Vehicle Memories - 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88

My first car was a 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88 hardtop coupe. I bought it from a great aunt for $500 when I was 15. My entire sophmore year, I took auto shop and spent dozens of hours grinding off rust and replacing large sections with fiberglass and Bondo.

For my 16th birthday, my dad painted it cherry red. It had bench seats, a massive trunk capable of smuggling about 6 teenagers into a drive-in, and an enormous 350 eight cylinder engine. I put in a smokin' eight track tape player and some kickin' speakers in the back.

One time, I got it up to 110 mph on a long country road. It was a very scary couple minutes.

When I joined the Army in 1983, I sold it to a local kid for $200. I'm sure he didn't love it as much as I did.