That post by Ferrari355 about wanting (and not getting) a Fiero for his first car got me thinking about my first car - a very rusty beige 1972 Plymouth Duster. 225 Slant 6, 3-sp manual tranny with floor shifter. Green plaid seats. Cop-style "dog-dish" hubcaps.
I bought that car for $25. When the tranny went bad, I paid twice as much for a junkyard tranny as I paid for the car!
When I took a girl out in that car, if she agreed to a second date, I knew she really liked me.
What was your first car?
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05:52 PM
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Robert Member
Posts: 433 From: One gallon East of San Francisco Registered: May 99
My first car was a 1954 Chevy station wagon. I don’t remember exactly how I bought this car, but I was only 15 at the time. It was during the time when you could buy a running car for $50 (1965?). A group of us used to pool our money and buy one of these cars, and drive it in the hills until it quit, so maybe this was one of those cars that I just kept. I parked it down the street so my mother wouldn’t know about it. She eventually discovered my secret and made me get rid of it. I traded it for a 90cc Bridgestone dirt motorcycle. What I remember most about the Chevy was it used to break pushrods regularly. So much so that I kept spares in the glove box and left the screws loose on the side plate of the straight 6-cylinder engine. The other thing I remember is that it had very little breaks. I had to use the emergency break to come to a complete stop. But what the heck, I was 15 without a care in the world, except where I was going to come up with the 25 cents to buy the next gallon of gas.
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06:19 PM
fierosound Member
Posts: 15146 From: Calgary, Canada Registered: Nov 1999
My first car: me; 16 years old / car; 6 years old (in the days when cars olnly lasted 3-6 years)
1966 Valiant Barracuda (grill and taillights slightly different from 1965 model year)
2 door, buckets/bench, 273ci Command V8, factory 4-speed w/factory Hurst shifter, sidepipes, factory sport wheels with wide tires. AM radio (WOW!) Power nothing! Everything went to the wheels. Mine was black w/red interior. Pictures similar to my first car at website below:
Confessed on that post mine was a Ford Pinto! Can't remember which I had to top off more daily, the oil or anti-freeze! When I joined the Navy I GAVE it to my younger sister so I could say I'm not the only one who had a Pinto for a 1st car! Hey! A Pinto is a horse, right?! Isn't a Fiero symbol the same except with wings(pegasus)! Maybe I was a jockey in my previous life?!
[This message has been edited by Gokart (edited 02-26-2000).]
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06:55 PM
Monkeyman Member
Posts: 15810 From: N. Wilkesboro, NC, USA Registered: Nov 1999
Like I said in the other thread, my 1st car was a '69 Chevy station wagon. It was a nice car (well maintained), but what 16 year old wants to be seen in a wagon (unless it's a Nomad or Pontiacs version like dogtired's got.)?
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07:01 PM
stimpy Member
Posts: 8197 From: Salinas, CA Registered: Jan 2000
Sigh... I will probably shed tears by the end of this. I had a 78 Chevy Malibu 2 door, jade green with cloth interior. I drove the bejeezus out of that car. It had factory rallys that I installed screw on moon discs over, 305V8 2bbl. It was a pretty car that I would love to have still. Too bad I drove it into the ground mechanically. Just a punk kid without a clue...
1983 Dodge Ram 225 slant 6 with a 3 speed, This truck was indestructable!!! It had 90,000 miles on it and I never had a problem with it for 2 years.... but it didnt have any power and wasnt very pretty, so I parked it behind the house and bought a ford exp, bad move on my part because the ford was a big POS, so I sold the exp for 1300 with its competition sound system (140 db, 4 12"s with an 1800 wat amp), anyways, I wanted a car with sporty styling and a V6, I was waiting to go to an auction with my uncle because he said he could get me a 88 Z24 for around 2 grand in mint cond (60k miles), but on (wednesday, 2 days before auction)the way back from my uncles house I noticed a small red sports car for sale in the front of a dealership, of course, my first reaction was that it was expensive, but I told my dad about it and he said I should ask about the price anyway because you never know. so my dad and I went to the dealership and ( I already knew it was a fiero) he told me it was a fiero with a v6. I asked him if it would be difficult to work on a mid-engine car and he said it should be similiar to a fwd setup. To make a long story short, I bought the fiero after driving it($1500) for a couple miles and have been hooked ever since. I gave my truck to my uncle for a nice paint job on the fiero which I hope to have done this spring. I'm not letting out any secrets yet but you guys will be drooling when you see it LOL.
My first car at 16 (1986) was a 83 C10 white PICKEM’UP Truck! Lot’s of Love went on in that Pickem’up. I was a very pissed at my parents though, my older brother at the age of 15 got a Brand New Red Corvette. He couldn’t even drive it for six months, and I get the old white Pickem’up. Life is not fair.
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07:22 PM
bHooper Member
Posts: 4156 From: greensboro, nc Registered: May 99
i got my first car in 1983 at the ripe old age of 17. my father brought home a burgundy/primer white 1977 toyota celica somethin or other. complete with retreads, a plywood dashplate and faded paint all over it! i drove it for 1.5 years until i got hit by some dude in a camero and the car wouldnt run anymore. my dad wound up taking the salesman out (that sold him the car), got him drunk and sold it back to him !! only lost about $400!
i hated that car with a pasion! but it was probably better than getting me th x-19 that i wanted!
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07:32 PM
wkayl Member
Posts: 2912 From: Loveland, Co Registered: Feb 2000
1953 Ford Mainline 4 door. Dad bought it at a farm auction for $23 in 1971. The farmer said he used it instead of a horse. Dad had to buy a wrecked car so I could get enough parts to make it pass MV Inspection. I used to save the oil we changed out of the farm tractors to keep at least some oil in the pan. Where I went to school there was a hill so I could get it rolling to start.
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07:53 PM
GT Bastard Member
Posts: 2243 From: Rapid City, SD Registered: Sep 1999
My first car was nicknamed the Pimp-Mobile. It was an '84 camaro with a V6 and F41 suspension. My dad painted it purple, pink and blue(pretty crazy huh?) Surprisingly, everybody seemed to love that paint. I drove it for 1.5 years and by the end of it's life, it was rusting and the engine was beginning to develope a knock in it. I drove the living crap out of that car... Poor little devil. I'll post a pic sometime.
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07:59 PM
PFF
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GT Bastard Member
Posts: 2243 From: Rapid City, SD Registered: Sep 1999
I am proud to say that my first car was an '84 Fiero Sport Coupe 3speed auto That was a great starter car! I still have the beast too! It handled great, but that thing is a pig! Second car was, guess what, an '87 Fiero GT! This one is currently bieng restored, and should be ready for action this summer!
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10:46 PM
Carolina 88GT Member
Posts: 134 From: Pikeville, NC, USA Registered: Feb 2000
Fierosound, You brought back some good memories. I was 17 when my Father gave me his 1966 Barracuda!! I was 8 years old when he bought it new from the local Plymouth dealer. It was a Formula S model with the Commando 273 cu. in. V-8, front disc brakes, limited slip differential, "bolt on" hubcaps (4 inch long lug nuts that stuck through holes in the hubcap), and "fast manual" steering (great for autocrossing, but a bear to parallel park!). The only non-performance item was the TorqueFlite automatic transmission--my Mother can't drive a clutch. I sold the car in 1986 to a fellow in Tennessee and have wished I had it back ever since! Fun car!!!!!!
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12:37 AM
BOILERMAKER Member
Posts: 1334 From: Indianapolis, IN, USA Registered: May 99
Mine was a 1965 Pontiac Strato Chief that my grand father had bought brand new in 65. It was beige with a red interior. It came with a straight six and a power glide. I hopped it up with a hi-po 327 and TH350, buchets and console and B&M shifter, and chrome modular rims with spinner caps and BF goodrich T/A's. I also had a beautiful paint job done. Even though it was a 4 door I got compliments everywhere I went. It really looked sharp. I especially remember the dash and front end of the car, it was a wall of chrome. It would take me 2 hours to polish all the bugs out of the bumper and grill!!! The speedo went up to 120 mph and the needle would go well past that. The car rode like a dream. The best part was the look on the faces of Mustang and Camaro owners when the got smoked by a 4000 lb 4 door. I had planned to install a 455 with a turbo from a 1981 Trans Am but I needed money for university and had to sell the car to a friend of mine. He took good care of it for a couple of years and then sold it to some punk who just trashed it. I really miss that car.....
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01:02 AM
PFF
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Monkeyman Member
Posts: 15810 From: N. Wilkesboro, NC, USA Registered: Nov 1999
These days kids only want the newest and fastest cars. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) They wouldn't let themselves be seen in some of these "old" cars that have been posted here. Am I just getting old? I'd rather have some of these "old" cars than the new ones. Not that I'd trade my Fiero for any of them (unless they're running, which the Monkeymobile isn't), but I wouldn't mind having some old Detroit iron in the garage.
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07:24 AM
2M4 Dale Member
Posts: 3461 From: Mansfield,Oh,U.S. Registered: Oct 1999
My first car was a 1967 Pontiac GTO convertible. My Uncle and my Dad gave it to me for my 16th birthday. I remember going with them when I was 10 to pick the thing up from the car lot.
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09:38 AM
87GT Member
Posts: 541 From: San Antonio, FL Registered: May 99
My very first vehicle was a 88!!.............................PLymouth Grand Voyager! uugghhh.. It had the chipped paint, bubbled tint, shag carpet, V6 that would smoke anybody to death that was behind me, and it was a damn minivan. I was 16 when I got this thing. I finally got it out of the way and bought a '94 Grand Prix SE. Great car, but the acceleration was pathetic. I sold it to a friend and bought my beloved '87 Fiero GT. aahh, I love that car.
54 chevy belair. I had just turned 16 when a friend and I hitchhiked to Bloomington(about 50 mi. away) to see about a job. Didn't get the job,and didn't want to do all that walking. I saw the chevy with a for sale sign in the window for $15 so I bought it and drove it home. I had it for almost a year until a tree jumped in front of it one night.
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05:58 PM
Patrick's Dad Member
Posts: 5154 From: Weymouth MA USA Registered: Feb 2000
When I was 17, my dad bought me a '73 Camaro. It had the newer straight 6. How did I find this out? It leaked oil from the rocker arm cover, so i bought a new gasket. I turned that thing every which way, until I went back to the parts store, and they said "You must have the newer one...." Which, as I recall, had something (The intake manifold? That doesn't sound right.) molded as part of the block, where they were seperate parts, before.
I bought mine in the summer of 1974. It was a red 1966 Mustang coupe. It had a 289 V8 with a 4 barrel carb. I paid $500.00 for it. Kept it until 1977 when I bought a 1969 Mach 1. I no longer have the Mach 1, but I won't make the same mistake with my Fiero.
When I turned 15 my mom gave me her 82 Camaro. It had a 305 and had ugly 14 inch wheels. I started to modify it as soon as I got it. first thing was a Kenwood stereo then I found a set of I-ROC wheels. The interior was a mess so I bought the interior out of a wrecked 89 Firebird. Then some guy backed into me and munched the 1/4 panel then the motor let go and I bought my brothers 1986 Fiero SE.
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08:33 PM
lowCG Member
Posts: 1510 From: seattle,WA U.S.A. Registered: Jun 99
A red Opel Kadette,with a black vinyl interior.In this car I discovered why it's not safe to mix bias-ply,and radial tires,yet still managed to drive the car back home after I removed the dirt from the exhaust(monza)tip.
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09:43 PM
Oreif Member
Posts: 16460 From: Schaumburg, IL Registered: Jan 2000
My actual first car was a 69 Pontiac Catalina with a 400 2bbl for $300. For the 6 months I had it, It spent more time in the garage then the road. I then bought a 1976 Pontaic Astre (Pontiacs version of a vega) It was my first car that ran well (LOL) had it for 2 years until I tried to break 100mph with it. I burned a hole thru the #4 piston in Tennessee. Once back home my uncle pieced it together with a junk yard engine and I sold it FAST!
[This message has been edited by Oreif (edited 02-27-2000).]
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10:37 PM
ka4nkf Member
Posts: 3702 From: New Port Richey, FL USA Registered: May 99
My first car was a 1933 Chyrsler coupe with rumble seat and 17 inch wire wheels. I purchased this car in 1950 and it was just like new. gave $125.oo for it and that was a lot of money for a high school boy with a paper route.
First car was a 1971 VW Superbeetle Ragtop Learned alot about mechanics the hard way with that one but wish I still had it! First truck was a 1964 Chevy C10, lots of fun and could never kill that 250-6, wish I still had that one two! BBT
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11:30 PM
frontal lobe Member
Posts: 9042 From: brookfield,wisconsin Registered: Dec 1999
OK this is pretty embarrassing to admit but it was a 1967 powder blue Ford Falcon 4-door. In my defense: 1)I was only 16, 2)I paid for it myself and 3)at least never for one minute did I think it was a cool car
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11:37 PM
Feb 28th, 2000
kel Member
Posts: 192 From: south central PA Registered: Apr 99
1984 Pontiac Fiero Sport Coupe.. 3 speed slushbox. Power nothing.. got that 1 1/2 years ago. drove that until I got my 86.5 GT 3 weeks ago.. 5 speed and power everything.
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05:36 AM
sdm1964 Member
Posts: 315 From: Glennville, Ga, usa Registered: Oct 1999
My first car was a faded out pea green 68 impala 4 door, power nothing, 307 with automatic, i even had to cut out the dash for a radio, I bought a new radio with you guessed it an 8 track player. Wow i am getting old. I am 35 and have prob owned over 40 different cars. May fav's were the 70 Charger, 74 ventura GTO. The 2 I have now and won't get rid of the 85 Fiero GT and 84 Z28 with t-tops. I would like to get an aeroback GT.
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06:09 AM
DJRice Member
Posts: 2741 From: Merritt Island, FL USA Registered: Jun 99
My first ride was a Gold (more like butterscotch) 1978 Oldsmobile Delta 88 4 door that I got in 1990 when I turned 16. It had a 305ci V8 and the 4bbl Rochester QuadraJet Carb. It had a very distinctive "flitter" to it because the exhaust manifolds were a bit warped so they leaked just a little.
I hauled all my friends around in that car for 2 years until my Mom got a new Lincoln and gave me her 84 Buick Lesabre 4 door. Which was basically the same powertrain.
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08:52 AM
deceler8 Member
Posts: 2139 From: Sioux City, Iowa USA Registered: Sep 1999
My first car was (believe it or not...I'm still amazed) a 1970 1/2 Camaro, 350 auto, orange with white stripes and black vinyl buckets.
The really sad part was that this car was really cool and I was really a geek at that age. And this car was my favorite until I bought the Fiero (alright, I've only owned four vehicles in my life and two of them are still in the garage).
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10:43 AM
deceler8 Member
Posts: 2139 From: Sioux City, Iowa USA Registered: Sep 1999
My first car was (believe it or not...I'm still amazed) a 1970 1/2 Camaro, 350 auto, orange with white stripes and black vinyl buckets.
The really sad part was that this car was really cool and I was really a geek at that age. And this car was my favorite until I bought the Fiero (alright, I've only owned four vehicles in my life and two of them are still in the garage).
1956 Ford Fairlane Club Sedan... In '91 I bought this car from a guy out in the country. Basically stock with the original 292c.i. and 3 on the tree double black exterior and gray interior. The best thing about the car is the radio reception. It can only pick up one radio AND it can only get it going N-S. Sadly, that radio station is in the same town where I live. I have never driven another car that sounded as good as that one ... I don't know what it was the straight pipes or the dual glass packs. I can't wait to get that thing back on the road!