<a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-99316">Brian McDaniels </a>bought this powder blue 1954 Chevrolet Bel Air when he was 18. It's the car he would meet his future wife Linda in. She is seen here in 1962, sitting on the car in front of his driveway in Columbus, Ohio.
1954 Chevrolet Bel Air —
Brian McDaniels bought this powder blue 1954 Chevrolet Bel Air when he was 18. It's the car he would meet his future wife Linda in. She is seen here in 1962, sitting on the car in front of his driveway in Columbus, Ohio.
Courtesy Brian McDaniels
At 19, <a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1141211">Janie Lambert</a> had her heart set on a 1960s Volkswagen Beetle. She was ecstatic to find this 1968 candy apple red number in a Knoxville, Tennessee, used car lot, partly because it went perfectly with the red, white and blue peace decal that she had been saving for her first car.
1968 Volkswagen Beetle —
At 19, Janie Lambert had her heart set on a 1960s Volkswagen Beetle. She was ecstatic to find this 1968 candy apple red number in a Knoxville, Tennessee, used car lot, partly because it went perfectly with the red, white and blue peace decal that she had been saving for her first car.
Courtesy Janie Lambert
<a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1148014">John Bunting</a> was lucky enough to own a few cars as a young man in the '60s, beginning when he was in high school. Here, Bunting and his wife Judy stand beside the decorated Pontiac on their wedding night, in 1968. He bought it brand-new that year for $4,200.<br />
1968 Pontiac GTO —
John Bunting was lucky enough to own a few cars as a young man in the '60s, beginning when he was in high school. Here, Bunting and his wife Judy stand beside the decorated Pontiac on their wedding night, in 1968. He bought it brand-new that year for $4,200.
Courtesy John Bunting
"Back then, not everyone had a car. So if a guy did, he was considered way cool," <a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1141387">Linda Glovach </a>said. This is a photo of her boyfriend tending to his 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle in Elmont, New York, in 1967.
1966 Chevrolet Chevelle —
"Back then, not everyone had a car. So if a guy did, he was considered way cool," Linda Glovach said. This is a photo of her boyfriend tending to his 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle in Elmont, New York, in 1967.
Courtesy Linda Glovach
When <a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1142236">John Hancock</a> turned 18, he bought this 1969 Ford Mustang. He loved it because it was "very, very fast." Here he is standing with his car in Donnellson, Iowa, in July 1973.
1969 Cobra Jet Mustang —
When John Hancock turned 18, he bought this 1969 Ford Mustang. He loved it because it was "very, very fast." Here he is standing with his car in Donnellson, Iowa, in July 1973.
Courtesy John W. Hancock
<a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1146638">Margie Santiago</a> said her father was the "epitome of cool" in 1968, with his leather jacket and his first car, a Chevrolet Bel Air. Santiago said her father remembers it being a '59 model, but some intrepid CNN readers pointed out that it's actually from 1957. Alex Nunez, director of RoadandTrack.com, confirmed that the car's trim shape indicates it is a 1957 Bel Air.
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air —
Margie Santiago said her father was the "epitome of cool" in 1968, with his leather jacket and his first car, a Chevrolet Bel Air. Santiago said her father remembers it being a '59 model, but some intrepid CNN readers pointed out that it's actually from 1957. Alex Nunez, director of RoadandTrack.com, confirmed that the car's trim shape indicates it is a 1957 Bel Air.
Courtesy Margie Santiago
<a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1141861">John McClain </a>loved driving around in this muscle car in the summer of 1969 when he was just 16 years old. The 1966 Oldsmobile was actually his older brother's car, but he was deployed to Vietnam from 1969 to 1971, so McClain was able to drive it around for two years until his brother returned home.
1966 Oldsmobile 442 —
John McClain loved driving around in this muscle car in the summer of 1969 when he was just 16 years old. The 1966 Oldsmobile was actually his older brother's car, but he was deployed to Vietnam from 1969 to 1971, so McClain was able to drive it around for two years until his brother returned home.
Courtesy John McClain
When <a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fireport.cnn.com%2Fdocs%2FDOC-1142579">Kathi Cordsen</a> got married in January 1970, she and her husband left the wedding reception in her mother-in-law's 1964 Buick Skylark. They didn't realize it at the time, but that car was a wedding present. "We drove it home on our wedding day and never had to give it back," she said. "My husband and I were pretty shocked and extremely happy."
1964 Buick Skylark —
When Kathi Cordsen got married in January 1970, she and her husband left the wedding reception in her mother-in-law's 1964 Buick Skylark. They didn't realize it at the time, but that car was a wedding present. "We drove it home on our wedding day and never had to give it back," she said. "My husband and I were pretty shocked and extremely happy."
Courtesy Kathi Cordsen