When did you start working on cars?

[callofthemopar]

was about 12 years old. grew up with poor-fessionals, So poor you had to do it your self. a group of about five of us kids ages 12 to 15 put 3 small blocks in a nova one summer day just to see which 1 ran better. I look back at that day now and say Wow! 3 engines and 1 day we were young and had nothing else to do. Amazing!

 

[Sonny Black]

I did work on my chev's back in the day....they or I blew them up... also did body work on my cars & paint,.....not bad BUT not always great...due to low funds.....now I cannot do heavy work on my car...due to working (at work) a lot!
also, getting old and my buddy's moved, died, or are no longer interested in helping or spending time working on cars!

plus after work I am so dam tired I don't always want to work on the '63......
put it this way, I enjoy driving it more than working on it...
so does what Sonny says make sense?

I hate typing

 

[Pops1967GTX]

The means of our work...

 

[TxDon]

I was fascinated by anything mechanical back as far as I can remember. I got in trouble many times by taking things apart just to see how they worked, my favorite Christmas or birthday gifts were old lawn mower engines, adding machines, radios, etc. I got to the point where I could reassemble what I took apart, then actually fix things. When I was 12 my Dad did a ring and valve job on our 55 Ford in the driveway and I helped, after that that the car bug bit and never let go. I got my license in that 55 and took over the maintenance, then bought my first project (Another 55 Ford) two years later. Since then I have owned hundreds of cars of all types and have done just about all kinds of mechanical and body work. I had a few Mopars in the 70s-80s and recently came back with my 67 GTX. Although I don't do much of the heavy work any more I still like to get out and get under my cars, it's the only way you can really appreciate them.

 

[snakeoil24]

I worked at my Uncles used car lot at a young age, bought cars for parts and sold parts and traded parts all the time. Then I got into Chevrolet for a short time. When I was 17 I bought my first Mopar. a 1970 Dodge Charger SE 426 Hemi. The car was trashed. I spent a great deal of time restoring it. learned car painting and Body work then from the car lot.

 

[AZBelvedere]

My first mechanic experience was when I took my brand new bike apart around age 7 or 8. I had just got it for Christmas and took the entire bike apart using a couple crescent wrenches. My mom had no idea what I was up too, until my Dad came home from work. I wasn't allowed to come back into the house until I put the whole thing back together. I think the only thing I needed help with was getting the chain back on and checking to make sure everything was tight again.

My Dad was an old school hot rodder of the 60s-70's and a ran a diesel shop with two of his brothers. They always had something cool in the garage. I loved going to the shop with him on Saturdays when they were working on their own hot rods. I'd post pictures of my Dad's cars if he wasn't so horrible at remembering to take pics, but he's had some fast ones. Before being drafted in 69, he was street racing a 63 Falcon Ranchero with a Mustang HiPo 289 & 4 spd. That was his big block killer. He's had many MOPARs too: 66 & 67 Coronets, 72 Demon, 65 Belvedere, & a 68 /6 Dart. He also had a 58 Ford F100 w/ a y-block 292 that would not die. That truck was owned by 5 members of my family (about 20-25 yrs total), and nobody ever had to crack that engine open.

My first project with my Dad was my 72 Monte Carlo w/ 350sb / 350th. Had a stock bottom end, Crane 280 cam, Wieland intake, 650 dp Holley, and an old set of 2.02/1.60 heads off a Chevelle. Ran pretty strong for a high school kids budget hot rod. Every performance part I bought was used and bought cheap. I'd just have my Dad look them over before finalizing the transactions.

My Dad is still very much involved in my 66 Belvedere build-up. This project was my first experience at building the ENTIRE engine from top to bottom, installing the Tremec 5-speed, and hyd clutch. We are now looking for either a 742 or 489 diff for my rear end and will be taking on a re-wiring challenge, custom gauge cluster, and eventually a MSD ingition & Atomic EFI.

We may also be building a 383 stroker for my Dad's recent purchase, a 86 IROC Z28 w/ 5 speed. This car looks damn near new for $5500. He has a gift for finding these steel-of-a-deals.

 

[#41]

I started helping dad around 11. Bought my first car at 15..... it didnt run so working on it was kind of mandatory.

 

[DeltaV]

I was around age 12 when I would help my Dad do various maintenance and rebuild the Rottenchester on the family car...Pontiac Catalina.

 

[JackR]

Long before I even knew what I was doing.
first really involved engine fix was on dads lifter clacking 66 rambler ambassador. Begged him to keep it so I could fix it. Head off, replaced collapsed lifters and bent push rods drove it for 2 high school years. I was 15 when I started that one.

 

[eldubb440]

I think it started with Revell models and slot cars.......then I had a little dirt bike, and another and so on

the old man was always changing oil, doing brakes, and greasing wheel bearings on the family cars, I always paid attention

 

[Richard Cranium]

 

[threewood]

Would have been 1989. I bought my 1st car, 1972 Mustang 302 2bbl, for $700. I didn't realize how expensive repairs were until I had to pay for them. Water pump went out, paid about $140 to have it replaced. Brake master cylinder was going out...fork over another $200ish. Couldn't do it on $3.35/hour pay.

Bought a Chilton's, and then a factory service manual and from then on I wrenched on it myself. Tie rods, ball joints, carb rebuilds. If I needed help I'd ask my buddy Tony, his old man was into Mopars and he got me started loving them too.

Big issue was specialty tools I didn't have and my Dad wasn't into cars so I had to make do and improvise. I really wish I had a welder back then.

 

[RTDaddy]

First working on car job was at 12 years old helping an uncle swap a transmission in a Jeep Wagoneer. Wrapped a chain around the roof and used a com-a-long to raise/lower the tranny. More or less assisted on that one. 1st real working on car was at 13, Old Man had a 73 Ford F-150 "camper Spl." with 390 2 barrel in it. He showed up one day with a 4 barrel intake and dual exhaust set-up and said "if you're gonna drive'm you're gonna learn to work on them-get those on the truck." Never realized how heave a cast iron big block Ford intake could weigh.

 

[68-500]

My father and uncle owned a mechanic shop/gas station. For as long as I can remember I spent every day I could there. First memory was changing spark plugs they “couldn’t reach”. My friends and I used that shop long after they closed doors.

 

[patrick66]

One time, a buddy and I swapped a transmission on a '76 Toyota Celica, in the parking lot of the NCO Club. We had just got it buttoned up when the skycops showed up and tried to start their little interrogations. Since we had the permission of the club manager to do what we were doing, the SPs were pissed about that! The car wasn't moving, otherwise.

 

[Cranky]

My sister actually started me into modifying my bicycle without knowing it. She could ride my bike but I couldn't ride hers and if she caught me on her bike she would hammer mine with whatever that was handy no matter where it was...even if it was hidden, she would eventually find it and hammer it. At the time we lived up north and we had cellars and I wasn't strong enough to get mine up the steps to the outside so if hers was out....yeah, I used it. It wasn't long before the fenders were beat to hell (so were hers) and I finally took them off but by then, she was too good to ride a bike anymore and left mine alone. She's 4 years older.....and well, still treats me as her 'little brother' and granted, we don't talk much anymore and haven't for several years now. Ended up turning the handle bars down too and things went from there. That was in the late 50's. She used to ask me if I was still playing with cars and my reply was usually a resounding yes then stick my little finger in my nose and act like I flicked a booger at her

 

[Cranky]

I was fascinated by anything mechanical back as far as I can remember. I got in trouble many times by taking things apart just to see how they worked, my favorite Christmas or birthday gifts were old lawn mower engines, adding machines, radios, etc. I got to the point where I could reassemble what I took apart, then actually fix things. When I was 12 my Dad did a ring and valve job on our 55 Ford in the driveway and I helped, after that that the car bug bit and never let go. I got my license in that 55 and took over the maintenance, then bought my first project (Another 55 Ford) two years later. Since then I have owned hundreds of cars of all types and have done just about all kinds of mechanical and body work. I had a few Mopars in the 70s-80s and recently came back with my 67 GTX. Although I don't do much of the heavy work any more I still like to get out and get under my cars, it's the only way you can really appreciate them.

It's like WTH (what the heck)!? My dad didn't do much work on the cars but he took me to the shops with him that did do the work. Oh man, I remember the 51 Plymouth Cranbrook that the mechanic said probably jumped time in 56. Had no idea what that meant. He said never mind about the 51 and bought a demo 56 Belvedere Sports Coupe. I learned to shift the Cranbrook with mom driving even though I wasn't all that good at it but it stuck until 63 when I took the 63 Dart on my own . Dad was always about not working on 'old stuff' and always told me to "just go and buy a new one" but that didn't sit well with me. Thing is, he used to brag to his friends about what I was doing. Found out about that when one of his friends told me about that. I'm sure if dad was still around he'd be surprised I'm still abusing his 95 Dakota that I got from him in 98......

 

[69 Sleeper Bee]

When I started working at the Gulf gas station at the front of our neighborhood running the car wash at 12 years old.
The mechanics started "letting" me clean their tools and put them back in the right spot. Worked up to changing oil, tires,batteries. Worked up to rebuilding brakes,carbs,removing engines and transmissions and the like. Never did get into rebuilding engines,trans, or rear ends so that is my weak point but my neighbor mechanic has been letting me help him.
He helped me rebuild my Oliver 550 a Diesel couple of years ago and it is running strong.

 

[WileE]

View attachment 1372882

You got that right. Seen some names here, haven't seen in awhile. I wasn't sure if I'd seen or answered this thread before, so I'll answer now: A little over 50 years ago.

 

[Cranky]

You got that right. Seen some names here, haven't seen in awhile. I wasn't sure if I'd seen or answered this thread before, so I'll answer now: A little over 50 years ago.

Yup....several that don't post anymore or haven't in a good while.