My first car was a 64 XM Falcon panel van, with 144 pursuit engine. A total misnomer, couldn't pursue anything with that gutless thing. In the hope of bettering performance I bought 170 'Super' Pursuit short motor and replaced the bottom end. Top end end was the same as a 144, that should have given me some idea you'd think, nup. Couldn't pursue a bicycle with that thing.
I learnt a lot with this car. Replaced the block (short motor), fixed the gearbox, dif, starter motor, generator and a multitude of other things. Made a 12" steering wheel for it, bought a second hand straight line shifter and installed that. Unfortunately, it was badly worn and I managed to jam it in first and reverse going up a hill. Applied the handbrake, got underneath with a hammer and bashed the linkages, it popped out of gear but the handbrake didn't hold, so the car rolled backward down the hill, the front wheel traversing my body, over my shoulder down my body and over my crossed legs, all I got was a chipped bone in my heel. I jumped up and chased it down the hill, the steering wheel spun and it turned to the right jumping the kerb and demolishing someone's letterbox.
I copped heaps from my mates over that who introduced me to their friends as the guy who ran over himself. I went on to two yellow stickers for excessive noise, and was pinched half a dozen times for speeding, losing my licence for three months. Coming off the horseshoe bridge in Perth one night in the pouring rain, I put my foot down, car spun out and around a couple of times almost bashing the traffic light.
Heaps more work on it: black bucket seats from a colt 1100, replaced the shifter with an H pattern shifter, cut a hole in the transmission tunnel and installed it between the bucket seats, very sporty. Fitted extractors and a dual exhaust system. The left pipe was a right hand pipe cut at the bends, the bends reversed and welded back together. Fitted a tacho and every gauge available at the time. I had the manifold shaved off, fitted a twin carb manifold and fitted twin carbs, still couldn't beat a bicycle away from the lights. Fitted out the back with a mattress, a stereo and coloured lights,, but the girls stayed away in their droves, called me a hood.
I did a lot of miles in that car, aside from scaring the crap out of everyone in Perth and its suburbs, I drove out to Kalgoorlie, through, Kambalda, Norseman, Scadden, Grass Patch, Salmon gums, Esperance, Albany, Bunburry, Busselton, and all points in between, deafening everyone and scaring the crap out of everyone with my superior driving skills.
Eventually I wrapped it around a tree going home from the pub. The crash repair guy, cut through the windscreen pillar and across the floor under the seat and welded a new rear end on. After that it made all sorts of horrid noises when I jacked it up. Going home from work one day, I turned into the driveway got out and around to the other side of the car, the wheel was sticking out passed the car about a foot, the axle bearing had self destructed, more diff work for me.
Eventually I sold it for more than I paid for it, $400, and went back to a bike. A 71 Triumph 650, and started trying kill myself again. But, I failed - still here, just a little bit broken!
My youth was a wild ride, I'd hate to repeat it though.
Not my car, but same model.