balthazar

Never heard of the '64 Olds 'GTO'... Olds intro'd the 4-4-2 in '64, so there must be more to the story... or a lot less. My '64 has the standard powertrain (303/389, RHM375, 3.08 open rear), but the car is a low-miles loaded (PS, PB, PW, AM-FM, PAnt, cruise, tilt, A/C, and more) original (56K miles). It's a real solid survivor, but it needs a go-thru and paint (Starlight black, black Cordova top, black bucket/console interior). I have Tri-Power & 8-lugs for it, but at this point I don't when/if I'll get around to it- other projects are in front of it, unfortunately. I missed picking up a super rare Hurst His-n-Hers for it off eBay last year- I'd still like to get one of these units (the first manu-matic ??)

So what am I supposed to do as a consumer: ignore all the wretched garbage I've tossed stamped Made in China, take my $1x,xxx hard-earned dollars and go research whether Dodge or the chinese were responsible for whathaveyou major components, then Spin the Big Wheel and hope for the best with the Hornet?? No thank you- the risk is far too high (based on reams of personal experience). And I submit that a motor vehicle is far more complex and had far more room for awful asssembly work that a palm-sized software case (MP3 player).

>>"Balthazar-Do you know much about the early 1960's Pontiacs, especially Grand Prix models?"<< Are you crackin' wise on me, son? Seriously, I own a '64 GP, one of the 7 '60s Pontiacs I've owned. Lots of time spent around '59-66s. The Golden Era for PMD- I love 'em! There's a mountain of info between my ears and my bookshelves. I couldn't even list general catagories in a concise manner... what do you want to know??

Even triple-wrapped in plastic isn't likely to keep water out- it's not the plastic itself but the what-has-to-be numerous seams and the manner of sealant on those seams... Water manages to get in against the stoutest of defenses. A sump pump system would've been very smart. I am extremely hopefull, nonetheless. 2 questions: I wonder if the water table level was acertained in 1957, and could there be any other reason as to why the crane operator needed another P-57... besides event hype?

There are so-oo many, it would almost be easier to pick a Division and concentrate there. I have a really excellent 'overview' book called Muscle Car Chronicle (ISBN 0-7853-7670-4); if you start with any book, pick up that one- excellent pics, covers all domestic makes' performance models (plus many race/drag cars) from '49-'01. I highly recommend it for the volume of pics alone. Pontiacs I know very well- there at least I can answer most any specific performance question you can toss out.

You guys all see the V-Series mesh grillework's origin on that '30 above, right?

>>"if he had taken a Camry or Prius instead, the trip would have gone smoothly and with no problems.. "<< They'd still be asleep in Sixty8's driveway come the 15th.

I like to pinch my helmet when I'm concentrating. Keeps me sharp.

UPDATE :: Just got off the phone with Sixty8 (10:30 pm) ~~ apparently the latest fix for the water pump is a no-go: 40 miles from home and the B-59 is red hot in the cooling system. Plan is to go back to home base, regroup, and perhaps take the Roadmaster. In that this may mean a 3-4 AM swing-thru here at the Ranch, I am now officially off the sight-seeing list. Another time. Gotta hand it to Sixty8 for his dedication on trying to get another set of fins there to greet the P-57 (I hear a contingency of Exner MoPars will be there). I had my B-59 rolled outside and waiting for a nose-to-nose photo op, expecting them maybe around 7pm... and at 8 when it started raining hard I paniced and ran back to my shop. Home alone & unable to push the 315/60-15s back up over the concrete lip, I had to push the B-59 in with my F-150. Did I mention I don't have the tie rod on it? Ahh, who cares; it's all good when you're ramrodding around vintage iron. I have to get cutting on the firewall ASAP anyway. It was good to see her outside in natural light again. Good luck, guys !! Vicariously & jealously looking forward to road trip updates here.

With certain things I'm concentrating on; yes.

Just because it's mind-numbingly popular doesn't mean it's great. Analogy: Paris Hilton

>>"Beauty is based on what you're used to seeing; something drastically different often causes a knee-jerk reaction. The 5er design was ahead of its time, and after so many years of conservative BMWs, I wasn't prepared for the surprise. "<< I dunno: I've seen automotive designs that were unique and new-to-me-@-that-moment and knew instantly that they were beautiful... to 'come round' to that opinion over time does not ring of true endorsement, IMO. The current 5-series does not strike me as 'dramatic' at all when you look at the entire industry styling-wise; but if all one concentrated on were BMWs, then I guess I could see that.

5-6 is fine. Give me a call about an hour before if you can- the schedule at Rancho Balthazar is always rather hectic.

'Packaging'... when weighted against real workable-gauge steel, nickel-iron, triple chrome and fins, is for pansies.

4 people... "stuffed" in a 1959 Buick??- a car that measures 81" wide at the doorskins?? Are ye daft, man?

^^ that's a very odd way of 'selling yourself' on an aesthetic you initially found distasteful... bringing up the question: for what purpose ?? What's 'in it for you' to convince yourself you like something you don't; is it somethig more than peer pressure? I ask because I want to know.

As some of you might imagine; nothing shown in the linked pics does anything for me. Rear is an undeniable mess of panels seams and cut lines- "Clean-up in aisle 535!". Interior just does not look high buck to me- esp the schizoid dual dash hoods. The rest of the dash just looks un-substantial.

>>"The night of the 12th, GM1 & Balthazar. Perhaps a phone call or two is in order."<< Any ballpark ideer what hour you might be Delta-Wingin' thru my neck of the suburbs?? Oh, and don't bother unless your ride has tailfins. No; cardboard & duct tape will not count.

I don't feel the XLR is where it should be; the Evoq is still superior in design, but I cannot call any current Cadillacs either 'bad' or especially 'ugly' from a design standpoint. But if the BLS was here, I could call that 'bad'. The rest beyond the XLR I grade as 'good': CTS - (current) still love it. SRX - they are a bit tall, but so are most of the smaller lux SUVs. STS - see a surprising number of them, recognize them immediately from the CTS and I find them upscale & 'tightly wrapped'. They're always hustling down the road, too. DTS - greaty appreciate it for the segment it's in, wouldn't mind owning one in the least. Esc - These are at the top of the segment IMO.

These always remind me of Neons from the rear for some reason. Good luck- hope it's reliable for you.

>>"The flexing rear frame was designed for NVH. ...if the structure was designed to flex in the first place? ...a structure designed to flex will be durable when flexed."<< I for one am not nearly so ready to assume the frame issue was 100% intentional: new vehicle, new segment, new frame, new plant. And legendary spin doctoring. Others may choose to accept manufacturer PR word-for-word...

>>"balthazar, I don't think I've ever seen you're B-59...got photos?"<< It's still in the building phase, unfortunately. When you take every 2 pieces apart (then lose most of your drive for 2 years)... it takes a while. This was taken last year:

$3,075,000 for a GM model? That kills the bugatti veyron for bragging rights...

Car looks great, but it's certainly not the first Hemi-powered shoebox Chevy. Love the waffle pattern in the sweep instead of the brushed horizontal stripes. but the machine guns barrels are just plain silly and frankly: distracting. Also love the 'Cloud' upholstery insert- that's a factory '57 pattern available in other colors (I'm familiar with 'Red Cloud')... it's an awesome pattern that temps me to put it in my B-59... except that if there's a chance that even 2 observers would recognize it as 'Chevy'- there's no way. Ford had a similar funky red-n-black pattern in '56.

>>"Anyone else experience something like this ... where daily driving has slowed your fire for "cruising"? Or, maybe it is something else ... some experience that has slowed your fire for a passion of yours?"<< My passions all require differing degrees of very hands-on work to even get to the point of 'cruising'... I wanted to get my '40 on the road last summer, and I am no farther along now than I was then, and I may only have 50-60 hours left. Chasing money is taking up all my time....