What car got you hooked on cars?

ZOMBIE!!!!!!

It started too early to attribute it to one particular car. I pretty much literally learned to read on Hot Rod magazine, which I latched on to going to the store with my parents. Another earliest memory is of being annoyed with the the big un-aerodynamic scoop on the top of my matchbox F1 car. (Didn't know about feeding air to the engine yet)

My dad didn't really want me to get into cars, but he did all his own work ('65 F250 and '64 Falcon wagon when I was a kid), and had owned and driven some neat cars and talked about him, so he didn't do all that much to deter me overall. As if there could be an effective deterrent. Over the last twenty years or so he's accepted the permanence of this car phase

For me, the cars have always been secondary to the driving. What got me hooked was living in a small town and the freedom I suddenly had to not be in it. The better driver I became, the quicker I could be somewhere else, and the less frequently I could be prevented from going (due to weather or whatever). So I drove everywhere. I'd bet I put more miles under my belt from 16-18 than most normals do in their first 10 years behind the wheel.

I learned about cars mostly to imagine how they'd be to drive, or how to drive around them when they got in my way. If I'd need to have lots of running room and perfect timing to make a pass, or if I could just cruise behind them and whip around them when the passing lane came up. I learned every inch of my roads so I knew when to back off and when to make a move, which corners had better cambering, which ones would still be iced up in the morning even in May.

The driver vs car guy thing always comes up when someone asks me what my dream car is. I don't have one. Sure, I have some attributes of cars that I want (RWD/AWD, stick, just enough power to be fun, decent handling, etc), but I don't care if that comes in a Corolla or a Corvette so long as I have someplace to go and the road is interesting. All those trips up and down the mountain taught me that when you're on a public road, the car only has to be competent, it's how crazy the driver is that determines how fast you'll go, and how interesting the road is that determines how fun it'll be.

DrBoost wrote: My dad's 76 Volare station wagon. Don't remember if it was the slant 6 or the 318, but it was just the family truckster, nothing special. I remember him working on it, tuning it up and such. I was maybe 5 or 6 would would stand on the grass peering over the fender and watching in awe that one man could know so much about cars. I'd ask him "what's this called, whats that called" and he knew. I was sure there was no other man on earth that COULD POSSIBLY know that much about cars. From that moment on, I wanted to me like dad. Fast forward 30 years and I'm a certified car nut. Thanks dad.

Wierd. My first massively impressionable car was a 77 Volare coupe with the T-bar roof that my dad had purchased from my uncle, who had purchased it from my grandfather, who had purchased it from my other uncle, who bought the car new. I still have that car, in a barn.

Klayfish wrote: ZOMBIE!!!!!!

Hey be nice. At least he had the foresight to search for such a thread (I'm guessing).

In my case: Corvettes.

When I was a kid in the 70's, I would ride around in the back of the car (no child seat, of course) counting every Corvette I saw.

The first car that made me have happy feelings was Eleanor. The first car that I owned that I loved was my 1976 TR-7 back in 2005.

My moms Delta 88 and my first, Chevy Celebrity.

Figure that one out.

When I was 4 or 5 my dad had a '73 Mazda RX-3 with a bridgeported 12a. It would scare me whenever he started it because it had an open header, and I would run and hide under the desk. But I always loved that thing.

After dad died we were going through some things and found some old 8mm film. One had some awsome footage of him holding the camera with one hand while hauling ass through some backroads in what appears to be south eastern KY. I've been hooked on cars for as long as I can remember. Watching Richard Petty's car in the early eighty's are one of my earliest memories. But after seeing dads film I guess I got it honest.

Ian F wrote:

Klayfish wrote: ZOMBIE!!!!!!

Hey be nice. At least he had the foresight to search for such a thread (I'm guessing).

Yeah, no harm meant.

Well, I started early.....

Then....

Oh yeah, I had interest in real cars too. My earliest cars I remember were my parents Pintos. They each had one. I remember being 12 years old and my father had an '84 Lebaron for a company car. One of those cars that would talk "Don't forget your seatbelt", etc... I thought it was so cool.

1985 Ford Tempo. What a tough piece of garbage that was. I'm not sure how it survived being driven by my brother and myself. While it never got air quite like the General Lee, it did leave the ground on a regular basis. There was this cross road that made a hell of a jump. Felt like you when 50 ft, but probably only went 5.

When I was 5, My "security blanket" was a General Lee hotwheel. After that, I fell in love with corvettes. The real clincher was when I realized the potential in smaller cars like RX7s, AE86s, and Fieros that could put them up against Vettes and the like. its been downhill ever since

I was born interested in cars. I was obsessed with Hot Wheels in the early 70's and played with them every day. I watched late 70's/early 80's NASCAR, Gran Prix, and NHRA racing on tv. During one summer break I watched Smokey and the Bandit 27 times in one month (back when HBO was one channel and they showed the same movies over and over for 30 days). I played any racing/driving video game I could get my hands on. Bought my first car before I got my license. I loved driving and would take day trips any chance I got.

I don't know where this comes from. No one in my family is a car person. Growing up in Detroit you would think my family would be into cars but they really couldn't care less. Because of this I wasn't exposed to car shows or live racing until I got my license. My dad knew how to work on cars (a necessity from his youth on a farm) so he showed me how to keep a car in good shape without taking it in for every little repair, but he didn't really care about what kind of car he was working on. I still do my own work whenever I can.

I was about 12 the first time I saw a 911 in person. The Hot Wheels 917 and 911 were some of favorites when I was young but the real one made me vow to myself to own one someday.

I also always loved cars, but the real life car that cemented it for me was my mom's 1966 Mustang. It was a 289 auto, and to me seemed to be the most powerful thing in the world. I imagined it could outrun just about any car on the planet. Being a kid in the 80's, that probably wasn't too far from the truth.

I had no choice! My father worked for Bruce McLaren and JWA as well as various other teams in the 60's. I was less than a week old when I attended my 1st Hillclimb with my dad competing. I never recall a time when cars weren’t a part of my life. Ever penny I've earned since leaving collage has been in the auto industry. I'm doomed for life.

My Dad's car when I was 11 years old:

That pretty much cemented my desire for cars.

watching smokey and the Bandit.

I'll see your General Lee and raise you:

KITT was a major influence, though I have yet to own a Trans Am. Though honestly, I think the one single car that got me hooked for life was a little more basic.

My mom had a 1974 Super Beetle, bright berkeleying yellow. I loved that car, because it was so much like Herbie. I rode in it all the time as a little kid. In the front seat. No child seat. No crash protection other than some tin foil and a prayer. But I always wore a seat belt.

1964 Jaguar E type convertible. Saw a new one when I was a kid and have longed for one ever since. I've owned a lot of Brits and other cars, but the E type has always eluded me. Hope to get one sometime before I leave this life.

I think I was born with the transportation gene. I think it came from my grandfather because my parents are not gearheads. My grandfather was really into ships but I loved hotwheels, rode my john deer pedal tractor until I was way to big for it. I went through periods as a kid were I was really into aircraft I have always loved motorcycles even though I now don't care for the danger. Cars are my favorite and racing is the bee knees for me and always has been.

My parents both raced 240 and 260 Z's back in the day. They then both raced Corvettes, my mom had a '67 small block car, my dad had a '69 big block car with a 4 speed. Then moms got the Mustang II as the family car. Then she got rid of it in favor of a 4 door Cavalier (E36 M3box).

My uncle is Roland Johnson and was the West Coast SCCA Formula Ford champ for a few years I think. He also owns a race shop in San Diego where he builds, maintains, services, and transports Formula Ford's, Vintage Race Cars, and Can-Am Cars. He has my dream job...

I believe the car culture is in my blood and always will be. I can only hope my daughter is blessed with the bug as well. Some of the best people in the world are my "car friends" as my wife calls them. LOL

its what my dad drove as a carpenter in my most formative years. but i already had the auto DNA without knowing it as it succeeded a series of cool cars including a 66 mustang coupe and 59 Sprite SCCA racecar.

i'd actually love to own one though.

I was on my way into a computer programming future when I went to my first race way back in 1983. The first time a Nascar Modified went by at speed, my life changed forever. To this day, a Nascar Modified is the epitome of a race car in my mind. Loud V-8, wide racing slicks, no frills, nothing that isn't required to go fast. Still haven't driven one yet.

I was just born to like things that I could go fast in or on. Skiing, bicycles, go karts, skateboard, etc. Always loved my Hot Wheels. The first cool car anyone in my family owned was an '86 FC base model that my Dad bought in 1994? I loved that car since day one.

I'm not hooked on cars.........much