how did you get your mopar?

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When i was thirteen years old my brother in law bought a 1970 340 dart swinger and he use to let me drive it out in the country. From that moment i was in lovewith the car. When i turnd sixteen i ended up with a 1976 Pontiac Trans am it is a beautiful car and i just happend to keep it for thirty for years but had always said to my wife that before i die i want to own a 1970 Dart swinger. Well on day i was looking through a auto trader and talking to my wife about mopars and she said to me every time we go to a car show the first cars you look at are the mopars not he pontiacs not the chevys and not the fords but the mopars. Then she said you are fifty when are you going to buy that swinger when your eighty!!!! One week later there was a 1970 340ci 4 speed scat pac Dart swinger in my garage beside my 1976 455ci 560hp trans am and i could not be happier. I absolutely love it.
 
I had been looking for a good Dart project car for almost two years. Looked in the usual places eBay, Moparts, newspaper etc. Didn't really have much luck. Looked at several cars but they were all over priced or needed too much metal work. Finally found my car on Moparts and emailed and phoned back and forth with the guy for a couple weeks. I sent him $500 deposit and made plans to go pick it up the next weekend. Took a Friday off work and started on the 6 1/2 hour drive pulling a trailer. Made it to his house and checked out the car, shook his hand and sealed the deal. We decided to come back in the morning and load up the car rather than leaving it outside at the motel all night. Overnight, an ice storm came through, and EVERYTHING was like a skating rink including the trailer! Have you ever tried to pull a car that you've never driven before, that has a stall converter, onto a trailer that is covered with ice?!?! Scary to say the least. We got it loaded up and began our sloooooow drive home. Took us an extra 4 hours of white knuckle driving to get home.

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When we got home, I realized that it was my wife's birthday, so we loaded up the family in the new Dart and went out to dinner!!!
 
Bought mine during my last deployment. Was looking for a A-Barracuda for quite a while and couldn't pass it up for the price. Had a good friend look at it who is a professional body guy. In retrospect not the most brilliant idea....to a body guy everything is fixable, and they don't see dollar signs like the rest of us do....atleast she run's and drives...for the most part....
 
well here is my most meroable race its a bit of a long story but worth reading '
i was intersted in buying my 74 duster, So i meet the guy who owned the car in cayuga on . sunday sept long week end
we were talking about the car, he said if u want to buy it u should try it
so i said ok i will try it tomorrow on monday at test n tune
he said no he had to go home on sun to spend the day with family, so if i wanted to try it it had to be now
so he went to buy back in and left me with the car, he was running street class and running constance 12.56
when he came back he said they called our class so we have to go now i got in and at the time i never knew much about cars or racing ,so i get in and we are going to the staging lanes and he is teaching me how to use the shifter (husrt rachet shifter)
and as we are going to the burn out box he is teaching me how to use the line lock.now let me explain the tach was under the dash sorta so i had to look down to see it and no shift light
i do a half *** burn out and stage last thing i asked was what to luanch at and what to shift at 1,800 and shift at 5,500
so off i go looking down at the tach shifted into second and looked up and relized the car was going to the left so straighten it out shifted to third and still watching the tach not knowing at the time that the car would come thru the big end reving over 5,500 so when the tach got to 5,600 or so i thought i did somthing wrong so i shifted again and it went in to nutural so i let off shifted back in to third and hit it again when all was said and done i ran a 13.01 and won the race so when i go back buddy asked me what happen and i told him.
so he said buddy u missed a shift went a 1/2 second slower than i have be running all day and still won the race Wow
he said he was not sure he was selling the car but after getting in the car for the first time and doing what i did he said the car is yours if you want it , you are one hellava driver and i know you will treat the car right so when i got my cash together in early november i went south to buy it and have had it since.

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I was browsing the internet and found it for sale in GA. Gave the fellow a call, went over and checked it out, came back the next day, and paid for it.
 

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i had just moved to tampa from orlando and my roommate said come and look at this ford van at this by here pay here lot. well the van was a ford .and on the lot set the demon. i open the hood and there were inner fenders.being from ohio i had not seen to many with inner fenders still there.so next day i went to test drive and make a deal.not untill i turn the key did i know it was a 3 on the tree.i gave them450.00 down and ended up paying 1,500 for the whole thing.that was in 1986 and i still have it.
 
Some pretty cool stories here.

When we got the '69 Sport Satellite, Pop was looking for a reliable daily driver. He drove for a trucking company called Gilchrist/Northeast out of Scranton and was friends with one of the painters who owned a little bondo shop. Discussing Pop's need for a good daily for the family one day, the painter told him that one of his customers had brought in a '69 Plymouth 4 door which needed some body work to pass PA inspection. The owner had decided it was too much and just gave Pop's friend the title and said, here, sell it.

It was a good buy. $300 in cash and a blown 454. The bondo shop owner scratched off the original Q5 and shot it with red oxide primer. It still had it's original Magnum 500's in place. Hell, even the original spare was in the trunk. The car didn't run right for the entire trip home back from PA, but a new set of points and an adjustment on the secondary air door and the 383 ran like new. Once Pop's friend found out that's all it took to get it running right (he was a Chevy guy and not that bright) he offered to buy it back for a $1000. No deal. Pop liked the car too much.

Mom and Pop moved on to other daily drivers and I asked one day if I could have the Sport. He knew I loved that car...still do.
 
The E-body I've got centers around Pop, yet again. He was driving for an outfit called Kane Freight Lines this time and the finances were a bit better than the last company.

He was in the market for an E-body and went looking. A guy near us had two. A '70 Challenger, Plum Crazy slant six car which needed everything to be a car again and a '74 Barracuda, 318 car, B5 blue with a blue interior which was a lot more solid. The asking price on the Challenger was a $1200, the asking price on the Barracuda was $600. Pop struck a deal: the owner kept the 318 and 904 and Pop bought the car for $300.

Pop started on it almost at once. Tear down revealed a lot of hidden surprises, but nothing which couldn't be handled. Pop got the body work done, the car in paint, the interior done, the suspension ready to go. Then we started our restoration shop and time and energy was focused on making everyone elses' rides into dream cars and the 'Cuda sat in Pop's garage.

The first time around Pop was going for go, building a hot 440 6BBL for it, not show, but since he decided that this was car we were building our reputation as restorers off of, it needed to be done right. He stripped it back down of the paint and started to correct some of the "mistakes" he made on the first pass.

Then he was coming out of a receiver one cold, icy, blustery day and fell and busted his shoulder. One operation and six months of rehab later, he decided it was time to retire.

He and Momma moved to TN to be closer to my oldest sister and her family and the Cuda stayed here in NY. A few years into retirement I got a phone call from Pop. After talking to him for a little while Pop said he and Momma had talked it over and he wanted me to have the Barracuda. I was left speechless. All the time and energy he spent looking for a restifiable E-body, all the time and energy he spent on bringing the car back to life -enjoying every minute of it - this car was his dream. And he was giving it to me to take care off.
 
I drove to Lithia Springs loaded it on a trailer and dragged it back to Jones County. My Jeep did protest greatly.
 
Well, here goes Yes I am a very blest man
This site of members gave me Victoria, and the day I learned it is easier to give then recive
I was gave a car.

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Victoria's short version
It all started on a sunny day on 8-24-07.
I was in therapy in my brothers pool one day and he called me about a Nice little 4 door Valiant in great shape for $400 dolors
at a rummage sale.
So he came and picked me up and off we went to buy the car, But when we got there and was ready to buy the old man needed a bill of sale for it,
So we drove home
I came back the next day with cash and a bill of sale that he could use for his car to fill out for me.
Well he was not home but the other guy was there running the rummage sale where the car was
So I looked at the car waiting for him to return for over an hour.
As I was looking thought the car I found the tags in it back in the trunk area
Got home ran the plates and found out the owner lived here in my town.
I call here up she ask me to meet here and the family at her daughters house.
Well I came to find out the lady tried to find this car 5 to 6 years before and failed and gave up.
So I gave her $400 dollars and got the tittle signed to me and handed me a lawyer NO charge to me.
It ended up the old coot was in Tight!!with the town the 63 Valiant was in
The law did not want to deal with him.
On the first visit to court They said Quote= Do you want to have a pissing contest over this car.
The judge said this to me after clearing the court.

The old coot did not show for court first time I filed, Second time No show again ,
This was getting to me because how could he get buy with this so my lawyer filed another against him.

He showed up But the coots lawyer said it has been disposed of.
The judge said nothing and my lawyer had to take me to another room and and inform me that Yes this is again against
the law but I would have to pay for a deposit and his fee to do this and told me what to do
I should just walk and put it in my name and report it stolen.

So I did.

Time went on and I learned it was Grumpuscreature staarted and said lets buy memike a car.
I could not stop this ball rolling and the whole world jump in on it and raised more then enough money to buy me a car of my choice.
This was something that I have never experienced in my life and was hard
to except But after some time under a tree talking and to it seems hundred's of members on the phone made me feel so much better and now is apart of my family.
There is so much to say about the story of Victoria, But it is an unbelievable
event on my life..

I could speak of all the members here but it would be running into 5 pages and I sure would want to thank everyone and not forget the ones that was helping me along mentally and spiritually though this.
It is hard to receive , That is something that I learned this year.
But Small Block sure is making me understand it ok, What a year.

Here is a thank you thread the day I met Small Block to go get Victoria

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=38222

This was how it all went down over three years ago :happy10:
I could not believe the old feelings that came back as I read it this morning

http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=37879

This is Ray, the owner of Vivtoria, and then me heading home from Troy Missouri :happy10: And know here at home on the hill.

Thank you all for my girl Victoria :happy10::happy10: I hope I have made you proud so fare as I was when I resieved such a great gift.

Here is the day I met Victoria and Ray.
Good pictures and more reading that I could hardly bare reading and seeing again :shaking2::crybaby:
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=38175
 

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My GSS Demon was always in the Chicago area since new. In 1992 I made the trip to the Mopar nats by myself. While driving through Chicago I ended up following this car through the city, sort of protecting it from other traffic. The next night while cruising Brice Rd. I spotted the car in the Burger King lot and found the owner. We talked and I told him that I had wanted a GSS since I was 16 (I was 20 at the time). Long story short, it wasn't for sale but he agreed to give me first chance if it ever was. The man lived 30 miles from me in Illinois. I pestered him over the years and almost bought the car back around 2003 but we never struck a deal. I think it was three years later (2006) that he initiated the call to offer me the car. After about 3 months of negotiating, I bought it. It's my holy grail and I will probably have it forever.
 
I wish we didn't have ours. Brother in law had both the 72 and 75 Dart that he wanted to restore. He drove them both at one time. Passed away suddenly a year ago and my boys inherited the cars.
 
A coworker told me about this 67 barracuda in the back of his barn that needed a total restoration but it was all there.
I declined because I did not want a basket case project.

Four years later he approached me again and told me this was my last chance and that another guy in the shop, a Ford guy was interested in it and he knew I was a mopar fanatic so he really wanted it to go to someone who could appreciate it.
It was also his Mother's car and unfortunately she and her Husband were killed in a horrific car accident 5 years prior.

It was not my favorite model as I had my sights on an E body some day, but I decided to do some browsing on the web that night and looked at a few notchbacks and decided this car could be pretty sweet if I did it up my way.

I went to look at the car, but it took a half hour to dig it out of his barn and remove all the crap away and off of it.
I was impressed how solid and straight it was but the interior was serving as disneyworld for the local rat population and smelled horrible.

I threw down $2-k for it which was $2-k cheaper than what he originally wanted for it 4 years prior.

It took me 10 years to get it done, and it still needs some stuff to be 100% complete.

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During the restoration, I bought this little beauty for $2800 to keep from going insane from not having a Mopar to drive around.

I sold her to a neighbor shortly after getting the barracuda on the road.

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WOW!! So many stories here 8) I did not have a clue about till now :happy10:
Keep them coming, :happy10:
 
I searched for two years for an A body and wanted either a 70-72 Duster or a 70 Dart. I scoured the southeast and literally travelled thousands of miles to look at cars. The only two criteria that I had were that it had to be completely rust free(minor surface ok) and that it had to be complete. I had so many guys that said "yea man rust free" or yes complete and in great shape which turned out to be complete bullshit. I found my Dart on ebay in Nevada and the seller had advertised that not only did it have fresh orange paint but that it was rust free and had never had any rust. I had my brother who lived in California go check the car out. Unbelievable, absolutely 100 percent rust free and 100 percent complete and original except for the front bench having been recovered. He had the paperwork to prove that it had been a SOCal and Nevada car its whole life AND had survived intact as it had an excellent factory undercoat. The entire front end had been rebuilt. it was extremely clean. I flew out, and drove it back to FL without a single problem except for some oil leaks. The best part I only paid 3500 bucks.
 
My mom and her boy friend Lyle picked up a 70 340 Dart back in 91. Then in 98 they broke up. The Dart was in mom's name and Lyle did not want her to have it. It was down with a blown head gasket at the time. So he made her and me a deal that if I helped him get it running again I could have the car. I was 18 and had loved the car from the first moment I saw it so I was all in on that deal. We almost had it back together when he was killed in a motorcycle accident. Some lady in a big suv pulled right out in front of him. It crushed me. I had lost a good friend and mentor. I will never sell the Dart. I will keep it always in memory of him.



The Duster I just payed 1000 bucks cash for.
 
My 20th bday on the trailer, And earlier this summer. Its amazing what I can do when I put my mind to something and give it 100%
 

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Cudaspaz, did your coworker get to see it after the restoration?

Yes, I showed him some pics of it.

I just took it to my old job to show him a couple weeks ago, but I got bombarded by all the techs, and they made me drive it through the shop.
everyone and their Mother came out to take a look at what was making all that noise.
I spent nearly and hour and a half answering questions and talking to some of the guys that had their own mopar projects at home that suddenly became inspired to get their project going again.

I looked for him but he was nowhere to be found so I left.

I talked to him since and he wants me to bring it to his house during the Christmas holiday while his Brothers are visiting.

I need to get pics of this reunion.

Maybe I will sell it to them if the price right...:snakeman:
 
About a year ago i got interested in cars and started my search for a worthy project.I had always thought the E body cuda's and challengers were beautiful but were way out of my price range so i started looking for any other mopar. I live in chevy country so they were scarce. After looking for a couple of months i gave up and asked a guy a few houses down if i could buy the 71 ss nova that had been sitting in his yard for 17 years he said the nova was his brothers and not for sale but the guy who lived beside him(who's house is was down a hill hidden from plain view btw) may have a project to sell me. So we walk over and he introduces me and i tell the man my situation and he points at a 74 duster /6 car and tells me thats what i needed and he would take $700 cash for it and i said sold ! drove it home that night with one no head lights and front fender and bumper and grill in the back seat lol had to fill the overflow tank full of gas and use it as a gas tank lol
 

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My fiance's lease was up on her apartment and we figured since we would be getting married in about a month, she might as well just move in to my place to save some money. She wanted to give most of her old furniture to her sister to use at school, so she rented a storage unit. We went out to dinner one night, then went and loaded up my truck with her furniture, we got to the storage facility and she had me open the door. I opened the door and there was a 72 Duster that had been fully restored sitting there. I was like, hmmmm, someone left their car here, and when I turned around she handed me the keys for it. Needless to say I was pretty excited, and once I fired it up I realized it was a big block as well!

72 Duster, 440, 14" slicks, TCI racing 727, 3.91 gears and 27k original miles.

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The car I got My dad owned it in 2008 and it went threw 3 people and I bought it from my dads buddy. Know its not going no where..
 
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