DeaconKC Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 1971 had some of the best muscle cars when it came to horsepower and looks. The Mustang Fastback, new Camaro body, the GTO and Monte Carlo, Charger and Challengers. Man what a dream time for gear heads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Yep , Roadrunners, Dusters, Barracudas, 442's , Trans Ams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rip Snorter Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Had a '68 GTO - fun car. On balance I think my 2005 Dodge Magnum RT is a better handling car, and as fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 You left out the top two!! The Hemi Barracuda and the LS7 Chevelle!! While I personally feel that the “pony cars” in particular, and the “muscle cars” in general had begun to get over large and overweight, those two were, for the time, proven to be the fastest production cars off the production line. Each, when properly tuned, was capable of sub eleven second quarter mile times on the best street tires of the day. The term “production” car was pretty loosely applied in those days since some of the parts used in the test vehicles were delivered to the dealerships in the trunk of the car and installed by the service departments. Nowadays, the top of the line performance cars are assembled by special teams not associated with the factory assembly line! A Dodge Challenger with a nine inch Ford rear end and a GM PowerGlide transmission can be bought from the local Chrysler dealer if you know how to fill out the order sheet and have enough cash to pay for it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 1 minute ago, Rip Snorter said: Had a '68 GTO - fun car. On balance I think my 2005 Dodge Magnum RT is a better handling car, and as fast. Yes , also forgot the Chevelle in the previous , but handling in a muscle car was rare back then mostly boulevard bruisers Do all my own work even today my 09 Challenger handles way better than my 72 Duster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rip Snorter Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 2 minutes ago, PowerRiverCowboy said: Yes , also forgot the Chevelle in the previous , but handling in a muscle car was rare back then mostly boulevard bruisers Do all my own work even today my 09 Challenger handles way better than my 72 Duster Dodge supposedly got some technology from Mercedes. The handling of the Magnum probably saved my life twice. I stopped doing my own work, other than minor things when computers came in to cars. Been a while! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 3 minutes ago, Rip Snorter said: Dodge supposedly got some technology from Mercedes. The handling of the Magnum probably saved my life twice. I stopped doing my own work, other than minor things when computers came in to cars. Been a while! Yes , these were designed when Mercedes owned Dodge the Lx/Lc/Ld platform was all built off a Mercedes chassis even the enrage pad can be swapped with a Mercedes one . The challenger BW is referring to is a Drag pak not really a production car and carry no VIN for racing only Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Ford and GM offer them too! The Camaro could be had with a 572 inch big block if you were lucky enough to get a lottery ticket! UPDATE: The Camaro is now available in unlimited quantity. No lottery! Available with choice of 572 cu in big block, 5.7L supercharged small block, or 7L all aluminum LS engine, an ATI Turbohydramatic 400 transmission, parachutes, and even wheely bars! Base price: $105,000.00 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tennessee Trapper Tom Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 I’m more affectionate for 67 to 69. Chevy Camaro freak. If you pay attention to racing they are the most common in street racing. I’ve had 2. Wish I’d never let them go. Enough room under the hood to do what you want and light enough to move fast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 8 minutes ago, Tennessee Trapper Tom said: I’m more affectionate for 67 to 69. Chevy Camaro freak. If you pay attention to racing they are the most common in street racing. I’ve had 2. Wish I’d never let them go. Enough room under the hood to do what you want and light enough to move fast My personal favorite was the ‘66/‘67 ChevyII! The 327/350hp 4spd car was quick enough to keep up with anything made at the time and had the best weight transfer of any car ever made! It could run dead even with the hemi’s of the day at the drag strip! Pound for pound one of the very best Stock and Super Stock cars ever produced! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckshot Bear Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 My first car was a '72 Ford Cortina with a hard vinyl roof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc X Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 The 1971 Boss 351 Mustang was the quickest factory stock Mustang (of that era) n the quarter mile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 41 minutes ago, Tennessee Trapper Tom said: I’m more affectionate for 67 to 69. Chevy Camaro freak. If you pay attention to racing they are the most common in street racing. I’ve had 2. Wish I’d never let them go. Enough room under the hood to do what you want and light enough to move fast We won’t get started about the street racing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixgun Sheridan Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 3 hours ago, DeaconKC said: 1971 had some of the best muscle cars when it came to horsepower and looks. The Mustang Fastback, new Camaro body, the GTO and Monte Carlo, Charger and Challengers. Man what a dream time for gear heads. While I agree the Camaro had improved, IMHO the Mustang completely lost its looks after 1969 and never got it back. Even the newer "retro" 'Stangs of the early 2000's looked like hell because they were too short and stubby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Sorry guys......1957 was it. Here is my 57 Ranchero with a 35i Cleveland that I built. Before and after. I did all the work myself except paint and interior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeaconKC Posted March 8, 2022 Author Share Posted March 8, 2022 This was my second car, unfortunately mine was a Chicago rust bucket that cost $150! '67 Ford Custom 500 with a 289 under the hood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 1970 1/2 Pontiac Firebird Formula 400 was the hottest car I ever owned and one of the best looking. Aegean Blue with black interior and trim, and it didn't have 'Pontiac' showing anywhere on it. NOT ANYWHERE! I swapped out the Firestone Fiberglas Oval tire (real dangerous crap) for Michellin (SP?) X-Stop racing tires, took it up north of Peoria, IL and ran it on through the time traps on a race course near Chillicothe (SP?) and turned 167 and 171 mph in a two way run. After five or six months I found that the payments, fuel, and insurance were more than I could afford and I let it be repossessed. I always regretted that but it was either keep the car or feed the kids and pay the rent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Big Sage , I might give you crap jokingly but currently doing a ground up on a 66 Mustang in memory of my wife that passed away from cancer. She and her dad all Mustang family so you know it always back and forth me being Mopar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 The 70 Buick LeSabre was a fine car, and pretty damn quick too. Except when someone is coming the other way. Not only first but only, and I believe that was in '78. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eyesa Horg Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 1 hour ago, Buckshot Bear said: My first car was a '72 Ford Cortina with a hard vinyl roof. They changed a tad. A friend had 60's vintage and it was a little square box! I like yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 57 minutes ago, PowerRiverCowboy said: Big Sage , I might give you crap jokingly but currently doing a ground up on a 66 Mustang in memory of my wife that passed away from cancer. She and her dad all Mustang family so you know it always back and forth me being Mopar My Ranchero build was a cancer recuperation project for me. So I know that every nut, bolt, wire and can of paint will be done with a special purpose for you. Do well my friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Kris Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 2 hours ago, Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life said: Sorry guys......1957 was it. Here is my 57 Ranchero with a 35i Cleveland that I built. Before and after. I did all the work myself except paint and interior. Nice truck. Uno had a '71, I think. Liked it a lot. That street looks familiar. Is that Downey by chance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Yep. Lived in Downey for 50 years until I retired and moved to Colorado in 2000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Born in 1950 put me 16 at 1966. 1967 I priced up a 67 ChevyII with SS package. 327 4v, 3 on the floor. I needed dad to co-sign. He reasoned for the same money I could get a Chevelle Malibu. OK. Things evolved again to a El Camino. Gas tax at that time was 2 cents less on trucks and the El Camino could be licensed as a truck. So I ended up with a new 67 El Camino 283 2b ,3 on the tree. Next was a 69 El Comino 350 300 hp, Tubero hidromatic 400. Next was a Olds Cutletss Supreme w 350hp engine, 4 speed "rockcrusher" transmission, 3.9 Posi differential. Beautiful car. Real sleeper. Then life took it all away. Marriage, kids, over 21 and couldn't be a rider on folks insurance. Insurance got higher than payments. Traded it in on an Opal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My hottest street car that could be considered to be stock was ‘64 Impala with a 425hp 409 with a 4spd. I say “considered stock” because I bought the car “less engine” and put the correct model 409 engine in it. I got the engine from a friend who bought it new in a BelAire in ‘64. It had a defective rear cam bearing that the dealership never found and after replacing two factory camshafts, they installed a 375hp 327 in the car and gave him the injured 409. The engine sat in his garage for fifteen years and I bought it for $200.00. I took it home, replaced the cam and bearings and installed it in a ‘72 Vega wagon that I drove for a little while before swapping in a 327 . When I spotted the ‘64, I knew what I had to do! I took the 409, which was rated at 425hp from the factory and pulled the heads. These engines were like all the other factory hot rods. The manufacturer always under estimated their high performance engines’ horsepower and most knowledgeable folks say these things made roughly 500hp straight off the showroom floor. GM put two gaskets under each head on these on the assembly line. Removing one head gasket and reinstalling the heads produced an increase of one full atmosphere in compression ratio, an estimated increase of 75hp. That, a set of headers, and the new, more aggressive camshaft probably put the actual output at 600+hp. The car was extremely violent when I would dump the clutch. It broke parts on a regular basis. With the big tires I put on it, it would crack the body in the quarter panels, right under the “C” pillar of the roof! It tore the welds on the axle housing once and it ripped the upper suspension mount out of the floorboard a couple of times!! With slicks and a 4.56 gear it would pull the front wheels in first gear. That cracked the quarter panels and broke the passenger side rear window. My father and I repaired the damage, more than once!! When I installed a set of ladder bars and a 6.17 gear, it stood almost straight up on a new concrete road! It’s the street car that I think I’d most like to have back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major E A Sterner #12916 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 10 hours ago, Rip Snorter said: Had a '68 GTO - fun car. On balance I think my 2005 Dodge Magnum RT is a better handling car, and as fast. As a fellow Magnum RT owner,I can honestly say the Magnum is faster.0-60 5.8 seconds GTO 0-60 7.3seconds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rip Snorter Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 9 hours ago, Major E A Sterner #12916 said: As a fellow Magnum RT owner,I can honestly say the Magnum is faster.0-60 5.8 seconds GTO 0-60 7.3seconds I can't recall the top end on the GTO, but it was very fast, and there is at least one fun story for another time. Coming across eastern Montana in the Magnum a few years back, had a Corvette pass me at speed. He passed with all courtesy, but I paused a minute, slapped the shifter, and floored it. You could see his head come up to look in his rear view mirror, suspect he heard the engine. Reeled him in pdq and the Magnum hadn't quite topped out. Haven't been past 110 since, but a fun car to drive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckshot Bob Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 19 hours ago, Rip Snorter said: Had a '68 GTO - fun car. On balance I think my 2005 Dodge Magnum RT is a better handling car, and as fast. I love the old muscle cars , then they built some real turkeys for a while. But todays cars really are fantastic. From a 4 WD truck that doesn’t ride like a lumber wagon , to speed and handling of todays performance cars . Also the bodies don’t rot like they used to here in the rust belt . I know they are expensive but they also last far longer, I can remember my dad starting to think about getting a new vehicle at 70,000 when I was a kid . Now the number seems to be 170,000 or better. I honestly feel the same way about tractors . I’d take a new New Holland over any of the Fords my family had when I was a kid . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Bob #35998 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My first decent ride was a 66 Olds 442. ❤️❤️ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PowderRiverCowboy Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Back in the Marine days , sent to El Toro as a grunt . Fun times Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Bear with me here. I was not heavily into hot rods, because I had neither the money nor the technical know-how. But reading the picture up above, the only "manual" I can think of on a car is the transmission. B&M is a shifter. But then you have a stall converter. A converter is part of an automatic. Why would you have a converter on a manual transmission? How can you have a converter on a manual transmission? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 B&M shifters are for automatic transmissions. Many automatics are modified to be shifted manually in high performance applications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 So you're saying that "Art Carr full manual 727" is an automatic transmission that's been converted so it doesn't shift automatically? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 4 minutes ago, Alpo said: So you're saying that "Art Carr full manual 727" is an automatic transmission that's been converted so it doesn't shift automatically? Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rip Snorter Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My '68 had an automatic which also could be shifted through the gears manually, my Magnum has similar. My recollection is that they used to be called Slap sticks. Very good fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.