Then and Now... Trick Paint from 1972

Hi all,

I went to a local show last weekend, and spotted a cool car that I had wondered about for almost 30 years. The last time I saw this car was at a local show in the late 70's, and all of a sudden here it was again, in exactly the same condition... I always wondered what became of this car. Turns out, it's still in the hands of the same people who owned it way back then. It looks like the tires are about the only thing that's different....

Just thought you might enjoy these photos, even though I'm NOT a big Camaro fan. It's just the paint job on this thing is so cool. The car seems to be owned by a lady, as I spoke with her briefly. If you look closely at the pic that I snapped back around 1979, I think that's the same lady leaning on the rear fender. I'm almost sure of it... Kind of weird, eh? You can see her in the recent photo, on the right... Hair's a lot shorter, but I'd bet it's the same gal.

I'd love to see some other photos from you guys with a sort of "Then and Now" theme...

BTW, their daughter apparently drives it now. I guess that explains the license plate... The lady told me something about how her daughter worried about the kids riding in it, but then realized that she, herself, as a child, used to stand in the back seat while her parents were drag racing in it way back when... I found that kind of amusing.

Kevin

 

Yeah, I actually like the old pic better myself. You can't tell from either photo, but the silver is a pretty heavy metalflake job... Very cool. It has held up well for 35 years.

 

That is cool. The car still looks good and the wheel/tire combo on the original photo is perfect!

 

i was at that show too. grew up there.
Definatelly a 70's job on that one

 

The car certainly aged better than the owner.

 

LSD influenced

 

Maybe if you are on acid that car is cool. Yikes 70's that thing is hideous!

 

The car was featured in Chevy Power magazine in 1976 or 1977. It was on the cover and there was a 2-3 page feature. I have the issue somewhere.

 

I love to see cars like that. They remind me of when I was a kid going to the WOW in the late 70s

 

I agree, brings you right back seeing that pic. I think all my hotwheels looked like that!

 

Yea Baby back then that was cuttin edge........

 

Now that's traditional...

I like it... it's what I saw in high school in the 80's.

Would have been high falootin' in the 70's... then old news in the 80's... perfect for a high school kid to pick up cheap. Cars like that were around the $2000 to $2800 range... old custom street machines, or street machines that were given some love at an earlier date.

I can remember a 70 Nova SS BBC that had purple paint, and gold anodized Appliance mags along with Gold Anodized trim... a couple Camaros, and a Mustang that had crazy paint and or flares... all were recycled high school transportation, and even cool to some degree, by even 80's standards.

Sam.

 

Gee, I talked with you... I was there with my dad. We brought the '59 Mercury wagon...

Didn't know you were a HAMBer!

Kevin

 

wow that is cool! the older pic is awesome, with the tires and wheels of the time. Doesnt look so cool in the newer pic though lol.. thats probably a clean *** car for a resto though since its had the same paint this whole time, its probably been inside its whole life..

 

That car shouldn't be touched.

 

....i AGREE...it was UGLY then and UGLY now.....

 

Wow - look at the flares on that brown-ish car beside the camaro in the "then" pic!

I'm with Sam - there were quite a few of these "a few years old" nicer cars available to the more affluent high-schoolers in the early '80s - we had a camaro with a similar paint job at my HS.

 

The "then" photo was shot in "Kodachrome" or similar and probably with an instamatic type camera which would explain the high contrast.
I've got a bunch of old car show photos that have faded in the same way. I think this is what happened when you had them processed at the drug store.

The "now" is digital and has no dyes that break down with age.

I sure remember lots of cars like this. Give them credit for preserving it well.

 

You are correct. And yes, back then, I used to get them processed at a grocery store nearby... I think they called the process C-41, or something. Seems like a long time since I photographed anything that required a trip to go get them printed. I've taken over 10,000 digitals since buying the camera I use now...

And, yeah, they have preserved this car very well. It's a time capsule.

Kevin

 

Its those old wheels and tires from back in the day that makes the "look". Since everything old is new again I'm thinking it is just a matter of time before this look resurfaces (maybe not the paint), the large white letter tires, the deep dish mags, (hopefully no wheelwell flares though) jacked up street freaks, sitting up high all the way around, or just jacked up in the back with shackles, big traction bars, and purple hornies mufflers.

 

I got a pile of AUTOBUFF magazines for those times when I want to see bad paint and au-natural ***ties...........Bet the lady sent a pic in back then!

 

I love the 70s and 80s paint jobs. Ugly as sin, but you can pick the decade so easily. 34 Ford sedans with fenders and running boards. Tinted windows, blackwalls, painted turquiose with a white orange an yellow "80s stripe" down the side. Awesome. They always seem to have a matching trailer too.

I wonder when that **** will be "new" again.

 

FORMULA 1 SUPER STOCK tires, possibly the gaudiest white letter tires of all time! I don't know if I've seen a set of them since '73 when I had them on my '67 390 Fairlane. There, I admitted it. And I feel better for having done so......
Interesting Camaro. I wouldn't change a thing about it, except for covering it in primer. Ecch!
Oddly enough, I eventually traded the Fairlane for a '67 Camaro. Big mistake, the Camaro turned out to be a real piece of ****.

 

All it needs is a roach clip hangin' from the rearview (might still have a vintage roach in the ashtray). Far out man.

 

it's a natural progression, g***ers>street freaks>pro street>fairground cruisers.
we're in the g***er frenzy now, should be at street freak level in about 2-3 more years. start hoarding the sidepipes and bolt-on ladder bars now, they'll worth their weight in gold soon!

 

A 2 toot salute to you for posting that....p*** the blade please!

 

I still like a Street Freak.

No matter how much you hate white letter tires, you have to admit it looks better with the old bias ply rubber.

 

Very cool, it reminds me of the AMT Street Freaks model kits of the same era. I might have to break one out for Model Car Sunday.

-KK

 

Yeah, I agree... In fact, I've always wondered why more people aren't building these Street Freak cars now... Or, why you don't see more of the originals popping up at local shows... You don't even see 'em on eBay! I know there are still plenty of them out there. I saw a Van recently that sort of fell into that category. I wish there were more of them showing up at local events. I absolutely LOVE that look. Maybe it's because I'm at that age...

Kevin