First car: 1971 Datsun 510 4dr, mostly stock.

Second car: 1972 Datsun 510 2dr, with a neat little 2 liter and some suspension tricks.

Still have a soft spot for them; I'll buy another when the right one comes along.

Okay, here's a brief history of CJFusco's cars:

When I was 16, my father gave me his 1987 Jeep Cherokee 4.7 Sport and bought a new Grand Cherokee. I loved this truck. It felt like driving a big, steel box. It wasn't fast, it wasn't luxurious, but it was manly as hell. Had a lot of good memories occur in the tailgate of that bad boy... I have thought of getting another Cherokee as a winter car. Maybe some day.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164949783.jpg

Eventually, the engine went in the Cherokee and we junked it. My father bought a retired police cruiser Crown Vic, and let me drive the Grand Cherokee. Picture me, in 1997, in high school, driving a Grand Cherokee - just when SUVs were becoming status symbols. Yup, I had even more good memories in the tailgate of THAT bad boy.

Looking back, I never was very happy with driving this car, though. I felt like it lacked something, like it was too luxurious to be taken seriously as an off-roader...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164949916.jpg

When I left for college, my father decided to sell the Grand Cherokee and he bought himself a new car (I don't remember what). I got to drive the Crown Vic when I came home. I hated this car. Even though it had a tuned 5.0 V8, it couldn't handle, was too big, vague, heavy, and floaty. I hated driving it. I don't remember what happened to it. I guess we sold it.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164950019.jpg

Around this time, my love affair began with the 944-series of Porsche cars:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164950158.jpg

When my grandfather passed on, my family got his 92-ish Taurus, which I drove while home for the hollidays, during incliment weather that the 944 couldn't handle.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164950100.jpg

I also forget what happened to this car.

When I graduated college, I needed a winter car to beat around in, and managed to find a 1997 Olds Cutlass for a steal. I still have it.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164950237.jpg

Last but not least, I sold the 944 and bought a 951 this summer. This car is absolutely incredible.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164950284.jpg

Nice...my first SPORTS car was a '71tii. That is a car I wish I still had!

mark 2 VW Golf ( or Rabbit for you lot ) 1.8 Diesel, some special series called Madison, guards red, square Jetta style headlights
can't remember what year it was from, but it didn't last me to long, busted head gasket and it turned out the PO had done some shady work... bit of a lemmon..

bought a brand new mark 2 Golf Tdi instead

that is one sweet looking 951... i like the colour ,and how the Fuchs are not black or chrome, but just work with the paintjob of hte car... don't change a thing !

keep the pics comin'..they really help the thread! :)

1950 Mercury two door coupe. Three on the three running a 239 flathead engine.

Drove the car for several years then traded it in on a 1961 VW beetle. Drove it for a while then while playing "boy racer" rolled it. Drove to a junkyard a week later and bought like new sunroof body, and strapped it to the top of the car using a logging chain and drove it home. It soon became a "Baja Bug" with the front and rear bobbed.

Next car was a 1964 Triumph Spitfire. Drove it for a year then shoehorned a Triumph Vitesse 6 cylinder into the thing. Would go sideways in 3rd gear with the extra power and light weight.

Still wish I had the Mercury.... Nothing like the sound of a flathead engine.

Mark II VW Golf GTD. 1.6L turbodiesel. 90hp. top speed of 165mph.

My parents gave it to me (it was my dad's car) for my 18th birthday (legal driving age in Italy) with 60,000km.
I drove it until it died and was parted out at 300,000Km.

Awesome first car!
The 124 Abarth used to populate my dreams when I was 10

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164983322.jpg

Fusco that was a great read.

REALLY nice looking 951 as well!

'78 Ford Country Squire Station Wagon. Light yellow w/ the fake wood paneling. 400ci 2 barrel :D.

The last of the BIG ONES.

Went through 2 transmissions and one motor in three years of hauling all my friends around in H.S.

Have you ever "caught air" in a large station wagon? I have. Dukes of Hazzard style. ;)

I do not wish I still had it. ;)

My '72 Chevelle though...yeah, I wish I still had that one.

As well my parents had both a '64 TR4A and a '72 TR6. Wish we still had both of those...

one of these--79 wag(this is an 83, but it is similar--except mine was 2-tone blue and in much worse shape).

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164985347.jpg

and one of these--79 924(except mine was green/tan with gold 5-lug spiderweb wheels)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164985409.jpg

Thanks for the kind words, guys. I am very, very happy with this car. The 944 was quick, but the 951 goes like a rocketship.

Unfortunately I can't take credit for that pic. A board member took this pic when he met the previous owner at a Pelican meet. My attempts aren't quite as professional-looking.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164986177.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164986189.jpg

When I started driving 3 years ago, my dad let me drive his 87 924S because he didnt get enough use out of it and didnt want to shell out for a new car. Still drive that when i can, but I put a lot of miles on my Xterra when its cold or I need to haul people around

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f2...1/100_0712.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f2...1/000_0026.jpg

First- '72 Super Beetle for $50 in '83 6 mnths later it was drivable and repainted (kind of). Rolled it on it's side once playing on icy roads, rolled it back over and motored on.

Then '70 Beetle after psyco girlfriend trashed the '72.

Next POS '72 Mustang Grande with leaf springs rusting thru the trunk.

Next Plymouth Valiant with the infamous unkillable slant six (paid $35 for it!)

Next parents let me kind of have a 1983 Lecar to commute to college in (spun it 360 degrees once with four people in the car on any icy narrow country road doing 60 mph and ended up motoring on!).

Next '72 240z

Next '78 Rabbit

Next '85 Nissan pickup

Next '77 924 (still have, teen daughter drives it now)

That pretty much sums up the cars of my "youth".

No pics of my first, the aformentioned 72 GTO. But here is my second car. I sold the GTO due to some unsound advice from my father, who hated Pontiacs for some reason. :(

Used some of the money to buy a 68 Barracuda fastback with a slant 6. (dad was a mopar nut) Two weeks later the 6 spun a main. :( :(

The rest of my GTO money, and then some, was spend converting it to a V8 and getting it painted. I left my job at the grocery and started working for the body shop to help defer the costs.

Here it is:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164989232.jpg

Current mopar nuts will notice a few incongruities with the car, but keep in mind that this was when they were still considered noncollectable junk.

First was a '66 Plymouth Fury VIP w/ 383 and 8 track player. Second was '63 Chevy P/U and third was '58 Ford F100http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1164993017.jpg

$300 '72 Ford Gran Torino....

not mine but

http://www.bknightscc.com/DSC00603.JPG

'73 Thing.

Boy Racer got a good start. :)