Hot Rods So, are all your cars traditional?

Or he could have just said "hey, fuck it, what's 13 mil?"

There's something to be said for driving carefully in an old car. I haven't got out of the habit yet.

 

this guy and some others are making complete sense

 

Exactly.

When was the HAMB ever about making sense?

Some guys will never get it

 

You gotta make a little sense or the dumbasses that don't two shits will spoil it for everyone!!!
Using your head doesn't make you dipshit or a follower.
Imagine the headlines. $13million dollar car destroyed Bc 50's car had poor quality braking system.
My guess is that that billionaire has a bit more sway with laws and government than the owner of that "traditional" ride that couldn't stop!
This is the one thing about the pisses me off with rat traps. Safety is out the window.
I am all for the traditional look but for shits sake, it has to have some level of safety.


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This has nothing to do with rat traps. It has to do with how cars used to be built, and how we drive them.

Seems lots of folks still can't stop in time with cars with 4 wheel disc ABS. Are you going to blame that on the car? or the driver?

 

You can have good brakes that are still traditional. They are not as cheap, or as easy to find as GM metrics but it is possible.

I have had a saying for a long time, Go fast cars need stop fast breaks. But that said your braking power should never exceed your bite. If you are not running 21st century tires there is no need to think that 21st century brakes are going to make you safe.

Diligence is key, pay attention to what you're doing and always have an escape route. You have to drive like you own a flux capacitor and can see 5 minutes into the future.

 

It has everything to do with "rat traps", because that is how the non rod and custom public sees ALL OF OUR CARS, regardless of fit, finish, or construction quality, even your Chevy II, Jim.

Don't forget the golden rule: "He who has the gold, makes the rules". You want to see some anti-old-car legislation fast-tracked right through my state government?

If it were allergy season when that incident happened, this wouldn't be a hypothetical. One sneeze, and I would be talking to lawyers. That's way too fine a margin.

I have been a race driver since 1986, pro since 1988, now retired. I can stop anything at its maximum possible rate of controlled deceleration. That said, I cannot stop a 4-corner-drum-brake 1960 Falcon, even on brand new, modern rubber, faster than a $13.75m supercar, also stopping at its maximum possible rate of controlled deceleration.

They are not called the "Friendly Suggestions of Physics". They are laws. When you try to break them, you, or others, get hurt, or killed.

I do not get to pick the prevailing speed of the freeway. Where I live, there are most often not a "back way" to get anywhere. It is the freeway, or no-way.

 

There is one thing in that equation that you can control.

 

Yes all mine are traditional!

 

Yup, the safety level of my vehicle, framed within the perspective of the vehicles and drivers I have to share the road with.

 

I found one more thing. The following distance.

Remember the two second rule? you can change it to the three second rule, for free.

But it seems that not many folks today are capable of doing this. I'm one of the few. I have to be, because I like driving old cars.

Most folks don't seem to enjoy driving old cars, I hardly ever see any when I'm on my travels.

 

Anyone who has driven where I live can tell you that leaving extra following distance absolutely will not work.

If you leave so much as a glazed doughnut thickness beyond a car length behind the driver in front of you here, someone will move into that space, every time, even if you are already under hard braking.

Leave two seconds, and two people will move in there. Leave three, and a trailer-truck will.

Keep backing off until you re-establish the gap, and you will be back in your own driveway.

Traffic here now meets, and often exceeds that of the class of the Los Angeles basin. This ain't Sierra Vista, AZ.

 

Huh...I've driven there, didn't seem to be a problem. Maybe I'm just lucky?

I guess if you're an ex race car driver living in SF, then you need disc brakes. Fortunately, I'm just a normal guy, living elsewhere, so I can have traditional cars.

I hope the Corvair survives, when I go through there next month. Should be interesting. It's never been hit in the front, and it has crappy single MC tiny drum brakes. Contingent on if the engine lasts that long, of course.

 

Try it daily, during rush hour.

 

My condolences.

 

Everthing Gimpy said is dead on. It is part of the reason my 59 ElCamino only saw about 600 miles in the 7 years it was in the Bay Area. The two attempts made to steal it had a lot to do with it too. Getting off the freeway was full braking effort and rapid downshifting because my safety zone was always eaten up by some jackhole who needed to turn 300 feet back.

 

And you can't do it with the typical disc brake conversion kit either!

 

Six piston Willwoods in the front, four piston in the rear. 12" rotors on all 4.

It stops good now. Still 4-lug, too. Still probably would have hit it, if I sneezed.

 

Well I still say that if the only reason your are laying on your belly in front of or behind my truck is to look under it and see if I have an I beam and drum brakes or independent and disk so you can say it is or isn't as traditional as you think it should be you are too frigging nosy. The Model A on the other Hand is intended to be far more "correct" in those areas. It probably won't be spending much time in the "big city" though.

 

So if you have to drive an old car in the bay area, back off 3 seconds behind the car in front of you repeatedly, wait for a semi to cut in, then ride his ass. you'll be fine

 

Boy howdy!
On many Bay Area chingos I've experienced this firsthand, Oakland, San Hosay, etc. and Sacramento can be like a "war zone" at rush hour.

 

Move.

 

Yeah, until I get hit by the semi behind me.

I can keep 80 mph all day. If I settle in with the semis, that would be 55 or 65.

My time ain't free.

 

To where?

I work in an industry that is only here.

Are you suggesting that I take a pay cut to 1/10th of what I currently earn, by moving to a place that costs half as much, to avoid upgrading my brakes?

If so, I'm in. Let me just divorce my wife first.

 

Sadly, that's all too true. We have the same issue in the greater Seattle area (and that's with our 'polite' drivers others claim we have). I hate driving the freeway anymore because of it, and generally I can avoid it (being retired), but can't always. Even the rural area I live in has a 'rush hour' now (with only three roads into/out of town, it doesn't take much to eff up traffic) and driving sanely seems to promote stupidity on the part of other drivers. I see at least one 'bad' pass every time I go somewhere.

 

Well Gimpy you can sure tell that 1964countrysedan doesn't live in the big middle of Dallas, Houston or Austin. Those places rival any West Coast metro area for insane drivers.
The one thing I have found is that the guys who scream no disk brakes, no AC No seat belts (suicidal) and a few other things are the same ones that think going to a rod trot 150 miles from the house is way too far to go and many never leave the county they live in with their rod or custom.

Hell the build on my truck is aimed towards the idea that a couple of guys told each other "what if" after looking at photos of the R&C Dream Truck in the late 50's and decided to build a chopped and sectioned truck but wanted to stretch the leg room in the cab a bit and still have good proportions. The engine will be painted gray rather than orange because Old AD chevy trucks had gray painted engines. On top of that will be a lot of finned cast aluminum (2 more pieces to buy and that is done) Hopefully the 4 barrel on the 292 will hide under the air cleaner enough but in 1958 you could conceivably put a 4 barrel on a six. Trans won't be that traditonal but no one will see it anyhow and the shift handle will be a stock 48 chevy shift handle with my Hamb knob on it. Dash is out of my first car that I ever owned and got replaced in that car with a donor dash years. That is one of the secret ingredients though as it may or may not work. Still no modernand gauges showing, no modern head unit showing, not much visible as far as the AC/heat unit goes. Upholstery won't upset anyone and I am leaning towards a bench rather than the planned on buckets just in hope my honey decides to sit in the middle rather than way over there. Outside, paint that looks right and not too modernish, white walls and a set of simple caps that I picked up a while back that have a nice look and aren't used too much. No led lights, no billet and no bags.

 

SO, ARE ALL YOUR CARS TRADITIONAL?

From a distance, yes.

 

My car has a simple black interior, not stock style by any means, but not modern... it's got a 283 but a later engine block, not sure what year... but it's also got a 700r4 and an aluminum radiator and modern wheels. I wouldn't get rid of the radiator and transmission for nothin. They make it a dream to drive. I have been thinking about selling the wheels and buying some chrome reverse and bias plys... just haven't pulled the trigger yet.


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a brake pissing contest?
mine on my daily driver are rated for 11k pounds

got 4 bench seats, no AC or heat
and just 2 doors

 

Yep, my Falcon has 6 piston 11.5" rotors and 10" With 4 piston rears with modern 255 -17 rubber and it won't come close to supercar braking either. And I've had my SCCA Pro Competition License since 1975.

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