Johnathon Henninger / Record-Journal
Meriden resident Scott Pierce, owner of this 1969 F-85 with the W-31 engine performance package, leans over the engine with his friend, Stephen Ninore, right. One of only 212 built, the car is a finalist in Hemmings Muscle Machines magazine’s Muscle Machine of the Year contest.
MERIDEN - Scott Pierce's 1969 Oldsmobile muscle car probably won't catch your eye with its glitz. Its plain blue lines are sparingly adorned by the chrome so popular during the era it was produced, and its hubcaps are simple stainless steel bulbs.
"It looks like something your grandma would drive," Pierce, 34, said at his home on Terrace Lane Tuesday.
But if you pull your car up next to the bulky F-85 for a quarter mile race, prepare to be left in the dust - Pierce's car can cover that distance in 13.54 seconds at a speed of 104 mph.
The F-85 is a no-frills Oldsmobile that was the least expensive available from the carmaker in 1969, he said. Only 212 people ordered the model with the optional W-31 350 horsepower V-8 engine, which sets it apart from grandma's car by a fair degree.
The rare automobile is Pierce's pride and joy, and he's entered it in Hemmings Muscle Machines magazine Muscle Machine of the Year contest. His car will compete against 14 other vehicles for the title.
The Oldsmobile sat in Pierce's driveway Tuesday afternoon. The hood was propped open, and the engine gleamed, but not enough for Steve Minore of Meriden, who painstakingly tweaked and rebuilt the engine for racing.
"Two years ago it was spotless," he said, jokingly chiding Pierce for his lack of cleaning.
Working on cars is a hobby for Minore, 41, who learned what he knows from his father, who was a mechanic.
Minore walked Pierce through the engine upgrade and did some of the more complicated work himself, he said.
The final product and the attention it's received is far more than the car owner ever expected.
After Pierce took his car to a drag race in New York, the magazine approached him about doing a feature. Photographers came to shoot him driving the car around Hubbard Park. It appeared in the January issue of the magazine, and the editors then selected the car as one of the finalists in the contest.
Hemmings Muscle Machines, launched in 2003, is a publication of Bennington, Vt.-based Hemmings Motor News, according to its Web site. It is described as "a high-quality monthly magazine dedicated to old and new American-built performance cars."
A lifelong Oldsmobile fan, Pierce bought the car three years ago for $18,500 with the intention of doing some minor work and taking it around to car shows and cruise nights.
After talking to Minore, though, those plans exploded. The interior has been upholstered and the engine upgraded to drag race in the Factory Appearing Stock Tire Category. Though it has an upgraded engine, it still appears to be factory original in every way.
The upgrades cost between $8,000 and $9,000 with some pro bono assistance from Minore. Pierce estimates the value of the car at $45,000, though he'd never sell it, he said.
Pierce keeps the car in his garage all winter and drives it for pleasure during fair weather. The engine gets 5 to 6 miles per gallon, so it's not a cheap car to drive these days, he said.
Pierce is a maintenance worker in City Hall.
His wife, Christin Pierce, wasn't pleased about the car purchase and the subsequent upgrades, he said.
"She wasn't too happy at first," he said. "Whenever she wants something I get the car thrown in my face."
But he's grateful to his wife for putting up with his expensive hobby.
"She's sacrificed a lot for me to be able to do this," he said. "It wasn't just my paycheck that paid for it."
Anyone wishing to vote for Pierce's car can do so at
http://www.hemmings.com/mmoy.
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