My first car was a ??.

[Merc]

I drove other peoples cars, meaning my parents until I got married then my wife's 1972 Plymouth Duster became our car. Overall not a bad ride, the 225 CI slant six gave really good torque, it had a longer stroke than most engines of the time. I remember it got about 28 mpg on the highway which was considered pretty darn good back then which shows how things have changed.

I drove a Plymouth Valiant convertible with a slant 6 for several years. Don’t remember the year, early 70s maybe. That was probably one of Chrysler’s better engines. Great performer and good gas mileage, but very noisy lifters. Never had a single problem with the drive train but everything else either rusted away or fell apart. I was a pop rivet expert back then.

[phil441]

1951 Ford convertible purchased very used in 1958. Ran pretty well but I kept blowing out the 4:11 rear end which was popular with dragster builders. Finally ran out of available rear ends and it lost it's pep but was still OK. Dad gave it away while I was in the AF.

[dryheat]

'56 Chevy Nomad station wagon. And then the Studebaker. I don't even remember the year but it didn't have the bullet nose.

[M1Tommy]

1969 VW Squareback.
When I was searching in '79, I also found a '69 Mustang. The Mustang had a dead-miss and I shied away from it. Looking back it was (a friend bought it and we repaired it) a stuck valve, easy repair. Looking back that old Squareback was great, even if the engine was a real PITA to service!
Tommy

[Dan in NH]

First vehicle was a '68 Ford F-250 camper special. Was a front-end total, paid 300.00 . Took over a year to get it on the road, but ready when I got my drivers license. Had a 300 straight six with 4 speed manual.

[Merc]

First vehicle was a '68 Ford F-250 camper special. Was a front-end total, paid 300.00 . Took over a year to get it on the road, but ready when I got my drivers license. Had a 300 straight six with 4 speed manual.

The few dirt track stock cars drivers around here used to love the torque developed by that powerful 300 CI straight six cylinder truck engine. It would rev quickly and walk away from the V8s on the straight aways.

[lyman]

my second vehicle was a 77 ford F100 shortbed
300 with a 3 spd,

motor was excellent, trans,, despite a 3 spd , was good, the linkage to the column shifter was trash, I put a floor shift kit in it,

[dryheat]

What was your tenth vehicle? I've had around twenty over the years. I know guys who have owned fifty, but I'm not a car guy. Absolute worst? The AMC Pacer. Yes, I actually owned one and at the time I thought it was kind of cool. AMC made some of the goofiest looking cars ever made and I made fun of Citroens. The Pacer broke down weekly. Somethings broke over and over. I got to where I could pull over, raise the hood, fix something and be one my way in minutes. The best car? The Toyotas. After 120 thousand miles the seat belts wouldn't retract. My friend's daughter was gifted his Toyota. She sold it at 300 thousand miles. Remember the bumper sticker: I'd eat...how did it go?

[Allen]

What was your tenth vehicle?

My first car really was a ??

My grandmother gave me her car, a '61 Falcon, she bought a '63 Nova, decided she wanted the Falcon back so we swapped. I didn't care for the Nova, sold it, gave her the $ back and my parents bought me a '66 Olds Toronado. Loved it and would probably still have it except it started to rust inside where the windshield met the metal part of the dash. The metal was textured like leather so I didn't see how any body shop could have repaired it. Aftermarket body part panels weren't made back then.

Of course I didn't know that in the future the car would be worth something. All above mentioned cars were used.

File photo of what I had including the color.

[dryheat]

That's a beauty. I had a 66 Pontiac GTO. It had the funky tail lights that were dropped in 67. The rear window was so rusted that when it rained the trunk would fill up with water. When you hit the brakes a tsunami would flow forward all the way to your feet. It would have made a great movie sketch.