Show us your vehicles

[AtomicEraTom]

I had a 1960 Bel-Air, great car once I put a Rochester Carb on it and threw out that Holley piece of junk!
1958 Delray, beautiful hot-rod I built with a 327 and a TH400 trans.
1963 Impala with a 283 and a 2 speed Powerglide, ran like new.
1968 Chevy flatbed with a 327 and a Borg Warner 4 spd. The thing was like brand new.
1987 Caprice, typical 80's Chevy, 307 olds, leaks, burns oil but never quits.
1996 Silverado, leaks oil a little but never leaves me stranded and has great 4 wheel drive.

I've had great luck with my Fords too, but never had a MoPar. My brother's Ram turned me off of them! That thing was a pile. Broke down more than it drove.

 

[Lincsong]

Not one single problem with either of my 2000 F-150's. The Chevrolet; (as in Chev-ro-let-me-down) all couldn't keep aligned, starter and alternators constantly went out, front suspensions were as well built as a no-name made-in-Taiwan wrench. Horrible experiences.

 

[Stearmen]

69 ss350

I am not the most brand loyal man to ever walk the earth, having owned Chevy, Ford and Dodge, with a Datsun 240Z and VW Bug throughn in for good measure. I can say my 69 SS350 Camero and 79 Silverado both treated me well. The 69 got around 12mpg on a good day, front disc brakes, white on black interior, Sebring blue with white racing stripes, real pearl essence in the white, and factory air. Sold it to a Cadet for $5000, thought I had died and hit the Mother Load!

 

[AtomicEraTom]

The most problematic car I had was the 79 Buick Electra. That was because of poor maintenance on the previous owner's part. I just had to replace the ball joints on my Silverado. They were the originals from 1996.

Not one single problem with either of my 2000 F-150's. The Chevrolet; (as in Chev-ro-let-me-down) all couldn't keep aligned, starter and alternators constantly went out, front suspensions were as well built as a no-name made-in-Taiwan wrench. Horrible experiences.

 

[tonyb]

As long as we're swapping anecdotes about Chevrolets in general and Caprices in particular ...

My "company car" back in the early 1990s was a late-'80s Caprice -- a retired police car with the "police package," meaning it had a stiffer suspension and heavier duty stuff throughout. Handled real nice, for a big car. And it never left we wishing it was quicker or faster. It had me feeling I had a fighting chance out there on those mean streets.

But I'm still partial to Fords. I have both a Chevy Astro and a Ford Windstar. A few years ago I had a Ford Aerostar. The Astro is okay. I got it fairly cheap (it was a retired vanpool vehicle, so it came with its entire service history, and it had fairly low miles at the time) and I've had it for going on 10 years now without any major repairs. But it feels tinny compared to the Fords.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I prefer police package vehicles. My P71 Vics were great cars. They handle great, you can feel that they're built sturdy, and they're good for 500,000 miles or more.

 

[David Conwill]

Interesting to hear the gripes about the Chevrolets. It makes me wonder if Tom and I, being younger, have a slanted view of these cars that are now 25 years or older. At this point, only the seasoned good ones have survived (If a bad car is a “Monday Morning” or “Friday Afternoon” car; what’s a good one? “Wednesday Midday”?).

Sure, lots of Detroit Iron from the 1980s can still be seen plying the streets in good, reliable condition - but how many more went to the junkyard in the early 1990s?

I really don’t know. All I know is that I would still like to store away some B-bodies and Panthers to show my grandkids what the last 100% American-style cars looked like. The current MoPars are neat, but they’re still unibodies.

-Dave

PS Lincsong, do you really pronounce the "T" in Chevrolet? Or was that just for humor? Because around here it would be "Chev-ro-let me down to sleep" or something.

 

[tonyb]

I prefer police package vehicles. My P71 Vics were great cars. They handle great, you can feel that they're built sturdy, and they're good for 500,000 miles or more.

Having worked (in a previous life, it seems) in ground transportation, I, too, have seen cars and light trucks rack up half a million miles and more. Most of those vehicles had many major components replaced, repeatedly, sometimes -- engines and transmissions, and suspension rebuilds and more brake jobs than you can count without taking off your shoes. For fleet operations with mechanics on payroll, that all pencils out.

But even civilian cars ought to get a good quarter million miles, I'd hope, provided they aren't involved in major collisions. Cars headed to the scrap heap with fewer miles than that leave me thinking ill of those vehicles and/or their owners' driving and maintenance habits.

Had lunch a few days ago with a fellow whose Toyota Camry now has 345K. No one would mistake it for a new car, but it's still presentable and it still runs well.

 

[Jaguar66]

My soon to be completed Jaguar E-Type 66 OTS. My first sports car, acquired in 1974.

 

[David Conwill]

Great XKE. Just stay away from Dead Man's Curve!

-Dave

 

[Jaguar66]

Great XKE. Just stay away from Dead Man's Curve!

-Dave

I would love to know where Dead Mans Curve, and test it out.

[video=youtube;QFLNz5s-_Zs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFLNz5s-_Zs[/video]

The E-Type introduction turned 50 this year. It will be honored at Quail Lodge in August, down in Monterey.

 

[David Conwill]

I’m not sure exactly, all I know is that you have to get past LaBrea swamp, Crescent Pines, and Doheny.

Wikipedia says it’s a stretch of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California located near the Bel Air estates just north of UCLA's Drake Stadium.

-Dave

 

[rue]

^ HA... you beat me to it lol

I would love to know where Dead Mans Curve, and test it out.

Dead Man's Curve is on Sunset Boulevard near the Bel Air estates just north of UCLA's Drake Stadium.

 

[tonyb]

Enzo may well have been right.

So how long has this restoration been in the works, '66?

I know that jealousy isn't becoming, but dang, I gotta admit I'm turning more than a bit green. I've coveted early E Types for about as long as there have been early E Types.

 

[Lincsong]

PS Lincsong, do you really pronounce the "T" in Chevrolet? Or was that just for humor? Because around here it would be "Chev-ro-let me down to sleep" or something.

It all comes out "junk" one way or the other. GM deserved to go bankrupt for ripping people off for decades.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

The biggest lemon growing up my family had, was my mothers 1980 AMC Eagle. She bought it from her father, in 83, he bought it new. During her ownership, it went through 3 engines and 5 Transmissions. For those familiar with my neck of the woods, my grandpa is good friends with Ernie VonSchleidorn and that's where he bought it. The engine went the first time 3 days after the warranty expired. Ernie wasn't going to honor it until my grandpa threatened his life. (He's 6'4 and 300-some pounds, you don't mess with him)

My dad also had a Ford Bronco he bought new in 85, it was problems from the day it came off the lot. We're mostly a GM family and have had a ton of good luck with Chevies over the years. Not that I'm knocking Fords, they've been good to me. We've had awful luck with every MoPar that has been brought into our household.

I've had my share of B-Bodies, C-Bodies, and 3 Panthers. They're great iron. Get your hands on as many as you can, you won't be disappointed.

Interesting to hear the gripes about the Chevrolets. It makes me wonder if Tom and I, being younger, have a slanted view of these cars that are now 25 years or older. At this point, only the seasoned good ones have survived (If a bad car is a “Monday Morning” or “Friday Afternoon” car; what’s a good one? “Wednesday Midday”?).

Sure, lots of Detroit Iron from the 1980s can still be seen plying the streets in good, reliable condition - but how many more went to the junkyard in the early 1990s?

I really don’t know. All I know is that I would still like to store away some B-bodies and Panthers to show my grandkids what the last 100% American-style cars looked like. The current MoPars are neat, but they’re still unibodies.

-Dave

PS Lincsong, do you really pronounce the "T" in Chevrolet? Or was that just for humor? Because around here it would be "Chev-ro-let me down to sleep" or something.

My parents have a GMC Jimmy that is still going strong at well over 200k. It's my sister's now, and I'm sure it won't last much longer with how she drives. It was my mother's car, then my father's, My brother, sister, and I all learned to drive in it. I even took it out on a few winter days where the snow was too high over the hood of my Caprice to get down the road.

Moral of the story is, take care of your car, it'll take care of you. I'm a big believer in routine maintenance and if it's broke, fix it ASAP!

Having worked (in a previous life, it seems) in ground transportation, I, too, have seen cars and light trucks rack up half a million miles and more. Most of those vehicles had many major components replaced, repeatedly, sometimes -- engines and transmissions, and suspension rebuilds and more brake jobs than you can count without taking off your shoes. For fleet operations with mechanics on payroll, that all pencils out.

But even civilian cars ought to get a good quarter million miles, I'd hope, provided they aren't involved in major collisions. Cars headed to the scrap heap with fewer miles than that leave me thinking ill of those vehicles and/or their owners' driving and maintenance habits.

Had lunch a few days ago with a fellow whose Toyota Camry now has 345K. No one would mistake it for a new car, but it's still presentable and it still runs well.

 

[Jaguar66]

So how long has this restoration been in the works, '66?

.

Since Sept 2010. As you may know there were several versions or series of E-types. There were the early series I 3.8L engined 1961 cars of which the first 100 or so, had a bonnet latch on the outside. Then later series I 3.8s continued thru '64. In '65 the engine became 4.2 L, with other improvements, which continued thru the first half of '67, when Jaguar started changing it to comply with DOT, EPA regs. The 1968 Series II 4.2L cars continued until early '71, at which time the Series III V12 model came out. Production ended in '74. Mine would be considered a late Series I car. The 65-67 covered headlight 4.2s are highly sought after.

When one begins to learn about these cars, you find out Jaguar made so many little changes along the way, not just the major Series differences.

 

[Jaguar66]

According to the description, here is Dead Mans Curve

 

[Jaguar66]

Dead Mans Curve straight ahead

 

[Swing Motorman]

I've got to say, Tom... nice couple of station wagons. They always strike me as the less-trashy, more efficient little brother to today's overused SUV. I'm partial to that type of car, since my love my 2000 Subaru Outback so much. (No need to post a picture, these cars are more common than quarters in a soda machine!) Too bad they weren't made in the '40s; I bet better than half of them could still be running.