Driving L.A. In My Youth
I turned 16 on a Sunday in 1959, so the first thing I did after school on Monday was get my driver’s license.
I didn’t have a car of my own for a while, so I would borrow my dad’s 1955 Ford station wagon when it was available.
What a thrill it was when I got my own car. It wasn’t new by a long shot, but it was mine.
1951-Oldsmobile-98
I think I paid about $100.00 for this nine-year old car. I got it a couple of months after getting my driver’s license. It was nice looking and big.
I polished it often, and it looked great.
I remember it had a switch on the floor that would change radio stations when you pushed it. Pretty neat, huh?
I don’t think I strayed out of the San Fernando Valley with this car, but to me, it was a great car.
1953-Ford-Crestline
I paid about $250 for this used car and bought it from a guy who owned the gas station I worked at on the weekends.
It was the cheapest model they offered in 1953. I put a floor shift kit in it, painted it fire engine red, and had black naugahyde tuck-and-roll upholstery installed in Tijuana. It wasn’t fast, but it was reliable.
I drove this car all over the L.A. area, to Disneyland in Anaheim a couple of times and of course to the beach regularly.
1955-Oldsmobile-Super 88
This was the first car I owned that was truly fast.
I bought it from a classmate in college for $600.00. It was what we called a “sleeper” back then, because it looked stock.
However, it had a powerful police interceptor engine with three two-barrel carburetors and a racing transmission.
For its day, it was very fast. I really loved that car and drove it all over Los Angeles County, Orange county and took lots of trips to beaches along the coast.
1955-Oldsmobile-88 Resto-Mod
I always loved that Olds, so many years later, I decided I needed another one. I could have purchased one somebody else restored, but I decided to create my own. And it had to be faster.
After many months and lots of $$$, this was the result. Under the hood was a 455 cubic inch big block Olds engine that was built to go. My wife and I had a lot of fun with it, so it was definitely worth the effort.
And now, a little more nostalgia
The video below shows the streets of L.A. and the surrounding areas back then. It is definitely a trip down memory lane as I drove most of them in my youth.