April 21, 200718 yr I've had this idea for a while, a thread about the different smells of classic cars. Every one of my "classic" cars has had a different smell. The 68 Camaro, 64 Olds, 59 Buick, even the 70s junk I've had... they all have a very distinct smell to them, I'd say my favorite is the Super 88's interior. It's devine. The seats & rugs all smell like a million dollars. It still smells NEW, if 2007 new cars smelled this good they'd suck a lot less. Any cars you've owned that smelled good? Can you tell the differance between a 1930/1940/1950/1960/1970 car? How about GM versus Mopar versus FoMoCo? One of the most depressing things about a fully restored car is much of that smell is gone forever. Sitting in the 1964 Buick Wildcat 4dr hardtop the other day when I went to the Junkyard (XP & Dodgefan were along) was so satisfying. It's such a intoxicating aroma.
April 21, 200718 yr Man o man, buddy; you are hooked. In the thousand vintage cars I've been in, I've always been aware of of the olfactory experience, but I have not necessarily formed concrete theories about decade-specific smells. Oftentimes it's the 'foreign' matter that overpowers- namely: mouse nests. The seat bottoms of my COE were PACKED- I had to rebuild them in entirety and get new spring sets for them. But the other smell that's strong in vintage iron is hot steel & rust. Love it.
April 21, 200718 yr Author Yes, that's true. Hot iron & vynil seats baking in the sun on a summer's day is a smell that conjures up images of a rusted 1963 Lincoln Continental that's sitting in a New England junk yard, it's black paint all crackled and it's lower half reduced to a rusty orange dust. Sitting in a 1968 Firebird Ragtop once back in 2001 was a great experience & I fondly remember the smell of the white vynil interior and original olive-green paint.
April 21, 200718 yr Yes, that's true. Hot iron & vynil seats baking in the sun on a summer's day is a smell that conjures up images of a rusted 1963 Lincoln Continental that's sitting in a New England junk yard, it's black paint all crackled and it's lower half reduced to a rusty orange dust. Sitting in a 1968 Firebird Ragtop once back in 2001 was a great experience & I fondly remember the smell of the white vynil interior and original olive-green paint. You should definitely become a poet. We've identified your muse.
April 22, 200718 yr Yeah I can always tell that I am sitting in my friend's Crapolla and my ex's Crapry and not in my Lumina. Both those toys smell the same and have a pungent scent to it. Like a dog peeing to leave his own trail.
April 22, 200718 yr I believe I remember discussing how different the "new car small" of the GTO was from other new cars back when I got it.
April 22, 200718 yr Yea...the buick does have a very distinct smell....no one likes it...i dont really notice it though. i guess its from all the mildew that was in there.
April 22, 200718 yr I believe I remember discussing how different the "new car small" of the GTO was from other new cars back when I got it. That's the Kangaroo excrement you smell! Almost like being in Avondale or Kennett Square, PA! Edited April 22, 200718 yr by Pontiac Custom-S
April 22, 200718 yr *raises eyebrow* Heh ... hadn't thought of that before, Sixty8 ... but, yes, each of my MCs have a distinctly different smell to 'em..... Cort:33swm."Mr Monte Carlo.Mr Road Trip".pig valve.pacemaker PICS:lego.HO.model.MCinfo.RT.CHD = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort "I knew she was a jewel in disguise" ... Kathy Mattea ... '455 Rocket'
April 22, 200718 yr '81 Jaguar: smells like old leather, a more strong smell than a bad one. It dissipates after a drive with the windows down and sunroof open. Sonoma: even though we bought it with ~4,000 miles on the clock, it smelled (and still sort of does, to a degree) like a new car. Venture: antifreeze, courtesy of the head gasket and intake manifold going sour. '78 Datsun: generic cleaning solution and pine (it got new floorboards in the loft and WC) '91 Explorer: it smelled like a Ford...that's the best description for it.
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