What One Car (doesn't have to be a Mopar) Turned You Into A Gearhead?
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brad2v
Well-Known Member
Like others, I was always into cars according to my folks. But without question, a family friends chopped '36 Chevy pickup hot rod was the one that cemented it. He let me drive it around the block when I was 14, and I was hooked.
67Dart273
Well-Known Member
First factory musclecar I ever rode in was a 65 GOTE. I grew up in a small town, and there just wasn't that much money for those cars, at least that early. Cousin of a friend of mine came to town, I guess he had a "rich daddy" but I'll say this, he had shiftin' down PAT. Still to this day I can remember bein' impressed.
Well, I don't know the exact car that got me and my brother started, but I can pinpoint "what" got us started. Our grandfather was a rep for Kendall Oil, and we went to a lot of drag races, tractor pulls, roundy rounds and anything else he would take us to. Maybe it was sitting in Chris Karamasenes "Chizler", or Big's Swamp Rat, or John Tedders Hemi Cuda!!
If I had to pick one car, it would probably be our Dad's 1970 440-6Pak Roadrunner convertible 4 speed car. Red with a white interior and top, it was a thing of beauty, and we loved going anywhere in that car. He also had a buddy who would come by once a week in his 70 Hemi GTX and they would go out to Telegraph Rd. and race. Bob, his buddy, never beat the RR, and would go home and throw parts at the GTX and come back for a rematch time and again. My bro and I would climb under that car in the drive and look in awe at the underside, not even knowing exactly what we were looking for!!
Maybe my bro will chime in with a pic of Grandpa, and one of the Roadrunner, both timeless classics and I miss them both dearly!!! Geof
If I had to pick one car, it would probably be our Dad's 1970 440-6Pak Roadrunner convertible 4 speed car. Red with a white interior and top, it was a thing of beauty, and we loved going anywhere in that car. He also had a buddy who would come by once a week in his 70 Hemi GTX and they would go out to Telegraph Rd. and race. Bob, his buddy, never beat the RR, and would go home and throw parts at the GTX and come back for a rematch time and again. My bro and I would climb under that car in the drive and look in awe at the underside, not even knowing exactly what we were looking for!!
Maybe my bro will chime in with a pic of Grandpa, and one of the Roadrunner, both timeless classics and I miss them both dearly!!! Geof
Started with American Graffitti,then Corvette Summer.Neighbores had hot mid 70's street machines.Then started high school.Best buddy 1st car,67 Camaro.350/m22 3.36's out back.Cam headers,all ten yards.Being a high school kid with a 4 speed car,you can guess what parts longevity was.Than was the final nail,in the being normal non-car coffin.
Woods74
Broke Senior
The cherry red LWB 1969 GMC truck my dad had.
Muad'Dib15
Well-Known Member
My Dad painted one of these viper red, stuffed a 500 cid caddy motor in it, and threw some fat tires underneath. Gilbert Brown now owns it.
Had I seen the video that the car was in though, the Binford 6100 Impala SS would have been the car that got me into cars.
d55dave
Well-Known Member
It was probably the late 70's, and I remember riding in the 64 Fury 383 hp my Dad just bought. He was commenting on the high compression 383, I remember the whine of the pushbutton torqueflite, and how it went when he opened it up. My brother still has the car. Of course, then followed by the yellow deuce coupe in American Graffiti, the calafornia kid 33 or 34 ford, the zztop eliminator, the hours my brothers and I spent playing in the derelict 40 ford pickup in the back yard, and helping Dad restore a 30 ford coupe in the 70's. Other memories - Dads 67 Dart GT 273 4 speed and his lime green 73 Charger. Here are before and afters of the 40 ford over the last ten years, Dad finally got around to it....
70DartMike
Too many projects
In high school a friend's dad drove a lowered 55 F100, built 302.
His mom drove a 68 Chevelle, 396 4 speed. She drove us around in it all the time.
My Grandpa had a 63 Fargo D200 which I always thought was the coolest truck.
My grandparents also had a 62 Dart 330, plain jane /6 car stuffed in the bushes, which they later gave to me. My cousin and I would always sit in the car and pretend to drive it. I looked at all the years of Dart's and decided 70 was my favorite, then I was on the hunt for one.
Then my cousin bought a 72 Gold Duster, snake skin roof and all. He then had it painted Hemi Orange, dropped in a 360, headers, 8 3/4. I drove it in my prom parade, doing burnouts at every stop sign, with the cops yelling at me to stop. My friend was in his mom's 68 Chevelle behind us, doing burnouts each time I did. It started a chain reaction.
The sweet feeling of 15 old cars doing burnouts all in a line got me hooked.
His mom drove a 68 Chevelle, 396 4 speed. She drove us around in it all the time.
My Grandpa had a 63 Fargo D200 which I always thought was the coolest truck.
My grandparents also had a 62 Dart 330, plain jane /6 car stuffed in the bushes, which they later gave to me. My cousin and I would always sit in the car and pretend to drive it. I looked at all the years of Dart's and decided 70 was my favorite, then I was on the hunt for one.
Then my cousin bought a 72 Gold Duster, snake skin roof and all. He then had it painted Hemi Orange, dropped in a 360, headers, 8 3/4. I drove it in my prom parade, doing burnouts at every stop sign, with the cops yelling at me to stop. My friend was in his mom's 68 Chevelle behind us, doing burnouts each time I did. It started a chain reaction.
The sweet feeling of 15 old cars doing burnouts all in a line got me hooked.
jos51700
Green Bearing thread connoisseur
You mean, aside from The General Lee?
In the early '80's, when I was a kid, my mom would drive use down I-70 from Missouri back home to Colorado. In Hayes KS (I think it was, anyway. It may have been Salina) there was a musclecar museum (It may have been a dealer of some type) visible on the North side of the interstate and in the front window of that museum was a wing car, and I'm pretty sure it was a Superbird. I wanted to stop and see that museum but mom would never go for it.
Also, growing up and seeing the RoadRunner on the 'Birds and 'Runners and the Duster Twister and the Demon and thinking how cool it was that there were cartoons on cars. I always thought that the Duster Twister was supposed to be the Tasmanian Devil...
Thanks to "Jerry was a race car driver" and "Demolition Man", this is one of about 3 non-Mopars I have wanted in my time.
In the early '80's, when I was a kid, my mom would drive use down I-70 from Missouri back home to Colorado. In Hayes KS (I think it was, anyway. It may have been Salina) there was a musclecar museum (It may have been a dealer of some type) visible on the North side of the interstate and in the front window of that museum was a wing car, and I'm pretty sure it was a Superbird. I wanted to stop and see that museum but mom would never go for it.
Also, growing up and seeing the RoadRunner on the 'Birds and 'Runners and the Duster Twister and the Demon and thinking how cool it was that there were cartoons on cars. I always thought that the Duster Twister was supposed to be the Tasmanian Devil...
Thanks to "Jerry was a race car driver" and "Demolition Man", this is one of about 3 non-Mopars I have wanted in my time.
herschel
Well-Known Member
My dad had a short box 327 truck four speed low geared that I leaned to drive in. My oldest brother had a 60 pontiac 389 four speed, my first car was a 65 lemons. So I was kinda born in to it. But what turned me mopar was Ill legal drag racing in the 80s, one. Night on lower river rd in Vancouver Wa guy took me for a ride in 69 4speed road runner, I've been mopar ever since.
fanofpetty
senior member
Well the first car that ever made an impression on me as a 12 year old kid , was by a friend of mine, who has an older brother, that owned a 71' ( this was in 1972 or so) roadrunner. He used to give us a ride in to town to the local hobby shop, and other places. That car was dark green, stripe delete, 383, 4 speed pistol grip, black bench seat, rallies, and completely stock. I loved that car. One time we rode with him on the Mass. turn-pike to Springfield, a vette pulled up along side us, and he floored it, and that thing went right up to 130 mph like it was nothing, and we left that vette like it was hooked to a tree! That was probably the fastest I had ever been in any car up until that point. I was hooked ! The guy in the vette followed us all the way to where we were going just to ask what was under the hood ! LOL! I knew from that day forward I wanted a mopar, and a roadrunner in piticular, and I now have owned my superbird, for 32 years. ( beside's a host of other mopar muscle cars) Some day I would love to find a green 71' roadrunner to put in my collection, just like that one he had ( except maybe bucket seats instead of a bench) I just loved how that car looked. I knew where that car was up until about 10 years ago, and then it disappeared. I'd love to find it.
brewil
Well-Known Member
Australian Valiant Charger which I thought at first was a Ford. That's how un-car I was.
GaryS
Well-Known Member
My first car...a '41 Chevrolet that I got at age 13 in 1954. That POS car was broken all the time! I decided that I had better learn to work on cars if I wanted to drive. God, I hated that car!...but at least it got me turned on to Mopars.
Not a particular car, but several. My uncle was Bob Metz, a custom car builder in Shelbyville, Ind. Everytime we went to visit family, the highlight of the trip for me, was to go see what Uncle Bob had in his shop at the time. There was always something pretty neat. He had several cars in Rod & Custom magazine
58 Plymouth fury, 350 cu.in. w/ dual quads (first B engine) "Christine"
rlevs
Well-Known Member
I think mine was a go-cart and or a tractor grew up on a farm
lou3500
Fla. Cuda Guy
My father [who was not into cars other than nascar] built models of a 65 mustang and a 63 split window corvette and gave them to me and he used to take me to the speedway every Saturday night to watch the stockcar races those two things along with neighbors whom built and raced cars set off the gearhead gene and i have been a car lover ever since i was 8 years old. And i have passed my love of cars to my children.
71'DemonRon
Well-Known Member
The General at an early age, later a friends 68' GTX & 68' Charger
rmchrgr
Skate And Destroy
A guy with a hat from N.C.
But I was born with gasoline in my veins anyway.
But I was born with gasoline in my veins anyway.
I was always into cars as far back as I can remember. But what really did it for me was my first ride in my cousins brand new 68 Charger R/T.
Fred B
Fred B
1968dartman
life is getting better!!
A guy that lived next door to my grandmother had a 68 Chevelle SS with a 327 in it. It was dark blue with a light blue interior. I can still remember seeing him pull into the driveway- I was hooked!! Thanks to my cousin's Dart Sport with a 340 for becoming a mopar nut. When I was about 8 or 9 my mom brought home a santa from where she worked that was broken and my Dad tried to fix it. It had a music box it in that played a christmas tune but Dad could not get it going. I pulled it out of the garbage and got it going. I still have that Santa and proudly display it every Chritmas so my Dad can see it!
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