57 replies to this topic

[dixiesquare]

ok , i know this topic will raise a few eyebrows and ruffle a few feathers , but i have to say what i have to say .


why do i ?, because every time one of these great cars come onto ebay or where ever the first thing every one wants to do is turn it into a bluesmobile , thats fine and all but ,, these cars , both monacos and gran fury's are getting hard to find , i would rather see them restored to new condition and driven proudly . if any of you , and i know there are a few here who have , driven or owned one you would know why , i found out my nephew found a gran fury up in wisconsin , and is restoring it to new , i asked if he was gonna "bluesmobile "it , and he said , why bring attention upon your self ?

he said even in the condition its in now , nobody second looks him , and his friends like his new land yatch , and are helping him get it restored .

well thats all i got to say about that .

[Stien529]

Ok.... sure you have the right to do what you want with your car. These cars are becoming very hard to come bye. What is the value of a 1974-1977 Monaco/Fury??? Not to much. These were just working type people cars. They were made to last for the life of the loan, then move on to a new one. These weren't built as collector cars. You will never see a Restored Monaco or Fury sitting on the stage at Barrett Jackson. My Fury was sitting in a garage in Georgia, the family didn't want it anymore. Grandma was long dead and it was in the way. I saved his life and made him into a car that has been photographed and sat in by 100's of people. He brings a smile to kids and adults faces. I want him to be noticed and enjoyed. If it was a regular faded green piece of **** Fury who cares????? When he was painted in his Blues Brothers colors bang attention and fun... Thats what its all about..... Bringing some joy to a kid...... Nuff said...

Jake

[dixiesquare]

see iknew people would take this the wrong way ,

you want a bluesmobile , fine , ok , thats your thing ,

me , i rather have it as a regular car , with the way cars are made to today , evey time i get in one i get scared , theres hardley any metal in these things ! thats why they put so many air bags in them , i owned a 77 newport , and i was never scared to drive it , and i walked away from a head on accident i had with it . todays cars , not so lucky .

but still i would still rather have it as a regular every day driver , than some thing that brings unwanted attention ,unless like yours and some of the others here , your in a band , or for some type of promotional service.

right now i got a old 89 caprice squad car from my home town i , yes its true , got at auction , and every one wants to know when i am gonna do it to it , not gonna happen , as old as it is and needs some body work and paint , people still like it as it is and ask if i want to sell . it will go to the crusher before bluesmobiling it happens to it .

[cheoperative]

I drive a 77 newport. Picked it up off of ebay for $800 bucks. A guy at work asked what I was going to do with it. I told him I was going to turn it into a tribute bluesmobile. He asked me why I was going to ruin a perfectly good car. He said cruise it like it is.

Me, personally, I dont see the fun in that. To each there own.

I get a kick out of seeing people smile, honk, wave, yell "does the lighter work?" Its cheap entertainment.

[76Bluesmobile]

To each his own dixie.

I would like to offer the following for consideration by all. A car is a representation of the owner and we should all be able to enjoy the car's we as we see fit. In regards to "Bluesmobiling" every Monaco or Fury we find because we want too, it is simply not true. I will tell you dixie, I wanted so very badly to restore my 76 Monaco when I first bought it 7 years ago. Finances kept me from doing that. Eventually, the rust issues it had took their toll on the car and I could only look on in frustration wishing every single day I had won the lottery. I simply could not restore it. So, I did the next best thing when the rust became too prevalant - I sanded it down as best as I could and repainted it.

I have taken the car to shows both right after I bought it - when it was still wearing its original Golden Fawn color and as a Bluesmobile. The Bluesmobile attracts more attention to the car, and more appreciation for Dodge products than it ever did as an original. I agree that cars should be restored, especially 70's cars that are becoming more rare due to a lack of collector value. But many also question spending $10,000 or more on restoring a rusting car to #1 condition that may only be worth $6,500 on the open market.

My Monaco has been rear-ended twice, but you almost cannot tell. It has once again become my daily driver after a couple year rest and I am glad I did that. It attracts smiles and looks everywhere. But dixie, here is where I believe you may be mistaken - if a particular car brings attention to the brand or style and causes even one car to be saved, was not any change worth it? A civilian Bluesmobile can always be restored back to original. If someone wanted too - they could make it happen. There is no reason to believe that a Bluesmobile Monaco cannot be changed. It could just be that someone might buy a Monaco in excellent condition with Bluesmobile hopes, but after consideration might just keep it original. That would be one original saved and mission accomplished, but the reverse could happen too. An original could languish and eventually be scrapped because we did not generate interest in the brand - mission lost.

Let us do the right thing - save Monacos however we can. In fact, I will be in the market for one by the end of July or August to replace my rusting relic. It will become a Bluesmobile and I will be proud of it. I appreciate police cars for what they contributed to automotive history and I will make sure that others know that as well.

Here is a statistic I created for this post and all should head it:

"9 out of 10 forum posters think the 10th should just chill out."

I wish those General Lee owners hadn't started this by coloring every 69 Charger orange.

[Elwood72]

My two cents:

I've wanted a Bluesmobile since I was 12 years old-from the moment she made her first appearance in the movie.After many slings and arrows,as well as peaks and valleys since,I have decided to throw everything I have into getting a car to turn in to a Bluesmobile.If it takes three jobs,so be it.It has evolved from "Someday,I'll get one" to "I'm going to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to get one." I won't get into the reasons why,suffice to say it's something that I feel I have to do.It just is.

However,as hard as this may be to believe,I agree with you dixie.If I find one that's "too nice";I will seriously consider re-selling it outright to someone who wants to keep it as is,if that makes any sense.At one time or another,I have actually seen two in Maryland that were just that:Too nice to mess with.

In the spirit of comprimise,I have also reached the conclusion that is the best of both:

If I find a "starter car" that needs more than just a paintjob to be "the real deal",I will keep EVERYTHING necessary to convert it back to its' original .I'm not looking for a bolt-by-bolt copy of the original Bluesmobile,just a Monaco that captures the "spirit" of the original.If it's the wrong color interior,I'll switch it,NOT dye the original.Whatever I do,I'll make sure I can un-do.I know in the end that could translate to a lot more work,but in the end,it's worth it.I have a list of what I will and won't do.

Of course,if whatever I end up finding has already been converted,even partially,that's a different story.


Did any of that make sense?

[Andrew]

If I could one day find a Dodge Monaco or similar car in Australia I will make it a Bluesmobile, but all I would do to it are things that can be reversed very easily to make it an original car again, like the paint.

The choice of making these old cars into Bluesmobiles or 'Bluescruisers' as I like to call Bluesmobiles that just don't cut it as Bluesmobiles, it's a cheap way of making your old cruiser into something people will look at and smile instead of look at and laugh at how much rust is on it. It's also a peice of history which is better remember any way it can be, but what better way than driving it.

Personally I don't like people buying up every old car and restoring them because that just makes it harder for people like me that doesn't have a spare 20-30k to get them.

I envy you guys over there in the US, you can buy them at auctions for a few hundred bucks, here in AUS most the old Monacos and such have been imported privately and restored, so that makes it harder to get unless we're willing to pay an arm and both legs for it, not to mention having the driver's side converted to the right.

Keep rollin' and letting that sweet Blues play!
Andy.

[Blueblood]

There's a ton of 1990 Crown Vics about..!

[Andrew]

I'd love a Crown Vic too! probably more than a Monaco because i just love the shape of the Crown Vics.
I've got a mod for GTA SA of a Crown Vic cop car, but I installed it over one of the games other cars so it was a civilian police car and then I could use the radio, lol.

Andy.

[Ghostbluesman]

dixiesquare said:

....and he said , why bring attention upon your self ? .

And that, my friend dixie, is my sole reason for owning a Bluesmobile!
Rob

[Bismo]

Well, for those who are interested in a C-body that's in great shape and is likely best off kept non-Bluesmobile'd, Shotgun Blues will shortly be re-listing his '75 Gran Fury on eBay. PM him if you want to discuss it early! (Now granted, he's selling her to help finance the old Monaco we will be converting! So we'll play both sides of the coin shamelessly.)

[Shotgun Blues]

Well said my Brother!

[dixiesquare]

its not that i hate bluesmobiles , i do not , i have seen some very good ones and some very bad ones ,

but ......

i have seen some very beautiful well kept cars , ruined and disfigured , and them left to rot ,when the facination runs its course and it is to late to change it back , and the car gos to the scrappers. that is what makes me mad , why ruin a perfectly good car ?

and to ansewer the question my nephew told , as to attention ,

in his younger days he was a bit of a hell raiser , and the city and county cops know him well , but that was a few yeasr ago , now to quote " he has seen the light " and has changed his ways , so why do some thing that would be detramental to forward progress?

small town cops dont forget , and hold grudges! but a few he knows are glad he is changing for the better .

[TakkunEG]

dixiesquare said:

and to ansewer the question my nephew told , as to attention ,

in his younger days he was a bit of a hell raiser , and the city and county cops know him well , but that was a few yeasr ago , now to quote " he has seen the light " and has changed his ways , so why do some thing that would be detramental to forward progress?

small town cops dont forget , and hold grudges! but a few he knows are glad he is changing for the better .

Yes, but one should think that hellraising traits don't automatically come with Bluesmobile ownership. Or any car that sticks out. I went to high school with a guy who drove an old hearse with flames painted on the side. As far as I know, he was never in trouble with the cops just because of his car.

I know I've heard some tales of fans who get harassed just because of their Blumos in certain places...but I gathered that it's just because the cops are bungholes and need to get over themselves.


This thread has made me wonder if there is anyone who collects Monacos and Furys and restores them with non-Blumo paint jobs, etc.

I know I've said it before, but I've always wanted a "pimped" Blumo. Since Monacos are so rare, I'd probably dress out a Crown Vic instead. I'm always seeing those in the Thrifty Nickel and such. Of course, not TOO pimped. Spinning rims at the most...I don't need LCD monitors on my mud flaps or a juice bar in my trunk. (Seriously, have you guys ever watched Pimp My Ride?? They do some kickarse stuff, but boy do they go overboard a lot of the time.)

[Elwood72]

Elwood72 said:

My two cents:
blahblahblahblahblah.....

Did any of that make sense?

Apparently not......

[TakkunEG]

Elwood72 said:

Apparently not......

Made sense to me. Why the long face...erm, type?

[Mercer]

Well, it's not a Monaco that I drive as a hobby. Not even a Mopar.
It's a '73 Cadillac CoupeDeville (year of the most sold Devilles) and it's stock.
Not exactly stock, but still as stock as can be after 36 years of duty.

And I'm trying to keep her that way and will proudly hand it over to my son, as soon as he's developing a need for having it. He already has an eye on her.

To me, even if she's not a rare model, she is "living history" and I don't care what she might be of worth for others. Anyway, she's here for my amusement and not for the amusement of others. I'm in an age, where I don't have to prove anything to anybody anymore.
Still she turns out to be a Bluesmobile from time to time. Mostly when I take a closer look at the costs that run up...
But even with that, I just love her and will stick to her as long as she sticks to me.
She's my iron mistress.
YES.

[TK826]

I can relate to this subject.

Not the "I hate Bluesmobiles.." part, but the emotional tear between
keeping it original, and creating a Bluesmobile.

I know I have posted it before, but here is a shot of my car:





This car has zero rust (not even a trace of surface rust), still looks new inside and out,
and in fact only has 8,100 miles on it.
(800 of that was from the trip home, after buying it)

The trouble I continue to deal with, stems from those very facts.
From the time I brought it home, I kept/ keep asking myself... "What now?"

Half of me says..

"This car has survived for 35 years and still looks like it just came out of
the showroom... Just to be covered with a B&W paint job?"

In the few times I have taken it out, it does get some looks...
But, it would appear that many of them come from people who are just looking to
get in front of "the old boat"... when the light turns green.

I think it may just get a more admiration and respect, after it is converted.


Because of this, the other half of me thinks...

"Well.. why did I get it in the first place?"
"Why spend a ton of cash and travel halfway across the country to find it?"

Was it so I can drive a 74' Monaco around?
Or, was it because I would finally have a decent Bluesmobile?

The answer is obviously the second reason.

I do believe it will generate more enjoyment and attention, once it becomes a Bluesmobile.
Then again, by doing so, am I contributing to a loss of a piece of history?

I think the question of whether or not to convert it in the first place, has been my biggest setback.
I believe that if I had found a Monaco in poorer condition, the entire project would be finished by now.

It's a question I think I will struggle with until the day I start rubbing it with sandpaper... or place it up for sale... untouched.

[dixiesquare]

that is one beautiful automobile , i also am at an age that things like driving a bluesmobile dosnt thrill or call to me go out and get one myself , no seeing your monaco , brings back great memories of the mid to late 70's and the parents of friends who had those great cars , that we would cruse around in , take to the drive in in comfort , go on road trips in COMFORT!

its just that body style wasnt around that long , what 73? to 78 ? before they morphed into st regis's and then those k car diplomates ?? look at ford and chevys from that era , their body style were used into the late 80's for chevy and still to the day for fords . for a body style that wasnt around that long , it has made a lasting impression on a lot of people, for what ever reason , be it stock or bluesmobile .

like i said it just erks me to see some thing of beauty ,changed into a movie prop .

but , i do say this about them , if you were to take them and change them into a clone of a police car , or even restore a real one , that to me isnt destroying a thing of beauty , but giving respect to what ever law enforcement agency , you choose to make it .


but part 2 ,

now all i have made mention of was the monaco , polaras and gran furys , again to me those cars are sacred to me ,

but any of the clones made out of ltd's and crow vic's go ahead theres a million of them out there ! be it the model dan drove in dragnet , the bb2000 model or any that are out today , go ahead ! theres only 20 years of them out there .

[JKNLWUD]

I can see both sides of the discussion. And I have the range of vehicles types in my collection. I have stock vehicles that I've lovingly restored back to showroom new. I've got resto rodded vehicles that look stock but are safer and work better than stock ever could. And I have a few fully custom vehicles. My Bluesmobile could very easily be turned back into a stock vehicle though. At its core, the conversion is a few holes here and there and some paint. Its not really anything too extreme. It would just take a little time and effort to make it "pristine looking" again. And someday down the road I may actually do her up as a fully marked CHP car. I don’t have much interest in a plain jane civilian Monaco though. I'm interested in the Cop motor and all the performance goodies. So my car will either be a Bluesmobile or a marked cruiser. Civilian just isn’t something that interests me right now. I have noticed that one of the advantages to the Bluesmobile as it sits, is its always car show ready. It’s my "last minute invitation, hop in and go" car show caw. It doesn't have to be clean. It does not have to be prefect inside. The nastier it is, the better it looks. Everything else I own I generally have to tidy up and polish before I can take it to a show.

And I tend to use the attention that the car gets as a subtle reminder that I need to be an ambassador for the movie and collector cars in general. The public looks at that car as being special and different from everything else on the road. The car DOES attract a lot of attention, and it makes the entire old car hobby look bad if I'm a jerk to someone. I find that I'm a lot more polite when I'm out in a more visible car. I have cars in my collection to enjoy and I find that I'm less annoyed at the other people on the road and I usually enjoy the drive a lot more when I'm out in one of my "toy" cars. I've owned some pretty high visibility vehicles over the past 15 years or so, and it may just be that I'm used to the attention and the responsibility that goes with a high profile vehicle. I like the attention. And let’s face it, people don’t build Bluesmobiles because they want to blend into the crowd.

If you want to talk about Rare cars. I picked up a Chevy ambulance from a guy a few years back. He was planning on tearing out the interior and converting it into a station wagon. I was fortunate enough to be able to talk him into selling me the car before he actually cut into it. After I got the car home and started researching it, as far as we can tell from the limited records that are still around that ambulance may be the only one built that year by the conversion company. That car I put back together so it looks stock. And while I've made some updates to the car so I can drive and enjoy it, everything I've modified is a bolt on upgrade, so it could be returned to 100% stock if I ever wanted to. Even with the rarity of that car though, I love driving it. It’s my road trip car. It’s fantastic on long trips. Rides great, is super comfortable, and has plenty of room in the back for bags and other stuff.

I learned a long time ago that we just can't save them all. And unless we are prepared to offer cash to preserve them, we can’t really expect everyone else to appreciate these cars like we do.