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THE NUMBERS GAME!
Unique Cars
|May 2024
IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH IT'S A BIT LIKE A TATTSLOTTO DRAW IN ROB'S MIND, WITH ALL THOSE NUMBERS WHIZZING AROUND
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I'M SURPRISED at times by the variety of things that unexpectedly bring memories of life's milestones in to sharp focus: a random stranger's mannerisms for first-love recollections; towns on maps for various lucky escapes; a Cooper S Mini like the Doctor's for my "I'm a Dad!" day; the motorcycle brand for the book that shifted my thinking.
Many of my car-memory cues involve numbers, often engine cubic-inch numbers: 239 - finally getting a 24-stud 239 'Flattie' for my '34 Ford; 272 at last becoming an OHV Y-block man 327 - my one and only crazy day out in a GTS Monaro 351 - my first rush within a whisker of 140mph (if you could believe the GT Falcon's speedo).
The brand focus for this column came from a number that popped up this morning. That number was '389; the last three digits of a mobile phone number on an invoice. Whether I wanted it or not, Pontiac's hero-engine from the 1960s - the 'Tri-Power' 389 V8 was immediately front and centre of my mind. So, why fight it? It's time to talk Pontiac with a particular focus on the mighty 389.
This story is from the May 2024 edition of Unique Cars.
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