Reminiscing about older vehicles

MacLawn · Feb 10, 2016

I learned how to drive on my Dad's 1949 Plymouth, born same year as me. Flathead six, three speed on column. My first car was a 1953 Chevrolet station wagon. Then, I got a '50 DeSoto and a '53 Dodge - put engine from Dodge in DeSoto, sold Dodge for about $10, bought it for $25, the DeSoto for $10, had a total of $35 in my DeSoto. Man, I've wished many times I still had the Chevy wagon and DeSoto two door coupe. Steel boys, now those were some serious steel.

turnkey4099 · Feb 10, 2016

MacLawn said:
I learned how to drive on my Dad's 1949 Plymouth, born same year as me. Flathead six, three speed on column. My first car was a 1953 Chevrolet station wagon. Then, I got a '50 DeSoto and a '53 Dodge - put engine from Dodge in DeSoto, sold Dodge for about $10, bought it for $25, the DeSoto for $10, had a total of $35 in my DeSoto. Man, I've wished many times I still had the Chevy wagon and DeSoto two door coupe. Steel boys, now those were some serious steel.

Barely able to see over the hood, 1934 Chev 1 1/2 ton just around the field during harvest. 36 plymout, 37 chev (in HS), 38 CHIV (1 year fater HS), 1941 or 1942 chev coast to coast in 1968, Drove my boddy's 'inheritance' -1926 Buick 2 dr coupe. Odd car, shift was just backward from normal. High was up and to the left. I only drive it about 1 mile though. Too many cars and too much money wasted buying cars since those days.

Harry K

Richard · Feb 10, 2016

3930dave said:
How many olde tyme mechanics couldn't diagnose a broken accelerator cable ? Not that they broke that often....

Interesting that you picked that part.

Years ago, I had a 1971 Olds 4-4-2 convertible.

I told a girlfriend I'd pick her and her friend up at college and take her girlfriend home.

We were in the next town over and I sensed with my foot that I was having to push farther on the pedal to make the car go.

Long story short, the throttle cable from the pedal to the carb was fraying/stretching and giving out.

I pulled into a parking lot to figure this out.

What to do???? I'm nowhere near a car parts place....

I tell my girlfriend, go over to Kroger, buy me some picture hanging wire...here's my wallet with some cash in it.

Tossed her the wallet and they both pranced to Kroger while I took things apart in the parking lot.

They returned with some picture hanging wire, I strung it through the sheath and in about 45 minutes, I had the problem diagnosed and a fix cobbed on it until I could get a proper cable replacement.

They were impressed!

:drink:

dieselcrawler · Feb 10, 2016

Richard said:
They were impressed!

:drink:

By the fact you had a 442, or actually impressed by your ingenuity? *grin* My wife would be asking what took so long!

I've always liked the 442's, had a '72 cutlass convertible for a while....

Had the same issue with dad's '71 chevy truck... we had some scrap wire with us, as we were hauling a load of junk that day, stuck it thru the hole in the firewall, it chafed a bit but got us home.

3930dave · Feb 10, 2016

ovrszd said:
I asked my mechanic Son. He says modern electronic sensors, relays, etc., are very susceptible to voltage variations. The commons source of variations are connectors. Very hard to locate the problem. If after searching and finding nothing and the problem disappears you have touched the source and in unplugging, cleaning and replugging the connector you fixed the problem without having ever seeing it...... So, when all else fails, unplug and inspect every connector that might have something to do with the problem area. Understanding the problem might be clear back to the large connector on the firewall or PCM.....

Yes, the joys of distributed sensors/wiring...... while doing that, use some dielectric-grease to help seal up the connectors when you re-connect them.

Rgds, D.

TomSeller · Feb 10, 2016

Reading all if this, I think I've lost my desire to have an old collectable car

3930dave · Feb 10, 2016

Talking with a truck driver about 30 years ago, he spoke of a throttle linkage breaking one day on his tractor, in the middle of nowhere.

He grabbed an old coat-hanger, made his own linkage. When he left the company a year or 3 later, the coat-hanger was still working fine - he said it was heavier gauge than the orlginal.

I know 1 or 2 people who would have a shot at rebuilding a sensor today, but I know a lot of geeks, and even so, they would need access to at least an electronics scrap pile.

Much of the old stuff was easier to limp along, as long as you had basic mechanical skills - which were relatively common in those days.

Rgds, D.

quicksandfarmer · Feb 10, 2016

3930dave said:
I know 1 or 2 people who would have a shot at rebuilding a sensor today, but I know a lot of geeks, and even so, they would need access to at least an electronics scrap pile.

I studied electrical engineering in college and I understand the sensors on a car but there's no way I could field repair them. They are manufactured items. It would be like field repairing a light bulb.

What we're seeing with cars is what's happening with all sorts of manufactured goods. The manufacturing process has become a lot more sophisticated, which means that generally things are more reliable and less expensive. But they're not meant to be taken apart and put back together again.

TomSeller · Feb 10, 2016

quicksandfarmer said:
I studied electrical engineering in college and I understand the sensors on a car but there's no way I could field repair them. They are manufactured items. It would be like field repairing a light bulb.

What we're seeing with cars is what's happening with all sorts of manufactured goods. The manufacturing process has become a lot more sophisticated, which means that generally things are more reliable and less expensive. But they're not meant to be taken apart and put back together again.

Right. It only takes a surprisingly small accident in the front end of a car these days to total it for that reason. The sheet metal and body damage sometimes takes a back seat to the damage to whatever is under the skin.