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.

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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.
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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.

[Calpernia]

I think Lucy sounds like she is doing fine. Eating is the most important part.

[LadyX]

Also need to send birthday hugs to your Little One, Cal - - sorry I missed it earlier, having a busy day with the first of the month chores.

[Aquamarine]

Oh, what an adventure! Took a few trips in a van going back and forth to Oklahoma back in my youth. This van had an engine located between the two front seats with a metal cover where a third passenger could sit. That spot could get really warm!

[martin_fierro]

The only thing better than one Lady X...

...are TWO! ("Dos Equis," get it? Yes, well...)

A Chevy Greenbrier Van, with a Corvair engine, in Alaska, dressed for caribou/moose?? X, you are One Intense Woman. <|:)~

[Calpernia]

ROFL!!!! OMG! Did you drive a tank at all while in the service? I bet if the military got wind of that stunt....you would have been the trainer for all the tankers!

[Mama_Bear]

Sorry I didn't get back here before you had to leave, dansy. But, I did find a photo of our Camaro. It was a '71 Super Sport, not a '69. In fact, I found this picture that is identical to the one we had, color and all. :-)

Gosh, I sure wish we still had it. It was a great car.

[Calpernia]

That is one thing I hate about Quicktime. It automatically defaults itself. You have to manually change that in your Control Panel and Sounds and multimedia settings.

[Calpernia]

I will be sure to give him a big hug tomorrow and tell him it is from someone special. Thank you Maggie.

[LadyX]

Been missing ya, martin_fierro - glad you surfaced again..:))

[Aquamarine]

Thanks, now I have a clue as to what to do! :)

[Calpernia]

Let me know if you get stuck. I don't know what version you have. The settings sometimes are different in each version of Windows. Otherwise, I'll have to start signing here again if you can't play my sounds ;)

[LadyX]

"Did you drive a tank at all while in the service?"

No, Calpernia, I didn't, but at Eieson AFB, when we lived in base housing there the last year and a half, when there were "whiteouts," I had one of the few vehicles that could get to the Commissary, with the engine in the rear of the vehicle.

You'd have laughed at me driving to get groceries, window down and head out, trying to see if there was a car approaching...drove kinda in the center of the visible world of buildings, the road not discernable, and pray there was no other fool out there except me..:))

I would be the ONLY vehicle in the Commissary Lot and in the store....

[Aquamarine]

I have Windows Media Player. I'm busy working on John's Post right now but would like to try to fix it tomorrow. Will be in touch.

[Calpernia]

Think I'll refrain from mentioning here that I can't even drive a car with a stick shift :))

[Calpernia]

>>>>I have Windows Media Player.

:) I meant your operating system. I know you have WMP ;)

Win2K? Win98? WinXP?

If you can't find the setting to change your default later on....Let me know what your system is :)

[Aquamarine]

I think it's Windows 98.

[Brett66]

This is unacceptable, this thread HAS to have a goat on it:

[LadyX]

"Think I'll refrain from mentioning here that I can't even drive a car with a stick shift :))" ... (it's okay - I learned on stick shift and drove Daddy's Willys Jeep Wagon for a time, but the last stick shift I drove was in 1963 in Alaska..:)) Have had automatic shift ever since - by choice!)

[Brett66]

I love the '70 goats too:

[MistyCA]

Well, if you want a little Fiat for free, I know where there is one parked! ;)