Do you have a picture of your first car?

[NiceGuyEddie]

135938_1645408327867_5749219_o by Joe Momma, on Flickr


Picture taken in Long Island, New York, early winter 1988 after owning the car for about a year.

1973 Dodge Dart Sport
Electric Blue with white vinyl top
225ci Slant Six (funny sounding engine)


I received this car at a Surprise Party for my 17th birthday. The car belonged to my stepmother since new, and we drove it to Florida three times. The paint was in fantastic shape for a New York City car. My father was obsessed with Rain Dance wax, and I inherited this obsession. I remember being outside in the cold in New York being the only one that was washing my car. The car had some rust in the low rear quarter panels, as well as behind the front wheels.


CB Radio w/ K40 whip antenna
Separate set of winter snow tires
4-speaker stereo system
I added all sorts of "mood lights" in the interior under the seats, etc
I added the 3rd brake light that blipped "outwards" (stupid)
I added fog lamps

Stuff I fixed when I was learning:

Starter motor
alternator
tune ups
tie Rod Ends
minor rust repair
muffler

The car had 100,000 miles on it when I got it and that was a lot for the time.

Unfortunately, the culture at the time was MOPAR SUCKS and I got a lot of flack in High School. It was my first car, it was free, so I never understood what the big deal was.

I had it about 3 years and sold it for $750 when I encountered a good deal on an almost-new K-car. (Wasn't as cool and still MOPAR)

[Jeff Kleiner]

Somewhere buried deep in a box in the attic there are pictures but it was easier to find an online photo of an identical twin (OK, not quite---no hood tach on mine). 400, 4 speed, didn't like the color then and don't like it now but you don't really get much choice in that when buying a 6 year old used car.



Cheers,
Jeff

[flynntuna]

Like Jeff, the pics of my first car are buried somewhere in a box. I did find a very close representative picture a few weeks ago when I was surfing the web about Steve McQueen.
He drove a car simular to mine in one of his movies. Mine was a 1970 911T.

[John T]

My first car was a 1959 Ford Fairlane 2 door Hardtop. The picture is not great taken with a Brownie Starflash. fullsizeoutput_1f.jpeg
It was 1965. The car only had 38000 miles. It was a 292 Y block with a 2 speed automatic. Not fast, and it got poor gas milage. But with the two walker glass packs it really had a sweet Ford sound.

[Gumball]

I soooooo wish I had a picture of my first car - a '69 Dodge Charger 383 that I bought in 1981 for $175. It was T5 Copper Poly with a white vinyl top and tan interior with console. Fairly good condition - just a cheap used car with a little rust along the bottom of the quarters. Don't have any records of VIN or anything, but I've tried for years to find that car. Sigh.........

[wareaglescott]

I have it but not in digital format.
1967 Ford Mustang Convertible. (Purchased in 1989) Red with white top and interior. 289 and a 3 speed on the floor. My Grandpa owned a plumbing construction company in Colorado. I grew up in Georgia. When I was 13, 14, and 15 I went to work full time for him in the summer and bought the car with my earnings before I turned 16. (Side note my Grandma ran payroll and deducted from the check if I did not make my bed to her standard! Served me well a couple years later at boot camp! lol) Sure was proud of that car. Ended up selling it to my dad when I went to college. HE sold it back to the guy we bought it from a couple years later. Lost track of it after that.

[JRD56]

1966 Mustang GT. Bought this in 1971 from the original owner. I still have it.

[i.e.427]

Yes I do.

[jetheft]

3315E2B3-3135-4C6D-AF57-6D6A6399364B.jpeg
1976 Trans Am 400/4 speed.

[Mark Eaton]

1969 Chevelle Malibu. I bought it for $1600 in 1986 after busting my AS@! all summer in construction between terms in college. Crossed the country in it multiple times. Pulled the engine and rebuilt it my senior year with my best friend (He has since passed). Lots of good memories with that car...

[Fixit]

1968 Mustang Convertible - Belonged to a family friend's daughter.

It quit running one day and they towed it to "Mom & Dads", rolled it behind the garage & let it sit for 7 years. Critters chewed through the top, made a feast of the interior for nests, and turned the car into a rodent condo.
Being open to the weather for nearly a decade didn't do the floors any good - It was a Flintstone special.
With the critters packing all the fluff/leaves/foam/whatever into every body cavity it rotted everything... and what the critters didn't ruin, the gal who owned it must have hit every fixed object in her path, as there wasn't a straight panel on the car.
Her dad told me "Get it out of my yard and you can have it!" - I called in a favor from a buddy who worked at a gas station (tow truck) and dragged it home.

This was pre-Internet (1981), so your source of parts was the classifieds, "Auto-Trader", trekking through salvage yards, or "a friend of a friend's uncle might have one". I must have flipped about 3 or 4 hundred thousand hamburgers at $3.17/hr to get it to the running and driving stage in the photo. This car taught me several valuable lessons - the most important being don't buy rust... no matter how good the deal!

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[wrp]

Was actually 3rd or fourth but we were not great on pictures in those days. This was my 66 GTO I bought in 1969, $1600 which was all the money in the world.

66GTO-4.jpg66GTO-2.jpgGTO.jpg

[myjones]

Was actually 3rd or fourth but we were not great on pictures in those days. This was my 66 GTO I bought in 1969, $1600 which was all the money in the world.

66GTO-4.jpg66GTO-2.jpgGTO.jpg

Bill
Saw the bracket racing info on the back glass, Were you running that at Beech bend?
A couple years ago at the Nostalgia drags we went to dinner with >Ron Sees< IIRC
He invented bracket racing. He was a promoter, track owner and announcer back in
the day and he had a lot of stories to tell about it. I hope to see Preston again this year.
Dale

[Chuck Sloggett]

DSC00101.JPG

1951 Studebaker Commander Starlight Coupe. Purchased from Ford Dealer in Broken Bow, NE late summer 1958.
V8 three on the tree with OD. Painted it 1950? Willys sunrise blue, wish I still had it. -- Chuck

[JoeT]

here's me going to my high school graduation, just about a month short of 33 years ago.



I grew up in the same town as Forte's shop. Buddies of mine worked there and we'd get all sort of go fast parts

[shark92651]

Didn't anybody have a crappy first car? My first car was a yellow 1975 VW Super Beetle. I ended up spending more money than I should have turning it into a "California Bug", dechromed, bumber delete, new paint, etc... only to have the electrical system short out and the wiring harness burn up all the way to the battery under the rear seat while I was in the drive thru line at the bank.

My second car was a Dodge Challenger. Not the cool ones, but the 2nd generation ones that were imported from Japan with the 4-cyl engines. Probably about a 1981 model.

I don't have photos of either, unfortunately.

[Tuftster]

I'll play. Mine was the 85' Z28 on the left, on the right is my buddy's 93' Cobra (which he still has). Unfortunatley my mom sold the camaro while I was away at college, the new owner apparently pissed off the wrong guy who set it on fire.

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[Big Blocker]

Well, I must be the "Old Guy" in your thread Eddie - What's pictured here is (a representation) of my first car and the first car that I "Hot Rodded":

'53 FORD Station Wagon, originally fitted with a 239 Flathead V-8, three speed automatic, single two bbl carb. That was very shortly swapped out for a 390 CI FORD w/ Holley 4 bbl, C-6 automatic, factory headers, mild cam and port matching. After that, it's all history as far as the cars I modded and raced, but the '53 was (or should have been) a keeper. Took quite a few girls to the beach in that station wagon . . .

Here she is:



Notice the surfboard racks, she was always ready for any adventure.

Doc

[Mark Eaton]

Wow Doc,

That thing is as big as a Suburban! I think you could have taken three or four girls to the beach I'm bummed that I didn't meet you at HB this year, I'll definetly track

you down next year if you show!

Mark

[Big Blocker]

I'll be there . . . haven't missed one yet in 14 years. Got the pics to prove it.

And yes, there were (most of the time) the local neighborhood girls with me as I was one of few that had "wheels" back then and a job to pay for gas . . .

Doc

[Mark Eaton]

Didn't anybody have a crappy first car? My first car was a yellow 1975 VW Super Beetle. I ended up spending more money than I should have turning it into a "California Bug", dechromed, bumber delete, new paint, etc... only to have the electrical system short out and the wiring harness burn up all the way to the battery under the rear seat while I was in the drive thru line at the bank.

My second car was a Dodge Challenger. Not the cool ones, but the 2nd generation ones that were imported from Japan with the 4-cyl engines. Probably about a 1981 model.

I don't have photos of either, unfortunately.

OK, Full disclosure... This is a representation photo of my first car but it was a "loaner" from my dad while I was in high school. I have two brothers and my father bought one of these for us to drive in HS because it would be safe. It was a good plan, my older brother rolled it twice, I got it into a multiple car pile up and my little brother had a head-on collision with a Cadillac Eldorado at 50mph! None of us were ever injured in it and it never needed any work until the Cadillac collision. It rolled 500k before my younger brother went to college and dad sold it.

[JoeAIII]

I did. 1991 ford escort.

[mburger]

Didn't anybody have a crappy first car?

My first car was a 1976 Chevy Suburban two wheel drive “Burnt Orange“ with faux wood paneling down the side. Thaaats right. My father actually ordered this from the factory like that. No pics unfortunately. (Or fortunately)

[Cobradavid]

Didn't anybody have a crappy first car? .

My first car was not a gem, but I learned a lot and had fun in it. It was a 1973 Ranchero that had a 302 and automatic with 95,00 miles. Bought it from our neighbors after it was totaled. Paid $100 in August 1981:



August 1982, after I replaced the passenger door, did some fair body-work and painted it with help from a friend's dad.



I sold it for $650 in 83 or 84 when I was in college. It had over 100,000 miles on it.

[DavidW]

The cars I learned how to drive with were I think a 1980 Plymouth Champ with a manual trans and a 1977 Camaro with a automatic, both my parents cars. I then in 1987 purchased my first car a 1972 Mustang Coupe. It had a 351w with headers.





I crashed that car a year later and luckily survived. Have those crash pics too but I'll keep those to myself.

[Frank Messina]

My first car was a $35.00 '52 Ford Flathead 2 door sedan. Sold it 3 months later for $40.00. We had a Kodak Brownie box camera, but that was only used for stuff you wanted to remember. This hunk didn't qualify.

Frank

[NiceGuyEddie]

You guys have had a lot of awesome first cars. Here is my entire list, save for the roadster:

1973 Dodge Dart Sport
1985 K-car
1985 IROC-Z, rare 5-speed w/ t-tops
1991 Acura Integra
2010 Toyota Tacoma

That's only 5 cars in 40 years....

[KenWilkinson]

Picture is not my car, but same color. 1959 Opel Rekord. Came from Germany (probably a Fort Dix NJ soldier). If you squint, it looks like a shoe box Chevy. Had a Short Wave radio which I loved.

[Perkster029]

Not to make anyone feel old, here.... I still drive my first vehicle, a 2004 Chevy Silverado.
Yeah, the speedometer may not show me how fast I'm goin, but that's literally the only thing that's ever gone wrong with it. And after 6 years without one, now I'm pretty good at judging how fast I'm going by just eyeballing it!
silverado - Copy.jpg

[Jazzman]

You guys started out with some really cool cars. I didn't. I don't have any photos. I think my dad might, but I can't find one. Maybe that's a blessing! It was a 1970 AMC Javelin with a straight six and three on the floor. It was "Big Bad Blue", which is another way of saying "sear out your eyeballs electric blue that nobody wanted"!! I hated the color. The car got me to an from school.

[Clover]

I don't think I wanted any pictures taken of me with my first car. It was a yellow 1980 VW Rabbit convertible that I was forced to buy from my cousin. It did not exactly have the image I wanted back then, however, I did not get pulled over but one time in the thing even though I sped everywhere. When driving that car around a high school, I am sure the cops that spotted that little yellow convertible speed by figured if the pulled it over he was have a teenage girl balling her eyes out to deal with. It had a manual and was actually a fun little car to blast around in. Plus, the high school girls really did love the thing, I was always being asked for rides.