So, Galz n' Guyz ... here is First Installment of my long-winded story about vehicles throughout a Lifetime of Driving ... 56 Years!
Happy Motoring !!!
All My Cars
(C) - Tom Hyland - 7/8/14
1. Very FIRST Car:
1959 - Spring - 1953 MERCURY Monterey - 2-Dr Hard-Top ...
Straight 8 Engine - Stick Shift - w/ Over-Drive - 2 Bbl Carburetor -
Pea Green Body Dark Green Top - Cream-Colored Rolled & Pleated Leather Seats - AM/FM Radio w/ Fader Control for Rear Speaker.
In Fall of 1960 put it up on blocks in Dad's garage while I was away in
Army for 6 months Active Duty. April 1961 friend mechanic Wayne Knell overhauled engine. His payment was my Dad's old 1946 Chevie.
Around June, 1961 sold it to my 'former' friend, Danny McHugh for
$125.00. He later swore that Tranny blew up & I cheated him!
2. 1961 - June or July - bought 1957 CHEVIE Belair 4-Dr Hard-Top -
V-8 Engine - Stick Shift - 4-Bbl Carb - Black Body White Top -
Fabric Seats w/ Red Leather Trim - Put Dodge Lancer Hub-Caps On.
This Baby was SHARP ... and could Really Move!
3. 1962 - August or so, decided to quit work at SSA and get a College
Education. Was going to commute 50 mile round-trip to College Park,
Md 5 days/week, and needed something Economical ... Traded in my
'Baby' ... And Still Owed Them Money! DUH?
1959 FIAT 1100 - 4 Cylinder - 4 Dr Sedan - All White Exterior -
Column Shift - 3-Speed - Bench Seat - Front Doors hinged in Rear,
Like a Rolls-Royce! Windshield Wipers had hose to Dashboard w/
Black Rubber Button about the size of a Silver Dollar - In Winter
Time it FROZE UP like a Rock! DUH?
Almost WRECKED it leaving the Dealer's lot at Reisterstown Motors!
Pulled out onto Reisterstown Road, had a Red Light. Big-Assed Bus
was turning Left from Right Side and I was in 'fast lane' - he couldn't
clear my car, so I popped the shift lever Up and eased the clutch out,
looking in Rear View Mirror ... BUS BLEW HIS LOUD HORN!
This Damned Import had First & Reverse in OPPOSITE positions!
I was going Forward! DUH? WHEW !!!
Drove it about 3 years. By then, it sounded like a Sewing Machine
Engine, was leaking oil, and I learned to adjust the valves myself -
Well ... Almost! Screwed 'em up Pretty Good! Traded it in on ...
4. 1965 - My Very FIRST NEW CAR - 1965 DODGE Dart - 4-Dr Sedan -
w/ Aluminum Slant-6 Engine - Aqua Color Exterior - Matching
Fabric Interior w/ Vinyl Trim - it was Shiny, and New, and Peppy ...
Taught my Fiance' to Drive in it ... talk about BALLS! It was only
about 2-3 months old, we went to a Wedding and I parked on the End
of a row. When we came out later, some "A-Hole" who was parked
Perpendicular had backed into the Left rear Quarter-Panel and CREAMED IT! DUH?
We got married on May 7th, 1966, and on the way to work one rainy morning, in Downtown Baltimore, another Damned BIG-ASSED BUS
Side-Swiped me while Sitting Still at a Traffic Light! DUH?
It was around 1972 when I TOTALLED IT ... about 98,000 miles ...
On St. Patty's Day Night, on way home from a Bar ... DUH?
By now, we lived way out in Reisterstown, and had two kids, so I
bought a Used Family Vehicle ... DUH?
5. 1972 - NASH Rambler Station Wagon - V-8 - Turquoise Exterior w/
Matching Color Interior - Automatic Transmission - Looked Nice &
Drove well ... for about 25 Days of the 30-Day Warranty ... then ...
The Transmission Went Up! DUH? Luckily the Dealer was reputable
and Honored the Warranty and Fixed it!
When the kids were little, and before Kindergarten, the wife stayed
Home, and I drove this V-8 to work every day to Johns Hopkins
University in Baltimore City and it was not very economical, so I
Decided to look for a really cheap 4-Cylinder ...
6. 1972 - Spring - I Think? 1965 VOLVO 122-S Series -
All White 4 Dr - 4-Cylinder - 3 Speed Manual on the Floor - w/ Dual
Suction Down-Draft Carburetors ... It would Really Shit n' Git!
Well, that's After I Fixed it! DUH?
If you remember, 1972 was the Year of The Great Gasoline Crunch!
Remember those Looooong Lines at the Pumps?
I saw an Ad in the Friday paper about the city of Baltimore having
Auctions every Saturday for 'Abandoned' Vehicles ... Aah That's the
Ticket!
So bright and early the next morning i drove down to Route 40 East,
Pulaski Highway, to check it out. Spotted this car there, No Glass was
broken, all 4 tires were up, no obvious bad body damage, and what
the Hell ... VOLVO had a Great Reputation for SAFETY ...
I walked around with the small crowd for awhile, went inside to find
out the Rules, and decided I would BID on it. The Minimum Bid was
$25.00 ... and CASH ONLY!
I believe the auction started around noon, the crowd went from car
to car, and eventually there we were, at this Volvo. I Bid $26.00 !!!
No One Else was Interested ... SOLD !!!
Went inside, Paid my Tab, and found out they had NO KEYS for it!
DUH? Went to a Pay Phone, called my Friend, Bill Yingling in
Reisterstown, and told him I needed a car Towed. He came and
loaded it up, and in about an hour it was parked in front of our house
on Highfalcon Road.
FIrst, I went to the local Western Auto and bought a Universal
Ignition Set and a new Battery. The ignition keyhole in the Dash was
A Bitch to Drill out, but I finally got the sucker dangling by Two
wires. Then I was totally Amazed ! Volvo had a fool-proof system to
prevent 'Hot-Wiring' ... the two wires that I exposed were only about
an inch and a half long! The Cable went from the ignition straight
down to the Bottom of the Coil, and it was spirally wrapped with Two
Stainless Steel cables, going in Reverse Directions! SHIT - SHIT - SHIT !!! I had a HELLUVA time using a Hacksaw to cut through them, but I DID it!
Installed the new ignition set, after taping each wire separately with black electrical tape. Installed the new battery, poured fresh gasoline into the tank, along with a can of stuff that evaporates any probable water in the tank, and got ready for the Big Moment ... would it Start? DUH?
Oh, yeah, I also had drained the old oil, and replaced with fresh SAE 10 W/30. She tried, and tried, and tried ... and finally started with a lot of sputtering. VOILA! I had a Car!
This whole process took about a week or more of after work and weekends to accomplish. I found out from a Friend, Patrick at work that the Two Carburetors had to be Synchronized, and he loaned me his Special little tool Kit. I went to the Library and made copies from a Chilton's Manual for the necessary maintenance information.
When the carbs were finally tuned, it was amazing ... She Purred like a Kitten! Drove her down all the Back Roads to the Shell Station in
Garrison, with No Tags, to get a Safety Inspection done. It Passed!
Got tags and drove that lil Sucker with Pride! Total Cost less Than $100.00 ... not Bad for a Dummy, Huh?
In January, 1973, the wife had surgery, and Mom & Dad were staying at the house to help with the kids. On a Cold Sunday afternoon, the five of us went to visit her at Maryland General Hospital in Baltimore.
It was just turning Dusk when we left, and we were tooling up The Jones Falls Expressway when IT HAPPENED! BAM !!!
BLACK SMOKE STARTED POURING OUT OF THE HOOD AND INTO THE INTERIOR! My Mother was Terrified ... so Was I!
Took the next exit at Park Heights Avenue, pulled into an Amoco Station, and called a CAB! Got the Four of them into the cab, offered the driver 20 Bucks to give me a Push to Start the car, loaded up on oil first (she had been burning some, so I had a case in the trunk.
Popped the Clutch ... she kicked over, and with all windows open, and black smoke pouring out the whole way, I drove that sucker out Reisterstown Road, all the way into my Driveway!
WHAT AN EXPERIENCE !!!
Mom thought the car was going to Blow Up and I was gon'na DIE!
In an effort to shorten this lengthy escapade, I'll give a synopsis of what followed. As my dad was a First-Class Rigger at Maryland Shipbuilding & Drydock Company, he rigged up a 'Jim-Pole' to my anchor Fence, got a Block & Tackle, and we Pulled that engine. My friend, Will, gave me step by step instructions, and Dad & I Re-Built that engine, right in my driveway.
Two out of Four Pistons had Blown their Heads. I had the engine Head
Shaved, got Pistons, Sleeves, Rods, Rings, et cetera ... and eventually, she purred better than before!
Total Cost about $526.00 !!! Because We Did All The Labor!
Drove my Volvo for about 2.5 more years, and sold it to a Niece's boyfriend, Tom, for $26.00 ... What I Paid for it!
It wasn't long before we realized we needed Two cars, what with the
Wifey Dear taking the kids to school, so we bought another Used
Station Wagon from 'former' Friends, Bill & Toni Hamp.
6. 1975 or 1976 - 1960 FORD Country Squire Station Wagon ...
w/ Real Wooden Outer Trim - and 'Magic' ? Tail-Gate that opened
Both Ways! It was also a V-8 GAS HOG! Heavy, but Safe for the wife
and Kids.
Well, Gang, I started this 'Epistle'
About 2.5 Hours ago, and I Need a Break!
You Probably Do Too!
You have quite a memory; I can't even remember all of my many cars, but I do remember my very first: A used 1962 Bel Air Convertible with a leaky transmission, and a cantankerous convertible top that often would not go back up on its own. I often rode around in the rain with the top down, but I didn't care - she was my first car and I loved her. (Now I wish I would have kept her, and refurbished her.)
That big gas crunch came in at about 1975 as I was working a Hess station in Ocean City,NJ and we had lines all night long during the Memorial day weekend...I was the night manager and the only employee pumping four pumps at once...also the only station open 24 hours...I know it wasnt 72 as I graduated High school that year and promptly got a gas hog...oh by the way the gas cost 49.9 cents in 75, so easy to think how many gallons was sold...enjoyed this Tom...but why did you always buy 4 door cars...? e
Look like you had your "ups and downs" with automobiles. I think we all did. I wouldn't be driving today if my current vehicle was like those in the old days, requiring constant maintenance. I just got an oil change (I used to do it myself) for the cost of your Volvo. At least, at 60,000 miles, that's all I've had to do to maintain it. Accidents, however, are unavoidable. Just have to have insurance for the inevitable.
My father liked to buy two cars at a time every couple years and my mother tried to chronicle all of them a couple of years ago, missing a few. She had to pay for most of them (on time). We were rather, car poor. Dad once bragged to me that during World War II when I was too young to remember, that he would buy a Model A for 50 bucks, drive it until it quit, and then sell it for 25 bucks. Neither mom nor I could verify that tale, especially when he said he bought, "Fifty of them."
Reads like my twin brother's book, his AUTObiography. Since Roger is here on AD, perhaps he'll post an excerpt.
Cars make me crazy! You are lucky you know how to fix the monsters!!
(Your poor mother!) Although I don't know much of the terminology used here, I enjoyed the stories.
P.S. when I first got the Volvo running, something terrible was screwed up! When I tried to turn radio on, wipers started ... wipers equalled directional signals, etc.
Eventually figured out that car had been Submerged during Hurricane Agnes, battery shorted out, and fused entire harness! I ran new wires, one by one, to fix each component. Hard-Headed Irishmen Don't Quit Easily !!!
