In our family, my grandfather had set up custodial accounts for all the grandkids, so in the advent we were old enough to drive, these funds would facilitate and help offset the cost of buying a car. Of course there were stipulations to this, some of those being our grades if still in school, if living at home, and our conduct and maturity all untimely under our parents discretion.

As the time was approaching, I figured I would start my search a bit early as I had specific requirements in mind. So I set about searching for my first car. I was impelled by the sheer fact that I could not be outdone by all people, my brother, who had gotten a 1977 Z-28 Camaro as his first car.The thought alone was inconceivable! For weeks I labored over the autos for sale in the classified ads, followed up on every lead posted on the telephone pole or taped to some storefront window. All it seemed I was doing was running into the same block wall because I was so adamant about the type of car I wanted. Just as I was about to give up hope, a friend I had deputized in the efforts to find a car for me had a friend who just had happened to know a guy that restored old hot rods. The vehement quest of finding the perfect car may have come to a successful end.

Every teenager has grand dreams of what kind of car they want, even before actually getting the license to drive one. New and sleek, purring with power, however big we dreamed, most of us were happy to just get four wheels finally of our own. My first car? A 1974 Mustang 2 Couple with a 2.8L V-6 engine sporting 105 horsepower. The brilliance of the sun would reflect deep ruby reds, dark magenta and such lustrous rich purples that at certain angles it appeared black, which only accentuated the stark whiteness of the oversized fuzzy dive suspended from the rearview mirror. Of course that was only where the paint job was still in decent…