Your first set of wheels?

[GUNNER75]

A previous post had me thinking about my first set of wheels and what my kids will start out with. First of all, I was an auto tech for several years and now I absolutely HATE turning wrenches, however I dig the hell outta installing go fast parts.

My first ride: (Rebuilt it after my parents finished the ol 260 V8 out. They purchased it in 86 or 87 for $2200 bones. It had 160,000 miles on it when I took it over. Installed a 1972 Olds 350/350 that I rebuilt and ran the hell out of it for several years.)

Previous to this and motivation to finish my first real car in short order, I was roll'n in a 84 LTD that even my fat ass today could outrun on foot. Baby blue with a white top.
This was very short lived. That 70 Road Runner was my ol mans project at the time. It was perfect just as you see it.

My 81 Olds after I worked it over.

So, what will my 6 year old daughter be driving to school in 8 years? Let's just say I have my eye on a very nice one owner Vega as well as a lime green pinto but what I would really like to get my hands on is a 83 Chevy Citation! No fancy spoiled ones on this end until they get out of high school. Now if my son thinks he can turn a wrench and works a job, guess whatever he drags home and builds he can run.

BTW, that 500hp Road Runner would smoke the crap outta anything around. If he only was aware of that at the time, I would have been limited to that baby blue beauty!

 

[ArcticLight]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Technically this 79 wabbit but it only lasted a week, got rammed into a guardrail.

This was the car I had for 5 or 6 years...

Day 1:

3 years later:

 

[High Binder]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

This was mine. '78 Trans Am 6.6 4 speed manual, it was in worse condition than the one in this pic though.

 

[SledDog]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first car was a 69 Datsun 510 coupe. Dual Mikuni sidedraft carb, Datsun racing 5 spd, seats from a 240z, formula libra wheels, killer car.

 

[Force_Multiplier]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1965 Chevy C10, I bought it off a farmer for $250, thing smoked so bad I had to drive it home w/ my head out the window. I pulled the factory inline 6 and Granny 4spd, put in a 396 and a Muncie M22... spooled the rearend w/ 4:10 gears... lowered it 4in all the way around, cadilac elderado leather seats... tons of body work.... it ended up pretty cool.... now I wish I still had it

 

[PGG]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1967 LeMans convertible it was a great car paid $1100 and redid it from top to bottom. PG

 

[nashlaw]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

'67 Olds Delta 88. Powered up by a 454 with a 2-barrel. On the open road it would pass anything but a gas station.
I have been on sofas that were not as nice riding as that car.

 

[maccrazy2]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

70 chevelle SS, I still have it. Currently doing a frame off build.

 

[*greenhorn*]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

i had a 1976 trans am, the guy i bought it from took a formula twin scooped hood and cut new shake scoop hole in it. it had w scoops i was the shit on the highschool parking lot. lol i look back on it now it probaly was the un-godlessly thing any one had ever saw.

had the heads ported and polished alum victor intake 800 eledbrock with hooker headers cherry bombs with the exhaust coming out from under just in-front of the real wheels, bored 60 over becouse it was the thing to do in auto shop, had motor worked at Crawdfords motorsports. lifted rear leefsprings with airshocks and L50 slicks i belive was the rear tire size

a budys dad said to chain the front suspection down so when it would lanch the front would hit the chains and it would hop a little

back woods Toccoa ga i thought it was the coolest thing. I wish i had a pic, its hard to belive with out the pictured proof

 

[TF160 Guy]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Mine was a 1939 Plymouth (in 1964). Deal with my Mom and Dad was I would buy insurance and they would by me a car. I worked summers to pay for the insurance. Since my parents bought a new car every year I expected the same. To my surprise Dad bought the car at the junk yard for $35.00. Really crushed.

I had to work on it every weekend for it to run the next week. Redid the interior, did body work and painted it.

Years later I realized how smart my parents were in using this as a teaching tool. I learned a great deal from that experience--things that helped make me who I am today.

Sorry no pictures-too many years ago.

Thanks Mom and Dad

 

[Guest]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1971 Cutlass S
Mine was the deep reddish brown color

 

[kill_zone67]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1982 Chevrolet S-10

 

[Xshot]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Mine was a 1964 Ford Galaxy 500 with 390, 4 speed and bucket seats. They've become a hot item with collectors.

 

[152]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

No picture for me,mine was a 1971 Toyota Crown bought on Okinawa..
I had a better car than most ocifers.

 

[crumpmd]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first car was a 74 beetle

 

[ZLBubba]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first vehicle was a 97 Jeep Cherokee. I bought it with 60k miles on it and ran it until 186k. Great jeep, and I still miss it.

 

[Inogame]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

I had a '86 IROC-Z Camaro, black with t-tops...

She was a rust bucket underneath, no floors in the back and every time it rained the t-tops would leek and I'd get wet.

That 305 ci TPI motor was a dog too...

But Damn, I miss that car. lol

 

[pyplynr]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Mine was a 1991 Ford Ranger ext. cab, 4x4. Worked 3 summers on the pipeline and paid $4000 for it and I believe it had about $5000 worth of hail damage when I got it. It was beat to shit but it alway ran good, until my sister totaled it.

 

[KHOOKS]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1986 Sunbird 1.8 liter turbo with the turbo lockup.LOL and yes to was a POS.

 

[Peloton]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

I got first car in 1983. It was a 1977 Chevy Vega, in orange. Not a dent in it, but I hated that car. At least it was free, thanks Dad.

Sold that 9 months later and bought a Mustang II. Also a POS.

 

[Parallax]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1969 Ford Mustang BOSS 302... had been a factory TransAm Sedan race car that a Ford dealer had purchased new for advertising and use in parades. It had 28,000 miles on it when I got it. The dealer had given it to his kid, he drove it, knocked up his girlfriend, and daddy took the wheels away and sold it.

 

[TRON]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1972 Dodge pickup with 3 on the tree, It was a sexy color of primer and blue..

chicks dug it.. lol

 

[fx77]

Re: Your first set of wheels?


1970 Mercury Cougar XR 7
Canary Yellow with Black Vinyl Roof, AM/FM and Hurst Shifter

 

[cooper_257]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1971 Ford F250 highboy with a built 390 and a 4 speed manual. it had no power steering and no power assist on the breaks. she had way more getup and go than stop.

 

[tmcginnis]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

I guess ill bring a little youth (and most likely ignorance) to the discussion.

I didnt have a cool muscle car or anything, but i did have a father who cared. I really liked the tuner style cars (cars that i now hate haha). I couldnt afford a badass tuner car or anything so i had to make due. Fortunately my dad found me a 1999 mercury cougar that had a blown engine and needed A LOT of work.

Needless to say, we tricked that bad boy out. I started working when i was 14 as a dishwasher at a pizza place and i put every penny i had into that thing. I learned a lot: how to replace an engine, do brakes, weld, fiberglass, wire electronics, install stereos, etc.
All in all, it was more of a learning experience about materialistic things, how to appreciate the things i have, and how to work with my hands. But i have to say, I will cherish those memories.

UNFORTUNATELY:
2 days after i finished the <span style="font-weight: bold">3 YEAR PROJECT</span>, a girl on her cellphone ran a stop sign and pulled out in front of me as i was on my way to the local car crash.

Here are a few pics:
I was 17 when this picture was taken

After the Wreck

and the cardomain i did for it back in the day
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2494236/1999-mercury-cougar

 

[country888]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Mine was a 78 ford F-150 with a 351M in it. Great truck ran great and would go anywhere! Looking back I cant believe I really took it on dates, but I sure had a lot of fun in that old truck!

 

[Dollman]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

First vehicle was an 1956 Chevy 3100 long bed stepside. It had a 235 cubic inch 6 cyl and a 4 speed tranny with the compound non syncro first gear. I got it in 1969 sold it in 1972. Next vehicle was a 1969 Camaro 302 cu. in. V8 RPO Z28, with dealer installed dual four barrels, and Muncie M23 "Rockcrusher" 4 speed transmission. I got it in 1972 when they were still cheap. I wrecked it at 140 mph in 1973. From then on until 1980's it was alot of chevy hot rods.

 

[ArcticLight]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Fredrick</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Next vehicle was a 1969 Camaro 302 cu. in. V8 RPO Z28, with dealer installed dual four barrels, and Muncie M23 "Rockcrusher" 4 speed transmission. I got it in 1972 when they were still cheap. I wrecked it at 140 mph in 1973. </div></div>

Damn....my dream car and you had to go and wreck it

LOL I bet you cried...or maybe are now? I'm crying right now!

 

[Bryan27]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

I had a 1996 TJ sahara, brand spanking new that I was paying for with my own money from my grass cutting bidness. July 4th, with 6,000 miles on the odo I wrapped the mf'er around an oak. Engine was sitting sideways. Front passanger side tire blew out on a gravel road. Luckily nobody so much as got a bump, bruise or scratch, only thing we had was a WTF look on our face.

 

[mexicanmatch]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first was a 1954 dodge 4 door family car. I was in high school and had an evening job. Paid $100 for it back in 1964. MM

 

[Dollman]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ArcticLight</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Fredrick</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Next vehicle was a 1969 Camaro 302 cu. in. V8 RPO Z28, with dealer installed dual four barrels, and Muncie M23 "Rockcrusher" 4 speed transmission. I got it in 1972 when they were still cheap. I wrecked it at 140 mph in 1973. </div></div>

Damn....my dream car and you had to go and wreck it

LOL I bet you cried...or maybe are now? I'm crying right now!

</div></div>

No, when I wrecked it I was 17 Y.O. I was pretty well injured as I hit and oak tree in a freshly disced field after leaving near 300 feet of skid marks on the road, flew over a ag irrigation ditch, took out a couple of hundred feet of barbed wire fence, and was another 200 or so feet in the field before I hit the tree. Not to worry, I had several 2nd generation Camaros after that, which I had built even higher HP motors for. Banged a few of them up a bit, but never had a wreck again like I had in that 1969 Z28. Back then in those years Camaros were still a dime a dozen and they, of course, were plentiful.

 

[Alderleet]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

I had my grandpa's 1989 Crown vic, that had a 351 interceptor big block. It wasnt a good beginner car.

THen my parents gave me their 1995 mazda millenia. I drove that car for a good 60k ontop of what they had. The coolant system however, decided to take a massive dump, the engine overheated, and it cracked the block when the coolant system detonated.

My first "real" car of my own, is my 2000 Toyota Tacoma SR5 TRD off road, v6 4x4. I love tacoma's so much.

 

[twheat]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1987 Toyota 4x4 extended cab. 130k in it replaced engine at 189k and ran it till over 300k and sold it.

 

[Rookie]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

Gold 1970 Chevy Monte Carlo. Came with 2 barrel carb which I swapped for a quadraject which I got from a junk yard and rebuilt. Headers, Mickey Thompson valve covers, chrome coil, gold-anodized air filter, Hushthrush mufflers......

Some races races in Lubbock back in the day with that one.

 

[downhill]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

In 1984 a 1969 GTO fell into my lap. Had the 389 with a Muncie 4sps,positrac,straight pipes and no headliner,no door panels and no rear deck cover. Paid the princely sum of $350 for her. She was a bit rough but she was loud,fast and friggin' awesome. At 18 I traded her for a 1982 Jeep CJ5. I now realize I was a FRIGGIN' idiot! But the girls seemed to dig the jeep alot more.

 

[dagwood]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first ride was a 1969 Chevy El Camino with a 307 V8 with a powerglide. Had custom red paint with skyline of New York airbrushed on the tailgate. Had alot of fun until the frame broke at the rear wheel arch.

 

[SledDog]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: downhill</div><div class="ubbcode-body">In 1984 a 1969 GTO fell into my lap. Had the 389 with a Muncie 4sps,positrac,straight pipes and no headliner,no door panels and no rear deck cover. Paid the princely sum of $350 for her. She was a bit rough but she was loud,fast and friggin' awesome. At 18 I traded her for a 1982 Jeep CJ5. I now realize I was a FRIGGIN' idiot! But the girls seemed to dig the jeep alot more. </div></div>

There's many reasons to have a car. At that age pussy is about the #1 reason. Heck it's about the #1 reason now.

 

[slowkota]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

My first was given to me in 2004, a 1994 Dodge Dakota Sport 4x4... after a year or so, I swapped the 3.9L V6, for a 5.9L 8cyl. I fragged the transfer case after a couple years, so I sold the motor, and scrapped the rest

The first vehicle I actually bought with my own cash, was a 1984 Olds Cutlass Supreme... Flawless body, but it had a carb'd 2.8 in it! I really miss that one!

 

[CE1371]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

 

[Jayne]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

'79 Malibu. Awesome car in high school because the thing always ran (unlike my friends toyota pickup that was cooler, but tended leave us stranded places):

 

[Switchblade]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1966 Ford Mustang. 351W, Offy manifold, Holly 750DP 3310, Custom Prototype Heddman headers, Prototype Flowmaster American Thunder Exhaust System, Prototype Track Pack suspension, 7" poverty steels with 235's. She ran like stink, handled better than anything else short of a Ferrarri, wooped up on everything and never lost a single street or backroad skirmish. This is what she looks like now. Pop is actually working on it with a few shops in Nor Cal to make her all shiney again.

Slated are a Smeding 427ci/351W, 17" Crager Bonneville wheels, 265-40 ZR rubber, all suspension remodeled, interior remodeled, body lightened with 'glass fenders, hood, trunk lid, and 2" flares to handle the 265's offset...think the real deal hellaflush, not some pussyassed civic

From Forza 4, what I want the paint and wheels to look like

 

[In2b8u]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1964 Chevy 1/2 t PU Flare side, with coat hanger wired on fenders, 3 on the tree with a 305. I could never lend it to anyone because you had to HAMMER the shift from 1 to 2 or the linkage would lock up (screwdriver kept under the hood wired on also). Painted right over the coathangers (mixed whatever colors my grandpa had left in various cans to come up with a one off shade of metallic shithouse green). Ran great, stopped OK, looked awful, got me to work and play like a champ. Paid for it in cash, and fixed it with boogered up knuckles.
My kids will have it easy compared.

 

[Sportin Wood]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

1991 Toyota Pickup with the V6... best truck ever. Now I'm fixing up my 76' Highboy that I bought as a first truck as a freshman in HS 9 years ago...

 

[Clark]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

67 Mustang [my dad's car, but I learned to drive in it]
54 Ford $100
58 Chev biscane [got laid in it] $250
60 MGA 1600 [got laid in it] $425
67 Sunbeam Alpine $575
67 Chev biscane [got laid in it] $250
69 Triumph GT6 $1500
84 Saab 900 $11000 [made car payments]
89 Saab 900 $15000
72 Jeep Commando [Just drove it when it snowed]$1500
87 Honda CRX [got in road races every day]
95 Saab 95 $8000
05 Honda Element $24000
00 Dodge Intrepid $8000 [got it for kids to drive to college]

 

[71firebird400]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Switchblade</div><div class="ubbcode-body">1966 Ford Mustang. 351W, Offy manifold, Holly 750DP 3310, Custom Prototype Heddman headers, Prototype Flowmaster American Thunder Exhaust System, Prototype Track Pack suspension, 7" poverty steels with 235's. She ran like stink, handled better than anything else short of a Ferrarri, wooped up on everything and never lost a single street or backroad skirmish. This is what she looks like now. Pop is actually working on it with a few shops in Nor Cal to make her all shiney again.

Slated are a Smeding 427ci/351W, 17" Crager Bonneville wheels, 265-40 ZR rubber, all suspension remodeled, interior remodeled, body lightened with 'glass fenders, hood, trunk lid, and 2" flares to handle the 265's offset...think the real deal hellaflush, not some pussyassed civic

</div></div>

If the carb is a 3310, then it can't be a DP

 

[Switchblade]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

It's a DP. The 3310 is here sitting on my garage floor. Pop brought it out for this for No2 son's first ride:

That short block in the background:
1972 LT1 Four Bolt mains, 13:1 forged pistons, Chevy 'pink' floating rods, and a Chevy competition crank. Cam specs...uh from what Pop said, somewhere around 'barely streetable'. Underneath it is a Doug Nash Copmpetiton 5 Speed with a nice heavy duty clutch and lightweight flywheel. Sam and I are going to try to get that car taken apart so we can refinish frame up and replace body panels with aluminum competition parts. The motor will be taken apart and rebuilt with 11:1 KB forged pistons, a Comp Big Mutha Thumpr, Summit gear drive, and a Torker manifold breathing through the rebuilt 3310. The reear end in the thing will be a Ford 9" with 3.25 or 2.88 gears in it. Overall, the car should come out somethin glike this in teh end according to Sam:

 

[garey]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

VW Bug, blueprinted with a VW bus engine transaxle I think. Fun to pop wheelies with and mud run.

 

[sirhrmechanic]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ArcticLight</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Technically this 79 wabbit but it only lasted a week, got rammed into a guardrail.

</div></div>

Holy smoke... I thought I was the only kid who started out with a Hunter Safety Orange Rabbit! I think it left scars. Hated the color, but it was cheap and went fast. Lasted me 3 years and finally rusted in half at the bottom of the A-pillar and broke in two. By then I could afford a pickup and a motorcycle...

Cheers,

Sirhr

 

[71firebird400]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Switchblade</div><div class="ubbcode-body">It's a DP. The 3310 is here sitting on my garage floor. Pop brought it out for this for No2 son's first ride:
</div></div>
But a 3310 is a vacuum secondary carb; which means it cannot be a double pumper.

 

[vwhugger]

Re: Your first set of wheels?

A '52 Ford with the V-8 and Fordomatic. It vapor locked a lot in the summer and ya just had to sit along side the road for a bit for it to clear up. And the 2 speed Fordomatic, well, let's say, if'n you were going about 40mph and wanted to go faster and floored it, it would shift down and the rpms would go up, but it wouldn't accelerate any faster.