Dad bought a '73 Duster brand new for $2700 as a second car in a growing family of budding baby boomers. Police car gold, cookie cutter hubcaps, am radio, 225 ci slant 6, 3-in-a-tree manual, no cigarette lighter since that was optional (a decision not appreciated by our Kent-smoking mother). Ventilation was via manually opened vent box doors in the footwells, no A/C for us. Vinyl bench seats - I think the only option on the car was the carpeting, such a splurge. But the Duster pulled it's weight and taught 5 kids how to drive a manual transmission without ever complaining - a solid machine from a simpler time. ... View more

My favorite will not make anyone else's list - a 1973, dark brown, white vinyl top, white interior with black carpet & dash, 318 V8 and a 3-speed automatic. My first car, bought it from a friend's brother in '76 and drove it into the 90's when it finally disintegrated from salt immersion in the early years followed by Gulf Coast humidity in the latter. It was a painfully lovely car, and that small V8 was still running strong at the end - the engine itself may still live on to this day, I would not be surprised. ... View more

I think this is a solid list. Anyone contemplating any vehicle, including these and particularly if you are on a budget (who's not !!), look very closely at 1) availability of parts, and 2) cost of service. Parts are very critical obviously, as vehicles age into their 30's, 40's and far beyond the design life bits need to be replaced and work-arounds are tricky. Depending on your ability with a wrench, cost of service could readily exceed purchase price over time, particularly for vehicles that were very high end to start with. Me personally, I'd include a couple LBC's (little British cars) on the list as they score well in both the above categories and many solid ones can be found within this price limit. Enjoy ! ... View more

My parents (Dad was indeed an engineer) owned a series of engineer-spec Plymouth station wagons to ferry mom and the our gang of 5 kids from Grand Rapids, Michigan to places mostly west and south. The 1969ish vintage Fury III wagon had air conditioning but it would be wrong to think it worked anything like today's systems. At highway speeds, it got very cold but the fan was outmatched by the size of that vehicle. Front seat passengers wore sweaters, middle seats were pretty comfortable and for us in the "way back", well, we would have been better off with the windows open. In stop and go traffic, everyone sweated, it would not have provided you much relief in the NOLA summertime. ... View more

Looks very well considered; I needed to replace the engine mounts on a newly-acquired '62 Triumph TR4, and certainly the engine (2.1 litre 4 cylinder iron block & head) weighs far less than 800 lbs but still, lifting from under the oil pan looked like a plan for disaster. Instead I simply took an available foot-long section of 2 x 12 lumber, turned it on edge and slid it up in the space just to the front of the oil pan where it was snug up against the pan lip, hold-in bolts and the block itself. Then I was able to easily jack up the engine and replace the engine mounts. Sometimes not knowing how to weld is a blessing ?? ... View more

A 1962 Triumph TR4 has no fewer than 23 grease zerks to enjoy. ... View more

Rob - you're a good Dad, certainly you saved your son a $1000 repair, wrote a sweet essay and taught me what a back probe pin is to boot. Well done and thanks !! ... View more

Thanks for the video's; Dad had a waterfall speedo in the (I think...) '68 Plymouth Fury III wagon, it was way cool even at the time. I've tried to explain this to my gang but never did a very good job. PS - one of my personal favorites is the simple white-on-black chrome ringed analog speedometers in '60's - 70's vintage Triumphs, set in a wood dash. This defines functional elegance. ... View more

I'm tickled someone remembers Mickey Lolich. I was 12 years old, living in Grand Rapids, MI and delivering 70 copies the Detroit Free Press before dawn every morning. Completely hooked on the Tigers then, I got to read the latest each morning before heading out to throw the papers. Mickey Lolich was simply incredible, Denny McLain's 31-6 record got the Tigers to the Series, but Mickey Lolich brought it home with the incredible 3 complete series wins. Heady stuff for a 12 year old kid in GR. ... View more

With a nod to Forrest Gump, stupid is as stupid does. ... View more

How about a clot of SUV's? ... View more

All very lovely; the problem with the low mileage sub-1000 mile garage queens (the Viper and the VW) is that you can't drive them without destroying value. If you cannot drive them, I don't see the point in having them, personally.  ... View more

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I don't behold it here at all. ... View more

Owner's choice, of course and diversity of views makes for a more interesting world. My personal view is if you want a modern vehicle, then buy a modern vehicle. I don't favor changing the very nature of vintage classics that makes them unique and interesting in the first place. And remember, if you do, you are forever altering a piece of irreplaceable automotive history, so consider carefully. ... View more

Too big and barge-like for my taste. Powerful, yes, but so is an ocean-going ore freighter. ... View more