A Happy Day at the Earp House

Ron Earp · 08-23-08, 05:09 PM

Fantastic day. The best part was a nice fellow coming and taking the Jensen Healey away!!!!!

I sold the motor, tub, and then took the parts off the car for another project. Fellow came and took it away, oh happy day!

Then the transport guy came and he bought this Torino to my house that my wife only found out about a few hours before. Fortunately she isn't completely ticked off, it does run after all - so another happy incident! It is a 72 CJ 4 speed, I like em but I know they are not well-loved by most muscle car folks.

Man, got to love a wife that puts up with this crap, she's a keeper!

R

RichardH · 08-23-08, 05:42 PM

Aw Ron! How cud yu dispose of that white beauty for that blue monstrosity.

Rob · 08-23-08, 05:44 PM

Congrats Ron. She's a beauty. I like em... for what it's worth. Plus.....CJ 4 speed Torinos aren't exactly a dime a dozen.

Yep...she's a keeper. Both the CJ and the wife. I'm fortunate enough to have one of those too (car guy wife that is, not the CJ.. :-)

Ron Earp · 08-23-08, 07:11 PM

Cause that "white beauty" already tried to kill me, oh, a few times now and the blue one hasn't.

Plus, the blue one is one of those "It's an American Thing" that I sort of figured most overseas folks wouldn't get. While you folks were wailing around in cool Cortinas and so on we were driving big barges with 7.5L motors.

Plus, it is sort of a running joke that the 13 Hour Enduro drivers from the UK get a dodgy car to drive while over visiting. First year was Jeff's Surburban. 8L motor, a radio worked if you shut the door hard, doggy poop smell with temps over 60F, and the steering could best be described as "Helm-Like".

Second year they got my Porsche 944 S2 that leaked oil, but didn't cause a fire, and had no AC as well as windows that didn't go down.

I figured I had to trump those two experiences. This year a 72 Torino CJ four speed with a clutch pedal that you'll need an Olympic physique to actuate and a reverse you'll have to hire a detective to find. Radio works though.

Pete K. · 08-23-08, 11:33 PM

Torino? Goin' to paint it red with a white side/top stripe?

Mark Charlton · 08-23-08, 11:53 PM

Congrats Ron,

I particularly like the "genuine" vinyl top. Very chic!

Seems like quite a step up from the previous beaters. I suspect you'll get even more visitors then ever.

Jac Mac · 08-24-08, 03:11 AM

White n Blue ,#15 on the doors, 'STA Power Engine Conditioners' sign writing and a nice 351c along with some 15" Nascar steels and drop it about 6" @ the front , 4" @ the rear and it will start to look like a real car!!

Randy V · 08-24-08, 09:30 AM

Wow Ron - A GREAT start to the weekend!!!!

Love the old iron... Particularly old iron that hasn't started it's march back to becoming one of the base elements of the mother Earth.. ((Rust))...

Tim Kay · 08-24-08, 11:51 AM

Ron, I'd call that one heck of a hat trick: Healy, Torino, Wife. And not necessarrily in that order.

In addition, the world owes you for what appears to be another lovely lady in training. One who will cherish a man with this ridicules need for the thrill of automobiles.

David Briggs · 08-24-08, 01:32 PM

The best day I ever had with my own Jensen was seeing some other poor bastard happily heading east on Highway 80, taking it to its new home in El Centro!
Being blessed with a very understanding woman myself I can appreciate your good fortune, you are an inspiration to us all!
Dave

Fred W B · 08-24-08, 03:07 PM

Cool car Ron, but come on now, we want to see the T70 going together

Cheers

Fred W B

Ron Earp · 08-24-08, 08:12 PM

Thanks fellows, I'll pass along the compliments to the Minister of Domestic Affairs and Sydney.

David I'm with you on that Jensen. It was a great day when it arrived, and it was a great day when it departed!

The idea is to simply drive the Torino around and have fun with it. Thus far that hasn't been an issue. Made a few trips out and about in it today, it's 1972 all over again. It actually drives well. Handles like a pig of course, but gos and stops reasonably well and it quite fun. I can't imagine the roads full of these things, but indeed they were.....

Tim, I thought a domestic Hat Trick was when you had three girlfriends and in one day, oh, never mind...I'm over the hill tomorrow, those days are long past....

Tim Kay · 08-25-08, 01:02 AM

Quote:

...I'm over the hill tomorrow, those days are long past....

....everyone needs a dream

Malcolm · 08-25-08, 05:57 AM

With that suburban Jeff lent us two years ago, you forgot about the stoved in roof where he drove into a multi storey car park with low ceilings forgetting he had a set of wheels and tyres on the roof!

I think you lend us these crap boxes so that when we get into your race cars we think they handle fantastically! Which of course they do.

Looking forward to our next visit to VIR.....and yeah it would be great to see the T70 moving forward.

Ron Earp · 08-25-08, 07:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Malcolm

With that suburban Jeff lent us two years ago, you forgot about the stoved in roof where he drove into a multi storey car park with low ceilings forgetting he had a set of wheels and tyres on the roof!

I think you lend us these crap boxes so that when we get into your race cars we think they handle fantastically! Which of course they do.

Looking forward to our next visit to VIR.....and yeah it would be great to see the T70 moving forward.

Oh, I forgot about that Burb feature, that was sweet!!

The Lola could probably be made to run and move, under its own power, in about 25 hours of work - if KED would get off their laurels and send a flywheel and clutch setup that was ordered from them on my behalf almost two months ago.

We can probably arrange a couple of "special" cars for you guys to drive around in while here. Why bother with Hertz?

Ron

Peter Olliviere · 08-27-08, 01:01 PM

Ron,

Great purchase, It would have been great to have been able to buy that kind of car new.

The guy in the attached picture is me back around 74 or 75. The car is a 1972 Mercury Montego GT powered by the 428CJ motor with automatic. I purchased the car new in 72 and a year or two later had it built by Speedwin Automotive in Long Island New York. The motor was ported and balanced along with the compression going to 10.5. Long tube headers and a 750 Holly were added. It may have been a boat but it was one fast boat. By the way the tires were Pirelli Centeratos with Koni shocks.

The Picture was taken somewhere in between New York and Florida on a vacation trip with my wife.

Ron Earp · 08-27-08, 01:21 PM

That is a cool picture and a cool car! I bet that was something to have back in the day. It would be a hell of a car to own today too! I found a 71 Mercury Cyclone GT with a 428 and 4 speed that I seriously considered but it needed A LOT of work.

I have to say, I enjoy driving this thing around. Gets the "WTF!" kind of looks, which is somewhat amusing.

Peter Olliviere · 08-27-08, 03:06 PM

The day after you posted on your new toy, I spotted a white one with light blue top. To see one does not happen often 30 plus years and low production numbers will keep it that way.

Peter

Ian K · 08-27-08, 05:55 PM

A good friend of mine in college had a wonderful daily driver.

1970 Torino with a well massaged 351C/4 spd.

Mine was a 1972 Firebird Formula 350 with a 400 small block and
Muncie 4 spd. Until I got the 240Z

Ian

Iron Sheik · 08-27-08, 09:39 PM

Sooooo,

Moderator man (with BAD taste),

Which one are you??/ Startsky Or Hutch?!!

I guess you have to be from Carolinas to like something like this.

BUT,,,,for god's sake,,,would you please paint over that S^%$y Gulf Poop color?

Congrats anyway,,,,70% of people on this Forum have bad taste, so,,, you are in good company