Motor Trends Roadworthy Rescues

[Imogene]

I LOVE this weekly series on the Motor trend channel - 246 on Dish. I can actually understand much of what these guys do to get these ancient cars running.

This week‘s rescue is a 1940? Chevy Gasser with a 454 big block. Geez I remember these cars

It breaks my heart that I recently had to sell my 78 GMC square body with a ‘73 454 in it.

Anyway, anyone who enjoys this sort of thing, here’s a link

Watch MotorTrend Shows | Max

 

[jimintoronto]

A long time ago I bought a Chevy Silverado one ton dually that had a 454 in it, that ran on propane, not gasoline. The original owners were a large marina dealership here in Toronto, who used the truck to pull large boats. This was around 1985, when propane as a motor fuel in Canada was really cheap, about 50 percent lower than the price of gasoline. I used the truck for my business and to pull a trailer with my oval track race car on it. Because propane is such a clean burning fuel, compared to gasoline, I used to go 20,000 miles between oil changes.

Eventually the body rust on the truck got to the point where I was going to sell it. A buyer bought the truck, just for the 454 engine. He pulled the engine, rebuilt it to run on gasoline, and put it into a Super Modified car. At the time he rebuilt that engine it had over 250,000 miles on it, but the inside was as clean as a whistle due to having only ever burned propane. It was built at the GM Canada truck plant in Oshawa , Ontario as a propane vehicle. JIM.

 

[Imogene]

A long time ago I bought a Chevy Silverado one ton dually that had a 454 in it, that ran on propane, not gasoline. The original owners were a large marina dealership here in Toronto, who used the truck to pull large boats. This was around 1985, when propane as a motor fuel in Canada was really cheap, about 50 percent lower than the price of gasoline. I used the truck for my business and to pull a trailer with my oval track race car on it. Because propane is such a clean burning fuel, compared to gasoline, I used to go 20,000 miles between oil changes.

Eventually the body rust on the truck got to the point where I was going to sell it. A buyer bought the truck, just for the 454 engine. He pulled the engine, rebuilt it to run on gasoline, and put it into a Super Modified car. At the time he rebuilt that engine it had over 250,000 miles on it, but the inside was as clean as a whistle due to having only ever burned propane. It was built at the GM Canada truck plant in Oshawa , Ontario as a propane vehicle. JIM.

What a great story

My 454 came out of a ‘73 Suburban. I lived in the foothills of the Allegheny national Forest at the time. Several of us had camps up there and we would haul our horses up there on long weekends for trail riding. I had the 454 slightly rebuilt for pulling my four horse stock trailer up into the mountain to camp.

I really didn’t want to sell that truck because I had bought it in 1981 when it was three years old. it had come out of logging fields and had been beat up pretty good but it was all I could afford at the time so little by little friends worked on it for me and I was able to get it rebuilt..

Things rusted out fast on the Ohio PA border in the winter time. We had Oilers where I lived back in those days. I took my truck and my horse trailer to the oiler every fall. When I sold that old GMC this summer, the paint was oxidized, but it didn’t have any rust on it. Same with my horse trailer. I bought it brand new in 1987. That old trailer has carried my horses 2100 miles across the United States twice.

I hated selling the truck, but I needed the money after my husband passed in April. The consolation is that it went to somebody who had wanted it for a long time and gave me a fair price for it. Foto taken spring 2024.

 

[jimintoronto]

What a great story

My 454 came out of a ‘73 Suburban. I lived in the foothills of the Allegheny national Forest at the time. Several of us had camps up there and we would haul our horses up there on long weekends for trail riding. I had the 454 slightly rebuilt for pulling my four horse stock trailer up into the mountain to camp.

I really didn’t want to sell that truck because I had bought it in 1981 when it was three years old. it had come out of logging fields and had been beat up pretty good but it was all I could afford at the time so little by little friends worked on it for me and I was able to get it rebuilt..

Things rusted out fast on the Ohio PA border in the winter time. We had Oilers where I lived back in those days. I took my truck and my horse trailer to the oiler every fall. When I sold that old GMC this summer, the paint was oxidized, but it didn’t have any rust on it. Same with my horse trailer. I bought it brand new in 1987. That old trailer has carried my horses 2100 miles across the United States twice.

I hated selling the truck, but I needed the money after my husband passed in April. The consolation is that it went to somebody who had wanted it for a long time and gave me a fair price for it. Foto taken spring 2024.

View attachment 398819

Looking at the photo, I see yours was a 4x4 . Mine was a rear wheel drive with dual rear wheels, and really huge springs. The original owner was a marina that sold big yachts up to 50 feet long, so the truck had about 12 layers of leaf springs on the rear axle. When you say "Oilers" are you talking about having the underside of the vehicle sprayed to prevent rust? Do you still have horses ? JIM.

 

[Imogene]

Looking at the photo, I see yours was a 4x4 . Mine was a rear wheel drive with dual rear wheels, and really huge springs. The original owner was a marina that sold big yachts up to 50 feet long, so the truck had about 12 layers of leaf springs on the rear axle. When you say "Oilers" are you talking about having the underside of the vehicle sprayed to prevent rust? Do you still have horses ? JIM.

Yes 4X4. She was on one ton cargo van leaf springs, all the way around.

Yes to under carriage oilers. It was popular in my rural area to keep from vehicles from rotting on all the salt that was spread on the roads in the winter. The oiler I used operated out of a 1950’s style mechanic garage. It was a busy side hustle that “didn’t exist”, lollol. The bay had a pit with wooden planks to pull up on. When the truck was done, I had to back the trailer in. You have no idea how glad I was for the backing lessons my son’s father had given me when we were still married.

FWIW, holes were drilled in the rockers, filled with chainsaw bar oil then capped. The rockers were still holding oil and capped when I sold the truck.

I still have one horse who was gifted to me as a companion to my elder Tennessee Walking Horse. The TWH passed at 30+ years in December and joins four other horses in my pet Sematary.

At 77, I am too old to own more horses, so I now have a loaner horse as a companion for this companion horse who is a 28 or older Dutch Warmblood, lolol. When I lay the Warmblood to rest, the loaner horse will go back home and that will end an era having Horses non stop since I was 12.

 

[jimintoronto]

Yes 4X4. She was on one ton cargo van leaf springs, all the way around.

Yes to under carriage oilers. It was popular in my rural area to keep from vehicles from rotting on all the salt that was spread on the roads in the winter. The oiler I used operated out of a 1950’s style mechanic garage. It was a busy side hustle that “didn’t exist”, lollol. The bay had a pit with wooden planks to pull up on. When the truck was done, I had to back the trailer in. You have no idea how glad I was for the backing lessons my son’s father had given me when we were still married.

FWIW, holes were drilled in the rockers, filled with chainsaw bar oil then capped. The rockers were still holding oil and capped when I sold the truck.

I still have one horse who was gifted to me as a companion to my elder Tennessee Walking Horse. The TWH passed at 30+ years in December and joins four other horses in my pet Sematary.

At 77, I am too old to own more horses, so I now have a loaner horse as a companion for this companion horse who is a 28 or older Dutch Warmblood, lolol. When I lay the Warmblood to rest, the loaner horse will go back home and that will end an era having Horses non stop since I was 12.

I have never heard of filling the door cavities with oil. There is a company in Ontario called Krown Rust Protection that does drill holes in car doors, spray inside then cap the holes with plastic plugs .

Here in Toronto the Toronto Police Service has 33 horses in their mounted unit. Most are cross breeds, standard bred with Clydesdales. Big tall horses, with calm personalities and solid confirmation. The mounted unit performs regular street and parks patrols every day all year long. They also are used for crowd control, and going where even the Police motorcycles cannot go in the 5 river ravines that we have in the city.

The mounted unit's officers are selected for a 4 year assignment . They undergo a 5 month riding training program before they go out on patrol, with an experienced officer as their coach officer. The horses are bought at around 4 or 5 years of age, and they also go through a long training course. Compared to the cost of a Police patrol vehicle, the horses are a bargain , and most will serve to around 20 years of age. The horses are also people friendly as visible representatives of the Toronto Police Service.

link. https://www.tps.ca/explore/mounted-unit/horse/york/

JIM.

 

[ChiroDoc]

Doc's '91 GMC Sierra:

 

[Imogene]

I have never heard of filling the door cavities with oil. There is a company in Ontario called Krown Rust Protection that does drill holes in car doors, spray inside then cap the holes with plastic plugs .

Here in Toronto the Toronto Police Service has 33 horses in their mounted unit. Most are cross breeds, standard bred with Clydesdales. Big tall horses, with calm personalities and solid confirmation. The mounted unit performs regular street and parks patrols every day all year long. They also are used for crowd control, and going where even the Police motorcycles cannot go in the 5 river ravines that we have in the city.

The mounted unit's officers are selected for a 4 year assignment . They undergo a 5 month riding training program before they go out on patrol, with an experienced officer as their coach officer. The horses are bought at around 4 or 5 years of age, and they also go through a long training course. Compared to the cost of a Police patrol vehicle, the horses are a bargain , and most will serve to around 20 years of age. The horses are also people friendly as visible representatives of the Toronto Police Service.

link. https://www.tps.ca/explore/mounted-unit/horse/york/

JIM.

Drilling rockers and filling them with oil wasn’t that common, even back then. It was popular in my rural county and a few other rural counties. Most of us didn’t have money to buy new trucks every few years. The oilers did a great service which became a risk as the years progressed <—people narcing to the EPA.

I love the mounted units!

Many of the bigger U.S. cities also have mounted units. Nashville, Tennessee‘s mounted unit is comprised mostly of Tennessee Walking Horses because the breed was established and recognized in this state in the early 1930’s.

Meet the Horse Mounted Patrol Unit

I was a lifelong trail rider (I can’t ride anymore), and went to riding Tennessee Walkers in 1980. That was when the doctors and therapists told me to stop playing sports and stop riding horses — I stopped playing sports

Walking Horses don’t trot. They have an intermediate gait that, in simple terms, is an extended power walk. They are very gentle natured and people oriented. Like your Canadian Mounted Unit, the mounted units in the U.S. also must undergo extensive training.

lt Is amazing to me, the fortitude all mounted unit horses possess.

@ChiroDoc, your Sierra is nice. Did you buy it new?