ALVIN THE VALIANT
What would you do if you cheated death by days?
If certain demise had suddenly turned to reprieve by unseen hand? Would you live as if it were a gift? Would you make the bucket list and begin the adventures of one living the bonus round? Here is Alvin, and here is his story. AND his bucket list!
I first met Alvin in a Mopar (Chrysler - Plymouth - Dodge) - focused wrecking yard in Niederwald, Texas. Having a fleet of decrepit Dodges & Plymouths, I was on a first name basis with the guy who ran it. When I got a call that they were done, the land was going to be sold and that everything was going to be crushed so "Come get what you want", I saddled up the ol' Econoline and headed out determined to grab some goodies.
On the way there I realized this was my chance; my chance to earn that real car guy merit badge and rescue a car from a junkyard to get running again. Though I knew this place was fairly picked over, I began thinking of old Chargers or maybe an old van. Nope. Everything there was big chunks of nothing left held together by rust. Then on my way out, I saw him sitting there, sunk into the dry Texas ground.
Quite possibly the least desirable Mopar on the planet, a 4-door 1962 Plymouth Valiant. But he was complete and intact! Nobody had even wanted parts off of him. In a classic Scott "Charlie Brown Christmas Tree" moment of crazy stray cat empathy for the unwanted, I put my hand on his fender and said, "You're coming home with me. I'm going to save you. You will not be crushed." A deal was made, and days later the car arrived at my driveway on March 6, 2013 - the same day Alvin Lee from the band Ten Years After died. This date and Alvin being almost an anagram of Valiant, and there you have it. Alvin The Valiant.
So, the question - WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
What would you dream of if you were a car that had been left for dead and saved? And even in life were kind of a goofy, weird looking 4-door? Well, those are the things Alvin is destined for after a little love & resurrection. If I were he, on gravy time and now fearless, with no more Fs to give, here's what I'd want to do:
Dress up like a racing car
Pizza and sunset at the beach
Drag race (Would be hilarious.)
Epic coast to coast road trip
Top speed blast (Believe me, it won’t be that scary. We’re talking 170 cubic inches and 101 HP new. I’ll be shocked if it hits 80 mph.)
Go camping
Get to some cool car gatherings
Enter a real car show
Do a ridiculous photo shoot with models (Like he was a show car going on a poster!)
Be a mercy wagon at least once
Get into a magazine
Make people smile
Be of benefit to veteran, children’s, and animal charities
Confound the purists and “Why guys” in our hobby
Be moved along to a forever home for further adventures
I had him running in an hour and driving up and down the driveway (carefully; zero brakes). The fried, trashed interior was removed and the 13” wheels and willpops (really crusty old tires) were replaced with old 14” Chrysler Rallye wheels and tires that had been on my ‘69 Dart and ‘67 Valiant. A few years later in 2017, I bartered for some floor patching and a nice bench seat. That’s how it was left, and it’s at my friend The Dodge Whisperer’s where it’ll be revived soon.
Not everything moves quickly, but you’ll see it here as soon as something happens with Alvin the Valiant!
Stay tuned!