I'm not a psychologist by any measure but am interested if some of the the other folks here feel the same way as me about certain things, because I have personally always had a soft spot for antiques, movie memorabilia, and just about anything else that can bring me back to a place in time when things were a whole lot simpler. I'm only 38, but my first car was a 64 Chevelle. Anytime I drove it I felt like I was going back in time. This may sound weird, but I doubt if I'm the only one here with this feeling. I am very much in tune with today's times and complications but feel a very close bond to my 66 Chevelle because it takes me back to simpler times when things that are important today didn't even exist in 1966. I love the "Twilight Zone" and I have a "Captain Fantastic" pinball machine made in 1976 (which I still play almost everyday) for that same reason. This may seem like an odd post, but it's from my heart, and anyone with any similar feelings please reply.:)

I think most people that own chevelles or elkies or any old car for that matter do so because as you stated it takes them BACK to a simpler time or they had one or always wanted one when they were young. I will be 38 in 4 months and my 2nd car was a 68 camaro 327 3 speed and i will always have a soft spot for the 68 camaro!! but i always liked the chevelles to so now i have a 71 chevelle and have owned at least 30-40 (combined)camaros,novas and chevelles. I cant say that is the only reason though as i enjoy fixin them up as much as cruisin around in them so i think there is a vast amount of reasons why people own them??

My first car back in the mid 70's was a Chevelle. Absolutely, it takes me back to a place & time where I have fond memories. :)

My first car back in the mid 70's was a Chevelle. Absolutely, it takes me back to a place & time where I have fond memories. :)

I love this. All I can think about is the old swimming hole we used to regularly attend in our vintage rides which is now posted off-limits by the government and our local air strip that used to be drag-racing headquarters being shut down by the local federallies. Aren't times great for us old car guys? We pull em out of junkyards and spend thousands of dollars and hours on them just to have folks tell us we are no longer welcome. It's all still good. I bet most of them wish they had our rides.:D

My first car was a 71 camaro, my folks bought if for me for my 16th bday, back in 78. and I still get a smile on my face when I drive that thing! I like driving my 70 chevelle mainly because from what I started with to where its at now, most folks cant believe its the same car. Its got a long way to go. my daily driver is a 68 elcamino. I think theres a pattern here. but love the way the old cars drive, the simplicity to them. I bought another elcamino for the tranny, and I cant bring myself to part it out, even though I'm sure I'll more than pay myself back the purchase price of the truck even after I pulled the change over. Nice thing about owning these old cars, I collect spare parts so the el camino wont take much to get it driving again. Jim

I love this. All I can think about is the old swimming hole we used to regularly attend in our vintage rides which is now posted off-limits by the government and our local air strip that used to be drag-racing headquarters being shut down by the local federallies. Aren't times great for us old car guys? We pull em out of junkyards and spend thousands of dollars and hours on them just to have folks tell us we are no longer welcome. It's all still good. I bet most of them wish they had our rides.:D

Absolutely, I remember the Friday & Saturday nights at the local Burger King, alway abunch of Hot Rods just hanging out. (reminds me of the song "Hanging Around" by Edgar Winter :)) Man, I miss those days.

I can't glamorize my "coming of age" years like "Hollywood Knights" or "American Grafitti" by any means, but just like most of you, we had our hangouts and they were special to us and nobody can take that away from us. So far to date that was as good as it gets. :beers:

So do these vids of my car take you back a few years, to about 1965?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udLQeGezRXE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gN9D2yxcdQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHOjF_CoKY0

Or if you prefer 1970, here's one of a buddy's car.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjWlDuz6wJk

So do these vids of my car take you back a few years, to about 1965?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udLQeGezRXE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gN9D2yxcdQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHOjF_CoKY0

Or if you prefer 1970, here's one of a buddy's car.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjWlDuz6wJk

That was great man. Your car sounds awesome. Are those Flowmaster 40's? On your second video it looked like the road you turned on was all skidded up and I thought you were going to do the same thing. Just wondering what made you go back the other way?

I've owned several 67s and still have a 67 Elky. Everytime I'm out doing errands in it I can't help but think of events with almost every one. I'm 60, had my first 67 in late 67, and still enjoy them. :yes:

I've owned several 67s and still have a 67 Elky. Everytime I'm out doing errands in it I can't help but think of events with almost every one. I'm 60, had my first 67 in late 67, and still enjoy them. :yes:

Even though I'm 38 and you're 60 I still consider you a young man Dale. My first drive in my first Chevelle was 23 years ago and I can still describe it like it was earlier today. I envy you because you actually were around when the Chevelle started. All I can do is restore mine according to what you guys who were actually there say they should be like. My hat goes off to all of you folks who were there when they started.

i don't like old cars because they take me back to some mythical time that probably wasn't as good as we remember it..
i like old cars because they are cooler, they are easy and cheap to work on, and you can find them in the Wal Mart parking lot on a busy saturday afternoon..
that, and people get out of your way when they see you coming- they know their crumple zones are no match for our steel bumpers.

Yes this brings back memories, I went through the sixties. My wife tells me all the time that I live in a time capsule. Well I do, and yes the Hollywood Knights movie was right on the money. We had a place like tubbys and the girls had skates on. It was great! Drive in movies, and getting together on Friday and Sat nights, and oh yes, the local drag strip. We have a group of guys that are called the old geezers. We all get together as much as possible. We all grew up together and have the same interest, old times and old cars, it can't get any better than that.

My first car was a 67 mustang. My buddie's brother had a 1970 chevelle LS6,4 speed and i had to have one.Unfortunely i could not find a used one so i bought a1970 442 W-30 ,4 speed (wish i still had it.). On fridays and saturdays we used to go to Daves Top Hat (the local cruise stop) and the Twin Drive Inn. Ahh those were the days. Every time i look at my 70 i think about those days and all those cars!

I was in high school while the muscle car wars were raging. It seemed every week someone else in school would buy a new/used factory hotrod.
We also hung out at the local Burger King where all the latest cars would come to show off. One of my favorite memories was when a guy who worked as a stock boy, drove up in a brand new `70 El Camino SS454 LS6. It was black with white buckets. He pops the hood for us all to see the 454/450 Horsepower stickers.
We'd also go to an area in a neighboring town to "scoop the loop". Lots of street races got set up as we tooled around.
My friend had a 65 Chevelle we built a high compression 327 for. We took it to the dragstrip to see what it could do. We never got any better than 14.0, but what gas we had trying.
The neighbor down the street buys a brand new black `70 340 Duster. He changes gears, timing, headers and wheels. He was pretty hard to beat.
His brother buys a brand new Mach 1 428 and does the same thing. It's no wonder we have a hard time finding parts to restore these cars. Most of the stuff went in the trash when the performance stuff was added.
Yeah, growing up with these cars all around, just makes me want to do it all over, if I only could.
Every time I drive the Chevelle that's never been restored, the smell of the interior alone is enough to bring back old memories.
Below are a couple scans I made from my 1970 high school yearbook.
Pretty neat to see the way it was.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e43/Rixls6/th_1970mundeleinhighyearbook478.jpg (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e43/Rixls6/1970mundeleinhighyearbook478.jpg)

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e43/Rixls6/th_1970mundeleinhighyearbook479.jpg (http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e43/Rixls6/1970mundeleinhighyearbook479.jpg)

look, i've tried to explain this for years, it's complicated, and very deep for me, the best way to describe it, was done so by virgina madsen in "sideways", she has a speech she gives about wine, and almost word for word, it's the way i feel about old cars, homes, furniture, watches, etc.

i know it's unacceptable, but there have been times i couldn't keep my hands off a car, the lines, the art, the heart, soul, and sweat that was poured into some items, to sit in front of a duesenburg or la salle, to open the works of a turn of the century elgin watch, to swing out the seat of a 61 300g, to run your hand down the fin of a 57 chevy. who built them? are they still alive? who owned the item? what were the circumstances of the purchase? was it a gift? was the item appreciated? handed down threw the family or disgarded as trash?

i am currently wearing a 1955 bulovia watch, drove a 71 olds to work today, and if i had my choice, i would live in a 30-40's craftsman home, or a victorian. i appreciate the new technology, i have about 800 cd's, a jvc t.v. and a microwave, but there is just something about old stuff, just the vibes they give off, the history.....i don't know, i can never quite explain it...

I think I can describe it:

You have a passion for the soul and warmth (figureatively) that these items give off. Nostalgia is the term commonly given, but it only describes it about 1/2 way. The other half is the living history these items represent. You like to imagine the craftsmanship (probably are a detail oriented person yourself) and care taken, as if these items were designed and custom made just for the original owner. With this imagination, you can almost picture yourself and that era, a much more simple and elegant time.

If you ever get the chance, travel to Germany, France, etc. I think you would be the kind of person who could appreciate the old architecture in cities like Munich, or the walled-in cities and castle towns.

Curious, are you this way with food as well?

yes, food is a big part of my life, and my fat ass....really, i'd rather cook at home for my friends, than dine out, because i take care, with ingredients, and most of todays restaurants don't pay attention to detail, my neighbors love me, cause they get all the food i can't fit in the fridge. going to a fine eatery, is a big treat for me, even though i'm a fair cook, there are some specialties i just don't have the time or talent to pull off. i fully appreciate a good meal...

I can't think of a more interesting time to grow up than the sixties. The fantastic cars and music from that time live on in my mind and when I see or drive an older car, it takes me back when there were less rules and more freedoms to just enjoy life.

My first Chevelle was a brand new '69 from a dealer in a small Missouri town. It was only a Malibu with a 307, but it looked good and I loved driving it. My girlfriend (now my wife) used to cruise the town square with me listening to the radio every Sunday afternoon. A local drive-in was a hangout for the cool cars and we always stopped in for ice cream or a soft drink.

I still collect and play the music from that time in my life and it sounds as good today as it did back then. It brings back so many good memories that I listen to it every week.

yes, food is a big part of my life, and my fat ass....really, i'd rather cook at home for my friends, than dine out, because i take care, with ingredients, and most of todays restaurants don't pay attention to detail, my neighbors love me, cause they get all the food i can't fit in the fridge. going to a fine eatery, is a big treat for me, even though i'm a fair cook, there are some specialties i just don't have the time or talent to pull off. i fully appreciate a good meal...

You said it yourself. Just like the days of old. Things were not as rushed, nor careless.

A fine craftsman does not have to justify his price, and most likely undervalues it.

heres the speech from sideways, it's about wine, but you can substitiute what you like. it kind of sums it up for me. not just the item in question, but everything that was happening at the time, and all the things they've been threw. wether they are family heirlooms, or a found treasure, the many hands these things have been threw are just as interesting as the item itself....

Miles Raymond: What about you?
Maya: What about me?
Miles Raymond: I don't know. Why are you into wine?
Maya: Oh I... I think I... I originally got in to wine through my ex-husband.
Miles Raymond: Ah.
Maya: You know, he had this big, sort of show-off cellar, you know.
Miles Raymond: Right.
Maya: But then I discovered that I had a really sharp palate.
Miles Raymond: Uh-huh.
Maya: And the more I drank, the more I liked what it made me think about.
Miles Raymond: Like what?
Maya: Like what a fraud he was.
[Miles laughs softly]
Maya: No, I- I like to think about the life of wine.
Miles Raymond: Yeah.
Maya: How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks, like your '61. And then it begins its steady, inevitable decline.
Miles Raymond: Hmm.
Maya: And it tastes so f-n good.