Old gas stations

[David Conwill]

It's good to know that there's a motor oil out there endorsed by Donald Duck.

Gasoline too!

 

[BlueTrain]

I couldn't begin to guess the dates of the photos but the first two show a sort of transitional gas pump from the tall, thin round ones. I can still remember fairly well the ones with the slot on the side for the nozzle with the flip-up nozzle holder that turned on the pump. But I don't remember when the newer ones came out and in fact, the local station where I usually buy gas installed new pumps recently that require even more input from the user.

The first one also shows the most direct re-purposing of a streetcar that I've ever seen. It still has the overhead poles as well as (I think) the complete undercarriage. That looks like an army officer front and center in that photo, which would date the photo early to mid-1930s, probably, unless he were a cavalry officer. Don't think he's a policeman.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The manually-operated visible-style pumps with the glass cylinder went out of style in the early thirties, although thousands of them remained in use into the 1960s in remote locations. The all-electric "clock-face" pump with a dial that marked gallons sold, with a "sight glass" mounted on the side to replace the traditional visible cylinder, swept the industry in 1932-33, and were all over the place by the mid-thirties. But around that same time the Veeder-Root Company introduced its mechancial price and gallonage computer unit, which not only showed the gallons dispensed but the price per gallon and the total sale -- and by the end of the thirties, all pump manufacturers were using these on their new models.

From then until the 1980s, there was no real mechanical change in gas pumps -- only cosmetic styling to keep up with the trends. Prewar pumps tended to be taller, and had more detailed casings. Most used traditional round globes, but some oil companies experimented with novelty shapes, or the rectangular "shoebox" globe, and some omitted globes altogether in favor of "ad glass" panels. Postwar, pumps got simpler and shorter, and globes began to go out of style. Some companies, notably Socony Vacuum and Sunoco, used "Script-tops," a false top that fitted onto the pump with cut-out lettering in the metal. The cut-outs were filled by a translucent molded plastic internal panel, which was back-lit in the manner of a globe, but was much less vulnerable to damage by vandals. By the end of the 1950s, few companies still used globes, and with the popularity of shorter and shorter pumps in the sixties, they were essentially extinct. The short sixties-style pumps remained dominant until the rise of the electronic pump computer and the tall convenience-store style pump in the 1980s, a style which remains dominant today.

 

[2jakes]

My first car was a Karmann Ghia, a '58, as I recall. A retired racer, but street legal (sorta). No reverse, which presented no insurmountable obstacle to a strapping 16-year-old with strapping contemporaries needing rides.

I think I paid 65 bucks for it. Or was it 35?

Paid 100 bucks for my first car.
A VW beetle minus the title and
had a homemade gas tank.
Drove it for a year before a cop
stopped me on the freeway.
Was issued five tickets.
Cop told me the judge might
drop some of the fines if I was
to show that I did something
about the tickets.
Getting a driver's license was on
the top of the list.
Cop was right, the judge dropped
some of the charges when I went
to court.
That was the first and last time I
ever got a ticket from the law.

 

[tonyb]

^^^^^
I've owned many an "interesting" car--"collectible" cars, now, which, in largest part, were just used cars back when I owned them.

The one car I still kick myself over selling was the '56 VW Beetle I owned in, like, '73, '74. Oval rear window, semaphores, sunroof. Rough as it was (T-shirts where the vinyl seat coverings once were, spiderweb windshield, etc.), it would still be worth a whole lotta scratch today. And fun to drive.

 

[2jakes]

^^^^^
I drove the family’s 1955 Chevrolet two-toned Bel Air to
high school.
I can’t even afford to look at one today.

 

[tonyb]

^^^^^
I drove the family’s 1955 Chevrolet two-toned Bel Air to
high school.
I can’t even afford to look at one today.

I just remind myself that holding onto, and caring for, all that stuff for all those years isn't hassle- or expense-free. That's why I don't begrudge the people who sell vintage stuff for many times what that stuff cost new.

There comes a point with most cars where putting more money into them is practically the definition of throwing good money after bad. That '56 Beetle would be an exception, as would your '55 Bel Air.

But cars wear out, and while many cars might potentially cover millions of miles over a several decades long lifespan, they don't get there without a whole lotta pieces being replaced along the way, not to mention an almost religious observance of maintenance intervals on the part of their owners. Used in the way most people use them, figure a quarter million miles out of a lighter-weight passenger vehicle and maybe twice that out of a full-size car or pickup before the cost of repairs would exceed the cost of a replacement in far better condition.

I don't drive as much as I used to. I cover only 15 to 20 thousand miles in the average year. Had I driven that '56 Beetle only half the time over the past four and a half decades (in other words, had I used it for its intended purpose), i would have put another 400,000 miles on it. It might well have gotten totaled. It certainly would have gone through a few engine rebuilds. And if many of those miles were covered in places other than those rare few where corrosion isn't a problem, well, the floors would have been replaced at least once. And that would be getting off light.

Curiosity had me checking out what a comparable car costs today. In restored condition, '56 Beetles with sunroofs go for $30K and up. It would have taken at least 10 grand to put my old bug into such a condition. And maybe more than that.

 

[BlueTrain]

My wife drove our first Volvo, purchased new, for eighteen years, mostly trouble-free. We finally replaced it for some reason or other with yet another Volvo, which we drove for about fifteen years. It was replaced when it was damaged in an accident. But not with another Volvo. They became too expensive for what we wanted to spend on a car. I also had a Volvo (these were all station wagons) that I drove for the better part of ten years. They all had well over 100,000 miles, too. But mine starting becoming unreliable, so it, too, was finally replaced. Our daughter still has a Volvo but she refused to let us get her a station wagon (mom car).

Neither of my wife's cars were traded in. They were just towed away and believe me, it hurt seeing them take their last ride.

My wife now has a Volkswagen station wagon, purchased just before Christmas. She retires in two weeks, so it should last forever, in theory.

One vehicle that I'd love to own is another 1965 Land-Rover (will settle for any variation) and there are people who restore them. That that's not going to happen. There's a short list of other cars that I'd also love to own, all from roughly the same period but unless we buy a house with barn and discover one under a haystack, well, it's nice to dream.

 

[2jakes]

@ tonyb...
The family car when I was a kid.

I even joined the woodie forum.
Found a ’39 Ford Deluxe panel with the idea of adding wood on the sides someday.


$omeday...indeed!

 

[LizzieMaine]

You can own and enjoy an "old car" for a reasonable amount of money if you aren't looking for one that's currently fashionable -- which excludes most boomer-era coupes, two-door sedans, and sports cars. But an ordinary 1940s 4-door sedan in nice condition, that was a better-engineered car when built than just about any of the 1955-65 models, can be found just about anywhere for less than $10,000, and if you stick with a Ford, GM, or Chrysler product parts and service availability are no problem. If you're handy, and you should be if you intend to own any kind of an old car, you can do most of the routine maintenance -- oil changes, greasing, tuneups, routine parts replacements -- yourself.

The most important thing to look for, outside of rust, is the condition of the car's electrical system. You can buy a new wiring harness for $700 or so, and if you intend on driving it for any amount of time, you should. Whether you can put it in yourself or will need to hire it done depends on the complexity of the car, but most pre-1950s cars are much less complex in this respect than later models. In any event, driving an old car with the original wiring is a ticking time bomb -- at best you can expect all kinds of weird, random electrical problems, and at worst you can go up in flames.

 

[BlueTrain]

The old Ford station wagons weren't that big in real life. My father-in-law had a Ranch Wagon from sometime in the 1950s. At one time, there were about six or seven vehicles on their property, including a Model A, a Cortina, a Corvair, the Ranch Wagon, a Ford pickup, and a couple of other vehicles, plus a Ford tractor. Then there were the boats.

Speaking of electrical problems, I had a short in the dash of my 1965 Land-Rover, which would have been around 1970, probably. I was on a long trip and all of a sudden, the inside filled up with smoke. There was some kind of short behind the token dashboard (about 5x8 in the center) which resulted, apparently in a minor fire. I removed the front of the dash and sort of moved the wires apart and put it back together. Nothing quit working and it gave no further problems. It was a relatively simple machine, although it wasn't at all fast or powerful but if you did your part and weren't stupid, it would go just about anywhere.

 

[tonyb]

You can own and enjoy an "old car" for a reasonable amount of money if you aren't looking for one that's currently fashionable -- which excludes most boomer-era coupes, two-door sedans, and sports cars. But an ordinary 1940s 4-door sedan in nice condition, that was a better-engineered car when built than just about any of the 1955-65 models, can be found just about anywhere for less than $10,000, and if you stick with a Ford, GM, or Chrysler product parts and service availability are no problem. If you're handy, and you should be if you intend to own any kind of an old car, you can do most of the routine maintenance -- oil changes, greasing, tuneups, routine parts replacements -- yourself.

The most important thing to look for, outside of rust, is the condition of the car's electrical system. You can buy a new wiring harness for $700 or so, and if you intend on driving it for any amount of time, you should. Whether you can put it in yourself or will need to hire it done depends on the complexity of the car, but most pre-1950s cars are much less complex in this respect than later models. In any event, driving an old car with the original wiring is a ticking time bomb -- at best you can expect all kinds of weird, random electrical problems, and at worst you can go up in flames.

I'd love to have an early post-War Mopar four-door. You know, a '46 or '47. I had a '47 Dodge school bus at one time. Armstrong steering. Flathead six. Chugga chugga. Highly impractical. (Go ahead, try parallel parking that thing on a downtown street.)

You're right, of course. If you steer clear of the "desirable" old cars, they can usually be had for regular people money.

Rule of thumb, which isn't always reliable, is that old cars peak in value when they appeal to 60-plus-year-olds looking to reclaim a piece of their youth. Hence, '50s, '60s and even '70s two-doors and ragtops are fetching big money.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The "P15-D24" cars -- the 1946-48 Plymouths and Dodges -- seem to have a very loyal following, and are often recommended as ideal "old cars" for someone who just wants the fun of driving a basic "analog" car. They have a tremendous amount of parts support, and because they were basically prewar cars built with little alteration thru the early postwar period, lots of NOS parts are still easily available. Most of the common service parts are still being manufactured, and some of them are still in stock at your local NAPA. The styling is not to the taste of the tailfin crowd, but you can get in an out of one without having to scrunch down, which is to me a real advantage.

My only criticism of the P15-D24 cars is the concealed running boards, which are lame.

 

[tonyb]

^^^^^
The Old Man had a green one in the mid-'60s. We called it "the tank." I liked it, as did everyone else in the household save my little sister, who preferred not being seen in it.

I recall him paying 10 dollars and a fifth of whiskey for it. And it came with an almost full tank of gas.

You know that expression "you couldn't give 'em away"? That was almost literally true of many pre- and early post-War cars in the Upper Midwest in the 1960s. They looked "old," and old wasn't where it was at then.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Rob

Canada, Maine, or Minnesota? The lumberjack figure could be of Paul Bunyan, I guess.

 

[BlueTrain]

Maybe it's Bimidji, Paul Bunyan's hometown. The Valley of the Jolly Green Giant is in Minnesota, too, out New Ulm way. I've been there and to the other Ulm, too.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Canada, Maine, or Minnesota? The lumberjack figure could be of Paul Bunyan, I guess.

I dunno, he's kind of skinny to be Paul Bunyan. Plus he's wearing a fez. Obviously the Time Traveling Hipster strikes again.

 

[DocCasualty]

Maybe it's Bimidji, Paul Bunyan's hometown. The Valley of the Jolly Green Giant is in Minnesota, too, out New Ulm way. I've been there and to the other Ulm, too.

Many places in Michigan, Wisconsin and Maine claim that as well as far as PB's hometown.

@LizzieMaine - LOL, I don't think they were trying for a fez, but it sure looks like it.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Many places in Michigan, Wisconsin and Maine claim that as well as far as PB's hometown.

@LizzieMaine - LOL, I don't think they were trying for a fez, but it sure looks like it.

A fez, if they were trying for that, would taper a bit more toward the top. This looks like a wool watchcap.

 

[Ghostsoldier]

I think it's supposed to be Paul Bunyan.

Rob