What was hot in the 1970's (man)?

Its amazing how much all of us had in common back then........and today.

 

The thing I remember was the sheer number of really genuinely fast cars that were around my town. It was kind a blue-collar lumber mill town, so there were a lot of young guys with disposable income, and Mission raceway was only 15 miles away, so that had a big influence too.There were a LOT of quick cars around here in the early part of the seventies. Guy who operated the local Esso had a L-72, 4 speed 4.56 white '66 Beaumont SD, My cousin had a '69 Camaro that started life with a 325hp 396 4-speed, it wound up with an L-72 and 4.88s, My mentors younger brother had a LS-6 automatic '70 Chevelle with 4.56s, there was a local excavation contracter with a new hemi Cuda with big gears, headers and a big solid cam, another guy had a '64 chevy II with a van solid axle, L-78 4 speed and 4.56s, one of the guys who owned another local gas station had a '64 Falcon 2 dr sedan with a crate Boss 351 & toploader, first street car I ever saw with tubs, another guy had a black flip-flop flake camaro with a tilt glass nose, tunnel-ram L-88 and 4.88s, I could keep going like this, there was a shitload of them, and this was in a little town that had a total population of less than 30,000. but these were all guys in their twenties/thirties so most of them werent "cruising", but they were sure out at the street-racing spots. I saw a lot of this shit go down thanks to my cousin. I would also go hang around Leisen Automotive on Friday nights, when they were getting ready to go out to Mission Raceway the next day, and a LOT of guys would come by there on a friday night. I was just a kid, but I would hang around and make a nuisance of myself till someone would give a broom, or get me to wash some parts. Probably helped that he knew my dad. Probably would have kicked my punk-ass out otherwise. Funny thing is, it didnt really last that long, by around '75-'76 it started to change into more of a "cruise" scene. Wish I would have been born ten years earlier, would have liked to see the local street racing scene around here in the sixties, but I couldn't very well ask my parents to drive me down to the "poulder" on a saturday night.

 

A LOT of guys cut the center of the bumper out, my best buddy had a red '72 GT with a 327 and a saginaw he cut the center of the bumper out too. I would LOVE to find a decent flat nose vega now, I'd probably sell my chevy II wagon and put the motor in the vega!

 

how about those goofy mercury capris

 

so some dude would come in walking into the room swinging those things and you would grab every pillow you could find to use a body armor unitl he whacked himself in either the head or the balls and put them down.

 

how could we forget about pinto station wagons with the fake wood paneling and the tuna casseroles and dried mashed potaotes

 

LOL ! I thought I had the only copy of Gene Tracys truck stop on 8track I had forgotten all about that !

 

Remember songs. like "Convoy" there were more, collecting beer cans. How do you keep a nine year old from drinking a beer? Easy, make it a collectible. We had kids buying and selling full sealed cans at school in second grade, the one kid was selling sealed six packs on the playground of some can his old man got from Canada while hunting Moose, the Gloria Steinham influenced teacher went nuts and took all his cans and money and poured it down the sink. His old man came to school the next day and they started beating the heck out of each there right in the middle of science class, next thing you know this kid has a new baby brother and he is gettin all A's. I just flashed a pic of her in my mind, deja vu, I just threw up a little. Remember the Streak, beared it all so they could see his Physique. I did that in 4th grade across the stage during assembly, looked like a naked mole rat.

 

My high school ride circa 1973, firemist green, pimstripe flames, green shage carpet in the bed & shell;
At least I thought I was cool

 

Yeah, and then for a long time there was peace, and suddenly there was...................warriors....come out and playyay......and the next thing you know we were all cracking ourselves in the head with bats instead, I could do three...really hurt when I had a lapse....gonk gonk gonk.

 

what??? Ya mean this one??>..........oh yeah that 8 track in the 56 works perfect

 

Used to show with a guy from your area named Dan Wildeman,had a killer Demon showcar,heard his ex trashed the paint

 

according to my mood ring this thread makes me happy.

 

Bought mine back in '78, it still works!

 

I put a 8 track version in my 65 country squire a few years ago but the old 8 track tapes I find dont las too long,I wanted one for my 65 galaxie I had back in 78 but did not have the money.

 

best deck ever made..wish i had one

 

head shops and rolling papers

 

I still have mine. Bought em' at Winns.

 

Damn! Best thread in a long time! Graduated high school in 1975, all this is so true. Could we have jacked up the ass end any higher on our cars? Dont laugh, but I believe what comes around, goes around. I firmly believe our kids or grandkids will recreate this look someday. For you doubters, look around, hasnt about every style ever done been brought back at one time or another? Not to say it was all that great. It was just our thing in the 70's...

 

My sister had a 73 Monte Carlo, I think the doors weighed about 600 lbs each. I think the hood was longer than the U.S.S Intrepid. We were all Ford guys, but that car was pretty cool! I always liked the factory Rally Wheels.

 

Street Drags--Tunnel Rams--8-Tracks----V-Gate Shifters--Olds rear-end in your 55 chevy---Traction Bars----Accel Spark Plugs---Hooker Headers--Cragers---Led Zepplin--Ten Years After----You could buy Hot Rod parts at Montgomery Wards-----J.C. Penneys-----Scatter Shields----Muncie---Golden Earring -----Deep Purple----ZZ-Top----Edger Winter---Ted

 

Might be OT a little but, all hotties were called FOXES or shit man, did you just see that FOX cruisin in the AMX? She was one FOXY LADY! Lemon pledge the hell out of your seat covers and dash, then hit the tires really good too! This was pre Armor-All days.

 

White with candy multi-coloured endless line panels all over it?

 

I remember seeing the car for sale in Huntington Beach 1980 for $6500

 

How about them lame macrame (sp) choker necklace? or them Puka Shell ones

 

Black with a nude chick chained to a wall on the tilt front end

 

we all had white headman hedders

 

On a woman,you yahoo!

Oh yeah;heard a lot of Gene Tracy as well. Funny shit at the start of his show,but he was so plastered by the end it became unintelligible.

 

In the 70's Led Zeppelin , gabriel hi jackers, mag wheels, window stickers , loose girls and drugs were hot !!!!!!

 

remeber j c pennys tools...pencraft