Hey all you car lovers! 
This
is the First Anniversary of Long Island Classic Cars.com!!
We launched this time in 2003 with the simple goal of creating a unique and fun website in cyberspace for all the car hobbyists, collectors, and businesses to gather and indulge in our passion. I’d like to thank all of you for making it a great first year and I look forward to continuing to make this the place for the collector car hobby in the local area.
More and more people have been using the site, listing their cars and parts, subscribing to the Newsletters, and listing their clubs and events. We had 280 events listed for the ’04 season! I expect this coming year to be even better!
The Newsletter has been a huge hit and I get many e-mails regarding it. Keep them coming!!
Thanks to all of you whether you’ve been here from the beginning or just recently discovered us!
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With the arrival of September we only have a month or two left of our precious car season here in the northeast.
This has been a great summer so far for shows, cruises, and other automobile related events! The weather has been fantastic! Cooler than most summers, and that has in turn provided for a more comfortable environment when we are sitting out there for 7 or 8 hours. Forget the heat of 90-95 degrees that plagues most events! This year has been kind to us!
There are still MANY events to attend on Long Island in the months of September and October! Don’t miss them!
I attended some pretty wonderful shows so far; ones that combined a great day and turnout with awesome locations!
There was the show at Morgan Park in Glen Cove put on by the Gold Coast Cruisers Club. What a great day and turnout! There were cars and trucks of every vintage, year, and model! Muscle Cars, Classics and Antiques, European and Japanese cars, trucks, customs and modifieds, as well as very rare models you see once every decade or so!
The MG Car Club’s Vanderbilt Museum show was held on a beautiful day and at a spectacular location! What an assemblage of British marquees that you don’t see very often! I had a great time there! It was nestled on the rolling hills of the Museum grounds and the weather couldn’t have been any nicer. They did a great job and even had a LARGE hospitality tent!
Hopefully soon we’ll have these British Car Clubs listed on the website along with their events!
Westbury Gardens was the host to the Greater New York Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America’s spectacular June show. This event featured hundreds of cars in all their glory, spread out on acres of beautiful fields. What a feast of diverse automobiles! This show traditionally draws out some of the finest machines on all of Long Island. This year was no exception. Incredibly detailed, pristine, and rare vehicles were in attendance. Some were about 100 years old!
Stunning examples of American and Foreign cars abounded!
The featured marquee this year was Dodge and I was proud to have two of my cars accepted to the show. I actually won first place with my 71 Charger R/T!
The Long Island Street Rod Association puts on some of the largest shows and swaps on the Island. They have several during the year and the turnout and spectator attendance is always remarkable. It is always a good place for vendors, show cars, vehicles for sale, and spectators to mingle and do business!
And let’s not forget the Long Island Cars Car Show & Swap Meets
which take place at regular intervals every month or more! Frank does an
incredible job of hosting these tremendous
shows at several fine locations in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. The shows have
huge numbers of cars, and some of them are two day events!! These shows bring
out a large following of vendors, and always have plenty of food as well, plus
many cars are always for sale.
There have been hundreds of other events that have taken place that I am
sure have also been noteworthy. I wish I could attend all of them but obviously
that is not possible. If anyone out there wants to write a column about car
shows, it might make an interesting read in the Newsletter! Think about it. Let
me know.
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As far as Cruise Nights go; the ones that the season started with have all stayed around! THREE CHEERS!!
Vroom Vroom….hooray! Vroom Vroom….hooray! Vroom Vroom….hooray!
In years past we had some “come and go” locations, but this year things have been working nicely!
Some of the shows grew very fast! For instance, the Friday night cruise in Huntington became very large after the first 4 or 5 weeks. Now it is at the point of overflow! The Tuesday night Oyster Bay event started out real small, but then they moved a few blocks over to the center of town, and now it is jam packed with cars, owners, and spectators all milling about. They even have restaurants and shops open late for you, and LIVE entertainment provide by Michael Dorio who is a guitarist and singer.
He is at one end of Audrey Ave playing rock and pop songs, and he keeps things moving! At the other end of the street is more live music; blues and boogie provided by Gail Storm on the Keyboards and vocals. She can really bang those 88’s!!
I still have never heard back from the folks at the Farmingville Fire Department regarding the Bald Hill Cruise Night they were running. I would have liked to feature it here on the website for all of you, but despite many attempts to contact them, I never succeeded in getting a response. If any of you know them perhaps you can contact them and we can feature their events for next season.
There may be one or two new Cruise Nights developing in Nassau and Suffolk that I have been notified about. When I get more info on them I will spread the word.
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On another note: 
The car market has seemed to level out quite a bit. I am hearing from many people that in fact, it may have slowed down!
Not as many cars seem to be changing owners as they did for the last several years. There are still some high dollar cars that are bringing big bucks, but the low to medium priced market is experiencing some sluggishness that it hasn’t seen in years. Some folks report that cars they have for sale are sitting for months without a buyer! We’ll see how this pans out over the ensuing year before we make any conclusions about the state of the market.
***I ask everyone for input on this. Let me know your experiences and thoughts on the market trend so far this year.
Send your comments to pgiordano@liclassiccars.com
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Hey everybody listen up. Here is someone who is need of our help. This
lady has posted an ad in the “Wanted” section of the website. She and her
family are in need of basic and cheap transportation in an urgent way. Perhaps
one of you have an old and reliable car, or know of someone or some business
that can help her out. Maybe we can get something donated.
Let’s really put our minds to this and show what Long Islander’s can do!
Here is the ad below….
Looking for a cheap car so
my husband can get to the heart doctor in Tompkinsville KY. Price range we can
afford is 200.00-300.00. Need one ASAP.
Janice Glasgow, Kentucky 42141
browneyes47us@hotmail.com
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I hope everyone has taken advantage in some form or another of the discounts that have been offered to you by our advertisers! These businesses have much to offer and their services are all professional and come with years of experience and references. Check them out! See last month’s Newsletter for their promotions.
Below is a reminder for everyone of Long Island Classic Cars.com new features. Again…take advantage of them!
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In July
we made the most significant changes to the website since we first launched
last fall. We are pleased to present them to you and feel that they will
enhance the website, as well as benefit all of the car enthusiasts who use the
site.
To
begin with, the PARTS ad section is now FREE
to individuals who want to list and sell their parts! You can place ads for all
your extra stuff at no charge!
Businesses
and dealers will still be charged a modest fee as before. Spread the word to
everyone you know! Now is the time in mid-summer to advertise your surplus!
We
have also incorporated two new sections onto the main page. You will
undoubtedly notice two new graphics under the main blue boxes. One of them is
an open book, the other is a flashing newspaper.
Clicking
on the “open book” link will take you to a page we have titled “The Word”. The
text on this page will change frequently and is meant to give you something to
think about. Read it slowly, and give each message some thought.
Clicking
on the “flashing newspaper” graphic will take you to our newly created
“Newsletter Archive”! Many people have asked me how they can re-read or have
access to previous editions of the Newsletter. This link provides continuous
access to them. In addition, there is also a cross-reference list of articles
and features by author and subject! How about that!?
You
can now search for your favorite scribe or story and read it anytime you like!
We
hope you enjoy and make use of these new features. They certainly will enhance
the website and provide more for the collector car community
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Cruise Night location
updates:
TUESDAYS: McDonald's. 98-01 Metropolitan Ave. Forest Hills, NY.
TUESDAYS: Audrey Ave. Oyster Bay, NY
WEDNESDAYS: Long John Silver's/A&W. Union Blvd, South of Sunrise Hwy. West Islip, NY.
FRIDAYS: Huntington Shopping Center. (Toys R Us) Route 110. South of Jericho Tpk. Huntington, NY.
SATURDAYS: Sonomax Station. 278 Greenpoint Ave. Greenpoint, Brooklyn, NY.
SATURDAYS: Kohl’s. Corner Grand Blvd and Commack Rd. Deer Park, NY.
More Cruise Night updates as they develop in the next Newsletter.
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GUEST WRITER(S) COLUMN(S)
We
have a new columnist this month. Lou Molinaro writes an article about
his first hand experiences growing up in and around the racetracks of Long
Island. Lou takes us through some vivid imagery of exiting events and what it
was like back in the days of the 1940’s and 1950’s. You may remember Lou and
his ’56 Jaguar from the My Car Story section in the June edition of the Newsletter.
“Rich’s Tech Tips” gives us explanations of
the workings and functions of automatic transmissions. This is the second of a
two-parter. Last month he began with the manual transmission. Also included are
some troubleshooting tips. Rich is definitely a knowledgeable guy! I’d like to
have him permanently stationed in my garage!
In
the “My Car Story” feature, Sonny Sommers presents an incredible ’57
Lincoln Continental Mark II. I saw this car at the Glen Cove Morgan Park show
and it was stunning! A rare and stately beauty!
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Cedarhurst, Long Island Racing History
By Lou Molinaro
I am a lifetime resident and lover of Long Island. My name is Lou Molinaro.
This is me and my first car, a 1937 Oldsmobile in front of Cedarhurst stadium.
I have tried to jot down some of my memories as a young boy, living on Long Island in Cedarhurst, where I grew up.
Our summers were better for us than most other L.I. kids, because we had the Bay. Most importantly, it was “Our Bay”. It was called Hook Creek, because it made a big hook around the really best thing we had in Cedarhurst; the Cedarhurst Stadium.
The Stadium is where we hung out all Summer Long and that’s where they played baseball. We had our own team, in Cedarhurst, just like the L.I. Ducks, but I don’t know if they were an AAA team or just Semi pro. The best thing of all in the summer, was when we were out on “our bay” in our rafts, and we could hear the Midget auto races inside the stadium. Yep, we had everything in that stadium in Cedarhurst, even an auto race track!
For us, all L.I. boys, it was very exciting. We even got to know some of the drivers. How lucky were we!
I can still remember some of their names. I remember Bill Schinler, Paul Russo, and Ted Tappit to name a few. I can still recall the horror the night one of the local drivers was killed. I think his last name was Stillwagon. The town buzzed about it for months.
During the day we were allowed to go inside the stadium and watch them practice. Much to our delight the drivers let us sit in the cars when they were in the pits. That was such a big deal for us, and made us feel so important. Even so, at night we had to sneak in to watch the races through the holes we made under the fences, where we could quickly escape if they saw us.
Some of the cars had some really weird engines in them, but the one I liked the most, was the car with the outboard motor in it.
The period of time I have been talking about was probably from 1936 up into the early 1940’s. Then World War 2 came, and all the racing stopped.
In 1946 when the war was over, the racing started up again over at Freeport and Deer Park. I never got to see the Midgets race there since I was still too young. I was still only a teenager and it was too hard to get around. The only cars I got to see race at Freeport were stock cars. I never got to go to Deer Park at all. Most people back then knew that L.I. was the Cradle of Racing, just as it was the Cradle of Aviation.
Although I never watched the Midgets at Freeport or Deer Park, I got to collect some pictures at those tracks. Most of them were of accidents. The only pictures I have of the Cedarhurst track and Stadium is one of the pits, with a tow truck and a racecar. There is a woman sitting in the car, probably a daughter of one of the drivers. I’m not sure, since I didn’t take the pictures then. The only camera anyone had was a brownie, and you had to be rich to own one.
An interesting fable that circulated amongst us back then, was that driving a green race car with a V8 was bad luck, and that you never put the number 13 on a car since that was also bad luck. I was just a kid and just accepted that as law, what else did I know? Then one night, out from the pits comes this beautiful maroon midget racer with the #13 on the side. As if that wasn’t enough to shake my beliefs, who was driving it, but Ted Tappit himself.
I know there were other tracks on L.I. I remember Dexter Park where I also got to see stock cars driven by friends of mine. Some of those drivers who drove there and at Freeport were Al Penola, Bruno Braci (also known as the mailman, named that because he was one). Riverhead, Bridgehampton and West Hampton were some other tracks. These are the only ones I can remember, although I am sure there were other small tracks scattered throughout the small towns and hamlets of my Long Island of yesterday.
As an afterthought, today’s technology blows me away, but the memories of yesteryear, sustains my spirit daily.
(Lou, these pictures are incredible! Did anyone ever
survive wrecks like this? They had no cages, roll bars or protection!)
(Pete)
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“THE CARE AND FEEDING OF YOUR AUTOMATIC
TRANSMISSION
By
Rich Fiore
Automatic
transmissions have been around for quite some time now. They came about
from man’s need for making life just a little bit easier and of course… mechanized.
So let’s talk about what a trans. is supposed to do. First off, the force
requirements to move a stationary vehicle as opposed to a moving vehicle are
very different. The stationary vehicle requires a higher effort so a greater
torque, (twisting force) is required to the rear wheels. So we have a
transmission. It simply varies the engine torque at different road speeds. In
the case of the auto trans. it changes the gearing automatically without
shifting manually and having to depress the clutch pedal. (How
depressing!!)
So
how does it work? I'm glad you asked. To start off, the auto trans.
utilizes a torque converter or viscous coupling to bring power from the
engine to the trans. It transfers engine rotation via hydraulic fluid. There
are 3 parts to the torque converter, the pump, stator and turbine. At idle
(low rpm), there is a certain amount of "slippage" within the
converter. As RPM increases, the converter output increases. This is how
we drive the trans. input shaft.
So
how about the rest of the trans? I'm glad you asked that too.
Without getting too much into details, the trans is a pretty complex piece
of machinery. It consists of 2 hydraulic pumps which feed fluid under pressure
to a valve body. The valve body is the brains so to speak and directs fluid
under pressure to specific areas of the trans which ultimately determine shift
points. One of these areas being the clutches (which drive), and
servos (actuators) that usually apply a band. A band will hold a gear
set in place.
As
I mentioned there are 2 pumps. The front is driven by engine rotation and the
rear by the trans. output shaft. Many years ago a vehicle with an auto
trans. that had only one pump could not be towed if the
vehicle was not running. Another item driven by the output shaft is the
governor. The governor is a set of flyweights (like a distributor
centrifugal advance) that opens a valve based on engine speed. The higher the
speed the more it opens to allow fluid to flow and induce upshift. Governor
pressure will upshift and throttle pressure will try to downshift. (I'll bet
you didn’t know there was an internal battle going on in your trans!).
Another
item on G.M cars which determines upshift is the vacuum modulator. It determines
the upshift based on engine vacuum.
On
to some of the few things you can check if a minor
problem might occur. First off check the level and color of the trans. fluid.
Make sure you check it in park or neutral. (Older Mopars specify neutral).
If the color is brown or something else, it probably has internal trouble.
Worse yet it could be contaminated with coolant due to a break in the trans.
cooler in the radiator. This mix is lethal to your trans.
Another reason for change of color could be higher that normal engine temps
causing the dye to break down. Check your cooling system.
If
delayed upshift is a problem check the hose to the vacuum modulator. Again,
usually GM cars. Repair any breaks. While you are there you can pull
the line off the modulator and check for trans fluid inside the
modulator. If the diaphragm is shot and you are drawing trans fluid
into your engine. A clogged filter can also create the same problem.
But
note this ... if the fluid hasn’t been changed in a very long time ( or
ever ), this may not be a wise thing to do. I have seen new fluid
play havoc with a dirty ole trans. Other than that there is not much more a
backyard mechanic can do when servicing an auto trans.
QUICK AND DIRTY: When was the last time
you checked your transmission linkage, seals, mounts, and driveshaft u-joints?
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Harold
Sommers & Stephen Siben: 1957 Lincoln Continental Mark II
by
Sonny Sommers
As pretty as anything from Italy, the Continental Mark II
was intended to be a work of art. It was one of the most beautiful cars that
Ford ever made and the most expensive automobile in America at that time. The Mark II started out as a product of
Ford’s short-lived Continental division, but it came as little surprise that it
wound up as part of Lincoln. Continental used Lincoln’s 368-cid V-8 engine with
10:1 compression (specially picked from the assembly line, stripped down and
hand-balanced for extra smoothness and refinement) which gained compression and
horsepower boosts for 1957.
Styling provided another touchstone, with its close-coupled
formal roofline and prominent continental spare stamping in the decklid calling
to mind the famous Lincoln Continentals of 1940 - 48. Upholstery was Scottish
Bridge of Weir leather and the carpeting was all wool.
Three out of four cars had air-conditioning. Added options were full power (steering, windows, seats, brakes) with a “dished” steering wheel and padded dashboard. Tinted glass was offered at no additional cost. The left rear tail light swings open for gas tank fuel fill. With the wheelbase at 126 inches, it had the class that Ford was looking for: A car with a low “slung” frame which helped to contribute to the car’s minimal 56 inch height and low roof style.
Yes, the Continental, with her sleek, clean lines was
adored on both sides of the Atlantic with winning admiration. Continental really was the car for the stars - Elvis (who usually drove Cadillacs) owned
one, as did Jayne Mansfield, who owned a pearl-colored ’57 with mink trim! 
Ford spared no expense in
the Continental and each one was delivered to the dealer in a fleece-lined
cloth cover! Continental Mark II bodies
demanded sixty hours for metal finishing alone – five times the effort on a
normal automobile. Only 444 cars were
produced – and came with a huge price tag of $10,000.00.
This blue Continental received its “Junior” & “Senior” awards at Hershey, PA in 1996. The car was bought in Atlantic City, NJ and is owned by Stephen Siben and Harold Sommers.
(Really
beautiful car! Glad I saw it in
person!)
Pete
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Here is where you can access previous editions of the Long
Island Classic Cars Online Newsletter.
October 2003 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Oct03.html
November 2003 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Nov03.html
December
2003 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Dec03.html
January 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Jan04.html
February 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Feb04.html
March 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Mar04.html
April 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Apr04.html
May 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/May04.html
June
2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Jun04.html
July 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Jul04.html
August 2004 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Aug04.html
You can also access the previous
Newsletters through a link on the main page of the website.
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That wraps up another issue of the Long Island Classic Cars.com Newsletter. Once again, thank you for making this a great first year!
We are accepting articles for the “My Car Story” feature that we do monthly. So, now is your chance to see your car in print and in full color on the screen, and sent out world-wide for all to see!
It’s a great keepsake for you to always refer to, and to send out to all your friends and family.
Also, if any of you out there have ideas for a column or feature you’d like to contribute, we welcome that as well.
And as always, stop by and say “Hi” if you see us at the shows and cruise nights!
Pete Giordano
Long Island Classic Cars.com