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Caption: It was tough to catch anything running to Port Weller drydocks , let alone a train complete with transfer van, even it it was only 3 cars of traffic.
The boys are taking their lunch break over at Wendy's just out of sight on the right. The Petro-Can station is facing Welland Avenue, which is just behind the van in this photo looking southward.
These days, the track from under the QEW Garden City Skyway all the way to Port Weller has been taken up. The 7304 was the former CN 1390, and currently a rare bird, operating in the Industrial area of Hamilton.
Classy car parked in the lot.:o) Looks a lot like an old Pinto. But hey, this IS St. Catharines.
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Nice, it even has one of the new yard cabooses in tow.
I think the Pintos, Vegas and Gremlins all ended up in the same place. They were not long for this world. LOL.
Yeah, Larry; don’t forget the Firenzas and Astres. Frightening junk. Wasn’t there a “Bobcat” in this mix somewhere too?
Yes, I think the Bobcat was the twin to the Pinto, one Mercury the other Ford (I could be very wrong though). If you looked in the dictionary for the term “disposable car”, a picture of any one of those cars will be there.
Nice shot. Neat with the black cab too
Oh; by 1988 my Gremlin had rturned to the steel mill in the scrap heap. Pintos were worse by far and the Vega/ Astre doesn’t even bear mention.
Were they on their way to or from Port Weller? The flat car looks empty. Certainly the line was taken up. Steel Slabs now come from China already assembled into ships. Port Weller DD must only do repairs now; another sad legacy of Ontario’s industrial past.
Curious, what did you guys pay for these vehicles at the time?
Well, (ahem) I wouldn’t buy junk like those listed……my first NEW car was a 1967 Ford Fairlane which set me back $2496 which to that I added ONE option, and that was a radio !!!!
The infamous blue Cougar I drove at the time of this photo was a 1976, also brand new, and it was $6750. I still have all my bill of sales.:o)
Pintos and other assorted rolling scrap started around 1971 I think, so maybe $3000 aughta get you one. Believe it or not, the Pinto came with a (badly needed) tool kit as well!!!
Very nice scene Arnold. The transfer caboose on the end is great!
1976 Gremlin purchased from Unique Motors in Oakville. 3200.00 out the door and it had a radio.
It lasted me about 4 years.
It did however manage to get stuck if there was more than a light dusting of snow. A heavy inline six cylinder motor put all the weight up front and it was a rear wheel drive car.
I went through 5 secondhand VW beetles from 1975 to 1998. Did not pay more than a $1000.00 for any of them. Exact opposite problem of Cdntrainphotg. Being a rear wheel drive with the engine in the back, it was 2 problems in winter. The rears axles hopping as they tried to push the front wheels through deep snow or once going and on a slippery surface the weight of the rear pushing the front end so that any steering became ineffective. Why did I keep buying them, I found them very easy to repair and enjoyed tinkering with them.
They were absolutely great on the gravel roads around Redwater. My best chase car ever.
@L.Parks: I thought those ‘beetles’ were a rather neat machine. A girlfriend of mine back in the early 1970s drove one. She was hit head on by a drunk driver. Not much padding in the front of those Bugs, though. She survived, but that was the last of the ‘engine in the rear’ cars for her.
I bought a two year old Pinto from a guy who only wanted $800.00 for it in the early seventies. It lasted for 4 years and would have lasted longer except we took it down the Coquihalla canyon on the old CPR / KVR grade (before the highway was built) and that trip shook every screw and bolt loose, I swear. Somewhere, I have a photo of the old beast on an old CP though truss bridge at the north end of the canyon.
Hah!! Good one. I hope he sold you the factory supplied tool kit along with the car. I’d suppose thats why the kit was provided.
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PS: YOu drove to BC in a Pinto?? Brave man.