by Charlie Larkin » Sat Oct 30, 2010 1:35 pm
I remember reading about this club in HCC a while back and started looking for it recently.
At the moment, I don't own a K-Car but I've always been a big fan of them. We had a 1983 Aries wagon for nine years and 212,000 miles. It was ordered new by my dad at Deering-Cote Dodge in Marlborough, Ma, and we took delivery in late June, 1983, the day before the last day of second grade for me.
Mr. Deering remarked that it was the most unusual Aries he had seen. It was ordered with the Custom trim, with the nice velour buckets, the 14" wheels with wires and whitewalls, a bunch of odds and ends....and a 5-speed. Dad didn't like the automatic performance and didn't want a Japanese engine.
I find it amazing people did CFC on the pre-'85, which wasn't supposed to be allowed, unless dealers made some special arrangements for customers and just wholesaled the older cars that weren't eligible. The mileage you can get out of a K-Car is very good and to call them inefficient is quite foolish. People just trading in old cars because they were old was destructive to the used and collectible car marketplaces, especially considering the disastrous results for the lower-income, thrifty and people who might otherwise buy these vehicles for collecting or parts to keep others on the road.
I'm more of a GM guy, but I'd like a nice K wagon and I'm looking at one right now. My 1991 Caprice has terminal frame rot and an Aries/Reliant wagon are on the "seek out and possibly buy if the price is right" list. I like the idea of something that will reliably get 28-30 miles a gallon and be reasonably comfortable for commuting and an occasional trip.
I live in Marlborough, Ma. and like cars in general. I'm also a train fan. My other hobbies include woodworking, scale modeling, cooking, reading, music, architecture, photography, history, drawing, and a little travel. Work consists mostly of returning to school at the moment to be re-trained as a paralegal after several years in education.
Looking forward to getting to know people. Is there a chapter in New England as of now?
Charlie Larkin