Getting It Right

Those three words can bring about some of the most spirited and opinionated discussions among human beings; how does someone know when something has been "done right" or not. With some aspects of our life, as with art, music, or photography, there really can't be a definitive line of right or wrong - because if we follow set-in-stone composition rules, it will only lead to a tedious repetition of cliches. But can the same concept be said for the automobile, hot rodding, and even racing?

I believe that answer is yes, but only to a point. Allow me to explain. I was reading an article about the 1939-40 Ford, arguably one of the most beautiful vehicles to come out of the depression era. While Ford's design chief, E.T. "Bob" Gregorie totally nailed the design of the car, it took several years to get it right in the chassis department. One of the biggest issues was Ford's early 30's style 112 inch wheelbase. It needed to be longer, so Gregorie designed one. He even had a working prototype done by 1935. Hence, the second delay - ego. Ford's chief engineer, Lawrence Sheldrake, would have no part of a suspension design that had been dreamt up by the head of Ford styling.

A few other examples that I personally experienced brought this "getting it right" concept to mind. The first was a beautifully restored / modified triple black 1970 Plymouth Duster (very similar to pic on left). Let me be the first to say, I will never tell someone how to build, paint, or modify a car. Heck, if you want to cut up a vintage 1957 Corvette and turn it into a modern pro-touring vehicle, go for it. As far as I'm concerned, it's your ride and your money. I had to give kudos to the guy who owned the vehicle, as he stated he built the Duster from a shell.

But here's where the "... only to a point" comes into play. While the Duster had all the right cues - from flawless paint and interior, to a cool sounding exhaust compliments of the modified 440 big block under the hood, (also similar to pic on right) and some spirited performance, it needed "some minor bugs worked out" according to the customer who brought the car in to the shop where my daughter, son-in-law, and I work. We ended up having this car for almost a week trying to work these bugs out. Even though the car looked flawless and totally cool, there were still so many things wrong with it, it was like working on a Pandora's Box. The brakes were all screwed up, because the system did not have all the correct parts; never mind a few fell out when we removed the "new" drum brakes. The steering system was a wreck as was the alignment, because short-cuts were taken. We had to tinker with the idle because the engine was getting way too much gas and ran like shit, especially with the aggressive cam coupled to an automatic. When all those challenges were ironed out and the car was taken for a mild test drive, we found that the original 6-cylinder torsion bars as well as the sloppy factory Chrysler power steering box were still in place. We already knew there was no front sway bar. If one even remotely nailed the gas while turning coming out of an intersection, the Duster was like a hippo on roller skates. It was actually somewhat nerve-wracking to drive, not fun like it should be. Bottom line - feel free to build and/or modify any car you want, any way you want - but all the components have to be up to the task of what you're building and work well together in the end. It will be done right not only in the visual department, but also in the mechanical world.

This past Friday night, my daughter, her kids, and I attended a local car show that meets every Friday night in the small town we work in. It meets in the a-typical shopping plaza parking lot that has a small hot dog stand in it. It is loosely organized and run, but it is definitely done right. No admission fees, cool oldies music supplied by a guy with an MP3 player, an amp, and some big speakers, and no hardcore limits on the cars that participate - domestic, foreign, stock or modified, original, restored, or somewhere in between - as long as it was 15 years or older. The evening was sunny and warm, everyone was laid back, and the show was packed! People of all ages, mingling, chatting, sharing memories, and bench racing. Not a bad way to spend an early Friday evening.

I can remember one time I was at the quarter mile drag strip in Epping New Hampshire. The track was holding a sort-of informal "run what you brung" type event. Be that as it may, the track still made any participants who wanted to take their ride down the 1320 feet of tarmac, go through their normal tech inspection. Rule #1 about hot rodding; safety first - then we can all have a blast. There was this one guy who owned a nice looking 1969 Chevelle; sounded really fast. However, he was denied entry into the racing portion of the event, because his car was not safe enough. He left the event all pissed off, rear tires a blazing out the main entrance. Apparently, he couldn't let go of his anger soon enough, because the Chevelle ended up getting totaled about 10 miles down the pike. A single car accident where the car went off the road, through a guardrail, and got stuffed it into the weeds and trees. He somehow walked away from the accident, even though the body had completely separated from the frame and then caught fire due to the Mickey Mouse wiring and fuel system set-up. And that's why he was denied at Epping in the first place. Things just weren't right. (Picture above for demonstration purposes only. Not of actual accident).

Lastly, I posted on the Vintage V8 Photography Facebook page that I was contemplating my next go-fast ride. Some of the vehicles left on my bucket list include hot rods from the 30's and 40's. I found a 1948 Ford pickup rat rod online that's down in Maryland. The rig has already been chopped and channeled (very well I might add), has a modified 460 Lincoln engine, a beefed C6 automatic, and a bullet-proof Ford 9" rearend. The interior is nice, and the flat black paint is flawless. The spider web grill is a plus. I might change the 16 1/2" Firestone tires and red steel wheels (still keeping them of course) for some American Racing or Rocket aluminum rims and Mickey Thompson rubber. Don't know yet. Either way, if I purchase it or not, I'll be cool with the fact that this semi rat rod was done right.

Until next time, peace out,
Dave