Quote:
Originally Posted by skibik
I was born in the 60's grew up in the 70's. I would have to say that the 60's and the first couple years of the 70's were the best car years. Look at the cost of a car back then and compare it to what that dollar is worth today and see what you could buy. You would never touch an SS with the dollar value from back then. You could buy a 1LS, maybe get a 1LT or possibly a 2LT but you would be stretching it. The dollar value back then on a $4000 muscle car would get you about a $25k car now and that is a long ways from a new SS at around $40k. In 1982, the year I graduated, I was given $500 from my parents to buy a car. I found a 1971 Chevy Impala, 350CI for $350. Granted it only had maybe 230HP I think(never really knew or remember the rating) but an 11 year old muscle car. $350 in today's value is about $1500 to $1700, not too many 2002 sports or so called muscle type cars for that kind of money. If money isn't a problem today, even with the government restrictions, the cars are starting to come around again but just not affordable to the average person. Also, back in the 70's growing up we looked at cars and seen what people were driving. Too many video games and crap today the younger generation doesn't see cars like we did back then anymore. Yes there are the few that enjoy the yesterdays and today's cars but are fewer with that interest today. JMO.
Dean.
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I graduated in 79 and my first car was a 73 Chevy Impala, 4 dr, with a 350 engine, automatic tranny. It was the biggest pc of crap car, ever, bar none.
Salt rusted out the car, either from outside in or inside out. Pulled door handle once to open the door and the whole latch mechanism fell out as the sheet metal gave out, ha. I actually put duct tape over it and it held, until the car finally caught on fire and I wouldn't let the fire dept put it out until dead. That was 1981 or 2yrs of hell.
Before the fire of pity removed this enigma, I was driving at night and pressed on the bright lights button which was on the left-hand side of the driver's floorboard and it disappeared, floorboard rusted out. I had to pop rivet a pc of aluminum there and put some cardboard underneath the floor mat to keep slush out. Didn't work very well.
Besides the muffler falling off, other maladies included the carburetor catching on fire for no known reason, putting the parking brake on and it never releasing, that was fun to drive home with, rear flat tire and the steel wheel was rusted onto the drum brake cover, took a sledgehammer to get that one off.
But my personal favorite was turning left at an intersection and wondering why I am not going anywhere when I noticed the rear wheel axle housing broke free and my left wheel and tire were a good foot outside the wheel well, ha. After that was fixed, it showed how weak the univeral joints were in the drive axle as they proceeded to give out too.
Never considered the 350 in that car to be a muscle anything. The 73 coupe 2 dr had a nicer rear window and Impalas then were available in a 307, 327, 350, 400 and even a 454, which the last two may have qualified as muscle. But my Impala was more like mucus.
