[marc weintraub]

Denis,

The first "S" was actually built in 1966 with as with any production run. My car was one of the first 100 produced and it was considered and registered as a 66"S". My 73"S" was produced in late 72, but is a 73"S". There was no noticable difference between the 66"S" and the 67"S".

As far as which ones did I like and what were the differences. I loved the peakiness of the 66 and the shortwheelbase of the early car with soft rubber makes it handle like a go kart. This car was not as quick as the 71-73 cars I have owned, but it always brought a smile to my face when I put my foot into it. The webbers sound great when your right foot gets a bit of an itch to go to the floor. I just don't like the the 901 transmission, but that is more personal than anything else.

The 71 was a fabulous car, but again... I really didn't like the 901 transmission. The handling was wonderful, but in my case the car was a targa and I am not a big fan of them for various reasons. Overall, a wonderful car with a very usable power range. I didn't really find it to be peakier than the 72-73 cars, but it did make a different sound exhaust wise. I can't describe the difference, but there was a very distinct one.

I had a 72'E" and 72"S" at the same time and these were two of my favorite cars. I loved the chrome and the fender oil filling feature. I think the whole "line" about gas station guys filling it up through the oil tank was pretty funny since you have to know where to go to open the fender door. It was in the passenger side door jam and the door would have to be opened to do this. I am not terribly sure there were too many gas station jockeys that knew where to look for the button to open it. Regardless, both 72"S" were just wonderful cars (one silver and one red) and they handled extremely well with plenty of power throughout the power band.

The 73"S" really differs in bumpers and little things of that nature. My car was so early in the production run that the bumpers were the only difference besides the oil filler and tank location. Overall, I love my 73 for it's handling, creature comforts, and overall stability. Please don't get me wrong though... these cars (the early "S") are all pretty close in driving characteristics and stability. It really comes down to who sets up the suspension and what type of rubber you are running with. The 72-73 cars had the highest revving engines, but I never really went to 7300 or 7100 in any of my cars, so I really don't notice much of a difference.

I liked the earlier door pockets in the 67 and I like the sport seats in all of them. I would love to get another 72"S" coupe, but the market seems to be pretty dried up for now.

Hope that helps...

Marc