a warning for all you classic owners

70hornet304 · 07-31-2003, 09:40 PM

Hello, i'm new to this forum as of today although i've been reading for the past few months. but i finally decided to sign up because i figured i should help make people aware of some seriously dangerous things. As you might note from my name i own a 1970 AMC hornet with a 304 in it, new paint job, new mellowtones....all very nice. with one exception. yesterday as i was driving my girlfriend somewhere and we were late and i was driving a little over the speed limit due to an ******* showing off his trans-am doing at least 85 on a major road in the rain and i tried to keep up but i could just feel my tires spinning so i backed off and as i watched this trans-am fly through an intersection the light turned yellow and i knew i couldn't make it before it turned red so i hit the brakes. the problem with my car is that it has oooold manual brakes and whether you want to stop fast or you want to slow down you have to push hard. so i hit the brakes and they locked up. it pulled hard to the right and slid sideways i tried correcting it and over corrected spinning out in the oppisite direction lifting two wheels off the ground and almost flipping, when my car hit the whole curb going sideways at probably 50 miles an hour spinning my car twice and ending up backed into a telephone pole. i had come to a complete rest with absolutely no collision with the telephone pole. i looked at my girlfriend and she was alright so i put it in park, turned it off and got out. she looked at her side of the car real fast and i glanced at mine and we were amazed at how little damage had been done......until we realized my tire and about 90% of my vintage mag wheel was about 100 yards down the road and the other rear tire was at a 45 degree angle. my left muffle tip got crushed but the mufflers survived. i dont think i broke any axles and im not sure about what other damage is done until my uncle (my mechanic) can look it over better. but i ended up getting away with no ticket due to road conditions and my braking situation. and most importantly im still alive. but i want to warn everyone that even though my speed was a tad excessive for the road conditions, hydroplaning and brakes locking up and real lack of control thereafter are serious concerns so always take precaution when driving in the rain or at all times. thank you for anyone who listened to my looong rant. and i'm happy to be a member of the forums.

rbohm · 08-01-2003, 12:47 PM

aaww but getting crazy in the rain is soooo much fun!!

actually i always drive more conservatively in the rain or other adverse weather conditions. you can get into as much if not more trouble in the newest cars with all the high tech crap they have, and the best rain tires if you decide to drive stupid. the moral here is, dont let other people dictate your driving habits.

Rev · 08-02-2003, 07:54 PM

I must sypathize with 70hornet304. I have been driving since the early 50's. so I know from whince I speak. I now play with my '66 Mustang on the freeways and byways of Houston.

After determinining that everyone else could stop faster than me, even with perfectly restored vintage brakes (rain or shine), I did have to do an upgrage.

I now have power (National Parts Depot), front Granada disks (Jim's Mustang, El Cajon, Ca.), but also with Praise Dyno front pads and rear shoes (Royce ,Tx.).

In short, after a lot of work and $1200 or so, my car stops like all the late model cars, which was my goal.

Rev

fine69 · 08-03-2003, 05:47 PM

you shouldn't even consider letting your car out in those kind of conditions..!!! and you surely shouldn't be trying to race a late model car ...IN THE RAIN..! YOUR LUCKY IT WASN'T WORSE......NOW GO TO YOUR ROOM AND THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'VE DONE......(and where you'll find one of those wheels...)

Jeff65 · 08-05-2003, 02:50 PM

My '98 V6 Mustang sports a new axle due to a collision with a curb. Last winter I was hurrying to work, roads were icy but I'd been there before and thought my driving skills were up to the task. On one turn, I encountered a bit of fishtail and still didn't listen to the road conditions. I was up to about fifty mph on what seemed like decent road conditions for snow and ice. I came over the crest of this hill, almost no traffic and made it to the next undulation. As I started to climb the next hill the nose of the car wandered left...up the street a half mile or two was an on-coming car....I figured I'd steer lightly to get back into my lane and when I got the front end to react, the car went sideways to the road. I knew better than to hit the brakes but there was nearly zero steering so I did the best I could to ride it out until the car slowed down...seemed like an eternity and an abrupt concrete curb backed by an embankment loomed larger and larger. About this time I realized nothing could be done and braced for impact. It was violent, flipping the car around 180 degrees. I'd made a complete 360 on the highway and was resting with the rear of the car above the curb. I checked traffic, opened the door and looked back to see a 16x9 wheel and P205 tire lying on the roadway. I could hear a clunk, clunk of a broken axle flipping around in the torque tube. The brake disc and caliper were completely gone and fluid was seeping out. It was below zero so I put the transmission in Park and adjusted the heater. It was quiet, my neck and back were hurting and my little V6 was a mess! Fortunately I had a cell phone and about an hour later the car was at the local Ford dealer and I was in my rental car - Taurus. $2000 later the car had new axle and new wheels. Taught me an old lesson once again. "Never trust mother nature!"

70hornet304 · 08-08-2003, 11:29 PM

thank you guys for the sympathy and letting me know im not alone. i thought i had learned my lesson this time but i was driving my temporary car, a 93 jeep grand cherokee with everything possible wrong with it. it was another rainy day and theres this one corner where theres two turn lanes that immediatly merge into one lane and being the stubborn *** that i am, i am always determined to not let anyone merge in front of me without a fight and i turned the corner just fine when all of a sudden my bald *** back tires hit a really wet spot and just fishtailed and i ended up sitting sideways in my lane. that jeep is just beyond repair though. sitting at a redlight is like getting a very unwanted back massage from all the vibration. its a total piece of crap. and the only other alternative is my dads 89 GT which just recently lost one of its mufflers. so im stuck with the jeep for now. the hornet was towed away though and it appears that theres no axle or underbody damage so far. that mag wheel saved my axle by shattering away from the hub instead of taking the axle with it. so with some new tips on my undamaged mellowtones (which i highly recommend) i could be back on the road with it in the next month or two. and the unfortunate fact is that the hornet was my daily driver while i was awaiting another GT after my dad sold his and/or a Jeep cherokee 4x4. but one thing that seems to be missing is cash and thats a big problem.

07-31-2003, 09:40 PM	#1
70hornet304 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 2	a warning for all you classic owners Hello, i'm new to this forum as of today although i've been reading for the past few months. but i finally decided to sign up because i figured i should help make people aware of some seriously dangerous things. As you might note from my name i own a 1970 AMC hornet with a 304 in it, new paint job, new mellowtones....all very nice. with one exception. yesterday as i was driving my girlfriend somewhere and we were late and i was driving a little over the speed limit due to an ******* showing off his trans-am doing at least 85 on a major road in the rain and i tried to keep up but i could just feel my tires spinning so i backed off and as i watched this trans-am fly through an intersection the light turned yellow and i knew i couldn't make it before it turned red so i hit the brakes. the problem with my car is that it has oooold manual brakes and whether you want to stop fast or you want to slow down you have to push hard. so i hit the brakes and they locked up. it pulled hard to the right and slid sideways i tried correcting it and over corrected spinning out in the oppisite direction lifting two wheels off the ground and almost flipping, when my car hit the whole curb going sideways at probably 50 miles an hour spinning my car twice and ending up backed into a telephone pole. i had come to a complete rest with absolutely no collision with the telephone pole. i looked at my girlfriend and she was alright so i put it in park, turned it off and got out. she looked at her side of the car real fast and i glanced at mine and we were amazed at how little damage had been done......until we realized my tire and about 90% of my vintage mag wheel was about 100 yards down the road and the other rear tire was at a 45 degree angle. my left muffle tip got crushed but the mufflers survived. i dont think i broke any axles and im not sure about what other damage is done until my uncle (my mechanic) can look it over better. but i ended up getting away with no ticket due to road conditions and my braking situation. and most importantly im still alive. but i want to warn everyone that even though my speed was a tad excessive for the road conditions, hydroplaning and brakes locking up and real lack of control thereafter are serious concerns so always take precaution when driving in the rain or at all times. thank you for anyone who listened to my looong rant. and i'm happy to be a member of the forums.

08-01-2003, 12:47 PM	#2
rbohm Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: tucson,az/luray,va Posts: 243	aaww but getting crazy in the rain is soooo much fun!! actually i always drive more conservatively in the rain or other adverse weather conditions. you can get into as much if not more trouble in the newest cars with all the high tech crap they have, and the best rain tires if you decide to drive stupid. the moral here is, dont let other people dictate your driving habits. __________________ define irony: a bunch of idiots on a plane, dancing to a song made famous, by a band who died in a plane crash. fordsix.com admin

08-02-2003, 07:54 PM	#3
Rev Registered Member Join Date: Nov 1998 Location: Houston, Tx. Posts: 3,887	Sympathize I must sypathize with 70hornet304. I have been driving since the early 50's. so I know from whince I speak. I now play with my '66 Mustang on the freeways and byways of Houston. After determinining that everyone else could stop faster than me, even with perfectly restored vintage brakes (rain or shine), I did have to do an upgrage. I now have power (National Parts Depot), front Granada disks (Jim's Mustang, El Cajon, Ca.), but also with Praise Dyno front pads and rear shoes (Royce ,Tx.). In short, after a lot of work and $1200 or so, my car stops like all the late model cars, which was my goal. Rev __________________ '66 Coupe, 306, 350-375 HP, C-4, 13.07 e.t., 104.8 mph, 1/4 mi. O.B.C. #2 '66 coupe

08-03-2003, 05:47 PM	#4
fine69 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: plano texas Posts: 3	bad boy..!! you shouldn't even consider letting your car out in those kind of conditions..!!! and you surely shouldn't be trying to race a late model car ...IN THE RAIN..! YOUR LUCKY IT WASN'T WORSE......NOW GO TO YOUR ROOM AND THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'VE DONE......(and where you'll find one of those wheels...)

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08-05-2003, 02:50 PM	#5
Jeff65 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Oklahoma City Posts: 208	My '98 V6 Mustang sports a new axle due to a collision with a curb. Last winter I was hurrying to work, roads were icy but I'd been there before and thought my driving skills were up to the task. On one turn, I encountered a bit of fishtail and still didn't listen to the road conditions. I was up to about fifty mph on what seemed like decent road conditions for snow and ice. I came over the crest of this hill, almost no traffic and made it to the next undulation. As I started to climb the next hill the nose of the car wandered left...up the street a half mile or two was an on-coming car....I figured I'd steer lightly to get back into my lane and when I got the front end to react, the car went sideways to the road. I knew better than to hit the brakes but there was nearly zero steering so I did the best I could to ride it out until the car slowed down...seemed like an eternity and an abrupt concrete curb backed by an embankment loomed larger and larger. About this time I realized nothing could be done and braced for impact. It was violent, flipping the car around 180 degrees. I'd made a complete 360 on the highway and was resting with the rear of the car above the curb. I checked traffic, opened the door and looked back to see a 16x9 wheel and P205 tire lying on the roadway. I could hear a clunk, clunk of a broken axle flipping around in the torque tube. The brake disc and caliper were completely gone and fluid was seeping out. It was below zero so I put the transmission in Park and adjusted the heater. It was quiet, my neck and back were hurting and my little V6 was a mess! Fortunately I had a cell phone and about an hour later the car was at the local Ford dealer and I was in my rental car - Taurus. $2000 later the car had new axle and new wheels. Taught me an old lesson once again. "Never trust mother nature!"

08-08-2003, 11:29 PM	#6
70hornet304 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 2	thank you guys for the sympathy and letting me know im not alone. i thought i had learned my lesson this time but i was driving my temporary car, a 93 jeep grand cherokee with everything possible wrong with it. it was another rainy day and theres this one corner where theres two turn lanes that immediatly merge into one lane and being the stubborn * that i am, i am always determined to not let anyone merge in front of me without a fight and i turned the corner just fine when all of a sudden my bald * back tires hit a really wet spot and just fishtailed and i ended up sitting sideways in my lane. that jeep is just beyond repair though. sitting at a redlight is like getting a very unwanted back massage from all the vibration. its a total piece of crap. and the only other alternative is my dads 89 GT which just recently lost one of its mufflers. so im stuck with the jeep for now. the hornet was towed away though and it appears that theres no axle or underbody damage so far. that mag wheel saved my axle by shattering away from the hub instead of taking the axle with it. so with some new tips on my undamaged mellowtones (which i highly recommend) i could be back on the road with it in the next month or two. and the unfortunate fact is that the hornet was my daily driver while i was awaiting another GT after my dad sold his and/or a Jeep cherokee 4x4. but one thing that seems to be missing is cash and thats a big problem.