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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Lately I have been giving some thought about doing “something” with my car. I have found that my interest and zeal for her isn’t what it used to be and in many ways I’m tired of owning a “Christine”.
I figure that if I sold her and that’s a big IF I would regret it for the rest of my life. Not because I couldn’t find another one but because me and her have such a history together.
I have thought about moth balling her somewhere until the urge hit’s me to do something different with her…..I don’t know, something like a total makeover with a modern drivetrain, different color, and some different interior...
I do know that I’m am just to busy to keep an open bay for her so she stays out in the weather all the time, Now that I have the bike I ride it most all the time and when it get’s cold I’ll still ride it because cold don’t bother me that bad. She just deserves better and I don’t know what I should do.
Going back to the selling idea, If I did I would only sell her to “The right person” and money isn’t what I’m chasing so if I did name a price then that’s the price and that’s it.
I have thought about doing her over again in a different color but then I know it wouldn’t matter if she was friggin purple with pink polka dots she would still be seen as a “Christine”.
Don’t get me wrong I like a Christine clone as much as anybody else who does but when you build them and you still have 3 more waiting after the present 2 then you kind of want your own car to be different.
For example if you work for UPS then I bet you don’t want your personal truck or car to be brown. That’s what I’m getting at.
Have any of you been at this point with your Forwardlook and if so what did you do to get through it without making a wrong decision? |
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| Well Donnie, in between your words I can hear the solution to you problem. Sell the Christine, and get yourself a nice DeSoto! With a Hemi!
Edited by 56fireflite 2009-09-12 2:39 PM
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Location: Parts Unknown | 58Donnie - 2009-09-13 10:30 AM
Lately I have been giving some thought about doing “something” with my car. I have found that my interest and zeal for her isn’t what it used to be and in many ways I’m tired of owning a “Christine”.
Have any of you been at this point with your Forwardlook and if so what did you do to get through it without making a wrong decision?
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Donnie,
It is inevitable for most people to get tired of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches after a while. Your arrival doesn't surprise me a bit.
Look, ... most guys on this list think I'm a butthead for always talking smack about red and white cars. It isn't that I didn't LOVE the movie, or don't like red and white cars. It is just that there is so much more. You have come to know exactly what I'm saying there. I think most folks think you are either in, or you're out. But there are many shades of critical thinking that come into play IF you allow yourself the thinking.
Take Ronbo's car as an example. It stands out amongst a sea of 58 Plymouth coupes for two reasons .... Ron's painstaking level of restoration detail, but far more to the casual observer .... it is the color. Are there red and white ones done to the same level of detail as Ron's ? I am sure there are. But Ron's is the car that stands out because ... as you stated .... ALL the UPS trucks are brown !
Now, some guys will forever be infatuated with that movie and the buzz will never fade .... only a red and white car will do. Good for them, I guess. They just come from a different paradigm. For many, it was their first brush with the Forward Look. For me, I had been playing with fins for years when the movie came out. You could get a 70 Olds in those colors, ... or a 74 Mazda. Nothing special about red and white. There are some dandy period colors that just fit the fin look so much better. Maybe I was not as taken because of it ?
Regardless, in my never-to-be humble opinion, you have one of the pinnacle cars of the entire fin era. An acme point of Exner design. Be it whatever color now, I think your history with the car and the fact it is THAT car with you, I'd never let it go. Could you find another ? Doubtful. At least not without a mountain of dollars and work. And still, it will never be the same car.
Being that you work on these cars for a living, your case of never having enough indoor space is going to be exponentially worse than us "collector" types that just keep our own cars. Not sure how you'd resolve that. Yes, I do .... I'd build a bigger shop !
If it were me, I'd keep it.
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Location: Hell's Outhouse - a.k.a. Buckeye, Arizona | Donnie, please don't take this the wrong way:
It's a hell of a lot easier and more fulfilling to have a car because you truly love what the car is - not what kind of image one may think it projects.
Keep it and make it your own, not someone else's, if you get my drift.  |
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | Keep the car.... |
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Location: Parts Unknown | Paint it - ever look at "Hot Rod Flatz" ??? They have some pretty cool colors I think . . . If another color doesn't spark any interest (if you do or don't paint it) maybe it's time to sell - That's o.k. - don't sweat it. Maybe another FL car is what you need ? Maybe you want to just spend time and money on the bike for a while ?? |
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Location: STL, MO | I'll probably catch hell for this comment but dont give up a 58Plymouth for a Sportster or because you identify your car as a clone of a movie car, I liked Christine the movie when it came out probably alot because of the car and when it smashes the camaro or the "show me" line rolls across the screen I like it, but then again I bleed Mopar, However I don't identify red Plymouths or black Chargers or white Challengers or even black trans-ams with thier film counterparts probably because I have seen plenty of them driving as drivers, now a orange charger w/ rebel flag and western wheels thats different and more pointed as a captian america panhead might remind me of Peter Fonda but a yellow 69 Charger does not. but a red Plymouth? you could do anything with it and not be typecast, not everybody saw, liked or remembers Christine but as mentioned your car is a highwater mark for american style and that is recognized by the masses, just my 2cents....now had you bought a big bike ..... |
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Exner Expert 19,174 posts. Neil passed away 18 Sep 2015. You will be missed, Neil!
Posts: 19146
Location: bishop, ca | Put it out on the evilpay, see what it brings, and decide what you want/need to do with the dinero it brings in,
Money talks, you know.
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Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | If it has sentimental value, don't sell it-you will regret it later. Money comes and goes-mostly goes, and when its gone -you can't get your car back.. Buy one of those small metal garages big enough for your car and maybe your scooter-they aren't expensive, but you do need a concrete floor. Someday the Christine thing will pass, but you will still have one of the prettiest Plymouths made...........................MO |
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Honestly, If I had time and the space to do it in I would like to have the car back like it was new at least as far as the exterior goes. New she was Sand Dune white with (I can't remember the name) red roof and lower body. She was a '57 Savoy with bumper wings stock.
Here in the real world she's not that great of a car as far as condition goes. She could have been A LOT better but for the money I had and the fact that she is, was, and will always be a driver I think she is a decent car. I suspect that for now she will get moth balled because I hope in the next 2 or 3 years depending on how business goes to have 3 more bay's and if that's the case then one of them will be for my junk whatever it is.
As far as the Sportster goes that has nothing reallyto do with it. I'd sell it at the drop of a hat and go buy another one. I do admit that after working on the bike and seeing how easy it was that I wouldn't mind having an older Pan Head of some sort.
Edited by 58Donnie 2009-09-12 4:27 PM
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Location: NorCal | 58Donnie - 2009-09-12 10:30 AM
I have thought about doing her over again in a different color but then I know it wouldn’t matter if she was friggin purple with pink polka dots she would still be seen as a “Christine”.
Not to everybody, just those who identify every Challenger with Kowalski and every Charger with the General Lee. IOW, those who don't really know cars. |
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| 1955Coronado - 2009-09-12 3:22 PM
Donnie, please don't take this the wrong way:
It's a hell of a lot easier and more fulfilling to have a car because you truly love what the car is - not what kind of image one may think it projects.
Keep it and make it your own, not someone else's, if you get my drift. ;)
I agree with you 100%. We all get tired of our cars now and then, but it is what we love. You will regret
selling her. Find another car to play around with, then go back to your Christine when you want. |
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Location: Netherlands | Why is it that that Dr Desoto-guy is always so full of S.... ense ...
He typed exactly what I'm thinking. I second the garage-enlargement.
Only I'll add another option which I probably would do like to do myself... Paint it gloss black, put a 440/500ci blower motor in it, Dana in the rear and have some REAL fun with the girl.
But you'll need to keep it from the elements after that ofcourse. 
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Location: STL, MO | Your Plymouth makes a helluva calling card-buisness statement, it's part of the fabric of who you are, if you think that piglets easy to work on try a big twin you'll have to wear boxing gloves and a blindfold to give it a fighting chance |
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Location: new york | Donnie! Keep your car! Take it from a guy who sold a 56 2 57's a 58 Fury's and a Christine movie car, I sold them years ago and held on to my convertibles now I wish I had a fury or a 2dr ht in my collection! Wood is cheap! Buy some !build a 10x20 storage garage you seem to have the property. Put the car in there and take it out when you want to. Antique insurance is cheap , so keep it! You can always build youself something else one there gone they are very hard to replace Good Luck on your decision and HAPPY MOTORING! Victor.. |
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| Wish so many '58 Plymouths had not been redone as Christine clones.
Park the car, can't hurt it to park it.
I put my '58 Plymouth away for five years after the Christine fad hit, car got too much attention at shows, etc.
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Location: Blythewood, SC | As I have always said, the 57's are superior in every way to the 58's. If you are not happy with your car, convert it back. I am sick of the "hey, it's a four door Christine" crap I get at car shows. I got that three times tonight. I plan to paint mine blue and silver or blue and gray.
If I had your car, I would restore it's original 57 perfection and paint it the original paint scheme. |
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Location: Bama | I'd take it back to 57 Donnie. |
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Location: Parts Unknown | Lawrence gets the witty comment of the night award for the above comment.  |
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Location: Australia | well if your planning a trip, can i tag along? id like to go back to '57 also thanks... adriana |
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Thanks y'all. I'll keep it (I've always known I would) but as soon as I have time I'm building a better spot for her to sleep in and again, when I have time there is a strong chance at least her exterior will look stock. I may make a few changes otherwise.
I found a real good deal on a crashed '08 Hemi Charger complete last night. |
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Location: Seville, OH | 57plymouth - 2009-09-12 5:42 PM
As I have always said, the 57's are superior in every way to the 58's. If you are not happy with your car, convert it back. I am sick of the "hey, it's a four door Christine" crap I get at car shows. I got that three times tonight. I plan to paint mine blue and silver or blue and gray.
If I had your car, I would restore it's original 57 perfection and paint it the original paint scheme.
Changng the color won't help. I get the Christine comments and mine is a torquoise/white Dodge! |
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Location: Parts Unknown | Swept57 - 2009-09-14 8:44 AM
Changng the color won't help. I get the Christine comments and mine is a torquoise/white Dodge!
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This is true. My DeSoto got lots of Christine references and it seems to me there is a lot of visual "mileage" between those two (?).
If I had the opportunity, I'd pick up another 58 Plymouth. The 2HT roofline, IMHO, shows that body off like no other. I like the strippers too, and a Plaza 2HT would be super cool, but I don't think they built a 2HT lower on the model scale than a Savoy, so a stripper see-dan would be good too. My reality is that a yard full of cars is not an option and my shop project will put the pursuit of any more wheeled projects on hold until I take care of the pile I already have .... that's why the new shop is 2400 square feet !
But maybe down the road ? As said above, the 58 Plymouth stands head-and-shoulders above all other model year designs Plymouth ever built. How can a person NOT want one ? |
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Location: Big pimpin' | Doctor DeSoto - 2009-09-13 1:09 PM
Swept57 - 2009-09-14 8:44 AM
Changng the color won't help. I get the Christine comments and mine is a torquoise/white Dodge!
**********************************
This is true. My DeSoto got lots of Christine references and it seems to me there is a lot of visual "mileage" between those two (? ).
So Doc, when ARE you gonna paint it red and white then?....  |
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Location: Big pimpin' | Handygun - 2009-09-12 3:41 PM
I'll probably catch hell for this comment but , now a orange charger w/ rebel flag and western wheels thats differentQUOTE]
Uh Steve, there called American Racing 10 Spoke "Vector" wheels....Just FYI..
Edited by dukeboy 2009-09-13 3:17 PM
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Location: kansas city, mo. | i say resto-mod....all black, mini-tubs w/ big, wide rims and mickey thompson sportsman s/r street radials. and a big block w/4 speed. oh, and slammed! |
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Location: Big pimpin' | Just remember guys, without the car being a red and white '58 Plymouth, or an orange Charger, or a white Dodge Challenger, or a black Trans Am, as I've owned some of these cars in there "Stock" states and NOBODY has EVER offered money to bring one in the stock colors to a car show before....They have when it's "Famous"...Just a fact, that's all..There's a reason the "Famous" cars are famous..period....You can fight it all you want, bottom line? All you gonna do is leave every car show, gas station, etc; pissed off when your "Resto mod, badass Hemi car thingy, '58 Convertible, 2dr sedan, flat black, hood scooped, tubbed out, blown alcohol, tube chassis, custom flamed painted, car gets something like this said at a car show...."Hey! Nice car..Isn't that like the one in that movie? Christine?"...Get ready for it no matter how you slice it...Dance with the one that brung 'ya...
Edited by dukeboy 2009-09-13 3:28 PM
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Location: Lemoore CA | I think you should put a 440 in it and paint it orange with a rebel flag on the roof and 01 on the doors. |
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Location: Big pimpin' | 5859 - 2009-09-13 3:33 PM
I think you should put a 440 in it and paint it orange with a rebel flag on the roof and 01 on the doors. :laugh:
D@mn that's funny....ROTFLMAO... |
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Well if she's always gonna be Christine then how about leaving her red and white but the white being a big pointy stripe over the roof and body with some Torino emblems. Then I can trade the Harley for an old Honda 4 cyl bike paint it gold and white with some CHiP's stickers and little blue lights..... |
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Location: Big pimpin' | Dance with the one that brung 'ya no matter what color she is....Course, you could always sell her for that '69 Camaro....
Edited by dukeboy 2009-09-13 4:35 PM
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Sometimes I like to dance with more than one at a time.... |
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Location: Fleetwood, Pa | Instead of a Christine clone........how about a Miss Belvedere clone??? I sure wish mine would have been kept stock before I bought it. If I would be doing it over it sure wouldn't be red and white. I love the yellow they had in 57 and 58. If I ever redo mine it will either be yellow with white or black. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Christine clones, but enough already. It's your car, do what you really, really want. Good luck with your decision. |
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Location: Big pimpin' | I understand, I mean afterall, Christine served her purpose and now that she isn't "Cool" anymore almost to the point of being hated here, I can see your need to change her appearance...by all means.. |
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Location: STL, MO | Not to hijack but I didn't know American ever made a "turbine' style wheel, my neighbors had a red&white 58 belvedere when I was a kid so it's just another Mopar to me but Christines cool I've seen it enough times to know what kind of motor the Dodge tractor that drops off the fat kid has in it. |
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | That's not exactly the case. I have kept my car far longer than anything else I have ever had. For me I enjoy a car more when I'm building, painting, changing, tinkering or something like that with it. Every car I have done for myself in the past once it was "finished" I got tired of it real quick and sold it to move onto the next project. Maybe that's why I do what i do for a living now, do what I enjoy and get paid for it. |
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Location: DFW, TX | Donnie, I've seen the work you've done on your car and I know how hard/often you drive it. I can tell you that while your car may not have all the spit-polish of some show cars, it is among the best Forward Look cars on the road. It is beautiful and looks just like the movie car. Don't discredit yourself.
That said, it is YOUR car and you should do what you want with it. I don't blame you for wanting to change it up. If you add in the 26yrs you've watched the movie, that's a lot of views of red/white '58 Plymouths! I'm not sure I'd change the year, although like Brian I prefer all aspects of the '57 to the '58 except maybe the aluminum Sportone. But that painted sweep can sure look good on a '57...
Anyway, I would do minor changes to it. Or start cuttin it up....
(let me know if you want some Photoshop help, I'd be glad to do some for you)
 (57Johnson.jpg)
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 57Johnson.jpg (26KB - 125 downloads)
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Location: Bama | That last picture is cool. Where did you find that? Looks old and just slammed. Donnie would have to have air bags to get out of his driveway.
When the fins are extended that is always a plus for these cars. When they try to make them taller, they FAIL!! |
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| I think you should keep the car.
That said, I kinda know how you feel.
While I was growing up, I was absolutely fixated on someday getting a '57 Chevrolet.
For some reason, that car has long been considered the automotive icon of the American 50s.
When I thought I'd never find a '57 I could afford, I started buying ForwardLook cars.
I finally got the '57 I wanted a few years ago... but now that I have one, I've discovered just how common they really are.
Don't get me wrong... I still love my '57, and the story behind it. And, to me, it still represents a childhood dream realized.
Meanwhile, I'd rather cruise around in a ForwardLook car anyday. They always get more attention in a crowd.
Everyone knows what a '57 Chev looks like... but the ForwardLook cars are just unique.
(And yes, I get the 'Christine' comments all the time - even with my '56 Dodge.)
Put your 'Christine' in storage for a while... Pull her out and put her on the road whenever you get bored.
Hell, if you're REALLY bored you could even put her on tour and pretend you're a movie star, too! Think about it, Man... Some people get so jazzed-up about those cars that they may even ask for your autograph!
If you ever get to the point where you're desperately craving attention... just roll out to the Dairy Queen and get some instant gratification - and an Oreo Blizzard.
Just a thought.
-NM
Edited by Nathan D. Manning 2009-09-14 8:08 AM
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Some of that instant gratification I got not long ago could have landed me in divorce court had I not have been such a saint. I put my autograph on a chicks b00b once back in high school when I was named MVP of our region championship game.....does that count? |
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| 58Donnie - 2009-09-14 8:10 AM
I put my autograph on a chicks b00b once back in high school when I was named MVP of our region championship game.....does that count?
I didn't realize you were on the chess team back in High School.
LMAO.
Yeah, I suppose that would count.
-NM
Edited by Nathan D. Manning 2009-09-14 8:15 AM
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | Oh no, I was like Dennis Guilder (fictional character from the film Christine you may have heard of it) played football as a WR-Right side "wingman" Wasn't very fast but could be at my top speed in about 3 steps and had real sticky hands...(no off color comments please) Those were the days but alas they were likely the most fame I will ever see..........I"VE GOT IT!!!!! I need a blue '68 Charger with a set of S/S wheels and a black top!!!!!! |
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Location: Watertown South Dakota | I went through the same thing with my "non FL" brand. Nice, nice car, but I was just bored with it after 10 years of driving. I swapped out the automatic for a 5 speed and put in lower rear gears and now, it's interesting again. My car is already modified, (not nice original), so this was an easy option for me. I was thinking of different colors, wheels, etc. but my budget couldn't handle that. The trans. switch was pretty inexpensive and did make the car a lot more fun. Sometimes a tire/wheel swap, some pinstriping, custom grill,,,small things can make a difference. I have so much history with my car that I will never sell it either, but keeping it fun and different can be a challenge. Just my input. |
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Location: Parts Unknown | Donnie ~
You raise an interesting sidepoint ....
I have liked b00bs on a serious level for about 40 years now, and NEVER get bored with them !
For the life of me, I can't explain the fascination and massive "happy" they can flood through my veins.
Maybe it is that put-'em-away / get-'em-out thing that keeps them interesting ????? Gotta change it up, I guess. |
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Location: Hell's Outhouse - a.k.a. Buckeye, Arizona | Doctor DeSoto - 2009-09-14 7:21 AM
Donnie ~
You raise an interesting sidepoint ....
I have liked b00bs on a serious level for about 40 years now, and NEVER get bored with them !
For the life of me, I can't explain the fascination and massive "happy" they can flood through my veins.
Maybe it is that put-'em-away / get-'em-out thing that keeps them interesting ????? Gotta change it up, I guess.
Ah, it's a bit clearer now, Doc - the Fireflites did come standard with dagmars, right? |
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Location: near St Augustine, FL | I'm surprised no one pointed out that your car is your 'rolling billboard' for your business... |
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Location: New Jersey | Donnie----You made the right decision to keep your Plymouth. Put it away, find a nice '53 dodge hemi with a 3-spd o/d--you'd be surprised at how much fun they are to drive--(check the Aug edition of Hemmings--there's one in Va.; '53-'54 Plymouths, too); ride your bike and drive the Dodge. Next Summer, when you drive the Plymouth again you'll say, "darn, this car feels good!"----Fred----Fred, Jr. says you can paint the old Dodge red and white! |
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Location: At "The Rock" in upper East Tennessee | In a way she is a "rolling billboard' and that brings up another thing, She's not that nice I don't care what anybody says she's a decent driver at best. The weather, driving her year round, driving her like I stole her, and the fact that I just did the best I could with the money and equipment I had at the time.
That being said if she is going to be a billboard she needs to be a lot nicer. This also brings up another point, I would love to show more about how I can do "Other stuff" Nathan's Chrysler, Dave's Dodge are two recent things that REALLY made me see how great these other forward look cars are.
Dave is about to send me a Barracuda and I hope that will be a chance for me to shine at something else. I mean I have other stuff coming in like a '40 Buick, 65 Falcon, 65 F-100, A '58 Plymouth 'vert, '67 "Eleanor" Mustang, and a local '57 Desoto but for whatever reason things that are mine is what I end up with. For example, Painted my bike and now I'm about to paint an '07 Fat Boy. That is why I think putting my car back stock on the exterior would show one thing, A modern trick drivetrain would show another and the fact that no matter what I do she will always bee seen as a Christine that should about cover it.
And Doc, I think you may have just hit the nail on the head. With B00b's we don't get to see 'em all the time and we can't just see 'em anytime we want too, so that is why we are so happy when we do. I have told my wife a 100 times that if we are having a heated discussion and she wants me to just shut up and her be the victor.......Bust 'em out.....arguments over. There is no way a man can be mad at a b00b. |
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Some thoughts about my car.
