Declining interest in gbodys discussion

[LukeZ]

Soon, when the batteries get better, we'll be dinosaurs.
Kids dont care about exhaust note. ANd those who do will satisfy with the fake noises pumped into the cabin through the speakers. As fake is their online personas, friends and relationships.

Haha I think you're wrong, pops. I know plenty of boys n girls who love the sound of a V8. A lot of straight piped mustangs and Chevy 1500s around here (then again, where arnt there lmao).

I don't think fake exhaust sounds through a speaker will ever replace actually hearing an engine rev. I meant, my car even shakes and rattles when I rev it. You can't replace that feeling.

 

[Geo's66]

 

[Geo's66]

 

[Geo's66]

View attachment 57472

 

[Geo's66]

 

[688guy]

Well, for me G Bodies were affordable 15 years or so ago when I first got one. I'm 60 years old and grew up in the hey day of the shoebox chevy's, SS 396 Chevelles and Novas, VW's (I drove one of the first lowered buses Alabama ever saw here from So Cal) and original Mustangs (I drove a '65 Fastback in High School). After the Navy, kids, mortgages and bills I knew I could never afford that '56 Nomad I'd always wanted, but I'd seen this 2 door Malibu sitting in a neighbors yard for months so I stopped one day, checked it out and left a note on the windshield asking if they might like to sell it. I never heard anything from them, then about 2 months later the guy called me and said it ran like crap, but I could have it for 200 bucks. I swapped a nice 350 in and had some cheap fun. Since then I've had 3 El Caminos, a '79 Lemans 2 door, an '87 F41, bucket seat Cutlass and a little old lady, one owner '83 Malibu wagon. I haven't had a G Body for years until my latest El Camino and I can tell you things sure have changed! It used to be that I'd go to the JY and there'd be 10 or 15 there and you could find sway bars, F41 frame supports, bucket seats, consoles, 4 spoke steering wheels off Cavailers, quick ratio steering boxes off F Bodies, but now you can't even find one G Body, at least not around here. Then again, there's actually quite a bit of stuff on the internet that you just couldn't find before. Personally, I don't do the facebook, twitter, social media deal, hell, I don't even have a cell phone, so I still cruise the forums, mostly just lurking, but occasionally I'll chime in...

 

[ssn696]

Geo's66, I'm bummed I can hit 'like' only once per post. So I 'liked' all four...you'd get five, but Post 45 is broken...

Also, I have shop envy...

 

[Jeff L]

My interest in g bodies grew out of my enjoyment of auto racing. I was a kid watching drag racing on abc tv and going to races at the old Danbury CT Race arena. The track is long gone, replaced with a mall. We finally got cable tv and when ESPN started showing Nascar races regularly, I was hooked. Dad had an 82 Regal and we started rooting for Harry Gant, Bobby Allison.

Then a friend bought an 84 SS and I loved it because of how it was Nascar inspired. Back then the noses, door skins, and most of the sheetmetal was used on the racecars over the tube frames. I remember an article in Stock Car Racing magazine showing pictures of Junior Johnson picking up some passenger car Monte door skins from a dealership after a crash by Bonnett during practice. I think I also remember a story of parts taken off a rental car to get a wrecked car ready for a race! That was truly the beginning of the end of the true stock car racing era.

So the idea of driving a car that used "Nascar Parts" was the closest I would ever get to being Waltrip or Earnhardt. I went the Daytona 500 and Winston 500 in 1988 and it was like I died and went to heaven. I was so glad to see the Montes race before being replaced by the Lumina the following year.

It just seems to me that our g bodies, except for maybe t types and Grand Nationals, are just not getting the love some other older car models get. I just love seeing "trolls" on some of the old car review sites that bad mouth our cars because of "low horsepower" motors. Back in 84-88 when the cars were new they held their own fine. I looked at my SS more as a comfy cruiser, not a drag racing demon. That was not what it was built for as far as the street version goes. So trying to compare those cars to a 345 hp Focus or 707hp Hellcat is just ridiculous in my opinion. I might not be around to see it but I can imagine 30 years from now when people will have self driving electric cars that can do 150 plus mph in a few seconds and snicker at our "slow internal combustion dinosaur"! Who knows?

Thankfully there are still plenty of us that like the old g bodies for a variety of reasons. If owning, driving, restoring these cars give you enjoyment, then so be it. If you like it that is all that matters.

The one cool thing about taking my 85 SS out is I think it has been over 7-8 years since I have seen another one on the road. When I am in a town that has a bunch of retirees, a conversation is always sparked up because of how long it has been since they have seen one, owned one a long time ago, etc. The bad thing about having a rare car like the SS is I better not drive it to rob any banks!! lol

 

[joesregalproject]

I think G-bodies are past the sweet spot. Lots of good stuff got crushed in the last decade, when steel prices were up and then when the government incentivized turning in perfectly good grannies. Most of what shows up in the yards are old parted out beaters dragged from where abandoned. This means that if you don't start with a complete survivor, you find out that the aftermarket does not yet have replacement bits for sale. This means the market has shifted upward in prices - more $$$ for survivors, more $$$ for aftermarket parts 'cause the 'yards don't have 'em, more $$$ to repaint and repair sheetmetal because the grannies have passed away. Those of us in the 'old fart' generation like me now have money but no time, so we either buy a 2010+ Camaro (fugly, good parts donor) or grab a cream puff for ($$$$) or pay a shop ($$$$$$) to make one. This leaves the average young gearhead out in the cold for resources. Best thing to do is make friends with one of us old farts. You might inherit a decent car when our wives intervene in our car-guy delusions....

I agree it's good to befriend the old-timers. I learned most everything I know from guys who were ready to retire. I got most of my mechanical knowledge from hanging out with old Pontiac guys at cruise nights. One guy had a '64 GTO, another a 455 Catalina, and another a '67 Bonneville and a '65 Grand Prix. I know old Pontiacs like the back of my hand.

I worked at a body shop for 6 or 7 years with an older guy who had been doing auto body for 40+ years. I learned to weld (with coat hangers too!), paint, pull dents, filler work, etc. from him. I learned rust repair from him too. He's one of three or four body shops around here that still takes rust jobs. Most don't do that anymore, collision work only.

I learned my machining skills working with some old time machinists too. I learned to operate all different types of mills and lathes. Not CNC stuff either, all old-school manual type machines. Stuff that no one teaches anymore.

Be grateful for your elders, they often have a a lot you can learn from them!

 

[Injectedcutty]

I have to say I've absolutely enjoyed this thread so far! Ive stated in somewhat similar threads about it, and tend to agree that there is a decline. Here in Louisville, if i see any G's out and about they are usually worn out looking and someone just needed an inexpensive driver.
However, on nice days i see mostly elco's and montes and the occasional cutlass. For the most part around here the nicer rides stay tucked away for shows, and most of them are factory original clean G's from all the makes. The other side of it are the drag cars which there are plenty of those, but most are not even street legal!
Hell, i went to the most organized JY the other day to scavenger hunt and there are no G's on the lot anymore as they don't have anything pre-'90....glad i scalped a roof skin and quarter windows from a donor 87 cutlass to fix mine about 4 years ago!!!
My love for the g bodies, or hotrods in general runs fairly deep, I bought my cutlass at 17 going into college back in 2001....obviously still have it and it would tear me apart to let it go! I have so much time, blood, sweat, and $$$$$ thati could never sell it for what I've invested! My mom used to drag race a 69 chevelle ss 396, and still has the jacket! My dad has always been a gearhead and we(3 older sisters and 1 younger brother) grew up learning to work on our own stuff. I was helping my dad do engine swaps at around 10 years old!!!!
As stated, so many of the younger generation have absolutely no desire to get into the car hobby, they worry about their social media and as long as they have an A-B ride it doesn't matter which sucks for the hobby! Luckily, there are still some guys and girls like us that have parents who show them the ropes on getting their hands dirty and having pride to enjoy their ride!
I've made sure my 2 girls are around the hobby as much as possible that way hopefully one day they will enjoy it as much as my wife and I. No joke, my girls play with hot wheels and toy car haulers as much as their dolls and such!!! My 6 year old made her list for Santa and the top spot was a request for and i quote "a racetrack for my cars"!!!!!! Needless to say, I enjoyed picking up a badass hot wheels track and some more cars and I can't wait to out that thing together on Xmas lol!!!!

Whew, that quick thought in my head just ended up as a short story lol!
Rant over, for now anyways (drops the mic)