Originally Posted by
over4T
Underknown item about the 396 Chevy is that they were actually 402 c.i. I don't know why they called them 396es; maybe because the manufacturers were beginning their underreporting the engines power about then. Calling the big Hemis, 427 Fords, etc. 425 horses when, in reality, they were all around 600 or maybe they already had the 396 badges made up.
Remember hearing about the shotgun incident but wasn't there when it happened.
You're right about the Bob's "car shows" and we were there a couple of times. I'm sure you remember the stories about the Burger Boy statues being swiped from a few Bob's locations. In Ventura our equivalent was the Original Mel's Drive In (weren't they all the original?) at Five Points and a Foster Freeze on Main across from the high school.
Best story from the F.F. was one Saturday night a local guy with an alcohol rail dropped in on his way home from a night at Orange County's drag strip and after a few beverages, not Foster's very good malts, was convinced to unload in the alley and push it off and make a run down Main Street. Ended up costing him his license for 1 year, a stiff fine and impound fees to get his rig back.
Never knew of Hoy Toy's but we had some good Chinese food in Ventura as well as up north, where there was a large Asian population during the Gold Rush times but not now. Think we tried the Hof Brau once and was quite good if I remember.