What old car changed you?

[jbiscuit]

We all have a car we have seen, owned, driven etc that got us involved in this hobby. Share your stories.

For me, it was when I was about 14. I had always LIKED old cars and gone to shows with my dad since I was little etc. The old Caesar's in Racine used to have a BUNCH of mean street cars back in the day. Tubbed Novas, a 66 Chevelle with a mean small block, a 57 Nomad gasser etc.... But when I was 13 or 14 I got a ride in a serious street car.

My buddy Jared's brother had this mean Bel Air. It was a 66 Bel Air 2dr, marina blue with matching bench seat interior, no hood, 427 with a tunnel ram, th400, 4.88 gears, MTs on steel wheels and Torque Thrust skinneys up front. It was MEAN. He used to be out in the garage EVERY day in the summer working on it. He was the typical older brother. Used to bark at us all the time to leave him alone and all that.....I remember him smoking while he was bending up the fuel lines for the carbs. Real tough guy. Anyways, he had this beat up old Bronco II that he drove to work all the time and the thing broke one day. He used to pick us up at school in it. Well late in the school year, prolly like first week in June, we come out of school expecting the Bronco and he was sitting out front in the Bel Air. Even Jared didn't get to ride in that car so this would be a treat! We were pumped. We jumped in and we were just grinning ear to ear waiting for him to start it up and get on it. He cranks her..........and cranks her..............and cranks her, pumping the gas but nothin. He's bitchin up a storm and its not looking good for our ride in the monster. He gets out and fiddles with the carbs quick, grabs the windshield wiper reservoir bottle and dumps a little mystery liquid into the carb throats and then jumps back it. After a few more cranks it roars to life. And man did that thing roar. I swear it was a 12.5:1 427 with a HUGE cam and big hooker headers etc...I think it had sh1tty thrush mufflers that were just destroyed on the insides cuz the thing sounded like it didn't even have mufflers on it. He tells us to buckle up and drops the trans into 1st and does the biggest, smokiest burnout right in front of the school, laying 100ft of rubber past the school buses and parents. It was the coolest thing I had ever witnessed, though a little stupid by today's standards. I remember us yelling and getting all excited only to be snapped at 30 seconds later and told to shut up. I was hooked for life.

I STILL love the fullsize cars to this day because of Jared's older brother.