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Check out Don Bell in front of his snazzy 1963 Chrysler 300 convertible (above) and his 1968 Plymouth Road Runner (right)!
Well before I reached my teen years, I had a love affair—with cars! I loved to look at them, ride in them, wash them, work on them, and just be near them. Whenever someone went to his or her car, I was there, asking, “Where are you off to?” and “Can I go along?” When my uncle Bill raised the hood of his car, I was there, looking over his shoulder, watching and learning.
My brother, Roy, and I made a game out of naming cars that went by on the road—we were very good at not only naming them but also identifying their year of manufacture. We occasionally argued about a year or model, but I believe he was right more often than I was. Even so, we had fun.
When I finally turned 16, in 1950, I was able to buy a used 1936 DeSoto sedan. It was like Christmas every day! I could never wait to start it up and drive somewhere, anywhere. Sometimes, when it wouldn’t start in the morning, my grandpa would give it a short pull with his Farmall H tractor to get it going. But my biggest problem was with the tires—I couldn’t afford to buy new ones, so I was constantly fixing them. I became an expert at patching tires and tubes.
I have had about 50 cars over the years, including a 1951 Chrysler New Yorker, a 1955 Mercury, and a 1964 Chrysler 300 convertible. When Plymouth announced the debut of the 1968 Road Runner in late 1967, I immediately went to the local dealer and ordered one.
I’ve owned many different brands and had lots of experiences (both good and bad) over my 64 years of driving. Nonetheless, I look forward to my next new car!
–Don Bell, Mount Joy, PA
