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Had a urge to get a 68 Nova or 69 Charger for years, kinda made do with buying hotwheels models for my boys, they'll grow out of them soon. Modern cars just make me yawn, real life experience to put me off please.
Was going to buy an Chevy El Camino from a family memeber until I realised it did 8mpg!
My Old man has an '89 chevy corvette, its ace!, 5.7L V8 with 300BHP - how americans get so little power out of such big engies always amazes me, but the thing sounds beautiful (you can set car alarms off with it - so childish, but hilarious), and at 70 on a motorway it just about manages 23mpg, but when you press the loud pedal it drops to about 2MPG!!!!!
its also a classic now so tax and insurance is cheap (relitively)
the rest of the costs are a bit eye watering though tyres are around £300 and becasue its an 80's car it is full of electrics that usually go wrong so that can be expensive.
With American cars its the mpg that hurts, other than that go for it, the noise of an old school V8 is immense
Are they difficult to get hold of or are they in plentiful supply?
An old mate had a thing about American cars he bought a couple of total sheds before getting a 1970s Dodge Challenger which was still a shed but not as bad as the others.
Made lots of noise and looked good but was surprisingly slow and frighteningly unsafe to drive in - just lap seatbelts and yards of bodywork that was very flimsy esp compared to a modern car. Often cut out while idling esp at traffic lights it was my job as passenger to get out and restart it by using a Snap-On screwdriver across the starter solenoid.
Fuel consumption was absolutely astronomical, to the point where we had to ask ourselves if we had enough money between us to go to the pub in it.
Enjoy 🙂
Not really a muscle car, but thru the 1990's and early 2000 I co owned a 67 Mustang Convertible with my Dad.
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That mustang is very pretty, could imagine it being a great wedding car, I was thinking more like this:
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I was considering taking a job in the middle east last year. If I did I was going to get a American muscle car - probably a Shelby Mustang - as the fuel costs there were so low that you could ignore fuel consumption. Here in the UK they make a lot less sense.
Speak to Sideways Tim..
All American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous! They look like they've been styled by a pubescent schoolboy, in between bouts of self-abuse. And they seem to be the technological equivalent of gibbon with a lump hammer. A mate had a big V8 chevy. Given this fact that the 'technology' was so agricultural and primitive, it was staggering the amount of stuff that went wrong with it.
Given the price of fuel nowadays you'd have to be absolutely unhinged to even contemplate it
Can you tell I don't like them 😀
Nope. Had a new Mustang in 2007, but that's not a muscle car. I concur, that Chevy fits the bill, I'd love a Chevelle or El Camino. '69 naturally.
Quite tempted now by some kind of ridiculous car seeing as I only do probably 1-2k miles per year max these days.
The ideal car would be something very cool, either UK or US, that was sound/reliable but cheap because it guzzles a horrendous amount of petrol and I can still chuck a bike in the back of. (Plus is actually enjoyable to drive rather than just look at!)
I will seriously consider it when my ageing Focus finally bites the dust!
TVR Cerbera FTW great noise if you get the V8
Slightly better on fuel
Get to know your local garage team! 🙂
All American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous
Nonsense. Some of the 70s Corvettes (the swoopy ones) are absolutely stunning. And surprisingly large in the metal, too.
Shame that at that time they had such puny engines - you've got this thing that looks like it spits flames putting out barely 150hp...
And how is an '07 Mustang not a muscle car? It's a V8!
All American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous!
I think it's more about the year than the make or model, 70's Mustangs went along the same bigger and brasher theme as all the others. The pre 68 Corvette/corvette Stingray was very nice. I must admit, that pre 69 mustang was about as far as I was prepared to go down the USA semi sports theme, my dad had a one or two Muscle cars which I wasn't interested in. We also co owned a 66 Ford Thunderbird and a 56 Desoto Fireflite.
A friends car appeared in a Take That video.
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It had a fairly hot engine in it and I think his biggest problem was getting enough traction to make the most of it.
I think I'd probably go for something like this and less in your face/Dukes of Hazard in the uk, tbh.
They are called jelly moulds I think. We had a 56 Desoto Fireflite which we found a bit dilapidated in a farmers barn nr Hull, was like driving a mini bus. We spent a lot of time restoring it, then traded it for the Mustang.
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I've had a car that qualified as classic - more German muscle than American, but the principles are probably the same...
Do you have a garage to store the car in?
Do you have a normal car to use on a daily basis?
Can you do bodywork yourself?
If any of the above 3 is no, then prepare to spend lots of money. The nice looking American muscle probably pre-dates galvanising and underbody streamlining/protecting. This means any water from the roads goes into lots of gaps in the car and just stays there starting rust pockets. If they are like classic Porsches, they probably rust from the inside out...
Fuel consumption you can probably control by choosing when and how to drive the car. Fixing bodywork, you can't really control.
Buy it, but go into it with very open eyes about how much it will cost you. I wasn't prepared for some of the costs, and it tainted my experience of owning what should have been the car of a lifetime (still had some damn good times in it though!)
Strictly speaking the Mustang was what they called a pony car. Muscle cars were/are 'full size' vehicles with extra option power plants. Stuff like the Charger, Challenger, Chevelle, etc. corvettes don't count as they're sports cars.
I've got a muscle car engine, a 454cu inch (7.4l) big block chevy V8.
Sadly it's wrapped in 3+ tons of SUV steel, aka 1997 GMC Suburban 2500.
It's still fun though.
Herself is determined to buy something interesting to drive soon - currently she's keen on:
67 Mustang fastback or,
Mk3 Jensen Interceptor or,
AMV8
I'd be happy with:
Mk3 Jensen Interceptor or,
Bristol Type 411 or,
Citroen SM 3[i]l[/i]
A mate of mine had a Pontiac Firebird, 4 point odd ltr supercharged affair. Dark blue metallic with the phoenix on the bonnet, nice. Another mate had a Corvette Stingray with a 'T top', that was about 5 ltrs & was always conking out.
I had a 2 ltr Mk 5 Cortina 😕
All American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous! They look like they've been styled by a pubescent schoolboy, in between bouts of self-abuse.
Not all are, late 60's/early 70's generally are nicely styled, later ones, like Eighties fashions, are bloody horrible. I had a copy of Hot Rod magazine, c1969, with a review of the 427ci Charger. Look for a best consumption of 14/gallon, a worst of 8. Also remember that American cars were designed for roads that went for miles with few bends, and not much traffic, so fairly soft suspension and really crap brakes.
If I had the money, and for an original, cherry one of these, it would have to be a [b]lot[/b] of money, this is my heart's desire:
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'71 Hemi 'Cuda
That's a BaBaRaRaCuCuDaDa... 😉
I've had a few muscle cars, probably my best was a big block 68 charger in B5 blue. I restored it drove it loved it then sold it for a later Trans Am that I used to commute to London in everyday. On top of that I've had plenty of camaros, Firebirds, mustangs and Corvettes. I'm planning now on getting a mid sixties small block Dart and using it as my run around. I adore 60's Yanks.
68 Charger sounds awesome, got any pics?
You don't need to go American, if your just looking for a V8.
Cheap to buy, 25mpg, handles very well plus you won't look like a Redneck.
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The pre 68 Corvette/corvette Stingray was very nice
I drove a tuned one of those with 400bhp at the wheels. It had about three inches of slop in the steering which was heavy and low geared, the axle wasn't very well tied down so it tramped, the car was tail light so span it's wheels as soon as the engine came on the cam, the handling on no-grip tyres was awful and the brakes dreadful. The muscle car tag no doubt came from the muscular input required to make it move, stop and keep it between the hedges. They were plastic BTW, Nicko.
The 68 Charger was the Dukes of Hazard car so Google that.
BAN.Ana - was one of those photos taken at CasAm ? - looks familiar. We had a 'sensible' wedding car, twas a rodded 49 Merc, matt black with flames, very, very loud.
Not me, but my dad has a '69 Dodge Charger Daytona (they don't get much more musclier). He's owned and drag raced it for more years than i care to remember. He is now pushing 70 and still competes!
All these from Santa Pod[url= https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3780/13544355835_0a619f632c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3780/13544355835_0a619f632c.jp g"/> [/img]
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b r - Member
You don't need to go American, if your just looking for a V8.
Cheap to buy, 25mpg, handles very well plus you won't look like a Redneck.
And absolutely not a muscle car
JohnJohn, that Charger is the mutts!
'69 Charger:
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Also to be seen in Fast and Furious and Bullit
I have very fond memories of this lady and this car racing at Santa Pod and Avon Park Raceway back in the Eighties:
http://www.sylviahauserracing.com/1971-dodge-challenger-440-rt-6-pak---mopar-miss.php
I've got a photo somewhere of her doing this:
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Its a tranny, I don't think I've got a scanned version, sadly.
It is kind of special. He did race against Sylvia when she first started.
'69 Charger:
Something like this came rumbling past me a week or two ago. No idea what it was, but it looked a lot like this, the thing was HUGE, it was like two cars! And it made the most beautiful noise. It was without a doubt the most awesome car I've seen this century.
I had a 1970 Plymouth Satellite a few years ago, had to get rid of it for financial reasons as it was just a toy. I was in tears when I sold it as it was the best thing I'd ever owned. My missus hated it and said whenever I drove it I reminded her of Mr Toad from Wind in the Willows as I always had a stupid grin on my face.
If you've got the cash buy one as you won't regret it.
It had about three inches of slop in the steering which was heavy and low geared, the axle wasn't very well tied down so it tramped, the car was tail light so span it's wheels as soon as the engine came on the cam, the handling on no-grip tyres was awful and the brakes dreadful.
Yep, that all sounds same as our 67 Mustang. Read CountZero's post perhaps, and in fairness all old cars have useless drum brakes.
barnsleymitch - Member
BAN.Ana - was one of those photos taken at CasAm ? - looks familiar.
Don't recall the name, but it was bought in Huddersfield, 2 of the photos are at the place we bought it from. Something I regret is never taking many photos of it.
I had to have an American car when I was a kid. I got a Pontiac lemans sports coupe. Not a muscle car and plug ugly, but for the year or so I had it every drive was fun.
Just for the record Edukator, these are what I was refering to
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Not quite american muscle, but had the heart of one, my dad had a Jensen interceptor convertible when I was a kid, you could hear it coming from miles away. The whole thing shook at idle and I swear you could see the fuel gauge drop when you put the hammer down. I never got to drive it as it got sold shortly before my 17th birthday...
looked a lot like this. lovely thing
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those old corvettes are beautiful!!
if we are talking american muscle can I just post this?
it gets fun from 2.06
binners - MemberAll American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous! They look like they've been styled by a pubescent schoolboy, in between bouts of self-abuse.
Have you never looked at an E Type?
It's a penis on wheels man!
binners - Member
All American vehicles, with the exception of Mustangs, are absolutely hideous! They look like they've been styled by a pubescent schoolboy, in between bouts of self-abuse.
Have a look again at the 'Cuda, the Charger, and the Challenger, then look at the Ventora, not so many differences, apart from size.
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Love them. All of them. Some were fast. Some were slow. Never driven one but seen plenty and have been a passenger in one of the former variety.
You could say they are big ugly steel lumps of hideous excess, or you could say they are just simply beautiful.
Interestingly some have been reborn in the form of modern variants.
A couple more hideous American cars:
'62 Caddy Coupe.
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'37 Cord. How beautiful is that?
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CountZero. Good point. Look at the proportions. Proves it's sometimes good to be a hideous - although I know your in the right camp 🙂
How many Vauxhall vivas** or whatever..have been reinvented as desirable production cars?
** - i am sure vauxhall vivas were good cars at the time and should not be singled out.
American muscle cars are cool in their loudness and ridiculousness but I don't think they translate well the a UK/ European setting. We don't have the big distances, big, wide roads, low traffic volumes, straight cruising roads, with 24hr dinners, big car parking spaces, dry atmosphere, attitude that when a stop light turns green you don't have to move for about 5 second e.t.c Its the same way in the US most motor bikes are cruisers and in the UK most are sports(ish) bikes. I'm in the US at the moment and someone bought a 3.5L V8 nitrous charged motorcycle into where I am working, awesome, but would be horrible in the U.K.
That said if you want one go for it, I'd buy one if I live in the US but would hate to have one in the UK.
Agreed.
Harley Davidson:
Cruisin' down to New Orleans?
Cool.
Cruisin' down to Bacup?
Jury's out.
Nonsense - We've got Maccy D's drive-ins and Halfords Car-parks.
In all seriousness I am sure there's plenty of UK-US car meets/events - as well as the above
iamroughrider - MemberNonsense - We've got Maccy D's drive-ins and Halfords Car-parks
Which in Britain are the natural home of the Vauxhall Nova, not the Chevrolet Nova. 🙂
well...lol
🙂
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The model I drove, NANA. As for the Vauxhall Viva, my sister had one on which the brake pedal broke, fortunately at a non-critical moment.
suggest you all lookup "roadkill" episodes on youtube for a contemporary
muscle car fix (old cars today)
eg
Closest I've got to driving one was a brand new, bright red (natch) convertible Mustang. We hired it in California in 2003 when we turned Dr North's work trip into a holiday.
While Dr North was working eeach day, I had quite a laugh rolling around Orange County as a 25 yo Brit - got a lot of attention from the young ladies in that.... 😀
Am contemplating having a fun car in the garage for high days and holidays. Needs to be more than a 2 seater (we have daughter), and something preposterous like that would be just the thing!
Back in the late eighties I had a 'pony' car. '78 Camaro RS - it looked the nuts (pre-facelift) IMHO but only had the 250 V6 engine. Full leather, air con, column shift & it even handed you your seat belt. Only issue was finding unleaded fuel back then.
Like this but dark blue:
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I need a crossplane V8 in my life. Ideally with an aftermarket cam and suitably lumpy idle.
I love these cars... Probably will never own one.
Thread's reminded me of my daft dream of building some ratty british muscle...
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Probably never going to do that either but still.
British muscle.. hehe.. reminds me of my mate's cousin who put a Rover 3.5 V8 into an Austin Allegro. That's bad-ass.
My grandad used to drive us to school in a mk4 cortina with a rover v8 in it, made even more exciting by the fact you could see the road through the holes in the floor.
Proper British muscle:
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And couldn't capture the muscle ethos any better- doesn't go round corners and gets only 600bhp from a 27 litre engine.
That Cord is stunning, and very ahead of it's time, pop-up headlights, front-wheel drive...
Really beatiful car.
a bloke down the road had a '69 Charger. It was HUGE, cruising the suburbs of Glasgow it looked like someone had fitted wheels to a boat.
Judging by the way the thing bounced on its springs at traffic lights I imagine punting down a B-road wasn't for the fainted hearted. What a noise though!
a geezer i work for occasionally has a yard full of yank tanks.
have a butchers here:
http://www.kxservices.com/promotion-gallery/promotion-gallery.htm
loads of motors there... my favourite is the van that wheel spins at 80mph and drops a Porsche from a standing start (but only if you have a few bags of sand in the back to help it get traction).
he rents lots of them for films or tv and uses other as promotion vehicles for various companies.
two other guys that work for him also have some strange addiction to beefy motors.
one has a pontiac thing with the bird on the bonnet. a good laugh on quiet roads, but just not my thing.
the other has a Ram pick up with four wheel rear axle. the thing hangs off the road 50% of the time.
Nice alpin, some beauties
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that first one with the stripes (Chevelle?) puts out over 650bhp. sounds like the world is about to fall in on itself when started up in the work shop.
Thinking about renting one for a weekend. They're based in Germany I assume?
ja.. west of munich
I need a crossplane V8 in my life. Ideally with an aftermarket cam and suitably lumpy idle.
It was definitely something like this that passed me the other week. I want!! What a sound.
*fires up eBay*
edit: OK, it seems they're going for 20k. Maybe I could settle for one of those Rovers instead 😐
I have a friend with a Hemi '70 Barracuda and it's pretty nice. The guy next door has a '67 Shelby GT500 which he decided to "restore" but he's a raging alcoholic and it's in a million bits now. Not likely to be a car again any time soon 😯
Ok I think the best plan of action is to spend this summer going to a few american car shows, there's a big one at brands hatch I think, and maybe rent one for a weekend. My main concern is my garage is too small so will have to rent a lock up, I'm not mechanically minded so really want something to drive occasionally rather than tinker with. Not worried about fuel costs as it won't be main vehicle. .
Can a midlife crisis happen twice?
[i]I'm not mechanically minded so really want something to drive occasionally rather than tinker with.[/i]
You are looking at +40 y/o cars... 🙄
A pal of mine takes modern Mustangs and makes them uber bonkers...
Not vintage but, at 1000bhp, the muscle is certainly there.
[i]You are looking at +40 y/o cars...[/i] yeh I know, crazy eh? Hence my concern.
Be prepared for everyone to sanctimoniously point out that "American cars suck in anything but a straight line" and "an M3 would run circles round that"... Pretty much repeating anything Jeremy Clarkson rants about.
They really are different beasts, but that's what makes muscle cars great! One of my friends in Glasgow has a Camaro and has very little trouble getting spares, so don't be too put off by that.
The modern ones are starting to become competitive too for what it's worth 😉
This is my dream right here...
This was my Plymouth...
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It ended up going to Ireland to be converted into a Plymouth Superbird. I wish I could get it back 😥
That Plymouth is four houses long 🙂
It felt like it going around corners.
I saw one of these when I was out last night, just parked up on the side of the road. Thought it looked very familiar - sounded great, not sure if it was one of the originals, but it was bound to have cost a lot to reproduce (although given where I live, I'm not suprised to see expensive cars, I appear to be surrounded by millionaires....)
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Went on holiday in Canada a couple of years back and had booked a cheap hire car to drive across the country for a couple of weeks. They were out of stock in Vancouver and we ended up in this instead:
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Might not be as authentic as the old ones but was great to drive and got a lot of attention - coming home to the Mondeo was a bit of a comedown!
Do you want some realistic advice?
If you don't want to spanner, and you don't have a suitably sized and equipped garage, just don't bother.
The novelty of occasionally driving a 'fun' car will wear off very quickly. You just don't get enough use out of them to be worth owning. Every time you go down that lock up, you'll find it won't start for some reason, or it's dropped oil on the floor, or something else has happened that needs oily handed attention before it'll even move.
Sponteneity is what's cool about a fun car. Decide it's a nice day, go for a drive. Done. But it's never like that. Old unreliable motors sat in a lock up you have to drive to, and that don't move when you get there unless you spend an hour on your back covered in crap kind of kill that sponteneity. You don't cruise around the countryside enjoying the open road. You sit in traffic hoping it doesn't overheat or you spend your time driving leaning forward in your seat trying to hear what that new grinding noise is. You'll carry a can of oil and a battery charger in the boot.
Classic car ownership is nothing like you think it will be. You'll regret it. And having done a fraction of the miles you envisaged, and having not kept on top of the endless upkeep they demand, you'll sell it as a none-runner, at a loss, in a few years to someone who has to fetch it on a trailer. And when you do you'll be glad to see the back of the bloody thing.
Buy a posh bike instead.
what jackthedog says is true.
My brother has avoided this problem by keeping his Alfa at a specialist storage company who make sure it's always in a driveable condition.
When he wants to use it he gives them a ring and a nice man with a covered van brings it to a location of his choice.
It's the sort of service that probably costs an arm and a leg, tbh.