Lucille is a 1965 Ford Mustang. Like anyone her age, she is not as spry as she once was. And, she has a few bad habits. (Who doesn't?) She drinks too much and occasionally her 289 V8 omits some noxious odors and impolite sounds.
She is nothing like the Mercedes Benz that carries my candy ass to work every day. She is missing a few modern conveniences. She has no shoulder harnesses or air bags. No windshield washers, no right side rear view mirror. No air conditioning or satellite radio. No digital displays of outside temperature, average fuel economy or miles remaining till you run out of gas.
 |
| 289 V8 |
She is kind of like a Manwich or a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken. You know it's not good for you but just can't resist.
 |
| 2012 Ford Mustang |
I am not alone. You don't have to watch the auctions on the Velocity channel or the Speed network to know how much old guys like me love old cars like Lucille. Just type 1965 Mustang into the search box on eBay and hundreds of them will come up.
But, I think there's more to it than that. People of all ages connect to the objects, communities and even ideas that they grew up with. Just listen to modern political speech. References to traditional values abound.
Gas is no longer 29.9 cents per gallon. Middle aged baby boomers buy cars for their safety and reliability. The environment is threatened by green house gases.
And, Lucille's days are numbered.
Sigh!
Perhaps, Lucille and my 1957 Thunderbird (which has been in my family since 1967) should meet. Same thoughts - simplicity under the hood, drinks too much, not as quick as she once was (neither am I), but a joy to drive and own.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea! Let's set up the rendezvous.
ReplyDeleteWell, John & Lucille, you have both already made it into the 21st century. I guess we should discuss who or what should lead you from here.
ReplyDeleteThe basic technology is the same for Lucille and the 2012 Mustang; regulations and materials developements have changed a few things. But maybe you already have the best of both worlds by owning some classic car history and being able to call on modern technology; after all modern day regulations don't apply to Lucille. Hence why she weighs 2500lbs and 2012 Mustang weighs 3500lbs.
Some modern (cheap) electronics and brake pad materials could go a long way to giving you better mileage with 60s driving pleasure.
Maybe the analogy works for modern life too? Take some modern technology add it to the best history could offer, don't get bogged down by regulation, and move swiftly ahead....
Karen VanAssche • Still gorgeous after all these years! You did remind me of a few things I had forgotten were missing from the cars of our youth. I don't remember a car without windshield washers! But then, we didn't have to worry about that since the attendant at the Texaco station took care of that problem.
ReplyDeleteJim 'TWIG' Terwilliger • Lucille is gorgeous. Reminds me of my misspent youth. Restoring and maintaining a great American icon, the second year of the original Mustang, has to be a labor of love. Congratulations
ReplyDeleteJeff Zika • love the car. Had one in high school. Found one here in Thailand that I'm looking to buy... it's a 69 but with a toyota engine (go figure)
ReplyDeleteGeorge Papich, MBA • Hi John!
ReplyDeleteAh yes, lamenting the soul and common sense of simpler machine design...
Not sure if this is rumor (Can't find where I read it, Google not helping)...Did you know that some of the newer performance cars are so well insulated against NVH (noise, vibration and harshness for you non-gearheads) that companies have taken to placing a passive radiator in the drivers compartment that is tuned to allow some of the glory noise of said engine.
A passive radiator is like a speaker minus the driver assembly. It vibrates in harmony with pressure changes in the neighboring compartment (can and string kid's phone analogy).
That floored me. Just strip off some of the insulation from the hood and get an aftermarket intake and exhaust system. Tubi exhaust for Ferrari or NSX anyone?
Bernardette Enochian • In my day...the Mustang was the poor man's Camaro...but I wouldn't refuse one...LOL. I've had both. I used to race our 1970 Mustang at the drag strip and had great fun.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you are a bit younger than I, Bernadette. When the 65 Mustang was new, there was NO Camaro. BTW, a review of today's offerings would lead you to the same conclusion. Camaro is heavier, softer and soon will share platforms with Cadillacs. Oh my!
ReplyDeleteShe's a beaut...take care of her!
ReplyDeleteBernardette Enochian • I would have been 14 in 1965, way before I fell in love with cars (although at the time I thought the Corvette was HOT...and I STILL do!). I was in Germany at the time and was too busy traveling with my family.
ReplyDeleteBernardette Enochian • Those were the days of DESIGN! Today, one car looks pretty similar to the next. It's a lot harder to find your car in the parking lot of the mall now than it was in the "old days." Outside a restaurant unless you know exactly where you parked your car, if there is a line of black cars (and you had a black car), you might have a hard time picking yours out, especially if they're lined up with the trunks facing you.
ReplyDeleteI used to LOVE looking at cars while dad drove and figuring what the make & model was, just from the body or even tail lights as we went past! I can't do that very often any more.
Bernardette Enochian • Hang on to Lucille, you're lucky to have her.
ReplyDeleteI just read your blog. Nice wheels. Same color as your old 240Z?
ReplyDeleteMike Darcy • George, its no rumor. I read several car magazines and just read about the new version of the BMW M5. It uses active systems (the car's stereo) to mix in prerecorded engine sounds when aggresive throttle applied.
ReplyDeleteKen Bogart • I agree with the "less is more" mentality.
ReplyDeleteThese days, cars can do amazing things. They have fantastic performance, awesome gadgets, and are technological wonders. However - they should be given the astronomical prices they sell for... While I appreciate modern technology in a car, But I don't get very excited by it. "Supercars" rarely impress me - for $50-100K+, they damn well better be incredible.
I am more impressed when an inexpensive car offers a well rounded package that surprises and delights the driver. There are many cars that come to mind: Mazda Miata, Suzuki Kizashi, Mini Cooper, Mazda3, along with many others in the <$25K range. These cars offer a terrific driving experience.
I don't need in car video screens, built in GPS, a dozen heated and cooled cupholders, or any of the other ridiculous accessories that have nothing to do with the transportation from point A to B. Give me a solid performer that is reliable and repairable.
Will Silk • Couldn't agree more with Ken on this one. I often get asked how today's production cars will fair in 20 years when the collectors start swooning over them. I imagine they will survive well, but the fact that you need a lap top with specific software just to perform a tune up in today's machines leads me to believe that the collector car hobby will shrink and become more populated by die hard enthusiasts that have the ability to access the technology needed to keep an early 21st century car going.
ReplyDeleteIn Lucille's case, I think she offers the perfect platform for the best of both worlds so to speak. Roush makes a very cool engine dubbed the 353IR. Great small block versatility with cool looking Weber-like FI induction. Wilwood makes sweet disc brake kits for these cars as well, and there's a whole host of things you can do to the chassis to spruce it up a bit and get the old girl to hold the road better.
Lot's of things to think about, but ole' Lucille has a lot of potential in the 21st century, that's for sure!
Thomas V. (Vic) Cole • New performance cars sound too much like vacuum cleaners. I test drove an M3 the other day and wasn't impressed. I don't expect it to sound like a '65 AC Cobra Hyperformance 427 (sigh), but performance cars are supposed to have racing heritage.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Papich, MBA • Just so long as the tone doesn't sound like F-1 shriek...Picture a whole line of new Honda or Toyota Hybrids with aftermarket engine-noise systems shrieking away from a toll booth during commute hour. Puts the term "ricer" on a whole new plane. (LOL...).
ReplyDeleteOf course a mini-van idling at a light with the sound of a Rolls Royce Merlin V-1650 could be interesting...
Ken Bogart • I think I will keep my old Miata's forever. Simple design, bulletproof reliability, and inexpensive to maintain and repair.
ReplyDeleteBill Cardell • Having recently traded high tech (e39 M5) for super low tech and rust (74 and 75 2002s) it's possible I'm leaning this way. Although realistically, the best cars of the 70s are pretty much crap when you go back and drive them. Still, the old bmws are growing on me.
ReplyDeleteWill Silk • I think when you try and compare vintage to modern, certainly in performance characteristics, the modern cars will come out in front. Still, there's something missing in a lot of modern cars in my opinion, and that's personality. The older cars just simply put a bigger smile on my face. Of course, it's also cool to know that when it comes time to wrench on them, all that's needed is a rather good set of straight forward tools to accomplish the mission.
ReplyDeleteBill makes a very important mention of the ultimate four letter word, RUST. With the older stuff, rust can be the quickest killer of an otherwise ideal car. I've worked on many Porsche 914s, and enjoy those cars thoroughly, but have seen many that had a terminal case of the tin worm. This is a real shame, because it's one of the friendliest cars on the planet to work on in a mechanical sense.
Ken's comment about keeping his Miatas forever is actually quite believable. The early '90s body manufacturing methods were far better than that of just 10 years earlier, and yet the electronics haven't gotten totally out of control on the drive train on most early '90s cars to warrant specialist repairers to be sought out.
Bill Cardell • I still have (and will never get rid of) my first Miata, bought new in 1989. It still runs great and it was responsible for starting a company. Simple as a rock and always puts a smile on my face, even during the 3 months in 1989 when it was stock ;-)
ReplyDeleteBill Cardell • I still have (and will never get rid of) my first Miata, bought new in 1989. It still runs great and it was responsible for starting a company. Simple as a rock and always puts a smile on my face, even during the 3 months in 1989 when it was stock ;-)
ReplyDeleteManuel Ribeiro, PMP • Being an InLine and Japanese Lover, I would recommend you to do what the guys In the Tokio drift movie did and fit the glorious Nissan RB26DETT and gearbox into that Mustang...or a toyota sourced 2JZ :)
ReplyDeleteJohn M- Car looks absolutely great, and I agree with most of your comments. She does look to me from the pix that it has the same first generation pollution control equipment that most cars in 64-65 had: namely the PCV valve. That's when it all started to spiral away. Five years later, the muscle car era had started tailing away forever. Today's cars are great; FI makes all the magic correctly happen. I do find it easier to work on early OBD-I vehicles, and you can always tweak any car with MegaSquirt. Still, this weekend I enjoyed wrenching on my 1946 Jeep, where if you can't identify the part, you know it can rust up and fall off safely because it wasn't essential.
ReplyDeleteThe essential car "soul" of the earlier vehicles will never be matched again. It's too intangible in today's hyper connected and marketed world. I just started receiving Car and Driver subscriptions again after a gap of several years. It's all about cra_p now. Infotainment solutions, cars that park themselves, just junk, in my opinion. Like some of those futuristic movies. If you lived through the era of just driving a car for fun or just cruising, you've lived in a world that has passed on. For the rest of my life, I will try to hold onto some piece of that old world and reduce my carbon footprint somewhere else to compensate. America was a great country while it lasted.....
John,
ReplyDeleteI'm catching up on all of your blogs. I enjoy your writing. I too have a vehicle from the past that has taught my children that rolling up the window doesn't involve pushing a button. Of particular note, my favorite part of your story has to be referring to yourself as a "candy-ass". Nice to see that you keep more than just the nostalgia for cars alive! You candy-ass. I know what that means but, really, what the hell does that mean?
All the best and s/f,
Jerald