The Green Machine Diaries: Love at first sight (sort of)
/June - August, 2018
I have an affinity for the old and odd. You can keep your Ferrari 812 Superfast, your Dodge Hellcat, your AMG GT. It’s not that I don’t like them, I just can’t afford them. I am a happy camper long haulin’ the Hot Rod Power Tour in the Octogenarian, our 1936 Chevrolet. In 2019 we logged 3,000 miles, crossed eight state lines, visited NASCAR speedways, and did it all in this eighty-year old beauty. No wipers, no AC, no spare tire, no radio, no reveres lockout — no problem!
We will save the epic tale of the Octogenarian for another day, but to appreciate the story I am going to relay, a drama of love at first sight (sort of!), a saga of a failure and redemption ( definitely!), I need to take you back to 2018, the year we acquired that aging beauty. It turns out we purchased three vehicles in 2018.
Yes, some might consider this excessive, but this is a love story (sort of) and love does some pretty crazy things. So the pictures you are about to see are a glimpse of 2018. They are proof of my wife’s amazing energy, big heart, and undying love. They also set the backdrop as to why you will see me with little boy glee in the video below. In the face of all we had going on, Shannan said, “Yes” to the Green Machine.
The Bandolero
The year 2018 began with making a run to North Carolina to meet up with our friend Harley and to purchase his 1936 Chevrolet, Bandolero. We trailered it home through pouring rain from North Carolina to Florida. The deluge was so strong it washed out part of I-40, leaving us holding out under a gas station awning for a few hours in the middle of the night while we waited for emergency personnel to give us the “all-clear” to travel an alternative route.
The 36 was a dream come true. Shannan and I met Harley a year earlier on a providential side stop to check out his cars. When we saw his 36, he was not ready to sell, but over a period of months we worked out a deal to buy Bandolero (The Bandit). But life wasn’t slowing down. We were hosting church leaders in our home, launching my podcast, On My Walk, equipping church planters, celebrating our son’s college graduation, publishing my leadership tool, The Leader’s Magic Hour, and traveling to Brazil to partner with friends there to equip church planters and pastors for the amazing work God is doing in that beautiful country.
On the car front, I bought back our Chevy Cobalt SS. When we sold it, it was running like little rocket, but we bought it back on life support. I had dreams to revive it (not to be). Meanwhile, I would occasionally work on rebuilding the engine of our 66 Olds Cutlass with my buddy Andre. And because a hot rod can always go faster we sent the Young Goat to Hawks Motorsports in Easley South Carolina for a little power additive.
Shannan and I picked up the GTO just in time to run a few legs of the Hot Rod Power Tour . . .
But we intentionally cut the tour short this year so we could head to the Lake for home improvements and to prepare for the arrival of our kids and grands.
June, 2018
Prior to the kids coming I saw a 1966 Ford Econoline van on the side of Arkansas Highway 25, just west of Highway 87. It was a homely looking beast, but relatively straight and with little rust.
July 8, 2018
I don’t know how many times I passed that green machine, but remember . . . “old and odd.” I needed to bring it home. One day I called the owner and discovered that it had been resting comfortably there for about three years. It had run at one time, but there was no heartbeat under the hood.
When the kids and grands left for home, I continued to muse on all the possibilities lurking under that patina. Somewhere in the distance I heard Oscar Goldman whisper (think Six Million Dollar Man), “We can rebuild him. We have the technology.”
August 2, 2018
The day before we were to return to Florida, and with my wife’s blessing (I think), I struck a deal for the Green Machine. I carried the cash. I lined up the tow driver. Sadly, his flatbed was out on assignment so we were going to have to go old school and tow the van behind the tow truck.
Pay close attention here. Notice the way the van is pointing relative to the tow truck.
No sooner did I hand over the cash to the the previous owner and see to it that the van was saddled up for the ride, then I took off for our place. I wanted to be ready to direct the tow truck driver . . . but he never came! At least it seemed like he never came. We waited and waited and waited until finally . . .
Notice which way the Econoline is facing.
The van took a child’s eternity to arrive because it blew a tire during the tow. Dry rot will do that! That was August 2, 2018. We tucked her into her new home and left for Florida the next day.
What I would discover over the next two years was that this was going to be an exercise in patience and determination and YouTube videos and trips to the parts store, and multiple calls to Chuck, my on-call master mechanic.
The engine had not run in at least three years (I’m thinking longer than that). The fuel system was shot. Brakes were non-existent. Wiring was a tangled mess. Mud daubers had built nests in every possible crevice. The brake shoes were home to spider webs. Apparently spiders considered this vehicle prime real estate as every time I crawled under it, I never knew what kind of eight-legged critter I would encounter. Points were a dud, ditto for the condenser, and the fuel pump. I discovered a bent push rod, a worn rocker arm and on and on.
But this July 30, 2020, about two years to the date of it’s arrival behind the two truck, the Green Machine hit the road under its own power. You’ve got to see the dust cloud in the video!
Between there and here has been an automotive adventure. I’ll be sharing the story in The Green Machine Diaries. You can also track my progress when I have the opportunity (usually rare) to make improvements.
We call this 1966 Ford Econoline The Green Machine for obvious reasons. But it also goes by The Grand Hauler because the grand kids love it and it will haul them around the lake when they are there.
Stay tuned.