SOUTH KITSAP — Exactly when South Kitsap resident Herb Feulner first got interested in cars and motorcycles is anyone’s guess, including his own.
But what the car hobbyist does know is that he’s always had a hankering for anything with an engine, steering wheel, all encased in metal and appointed with chrome.
“Oh, yeah, I’ve always liked cars,” the 90-year-old retired Puget Sound Naval Shipyard employee said while giving a visitor a tour of his busy working garage off of Sidney Avenue that dominates his property. He was first captivated by the thrill of riding motorcycles with a friend, but then formed a longtime love of automobiles — all makes and models.
The father of two — along with thousands of other auto fans — will be at the Port Orchard waterfront Aug. 13 for the 30th CRUZ Car Show, which is Kitsap County’s highest-drawing summer event.
“It’s a disease,” the affable Feulner said with a laugh. While some car aficionados enjoy the restoration process — he does his share with eight cars on his rural property in varied conditions — when he buys a car, it almost always sticks around to be admired and enjoyed.
One of his favorites is a 1961 blue 4-door Chevrolet Impala hardtop that retains most of its original elements. The interior door panels and detailing, clean and pristine, were fabricated at a Chevrolet plant more than a half-century ago. Most notably, he said, it still retains its original robin’s egg blue coat of paint.
Feulner bought the car from its owner in Kettle Falls, Wash., who wanted to sell it for $8,500. “It was running terrible,” the Saints Car Club member said. “So, I offered him $6,000. He took the offer.”
The Impala was a workhorse of the American middle class in the 1960s. It was stylish, sporty — and affordable. Feulner guessed that a model like his sold new out of the showroom for about $2,000. The robust V-8 283 engine with Power Glide, like other cars of its era, delivered a now-paltry 16-17 miles per gallon on the highway, Feulner said.
The blue Impala with Feulner at the wheel heads out on the highways regularly and usually is joined by three other Saints Car Club members on trips to Montana, Idaho, Colorado and Utah. The classic car also recently made a visit to Santa Cruz in California.
Cars of an earlier vintage rest inside his large garage, in various stages of restoration. A 1934 Pontiac with a Cadillac engine — he calls it his “rat rad” — appears as would a patient on an operating room table, only surrounded by tools and auto parts. A 1939 Studebaker Commander is parked next to it, as is a flashy, distinctive Studebaker Golden Hawk equipped with a supercharger. Adorned with a rich black coat and gaudy gold trim, the car gets plenty of stares when Feulner takes it out for a spin on South Kitsap roads. Today, it’s a silky showstopper, but the Golden Hawk once was nothing but a pile of car parts and sections.
“It was all in pieces when I brought it home,” Feulner said. “It was like a jigsaw puzzle to put it back together.”
Outside the garage and parked under an overhang is a little red and white 1959 Nash Metropolitan, built in England.
Like a father asked to name his favorite offspring, Feulner equivocates but, when pressed, concedes the Oldsmobiles are a particular favorite. He owns two of them, which are models known for their interior luxury and boat-like appearance: a 1985 Cutlass Supreme and a 1961 Olds Dynamic 88, painted red with a white top.
This “father” of a passel of automotive classics acknowledges the love of his automotive babies has been a lifelong thing. But for Feulner, the process of restoration is just a means to an end.
“For me, the fun comes when you get inside and drive down the road.”
