Voitures Anciennes

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RobertArthur · #841 Post by **RobertArthur** » Sun Jul 06, 2025 1:07 pm

Touring by car, a sunny afternoon in California, 2015, a granddaughter and her grandfather. And his Ford, still going strong.

Hotrodder · #842 Post by **Hotrodder** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 12:21 pm

A proper "old school" hot rod. The streets were full of them in LA in the 60's. A two-door 2-seater was my first car at age 16 in 1964 looking very much the same, apart from the fact that mine didn't have a nice V8 in it. It was nippy enough with a modified original 4-cylinder considering the apalling steering and brakes as fitted in 1930.

curtis · #843 Post by **curtis** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 1:55 pm

Were they cable or rod brakes?

Nomoss · #844 Post by **Nomoss** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 2:43 pm

When did they start fitting covers over the engines?

curtis · #845 Post by **curtis** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 3:48 pm

Is that a genuine question, or tongue in cheek?

RobertArthur · #846 Post by **RobertArthur** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 3:54 pm

When did hotrodders start removing covers?

curtis · #847 Post by **curtis** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 5:41 pm

A lot earlier than that photo

Hotrodder · #848 Post by **Hotrodder** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 5:58 pm

My first three cars (all model A Fords) had rod brakes. Not brilliant, but they taught me a good lesson about being aware of hazards ahead in plenty of time to avoid them.

The question about hoods/bonnets has an easy answer. Any bodywork that was not essential to the speed of the car was removed (for racing) ie. fenders/wings/mudguards and in some extreme cases windscreens. This also applies to the use of skinny front wheels to save weight and fat rear tyres to improve traction in the straight line races that were so popular soon after WW2. Exposing the engine in later years is/was just to show off.

Hotrodder · #849 Post by **Hotrodder** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 6:04 pm

An example of taking this (and other) extreme fashions was built by an ex school friend of mine in 1970. A heavily modified model T Ford roadster.

Danny-Eichstedt-Leg-Show-T-Bucket.jpg

In case you scoff at the sheer impracticability of it, he drove it over 2000 miles to an eastern USA show. A real epic journey without mechanical failures.

curtis · #850 Post by **curtis** » Mon Jul 07, 2025 7:37 pm

Last weekend's rassemblement at St Savinien.

I loved this De Soto, especially the top niveau clim! I had never seen this before.

P1000794 by john curtis, sur Flickr

P1000796 by john curtis, sur Flickr

P1000795 by john curtis, sur Flickr

France in Focus

France in Focus