Woodward Dream Cruise

[ron hausmann]

All - it’s Woodward Dream Cruise this Saturday and all weeknights leading up to it.  Ten miles of eight-lane highway packed with every conceivable muscle car, hot rod, classic car, tractor, truck, and even a few half tracks. My Kissels will be driving around the Birmingham, Michigan area these nights and at the intersection of Old Woodward and Woodward (South End) on Saturday. Here’s a Picture  of the two cars I’ll drive and display.

Ron Hausmann P.E.

[rustyjazz1938]

I am also planning on having a car driving around the nights prior, and on display at Pasteiner's the day of the Dream Cruise. I hope to have my 1922 Oldsmobile Model 47 V8 Touring Car out and about:

 

 

I have significantly more work to get the Oldsmobile up and running than Mr. Hausmann does with his cars though. You'll notice I'm pointing at something missing from the car... The sharp eyed folks will see it in the background. Luckily it is much closer to being back together again than when this picture was taken... 😁

 

Nothing like a deadline to help you get the work done!

[franklinman]

We’ll be there with at least 2 early Broncos.  Both are AACA Grand National winners. We will probably have a third along for driving/cruising, my buddy’s Stroppe ambulance. Never been to this before but looking forward to it.

Edited August 15, 2019 by franklinman (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

We'll be there somewhere with the Pink Lady.

 

[Brass is Best]

Double check your cooling systems. Have fun!

[bryankazmer]

lots of rods and used Corvettes

[Hans1]

I plan to be there in wifes 91 Mustang convert

 

[countrytravler]

23 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

We'll be there somewhere with the Pink Lady.

 

Find this guy. Shelby Jet. He bought this car new and still has it. 62 fuel car. He just finished this black one. He and I use to to street race on the Woodward Ave.

[CarFreak]

Cadillac & LaSalle Club will be at the Shrine Church Tower Parking Lot, NE corner 12 Mile & Woodward today (Wed) from noon until about 9 pm. 

 

Oldsmobile Club will be at the same location all day Saturday. 

 

Both clubs welcome anyone with their marque cars to stop by and say hi. 

 

 

[countrytravler]

I started cruising Woodward Ave with my dad in the early 60s. He worked for GM and his job was to test muscle cars. He would bring home a different car almost every night and my dad would would take me and a friend or 2 depending on the car and go street racing. My dad was a professional driver. He was a backup driver for NASCAR in the 50s. He would have to report on the results. Not only GM he would bring home but also the other big 3. It was mostly for testing. Then I got my license in 68 and my 1st car was a 65 Chev Impala SS convertible with the 409-400-4 speed. 400.00. Woodward and Telegraph was my 2nd home until the 90s when I moved to FL. Lot of good times on the AV. Never wreck or got a ticket. Just some of the cars that I had through the years street racing. The 57 Bird had a 427 Hi Riser, the 63s had 409s, the black truck had a 454 with a tunnel ram, the green truck had a 327 375 fuelie. The red 62  Chev Clone car had a 427 Z11, very rare engine. The white 62, my 2nd 409 car in 68. The black 62 409-409 in 1980. 65 fuel car in 78, not actual picture of car.  9000.00. My 1st Vette that i bought in 74 when I got back from the NAVY. 65 fuel car, 1800.00. not actual picture.  66 GTO 421 tri power car, bought in 76, 2000.00. My 2nd Vette bought in 75 for 1800.00. Backet case 427 390 glide car. I put a LT1 with turbo 400. Car ran 12.20.  70 LT1 Vette bought in 78. 3600.00. 72 Chev with a built 402. Just a few of the cars that was raced on Woodward except for the white 63. That was strip only car. We won the Nationals in 88 with that car. It had a 409 with a 2 barrel carb and power glide. 12.70s @ 107 all day long.

[Lebowski]

16 minutes ago, countrytravler said:

 I got my license in 68 and my 1st car was a 65 Chev Impala 

 

 

Thanks for the info and great pics. We have a couple of things in common. My name is Dave, I too got my license in '68 and my first car was a dark blue '65 Impala. Unfortunately mine had a 6 and 3 on the tree. My dad knew I had a heavy foot and he said you can have a car with a 6 or you can walk. Less than a year later my license was suspended for 2 months because of too many tickets.... 

 

Also, I have a brother who lives near you in Groveland...

Edited August 14, 2019 by Lebowski (see edit history)

[countrytravler]

6 minutes ago, Lebowski said:

 

Thanks for the info and great pics. We have a couple of things in common. I got my license in '68 too and my first car was a dark blue '65 Impala. Unfortunately mine had a 6 and 3 on the tree. My dad knew I had a heavy foot and he said you can have a car with a 6 or you can walk. Less than a year later my license was suspended for 2 months because of too many tickets.... 

 

Also, I have a brother who lives near you in Groveland...

WOW!! how cool!! Thanks for the share.

[TerryB]

Great photos, thanks for posting!

[STEVE POLLARD]

Beautiful cars !!  

[Hans1]

 

Started crusin Woodward in a "51 Kaiser, 54 Buick Century, then Pontiacs 60, 63, 65, 68, then Fords.

In '91 gave wife a '91  Stang   GT convertible,  use it every year.

I think the '60 Poncho with tri power, munci 4 speed and 3.90 was the best!

Our anniversary is the 19th, so the cruse is a good reminder...............to get the car ready................!

[franklinman]

Well, we made it to Dearborn, Broncos unloaded and cleaned up. Now we can relax and start having some fun!

[Guest Mark McAlpine]

This year is the 25th anniversary of the Woodward Dream Cruise, so it should be even a little bit more special than usual.  Heading down to Woodward now to pick-up some shirts and dash plaques before they sell out this weekend.

 

Thank you to everyone for posting photos so people who can't attend the cruise can still enjoy it vicariously.

[countrytravler]

PLEASE PEOPLE!!!

PUT GPS TRACKING IN YOUR VEHICLES!!!!!!

Edited August 15, 2019 by countrytravler (see edit history)

[ron hausmann]

Cruising on a trailer to avoid the Goonies 

Ron 

[Matt Harwood]

Some photos from today. If you haven't been there, it's pretty remarkable. People line the sides of Woodward, there are parties going on everywhere with music and cook outs, and cars cruise up and down Woodward all day. There are also car shows in every single parking lot. The whole thing is maybe 8 or 10 miles long, both directions, so it's A LOT of cars and people. Cruisers are supposed to keep to the right two lanes so the commuters can still use the left two lanes, but obviously that wasn't happening and I think if you're a local and don't know this is going on and try to go to the grocery store, you probably shouldn't be behind the wheel. There are cars EVERYWHERE.

 

There were a few interesting cars and we may head out later and see if there's more action and better cars later this evening. By far the #1 most common car was the late-model Mustang, followed closely by C5/C6/C7 Corvettes and late-model Challengers. The most common "old" car might have been 70-72 GM A-bodies. A half-dozen Model Ts were zipping up and down the street, and there's always some really wonky stuff like the giant shopping cart, which I thought was just too cool.

 

 

Most people were behaving, although there was considerable police presence everywhere you looked--I'm sure this is a very lucrative weekend for the local constabularies. Plenty of revving engines and burning rubber, and one moron doing a burnout until something expensive-sounding gave way and then the police rolled up. 

 

If you're a car guy, it's worth a trip to Detroit, which is still a great city. There were cars and people from all over the country and all over the world here having fun. I would have personally liked some more variety, but I guess that's the direction the hobby is headed. If there's someone to blame for the reduction in participation in old car meets, it might be the OEMs cranking out modern muscle cars that are easy to buy, easy to maintain, and easy to drive. More than one person said that they'd never go back to driving old cars again. That's sad.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 18, 2019 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[ron hausmann]

Drove both the 1923 Kissel Gold Bug and the 1921 Kissel Sport Tourster at yesterday ‘s Woodward Dream Cruise! Wonderful spot in Birmingham Michigan. The parked cars became people-magnets when we stopped cruising.. didn’t see as many old cars as last year either, echoing previous comments. Both cars acted up. The packing but on the Gold Bug started peeing water while the Tourster started to refuse to shift. Guess I’ve got more stuff to fix!

Ron Hausmann P.E.

[CarFreak]

Woodward Dream Cruise is always a blast!

 

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/08/17/2019-woodward-dream-cruise-mega-gallery/#slide-2161893

 

https://www.detroitnews.com/videos/news/local/michigan/2019/08/18/riding-dream-cruise-shopping-cart/2045560001/

 

https://www.freep.com/picture-gallery/money/cars/dream-cruise/2019/08/17/woodward-dream-cruise-2019-pictures/2040088001/

 

 

[bryankazmer]

taking the first photo gallery as a random sampling:

original appearance prewar:  0.6% (1 car)

original appearance, post war:  27%

Modified:   44%

Used Cars (late model):  28%

 

This was a quick sort.  Some of the "modified" would switch to "orig, post war" with a wheel change, but I was too lazy to go back and split that out.  You might classify a given car differently, but the total is high enough that these splits should be fairly accurate.

 

I don't think this is a totally random sample of the hobby because prewar car owners generally don't like to drive in a traffic jam like Woodward Cruise. 

Nonetheless, what do you think this says (if anything) about the hobby?

[Matt Harwood]

1 hour ago, bryankazmer said:

what do you think this says (if anything) about the hobby?

 

My takeaways:

1. Most people believe that new Mustangs/Camaros/Corvettes/Challengers are collector cars.
2. Most people want cars that are painless to own and drive, and are getting more insistent on having power steering and A/C. Even young people who could handle an older car want conveniences. If your mother drove a car in the early '50s, she's actually more of a man than most men in late-model muscle cars today.
3. Most people think old cars aren't reliable or are unusable in the modern world, or they are afraid of driving in traffic with something that doesn't have ABS and airbags, or that old cars are a death trap.
4. Most people equate fast with fun. Slow can't possibly be fun so why own a slow car?
5. Most people do not know how to drive a manual transmission, let alone something without synchronizers.
6. Most people have zero vision or imagination and only want what they see around them. As more late-model cars fill shows (and fewer old cars show up), it becomes a self-reinforcing feedback loop.
7. Being able to buy a brand new "collector car" at the dealer and have low monthly payments and a warranty is more desirable than buying an old car that they are just sure will always break down.
8. Spending money is preferable to doing anything yourself. Most "customized" late-model cars consist of bolt-on parts that were engineered by someone else. If you have a credit card, you can make a totally unique late-model "collector" car that's just like everyone else's. You can also buy stickers--that's fun.
9. Guys who drive Model Ts seem to have the most fun of all.

 

 

Edited August 19, 2019 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[TerryB]

Easy to own, great performance, warranty, easy to find parts and get serviced all make the latest generation of performance cars attractive. They can be driven every day so only one car ownership required.  The comment on the Model T is excellent, fun at a bargain price.  I would think Model A owners fit that description too.

[auburnseeker]

Probably doesn't help they took Votech/ shop class out of schools,  so guys don't know a thing about mechanical work or even how to wet their feet for those that aren't born into a Mechanical family.  It's easier for the counselors to push college degrees in liberal arts than to see the value in teaching a trade. 

We also have another 50 years of cars to pick from that they didn't have 50 years ago and as mentioned think of the offerings of the mid 70's to early 90's from the dealer compared to Today's offerings.  

Of course from the literature I sell and get to look at.  the auto manufactures use to really push education about mechanical things.  I suspect few do now.   What was better than Chevrolet coming up with the corvette then sending all kinds of stuff to schools about the engineering and construction of it along with the whole parade of Progress?  

I doubt any of the big manufactures promote stuff like that anymore,  except at maybe the college level and even then I would bet it's much more minimal. 

[tomcarnut]

2 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

 

My takeaways:

1. Most people believe that new Mustangs/Camaros/Corvettes/Challengers are collector cars.
2. Most people want cars that are painless to own and drive, and are getting more insistent on having power steering and A/C. Even young people who could handle an older car want conveniences. If your mother drove a car in the early '50s, she's actually more of a man than most men in late-model muscle cars today.
3. Most people think old cars aren't reliable or are unusable in the modern world, or they are afraid of driving in traffic with something that doesn't have ABS and airbags, or that old cars are a death trap.
4. Most people equate fast with fun. Slow can't possibly be fun so why own a slow car?
5. Most people do not know how to drive a manual transmission, let alone something without synchronizers.
6. Most people have zero vision or imagination and only want what they see around them. As more late-model cars fill shows (and fewer old cars show up), it becomes a self-reinforcing feedback loop.
7. Being able to buy a brand new "collector car" at the dealer and have low monthly payments and a warranty is more desirable than buying an old car that they are just sure will always break down.
8. Spending money is preferable to doing anything yourself. Most "customized" late-model cars consist of bolt-on parts that were engineered by someone else. If you have a credit card, you can make a totally unique late-model "collector" car that's just like everyone else's. You can also buy stickers--that's fun.
9. Guys who drive Model Ts seem to have the most fun of all.

 

 

The Ohio Model T Jamboree gets around 100 Model Ts every year. Done the last three in our 1911. Lots of families participating. Wonderful time! Unfortunately I have to miss this year due to wedding of good non car friend.

[ron hausmann]

All -

       they are reporting that there were about 1.5 million people lining the street or cruising between eight mile road and Pontiac, which is the 12 mile stretch of Woodward which is generally the “Dream Cruise” circuit. And 40,000 cars. How can you describe this? 

       My grandchildren and I were counting languages we heard. Our spot was at 14 1/2 mile and Woodward. We heard 15 separate languages spoken. I talked to many people who come here from around the world just to be part of this automotive celebration. Mostly Asian, European, and middle eastern. They all loved the Gold Bugs side seats!

      Ron

[Aaron65]

2 hours ago, auburnseeker said:

Probably doesn't help they took Votech/ shop class out of schools,  so guys don't know a thing about mechanical work or even how to wet their feet for those that aren't born into a Mechanical family.  It's easier for the counselors to push college degrees in liberal arts than to see the value in teaching a trade. 

 

I'm a high school liberal arts teacher, and you're mostly right, but most schools are pushing STEM degrees (science, technology, engineering, math), at least in Michigan.  Unfortunately, few of these students (at my school anyway) are truly interested in anything mechanical.  Those who want to be engineers seem to go into it, to some extent, due to the perception of a comfortable lifestyle more than any burning interest in how things work (not that I blame them).  The medical field seems really popular right now.  Times change...  Cars are more reliable, so you don't have to get to know them by working on them on a regular basis.  Most schools don't have auto shop (which is partially a chicken and egg deal), so they're not exposed to cars there.  I think quite a few kids like the modern stuff, some like older stuff, but it's never going to be like it was when my dad was a kid, or even when I was a kid, when 5.0 Mustangs were really popular.   

 

This year's graduating class had a refreshing number of kids going into the trades, like welding and construction.  Few mechanics.  I'd still say it was under 10 percent.  I hope things get better in the future; I try to sell the trades to interested students whenever I can.

Edited August 19, 2019 by Aaron65 (see edit history)

[Locomobile]

5 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

Guys who drive Model Ts seem to have the most fun of all.

 

Jay Leno said the Model T is the best antique car to own. Inexpensive, cool antique look and parts availability. I've seen T coupes on Ebay in drive away condition, unrestored but serviceable for 8000.

 

I'd love to have a Model S boat tail roadster, but I don't think they are too inexpensive.

 

 

I'd like to do the Woodward cruise, but steam cars don't like parades or traffic jams. Gotta keep the fuel moving or she carbons up.

 

-Ron

Edited August 19, 2019 by Locomobile (see edit history)

[ron hausmann]

All,

      If you ever do take your oldies to the Woodward Dream Cruise in Michigan, the “cruising” is much better the entire week beforehand!

     The actual Saturday Of the Woodward Dream Cruise is a 12 mile long traffic jam, unsuitable for old cars that need to move. But Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday late afternoons and evenings before Saturday are PERFECT for cruising. That’s when many of us go!

     Regardless, it is one bucket-list act9vity that you all need to look into in my opinion. It’s a blast.

     Ron Hausmann P.E.

[ron hausmann]

More cruise pictures. Grandchildren love the cars!

Ron