New here. My story & the car question

That car is gorgeous. Welcome to the board!

 

Here's the 2001 PT Harley Quinn PT. The entire inside has been dismantled, painted, carpet dyed red, doors painted, dashboard cover rubberwrapped a flat black, & a 21inch tall shifter fashioned from a length of copper pipe.



The 2003 PT GT (future project for 2015) The first pic is the before pic aka how I got it delivered to me. So after all new brakes, & brand new rocker panels, plus a set of aftermarket rims, it's on the road.

 

Love the car and good story. Serious question though, what is so intriguing about PT's? I valet and drive them constantly and would rather take the nearest bridge than get in them. They are so dismal. I do know though, that you are not alone and it's not uncommon for people to collect so I'm genuinely asking what is appealing about them? Maybe just not my taste.

 

Got a couple more photos of my 65 Buick tho as well to balance out the Mopar photos from earlier.



It's a boat for sure. I only put the vinyls on it to distract from the naked eye that it really really needs a paint job. I just haven't got the funds saved up for that yet. Looking at a very very very dark green almost black, with a light dusting of green flake in it. It's a custom color that I made up while in my paint room at work. It's been approved by the old guy that paints these kinds of cars.

 

I'll be honest, when they first came out, I hated them. Dumpy things, drove like a dog. But I purchased my red one when I was working for a car dealership. They took it in on trade & at the time I was driving a 1993 geo tracker that was missing about 90% of its floor panels (rusted right out) I had a choice between a beat up chevy pickup, & the 2001 PT. What sold me on the PT was that the folks that traded it in had a washing machine in the back, still in the crate, & it fit. Plus when I got it home, the first thing I did was remove the resonator, & replace the factory muffler with a Vortex muffler. The factory exhaust pipe went from 2.25inch to 1in ID at the muffler. I also got rid of the factory airbox. It was huge, bulky & restricted the airflow into the intake. I bought a cheap cone filter, & a piece of PVC pipe. It actually perked it up quite a bit. I got & still get about 38miles per gallon out of it. Plus it's like having a van because the back seats are removable.

I get alot of cat calls & insults for what I do to my cars, but I don't let it bother me. I like having vehicles that are different from the norm.

 

I showed the pictures of the Barnum & Bailey edition to my brother, Norm. He emphatically agrees it is "different".

 

The headliner got done in the red one as well. Only problem with these cars is how much you have to dismantle just to take out the headliner. All the paint was done with masking & rattlecan sprays. I prefer rattlecan over the "professional" paints that I mix all day. I find that I have alot more flexibility this way.

 

Hi,

Awesome car and story! Welcome!

Ed

 

Sounds like you're really good natured about your cars (especially the PT Losers). The only people who collect them around here are the 'Pull A Part's. As for that Electra, I'd very respectfully suggest keeping a stock color and limit your modifications-- your Electra peers are more likely to appreciate and respect that than things you've done on the 'Cruisers. It's your car and all that, but 1. it's only original once and 2. when it looks original some will see it as a blank canvas, but modified all they see is someone else's ideas. There's an old thread here titled 'Does big rims look stupid?' that has some witty insight into opinions some have on people's tastes and modifications. Food for thought.
Patrick

 

Well being a counter guy you know what i am talking about then trying to find older parts.

I used to work as a tech for a local Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer and i was never fond of the PT's, in fact i always called them a PT Loser. But, that changed one day when i had to test drive a 2 door PT GT Convertible. Well sir, dont you think i wasnt surprised when i pulled that little beater out in the rd and matted it like it was a normal 4 door slushbox turd. The little squirrels commenced screaming to about 6k and tire smoke galore all around me. I backed right out of it as i was still trying to pull out on the road in front of the dealer ou:, not the best place for burnouts yah know. I took it up the road listening for an air leak but i couldnt resist to keep wailing the throttle and the throw you in the seat performance. I burned up a 1/4 tank of gas on a 5 mile test drive and i told one of the other techs to take it for a burn. He too came back with a smile. I will say those little 2 door PT's with the turbo will really surprise you and can easily be a sleeper.

 

The 5speed 2001 Limited has some get-up-and-go as well, but the turbo has a healthy & surprising Oomph to it. I think the boost on those is something like 14psi for the 2003 GT. I have some more work to do with it, & really can't wait to put summer tires on it. Winter tires have alot of squish to them, & sidewall roll so you can't really get the feel as to how its going to drive

I like mine. But I cannot stand a "plain jane" type car, hence my wacky paint jobs & custom work. The 65 Buick is nice, but factory colors are all in this darb pastel format. I have the catalog of colors & colors like: powder blue, sea mint green, off white, a faded yellow, a 'brown' & the flat black are pretty drab colors. I picked a very dark green with a slight hint of green flake simply because its a "luxury car" & somehow it has to present itself as one. The black is nice, but shows off EVERY nick, chip, light scratch, etc. It's also impossible to keep clean just sitting in my driveway. The drivetrain & motor will stay stock/factory. The inside will remain factory (save for the headliner which had to be sucked out with a shop vac because it had dried out & turned into dusty silt). The wheels will be changing from a 235/55/R15, to the correct conversion from an original bias ply L78, which is a 235/80/R15. I plan on getting tires with a whitewall stripe. The green that I picked out looks like a gloss black until the sunlight hits the curve of the car to make the emerald green flake sparkle. I chose this custom color because I wanted to retain the luxury aspect, & not go into the crazy dept that the other PT's have. The 65 Buick is technically a 'daily driver' in the summertime. It won't see any paint this year, but maybe next year. This year is the carrier bearing, & all the universal joints getting replaced. This is also the year that a new gas tank goes in.

 

Here's a Buick owner, making his own whitewall tyres:

[video=youtube_share;pHWTa2tAYIc]http://youtu.be/pHWTa2tAYIc[/video]

 

That's dangerous, plus up where I live, most shops that hold that precious inspection sticker that allows you to drive on the road up here, will automatically fail your car if you run them (I've already asked)

I'll buy tires with a white wall, or raised white lettering.