Bob's 66 Corvette Stingray

1966 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray

Mike and Mark had just parked and ordered two large, frosty A&W root beers, double cheeseburgers and curly fries.  Suddenly, they heard the familiar rumble of Bob's 66 Corvette rolling into the parking lot of the local drive in.

Bob was a huge man.  He was in his late 50's, stood at 6'5" and must have weighed over 270 lbs.  Mike and Mark were amazed he could squeeze his huge frame in and out of his Corvette.  He made Mike and Mark look like small children.


The "cool guys" would meet up at A&W every Wednesday evening during the summer.   Classic cars from all over would take over the restaurant for the evening.  The owner didn't mind at all.  For the most part, they were a respectful group of guys.  They were great for business too.

Luckily for Mike and Mark, Bob liked them.  While Bob was pulling into A&W, an old wood paneled station wagon pulled in right behind him.  Four young girls, music blaring, bouncing up and down to the beat.  They were laughing and smiling, having a great time enjoying the warm, summer evening.

Unfortunately, the girl driving the station wagon wasn't paying much attention to what was going on in front of her.  Her car rolled forward and over the blaring radio echoed the sound of a sickening "CRACK".  The young girl had hit the back of Bob's pristine Corvette.

Mike and Mark heard the engine of the Vette shut down.  The door of Bob's car flew open.  Mike and Mark start chewing faster and harder, like two kids eating popcorn during the climax of a movie at the theatre.

Bob walked to the back of his Vette, to view how much damage has been done to his baby's bumper.  Without a word or even a glance towards the cowering teenagers, Bob walked back to his car, leaned into his car window and pulled out a shiny, metal baseball bat.

Mike and Matt's mouths simultaneously stop chewing.  "Holy sh--" Mike whispered.  Both were frozen from the scene unfolding before their eyes.    Why does he have a bat in his backseat?  they wonder.  He doesn't even play baseball.  Maybe he had been saving it for an occasion such as this!

Still silent, Bob lumbered up to the front of the station wagon, faced the windshield,lifted the bat above his head with both hands, and with all of his power, repeatedly smashed the bat into the hood of the wagon.  

The nervous teenage girls began screaming and wrapping their arms around each other. One had her hands over her ears to muffle the sickening thud of his baseball bat slamming into the hood of their car.

When Bob was done, he walked quietly back to his Vette.  Threw the bat into the passengers seat and poured his huge frame back into his seat.  He started up his car and calmly and slowly, pulled into the unoccupied space next to Mike and Mark (who were laughing uncontrollably about what had just went down).

 A car-hop skillfully rolled up on her old school roller-skates. Bob placed his order as if nothing had happened, ordering his usual, cheeseburger with extra pickles, curly fries and large root beer float.

Mike and Mark leaned over, still snickering and said "How's it going, Bob?"

"Just fine.  What are you guys up to?"

Meanwhile, behind them, the four teenage girls have pulled their beaten and bruised station wagon into a  parking spot, far away from Bob, and have gotten out to see the damage.  All of them crying and freaking out.

The manager suddenly appeared next to Bob's car window and gave him a heads up that the cops were on their way.

"Who cares.  Let 'em come.  I'm still eating my dinner."

In less than five minutes, four cop cars rolled up. A police officer walked carefully up to Bob's drivers side window.  Bob recognized the officer.  They had butted heads more than a couple times over the past few years.  Bob hated this guy.

 "I need you to get out of your car now."  said Officer Tom.

"Why?  If I get out of my car, I'm gonna hurt somebody."

The officer kept insisting and eventually Bob got out of his Vette and showed the officer the damage to his bumper.

"Look at that!"  Bob yelled.

"What?" the officer replied.

"Look closer" said Bob

The officer bent down, his face an inch away from the bumper of Bob's car.  Bob suddenly did the unthinkable and smashed the officer in the face with his giant knee sending blood spurting from Officer Tom's nose.

At that point, all hell broke loose.   It took 4 officers to hold Bob down.  He was taken away to jail in handcuffs.

A week later, Mike and Mark saw Bob pull in to A& W.  He took up his usual space right next to them. Bob informed them he was out on bail.  While Mike and Mark were chatting, Bob spotted the arresting officer sitting across the street in his patrol car.  Bob stopped in mid sentence, his eyes grew dark and cold  and he took of running.  According to Mike and Mark, he beat the tar out of the officer and was put back in jail.  This time he got four years.

Sadly, Mike and Mark learned that within a year after Bob's release from serving four years in jail, he was killed in a car crash while being chased by the police!

Sean's First Classic Car!

1968 Ford Mustang Coupe

In the fall of 2010, Sean began to research 1960's Mustangs for sale.  He looked on Craig's List, E bay, and local newspapers.  He researched engine sizes, body types, exterior colors and interior colors.  His three requirements before purchasing a Mustang were:

• $3,000 or less
• Must have cool racing stripe in paint job
• Must have been built in the late 1960's

Sean looked on line and in newspapers for over a year before finding a 1968 Ford Mustang Coupe, 289 V8 engine.  The car was located in Maine, Sean lived in Michigan.

Now, I should probably mention that Sean is 13 years old!  He was twelve, when he started this huge undertaking of finding his first car. 

 Sean's passion for classic cars began sometime around the third grade.  He loved to spend Saturday afternoons watching the Mecum Auto Auction on television with his dad.  They would watch for hours at a time together and still do!

Every August, he looks forward to heading up to Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak, Michigan with his parents and younger brother and sister for the annual Woodward Dream Cruise, where thousands of classic cars come together every year.  They cruise in his mom's restored 1968 Ford Mustang!  I think you can see where his passion for the Ford Mustang came from.  His Grandma Chris also had a classic Ford Mustang, a 66 Ford Mustang Coupe!

For four years Sean saved up $1500 mowing lawns, shoveling driveways and doing odd jobs around the neighborhood. His father agreed to match his $1500 towards his first car.

On a cold sunny day in November of 2011, Sean's 1968 Ford Mustang was delivered to his home all the way from the state of Maine!  The pictures at the beginning of this blog were taken the morning it arrived.

Sean's hopes and dreams are to restore the Mustang, one piece at a time, with his dad's help, guidance and money!  In Sean's defense, I should say he is saving up all of his money to help his dad pay for the restoration pieces.

His goal is to have it restored by the time he receives his drivers permit, in two years. 

Now that spring has arrived, Sean can be found every day after school either in the garage or in his mom's driveway working on his new toy!  Last weekend he replaced the front brake pads and polished the exterior!

His largest and most expensive renovation will be the interior,  it needs to be completely replaced. 

Sean's ultimate dream is to own a 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302! 

 

I believe with the passion and drive he has already, he'll have no problem fulfilling his dream!

 

Bob's 1964 Ford Galaxy 500 XL

1964 Ford Galaxy 500 XL

This week's post is close to my heart.  I will be sharing my older brother Bob's classic car story about his 1964 Ford Galaxy 500 XL.  Bob bought the car from a local ad he had seen in the Royal Oak Daily Tribune.  He paid $2,800 for it in 1972.

His Galaxy was durable, reliable and surprisingly comfortable to ride in.  For those of you bloggers that love to hear the specs of these cars here you go!  18 inch wheels, 233 6 cylinder with the 3 speed on the column, for being a Detroit owned car it had very little rust. 1964 was the fourth and final year for this body style.

Bob was a 17 year old junior at Royal Oak Kimball High School at the time he purchased this car.

We were living on a beautiful, tree lined street named BonnieView, in Royal Oak, Michigan.

On a sunny Saturday in July, Bob picked up his blind date, Karen and the two of them drove off, windows down, hair blowing in the wind in his 64 Galaxy 500, destination...Pine Knob to see Jefferson Starship perform.

Bob and Karen pulled into the parking lot, joining several of his friends for a tailgate party.  Several cocktails later, Bob and Karen stumbled their way up the seemingly never-ending steps to the top of the hill at Pine Knob.  Karen spread out a blanket and the two of them watched the sun set and the stars come out while songs from the warm up band filled the air.

Everything seemed to be picture perfect between Bob and his blind date.  They realized they had a lot in common.  They talked and laughed until Jefferson Starship came on stage.  The quiet, romantic hill they were perched upon was suddenly rushed by hundreds of screaming, drunk, out of control Jefferson Starship groupies.  Their blanket was trampled, covered in mud and beer.  After an hour of getting shoved around and stepped on, Bob and Karen decided to leave the concert early.

They made their way back down the 150 stairs and out the exit.  They couple made it to the Galaxy with little trouble, but when Bob went to start up the car, he realized the battery was dead.  Turns out Karen had forgotten to turn off the dome light after she put her lipstick on and had killed the battery.  For my younger readers, please understand, this was way before cell phones were around, so Bob went on foot to track down a security car to jump start them.  After a half hour, Bob returned with help.

A quick jump and they were cruising out of the parking lot.  Two short lights and they were on I-75 heading back home.  Bob was showing off to his new girl, doing over 80 down the freeway, stereo cranked as loud as it would go, both smiling and laughing.

They had planned on driving to Pasquales, on Woodward for a late pizza.  Unfortunately, fate had other plans for them.  A mile before the exit to Woodward, thick grey smoke started billowing out from the hood of the Galaxy 500.  So thick, Bob had to roll down the drivers side window and stick his head out to see where he needed to pull over on the shoulder.

Karen jumped out gasping for fresh air while Bob popped the hood to see what was smoking so badly.  He was embarrassed that his blind date wasn't going so well.  The smell of burning rubber filled the hot night air.    Bob kept a water can in the trunk and poured some into the radiator, hoping that would sooth his sick, choking car.

After letting the engine cool down for a bit, they hopped back in and made their way to the Woodward exit.  Bob could tell something wasn't right with his car, it was running rough, luckily Karen didn't know any better.  They pulled up to the light at 11 and Woodward.  It was Saturday night and all four lanes of Woodward were lined up with cars coming and going.

The light turned green.  Bob hit the gas pedal, the Galaxy that usually jumps off the line like a horse at the Kentucky Derby,  dies right in the middle of the intersection and in the middle lane too!  Almost instantly, the sound of car horns begin a chorus behind them.  Bob and Karen are both filled with embarrassment.  Bob thinks fast and puts on his flashers, he has Karen steer and he pushes the dead beast into the gas station at the northeast corner of 11 and Woodward.

Karen had decided she had been through enough on this blind date and used the pay phone to call her dad to come pick her up.  Bob never did hear from Karen after that night.

As for the Galaxy 500, Bob figured out that it wouldn't go forward in DRIVE but it would go backward in REVERSE.  He had no money in the bank to fix his car.  He knew the back roads of Royal Oak extremely well and ended up driving the Galaxy 500 all the way home BACKWARDS!!

Ian's 1967 Chevy Chevelle SS

1967 Chevy Chevelle SS

Ian found this metallic blue 1967 Chevy Chevelle SS on a classic cars for sale website.  He paid $8,500 for it.

The 1967 model was upgraded to include front disc brakes14 inch wheels and a 3 speed automatic 350 engine and rear shock absorbers.

The interior included bucket seats, power windows, rear defrost and an AM/FM stereo system.

Ian bought the car with the intentions of fixing it up and selling it for a profit, to help pay his way through college.  He was renting a house near campus along with 3 of his classmates.  He spent most nights in the 2 car detached garage, staring at the underside of his Chevelle, with only a space heater to keep him warm on the cold Michigan winter nights.  Replacing parts when he could afford them.

His roommates turned out to be very handy under the hood of a car and in between their classes, they would wander out to the garage, beer in hand, offering to help Ian out.

It took over 6 months to fix up the Chevelle to the point where it was safe to drive.  Ian and his roommates would pile in the bucket seats and head down to Detroit.  Their favorite destination was Greektown, for saginaki and beer.  Ian's Chevelle became part of the group.  With it's metallic blue paint, it was easy to recognize cruising through the streets of Detroit.

Ian and his roommates ended up keeping the Chevelle through their 4 years of college.  It had helped them create too many awesome memories to sell.

The year after graduation, Ian sold his pride and joy to a college freshman from his alma mater, hoping to carry on the memories into the next four years.
  

Danny's 1990 Chrysler Imperial

1990 Chrysler Imperial

Lots of chrome, polished stainless steel, shiny new cherry red paint job.  Danny's 1990 Chrysler Imperial came with all the bells and whistles; heated mirrors, leather interior and an electronic dashboard.

Danny had purchased this all american car from his father in law in 1997 for $3,100.  His father in law had kept the Imperial in pristine condition.  The paint job looked brand new, all the chrome was glistening in the sun.  It had been kept in the garage every night and was religiously and meticulously washed every Sunday afternoon, during the spring, summer and fall.  

It was a very reliable car for the 24 year old.  3.1 liter engine, so there wasn't any chance of drag racing in Danny's future!  Because of it's air suspension, it was if you were riding along in a limousine, smooth!  More of a cruising car.

Danny was a newlywed, he and his wife, Brie had just moved into a bungalow in Berkley and were beginning a new life together.  This was their first car as a couple.

In March of 1998, Brie found out she was expecting their first child.  On a cold, snowy winter night in November, Danny found himself driving his reliable, trustworthy 1990 Impala at breakneck speed towards Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital.  Brie was in hard labor.

She sat in the passengers seat, screaming, holding her belly with both hands, like an NBA player with a basketball.  Both Danny and Brie sweating profusely.  Two miles from the emergency entrance baby Josie decided it was time to make her appearance in this big world.  Danny, jerked the wheel and pulled over on the shoulder, somewhere between 11 and 12 Mile on Coolidge Road.  He threw on the emergency flashers and watched helplessly as Josie was born in the front seat!  Never in their wildest dreams would Brie and Danny have thought THIS would be a memory that would be associated with their first car together!

Danny snatched Brie's white sweater from the back seat and gently wrapped the whaling baby girl inside.
He carefully drove his Impala at 20 mph the last two miles and safely delivered his wife and baby girl,  Josie to the awaiting nurses inside the emergency entrance.

Thom's 1970's VW Beetle

1970 Volkswagon Beetle

I really enjoyed listening to the story behind Thom's hunter green 1970 Volkwagon Beetle.  I hope you enjoy it too!

Thom purchased the car used in the fall of 1980.  It was his senior year at Royal Oak Dondero High School.  He saved up his money for four years from his paper route.  He had finally saved up enough to buy his dream car. Thom paid $650 for it.  Bought it from a friend of his parents, who had kept it locked away in their garage for 10 years.

Every Friday night, Thom would pick up his friend, Phil and head over to the football stadium at Dondero to watch the Varsity team play.  Both, Thom and Phil, played a lot of sports in high school, tennis, baseball, golf...but most of their closest friends were on the football team.

After each game, they would head over to McDonalds on 11 Mile Road to stuff themselves with cheeseburgers and french fries.

One Friday night, on the way home from McDonalds, Thoms' beloved green VW started choking and sputtering.  He was able to drop Phil off at his home.  It was almost 1 in the morning, there were no cell phones back then to call for help.  About 3 miles from his home, the car finally released its last breath and Thom pushed it off to the side of the road.  He was right in front of a cemetery; the one in Royal Oak that divides Main Street and Rochester Road, just before 12 Mile Road.  

He was in a state of panic because his curfew was 12 midnight.  His father was very strict about the house rules and Thom's plan to sneak in late was beginning to fall apart.  He tried thumbing a ride, but the longer he hitchhiked, the more nervous he became.

It was almost, 1:30 now...he walked to a nearby gas station and called his friend, Phil.  Phil was able to sneak back out of his own house, pick him up and very stealthily snuck him back into his parents home.

The next morning, his older sister, Joanne, gave him a ride back to where his VW had expired...but there was NO VW anywhere near the cemetery.  "Where is it, what happened?" His sister, being older and wiser, suggested that they stop in at the Royal Oak Police Department to see if they had towed it somewhere.  

Nope, it turns out someone decided they loved that old VW more than Thom did and stole it right off the side of the road.  Thom was devastated.   He had spent all of his cash to buy his dream car and now it was gone.

The police never did recover his Volkswagon.  Thom ended up getting his sister's hand me down, Chevy Chevette for the rest of his senior year.

This year, Thom will be 50 years old, and he still speaks about that Volkswagon as if it was his first born child.  At least he'll always have the memories that he made with his friends while he DID have it.