A GDYNETS

PUBLICATION
2016, G. DAVID
YAROS. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED.

Car Collector
Chronicles

Volume IX, Issue 6

Exploring:

Ca

Car Collecting Today

High RPMs

Classic Rides
Reports From the Field
Oldsmobile (1897-2004)
Cadillac (1902- )
Allant (1987-1993)

Corvair (1960-1969)

= Clickable Link

IN THIS ISSUE:
High RPMs

Readers Respond

Readers Rides

Last Plymouth

Upcoming Events

Generation Y

Pics to Ponder

CCC Forum
EMail:

OldsD88@gmail.com

June 2016

It has rained all night, and

now all day. That, combined
with the fact I am going to
NC for a week, said to me it
was a good time to start on
this months issue.
For the NC trip I drove
my 2002 Ford F-250 with a
Triton V10 engine to Cincinnati where I met up with a
friend who drove the second
leg. My truck has only been
driven locally since I purchased it a year ago. I shall
now find out what kind of
gas mileage a V10 truck gets
on the open road. To date,
In strictly city driving, I have
been averaging all of 7.47
MPG. Given the city mileage, is 10 MPG on the highway wishful thinking? We
shall see!
As it turns out, 10 MPG
from the Triton V10 engine
was in fact wishful thinking.
On the highway at speeds of

70 + mph I averaged 15
MPG! Needless to say, I was
pleasantly surprised at this
turn of events.
June Automotive Milestones
3-1864 R. E. Olds born in
Geneva, OH
6-1925 Chrysler incorporated
6-1933 1st drive-in theater
opens (Camden, NJ
7-1928 1st Plymouth built
12-1954 Packard offers tubeless tires
12-1975 Chrysler ends Imperial production
16-1903 FOMCO estabd
17-1946 1st phone call from
a car made in St. Louis. MO
18-1923 1st Checker Cab
19-1947 Tucker premieres
19-1969 Four millionth Cadillac built
20-1941 Ford signs 1st contract with UAW
22-1954 Packard and Studebaker merge
25-1956 Last "true" Packard
produced in Detroit

25-1957 Last Hudson produced

26-1958 1st Nissan, nee Datsun
imported into U.S.
27-1985 Route 66 decertified
29-2001 Last Plymouth built
30-1953 Corvette debuts - NYC
30-1969 Last Rambler manufd

- Time to uncover the car!

GDYNets on the Web

Find GDYNets on the web:

CCC -THE FORUM -A web

site to discuss the newsletter,
the hobby and our cars.
Car Collector Chronicles
Saved 62 -Our 1962 Olds
convertible, Ransom Eli Olds
and things Oldsmobile related
web site.
The Gray Lady -1955 Cadillac
Coup de Ville web site.

SAVED 62: A website devoted

to our 1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 convertible. The site

also has a lot of information on
Oldsmobile cars and the company founder, Ransom Eli Olds.

THE GRAY LADY: This website features our 1955 Cadillac

Coup de Ville, lots of Caddy
information and an extensive
repair library.

DAVES DEN: -A site devoted to a myriad of interests.

Foremost is extensive information on the Steel City of Gary,
IN. There are also offerings on
steel making, U.S. Steel-Gary
Works, U.S. Marine Corps, M14
assault rifle, of course Oldsmobile, and the tragic story of the
murder of Gary, IN Police Lt.
George Yaros.

Car Collector Chronicles

Page 2

Readers Respond
I have to acknowledge that I was quite surprised by the fact that our May issue elicited more than a bit of responses from readers. The content must have struck a spark
or two (pun intended)?
One response was from ACDelco. It wanted permission to use a photo I had posted
on Facebook of parading AC spark plugs. The request was received from
#ACDelco100. A good thing it used Facebook to reach me, as I do not tweet!
Cincinnati reader Mark Turner reached out to share his Indy 500 experience. Mark is
a journalist, regular contributor to Cincinnati Profile , an online journal, and maintains
his own auto related blog ; both recommended reads. Mark related:

The content
(of our May
issue) must
have struck a
spark or
two?

I was doing some work for the track getting video of cars and logos. Having full access to the entire track, I wandered down to the pits so I could be there at the finish.
The winning car stopped on the bricks and the media, including myself, washed out and
engulfed it and the driver.
There's a trick you learn when shooting video. You put your hand behind your back
and feel around for people or objects. If you feel something, obviously you go a different
way. Well I kept doing that as I backed up until I suddenly didn't feel anyone behind me.
I took a big step and tripped over the right front tire of the winning car. My fall was partially broken by the front wing which snapped off as I hit it! Yes, I literally broke the winning car.

Better him than me is all I can say. How does one gracefully extract themselves from
such an awkward circumstance?
Jon Schapiro, from Long Island, wrote to confirm that SE Wisconsin is not the only
part of the country experiencing day-to-day temperature differences of 30 degrees.
Brian Gibbon also reached out to comment on the weather. His comment was one of
hoping for a fast winter. That is right, he hopes winter shall be short and sweet. He
may do so, as for him winter has yet to arrive. Brian hails from Australia, where while
cars are right hand drive, they are driven on the left side of the road and winter is on the
near horizon.

Readers Rides
The emails from Jon and Brian sparked (Yes, I know the AC reference is getting a bit
old. No more, I promise.) another thought.. Each attached pics of their Cadillac cars.
Being a Cadillac fan myself, my interest was piqued.
Jon has a Versailles Green 1958 Sedan de Ville.
She is mighty nice looking ride!
Brian is lucky enough to own 2 Cadillacs, a 1957
Eldorado Seville and a 1960 Coupe de Ville. The
57 is a white over gray 2-door hardtop, one of 2,100
manufactured.
The
1960
Coupe
de
Ville, also is a 2-door hardtop, maybe Olympic
White. It was produced in far greater numbers
(21,585) than the 57 Eldo Seville. What I find

interesting is that the 57 sports narrow

whitewalls, while the 1960 has wide whites?

Car Collector Chronicles

Page 3

Readers RidesContd.
The point is, I am certain I am not the only one intrigued to see and learn about the cars
CCC readers own. I am also certain you are justly proud of your ride and have taken
more than a few pics of it. Let that pride shine through on the pages of CCC! Send your
photos, locale and anything about your car you want to tell us: Why you acquired this particular car, how/when/where you found it.
All of us are interested in hearing from you and seeing your car photos. Share your passion with your fellow fans ol rides. After all, are not these cars meant to be seen and enjoyed be as many folk as possible?

Last Plymouth
Our Automotive Highlights column for this month makes note of the fact that 28 June
2001 marked the demise of the Plymouth automobile. On that date the last automobile
bearing the Plymouth marque, a Neon, was assembled.
Years ago I mentioned in these pages that as a recent college grad in the market for a
car I looked at the Plymouth Arrow. Remember them? I did not buy one, electing to go
with a Ford Pinto instead. I have also referenced in this publication the durability
(ubiquitousness) of the Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon. When was the last time you laid
eyes one of them?
This article is about yet another Plymouth last. While in NC last week we dined at the
Pik N Pig in Carthage . For those not in the know, of which I number myself, the Pik N
Pig is a barbecue joint of some repute, at least locally. Barbecue is not unlike old cars,
everyone has their favorite. As one who first opts for the ribs from the Mrs. grill, then for
the offerings from Montgomery Inn in Cincinnati , I can only say the Pik N Pig was ok.
But then being a Yankee, what the heck do I know?
At any rate, as we entered the rib joint a couple pulled into the lot with an old two-tone
Plymouth, seldom seen. How old? Can you say pre-WWII? I was eyeballing the ride
after dinner when the owners approached. I got the history of the truck from Paul Christensen and his wife.
The Plymouth in question is a PT-125. Note,
that is a PT One Twenty Five, not the PT
(Personal Transport) Cruiser which sported a
Chrysler logo. In this instance PT refers to
Plymouth Truck. Not only is it a 1/2 Ton pickup,
it is the last real pickup that Plymouth offered to
the motoring public. When vehicle production
resumed after the war, Plymouth chose to not
compete in the truck market. That thinking prevailed until 1974, when the Broncoesque sport
utility TrailDuster hit the Plymouth dealership
showrooms.
Here is the skinny on Pauls truck; which is not
the one pictured above (I did not have my camera with me at the restaurant). Pauls truck
is (Sumac) Red and Black. The one pictured is Mountain Orange and Black.
Paul bought it in L.A. in 1989 from the original purchaser. It spent all its life in California
until Paul and his wife moved to NC. It presents itself as stock. The exception being a
218 c.i., 95 h.p.flathead six, vs. the correct 201 c.i. 87 h.p. engine, powers the truck Being stock means it has a 6 volt electrical system. It also means the truck does not have
turn signals. The truck sits on a 116 inch wheelbase and rolls on 600 x 16 bias ply tires.
The same basic truck was manufactured by Plymouth from 1937 through 1941. All civilian truck production ceased with the outbreak of WWII. Pauls truck was number 379 of
599 which were produced at the Los Angeles assembly plant. In 1941 Plymouth produced

This article
is about yet
another
Plymouth
last.

Car Collector Chronicles

Page 4;;

Last PlymouthContd.
a total of 6,037 pickup trucks. The trucks sold for $625. That amount is a sum equal to $9,647.62 in the
year 2016! The NADA Bluebook says today this truck has a dollar value of Low-$7,375, Avg.-$13,050
and High- $19,300.
I mentioned that such trucks are seldom seen. Of course the low production number has a lot to do with
that fact. Not only were few examples produced in 1941, even fewer have survived. That is because the
nature of pickup trucks back in the day was to be driven hard and put away wet. The Plymouth Owners
Club postulates that Pauls 1941 Plymouth P125 is but 1-of-19 known to be restored to stock condition.
Should you encounter Pauls truck, or one of the very few others, do take the time to learn about It and a
bit of Plymouth manufacturing history.

Upcoming Events
Toledo, OH might be a city you want to hit this summer? On 13 August
it shall be holding the 75th birthday celebration of Jeep. A parade, indoor and outdoor car shows, Jeep history displays and film screenings
are some of the activities planned. The goal of the organizers is to have
one example of every Jeep vehicle ever made, or as close to this as is
possible. More info is found at Facebook.com/ToledoJeepFest .
Aficionados of milk trucks, will be gathering in Springfield, IL for four
days this month to tout all things DIVCO. For those who fondly recall the
days when milk was delivered to ones door it would make for any interesting time: DIVCO Meet .
If milk trucks are not your thing, you might enjoy the annual gathering
of the Professional Car Society . This group shall be rendezvousing with their ambulances, hearses,
funeral cars and flower cars in Gettysburg, PA in mid-August.
The Milwaukee Masterpiece is no more. It has changed its name to better reflect the true nature of the
event. Henceforth the event shall greet the automotive world as the Milwaukee Concours dElegance .
The exhibition will take place on the shores of Lake Michigan at Veterans Park on Saturday and Sunday,
27-28 August.
The Heritage Museum & Gardens in Sandwich, MA offers monthly behind the scene tours of its stored
automobile collection. The tours are guided by the museum curator, include access to employee only areas of the museum and provide a detailed look at what all is involved in maintaining, moving and making
the collection available to the public for viewing. Go here for more information.

Generation Y
People born before 1946 are called the Greatest Generation
Folks born between 1946 and 1964 are know as Baby Boomers.
Persons born between 1965 and 1979 are referred to as Gen X'ers.
Those born between 1980 and 2010 have been labeled as Generation Y.
Why do we call this last group Generation Y?
Y should I get a job?
Y should I leave home and find my own place to live?
Y should I buy a car when I can borrow yours?
Y should I clean up after myself at home?
Y should I wash and iron my own clothes?
Y should I buy any food?
Why do we call this group Generation Y?

Car Collector Chronicles

Page 5;;

Pics to Ponder

I am able/glad to report that by publication date the SE Wisconsin weather has improved considerably. I
am almost willing to venture a guess that spring has indeed sprung. What I do know is, I have had to mow
the lawn three times already!

Ok, Ive had my say for the month. Now its your turn! I invite/encourage submission
of your comments, opinions and article contributions. I also ask that you please help
spread the word about our publication. Everything sent shall indeed be reviewed by
me. Submissions should be sent to CCC at OldsD88@gmail.com.

Now that you have finished reading the newsletter, if so inclined, like CCC on Facebook by going here. To UNSUBSCRIBE send an email to ==> OldsD88@gmail.com
_______________________________________

-- RESTORE 'EM, AND DRIVE 'EM!

COMING NEXT ISSUE:
TBD