Classic Cars

UNIONVILLE, CT – Good deeds sometimes get rewarded. So does patience. Ken Griffin of Unionville wasn’t expecting any gratuity some years ago when he noticed a shaggy lawn behind the house of his elderly next-door neighbor and offered to help out. “I asked him what was wrong and he said …

(From the RIDE-CT archives…) LITCHFIELD, CT – Debbie Deziel and Guy Livolsi of Litchfield went from saying “I do” while getting married at the Hopkins Inn in Warren, CT back in September 2021 to adopting an enthusiastic “Let’s do it” attitude the next day by loading up their 1929 Ford …

CHESHIRE, CT – Like so many other classic car owners, Bill Borriello of Meriden, CT gained his love of a specific make and style as a child, and that explains why he has owned his vibrant white 1959 Chevrolet Impala sport coupe since 1981.  In fact, it’s the second ’59 …

WATERBURY, CT – It has the heft and profile of a hippopotamus and a gait to match when in motion, despite having a V12 engine. “It’s not a hot rod. It goes, but it’s smooth, nice and easy. Stopping it is harder than going,” said Jarrett Smith of Waterbury last …

(Editor’s note: This story was updated on Aug. 13, 2024. It originally identified the Daimler SP250 as a 1960 model. While it was manufactured in June 1960, the car was recorded as a 1961 model when it was dispatched to Canada in February 1961 and eventually registered.) BLOOMFIELD, CT – …

GOSHEN, CT – Bob Wachtel of Goshen has owned his 1999 Dodge Viper GTS for nearly as long as the sports car model was built. The Viper debuted in 1991 and the first generation went on sale in 1992. It lasted through a fifth variant until 2017, although there were …

WOODBURY, CT – Sal Geraci has a fondness for classic cars even though he has a 2010 Dodge Charger and 2006 Dodge Challenger in the seven-vehicle collection found at his Woodbury home.  “Old cars have character. They look nice. You can look at a tail light or just a piece …

TORRINGTON, CT – Jorge Baujin is unlike many classic car owners who have expensive relics. The Torrington dentist doesn’t drive a flashy muscle car, an aged luxury model or an exotic rarity. And that’s just fine with him as his modest possession nonetheless stands out because of its simplicity.  “It’s …

TORRINGTON, CT – It’s a family heirloom in vivid green; a slow-moving 1950 Chevrolet sedan delivery model that owner Mark Langenheim Jr.’s grandfather once drove as a teenager delivering groceries for the long-gone Mencuccini’s market in Torrington. “My grandfather used to drive it when he was younger. Years later, he …

NEW HARTFORD, CT – Regina Wexler grew up in a family that had a fondness for German-made Volkswagens. “We had Beetles, we had square backs, my cousins had a big bus, and my grandparents, who immigrated here from Germany, they had a Karmann Ghia,” Wexler recalled as she stood beside …