mine arent this great. i think my favorite though is my "car buff" neighbour. he looks around talks some talk. "your 350 looks a little old" no its a 55 oldsmobile i say. "no man that looks just like the 350 i had in my ford work truck" so i said what you had a sbc put in your ford?and he replied with "i had a stock v8. a 350" as he looked at me like i was born yesterday. so i said alright i wanted to get on with my stuff. as he was leaving the 40 or so year old guy says like a smart ass prick... "oldsmobile didnt make engines, they made cars" so i asked him when ford started making 350's. he got really smart here. "kid, i know my shit. i have 20 years on you alright. car manufactures dont make engines. they make cars. a 350 is the same as a v8 ford, chevy, dogdge etc. they are all 350 v8's" all i could do was cringe and politely say "go away and let me build my car"
Lol Sometimes you get guys who really should know better making stupid comments. I had a guy who had the exact same make, model, and year, of car as mine telling me how come his was sooooo much faster because it had a rare engine option. They even came with the same engine originally. 1. a 273 2brl in a dart is not rare 2. a 273 2brl Dart is not fast 2. Mine no longer has a 273, but a race built 340 that ran in the 10's 3. Just because he had painted his purple did not make it faster.... But but he still went about telling me how much better the stock 273 was over my car.
Whenever a kid is interested in my old cars I've got all the time in the world for them. If the parents worry about the kids touching I tell them there's nothing that kid's gonna hurt. I'd rather have the kids remember it as a cool experience then worry about dirt or a scratch. Now when dog owners let their dogs jump on the car, that's different...
In the '62 Galaxie Wagon: "Nice GhostBusters Car!" "Nice Impala" "Why did you put a Ford grill on your Caddy wagon?" With the chopped '51 Ford: "That body sure looks tall, did you make it taller?" "Why are you copying Jesse James black car?" "No, no, NO, thats a F*cking Mercury! You own this car and you don't even know what it is!"
A friend's wife, who was a city councilor here and a super-liberal, asked about my dirt modified that had a narrowed and shortened Vega coupe body on it. She wanted to know what kind of car it was. I told her it was a new Chevy Vega that was designed by the Democratic National Committee.
Occasionally the encounter goes the other way. Seven or eight years ago there was a half-dozen of us in coupes and roadsters heading from Santa Rosa to Bakersfield for the CHRR. During one gas stop an oldtimer who was fueling his late-model Lincoln walked over to a friend's full-fendered, uncut Deuce 3W, walked around it checking it out, then commented "I had one just like it years ago." My friend, a very affable guy and no kid himself, responded quite pleasantly "Oh really, what was it?" The old fellow's smile disappeared, his eyes narrowed. "It was a '32 Ford three-window coupe! What part of 'one just like it' didn't you understand?!" Mike
There was a local guy that had parked his Edsel conv. at the docs in a small town in North Norway, when the coastal liner arrives. (And there are a lot of American tourists on these ships during the summer.) Then this American Tourist walks down the docs and see this car and say: OH HOLY SHIT, ITS AND EDSEL!!!!!!
Overheard at a local show and shine: "Cool engine, I didn't know they made a V6 hemi " (239 flatty) Flatman
I have to admit that generally speaking, I hold the un-washed masses (read general public) in contempt. I can usually handle the "dune buggy" types, but what really fries my onions are these so called "experts" as I call them, who with a high level of certanty, state to their buddy or wife that one of my flathead Ford V8s is a Hemi, or "Yep, it's an Offenhauser" (offy heads) or tell me the virtues of an independent front suspension. The best one I ever heard was at a cruise night about ten years ago; a young boy about 11 or so was looking inside my chopped and channeled '30 A coupe and proclaimed how small it was inside. His mother explained to him that was becuase people were smaller back then! I like other hot rodders better than the general public!
Strolling through the swap meet at NSRA nationals in Louisville a couple of years ago passed three pre-driving age kids. Overhead one complain, "All they got here are OLD cars." Dad had a restored '30 Coupe when I was in high school. I was dateing a girl from the next town ('bout 20 miles away) and I took the coupe one time. Pulled up in her drive and both her parents popped out of the house -- a '30 coupe was what they went courtin' in Oh well, I lost the blonde and dad lost the coupe (omit long rant about greedy so and so's )
Those were some awesome replies. . the ones about the kids are the best. Several yrs ago almost 20 when I had a bracket racer, a friend and his 8/9 yr old son came up. I ask the kid if he wanted to sit in the car, I made it hot, and started it up. here he is with a grin ear to ear, and his dad takes a pic. he still has it blown up and framed. wow.
Went to Napa to get tune up parts for my 62 Rambler Classic. Counter guy asked who made it, and am I sure it has points and not an electronic ingnition........ Needless to say he couldn't find my parts. So much for Napa.
i always get boring statements...or i just get the long confused stare in which i just stare back driving my 50 ford everyday... "what year is that caddy?" (they see the 57 caddy hubcaps) "I have/had one just like!" "you don't have the original motor in that do you?!" (yeah i do..)
I love it! I thought I was the only one. Guy walks up to my 29 RPU at a store and says "I don't get it... whats the point?" I look around and say "oh thats easy, did it cause you get these people come up with this stupid ass look and say "I don't get it... whats the point?" Man the guy was so pissed off. I get the dune buggy thing alot also, one guy told me he had one just like mine but his had a REAL BUG MOTOR in it. Had two young ladies walk up and ask if that was my DUNE BUGGY? I said hell yeah.....as I helped them into the seat for a ride, I have been into dune buggies a long time.
The one I always remember is when I was standing in line at some food joint and this grey haired old lady comes up to me and asks me if my heavily chopped 51 merc that was parked outside was a merc or a hudson? Not bad, not bad at all and that was a good question, at least she's on the right track. Well, I tell her it's a 51 mercury. She turns back to the merc, takes a long look, thinks about it for a few minutes and then goes on to tell me that "they didn't sell many of those mercury's back then because the windows were so small and people couldn't see out of them real well". I knew what she meant!
I always get the, "when ya gonna paint it?" Or the, "hey I didnt know they had bucket seats back then!" But my favorite is the fact that I am building a 55 chev convert at work, about once a week some one comes in to check it out and the first thing they ask, "is it a real convertible or did you cut up a 2 door?" I started telling them to watch a lot less TV!
my ex girl friend said she say a truck exactly like my 55 f100 on the free way. she said she took a pic so i had her send it to me..... it was a 66 c10. the bad part is it happened a couple times and they were always 60-66 c10s oh and lots of people like my cadillac (buick)
One day a local car builder parked a customized Ford in front of our place of business. I pointed it out to my father and asked what year it was. He looked it over and said it didn't look quite right for a '32. I know the builder, he does great work, all steel, very smooth. I said, well he built it custom. Dad says, Oh its a kit car! I said NO its one of a kind, not paint by numbers. I've never been able to explain to dad that a custom is not a kit car and that the builder might not like his work called a "kit car". Although you could customize a kit car I suppose.
Not a car story but true and funny anyway . my driveway is over 800 feet long so I used to give the grandkids rides on my motorcycle in the drive then bought them a honda 50 when they could handle one .A few weeks after getting them the DIRT bike the wife and I have the 5 year old granddaughter with us at a small diner. We're seated infront of a large window when a Hells Angel wearing colors pulls up and parks on a custom dresser right in front of trhe window and comes in and sits in the booth behind ours wich was the only open seat. My grandaughter immediatly stand up in her seat and taps the guy on the shoulder.When he turns around she gives him this huge smile and a thumbs up and says hey mister thats a realy cool dirt bike!grandpa got me one but its not that big!The guy started laughing so hard I thought he was going to piss himself!we spen the next hour talking bikes and cars and before he left asked if we would let him show her his DIRT BIKE we went out and he sat her on it and everything!
Back when I had my Torquoise & White '56 Olds I'll bet a hundred people told me that their dad had one JUST LIKE IT. I always answered that I bought it from a traveling salesman who must have been a hell of a ladies man, because I keep meeting his kids every place. Olds made 5500 Super 88 2 doors, I don't know how many in my colors, not too many, I'd say. I guess that guy sure got around.
I was at a local cruise last year There's this real cute girl, looked about 20, with this little skinny boy that looked about 14. He says "That's a blown flathead." She says "What." He says "That's an old motor they stopped making in 1953; the valves are in the block and not in the heads." She nods her head and still has that dumb look on her face. I walked up to them and said to the boy "You're too young to know anything about a flathead." He said "That's all my dad ever talks about is flatheads; his dad never drove anything but a flathead." I was very pleased with that young man and his knowledge.
me and a buddy were at a local car show standing by his blown sbc 36 plymouth coupe. no hood, polished 6-71, hemi orange, bigass back tires, chrome everything. a 20ish girl & her boyfriend walk up & look the car over. the girl asks my buddy "is that car original?" her macho boyfriend jumps in & says " not the paint baby. they didn't have orange back then."
Once the bolt holding my alt bracket broke causing me to leave the car on a VERY public road with REALLY fancy NO PARKING signs posted about every 3 foot. I made a MAD dash to the nearest auto store in hopes of returning BEFORE highway patrol caught sight of the car and towed it off. When I finally got back, there were two cruisers parked behind and in front of the car and 3 officers pawing over my 58 CHEVROLET BISCAYNE. I walked up and smiled and said HI! Whatcha doin?! One of the officers piped up, well I drove past and saw this car sitting here and couldn't believe my eyes!! So I radio'd over and had the other cruiser stop by because NOBODY's gunna believe we found a 59 CADILLAC sitting on the side of the road. I just smiled, eyes got as round as saucers and I just went with it until I could get it running again......then they followed me all the way home. To serve and protect, I love the boys in blue!! Brandy
At a cruise in last summer two young guys come running up to my T coupe. One looks inside and says to his buddy, OOO whow Man Nitros. I tell him , No man fire extingusher First time my 8 year old grandson sits in my stock 29 A Tudor, after he looks everything over for a few minutes , I ask him what he thinks? his only answer. No cup holders.
I get that problem all the time Nice dune~buggy. No it's a hot rod. Here is one for ya. I went to a well known auto parts store to get a speedo~cable I handed him the cable and ask him if he could match it up. He asked me what kind of car I drive I said, a 23 t-bucket w/ a 1976 Buick 3.8 and a turbo 350, and a Auto Meter speedometer. Can you match it up. Well, he said, I need to know what kind of car you drive so I can enter it in the computer. Then I said, never mind. I left when to the next town over to a Mom & Pop auto store. Went in ask the guy if he had one of these cables handed it to him he asked me what kind of car it came off of. I said ... well ummm.... Oh he said, you got one of those. I'll be right back. With in about 30 seconds he came back and said will this work. I looked at it. I said yes, paid the man. Go figure. I manly do not go to those franchise auto stores but it was close to my house
My car has been an Impala, a Buick, and a Plymouth....nobody ever says Oldsmobile. One guy at work (redneck, hillbilly, whatever) who works on the "big boss's" stuff, a '65 Mustang convertible with a blown 302....junk car.....but anyway...he says "yeah it'll give that ol' Chevy in the parking lot a run for it's money!" and I don't say a word or bat an eye. He goes on, trying to rib me. Finally I ask "what Chevy?" He says "that old one, an Impala or something." to which I say "I don't own a Chevrolet" and walked off. This is O/T but still funny... A few of us were at a cruise night last season, and there are some kids around looking like they're on their way to the prom. They are looking around at everything....this one kid comes up and says nice cars, etc. Then goes on into how he's got a '78 Camaro with a 318 or something, right away you know he's clueless. He then says "yeah, I was hoping there would be some camaros here but I don't see any." The whole time we are standing directly next to a '69 Yenko. Across the row is a '67 with dog dish hubcaps. There are a couple 2nd gen's too.....I say "What about this one?" meaning the car next to us...he says" Well that's a Yenko. I'm talking about Camaro's" "uhhh.......oh yeah...."
a few years back i went to the long beach swap meet with a friend in his rear engine chevy truck (toronado front clip mounted in the back). we leave the swap and pull into a gas station, he gets out pops the hood and starts filling the tank which is in the front now, i'm just sitting in the passenger seat and there's this big ass mexican banger guy looking at the truck. he walks around it a few times then walks up to the passenger side and asks me if it electric because there's no engine. now this whole time my friend dave's pumping gas into this thing i guess when this guy was looking the truck over under the hood he just completely missed that part. my only response was to say "yes it's electric he's just filling up the gas tank for the generator."
I gave up trying to set them straight early on. I've had my 57 Chevy 150 2door wagon since 75,it had sedan delivery side panels when I bought it. At least 75% identify it as a Nomad. After that, hearse is next,followed by "Why did you paint the back windows?" Oh well, at least I haven't heard "dune buggy" yet.
Got to be one of the funniest threads ever...classic!! We installed remote door solenoids on my dads gold 56 Victoria which was a groundup build. He takes it down to the POLICE licensing section to get it licensed. The guys come out.."wow..this is awesome.." so my dad fills out the paperwork and the guys start insepcting it...he goes "how do you get in this thing, there's no door handles?" Dad replies "Oh, you press this button my my remote and they pop open." not being a dick or anything..The inspector then replies "WOW!! They were pretty advanced back then!" and proceeds with the rest of the inspection!!! ha ha
These are a little OT here, but I used to drive a 68 chevelle as my daily. I'd always get "dude what year is your mustang?" I also had a 67 chevelle 300 deluxe, 2 door sedan and people always thought it was an impala.
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