Cars That Made You Want One

I'll take one of these please. Any benefactors out there?

I was born into a chevy family, i was driving a 57 chevy with a 360hp 350 with a Rochester f.i. setup, but i got a ride in an acquaintance's 68 gtx. It felt stroger than my 57, even though i had 4.56 gears, and he had 2.76s.
Then one of my best friends traded a nicely built 454, (that was a BIG chevy at the time) sraight across for a running duster. With a 440, tf, and a dana. Street driven, solid elevens at riverside raceway (closed in '88).
I decided i needed a big block mopar, a buddy knew of one, available for trade for a real 68 z28 302 i had. I said, ok, i'll take that pan-to-carbs max wedge. Found a 62 savoy to put it in, i thought it was ugly, found out it was light.
Still got it, kinda like the looks now.

As a kid, a family friend took me for a ride in his brand new 1970 Duster 340 4-speed. He was not scared to beat on that car. Got me interested in cars.

growing up in the 70s was a good time to be a kid into cars. I was the youngest of 4 and my oldest sister graduated high school in 72, I remember she had a few boy friends but the cars they came in were usually mopars. when they pulled up the front windows of the house would rattle. road runners a 70 charger etc. I guess the first car I saw that I wanted was a black 64 belvedere that was bad ***....I finally got my hard top b in 09.64 sport fury. never had a road runner or charger but fell into my challenget vert in 87. still have that.

Wow,you just made me remember something.My sister dated a guy that pulled up in a spankin' new 70 383 4 speed RoadRunner. Lime Green. We went out street racin' that night. It may have had 100 miles on it.

44070dart said:

I always was a motor head but the first car my dad had that impressed me was a new '58 Old Super 88 (exactly like the picture) .. now I know this is not a muscle car, but for a big car it could burn that tire up. I was 9 and my oldest brother was 17 and if we washed and waxed it, we could take it to get a hot dog about 4 miles away. He beat that thing to the hot dog stand and back. Fastest I ever went on a city street and it was great. I was hooked on speed and that was the start for me. Sixty year later, bad knees and all, I have a 4-speed stroker Dart. Guess it stuck.

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my dad has a 58 olds fiesta wagon, took him 15 years to find it. his dad had one when he was little. tri power all original. didnt make many wagons in 58

Nice '58 hardtop model ..looks great with windows down and no b pillar..

The local car to us that we all loved as kids growing up was a blown orbit orange 70' GTO Judge. That wine of the blower was so cool and still is even today of course. His brother also had a blown black 67' GTO ISCA show car. I remember him saying, "go ahead touch it". The paint and clear was so perfect and thick that I literally jammed my finger. You would actually touch the car sooner than you thought you were going to. I forgot home many, but it was in the teens on how many coats of paint and clear was on the car. Those cars left huge impression's on us little kids on our BMX bikes.

Then I saw Bullitt with my Dad and then the D.O.H sealed the deal on my love for Chargers. Yes, I said love, is that wrong? My Chargers always seem to out last my women.... lol.

44070dart said:

I always was a motor head but the first car my dad had that impressed me was a new '58 Old Super 88 (exactly like the picture)

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I don't think there was a shortage of effort from the engineering department at most of the major manufacturers back in the heyday, Olds and Buick inclusive. Problem is and was, the projects can get gutted by the bean counters til no one recognizes or realizes their efforts once the project is finished. I did some deeper reading on the Buick Nailhead recently. I was quite surprised to find that that motor was intended to be supercharged, and the heads were absolutely huge with the valves set at 90 angles to one another. What they ended up with is a very reliable motor that cant breathe, and only one set of valves in a very weird configuration. If they had followed through with the original concept, breathing and small ports would have been no problem with a supercharger. To the point, we should all be thankful the 2nd gen hemi project never got gutted in that fashion to save $$$.

When we came to this country we needed a new car, so we went to this Dodge dealer. My dad couldn't afford the new 65 Coronet so we ended up with a 65 Chevy Malibu, 4 door, six, automatic, white with red interior. Long story short, biggest piece of crap we ever owned. In 67 my dad went back to the Dodge dealer and bought a 67 Dart GT, 273 automatic, console car, BEAUTIFUL!! But I always loved that 65 Coronet!! We have always own Mopars, my dad worked there as a carpenter and so did I. So 53 years later my wife bought it for me, God love her and I love my car!!

6PKRTSE said:

Then I saw Bullitt with my Dad and then the D.O.H sealed the deal on my love for Chargers. Yes, I said love, is that wrong? My Chargers always seem to out last my women.... lol.

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Bullitt did for me. 11:30pm Sat night at the movies as a kid. FF to 91. I get to find a Black 440 4 speed 68 Charger R/T and buy it.

The Hellcat Challengers are the only new cars that have kept my interest for any length of time and I would love to own one someday.

ykf7b0. I agree with your last post. I'd be interested in either the Hellcat OR Demon someday. Hell, maybe even both if I had unlimited money and garage space. Unless Dodge comes out with something better

BB14404SPD said:

Bullitt did for me. 11:30pm Sat night at the movies as a kid. FF to 91. I get to find a Black 440 4 speed 68 Charger R/T and buy it.

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The screaming tires and violent inhalation of the AVS secondaries...lots of us were hooked by that six seconds of left turn, foot to the floor, goodbye.

My love for MoPar especially started at the drag-strip
with my stepdad Bob, (he was a Pontiac guy started with a 64 GTO)
but I was in love with MoPars, almost all the fuel altered had Hemi's

my favorite was Dave Hough & the Nanook cars
this car & a few earlier ones got me hooked line & sinker


my stepdad also had a 35 Ford pick-up hot rod,
with a Buick nail-head when he 1st married my Mom
I loved riding around in that little truck
he later built a 53 F-100 with a hopped up 352 FE
I learned to drive in that truck, in a shopping center parking lot

My great uncle Tink,
had MoPars always growing up, Fury's, DeSotos, Fireflite etc.
later a 340 Duster he bought new for my Aunt Anne
my uncle Jim had a 67 Barracuda,
my Uncle John had a 68 Barracuda Formula S 383cid
he'd take US boys for rides & do burnouts,
I was hooked

my mom had a 57 Savoy wagon
I was brought home from the hospital in
& one of our family cars was a 57 Ranch Wagon
my stepdad built for my mom (I still love wagons)

my Mom's 1st ever new car like Nov. 1967-ish
we went to a SF Dodge Chrysler Plymouth dealership
I saw a 68 Charger R/T on the showroom floor, I fell in love
head over heals, I was barely 8 y/o

I tried to talk them into buying the Charger
BUT;
My mom & my stepdad ordered a brand new
1968 Sport Satellite GG1
with white top & bucket seat interior
383cid 4bbl 4 speed,
I grew up riding around in that car
I later got that car in a trade/cash deal, from my stepfather
he was selling the Sport Sat for $300
I had a /6 Demon, I was gonna' build into a drag car
he wanted a economy driver for going to work/commuter
I wanted the Sport Sat bad, so I gave my dad the Demon
& bought the Sat for his asking price of $300

I was extremely happy to get my moms old 68 Sport Satellite
MY stepdad always did stuff for me, so I thought it was the
proper thing to do

I had that car for well over 10+ years, got it in like 1978-79-ish
along with a 68 Charger R/T I bought from a divorcee
green with black guts & top, buckets console, auto
that lived down the street from US for $350,
back in 1974-ish when I was a sophomore in HS

I wish I had more photos of a few of them
or any photos of a few of them...
I loved them cars, the 68 Charger R/T & my Moms ol' Satellite
(I turned it into a drag car too)
I always had some sort of MoPar thru the years,
I'm on my 13th 68-70 RR, had a dozen 68-70 Chargers too
it's an addiction

here's one of mine from like 1980-81-ish (?) 69 RR


when I was 18, my 1st real drag car


later painted like Gary Blazen Hasen's 23 Altered
or Nanook when his was Green & white, I wanted Orange

This guy helped culminate my interest in cars. My grandfather was a Kendall Oil rep, and would take my brother an I to any and all manner of races that Kendall sponsored. Here he is with his girlfriend at the PHR Summernationals in 1978. In the blown up picture, you can see my brother, my cousin and I on top of his camper watching the racing. I think grandpa was looking at other things!

I remember my sister dating a guy who always drove beater cars. His nickname was primer, because his cars always had different color primer all over them. He finally bought a really nice green on green 383 4 speed 69 Road Runner. It was probably only 3 years old,and very well kept. Within a years time, it was a beat to death rat with primer all over it. The hood was bent from flying open and hitting the windshield, one rear quarter was hit hard,the rest of tne panels were beat,there wasn't a straight panel on it. I saw it in his yard with the engine in pieces on the ground. A few months later it was in the local salvage yard.

Man, what a shame.

A lot of these cars were sold cheap when the gas crunch started, my brother in law bought a 70 Challenger R/T 440 Sixpack car for $1800 in early 1974. When the original owner offered him the set of 15 inch rallye wheels that came on the car for an extra $50 he declined the offer. He wrecked the Challenger in a street race in 1979. I can remember seeing some really nice cars beaten to death and wrecked back then.