The editorial staff of the Unmuffled Auto News humbly begs forgiveness from all subscribers/readers. Zoomvroom’s hypothesis is the editorial staff somehow “forgot” about an exciting new post. Tune in tomorrow for that not-so-mythical post.
What I’m Working Towards This Week
I’ll be back with more great stories next week – gotta go – code 3 !
Such An Amazing Old Car Collection on Vancouver Island!
Just about any human could dream of owning any one of these cars that Ted and Sharon Forbes of Sooke, B.C. (the tip of Vancouver Island) own.
Ted has restored every single car that you see in these mere photos! 
This lovely ’56 Bird has been owned by Ted and Sharon since the 1970’s, and looks lovely in it’s “golden glow yellow!”
This extremely amazing 1956 Ford Skyliner was restored way back in 1988 by Ted. It is all original with every power option. It came from the Indian reservation on Vancouver Island. Lovely!
This beautiful 1956 Mercury Crown Meteor is lovely looking in it’s black/red exterior/white interior combo. It is all power with all accessories except “air.” It was restored twenty-two years ago in 1990. After the restoration, it was driven to Ocean Shores, Washington, USA for their first ownership drive.
This swoopy 1955 Mercury Meteor Convertible took twenty-eight years of constant pestering on Sharon’s part to let the original owner sell it to Ted. It is extremely rare. Out of 201 cars built, only about eight remain. A good part of this car’s life was spent in Winnipeg. Just to prove how rare this car is, FoMoCo Times has an article on this car!
“Juicy Fruit” has taken Ted and Sharon all the way from Vancouver Island to Rockin’ Red Deer in Alberta, Canada to Hot August Nights in Reno, USA, and many other trips. Meteors used some Mercury colors for 1956. Juicy Fruit is painted Grove Green and Saffron Yellow. She also has that awesome black lightning blot so popular in the Jet Age. She is all full power accessories except “air.”
This dream-worthy 1956 Mercury M-100 pickup is real! Since 1978, Ted and Sharon have driven this truck all over the place. They have gone from California to Manitoba to Sturgis, and many other places without ever missing a single beat. Around 12 years ago, a 302 crate engine, an AOD, and a Aspen suspension were added to the truck to make it drive even better. Lovely.
This amazing 1956 Mercury Montclair Convertible is London Grey and Persimmon. Ted found what was left of it in the Spokane area, restored it, and then drove it to the 1996 Hot August Nights in Reno, Nevada. She has full power, and is loaded to the gills with every single accessory available for 1956 Mercury Montclair’s.
This numbers-matching 1955 Mercury Convertible has only 530 miles since the restoration! Amazing! Back in 1989, Ted tow-barred this car all the way from Southern California behind his little Ford 302 box van. It was so ugly that nobody ever gave him the thumbs-up! Now, it is perfectly restored and has the optional Canadian colors: Sunset Coral with the matching Tapestry Weave interior. It has full power, accessory steering wheel, and a metric speedometer! VROOM!
This shiny 1958 Pontiac Parisienne Convertible took six MONTHS of welding time from Ted to help get it into the condition that it is in right now! It is full power with the 348 engine, bucket seats, and just about every factory and dealer option available for 1958 Pontiac’s! Ted and Sharon drove it to the 2004 Hot August Nights where they won the shown trophy! I want to buy it!
This sweet 1959 Oldsmobile Convertible was bought by Ted at Don Wheaton’s Auto Dealer way back in 1968. Back then, Ted was a kid working in the oilfields. Ted and Sharon took their honeymoon in this car in 1969! When Ted and Sharon went overseas to work in the oilfields for 25 years, this car was stored in Ted’s barn in Manitoba for that period of time. With 30,000 miles showing on the odometer, this car has many, many more miles of enjoyment to go! It has bucket seats. Plus, only a handful of these cars were built in Canada. This one was!
The good ‘ol 1964 Ford Park Lane Convertible has 78,000 miles on it, rare 15″ wheels, a Super Marauder engine, bucket seats, and lovely paint. Ted has cast iron headers and tri-power carbs just itching for a drag race! Now that’s what I call a SLEEPER!
Ted looked for one of these 1958 Mercury Convertibles for about ten years before buying this one from John Fowlie in California. Ted and Sharon restored it with a HUGE 430 CI engine, memory seats, and many other BIG parts! Everything about her is big!
When Ted found this lovely 1959 Chevy Impala Convertible, it was a rust bucket folded up on a pallet with no powertrain or interior. Originally, it was a black Canadian-built Impala. Ted has since put in a 1995 Lt-1 Corvette engine and a 700R4 transmission. Ted hopes that when the car is finished, it will look like it just came out of the factory doors. Ted has already put on a full Continental kit, fender skirts, and other must-haves for a cool old boulevard cruiser. Presently, it is about 70% finished, but you may see it next spring at Hot August Nights…
This beautiful 1959 Edsel has yet again been meticulously restored by Ted Forbes, and has all the full power options. It is also the latest addition to the Mountaintop collection. Way to go, Ted!
NOTE: THIS COLLECTION IS NOT MINE!
Just to Let You Know.
Because of the Mount Everest-sized piles of homework that I have, I will be unable to post for the following week. Tune back in on next Tuesday (the 24th) for a post that should make up for the week off (NOT a vacation…)!
All the ways of Going to Market in the State of Maine.
The State of Maine is a very rough (read pretty and natural) state. The edge of Maine’s coastline is dotted with thousands and thousands of inlets that resonate with the booming of waves. The rest of the state has flat plains, forests that would send lumberjacks running for the napalm, and mountains high enough to give an astronaut vertigo. The people who take their goods over the mountains of this pristine state always seem to have the toughest vehicles ever. The Cole Land Transportation Museum tells the whole story of it.
The Cole Museum is a logical and remarkably correct collection of Maine (street) transportation throughout the year. The descendants of trucker Allie Cole started the museum in 1990, to show visitors to Maine what the Maine way of travel is actually like.
The Cole family is a founding family in terms of Maine’s commercial trucking. For something that was close to 90 years, Cole’s Express trucks were fixtures on Maine and New England’s highways. Cole’s Express hauled everything from paper, potatoes, and various other items that start with a “p.” From 1917 to 1992, Cole’s Express hauled heavy loads way out in Maine.
If you’ve ever visited Maine and wondered “What would I need to get around all of Maine at any given time of the year?,” the Cole Museum offers it all. If a snowplow pops into your mind, the Cole Museum has it. Obviously, snow plays an important part in Maine’s ecosystem… Several snowplows are in the exhibits, including a massive early Linn tracked truck that required a crew of four strong men. Two of those burly men stood at the back to lever the massive plow wings into position.
Out in the sticks of Maine, roads being plowed really wasn’t much of a guarantee, so most of Maine’s residents are big of DIY’s. Maybe that’s why there’s a brood of cool old snowmobiles; necessities back out in Maine before they became toys in California. . .
Allie’s son, Galen Cole, came up with the brilliant idea for the museum. Galen was president and chairman of Cole’s Express from 1955 (when Allie passed away) to 1992, when the business was bought by Roadway.
Galen told Hemmings Motor News “We opened the museum in 1990, and now have more than 200 vehicles. When we were ready to break ground, I asked all the newspapers in the state to ask if any of their readers had vehicles that they wanted to contribute to the collection. One of the proudest things in my life is that 77 of our vehicles were donated to us before we ever broke ground. Our collection is unique in that, besides cars and motorcycles, it documents the commercial vehicle from horse-drawn wagons all the way through the 18-wheeler.”
Then, there are the amazing military vehicles that the Cole family proudly salutes that are included in the displays. Outside, there are is a memorial honoring all 339 Maine KIA-MIA troopers who fought in the Vietnam War. Then, there are two more memorials to the Vietnam War: one is a Huey helicopter, and the other one is a M60 tank. Then, there is a bronze statue of the museum’s Willys JEEP, and a Purple Heart memorial.
From May 1 through November 11 2012, the Cole Land Transportation Museum is open from 9-5 EST, seven days a week. Their address is: 405 Perry Road, Bangor ME, 04401. You can call them at: (207) 990-3600. Their fax number is (207) 990-2653. The website is colemuseum.org Admission is $7.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors 62 and over, AAA admission is $6.00, and anybody 19 and younger is free!
I think I’d better save up for my plane ticket…
A Hole Shot (not a half shot!!)
So, a hole shot sounds like it is right out of a golf tournament (for all I know, it could be!). But, it’s not. In car-speak, a hole shot is when a drag racer beats his competitor right when the race begins. Basically, that’s when both racers are coming out of the hole. The driver that gets a hole shot most likely has a ‘lead-foot’ the size of an elephant, or just has a faster reaction time. I like the former. . .The winner pulls a hole shot, and the loser is holed.
There you go! VROOOM!
From Bad to Worse
In the ongoing saga of this writer’s health, the editorial staff wishes it to be known that he has been recalled for major factory repairs. As soon as all repairs have been made, he will return for active use.
From: The Editorial Staff
Just Letting You Know
Hi there, I injured one of my typing fingers last evening, and had to go to the ER. It’s hard to type with it, so check back on Tuesday (don’t worry, I will post!).
The World’s First Airplane Car Thing… the Terrafugia Transition
So, remember how I’d said that I’d announce a very lucky winner today? Well, I think we’ve waited long enough…Are you ready? I’m sorry, I must be deaf! I said, ” Are you ready?” I thought so! Our lucky winner is…………Carolyn Boyles! Congratulations Carolyn! Please contact me with the address you’d like the subscription sent to.
What the %#&! IS Terrafugia, let alone the Terrafugia Transition? I thought the same thing! Well, if you’re interested (which I’m sure you are!), the Terrafugia Transition is the FIRST flying car available to the public. Available, as in July of 2011, NHTSA cleared the Terrafugia Transition for legally driving on public roads. The Transition is a milestone in terms of cars that can fly! FYI: That doesn’t include jumping a Jeep off of a huge pile of rocks! But, don’t expect to see Transition’s for at least another 5-6 months. Though Terrafugia has been around for about 13 years, they don’t have a factory big enough to commercially produce the $250,000 flyable car. The Terrafugia will cost about $250-60,000, a company spokesperson said in September 2011. Powering the 970-pound Terrafugia is a Rotex 912S engine makes 100 horsepower. Guzzling only 35 mpg on the ground, a driver/pilot can go up to 300 miles on the ground, fill up with 23 gallons of premium unleaded automobile fuel, and take off from a local airport, go about 425 miles, fill up, and repeat the process. When on the ground, the Transition is rear-wheel-drive, and when in the air, the Rotex 912S engine acts as a pusher engine. The one small problem with the Transition is that it only can hold two people and 100 pounds of luggage. Terrafugia is thinking of making a larger model for oil companies to use, as the Transition only needs about 300 feet to take off. When on the ground, the Transition can go up to 65 mph. When in the air, it can go 112 mph, with a stall speed of 45 mph. The one thing the Transition is NOT meant to do is aerobatics. The steepest angle it can go at is about 70 degrees in any direction. This also applies to when going on a road, so don’t plan on going on narrow, hilly roads – you probably won’t make it…
Also, don’t expect to see a Transition take off from a long stretch of road or freeway; it’s required to take off and land from an airport. That also means that if you have a long, straight driveway, you cannot take off from it! One of the many things that NHTSA granted Terrafugia (which means “escape from land” in Latin) was to use RV tires, but Terrafugia is now asking to use equally safe motorcycle tires, as they are lighter, and as safe, if not safer. Terrafugia’s MIT trained engineers designed the folding wings of the Transition to be only 6’8″ tall; short enough to fit into an average garage. Terrafugia estimates that the Transition, which has been in development since 2006, to cost only $60,000 a year to maintain. The estimates for how much money will be spent on gas for the Transition are about $28,000 a year, as it is as efficient as a Honda Insight. American made, this car is good for people who want to buy local. All you have to do is wait for one to be produced and have $250,00 in the bank!
As Edmund’s InsideLine said “That’s one small step for mankind, one giant leap for Terrafugia.”
Enjoy looking around on the Terrafugia website, impress your bos, and lose yourself in the land of Terrafugia! http://www.terrafugia.com/index.html
Happy Blogversary!
Just think, one year ago (as of this previous Friday), I was sitting here writing my first post. I was a bit nervous, but also really excited. I want to honor my one-year (give or take a few days…) anniversary of my amazing blog, and my 100th post! All right, it’s my 101st! Count all my posts if you don’t believe me! I know that I wouldn’t be here without you, so I’d like to take a moment to thank you for keeping me going for one year! I really did mean to post on Sunday, and have something fun announced on Monday, but I had a teen ice skating activity with a local teen group. Some things added up, and I never got around to doing it. Sorry! I REALLY hope that this makes up for it.
So, I’ve decided to do a giveaway of a one-year subscription to Motor Trend. All you need to do is post a comment before Thursday night, and you might be receiving a copy of Motor Trend in about 6-10 weeks! I’ll announce the winner on Friday, so post a comment! Booyah!
The Unmuffled Auto News 