Just A Car Guy: In 1965, Boyd was 14 when his dad gave him a Plymouth, and he fixed it up by using up 5 or 6 parts cars that in total, cost him about 100 bucks, and by the time he was legal to drive, it was done, and 5 of his friends could ride with him

Friday, December 15, 2017

In 1965, Boyd was 14 when his dad gave him a Plymouth, and he fixed it up by using up 5 or 6 parts cars that in total, cost him about 100 bucks, and by the time he was legal to drive, it was done, and 5 of his friends could ride with him

He used up the to harvest parts to keep his car on the road. He salvaged seats, motors, fenders and trunk lids for his ‘Old Plymouth’

Boyd moved on to buy other, newer cars, but says they’d often let him down. He’d come back to the Plymouth several times, but says it was last legally on the road for Halloween in 1969.

“My sisters learned to drive the Plymouth around the farm, and would often take it to the sand dunes,” he says. “It was an amazing car that you could just about drive over anything.”

Over the years the Plymouth was moved around and sometimes stored inside and other times outside. Time has taken its toll, and the car no longer has functioning brakes. Rust has eaten holes in the gas tank and floorboards. Someone even painted a target on it and used it for paintball practice.

But that never stopped Boyd from driving it when he’d return for visits. With a gallon can of gasoline wedged into the engine bay and a 12-volt battery wired in place, he’d start the car and drive it around the farm, slowing it down in first gear to a crawl before he’d pop it into reverse to stop.

“That was the ritual, “ Boyd laughs.

Now, however, he needs to decide what to do with the car because it will soon have to be removed from his late mother’s property.

Nearing retirement himself, Boyd would like to find another 1951 Plymouth to restore, using many of the parts from his ‘Old Plymouth’ to keep the memories of a car he calls a ‘lifelong friend’ alive.