A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....10-01-03....Muscle Car Mania!

dansangel

[dansangel]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

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We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, dansangel, dutchess, Mama_Bear, Aquamarine ~

Muscle cars have been a huge part of the American heritage. Songs have been written about them, movies made and legends born. Americans are fans of different incarnations of racing; NASCAR, Indy Car, drag racing and Formula One, to name a few. Mario Andretti, Dale Earnhardt, Michael Schumacher and Don Garlits are all household names.

Today at the Finest, we celebrate the American Muscle Car. Presented here are just a very few of the wealth of American muscle cars from which to choose.



From the Corvette History Site:

The first Corvette was built on June 30th, 1953 in Flint, Michigan. The antennas in the '53 Corvettes were mesh screen fiberglassed into the inside of the trunk. The '53 vettes had two interior hood releases, one for each hood latch. There were only 300 Corvettes produced in 1953, all were roadsters. All 300 were polo white on the outside and red on the inside. The only engine available was a 150hp six cylinder engine with a powerglide automatic transmission. The base price of the '53 Corvette was $3,498.00.



From the Automotive Intelligence Site:

The original Ford Thunderbird, introduced in 1954 as a '55 model, was a sporty two-seater. It's long cowl was set off by elegant round headlamps, an "egg-crate" radiator grille and a wraparound, aircraft-style windscreen. A scoop in the bonnet and a row of chrome-like vents in the bumpers hinted at the car's V-8 power. In 1956, the famous porthole window was added to Ford Thunderbird's optional removable hard top.



From the Mustang Maniacs Site:

The Mustang was the brain child of Lee Iococca .The Mustang debuted at the World's Fair in Chicago on April 14, 1964. The car was available with a wide choice of options in coupe and convertible only. Reaction to the Mustang's arrival was tremendous and dealers could not get enough. The first day the car went up for sale, April 17, 1964, saw 22,000 cars sold at or above retail.



Chevrolet's answer to the Mustang was the Camaro SS. Shown here is a 1969 model:

The 1969 Camaro SS featured a 5.7 liter 350 cubic inch V8 engine. With 295 bhp and a 4-speed manual transmission, it reached top speeds of 121 mph. For the serious muscle car collector, the 1969 Camaro SS is a must-own.



A personal favorite of mine is the 1970 Chevelle SS:

The 70 Chevelle SS boasted a big-block 454 in either an LS-5 with 360 bhp or the more rare LS-6 with 460 bhp. An LS-6 car was tested by Hot Rod magazine and ran 108 mph in the quarter mile in 13.44 seconds. Be still my heart!



For all of you Mopar fans, here is a 1971 Plymouth Barracuda:

This Mopar Muscle Machine boasted a 383 cubic inch, 4-barrel engine. It has been known to run 12.13 seconds at 107 mph in the quarter mile. It's sleek good looks made it a favorite that resurfaced in the TV show "Nash Bridges" with Don Johnson's character at the wheel. Nostalgia at its best!

I must admit I have a long-standing affection for a later model muscle car. From 1986 until 2000, I was the proud owner of this beautiful 1986 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS:

Yes, that's .45MAN - notice *his* long-lost love right beside the SS, a beautiful 1988 Merkur XR4TI.

When I purchased the Monte Carlo SS brand new in 1986 it was "love at first drive." The Chevy always gave a great ride, had excellent acceleration (small-block V-8 with a 4-barrel carburetor) and ended up being low-maintenace over the course of our long relationship. In May 2000, someone decided they wanted my car more than I did and tried to steal it. The theft was foiled by a combination of .45MAN discovering it in process and the fact that the rank amateurs damaged the steering column so badly the floor-mounted shift would not move out of "neutral."

After the car was in the shop for a long 8 weeks while parts were located around the country, it was found that the transmission was slipping and the a/c was shot. After much soul-searching and a few tears, it was decided that the car that had served me so well over 14 years, needed to go on to "greener pastures."

Please feel free to share a fond "Muscle Car" story with us, or just kick back, relax and enjoy the show as others cruise up and down Memory Lane.



And, while you're at it, check out our own St.Louie1's pride and joy, a pristine 1974 Corvette:

Martin_Fierro doesn't call me Dans"Gearhead"Angel for nothin'! ;-)

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 09-29-03 Military Monday 09-30-03 Hall of Fame #5

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me a FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

Click on the photo to view the album. To
submit your photo, please contact danbh59@yahoo.com
and include Freeper Photo Album in subject line.

[WVNan]

[WVNan]

MAY YOU HAVE THE BEST DAY YET!!!!!!

[Mama_Bear]

I love the froggy birthday card! Thank you both.

This is such a fun thread, dansy! I need to leave for awhile, but first I want to make sure that I thank everyone for the birthday wishes.

This is such a fun thread, I will be back later this afternoon to participate. I need to see if I can find a picture of the 1970 (I think it was a '70) Placer Gold Camero that we bought right after we were married. It was one of those self-indulgent things that young people do that we definitely could not afford.....but it was great car. How I wish we still had it! :-)

[Mama_Bear]

Thank you, Meekie. I appreciate the birthday wishes. :-)

[Mama_Bear]

Oh, another pretty poem and bear. Thank you! :-)

[Mama_Bear]

Be sure to tell your son that another October 1st baby wishes him a very happy birthday. We share a special day.........October 1st is the best day of the year to be born! ;-)

Thank you for the happy birthday song!

[MeekOneGOP]

LOL ! A cake-eatin' rat !! ...

[Mama_Bear]

Thank you, Nan. I can't see the graphic, but that's okay........it's the thought that counts. I am feeling very special today. :-)

(((((((((((((((((Nan))))))))))))))))))

[MeekOneGOP]

You bet ! I hope you have a happy BearDay !!

[Mama_Bear]

LOL!! That has got to be one of the silliest bears I have ever seen!

((((((((((Meekie))))))))))

[MeekOneGOP]

:O)

[Billie]

Wow - I teared up reading that sistah Billie.

I didn't mean to do that :( - we're s'posed to be talking fun, crazy, muscle cars here!

[Molly Pitcher]

dansangel, thank you so much for today's thread!!

Here's my muscle car story...

In 1989, my much loved, late Father bought a used Monte Carlo SS....white...

He bought it mainly to pull a small fishing boat he had, but liked it all around so much, he wondered to his 2 sons-in-law and 5 grandsons why he had waited til he was 70 to get such a car!! LOL!

Anyway, the guys all loved riding in it, and I didn't mind driving it too much, either.:-))

[dansangel]

Who let Nader on here? LOL

THAT'S where I heard about it!

Overheating could be a problem. Like most things it was idiot owners. 'Broken belt? I'll drive it in for service...'

That makes sense. So, the whole thing was just hysterics, right? Sheesh.

Hilarious! He didn't know the Corvair rotates opposite to possibly every other engine ever made. 1 speed forward, 4 speeds reverse! Funny as H_ll.

That is funny - goes in reverse at 110 mph! :-)

The buggy is quicker than a Viper (and the Vette) to about 80-85 but has the aerodynamics of a barndoor.

I imagine that helps to keep it upright on sand! ;-)

Too bad I have to work else I'd just be fooling with cars 80% of the time. It's hard enough waxing everything regularly.

Sounds to me as though you have enough to keep you busy for a couple of decades, even without working!

When will I grow up? I hope never.

Amen. Life is way too short.

[dansangel]

Did you get On-Star with any of them?

No - when I want someone to know where I am every waking moment of the day, I'll get it. Right now, I get by with a cell phone that I only use for emergencies and AAA.

How much does it cost, anyway? I've never looked into it.

[dansangel]

His rant against the Corvair put him on the map. Not to mention killing one of the most interesting cars GM ever made.

FormerlyAnotherLurker called Nader to my attention, as well. Yikes. I had forgotten that's what put Nader on the map years ago.

Too bad Commie Ralph couldn't have disappeared along with the car he killed.

I totally agree. It's obvious the ego he gained from his little facade has continued to grow, stroked by his minions. Eck.

[dansangel]

Thanks (((((Aqua))))))

How are you feeling?

Details! We demand details on Mr. A's green mustang - LOL!

[dansangel]

Ha! I was right! Playing loose with the facts again.

Caught me fair and square, ya did....even though you omitted the part about peeking ahead a few posts!

:-)

[dansangel]

But, in your haste to defame me, you ignored the most striking thing of all about my post. We actually have *something* in common!

:-)

[ST.LOUIE1]

Oh, Louieeeeeeee, I wanna ride in your Corvette! Pleaseeeeeee?

I'll take you and Fuzzy both for a ride.

Neither of you can drive it though! LOL