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Question Of The Day: We Want To Hear Your “That’s Too Much Car For Them!” Stories!


Question Of The Day: We Want To Hear Your “That’s Too Much Car For Them!” Stories!

I never thought that I would make it to the point in life where I would see someone with a badass car and instead of being impressed or jealous, I’d think, almost immediately, that I was seeing the prelude to an accident. And I’ve done time in the military, watching young soldiers buying cars they could finally afford. I was convinced that I just had a couple of family members and some neighbors who were panicky about my own habits and that was that.

Then I moved to Kentucky, and I met a young man who, fresh out of high school, was driving a pretty sweet 1968 machine. It wasn’t perfect, but it looked like a great start to a project. It ran well enough, but from the moment I was introduced I was ready to place a bet on when the accident would occur. The more I saw of this guy and the car, the bigger I would’ve wagered…drove like an ass, always revving the car wherever he went. I tried to tell myself I was being paranoid, but a couple of weeks ago, the inevitable happened: car left road, met rock pile, twisted body and frame. Luckily, the owner and his passenger escaped completely unscathed, but the car is done…as in “parts only”, no bodyshop can work a miracle done.

The catchphrase, “Ban low-performance drivers, not high-performance automobiles” exists for a reason. The car is a tool. It is the operator who causes actions, good or bad. And some people would do well to be left with a Cushman golf cart and the legal barring of driving anything higher-performing than that. We want to hear the stories you’ve got involving the local low-performing driver who has the hot set of wheels in danger!

 


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15 thoughts on “Question Of The Day: We Want To Hear Your “That’s Too Much Car For Them!” Stories!

  1. Matt Cramer

    Sold a Suzuki GS500F – something that’s typically described as an entry level sport bike at 40 hp. But it’s still something that can bite you if you act stupid. The kid who bought it may not even have been the legal drinking age.

    About a month later, I got a phone call when I was trying to get to sleep, from the police. Turns out they’d found the motorcycle, but no sign of the rider. The kid had never registered it in his name, and it didn’t sound like they had found the bike rubber side down. I hope the kid turned up safe.

  2. AndyB

    As a rider of a ZX-14, I have to point out that you can also get run over on a 5hp scooter just as easily. Motorcycles are not cars, and need to be driven with a different attitude towards other people on the roads.

    That said, most motorcycle accidents involve going too fast and running out of skil (single vehicle accidents). Which can also happen with a 5hp scooter, but are more likely to be fatal as the power levels increase.

    Sucks about the GS. Always wanted one.

    1. Brendan M

      I would tell you the story of my friend crashing his one day old 5.0L MN-12 Thunderbird into a jersey barrier head-on, but I’m not sure if the statute of limitations has run out yet.

  3. W T

    I was 16 and my parents and I were looking for me a cheap car. Guy down the street had a ’73 Mach 1 Mustang with a 351C for $3500 (this was the late 80s). My mom asked a mechanic friend of ours to take a look before we bought it.

    “That’s too much car for him.”

    Dammit.

  4. Paul

    I remember looking for my first car and found a sweet black ’71 GTO with a 455 on a used car lot.
    I actually got my father to come down and look at it. When they popped the hood and he saw the 455 he said “Ahhhhhh NO!
    Probably saved my life.

  5. Weasel1

    1972, brand new drivers license, drive my mom around while she shopped for a new car. She really liked a 1968 Buick Wildcat, so we went to show it to Dad. On the way back, leaving a stop light I got a little heavy on the gas and the tires chirped. Mom never said a word, but when we got to the dealership she bought a 68 Biscayne 6 cyl 3 on the tree

  6. jerry z

    I had two brothers ahead of me. My parents told me before even I got my license that I would not be driving a car with a V8. This was in 1980. Thanks brothers!

  7. Al@uglycarpictures

    Odd thing is there are a lot of cars on the road today with 4 cylinders that would smoke an old V8 car from the 70s, 80s, and 90’s. Many of those classics were slow, very slow.

  8. crazy canuck

    Sold my 67 chevelle to a cousins buddy warned him it was a handful and was built to go straight , solid roller tunnel ram hairy small block 4gear . Car ended up wrapped around a pole . He ended up living only because a ER nurse on her way home saw the accident and provided aid .

  9. Rusty

    In 1984, at the age of 18 I had a 1972 Pontiac GranVille convertible with a 455. Then bought a 4 door hardtop for body parts (rust free, but it wasn\’t a convertible!), that also had a very well running 455. Then I found a 1968 2 door Tempest with a bad 326 for $125. The extra 455 went into the Tempest (an old swing set and a come-a-long), with cheap headers, 4bbl, etc. Drum brakes, bias ply tires, and original worn out suspension. Half throttle and the tires would light up. A week later the original 2 speed transmission from the Tempest died and I didn\’t have the cash to put in the GranVille Turbo 400 and shorten the drive shaft. Looking back I realize that god was looking out for me when that transmission died.

  10. SWPMFAN

    Top fuel dragsters for Troy Coughlin jr, Hillary Will, and Brittany Force
    Funny car for just about any driver in the laid-back header era with John force at head of the pack followed closely by his daughter Courtney.
    2015 -17 corvette pm for almost anyone who has driven those animals with Jeremy Ray and Sidney Frigo leaders in the club house.
    Rvw at anytime for any driver on any track with Stevie Fast and Daniel Pharrell flying to the top of the list.
    Thank God none of these cars or drivers have caused serious injuries to themselves or competitors

  11. coffeejoejava

    My brother had a ZX-11 crotch rocket. I came home on leave from overseas and borrowed the bike one night to see friends in another town. I got stuck behind a mini van waiting for oncoming traffic. As soon as it was clear, I downshifted and rolled on the throttle. I was doing 90 and hitting 3rd gear when I was even with the van. Next time I looked at the speedo it was 150 mph or so. I thought to myself, “If I wreck, they will find my body 200 feet away from the bike at this speed.” I let off the throttle and settled down to a “resonable” 90 mph for the rest of the ride. Never rode another sportbike again!

  12. Mark

    It\’s funny you bring up the golf cart. 15 year old me driving a lifted cart around a campground. My buddy had one too and as we were going to return them we got a little too competitive. I nudged him into the grass, he claims he hit a bumped and got in to the back of me. Spun me sideways and just before the cart rolled over I bailed… on the wrong side. Cart rolled over me and I stood up and immediately passed out. Luckily some EMT\’s were camping right by where it happened and got to me. I had to take an ambulance ride but got away with a concussion, sprained wrist and ankle. I was young and dumb and have seen other young and dumb people ruin nice cars because they were driving past their skill level.

  13. the fatguy

    my brother and i crammed a tunnel rammed
    302 ford & C4 trans into an opel gt once. we also
    put a super short 8.75 posi mopar rear with 3.73’s
    under the rear.

    the guy that bought it literally fishtailed out of my
    driveway on his first drive as the new owner, and
    into a pole across the street. hit it between the
    passenger door & rear tire so hard it blew out every
    window in the car.

    i looked at the money in my hand, shook my head
    and quietly closed the garage door……….

    thank goodness i took him for a test ride earlier,
    and wouldnt let him drive till he forked over the cash!

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