TK-65

Overhaulin was popular. So were vans with space murals, sidepipes on anything, mini trucks with heart beat pin stripes, Geo Trackers with reversed 13 inch wheels, S10s with ground effects and neon frame lights. The latest trend that many thought was here to stay was sport compact. When was the last time you saw a car with a huge wing and fart can muffler. Those Chip Foose designs will be passe too when the next big trend comes around.

One thing that NEVER goes out of style or gets to be unpopular is stock. The cool thing about Lenos Toro is it looks stock. I can see suspension and brake updates sticking around, but the paint jobs and wheel choices will fade just like every trend before them.

Aceshigh

Opinions are subjective...

(mind you right now we're only talking about 1 guy)
Chip Foose modified vehicles are limited and will sell for premium coin for years to come.
Hurst Olds never went out of style. Carroll Shelby never went out of style.
Those 2 names in classics bring in VERY BIG COIN these days. So does Foose's work.

His work isn't too "loud" , I don't 'know if you know what I mean by that.
Like the picture below.....that's "LOUD"

Agreed. Those are aesthetic changes (Fads) that move over time.

Donks, 4x4 drivetrains, Porsche whale tails on classics etc.
Most are visual & aesthetic , and not performance oriented.
Loud crazy fads, like those 80's crazy paint jobs with zig zags in the paint.

PERFORMANCE increases are never going to go out of style.

Like this.....it will fade.


Oh ....my bad, I didn't see your avatar. I know you don't mind LS swaps.
I thought you did a typo with the Delta reference.

I do agree that the LS swap looks funny in a drag car with roll cage IF it's being used as a pro-touring car.
Then again......if he's in the 11's.....maybe he's keeping it because of that ???

ziff396

I turned overhaulin off the day they put a Cheby crate into a 72 Cutlass. Could not believe they did that.
Anyhow, Alot of the other shows were good.

TK-65

No way in hell these cars are cool in 5 years, Id say they aint cool now.







These cars will not fetch top dollar. Want proof? Check out B-J when a 1980s or 1990s street rod goes across the block.

This was hot at one time too. Again another fad thats gone away. I bet theres tweed interior behind those tinted windows too.

nonhog

I like Olds powered Olds but if Chip Foose stole my car I'd be far more pissed about the Busy paint scheme and the tasteless interior. Than the LS or BBC power.

stevengerard

I respect anything anyone does to their car as I respect that they dig cars and have their own tastes, but..... I prefer stock or subtle changes myself. I for one would love to own a wagon or a hardtop that I don't feel I need to keep all original, it has been fun trying to get the W30 back to how it rolled off the assembly line but it would be just as fun to drop a set of used aluminum heads on a 455 and not worry about "ruining" a W car.

That said I always told my wife, Foose may be an artist but don't you dare send my car off to one of those places - Though I'd like to have them do up my wife's suburban as the ultimate soccer mom car.

rocketraider

Oh mercy! My eyes, my eyes!

Get rid of the faux Landau roof on the Challenger and you have a decent looking car- and I garondamntee you there's Chrysler power under its hood, not some GM LS chunk.

That 'Bu was pure eye pain 20 years ago and still is.

The OH Mustang looks like a kid's Hot Wheels toy. I think that about a lot of so-called custom work these days. It looks like... a toy. Or some acid-tripping Japanese Manga artist's idea of what a car should look like.


Unfortunately, TK, they're still around. Though to my surprise the kid around the corner got rid of his riced-out DelSol and now has a fairly restrained Acura. Maybe Ryan is finally growing up- he's 26 now, so he should be. The DelSol was always clean and had a "finished" look to it, but that picnic table wing and fart can was a bit much. Especially considering the sano 67 Nova his dad had. Yah, it was tubbed and back-halved and caged, but it was clean and looked "finished" unlike a lot of cars of that ilk.

That's the big issue with building a car to current trends. When the trends go out of style, so does the car. Not to mention your idea of personalisation is probably not going to be a prospective buyer's idea of it.

I'd like to have another ElCamino, but the vast majority I find have Previous Owner's Stamp all over them. I know full well Chevrolet did not paint every ElCamino red with charcoal gray interior or put Chevy Rallys on all of them. Then they will inevitably have a later crate engine instead of the far more interesting 283/327/396 they came with. As pointed out earlier, "owner taste" modifications are why numbers matching unmolested Chevrolets bring top dollar. They are a rare breed.

RE: the Leno Toronado. By converting it to rear wheel drive he cut the ***** right off that car. FWD is what made a Toronado a Toronado. Far as I'm concerned he completely and intentionally dissed the significance of what the car was- a big-block powered front wheel drive car when conventional wisdom of the time said it couldn't be done.

stevengerard

I think even performance mods have a limited useful life. Many folks are going with bigger and bigger wheels as bigger usually means better performance but anything bigger than 17" or 18" is really unnecessary. Years ago blowers sticking out of the hood was a decent way of bang for your buck speed, now we have centrifugal blowers and turbo chargers and under the hood roots blowers. I still dig a big ole blower sticking out of a 67 vette hood but I dig a Buick GNX doing 11s with a turbo 6 just as much.

Aceshigh

Well unfortunately you're in the minority these days.
THe younger crowd is REALLY into the "Dubs" look of that Mustang.
In fact, IIRC that Mustang belongs to a disabled guy in a wheelchair
and he was ecstatic when they revealed it to him.

I'm NOT a fan of those ginormous rear rims, I think they're obnoxious.
But again, there's so many people out there whose taste varies.
As for the Vato mobile right there, that's HUGELY popular in the Latin community.
I'm sure most of the owners here in Oldsmobile realm are rural, 40+ years old, White males.
I'll go out on a limb here by saying they're not "In Touch" with Young urban,
or Hispanic, or African American trends. But the funny thing is.........they should be with
African Americans because they dig Oldsmobiles the most.

Unnecessary???
Well that's a term that has no home in the muscle car or performance car genre, wouldn't you say ???
We do ALOT of things that are not "necessary".

However, I do agree bigger then 18" isn't needed for performance but it depends on the body lines of the car.
Your average 4 door sedan these days have 17"-18" rims on them as standard equipment.
Now if we're talking a 14" rim on a 1970 Olds VS an 18" rimmed car
The bigger rimmed vehicle is going to be able to put on MUCH bigger brakes,
AND put more rubber down on the ground for traction.

However, that also adds weight.
So for that acceleration grip, and braking power comes a price.
However, in a track race where turns are necessary, the lower profile tire on the
18" rim is going to present less flex on the skidpad then a 14" big walled tire.

If this is your example to justify your position then I have bad news for you.
That car was NEVER a desirable car, and it's not yet old enough even if it was.

It never was a "Performance" or "collectible" vehicle.
With the return of the muscle car era, I highly doubt it will be even in the future.

kjr442

I say keep it on the road know matter what! I just hope it is a Olds.

fizzy55

i wish you guys could see the looks and double-takes at the local cruse nights when people walk by my 72 el camino with 70 W-30 in the engine bay,f-heads,OAI,real intake and all. i even had one guy say he never knew oldsmobile made an el camino

Aceshigh

Now THAT is funny.

That's the true definition of Hot Rodding my friend.
Taking what you got, and making it work, and making it faster.

There never was a limitation on engine swaps. Nor will there ever be.

TK-65

Sorry, but you dont know me at all. I am 34 years old and live in Detroit. Dont tell me I am not in touch with the urban trends. We invent most trends here.

The car I used was an example of a style that was EVERYWHERE in the 80s and 90s. Monochrome was the Chip Foose paint job everyone had to have.

Here are two example of two styles that are gone today, monochrome and pro street.

Aceshigh

I shouldn't have used the 2nd party sense saying "You", so forgive me.
I meant most owners, "they", are in their 40's and are not in touch.
A general sense if you will, not targeting you specifically.
That just came out wrong.

I went back and edited my post so it's clearer.
Then I misunderstood your post, my bad. I thought you meant the car itself.
I think we're on the same page with most of the other stuff, because I've read most of your other posts.

TK-65

So my roundabout point is LS swaps may be cool today but may not be cool tomorrow. A ton of muscle cars and 32 roadsters got TPI 350 swaps in the 90s. No one is doing that today. I remember the first time I saw an LS1 in a beater Chevelle at the Power Tour. It was cool. Now, not so much. In a few years when the latest GM engine comes out, LS swaps will die down too. Just like LT1 swaps and TPI swaps.

What has never went away or went out of style is using your original engine or original make of engine. The MCACN show in Chicago this past weekend is proof that stock Muscle Cars are and always will be in style.

BTW I own a 2000 Z28 6 speed car. Its a blast to drive. I love the LS platform. But I cant see myself putting one in an Olds.

gearheads78

Well said TK. When I started building my 66 four years ago I was considering an LS swap and they were not near as popular as they are now. I decided against it and brought up the very reason you said. I didn't want to date my car. I used the exact turned port reference you mentioned as to why.

I can easily stand on both sides of this debate because of my experience with LS motors and knowing what they can do.

MDchanic

Okay, I grit my teeth through miles and miles of achingly bad grammatic and typographic errors every day in a few different forums. I don't correct people, because if I corrected everyone, my fingers would bleed. As it is, sometimes I think my eyeballs will start bleeding.

I HAVE to correct this, though, as it is not a grammatic error, but an factual error.

First Person: I, We
Second Person: You, You ("Y'all")
Third Person: He, She, They

You meant, "I shouldn't have use the second person..." and that you should have used the third person instead ("People prefer xyz...").

Sorry.

- Eric

rocketraider

Eric, Aces is no dummy (his Special Ops military experience proves that) but some people just have trouble with spelling and grammar. A lot of car people do- they were the guys drawing cars and engines in notebook margins in grammar class.

I had the teacher-frustrating ability to doodle and daydream in class but also fire back the correct answer when teacher just knew she had me.

Besides, Aces is fun to argue with! A worthy adversary...

I'm just waiting for the day he becomes an old fart himself, with his memories and his Pall Malls, with his sons full grown!

MDchanic

I never said that, or meant to imply it, and I'm sorry if it sounded that way.

Quite the opposite, really:
I'm not so much of a jerk that I can get mad at people of limited ability for doing something wrong. What gets me is when people who clearly have the brains just don't get it (or, worse, don't bother).
In this case,I only mentioned it because it's an incorrect use of the term, and might be noticed in some future conversation in person, while most of the drivel we all pass back and forth would go completely unnoticed in normal conversation because spoken English is so different than written English, and I'm sure we can all talk a blue streak when given a chance.

Again, I didn't mean to offend, but felt that this was an instance where I should point out an error. If someone kept saying "camshaft" when he meant "crankshaft," we'd correct it right away (though when people type "breaks" for "brakes" it seems we don't care ).

- Eric

Aceshigh

Good Lord, I'm having a bad grammar day. LMAO

No offense taken, I'm always open to criticism and improvement.
If I can't master my own ENGLISH language , then I can't complain about
all the illegals who don't speak English themselves, so thanks for pointing
that out. I hate when I screw up my grammar.

I take no offense when I'm truly wrong. So thank you.
I attribute that to my 3rd shift 11th hour zombie attention span.

Well thanks bud. I'm surprised you remember that.
Not SpecOps though, I was Crypto/Intel under NSA authority, then with NCIS briefly....but close enough.
Here's an old pic screwing around at the Pentagon 11 months after 9-11 (right)
My buddy Jeremy on my left who worked directly for the Sec of the Navy at that time.

MDchanic

You're preachin' to the choir there.

Believe me, I know the feeling.
There was a while a few years back where I developed the habit of always shifting the automatic into Park at traffic lights, because without the forward motion, I'd fall asleep and let off the brake pedal, and I nearly rear ended a couple of people.

So, as your writing here seems to reflect, you're somewhere above 95th percentile in terms of IQ, which is to say that what I said in my original post was not news to you, and I should have just kept my big trap shut.

Cheers.

- Eric

Aceshigh

We only improve ourselves when we're humble enough to be shown where we are wrong.
(but not in terms of engine choices Rocket Raider) LOL
I'm not leaving that one wide open.

Most people say that is it is the intellect which makes a great scientist. They are wrong: it is character.
Albert Einstein

BTW , as smart as any person can be in an area, I'm not an Oldsmobile expert at all.

66 Olznut

I found my 400 E block in a '70 Chevelle, figure that one out.

Wyze

Don't you guys realize time repeats itself!!!!!!!!



Blah blah blah!!!!!!!!!!
There's nothing wrong with putting 22's on a car as long as you don't cut it up to make them fit!!!!!!!! Seeing people make comments like ^^^^^^^ just make me sick!!!!!!

What's the difference from having 15's or 22's???????
Didn't most come with 14's!!!!!!



I can't wait till spring so I can throw some nice 22's on my 68!!!!!!

garys 68

Let me start out by saying I am the guy this thread was directed at, I'm even an Olds newbie.
I'm doing an LS conversion in a non-numbers matching 72 cutlass (442 clone). I'm not doing the LS motor because it's cool, but because I did one before in a 68 corvette convertible. And the reliability, ease of maintenence, gas milage, power, etc is hard to beat.
If Olds was alive today and building a 442, you know it would have an LS motor (ie. camaro, firebird, corvette, GTO, CTS-V). So if anyone is ok with a 350 to 455 swap, or a Qjet to Holley swap, or an aftermarket exhaust swap, I dont see the difference with a modern LS motor swap. Why not use up to date technology if it's not a numbers matching car? I'm also going with a Vintage Air system, DBW cruise control, dynomat insulation, etc.
I am going to keep the interior and exterior stock looking, because I like the appearance. The only indication inside or out that my 68 vette is not stock is a 6 speed shifter plate. Even the Vintage Air uses the stock control panel. I'll be going that route with the Olds.
So flame away, while I'm getting 25mpg, with the cruise control on, AC blowing cold, in a comfortable, reliable ride that can be tuned with a laptop instead of a screwdriver.

Wyze

Sounds like a nice plan!!!!!
I wouldn't power my car with anything but an Olds but at the sametime I'm putting 22's on my 68!!!!!!

I think a REAL carguy or gal just likes cars!!!!!!!!!!

citcapp

Different strokes for different folks. I like blowing away all LS powered chebbys with my old 57 Olds with a mild tweaked 455, I am old school and love tuning with a screwdriver. I like being part of the action not observing it.

DJS70cutlass

hit the nail right on the head

88gspot

ultimatley it comes down to , ITS YOUR CAR AND YA CAN DO AS YA PLEASE . that being said if ya wannat take my car and and on your dollar build some nasty *** olds motor and so on do i wont take any ofense . but to rag on someone who does as he pleases with his car is just bullshit , we are in a car hobby not a bunch of elitest,s . if your thing is stock / resto good for u , im not gonna say your dumb for keeping it old school and ill respect your car for what it is . this is why most of the time now the car scene isnt what it used to be cause people can t let stuff go respect the work put into it without bashing them , oh and for the record the donk thing will never get my respect as its just another thing the ghetto wrecked lolol

garys 68

I'm too old to care to race anyone...or even to know what a donk is....

TK-65

88gspot

i know a little hipocritical lolol , just cars shouldnt be lifted to get 30in wheels under it .

88gspot

these abortions are called donks . some ghetto made cars , ya know what i mean im tryin not make race reguarding jokes here lolol

garys 68

Thanks, now I'm going to have nightmares.......

Wyze

Smh!!!!
When you say ghetto it sure sounds like it!!!!!!
So is it cool when a White guy from the Burbs does it!!!!!!

MDchanic

I'm a white guy from the ghetto, and I wouldn't even think of doing that. Even when I was a kid, when it was Lincoln Continentals with big round Stutz Bearcat lights and chrome grille surrounds, I wouldn't have done it.

Tacky is tacky, no matter how much it costs.

- Eric

88gspot

it originated from the ghetto , no it wouldnt be any diff if a white guy did it although i have yet seen a white guy do it . dont get all pissy and turn it into a race war as thats not what i was doin and ya gotta take it there

Wyze

Ghetto!!!! Yeah right, not in Maine!!!! Lol
but your right about tacky being tacky!!! But who's to say what's tacky!!!!!

I'm not pissy at all but I think you live on another planet or something if you never seen a whiteboy with a bigwheeled car!!!! They started it!!!!
& those cars aren't Donks in the pics!!!!! They're just lifted!!!!!
no that stuff didn't start in no ghetto!!!
Do some research!!!!!!

MDchanic

Like many people who grew up poor, I moved out.

When you grow up, you'll understand better.

- Eric

88gspot

i live in new york , not another planet as ya may think . we have all sorts of diff car trends here . still day in and out donks or any other ride like that i still think is horrible , but who am i im just a white guy that never saw a white guy roll in a donk .