Summer of 1983, I was a poor high-school kid going into Senior year, and wanted my own car to drive. I was looking at a pale yellow 1970 Cutlass Supreme with the typical rust behind the wheel wells and peeling vinyl top. When I popped the hood, though, and saw the “Rocket 455” on the air-cleaner lid, I gladly paid the $500 asking price. This was before the internet, so it wasn’t easy to find out what the little “SX” badge was on each fender.
The first thing I bought, before I even picked up the car, was a factory 4-bbl intake and carb for $50 from the Bargain News to replace the factory 2-bbl. I “fixed” the rust with pop-riveted panels and Bondo, stripped off the top and hacksawed off the studs from the halo trim, and began painting the whole thing primer gray. I could only afford two American Racing CP200s with some G60s for the back; the front had to remain black steelies with chrome lugs.
With the highway-cruiser 2.56 rear Posi, there was way too much top-speed for an irresponsible 16-year old. But with the wheel speed and torque of that combination, it was easy to immolate those rear tires at will… I still remember the first time I hit 100mph on the highway on the way to school, listening to David Lee Roth on cassette belting out “Panama” through the 6×9’s in the rear deck panel. I’d of course do it differently if I knew then what I know now, but it was a great learning experience and experience-generator for me at that time. Nothing can ever replace that, or match that. H/T>
