What made you a gear head?

[Jeff L]

Started with Hot Wheels play sets and cars as a kid in the late 60’s and early 70’s.

There was a racectrack near my town called the Danbury Race Arena which was part of the old Danbury CT Fair Grounds. Both gone now, a Mall in its place since around 1983. Went to the races most Saturday nights every Summer. Loved Drag Racing also and that started the car fever I acquired. Have been interested in cars and racing since I can remember.

I think it was also my cousins buying Hot Rod and other car mags which helped get me hooked on performance cars when I was in 6th grade and cutting out the pictures of cars I liked. It grew from there.

So all of these factors started me on the road to cars being a life long hobby in many areas such as repair, racing, and going to buy groceries! lol

 

[tc1959]

My Dad owned a Union 76 station when I was a kid. I would go to work with him in the summer . My brother and I used to ride up and down on the lifts. We helped fetching tools, Playing with the Dr. Pepper machine, Jumping up and down on the driveway bell hose. He had a box full of old carbs and junk. I would sit at the work bench and take those apart and put them back together. One of my Dads best customers had a 70 Chevelle 454 4 speed . He was in the Air Force and when he was out of town we would store it for him in our back bay. I would sit in that thing and pretend I was driving it, Every chance I got. Lots of fun for an 11 year old.

 

[ssn696]

Ertl. I was drawing trucks and cars looking up from a bug's view from below starting about age 8. Moved to a new state for my senior year in HS...one big enough to have an industrial arts program. I had no study halls - wood shop, electronics shop, auto shop. To pay for college, I got a job nearby pumping gas and graduated to driving their tow truck nights and weekends. The old mechanic there taught me how to pack a wheel bearing using only palm full of grease. I got serious in the Navy when I discovered the Auto Hobby Shop on base.

I was pulling the motor from my wagon to rebuild it, and the older guy in the stall across from me started getting angry at the strut compressor. I stepped over and helping him reassemble both fronts. An hour later he came over and said, 'I'm done, want some help?'. 'Sure. Take out that motor mount bolt and....'. An hour later we had the motor out and on the floor. 'So, what brings you here?' 'I'm the new CO of the USS New York City, and I start tomorrrow...' AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've just been ordering my new boss around, making him black to his elbows!!!!!! Did I mention AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?!?!?!?

I got put in charge of my division about 2 months later about a week after being frocked to E6. I guess he thought I could also fix a bunch of short-timers awaiting parole at the end of Decom...

 

[84 W40]

It all started in the early 70's with a few of my uncles and my father having muscle cars. As a kid going for a ride and getting pinned to seat while they were shifting threw gears put a smile on my face. I did play alot with Hot Wheels and tracks, AFX tracks, Sizzlers tracks and SST. What got me into drag racing was a track that one of my uncles gave my when I was 10 years old. It was made by Eldon and called Top eliminator drag strip and I still have it.

 

[Bonnewagon]

My Dad and the rest of my Uncles survived The Great Depression by being frugal and mechanical. So I was raised to be thrifty and always be tinkering with stuff. His Brother had an ESSO station in Versailles PA (not far from pagrunt) and I hung around there in Summertime. I was indoctrinated with grease at an early age. But they were about fixing cars just for maintenance reasons. My Cousins and I took it to the next level by hot-rodding anything and everything. Hey Jack- lots of cool hot rods in NYC back in the day. My dream car was a '32 Vicky.Coincidence?

 

[Rus]

For me it started out of necessity. We grew up with no money so I bought my first car for $50. A buick Lesabre convertible. It needed a motor and convertible top. Never did it before and grabbed a Chilton book and the rest is history. I am addicted and keep stepping up my projects. My last one was a frame off resto mod.

 

[Monte Cristo]

Dunno. I had Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars as a kid, as well as the big steel Tonka trucks, bulldozers, etc. We had model trains, not race tracks in our house. I loved fixing the rail cars and locomotives. My grandfather started us with the trains. He was very mechanically minded, but not an auto mechanic by trade. I remember him having an old odometer in his workshop as a kind of toy. I probably take after him, because I am very good with mechanical things and spacial relationships, how things fit together. I was always good with jigsaw puzzles too.

I am lucky to have had an uncle who made his first bankroll fixing up used cars and reselling them. He was always there to give me advice when I had a problem. I learned to fix my own car, because I had to, but I enjoyed doing it. I knew I would do a better job on my own car than the garage would. Even if I needed to buy a tool to do the job, I knew that I would have it for the next time I had a problem. So, I was investing in myself.

I don't consider myself so much of a hot-rodder, than a preservationist. Sure, I will improve the performance of something if I can, and its in the budget, but that is all part of preserving the car for future generations. I grew up with a neighbor who had two '29 Nashs in his garage and a third out back for parts for the other two. Keeping old cars running is a kind of national service. People love to see old cars maintained in good repair. The 80's cars are special to me. They still had character. After that, the designs are became too similar, and frankly, boring. I've also always hated the throw-away society. Keeping my cars in good shape is my way of rebelling against that.

 

[MrSony]

My parents used to go to the street drags out in Van Meter (rural Iowa town with about 800 people, nice place) back in the 90s. When my mom was still pregnant with me, (mid 98), she and my dad stood about 4 feet from a 502 64 malibu and a 500hp t type and as they shot past em my dad said I kicked really hard and he knew then I'd like cars. The first car I remember liking was the General Lee, I had dozens of toys and models as a kid. Still do. I had about 1000 hotwheels/matchbox cars, and still have quite a few of em. I also always used to draw a lot, specifically cars. They were easiest thing to draw because all the shapes are definite, they don't wrinkle or change like a person's face. My dad had about 200 car mags that I would leaf through and somewhat learned how to read from. My dad always liked the idea of cars, he did a little tinkering here and there to keep his stuff on the road, oil changes, gasket changing, etc. But was never seriously into it. Once I got my permit at 14 it all went down hill from there. Garage is full of engines, backyard has a firebird and my Regal, driveway has an old C10 of my brother's. Fun times. I can't imagine not being into cars. I thank the lord I'm a car guy everytime I see one of them skinny jean and beanie wearing "males" walking around with their selfie sticks and Starbucks cups.

 

[307 Regal]

I feel hesitant to call myself a gear head these days, as I'm mostly in it for the driving and the "glamour" and don't take much pride in my wrenching despite all I've done to the car. (I do average work at best, mostly from a lack of patience.)
But I went down this road because of my dad. He was always a gear head and would take me to drags, car shows, and swap meets. The sound of V8s eventually became cathartic.
The last straw was when I asked my dad to buy me a video game with gun-toting space robots. He turned his nose up at it (not a gun fan) and instead got me this:

Everything was set in stone after that.

 

[MrSony]

I feel hesitant to call myself a gear head these days, as I'm mostly in it for the driving and the "glamour" and don't take much pride in my wrenching despite all I've done to the car. (I do average work at best, mostly from a lack of patience.)
But I went down this road because of my dad. He was always a gear head and would take me to drags, car shows, and swap meets. The sound of V8s eventually became cathartic.
The last straw was when I asked my dad to buy me a video game with gun-toting space robots. He turned his nose up at it (not a gun fan) and instead got me this:

Everything was set in stone after that.

Never played that, the Original Gran Turismo was my Jam. I still have it. Forza is better in everyway though.