Why I Love My Car

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Spike Morelli

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 12, 2015
Messages
900
Reaction score
1,230
Location
Formerly Los Angeles, now Boise, Idaho
My Car
1971 Mustang Mach 1 ram air 351c H-code, fmx, ps,pb, medium yellow-gold, hubcaps and beauty rings.
Boart Races Reunion NHRA Museum.jpgToo Much.jpgWild Cherry at Branson's Resort.jpgIt sounds corny, but I really love my car. It's a '71 Mach 1. To start off, I wasn't even looking for the car. I've had a '65, and a '66 Mustang, a GTO, a '70 Olds 442 ram air, a Model A, a chopped '34 coupe, a Toronado, a Datsun pick-up....each one well maintained and clean, ALL good cars to me. After buying my house, and being into sixties vintage hot boats, I thought I'd buy a Ranchero or an El Camino to tow with ( I'm really not a truck kind of guy), so I bought a Cars for Sale newspaper one day, took it home, threw it on the kitchen table, got a Pepsi, then came back to browse thru the ads. The newspaper was opened to the Mustangs for Sale section, and my eye went to an ad stating "1971 Mustang Mach 1, clean, $1000.00". I called just because the price was so cheap, this couldn't be right, but I called and confirmed the price, and went right over to the seller's home to check out the car. I bought it right on the spot and drove it home. The car found me.That was 1990, I've been driving it everyday since. In '97, I started to endure a most brutal divorce, which went on for 5 years, during which time, I really had no money. One day I patted the car's fender and told it to hang in there because I couldn't afford to fix anything if it went wrong.....and for the next 5 years, no lie, the car didn't need a thing, not even a wiper blade. The car really stuck by me when I really needed it to. Further, as I said, I tow with it as well, and it does a fantastic job of pulling. The only short area, in regards to towing, is that hefty brakes are required to stop trailers, but my trailers all have brakes, so, I don't even know they're there.

This horse is a workhorse in race car styling! Not a month goes by that someone doesn't give me a "thumbs-up", or want to take a cell phone photo, or ask me if I'd sell it. None of my former vehicles have been so enamored in the people's eyes as this car.

The car is never garaged, come rain or shine. An occasional waxing keeps it looking great.

It handles better than my early Mustangs, or the GTO and 442. Ford's change to Saginaw steering box was right on.

My wife keeps asking me what car I'd buy if I were to buy a new car. Challenger maybe? I don't know, but i'm not selling my Mach!.

Two weeks ago, I got into a fender-bender, bent my hood, my grille demolished, my right front fender bent. No one hurt, drove the car home. I was despondent about my old friend. You know the saying, "You never know what you got 'til you lose it"? Well, looking at my old Mach, I realized just how much the car means to me. Don't fret, thru connections, I've replaced the bent and destroyed parts with original Ford replacements ( repo grille however, and it's nice), I don't think I want to just paint match a section of the car. It will get a fresh, down to bare metal re-paint, as-was. it's been there for me, I'll be there for it. "Mary Death" rides on better than ever.

IMG_3112.JPG

 
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Great story and good writing. :)

You two deserve each other. ;)

Didn't it endure too much abuse during the filming? It seems that film crews got no respect for whatever they work with.

Friend of mine has rented her house to a film crew as a location. I think she'll regret it. :)

 
Good read!

Did you know you car also made it onto Google Streetview?

LXuU3w4.jpg


 
Great post great story. Your not alone many members of this forum love our cars for whatever reason. Some of us (me included ) have owned our cars for many years and could never picture our lives without it. I'm a Mustang guy for life and believe or not I even went so far as to inquire at one of the local Mortician's about being buried in it. Laugh if you want it's true.

 
Good read!

Did you know you car also made it onto Google Streetview?

LXuU3w4.jpg
Great story and info about your car!

Dang Brett!!!!!!!! How the HECK did you find that????

THANKS FOR POSTING!

Toooo cool!!!!!!!!

Ray

 
Great story and good writing. :)

You two deserve each other. ;)

Didn't it endure too much abuse during the filming?
Yes, the film crew drove the snot out of it....they made a few high speed passes for long shots, they had the lead actress sitting on the driver's door windowsill as they spun out the car time and again, they even used it to tow some gear to the set out in the desert. It never skipped a beat, never lost a hubcap through all those spinouts, it did everything they wanted....and then drove home. It WAS filthy with dry lakes dust in every nook and crannie, but she washed up real well. A handful of crew personnel inquired about buying it, they were so impressed, but they didn't damage it.

 
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Good read!

Did you know you car also made it onto Google Streetview?

LXuU3w4.jpg
Wow! No, I didn't know about this. Pretty darned cool I think. It's a great shot........weird to think that some satellite zoomed in on me driving down the highway in the middle of nowhere. I didn't lie to you guys, the car just does it's thing and more. I especially dig the shot 'cause there I am, icechest on the passenger seat, flameproof driving jacket on the hook behind me, dragboat in tow, just bookin' down the road.

Seriously, did you just happen upon this, or is there a process to find such images?

 
Good read!

Did you know you car also made it onto Google Streetview?

LXuU3w4.jpg
Wow! No, I didn't know about this. Pretty darned cool I think. It's a great shot........weird to think that some satellite zoomed in on me driving down the highway in the middle of nowhere. I didn't lie to you guys, the car just does it's thing and more. I especially dig the shot 'cause there I am, icechest on the passenger seat, flameproof driving jacket on the hook behind me, dragboat in tow, just bookin' down the road.

Seriously, did you just happen upon this, or is there a process to find such images?
I'm actually a gifted savant who spends 100% of my time clicking through google street-view maps looking only for 71 to 73 Mustangs....

Well, not really.

Someone posted a thread here a while back suggesting a game of finding 71-73 Mustangs on street-view. Not a successful game mind you as that would have been like looking for a needle in a haystack, however at the time I did a google search using "mustangs on street view" as the search string and I found that someone else had stumbled across your car on Street-View and posted it on the Jalopnik forum. When you posted into this thread the pic of your car with a boat attached I thought hang on I've seen THAT before!

Here is the link to the Jalopnik user who did randomly find your car:

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/cool-cars-on-google-street-view-1648314066

...and here's the link to the actual street-view location - the google van did a great job of photographing your car in a very scenic location!

https://www.google.com/maps/@34.9314087,-118.9304083,3a,75y,275.76h,63.85t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sXNDqdSfzTehWv7xE55HHoA!2e0

YsB6cYQ.jpg


 
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Spike, you've got some serious horsepower behind you!

I'd link in to it (ala mad max style), for some oh so slight overtaking grunt! Hehe
Thanks! well, I haven't been quite so forthcoming about what I do for a living. I've always been an "engine guy" ever since High School. I worked in the business for some years, while singing with a band at night, then going full time with the singing, and now, back to building engines. The 351c in my Mach is one of mine, and it's stock. The Blown Gas Chrysler Hemi in that hydro was originally built in 1965 by the legendary engine builder Dave Zeuschel, I went through that same Hemi, completely, and brought it back as it originally was raced. It's not de-tuned, it's not a "cackle motor", it's a for real blown gasser, in 1965 tune, it puts out an effortless 800 HP. I have two other hot boats, one with a '63 Ford 406 Holman/Moody equipped engine ( my build), and another boat, with TWO 327 Chevys Hilborn Injected, inline, on nitro ( a restoration) and again, my build on the engines. I've built every engine in every car I've had since High School, except the Honda Accord my wife currently drives.

The shop that I work at is well known, and has been in business for 50 years. I am the engine assembler there. Here's a shot of my car in the parking lot......like I said....I drive it to work everyday.

shopwall.jpg

 
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