Since you asked....

As I mentioned in a previous thread, I was planning on taking a longer drive with my 1975 Criterion this weekend...and I did. The weather wasn;t very impressive, but nonetheless, off we went. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Richard has been screaming at me to post some pics, so rather than have him blow a gasket, I took the camera along. Just a couple of points to mention:

1) She needs a LOT of work. You have been warned. If you want to see a pretty Criterion, look for pictures of Robert Shepard's or Richard Vyse's instead. Mine has a loooong way to go.

2) Her name is Lucille. (My 1968 Superior is named Annabelle). I know that Paul Steinberg and others don't like people giving female names to their vehicles but...I did. My cars, my choice.

3) I have a spotless MARS 888 light to replace the rusted-through one that is on the car right now.

4) I have all the body mouldings that are missing in the pictures.

5) I have all the wheel covers.

6) Those of you who wanted me to get rid of the Twin Sonic lightbar that she came with and replace it with the original 184 will be pleased to see that I did so. I think it looks a lot better.

Anyway....Lucille and I had fun today. Hope you enjoy the pics!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49861959@N06/4572448783/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49861959@N06/4572448847/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49861959@N06/4572448909/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49861959@N06/4572448971/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49861959@N06/4572449179/in/photostream/
 
If they were all in perfect condition, none of us would have anything to do....and besides, the work you put into your car makes it that much more special in many ways. It looks very restorable to me, so drive and enjoy, thats what its all about anyway!!!:cheers:
 
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2) Her name is Lucille. (My 1968 Superior is named Annabelle). I know that Paul Steinberg and others don't like people giving female names to their vehicles but...I did. My cars, my choice......................

I don't mind you or anyone else giving a female name to their car, nor would I mind if they gave the car a male name, or for that matter a name that was gender neutral, or even just a plain silly name. Just don't expect me to remember what the name is, or be offended if I happen to call your car by some other cars name. You know the old expression... If it has t*** or tires, it is going to cause you grief at some time in its lifetime... :my2cents:
 
I second what Jim is saying, "She is beautiful". I like it!!! Thanks for sharing and it was great talking with you this afternoon Doug. I'm working on the left siren mount but like your idea we dicussed if need be.
 
Any wheeled creature with "The Light From Mars" on it is ok in my book. You should have seen what the figure-8 Mars Light mounted above the regular head light of a Nickel Plate Road Berkshire steam locomotive could do. When that big girl same steppin' along at 70 mph or better with the Mars beam gyrating and the stack blasting and the baritone whistle screaming, you got out of the way pronto. Nice lookin' rig you got there.
 
Great pics

Glad you got the beast out for a spin. Makes me jealous. I'm sure it turned many heads...especially with those NY plates!

Any word on the '69?...I'm sure Cliff is going crazy.
 
Glad you got the beast out for a spin. Makes me jealous. I'm sure it turned many heads...especially with those NY plates!

Any word on the '69?...I'm sure Cliff is going crazy.

She's still registered and insured in New York State, Bill (in my name). That's how we got her from Philadelphia to Ontario when my brother drove her up. She's not in a condition yet to pass the B.C. import inspection, so I'm leaving her registered as-is for now.

Poor Cliff. I have no doubt that he's going crazy, and I don't blame him. I feel very badly about it. The situation with the '69 Superior has really dragged on. I've been in touch with him very recently, but unfortunately have no good news to pass along. The folks who own the '69 are just taking their sweet time. They have other stuff going on and this, sadly, is very low priority right now. I spoke to my contact last Monday, and she's going to try to push things a little faster. Perhaps I should have kept my big mouth shut until things were more firmed up.
 
Gee thanks Doug! Now I know mine is the worst one.

Believe me, Danny...yours is not the worst. There have been times when I think I'd probably trade you yours for mine. I think they're both tied for First Place in the "Boy, have we got a lot of work to do" category (also known as the "What were we thinking???" category)!
 
If you will pardon a brief digression here, look up a site called 765.org to see what the Nickel Plate Road Berkshire mentioned above looks like. 765 no longer wears her Mars light, as the current owners don't like the looks of the device, or the maintenance thereoff, but there might be some pix on the site of the big girl when she was outfitted with the Mars. All 80 of the NKP Berks were fitted with the Mars after WWII, and really put on a show coming down the track. If you like ambulance and fire rig siren parades, you would have loved being trackside in a small Indiana or Ohio town in the '50's when one of these machines shot through at 70 or better with a long string of cars dancing wildly along behind the tender, and the conductor and brakeman hanging on for dear life up in the cupola of the rockin' and rollin' caboose.
 
up and running is a good thing. as the saying goes you eat a elephant one bit at a time. trust me those cars are elephants. not a lot of fun having one if you can't drive it. so that's something to be said for all that have one here and post. there all drivable in there own way. so here sits 6 of the 150 or so still on the road and still being enjoyed. but Doug get that back board back in the box and secure that latch. don't want to lose that going down the road
 
but Doug get that back board back in the box and secure that latch. don't want to lose that going down the road

Good point, Ed. It normally is secured. I had the board out for the photos because I wanted a couple of pics for those non-pro car friends who have asked me "What is that box on the top for?". I had just taken a couple of close-ups which I didn't bother posting.

By the way, Ed....I'm seriously considering dipping into my personal line of credit, spending whatever it would take to ship this ol' girl down to you, and asking you to give her the "Robert Shepard Treatment".
 
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