According to my old copy of James Moloney’s Early Ford V8 Photo Album, Ford made more than 10,000 four- and eight-cylinder roadsters in 1932, and just shy of 6,000 cabriolets. Those old open Fords with rollup windows are rare for sure, and even rarer in the hot rodding community. If you’re stripping a car to race it, a roadster is much easier to decontent than a cabriolet, with its fixed windshield posts and glass and window regulators in both doors.

And yet this ’32 cabriolet, now owned by Terry and David Stoker of Stoker’s Hot Rod Factory, makes the case that a cab can be a downright handsome hot rod, one that’s fun to drive, too.

Jerry Hagens, who builds “period-perfect cars” out of his shop in Aledo, Illinois, came across the cabriolet in Missouri in the early 2000s. “It was pretty rough. There were three bullet holes on the right side, and they had torched around on it a little bit.” The area where the top bows hook down was gone, so Jerry had to rebuild that and the rest of the top structure.

But that gave him the opportunity to right what he saw as a wrong. “The cabriolet always had a bad looking top,” Jerry believes, “so I cut the rear irons down 2 inches across the top of the back window. That lays the top down nice.”

Steve Ralphs out of Durant, Iowa, made a new top for the cabriolet and new upholstery out of red leather. “Steve’s a magician when it comes to building tops and stuff,” says Jerry. “This is the first convertible I’ve owned that didn’t leak.”

After the cabriolet was finished, Jerry drove it to Chicago for a weekend trip. “It rained all the way up there, rained all night, and rained all the way back.” Yet he stayed dry inside.

And the Hemi fired right up, despite all that bad weather and no hood to protect it. Jerry plucked the Red Ram out of a 1955 Dodge he found in an Iowa boneyard. “It’s just a super, super little motor. Sounds like a little Offenhauser.” He rebuilt a ’39 Ford transmission to send power to a ’39 Ford rearend.

At the same junkyard where he found the Hemi, Jerry bought a pair of headlights that he believes were from a ’36 Ford pickup. Their housings were painted Desert Sand, a 1936 Ford color. He decided to match that color on the body, the engine, and the wheels. “I just saw the car that way,” he explains. “When I run an open hood I like to have everything tie together.” Red pinstriping on the wheels picked up the upholstery color, as did painting the Red Ram lettering on the valve covers and using red spark plug wires.

Jerry says it usually takes him “10 to 11 months to build a car,” this one included. Once it was done, he drove it “for a while” and entered it in a few shows. The cabriolet earned a Period Perfect award at the Goodguys show in Des Moines, Iowa, in 2004.

“I’ve been in the winner’s circle at Goodguys in Des Moines nine times,” Jerry says. “They always seem to like my cars.”

Headed West
“I loved that car,” Jerry says of the cabriolet now. “I even tried to trade ol’ Lynn back out of it, but I didn’t have anything he wanted.”

“Ol’ Lynn” is Southern Californian Lynn Park. Though he’s best known for his deep involvement with Shelby Cobras, he’s been a hot rodder most of his life, “and I’ve got a little bit of everything,” he says. Not long after Jerry won his Goodguys award, Lynn was asked by Jerry if he’d be interested in the cabriolet. “I said, ‘Sure!’ It had the cutest Hemi in it, a sweetheart of a car.”

Lynn and Jerry are longtime friends, and the cabriolet wasn’t the first hot rod that came to SoCal from Aledo. “He built my Willys,” says Lynn, referring to his drop-dead-gorgeous, all-steel ’40 coupe powered by a 392 Hemi (“The Consummate Willys”).

Lynn figures, “Off and on, I owned the cabriolet for 13, 14 years. I sold it to a guy and then bought it back. I never put it in a show, never had the top down. That top had a pretty shape to it. I just got in and drove it. All I changed was the oil.”

He did sell the cabriolet a second time, to the Stokers, in March 2018. Terry Stoker describes the cab as “90 percent done when we got it. We changed a lot.”

The most obvious change was to the car’s color scheme. The Stokers kept the Desert Sand hue on the body and the engine, but repainted the wheels black (with no red pinstripes) and replaced the red spark plug wires with black ones. Chromed Vintique headlights were mounted in place of the painted truck headlights. Terry said that when they got the car, many of its suspension components were painted red. The Stokers painted the rearend black and chromed the 4-inch dropped front axle.

Inside the car, the red leather gave way to a more subdued black upholstery, stitched by Elegance Auto Interiors. The cloth inserts are from—can you guess?—a 2014 Chevy pickup.

“We like to rescue cars, make them more our style, drive them, and sell them,” says Terry. Back in Illinois, Jerry spotted an ad for the facelifted cabriolet, and he liked the changes he saw. “He did a good job on it,” says Jerry. “It still looks good the way it is.”

“Ford didn’t make many cabriolets, and you don’t often see them as hot rods,” Terry points out. But between the “cute” little Hemi, the laid-down top shape, and the distinctive color, this cab flat-out works as a hot rod. And one that’s ready to log more miles, too.

The post 1932 Ford Cabriolet Is a Hemi-Powered Hot Rod That’s Rare and Driven appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Old Cars Aren’t New Cars

Duh. This revelation split my head after I noticed a gooey spot of oil in the driveway. I was having a causal conversation with my neighbor when I suddenly turned and went to a knee, then dabbed, smelled, and studied the goo in the light. It was gear oil, and worse yet, it was off to the driver side instead of centered in the driveway. It could only mean an axle-seal leak. Walking to the back of the car, I noticed the pinwheel drool marks on the inside sidewall of the driver-side slick. I left the neighbor wondering what was I doing.

For seasoned car guys, this is completely normal. You put a leaker on a clean driveway and I can probably tell you which bearing, seal, or gasket has failed and whether or not you forgot to add the limited-slip additive when you last changed the oil in the diff.

Why am I so good at this? I own old cars, and they always malfunction and leak at some point. I, personally, have no expectation of perfection. Old cars aren’t new cars.

New-car guys have to learn this the hard way. Someone save me from the guy with a fist full of money and the expectation that a 1,000hp street car is going to start all the time and get back and forth to work. They don’t, or at least, not for long.

Old cars, and especially fast cars, are hot and loud, they eat speed parts and batteries, strand you on the road, and annoy your wife and neighbors. It’s just what they do. So if you have $50K burning a hole in your Dickies, buy a $20K car and slowly spend the other $30K when things break. It’s the only way to truly appreciate what you are getting into.

The post Something is Leaking, Can you Guess What it is? appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

You probably noticed this is part two of the story dealing with installing a Chassis Engineering parallel leaf spring (with sway bar) kit, a John’s Industries 9-inch Ford rear suspension in our 1936 Ford Phaeton. The new rolling stock will consist of chrome reverse rims and wide whites from Coker Tire. If you missed part one (Jan. ’19 issue) it dealt primarily with the assembly of the 9-inch rear and painting and prepping all those new parts for installation. Since this is a complete bolt-in operation we painted all the brackets prior to installation. Now we are ready to actually install the parts.

Of course before we can install the new suspension the old suspension must be removed. As always, when working under a car be certain it is safely supported, in this case the car is supported by the chassis so the suspension is hanging free and can be removed.

The removal process is really quite simple. We began on the inside of the car, by removing the transmission tunnel to access the torque tube. Since this is a closed driveshaft we had to disconnect the torque tube at the transmission.

Next we moved under the car to disconnect parking brake cables, brake lines (our car had been converted to hydraulic brakes) and remove the original Houdaille lever action shock absorbers. After removing the shocks take some time to carefully examine the framerail as it is common to have hair cracks where the shocks are mounted. If you find a crack now is the time to perform a proper weld repair. Happily ours showed no signs of cracking.

Next we took a quick trip to our local tire store to have the rear tires removed from the rims. We did this so we could roll the complete rear suspension out from under the car. The tires would never have cleared the fenders and the rims provided the needed clearance, so the unit would actually roll.

With the wheels mounted we slightly lifted the rear axle housing and supported it with jackstands. The weight of the car is still on the chassis jackstands not the rear axle. We removed the nuts from the U-bolts holding the rearend in place and lowered the housing to the ground with a floor jack. The whole assembly was then rolled out from under the car, making way for our suspension and rear axle housing.

The Chassis Engineering rear leaf spring kit for the 1935-1940 Fords has long been a staple in the street rod world. It is a simple, straightforward suspension swap that can be handled by most street rodders at home. It is a complete bolt-in kit so if you have a drill, hand tools, and measuring devices you can install this kit.

Work began at the front spring hanger. Locating the bracket begins by removing the rivet at the bottom of the framerail where the X-member meets the side rail. This is in the “dog leg” of the frame. Carefully remove the rivet as this hole is generally used to bolt the bracket to the frame. This brings us to the fine art of rivet removal. There are many methods, personally I prefer to drill a hole through the center of the rivet and then knock the head off with a chisel. The trick here is finding the center of the rivet for drilling purposes. I fabricated as simple tool for finding center and center punching a rivet (see photos) and I had the rivets out in no time.

With the front rivet removed temporarily bolt the bracket in place. Since early Ford frames vary this hole is not a positive locator, so measurements must be checked. Using a carpenter’s square, check the measurements to be certain the center of the front spring hole is 23-3/4 inches from the center of the rear axle and 41-5/16 inches from the center of the rivet in the forward X-member brace. We used the factory axle snubber as our axle centerline. In our case the rivet hole proved to be a good locator hole. Once the center measurement has been verified simply drill the holes through the side frame using the bracket as a guide. A set of transfer center punches will ensure you are drilling in the center of each hole. The bracket was then bolted in place with the supplied hardware. To complete the front mount there is a second bracket that bolts to the top of the frame and then to the new lower spring bracket. When bolted in place this bracket effectively boxes the frame, making the front spring mount very strong. Since we are doing a “body on” installation we found the proper location and drilled a pilot hole through the floor of the car and then through the top of the framerail. The bracket also required two holes to be located, marked, and drilled so we could bolt it to the new lower bracket.

Next up was mounting the rear spring hanger bracket. Once again this begins by drilling out the rivet in the rear corner of the chassis and the rivet in the back corner of the rear crossmember. We used the same method for rivet removal and then temporarily bolted the bracket through the rear hole and attempted to bolt the front hole in place. Here the aforementioned chassis variation from Ford came into play. Our front hole required elongation of about 1/8 inch for the bolt to go through the rivet hole. A minor modification that then allowed the bracket to bolt in place. The bottom of the framerail is square and clean before drilling any holes. Also, be certain the vertical portion of the bracket is securely clamped against the side of the framerail prior to any drilling.

With the bracket located it is a simple matter of drilling six holes per side to bolt the bracket in place. Begin with the two bolts that go through the side of the rails. Since the gas tank is on the other side of the framerail it is recommended that you put a wood safety block between the frame and the gas tank to ensure you don’t drill into the tank.  With the rear bracket bolted in place we can now mount the springs.

Using the supplied hardware mount the front of the spring through the front bracket and allow the spring rest on the floor. Now is a good time to rotate the spring up to make sure the rear bracket aligns with the spring; ours was spot-on.

With both springs in place it is time to roll our John’s Industries 9-inch Ford rear into place. Having someone on hand to help with this process is a good idea as this is one heavy piece. With the rearend centered over the springs we placed our Chassis Engineering 2-inch lowering block on the spring and then raised the spring up and bolted it in place with the supplied U-bolts. Since our axle housing did not have the spring pads welded in place we did not completely torque the U-bolts, as we would be adjusting pinion angle later.

With the John’s 9-inch housing bolted to the Chassis Engineering springs it was a simple matter of jacking up the housing until the rear springs aligned with the rear spring hangers. The supplied spring shackles were then bolted in place and we now had a new rearend housing mounted in our 1936 Ford. Using an angle finder we rotated the housing to have a 3-1/2-degree angle, we will weld the spring hangers to the axle housing after our coming tranny swap to ensure we have the proper angles before final welding.

Next we mounted the shock brackets to the rear crossmember of the chassis and installed the supplied tube shocks from the lower spring plate to the new upper shock mount. We had clamped the Chassis Engineering sway bar kit on the housing prior to installing the rear axle housing. Installation of the sway bar was very straightforward; simply locate the supplied brackets on the framerail, drill the required holes and bolt on the brackets. Before bolting the brackets in place remember to put the long link bolt and one urethane bushing through the bracket so the bolt is hanging down. The links drop straight down to the sway bar and bolt in place. We had to loosen the U-bolts on the rear housing and adjust the sway bar for proper alignment and the job was done.

The entire kit installed quite easily and we were rewarded with a brand-new rear suspension that will handle plenty of horsepower (although it is doubtful our 59AB Flathead is a real threat) and the leaf spring and rear sway bar will provide good handling. We bolted on our new chrome rims and wide whites from Coker Tire and lowered the car down to the ground. We were pleased with the stance but final adjustments will be made after we install a Super Bell 4-inch dropped I-beam axle up front. Companies like Summit Racing have lowering blocks as thin as 1/4-inch, so dialing in the rear ride height can be quite precise. SRM

The post Installing a 9-Inch Rear in a 1936 Ford Phaeton appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

As the age of the cars being restored grows older, the rust damage needing to be repaired becomes more extensive. Panels that we wouldn’t have even thought to replace a few years ago are being replaced. The upper dash is one of those panels. It’s a part that most folks don’t associate with rust damage, as quarter panels and floor pans seem to get all the glory in that department. But over the years, water seeps under the windshield and through the trim holes. If left untreated, this cancer will spread to the A pillars and the cowl.

The good news is, the upper dash is one of the easiest panels to replace! The welds on the back and sides are covered by the dash pad. The upper cowl grill covers the welds on the front side. Also, the upper dash doesn’t involve any structure in the car. If the cowl is in good shape, there’s no need to use any bracing when removing the upper dash. It’s the perfect project for anyone who has limited or no experience with panel replacement.

As with any panel replacement, proper preparation is key. Measure twice before cutting anything. Take photos of the upper dash, make note of the places where it’s spot welded, and the places along the corners where it’s fillet welded. The VIN number plate is also part of the upper dash; drill out the welds and remove the plate before cutting away the old dash.

Ashley Van Dyke is the proud owner of this 1969 Camaro RS. It was her daily driver for five years, but the rust damage throughout the car needed attention. And with the windshield in place, there was no way to see any problems in the upper dash. Once the glass was removed and the car was blasted, the degree of corrosion in this part was shocking. Luckily, the cowl under it was fine and replacing the upper dash would be an easy task.

Getting Your Weld On
If it’s your first panel replacement, practice your welding on spare parts or metal before trying it on the car. If you’ve never done a plug weld before, drill some 5/16-inch holes in a piece of sheetmetal. Line it up on another piece of sheetmetal and try MIG welding the holes. The MIG wire comes out pretty fast and quickly fills up that plug weld hole. You want to make sure to get proper penetration on the lower piece of metal. Point the wire in the middle of the hole so that it makes contact and heats the bottom layer first. The melting wire will adhere to the edges of the hole. Use a chisel or Seambuster to try and pry the pieces apart. If they separate, then you’re not getting enough penetration to the bottom layer. Practice plug welding until you’re confident in your welds. Find the right combination of wire speed and heat. And if the wire pokes through the bottom layer, stop immediately. Allow it to cool and tack weld up any holes. This is the rule for any welding you’ll do. Burning through does happen, but it’s easy enough to fix.

The Seam Sealing Debate
Some folks like to apply seam sealer immediately before the new dash is put into place. Other professionals prefer to seam seal after all the welding is done. To help us in this debate, we asked two respected restoration experts. Butch Cook of Vintage Cars recommends waiting until after all the welding is done. Molly Gersky of Driven Restorations also likes to seam seal after welding. And it’s easy to do. Sit inside the car, get under the dash, and look for the gap between the dash and the cowl. Place the tip of the seam sealing applicator into the crack and inject a fat bead of sealer along the line. Then run a bead along the front and sides of the dash.

To Trim or Not to Trim
Ashley will be using flush-mount glass for this Camaro, so the windshield trim holes will not be needed. If you’re keeping the chrome trim, do a dry fit of the windshield and trim and see where the holes will need to be located after the new dash is installed. Use the paper template as a reference. Be sure to drill the holes before you do any finish paint.

Materials

The post How To Replace 1969 Camaro Dashboard Sheetmetal appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Sam Foose 1934-2018
Even heroes have heroes. Sam Foose, designer, customizer, and a bona fide hero in the custom car world, died on November 28. He was born in 1934 and grew up in Santa Barbara, California. He fell in love with cars at an early age and was working on them years before he was old enough for a driver’s license. Sam was only 14 years old when his family left the West Coast for Arizona. Sam decided to stay in Santa Barbara. In order to support himself, he put his talent to professional use, working on cars in a friend’s garage, where he was also living.

Sam married his wife, Terry, in 1960. Around that time, he began working for AMT/Monogram. Sam (along with coworker Gene Winfield) had the enviable job of designing and building custom cars that would be the prototypes for the 1:24 scale models. For countless enthusiasts, those models were the first step into the hot rod hobby. By 1970, Sam’s design and building skills led him to open his own shop, Project Design, where he did autobody work in addition to creating hot rod and custom projects. His most eager worker was his 7-year-old son, Chip, who had already been studying and copying Sam’s drawings for several years. Chip’s first tool at Project Design was a broom for sweeping the floor, but under Sam’s eye, he graduated to hammers and wrenches, as well pencils and brushes.

Since those days Chip Foose has become an extraordinary designer and builder himself. Chip has always credited his father, Sam, with being his mentor, inspiration, and above all, his hero. When describing Sam Foose, many of us would use that same word.

Medford Joins Top 100 Program
The Medford Rod & Custom Show in Medford, Oregon, has been added to the Painless Performance Products/STREET RODDER Top 100 program for 2019. STREET RODDER staffers will be at the Jackson County Expo Center in April and nine other events during the year, selecting 10 cars or classic trucks from each event as Top 100 winners for 2019. Each winning vehicle owner will receive a custom jacket. Winning vehicles will appear in the pages of STREET RODDER magazine and on streetrodder.com.

All you have to do to be eligible is show up with your vehicle at one of the following events:
Cruisin’ The Coast 2018, Biloxi, MS                          PAST
Grand National Roadster Show, Pomona, CA           PAST
Sacramento Autorama, Sacramento, CA                    February 15-17
Detroit Autorama, Detroit, MI                                   March 1-3
Medford Rod & Custom Show, Medford, OR          April 13-14
Back to the 50’s, St. Paul, MN                                   June 21-23
Syracuse Nationals, Syracuse, NY                             July 19-21
NSRA Street Rod Nationals, Louisville, KY             August 1-4
Hot August Nights, Reno, NV                                   August 6-11
Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals, Bowling Green, KY     August 8-10

The post Latest News From the Street Rod Hobby appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Torque Specs and You
So this happened. I was torqueing the rod bolts on an engine, and No. 5 didn’t want to tighten up. I knew better, but I kept cranking on them—and then—snap! I broke a rod bolt. These are ARP bolts, the best, and yet they didn’t want to torque. The person who installed these bolts stretched them beyond their ability to spring back and set me up for failure.

You bolt something together to keep it from moving. When you do this, you are applying a preload or “clamp load” to the stack you are trying to hold together. A tightened bolt stretches like a spring. This stretching puts tension on the items being held together and is also enough to keep the bolt itself from backing off due to vibration, heat, etc. If you remove the bolt, the elasticity of the bolt pulls it back into place. So clamp load is what holds your stuff together. The key to a bolt holding things together is the amount that it is stretched. If it is not stretched enough, the bolt can come loose from vibration, and if it is stretched too much, the bolt will not spring back to its original position like this rod bolt and will exceed its yield point and break.

There are three ways to measure the stretch of a bolt: a stretch gauge, a torque wrench, and a torque angle. A stretch gauge only works when you can see both ends of the fastener (like a rod bolt), and most items like head bolts can’t be measured this way. Torque angles can be used, but they need specific calibrations per application. Most of us are going to use a torque wrench to measure the stretch of the bolt.

Torque measures the friction of the bolt as it tightens. As the threads begin to push against each other, the friction between the two surfaces increases and begins to stretch the bolt. When the bolt reaches a certain friction, it is close to the clamp load of the fastener. The torque required to tighten a bolt is determined by the material used, finish of the bolt, strength of the bolt (grade), lubricant used, and condition of the threads. A lubricated bolt requires less torque to stretch, because less friction is involved; remember it is the stretch, not the torque, that determines the clamping load of the fastener.

Most every bolt type has been calculated to a torque specification, which can be found all over the Internet and in many mechanical handbooks. One other thing to remember is something called “friction factor.” According to the ARP website, a bolt has its greatest friction on the first tightening, and as the bolt is loosened and re-tightened, the friction lessens and then levels out. ARP recommends torqueing some of their fasteners at least three times to get close to their recommended torque specification.

Torque Range
Many manuals show a range in which the bolts are torqued. The head bolts on a 390-428 engine torque to 80-90 lb-ft. If there is a specific torque spec for this bolt, then why the range? Ford is not being sloppy; this is telling you a top and bottom limit based on the bolts used. Torque wrenches can vary quite a bit, so this spec says that below this range things can vibrate loose, and above this range you get close to the yield limit of the bolt. Some people torque to the highest recommended number, and with the variability of torque wrenches, you run the risk of falling outside the limits. Torque to the middle of the range.

Torque to Yield
Torque-to-yield (TTY) bolts are used in engines with lots of aluminum parts that heat up and expand more than cast iron. Torque-to-yield bolts are designed to be stretched to a yield range that is at the bolt’s elastic limits, which gives them a more consistent clamping force. Because they are stretched to this yield range, they can’t be reused.

Torque spec is used to measure the stretch of the fastener so the correct clamping force is applied. When tightening bolts, make sure the threads are clean, use the right lubricant on the threads, keep your torque wrench in good condition and have it calibrated every year or so, and torque standard bolts several times to achieve consistent results.

The post Vintage Mustang Tech Questions and Answers appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Mooneyes has been synonymous with hot rod culture since the beginning. That combination, along with many other facets of American culture has made it to the Land of the Rising Sun. The cars that come out of this show every year are more stunning than the last, and each build is infused with Japanese flavor. Checking out the load in of the event is a wonderful inside look at the deeply rooted passion they have for classic Americana. Take a look behind the setup of Mooneyes Japan 2018!

The post Mooneyes Japan 2018 Load-in Gallery appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

In 2015, hemmings.com posted a story about an obscure car called a 1938 Adler Trumpf Rennlimousine. Maybe 10 were built, the exact numbers are not known; and four or five raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1937, 1938 and 1939. One of the cars took a 1,500cc Class win. Today, only three are known to exist. The styling is late 1930’s German aero: rounded front; wraparound windshield and a long, tapered tail. This is a quirky-looking car … until you get to the back of the roof. Wow! It’s a Sting Ray with a split rear window and two round taillights on each side!

The Sting Ray story is that in 1957, young GM designer Peter Brock sketched the basic design, as per Bill Mitchell’s loose direction for the next Corvette: “Mitchell’s” Corvette! Around the same time, Chevrolet general manager Ed Cole wanted all 1960 Chevrolets (Corvette included) to use a transaxle for better weight distribution and improved interior space. Brock’s design was used for the body of the Q-Corvette and included a fastback; but not what we know today as the Sting Ray. A fullsize clay model was created, but due to cost, the overall project fell apart and only the Corvair got a transaxle. Brock left the company shortly afterward.

When Mitchell acquired the mule chassis from Duntov’s Corvette SS racer, he had Larry Shinoda take Brock’s Q-Corvette shape and make a roadster body to fit the chassis. This became the Stingray Racer. When it was decided that the Stingray Racer shape would be the styling direction for the next Corvette, Mitchell gave the assignment to Shinoda. But the Stingray Racer was a roadster, and Mitchell wanted a convertible and a fixed roof coupe for the new Corvette.
So how did Shinoda come up with the now-iconic Sting Ray roof? Everyone just assumed that Shinoda or Mitchell designed it, and no one ever asked.

In July 2015, I wrote a post about the Adler Trumpf Rennlimousine on my corvettereport.com blog site, as part of my “Corvette Odd-Ball” section. In September 2018, I got an email from a man in Florida named James McLynas telling me that he found my story and that back in the late 1980s he owned a 1938 Adler Trumpf Rennlimousine. I got his phone number and we had a very interesting conversation.

McLynas explained that he’s always liked unusual cars. One day in the late 1970s, in Michigan, he saw the back end of an unusual-looking car parked in an old man’s side yard shed. Thinking it was a Corvette Sting Ray, McLynas knocked on the door of the house and met the eccentric owner, Rubin Halprin. When McLynas asked about the old Sting Ray, Halprin went off on him. “Ha! That was Hitler’s car! That’s not a Sting Ray! That’s a 1938 Adler Trumpf! It was raced at Le Mans and won its class! Those bastards at Chevrolet photographed my car, stole my design (Halprin did not “design” the car) and made it into the Sting Ray!” Halprin was a serious hoarder and a real crank.

Halprin went on to explain that he bought the car for $2,000 or $3,000 from a retired Air Force officer that brought the car back from Germany in the mid-1950s. The paint was bad so Halprin gave the car a $19.95 Earl Scheib blue paintjob and used the car for years as his daily driver. One day in July 1959, Halprin took a bunch of local kids to the State Fair. While at the fair, GM Styling executive David Holls and a co-worker approached Halprin and asked if he would bring his unique car to the GM Tech Center. Thinking that GM was going to buy the car and he’d make a nice profit, Halprin had a friend follow him to the Tech Center so that he’d have a ride home.

Holls met Halprin at the tech center with a photographer to document the car. After the pictures were taken, Holls thanked Halprin and that was that. Well, Halprin is royally pissed. He cussed them out, left all steamed up, and was surly about it the rest of his life. A few years later the car was stolen then recovered with the car’s nose banged up. Eventually, the car wouldn’t run anymore so Halprin pushed it into his shed.

In 1985, McLynas happened to be in Michigan and thought he’d look for the old Adler Trumpf. Halprin still had the car, only by then the shed had fallen down and the car’s condition was even worse. McLynas has affection for unusual cars, so he worked a deal with Halprin and bought the car.

McLynas didn’t do much with the car and eventually sold it in 1990 to the Black Hawk Collection. The new owners gave the car a total restoration with the help of a prison work program that taught auto restoration skills to inmates wanting to learn a trade. Years later, the 1938 Adler Trumpf won a class at Pebble Beach, was purchased by a private collector, taken to Austria and never seen again.

After McLynas sold the car, he heard that retired GM Design Director David Holls was to be one of the judges at a concours car show. McLynas went to the show to specifically ask Holls if the Adler Trumpf that he bought from Halprin, had been photographed at the GM Tech Center. Holls explained that he couldn’t talk then because he was judging the show, but offered to have him over to his house. Holls said, “I think I know what you want to know.”

The following week, McLynas visited Holls in his studio. After they had lunch, McLynas asked, “Did GM take the roof design from the Adler Trumpf and use it for the 1963 Sting Ray?” Holls then took out a binder and showed McLynas the photos of Halprin’s 1938 Adler Trumpf. McLynas was looking at his car; the day eccentric old Rubin Halprin took to car to the tech center thinking he was going to get a lot of money. Instead, all he got was a “thank you.”

Holls then said, “Let me answer your question.” (All the while nodding his head up and down) “This car had nothing to do with the Sting Ray.” Holls also had snap shots taken the day he saw the car at the State Fair.

What happened was this; the GM designer photographed an unusual-looking car, one of maybe 10 ever built before World War II that survived the war, eventually becoming a G.I.’s “spoil of war.” Bill Mitchell was GM’s Sr. VP of Design and racing his Stingray Racer on his own dime. But what he was really doing, besides having fun, was testing the public’s reaction to the Stingray’s unique shape. Mitchell saw the photos of the Adler Trumpf’s roof, handed the photos to Shinoda, and instructed him, “This is want I want.”
Everything comes from something. The fact that the Sting Ray’s roof shape came from the Adler Trumpf Rennlimousine in no way detracts from the iconic Corvette. Mitchell had a keen eye for design and intuitively knew his Corvette had to have the Adler Trumpf Rennlimousine’s roof. Vette

The post Origins of the iconic 1963 Corvette Sting Ray split-window design appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

It all comes down to where the rubber meets the road. It might look really cool, have an awesome engine living under the hood, and sound really mean and nasty, but if it doesn’t have the dyno power numbers to back it up, it’s well, lots of talk. Now we’re not here to say that a cool car comes down to just power numbers and realize that many cars are built with different goals in mind. But it is pretty interesting to see what different combos and packages actually produce at the rear wheels.

To find this out we teamed up with the folks at Midwest Mobile Dynojet chassis dyno operated by Redline Motorsports out of Bloomington, IL, which was sponsored by Petty’s Garage.  Held at National Trail Raceway (Columbus, OH) in conjunction with the Mopar Nats in August. The Dyno Showdown allows street-driven, licensed, registered, and insured Mopars to compete for the best power numbers.

We’re also very thankful to the folks at Petty’s Garage for sponsoring the mobile dyno showdown event. Without their help this would not be possible. As well, Petty’s Garage brought out their semi-truck trailer display filled with all kinds of goodies including Petty cars and parts, which was parked adjacent to the dyno action alongside of the National Trail Raceway drag strip. Folks in attendance were able to buy all sorts of performance parts and performance packages to upgrade their Mopars to run like a king! They even had lots of cool T-Shirts there. The folks at Petty’s Garage not only offer cool parts for late-model Dodges and even Jeeps, but they also build complete cars, from late-model Hemi Challengers and Chargers to classic restorations of many domestic makes in their Level Cross, North Carolina facility.

The Dyno Showdown, takes place on Friday from 9 am to 5 pm, while The Mopar Nats drag race, car show and huge (and we mean huge) swap meet occurs over the entire weekend. And most any street-legal Mopar or AMC- vehicle that is registered, licensed, and insured is eligible to compete on the dyno for free. The horsepower classes are separated to one of four classes: Vintage Power-Adder, Vintage Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model Power-Adder, and Late-Model Naturally Aspirated. This year there was no entrant for Vintage Power-Adder. We also included an Editor’s Choice Award to round out four categories, which we provided awards for. To MC this event we had the tremendous help of former Mopar Muscle Editor and now Editor of Car Craft, Johnny Hunkins. As well, we’d like to tip our hat to radio and TV host Clarence Barnes for his great MC duties as well. Thank you.

During the course of the day we had 22 eager competitors who braved the dyno rollers. We were on schedule to have even more dyno competition, but a strong rain storm came down later in the afternoon and left everyone running for cover until after 5:00PM, ending the dyno competition a little ahead of schedule. But we’re definitely looking forward to spinning the rollers next year at The Mopar Nationals in Columbus, Ohio and we hope to see you and your Mopar there!

Sources:
www.midwestmobiledyno.com
www.pettys-garage.com

Amongst our winners for the Dyno Competition were:

Power Adder, Late Model  810.53 Horsepower
Winner: Ron Young
Hometown: Battle Creek, MI

Our biggest power winner for the Power Adder, Late-Model went to Ron Young who brought out his daily driver 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat with a few modifications to test the dyno rollers. When he was done, the computers displayed a whopping 810.53 horses! Plus this runs on E85.

2015 Hellcat Challenger
Red
Horsepower: 810.53
Engine: Blown Hellcat, TTI Exhaust, Pulleys, Injectors, Tim Barth Tuning, Daily Driver

Naturally Aspirated, Late Model  443.93 Horsepower
WINNER: Jason Werner
Hometown: Clarksburg, WV

For the Naturally Aspirated Late Model category we had eight contestants brave the rollers. When we were done, Jason Werner won the category with 443.93 horsepower delivered to the wheels. With a Petty’s Garage prepped 440 HEMI featuring a Comp Cam with 0.645 lift, Kook’s Headers and Magnaflow exhaust system Jason walked away with a trophy.

Horsepower: 443.93
2010 Dodge Challenger
Plum Crazy
Engine: Late model Hemi, 440 stroker  GEN III Hemi, 10.881:1 Compression, Diablo Sport custom tune, Factory 6.1L heads ported by Bear, Stage 3 Arrington Intake, Arrington 90mm throttle body, Comp .645 lift cam, Kooks headers, Magnaflow Mufflers w/Arrington cutouts

Naturally Aspirated, Vintage  737.48 Horsepower
Winner: Brian Schmidt
Hometown: Kewaskum, WI

The Naturally Aspirated, Vintage award was won by Brian Schmidt with his 1971 Plymouth Duster that is powered by 572 cubic inches with parts from Indy, Holley, and more. The pump gas powered A-Body spun the rollers to achieve 737.48 horses.

Horsepower: 737.48
1971 Plymouth Duster
Curious Yellow
Engine: 572 cubic inch Wedge with 11.5:1 Compression. Dual Holley 1050 Dominators, Indy Tunnel Ram intake manifold, Indy Cylinder Heads,. Cam specs, 0.824 lift, 289 @ .050-inch lift. 2 3/8-inch headers with 4 ½ inch collectors. Motor built by Motor Masters to run on pump gas.

Editor’s Choice

Winner: Jerry Otterbein
Hometown: York, PA
Our Editor’s Choice award went to Jerry Otterbein with his gorgesous 1969 Dodge Coronet R/T. Powered by a 440 that is stroked to 502 cubic inches and a parts list that includes an Edelbrock Performer RPM intake and cylinder heads that flow exhaust into a set of TTI exhaust headers.

WINNER

1969 Dodge Coronet R/T
Red
Engine: 502 RB Mopar with 10.5:1 compression, Edelbrock Performer RPM cylinder heads and intake manifold, Demon 850 carburetor, 0.544-inch cam lift, TTI headers and exhaust, and Drag radials.

Check out our photo gallery of the participants and class winners. We hope to see you next year at Mopar Muscle Dyno Showdown sponsored by Petty’s Garage at The Nats – at National Trail Raceway!

DYNO RESULTS:

Naturally Aspirated, Late Model

WINNER
Car Owner: Jason Werner
Hometown: Clarksburg, WV

Naturally Aspirated, Late Model

Horsepower 443.93
2010 Dodge Challenger
Plum Crazy
Engine: Late model Hemi, 440 stroker  GEN III Hemi, 10.881:1 Compression, Diablo Sport custom tune, Factory 6.1L heads ported by Bear, Stage 3 Arrington Intake, Arrington 90mm throttle body, Comp .645 lift cam, Kooks headers, Magnaflow Mufflers w/Arrington cutouts

Competitors:

Car Owner: Brooklyn Reed
Hometown: St. Albans, WV

Naturally Aspirated, Late Model

Horsepower 401.18
2018 R/T
Black
Engine: 392 V8 Hemi, 6.4 L

Car Owner: Charles Tyree
Hometown: Barberton, OH

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower 328.96

2010 Dodge Challenger
Pearl Black
5.7L Hemi
K&N Cold Air intake

Car Owner: Bill Bratton
Hometown: New Palestine, IN

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower 401.26
2012 Challenger SRT
White
6.4 Hemi 392 Hemi
Air Intake mod

Car Owner: AJ Kraft
Hometown: Evansville, IN

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower: 365.24
2008 Challenger SRT8
Hemi Orange
6.1 Hemi
Crower Cam
Flowmaster exhaust

Car Owner: Tom Augustyn
Hometown: Chargrin Falls, OH

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower: 313
2009 Challenger RT
Grey
Engine 5.7 Hemi, Predator Tune, Cold Air Intake, Cat Back Exhaust, Performance Throttle Body

Car Owner: Mike Kollatz
Hometown: Albany, WI

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower 367.76
1997 Dodge Dakota
Bright Jade Pearl
Engine: 5.9,4-inch stroke 408ci, 10.2:1 compression, Magnum R/T cylinder heads, cam 236 duration cam, Spintech 9000 2 ½ inch mufflers, Intake Mopar M1 four-barrel

Car Owner: Sean Cunningham
Hometown: Newark, Ohio

Naturally Aspirated, Late-Model

Horsepower: 256.18
2017 Challenger SXT Plus
Go Mango
Engine 3.6 with Hellcat intake/K&N

Power Adder, Late-Model

WINNER
Car Owner: Ron Young
Hometown: Battle Creek, MI

Power Adder, Late-Model

Horsepower 810.53
2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat
Red
Engine: 6.2, power adder, Tim Barth Tuning, Pulleys, Injectors, TTI Headers, E85

Competitors:

Car Owner: Charles Doran
Hometown: Decatur, IL

Power adder, Late-Model

Horsepower 466.85
2012 Dodge Charger Super Bee
Stinger Yellow
Engine: 392 Hemi, Vortech Supercharger, Corsa Extreme Mufflers, S.O.S. Coils, Custom Tune

Car Owner: William Duncan
Hometown: Wadesville, IN

Power adder, Late-Model

Horsepower: 628.44

2016 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat

Red Lime Red

Engine 6.2L Hemi Supercharged

Car Owner: Brian Gosiewicz
Hometown: West Sencca, NY

Power adder, Late-Model

Horsepower: 514.60
2003 2500 Pick Up
Blue
Cummins Diesel 5.9
Engine Tune by Firepunk, EFI Bosch Motorsports, 66mm turbo
5-inch exhaust

Car Owner: Steven Rutter
Hometown: New Palestine, IN

Power adder, Late-Model

Horsepower 635.29
2016 Dodge Challenger Hellcat
Redline Red
Engine 6.2 L 100 percent stock

Car Owner: Bob Daniels
Hometown: Beloit, WI

Power Adder, Late-Model

Horsepower 656.25
2016 Dodge Challenger Hellcat
Black
Engine: Cold Air Intake, 2.85 Pulley, 1050 Injectors, Cat-less mid-pipe, Diablo tuner

Car Owner: Freddie Loudin Jr.
Hometown: Stonewood, WV

Power Adder, Late-Model

Horsepower 486.70
2015 Dodge Challenger Scat Pack
Black
Engine 392 Hemi,
ProCharger
Longtube Headers

Naturally Aspirated Vintage

WINNER

Car Owner: Brian Schimdt
Hometown: Kewaskum, WI

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower: 737.48
1971 Plymouth Duster
Curious Yellow
Engine 440RB, 4.50 bore, 4.50 stroke 572ci, 11.5:1 compression,  cam .824-lift, 289 @ 0.050., two Holley 1050 Dominators, Indy Tunnel Ram, headers 2 3/8-inch, 4 ½ inch collectors, 4-inch Dynatech mufflers, motor built by Motor Masters and runs on pump gas

Competitors:

Car Owner: Tim and Tom McIntee
Hometown: Struthers, OH

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower 415.26
1966 Dodge Charger
Yellow
Engine 440ci, 750-Edelbrock carb, single-plane, 11.5:1 compression, Trick Flow Power Port 240, Mufflers, Borla Pro XS

Car Owner: Rob Zielman

Hometown: Celina, OH

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower: 232.16
1967 Plymouth Sport Fury
Green
Engine 488ci, V10, Holley EFI, 200-horse NOS, Sheet Metal Intake, Dyno Max mufflers, Tubbed

Car Owner: Bruce Shotts
Hometown: Jeannette, PA

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower 331.04
1977 Chrysler Cordoba
Red
Engine 440, 10.5:1, Carb 850 Holley, Edelbrock Torker II, Iron Heads, .564 lift, AP Stainless Mufflers, Headers 1 ¾ inch

Car Owner: Bob and Peg Lawlis
Hometown: Cuyahoga, OH

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower 683.61
1968 Dodge Dart
Red
Engine: 572 GEN II HEMI
EFI FAST
10.75:1 Compression
B3 Tuner
Stage V Intake
TTI Headers 2 1/8-inch
Homemade cold air intake
CAM Specs I262, E266 solid roller

Car Owner: Greg Krug
Hometown: Lawrenceburg, KY

Normally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower 384.79
1971 Dodge Challenger
Plum Crazy
Engine: 440, 12.5:1 compression, Edelbrock Performer Cylinder Heads, 850 Carburetor, tti headers 2 ½-inch, Mufflers tti Dynomax

Car Owner: Jim Dennison
Hometown: Sevierville, TN

Naturally Aspirated Vintage

Horsepower: 455.87
1966 Plymouth Satellite
Blue w/White Top
Engine 512 RB Chrysler, 13.5:1 compression, Dominator Carburetor, Indy Cylinder Heads, Super Victor Intake, 2 1/8-inch headers, Performance Trans, PTC Converter

The post Power to the People: Testing for Real World Power at the Mopar Nationals appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Check out the latest illustration from Bob Hovorka with help tips and tricks every street rodder should know!

The post Fix’Ems appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

When you first see it, you think, “Now that right there is a really nice car…”

It’s a simple compliment, but one that means so much in the sea of over-customized offerings that we’re usually privy to.

You then stop for a moment, let your eyes refocus, and in doing so, begin to take in the amount of detail and care that’s gone into Pure Vision’s latest creation: a 1971 Pontiac GTO convertible. It was thankfully pulled from a field where it was left for dead, and upon doing a bit of research, was found to be one of only 653 drop-top GTO’s built for the ‘71 model year as well as being the last year for the convertible GTO – ever.

Pure Vision Design is located in Simi Valley, CA and has been producing beautifully reimagined muscle cars for more than twenty years. It’s headed by Ring Master Steve Strope whose calm exterior fools you into thinking that there’s not actually a full-blown circus happening inside his head. That’s why, when a client asks Steve for ideas in regards to a build, he puts on his top hat and gets all giddy. A man of principle, he never builds the same car twice, and when asked to do so he simply states, “Somebody paid a lot of money for version 1.0 and I’m not going to insult them by making 2.0 for somebody else. I’ll just design them their own car.”

Not only does this guarantee exclusivity for the client, but it also ensures that every vehicle that comes out of Pure Vision must stand on its own merit.

If you’re a fan of Steve’s work, then you know that almost every car that comes out of Pure Vision’s rollup door has a theme to it (see Martini Mustang or the Black Ops Fairlane). When it came to the GTO, however, the client had a request that was in no way theme based. He instead, wanted the build to be focused on daily usability- a moderate but not over-the-top blend of performance and comfort.

“The customer wanted to take it out on date night and cruise around with his girlfriend, thus the goal was to get in it, turn the key. drive it, and enjoy it. So, the parts and pieces that were ordered for this car follow in line to that mindset,” says Steve.

Okay, so what does that actually mean?

For starters it means turning the dial down from 11, to a more moderate 8. This in no way means that any less attention was given to the GTO, but instead, there was a re-focus of ideas that culminated into what is perhaps the best driving ’71 GTO convertible in existence.

Upon arrival to the shop, the GTO was bugged-bombed, stripped of its parts, and a new chassis was ordered from Schwartz Performance. The unit came complete with an AGR steering rack built to Schwartz’s own specific valving, JRi shocks, and a torsional rigidity that’s 200% stiffer than a stock A-Body frame. Pure Vision then reinforced it further to quell any additional body flex that may have occurred due to the GTO’s convertible configuration. Out back, a full-floater 9-inch with a 3.50 or so rear gear helps with motivation. Stopping is accomplished via a Wilwood braking system that employs two-piece rotors with beefy 4-piston calipers up front and smaller 4-piston units in the rear. The chassis itself is a beautiful piece and serves as the perfect underpinning for a car of this caliber.

The body is standard ‘71 GTO, which in reality, was a facelift year for the car. Changes included a beautiful wire-mesh grille, dual-snorkel hood and a revised lower front fascia with round marker lights. There were other slight changes incorporated as well, but for you non-GTO buffs, those are the most prevalent. Dismantling any old car is an exercise in patience, and the GTO was no exception. During our conversations, Steve mentioned that preserving all the trim and interior pieces was extremely important due to the rarity of the car, and unlike many of his other builds, reusing those parts was integral, as he wanted to keep the integrity of the car intact.

Once apart, extreme care was paid to the exterior body panels in regards to getting them straight along with making sure that every seam and body line matched perfectly. At this time, the inner wheel tubs were increased by 1-inch on each side to accommodate a 305-series rear tire. This modification required caution, as ample room was still required to allow for the convertible top to retract into the rear cowl.

Based on renderings done in conjunction with Eric Brockmeyer Design, Steve and the GTO’s owner determined that the car was to be painted Celine Bronze, a color Steve first viewed while doing some in-person research at a local Aston Martin dealership. It was then sent to Mick Jenkins of Pomona, CA who made sure the final paint and body was flawless.

Thankfully, Steve also believes in the philosophy that bigger is not always better, and as such he was careful when choosing his wheel and tire package. HRE RS101 wheels with a clear powder coat and dark bronze centers were chosen in sizes 18×9-inch for the front and 19×11-inch in the rear. Tires come in the form of sticky Pirelli P-Zero’s in sizes 255/40R-18, front and 305/35R-19, rear. Running a staggered stance gives the car just enough rake to look sinister, with the upper lips residing just inside the fender wells. Not only does this make for a spot-on stance, but there’s an air of built-in aggression that works beautifully with the overall design.

From the start, the GTO was to be focused around drivability, which is why selecting the correct power plant was of the utmost importance. To achieve this, Steve took full advantage of the millions of dollars spent by General Motors on R&D, and opted for a supercharged LSA crate engine and a 4L80e 4-speed overdrive transmission. These two items, combined with the factory computer, harness, and ancillary items such as the intercooler, intercooler pump, and the air intake system, all insured that reliability would be a non-issue. Well-built and well-designed components rarely fail.

When asked what he thought about the hot rodders of today utilizing modern technology Steve mentioned something that rang very true, “Most of the time, the OEM plug-n-play stuff is better than our aftermarket stuff. Why? It’s not because we’re stupid, it’s because that stuff is built together as a unit and they have millions and millions of dollars of R&D, so taking advantage of that when it works for your project is a great thing. Guys have been taking stuff from junkyards, redoing it, and putting it back on the street since at least the 1920’s and 30’s. Hot rodders have been stealing from what the OEMs made to make their junk go faster and look better, and as such, we hot rodders are some of the first recyclers of automotive components.”

When you break it down, his train of thought makes perfect sense. What lives under the hood of this GTO is essentially what’s powering a 2015 Cadillac CTS-V Coupe, and that my friends, is a very good thing.

Looking inside the car, the first thing you notice is that much like the exterior, the cabin of the GTO is not overly complicated. Instead it represents a beautiful combination of materials and forethought that brings the physicality of the interior up to the standard of a modern luxury coupe. The stock dash for instance was removed and recovered with beautiful chocolate brown leather with contrasting white stitching. Black-faced VHX gauges from Dakota Digital were then installed to cope with the new engine harness. And then, by keeping and refinishing the original knobs and bezels, Steve managed to keep the dash’s overall feel authentic without being over the top.

While the dash is beautifully crafted, it will be the treatment given to the seats and door panels that will set this build apart. With decades of experience, the team over at Gabe’s procured some buttery soft leather to be used for the seating surfaces, along with a stylish mesh that I’ve yet to see utilized in another build. Walking up to this car, top down, is a feast for the eyes and the attention given here helps the GTO come together in a wonderfully cohesive package.

I looked over this car for the better part of eight hours, examining just about every part of it. However, it was when Steve asked me if I wanted to drive it that truly got me excited. Climb in, turn the key, and the GTO fires to life in the same fashion as any modern vehicle. There’s no pumping of the pedal, no fumes, and absolutely no drama. The original Pontiac shifter feels perfect in the hand and dropping the car into gear is as simple as pressing down on the PMD button and sliding the stick back a few clicks.

For comparison, stock GM convertibles from the late 1960s and early 70’s were awful. Yes, they provided an enjoyable driving experience, but good wow did they squeak, rattle and flex! With the GTO, there was none of that. Closing the door was met with a solid “THUNK” and once underway, there wasn’t a hint of a squeak or rattle. In fact, driving the GTO at speed had me forgetting about how terrible these things were from the factory. This partly comes down to the door linings, additional sound deadening materials and obtaining great door latches and strikers, not to mention the ultra-rigid chassis. In the end though it comes down to a theme of quality that can be seen throughout the car. From the builder, to the body and interior shops, to the detailed inspection of every part used before they’re installed, the attention to detail here is something others should use as a benchmark.

Here was a classic convertible that let you have a conversation without raising your voice. It is composed and planted with the on-road confidence of a modern performance vehicle. There was brute force power when you wanted it, loads of brake when you needed it, and luxury that made you feel as if you were driving anything but a 1971 GTO. If there was a downside, it was only that the Goat drove so damn good that it made you forget you were piloting one of the coolest things on the road.

In the end, I’ll say this – if you’ve got the means for your dream car, then talking to Steve Strope at Pure Vision Design wouldn’t be a bad idea as this reimagined GTO is one of the few customs that exceeded every one of my expectations.

The post Overbuilt: Pure Vision Design Builds a Better GTO appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

It’s one thing when you do this thing we do to make a living—it’s often a struggle, but a passion-filled one nonetheless. But for the average blue-collar American who chooses to do this thing we do as a hobby, it can downright be impossible when times are tough. Family always comes first, but when the tight-budget purse strings allow, the ability for a family to partake as a whole—from the building of to enjoying the finished product—it’s nothing short of an amazing experience. Bruce Brunk’s tale of Hot Rod Fever is proof positive, as you’re about to read.

“I’ve been crazy about cars and hot rods since I was in junior high school. I guess it all started when my dad, Nick, bought a 1967 Chevelle that he started drag racing at the local quarter-mile dragstrip located north of my hometown of Ardmore, Oklahoma. I had ‘hot rod fever,’ even to the point of wallpapering my bedroom floor to ceiling (without my parents’ permission) with clippings from my dad’s hot rod magazines (also without permission). To say the least, he was NOT happy.

“During his years of racing, I worked with him every chance I had trying to learn everything that I could. While supporting three children and working a fulltime job, he did what he could working from a one-car garage on a shoestring budget.

“With my dad no longer drag racing and me getting my driver’s license, he handed the Chevelle down to me, which consisted of just a body and frame. Any money I earned working after school went into buying wheels, tires, interior, running gear, and so on. With the help of my older brother, Larry, and my dad, we got the car running and back on the road. After a while, I ended up returning the Chevelle to my dad and bought a motorcycle that I rode during my final year of high school.

“After high school, my car craze continued when I found a 1961 Chevy shortbed truck with a six-cylinder engine and three-on-the-tree transmission that I bought. It needed some TLC, so my friend painted it and I bought wheels and tires for it. This sealed my love for old Chevy trucks.

“This truck was eventually sold, and then in the early ’80s I bought a 1970 Chevrolet truck. This was what I was driving when I reconnected with a girl from junior high school, whom I would later marry. After we married, we sold the 1970. Because a coworker offered me decent price for the truck, I let her go.

“Within a few short years of being married, we had two daughters, Sarah and Rachel, which slowed my pursuit of my hot rod truck dreams. Even when the girls were just toddlers, I had my eye on a coworker’s 1962 Chevy shortbed truck. The day I saw it I told him them that if he ever decided to sell it I wanted first shot at buying it. Sometime later, my coworker stopped me and told me it was for sale. Without hesitation, I jumped at the opportunity and bought the truck. It was a clean, straight body truck with very little rust that ran very well. After getting it painted and then upholstered it became my daily driver.

“During this time when I was driving the 1962, I was working full time at the utility company and taking college courses in the evenings. I was commuting to attend these night classes. Sadly, at this point, the truck’s six-cylinder and three-speed meant it was just not practical. So, I had to sell the truck. Then, in 1992, I decided to pursue a pharmacy degree, so my wife and I sold our home, most of our belongings, and moved from Dallas, Texas, to Norman, Oklahoma.

“During these years, our transportation was limited to what we could afford and keep running, so buying and working on an old truck as a hobby was impossible. A friend in Norman knew how much I loved old cars and trucks, so he took me to see the cars that his father-in-law had in a shop. I’ll never forget walking into his shop and seeing two street rods that he had built: a 1933 Dodge coupe and a 1933 Dodge sedan. I knew then that after graduation from pharmacy school, I would again pursue this hobby of street rodding.

“After graduating from pharmacy school in 1997 and eventually settling back in our hometown of Ardmore, Oklahoma, I began looking for a home for my family. My wife always laughs when she tells people that I went looking for a shop that had a house that my wife might like, which is exactly what I did. After purchasing a home in 1999, I slowly began acquiring what I would need to start this hobby. I was starting from scratch; I had nothing except a small toolbox stocked with a few wrenches, ratchets, and screwdrivers. In addition to my fulltime pharmacy job, I also took on a part-time pharmacy job just to fund my hobby.

“At a Goodguys show swap meet in 1999, I spotted an original and complete 1939 Chevy coupe. A deal was made and the car was trailered home. With my dad’s knowledge and experience with old cars, we took her from a rusty, non-drivable relic to a beautiful street rod. This labor of love took us nine years, all of which were riddled with everything from our laughter to strong disagreements about the build. As soon as we finished the coupe, we started taking it to local car shows; this further fueled my hot rod fever and I knew that I still wanted to buy and build another old Chevy truck.

“In spring 2009 my wife and I went to a Pate Swap Meet in Ft. Worth, Texas. While we were there, I spotted a 1952 Chevrolet five-window truck. The truck looked sound, although not running, so we made a deal and hauled it home. Once we got the truck home and started disassembly, we uncovered more rust than we had expected. Very quickly we realized which original parts could be salvaged and reused along with which parts were too damaged to repair. Ultimately, we saved the cab, doors, hood, and frame—everything else had to be replaced.

“Whenever our schedules allowed us, Dad and I worked to disassemble the truck, label and inventory every usable part, and a made list of parts that we needed to order. After disassembling the truck we had the frame sandblasted and powdercoated. We installed a Heidts frontend, a rebuilt small-block 350 that we pulled from my dad’s 1991 Chevy Suburban, a 700-R4 transmission from Phoenix Transmissions, and a Ford 9-inch rearend from Currie mounted with a four-link from Total Cost Involved. With the rolling chassis finished, we assembled the truck using the surviving parts, new front and rear fenders, plus a new truck bed. Then, our attention turned to the truck’s body. First, Dad and I removed the original firewall and replaced it with a Bitchin’ Products firewall with a 4-inch recess, allowing us more room in the engine bay. After assembling the old and new body parts together, we began to get an idea of the truck’s stance and were able to better imagine what it would look like finished. With everything fitted, we then disassembled the truck in preparation for bodywork. Shortly after this, my dad developed health issues that curtailed his visits to the shop to work on the truck. Fortunately, he was always a phone call away when I had a question or a problem, but his absence slowed progress.

“While the truck was getting reading for bodywork, my wife and I discussed the paint color. I envisioned it being orange but she kept insisting that the truck had to be green. So, we looked at every car show we attended, in every car magazine, and even new cars on car lots in search for the perfect color. Bouncing between orange and green we finally settled on PPG Snake Skin Green. Now the truck is ready for a trip to the body shop—which turned into not one but four different shops.

“An acquaintance gave me the name of the Custom Colors body shop in Choctaw, Oklahoma, which became what was to be the truck’s first body shop stop. After a couple of months, minimal bodywork was completed when we learned that the owner had unexpectedly retired. So, we went to Choctaw, got the cab and other parts, and took them to a local Ardmore body shop owned by Kim Spiering who was willing to complete the bodywork. During this body shop stay Spiering completed the majority of the bodywork, installed door latches, primered the parts, and applied undercoating to the essential areas. It was during this time that I contacted Chris Frasher, a local painter who agreed to paint the truck. Frasher was owner of CF Designs, which was a one-man operation specializing in motorcycle painting but he agreed to paint the truck between motorcycle jobs. After leaving Spiering’s body shop, the truck went to Frasher’s shop to begin final preparation and then paint. However, the truck hood still wasn’t fitting well and needed to be fit to the cab. One day one of Frasher’s friends and a fellow automotive shop owner, Micah Newell, of Newell’s Customs in Healdton, Oklahoma, stopped by Frasher’s shop and inquired about the 1952 truck in his shop. Frasher shared that the truck was there for paint but more work was needed on the hood. Aware of Frasher’s heavy motorcycle jobs, Newell offered to tackle the truck’s hood. The Chevy was headed to her fourth body shop stop, Newell’s Customs, where Newell finished the remaining work on and mounting of the hood—then the truck was returned to Frasher’s shop for paint.

“As body and mechanical parts were painted and ready, I began assembly. This was a slow process that took the help of my family and several friends to complete. My brother, Larry, and I installed the front and rear glass. Then my son-in-law Kane Bass and daughter Sarah installed the corner cab glass. My daughter Rachel helped me connect the front fenders to the cab. After this, I tackled the wiring of the truck and finishing on the bedwood. With the wiring complete and ready for interior, my wife, Denise, and Larry helped me take the truck for upholstery to Shawn Cook, owner of Cook’s Auto Top and Trim. Before we arrived, my wife had already decided that she wanted the seats and carpet to be a rich brown color and she knew what she wanted the stitching pattern to be. In just a few weeks, Cook had installed the sound system and upholstered the truck’s interior.

“When it was time for the bed to be set on the frame, Larry, Kane, Frasher, and myself got the bed squared and mounted to the frame; then we added the rear fenders. At this point, the truck was mostly complete with minor finishing details remaining; and this put us just one week before the Goodguys show in Ft. Worth where the truck was scheduled to make its debut. Frasher and I (and my wife when we needed an extra set of hands) had a few marathon sessions finishing those last few details. (Her extra set of hands was always there throughout the nine-year build. In fact, my wife was there from start to finish all nine years, always willing to lend her hands, and she never minded crawling under the truck and getting dirty!)

“The day the 1952 Chevy truck rolled through the tunnels at Texas Motor Speedway and onto the infield there was a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment of a long nine-year process. Remember the 1967 Chevelle that started my love affair with Chevy hot rods? Well, my dad gave me the Chevelle he raced in the ’70s and it is sitting in my garage—it’s my next Chevy hot rod project!”

Facts & Figures

CHASSIS
Frame: Modified stock
Rearend / Ratio: Currie 9-inch / 3.70:1
Rear Suspension: TCI four-link
Rear Brakes: Drum
Front Suspension: Heidts IFS
Front Brakes: Disc
Steering Box: Power rack
Wheels: 15-inch Wheel Vintiques
Tires: BFGoodrich Radial T/A
Gas Tank: CPP 19-gallon

DRIVETRAIN
Engine: Chevy 350
Valve Covers: Cal Custom
Manifold / Induction: Edelbrock AirGap / Holley 670 Street Avenger
Ignition: MSD
Headers: Sanderson
Mufflers: MagnaFlow
Transmission: Phoenix Transmissions 700-R4

BODY
Style: Advance Design 1/2-ton five-window
Fenders Front / Rear: Stock
Hood: Stock
Grille: Stock
Bodywork by: CF Designs, Custom Colors, Kim’s Body Shop, Newell’s Customs
Painted by: CF Designs
Paint type / Color: PPG / Snake Skin Green
Headlights / Taillights: Classic Parts of America
Bumpers: Classic Parts of America

INTERIOR
Dashboard: Stock, smoothed
Gauges: Classic Instruments
Air Conditioning: Vintage Air
Wiring: American Autowire
Stereo: Memphis Audio
Steering Wheel: 1960 Impala repop
Seats: Snowden Custom
Upholstery by: Shawn Cook Upholstery
Material / Color: UltraLeather / Brown
Carpet: Brown square-weave

The post Hot Rod Fever: The Brunk Family 1952 Chevy Pickup appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

The guys at TredWear have assembled one wicked ride with their irreverent creation of a Daytona-flavored Charger dubbed “Scraptona.” We spent two days shooting the car for the May 2019 newsstand issue of Car Craft, but with their aid, we will now bring you a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to put this bitchin’ car together!

If you’re seeing this for the first time and want to see what all the hub-hub is about, check out “Scraptona” here

You can also visit TredWear’s website here

The post Building The 1969 Dodge Charger “Scraptona”: “Mostly Old Parts & Rust,” With a Twist! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

The Mooneyes Japan car show, formally called the Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show held by Mooneyes, is totally epic in every way. Aside from the fact that the classic American car culture of yesteryear has made it to Japan, the cars showcased are world-class. Kustoms, lowriders, hot rods, classic trucks, bombs, led sleds, muscle cars, even the Pendelton flannels and Dickies work-wear is on point. This show was totally massive so twiddle your thumbs over part one of the Mooneyes Japan 2018 show. 

The post 2018 Mooneyes Japan Car Show Part 1 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Chevrolet General Manager Ed Cole was always “looking over the horizon” for new technology. In 1957, Cole commanded his engineers to start working on a line of 1960 Chevrolets that would all use a transaxle to improve weight distribution and open up interior space. Cole’s line of Q-Chevrolet cars included the Corvette.

Duntov’s Q-Corvette proposal had the required transaxle, a platform frame, four-wheel independent suspension, and an all-aluminum, fuel-injected 283. The Peter Brock body design would later become the 1963 Sting Ray. The entire Q-Chevrolet concept quickly collapsed due to cost and only the 1960 Corvair and the 1961 Pontiac Tempest ever got a transaxle. But Duntov was hot on aluminum engine components. In 1960, aluminum heads were offered in the sales brochure on the 315-horsepower fuel-injected engine, but casting problems caused durability issues and the option was dropped.

In 1962, Duntov developed the all-aluminum 377-cubic-inch racing engines for his Grand Sports. The engines were good for short races but couldn’t hold up for long, 12-hour races. The issue was that the small-block Chevy was designed to be cast iron, not aluminum. While the aluminum 377 was struggling, work began to replace it with the W-Series 348/407/427 truck engine. As soon as the L78 396 was released in 1965, Duntov started working on aluminum heads that eventually became the L88 in 1967 that saved about 65 pounds.

An iron SBC weighs around 575 pounds and an iron BBC weighs around 685 pounds. The SBC was capable of impressive power, but the BBC produced monster levels of power. Duntov wanted the BBC’s horsepower and torque, but with the weight of a SBC. By mid-1967, Chevrolet started feeding all-aluminum big-block engines to Jim Hall for his Chaparral 2F Can-Am car and to Bruce McLaren for his M8A Can-Am car in 1968. Chevrolet quickly made the all-aluminum 427 available to all of the Can-Am teams through Chevrolet Product Promotion. Thus began the total domination of aluminum big-block 427 Chevy-powered McLarens that lasted for five years.

The Can-Am aluminum 427s were modified versions of the L88 Corvette engines and included the following special parts: roller timing chain; Chevrolet-supplied performance camshaft; Forgedtrue pistons; Carrillo rods; Weaver Brothers dry-sump oil system; shallow magnesium oil pan; ported, enlarged and recontoured heads and Crane aluminum roller-tipped, needle bearing rocker arms with studs on top. The induction system used a magnesium manifold with a 2.9-inch bore vertical throttle body for each cylinder. The injectors sprayed fuel into each of the curves of the tuned-length stainless steel velocity stacks. Jim Hall’s Chaparrals used a Lucas-based fuel-injection system and eventually went to a Kinsler system in 1968. The Can-Am 427 big-blocks were the most successful versions of the all-aluminum big-block configurations for racing.

The ZL1 made its debut on the cover of the December 1968 issue of Hot Rod. The headline was mind-blowing. “A 625-HP Look At: Chevy’s All-Aluminum 427.” Then there was the bad news. RPO ZL1 cost $4,718.35 on top of the $4,781 base price of a 1969 Corvette for a grand total of $9,499. “Officially” there were only two ZL1 Corvettes produced. However, there were perhaps a dozen or so pilot cars that were disposed of after development was completed. The ZL1 was essentially an L88 with an aluminum block. The production versions of the L88 had cast-iron exhaust manifolds and stock exhaust, and were slightly quicker than a 427/435 L71. My guess is that offering the ZL1 was a bookkeeping issue, a way to account for the expenditure of development cost. However, Chevrolet did sell a lot of L88 and ZL1 crate engines to racers. Let’s take a look at how ZL1-powered cars faired on the racetrack.

McLaren Can-Am Racers: Bruce McLaren’s Can-Am cars were the best prepared cars in the series. McLaren fielded two cars per year, one driven by Bruce and the other by Denny Hulme. The team would show up, make some adjustments, and win races! This went on for five years. The “Bruce and Denny Show” lasted until the arrival of the turbocharged 917/10 Porsche in 1972.

John Greenwood’s Trans-Am and IMSA Corvettes: Greenwood’s cars were as brash and loud as his driving. Greenwood started as a drag racer and tended to over-build his engines. Greenwood Corvettes regularly took pole positions and broke track records, but didn’t finish races. But he did win the SCCA A/Production championship in 1970 and 1971 and the Trans-Am championship in 1975. Greenwood was once described as “Attila the Hun” on the track.

Jim Hall’s Chaparrals: Jim Hall was the innovator in Can-Am racing. Hall got substantial help from Chevrolet, as several all-aluminum 377 small-blocks were used in various Chaparrals. But it was Hall’s 1966 Chaparral 2E that got the most attention, thanks to the foot pedal-operated rear wing. His competitors laughed until they saw the downforce advantage, combined with wider tires. This enabled Hall to use more power of the Can-Am all-aluminum 427.

Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins’ Can-Am 427 Camaros: In 1969, top Super Stock racers petitioned NHRA to create a new professional class called “Pro Stock.” Big-block Mopars, Fords and Chevys put on an awesome show. The most popular Chevy racer was Bill Jenkins. Grumpy used the all-aluminum Can-Am block engines for his 1969 and 1970 Camaros. As powerful as they were, in a 9- to 10-second drag racing sprint, the Chrysler Hemi cars always had the slight advantage.

Dick Harrell’s COPO Camaro: Fred Gibb Chevrolet worked a deal with Chevrolet Promotions Manager Vince Piggins to buy at least 50 ZL1 COPO Camaros. Cars #1 and #2 of 69 were delivered to Fred Gibb Chevrolet on December 31, 1968. Camaro #01 was sent to Dick Harrell’s shop in Kansas City, Missouri, to be prepared for the 1969 NHRA Winternationals. The Harrell Camaro even took out “Mr. Four-Speed” Ronnie Sox and his Hemi Cuda. In 1971, the car won the AHRA Super Stock and Pro Stock championships.

Jim Butcher’s 1974 NHRA Top Fuel ET Record Holder: Chrysler Hemis dominated Top Fuel drag racing in the ’60s and early ’70s. Ohio racer Jim Butcher discovered that he could build a ZL1 for Top Fuel that was 500-pounds lighter and cost $2,000 less than a Hemi. At the 1973 Gatornationals, Butcher took runner-up in the finals and set the NHRA Top Fuel e.t. record with a 6.07-second run. He repeated his performance at the Summernationals; then qualified #1 at Indy—two-tenths ahead of the #2 qualifier.

In 2008, Chevrolet debuted the “Anniversary 427 Big Block.” All of the original tooling was used, so the Anniversary Edition 427 has oval port big-block heads and the forged rotating assembly. Two deviations were made to accommodate modern pump gas: 10.1:1 compression (the original was 12.5:1) and a mild hydraulic roller cam. Power rating is around 500 horsepower. Each engine was numbered on the valve covers, includes an engine-bay tag, emblems and a certificate of authenticity. List price was $28,625. At the Barrett-Jackson 2008 Scottsdale Auction, Anniversary Edition 427 #001 sold for $60,500.

Like it or not, today we are at the doorstep of the era of the electric racing cars. Modern LS-based performance engines can easily out-perform the big-blocks of the olden days. But there will never be anything like the thunder and roar of those old big-blocks Chevy race cars. Vette

The post The Vintage All-Aluminum 427 Big-Block Chevy V-8 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

It’s hard to know when any of us are influencing a child or adolescent, but rest assured that it happens with regular frequency. Young people are always watching and learning, which is just one of the reasons to always put your best foot forward. We doubt that Stephanie Strack’s older cousin even realized the influence she was having on 10 year old Stephanie when she began driving a bright yellow SN95 era Mustang around Y2K, but influencing she certainly was. Stephanie explains that it was this car that hooked her on Mustang mania; she even knew it at the time. Some day… she thought.

By driving age, Stephanie’s desire for a Mustang of her own was burning strong, but a car certainly wasn’t going to be handed to her. “When I was 17, I got a job at a local fast food restaurant, and took the bus there every day after school for work.” She even recounts working the drive-through window and noticing a guy in a modified SN95. “Right there I told him I wanted a car like his some day, and remarkably, we’ve become good friends in the years since. Jereme Sawyer is an Afghanistan war veteran, and is still an inspiration to me.” After saving her pennies, Stephanie’s first Mustang would come a short time later when she bought an 2001 V6 with a 5-speed in 2007. While it wasn’t her ultimate dream car, it was certainly a good start. Stephanie was becoming immersed by now, rowing her own gears, installing a Flowmaster exhaust, and getting to know other members of the Mustang community at a weekly Friday night car show near her home in Puyallup, Washington.

Stephanie took another step up in 2010 when she bought an 2002 GT, but her life went on hold a couple years later when she joined the Army; eventually working as a military police officer. Once in the groove as an MP, Stephanie again returned to her Mustang interests and traded the GT in on her first real dream ride, a 2007 Roush Stage II. It was a genuine creampuff with just 3,200 miles, and Stephanie wasted little time making it her own. She turned to Brad’s Custom Auto in Seattle for a litany of modifications, to include cams and long tube headers, and for awhile it was Mustang bliss. “I loved that car,” says Stephanie, “but to be honest, I ended up having a lot of unfortunate experiences in it.” The troubles were two-fold, with annoying gremlins that may have come from mostly sitting for 7 years, such as the leaky heater core and intermittent dash light failures. The real kicker for the car that Stephanie later nicknamed “chaos,” was a series of accidents caused by distracted drivers. After several repairs, the Roush was no longer the creampuff that Stephanie desired, which brings us to the car spread across the pages here.

Fresh out of the Army in late 2016, and with a good job in hand, Stephanie decided it was time for a fresh start. She traded her Roush in on a brand new 2017 GT, and now had a clean slate to work with. Stephanie has always worked hard for what she has, and knows the value of a buck. The new car was an admitted stretch for the then 27 year old, and so she carefully prioritized what she was willing to pay for. “I decided against the upscale trim packages, because frankly I think the base interior is pretty nice. Instead I spent my money on things that really mattered.” Read between the lines, and that means Stephanie eschewed the frills in favor of high performance. Of course the main players are the GT’s Coyote V8, a six-speed manual trans, and the Performance Pack which comes with 6-piston Brembo front brakes, 3.73 gears, and a host of other suspension and cooling upgrades. Stephanie’s color choice was Magnetic Metal, thought the current deviation is clearly visible – more on that in a moment.

Fresh from delivery, Stephanie wasted little time putting her own stamp on her new car. First up was a set of Steeda lowering springs, and not far behind was a Steeda rear wing and MMD grills. Stephanie explains that she chose the wing in part, in homage to her first Mustang, a New Edge with a factory rear spoiler. “The Steeda piece reminds me of the original wing on my 2001, although the Steeda one looks much better, and on a S550, I think really sets it apart.” Clearly, Stephanie was charting a course that would make her Mustang uniquely hers, though the real showstopper was still to come.

When Stephanie purchased her new GT, she truly loved the dark metallic factory hue, and still does, but she soon realized she wanted something that would really separate her Mustang from the crowd. To that end, she decided on a full vinyl wrap supplied by Fellers, the actual vinyl being an Avery Colorflow satin product in a color known as Rushing Riptide Cyan Purple. The chameleon like nature of the wrap ranges from deep blue to purple, and while it’s not going to be what everyone wants on their own ride, it’s unquestionably stunning. It’s frankly what drew us to the car when Stephanie had it on display at the Mustangs Northwest Bellevue Roundup, but we were drawn further in by Stephanie’s story and her passion for Mustangs.

Just as Stephanie did with her 2007 Roush, she enjoys occasional track forays in her 2017 on the road course at Portland International Raceway. The site of numerous professional race series events over the years, Portland is a great place to exercise the performance offered in today’s high powered ponies. And yet the factory 435 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque offered by the Coyote 5.0 wasn’t enough for Stephanie. She recently upped the ante with Ford Performance’s M-6066-M8627 supercharger kit for the S550, featuring a 2.3-liter TVS blower that makes up to 9-pounds of boost. This gave Stephanie’s S550 a healthy bump in power to 670 horsepower and 545 lb-ft of torque.

With engine output that is undoubtedly dragstrip worthy, we asked Stephanie if she’d ever run the quarter-mile. “I’m planning to this coming year,” she said with a grin, adding that she has a one-piece driveshaft and a couple other upgrades to do before she gives it a shot. Rather than just an optimistic comment, we’re confident Stephanie will make that 2019 date at the drags because she’s got a can-do attitude, and a track record of accomplishing what she sets out to do. And if we had to guess, we’ll bet her trip to the dragtrip will be the first of many!

The post Stephanie Strack’s 2017 S550 Mustang GT appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Chrysler didn’t set the world on fire with the release of the sporty compact Barracuda on April 1, 1964. That blaze was ignited two weeks later with the premiere of Ford’s iconic Mustang. However, Plymouth’s work was not in vain, as its ponycar entry would one day morph into one of the hottest rides ever to hit the road during the heyday of Detroit’s muscle car wars.

Plymouth built the fresh “new for ’64” fastback on the shoulders of its Valiant compact, which paralleled the same formula Ford followed by creating the Mustang on the established Falcon platform. There were overall aesthetic similarities between the two cars, but the main visual difference was the exceedingly ginormous greenhouse glass covering the Barracuda’s foldable rear seats. It was both loved and hated by the masses; either way, it set the Mopar entry apart from pretty much any car on the market at the time.

Just like the Valiant, the Barracuda was offered with Chrysler’s indestructible Slant-Six powerplant, along with the new-for-1964, LA-based 273 V-8. Mother Mopar gave the first-generation Barracuda all the goods it would need to compete with the Mustang on a performance level, but Plymouth soon found out that the Mustang would be the belle of the ball in Detroit for those first few years of production. Unfortunately for Plymouth, Barracuda production numbers were never more than a fraction of the number of Ponies being pumped out of Ford’s assembly plants.

In 1965, Plymouth decided that the Barracuda needed a performance package of its own. The Formula S option was soon offered on the newbie compact. Overall, it was well received by consumers looking for a sporty ride with a kick where it counts. By selecting this option, buyers received the 235hp Commando 273 V-8 powerplant, larger wheels and tires, suspension upgrades, and a tachometer; all of which helped make the Barracuda a performer out on the street, especially when paired with the A-833 four-speed transmission.

The Barracuda went through a facelift in 1966, a new front clip and taillights giving the compact a more chiseled look. However, the writing was on the wall for this fish, as Plymouth promised a total revamp of the Barracuda for 1967. Sales slumped greatly, though many felt that the 1966 version was the best-looking of the three years of the first-generation Barracuda.

The Formula S package was brought back in 1966, nearly identical to the previous year (other than a four-speed shifter change). The package sold well, with 5,316 cars being equipped with it out of the total of 38,029 Barracudas that rolled off the assembly line. These little A-Bodies became a popular choice for professional road course racers looking for a car that could compete when both power and agility were needed.

A Fish Tail
Back in the 1980s, Bill Marchese of Staten Island was traveling cross-country in his Ford Fairmont wagon when he had his first encounter with a Barracuda. You see, the big family truckster broke down, and he limped it into a nearby garage. Waiting for service, he spied a 1965 Formula S on the property. He had never seen one in person before and was intrigued with the standout Mopar. He asked the owner if it was for sale, and the reply was no.

“I didn’t know much about the Barracuda back then; I thought it was some kind of special edition with all that glass back there,” says Bill. He returned home to New York but never could get that Barracuda out of his mind.

It would be years later when Bill would finally nail his own fish. Now retired, the former Corrections Captain was looking for a project car. He remembered the fish that got away and started looking for a similar ride to restore on his own. On a web search, he spotted a needy but complete 1966 Barracuda in nearby Pennsylvania. From the pictures the car looked to be in good shape, and was built up the way Bill would have done it himself. It even had the Formula S option, rowed by a four-speed and with creature comforts like air conditioning. Bill figured that’s got to be a rare combination. After a brief negotiation, this Citron Gold fish was coming back to Staten Island for a makeover.

Bill was happy that there were no surprises when it came to his new Mopar. The car was complete and in good overall shape, but it had been off the road since 1988 and not running at the time. In a matter of a few days in the garage, the car was back on track running well. As it was a Southwest car originally, the body was in excellent shape, needing only minor work to get it up to snuff. Bill had it resprayed in the original color and added a black accent stripe, which was a dealer-installed option at the time. Legendary supplied the new interior.

The car also came with some nice options. “It has front disc brakes, console, and Sure Grip rear, along with the tinted windshield,” states Bill. One thing he did locate was a N.O.S. resonator out back, a hard piece to find these days. The car is believed to be driving on its original powertrain: engine, trans, rear, and even its original clutch. At 108,000 miles, it’s just getting broken in!

Once out on the road, Bill loved the way the compact performed. He also loved the fact that he had a car that everybody didn’t have. “I could take it out to big shows and be the only 1966 Barracuda around.” But all good things must come to an end, and it did for Bill and the Barracuda. He put the car up for sale, and it was nabbed by car collector Mark Goldberg from Long Island, New York.

Mark, too, was taken by the vibrant color and sportiness of the Barracuda. In his extensive garage, it now shares space alongside one of his most cherished rides and a Mopar nemesis from days past, his 1965 Mustang. Mark continues to keep the car on the road, taking Mopar’s brilliant A-Body hot rod out on flogs around the community. This fish is right at home on the shores of Long Island.

At a Glance
1966 Barracuda Formula S
Owned by: Mark Goldberg
Restored by: Owner; Bill Marchese
Engine: 273ci/235hp Commando V-8
Transmission: A-833 four-speed manual
Rearend: 7 1/4-inch with 3.23 gears and Sure Grip
Interior: Black vinyl bucket seat
Wheels: 14×5.5 steel
Tires: 185/70R14 Goodyear Viva
Special parts: Airtemp A/C, console, Formula S package, tinted windshield

The post 1966 Barracuda Formula S: Plymouth’s Opening Salvo in the Muscle Car Wars appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

From dream car to daily driver, John Collins couldn’t be happier in his 2009 Shelby Mustang GT500. Growing up, John wanted the pony car since its debut in the 1960s, telling us, “I wasn’t able to get the Mustang I really wanted back then due a financial reason. I was already married and had some kids.”

Fast forward almost 40 years and John is now cruising around in his dream car. The Wisconsin native finally came to terms with his dream and bought a 2009 Shelby Ford Mustang GT500. This Mustang is packed with a supercharged 5.4 L engine under the hood and Collins is not shy, always willing to tell you his dream car has just enough pick-up to turn a few heads. He said, “This car was worth the wait!”

If you have a Fierce Ford in your garage feel free to reach out to Fierce Ford Friday contributor, Kendra Sommer. All Ford submissions can sent to: kendra@cwkmedia.net For more Fierce Ford Fridays head over to www.Mustang360.com

The post Fierce Ford Friday 2009 Shelby Mustang GT500 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

The Mustang is truly a worldwide phenomenon, as we constantly get emails about cool Mustangs not on our continent. For some reason, Belgium seems to be a real hotbed of Mustang passion—see our story on Adelbert Engler and his 5,000 “Mustangs” (http://www.mustangandfords.com/features/1712-the-man-with-5500-mustangs/)—and that was proven again when ‘s Jegers Dirk (we know, odd spelling but, ya know, Belgium—we’ll just call him Dirk) about his 1968 Mustang GT that we first heard about from Tony McEwen at TexasMustang.com.
Dirk is the PR Manager for the Belgian Mustang & Cougar Club and his Mustang story started about 20 years ago when he discovered the Mustang and had the desire to build one. He found a ’68 GT at Movie Cars in the Netherlands that had matching-number transmission and rearend, but a non-original engine. The VIN showed it was a J-code car, and overall was fairly rough but all there and rust-free. The previous owner had been in California, the land of (mostly) rust-free sheetmetal. In fact, on one of his visits to America, Dirk went to the previous owner’s house in California and reported, “The only silent witnesses were the oil spills on the driveway, which were most likely from our Mustang. According to the current residents, the previous owner had died a few years ago, probably the owner of our Mustang.”

It was clear that the car needed a good restoration, but Dirk drove it around Belgium for a good 18 months just like it was to figure out what should be done to the car, and that prompted a complete restoration to as original as possible with, as Dirk said, “no modern gizmos, just old school as he came off the assembly line at the San Jose plant in February 1968.”

As the years went by, he collected parts and slowly began tearing the car apart and restoring it, renewing all the hardware he could get, much of which came from AMK and National Parts Depot (NPD). While stripping the pain by hand, he discovered a C-stripe and two-tone hood. Once the car was stripped to a bare shell and coated with epoxy, they sprayed original I-code Lime Gold (in lacquer! Must be nice to live in Belgium!). The glass is all original, including the vent windows after “intense polishing.” All of the exterior chrome pieces are original as well (after re-chroming). Texas Mustang Parts supplied new parts for the suspension and brakes, and the interior parts came from TMP and Distinctive Industries.

The small-block J-code 302 4-V was rebuilt by Gunter Specialties LLC in Valley Mills, TX with as many correct parts as possible, including a cast-iron intake and the original 4-V heads with Autolite carburetor. It was dyno tested at Eaton Balancing in Lorena, TX and made 230 horsepower, “just the way I wanted it to be,” according to Dirk. The rest of the car received similar tender loving care.

Dirk said, “Our Mustang has become a part of our family, perhaps in the same way as in his previous life in the States. M dear wife Gerd was always there for me with good advice and care, and she has helped me very well with research and purchases on Ebay. Good friends of mine always liked to [tease] me a little bit by saying, ‘Are we going to experience in our lives when this Mustang is finished?’ They seemed to be struck by lightning when they saw the car for the first time! We are very proud that we have saved this car and have restored it back to its original state. Now it’s time to take care of it, drive, and enjoy the Mustang. There have been so many people over the years who have assisted me with help and advice, so many thanks to everyone who helped me on this project, an American legend in Europe.“

Built with special thanks to: Gary Pate, Robert Lane, Lisa Kotlovsky, Heather Griffith, David G Cruz, Art Mann, Vicky Thurman, Mohomad Obaidy, Bob Perkins, Tony McEwen, Francky Nuyts, Howard Hill, Mark Hiatt, Geoff Abel, Emiel de Weerdt, Peter Crauwels.

The post An American Legend in Europe, 1968 Mustang GT appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

There are car guys and then there are Corvette guys, but that doesn’t mean a car guy can’t become a Corvette guy. Take, for example, John Gendelman of Flemington, New Jersey. John owns what might best be described as an eclectic mix of mid-modern American automobiles, with representation from both Ford Motor Company and General Motors: a ’57 T-Bird, a ’50 Cadillac and a ’62 Chevy stepside pickup just to name a few.

This is not to say John’s desire for a Corvette is a recent development. On the contrary, he’d been searching for a 1962 Corvette for quite a while. It was a different ’62 model on eBay that lead John to the Ermine White ’62 featured here. John told a friend about trying to deal with a cantankerous seller on eBay with a chronically listed car and the friend told John of this ’62 Corvette, which was located just around the corner from John’s office.

John met with the seller and it didn’t take long to split the difference between John’s offer and the asking price. It was an unmolested driver in good condition that was still in the original owner’s family. It was perhaps being equipped with a Powerglide transmission that cast the ’62’s fate as a good starting point for what John had planned. Typically, Powerglide Corvettes aren’t exposed to the type of service a stick-shift car sees. Under the hood, behind the last year for a cast-iron case Powerglide, was a first year SD code 327 with 300 horsepower.

John drove the ’62 for a brief period of time before he decided its primitive qualities needed modern enhancement, but no modifications could take place that couldn’t be reversed.
Enter Paul Comeau and the Corvette Shop of Montgomery, New York. The Corvette Shop’s first tasks were to upgrade the suspension, steering and brakes. Adhering to John’s keep-it-reversible mandate, the stock ’62 Corvette IFS with recirculating ball steering and drum brakes hung from spindles on bushed kingpins was removed as a unit and replaced with Jim Meyer Racing Products 1953-’62 bolt-in front steer crossmember.

The new bolt-in crossmember arrived with the upper towers welded in place holding tubular upper and lower control arms. Using over-the-counter GM parts, the spindles pivoting on ball joints are 1967-’72 Chevelle pieces equipped with Wilwood 11-inch disc brakes. A Corvette dual master cylinder with a vacuum brake booster handles assist. At three turns lock-to-lock, a Mustang II-type manual rack-and-pinion handles turning and QA1 adjustable coilover shocks do the damping.

The rear suspension retains a 3.36:1-geared live axle with posi, but in place of the OE parallel leaf springs is a Jim Meyer Racing Products four-bar kit. As in front, fully adjustable QA1 coilovers handle damping. Vette Brake & Products 10-inch disc brakes do rear braking. Not getting carried away with the brake rotor size allowed 15-inch wheels to stay in place. Coker 205/75R15 American Classic narrow whitewalls are mounted on polished America’s Finest Corvettes simulated knock-off alloy wheels.

Under the hood where a 300-horse 327 once was there’s a 1971 350 with a mild bore out to 355 inches. Chevrolet Orange engine enamel with a stock ’62 Corvette air cleaner helps to impart an original look and to conceal the FAST EFI on an Edelbrock Performer intake manifold. A stock, polished stainless steel ignition shield conceals a Delco-Remy points and condenser type distributor upgraded with PerTronix inductive-type ignition with a mechanical tach drive Delco-Remy generator completing the stock look. A DeWitts Direct Fit aluminum radiator in conjunction with a six-quart finned aluminum oil pan keep the engine cool.

Martin’s Transmission in Walden, New York, rebuilt and beefed a 700-R4 with a TCI 2,200-stall converter and lockup valvebody, giving the ’62 a lower first gear plus overdrive. Additional detents and quadrant markings make the stock Powerglide shifter appear unmodified at first glance. A Corvette shrunken 15-inch diameter steering wheel adds room for driver comfort and helps to quicken the steering ratio.

The Corvette Shop looked to Al Knoch Interiors for the ’62’s interior restoration and upgrade needs. At the Corvette Shop, a foundation of Dynamat was laid over the floor and transmission tunnel followed with underlayment and red loop pile carpet matching 1962 OEM specs. The stock red vinyl buckets were replaced with a pair of Al Knoch Interiors complete bucket seats upholstered in red leather. A pair of new door panels, sill plates, cranks and knobs completed the doors. The almost undetectable from a stock Corvette radio is a RetroSound AM/FM head unit.

Having been repainted only once, the paint was in great condition when John bought the ’62. The original owner stuck with Ermine White, but opted for a more durable, glossier basecoat/clearcoat done in PPG urethane. The Corvette Shop did not restore John’s ’62 all at once. In between driving the car quite a bit, John would bring it in to repair a road scar or keep making improvements. At one of these times all of the chrome and stainless steel was removed and sent to Virginia Vettes for re-chroming and polishing.

John Gendelman has the Corvette bug now and there’s no turning back. He recently added a 1965 Sting Ray convertible with a 365-horse 327 and a brand-new C7 Z06 to his mid-modern mix. Having the new Z06 doesn’t mean the ’62 doesn’t get driven. On more than one occasion, including a 2014 jaunt down to the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, John recollected pulling down the highway miles and feeling like he was Tod or Buz driving on Route 66. Vette

The post 1962 Corvette Restored and Customized for Show and Go appeared first on Hot Rod Network.