written by Richard Coulter
In 1972 I was 23 years old and lived with my parents in Scarborough.
I was longing for my first REAL muscle car. Until now I had only owned 2 cars : a 1958 Chev Delray station wagon that I sold in California ( but that’s another story) and a 1961 Pontiac Strato Chief four door sedan. Both underpowered 6 bangers.
From the front of our property one could see a fair distance looking west along Bertrand Ave.
A man who was a truck driver rented a basement apartment in one of these Scarborough ” berry boxes”
Because the single driveway only allowed 1 car ( the owners ) his ( the renter ) was relegated to the street.
This allowed me to get a closer look at his car while walking along Bertrand Ave.
It was a white 1969 Oldsmobile 442 convertible. It had black accent stripes,factory dual trumpet exhaust pipes, black bucket seats with a 4 speed Hurst standard shifter. The piece de resistance was the air spoiler that was attached to the trunk lid. The top was down and displayed all it’s magnificent glory.
It was a sweet car. I was sold. I promised myself that my next car would be a ’69 442 Convertible.
When he started up that car the rumble of that big 400 c.i.d Olds Rocket engine was music to my ears.
As he drove along Bertrand Ave towards Kennedy Road I could feel myself reaching down to change gears. What a thrill
The search was on !