I got her in July of ’63. She was sitting on the dealer lot. She was ordered and then refused. Back then you ordered what you wanted and several weeks later it would arrive. My Dad found her. We were looking for a new car for me as my ’55 Plymouth was slowly disintegrating. I’d stop at the gas station and check the gas and filler up with oil.
It was much more than I expected. First of all she was a convertible - a white ragtop over Honduras Maroon body. She had black vinyl seats with a chrome trim – bucket seats. I had no idea what SS meant at the time. I sat in her and a tachometer stared me in the face. I was in love. Looked down and saw a console with a four-speed shifter. This was the car I wanted.
I opened the hood and stood there in shock. I knew what a 409 was. I had seen them blasting around the streets and on the New England Thruway. They were “it” back then. This was just a 340 HP, but still, it was a 409.
Mom, Dad and I went to pick it up. Dad had to try her first. Thought it was peppy, but just OK. (He never stood on it.) Mom looked at the tach and thought we were only doing 20 MPH. Gave her approval. Mom never learned to drive.
I got her home and I was the King of the block, no neighborhood. I put the top down and tried to put on the boot, but it wouldn’t stretch out. (Eventually it did.) Drove her everywhere.
We were together all through college, military draft, basic and advanced training at Ft. Dix and officer OCS Infantry training at Ft. Benning. We shared my first love, my first heartbreak, first ……. you know what I mean. We were inseparable.
We had our first drag race; it was on the street of course. Nobody really gave a damn back then as long as you raced away from traffic. For some reason the Ford 390’s were faster than the 406’s. But we raced anything any chance we had. Win some lose some. I also ran some at Dover Drag Strip, NY (RIP) with a flagman starter before they installed the lights.
It took its toll. First the clutch went. I replaced the cluster gear and second three times. I ripped the upper arm out of the rear end housing. I blew up the differential. I broke an axle in half. (With positraction, I was able to drive that one home.) Dad helped some. I dented the oil pan. I replaced the exhaust valves, another clutch and a driveshaft universal, three brake jobs and upper and lower ball joints. I went through tires like eating popcorn. There was only a one year warrantee on new Chevys then, so after that, I had to pay to fix it.
After a few years I was able to make some improvements. The QJ always gave me trouble. Sometimes there was a big bog when the secondaries kicked in. Got a small AFB, but that wasn’t the answer either. I picked up a three-deuce setup from a 350HP-348CID as well as a tri-Y header setup. Put Cragar satin mag wheels up front and Prowler Eliminator street slicks on steelies in back. Put a Dayton ignition dual point distributor in with a Mallory coil. A set of Stewart Warner gauges sat under the dash. Shifted the transmission with a Hurst shifter. The car ran better than ever. A 4.11 gear in the posi rear rounded things out.
After I had my car set up, a friend of mine put a full-house 409-409 in his 1958 Chevy. He thought who the hell he was. I tried to tell him how to set up his carb linkage for his dual four barrel motor. He wouldn’t listen. He knew it all. Told I’d race him on the spot. He accepted and lost. Big time. His “set-up” only got the rear two barrels of the rear carburetor working. Embarrassed, he listened and a few days later we beat a 426 Street Hemi. That 409 would rev to 8000 if you let it. It was some motor.
Did I ever tell you about 1964? Pontiac put a big block in a Tempest. From then on my ’09 status dropped down a peg. All these new cars are fast.
She and I parted ways in the beginning of ’69. I was transferred to Ft. Knox. I sold her with a tear in my eye to some kid for $500.00. I got a really good deal on a 1965 401 nailhead Buick Wildcat for $500.00. One of the worse things I ever did, selling her. I’ve regretted it to this day.
I sold the Buick to my Uncle when I went to ‘Nam. When I got home I later got into Corvettes. Like an L88 Corvette. Not new. I put a new L88 into my daily driver 1971. More speed but not the magic of that 409.
“That’s all I got to say about that.”
It was much more than I expected. First of all she was a convertible - a white ragtop over Honduras Maroon body. She had black vinyl seats with a chrome trim – bucket seats. I had no idea what SS meant at the time. I sat in her and a tachometer stared me in the face. I was in love. Looked down and saw a console with a four-speed shifter. This was the car I wanted.
I opened the hood and stood there in shock. I knew what a 409 was. I had seen them blasting around the streets and on the New England Thruway. They were “it” back then. This was just a 340 HP, but still, it was a 409.
Mom, Dad and I went to pick it up. Dad had to try her first. Thought it was peppy, but just OK. (He never stood on it.) Mom looked at the tach and thought we were only doing 20 MPH. Gave her approval. Mom never learned to drive.
I got her home and I was the King of the block, no neighborhood. I put the top down and tried to put on the boot, but it wouldn’t stretch out. (Eventually it did.) Drove her everywhere.
We were together all through college, military draft, basic and advanced training at Ft. Dix and officer OCS Infantry training at Ft. Benning. We shared my first love, my first heartbreak, first ……. you know what I mean. We were inseparable.
We had our first drag race; it was on the street of course. Nobody really gave a damn back then as long as you raced away from traffic. For some reason the Ford 390’s were faster than the 406’s. But we raced anything any chance we had. Win some lose some. I also ran some at Dover Drag Strip, NY (RIP) with a flagman starter before they installed the lights.
It took its toll. First the clutch went. I replaced the cluster gear and second three times. I ripped the upper arm out of the rear end housing. I blew up the differential. I broke an axle in half. (With positraction, I was able to drive that one home.) Dad helped some. I dented the oil pan. I replaced the exhaust valves, another clutch and a driveshaft universal, three brake jobs and upper and lower ball joints. I went through tires like eating popcorn. There was only a one year warrantee on new Chevys then, so after that, I had to pay to fix it.
After a few years I was able to make some improvements. The QJ always gave me trouble. Sometimes there was a big bog when the secondaries kicked in. Got a small AFB, but that wasn’t the answer either. I picked up a three-deuce setup from a 350HP-348CID as well as a tri-Y header setup. Put Cragar satin mag wheels up front and Prowler Eliminator street slicks on steelies in back. Put a Dayton ignition dual point distributor in with a Mallory coil. A set of Stewart Warner gauges sat under the dash. Shifted the transmission with a Hurst shifter. The car ran better than ever. A 4.11 gear in the posi rear rounded things out.
After I had my car set up, a friend of mine put a full-house 409-409 in his 1958 Chevy. He thought who the hell he was. I tried to tell him how to set up his carb linkage for his dual four barrel motor. He wouldn’t listen. He knew it all. Told I’d race him on the spot. He accepted and lost. Big time. His “set-up” only got the rear two barrels of the rear carburetor working. Embarrassed, he listened and a few days later we beat a 426 Street Hemi. That 409 would rev to 8000 if you let it. It was some motor.
Did I ever tell you about 1964? Pontiac put a big block in a Tempest. From then on my ’09 status dropped down a peg. All these new cars are fast.
She and I parted ways in the beginning of ’69. I was transferred to Ft. Knox. I sold her with a tear in my eye to some kid for $500.00. I got a really good deal on a 1965 401 nailhead Buick Wildcat for $500.00. One of the worse things I ever did, selling her. I’ve regretted it to this day.
I sold the Buick to my Uncle when I went to ‘Nam. When I got home I later got into Corvettes. Like an L88 Corvette. Not new. I put a new L88 into my daily driver 1971. More speed but not the magic of that 409.
“That’s all I got to say about that.”
Yes, 409's are in a class, by themselves.
