As the maintenance and repair schedule of my six-car antique fleet approaches the rigors and requirements of a full-time job, I somehow find it therapeutic to imagine myself trading in my troubles for others. Even on days when my patience is tested to its maximum capacity by low-quality replacement parts or phantom gremlins, staying away from the satisfying elixir of antique vehicle sights, smells, and sounds is an impossibility. Therefore, the local cruise night one town over recently offered some welcome distractions from my world of clacking lifters, chattering clutches, and wallowed-out throttle shaft bores. Care to join me for a themeless jaunt?
Local Michigan cruise nights are overwhelmingly populated by your typical jacked-up Blazers, Camaros, Chevelle SS clones, Novas, Mustangs, and candy-colored “wallet rods,” so I tend to flock to the slower stuff, the oddballs, and the beaters. I’m not sure this ’34 Ford pickup falls into any of those categories, but it was one of my favorites just the same.
This photograph sums the truck up for me: a flathead peeking out through a row of louvers, topped by an emblem that’s too cool for a 21st century world.
Trucks from the 1930s were not built for the long of leg or the wide of girth, but if you can fit, you’ll find no dashboard distractions to steal your attention from the intended purpose: keeping a leaf-sprung mechanical-braked beast between the lines.
This ’68 Buick Wildcat, on the other hand, offers no such compromises in seating or legroom. Ostensibly powered by a Buick 430, perhaps no car is better suited for a freeway cruise, or a local car cruise.
Buicks usually had wide benches and few gauges, so the owner installed his own set under the dash. General Motors idiot lights for engine temperature usually didn’t switch on until the engine reached 248 degrees, so that’s a forgivable transgression in an otherwise stock Buick. Of course, as any old car owner knows, if you have gauges, you will watch them, and you will worry when there’s nothing to worry about.
This ’65 Dodge Coronet 500 convertible seems worlds away from the expansive Buick. Even though its appearance is mostly stock, its owner has installed the obligatory Torq-Thrusts and given the Coronet a touch of rake. I’m not sure you can crank the torsion bars down quite that far, so this one may have some spindle tricks up its sleeve, but either way, it’s a nice look without being overpoweringly juvenile.
Bucket seats and a console reinforce the exterior’s sportiness.
As do its just barely tasteful chromed exhaust tips. Thank God it’s not red; red would have been too much on this particular car. In this case, the muted tone makes the Coronet one of my favorites of the day.
This one, however, was probably my favorite. It’s a chalky, beaten up ’61 Galaxie two-door sedan, probably 292 propelled. Inside, it almost certainly smells like all original old cars smell, a smell that should destroy my ridiculous mold allergies, but almost never actually does.
The period Goldwater bumper sticker adds some period correctness, and even if you identify more with the political opposition, there’s no denying that it adds a touch of authenticity to a car that looks like it’s been sitting in a garage since Goldwater’s loss to Johnson.
This Galaxie seems to have the old two-speed Fordomatic, which certainly doesn’t shift as often as a three-speed. Black and red is an iconic color combination, one of the best of the sixties, even when the paint is chalky. I love this car and I want to buy it. Fortunately, it’s not for sale.
Another striking color combination from the old days is red on red, although it may be an acquired taste (my wife thinks our ’74 Firebird is WAY too red). C3 Corvettes normally do nothing for me, but this ’70 looked great (which seems like a hypocritical thing to say considering my comment on the Coronet above).
I think I may be almost alone in this opinion, but these are among my favorite wheel covers, and the owner was in the correct minority in leaving them on.
A four-speed would be my preference, but I’m sure that by 1970, many Corvettes were equipped with a Turbo-Hydramatic for those who wanted the look but not the “leg busting in traffic” inconvenience of a manual. Anyone know what year automatics outpaced manuals in Corvettes?
A more sedate 1970 Chevrolet showed up in the form of this 307 Malibu, one of perhaps one in existence that doesn’t wear a reproduction SS badge somewhere. Other than a set of rally wheels, it looks stock, and reminds me of one of my few car-related regrets. In 2003 or so, I saw a 307 Malibu hardtop in this color on the side of a country road for sale for $3400. It was almost as nice as this one, and I didn’t buy it. Although a ’70 Chevelle is a little too popular for my true tastes, it’s a great-looking car that will almost literally never depreciate in our lifetimes. What a missed opportunity!
Another car that’s escaped my clutches is the Mercury Comet, and this ’63 S-22 was the unfortunate victim of some of my awkward ogling.
In the ’50s and ’60s, even cars that weren’t conventionally handsome were intricately detailed, as evidenced by this elaborate emblem, tail panel, and these triple jet-exhaust emulators.
The last of my hard-core automotive crushes on this particular evening was this ’65 T-Bird convertible with the uncommon rear-seat tonneau cover. It’s not a Sports Roadster, but it looks like one.
With the cover, Ford created one of the longest rear decks in automotive history. But those sequential taillights! I’m in love again.
As your mother always told you, however, you gotta go home with the girl that took you to the dance, and “Big Blue” is my girl. So, like the flying saucer she looks like, we glided down the highway at a fifties appropriate 63 miles per hour, to a home where some fresh hell certainly awaits me in the garage. But it’s always nice to dream, even if those dreams are only a temporary respite from wrench turning reality.
I’m sure Big Blue was happy to be out and about and also to consort with other vintage vehicles out for a stroll. Thank you for sharing your story and pictures. I enjoyed reading and perusing the various auto piccies.
Enjoyed your pictures and comments. My eyes lit up when I came to the 50s Buick, only to see it’s yours. T
he pick of the litter, I’d say.
I reckon the Buick would have got just as much ogling as the other cars.
The 61 Galaxie and the blue Buick would be my two faves from that selection, I driving my classic daily at the mo my Citroen is in the carport for an exhaustectomy its off now to make a new one, Taking my girl to school this morning we merged onto the expressway two cars behind a 105E Ford Anglia so two old British bombs in the commuter chaos today, quite a tidy Angle box too no rear bumper and a fair bit of spray putty on the back it must have been under repair recently and not finished before going back into service.
A wonderful assortment of varied finds you have!
Is it me, or where about one-third of ’61 Galaxies painted black? That’s far from a complaint as black looks great on nearly anything. Of the ’61s I’ve seen the last couple years, it seems most have been black.
“Anyone know what year automatics outpaced manuals in Corvettes?”
Given that for the first two years (’53 and ’54), and much of the third (’55), all of them were two-speed Powerglide automatics, it wouldn’t surprise me if automatics always outpaced manuals in Corvettes.
I studied that picture of the ’61 Ford interior for at least 10 minutes, as it brought back a lot of memories, both good and bad. The version I had wasn’t that “fancy” but the layout and organization were obviously the same. Nothing says early sixties Ford like that ignition switch on the left side of the dash.
Great pictures and a great selection of cars; it would be hard for me to decide which one to take if for some reason I was given the opportunity to just drive one away. I’m a sucker for convertibles so it would likely be the Buick and then the Dodge, in that order. While I like the Thunderbird, given a choice I would rather have one from the 1961-63 iteration, especially if it came with the Sports Roadster cover.
That 61 Ford interior brought back many memories for me, too. My neighbors, when I was in grade school, had a 61 Country Squire (a gorgeous caramel shade of brown), but even more: my family had a 60 and 64 Ford and all three used what was basically the same instrument panel.
I love those early sixties Ford interiors too. There’s something compelling about the shaping, the detailing, and the upholstery materials. Of course I was raised on washing Dad’s ’62 Falcon every weekend, so that may have something to do with it.
I’ll take that 1970 Chevy over all of them.
A black car with red interior? Are you kidding? I HATE that color combo, but then again, I dislike black for the exterior color on a car, period, unless it’s a limo.
“AU+H2O” was the popular bumper sticker for Goldwater.
“we glided down the highway at a fifties appropriate 63 miles per hour” – that’s my normal cruising speed on the highway every day to and from work!
Black does get dirty and shows it. My ATS was white, but the interior was dark red leather with black trim. My CTS is Black diamond with all black interior, not the color combo I would have ordered, but the car was a left over when I got it with decent incentives. My choices were a white turbo 4 or a V6. The black diamond is very pretty in the sun when clean.
I guess it depends where you live. We get a lot of wind-borne dust here (“watch the topsoil blow away”), so dark colours get dirty very quickly. Doesn’t stop people buying them though, and the new car wash in town seems to do a roaring trade.
When we bought our ’00 Diamante, the dealer complimented our colour choice (Riversand, a pale gold), pointing out that it wouldn’t show the dust – now there’s a smart dealer!
I vote Mercury Comet for the win, the only way it could have been nicer is if it were a 60-61 with the cat eye taillights.
Nice selection of cars, looking at the background of your photos makes me thankful for your eccentric reporting tastes.
Thanks!
My “little” sister (she’s 60 years old) has a 70 Malibu very similar to the car pictured here. Her’s is a light green with a black vinyl roof, and it also has a 307 with Powerglide….a NICE car, but nothing too special to drive.
As far as I know, the Malibu resides in her garage while her 10 year old Subaru wagon is parked on the street in front of her house.
Great assortment. Thinking about it, I don’t think there is a single one that you shared that I could not live with in my garage.
I really like that black 61 Ford, though. The 61 (and 60) is, for me, much more highly dependent on body style and color for whether I like it or not compared with most other cars. This one in black and as a Galaxie makes the cut.
And I know exactly what you mean. Every older car I have ever lived with starts to nag me with its faults and imperfections. I think this is why I was such a series or short-term relationships with my cars when I was young. Six months was long enough to see my own car’s faults, and then I would be seduced by something else, which I just knew was absolutely perfect. Until it wasn’t. I eventually learned to manage my disappointment over the long term.
This is why I wish I were better at selling things! Once you get tearing into them, they’re yours, and that’s a kind of attachment I’ve never gotten over very easily.
In classic CC effect, in the picture of the ’68 Buick Wildcat convertible, I owned almost identical examples of the two trucks parked behind it, a ’79 El Camino (GMC Caballero) in the same color blue, and a ’70 Chevy C10 it in the same shade of white. Except no chop top on my truck. Had them both at the same time, as well.
What a great assortment of cars. The ’34 Ford pickup is especially sweet.
Nice selection! For reasons that are different and similar all at once, I like the ’61 Galaxie and the ’68 Wildcat. The ‘Vette is a looker too, though. Hard to beat an early C3. And I don’t think the color commentary is hypocritical at all–what might be impugned on some cars can easily be forgiven on a Corvette convertible.
I will say I like the green Torino GT in the background of the second T-bird photo as well. Not to mention the Thunderbird itself–the flair ‘Bird had one of the best dashboards of the 60’s as far as I’m concerned.
Love that ’34 Ford pickup and the T-bird too, it would be perfect with a 428 6V under the hood, easily done. And it hit me like a hammer blow to the head; I have not attended a single car show this year. I feel like such a loser…. The wheel covers on that C3 Corvette are officially hideous, but I really like your Buick.
AAron65, I am always a sucker for late 40’s to mid 50’s Dynaflow Buicks, even if a sage CC’er (you) once said “a Dynaflow stops leaking only once, when it’s out of ATF”.
And as you noted, Buicks smell different, so I am sure I would experience a memory form of time travel if I sat in one now, smelled that smell, and heard that motorboat exhaust when accelerating. Was that exhaust sound unique to the straight 8’s, or do the “new” nail head V8s sound the same?.
Big Blue wins my vote! But I am not totally objective; a 1950 two tone green Riviera was in my family just before I got my license, not that I didn’t drive it up and down the driveway at every opportunity.
RP, a straight 8’s burble is unlike any other engine! 🙂
I’ll always remember a wedding I went to, where the cars used were a pair of beautifully restored white ’48 Buicks. That sound!
Can’t remember whose wedding it was though…
I don’t remember my Grandmother’s 1950 dynaflow leaking any to speak of when I was driving it to high school and then college. I do know that the engine would use some oil, but I don’t remember a lot of oil on the garage floor.
My Dad said that the dynaflow had two rebuilds in the 50’s, and that the Buick service department thought it needed to be driven more. So I think that my Mom would use it some (as I recall).
Did you get the Mustang sorted out? Last I remember it was getting a piggyback ride.
Have you ever made the orphan show in Ypsilanti? It’s a particular favorite of mine as most of the brands that I grew up with now qualify. I got to the show yesterday just in time to shoot a bit of video.
No piggyback ride for the Mustang, just a troublesome transmission, but that’s all good now. Now it has one lifter that bleeds down (Comp lifters with 3000 miles on them), and it actually has since day one. There’s a ticking that comes and goes but it’s especially pronounced at slow cruise. Ugh. Next summer, I’ll probably swap out the lifters, which is always scary because you have to do the cam break-in procedure again, which is one of the scariest things in auto mechanics. 30 minutes with the engine racing in the driveway, hoping you don’t hear the popping and backfiring of a wiped cam lobe. ***Shudder***
I’ve been to the Orphan Car Show quite a few times, but I was laid up Saturday and Sunday with a ridiculous cough/cold, so I missed that and Pure Stock Drags in Stanton, both of which I planned to attend. Drag.
30 minutes with the engine racing in the driveway, hoping you don’t hear the popping and backfiring of a wiped cam lobe. ***Shudder***
You’re a braver man than I. The rain Saturday persuaded me to skip the Model A show at the Gilmore. Second rain out this year as the radar showed the Gilmore blanketed with rain on the day of the Mopar show, so I skipped that one too. Rain on Saturday of the Old Car Festival. The owner of a 23 Nash was telling me how his tires sank about 4 inches into the mud.
Got a shock at the Orphan show as the first Tucker I saw had huge wheels on it. Couldn’t believe someone would make a donk out of a Tucker but a glance at the instrument panel showed it wasn’t a real Tucker.
There were two real ones there.
2 things before you go ballistic on the lifters. Check preload adjustment on the rockers; it is possible it was not set properly, or the adjusting nut has backed off. Have seen that even on the shouldered rocker studs where you simply torque the nut down. Also, I have not seen a Ford owners manual from ’62-’80 that did not mention the possibility of lifter clatter on start up. My Edelbrock cam and lifters in my 302 would do that occasionally; an extra 1/4 turn of preload solved that issue.
It’s not the preload, and it’s louder when it’s hot. I’ve tried a half turn, 3/4 turn, and a turn down past zero lash. I’ve actually had two sets of rockers on it, Comp roller tip and plain old Sealed Power units, because the rollers were just noisy, period. I’ve had Polylocks and jam nuts on there. It’s the lifters. I DID get a set of oil deflectors so I could try adjusting them hot one time, because the Comp lifters shoot oil all over the place, unlike the stockers. In fact, I have a pair of cut valve covers from when I first hot adjusted the valves when I was 17. Since then, I’ve gotten to where I can cold lash hydraulics in about 20 minutes on just about anything.
Great selection of cars and pictures. thanks for sharing.
Put me down for the Galaxie or Comet, please.
I like the Coronet and the Galaxie!
The red-on-red Corvette reminds me of the 1967 Impala coupe a friend found and bought in Ohio in the mid-70’s. It had about 80,000 miles on it, was not an SS but had been ordered with a 4-speed manual transmission, and my friend paid about $800 for it.
3 weeks later, he wrecked it. He kept the engine and transmission and sold the rest of it. The motor/trans went into several other cars.
No comment about the red and white ’55 Bel Air 2-door sedan? (j/k)
My favorites are the Wildcat, T-Bird, and your Buick. I see a red ’64 Pontiac Catalina convertible in the background of your Wildcat interior shot.
Blue ’53 for me.
That Buick convertible is really catching my eye, and I’m getting ready with a cheque for the fantasy garage, and then you offer the Thunderbird. I don’t normally do white cars, but I’ll make an exception for this.
I’m also surprising myself by being tempted by the Corvette, but like you the Ford pickup seems a star.
And your general point about a wide variety of cars and ages at a show or cruise, perhaps with some movement going on, great sunlight and a drive home in your own – well, I can certaily recognise that!