That does remind me of another pet peeve of mine: "The OEMs spent millions and millions ..." and the implicit notion that automotive technology is a form of arcane magic beyond the ken of mere mortals.
Yeah when I mention that many modern things on cars today were invented by goofball hot rodders like us they don't believe me. Lol
Yes, and the perfect example of this is the rearview mirror, first used on Ray Harroun's 1911 Indy 500 winning racecar.
Wellll.... Nicolaus Otto used coal gas as the fuel in his early engines, and the fuel was injected under slight pressure into the inlet track. So technically... And diesel engines had direct fuel injection long before Hilborn and Travers came up with their constant flow system. And aircraft engines used fuel injection in some. So a better statement would be that hotrodders were the first to make an affordable system. I know just call me any names you want! I love the history of internal combustion engines.
Naw I actually just came across another pet peeve on FB. People posting wrong info and getting bent out of shape saying they don't care about your "opinion" when you correct them and provide proof. Guy was claiming that an sbc had the same bellhousing as a 216/235. Started bashing me saying I didn't know what I was talking about even though I had already said I had a 53 Bel Air I personally did the 235 to sbc swap on. I even went out and took this pic lol. Dude still claims I don't know what I'm talking about lol
What about one of the oldest : Idiots that don't know or care that the LEFT lane is NOT the "LIFT" lane, especially after they p*** you at a high rate of speed , pull in front of you, then drop back to 55mph !! Yes, it's been a rough day on the freeway today!!!
My pet peeve guys that want there 60s style power train to run @ 1500 rpm at 70 MPH. Examples high stall converters that are non lockup, new systems have computers and knock sensers to keep you out of trouble. What is wrong with RPM I drove a 64 Chevy 327 150,000 miles with 4.11 gears with highway speeds at 70 MPH A 1956 235 Chevy 3 speed most got a 3.70 gear. That meant a 3.94 inch stroke engine was running over 3000 rpm at 70 MPH which was the day time speed limit in the 60s in Kansas. I remember the saying what kills engines is high loads at low RPM and no loads at high RPM.
Having picked up the one item that is not marked at the DOLLAR store and having to wait at the register for a price check! WTF???
That's a good one. 62 was the last year of the 235. When I put a SBC in my 62 Bel Air I had to change out the powerglide because it had the wrong bellhousing and wouldn't mate to the SBC. Aren't those guys funny? Once they've identified themselves I like to mess with them a bit. It's funny how much trouble people to go through to reduce RPM of their engine when if they didn't have a tach they wouldn't know any different. All my stuff has 3 speed transmissions and runs higher RPM and lives just fine with high rpm highway driving.
I deliberately changed complete rear ends to get a higher gear to lower my rpm at freeway speeds in my 56 Ford. There were very few open interstate roads in 56 and for the most part the speed limit were 55 and that’s the speed most drove on the 2 and sometimes 4 lanes between towns on not very good roads. Now at 70 mph my rpm is 2200 which is perfect for the most part and a kick down (p***ing gear) with run an easily 85 if needed. I didn’t want an overdrive but did replace the original transmission with a true 3 speed automatic. My engine is still the basic 292 it was from the factory and it performs to my expectations for the driving I do. When I’m on the road I drive with traffic 70-75 and I’m sure some think how is that “old car” keeping up…. Little do they realize that 200+ hp will run on the road just fine.
It's not that you can't drive on the highway without OD, it's just that it's better with it. First, with a tight car with good steering and brakes, 70 mph is slow nowadays, especially on open road. I have no desire to constantly foot a engine to 3300 rpm, ****ing down loads of fuel, for hours on end when I could just shift into a higher gear, and put less load on the engine and go faster more comfortably. If it's done properly, it's not just lowering RPM, but properly matching engine powerband to converter, transmission, rear ratio, tire size, etc., to achieve optimal performance.
Back on the rust or not discussion, after building shiny cars for most of my life I had acquired quite a few parts that were the cool stuff but not anywhere near good enough to use on a nice car so I decided to build a rust-rod sticking with what is cool on a real hot rod but saving old crusty junk in the process. I started with a 32 frame that happened to be under a very rusty old model A hotrod that I bought a couple years ago off of Ebay for $234. I didn't even know there was a frame until I got there to pick it up. Fortunately I just happened to have a 32 Frame jig borrowed so we decided to force the frame into the jig and reinforce it and boxed it. Isn't this where rat rods got their start back in the late 80's or early 90's?
My pet peeve is dudes that don't read the ads they post...like the guy who posted about his "hot rod" Plymouth that had all kinds of cool stuff complete with an Idiot Steering Column....he should of also mentioned the "loose nut behind the wheel"....
Further to this — and with apologies for reviving this thread for possibly another 4+ months: judging a technical concept by an incidental characteristic of the one iteration of the concept you happen to be familiar with. An example I came across a few years ago: DeDion axles are bad because they require complicated axial articulation! They have complicated axial articulation on the Rover P6 (really not all that complicated?) to avoid the need for sliding UJs/CV joints, but the vast majority of DeDion axles don't require any such articulation.
A cl***ic case of Pom engineers making a simple concept complicated "because they can" The supercharged 1500cc V16 BRM engine is an example
Yeah , but the poms at BRM decided to out think themselves and later built the H16 monstrosity "Lets make it more complicated, heavier , and unreliable" For pure sound pleasure engines in 5 or 10 cylinder configuration sound the best [our brains are wired this way]
Door panels. I think a door panel should have some dividing line between upper and lower material with a more scuff resistant material . A door panel just looks plain and cheap without something to break up the the large area, even an arm rest helped some. I also dislike when door panel are secured with sheet metal screws and some don't even line up from left to right. The topper is when the screws are so tight that the material twist and bunches up around the screws heads .
Possibly mentioned in this thread already - Car for sale, decent wheels and tires. Ad states the rolling stock is not part of the deal! Or a real pile is for sale, with pics of someone's finished car doing a wheelie. Seller states ''this is what it could be with a little work''. How about ''the hard work is done''? lol
TV car shows! It's very interesting watching Kindig how they build cars nowadays. with all their ultra high tech equipment, true the results are amazing.. but for me it's the ol time customizers that I truly admire, Sam Barris, Alexander Brothers, Cushenberry, Weinfield, Herb Gary etc. THESE guys were true craftsmen working with nothing but common body tools, acetylene torches and lead!!! These new guys punch it in a computer, sorta AI designed and built. Oh let's narrow the bumper 3/16 of a inch chop the top a 1 1/4 give me a break!!!
Lots of parts and pieces flying around there. On the 5 and 10 cylinder thing; not much exposure here, but I have heard Dodge Vipers, and to me they don't sound good.
That's funny, I have 2 cars with solid, low trim level door panels. No division, no armrests, nothing. I like them because it appeals to the drag racer/light weight mentality. That, and I'm generally a cheap skate! Different strokes for different crankshafts, I say!
I will ask is why are you driving 70 if I am not mistaken most places the speed limit is 65 on the interstate 55 on two the lanes and 35 or under in town? Isn’t the whole point of an old car to slow relax take in the sights and enjoy the simple things?
Not sure about your area, but around me if you're doing 70 in the right lane, you'll have a steady flow of traffic p***ing you like you're standing still. Which segues nicely into my pet peeve of people failing to consider that a car that's 50+ years old might just not perform like something modern while driving in traffic. I will agree though, the real joy of an older car is taking the scenic route, going slower, and just enjoying the ride.
Sometimes the point is to take it slow and enjoy the ride. Other times I want to be more deliberate in getting from one place to another. The latter doesn't prevent me from enjoying the ride, and the former doesn't mean that I wouldn't enjoy that ride more if my car were quieter, cooler, more fuel efficient, and less taxed in doing so. A couple months ago I drove my 61 Olds out to Indianapolis for the CCR. That was an 11-hour drive from my home in NJ, one way, which I did by myself. Between the increased cruising speed and the reduced fuel consumption, it knocked 2 whole hours of driving (one way) off the trip since the last time I did it with my 56 Holiday. The only scenery I missed was darkness on Route 80 and maybe some cows in Ohio. There's also enjoyment in pumping Metallica on my Alpine stereo with the subs hitting, blasting across the interstate with the windows down and a nice cup of gas-station coffee in my hand. A different experience, but no less enjoyable.
The Jalopy Journal
