Nothing to lose at the Goodlettsville Cruise

Saturday night means cruise night in Goodlettsville, so BHo and I jumped in the ol’ ’63 Chevy pickup and headed out. This was kind of a landmark event for us, because it was the first time since we moved to Tennessee that the truck has made it to a car show. I’m not sure that it really wowed the crowds or anything, but it was a significant point for me. I had a good time taking my son out to this event. It was a good night to enjoy each other’s company in the presence of a lot full of nice cars.

The coolest car here to me was this ’63 Impala SS. This car looked great with its dog dish hubcaps and black tires. The hood was closed, but it had that all-important “409” badge on the front fender, four speed shifter, and teakwood steering wheel. This old car just had “the look.” There’s a reason the Beach Boys wrote a song about these. The color was Riverside Red with a matching interior. It’s hard to believe that this pretty Impala and my crusty old truck were both sold at some Chevy dealership in 1963.

Here’s a ’51 Ford pickup. When I see these, I immediately think of Sanford and Son. The one on the TV show wasn’t this nice, though. The chrome bumpers and grille really spice it up. Black and red is always pretty. The whitewalls looked great. Even the black pleated seat worked here. It was also for sale, so if you had been at the cruise, you may have been able to drive it home. The badge says V8, so that’s the one you’re looking for.

I really never was a big fan of this Gasser look, but this particular ’55 Chevy Bel Air pulls it off. It has the right stuff—the stance, the wheels, the whitewall cheater slicks. The red tinted windows are a must on this, although I could see going insane in here on a long trip. It kind of reminds me of the Kenny Rogers Roasters episode of Seinfeld. The car is called “Wicked Intentions”, and it really was put together well. The Gasser thing is really popular right now, and among the Gassers, this is a good one.

This ’77 Pontiac Can Am with the Turbo Trans Am wheels is a little rough, but it’s still worth a mention. I’ve always been a big fan of these GM Colonnade coupes, and these were pretty rare. They built less than 1,400 of these, so you can see why they’re trying to bring this one back. These were more than just stickers and spoilers. Compared to the LeMans off which it was based, the Can Am pumped out 200-hp from its 400-c.i. plant, 20-hp more than the base car. Interestingly, Pontiac intended to build more of these cars, but the mold used to produce the rear spoiler broke, ending this car’s production.

There were lots of nice cars at the Goodlettsville Cruise on Saturday night, and I took pictures of most of them. Check them out in the slideshow below, or click this link for a nicer version.