[themoose]

I posted this question on another site and got very little response so I thought I'd try again with a more Chevy friendly audience

Why do you own a Chevy? Here's my story. It’s a little long because as I think back I find that I have owned quite a few. My father always owned Chevys so it was only natural for me to get one when I was old enough to drive. My first one was a 57 4dr Belair that was originally my mother’s car, which became my daily driver. My neighbor had a 39 coupe abandoned on the side of his house that after much hounding on my part, he sold to me for 50.00. I ended up putting a 241 Dodge hemi in it (that was a fun car) Next came a 55 2dr hard top with a built 327 and a 4 speed. I sold it when I got drafted and never saw it again. When I got out of the service I bought a 61 Corvette that I ended up stuffing with a 427 L88. I drove that car a couple of years before selling it to get a new 70 Corvette with a 454.(Worst car I ever owned) Shortly after buying the Vette ,I got the bug to build a hot rod and started looking for something to tear into. While driving through a nearby town I spotted an old coupe sitting in a gas station with a for sale sign in the window. I turned out to be a 1932 Chevy 5 window that was all there with no rust and in running condition. I bought it, but because it was so complete I couldn't bring myself to tear it apart (1972)so it went into my father’s garage where it sat for 22 years. Still looking for a project car I was able to buy a 57 Chevy 2dr body with no engine from a friend who had bought a new house and needed the money. I made a gasser out of that car with a straight axle and a Chevy big block with all of the good stuff. I drove that car on the street about 9 months before deciding that it was way too exciting and was going to do me harm. I sold both it and the Vette and bought a 67 Camaro from a friend who just lost his job. I drove that car for a couple of years and then bought a 74 Nova 2dr for a daily driver. About that time got a job as a service manager at a Cadillac dealership where I worked for the next 25 years. One of the benefits was a company car, so that ended the Chevy saga. Getting back to the 32 I finally decided to restore it in 1993 and when finished I took it to a number of car shown and it did really will. It proved to be a pain to drive with its mechanical brakes, lack of power and constant overheating in hot weather. This time in went into my garage where it sat for another 15 years. I was getting close to retirement and was looking to the future for something to keep me busy when the thought of again owning a hot rod hit me. I only had one extra bay in my garage and that was occupied by the 32. The thought of selling it after owning it for 38 years did not sit well with either me or my wife even though we had not been able to enjoy the car because of the aforementioned issues. I decided that I didn’t care what anybody thought; I was going to turn that Chevy into a hot rod! After over a year of late nights and long weekends the car is finally finished and I have retired. Now the fun begins. Well I’ve rambled on long enough now it’s someone else’s turn. Lets here some stories of how you came to own a Chevy.

[EDNY]

Guess we all started the same way...my father drove Chevy's and gave me my first car.. a 1957 Chevy 2dr hardtop 210.  The engine was shot so at 15, I pulled the engine and dragged into the basement of a house we were renting. (Never had a garage back then).   Got it back together and when I turn 16 got my license and drove it until the military caught up with me...when I sold it

One thing I learned hanging around with my Mopar and Ford friends was that I could bolt up a tranny (auto/manual) from a V8, straight 6 and even 4 cylinder onto any of the Chevy engines around SBC, BBC, BBC W block etc. 

It was very easy drop any Chevy engine/tranny combo in just about any Chevy vehicle I had....parts were very interchangeable. Seemed back then if you had a blue Ford the parts wouldn't work in the same model car if it was red?

To me Ford, Chevy, Mopar are like religion to us....don't say nothing bad about another persons religion.

Ed

[trbomax]

  It was 1958 and a friend of my dad that we went hunting with had a 31 ford 5 window,the classic rod with a 48 merc flattie and a 39ford top loader.I would ride around with him on weekends and he would let me drive it when we were out in the country.I had to have one. I had been reading the magazines really wanting something like that but I didnt have much money,wasnt old enough to drive, we only had a little 1 car garage , the kind with the swinging doors. I would read the want ads and one day there it was,28 chevy 3 window coupe-$400. I only had about $500 to my name,but I had to have it. It was kinda half assed restored but not rusty and it ran!Kenny (my dads friend) drove it home and I just washed and waxed and stared at it for a year untill I could drive(I drove it around the neihborhood and mom and dad pretended they didnt know).Over that year I built up a library of hot rod books that completely filled my closet. I picked up a V860 and a 39 ford trans that year and dad and I rebuilt it.Up untill then I had only built go kart motors so this was really a big deal!Kenny helped me with the big swap and we used a 55 chev rear with an open drive conversion on the ford trans (I think from a lincoln?) Somewhere we found out what parts to use on the front axel for juicers and I got some 16" wheels and tires. I remember kenny welding up the drive shaft useing some angle iron to keep it straight, And the whole mess finally ran.Of course the v8-60 was a dissapointment , but it DID run so I felt good about it. Next was a 55 chev 265 and an honest charley adapter to the trans. I rebuilt the 265 on my own and this time it ran a lot better! My dad built a new 3 car shop with insulation,drywall, and a real furnace. So the body and fenders came off for paint. I already had learned how to paint on some other kids cars so at 17 yrs old I was on my way. I think I learned more between the age of 14 and 20 than most people do in a lifetime. By the time I was 20 I had 2 yrs of drag raceing the 28, 5 or 6 different motors,had graduated to a t-10 /hurst 4 speed and totaly destroyed the wood in the car! My dad and I were also running an A stock 1962 SuperDuty Pontiac  on the weekends. Its a long story about how the glass car and new X frame all came together,and by the time it was finished I had graduated from the university of toledo with an engineering degree and found myself in the fiberglass fabricateing bussiness. It was 1966 and at 22yrs old had acumulated more machinery and fabricateing skills than I had time to use. But anyway, the bottom line is that I bought a chevy because it was what I could afford and as it turned out was one of the best investments I ever made, but I dont know how I crammed all that into 6 yrs!

[chopper526]

I gotta say I don't particularly have a preference. I have owned everything except foreign. I have always been more attracted to the model than the make; Firebird, Mustang, Corvette, Torino, Coronet, Cougar, early 60's to early 70's. I have also, always loved old coupes '28 to '32. I almost made a deal to buy a 1932 Ford 5 window streetrod back in 1978. The car was about 75% done, I just didn't have the $1,000. that they were asking for the car. Fast forward 32 years later. I bought my '32 Chevy 5 window off of a friend who had owned it since the mid '60's. I can't honestly say I have wanted a Chevy 5 window all these years, but I did want a 5 window. I am happy to own and work on it, and it is great meeting everyone along the way.

[ghost28]

For me it started on a farm in south dakota when I was about 11 years of age. We were on vacation visiting relatives they had 2 old vehicles sitting on there property one was a c cab ford and the other was a 32 chevy 5 window. the ford wouldn't start but the chevy lit right off and I proceeded to nascar it through the cut corn fields with my younger brother hanging on to the running board. I was able to throw him of with no damage to him, but the damage to me had been done and early chevys were in my blood. My oldest brother was a mechanic at a local Colorado chevy dealership, and he taught me and my little brother most of what we know now about chevys. during my teen years I built and drag raced a number of tri 5 chevys, but the fastest and most fun was a 55 2 dr sedan that the american graffitti car could have been cloned off of. cut wheel wells, I ran a 292 small block with a rock crusher 4 speed, 8 3/4 chrysler rear axle, wit 513 gears., 12 inch m/h drag slicks. it was almost unbeatable on the street, but at the track it ran high 11s to low 12s. pretty respectable for a street car at the times. Sadly it was totaled one late night in downtown denver by a drunk driver. I wrote a story about this car for good guys gazette last year . It was titled the Curtis Marauders, pretty good read if ya got the time look it up. I did dabble with a 65 plymouth satelite with a 426 wedge, and a hemi 4 speed and later I built a 440 for it. It was fun and fast, but wasn't the same as my tri 5s. Since then I have gone backwards in the years with chevys, and my last build was my 27 chevycoach. HMMMM I wonder if chevy ever built covered wagons? It's either that or go back to my tri 5 heritage for awhile which is what I prolly will do for my next street project. A 56 2 door sedan is in my sights. I do have a 51 ford club coupe put away for a future build , but my heart isn't into at this time, but it also deserves some attention in the future. I would like to build an early 30s, nose high, full fendered gasser style chevy coupe.., bobbed rear fenders, with slick hanging out beyond them, ten spokes up front.  I have most of the hot rod parts for this build when it happens.
That's my story and I am sticking to it.
John

[TFoch]

I guess my dad is the reason I’m a Chevy guy.  He always had GM cars but mostly Chevys.  Some of the cars he had were a 55 Nomad, 57 Cameo Pick Up, 63 Nova SS Convertible and a 65 Chevelle SS.  My first car was a 1965 Ford Falcon because it was all I could afford.  I drove it for one winter and then sold it for a 67 Chevy Short Bed Pick Up.  Then I bought a 70 Nova when I got out of college.  We put a 350 in it with a tunnel ram and 2 600 Holleys.  It had a Borg Warner Super T10 and 4:88 gears.  Ran a best of 12.2 at 112.  Not bad for a street car.  I traded that for a 74 Corvette which was later sold for the down payment on a home.  Years later I got the bug again and bought an all original 66 Nova.  When I finished restoring it I sold that.  I decided I wanted to build a hot rod and it had to be a Chevy.  I was looking for a 32 – 35 Chevy coupe that I could build and make my own.  While searching I came across an ad online for a 33 Cabriolet.  It was just the body without the frame.  I flew out to Oregon and with the help of a friend I fit it all into a POD and shipped it back to New Hampshire.  I found an original chassis about 40 miles away and started my current project.  I’ve been at it for 5 years and hope to drive it this summer.  I made sure the whole drive train was Chevy with a 283, 700R4 and a 10 bolt rear.  My Dad gets the first ride as he was born in 1933.  My daughter gets the second ride and wants to be driven to the church at her wedding in it.  Can’t wait to drive it.

[TFoch]

Lots of new members since the last post.  Anyone else care to add to it?

[Senior31]

As with most of you I have my Dad to blame.  I grew up around street rods and my first car show was when I was less than a week old.  My main problem is that I was born about 20 years too late to really enjoy the muscle car era I still did my best to re-live it.  My Dad has pictures of me around 2 years old helping him wet sand his 33 Chevy coupe.  I think I was more just dipping the paper in the bucket of water and spreading it around on the car, but I was still "helping".  My first car was a '83 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme wagon.  Yes, it had the fake wood grain paneling on the side, but that didn't stop me.  I put corvette rallies on it and the dropped an Olds 350 in it with a posi rear end.  Not a bad car for a couple years, but I really wanted to build something.  So my Dad made a deal with me that if I saved enough money to buy all the parts and car he would help me build anything I wanted.  I came across a 73 Nova and just had to have it.  So, I saved for a couple months and finally had enough money to buy it.  I ended up finishing it my senior year of high school.  Of course, with the limited budget the car only lasted a couple years.  I then got the bug to put a V8 in an S10.  It was off to college first and then when I came home from time to time I would work on it.  I finished the motor swap my freshman year and drove it for a couple years before I started body work. Unfortunately, I lost interest in the truck and sold it.  Then came my first street rod.  I started my search for a 34 2dr Sedan.  This was my dream car.  I remember not being able to go to shows in my Dad's coupe because my brother and I could no longer fit in the car.  This is why I decided on a sedan, but fresh out of college there is no way I had money for any of the cars I came across.  Then, I came across a 36 Plymouth Sedan for really cheap so I bought it.  This was my first personal street rod build.  I had helped my Dad build a 33 Dodge Sedan while in college, but this one was mine!  I got the Plymouth on the road in one winter, but this car was ROUGH!  Then one day I was on Ebay and came across a 35 Chevy 2dr Sedan down in Texas (I live in Ohio).  I watched the car not sell 3 times on the 4th listing I decided to take a shot.  I won it!  This is my current driver and my dream car!  I also came across a 34 3w  Coupe on the HAMB close to home and decided to sell my 04 GTO to buy it.  I also own a 64 Chevy II wagon to haul the family in to the shows.  So that is pretty much my story.  I am sorry it was so long, but that is pretty much why I am Chevy guy.  I also like owning and building cars that not everyone owns or builds.  Not that there is anything wrong with Ford's, but everyone has a Deuce!