Duke
SuperDork
3/4/11 11:21 a.m.
neon4891 wrote:
Duke wrote:
Here's mine:
'67 Le Mans; Dad bought it new for Mom at Christmas of '66. 326/2bbl/Powerglide. It's not quite as solid as it looks in this picture and has 270,000 on it, but it would be a fine driver. I grew up riding in it and driving it, and I've been hanging onto it ever since, but it may go up for sale this spring. It hasn't been out of my garage in a few years. Anybody interested?
Will it be chgallenge priced?
No, I'd like to get more than that for it, and I think it's worth it. It's complete, and works. It just needs some massage (it's a little stiff from not enough exercise), and it could use some bodywork touchup and a repaint. But it's perfectly driveable as is.
I had a 64 electra 225 it had a nailhead in it but it wasn't the original engine. That thing was a good two feet longer than dad's full size conversion van. It was bad in black and rode down the road like it owned it.
When it comes to big, bad American iron, one car stands tall-the mighty 1969 Dodge Polara Pursuit Special. 440 cubic inches of Magnum V8, manual steering, cop suspension, cop tires, etc. Built to chase down and catch the musclecars, it did just that with its 14 flat quarters and 150+mph top speed. The fastest police car built for decades.
Heres mine in the midst of a resto:
[URL=http://img98.imageshack.us/i/img952775.jpg/]
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[URL=http://img262.imageshack.us/i/polara207.jpg/]
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http://img98.imageshack.us/i/img952775.jpg/
http://img262.imageshack.us/i/polara207.jpg/
Had one of these when it was only 11 years old. Its the only car i wish I had not sold.
All this was on the air cleaner lid :
425 ci ultra high compression super rocket V8.
Use premium fuel only.
It was a big air cleaner lid.
Not old, but I just bought this today as my new DD.1994 Buick Roadmaster 164,000 miles 2 owner LT1 engine 
Yeah that polara is one hell of a bad ass car..
http://www.allpar.com/squads/history.html
http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/05/01/hmn_feature15.html
One of my fasicinations with musclecars is just how slow they really were by modern standards. This car bucks the trend slightly, but it is at best on par with a subaru forester xt stock... Amazing how far technology has come.
My last one, no pics, was a 65 Merc Marauder, 390ci 300hp, 4-speed, buckets, tach, all factory. Black on black in black, nicknamed the 'Thirsty Bitch'
Luke
SuperDork
3/6/11 11:56 p.m.
Cars will likely never be as cool as this ever again.
I've had/have several American Boats.
67 LeMans (recently purchased, no photo.) Its getting an LS1 and T56 along with a Schwartz chassis in the long run.
73 Impala station wagon (sold). I bought it with 58k original, 454, A/C, and that's it. It was a true barn find.
I also had this 62 Caddy SDV with shaved handles and hacked springs:
73 Hornet Sportabout Wagon:
My 96 Impala SS:
And the big one... a 66 Bonneville that is currently in body work. It started with a 389, then had a Caddy 500, and now will be getting a Duramax/4L80E combo. Count the lug nuts and comment at will:
WhiteLX
New Reader
3/7/11 1:26 a.m.
My dad's got a 1965 T-bird with the 390. I've always wanted a 1967 Impala.
Ian F
SuperDork
3/7/11 7:22 a.m.
Sadly, the closest I've ever gotten to a big American boat would be the old 70's 4x4 trucks I've owned. And maybe to T-bird with a 390 I yanked the heads and 4bb intake off for the 360 in a '71 F100 I had for awhile.
I've been having a severe 'want' for an old late 40's Caddy fast-back coupe, though... resto-modded, of course. 
I'e always wanted an early '70's Vista Cruiser...I've been looking for years but never found one when the timing was right... 
Ignorant wrote:
Yeah that polara is one hell of a bad ass car..
http://www.allpar.com/squads/history.html
http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/05/01/hmn_feature15.html
One of my fasicinations with musclecars is just how slow they really were by modern standards. This car bucks the trend slightly, but it is at best on par with a subaru forester xt stock... Amazing how far technology has come.
While new cars are undoubtably faster and more capable, its important to remember that the heavy hitters in musclecar land were severely limited by tires and factory exhaust(both of which were immediately discarded in many cases). L88s, Hemis, Boss 9s, 428SCJs, 455 GSXs, SD455s, RAIVs, SixPacs, 455 HOs,etc are all easily capable of times that would still be considered quite quick in today's world with the addition of modern rubber and a less restrictive exhaust. Remember the intro of the ZL1 Corvette in '69? I do. Gm trotted one out in a Corvette. Equipped with an auto trans, slicks and open exhaust, it ran 10 second quarter miles.
forzav12 wrote:
Ignorant wrote:
Yeah that polara is one hell of a bad ass car..
http://www.allpar.com/squads/history.html
http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/05/01/hmn_feature15.html
One of my fasicinations with musclecars is just how slow they really were by modern standards. This car bucks the trend slightly, but it is at best on par with a subaru forester xt stock... Amazing how far technology has come.
While new cars are undoubtably faster and more capable, its important to remember that the heavy hitters in musclecar land were severely limited by tires and factory exhaust(both of which were immediately discarded in many cases). L88s, Hemis, Boss 9s, 428SCJs, 455 GSXs, SD455s, RAIVs, SixPacs, 455 HOs,etc are all easily capable of times that would still be considered quite quick in today's world with the addition of modern rubber and a less restrictive exhaust. Remember the intro of the ZL1 Corvette in '69? I do. Gm trotted one out in a Corvette. Equipped with an auto trans, slicks and open exhaust, it ran 10 second quarter miles.
Very good points. I think it's also important to talk about these cars in relation to their workaday peers. Driving an inline six F100 or an impala with the straight six and holy crap everything else on the road is a rocket ship.
forzav12 wrote:
Ignorant wrote:
Yeah that polara is one hell of a bad ass car..
http://www.allpar.com/squads/history.html
http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/05/01/hmn_feature15.html
One of my fasicinations with musclecars is just how slow they really were by modern standards. This car bucks the trend slightly, but it is at best on par with a subaru forester xt stock... Amazing how far technology has come.
While new cars are undoubtably faster and more capable, its important to remember that the heavy hitters in musclecar land were severely limited by tires and factory exhaust(both of which were immediately discarded in many cases). L88s, Hemis, Boss 9s, 428SCJs, 455 GSXs, SD455s, RAIVs, SixPacs, 455 HOs,etc are all easily capable of times that would still be considered quite quick in today's world with the addition of modern rubber and a less restrictive exhaust. Remember the intro of the ZL1 Corvette in '69? I do. Gm trotted one out in a Corvette. Equipped with an auto trans, slicks and open exhaust, it ran 10 second quarter miles.
as much as some people hate to hear it...they were also severely limited by HP. All the heavy hitters except for the SD 455 (310 HP in '73) were rated in GROSS numbers. All today's cars are SAE NET. 400 HP in today's numbers is like 460 under the old system.
ZL-1 Vette? What'd they build in '69? 2? I can't say for sure but it wasn't many. I do know that they build a total of twenty "20" of the venerated L-88 Vettes in '67.
Most of these cars you hear the old farts yapping about were dogs. Period. let the Barret Jackson set fight over em
curtis73 wrote:
And the big one... a 66 Bonneville that is currently in body work. It started with a 389, then had a Caddy 500, and now will be getting a Duramax/4L80E combo. Count the lug nuts and comment at will:
More details please. I am VERY interested in DMax transplants into big cars.
a401cj wrote:
forzav12 wrote:
Ignorant wrote:
Yeah that polara is one hell of a bad ass car..
http://www.allpar.com/squads/history.html
http://www.hemmings.com/mus/stories/2007/05/01/hmn_feature15.html
One of my fasicinations with musclecars is just how slow they really were by modern standards. This car bucks the trend slightly, but it is at best on par with a subaru forester xt stock... Amazing how far technology has come.
While new cars are undoubtably faster and more capable, its important to remember that the heavy hitters in musclecar land were severely limited by tires and factory exhaust(both of which were immediately discarded in many cases). L88s, Hemis, Boss 9s, 428SCJs, 455 GSXs, SD455s, RAIVs, SixPacs, 455 HOs,etc are all easily capable of times that would still be considered quite quick in today's world with the addition of modern rubber and a less restrictive exhaust. Remember the intro of the ZL1 Corvette in '69? I do. Gm trotted one out in a Corvette. Equipped with an auto trans, slicks and open exhaust, it ran 10 second quarter miles.
as much as some people hate to hear it...they were also severely limited by HP. All the heavy hitters except for the SD 455 (310 HP in '73) were rated in GROSS numbers. All today's cars are SAE NET. 400 HP in today's numbers is like 460 under the old system.
ZL-1 Vette? What'd they build in '69? 2? I can't say for sure but it wasn't many. I do know that they build a total of twenty "20" of the venerated L-88 Vettes in '67.
Most of these cars you hear the old farts yapping about were dogs. Period. let the Barret Jackson set fight over em
That may be true. But, even allowing for the old ratings, Hemis, Big port 427s and cammers still make big power. Some were also greatly under-rated for various reasons(insurance, favorable NHRA factoring, etc). Recent dyno testing of Hemis have shown the 425hp rating to be a joke. A 440 SiX Pac, A GS Stage Buick and Super Cobra Jet still turn good numbers when relieved of the junk exhaust and properly cammed and tuned(as their manufacturers intended for them). They only made a few ZL1s and L-88s to be sure, but the iron 427 Vette was usually faster for drag racing anyway.
Dogs? Maybe in some cases-like a loaded GTO with automatic,AC and tall gearing.
On the other hand, I used to run a completely stock(except for super tuning-distributor,timing,ideal jetting,proper plugs,etc) '69 Road Runner. It was the base model with the 383, 4 speed and manual everything. Options were limited to a 4.10 Sure Grip and the Air Grabber. Essentially a pretty typical musclecar. It ran high 13s all day long on its stock Polyglas tires. While that time is not going to worry a ZR-1, it really isn't that far off today's reasonably priced(remember the RR was a bargain musclecar) performance cars-Camaros, Chargers, Mustangs, EVOs, WRX's, Challengers, etc. and is probably faster than today's cheap performance-Mazda Speed3s, GTi's,etc.
I owned(and still do) some heavy hitters, as well. Slicks, headers and tune had them turning times that would still be considered fast today.
The big difference(other than the gigantic strides in handling/braking/safety) is in the amazing drivability that new performance cars enjoy-not to mention fuel economy that would have be unheard of back in the day.
The other interesting thing is that new cars weigh much more than old ones in most instances. Heck, that massive CHP Polara that I posted weighs less than many Audis and BMWs these days.
The other thing missing in much of the modern iron(I speak from experience as I've got a few of those, too) is the assault on the senses the old heaps produced. Noisy, shaking from high lift cams, ability to vaporize the period tires in all gears, sounds, wild colors, wild wings,scoops and spoilers-the old muscle was outrageous and dangerous too, as there were no legions of modern safety nannies to save you from your mistakes.
a401cj wrote:
curtis73 wrote:
And the big one... a 66 Bonneville that is currently in body work. It started with a 389, then had a Caddy 500, and now will be getting a Duramax/4L80E combo. Count the lug nuts and comment at will:
More details please. I am VERY interested in DMax transplants into big cars.
Its a long story... but I'll try to condense it.
I started out building this car to tow my travel trailer. I boxed the frame, built an overkill hitch, built a diesel-like Caddy 500 for it. Then the engineer in me kicked in.
I decided to start looking for a 12-bolt to replace the inadequate 8.2" rear. I went searching for a 12-bolt and found that they are pretty ridiculously expensive, so the guy at the junkyard pointed out a 14-bolt from a step van and said "measure that." Long story short, the car has a 14-bolt full floater in it :)
So then I wanted better brakes and 8-lug wheels all around so I modified the front to carry 3/4 ton spindles and brakes. Then I selected a master cylinder to properly run it all and it turned out perfect. Then I needed a bulletproof OD for it. I was going to get a computer and run a 4L80E but for the same money (and less complexity) I got a gear vendors OD
Now I have it all apart for body work and I've moved four times since then. I got tired of transporting all the parts so I sold the Caddy 500 and TH400 with GVOD. While the body is off the frame I'm going to fully box it. Then I'll drop in the Duramax and a 4L80E so it will be ready to tow whatever I need. The running gear will be completely HD truck. The only things I'll need to really beef up are the suspension (probably really heavy air bags on the rear, fabricate some boxed trailing arms, and make a watts link to keep it firmly centered. It won't quite have the weight of a heavy truck to anchor something like a 30-foot travel trailer but I might be surprised. It can handle the weight, just not sure about the sway. I think it will handle 10k just fine, but I wouldn't want to go cross country with it that way... but again, I might be surprised at how well it does.
Merc
New Reader
3/8/11 3:05 p.m.
That is so sick! I wish I had started life working on American cars!! I would someday like to take on a full project like that but like a lot of us it probably won't be until I'm middle aged.
BTW, I like that you picked a 4dr sedan. I've seen so many 2dr sedans that you kind of get sick of looking at them... Well not really but you do see a lot of 2drs.
I want one of those Blues Brothers cop cars.
a401cj wrote:
Most of these cars you hear the old farts yapping about were dogs. Period. let the Barret Jackson set fight over em
That's a bit of a peculiar comment for a guy with AMC 401 badging in his avatar and referencing a 401 powered Jeep in his handle.
Rob_Mopar wrote:
a401cj wrote:
Most of these cars you hear the old farts yapping about were dogs. Period. let the Barret Jackson set fight over em
That's a bit of a peculiar comment for a guy with AMC 401 badging in his avatar and referencing a 401 powered Jeep in his handle.
Against their workaday peers, they were fast.
A stock 2010 mazdaspeed 3 will do a 1/4 in 14.4 sec as reported here. http://www.insideline.com/mazda/mazdaspeed3/2010/comparison-test-2010-mazdaspeed-3-vs-2010-hyundai-genesis-coupe-38.html
The same mazda speed will out brake and out handle anything from a domestic maker, save maybe the gt40 and cobra, from the 60's.
The are awesome visceral machines that require tons of balls to drive and are great fun.. Fast, compared to a 4 door hatchback? Nope. Cool as hell? YES!
Get the Allison that is coupled to the Duramax, assuming that you can get the electrons all behaving. It is an awesome trans.
