A GDYNETS® PUBLICATION © 2016, G. DAVID YAROS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Car Collector Chronicles ®
Volume IX, Issue 1
Exploring:
Ca
Car Collecting Today
High RPMs
Classic Rides Reports From the Field Oldsmobile (1897-2004) Cadillac (1902- ) Allanté (1987-1993)
Corvair (1960-1969)
◄ = Clickable Link
IN THIS ISSUE: High RPMs
1
Ol’ Man River
2
SITEings
3
Did You Know?
4
Just last week, with temps in the mid-to-high 50’s I was thinking of taking Saved 62 out for a spin. Fat chance of that now. Two days ago we got hit with 9”, plus of snow! For those with an interest, you will find the 2015 CCC® Index on the scribd web site. I want to thank all who responded to my missive for vehicle records software programs. They did help. I now have a simple spreadsheet with which I am toying . I also have worked extensively with Tamas Csörgo, the author of mcAutoTrak, debugging his program. We now have it doing both what he intended and what I requested/need. Thanks Tamas!
January Automotive Milestones 01-1897: Winton builds 1st car with steering wheel 02-1923: Chevy debuts 1st
®
CCC® Forum EMail:
5
◄
OldsD88@gmail.com ◄
air-cooled engine 05-1924: 1st Chrysler debuts 06-1954: Kaiser Darrin goes on sale 09-1926: First Pontiac built 10-1979: The last convertible Beetle rolls off of Volkswagen production lines. 13-1942: Ford patents a method of constructing plastic auto bodies 14-1954: Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson merge to form American Motors Corporation 14-1958: Ford merges the Edsel Division with LincolnMercury 16-1977: Dodge Omni and Plymouth Horizon debut 17-1953 Corvette first intro'd at GM Motorama as a concept car 17-1903: Cadillac premieres its first car, Madison Square Garden, N.Y.C. 17-1956: Ford Motor Co. goes public 22-1950: Preston Tucker found not guilty of mail fraud 28-1896: East Peckham,
Kent England issues first speeding ticket to a motorist going 8 mph in a 2 mph zone. 29-1886: Karl Benz filed the patent for the first gasoline-driven automobile 30-1958: Rambler American debuts
- Happy New Year! -
GDYNets® on the Web Find GDYNets on the web:
What is it?
January 2016
s
CCC -THE FORUM ◄-A web site to discuss the newsletter, the hobby and our cars. Car Collector Chronicles® ◄ Saved 62 ◄-Our 1962 Olds convertible, Ransom Eli Olds and things Oldsmobile related web site. The Gray Lady ◄-1955 Cadillac Coupé de Ville web site.
SAVED 62: A website devoted
to our 1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 convertible. The site also has a lot of information on Oldsmobile cars and the company founder, Ransom Eli Olds.
THE GRAY LADY: This website features our 1955 Cadillac Coupé de Ville, lots of Caddy information and an extensive repair library.
DAVE’S DEN: ◄-A site devoted to a myriad of interests. Foremost is extensive information on the “Steel City” of Gary, IN. There are also offerings on steel making, U.S. Steel-Gary Works, U.S. Marine Corps, M14 assault rifle, of course Oldsmobile, and the tragic story of the murder of Gary, IN Police Lt. George Yaros.
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 2
Ol’ Man River
“[W]hat I recall as old/ obsolete in the mid-50’s is suddenly new and innovative in the 21st century!”
With the tick of the clock on 31 December, another page was turned. We have now entered our ninth calendar year of publication of CCC® ! I know not how many more years we shall continue? That remains to be determined. This month another milestone is also passed. Suffice it to say that with the passing of this milestone I may no longer kid myself about my age. Without revealing my age precisely, let me say that even I must now admit that I am indeed an old coot! All this is by way of lead-in to reference of a noted turn of events that deserves the preface of “You know you are getting old when … .” A NY Corvair owner recounted this incident: So I order GM key blanks from Clark’s and go to my local hardware store. Young guy cuts the new keys and I go home and try them, but neither one works. I decide to try them reversed and sure enough the round key opens the doors and starts the car and the hex key opens the trunk. Next time in the store I mentioned to the kid that he did the keys backwards. He looks at me funny and I explain they are backward. He tells me what’s the difference, he never saw a car that had different keys for the doors and trunk. Are we that old? On the subject of keys, it seems the trend now days is to not have car keys at all. Our Toyota Avalon has fob/transmitter that must be in the car for the starter button to work. Starter buttons? The last one of those I remember was on our 1948 Olds! While I certainly am not getting any younger, what I recall as old/obsolete in the mid50’s is suddenly new and innovative in the 21st century! In a related vein I ran across a “Then & Now” comparison which I found to be relevant and a bit humorous. I would gladly give the drafter credit, but s/he is anonymous: 1957 vs. 2016
Scenario 1: Jack goes duck hunting before school and then pulls into the school parking lot with his shotgun on his truck gun rack. 1957 - Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack. 2016- School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers. Scenario 2: Johnny and Mark get into a fist fight after school. 1957 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies. 2016 - Police called and SWAT team arrives -- they arrest both Johnny and Mark. They are both charged with assault and both expelled even though Johnny started it. Scenario 3: Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt. 1957 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college and becomes a successful businessman. 2016 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy is removed to foster care and joins a gang. Scenario 4: Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school. 1957 - Mark shares his aspirin with the Principal out on the smoking dock. 2016 - The police are called and Mark is expelled from school for drug violations. His locker and car are then searched for drugs and weapons.
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 3
Ol’ Man River—Cont’d Scenario 5: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from the Fourth of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle and blows up a red ant bed. 1957 - Ants die. 2016 - ATF, Homeland Security and the FBI are all called. Johnny is charged with domestic terrorism. The FBI investigates his parents - and all siblings are removed from their home and all computers are confiscated. Johnny's dad is placed on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.
SITEings For some reason, I was able to get a lot of surfing time in last month? In the process I ran across quite of few items of note; some interesting and helpful and others just plainly absurd. Let me start with the absurd, as it formed the genesis for this article. There is a web site that offers what are described as hard to find NOS parts. It says it is “Specializing in General Motors vintage and classic car parts.” That said, there are also AMC, Ford and non-GM part offerings on the site. The name of the site is Oldsmoblie Obsolete. ◄ I do not know the origin of the site name, but speculate the owner started out selling Olds parts and subsequently branched out? While perusing the site at my leisure I almost went into shock. I was more than astounded at the prices listed. I found myself asking if this guy really sells any of this stuff. I would like to see his year-end ledger to determine if he is making any money. Here are but two examples: One may acquire this 5¢ worth of plastic for only $45.00! Yes, you read that right, 45 bucks and it is yours! Here is the link to this item. ◄ Who, or should I say who in their right mind, would pay this price? O’Reilly Auto Parts offers a functional replacement from Dorman for all of 79¢! Then there is the 1958 Oldsmobile thermostat by-pass hose. ◄ It cannot be more than six inches (6”) long, if that. Yes, it is a genuine GM part. That it is should cause one to inquire as to how old it is. Am I wrong to assume the age might have a bearing on the remaining useful life of the rubber of which it is made? I think not. Moreover, I do not see any markings on the hose which, once installed, we make it readily identifialbe as NORS. It too is priced at $45. Why $45, as opposed to $27.50, $39.40 or $55.65? When I see multiple items all carrying the same price I question the resoning that went into determing the prices. While the “About Us” page ◄ of this site claims the business has been in operation for fifty (50) years, one of the telephone numbers for Olds Obsolete on the site goes back to a business identified as Bitterroot Banquet and Ballroom in Stevensville, MT. That seems a bit strange, to say the least? At the same time, given the prices here, I can cetainly appreciate the need for the web site owner to have a real job with a real income! Moving on, let’s take a look at an old car site that I found to be quite creative It is a commercial site maintained by one Steven Erler. It is difficult to describe/characterize Steven. In addition to being a car collector, he is a photographer and artist. He will gladly create an image of your ride, for a fee. What I found of particular interest were the images he created of “Cars that Never Were.” ◄ What caught my eye in particular where his renditions of American station wagons. There are a number of them pictured on the site. We are talking Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler and Oldsmobile. His creations of these cars harks back to the classic lines originally found in the 1955-56 Chevrolet Nomad.
“While perusing the site at my leisure I almost went into shock … at the prices listed. I found myself asking if this guy really sells any of this stuff.”
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 4;;
Sightings—Cont’d.
Who would not be proud to cruise the boulevard behind the wheel of the 1957 Olds wagon depicted on his site? I would most definitely be glad to be among that number! This may be common knowledge to a lot of you, but it came as new info to me. It is information that many of us could make use of with respect to our rides. Almost every old car I have owned has had a mirror; be it rear view, side view or visor; that has seen better days. Correct replacements are not the easiest items to find. Enter the She will “Mirror Lady.” ◄ make that mirror look like new again. While her prices are not cheap, they are not at all out-of-line when one considers what they are getting. In this instance the maxim of “one gets what they pay for” is certainly applicable.
Did You Know? I ran across this tidbit while surfing the net, and it came as news to me. Should you be traveling in either the states of New Jersey or Oregon be prepared for a surprise when getting gas. Do not be suspicious, or worse afraid, when a person comes out to pump your gas. That is because in these two states gasoline is required to be dispensed by an attendant. When is the last time you had someone pump your gas? Gas station attendants, of which I was one back-in-the-day, are so rare today that Wikipedia® has a web page which defines what one is: A filling station attendant, gas station attendant (United States and Canada), or gas jockey (US), is a worker at a full-service filling station who performs services other than accepting payment. Tasks usually include pumping fuel, cleaning windshields, and checking vehicle oil levels. New Jersey law (N.J.S.A. 34:3A-7) reads: Training, Supervision of Attendants No person shall dispense fuel at a gasoline station, unless the person is an attendant who has received instructions regarding the dispensing of fuel, had practical experience dispensing fuel under the direct supervision of an experienced operator for a period of not less than one full working day, and, upon examination at the end of that period, demonstrated his understanding of those instructions. The instructions shall include a full explanation of the prohibitions of section 3 of this act and any emergency procedures established pursuant to section 8 of this act. Oregon Revised Statutes 480.330: Operation of Gasoline Dispensing Device by Public Prohibited An owner, operator or employee of a filling station, service station, garage or other dispensary where Class 1 flammable liquids, except aviation fuels, are dispensed at retail may not permit any person other than the owner, operator or employee to use or manipulate any pump, hose, pipe or other device for dispensing the liquids into the fuel tank of a motor vehicle or other retail container. Oregon is unique in that it has publicly declared its reason for the gas station attendant law. Typical of government at its best, Oregon legislators came up with, count ‘em, not one but ► seventeen (17) reasons why gas must be dispensed by a service station attendant. I do not make this stuff up folks!
Car Collector Chronicles
Page 5;;
What Is It?
The tail lights are 1965 Chevrolet (and I am not sure they are all working?). The fins resemble those of a 1968 Plymouth Fury. The license plate is definitely foreign. The question is what is it? What I do know is that I have never seen a Plyrolet in real life.
– Ok, I’ve had my say for the month. Now it’s your turn! I invite/encourage submission of your comments, opinions and article contributions. I also ask that you please help spread the word about our publication. Everything sent shall indeed be reviewed by me. Submissions should be sent to CCC® at OldsD88@gmail.com. –– Now that you have finished reading the newsletter, if so inclined, like CCC® on Facebook® by going here. To UNSUBSCRIBE send an email to ==> OldsD88@gmail.com _______________________________________
-- RESTORE 'EM, AND DRIVE 'EM! COMING NEXT ISSUE: TBD