American Car Enthusiasts

[Tazio]

BTW a 1966 hardtop Pontiac GTO's list price was $2,800

[Gregor-y]

Really? I knew lots of guys that had muscle cars growing up in the 60's and 70's. All you needed was a steady job and a little savings, or you could get them used for a song, they just weren’t that expensive. And if you were a wrench, you could build them for them for drag racing. You my friend are laboring under a misconception. Then again I can’t really blame you. You kind of had to be there

I grew up in the 70s and 80s and muscle cars were pretty rare and definitely not cheap, even five to ten years ten after their heyday. Sure there were plenty of normal Chevelles, Skylarks and Bonnevilles around, but nothing so flash as what you see at auctions today. Most adults I knew were busy paying for families and houses and the only person who went out and bought a Lil Red Express was the guy that was still living with his parents who had very few financial obligations. Pittsburgh at the time was reeling from all the steel mill closures so people didn't have a lot of spare cash.

Maybe everyone in California was rich at the time. It kind of looked nice on CHiPs. As you said I wasn't there.

[Tazio]

I grew up in the 70s and 80s and muscle cars were pretty rare and definitely not cheap, even five to ten years ten after their heyday. Sure there were plenty of normal Chevelles, Skylarks and Bonnevilles around, but nothing so flash as what you see at auctions today. Most adults I knew were busy paying for families and houses and the only person who went out and bought a Lil Red Express was the guy that was still living with his parents who had very few financial obligations. Pittsburgh at the time was reeling from all the steel mill closures so people didn't have a lot of spare cash.

Maybe everyone in California was rich at the time. It kind of looked nice on CHiPs. As you said I wasn't there.

I can appreciate your posture in this matter as Western Pennsylvania really did take a huge hit in the steel industry; I married a woman whose family left Butler for San Diego in 1970.
At that time the economy was very robust in Southern California. It wasn't until the mid 80's that it tanked for a little while. There was a culture of muscle cars in Southern Cal, and you really did see a lot of Challenger, Chargers, GTO's, and etc. Corvettes were a whole different story, by the late 60's they were already very pricey. I think you make a good point about your experience, but that was not the case in Southern California.
Chips lol, that’s funny! They were always chasing someone in a muscle, or pony car
Peace my man

[Gregor-y]

No worries; I was more grumpy about the state of things today than passing judgement on the past. I've met plenty of people in Chicago with family histories of drag and street racing both here and around Detroit. Pittsburgh was a pretty confining place. And if I find a decent job on the California coast I'll still move there in a heartbeat.

[Jag_Warrior]

I was shooting the bull with some guys around my age at a facility I go to about once a month. I was telling them how my dream car when I was a teenager (late 70's/early 80's) was a Dodge Challenger or a Plymouth 'Cuda. A guy near where I lived had a Challenger with a 340, a 4 speed and a triple-deuce setup. But he wanted $800 for it! Way too much money for me. So I ended up with a Plymouth Roadrunner (the rounded "boat"/early 70's model, not the square bodied late 60's model that I liked). It had a 383 Magnum and an auto transmission, and even came with an extra 383 engine - all for $500. I snapped that one up, but sold it not too long after I got it together. My problem was paying for the insurance. That's what kept most of the younger guys I knew out of muscle cars back then. And really, when we talk about how you could get this or that car for a couple grand, you also have to remember that a couple grand was a lot of money for a teen/early 20's guy when minimum wage was $3/hour.

What I can't figure out these days are the kids who can afford WRX's, STI's and Evos... in high school! I mean, a $30K+ car is bad enough. But how do they afford the insurance?! I let my girl's nephew drive my XK8 to his prom a couple of years back. He begged and I felt like he'd earned a break. But to ease my mind, his aunt and I swung through the parking lot, just to make sure there was no drinking or foolishness going on during the event, and that place was loaded with jazzed up sport tuners. Nice ones too! Not just tarty Civics, with wings and giant fart can mufflers (although there were some of those too). The next day I asked him if the other kids had also borrowed some of the cars I saw to go to prom? Nope. He named off the guys who had the WRX's, STI's, Evos, BMW's and even a Porsche Boxster as daily drivers. And since he said they weren't "rich kids"... I'd really like to know just how these kids can afford these things - and the insurance!

If one of those kids would share the secrets of his success with me, maybe I could afford to buy a '63 Corvette split window... without postponing my retirement until age 93.

[Tazio]

^^^^Yes I don't understand how young people can pay for insurance for any car that is financed these days. The answer is simple though their parents pay for it.
The last two vehicles I've purchased (slightly used Tundra, and a new Aprilia 750) I paid for with cash. I carry the absolute minimum on the Aprilia, and on the Tundra minimum with extended liability. If I do more than the minimum in a wreck on my Cycle I probably wouldn't be alive to pay it. Auto insurance is the biggest con going IMO.
I'm extremely careful when I'm driving.

[Roamy]

I once was told something I will take to the grave with me !

There are only two kinds of car freaks

!. Those who have Ferraris
2. Those who want Ferraris

So far in my life this is the truth. As far as I am concerned our old sh!t is just good for making fence wire.

[Gregor-y]

Way too fiddly. I want a well preserved Volvo 240 that I can own for the rest of my life.

[Tazio]

Way too fiddly. I want a well preserved Volvo 240 that I can own for the rest of my life.

I had a 1972 Volvo 164 in the early 90's. It was in excellent condition and really was a joy to drive. The straight six power-plant in that rig was a perfect balance of fuel economy and power. It was a real shame that a woman T-boned me and totaled it. Great cars those old Volvos
Way off topic now Gregor-y, I was driving from Colombia MD to Alameda CA. It was raining on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I was getting a little low on gas so I pulled off at an exit that said Beaver Falls. I decided to refuel there just so I could be on the tierra firma where Joe "Willie" Namath grew up. As soon as I stepped out of the car a bolt of lightning struck the ground about 150 yards away, scared the crap out of me. I filled up poste haste, and got the hell out of there. At least I stopped in Broadway Joe's hometown. I loved it when he and the Jets would come to SD to play The Charges. I worked the games so I saw them all. A typical game between them usually ended with both teams scoring in the 40's or higher. Regardless of the outcome Joe would always be quoted as saying John Hadl was the best QB in the league. I realized after some time much later he probably said the same thing about Lenny Dawson in KC, Daryl "The Mad Bomber" Lamonica when in Oakland, and Bob Griese in Miami. Namath was unmatched in the late 60's and 70's. I'm going to stretch my luck by posting a video. He does mention a car he asked for as a signing bonus so it has some pertanence to the thread subject.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrUgB55lLM4

[Gregor-y]

Dear God, not Football. You couldn't get away from it in Pittsburgh. My father had two TVs next to each other with one showing to the Pittsburgh game and another set to a Youngstown, Ohio station that was covering the Cleveland Browns. The sound on both was turned off on both since the radio was tuned to Myron Cope providing better local commentary.
Of course the only thing that mattered was this:
Immaculate Reception - original broadcast - YouTube

Congratulations on surviving the PA Turnpike. It was one of the first true highways in the US built in the late 30s but it didn't have any of the design features that make most modern roads relaxing.