Tuesday, September 30, 2008
October Events
Hi guys. Here is the calendar of events for the Rollin' Relics in October. Don't forget about the Cruise Night on Friday where I'll pick the October Rollin' Relic of the Month for the site. I'll also do a special feature on the Engine Raffle, so be sure to check back soon.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Monte Vista Car Show Award Winner
I can't believe I almost forgot an important picture. Here is a photo of the winner of the "Best Engine" and "Best of Show" from the Monte Vista Car Show earlier this month. The Rollin' Relics had a very good turnout at that show, and brought home some metal to prove it. Congratulations!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Poker Run 2008 Photos
That Poker Run course seems to get better and better every year. I don't know about Old Stage Road, though. I don't know about you, but I had a great time. Unfortunately, I only took a few pictures. If you have some photos from the Poker Run that you'd like to share, feel free to e-mail them too me at: blueomni87@yahoo.com. We've also got a couple of important events coming up soon:
- Saturday September 27th: the Lemoore Car Show
- Saturday, September 27th: the Selma Car Show
- Tuesday, September 30th: the September Rollin' Relics Club Meeting
- Tuesday, October 4th: the McDermont House Car Show, in Lindsay
- Tuesday, October 11th: the Exeter Parade and Car Show Fall Festival
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Aero Dogs Car Show Photos
Well, it's been a while since my last update, so I guess I'm overdue. Below are a few photos of the Aero Dogs Car Show last week. Hope you like them; they're courtesy of Gary and Juanita Coffer. I'll also have some photos of the Poker Run coming up really soon.
Monday, September 15, 2008
September Rollin' Relic of the Month
Today, we welcome a new feature to the Rollin' Relics website: the Rollin' Relic of the Month. This month's award goes to the 1952 Cadillac owned by Gary and Juanita Coffer. This is one Cadillac that always outshines the rest, wherever it goes. With the 24 caret gold plated insignias (a 50th anniversary Cadillac special), fresh Olympic Blue paint, or the sound of that classic V8 through its dual exhaust, this one's always a sure show-stopper.
Gary has had some history with these classic caddies long before he laid eyes on this beauty. As a child, he rode in one owned by his parents. He quickly realized why Cadillac was considered the standard for all things automotive. The world renowned comfort of the famed American automaker must have rubbed off on him. But first, a little history of the car.
This 1952 Cadillac Fleetwood Special (Golden Anniversary Edition), Four Door Sedan, was originally purchased from a dealership in New York by an Army Colonel serving in Germany. The Caddie was shipped there, but was rarely used. Because the Colonel had his own personal staff car, the Cadillac wasn't needed very often. The car was later sold in Texas with about 34,000 on the clock. The second owner was a Christian missionary who also spend a good amount of time overseas. After years of faithful duty, the Cadillac became too much for the second owner to handle and needed to find a new home.
About this time, Juanita and Gary were reading the local paper, and noticed an add for a '52 Cadillac. Gary swore that they would only look at the car, and not make any quick decisions about buying a new vehicle. That plan rapidly dissappeared, when they gazed upon the Caddie. The car had about 74,000 miles after an engine overhaul, but showed an incredible amount of potential. Gary bought the car that day, but had a lot of work to do.
The 331ci V8, needed a good deal of TLC, since the previous owners failed to do a lot of the routine maintenance, as the car just sat for long periods of time. After some fresh paint, trim pieces and tires, the '52 started to come together. After getting the engine to run properly, work was done on the exhaust, and the motor and bay received a fresh coat of paint. But then the real work started. The interior needed a complete restoration. Everything was either restored or replaced.
After all that elbow grease, it's easy to see why this car is so special. 1952 was a special year for Cadillac. It was the car makers' 50th anniversary year, and many of their cars received a couple of new add-ons. It has five 24 carat gold plated insignias included two "V" symbols and the "Fleetwood" name on the dash. 1952 was also the first year Cadillac offered power steering, dual exhaust exiting from the rear bumper, a four barrell carburetor, and the dual hydromatic automatic transmssion. This one also came from the factory with automatic windows, but they were converted back to cranks by an earlier owner.
One addition Gary made to the car, was that of a couple of desert water bags. Gary, who has collected these iconic devices for the past few years, now has over 100. "The [water] bags," Gary told me, "were used to keep the engine cool between gas stations in the desert." Since gas stations were few and far between in desert areas, these bags served a double purpose. These specially designed bags were filled with cold water, and hung from the front bumper. The hot air that passed around the bags was cooled before it ever reached the radiator. If the radiator did happen to overheat, you then had an extra resovior of nice cold water.
But don't fear, Gary's not done yet. After some steering work on the Cadillac, he has some other projects on the back burner including a '64 Falcon convertable, a '64 Ranchero, a '52 Mercury, and even a '59 Edsel. Good luck Gary and Juanita, you might one of those other projects here someday as a Rollin' Relic of the Month. Just keep on crusin'.
Gary has had some history with these classic caddies long before he laid eyes on this beauty. As a child, he rode in one owned by his parents. He quickly realized why Cadillac was considered the standard for all things automotive. The world renowned comfort of the famed American automaker must have rubbed off on him. But first, a little history of the car.
This 1952 Cadillac Fleetwood Special (Golden Anniversary Edition), Four Door Sedan, was originally purchased from a dealership in New York by an Army Colonel serving in Germany. The Caddie was shipped there, but was rarely used. Because the Colonel had his own personal staff car, the Cadillac wasn't needed very often. The car was later sold in Texas with about 34,000 on the clock. The second owner was a Christian missionary who also spend a good amount of time overseas. After years of faithful duty, the Cadillac became too much for the second owner to handle and needed to find a new home.
About this time, Juanita and Gary were reading the local paper, and noticed an add for a '52 Cadillac. Gary swore that they would only look at the car, and not make any quick decisions about buying a new vehicle. That plan rapidly dissappeared, when they gazed upon the Caddie. The car had about 74,000 miles after an engine overhaul, but showed an incredible amount of potential. Gary bought the car that day, but had a lot of work to do.
The 331ci V8, needed a good deal of TLC, since the previous owners failed to do a lot of the routine maintenance, as the car just sat for long periods of time. After some fresh paint, trim pieces and tires, the '52 started to come together. After getting the engine to run properly, work was done on the exhaust, and the motor and bay received a fresh coat of paint. But then the real work started. The interior needed a complete restoration. Everything was either restored or replaced.
After all that elbow grease, it's easy to see why this car is so special. 1952 was a special year for Cadillac. It was the car makers' 50th anniversary year, and many of their cars received a couple of new add-ons. It has five 24 carat gold plated insignias included two "V" symbols and the "Fleetwood" name on the dash. 1952 was also the first year Cadillac offered power steering, dual exhaust exiting from the rear bumper, a four barrell carburetor, and the dual hydromatic automatic transmssion. This one also came from the factory with automatic windows, but they were converted back to cranks by an earlier owner.
One addition Gary made to the car, was that of a couple of desert water bags. Gary, who has collected these iconic devices for the past few years, now has over 100. "The [water] bags," Gary told me, "were used to keep the engine cool between gas stations in the desert." Since gas stations were few and far between in desert areas, these bags served a double purpose. These specially designed bags were filled with cold water, and hung from the front bumper. The hot air that passed around the bags was cooled before it ever reached the radiator. If the radiator did happen to overheat, you then had an extra resovior of nice cold water.
But don't fear, Gary's not done yet. After some steering work on the Cadillac, he has some other projects on the back burner including a '64 Falcon convertable, a '64 Ranchero, a '52 Mercury, and even a '59 Edsel. Good luck Gary and Juanita, you might one of those other projects here someday as a Rollin' Relic of the Month. Just keep on crusin'.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Monte Vista Show Photos
Hi guys. I know you've all been waiting for these for a while, and now they're up. These are from the Monte Vista Car Show last week. There was a really good turnout from our club, and quite a few others; including some really nice bikes. Hope you like the photos, and remember to come back really soon. I'll have the September Rollin' Relic of the Month (our very first of a new monthly feature to the blog) posted tomorrow around noon.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
September Cruise Night Photos
Hi Guys. I'm glad I got to see so many of you out at the September cruise night Friday and this morning at the Monte Vista First Annual Car Show. Here are a few photos from the cruise night, and I'll have some from the Monte Vista show in a few days. I'll also have the Rollin' Relics Blog "Relic of the Month" feature every month starting September 15th, so make sure and come back soon. Until then, enjoy the photos.
Don't forget, if you want to see a larger version of any of the photos I feature here, just click on that photo, and it will open the full version of the image in its own window.
Don't forget, if you want to see a larger version of any of the photos I feature here, just click on that photo, and it will open the full version of the image in its own window.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Cruise Night Friday!
How's everyone doing? I can't wait to see you all tomorrow night at the September cruise night at the Porterville Pizza Factory. I'll be trying out a new feature here this month: the Rollin' Relic of the Month. Want to have your ride fully featured here? Then make sure to come on out to the cruise night Friday where I'll make my first choice.
I'd like to take a quick note to correct an error (sorry, I make 'em too). The contact number on the Rollin' Relics Poker Run 2008 flyer is incorrect. It should be: 559-805-3379. I've already posted the erroneous version of the flyer, but I'll post the right one soon.
If you miss the cruise night, don't fear, we've got lots of great things to do really soon:
I'd like to take a quick note to correct an error (sorry, I make 'em too). The contact number on the Rollin' Relics Poker Run 2008 flyer is incorrect. It should be: 559-805-3379. I've already posted the erroneous version of the flyer, but I'll post the right one soon.
If you miss the cruise night, don't fear, we've got lots of great things to do really soon:
- Saturday, September 6th: the Monte Vista School Car Show (see flyer below); and the Teen Challenge Show in Shafter, CA
- Saturday, September 13th: the Rollin' Relics September Breakfast Run will meet at the Porterville Trailer Center at 7:30AM to cruise up to the Country Waffle in Lindsay, and then to the Aero Dogs Car Show in Tulare after breakfast.
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