The number of playable B&W Televisions ...

[jstout66]

and now.. after reading thru the posts, I'm firing up my B&W sets. This pix is of the 1979 Zenith B&W we used to have in our kitchen.
And W3XWT.. UGH! I had a 73 Ford LTD that I do believe was the biggest POS I ever owned, well that or a tie with my 78 Mercury Bobcat. My LTD had the 400 engine in it, which I think Ford had issues with..... The 2 cars I wish I had were my grandparents 71 Ford Wagon.. I think it was a Galaxy... my other grandparents 65 Ford Galaxie, and I would love to see a model of my first car which was a 72 Pontiac Bonneville. I haven't seen ANY of those around here in AGES.

[radiodayz]

My first car was a '75 Chevy Vega, probably an even worse car than the Pinto. I still see old Pintos on the road once in a blue moon, but I haven't seen a Vega in decades.

[wa2ise]

Originally Posted by radiodayz

My first car was a '75 Chevy Vega, probably an even worse car than the Pinto.

Back in the late 70s I had a 72 Pinto and my brother had a 74 or so Vega. One night, my brother takes a girl out on a date at the movies. Later, movie is over, his Vega won't start. He calls me, I come rescue him in my Pinto. Last date he had with that girl... She probably figured that we had no clue when it came to cars...

[Sandy G]

The Vega was actually a NEAT little car, as envisioned by its father, the late Eddie Cole, who was also the ramrod behind the 1955 Chevy V-8. It just suffered from cost-cutting measures & extremely poor execution, & was rushed into production w/o so much as a "By-Your-Leave"... The all-aluminum engine& the brand-new technology developed especially for it were never really "Put thru the wringer", as it were. The new-from-the-ground-up plant in Lordstown, Ohio was full of young, inexperienced workers, who were also VERY militant towards management. The paints & primers used were especially inadequate-Cost-cutting again-And Vegas suffered EXTREME early rust out. They didn't ride well. They were cramped inside, despite not being all THAT small, at least by today's standards. There was never a 4-door model, & the little wagon, while pretty, was not really all that practical. The BEST thing about a Vega was that you could drop a 350 V-8 in one almost w/yr eyes closed.

[bgadow]

I'm really not sure that I have seen a Vega in the last 30 years that didn't have a V8 in it! I've hardly seen any, period. My old barber used to have a couple that he drag raced. The Pinto, well, I always hated the looks of 'em but I still see one on the road every so often.

[mstaton]

The Vega was known as "the only car to rust in the showroom". I agree, it was rushed into production and destruction. It could of been a good car with a lot more testing. They were trying to catch up to the pinto but lost. The pinto wasn't too bad depending on the year and engine choice. The Ford Escort that replaced the Pinto was MUCH worse. Oil burning POS. They obviously got better as they got newer. Friends of my parents bought a brand new 1981 Escort automatic. All 4 jumped in for a trip to Vegas. It overheated on the Baker grade. There are 2 known Cosworth Vega's in this area but I believe those are the only ones left. Still a lot of Pinto's around here.

[Reece]

Here's my 1970 Zenith 12" portable I bought new at Woolco in Dekalb IL for around $100 back then. It was used for about ten years and since then has basically sat. It still has all the original components save about three new tubes. This pic was taken off the air a few years ago before the digital invasion.

[holmesuser01]

Originally Posted by bgadow

I'm really not sure that I have seen a Vega in the last 30 years that didn't have a V8 in it! I've hardly seen any, period. My old barber used to have a couple that he drag raced. The Pinto, well, I always hated the looks of 'em but I still see one on the road every so often.

Had a '72. The engine pistons were running in the aluminum bores and wore out in no time. Alot of people with the 4 cylinder engine had the engine bored out and installed steel sleeves for the pistons to run on. These cars ran fairly well.

I kept my car in a garage, and washed and waxed it waay too much. I was horrified when the first rust bubble appeared in the paint. The guy that bought it from me put a 283 V8 in it.

I found a Sanyo built Sears 9" yesterday, full of compactrons. More to come on this later.

[hi_volt]

Youngsters.....

I drive a 1961 VW Bus.

It's almost as old as I am. Probably has over 500,000 miles on it (not on the engine, of course). Use it daily, and can haul console sets. No power steering, no power brakes, no electronic fuel injection, no power windows, no cruise control, no power door locks. Very reliable. If we ever do have a solar flare, I'll be the only guy in town that still has a running car.

[snelson903]

i drive a 1977 gmc k20 4x4 pickup i restored in 04, i just bought a liftgate for it so it will be easyer to get tv's in the back. you know when you see one some where and pick up by yourself ,see im thinking ,when you see a console along the road and your by yourself now i can get it in my truck alone. if you have to get help your family member has time to talk you out of it,with a liftgate your pulling in the drive before anyone can say do you need another tv .

[dieseljeep]

When they designed the Vega, it was aimed at the younger car buyer. Inexpensive to buy and run, almost sporty. Most young car buyers don't want a four door car. They also figured a small wagon would appeal to some buyers for camping, fishing etc.
History proved them wrong.

[ChrisW6ATV]

Since there is a big discussion of cars mixed in with the B&W TVs, I recommend that a moderator split off the car comments into a new topic in the "General forums" category.

[DavGoodlin]

Originally Posted by dieseljeep

My brother bought a lease-return 75 Pinto wagon for his wife. It was the more deluxe model with the walnut grain wallpaper on it. I took it for a ride and when I returned I replied "that baby really moves for a four banger". My brother replied "look under the hood". It had a small V-6 in it.
PS. Was "Scotch Buy" beer the lowest priced beer in your area.

I do believe that V6 was none other than the Cologne, Germany-built Ford 2.8 liter that also came in the 72-76 Capri's sold at Mercury dealers. Those things would fly with a 4-speed box.

I knew someone that had a 2.0 liter 4-cylinder (another German-Ford) that was not too shabby either. I hated the 2.3 liter engines because I could never get those stupid Holley 2-barrell carburetors set right...

[jstout66]

In my hometown... still sitting on the used car-lot is a one owner 74 Ford Maverick. I always remember the "Maverick" because of a TV show I loved in the 70's "Family"
In the TV series.. the family was portrayed as upper middle-class, yet.. they always drove Pinto's and Mavericks, which I thought kind of odd.
This Maverick is mint.. with 64K, and I had quite the surprise when I opened the hood and it had a 302 V-8. However.. when I sat in the car (I must be getting too old and FAT) but the bench seat had NO support what-so-ever, the most UNcomfortable car I ever sat in......