For me, it was my brother-in-law. When I was young, he had several 60's Mustangs, and then a 70 Camaro, I'll never forget the Camaro because of the crappy green color it was painted! Growing up, he would take me to the hobby shop and buy models for me, then help me build them. He gave me my second car, a 76 Fiat Spyder convertible that he crashed and the insurance company totaled. We used a crow bar to bend the fender off the front wheel where it was rubbing, and I proceeded to drive that car for about 3 years, not fast, but fun as all get out, 5 speed, it was like driving a go-kart! Later on, he helped me rebuild a 77 Firebird and I wrecked it about 6 months after we finished it, slid into a lightpole during a snow storm, I hated Ohio weather! As a wedding present, he rebuilt the entire front end for me, and even let me borrow his 72 Chevy pickup truck on my honeymoon! Don't ask! Anyway, my brother-in-law Mike Brady was the biggest influence I had, he's very proud of me now when he sees the cars I've built over the last 10 years, I couldn't have done it without him teaching me how to wrench on cars!

 

for me it was my friends uncle.. i have some friends down the street.."3 brothers" and there older uncle...... i must have been in 8th-9th grade.. he had a wild 72 nova....his friend's had a pro stock, short bed truck with a blower....another friend of his had a 66 malibu....and another older guy down the street had a built 69 nova....and there was a guy at the other end of the street, that had a 68 camaro....that everybody raced and try'd to beat, till he threw a rod and it sat for 15 years.....and there was another guy on my street that had a 100% factory big block 4 speed chevelle ss.....

 

i had a couple of influences...first was on the block i grew up...i can only vaguely remember because i was about 7 or 8 yrs old (back around 1976 to 1978)....but some guy on my block was always messing with cars...i know at one point he had a 1969-1976 style vette and another time had a 2nd gen Z/28....i would be playing with my hot wheels or matchbox cars imagining i was his age working on my cars...my 2nd influence was my good friend whose dad gave him a 69 fastback mustang. it had a straight six and was totally rotted but cool nonetheless (to me anyways)...him having that car drove me to get my first muscle car, a 1976 Camaro LT Type. it had a GM 350 with some worked heads and a lopey cam... it's been cars cars cars my whole life from a little kid to now (I'm 35 yrs old).

 

I stumbled on this picture. It was one of my pop's favorite cars . As I remember it was a 65 BB car . Circa flares and fat tires and wickedly fast . I spent hours sitting in that car.... anyway the back of the picture had June 3rd 1975 in my chicken scratch ( I was 12 at the time) handwriting on the back.It was the day he pulled it out of the garage because a friend of his wanted the car. I remember him getting paid with three one thousand dollar bills and one five hundred dollar bill .It was one of the few cars he ever sold , and it brought up great memories so I was interested how others got the bug

very cool pic - i love those old faded ones!!

 

This was it for me.My dad raced at ascot and some of the other so cal race tracks, like western speedway.This is ascot in gardena ca.circa 1963.

 

This was it for me.My dad raced at ascot and some of the other so cal race tracks, like western speedway.This is ascot in gardena ca.circa 1963.

i miss ascot!!!!!!

i used to race BMX there.....

for those who dont know, ascot was a wonderfull place!!

 

Dad was definately my biggest influence. Always was, and still is a car guy. Whan I was 16, he gave me my first car. A 67 rs coupe, gold with black deluxe int, power windows and vigilite set-up. I wish I still had that one, but it was totalled in front of Mom and Dad's house back in 1980.

 

I wish I knew what influenced me. My father had no interest in cars, and drove the most boring vehicles made. Despite that I became interested in cars when I was 5 or 6. Maybe it was the lady next door who drove a Nash Metropolitan (this was the early 60's). I thought that was the coolest car. Or maybe it was the guy across the street. He had some kind of old race car tucked in the garage. I never saw him drive it, but every once in a while he'd start it up and let it run for a while and I would just sit on the curb in front of my house and watch and listen in awe to the racket it made. We moved away when I was 10, and I never did find out what kind of car it was.

I got into Camaro's by accident. I was more into Mopar's and was looking for a Duster 340 for my first car. I couldn't find one I could afford and ended up getting a 68 Firebird. I really liked it but ended up wrecking it a few weeks later. I wanted to get another but found a 68 Camaro instead. The rest is history.

Kevin

 

Dad was definately my biggest influence. Always was, and still is a car guy. Whan I was 16, he gave me my first car. A 67 rs coupe, gold with black deluxe int, power windows and vigilite set-up. I wish I still had that one, but it was totalled in front of Mom and Dad's house back in 1980.

your dad kicks ***!!!!

all my step dad gave me was an 81 celica..lol

 

had a buddy 13 ,i was 15 ,built a dirt track car his uncle drove,really got me started 38 years ago

 

My Dad here as well.

He used to have number of cars when he was younger, most notably a '66 Hemi Coronet (Hemi was gone early on) and a '70 Nova SS drag car (Super Stock J at Englishtown). When my brother and I were growing up he kind of cooled it to see if we would find the hobby on our own. I did very early on (14 or so?) and my brother did when he was 22. Now my dad has a '69 3x2 Vette, my brother has a '70 Chevelle 427 (dyno'd 621hp/555lb-ft) and I've got the Camaro. It's very much a family deal here.

 

As I remember it was a 65 BB car . Circa flares and fat tires and wickedly fast .

Van, I wonder if your father had the flares done at Rich Brown's Corvette city...He did alot of them back in the day...
It was my older brother and his buddies that did it for me...Having to babysit for me, (I was 11 at the time) he and his buddies with their cars, would meet at our place and cruise to Brotherhood way or the Great Highway in San Francisco and I got to watch them run, later on we would go the A&W Rootbeers in Westlake and show the cars...I saw alot of old school muscle back then. My favorite was a brand new Fathom green w/white ralleys 69Z, I guess I never forgot that car...

 

ive never been a flared fender fan....

but looks sexy on that vette!!

 

Very Cool Topic and neat stories. My Dad was not into cars at all, they were strictly transportation. With that said he did own a burgundy with black top 60's GTO (I was real young but, remember the car). My main influence was my older brother, he had a 1967 fastback Mustang with a pumped up 390 that was WAY FAST and I used to be scared to ride in it with him. My brothers best friend was a guy name John Wesson (Johnny), he always had cool cars (1st gen Camaro SS, V8 Chevy Luv truck, etc...) His parents owned a muffler shop, and they were always racing (salt flats), he held the world record for a while in a VW Karman Ghia. Those two my bro and Johnny definetly gave me the bug at a very young age (~9 years old).

 

Being the youngest of 4 boys...It was my older brothers. Between them, i got to ride in a super bee, tricked out Impala, ElCamino, Chevelle's, MachI Mustang, GTX, and a few I can't remember! I always loved fast cars. Mostly, I could just never afford one. My folks were like Camaroman7D's-"cars are just transportation"... I remember the day that my mustang II left me stranded one too many times and I was bellyachin' to a co-worker about how I wish my Mustang was his new IROC 5.7L Camaro. He said that he was sick of the gas and insurance on it, so he made me a deal I couldn't pass up. When my Dad took me over to get the car he just shook his head and said "You better not get any tickets in that rocket" (I did in-fact end up with some tickets in that car) but driving it home on the freeway was the best feeling in the world!! Guys driving by giving me "thumbs-up" signs all the way home. After that, I owned a Berlinetta, a 2nd gen, and now a first and 2nd gen. So as for the influence...it was my brothers, an older sister, friends, and the neat little 'ol lady who sold me her first gen for 2,000 six years ago
Dano:beers:

 

A neighbor (no not Don Garlits or Art Malone, though both were also neighbors); his name is Richard Whigh (WHY) and he lived at the end of my street growing up. I hung around a lot not because he had two attractive sisters (though that was a plus) but because he used to terrorize his immediate neighbors with frequent burn-outs and running around with his manual cutout valves on his '53 chevy open. Did I mention he was a "W" motor guru with a yard full of 348 tri powers and dual four barrel 409's.

He wanted to be an engineer but had to go to work to support the family after he lost his dad in the Korean war. Though he only finished high school he read a lot of technical manuals and worked at the local NAPA parts store as their machinist.

He taught me a lot about torque and it's application. We spent one afternoon setting up a Olds rear for his car, with me getting experience setting up the pumpkin for his Hotchkiss rear end. After spending four hours setting everything up I knew it was right; but he told me, "Watch this!" He then backed out to the edge of the street facing me, he brought the RPM's up (boy could those 409's really wail), and side stepped the clutch grenading the rear end as it lurched most of the way off the street.

I asked him why he did it and he said to show me that though I believed it wouldn't break because it went together the correct way, the 409 exceeded the design specs and could break it at will. Faith is a good thing in religion, but science is better at predicting the secular. Then he had me swap the old pumpkin back in.

He was a body man as well and painted several of my cars for me; his were metal flaked, or flamed or in some way custom. He always wanted something different from the masses. He would fabricate tube chassis, as well as machine parts. He made some interesting cop cars for the local vice squads, after he joined the Sheriffs office (from which he has retired and now works as a contractor renovating homes).


Larger Dave

 

Per request from Van :thumbsup:

I grew up with 1st gen restoration (and other GM Muscle) for as far as I can remember back, and my Dad was my influence.

Was in the shop regularly by the time I was 8 or 9, mainly just watching, handing tools, and being a go-fer. Was getting my hands dirty shortly afterwards, and began studying MacNeish's book regularly before Jr. High School. I was doing a good amount of resto work well before I could even drive, and frame-offed my first vehicle before I got my driver's license. By the time I was in high school, I was doing a considerable amount of resto work, from detail and mechanicals to paint/body work. Judged one of the highest classes at the Camaro Nat'ls when I was 16.

Many times, I really disliked it. He was pretty tough on me at times. The cars we were building were regular best of show, paint, engine, etc. cars, and quite a few nat'l awards. Very high standards. We butted heads many times, but in hindsight, it made me better at what I do. Turns out we are extremely alike when it comes to resto, both perfectionists and sticklers for detail.

This is a taste of what I grew up with:

dave

 

Also my father, he had a 68 California Special with a high per. 390 from the factory..Mom had a 67 fastback 2x2 with a 289..and all my uncles on my Moms side had cool Rides..i was raised with Mustangs..and always dreamed of one day owning a Camaro..:thumbsup: ..

 

Show off !

Per request from Van :thumbsup:

This is a taste of what I grew up with:

dave

 

It is hard to say who influenced me. I think I influenced myself. I was given a 1970 Pontiac Tempest and told if I want to drive it I have to either fix it myself or pay someone to do it. As a senior in HS (1985) and female to boot, I didn't have much money, certainly not enough to pay someone to keep this car alive, nor the intelligence. Each and every repair was an accomplishment for me. I drove that car for 2 years, until the boyfriend changed the oil and sent the hood flying. Something wasn't done right and the engine blew up. Picked up a 74 Nova after that, and put it on the road for 3 years before it finally died. Didn't pick up anyting else fun until last year when I got the camaro.

 

I grew up on a farm with my grandparents. Farmers fixed their own stuff when it broke.

Nine yrs old, I had torn apart and assembled a B&S mower engine. It worked! Later, helped with valve job and overhaul of a Farmall "M" and AC WD45, our tractors, and did car/truck repair.

I know the definition of overhauling a carb on the kitchen table.

 

Although I am a 1st generation Camaro owner; I can't actually say that I have driven one.... YET (anybody up for test drive??). My love affair with cars & Camaros goes like this:

My only brother is 13 years older than me and he was and has ALWAYS been a motorhead. When I was 6 or 7 years old he had a White '68 SS 396/4-speed Chevelle that was just plain bad..... I loved going for un-belted, sideways rides to Deep Purple 8-tracks, smelling CAM2 & rubber burning while listening to that mean 396 Rat motor under the hood.

I didn't think any of my brother's buddies cars were cool at all (GTO's, Challengers, Impalas, a Torino, and a Buick GS)..... then one day he came home without the SS. He came to me knelt down and said "Richie.... I sold the Super Sport buddy".... I was CRUSHED.... it was as bad as my pet dog getting hit by a car. A lump in my stomach formed and I began to cry.

He tried to cheer me up by saying "I think you'll like my new car buddy"..... I hated him..... well until I seen it a few days later..... it was one of the best sights I had ever seen. He pulled up the driveway in a Black on Black '68 Camaro with Cragars & a custom dark purple airbrushed flame design on the cowl hood. It had a very odd combo in 1976 of a 400 SB with a Muncie handbox in it. This was a weird combo at the time because the 400 was considered a "slug" & since none of the 400's came with a 4-speed except in the trucks. A manual 400 flywheel was somewhat rare and it wasn't a common combo THEN at all.

I don't know if I had never seen a 1st gen Camaro up until that day or just never cared because my big brother didn't own one. I jumped into it and said "let's go..... give it the gas Joe"..... WOW!!!! I was and still have been in love with that car.

He kept that car for a few yeas and when he let her go I vowed to have one of my own someday. Decaeds have now passed & I landed a '68 a few years back. Guess what color I want to paint it?


BLACK... just no cragars though.

 

Great thread... my first 'car' itch was building a Soap Box Derby car in the early 60's and winning 2 downhill heats in Omaha. Then Fr. James Kiernen was a teacher at the highschool I attended and he started an 'auto club' of sorts to help us teen guys learn about cars. My dad worked on the road to support a family of 9 but he did change his own oil and I watched that. The auto club was where I got into cars alot. Memorized the c.i. engines of the 3 major cars back then. We also overhauled my mom's 61 buick 215V8 as a class project and it ran
from then it was just buddies that had similar interests and a slow fever of wanting that 69 camaro someday. Working for Amsoil Corp. in the late 70's got me into the pits at the Atlanta 500 with our team of Dave Watson and that was awesome. The thunder of those cars in a pit stop is enuf to shake your fillings loose but thats where I got the name 'thunder' that we call our 69 RS.
We got it in Feb. 03 and have enjoyed the awesome group of people in here ever since. I could NEVER have gotten my car up to my standards without this site.

 

My college roomate was a car fanatic. He and his dad restored a 67 Camaro and dragged races it in Granite City raceway just outside St Louis. He sold the car for college tuition money and eventually sold the 396 for the same. We used to have some beers and he would chat away about how he replaced the interior, built the motor from the block up, etc. etc. About 5 years ago he bought a 68 RS with a 427. He kept the car in storage when he moved to Hong Kong and then Beijing. Last year he sold it to me. It was not my dream car (72 Chevelle SS 454), but it was too good to pass up. Original sheet metal, virtually no rust and a strong motor. I am having a great time restoring the interior of the car and having fun toasting all the rice burners out there.

 

A buddy I grew up with as neighbours was into cars in a big way. His father was the Lincoln Mercury dealer in town and we had free run of the shop for after hour wrenching. The first car we modified was a 1950 Chev coupe. In went a 283/Saginaw 4 speed and a Pontiac diff. Next was a 57 Chev sedan delivery that was blessed with a 392 Hemi and the push button automatic. Go figure! The engine was so big we couldn't put the hood on. Here we are some 35 years later, I'm still a gear head and my buddy isn't. I wouldn't trade those days for anything.

ZAPPER