#1  
Old 09-19-2019, 12:55 PM
MXTex MXTex is offline
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Default The summer of 1978

The summer of 1978 was full of firsts for me. I was 15 years old and got my first job. Drank my first beer. Had my first smoke. Kissed a girl for the first time. And most importantly, I saw the 1967 GTO which would become mine. It was one hell of a summer.

After leaving that first summer job, which was at an auto repair shop; I had tunnel vision for building a hot rod. To this end, I purchased a Chevy 350, 4 bolt main block on which to base my build. Then I placed an ad within the local paper’s ‘wanted’ section. It read; “Wanted, 67, 68 or 69 Camaro or Firebird”. My plan was to purchase a car then build a motor for it. In response to that ad, the phone rang off the wall. So many calls about Camaros and Firebirds that they all seemed to blur together. But one call stood out. “I don’t have a Camaro or Firebird, but would you be interested in a 1967 GTO? It’s been wrecked but a replacement front clip will come with the deal.” He wanted $500 for it. This is where it all started.

One of the more popular evening destinations for a teenager in my area was the parking lot of a local pizza joint. On Friday and Saturday nights, the parking lot was teeming with teenage activity. Fights, flirtations, booze, smoke, music, socialization and cars….it was awesome! It was here that I saw my 1967 GTO for the first time. I’ll never forget seeing it cause the front clip was a different color than the rest of the car. And it was a four speed! My buddies and I checked the car out along with several other hot rods that were parked there; then went for a cruise in my friends Dodge Colt. About an hour later, while still cruising around, we came upon an accident. And to our surprise, it involved the 1967 GTO we had just seen earlier that evening. The driver of the Goat had fish tailed out of a corner and hit a parked car. The different colored front clip was wasted. I had a brief conversation with the driver of the Goat where he mentioned that his Dad was going to sell it now.

I convinced my Dad to take me to see the 67 GTO from the wanted ad. I was still 15 and couldn’t drive legally yet. We get to the car and I’m shocked to discover that it was the Goat from the pizza parking lot. The father of the kid that wrecked it proceeds to tell us that he’s selling because his son had wrecked it twice now. Apparently, after wrecking it the first time; he had been warned that if it happened again, the car would be sold. And that’s exactly what happened. We bought it for $500.

The next weekend we went to a warehouse where another 67 GTO sat with a good front clip. We removed the clip and I was off to the races. First, I installed the front clip. It was blue while the rest of the car was gold. I didn’t care. Then I pulled the cylinder heads to find that one valve was missing a chunk. So I went to our local speed shop and purchased an Engle camshaft (272 duration and 470 lift). The heads got a nice 3 angle valve job and the Engle cam went in. The motor sounded so good I couldn’t believe it. Nice raunchy idle. Then I turned 16!!!!

I had that car all the way through high-school and had so much fun with it. Street racing every chance we got. Eventually we got it painted. And over the years, we put several different motors in it as well. It was truly a magical time and it’s a miracle that we came out of it in one piece. In many respects, it was the best time of my life.

Then it came time for college. Dad had had enough of my shenanigans and decided that the car would not go with me to the University. As a matter of fact, I went to college without a car. The only thing I had with wheels on it was a skateboard. Talk about going from hero to zero. And the car was sold for $1800. I never saw it again.

Now, almost 40 years later, I’m building up a 1965 GTO. I’m looking forward to hopping in that time capsule and taking a trip down memory lane.

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  #2  
Old 09-20-2019, 05:14 AM
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brut4s brut4s is offline
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Awesome! Any pics?

  #3  
Old 09-20-2019, 08:27 AM
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ponyakr ponyakr is offline
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Location: North Louisiana
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Good story !

'78 was also a good year for us. We raced in 45 bracket races & won 15 of 'em, with Pontiac power. We also got married that year.

Good luck with your '65 build !

  #4  
Old 09-22-2019, 01:33 AM
joegpho joegpho is offline
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Did you ever try and find your 67? Do you have the VIN?

  #5  
Old 09-22-2019, 10:55 PM
MXTex MXTex is offline
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No, I never tried to find it. But I do wonder if it's still around.

  #6  
Old 10-11-2019, 09:21 PM
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433lemans 433lemans is offline
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Ahh, the days of being able to buy muscle cars for a few hundred bucks! My 68 GTO purchased in 1972 for $800, 64 GTO in 1976 for $400...several Pontiacs before and after for $100 and up... the good old days before the investor crowd found this market to make money.

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