blond that would cruise Main St. in Peoria back in early 80's in a red Vet. She was pretty fast on the line, but I had a full chassis Camaro with tall deck 427 on NOS. I bet her a date if I won. She lost and we dated for awhile. Boy was that the good ole days I sure miss that Camaro!

[davischevy]

My lovely bride and I spent some time in Kentucky distillery country last weekend. The Old Taylor distillery has been closed for years, but is being restored. I think the architecture is neat.

[Ol Blue K20]

Neat looking place. Where else did ya go?

[davischevy]

We toured Cincinnati, OH Frankfort and Louisville KY and the Kentucky horse farms.

WE visited Woodford Reserve and Buffalo Trace distilleries but didn't do the tours. It was the week leading up to the Kentucky Derby and the place were so crowded we didn't hang long.

[special-K]

I'm glad they are saving that building. Very neat indeed. Dang that's right, it's triple crown time again!

[Ol Blue K20]

Sounds like a fun trip.