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

Posted on 10/01/2003 1:29:24 AM PDT by 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
If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.
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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TOPICS: Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Political Humor/Cartoons
KEYWORDS: automobiles; cars; classiccars; freepers; fun; gearhead; highouputengines; military; motorhead; musclecars; patriotic; surprises; veterans
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To: Aquamarine; Calpernia; All
Time for me to say good night - - - will look for the essay in the morning, Aqua..:))
221 posted on 10/01/2003 9:34:38 PM PDT by LadyX (((( Count your blessings - not your woes ))))
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To: lonestar; FreeTheHostages; jwfiv; Billie; Pippin; Libertina; JohnHuang2; Aquamarine; ST.LOUIE1; ...
Good night to the Finest!


222 posted on 10/01/2003 9:38:20 PM PDT by Calpernia (Innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does.)
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To: 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!

That does it!!! Tomorrow, I'm selling my car. :-)

223 posted on 10/01/2003 10:03:53 PM PDT by The Thin Man
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To: Calpernia
"...my husband might actually register for FR. "

You may want to reconsider - I find getting stuck on car threads fun but addicting. You might not get to talk to him for awhile. (I realize that may be a plus, too!)
224 posted on 10/01/2003 10:10:22 PM PDT by FormerlyAnotherLurker
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To: Calpernia; LadyX; All
Come on over and see what John wrote.
Where's My Yellowcake?!

225 posted on 10/01/2003 11:57:12 PM PDT by Aquamarine
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To: Brett66
This is unacceptable, this thread HAS to have a goat on it:

ROFL! - And thank you for providing it! :-)

She's beautiful! I take it that's *yours*?

226 posted on 10/02/2003 3:27:27 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: The Thin Man
That does it!!! Tomorrow, I'm selling my car. :-)

Here's a Saturn for you! It's an Ion concept that boasts 255 hp and AWD.

227 posted on 10/02/2003 4:52:42 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: Mama_Bear
Oh, Mama_Bear - that is a *beautiful* car! I remember them well. It's too bad they just don't make 'em like that anymore.

It's always easy to look back and say, "I wish I'd have hung on to that" - but of course we had good reasons for giving up our past cars.

As much as I loved my Monte Carlo SS (after 14 years it was like a family member!), when I got it back from having the attempted theft damage fixed and other things started going wrong, I had to make a financial decision that was very hard.

The decision you and hubby made at the time was the right one and we all just have to move forward! Thank you for sharing your story.
228 posted on 10/02/2003 4:57:59 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: dansangel
I really wish I owned that car but alas, no. That's my dream car I hope to own someday. ;)
229 posted on 10/02/2003 5:55:19 AM PDT by Brett66
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To: Brett66
That's my dream car I hope to own someday. ;)

And so, someday, you shall! Just like I hope that GM comes to their senses and makes a rear-wheel drive V-8 Monte Carlo SS again; that would be my dream car.

230 posted on 10/02/2003 8:51:25 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: dansangel
,,, Hi Dansy! My brother drove a HG 253ci V8 and our cousin drove a HT 350ci Monaro in the 1970s. I thought I'd kick in something exotic/south of the border for this thread.

I hope all is going well for you.

231 posted on 10/02/2003 5:28:37 PM PDT by shaggy eel
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To: shaggy eel; .45MAN
(((((((shaggy eel)))))))))

Thank you for the lesson on motorcars "Down Under." The website you posted the link to is very interesting and informative! I'll have to get .45MAN to go there and take a peek.

Hoping this finds you and your missus doing well. It has gotten decidedly "cooler" here in the southern part of the US. We're getting ready for Fall and Winter and you are coming into Spring and Summer. Any vacation plans in the making?
232 posted on 10/03/2003 4:58:04 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: dansangel
,,, Hi Dansy!

We had a major storm on Friday night. Not quite Hurricane Isabel, but more than we could handle, just the same. State Highway 1 was closed so we headed back into Wellington and had to find a hotel. A Convair cargo plane was lost en route from Christchurch to Palmerston North just north of our place off the coast, north of Waikanae Beach and a town called Paekakariki was flooded out. We finally got home late Saturday afternoon. Spring is absolutley volatile. Winter seems a lot more stable. Check this out.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2681652a10,00.html

Our next break away will be in late October, when we have Labour Day - we'll go north to New Plymouth. Just after Christmas we'll hit Gisborne, Tauranga and Whakatane on the east coast. It's really hot up that way over Christmas.

All the best from Wellington City!

233 posted on 10/05/2003 2:04:39 PM PDT by shaggy eel
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To: shaggy eel
Oh my goodness! That one photo of the motel *buried* in mud gave me chills!

Glad you and yours are doing OK. No matter where you live, there's always some form of bad weather to keep you on your toes. Whether it's tornadoes, hurricanes, monsoons, mudslides and even forest fires - there's always *something* it seems.

Thank you for that update - also glad to hear you are planning some time away. We are going away for a few days - to the coast - the week of the 20th. Then, to Florida over Christmas holiday. I can't wait!

(((((HUGS))))))) to you and your missus - please stay healthy and safe!
234 posted on 10/06/2003 4:42:23 AM PDT by dansangel (*Visualize No Democrats*)
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To: dansangel
,,, good to know you're getting away to FL Dansy - it would be a great destination. Hugs back to ya!
235 posted on 10/06/2003 11:40:41 AM PDT by shaggy eel
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