Let's Play Cars

- Joel Rickard - I bounced this subject off Pat, our editor, and her voice went - well -soft. "Mine was a 52 Pontiac, that lovely shade of green they had back then- and a standard. No turn signals - just stick your arm out the window. Drove that car through Vancouver for months with no turn signals 'til a friend took pity on me and installed them. Everything was standard then; drove lots of panel trucks with that horrible long stick shift - 4 on the floor- and drove Beetles for years. I figured if you could drive a Volkswagen Beetle you could drive anything...never drove a tractor though." I, however, was raised in a farm community (Airdrie, Alberta) where we learned to drive almost anything and everything around the time the pimples started arriving. Tractors were a natural; the only challenge was every tractor had a personality - even worse than cars or trucks. That personality was usually directly connected to the owner and they always compared their "riggin" with their wives. When we used the phrase "put the pedal to the metal" we meant real metal. In later years what we were used to plowing through snowdrifts were called" tanks"! We burned marked gas at 28¢ a gallon and usually could fill a tank for under 10 dollars. We also knew how to siphon gas. The kids who had the cool cars also ran around with a silver spoon in their mouths. Most of us bought our first car for under a hundred dollars...and that was a lot of money but it was a lot better than driving the family station wagon. Each car or truck was unique and had style. Some, of course, were lemons and some were way before their time. Studebaker, Edsels and Hudson Hornets ended up in many a demolition derby. All the cars had huge trunks and you climbed into the engine compartment when you had to do any work under the hood. And yes, the hoods would fly open if you went fast enough. A hundred miles an hour was flying, especially on gravel roads. Bias tires and real bumpers that were strong enough to push or pull another car. Push button automatic transmissions were special. Dodge came out with a slant 6 cylinder that would run forever and there was a group of diehards in the Ford realm called "Flatheads Forever". There were very few "foreign" cars with most of them expensive or hard to get parts for. My first car was an Austin Cambridge and I paid $65 for it mainly because the owner took five dollars down and five dollars a week until I paid it off. We used trucks...and I say trucks...to work with. Internationals, Ford 3/4 tons (with no shocks) and the old faithful Dodge flathead inline 6 cylinder. They all burned oil and most were a 6-volt system and had a push button starter. You want power? Remember the Rocket 88 Oldsmobile and the Chevy. 409 engines. In the 60's came the "boats". Monarchs, Cadillac, Chryslers and the Oldsmobiles. This also was the time of experimentation with Corvair Spiders, Prinz, Vauxhalls, Volvos VW and Chevy Vans, Sunbeam, Austin Mini Coopers, Morris Minors, Nash Metropolitans, Hillman and the Ford Falcons in the smaller group with Ford T Birds, Crown Royals, Corvettes, Mustangs, Camaro, Buick Riviera, Eldorado Biarritz and Broughams, Dodge Charger, 440's, Grand Prix, Jaguars, Mercedes, Toronado, etc. etc. And they all had spark plugs, points and an understandable "users manual". When it came to trucks we used them for work and they were built tough and rough. We had low gears that were called "bull low" and I hauled my share of horse manure, grain and gravel. Most of us were back yard mechanics - we had to be. Changing oil, plugs, clutches was a way of life. Getting a truck started in -20 F. was a real challenge. If I missed your "first", I truly apologize, as it is very important you remember your first love. This was the moment of true freedom and to this day one of the last personal items anyone wants to let go or give up. My dad used to say... "Take my left arm but don't take my car away from me." I now understand. Close your eyes and you can picture the dash of your first car, the color of the instrument panel, the gauges. Look up and you can see yourself in the mirror. Remember that smell and finally the sound. Every car had it's own personal engine, transmission or starter sound. You could tell what kind of vehicle it was and who belonged to it just by listening to the way it decided to start. You could also tell if the driver knew what he or she was doing by listening to them shift gears. We all knew how to drive in the snow or a hundred degrees without air conditioning. The farm girls, many times, could out drive the guys. My first car was truly my first true love. We shared (and still do) very, very special secrets.

 

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