1956 Fury - Plymouth Bulletin

Transcription

Larry Gammon Photo
Founded 1957
308
F ury F ifty-six
Photo by Allan Faltus
F ury F ifty-six
Larry Gammon’s 1956 Fury sport coupe
May - June, 2011
Twenty-time Old Cars Weekly Golden Quill Award winner
Founded 1957
Allen Faltus’ 1956 Fury sport coupe
Volume 52 Number 4
308-i_s front cvr.qxd:277-i_s front cvr.qxd
5/20/11
7:18 AM
Plymouth® Owners Club, Inc.
®Plymouth is a registered trademark of Chrysler Group LLC and is used by special permission.
MEMBERSHIP
The PLYMOUTH BULLETIN is published bi-monthly by the Plymouth Owners Club, Inc.,
PO Box 416, Cavalier, North Dakota 58220. Periodicals postage paid at Grafton, ND.
Membership is open to all persons genuinely interested in Plymouth or Fargo vehicles.
Ownership of a club recognized vehicle is not a prerequisite for club membership. Club
dues entitle members to receive all BULLETIN issues published within the 12 month period following establishment or renewal of membership. Membership in the Plymouth
Owners Club is a prerequisite for membership in one of its regions.
DUES
Dues for first-time members are $32 per year payable in US funds. Renewals are $30
per year payable in US funds. Payment can be made by VISA or MasterCard. No personal checks outside of USA please. Overseas members may get airmail delivery for $45
per year.
MEETS
National meets are sponsored by the Plymouth Owners Club. Such meets are held on a
rotating basis with location of the meets determined by local regions upon application to
the Officers and Board of Directors. Notice of the dates and locations of such meets will
be announced in the PLYMOUTH BULLETIN. At least one meet will be held east of the
Mississippi River and one meet west of the Mississippi with meets held in the Spring,
Summer and/or Fall. On years ending in "8" a single Grand National Meet is held in the
Detroit area in honor of Plymouth's 1928 beginning.
AWARDS &TROPHIES
MAYFLOWER AWARD is awarded to the highest scoring 4dr sedan not winning Best of
Show at each national meet.
EDITOR’S AWARDS are presented annually by the Editor for outstanding contributions by
the members to the PLYMOUTH BULLETIN.
JUDGING CLASSES
Class 8 -- 1960-61 full size; 1965-77 C-body
Class 9 -- 1964-1974 Barracuda
Class 1 -- 1928-1932
Class 10 - Commercial (pickup, sdn del, stn wgn)
Class 2 -- 1933-1939
Class 3 -- 1940-1948
Class 11 - 1976-80 F-, 78-89 M-, ‘80-81 R-bodies
Class 12 - 1978-1989 Early FWD - L-, K-bodies
Class 4 -- 1949-1954
Class 5 -- 1955-1959
Class 13 - 1987-2001 Late FWD - P-, PL-, AA-, JA-bodies
Class 6 -- 1960-76 Val.
Class 14 - 1971-1994 imports
Class 7 -- 1962-78 B-body Class 15 -1997-2001 Prowler
Senior -- Best of Show cars since1996
JUDGING GROUPS: Group I: 1928-39 / Group II: 1940-59 / Group III:1960-89 RWD /
Group IV:1971-2001 FWD & imports
MEMBERSHIP ROSTER
A complete listings of all current members along with their address and Plymouth and/or
Fargo vehicles roster can be downloaded at any time via e-mail or member can obtain a
disc with the information. Contact Membership Secretary Jim Benjaminson.
ADDRESS CHANGES
The PLYMOUTH BULLETIN is mailed by periodicals postage. The postal service WILL
NOT FORWARD YOUR COPIES IF YOU CHANGE YOUR ADDRESS. If you plan
to move, use the postal address change form on the cover and send it to the Membership
Secretary BEFORE you move. The Plymouth Owners Club WILL NOT replace issues
not received because of an address change.
NON-DELIVERY OF THE BULLETIN
If you have any questions or problems, direct your inquiries to the Membership
Secretary.
BULLETIN DEADLINE DATES for ads, articles, photographs, etc.
Jan-Feb -- Dec. 10
Jul-Aug -- Jun. 10
Mar-Apr -- Feb. 10
Spt-Oct -- Aug. 10
May-Jun -- Apr. 10
Nov-Dec -- Oct. 10
Articles, etc., submitted to the BULLETIN CANNOT be returned to the author for review
prior to publication. ALL submissions are subject to editing.
RETURN OF PHOTOS AND ARTICLES
All items sent to the BULLETIN will be returned if requested with a SASE (please DO
NOT affix US stamps to the return envelope--as it will be mailed from Canada--but
enclose within envelope).
MAIL DATE
The BULLETIN is to be mailed by the last week of the even numbered month of the cover
date (i.e. the Jan-Feb issue is to be mailed in February, etc.).
ADVERTISING POLICY
Please refer to the complete advertising policy printed in the Marketplace section.
TECHNICAL ADVICE
Technical questions may be submitted to the individual advisor for each model.
Technical questions should be brief and specific. A SASE should be included with your
enquiry (please do not affix stamps if mailed out-of-country but enclose within envelope).
Page 1
TECHNICAL SUPERVISORS
GROUP I
Earl Buton, Jr.
2366 Glasco Trnpk.
Woodstock, NY
12498-1013
GROUP II
Dave Geise
417 Tennessee Tr.
Browns Mills, NJ
08015-5664
GROUP III
Merrill Berkheimer
36640 Hawk Rd.
Hazard, NE
68844
GROUP IV
Chris Suminski
27090 Jean Rd
Warren, MI
48093
TECHNICAL ADVISORS
1928 Q
Earl Buton, Jr.
(see address above)
(845) 679-6185
[email protected]
1929 U
Jeff C. Buton
275 Dutchtown Road
Saugerties, NY 12477
(845) 247-3158
[email protected]
1930 30U - 1931 PA
Robert McMulkin
Box 40
Lemon Springs, NC 28355
[email protected]
1932 PB
Bruce E. Buton
2366 Glasco Tnpk.
Woodstock, NY12498-1076
(845) 657-6287
[email protected]
1933
Robert Davis
1870 Eldon Rd, RR1
Woodville, ON KOM 2T0
(705) 374-5059
[email protected]
CANADA
1934
Edward R. Peterson
32 Crane Road
Walpole, MA 02081
plymouth34@hotmail
1935 - 1936
Wayne Brandon
5715 Forest Green Dr.
Perry, MI 48872-9197
(517) 675-5717
[email protected]
1937
Robert L. Semichy
18220 Daves Ave.
Monte Sereno, CA 95030
(408) 395-4968
1938
John Sbardella
11 Heritage Path
Millis, MA 02054
[email protected]
1939
Roy G. Kidwell;
9 St. Andrews Garth;
Severna Park, MD 21146
(410) 987-6081
[email protected]
1940
Jim Benjaminson
Box 345
Walhalla, ND 58282-0345
1941
Larry W. Jenkins
Rt. 1, Box 127
Belleville, WV 26133-9728
[email protected]
1942
William Leonhardt
10100 Fletcher Ave.
Lincoln, NE 68527-9735
(402) 467-2222
1946-49 P15
Frank J. Marescalco
2610 D Street
1950 P19, P20
David Pollock
Box 196
Shawnigan Lake, BC
VOR 2W0 CANADA
[email protected]
1951-53
Neil Riddle
20303 8th Ave NW,
Shoreline,WA 98177-2107
[email protected]
1954
Darrell Davis
100 Tech Drive
Sanford, FL 32771
1965-66 C-Body
William D. Coble, Jr.
331 N. Roosevelt St.
Shawnee, OK 74801
(405) 275-4004
1966-67 B-Body
Art Schlachter
2056 Cardinal Dr.
Danville, KY40422-9732
(859) 236-9487
[email protected]
1967 C-Body
Bill Gallop, Jr.
201 Park St.
New Bedford, MA 02740
(407) 330-9100, 701-4493cell (508) 993-0619
[email protected]
1968 C-Body
1955
Jason Rogers
123 Carterwoods Drive
Warner Robins, GA 31088
(478) 953-4760
[email protected]
1956
Chris Suminski
27090 Jean Rd
Warren, MI 48093
(586) 933-7404, cell
[email protected]
1956-58 Fury
Tom VanBeek
3006 Emerald Street
WestBend, WI 53095
(262) 338-8986
[email protected]
1957-58
Wally Breer
66 Stanway Bay
Mitchell, MB R5G 1H5
CANADA
[email protected]
1959
Robert Hinds
1292 Daventry Court
Birmingham, AL 35243
[email protected]
1960 Sav/Belv/Fury
Randy Wilson
PO Box 647
Maxwell, CA 95955
(430) 438-2376
1960-76 A-body
Bruce Pine
1458 Nunneley Road
Paradise, CA 95969
(530) 876-7463
[email protected]
1961 Sav/Belv/Fury
John Thurman Wiggins
677 Winklers Road
Red Boiling Springs, TN
37150 (615) 504-3746
[email protected]
1962 B-Body
Gerald Klinger
1027 N.W. 1st
Gresham, OR 97030
(503) 665-8330
[email protected]
1963 B-Body
Darrell Davis (see 1954)
1964-65 B-Body
Rob Elliott
307 - 30 Ave. NE
Calgary, AB T2E 2E2
Omaha, NE 68107-1622
(402) [email protected] CANADA [email protected]
Mark E. Olson
707 4th Street
Proctor, MN 55810-1722
(218) 624-4482
[email protected]
1968-70 B-Body
Clif Nelson
7038 117th Ave. NE
Adams,ND 58210
[email protected]
1969-71 C-Body
Edwin C. Hill
412 West Temple St.
Lenox, IA 50851-1228
[email protected]
1971-01 4-cylinder; FWD
Chris Suminski (see 1955-56)
1971-72 B-Body
Edward F. Weingart
334 Creekview Dr
Hampstead, NC 28443
[email protected]
1974-77 C-body
Wally Breer (see 1957-58)
1975-78 B-body
Ed Lanfer
6201 Wade Avenue
St. Louis, MO 63139-3108
[email protected]
1976-80 F-body
Wayne & Karen Fowler
6902 Ruckles Road
Mt. Airy, MD 21771
(301) 831-7150
[email protected]
1978-89 M-body
Michael Bonadonna
455 North Cherry Pop Drive
Inverness, FL 34453-7975
(352) 341-1019
[email protected]
1980-81 R-body
Chris Suminski (see 1955-56)
Plymouth Commercial
Bob Manke
6037 E. Canal Rd.
Lockport NY 14094
(716) 625-4048
[email protected]
Fargo Commercial
Cam D. Clayton
Box 725, Kaslo, BC
V0G1M0 CANADA
[email protected]
Advisors wanted: 1949; 1970-74 E-body; 1972-73 C-body; 1973-74 B-body
308-FULL ISSUE
5/24/11
3:05 PM
Page 1
Plymouth ®
Owne rs C lub
Box 416
Cavalier, ND 58220-0416
Phone: (701) 549-3746
Fax: (701) 549-3744
e-mail: [email protected]
plymouthbulletin.com
The Plymouth Bulletin
No. 308
May - June, 2011
LANNY D. KNUTSON, editor
(204) 889-8008
288 Strathmillan Road, Winnipeg, MB R3J 2V5 CANADA
[email protected] or [email protected]
FOUNDER-DIRECTOR
Jay M. Fisher
Acken Drive 4-B
Clark, NJ 07066-2902
(732) 388-6442
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR
Earl Buton, Jr.
2366 Glasco Turnpike
Woodstock, NY 12498-1076
(845) 679-6185 [email protected]
OFFICERS 2010-11
PRESIDENT
Nick DeSimone
1423 Pecan Grove Dr.
Diamond Bar, CA 91765-2536
LANNY KNUTSON PHOTO
VICE PRESIDENT
Bobbi Berkheimer
36640 Hawk Road
Hazard, NE 68844
MEMBERSHIP
SECRETARY-TREASURER
Jim Benjaminson
Box 345
Walhalla, ND 58282-0345
CORRESPONDING SEC.
Tom Nachand
5215 NW Cavalier Ave.
Lincoln City, OR 97367
B ULLETIN EDITOR
Lanny D. Knutson
288 Strathmillan Road
Winnipeg MB R3J 2V5 CANADA
DIRECTO R 2 0 0 6 - 11
Carl D. Wegner
19600 Cardinal Drive
Grand Rapids, MN 55744-6189
DIRECTOR 2008-13 (Judging)
Joe Suminski
68226 Winchester Court
Washington, MI 48095-1244
1956-58 Fury Tech Advisor
Tom Van Beek’s
1956 Fury sport coupe
Fury Fifty-six
DIRECTO R 2 0 1 0 - 1 5
Robert S. Kerico
4640 Boardwalk
Smithton , IL 62285-3662
(618) 444-6966
[email protected]
-1-
308-FULL ISSUE
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3:05 PM
Page 2
Fury Fifty-six
The stick-shift Fury
that got away
A
mailing from New Brunswick
arrived at my door. I first
thought it might be a tourism
packet enticing me to visit the
Canadian Maritime province (which I
would like to do someday). Instead, I
pulled out photocopies of road test
reports on the then-new 1956 Plymouth
Fury. Interestingly, these
reports had been published in
1956 issues of Road & Track
and Sports Car Illustrated
(now Car and Driver), two
magazines dedicated to the
sports car set that seemed to
naturally disdain “oversized”
Detroit iron, even (especially?) those, like the Fury, that
exhibited sporting pretensions. So, what did these
sports car writers think of the
new Fury? More positively
than one might expect.
The New Brunswick
mailing came from member
Jim Marr who lives in
Moncton. Jim, who holds an
interest in early sixties police
and performance cars, now
owns an unusual factory-original Dodge Polara four-door
sedan powered by a
Sonoramic engine (and no, it’s not a
retired police car). He had found the
Fury articles while sorting through
some old magazines. I emailed him,
saying that I was interested in reprinting the articles in the BULLETIN but
would need the originals for scanning.
In short order another New Brunswick
envelope was in my mailbox and I was
set, so I thought.
Magazines now have independent
brokers handling their copyrights, and
the brokers may not be as ready to
grant reprint permission to a club publication as did the magazines themselves in the past. After some time I
was able to receive permission through
Car and Driver’s brokers. Road &
Track’s brokers wanted money, more
than we should pay. They asked me if
NOW, WHY THAT MOTORBIKE picture?
Because, it almost became a ‘56 Fury. I
had purchased the Suzuki 50cc bike in
the spring of ‘65 after I was left without wheels when my ‘57 Dodge’s 325
poly engine threw a rod. It was easier
for a college student to get a loan to
buy a new motorbike than borrow
money to fix a used car. But I
still had the car to fix, and
after procuring a ‘58 325 with
summer job money, I found an
ad for a ‘56 Fury. I hopped on
my bike to take a look and
found a somewhat beat up
Fury with a manual transmission. The asking price was
$550 ($3700 in today’s
money). Not much, but it was
more than I had after buying
the engine. But I did have the
Suzuki for which I had paid
$350 a couple of months earlier. I offered a trade even-up,
telling the seller that it would
be great for his young teenage
son. He mulled it over for a
couple of weeks but finally
said no.
It may have been just as well.
My ‘65 Suzuki almost became a ‘56 Fury.
I was having visions of putting
a floor shifter in it, painting it
I wanted to make a deal. I made an
red, radiusing the rear wheelwells…
offer but I didn’t hear back. You do
making a mess of it, in other words.
have the Sports Car Illustrated road
Besides, with its “new” motor, the
test to give you a flavor of sports car
Dodge was in much better shape. And
thinking when it came to the Fury.
I still had my motorbike. Still… a
That led me to requesting stories
stick-shift ‘56 Fury? It’s one that got
from the club’s ‘56 Fury owners. The
– Lanny Knutson
away.
response was great, thanks in no small
part to Jack Lewis, the Golden Fury
The Plymouth Bulletin
unofficial “godfather” who started and
No. 308 May-Jun 2011
maintains the Golden Fin Society webLANNY D. KNUTSON, editor
site.
LEEANN LUCAS, asst. editor
-2-
THORSTEN LARSSON PHOTO
From the Editor
308-FULL ISSUE
5/24/11
3:05 PM
Page 3
T he
Plymouth Press
Golden Quill Number Twenty
CLUB NEWS
W
ord has been received
that the PLYMOUTH
BULLETIN has received a
Golden Quill Award for 2010
from Old Cars Weekly, as
announced in its May 12
issue. This is the twentieth
such award given to the
Plymouth Owners Club’s
official publication.
Also repeating as a
Golden Quill winner is the
Mid-Atlantic Mayflower,
Plymouth Owners Club
newsletter of the POC’s MidAtlantic Region. David
Young is its long-serving editor.
Receiving its first Golden
Quill is La Luneta, edited by
POC member Orlando
Bongiaradino of Argentina.
The Spanish language publication of Club Amigos de
Automóviles Antiguos has
recently offered articles translated into English.
New Renewals, New Info
W
hen I had the new renewal envelopes printed, I had a box
printed on them for “Yes, send me a new membership
card” and a box for “No, don’t send me a new membership
card.” (The idea was to save postage spent on sending membership cards to those who don’t want them.) The first mailing
to get these new envelopes was the April 30, 2011, renewals.
So far I have processed 265 renewals and here are the results:
• 103 specifically said “yes” to wanting a new card. Six sent
renewals using a mailing label from the BULLETIN cover, so
they will get a membership card to acknowledge payment;
• 28 specifically said “no” to wanting a new card.
The remainder did not mark either box, so they won’t get a
new card, although 16 will be contacted again because they did
not return the Great Roster Update card.
I haven't kept track of the number of new pieces of information
we’ve received, but it has been very substantial.
– Jim Benjaminson
Membership Secretary
The Plymouth Bulletin (ISSN 0032-1737) is published bi-monthly. Subscription
through annual dues: $32 new; $30 renewal. Published by the Plymouth
Owners Club, PO Box 345, 603 Central Ave, Walhalla, ND 58282-0345.
Periodical postage paid at Grafton, ND 58237. POSTMASTER: Send address
-3-
P
No. 308
POC to advertise in other publications
lymouth Owners Club ads
will be placed in three
publications: Old Cars
Weekly, Antique Automobile
Club of America (AACA)
magazine and Hemmings
Motor News.
The advertising initiative,
a project of the club’s Board
of Officers and Directors, is
being spearheaded by Carl
Wegner. The ads have been
designed by Mike Bade of the
Cascade Pacific Region.
A reciprocal arrangement
has been reached with the
WPC Club in which it and
the POC will place ads in the
other’s publication with no
cost to each.
The ads have each been
coded which enables the
Membership Secretary to
determine which publication’s
ad influenced a new member
to join. That information will
help determine the publications in which the POC
should continue to advertise.
Ad designed for
Old Cars Weekly
Member Born
Val (Cutshall) and Brad Koehler announce the birth of a daughter, Evelyn Judith Koehler on May 1, 2011. She weighed 71/2 pounds and was 21-1/2 inches long. She will be attending
her first Prairie Region meeting, shortly. Dennis Cutshall is the
proud grandpa.
Members Remembered
Paul E. Poitras, Denver, Colorado, died in late October 2010.
An owner of a 1959 Sport Fury convertible, he had been a
member since 1994. He is survived by his wife, Betty.
Nancy R. Aylesworth, Galena, Illinois, died on April 15, 2011,
at the age of 71. She is survived by Brad, her husband of 45
years. Brad and Nancy, POC members since 1989, were founding members of the Dairyland Region. They owned a 1955
Savoy sedan
308-FULL ISSUE
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3:05 PM
Page 4
From the President
˘¯<<
The legacy of classic
Plymouth automobiles
As
I reminisce on my involvement with “older cars,” I
have realized that the
majority of those cars were non-Mopar
and, to be more exact, non-Plymouth.
My first car was a 1951 Chevrolet, my
best friend had a 1950 Ford and rounding out the trio was a friend who had a
1950s Dodge with Fluid Drive. Chevys
and Fords were always admired even
when they weren’t “souped up.” Guess
whose car was never taken to impress
the car-hops at the local drive-in or used
for cruising the neighborhood? Unless
it was a muscle Mopar, a Chrysler product was pretty much ignored.
As I grew older and matured, my
cars always seemed to be GM or Ford,
various makes and models.
At some point in time after moving
to the Los Angeles area, I wanted to an
“older car” and since I couldn’t afford a
restored 1950s Chevy or Ford, I purchased a stock 1931 Ford two-door
sedan. Never had it crossed my mind to
stray from what everyone else had. It
was a great car, used for several weddings and even brought my oldest
daughter home from the hospital at the
tender age of three-days-old, much to
the chagrin of the nurse.
Let’s fast forward to the mid 1990s.
Here I was again with no classic car and
was reverting back to the same old philosophy of my youth. Let me see if I
can find a GM or Ford to help resurrect
the great times I had while owning a
classic car. My cousin told me he knew
of a classic car for sale. It was a 1940
Plymouth business coupe to which I
replied: “What kind of car”? I then
said,”Why not, let’s go take a look.” I
am glad I did as I bought it, brought it
home and now, better than 15 years
later, I am still a proud owner. More
often than not, when I enter the garage
where my Plymouth is, a smile forms as
I remember the comments from many
who have seen my car and have reminisced with me of the “Glory Days”
gone by.
It was through the efforts of Tony
Cipponeri and other California
Plymouth owners that the Golden State
Region of the Plymouth Owners Club
was chartered. As the region membership grew, I began to realize how unique
Plymouths are. They are unlike most
other cars within the same time frame
and have a certain mystique associated
with them. How many other cars have
had a full-length feature film (Christine)
made of them that, to this day, still
brings chills and sweat when thinking
about it. I have come to appreciate the
appearance and design of Plymouths
ranging from 1928 through the mid
1950s and how they stand out from all
the rest. As we check Plymouth history,
we find that many “firsts” or innovations are attributed to the Plymouth
automobile.
As I continue to take my 1940
Plymouth business coupe to local car
shows and running errands on weekends, I can’t help notice the attention it
gets. Most people, myself included,
enjoy seeing the “other” classic cars but
hardly pay them a second look or
express a comment since we have seen
-4-
so many and it reminds me of a saying:
“If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them
all.” That isn’t the case with Plymouths.
People tend to stop and take their time
to appreciate the looks and styling while
remembering back when they owned
one and enjoying the pleasant memories
they bring back.
We members of the Plymouth
Owners Club realize all this as we continue to keep our cars looking as when
they had just come off the showroom
floor and we take our Plymouths out for
all to enjoy. We need to do more to perpetuate the Plymouth legacy. We must
share our love for Plymouths with
everyone in our lives, particularly family members and friends as they are the
ones who will keep the Plymouth legacy
for the future generations. Share your
knowledge and experience with them,
include them in your trips to local car
shows, let them hear the comments from
people who stop to admire them, invite
them to your regional meetings, share
your PLYMOUTH BULLETIN and its fine
articles with them and, whenever possible, invite them to an national meet so
they can experience firsthand the camaraderie of the group that treasures classic Plymouth automobiles. Let’s help
them remember the past as they move
on forward into a bright future. Don’t
let the legacy die off with our generation; do your part to perpetuate it.
In my next article for PLYMOUTH
BULLETIN #309, I will discuss the continuing efforts of the Officers/ Board of
Directors and how they affect the
Plymouth Owners Club. We have been
contemplating several changes which
will help to make our club a more cohesive and stronger organization. Any
comments or suggestion you have and
wish to share can be sent via email to
[email protected] or call my cell
(714) 864-0658.
-- Nick DeSimone, president
308-FULL ISSUE
5/24/11
3:05 PM
Page 5
New Judging Classes for 2011
S
Trail Duster 1974-1981
Voyager RWD vans 1974-1983
Arrow pickup 1979-1982
Scamp pickup 1983
Voyager FWD minivan 1984-2000
Colt Vista minivan 1992-1994
(Vehicles in Class 10 are judged together but compete for Best
of Group trophies in the group related to their years of manufacture.)
tarting with the 2011 Summer National Meet, the
Plymouth Owners Club, Inc., will accept all
Plymouth vehicles for judging from 1928 through
2001.
We are also trying a new 400-point judging system rather
than the 100-point system used in the past. This is an effort
by the Board of Officers and Directors to enhance and improve
our national meets.
Class 11 – Rear Wheel Drive
1976-1980 F-body
Class Revisions, 2011
Volare 1976-1980
Group 1 – 1928-1939
1978-1989 M-body
Class 1 – 1928-1932
Class 2 – 1933-1939
1980-1981 R-body
Caravelle (Canada) 1978-1989
Gran Fury (USA) 1982-1989
Gran Fury 1980-1981
Group 2 – 1940-1959
Class 15 – Prowler 1997-2001
Class 3 – 1940-1948
Class 4 – 1949-1954
Class 5 – 1955-1959
Group 4 – 1971-2001 Front Wheel Drive
and Imports
Group 3 – 1960-2001 Rear Wheel Drive
Class 12 – Early Front Wheel Drive
Horizon 1978-1990 (L-body)
TC3 1979-1982 (L-body)
Reliant 1981-1989 (K-body)
Turismo 1983-1987 (L-body)
Caravelle 1985-1988 (K-body)
Class 6 – 1960-1976 A-body
Valiant 1960-1976
Duster 1970-1976
Scamp 1971-1976
Class 7 – 1962-1978 B-body
Class 13 – Late Front Wheel Drive
Savoy 1962-1964
Belvedere 1962-1970
Fury 1962-1964, 1975-1978
Sport Fury 1962-1964
Satellite 1965-1974
GTX 1967-1971
Road Runner 1968-1975
Sebring 1972-1974
Sundance 1987-1994 (P-body)
Acclaim 1989-1995 (AA-body)
Neon 1995-2001 (PL-body)
Breeze 1996-2000 (JA-body)
Class 14 – Import s
Cricket 1971-1975 (USA 1971-1973; Canada 1971-1975)
Arrow fastback 1976-1980
Sapporo 1978-1983
Champ 1979-1982
Colt 1983-1994 (Canada 1976-1994)
Conquest 1984-1986
Laser 1990-1994
Class 8 – Full Size
1960-1961
Savoy, Belvedere, Fury
1965-1977 C-body
Fury 1965-1974
VIP 1966-1970
Gran Fury 1975-1977
Senior Class
All previous Best of Group (Show) winners
Class 9 – 1964-1974 Barracuda
Class 10 – Commercial
-- Joe Suminski
Judging Director
Fargo trucks, sedan deliveries 1928-1930, 1936-1972
Plymouth station wagons 1934-1988
Plymouth sedan deliveries 1935-1941
Plymouth pickups 1937-1941
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Letters
From Australia
I AM MARK ANDERSON from
Adelaide, South Australia. I
have been put in contact with
you by Trever Feehan in
Darwin, Australia. I own a
1929 Dodge truck that is the
same as Trever’s (BULLETINs
298, p. 54, and 300, p. 17).
My inquiry is whether you
might have any contacts for
parts and literature (i.e., parts
and workshop manuals) in
Canada or any information
on these trucks with the
Plymouth four motor.
Mark. Anderson
Adelaide, South Australia
own an Irish-assembled
right-hand-drive 1959
Belvedere limousine.
Kevin Herron
Dublin, Ireland
[email protected]
A PHOTOCOPY of the “Plymouths
in Ireland” article was sent to
Kevin by Nick DeSimone to
whom Kevin’s email had been
addressed. One copy of Issue
150 (Jan-Feb. 1985) remains in
the club store inventory. Anyone
with further information on, or
interest in, the ‘59 Plymouth
limo, please contact Kevin
Herron. –ed.
[email protected]
I REFERRED Mark to the book
Dodge Trucks (Crestline) by
POC member Don Bunn. On
pages 42-43 and 46-47, Don
refers to the 1929 and 1930
Merchants Express half-ton
which was powered by the 175
cubic inch, 45-horsepower
Plymouth four-cylinder engine.
The model was available in
pickup, screen side, panel and
chassis forms. Anyone who has
further information is encouraged to contact Mark. --ed.
From Ireland
COULD YOU HELP ME find
an article in a past PLYMOUTH
BULLETIN? It is the following reference: 150Historical-Plymouth in
Ireland. I am interested as I
P15 club coupe hits “speed limit”
IN LIGHT OF Jim Benjamin’s “Speed Limits” column in BULLETIN 306 and Nicholas Essinger’s
response in Issue 307, Norm Pennie of Vancouver, British Columbia, sent this picture of a P15
wreck, dated February 1947. Its caption reads:
Road Runner
COLLAPSED COUPE
At midnight on Jan. 21 Eugene Freeman, a 39-year-old bartender at the Oak Tavern
in London, Ohio, washed the last beer glass, finished work and started to drive to
Springfield, 25 miles away. Less than a mile outside of town Freeman’s car hit a
patch of ice on the highway and went into a skid. Out of control, it careened across
the frozen shoulder of the road and finally came to a shuttering stop against a young
walnut tree. Freeman, who broke several ribs and cut his legs and face, is recovering. But his Deluxe coupé never will.
www.wimp.com/looneytoons
METHINKS that he (Eugene Freeman) did more than “slip a little bit” on the patch of ice and
that he did contact more than a young sapling! And, if all he got were some broken ribs and
cuts, he was a bit more than lucky! And, they say that he recovered? Well, most people
would feel that there was nothing left to salvage, but I believe that I would take that wreck
right now and be able to recover quite a few pieces… right?
Nicholas Essinger
Troy, Ohio
FINALLY! A new Road
Runner cartoon. This is the
first one done with computer graphics.
It’s only three minutes,
but it's three minutes of
fun!
Jim Benjaminson
Walhalla, North Dakota
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The Wayback Machine
W
hen out and about here in the Catskills of New York,
over the course of the past year, in the “Wayback
Machine,” as I like to call my ‘40 Plymouth, I have taken
photos.
Some of them I have antiqued to give the look of the ‘40s
although I know I have incorrect wheels and tires. (Such is
life, as these are the wheels I had, and four radial tires are
much cheaper than the correct bias ones.)
The hardware store building dates back to
1869. It had been a hardware store continuously since that time until this past year.
The stone house dates back to the
1790s and the rest of the photos are of
settings that I just like.
My wife has said to me many
times that you don’t give a man who
is retired a digital camera, a computer, an old Plymouth and acess to the
Internet but, by gosh, I sure do have
fun with them and the Wayback
Machine.
Bob Drown
Neversink, New York
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Benji's Page
The Enduring Mystery:
Ethel Miller, Harry Mook
and the First Plymouth
As
many
BULLETIN readers know, I’ve
spent a lot of time
researching the story of
Mrs. Ethel Miller, the
Turlock, California, hotel
operator who claimed to
have owned the very first
Plymouth car built. The
car in question, a 1928
Model Q sport coupe, was
driven by Mrs. Miller to
the Chicago World’s Fair
in the fall of 1934, where
she took possession of the
one-millionth Plymouth.
Two years later, she would
make a second trip, this
time to Detroit, to claim
possession of the two-millionth
Plymouth. Then, it seems, Mrs. Miller
fell off the face of the earth. Where was
she when the three-millionth Plymouth
was built? We know she wasn’t there
when the four-millionth was built,
when it was child actor, Mickey
Rooney, who was present to receive the
milestone car.
For thirteen years, I tried tracking
down the “mysterious Mrs. Miller,” as I
came to call her. With her having a
common name like Miller, I knew it
wasn’t going to be an easy task. I
started my search with two assumptions. First, that she was probably
deceased and second, she may have
remarried. Thanks to the help of many
people involved in the search, the mystery of Mrs. Miller was finally solved
(see BULLETIN 271, March-April 2005).
I found I had been correct on both
assumptions: she had passed away in
1967 and she had remarried—several
times! But with answers always come
more questions. What really became of
her car?
During this entire time period, I
was aware that Chrysler Corporation
had possession of a ‘28 Plymouth
Model Q sport coupe. There was a
problem, however. The serial number
of the car showed it had been built in
the middle of the model run and was
NOT the first Plymouth. I had personally examined and photographed the car
so I could “prove” it wasn’t the first car.
So the question arose: what became of
the First Plymouth? And when and
where did Chrysler acquire the car they
owned? A recently discovered photo-8-
graph offered for sale on eBay may have
solved that problem, but it raises even
more questions.
Thanks to club member Mark
Olson, I was alerted to a photo being
offered on eBay showing Chrysler vice* and Jack
president Harry G. Moock*
Rose standing alongside a ‘28 Q sport
coupe outside the Statler Hotel in
Detroit. The photo, dated March 29,
1949, was taken by a Detroit News
photographer, identified only as
“Martin,” to accompany a news story
by a reporter identified only as “Watts.”
Mr. Moock, who had
been Plymouth’s General
Sales Manager, was retiring from Chrysler and
had arrived in the old car
for breakfast at the
Statler. Close examination of the photo reveals
that the car was being
driven by what appears
to be a chauffeur—making one wonder how
three grown men could
fit into the small confines of the car. One of
them, perhaps Mr. Rose
(who has yet to be identified beyond his name)
may have ridden in the
Chrysler product car that
can barely be seen behind
the Plymouth.
I remembered that years earlier, former BULLETIN editor Donald Wood, had
written about Chrysler’s “first
Plymouth” in an earlier issue. I pulled
up the story he had written about the
car in BULLETIN 110, May-June 1978. I
also contacted him with several questions. Donald’s original story states
that “the car was purchased in the early
1930s (the exact date unknown) and has
been used for numerous historical milestones in Plymouth history, publicity
photos, parades and social events as
symbolic Plymouth #1. It is, in fact,
not the number one Plymouth by virtue
of its serial number which places it near
the middle of that model run.”
I sent Donald a copy of the eBay
photo and asked for his thoughts on the
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Page 9
car. This is his reply:
Here is everything I know about the
‘28 Q in question: I went to work for
Chrysler in June of 1964 as a patent
attorney in the Highland Park facility.
Soon thereafter I took over as editor
of the PLYMOUTH BULLETIN, became
active in the Detroit Region of the club
and began inquiring about any old
cars that Chrysler might have saved.
Cliff Lockwood was the Chrysler
archivist at that time. Cliff took me to
an old shed on Jefferson Avenue,
across from the Jefferson Avenue
Chrysler assembly plant. The shed
was on the grounds of the old
Chalmers plant and was near a showroom building on Jefferson. Club
member John Robertson, who was
working as a clerk in the Chrysler
Patent Department, accompanied me
on the trip to the shed. There we
found the subject ‘28 Q and a yellow
1929 DeSoto roadster. Both were
covered in crud and were sitting on a
dirt floor, although they were covered
by the roof of the shed. I asked if I
could take possession of the
Plymouth and John asked if he could
take possession of the DeSoto. Cliff
readily agreed to both requests.
The Q, with minor work, was driveable and I drove it some 25 miles to
my home in Birmingham, Michigan. I
cleaned up the car, did a minor cosmetic restoration, and kept the car in
the detached garage
behind my home. I am
guessing I took possession
of the car in late 1964 but
it could have been later. I
kept the car in this
detached garage until 1967
when we moved to a home
in Birmingham with an
attached garage where the
car was kept until perhaps
late 1967 when Chrysler requested
that I return the car to the Road Test
Garage in Highland Park for use in a
parade. During the three years or
so that I had the car, I used it occasionally for family outings, with my
children riding in the rumble seat.
The car is definitely the car that is
now in the Chrysler Museum. I
believe it has been repainted since.
Of course, I knew it was not the first
Plymouth, but I can attest that
attempts were made at various times
to pawn the car off as the “First
Plymouth.”
Unfortunately, I never asked where
the car had come from. I am now
guessing. Is it the car in the photo
you sent me with “THE FIRST PLYMOUTH
ON THE WAY TO THE WORLDS FAIR”
painted on the side which is supposed
to be the car that Ethel Miller traded
for the one-millionth Plymouth? (I had
sent Donald a cropped photo of the car,
showing that lettering—the complete
photo, which I have obtained from her
family, has Mrs. Miller standing alongside
the car. –JB) If so, it looks an awful lot
like the car that I had. How many of
these Q cabriolet “hardtops” were
made in the Q model year? (There
are no known production records for
the Models Q and U Plymouths). I
also guess that the car in the 1949
photo taken upon the retirement of
Harry Moock is the same car, which,
as you surmise, also means that
Ethel’s #1 Plymouth was a mid-1928
model year Plymouth. Keep me posted!
With Ethel Miller (Winzler) having
passed away 44 years earlier—and with
none of her children now living – there
simply are no records available to accurately prove that she actually had the
very first Plymouth. It’s a question I’ve
asked myself many times – although a
local Turlock history book claims it was
-9-
her local dealer, Frank Stierlien, who
had discovered that she owned the first
car, but how did this just happen to
coincide with the soon-to-be-produced
one-millionth Plymouth? And how did
Walter Chrysler (who offered to fly her
to Detroit to watch that car being built)
find out she had the very first car, if,
indeed, it truly was the first car?
The only way to prove that she
actually had the first car would be to go
through the California motor vehicle
department records, if they still exist.
Tracing the license plate on the car
could prove (or disprove) the claim. But
knowing California, the records – if the
they do exist – probably show the
engine number rather than the serial
number, a practice California followed
for many years.
Looking at the facts, I can come to
only one conclusion: the ‘28 Plymouth
in the Chrysler Museum collection is
not the first Plymouth, but it almost
certainly has to be Mrs. Miller’s
Plymouth. As Donald Wood wrote in
his 1978 article: “The car was purchased
in the early 1930s.” Mrs. Miller “traded” her ‘28 coupe to Chrysler in
September 1934 for the one-millionth
Plymouth. Chrysler still owned that car
when a publicity photo was taken of
Mrs. Miller with her three “milestone
cars” the first car, the millionth car and
the two-millionth car, in December
1936. The car in the 1949 photo
proves Chrysler owned an identical car
then—what are the chances that in the
13-year period between December 1936
and March 1949 they would have “lost”
Mrs. Miller’s car and purchased another
one like it? Although it’s all circumstantial evidence, I have to conclude the
Mystery of Mrs. Miller’s (not quite)
“First” Plymouth has been solved.
-- Jim Benjaminson
* Chrysler vice-president Harry G. Moock
described a successful sales person as one
“having the curiosity of a
cat, tenacity of a bulldog,
friendship of a child, diplomacy of a wayward husband, patience of a self-sacrificing wife, passion of a
Sinatra fan, assurance of a
Harvard grad, humor of a
comedian, simplicity of a
jackass and tireless energy
of a bill collector.”
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Regional Report
Buckeye Region
NATIONAL VICE PRESIDENT
(responsible for regions)
Bobbi Berkheimer
IT HAS BEEN A LONG, COLD and snowy
winter here in Ohio. Thank goodness,
spring has now arrived. On April 2, the
Buckeye Region held a meeting at
Hardin Motors in Mt. Victory, Ohio.
Member Jerry Burrey is hosting the 9th
Annual All Mopar show on June 18.
The historical society is holding a
pre-1950 car show in downtown
Marion, Ohio, on June 25. At this event
last year our Buckeye Region was
founded with five members. Since then
we have grown to 20 members and hope
to have 30 members by fall.
The Buckeye Region has also
received a special invitation to participate in one of the premier events for
vintage car enthusiasts in central Ohio.
Our host is setting aside a special area
for the Buckeye Region and other
Mopar owners. Our host opens his 11acre grounds annually for this special
event. Last year 405 vehicles were on
display. Our host has a fleet of his own,
but does own one very special 1949
Plymouth four-door sedan. With our
host’s permission, we hope to have a
separate article in the PLYMOUTH
BULLETIN so everyone can see why his
car is so special.
Our Region is still in the process of
establishing a website. More news will
be forthcoming when we complete this
project.
Several members of the Buckeye
Region are in the process of extensive
restorations. Hopefully, the rides will
be ready to enjoy the 2011 vintage car
fun.
The Buckeye Region would like to
thank the national POC and other
regions for their assistance, guidance,
encouragement and cooperation in getting our region underway.
– Ron Thomann, president
Carolina Region
OUR MARCH MEETING was held at the
Auto Barn in Concord, North Carolina.
The Auto Barn is a classic and
collector car storage and sales business.
They can handle all the paper work,
phone calls, emails and negotiations
regarding buying, selling or storing your
BUCKEYE REGION
FLORIDA SUNSHINE REGION
LONE STAR REGION
R O C K Y MOUNTAIN REGION
Ron Thomann
8001 Schott Rd.
Westerville, OH 43081 (614) 895-2319
[email protected]
Michael Bonadonna
455 North Cherry Pop Drive
Inverness, FL 34453-7975
(352) 341-1019
[email protected]
Van Massirer
124 Canaan Church Rd.
Crawford, TX 76638
(254) 486?2366
[email protected]
Wayne Kreps
8911 Ithaca Way
Westminster, CO 80031
(303) 427-5543
[email protected]
GOLDEN STATE REGION
LONG ISLAND REGION
CAROLINA REGION
Greg Errett
PO Box 2511
Winston-Salem, NC 27102
(336) 747-6871
[email protected]
CASCADE PACIFIC REGION
Mike Bade
15149 SE Pebble Beach Drive
Happy Valley, OR 97086
COLONIAL REGION
Betty Kibbe
456 Holyoke St.
Ludlow, MA 01056
DAIRYLAND REGION
Tom Wagner
4913 Foxwood Blvd.
Lakeland, FL 33810 (Dec 1-May 1)
(920) 285-2660, cell [email protected]
Kenneth Wilson
312 Bagshaw Court
San Jose, CA 95123
(408) 227-1837
[email protected]
HEART OF AMERICA REGION
Mike Schaefer
12221 NE 136th
Kearney, MO 64060
www.plymouthclub.com
HOOSIER REGION
Westpoint, IN 47992 / (765) 714-0255
HUDSON VALLEY REGION
TULSA REGION
Jerry Burch
1111 South Florence Ave.
Tulsa, OK 74104-4104
UNITED KINGDOM REGION
(515) 597-3244
[email protected]
MISSOURI "Show Me” REGION
Barry Reece
“The Meadows” Cookley Halesworth,
Suffolk IP19 0LU, ENGLAND.
tel/fax: 01986-784305
[email protected]
WESTERN CANADA
Rob Elliot
[email protected]
[email protected] (Loyd Groshong)
307 - 30th Avenue NE
Calgary, AB T2E 2E2 CANADA
PA OIL VALLEY REGION
(403) 277-1956
[email protected]
[email protected]
PRAIRIE REGION
Ed Lanfer
6201 Wade Avenue
St. Louis, MO 63139 (314) 704-5608
Frank Shemek
11901 South 34th St.
Bellevue, NE 68123
(402) 291-4834
[email protected]
[email protected]
-10-
(612) 759 2103 [email protected]
Winter: R.Ramberg [email protected]
[email protected]
LINCOLN LAND REGION
Richard Tetzlaff
23383 Malanie Trail North
Scandia, MN 55073-9745
Jim Dooley
29341 US Hwy 69
Huxley, IA 50124
Jim Stoudt
1290 Bankson Rd.
Oil City, PA 16301 (814) 676-6678
Richard Wahrendorff
1471 Rt. 213
Ulster Park, NY 12487
TA L L PINES REGION
MID-IOWA REGION
Tommy G. Pike
1602 East Dale
Springfield, MO 65803
Kevin Reeves, President
5268 W. 500 S.
[email protected]
Russ Nardi, pres: (586) 566-5838
[email protected]
Dianne E. Taylor
407 E. Nicodemus Rd.
Westminster, MD 21157
[email protected]
Jan Peel, Editor, [email protected]
DETROIT REGION
MID-ATLANTIC REGION
Tony Tricoci
10206 South 43rd Court
Phoenix, AZ 85044 (480) 893-8687
Bill Tropia
52 Breece Dr.
Yardley, PA 19067-1513
Joseph B. Lewis, editor
9145 Hazelton
Redford, MI 48239
GRAND CANYON REGION
DELAWARE VALLEY REGION
[email protected]
Peter Marks
47 Flintlock Drive
Shirley, NY 11967
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Page 11
car or cars. They can also help in the
financing of classic cars. This is a great
place to have a meeting and we usually
have one or two of our meetings there
each year.
John Jancic’s Best of Show ‘70 Road Runner
THE CHARLOTTE AUTOFAIR, held April
13-17, is the largest old car event in the
Southeast. Our club had a great location
for the car show on Saturday and
Sunday. The weather was good both
days with late evening storms that did
not affect the show and a little coolness
for Sunday. John Jancic won the Best
of Show again this year with his beautiful 1970 Road Runner.
KEEP THOSE OLD PLYMOUTHS running
– Dean Yates
and on the road.
Cascade Pacific Region
OUR MARCH MEETING was called to
order by vice-president Robin Will with
46 members in attendance. Pat and
Patty Brost provided refreshments.
Topics for discussion included our
2011 CPPC calendar, our April
Mayflower tour to an artist’s studio, the
2011 Portland Swap Meet, a tour to the
Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, group travel
to the 2011 National Summer meet in
California, our club website <cascadepacificplymouth.org> and a POC membership report by Tom Nachand.
In the Tech Committee report, Gary
Rusher announced that he thinks he has
tracked down the rattle in the motor of
his ‘30U. The culprit is apparently the
clutch and pressure plate which are out
of balance due to a previous rebuild.
Gary also mentioned that an index he
has compiled of all ‘28-39 Plymouth
headlights will soon be available on our
CPPC website.
Following other announcements and
our raffle draws, the meeting was
adjourned.
– Donna Bade
Dairyland Region
Member Remembered
Nancy Aylesworth
THE DAIRYLAND REGION has the sad
duty to announce the passing of one
of our founding members, Nancy
Aylesworth. Brad and Nancy
Aylesworth were instrumental in
forming the club in the early 1990s
leading to its charter in 1995. Nancy
was, without a doubt, one of the most
welcoming and friendly people in a
club that is full of such people.
Always making sure the members
(especially new ones) were comfortable and engaged in conversation, she
was continually looking for ways to
help out or do whatever she could to
make the club a success. As a past
secretary, she was club officer when
needed and a supporter all the time.
Nancy is sorely missed. When health
problems made a decision to leave
Dairyland necessary, the loss of her
presence was tangible. All the members of Dairyland who knew Nancy
– Jeff Tarwood
mourn her loss.
and the possibility of the Detroit Region
hosting a one-day leg of the 2013 crosscountry tour.
Lynn Miller and Joe Lewis reported
on spring car shows and events. The
membership voted to purchase a swap
table at the North Oakland Swap Meet
to promote the Plymouth Owners Club.
Members may also use this area to sell
parts.
Anyone interested in one of Dave
Cleavinger’s remaining five cars should
call Mel or Sylvia at 517-882-5881.
During Tech Time, Larry Borkowski
asked for advice on the way to adjust
the 1941 column shift linkage. He also
asked for a source for a rebuilt master
– Paul Curtis
cylinder.
WE HELD OUR APRIL MEETING at John
and Marguerite Rastall’s Pedal Car
Museum in Macomb Township.,
Michigan. Boy, what a collection of
various pedal cars, some large, some
small. I even saw one similar to the one
I had as a five-year-old. For some
strange reason we called them “Jeep
Trucks.”
Delaware Valley Region
OUR MARCH MEETING was opened with
13 members and one guest in attendance.
Club business focused on our two
upcoming shows: The Mt. Ephraim
Dodge show on May 14 and the Jarrett
15th Annual All Mopar Show on June
26.
Our annual banquet was the perfect
opportunity to show our appreciation to
Larry and Lorraine Nuesch. Their hospitality, generosity and good will
towards all members is recognized by
everyone in our club. In my opinion,
they are very well deserving of the
Betty Watson Trophy for 2011.
– Hank DeMayo and Bill Tropia
Detroit Region
PRESIDENT RUSS NARDI called our April
meeting to order at the John and
Marguerite Rastall Pedal Car Museum
with 16 members present.
President Nardi reported on the
request to host the summer 2014 meet
-11-
They have a collection of old wagons. Pedal cars shaped like airplanes
hang from the ceiling. There is also a
collection of license plates which are
placed on the pedal cars. Many of the
pedal cars are based on actual cars such
as Mercedes Benz and Chrysler vehicles. I was surprised that there were so
many sizes of pedal cars made over the
decades which basically started in the
1920s and continued through the 1960s.
– Joe Lewis
Heart of America Region
TWENTY-EIGHT MEMBERS and four
guests were present on a beautiful warm
and sunny day for our April meeting.
After reports were given, our president, Mike Schaefer, displayed the new
dark blue club jacket which Glenn
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Page 12
Means had donated to the club to sell
with proceeds going to our treasury.
Reports on tours and cruises were given,
including a trip to Nebraska to see the
Soukup Toy Museum as guests of the
Prairie Region.
Bill Krenzer gave a tip on keeping
the necessary tools and provisions in
your car while making a trip in your old
car.
Charter members, Jerry and Doris
Elwood have taken on the new job of
club historians.
A WINDY AND CHILLY, very March-like
day, found ten of us enjoying lunch at
the Golden Corral in northern Kansas
City. In spite of the lack of warm bodies, we had a lot of warm conversation
and good food. Thanks go to Alan
Monshausen and Sharon Haselhorst for
– Vicki Schaefer
hosting.
Hoosier Region
APRIL 30TH turned out to be a cool, dry
and blustery day for our tour to the
Monon Railroad Museum in Monon,
Indiana. Twelve members and guests
met to the no- closed Flo’s Roadside
Diner. We peeked in the windows and
concluded that Flo’s must have been
quite a place in its “heyday.” We then
drove to Monon, Indiana, and had lunch
at the Whistle Stop Restaurant.
While waiting for our food we were
entertained by trains running on two
overhead railroad tracks. The food was
really good and with generous portions.
It is part of the Monon Museum and
both
are delightful places to visit.
Kevin Reeves held a very short
meeting. We don’t have much coming
up at the present time as May is filled
with Mother’s Day and racing events.
Harold Harvey, our tour guide at the
Monon Museum, was well versed in all
its collectibles from the
Monon and other related railroads.
China, bells, and other memorabilia too
numerous to mention were displayed. He put on a movie for us to
view. We next moved outside where
there are various railcars on display. It
was so windy by then that it almost
blew us away.
We then drove to Delphi and the
Wabash and Erie Canal. Most of the
Plymouths at the Rhinebeck Show in upstate New York
group walked on the walkway that is by
the canal. By then it had been a full but
fun day. Thanks to Kevin and Kristin
for setting it up.
– Jan Peel
Hudson Valley Region
ON THE WEEKEND of May 6-8 the annual Rhinebeck Car Show and Swap Meet
was held. Sunday was the Antique and
Classics show. There were seven entries
in the Plymouth class at Rhinebeck this
year, three of which belong members of
the Hudson Valley Region. Although
rain was in the forecast, it managed to
hold off for most of the day on Saturday
and Sunday. On the flea market side,
there seemed to be more vendors this
year than last year.
OUR LAST MEETING was held February
26th at the Olympic Diner in Kingston.
Six members were present (Earl, Jeff,
and Bruce Buton, Dan Kilpatrick, Ray
Andreassen, and I). A spring tour was
discussed. A visit to local wineries was
agreed upon. Also a club presence for
the annual Sawyer Motors Car Show in
July was discussed. More information
will follow. Since we incur no expenses, a motion made at the meeting to suspend further collection of dues was
voted upon and passed. A twenty dollar
initiation fee was accepted and passed.
Our next meeting will be held in June.
– Richard Wahrendorff
Mid-Iowa Region
OUR ANNUAL FEBRUARY VALENTINE
dinner was held at the Hilltop
Restaurant in Des Moines. Twenty club
members enjoyed the good food and
each others’ company.
John Wright modeled one of our
new club denim jackets with the club
logo on the back. He is taking orders
for the jacket and T-shirts.
-12-
IN MARCH, it was back to class as 16
members and guests gathered in Bob
Coburn’s garage for a seminar on
brakes. Nancy Jones and Dave
Wermager brought some baked goods to
go with the coffee Bob had ready to
wake us up. Cal Wiseman led the
round-table question and answer session. There was lots of informative discussion. It was nice having Jim
Klemm’s son join us as he is currently
teaching auto mechanics at Northwest
Iowa College.
Next came hands-on training.
Following Cal’s demonstration, some
members tried using a double flaring
tool to build the special flared ends used
on brake lines. Jim Dooley manned the
brake lathe and showed us how to use
the machine to resurface brake drums
and rotors. Bob Coburn took charge of
converting Nancy Jones’ 1967 Sport
Fury convertible to power brakes.
Several people stepped up to help. Luke
Wermager and Jim Dooley were the
dynamic duo doing the back-breaking
work under the dash.
It wasn’t all work and no play. A
time of fellowship was enjoyed by the
men during lunch together at Montana’s
Steakhouse.
It proved to be a long day for those
who could return after lunch. I (Nancy)
want to say “Thank-you” to those who
helped with my car, whether as handson mechanics or giving advice or moral
support. It was all appreciated.
Plymouth Club members are the great– Nancy Jones
est!
Prairie Region
OUR APRIL GET-TOGETHER on the 9th
began with beautiful weather as we
headed to the Soukup Toy Museum. We
enjoyed a good lunch at Mac’s in
Fremont, meeting and greeting our visitors from the Heart of America Region
308-FULL ISSUE
5/24/11
3:05 PM
and the WPC Club,
before heading out
for the tour of Harold
and Leona Soukup’s
Toy Museum in
North Bend.
Having over
3,000 toy cars to
view along with
numerous other toys
on display was too
much to consume in
one visit. I know
that I will be going
back for more. We
then had opportunity
to talk with Greg
Soukup and view the
automobiles that will
be up for auction in
July.
No meeting was
held, and our next
meeting will be at
our swap meet in
Missouri Valley on
May 15th.
Page 13
Free Membershi p!
Sign 5
Sign up five NEW members in 2011
and your membership will be paid for one year.
Sign up ten NEW members in 2011
and your membership will be paid for two years.
Be sure to have your new members mention your name
to Membership Secretary Jim Benjaminson when they sign up.
Membership forms are on the white dust cover of each BULLETIN
or may be printed from the plymouthbulletin.com website
– Frank Shemek
Rocky Mountain Region
WE MET AT THE FORNEY MUSEUM in
March to tour their Nash display. We
had a relaxed, leisurely stroll through
the museum as we looked at each car,
read information on it and reminisced.
Stanley Hicks has a picture of his parents, shortly after they were married, sitting in the front seat of a 1920 Nash just
like one that was on display.
After enjoying our time at the museum, we went to a Village In for a nice
time of fellowship over lunch.
APRIL’S EVENT was a joint activity with
40 people in attendance. In one of the
best events we’ve had, I must say,
arranged by Jay Thomas, we went to
Strausburg, Colorado, to the Urich
Foundry located, appropriately, on
Railroad Avenue.
The Urichs divided us into two
groups. While one group toured the
Comanche Crossing Museum, the other
half toured the foundry. The museum is
not normally open this time of year but
they opened it just for us.
During the tour of the foundry, we
saw equipment of all sizes that filled
four buildings. We watched brass mold-
ings being poured. Again, the workers
came in just to do the demonstrations
for us.
The foundry specializes in miniature
trains. There were two passenger cars
in the assembly building that were going
to a private 2000-acre estate where the
engine had already been delivered. The
cost of each car was approximately
$40,000. The foundry also builds part
for and helps restore old locomotives.
Questions were welcome and
answered with enthusiasm. “Do you
love your job?” Marlin Urich does!
After our tour, we went to the
Urichs’ private theater for a marvelous
lunch prepared from scratch by the
Urich women. It was delicious!
We weren’t done yet! Bring on the
movies! A movie that was produced
around 1920 to promote automobile/
pedestrian safety was a good reminder
that stoplights and road rules are not a
bad thing. Also shown was a very early
episode of Our Gang. Oh, did I mention
that we were served popcorn during the
movie?
Out on the track, we went for a ride
on a miniature train built by the Urichs.
The best part was the tunnel.
They also have quite a collection of
– Sandra Hicks
old trucks.
-13-
Tall Pines Region
APRIL’S MEETING was held at the home
of Don and Marlys Rohweder in New
Brighton, Minnesota. The weather had
warmed up a little and nine members
came in five old Plymouths. Ten others
came in modern vehicles. Our hosts,
Don & Marlys Rohweder, had their
beautiful ‘52 Plymouth convertible and
a ‘63 Chev hardtop on display.
Although it was reasonably warm, it
was still cool enough to keep most
activities indoors. Our returning
President, Rich Tetzlaff, conducted our
business meeting, most of which was
discussion and decisions regarding our
Fall Touring Meet, which is not too far
away.
We also discussed a tentative date
and place for our June 40th anniversary
meeting.
After the meeting, we went outside
for a while to check out the old cars,
since it had warmed up some. We then
had more time to visit before being
called to our potluck dinner. Thanks to
Don & Marlys for opening their home
to us.
– Happy Plymouthing,
Rog & Jean Ramberg
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Page 20
2011 National Summer Meet
hosted by the Golden State Region
Pacific Grove, California - July 13 through July 16, 2011
Pacific Grove, offering an
unparalleled quality of life, shares its
borders with the Monterey Bay, the
City of Monterey, the Pacific Ocean
and the Del Monte Forest
with breathtaking views.
The host hotel is the Sea Breeze Inn & Lodge, 1100 Lighthouse Avenue, Pacific Grove, CA. 93950
(800) 575-1805 / Fax: (831) 643-0235
Arrival Date: Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Departure Date: Sunday, July 17, 2011
R o o m B l o c k : Variety of 1 & 2 beds – modifying counts is contingent upon specific guest bookings.
20 rooms for Wednesday 7/13; 25 rooms for Thursday 7/14; 40 rooms for Friday & Saturday 7/15 & 7/16
Rates: Standard 1- Queen Room = $89.95 + tax 7/13&14 and $109.95 + Tax 7/15&16
Standard 2- Queen Room = $95.95 + Tax 7/13&14 and $119.95 + Tax 7/15&16
Reservation Procedure : Guests to call individually to reserve, mention the Plymouth Owners Club for preferred rates and availability. B i l l i n g : On own, all charges. Cancellation Policy: Guests will be held to a 30-day cancellation policy and a 2-night minimum. Cut-off Dates: Guests will be able to reserve at preferred rates until April 20, 2011; afterwards standard hotel rates will apply.
Inclusive: AM Coffee & Muffin Social, use of onsite amenities, wireless Internet, local calling.
The Pacific Grove/Monterey area is very popular in July.
Please call the Seabreeze Inn and book your room as soon as possible.
SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES Tour information, signup sheets and maps will be available in the Hospitality Room
Thursday, July 14th: Driving tour to Big Sur – Tour Guide Tod Fitch. Depart the meet hotel at 10:30 AM for an hour long
36 mile drive along scenic California Hwy 1 over to the Nepenthe Restaurant in Big Sur. www.nepenthebigsur.com Along the
way we will stop for photographs at the famous and photogenic Bixby Creek Bridge. The restaurant has fabulous views down
the rugged coastline. After lunch we will return along the same route. The group size limit is 40 guests so make your decision
as soon as possible.
Friday, July 15th: Driving tour to several wineries – Tour Guide Tod Fitch. There is a $12 fee per person to cover the winery tour. Depart the meet hotel at 10:00 AM for a short drive to the Chateau Julien Winery where we will tour the facilities with
an explanation of the wine making process and an opportunity to taste some of the vineyard’s wines. Then we will continue on
to the village of Carmel Valley for lunch and visit several wine tasting rooms or, for those who prefer, visit some shops and
galleries. The return route to the meet hotel will show off some quintessential California landscape. We should be back at the
meet hotel by 3:00 PM. (Note: This tour was changed from an all-day trip to San Juan Bautista Mission to allow time for participants to wash and prepare their cars for Saturday’s judged show.)
Saturday, July 16th: Ladies/spouse bus tour for lunch and shopping in Carmel – Tour Guides, Leslie Fitch and Kim Hunt.
SELF-GUIDED TOURS At your leisure, these tours are available every day.
Wi n e Tro l l e y Tours of Montere y – $59 per Pepson (Includes 5-hour guided tour & wine tasting at one venue). A box lunch ($15.00)
and additional wine tasting ($7.50 each) can be purchase while enroute. A Plymouth Owners Club special $89.00 per person,
includes the box lunch and wine tasting at all 6 wineries.To make reservations/purchase tickets, please call 831-624-1700.
Experience an unforgettable journey wine tasting in the aesthetic beauty of Carmel Valley aboard “Hattie the Magnificent Trolley.” For
more details: www.toursmonterey.com
Montere y M o v i e Tour – Daily boarding near Fisherman's Wharf (Monterey, CA) at 1:00 PM. Cost $55 per person, seniors $50, children 15 years and under $35. To make reservation/purchase tickets, please call 800-343-6437. Winding through Monterey, Pacific
Grove and Carmel, this scenic tour also stops along the stunning 17-MILE DRIVE® in Pebble Beach. The three-hour adventure takes
place aboard the multimedia Theater-On-Wheels®, a customized luxury motor coach with high-back seats, overhead video screens and
personal headsets. As you glide past sites made famous on the big screen, you’ll hear behind-the-scenes stories of Hollywood glamour.
For more details: www.montereymovietours.com/index.htm
Summer and Fall Whale Watch: Humpback Whales, Blue Whales, Dolphins, Killer Whales Reservations can be made by calling
(831) 375-4658 with a credit card to hold your spot. Departure is from Monterey Bay Whale Watch Center located on Fisherman’s Wharf.
For more details: www.montereybaywhalewatch.com/trips.htm Morning trips: 4 to 5-hour trips every day, departing at 9:00 AM and
returning between 1:00 and 2:00 PM. Cost for morning trips: Adults $45, children 12 and under $35, children 3 and under free
Afternoon trips: 3 to 4-hour afternoon trips every day Trips depart at 2:00 PM and return between 5:00 and 6:00 PM. Cost for afternoon trips: Adults $36, children 12 and under $25, children 3 and under free
Monterey Bay Aquarium, located in Monterey at the west end of historic Cannery Row. Tickets can be ordered by phone (866) 9639645 from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Mon. through Fri. Tickets prices: Adults, $29.95, Child (3 thru 12) $19.95, Student $27.95, Seniors
(65+) $27.95. For more details: www.montereybayaquarium.org /
John Steinbeck's Pacific Grove - Driving Tour: This is a self-guided driving tour of John Steinbeck's Pacific Grove. It features
local sites relating to the lives and work of John Steinbeck and Edward F. Ricketts. There are 20 places to visit on the tour. For more
details: www.93950.com/steinbeck/
-14-20-
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Page 21
July 13-16,
2011
Pacific Grove,
California
REGISTRATION: $ 1 5 per person or $ 2 5 per couple by June 1st; After June 1st $ 2 0 per person or $ 3 0 per couple
(Includes: name tags, meet program, goody bag, hospitality room, Thursday complimentary dinner)
$______________
Participant’s Name _________________________________ Spouse/Passenger _____________________________________
Address __________________________________________City _______________________________Zip ______________
Phone (h) ________________________ (c) ________________________ Email __________________________________
I’ll be a Judge ___________ Which Category or Class or Year _____________
VEHICLE REGISTRATION: POC Region______________________________
Car to be Judged: ______ number of cars @ $ 25.00 by June 1st or @ $ 30.00 after June 1st
$______________
Year _______ Model __________________ Body Style ________________________
Car, Non-judged: ______ number of cars @ $ 25.00 by June 1st or @ $ 30.00 after June 1st
$______________
Year ________ Model _____________________ Body Style _________________________
SELF-GUIDED TOURS Available all days – Pay as you go Wine Trolley Tours of Monterey; Monterey Movie Tour;
Monterey Summer and Fall Whale Watch; Monterey Bay Aquarium; John Steinbeck's Pacific Grove - Driving Tour
SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES (See Activity Descriptions on accompanying page)
Thursday , July 14: Guided tour down the Big Sur coastline to a lunch at Nepenthe Restaurant. Tour Guide Tod Fitch.
Note: Limited to 40 people so register early. Number ______ Pay as you go
Friday, July 15: Guided tour to several wineries; lunch at Carmel Valley Tour Guide Tod Fitch
Number ______ Pay as you go
Saturday, July 16: GSR POC Ladies Lunch & Shopping in Carmel – Transportation provided
Tour Guides, Leslie Fitch and Kim Hunt Number ______ Pay as you go
6 : 0 0 P M Awards Banquet & Awards Program Buffet Menu make your selection
Grilled Chicken Alfredo_____ / Grilled Carmel Style Tri-Tip_____ / Carved Ham_____ / Vegetarian Pasta Dish _____
Total Banquet Number ________ @ $ 40.00
$______________
T-Shirt Order: S____ / M____ / L____ / XL____ @ $15 / XXL____@ $17 / XXXL____ @ $18 Total $______________
Make checks payable to: Golden State Region, POC 2011 National Meet MEET TOTAL $______________
Mail completed registration to: 2 0 11Summer National Meet, c/o Nick DeSimone, 1423 Pecan Gro v e
Drive, Diamond Bar, C A 91765-2536
For additional Meet Information, call or email: home phone (909) 861-4950 or cell phone (714) 864-0658
Email: [email protected]
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Page 22
Tour with the Tall Pines
Plymouth Owners Club Inc.
2011 National Fall Touring Meet
August 31, September 1-3, Rochester, Minnesota
Tall Pines Region, hosts
Tour Overview
Beginning on Wednesday, August 31, there will be organized daily driving tours throughout beautiful Southeastern Minnesota’s bluff
country and the Mississippi River, Lake Pepin area, from the host hotel: LaQuinta Inn and Suites, 1625 So. Broadway, Rochester MN.
55902. Special room rates of $75 can be reserved by calling 507-281-2211 and asking for the Plymouth Owners Club rate which ends
August 10th, 2011. Includes free hot breakfast buffet, wireless internet, indoor pool, onsite restaurant, fridge and microwave. All tours
leaving Rochester will be approximately 120 miles round-trip, and because of limited parking we will be offering a bus tour on Friday.
We strongly encourage the use of GPS devices, cell phones and handheld walkie talkies so people can complete the tours with minimal
confusion. We will be providing complete addresses and phone numbers for each tour stop. We are urging early registration as some tour
and events are limited. We will attempt to tour on rural, less-traveled roads where possible.
Wednesday, August 31:
The plan for Wednesday is to tour to Harmony, Minnesota, where participants will board smaller vans and begin an Old Order Amish
tour. Guides will explain Amish culture and history stopping at 5 - 6 working farms. Most stops offer retail opportunities to purchase
Amish quilts and crafts. Driving back toward Rochester, we will visit Historic Lanesboro, the Bed and Breakfast Capital of Minnesota.
Lunch is on your own and a tour of Lanesboro will provide viewing of the beautifully restored homes and mansions or visits of the many
unique shops. This is a fun town, especially for the ladies.
Thursday, September 1 s t :
Thursday will be a driving tour to the National Eagle Center located on the banks of the Mississippi River.
The center has many exhibits providing insight into the life of the eagle. We hope to be participants in an
interactive program where we can see eagles feeding and bathing and learn about the eagles’ significance in
the environment and their importance in Native American culture. Hopefully, we will
be able to view wild birds from the observation deck, and learn about injured eagles and how they can be returned
into the environment. Lunch is on your own, but we have arranged for box lunches to be available at Nelson’s
Cheese Factory, Nelson,Wisconsin. Nelson’s is known for their super ice cream cones. Following lunch we will be
visiting one of the largest private Franklin automobile collections in existence, and it has a Plymouth also.
Heading back to Rochester, we will stop and visit Lark Toys. Lark Toys is one of the largest independent toy stores
in the United States. It has a huge hand carved wooden carousel and for a buck you get a ride. There’s an old time toy
museum and toy exhibits. If you need a souvenir of the trip for the grandkids this is the place to get it. The evening
begins with a Tall Pines Region build-it-yourself Burger Buffet at the hotel. Be sure to check this on the registration form. If you’re still not tired, drive to downtown Rochester for the Street Fair with shopping and music.
Friday, September 2nd:
On Friday we will offer a bus tour. We will tour into Western Wisconsin and visit Elmer’s Auto and To y
Museum. The museum includes antique, classic and muscle cars along with motorcycles, bicycles, over 200 pedal tractors and over 600 pedal cars on display. In
addition there are 1000s of auto-related toys. This is a fascinating museum and
includes one of the most beautiful views of the Mississippi River valley. Also we
will visit The Pickwick Mill. Built in the 1850s, it is one of the oldest waterpowered gristmills in Southeastern Minn. It was built with locally quarried limestone with a timber frame that was so closely fit that nails were not used. This
will be an extremely educational and interesting stop.
E lmer ’s
Saturday September 3rd:
Saturday will be a day for touring around the Rochester area. We will be visiting the Mayowood Mansion. Mayowood
The Mayowood estate was created between 1910 and 1938 by Dr. Charles Mayo, co-founder of the internationally known Mayo Clinic. The centerpiece of the 3000-acre estate is the 38-room Mayowood
Mansion and gardens. The Olmstead County Historical Center is another interesting stop with numerous
exhibits including five historic buildings on the grounds. Following lunch on your own, we recommend
a tour to Assisi Heights and home of the Sisters of Saint Francis. There will be a one-hour tour of the
buildings and grounds. The view of Rochester is very picturesque from Assisi Heights. On the way back
to the hotel we will stop at the Plummer House, the former residence of Dr. Henry Plummer, a Mayo Clinic partner and founder. The
Plummer House is located on Pill Hill as it became known because of all the doctors’ residences located there. Again there will be spectacular views of Rochester. The day will conclude with the banquet, membership meeting and awards at the host hotel.
Sunday, September 4 t h : breakfast and farewells
Contact: Carl Wegner [email protected]
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Page 23
Tour with the Tall Pines
Plymouth Owners Club Inc.
2011 National Fall Touring Meet
August 31, September 1-3, Rochester, Minnesota
Tall Pines Region, hosts
Member’s name__________________________________ Spouse / Passenger_____________________
Address_____________________________________ City_____________________ Zip____________
Phones (home)_____________________(cell)___________________ Email_______________________
Ve h i c l e R e g i s t r a t i o n :
Year _________ Model_____________________ Body style__________________
(We strongly recommend the use of GPS tools, cell phones and walkie talkies for all tours)
---- Registration desk opens, beginning Tuesday August 30th, at 5:00 PM -----
Registration: $20.00 per vehicle/member before August 10th –– $25.00 after August 10th $_____________
Activity Registration
( See descriptions of activities on the accompanying page.)
Wednesday August 31, 2011
Driving tour to Harmony, MN. There, experience Old Order Amish culture, with a 2 hr.
guided van tour, visiting working farms.
(Limit 70)
Number @ $25_____
$______________
Visit Historic Lanesboro, lunch on your own and shop before returning to Rochester.
Thursday, September 1 s t , 2 0 11 Driving tour to the National Eagle Center, Wabasha MN. (Admission)
Box lunch available at Nelson’s Cheese factory. Nelson WI. (Lunch on your own) Visit one of the largest collections of
Franklin automobiles in the country, then on to Lark Toys.
Thursday evening, Special “Burger Buffet” dinner.
Number @ $ 11 _ _ _ _ _
$______________
Evening Street fair, Downtown Rochester, food, shopping and music.
Friday, September 2nd, 2011 Because of limited parking, today we offer an all day bus tour. We will be visiting the historic Pickwick Mill, Pickwick, MN, and Elmer‘s Auto and Toy Museum, Alma, WI. Cost will include the Bus ride and all
admissions. Lunch on your own.
Number @ $ 2 5 _ _ _ _ _
$______________
Saturday, September 3rd, 2011 Participation pictures. Visit the Olmstead County Historical Center
and Mayowood Mansion.
Number @ $ 1 0 _ _ _ _ _
$______________
Tour to Assisi Heights, Sisters of St. Francis and historic Plummer House. (Admission)
Evening dinner buffet, membership meeting and awards. Number @ $ 2 4 _ _ _ _ _
$______________
T Shirt Order: S_____ M_____ L_____ XL_____ XXL_____ XXXL_____
(All T shirts have pockets) Total T Shirts @ $15.00 ea. ______
Registration Total
$______________
Make checks payable to: Tall Pines Region POC
Grand Total $______________
Mail completed registration to: Don Rohweder, 2 6 1 1 s t Ave SE, New Brighton, MN 5511 2
Fall Meet Information: Richard Tetzlaff 651-433-2707 or cell 612-759-2103, [email protected] / Carl Wegner 218-326-5965
[email protected] / Don Rohweder 651-636-2506,cell 612-817-6135 [email protected]
Meet Hotel: LaQuinta Inns and Suites, 1625 S. Broadway, Rochester, MN 55902 507-281-2211
Information on alternative self-guided tours for people with other interests available at the registration desk.
-17-23-
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Page 24
Plymouth Owners Club sponsors ...
1st Western New York (Niagara) Tour
1928 - 1932 4 Cylinder Plymouths
September 15 - 17 2011
Thursday, September 15th: Registration 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Holiday Inn Lockport
, 515 Transit Rd. (Rt 78), Lockport, NY 14904
For reservations call 716-434-6151 or 1-800-HOLIDAY or www.holidayinn.com
Room rate is $91.00 plus tax (mention Plymouth Owners Club)
Reservations must be made before August 15, 2011. Includes Continental Breakfast
Trailer and motor home parking on premises
• 5:30 pm There will be a short tour and stop for dinner (pay on your own)
Friday, September 16th:
Tour 8:30 am
• To the Historic Lockport Locks and Erie Canal Boat Cruise
Includes 2 hour cruise on the Erie Canal through 2 locks cost: $13.00 each
• After a stop for lunch we will tour to the Niagara Power Project to see how
water is turned into electricity (free of charge)
• Then we will tour to the Herschel Carousel Factory and Museum and
enjoy a ride on a restored carousel (cost: $3.00 each)
• Return to hotel
Saturday, September 17th: Tour 8:30 am
• Buffalo Waterfront, Naval and Servicemen’s Park (cost: $5.00 each)
• Pierce Arrow Car Museum (cost $7.00 each)
• Then lunch at the Anchor Bar, Original Home of the Buffalo Chicken Wing
• Return to hotel
• 6:30 pm Banquet at Holiday Inn
If you are interested in seeing Niagara Falls, come a day early.
I will arrange a tour on Wednesday, September 14, 2011. Call for details.
Registration
Name __________________________________________ Spouse/Guests _______________________
Address __________________________________________ City ______________________________
State/Province_______________ ZIP/Code _________ Phone ________________________
Your Plymouth
Year __________ Model _________________
Registration
Dinner
Total
Mail to:
$18.00 per car
$25.00 x _______
________
________
________
Robert Manke, 6037 E Canal Rd, Lockport, NY 14094
Phone: 716-925-4048
e-mail: [email protected]
Dash Plaques
Running Board Flea Market
-18- -
Tour 50 - 70 miles per day
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3:05 PM
Page 19
Survivors
1967 Fur y IIIs
by John Reddie
Cohasset, Massachusetts
I
have had my 1967
Plymouth Fury III
convertible since
July, 1973. Up until
June 2000, it was the
only car that I used daily.
At that time, the body
had so succumbed to the
many New England winters that I had to stop
using it for two years
while I repaired the body
(see BULLETIN 271).
After the body repair was
completed, I used it until
August of 2005 when I
had a tragic fire that
destroyed the entire interior (BULLETIN 290). I was fortunate
enough to bring it back and get it roadworthy and it is now
used all the time except in bad weather.
I am pleased to say that in May 2010, the car turned over
600,000 miles. When I purchased it, it had just over 72,000
miles. Is it a survivor? Well, that depends on how one interprets the term “survivor.”
If it means that the car
has all of the original
pieces that it had when
new, than it is not.
With that said, though, I
will say this: It has survived almost 44 years of
use plus a devastating
fire. It has had three
engines, the present one
being a 1976 Plymouth
318. Other than that, all
of the parts that I have
replaced are for a ‘67
Fury. I am so glad that I
am still able to use this
car. I am retired now,
and there is nothing like
lowering the top and taking a cruise on a nice
warm summer day.
My other driver car
is a 1967 Plymouth
Fury III four-door hard-
600,000 miles
top. It is pretty much original with the points ignition. This
car has over 200,000 miles and so far runs fine.
It is great to receive a new P LYMOUTH BULLETIN in the
mail. Thanks, and enjoy those old Plymouths.
PB
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Page 20
The Oddball
Tech
Service Awards
T
he Plymouth mechanics – not
that they were oddballs – had
information that was less than
great to keep our wonderful toys on the
highways and byways. Stay with me on
this one, because we are going to cover,
on the run, seventy-odd (did I just say
that?) years of various stuff.
Nineteen thirty-four was the first
year that a customer/dealer repair or
service manual was printed by Chrysler
Corporation. Prior to that, the owner’s
manual was it, except for service bulletins, etc., and the mechanic’s basic
common sense. Some help did come in
the form of bulletins that were included
in items sent out for Chrysler and
Dodge dealers. The early years found
these bulletins mostly printed on orange
sheets although a few on blue paper
were put out by Dodge. The first
Plymouth-only version started in 1933,
Year
1949
?
1954
1955
1955
1957
1960
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
with #1 and ended somewhere around
1951. Some of what was out there is
the 1936 Chrysler Corporation Service
Reporter, the post-war (1946) Product
Information News, MoPar Parts
Progress, Reporter and Topics, the 1949
General Service Letters, 1951 Shop
Talk, Progressive Repairman, the 1954
Service Siren and Parts & Service
Facts.
From there on Chrysler Corporation
began flooding the field with titles like
Spark Lines, Customer Care Topics,
Plymouth Technical Product
Information, Service & Parts Scene,
Important Service Information, etc.
About 1958, Chrysler Corporation started with Chrysler-Plymouth Information
Bulletins that were set up as 1958-1, 2,
3; 1959-1, 2, 3; and so on, right on up to
the end. The later years’ bulletins were
sent throughout the year as loose leaf
N o . Award
***
Lucite Tech Guy paper weight
?
Zippo lighter
6
Knife w/5 accessories and leather case
7
Sterling silver belt buckle
7L
Brass/leather pad holder * Leadership
10th Member ring
12
K-D 5-piece tool kit w/leather case
1st
Combination box/open-end wrench set
2nd
TW-1 (ft-lb torque wrench)
3rd
TW-2 (in-lb torque wrench)
4th
T-3 Loc-Rite wrench set
5th
T-4 1/4" Bonney socket set
6th
T-5 Utica pliers set
7th
T-6 Aja punch set
8th
T-7 Central one-inch micrometer
9th
T-8 Central two-inch micrometer
10th
T-9 Bonney 3/8" socket set
11th
T-10 3/8" spark plug socket set
12th
Jacket
13th
Deep-socket wrenches
14th
1/2"-drive socket set
15th
1/2"-drive ratchet
16th
Analog voltmeter
17th
Metric sockets
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1986-C
1987
1987-C
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2001
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18th
19th
20th
21st
22nd
23rd
24th
25th
25th
26th
26th
27th
28th
29th
30th
31st
32nd
33rd
34th
35th
36th
37th
38th
39th
40th
40th
pages and then offered as bound editions.
My first service record and filmstrip
is from1936 and is entitled A Good
Steer. Again, after the war, Master
Technician Service was started with
records and filmstrips and reel-to-reel
tapes which progressed from there on to
Beta and VHS tapes and, I believe, a
laser format.
This is where I digress. In order to
entice the mechanic to improve skills,
Chrysler Corporation went into the
Tech Service Awards, a program in
which they would school mechanics on
various subjects each month. The
mechanics would be tested, and at the
end of the year, if a passing grade were
maintained, they would get that year’s
award. The Tech Service Awards were
different for the mechanic and for the
dealership. I will list and picture what I
have for the early years as well as the
Gold Tool Award program which was
started in 1963. The awards were excellent quality tools that were often used
by the members.
So, ‘til we meet again, keep looking for
the “Oddball.”
– Andy Weimann
[email protected]
Ratcheting metric box wrench set
Channel-lock pliers set
5-piece metric wrench set
Audible circuit tracer
Vice Grip pliers set
10-piece nut driver set
8-piece screwdriver set
Digital volt/ohm meter (DVOM)
Canada screwdriver set
Cordless screwdriver and bit set
Canada manual ratchet/5 sockets
Soldering gun set
Stubby shop light and flashlight
Stubby ratchet and socket set
5-piece metric flex-socket set
12-piece Torx bit set
Audiotech probe Model AT100
Buck-type knife w/wood box
Bernz-O-Matic TS 2000 torch head
Snap-On 3-piece comb wrench Set
Multifunction tool w/case
Snap On mini tool box w/screwdriver
Wristwatch
7-piece electronic screwdriver set
Digital meter
Plymouth production stopped
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P
ine Wood
(Plymouth Wood)
Dad Wes Lape’s
Lape’s ‘65 Barracuda
break off to get to get the correct weight of
5 ounces. So we picked up one of those, as
well.
David and I went through the same steps
that Logan and I did to complete Logan’s
car. He (we) sanded, varnished, painted and
“polished” the axles (nails). And we added
chrome windows and bumpers. When we
were done, I attached the wheels and we
applied liberal amounts of graphite. We set
the car on the scale and it weighed in at 3.7
ounces. We broke off the extra weight pieces from the “chasby Lee Lape
sis,” screwed them to the bottom, set the car on the scale, and
Papillion, Nebraska
it was right at 5 ounces. I cut the top out of a tissue box and
added some foam padding, and we placed the car in it until
hen I last wrote, I mentioned that I was going to
race day.
build another Pinewood
The big race was on Saturday,
Derby car with my grandson
April 9th. Unfortunately, that was the
David (we have six grandkids; five boys
day of our POC club meeting, so I was
and one girl). I was thinking of trying
unable to attend. We were meeting with
to make this one look like my ‘41
the local WPC chapter, and members of
Plymouth coupe. The family brought
the Heart of America Region to tour
the kit over a few weeks ago, but at
Harold and Leona Soukup’s Toyland
that time, a date hadn’t been set for the
Museum in North Bend. I helped set up
The “chassis”
race, so there was no hurry. I took a
the meeting place for lunch in Fremont,
pencil and kind of drew a pattern for the
Nebraska, and felt I should attend, but I hated missing the
coupe on the block of wood, and set it aside,
race.
When the Scout pack set the date, David and I planned on
The first cell phone call came right after we ordered lunch.
making a trip to the shop the next Saturday and cut the patDavid’s mother said the car had been checked in and it passed
tern out on the band saw. He came over on the appointed day,
the initial inspection. Wes had driven his Barracuda to the
and I asked him if he had anything particular in mind for the
pack meeting, and everyone was impressed with his car, and
design of the car. He said, “Can we make it like my daddy’s
how well David’s Pinewood Derby replica turned out. The
car?” (a 1965 Barracuda). I said that was an excellent idea, and
second call came while I was standing in the parking lot waithanded him a pencil and told him to erase my lines.
ing for the others to finish lunch before touring to North
I pulled out my copy of the Plymouth DeSoto Story and
a couple of pictures of David’s dad Wesley’s Barracuda, and we
traced out a new pattern. We jumped in the car and drove over
to the shop and cut out the block. We then went to the
Hobby Lobby store, where we found a turquoise paint in the
model car section that was almost the same color as his dad’s
car.
While in the model section, we discovered a whole
Pinewood Derby section, with accessories and even blocks
already pre-cut in different patterns. In addition to selling
weights that could be added to a car, they sold an aluminum
chassis which weighs 2.5 ounces and looks like a car frame
with dual exhaust, the bottom of the engine, radiator, drive
shaft and rear end. There are sections of the “chassis” you can
Derby – The Sequel
W
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ounce limit. We
took the “frame”
off, and cut out the
“drive shaft” with
some side cutters,
and it weighed in
at exactly five
ounces. Finding
that he raced at
1:30, we went
home and had
lunch.
When we
returned, we learned
there were 17 cars
in the Bear class.
David was in the
middle of the races.
Sanding the axles (nails) with Grandpa His car was second
on the first race
(only because another car jumped the track and hit his). He
was first in the next three races. They raced each car four
times, once on each lane, and then average the four times. When the
results were announced, David
was ninth out of 17 cars, but
he was happy to have, at
least, made it to districts.
They announced there was
only about a tenth of a
second difference in times
for the first ten cars.
Bend.
This time it was David, and he said, “Grandpa, I won first
place!” I thought, “Alright, they both placed,” and I assumed
he was first among the Tiger Cubs. He then asked if I could
come on the 30th. I asked him what he meant, and he said
excitedly, “I’m going to Districts! I had the fastest car!” I
congratulated him and then said he was going to have to put
it up and not
play with it
until after the
district races.
Logan had actually slept with
his car after his
races, but David
informed me,
“They kept the
car.” I guess
they keep the
top cars so they
will remain
unchanged until
the district races.
So, next
Sanding the car
year I will have the
potential of building
three cars, as David’s
younger brother Dylan
will be eligible to
join Scouts. Our son
Lonnie (who is in the
Army and stationed in
Colorado Springs,
Colorado) helped his
two boys build cars
for their Pinewood
Derby. We talked to
my daughter-in-law
over the weekend, and
she said Lander’s car
came in dead last, and
Kalen’s car came in
next-to-last. They
said next year they
wanted to fly Grandpa
out to help them with
building their cars!
So I might get to
build that ‘41 coupe
yet. It’s just that now
I’ve set the bar pretty
high.
PB
Car,
Car, badge and Grandpa!
Putting on the varnish
Spraying the paint
Update:
T HE WA G O N W HEEL D I S T R I C T Pine Wood derby races
were held April 30 in Bellevue, Nebraska. David, his dad and
I checked in his car and found it was .02 ounces over the five-
The Winner! David [LEFT] watches his Barracuda [LANE 1] come in
first
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F ury F ifty-six
REPRINTED FROM SPORTS CAR ILLUSTRATED, MAY 1956, WITH PERMISSION FROM CAR AND DRIVER MAGAZINE.
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SUBMITTED BY MEMBER JIM MARR, MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA
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by Jack Lewis
Riverton, Utah
3:06 PM
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Hooked on the ‘56 Plymouth Fury
have been a
Plymouth fan since
my annual treks to
the showroom with my
dad during the fifties. In
1954, when I was 13,
this trip became especially exciting; it was the
debut of the all-new
‘55s! All Dad and I did
after viewing the debut
of the Forward Look
was talk about the new
Plymouths. Unfortunately,
he could not afford one and
continued driving his ‘48 Plymouth for another year.
Then the ‘56 came out and I couldn’t believe a Plymouth
could look better! And my father was happy as well, as
someone traded their ‘55 Plymouth Savoy four-door sedan V8
for a new ‘56. The dealer called Dad, and his dream car ‘55
was to be his!
But I was hooked on the ‘56. There was something about
those fins and the crisper look of the Sportone styling on the
Belvedere two-door hardtop. When I was fifteen-and-a-half
(old enough to get a learner’s permit in California), my father
bought me a 1950 Plymouth coupe that would take me
through high school and into my freshman year of college.
The second semester was to start just before my 18th
birthday in February 1960. I had come home for my birthday
weekend and when I arrived home that Friday afternoon, my
dad was waiting and said he was thinking about buying a
“cream puff” car he saw up at the dealer’s and wondered if I
would go to look at it with him. When I saw it, I couldn’t
believe my eyes: a 1956 Belvedere two-door hardtop, red and
black in color, with the Power Pack 277 engine. It even had
dual exhausts! The dealer took us for a ride and then asked
Dad if he wanted to drive it. Dad said, “No, but my son
does.” And I did! When we got back to the dealership, the
dealer threw the keys back at me and said, “Happy
Birthday!”
The Plymouth hardtop would become the love of my
life. Cruising the drive-in restaurants (which included the
famous “Mel’s” of the movie American Graffiti fame, as I
grew up in San Francisco), street racing and going to the
Sunday drags at Half Moon Bay or Cotati airstrips, were
all the things to do with young car nuts. My ‘56 Belvedere
would be a trophy-winner at the drags and acquitted itself
quite well on the street (a 74.7% win rate!). Other than
dyno tune-ups at the local speedshop, it remained bone
stock and ran a best of 17.32 seconds through the quarter
mile at 83 MPH with a Powerflite transmission and street
tires. Further, its reliability was enormous: never a drivetrain failure in 65,000 miles. One type of car haunted me
though; it was naturally another ‘56 Plymouth – three different Plymouth Furys! Each of those three smoked my
Fury Fifty-six
Belvedere with ease. The ‘56 Fury would become a lifelong
obsession of mine.
I would finish college and then go on to Air Force Officer
Training School. Our Training Officer told us that upon graduation, to get a great start on your Air Force career, don’t go
home on your first leave and get married, and don’t go into
debt by buying a new car. I took his advice on the first item
but failed on the second. My Belvedere, by then, had over
100,000 miles and would be required to put many more miles
on to satisfy my Air Force tour, and coincidentally, Plymouth
had just came out with a ‘64 model that was the most exciting
thing I had seen since the ‘56-58 Plymouth Furys. So before
arrival at my next USAF assignment, I would be traveling
there in a gorgeous and fast Sport Fury!
By the mid 1970s, the Air Force was long behind me. I
was married to a beautiful woman (now a 42-year affair), had
two wonderful children, an enjoyable and challenging career,
and had bought and sold some cars and pickup trucks. There
was also something else I kept thinking about, my old love
affair with my ‘56 Plymouth, and how I could reignite that,
but this time with a 1956 Fury?
I began looking for one, but none showed up in want ads,
car lots, etc. In the mid-1980s a friend introduced me to
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I found my Fury!
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Page 30
Hemmings magazine. He said if a Fury would ever go up for
sale, Hemmings would be the best source for finding it.
Finally in December 1987 a person listed three ‘56 Furys for
sale. I bought the best one. Six months later I found that the
seller was not the rightful owner (and he didn’t know it). I
got all my money back.
In 1989 another Hemmings ad appeared, advertising a
Fury with “minimal rust in the usual spots.” I called, put a
deposit down, bought a trailer and drove two-thirds of the
way across the country only to find that this Fury needed a
total body replacement save the roof! The trailer came back
empty.
At the end of 1991, I found my Fury and it was right in
my own back yard of Salt Lake City, Utah. (My career moved
us to Utah in 1986). It was painted red, had rust in the “usual
places” (this time for real), was missing just a few items and
the price of $1500 seemed right.
ers, John
Teske and
Ed Dea, and
‘57 Fury
owner John
Paxos, I
placed ads in
Hemmings,
the WPC
Club and
Plymouth
Owners Club
magazines.
The response was swift and gratifying!
What to call the group? I don’t know how or why, but the
name “Golden Fin Society” popped into my brain and that’s
what it would be called. I initially provided four then soon six
newsletters a year, continued to maintain the ‘56 Fury registry
and added new 1957 and 1958 Fury registries, and with the
help of Hemmings magazine, developed a website hosted by
them: http://clubs.hemmings.com/goldenfin/ Since then, the
club has grown to over 250 members or associates who have
contributed to a networking of friendship and interest in each
others cars! The ‘56 registry is now up to 227, the ‘57 grew
from 0 to 96 and the ‘58 to 119! The late Tom Mitchell suggested an annual National Gathering and he hosted the first in
1999 in Missouri. We are having our Tenth GFS Gathering in
Utah, in June 2011. Through these gatherings I have met over
fifty percent of our group face-to-face – a fantastic group of
people.
My Fury? It is progressing, as all bodywork has been
completed to include paint, the motor is rebuilt, the car has
been rewired. Remaining is plating and polishing, fabrication
of the interior, and final reassembly. I can’t wait to turn the
key. I am still hooked on the ‘56 Fury!
Les Streitmatter ’s Fury
at the 1991 National Spring Meet
While looking for my Fury, I got hooked up with Les
Streitmatter, an Illinois ‘56 Fury owner. He was willing to
share his knowledge, copies of his Fury literature, including
magazine articles and a registry of some 50 or so ‘56 Fury
owners that had been originally started by a fellow
named Paul Oxley and later maintained by another
Fury owner, Loyd Groshong of Missouri. Les also
paved the way for a correspondence/telephone relationship with the Plymouth Owners Club ‘56-58 Fury
Tech Advisor, Tom Van Beek of Wisconsin, also a
‘56 Fury owner. Tom’s help was invaluable and selflessly given!
I began work on my Fury right away, but my
progress was slow. And with every bit of progress
came discovery of new requirements for restoring my
Fury properly. I also found that obtaining parts,
especially unique Fury parts, was nearly impossible!
The years 1992 through 1997 proved very frustrating.
I did have some experience with the Chrysler
300 Club as an owner of a ‘79 Chrysler 300, and was
amazed at the networking the club had that was especially helpful to owners of the “Classic” 300 letter
cars of ‘55 through ‘65. I wondered if such a network
was possible for “Classic & Golden” Fury owners? I
decided to try to develop such a group. At the end of
1997, with the encouragement of two ‘56 Fury own-
PB
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Jack with his Fury
at the 2008 Utah Concours d'Elegance
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Fury Fifty-six
sources of parts.
The chassis and drivetrain were
blasted and powder-coated black.
New main springs were placed on
the rear and new coils on the front.
Brake and fuel lines are now stainless, as is the exhaust system. The
gas tank was restored and lined by a
commercial tank repair company.
The engine, Powerflite and rear differential were rebuilt by professional shops. The differential and transmission had many new parts and
bearings installed. The engine was
full of sludge, but scraping and a
hot-tank dipping took care of that
problem. It was then magnafluxed,
line-bored, balanced and torqued to
manufacturer’s specifications with
oversize bearings. It was bored 0.40
oversize and new pistons were manufactured from the originals.
Master and wheel cylinders were
brass-lined, and new brake parts were installed along with a
rebuilt power booster. All salvageable original, as well as
new, fasteners were replated with zinc chromate, which is in
keeping with the gold theme of the Fury. The fasteners now
have a nice gold appearance in addition to being corrosion
resistant.
The body was stripped and repainted with
original colors as they were found during
stripping. Very little sheet metal repair
was needed since the car spent its life
in an almost rust-free environment.
New reproduction wiring and interior were installed, and a new steering
wheel was cast from modern plastic. All chrome on the car was
replated and the stainless trim was
polished. Anodizing was used on
those aluminum parts that originally had
it except for the hood ornament which was
gold plated.
The Fury is a pleasure to see and drive. At the
Carlisle National Chrysler Products show in 2008-2010, I
was quite surprised to receive two Celebrity Pick Awards and
two first-in-class awards. It has been an enjoyable restoration
which is thoroughly documented. The car, now driven to
shows and on nice days, has about 3,000 miles on it. P B
My 1956 Fury
by John Teske
Ashburn, Virginia
B
efore I purchased my 1956 Fury in 1996, it had spent
its life in Arizona. In May 1956 it left the assembly
line in Evansville, Indiana, and was shipped to
Weaver Motors in Galesburg, Illinois, where on
April 21, 1956, the first owner purchased
it.
I came into possession of the Fury
through a Phoenix dealer and am the
second owner. It was in need of
total restoration which is what I was
looking for as a retirement project.
It was running, and the body, protected with a primer coat, was in
good condition. Everything else needed total refurbishing. All wiring and
interior items were totally dried and crumbling from the hot, dry Arizona weather. It
also had unknown mileage since the non-functioning
odometer showed about 5,000 miles. The original owner
apparently enjoyed the Fury.
The car was totally disassembled and everything was
renewed. During the ten-yearrestoration an effort was made
to restore the car to a factoryoriginal condition. This
required original manuals and
an unending parts search.
When I found something, it
went into what was becoming
a substantial spare parts
inventory. Salvage yards and
the internet were the main
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Prog ress of a restoration
Arrival from Arizona
Unloaded…
in its primered “splendor”
Special Fury trim…
hides one of few spots of rust
Wheelwell lips are solid
Inside the glove box door
is a special sticker for heater-equipped cars
Fury wheel covers
attach to the clips seen on the wheel above
Ready for the chrome shop
Grease-encrusted engine is revealed
Newly painted wheels; wrapped wide whites
Opened engine reveals sludge
Engine number found under the grease
Engine and transmission leave the chassis
Loaded for more work
The body and chassis part ways
The bare chassis ready for clean-up
The floor, too, is solid
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Page 33
The chassis cleaned and painted
Front suspension detail
The engine, rebuilt, painted and ready
The transmission ready and waiting
Engine, transmission and chassis reunited
Two fours ready for the engine
The body stripped and prepped…
for Fury Eggshell White paint
Body and chassis reunited
Wires
Clips
New and renewed parts
The dash, before and after
A door panel, before and after
Under the hood and in the trunk
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Fury Fifty-six
All-time Favorite
Extolling the virtues of the ‘56 Plymouth
My
by Duane Esarey
Yoder, Colorado
was quite rare right
from the start.
In 1962, while in
college, I was able to
get a ‘56 Savoy fourdoor sedan with the
270 V8 and threespeed manual transmission with overdrive. It was no
slouch, leaving several
‘55 and ‘56 Chevys
and Fords in its dust.
I handed it down to
my younger brother
and sister to try wearing it out. Though
they did not succeed,
it was sold, and I lost
track of the car.
Years went by as
I spent some thirty
years as a teacher, but
I always kept an eye
out for a ‘56 Fury. I
subscribed to more
first introduction to the 1956 Plymouth was
at age 13 when I was really beginning to get
interested in cars. The 1955 model had
already caught my attention. Then the slightly revised version
came out late in 1955, Plymouth for 1956.
Then, in January, “what to my wondering eyes should
appear” but the Fury! I remember, with my dad, drooling
over pictures of that new big-horsepowered and sleek-looking
one-of-a-kind automobile.
At that time I determined that I’d love to own one of
those cars. But that was not to happen for many years,
because a lot of other cars got in the way and the 1956 fury
JACK LEWIS PHOTO
and more car magazines. I finally saw one advertised, located
in Rittman, Ohio. Shortly after Thanksgiving in 2001, my
wife and I went to see the car. We bought it on the spot,
thanks to Cheryl Hummel.
Needless to say, the years since have been sweet due in
part to the fact that right out of the garage is that long-soughtafter and waited-for 1956 Plymouth Fury.
We’ve had some work done on it. The only major work
was a transmission overhaul. The car is a driver, as we have
taken it on several cruises and to many shows. We now have
other vintage cars in our collection; but, as you might guess,
that white ‘56 Fury with its golden side rim and healthysounding engine is our all-time favorite.
REPRINTED FROM PLYMOUTH BULLETIN 281
Duane and LuEllen Esarey at Tulsarama, 2007
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DAVID ESLICK PHOTO
Fury Fifty-six
I
trade it off. As soon as I had
traded it, I realized I had
made a huge mistake and
tried to buy it back, with no
luck. I then started looking
for another one. At this time,
my other car was a 1936
Plymouth coupe. This was
my very first car, bought
when I was 15 years old. I
still have it 53 years later.
I finally found another
Fury and bought it in
August1984. The restoration
had already been started by
the previous owner (a single
lady) and the car was apart.
The body had been repainted
and the windows were out of
the car. I took the car home
on a trailer and in a lot of
boxes. After many years and
innumerable phone calls to
locate various missing pieces
and parts, the car was finished in the spring of 1993. The previous owner had became
very ill and I was not able to get all the missing pieces from
her.
The production of the 1956 Furys was not very high.
Only 4,485 were built.
My Second Fury
by Tommy Pike
Springfield, Missouri
had been looking for my second 1956 Fury for 20 years.
I had owned my first one from January, 1961, to January,
1964. Glenda and I were married in April, 1962, and
drove the Fury to Colorado on our honeymoon.
When the Fury begin to need some repairs, we decided to
My ‘56 has been featured in many books, magazines and on
calendars.
These cars were almost as fast as their big brother, the
1956 Chrysler 300B. They are fun to drive, and they handle
great for a full-size sedan without power steering. I had my
original Fury up to high speed of around 110 to 120 miles per
hour but have never had nerve to take this one over a 100. I
was much younger then.
Some specifications of the 1956
Plymouth Fury
JACK LEWIS, GOLD FIN SOCIETY, PHOTO
Engine: Overhead valve Fury V8
Displacement: 303 CID
Horsepower: 240 at 4,800 RPM
Transmission: Three-speed manual with optional
overdrive or automatic push-button Powerflite.
Compression ratio: 9.25 to 1
Body style: Two-door coupe
Number of seats: Six
Weight: 3,650 pounds
Wheelbase: 115 inches.
Overall length: 204.8 inches.
Base cost: $2,807.00
It also has the following options:
Automatic push-button transmission
Search-tune radio with rear seat speaker
Highway Hi-Fi record player
Power brakes
A number of the items on the car are
standard equipment:
Heater
Tinted glass
Interior light package
Factory tachometer.
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DAVID ESLICK PHOTO
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Dad’s ‘56
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F ur y
went thru points and condensers faster
than they got paychecks to repair it.
My dad realized the night they
signed papers on a new blue ‘63
Plymouth Fury that he’d made a mistake trading this beautiful white and
gold car. He went back the next day to
the dealership and tried to buy the
white and gold car back. But alas, it
had sold shortly after they’d left the
dealership the day before.
And thus began the legend of the
‘56 Plymouth Fury in the Pike family
of Springfield, Missouri; a legend I’ve
lived with all my life.
My childhood is full of memories
of the pursuit of another one of these
mythical cars. How many times did
my dad catch a glimmer of white and
gold in traffic and he’d make a wild uturn and chase that glimmer until he
knew it wasn’t what he was looking
for? It happened often enough that I
knew how to brace myself with my
by Tonya Jo Pike
feet in the back seat for the crazy turn he’d make. How many
times did we spend a lazy weekend day, driving miles and
life is full of car-related stories. As the daughmiles, to check out a report of a ‘56 Fury hiding in a barn or
ter and only child of a lifelong Plymouth
field somewhere only to have Dad come walking back from
owner, that, in and of itself, is not strange. But
the hike frowning and shaking his head no? It was often
there are two stories that have been part of my life longer than
enough that Mom kept a bag packed with books and snacks to
all the others, literally since birth or before.
keep me entertained while we sat in the car and waited
The first is somewhat typical of the other birth, marriage,
patiently on Dad.
death car stories you hear in nearly every car-crazy family.
Friends of mine are always amazed that I can distinguish
I’ve been told ever since I can remember that I cost my dad
‘50s model Fords, Chevys, Dodges, Plymouths, Chryslers,
an Avanti. Seems he wanted to buy a new Avanti and my
Buicks and Pontiacs as easily as I do – cars built 15 years or
Mom wanted to have a baby. Mom won, and I am the baby
more before I was born. Let me tell you, the third time your
that resulted. Thanks Mom!
dad yells at you because you’ve sent him to look at a ‘58
The second story started before I was born. My earliest
Ford, you quickly learn to distinguish the right from the
memories are of hearing about this mythical white car with
wrong! Except then you come to realize you are looking for
gold trim and tailfins. A car faster than the wind that my parsomething that is very rare and you aren’t going to see it in
ents owned when they first married, before I was born. But it
normal traffic… and then you kind of quit looking for it.
was an unusual car, quite advanced for its time. As such, it
When I was in junior high, I spotted a man at our local
was both hard and costly to work on. Being newlyweds on a
annual regional swap meet wearing a t-shirt with … lo and
budget, my folks eventually had to trade this car off because it
behold … a ‘56 Fury on it! That man in the
shirt turned out to be Loyd Groshong of Troy,
Missouri. And thus Dad and Mom would
begin a long friendship with Loyd and his late
wife Marion – all because of the mythical
white and gold car that Loyd owned and Dad
didn’t. At least I got to go to Troy and see a
real one, and finally know what Dad was really looking for.
A few years after Dad met Loyd, he got a
true lead on a ‘56 Fury for sale in Illinois. It
was owned by a female school administrator
named Kitty. She was an accomplished car
restorer, having redone a number of rare
MGs, several DeSoto Adventurers, and a couFather, Daughter, Fury: Tommy and Tonya Jo Pike with that’s been part of their lives ple of other ‘56 Furys. She had a special
A d a ug h t e r ’ s p o in t o f vi e w
GLENDA PIKE PHOTO
My
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Page 37
place in her heart for ‘56
Furys because her grandparents had given her one
to drive when she turned
16. She had started a
ground-up restoration of
the one she was offering to
sell Dad. She had been
thinking she’d keep it herself when it was done.
However, she said a lot of
things had changed and
she gave us a number of
semi-valid reasons for
wanting to rid herself of it
in mid-restoration. She
Tulsarama, 2007: Three of us drove together, Tommy Pike in his ‘56 Fury, John Mitchum in his ‘55 Belvedere
and Loyd Groshong in his ‘56 “Fury” convertible. I drove the late-model Chrysler so we would have a way to
was too busy with school,
get around. -- Glenda Pike
she had another MG to do.
But Kitty was very conon calls that weren’t going to be a help in getting this Fury
cerned, as I remember, to know WHO was willing to buy this
finished.
project of hers.
Now, let me interject this: Southwest Missouri is not a hot
So, we made a family trip my senior year of high school
bed of Chrysler owners. Ford and Chevys reign supreme
to Illinois to see this car. I remember going to Kitty’s house
around here. I am the black sheep of the family because my
but I don’t remember actually going out into the garage to see
dream car was a ‘68 Mercury Cougar which sits in my parthe car. This was all very different, because we actually took
ent’s driveway to this day – but that’s another story entirely!
a weekend family trip and stayed two nights in a motel to see
Dad is pretty much known around here as “that Chrysler (or
this car. We met Kitty and she was eager to know even Mom
Plymouth) guy.” That’s why everyone knows him; he owns
and me. What we didn’t know at the time was that Kitty was
the odd car out, always. Your buddy winds up with grandterminally ill. I think it was important to her that this car go
ma’s ‘60s model New Yorker to sell? Have him call Tommy
to a FAMILY, not a COLLECTION, where it would be finPike; he’s your guy to talk to about it.
ished and loved, yes, LOVED. I know the car meant an
But finally the day arrived and our ‘56 Fury was back in
awful lot to her, more than all the others she had done.
one piece! And Dad drove it to the first car show; then the
So a deal was struck between Kitty and Dad, and some
first cruise-in.
weeks later Dad and a friend of his, Ronnie Estes, went after
And now, more than 20 years later, the story remains the
the mythical white car. This was before cell phones, and I
same. You pull in. You park. Talk stops. People stare.
remember waiting anxiously with Mom for them to call to say
Uneducated car people go, “What is that?” Idiotic less-thanthat it was loaded and, then again, when they reached a motel
know-it-alls very mistakenly whisper “Christine, a damn
partway back home. As I remember, they carried all the parts
Christine!” True car people step back and look on in awe or
into the motel room for the night, not wanting to risk someat least deep appreciation. It’s nice to know those Ford and
one mistaking the gold anodized parts for gold plating and
Chevy guys can appreciate class when they see it!
stealing them.
Not long after Dad finished this ‘56 Fury, professional car
Then the next day, it arrived. But alas … it was NOT the
photographer Michael Mueller came through and phomythical white and gold goddess of my childhood dreams or
tographed our car. It has been featured in countless books
what I had seen sitting in Loyd’s garage! Oh she was
and magazines since. There is a very unbelievable sense of
eggshell white alright, but she was in boxes. Boxes and what
pleasure to walk into a bookstore and pick up a book and find
seemed to be millions of boxes! Parts everywhere! My
our car in it. It’s an even greater pleasure for me to find that
teenage brain had not contemplated what ground-up restoranew book with the Fury in it, before Dad does, and be able to
tion meant at all!
surprise him with it!
Since my dad had not taken the car apart, it took him sevMy dad is the second owner of both a ‘36 P2 coupe and a
eral years to put the car back together… years filled with
‘37 Plymouth truck, and the third owner of a ‘41 Deluxe
innumerable phone calls to Loyd and Kitty, until she died,
sedan. All these vehicles have stories of family legend equal
plus hours of looking at parts manuals and car literature.
to the ‘56. I have often said they will pry the keys to these
Plus, there were another few thousand phone calls to locate
cars out of my cold dead hand when I die; that I will never
odd pieces like trim clips, trim corners, and wheel cap clips…
sell them after my Dad is gone. But the hardest one for me to
and more phone calls and panic when there was a major issue
let go will be the ‘56 Fury … such a pretty white and gold
getting the upholstery done. We got calls regarding somecar, faster than the wind, tailfins to die for, and so very tied up
thing about this car for what seemed like every night literally
in my childhood memories of afternoons spent trying to find
for years. I got very good at asking very pointed questions of
either the car or parts, and then putting it back together and
the callers if Dad was gone. I didn’t want him wasting time
PB
back into our lives!
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JACK LEWIS, GOLD FIN SOCIETY, PHOTO
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Our ‘56
H
by Byron Parsons
Everest, Washington
Fury
Fury Fifty-six
aving worked for Dependable Motors, a DodgePlymouth dealership in Mount Vernon, Washington,
in 1955 and 1956, I remember liking the ‘55
Plymouths but really liking the ‘56 Furys and the Dodge
D500s. I have both now. At age 22 in ‘56, I couldn’t afford
anything like them. I was also about to be drafted into the
Army, which happened in January, 1957.
Through the years, I always wanted a ‘56 Fury. I saw
one for sale at the Portland Swap Meet in the early ‘70s. It
had been an automatic car but had been converted to a stick
shift. I did not buy that one.
I found another that was being driven in our town of
Everett in about 1977. I talked to the owner for a couple of
years but he would not sell, so I let it go. About a year later,
after the Fury’s reverse had gone out, he called and asked if I
was still interested in the car. That was 1980 and that was
when we got our Fury.
The seller’s grandparents had bought the car new in
Denver, Colorado. It had just over 60,000 miles when we got
it. It now has 131,422 miles and we are its third owners.
The car is more original than it is restored. The motor,
transmission, brakes, exhaust, seats, door panels, carpet and
bumpers have all been redone. The
tires are new. The glass, grille, chrome
(except the bumpers), headliner, suspension, trunk mast, trunk weatherstrip
and cardboard panels are original. The
body has been straightened and painted. Some rust repair has been done.
The car originally had a Powerflite
transmission and heater as its options.
It now has power steering, power
brakes, a search radio, a dash clock
and after-market air conditioning. An
after-market continental kit has been
added and over the years it has also
had fender skirts and cruiser skirts.
It took about 13 years for me to get
the car back on the road. I was working in those days, so sometimes the car
sat quite a while between work periods.
We went to Hot August Nights in
Mississippi River: 1999
Reno, Nevada, for three years, driving
our ‘59 Crown Imperial two-door hardtop. We registered again for 1994. I had just gotten the Fury
going yet had not really checked it out. Still, we decided to
take it in place of the Imperial. It is about a 1800-mile trip
for us.
We did make the complete trip but, as I said, we had not
had time to check the car out and we gad a lot of car trouble
on that first trip. I had not had the gas tank cleaned, and
Route 66 in Missouri
every 50 to 100 miles, it seemed, we had to stop and clean out
the sediment bowl. The car was also hard-starting during the
entire trip. At 200 miles, we stopped to put in a new ballast
convertor but it didn’t seem to help. When we got home and
checked it out, we found we had wrongly wired the ballast
resister which resulted in never getting full voltage during the
starting cycle,
On the way home, driving through Portland, Oregon, at
about 1600 miles into the trip with another 200 to go, we
thought the rear end was going out. It was making a noise
and seemed to be jerky, especially when making turns to the
right or the left. We had it checked out at a shop. The
mechanic said, “Yes, the rear end is going out but if you take
it easy and drive a lot slower than you have been doing, you
Portland pair: With Allen Faltus’ Fury [LEFT] at the 2010 Summer
Meet
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Page 39
should make it home. We took off easily
and slowly, and we made it home.
I found it was another thing I hadn’t
checked out. The problem turned out to
be the trunion U-joint that had gone dry
and frozen up. It turned out to be the
trunion U-Joint that had gone dry and
froze up. I had a new driveline made with
cross-shaft U-joints that can be easily
greased.
That was 18 years and 60,000 miles
ago. The Fury has made further trips to
Hot August Nights in Reno with no trouble. We went to Hot August Nights for six
years in a row, three times in our Crown
Imperial and three times in our Fury. Of
the thousands of cars there, the only ‘56
was our Fury.
In those six years, we were always in
the parade of cars on the last day of the
show. One year, while watching the local
evening news, Irene yelled out, “There’s
our car!” She tried then, and after, to get that clip from the
news station. They said we could have any tape from the
news except that which had anything to do with Hot August
Nights events. The promoters had all rights to them.
Twenty years ago, I found some new old stock seat and
trim panel upholstery. The fabric didn’t wear well when new
and it still doesn’t. We redid the seats a few years ago and
they need to be done again. Luckily, I bought enough materi-
WPC Boyhood Home in Ellis, Kansas
The front bearing must have frozen up, causing the belt to slip
on the stopped generator pulley, causing the smoke. Then he
bearing must have broken loose, leaving the generator turning
sloppily and feeling loose. We found an auto repair shop and
the mechanic dropped everything to put in a new bearing. We
were on our way in a couple of hours.
Sometimes when the temperature got to a 100+ degrees,
the car would vapor lock. I installed an inline electric fuel
pump which seemed to help in such times. Also, when
I turn it once after the car has sat for a length of time,
it starts easier.
Through the years, we have been to many car shows,
picked up quite a few second- and third-place trophies
and one first (we must not have had much competition). The car is not a show car; it’s a driver.
We have been on a lot of trips from a few hundred
miles to a six-thousand-mile trip. We have been to
Canada and 15-plus states, some of them several
times. We are looking forward to more trips in the
future, including to Riverton, Utah, this June (2011)
Blackhawk Museum in California: The Golden Furys of Byron Parsons for the GFS tenth annual national gathering of ‘56, ‘57
(‘56), Mark Hash (‘57) and Paul Schmaltz (‘58)
and ‘58 Plymouth Furys. Then, it will be on to
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada in July for the
al at that time and I can redo them once again.
PB
2011 WPC Club regional meet.
Other than normal maintenance throughout the years and
sixty-plus thousand miles, the Fury has been mostly troublefree. We’re on its third set of tires. The first were bias-ply,
the rest have been radials which are much better.
On our way home from the first GFS (Golden Fin
Society) gathering in Missouri, we went on to Auburn,
Indiana, for the annual ACD (Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg)
reunion on Labor Day weekend (a 6000-mile trip). Coming
home through Minnesota, traveling at 70-75 MPH, the car
made some kind of noise and shook while smoke came out of
the hood edges. Then it seemed okay. We slowed down,
pulled over and checked under the hood. It seemed okay. I
knew something had happened and kept looking and checking. Finally, I put my hand on the generator. It felt rough.
At a local show: The ‘56 Dodge is like our D500 but with the
green colors reversed and a white top.
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Page 40
Fury Fifty-six
PHOTO BY FRANK M. CHELLEMI
308-FULL ISSUE
W
How I got my Fury
by Eddie Sachs
Farmingville, New York
RUSTED BOLTS AND BUSTED KNUCKLES,
LONG ISLAND REGION, JANUARY 2006,
AS REPRINTED IN PLYMOUTH BULLETIN 281
NEWSLETTER OF THE
PHOTO BY RON SWARTLEY
PHOTO BY LARRY NUESCH
hen stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1955,
I went into town and saw my first 1956
Plymouth Fury. It was beautiful, fast and
expensive. At that time $3600 was way too much for me.
My 1955 Plymouth Savoy with a V8 engine and a
Powerflite automatic transmission had cost $2100.
Fast-forward to 1959. I was working in Hempstead,
Long Island, and one day I drove past a dealer on
Hempstead Turnpike. Sticking out on the lot was a white
car with the gold on the fender. I made a quick U-turn and,
sure enough, it was a 1956 Fury. It looked good,
ran fine and was only $1350. On May 28, 1959, it
was mine.
That was 47 years ago and the car will always
be mine. It has been to Massachusetts and
Pennsylvania about 20 times and to Delaware,
upstate New York, and Dearborn, Michigan. It is
the only 1956 Fury on Long Island. The car has
more than 285,000 miles on it and has had its 303
CID dual 4BBL V8 engine rebuilt twice. It still runs
well and will continue to do so as long as I run
well.
My advice to all Plymouth owners: do not to
let them sit. Run them. That is what Plymouths
were made for. Good luck to all club members.
Ed and Rose Sachs with Jack Lewis [CENTER] and their ‘56 Fury at the 2004
Golden Fin Society National Gathering held in conjunction with the All Chrysler
Nationals at Carlisle in 2004. Ed and Rose's ‘56 went over the 300,000- mile mark
in 2010!
-40-
Still
Original
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Page 41
Fury Fifty-six
I
by James Cloer
Tulsa, Oklahoma
The tachometer sender came from Canada and, upon
installing it, I found the tach worked like a charm. The rest of
the car is original, having a single four-barrel carburetor
topped by a gold air cleaner.
Before leaving North Carolina and ending up in Tulsa, I
had gone to the Sanford, N. C., Chrysler dealership and was
given permission to look through their attic for parts. There, I
found a gold mine of ‘56, ‘57, ‘58 and ‘59 Plymouth parts,
among them all kinds of Fury gold and other trim pieces
which I bought.
My three Furys and ‘59 Sport Fury convertible have been
put on hold in storage for years, waiting to be put back on the
road. The ‘56 is still original and I love looking at it.
My collection of Six Pack and 426 Hemi cars has taken
priority over some of my earlier ones, but I will always love
these early muscle cars that were built during the prime of my
life.
grew up in northwestern Arkansas where, in the late ‘50s,
I would see a ‘56 Fury being driven around town quite
often. Then, I would see a ‘57 Fury and a ‘58 Fury at
times. That made me want all three and now I have all three.
It would only be right to mention a friend, Bill Sossaman,
who was instrumental in the acquisition of my ‘56 Fury. I
was finishing school at the University of Arkansas, after a
four-year interruption in the Navy, when I noticed that a ‘58
Fury had appeared on campus. I left a note on the car, and it
led to a good friendship with Bill, the original owner of this
Fury. I helped him locate parts, since I had just purchased a
‘58 Fury of my own and had extra parts.
I graduated and went to North Carolina after a job offer.
Bill , who had gone on to pharmacy school in Norman,
Oklahoma, called me later that year to tell me that a ‘56 Fury
was in Norman and that the lady who owned it was going to
trade it for a newer car.
This Fury had 63,000 miles on it and Bill said he could
drive it to northwestern Arkansas on his way home for
Christmas. I sent the money and when I arrived home for the
holidays, there the Fury was, at my father’s house.
This was only the second ‘56
Fury I had ever seen. It still had the
plastic seat covers but was missing
one hubcap and the tach sending unit.
I drove it around home for a few days
and then put it in storage at my
father’s home.
Back in North Carolina, while
taking a short trip to Level Cross to
see the Petty shop, I spotted a salvage
yard which had hupcaps hanging over
the parts counter. Stopping there on
my return trip, I found a beautiful set
of ‘56 Fury wheelcovers. No one
seemed to know what they fit, so I
got a super deal on the set.
PB
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Loyd’s Furys
5/24/11
3:06 PM
Page 42
Loyd Groshong
Troy, Missouri
L
Des Moines, 1989
oyd and his ‘56 “Fury” convertible
are well-known at national meets.
Fury Fifty-six
Peoria/Morton, 2005
The car was created from a Belvedere
convertible and Fury trim and engine.
Loyd also has a factory-original
‘56 Fury coupe that, likewise, has been
registered at national and other meets.
PB
Iola, 2005
On the way toTulsa, 2005
Tulsa, 2007
Tommy Pike,
Pike, ‘56 Fury,
Fury, John Mitchum, ‘55 Belvedere,
Belvedere, Loyd Groshong,
Groshong, ‘56 Fury
-42-
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Cover
Cars
Page 43
Fury Fifty-six
T
Allen Faltus, Ellensburg, Washington
he engine in Allen’s Fury has the optional 2x4 setup which
raises the 303-cubic-inch motor’s horsepower from 240 to
270. The motor has the correct air cleaners, which are the same as used
on ‘56 Corvettes. This was a dealer-installed option. There was a factoryinstalled setup, as well, on what is popularly known as the Grand National option.
This latter option used an aluminum intake, and both four-barrel carburetors were covered with
one huge air cleaner with paper element. The factory option is extremely rare and went predominantly to the NASCAR drivers. -- Jack Lewis
L
Larry Gammon, Calgary, Alberta
arry Gammon finished his ‘56 in late 2005 and early 2006. Many of our
restorers leave the Turbine Cap wheel covers behind and go to copies of
the Chrysler wires that were used on ‘56 300B and Imperials. They are not
factory-original but sure could have been ordered from a dealer at the time.
Larry's air cleaner for the single four-barrel is correct, but the lettering is not
“factory” for a Fury air cleaner (factory-correct for the Belvedere/Savoy 277
power pack option is white on red air cleaners). Larry's interior is gorgeous,
though inserts are SMS-supplied fabric which is close but not correct. SMS, as
of about two years ago, is now reproducing the correct fabric. No one could get it
before then. -- Jack Lewis
-43-
Editor’s note: The third segment of the Hall family ‘54 Plymouth
story will appear in the next issue.
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Page 44
Plymouth Miniatures
Hunting the Plymouth taxi
R
egular readers of my column
well know that I enjoy writing
about miniatures and other segments of Plymouth memorabilia, especially that which I think folks may not
have seen or have had an opportunity to
view up close. Hopefully, they will take
delight in just knowing that these
Plymouth items are out there, somewhere in this vast world of ours. And
who knows? I may also inspire some
readers to get out and search for similar
Plymouth items. There is fun
to be had in the hunt, and the
trophy, to my way of thinking, is every bit as exciting to
have, mount and brag about. I
guess bragging about what I
track down in the realm of
Plymouth “animals” is what I
like best in doing these articles. Talking about our old car
hobby is, well, about as good
as gets.
Hunting down rare and
exotic species from nature can
get a person in a whole lot of
trouble in the real world – as
it certainly should – or it can
take up lot more time than it
is worth. Sometimes that is
even the case for inveterate
(and retired!) trackers like me.
Occasionally it is safer, easier
and just as pleasurable to go
out looking for a Plymouth
item, in this case a miniature
that is readily available in an
accessible location and will
not cost you much when you
are able to net it.
Our easily seen prey this
time is a 1967 Plymouth Fury taxi,
made by Johnny Lightning, a maker of
1/64-scale diecast vehicles familiar to
many of us. I am sure you have spotted
it by now in the pictures accompanying
this article. I wouldn’t say it’s as common as the squirrels in your local park or
that sparrow insisting on building a nest
in the eaves of your garage, but if you
get out once in awhile for a little shopping at the big box stores and stroll
through the die-cast toy aisles, you are
likely to catch a glimpse of this red and
white Plymouth taxi. It’s guaranteed to
bring a smile to any harried, weary bargain hunter hoping to get back soon to
his or her garage to polish up the vintage
Plymouth for an upcoming cruise.
What’s more – and while we all ooh and
ahh over the Plymouth muscle cars,
sporty ragtops and racy hardtops – I, for
one, like to recall the days when our
favorite car earned its way in the world of
automobiles as a sturdy and reliable taxi
in big cities and small towns. Can you
remember your last ride in a Plymouth
taxi? I can.
The heyday of Johnny Lightning
production was about five or so years
ago when the Johnny Lightnings (along
with Hot Wheels, of course) practically
dominated the die-cast section of the toy
and big department stores. Like me, you
may recall going into the toy shop in the
-44-
mall and coming out with three JL vehicles for only $5.00 plus tax. The asking
price was so low, and the cars so downright nice, that the purchase became irresistible – and more than likely you were
able to pick up a Plymouth or two in
your batch of three. Not bad, especially
if you hadn’t wanted to be in the mall in
the first place. From that five-year
“moment” of Johnny Lightning joy, the
road has been downhill for
the brand. Johnny Lightning
vehicles became fewer and
fewer to the point, which I
recall in the summer of 2009
at my local Wal-Mart, when I
did not see a single one on
the shelves. I was able to
locate a few at flea markets
during this period but the discussion among toy collectors
and car folks was on the mystery of what happened to JL?
The company did change
hands at some point, and
maybe the brain trust ran out
of ideas for new vehicle production. Raw materials needed to make die-cast cars
jumped in price about this
time, and the collector market
for toy vehicles changed. All
of these factors may have
contributed to the demise of
JL in one way or another.
Johnny Lightning did
attempt a weak comeback in
late ‘09/early ‘10, and it was
possible to find a few them,
plus some factory leftovers,
on store shelves. However, as
serious die-cast hunters now know, the
company is only a shadow of its former
self. The variety of new models is currently very limited and the packaging is
smaller (that’s fine from an ecological
and storage point of view), and it looks a
bit on the “el cheapo” side when compared to previous JL offerings from the
golden days. This last gasp from JL
continued on page 46…
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Page 45
Clif ’ s Notes
“Neglected”
Plymouths
few year’s absence from the scene.
This model came in six configurations,
from a lowly basic two-door hardtop to
a fancy four-door hardtop sedan. There
is no mention of convertibles in the
1970 Sport Fury line (the convertibles
appear to have only been available as
Fury III models). It was available in 18
exterior colors and 18 colors of trim for
the interior too (seems like a lot, doesn’t
it?). Sport Furys could also be had with
a Brougham interior (a pretty fancy
word for what started out in the ‘20s as
LANNY KNUTSON PHOTO
I’m
back again with more on
the “neglected”
Plymouths, the ‘67
through ‘73 Furys. Yeah, I know everybody loves the Dusters, Road Runners,
GTXs and, last but not least, the
Barracudas, especially the ‘70-74 models more commonly called ‘Cudas by
their followers and lovers. But there are
many lovers of these bigger cars too,
including me.
We will expound on the ‘70-71
Fury line this time around. They were
very nice-looking big cars for the times,
at least to one who is as partial to
Plymouths and Dodges as I. Maybe you
are too. These cars are hard to find
nowadays.
These big C-bodies even had a
muscle car in the ‘70 and ‘71 model
years. In 1970 it was called the Sport
Fury GT and a bit lesser model named
the S/23 was introduced later in the
year. In 1971, only the Sport Fury GT
returned.
Following the 1969 models, which
left something lacking stylewise, in my
opinion, the ‘70 models bore mostly
new styling with new front end treatments with loop bumpers. Hidden
headlights were available on the 1970
Sport Fury GT and Sport Suburban
wagons. There was the new-for-‘70
steering column ignition switch and
lock with a buzzer. Also available was
a new wider rear track on sedans, hardtops and convertibles. Fiberglass belted
tires were the new option. The ‘70-71s
were about the same basic size as the
‘69s but much improved in appearance,
in my book.
Back again (and called “new”) was
the Sport Fury model, returning after a
that only 689 of the S/23s and 666 GTs
were built by Plymouth. I imagine that
those who wanted muscle in a six-passenger car went for the very popular
Road Runners.
Only two of the many high-impact
color paints available could be ordered
in the Fury series: Lemon Twist (code
FY1) and Tor-Red (code EV2). This is
too bad, as a lot of very neat high impact colors were available then. I
have personally seen these muscle car
Furys only in black or white, but that
does not mean much, as I have only
seen a few of these cars in my lifetime.
Production figures for 1970 are as
follows:
Fury I: two-door sedan–2,353; fourdoor sedan–14,813; total–17,166
Fury II: two-door sedan–21,316; fourdoor sedan–27,694; total–49,010
Fury III: two-door hardtop–21,373;
convertible–1,952; formal hardtop–
12,367; four–door sedan–50,876; fourdoor hardtop sedan–47,879;
total–134,447
1971 Sport Fury GT: Art Modl, Mondovi, Wisconsin
a lowly basic transportation car, don’t
you think?)
New for 1970 in the Sport Fury
lineup was the S/23 model. The S/23
was available with anything from the
318 on up to the 383 big block for
power. Muscle looks came with this
S/23, but not the raw power of the GT
model which was available with the
440-4 barrel or the 440-6 pak. I remember looking at both models at one time
in the Plymouth dealership in Grand
Forks, North Dakota. They were used
cars at the time. Not realizing how rare
they were back then, I’ve now learned
-45-
Sport Fury: two-door hardtop–6,663;
S/23 coupe–689; GT coupe–666; formal
hardtop coupe–5,688; four-door sedan–5,135; total–25,695 (Gran Coupe total
is unknown but the cars were rare)
Station wagons: all six models–total–36,813
Total 1970 production of these beautiful C-body cars was 265,955.
Maybe I am a bit prejudiced, having
owned both ‘70 Fury III and ‘71 Fury
III two-door hardtops, one back in the
‘70s and, just a few years ago, a ‘71
which was equipped with a then-new-
5/24/11
3:06 PM
Page 46
other collector cars in order to buy a
new Dodge Challenger R/T, which I
drive to this day.
Speaking of these ‘70 C-body
Plymouths, my cousin Dennis bought a
new Gran Coupe in March of 1970
when they came out. It had the 383
cubic inch, 290 horse engine as did my
70 Fury III. My brother Al bought this
car from him when it had become a
$1200 used car.
I’d best quit my musing by letting
you know that 375 Sport Fury GTs were
built in 1971. That was the last year for
them. I will talk more about these cars
down the line.
Please do not forget about my collector car auction on June 11th at
Adams, North Dakota, by VanDerBrink
Auctions. Look it up and you’ll find
that my buddy Terry’s ‘69 HEMI Road
Runner – totally restored – has now
been added to the sale. Come over, it
for-Plymouth 360 cubic inch
motor–very peppy for a two-barrel car.
Pretty much the only change for
1971 in the Plymouth C-body is found
in the grille and taillights. By 1971 over
80% of the Furys had air conditioning,
and 98% were automatic transmissionequipped–no
wonder there.
How many Cbodies have
you known to
have fourspeed transmissions after
maybe 1966
or even a
three-speedon-the-column
as did my ‘70
Fury III.
1970 Sport Fury GT: Kjell Egil Mandelid, Voss, Norway
Likewise 98%
had power steering and 75% came with
will be fun. Call 701-331-9092 to ask
power disc brakes, while 74% were getme about it or visit vanderbrinkaucting tinted glass all around and 60% got
tions.com for video, pictures and invenvinyl roofs. Things were getting fancier
tory. THANKS.
for the C-body crowd.
-- CLIF NELSON
I owned the very nice ‘71 Fury III
[email protected]
two-door hardtop back in 2008 for about
six months until I sold it on my sister’s
classic car auction sale. It had come to
Minnesota from San Diego, California,
and was a rust-free car. The nice young
man who brought it back from
California had installed 15-inch allchrome (no trim rings) Plymouth-type
Road Wheels with 275/60 tires on the
back and smaller tires up front to give it
a proper “rake from the ol’ days.” It
was fun to drive with its power steering,
power disc brakes and air conditioner on
top of 360 engine with a two-barrel carburetor. I loved it but sold it and two
-46-
Plymouth Miniatures
continued from page 44…
LANNY KNUTSON PHOTO
LANNY KNUTSON PHOTO
308-FULL ISSUE
includes our ‘67 Fury taxi and a couple other MOPARs but no other
Plymouths. On looking over our
Plymouth, my conclusion is that JL
did a satisfactory job in casting our
little taxi and optioning it with an
opening hood. While I have not yet
found a “loose” version – only packaged ones – I assume that the V8
engine under that hood is detailed.
The interior is tan, which quite likely
resembles the original color of vinylcovered taxi seating. Other details
include a factory-painted grille, front
and rear photo-etched F URY II badges
on the lower front fenders, windshield
wipers, a taxi topper with R ED &
WHITE in small letters and full-wheel
chrome hubcaps with blackwall tires.
Needless to say, this is a Red &
White Cab Co, Inc-owned vehicle, as
viewed on the rear doors. A phone
number – DL-4-8400 – appears on the
front fenders. I do not recall any Red
& White cabs or the phone prefix letters from any of my travels, but
maybe some of our readers do. If so,
please let us know. My suspicion is
that Johnny Lightning fashioned this
cab after a real one somewhere, someplace; and, as always, my curiosity is
biting at me. Help me out, if you
can, with my taxi quest.
The price of cab fare at Wal-Mart
where I found mine was about $2.97,
not bad when you consider all that
you are getting, including some serious Plymouth diversion. The JL
taxis can also still be found on eBay
for the same price, but you will also
have to pay shipping charges. If you
want to really save some cash, you
may want to check out a flea market
and I’ll “betcha” you just might get
lucky and find your Fury II cab for
about $1.00, a pretty cheap rate for a
taxi ride, “you gotta admit.” I guess
what I’ve been hammering on here is
that our little Plymouth Fury II Taxi
can be found in many places without
much of a hunt and, most of all, you
will have a lot of fun bagging it and
bringing it home to rest in your
Plymouth trophy case.
-- Bill Brisbane
[email protected]
308-FULL ISSUE
5/24/11
3:06 PM
Page 47
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308-i_s rear cvr.qxd:277-i_s rear cvr.qxd
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Page 1
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Larry Gammon Photo
Founded 1957
308
F ury F ifty-six
Photo by Allan Faltus
F ury F ifty-six
Larry Gammon’s 1956 Fury sport coupe
May - June, 2011
Twenty-time Old Cars Weekly Golden Quill Award winner
Founded 1957
Allen Faltus’ 1956 Fury sport coupe
Volume 52 Number 4

1956 Fury - Plymouth Bulletin

Transcription

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