[Chrysler300] Rarity, rods and Old Farts.....

["L.Andrew Jugle" <lajugle@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

There was this bunch, two bunches as it turned out, of twenty 
somethings that complained about all the old farts that were selling 
their cars because they wanted new ones.  The youngins' soaked them 
up as best they could.  How else could $5,000 to $10,000 cars be got 
for $500? Used, abused and sent to pasture.  Some original owners 
kept them; they became the bench marks: "Original Owners".

Some said they werw rare, but hell, I saw them all over the place. I 
remember a guy that had rows of them in a shop in Chicago; $500, 
$900, some beat-up wrecks for $100---that eventually went to the 
Soldiers Field demo derby.  Lots were restored, sometimes radically---
some people cried,"Foul!", but most just didn't know.  There was one 
fellow locally that went nuts with these rare beasts---had twenty of 
them, all original.

I used to go to their meets. Fine people, knowledgable, friendly "car-
nuts". They would ask, "300?? What's that???  Aren't those Mercedes?"

You know that MOST Dusenbergs made where four door sedans??  Did you 
know that no two were ever made alike?  Did you know that now there 
are TWICE as many roadsters as there were when production ceased?

When I take the 300 now to public "Cruise Nights"  I get the, "Look, 
and old 300M, or "Oh, it doesn't say "HEMI" on it." or "My Uncle 
Harold had one of those, but it was a four-door."

So back in the 70's another bunch of twenty-somethings started a 
couple of car clubs. "300" was the theme, not "Classic" or "Auburn, 
Cord & Duesenberg". I believe it was noted by Gil Cunningham that no 
two 300's were ever made alike. I believe it.

Rods are always around. The Airflow at Barret-Jackson is an example.
It is only ILLEGAL to do with a car what you want in France. You want 
to put an automatic into your "F" convertible because that 4-speed 
has bad synchros, go right ahead--if you own it.  If you try to MAKE 
an F convertible four-speed, however, thank God there are people 
around to say, "Hey, wait a minute."

I remember comments about how 300 C converts were common as dirt---
but they were only Black or White.  It was years before people 
figured out they kept seeing the same 3 cars.

L. Andrew Jugle, Elmhurst, IL. ...and I miss George Berg and George 
Cone every day.






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