If you’re looking to buy a new Mopar and live around The Dalles in northern Oregon, we have an additional reason for you to drop by Urness Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep. There to greet you as you enter the facility next to the Hellcats, 300s, and Jeep Track Hawks is a beautifully restored 1968 Dodge Charger 440 R/T, property of dealership owner, Tim Urness. Dressed in Bright Red, this beautifully restored car is a thing of beauty. But the journey from field car to show ready was marked by a series of challenges not uncommon for these classics from the original Mopar muscle car era.

Urness found the car sitting in a field not far from his home in Oregon. Supported on four logs, the car was in the worst condition of three Mopars (including a 1970 Mod-top ’Cuda and a ’70 Charger R/T) that belonged to the current owner who stated that he purchased the car from a guy from California who was stationed in the military. The owner gave the Charger to his father to drive for a while but when his father opted for a new car, the Charger was relegated to its “log-based storage.” It was due to the fact that the ’68 Charger required the most work of the three cars he owned at the time, that he decided to part with it and handed the key to Urness in 2001 after some quick negotiation.

The rebuild started almost immediately as the car was disassembled and assessed for parts that would require replacement. With time, the car was media-blasted to remove all previous paint at Urness’s brother-in-laws shop. All seemed to be on the way to revitalizing the classic until a snowstorm brought everything to a halt. The winter of 2005 was one for the books in the Columbia River gorge. At the height of one storm, the roof on the shop where the Charger was undergoing its restoration collapsed. For two long weeks, no one knew the fate of the Charger, but a betting man would have guessed this was the end of the line for the classic Dodge.

As luck would have it, a welding table positioned near the Charger saved the car from being crushed like a beer can, the table holding the roof of the car after its collapse. A single dent in one A-pillar bore witness to the close call the car encountered — an amazing stroke of luck. But the question then became where to take the car next.

The Smith Brothers, James and Bob, from Lyle, Washington, are well known for their vast restoration knowledge, Dodge Chargers of this vintage being one of their specialties. With metal scalpel in hand, they removed all of the remaining rusty pieces and then put in a big order from the Auto Metal Direct catalog to obtain the parts needed to make this Charger whole once again. From the glass to the bumpers to a vast amount of body panels, they masterfully installed the new parts retaining key elements of the original metal when possible. Credit for the paintwork falls to The Mad Hatter, Doug Graves who applied the impressive Bright Red coatings.

The original 440-cid engine was also going through a reconditioning program at the time to make it worthy of the rest of the car that was shaping up quite nicely. Local Chrysler technician Doug Zaugg was charged with rebuilding the engine to better than new condition. Among the key elements used to build out the 440-cid engine were Keith Black pistons, Mopar Performance camshaft, and an Edelbrock 4BBL carburetor. The original block, heads, and intake were retained and a Mopar Performance ignition was installed to fire it on key command. The original Chrysler New Process A833 four-speed transmission was rebuilt to factory specs — in this case Hemi specs with an 18-spline input shaft for the peak of durability.

High praise for their efforts to restore the Charger comes from Urness who recently stated, “The Smith Brothers Restoration helped to restore the vehicle using their encyclopedic knowledge of Chargers. It was under their guidance and talent that they assembled all of the loose ends to keep the project pure. Their help was invaluable in this endeavor, and I cannot say enough about their skill, knowledge, and friendship.”

The Urness Charger looks just like a factory fresh R/T as delivered in 1968. If you get the chance to drop by the dealership, it’s worth the trip to see this classic even if you don’t roll out with a new Hellcat Charger. But this classic muscle car could just put you in the mood for some tire-smoking action of your own. We warned you!

Fast Facts
1968 Dodge Charger R/T
Tim Urness, The Dalles, Oregon

ENGINE
Type: 440-cid V-8, 375 hp, 482 lb-ft torque
Bore x stroke: 4.350 (bore) x 3.750 (stroke)
Block: factory OE 0.030-inch overbore
Rotating assembly: forged factory crankshaft and stock connecting rods and Keith Black pistons, 0.030-inch overbore
Compression: 10.1:1
Cylinder heads: factory original cylinder heads (PN 2843906)
Camshaft: Mopar Performance Purple camshaft with Mopar valvetrain
Induction: Single Edelbrock AFB-style 4-BBl carburetor
Oiling system: Milodon increased capacity oil pan with high-volume pump
Exhaust: factory exhaust manifolds, mufflers and tips
Ignition: Mopar performance electric conversion kit
Cooling: additional row of cooling tubes (three rows total)
Engine built by: Doug Zaugg
Machine work by: Shawn Daggett

DRIVETRAIN
Transmission: Dodge A-833 New Process four-speed, 18-spline input shaft
Clutch: Centerforce clutch system
Shifter: Factory stock Hurst 4-speed shifter
Suspension: Firm Feel Suspension with increased diameter sway bars and torsion bars
Rearend: Chrysler 8 3/4-inch rear end with 3:23:1 ratio with Sure-Grip

CHASSIS
Suspension: stock Chrysler
Steering: Firm Feel Suspension fast ration steering
Front brakes: stock Chrysler 11×3-inch drum brakes
Rear brakes: stock Chrysler 11×2.5-inch drum brakes
Body reconstruction and restoration: The Smith Brothers (Lyle, WA)
Painter: The Mad Hatter, Doug Graves (Dallesport, WA)
Paint: Bright Red paint

WHEELS & TIRES
Wheels: 15×8 (front) and 15×10 (rear) Magnum 500 wheels
Tires: F70-15 Goodyear original-style tires

The post Dealer’s Choice: 1968 Dodge Charger 440 R/T appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Ancestors

With so much action occurring simultaneously in so many regional hotbeds this year, no single magazine staff could hope to be in all places at all times. Robert E. Petersen’s unique advantage was owning multiple titles, each employing specialists who overlapped into the print equivalent of an automotive internet. Moreover, “Pete” could test the potential of any emerging market quickly and relatively cheaply by utilizing in-house editorial and production people to either start a publication from scratch or spin one off from an established Petersen title, then heavily promote the new project in the others.

This year, go-kart-crazy Car Craft launched an offshoot called Kart, packed with ads. Similarly, Motor Trend soon spawned competition-oriented Sports Car Graphic. Immediate, widespread widespread distribution of anything new was assured by a North American dealer network already profiting from Pete’s established monthlies, plus a steady barrage of thicker, higher-priced, “special edition” Petersen annuals, how-to books, racing compilations, and other recyclings of previously published articles and photography.

We’re sharing this ancient history to illustrate how the vast Petersen Publishing Company photo archive came to acquire an incomparable range of subjects. This year’s vehicular variety foretold the unprecedented strangeness of the decade to come. Among other oddities, Pete’s road warriors documented beatniks and bubbletops, a fighter-jet engine on wheels, four V8s on wheels, and a show-winning custom “car” with no engine and no wheels. They covered the first 400-mph American car and driver, tested a new wave of “medium compacts” from all three of the Big Three, and chronicled sleepy Pontiac’s seemingly sudden emergence atop auto racing (the GM division’s reward for three years of discreetly circumventing Detroit’s 1957 agreement to stop sponsoring, supporting, or even promoting high performance).

While those lucky guys enjoyed virtually unrestricted access wherever they flashed a Petersen business card, only a tiny fraction of their photos were published at the time. Whereas anything in print had passed scrutiny from the editors, advertiser-conscious publishers, and all-powerful editorial director Wally Parks, the rest of the story often went unseen and untold due to political, business, personal, or space considerations. It’s these unpublished outtakes that deliver deeper, truer insight into scenes unfolding right in front of staffers’ lenses—but subsequently kept behind the curtain separating us mere mortals, the readers.

Some of the artists’ faces appear here, frozen in time by mischievous colleagues always armed with cameras. Almost all of them are gone now, nearly six decades after so much of their best 1960 work was developed, dried, sleeved, labeled, filed, and forgotten, forever—or so it must have seemed to our frustrated editorial ancestors. It’s our pleasure to prove them wrong here in the next century.

The post Mickey Thompson Hits 400, George Barris Builds an Air Car, and Flying Caduceus Launches Bonneville’s Jet Age in 1960 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

North Aurora, Illinois, carlectors Rick and Patti Coleman are the proud owners of this Mountain Green Metallic Mist Nickey Vintage Continuation Series Super Camaro. It is the second in what hopefully will be a long line of vintage Camaro supercars built by Nickey Performance, Inc., and the first Nickey Vintage Continuation Series Super Camaro to be sold stateside. You may ask, where is Nickey Vintage Continuation Series Super Camaro number one?

“That was our prototype, and it was sold to a collector in Canada,” explains Nickey Performance CEO Stefano Bimbi. “This, our second 1967 Camaro RS/SS, was dubbed ‘Margarita’ by its owners because they like the Mountain Green Metallic Mist color, as it reminds them of their favorite drink.”

Rick and Patti’s RS/SS was originally purchased new from Conyers Motor Company in Conyers, Georgia, in August 1967. The Hewit brothers, from Hendersonville, South Carolina, drag raced the Camaro at local Carolina tracks. At some point they repainted the car black, as they were taking some heat from friends about driving a green racecar (the color is considered to be unlucky). After the older brother lost his life in a highway accident, his widow parked the Camaro behind the family convenience store and gas station. She eventually tired of people stopping by with offers to buy the car and stored it in the basement of the family’s Lake Hartwell summer home. The car remained there for the next 9 1/2 years.

As it happened, Randy Reynolds, a GM tech retired from Indian River Chevrolet in Coco Beach, Florida, lived in the same neighborhood and kept tabs on the car. On Christmas Eve of 2006 Reynolds, armed with a pocket full of cash, apparently caught Mrs. Hewit in an agreeable mood and purchased the RS/SS for an undisclosed sum.

Two days later Reynolds and body man Chris Thomas (of Lane’s Paint & Body in Hendersonville, North Carolina) began dismantling the Camaro and eventually stripped it to bare metal. Thomas repainted the RS/SS in the correct, one-year-only Code H Mountain Green Metallic Mist color.

Six and a half years later, Steve Gospodinoff, owner of S.G. Mechanical Repair Service, purchased the 5,889-mile Camaro (which had just 150 miles added since Reynolds’ rejuvenation) and spent the next two years addressing numerous small items about the car that he felt were slightly out of whack.

“Actually, I had no intentions of ever selling her, but a guy named Mike Wheatly kept coming by and pestering me to sell,” Gospodinoff recalls. “Finally I decided to put such a high number on the car that I figured he would go away, but my plan backfired. He stepped up to the plate!”

Wheatly kept the Camaro for only a short time before advertising the car on the Yenko.net website, as he needed cash to buy a 1969 Z/28.

“I knew it was a pretty special car, a 4K car,” says Bimbi. “What that means is that the trim tag lists the RPO L78 engine option code on the bottom. Chevrolet Division only used that in 1967. It verifies the car as a 396/375hp car. Of the 220,000 or so Camaros that were built that year, only 1,138 were produced as high-horsepower, solid-lifter RPO L78 cars, so it’s a pretty significant vehicle.”

A title search by the NCRS Dealer Delivery Data Report and a thorough examination of the trim tag further indicated that the Coleman’s RS/SS may very well be the last 1967 RPO L78 big-block built at the Norwood, Ohio, GM Assembly Plant on what is generally believed to be the last day of 1967 Camaro production, July 19, 1967.

Unfortunately, the Camaro no longer had its original L78 big-block and Muncie four-speed transmission. Currently powering this beauty is a Chevrolet Performance Parts 9.6:1-compression ZZ502 Deluxe crate engine, rated at 508 hp at 5,200 rpm and 580 lb-ft at 3,600 rpm. It’s backed by a GM 4L60 four-speed automatic overdrive transmission by FLT.

The Coleman’s RS/SS does retain the original GM 12-bolt rear axle. Stefano explained that GM 12-bolt rearends don’t have a VIN stamp on them to match to the car, but this one is correctly date-coded and has a one-year-only mount for the traction bar arm.

The remainder of the Camaro’s suspension is textbook Nickey Super Camaro, including Lakewood traction bars and KYB high-performance shock absorbers. When Patti gets on the gas she wants to be assured of adequate stopping power. The Camaro makes use of the OE GM 11-inch four-piston power disc front brakes and 10-inch J65 metallic rear drum brakes. Wheels and tires consist of 15-inch American Racing Torq-Thrust IIs wrapped with Mickey Thompson Sportsman S/R high-performance radial rubber.

Inside, the RS/SS has been updated with a six-way GM tilt steering column and Vintage Air climate control. The Camaro features Pro Car bucket seats with black vinyl and a factory gauge package that includes the special redline tachometer used only on Z/28s and L78s. According to Bimbi, the Camaro also had an A.C. Delco AM radio that has been upgraded to Bluetooth and XM, yet the car still retains the original-style rear-mounted trunk antenna option.

When it came to the Camaro’s exterior, the “less is better” philosophy is carried over from the original Nickey Super Camaros. Note the steel L72 Corvette-type Stinger hood, which were put on the original Nickey Super Camaros. “Most people don’t realize that 1967 Camaros did not come from GM with front and rear spoilers as so many have them added,” says Bimbi. “However, none have been installed on Margarita to maintain the crisp and clean lines of this unique car, as well as to preserve the integrity of the original sheetmetal.”

Prospective Nickey Vintage Continuation Series Super Camaro buyers can purchase these cars to look like 100 percent original Nickey Camaros, in Day Two trim, in Restomod condition (as the Coleman’s is), or full-tilt race. Although some might scoff at taking an original 1967 RPO L78 RS/SS and converting it, Bimbi claims, “Nothing was done to destroy the integrity of the car. It can be returned to stock at any time. What we have here is a very nice, very fast, dependable and comfortable driver.”

With Nickey Performance’s past history, it makes Rick and Patti Coleman’s Margarita, shall we say, all the more “tasty.”

At a Glance
1967 Nickey Vintage Continuation Series Super Camaro
Owned by: Rick & Patti Coleman, North Aurora, IL
Restored by: Nickey Performance, St. Charles, IL; Chris Thomas, Lane’s Body & Paint, Hendersonville, SC;
Engine: 502ci/508hp GM Performance ZZ502 Deluxe crate engine
Transmission: GM 4L60E four-speed overdrive upgraded by FLT
Rearend: GM 12-bolt with 4.10 gears and Positraction
Interior: Black vinyl Strato bucket seats
Wheels: 15×6 front, 15×8 rear American Racing Torq-Thrust II
Tires: 26×6.00/R15 front, 28×12.00/R15 rear Mickey Thompson Sportsman S/R
Special parts: KYB shocks, Lakewood traction bars, F41 front sway bar, power brakes, front disc brakes, Doug’s headers, MagnaFlow mufflers, Be Cool aluminum radiator, Vintage Air A/C, GM six-way tilt steering column

The post Nickey Performance Builds New Vintage Continuation Super Camaros appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Are you ready to live the Vanishing Point dream? Perhaps, with 225-cubic-inches of outlaw-running fury? That’s what this beater-status 1970 Dodge Challenger promises in full: “The car has all the original white paint and dings and dents and rust and patina from the last 50 years, and it looks like the Vanishing Point 1970 Challenger just before the crash at the end of the movie.”

Now, this isn’t your usual movie recreation, it just happens to look like the legendary hero car after it had traded paint with everything from the Nevada Highway Patrol to bougie Jag E-Types. Though, instead of Kowalski’s mandatory Hemi, with its pistol-gripped Hurst shifter and four-speed, this Challenger arrives with the infamous 225ci slant-six!

Backed by a three-speed Torqueflite, the meager 145hp won’t be sending you across the desert in any quick pace (you better hope the “blue, blue meanies on wheels” are equipped with bicycles and Smart Cars), but this daily-driven Challenger is one of the most honest survivors we’ve seen in some time. It’s rare enough that you find a six-cylinder Mopar that wasn’t already eviscerated for one of the hotter Chrysler-family V8s, much less one that mirrors a hero car so much. Along with the dents and scrapes, this Challenger has been gone through by the current to ensure that it stops, starts, and runs better than it looks — even with those 10-inch drums.

The price of this eternal, six-cylinder glory? $18,950 on-the-dot, with a slight discount if there’s a worthy trade. Check out the Craigslist Ad here!

The post 1970 Dodge Challenger Craigslist Find – If Kowalski Had a Slant-Six! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Route 66. The Mother Road. Every car enthusiast’s bucket list item, yet how many really see to it that this bucket list line item is indeed checked off? Sure, many of us have driven a part of it, and some probably even drive a portion every day if you live near it. We’re talking start to finish. From Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California, covering some 2,400 miles, it’s a trip few get to take, yet so many should.

Jim Diorio, of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, is one of those that wanted to accomplish driving the complete Route 66 and set out to do it in 2018. However, he didn’t have a classic car to pay homage to the drive. In July 2017 he found a ’66 Mustang hardtop that was on its way to the salvage yard and brought it home for $400. Over the course of six months Jim rebuilt the car. February 2018 he wrapped the build by installing the custom Route 66 graphics and turned the key for the first drive.

After a few months of weeding out new build issues and putting some local car show/cruise in miles on the ’66 Jim set out for Chicago from his home in Pennsylvania and drove the complete Route 66 in September of 2018 as planned. Jim put roughly 3,500 miles on his Mustang crossing our great country on Route 66 from beginning to end and had absolutely zero issues with his Mustang on the drive. Though the trip is in the books for him, you can relive his build and the drive itself by visiting his blog at www.66onroute66.com.

The post Driving a 1966 Mustang on Route 66 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

When you work the SEMA show, it can be a dizzying experience. There are more parts and cars than you’re physically able to comprehend. Every manufacturer is in attendance with their latest components ready to show them off to buyers, sellers, and media folks like us. We are so busy checking out new parts, running from hall to hall, doing FB Live videos, IG posts, web galleries, and online Web stories during the event, but we also have an eye on the print content you’re reading right now.

After all, we can’t cover everything SEMA via galleries, FB live videos, and IG posts. The easiest way for us to tell about SEMA is a full story on the trendsetting and hard hitting parts each manufacturer hopes to make a mark in 2019.

The post Top Parts From SEMA 2018 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Dan Kelly, 1972 Nova
After two years of watching Counting Cars and Mecum auctions on TV, my wife decided she had had enough, so she took to Craigslist to find a car. To our surprise, she found a car within my price range just a few miles from our house. She remembered me telling her about my first car, a 1971 Nova, and so not knowing a lot about classic cars at the time, her main focus was on a Nova from the 1970s or late 1960s.

Long story short: A 1973 Nova came up just a couple miles from our house. Not sure how I felt about a 1973 Nova, I gave in to my wife and agreed to give it a look anyway.

As soon as we turned onto the street and the car came into view, I was completely sold. And surprised. I was expecting to see your typical 1973 Nova, bumpers and all, but it appeared to look more like a 1972 model.

According to the owner at the time, the previous owner had two Novas. One was a 1972 with a good body and bad interior, while the other was a 1973 with a bad body and good interior. So instead of junking the two, he put the 1972 quarters, fenders, grille, and bumpers on the 1973 model, and with some pretty good bodywork and a nice red paint job, you’ve got the best of both cars.

There were also a couple of extras. A couple of functional vents are on either fender, which allow air to flow into the passenger compartment via small doors in the kick panels. Also, there’s an integrated antenna on the right quarter-panel, which seems to get a lot of attention for some reason.

Luckily, most of the mechanical mods I was looking for were already done. The 350 small-block was rebuilt with a 0.030 overbore, Edelbrock carb and manifold, Comp cam, Summit stainless-steel headers, and so on. The TH350 transmission was also rebuilt with a shift kit and a B&M shifter. So all that was left to do was cosmetic or chrome!

Growing up in the 1980s Midwest, if you had a car that was anything close to a muscle car you did two things: tires and rims and as much chrome as you could afford. Unfortunately, that’s all my 1971 Nova and my second car, a 1974 Z28, had. They were basically all show, no go. This time around, I hope things are a little more even!

The post Reader’s Ride: Dan Kelly’s 1972/1973 Chevrolet Nova appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Since the beginning it’s been American Muscle and blue ovals for the Trepanier household. Husband and wife team Melissa and Brandon are the owners of a 2006 Roush Mustang and a 1998 LX Mustang.

The discussion to get involved with Mustangs started when the couple first started dating. “He told me he wanted one and I said absolutely,” Melissa said. That conversation turned into a year-long adventure tracking down the perfect 2006 Stage 1 Roush Mustang.

Since getting the Roush, Brandon has done a lot of the modification himself. “The Roush I modified myself. It had a stock GT Mustang motor but is now cammed, has headers, and the fun stuff,” Brandon said. The 1998 LX Mustang is just a few months old for the family and is the couple’s cruiser!

If you have a Fierce Ford in your garage, feel free to reach out 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: Brandon and Melissa Trepanier have been all-Ford since the first date appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Susan Suhr, 1971 Oldsmobile 442 Convertible

If you were born in Los Angeles in the early 1950s, then you possibly could be a car enthusiast. There are massive freeways to navigate from the happening beaches of Santa Monica and Malibu to the chic shops of Beverly Hills to the downtown offices of the financial district, and on to the suburbs of the expansive San Fernando Valley. Life was carefree, families were wholesome, and the car was alive and well.

After the Swinging Sixties came the 1970s, and the muscle car evolved to bigger, faster, and better. So it wasn’t unusual that my husband, Gary, fell in love with this genre of classic car and began a hobby of collecting them. His first purchase was of a 1971 Plymouth GTX 440 lovingly nicknamed the Beast. This car was sold to purchase the engagement ring for me, his wife to be. I hail from New York City, where my preferred modes of transportation are my feet, followed by subway and taxi.

As an enthusiast, Gary owned a 1971 ’Cuda convertible, a 1971 Road Runner 440 Six-Barrel, and a 1971 GTX 440 before he purchased his dream muscle car, an electric blue and white 1971 Oldsmobile 4-4-2 convertible. He wanted a convertible and liked the idea of “fast and furious,” but he was never reckless and never ticketed.

We don’t know much about the history of the car other than it was bought from another muscle car enthusiast in 1994. The numbers-matching engine and transmission (with Hurst Dual-Gate shifter) were rebuilt, and the car was repainted and had new upholstery installed.

We liked to drive the car down Pacific Coast Highway with the top down, particularly on summer afternoons, and go for brunch and scenic drives up the coast. We did not show the car, but the oohs and aahs from our road companions as well as comments like “nice car,” “beauty,” and “a blast from the past” added to our drives around town.

Many have an appreciation for the classic muscle car and the care and commitment to preserving the last year this model was manufactured. So enjoy the ride while it lasts!

The post Reader’s Ride: Susan Suhr’s 1971 Oldsmobile 442 Convertible appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Manual-transmission—equipped Chevy Malibus (and other General Motors G-bodies) are rare. When new, the Malibu wasn’t known as a top performer in the GM family; the moderately sized car was for families, and an extra pedal was unnecessary. Today, few companies provide options for these cars, but our friends at Three Pedals in Sterling, Virginia recently introduced a complete manual-transmission swap kit for G-bodies, and it’s far superior to anything the factory offered. The CC/Malibu gets these upgrades courtesy of a McLeod Muscle Car 5-speed transmission and Three Pedals ’78 – ’88 A- /G-Body pedal assembly.

Three Pedals has been working on our 1978 Malibu project for the last two installments, but in case you haven’t heard of Three Pedals, they specialize in manual-transmission swaps. The company’s biggest slice of the market is GM B-bodies (’94-’96 Chevy Caprice / Impala SS / Buick Roadmaster  / Cadillac Fleetwood), but today we’re rewinding time to show you our thrash to outfit the CC/Malibu with three pedals in order to make it to the 2018 Car Craft Summer Nationals.

There are many ways to do it, but we leaned heavily on the aftermarket options—less headache. It’s possible to do a similar set-up using a combination of OEM components (like a used GM T56), but the important piece of the puzzle is the Three Pedals pedal assembly. It’s nearly impossible to find a G-body clutch assembly in a junkyard and there are very few aftermarket options. This pedal kit is a complete heavy-duty assembly with zero flex, built-in geometry to work with a hydraulic clutch, and it fits under the G-body dash.

We chose the McLeod Racing Muscle Car 5-Speed, which is economically priced for its 500 lb-ft torque rating. The fully synchronized gears and the internal rail shifter aide in quick, smooth shifts. The transmission is specially designed to offer a .63 Fifth gear for overdrive in a small case, so there’s no floorboard stretching required.

Three Pedals offers a complete G-body manual-swap “kit builder” tool on their website where you can option your conversion. The kit we’re installing retails for around $6,900, but includes everything we need brand new, including flywheel, driveshaft, pedal assembly, and master cylinder.

We’ll skim over removal of the old automatic driveline and focus on the installation and set up. Our project takes place after we’ve already removed the 4L60E transmission installed in a previous project-car update (which we’ll likely use in another project!).

In Project CC/Malibu’s last story, we installed the stealth Holley Terminator EFI system, which has the appearance of a traditional Holley four-barrel carb [https://www.hotrod.com/articles/art-deception-self-learning-efi-looks-like-carb/], but is actually a self-learning, wide-band, closed-loop—controlled EFI system. That improved our power, drivability, efficiency, and fun factor—all adjectives we’re attempting to further improve on with our five-speed swap!

What You’ll Need

The post G-Body Malibu 5-Speed Swap: New Kit Supplies Pedals … No Cutting! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Joe Barry and his 1956 Chevy named “Creamsicle” have been competing in the Ultimate Iron class of Drag Week for years. He and his son Joey planned on bringing a different car this year, but it wasn’t ready in time, so at the last minute, they dusted off the tried and true, twin-turbo, two-tone, Chevy.

Joey, 16, is a huge motivator for his father, and the two exemplify the true essence of bonding over building and racing cars. Not only do they bond as father and son, but also with the other racers that keep coming back year after year. “A lot of people we go a year without seeing and you pick up right where you left off the year before,” said Joe. “We joke about it being the Drag Week family, but there’s a lot to it.”

2018 was a highly competitive year for Joe. He and Bryant Goldstone duked it out all week long and unfortunately for Joe, Goldstone nudged him out by 0.222-seconds over the five days of racing. We are excited to see what car Joe brings out next year, but until then, enjoy this quick montage of his 2018 Drag Week.

The post Joe and Joey Barry Dusted Off Their “Creamsicle” 1956 Chevy for Drag Week 2018 appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Last year, this ’72 Chevelle showed up at Anthony’s Rod & Custom in Middle Island, New York, for a complete makeover. Local Chevy owner Mike Ingoglia sent his prized A-body to the shop as a bare shell and frame, and let proprietor Anthony Luca and his crew go to town on his Bowtie.

To start this build off on the right foot, Anthony stepped back and took inventory of the project in front of him. He then decided that the best way to attack this ride was to first fit all the body panels correctly. Once the panel-puzzle was put together they then made sure that the gaps were nothing short of perfect before moving on to the next step of making the flanks pin straight. The bumpers were then shaved to perfection before being sent out for chroming.

Then the body was removed from the frame and put on a rotisserie so the crew could get at the undercarriage to make a few floor repairs. Next, the firewall was flattened, the heater box was removed, and the rear wheeltubs were massaged for more room. Kindig-It color-matched door handles were added, and the crew made them fit to perfection. The underside of the body was painted the color of choice and, once done, the body was reinstalled on the restored frame. From there, the car was prepped and its color/clear coats of DuPont Hot Hues Razzleberry Red were applied. Ghost stripes came next, and then final process of assembly.

This radical ride is powered by a 572 big-block and shifted by a 4L60E transmission. A March Performance serpentine system was installed along with 1 7/8-inch long-tube headers. An Aeromotive A1000 fuel pump feeds the hungry big-inch mill. An AirRide system will handle the suspension duties and there will be four wheel disc brakes to slow everything down. A Ford 9-inch with a Currie centersection and axles will supply the power to the back meats. Check back at Super Chevy in a few months to see the final product. You’ll be glad you did!

The post Stunning 1972 Chevelle Being Built In New York appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

On this Muscle Monday Kendra visits with David Garton, whose 1968 Mustang Cobra Jet was in the Muscle Car Review display at the 2018 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals. Garton bought the car after it had been sitting for decades, only to discover it was one of a batch of 50 cars Ford built specifically for drag racing—the so-called 135-Series cars, named for the first three digits in their VINs. Garton later reunited the Cobra Jet with its original drag racer, Phil Glass.

Watch this space every two weeks for Muscle Monday videos! Next time Kendra returns to MCACN to chat with the Super Car Workshop’s Brian Henderson about Rick Thayer’s 1968 Chevy II/Nova, a COPO car that received a 427 transplant courtesy of Dick Harrell.

The post Muscle Monday: Cruisin’ with Kendra and David Garton’s 1968 Mustang Cobra Jet at MCACN appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

The 37th Annual Wisconsin Early Mustangers All Ford Car Show will be on May 19, 2019. While the name says Early Mustangers, all models and years of Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles are welcome. It is Wisconsin’s largest All Ford Show and averages approximately 300 registered cars and over 2,000 spectators. The show fills four acres of available parking at the Ewald’s Venus Ford Dealership. Cars from the earliest Model As to the newest Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury’s cars, trucks, and SUV’s can be seen. The show is set up and run by Wisconsin Early Mustangers members.

Early registration (until May1) is $8 and day of show registration is $10. There are 26 show classes awards and People’s Choice Award that will be presented based solely on participant voting, plus the host, Ewald’s Venus Ford, presents an award for Dealer’s Choice. Classes range from stock and modified/customized vehicles to the Mustang Hi-Performance, Mach 1, Bullitt, Roush, Saleen, and Steeda. While most vehicles are driven to the show, they also have trailer queens and non-street legal vehicles registered. Over the years the Sprint cars, Cobras, street rods, and special interest vehicles are always something special to see.

This car show is a family friendly event, with local organizations and business providing food, beverages, and delicious treats. A DJ provides great rock and roll music and special announcements all day long. Inside the service bay you can learn more about the Wisconsin Early Mustangers, checkout the swap meet area or purchase raffle tickets.

Over the past few years we have been lucky enough to have the Ford Performance Trailer present. It provided a chance to learn about and see the new innovations Ford has to offer automotive enthusiasts. They also bring a couple of amazing new Mustangs to enjoy.

Show profits are used to award an Automotive Mechanic Apprenticeship Scholarship to an individual showing the interest and talent to become a professional mechanic. Applicants are chosen from Ewald’s Venus Ford mechanics who apply. Recipients must maintain a set grade point average and meet the requirements for the scholarship.

For more information visit www.wemustangers.com or visit Wisconsin Early Mustangers on Facebook.

The post Mustangs in Cheeseland for Mustangers All Ford Car Show appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

When Chrysler first offered their 300C platform back in 2005, it was as a solid performing sedan that offered excellent people moving skills. As the sedan evolved, it was offered with more performance-oriented things, the top level carrying the label, SRT8. This special performance package included a 6.1L Hemi engine, producing 425 hp at 6,200 rpm and 420 lb-ft of torque at 4,800 rpm and a performance suspension package. In Chrysler advertising materials, the car was capable of 0 to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds.

For most folks, that would be plenty fast, right? But for Albert Villalobos, that wasn’t nearly fast enough. To take his daily transportation to the stratosphere with regards to power, Villalobos stopped off at Spankin’ Time Motorsports and worked with owner Adam Montague to design a package that would make his 2005 Chrysler 300C one of a kind. In its current form, the sedate sedan delivers timeslips of 10.01 seconds at 143 mph and dyno sheets proclaiming 850-plus horsepower at the rear tires.

In the Beginning
But the road to such sterling performance didn’t come all at once. As a high school freshman, Villalobos fell in love with the newest generation of the 300c when it first arrived in 2005. Unfortunately, he wasn’t in a position to own one at the time, but the hook was set and when he had the means, he purchased a used one as his daily driver. At that time, he wasn’t versed in the ways of the SRT8 lore but he did feel that his Hemi V-8 definitely needed a boost and installed high-performance intake and a set of Flowmaster mufflers just to make it different from the rest.

As luck would have it, Villalobos had the chance to meet Montague at Spankin’ Time Motorsports, where they talked about potential next steps in the 300C’s evolution. Villalobos spotted a car equipped with a ProCharger at Montagues’ shop and shortly thereafter the ProCharger P1 supercharger found it way on to Villalobos’ Mopar. While the power increase was huge, it just whets his appetite for even greater future power upgrades.

Not long after the first power adder upgrade, Villalobos and Montague began preparations for full tilt Gen3 Mopar powertrain that would include the much larger ProCharger F1D supercharger and a completely new engine, transmission, and suspension makeover. Over the next three years, Villalobos would pay Montague on the installment plan, Montague buying specific pieces as the money came in. With all of the new parts in hand, Montague dug in, pulled the 300c apart and built the creation we see here including the stroker 401-cid engine.

Getting Serious
To deliver the most power potential, the 300C was converted to E85 fuel to take advantage of the high-octane fuel that would allow more latitude with regards to performance changes. Next came the reworking of the engine and an “slight” enlargement of the engine from 5.7-liters (this was not an SRT8 originally) to 6.6-liters (401 cid) and installing a package of Montague-approved components that include Molnar 4.080-inch stroker crankshaft, Molnar Turbo rods and CP Carrillo 9.2:1 compression pistons and blower ring set. The valvetrain was enhanced through the use of Crower components, including a high-lift custom camshaft but using stock rocker arms and shafts.

While the change in fuel and the reworked engine were clearly capable of some high-horsepower outputs all on their own, the crowing touch was the installation of a ProCharger F1D supercharger and front-mounted intercooler that deliver 15.8 pounds of boost. These highly efficient superchargers are designed to fit underhood (a key request by Villalobos who wasn’t interested in letting his competition see just why this 300C could so easily spin the rear slicks).

Add to that the highly modified fuel system, a host of big-fuel flow components including an ATI 17 percent overdrive balancer, 80mm throttle body, Five-O-Motorsports 1,400cc Black Ops injector system, billet fuel rails, Fore Innovations Triple Billet Hat and three TI 465 fuel pumps, programmed to deliver progressive tip in of the fuel flow by rpm level. The key here is the tuning, which Montague has developed through massive amounts of trial and error on his in-house dyno and in-the-field drag testing.

The ProCharger F1D package fit perfectly into the forward section of the driver’s side of the engine compartment using the factory beltdrive system and mounts. While the car has well over 160,000 miles on the clock, the new “performance” package is just getting started and now has a little over 6,000 of roadwork with a few quarter-mile trips in between. So far, short of a few tuning adjustments, everything is working just fine. Villalobos is careful to change the oil in the proCharger supercharger every other engine oil change or about every three months.

Comfort and Safety
The interior of the 300C looks very much as it did from the factory with one glaringly obvious change — a 10-point rollcage that serves two purposes — to protect the driver in case of an accident and to tie the chassis together allowing the suspension to be that much more efficiency by keeping the tires and related components in place. Amazingly, the ride quality is improved from stock, even if the ability to find your way into the front seats is more challenging than before. On either side, to aid in driver exit and entry, the sidebar is pinned and can be released and then repined once the occupant is in place. Full five-point harness restraints are included to keep everyone safe.

Clearly Villalobos’ plan to run quietly around town with his stealth cruiser is intact with a couple of small details that tell the locals that this isn’t a stock Chrysler 300C. For one, Villalobos runs Hoosier rear slicks most of the time around Southern California, since it doesn’t rain from March through to November. And with 870 rwhp on tap, Villalobos is in the club — a card-carrying member of the Team Spankin’ Time — where members must have two things: they must be built by Montague and achieve a minimum of 750 rwhp. Frankly, Villalobos was almost there running 91-octane pump gasoline.

But the biggest red flag that signals “something’s up” is the sound of the ProCharger supercharger that wines loudly when the throttle goes down. Regardless, the exterior, which exhibits some wear to the paint and the front spoiler, definitely plays the part of a sleeper. Of course, those who happen to go down to the local Fontana, California, dragstrip know much better …

2005 Chrysler 300c
Albert Villalobos, CA, Riverside, CA

ENGINE
Type: 5.7L Chrysler Hemi stroked to 6.6 liters (401 cid)
Bore x stroke: 3.955-inch (bore) x 4.080-inch (stroke)
Block: factory OE 5.7L originally
Rotating assembly: CP Carrillo Pistons (upgraded wristpins for boost), Molnar 6.125-inch Turbo H-beam connecting rods, Molnar Gen 3 Stroker crankshaft, CP Carrillo ring set — SST top ring, Cast Napier second ring and Std. tension oil rings
Compression: 9.2:1
Cylinder heads: 6.1L Chrysler heads, CNC’s with PSI valvesprings, locks, retainers and locators, stock valves with 70cc combustion chambers, stock rocker arms and shafts
Camshaft: Crower custom blower camshaft, 0.590-inch intake lift and 0.600-inch exhaust lift, duration: 234-degree intake and 248-degree exhaust at 0.050, 118-degree lobe separation
Induction: conversion to E85 with custom Teflon fuel lines, ProCharger F1D supercharger producing 15.8 psi of boost, custom front-mount intercooler with 3-inch tubing, Twin 50mm blow off valves and 17 percent overdrive through ATI balancer system, stock 6.1 SRT8 intake manifold and 80mm throttle body, Five-O-Motorsports 1,400cc Black Ops Injectors with Fore Innovations Triple Billet Hat and three TI 465 fuel pumps with progressive triggering
Oiling system: Melling oiling system
Exhaust: stock 6.1 Hemi with factory header pipes and SLP CAT Back exhaust
Ignition: factory Mopar ignition with custom ECU tuning performed by Spankin’ Time Motorsports using Diablo Sport Tuning System
Cooling: factory original radiator and electric fans
Engine built by: Adam Montague, Spankin’ Time Motorsports (San Bernardino, CA), machine work by Steve Anderson, Anderson Race Engines (Riverside, CA)

DRIVETRAIN
Transmission: Southern Hot Rod War Viking automatic with ProTorque 2,800-stall speed and custom transmission tune by Spankin’ Time Motorsports
Shifter: factory two model shifter
Driveshaft: stock factory driveshaft
Rearend: stock rear end with 2009 Mopar/Getrag axles and 3.06:1 ratio with limited-slip differential

CHASSIS
Front suspension: Lakewood front struts 70/30 ratio, stock SRT8 springs and front sway bar delete
Rear suspension: Lakewood rear struts 50/50 ratio
Steering: stock power steering box
Front brakes: stock Chrysler disc brakes
Rear brakes: stock Chrysler disc brakes
Paint: factory black paint – original

WHEELS & TIRES
Wheels: stock SRT8 Chrysler wheels front and Weld RT’s in the rear
Tires: Nitto 555’s for the street and always up front and Hoosier slicks in the rear for the track

The post Daily-Driven Quarter-Mile Beast: 2005 Chrysler 300C appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

It’s easy to say the next generation of an engine was better than its predecessor. The jump from a Gen 1 (2011-’14) to Gen 2 (2015-’17) Coyote wasn’t a monumental leap in technology, but when it came to the Gen 3, that’s a completely different story. The quad-cam Coyote was already an extremely efficient air pump, but the Ford engineers took things even further on the dual-fueled 2018-up engines.

The jump to direct injection was a bit of a learning curve for most auto manufacturers. Due to the inhomogeneous blending of air and fuel at low engine speeds, controlling engine emissions has become harder. Think of a mist sprayer (port injection) versus a pressure washer (direct injection). Even when using the intake manifold’s charge motion control valves to increase port velocity at lower engine speeds, the fuel was effectively spraying through the air and causing inconsistent air/fuel ratios.

The 2018 Coyote engine’s biggest differences (from a performance perspective) are the addition of direct injection with supplemental port injection and increasing the compression ratio from 11:1 to 12:1. Some car manufacturers that use supplemental port injection will spray the DI and port injectors together at low rpm, whereas the Gen 3 Coyote relies solely on the port injection at low loads, then adds in the direct injection as engine speed increases.

While this all sounds overly complicated, the system is rather contained, and the direct injection pump receives fuel from the port injection fuel rail. What this means for gearheads is that we no longer have to deal with direct injection injectors and pump lobes, allowing for a simple upgrade of the port injectors when additional fueling is required. (The factory port injectors on a 2018-up 5.0L is only 19 lbs per hour!) Sounds like a howling good idea to us!

Ok great, so swapping a 2018-up crate engine is complicated as hell, right? Not at all! It’s no more complicated than any previous generation Coyote, thanks to Ford’s M-6017-M50B controls pack kit ($1,699.99, street price). Though the 2018 Coyote engine is application-specific, it is still nearly plug-and-play after a few power and ground connections have been established. A standard fuel pump (with a higher static fuel pressure of 65 psi) supplies the rails just as previous generation Coyotes. One bit that might throw people off is the 2018’s dual-mass flywheel that can be simply exchanged for a standard 2011-’17 clutch/flywheel assembly.

The M-6007-M50C 2018 Coyote crate engine ($8,499.99, street price, new) is the exact motor found in any 2018-up Mustang GT. The methodology behind our testing was to follow the process in which an engine is normally modified. Here, we started with the 100-percent stock engine, down to the air box and catalytic converters. We will then add a JLT cold air intake on 91 octane, and later optimize for E85 fuel.

On The Dyno
Strapping down the 2018 Coyote on Westech’s engine dyno was no different than any other Coyote we’ve tested. Our engine fired up instantly and we could tell immediately that the Gen 3 is a much smoother running engine than earlier Gen-1 and -2 designs, thanks to charge-motion control valves built into the intake manifold. After a break-in cycle, we went WOT with the bone-stock calibration. This resulted in an astonishing 496.8 horsepower and 427.4 lb-ft of torque. That’s about 60 more horsepower than we see from previous-generation Coyotes. A big portion of that gain is the incrementally superior design of the 2018-up intake manifold, which we’ll cover at a later date. In any event, this third version of Ford’s Coyote reactor core offers impressive power on par with competitive offerings from Mopar (the 392ci Hemi crate at 485 hp for around $8,400) and Chevrolet Performance (the 6.2L small-block LT1 with 460 hp for around $7,800).

Cold Air Intake & Tuning
Oftentimes the first modification to a Mustang is an intake and exhaust. With no full exhaust on tap, we went straight to JLT’s cold air intake for 2018 Coyote Mustangs (part No. CAI-FMG-18, $349 street price). There are two methods for delivering denser, cooler air to a Coyote-equipped Mustang: a stock mass air flow (MAF) sensor housing diameter that normally doesn’t require a tune, or a larger MAF housing and intake pipe that requires a tune. With more air comes more horsepower, but the MAF curve in the software must be accounted for.

JLT uses a full 4.2-inch diameter intake tube with no taper to reduce any possible airflow restriction. JLT increases the overall MAF housing diameter 20mm. We went with the oiled filter, but JLT also offers a dry version as well. The cold-air intake installed on our Coyote’s throttle body in a matter of minutes and also included a different silicone coupler for the GT350 intake manifold testing we’ll be testing later. Eddie Rios of Addiction Motorsports used HP Tuners software to optimize our 91-octane tune for the new intake. All in, we broke 500 horsepower with 511.7 hp and 433.9 lb-ft of torque. That was a respectable gain of 14.9 hp and 6.5 lb-ft of torque.

Optimizing on E85
Cold air intake, check. What’s next? For most Mustang enthusiasts, it’s either headers or an E85 tune. With an E85 tune being the easiest, we opted for that. Westech Performance stocks a slew of Rockett Brand Racing fuels, but for our testing purposes, we were most interested in their balanced E85. Full bolt-on 2011-’17 Mustangs require an injector upgrade when moving to E85, but since the 2018 has both DI and port injection, there’s plenty of fuel margin to go around. A couple of partial pulls allowed Rios to get the timing and air-fuel ratio where he wanted it. Another solid gain put us at 532.5 hp and 451.1 lb-ft—an addition of 20.8 and 17.2, respectively.

Having dyno tuned several Coyotes, we were blown away by the power from such modest changes. If this were a Gen-1 Coyote, that kind of increase would costs us a Cobra Jet manifold and headers to barely outperform the numbers we’re already making. Keep watching Car Craft in 2019 as we bring you much more on Ford’s new Gen-3 Coyote crate offering because this Coyote is howling at the moon for more!

The post Ford 5.0L Coyote Dyno Test: CAI & E85 Tune Makes 532 HP appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Flex-Fuel Tuner for SRT Hellcat
Advanced Fuel Dynamics // 866.902.3835 // www.advancedfueldynamics.com
The ProFlex Commander from Advance Fuel Dynamics is as simple as it gets when it comes to plug-in E85 capability, and it’s now available for the SRT Hellcat. AFD’s BlendSense technology constantly monitors ethanol content in a vehicle’s fuel tank and dials in the engine’s performance on the fly, mitigating the need to completely switch fuel types and tunes for different applications. The ProFlex Commander features Weather-Pack connectors, an inline fuel sensor with quick-disconnect fuel lines, and a control module that can display real-time ethanol content in your fuel tank via the ProFlex Connect app Bluetooth connection. AFD claims about a one-hour install time with basic tools and no tuning required to achieve up to a 70hp gain!
Price: $800

Easy-to-Wire kit for the Ford 6R80 Six-Speed Automatic
Ron Francis Wiring // 610.485.1981 // www.ronfrancis.com
The Ford 6R80 six-speed automatic transmission has its neutral safety and reverse light functions housed internally in the case, making it more difficult to gain access to make them work in an aftermarket application. The CY-80 wiring harness from Ron Francis Wiring provides the circuitry needed to access those components and a shift indicator feature has been added. Ron Francis Wiring notes that the factory ECM for the transmission is still required for these functions to work with the CY-80 harness.
Price: Not available at press time

Direct-Fit Dash Clock for C1 Vettes
CON2R // 503.626.6390 // www.con2r.com
CON2R makes this direct-fit clock for 1958–1962 Chevrolet Corvette. This almost-invisible detail only requires one touch on the quartz movement to set the time. The fonts and appearance are that of the original part but with modern LED lighting, and using the “Your Way” customizer on the company’s website allows you to truly match the clock to your car’s theme.
Price: $195

Brawler Side-Hung Bowl Carburetors
Brawler // 866.464.6553 // www.holley.com
Brawler carburetors are machined and assembled in the USA and feature all-aluminum construction. These carbs are available with either vacuum and mechanical secondaries, and you can choose between an electric or manual choke on the street versions. The air bleeds and needle and seats are easily interchangeable so they can be dialed in to your desired application, and the 4150 models feature a sight glass in the fuel bowl. You can get a Brawler in both mechanical and vacuum secondaries at 570-, 600-, 670-, 770-, and 1,050-cfm variants.
Price: Starts at $269.96

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How better to celebrate the Ford Mustang’s debut in NASCAR in 2019 than shredding tires at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Joining the Mustang racing family is 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR champion Joey Logano and, with Formula Drift champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. (JR) and teammate Chealsea Denofa in tow, they all went drifting at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

With Joey behind the wheel of the Cup car, and JR in his RTR Mustang competition drift car, the two slid door-to-door in the Roval infield of Charlotte. Denofa joined in the tire melting action for some three-car donuts in a Shelby GT350. “I have never seen a driver from another [racing] discipline take to drifting like Joey did,” said JR. “After a bit of instruction, he was linking turns, and I was comfortable enough to get super close. He was bit by the drift bug, and I look forward to some more fun with the champ in the future!”

Usually when Cup cars are sideways, it ends poorly, but Joey took to the experience. “I had an incredible time drifting the 2019 NASCAR Mustang with Vaughn Gittin Jr.,” said Logano. “This was a really fun way to be welcomed into the Mustang family.” I’m looking forward to doing more Mustang burnouts and donuts on the way to victory lane next year!” JR said Joey was bit by the drifting bug, but was it hard enough that we may see him behind the wheel of a drift car in the future?

The post The Ford Mustang Joins NASCAR appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

Q.
I am building a 1932 DeSoto three-window coupe; hoodless, fenderless, with a first-generation 354 Chrysler Hemi on American Stamping 1933 Ford ’rails. I got the body out of a dry creekbed in Star Valley, Wyoming, 20 years ago, and now that I’m retired I have been working on it full time for the past six months. My question is about the rust in the seams and lap joints. As you can imagine, the complete car is covered in surface rust but it has only a little rot on the bottom of the passenger door. I sanded all of the rust from the inside of the car, and have started the outside.

The rust on the driprails and doorskin seams is almost impossible to remove with sandpaper or a wire wheel on a die grinder. The driprail is made up of three pieces of steel folded together and spot-welded to the roof. The attached picture shows the driprail at the top of the door hinge and I can remove most of the rust you see, but how do I get the stuff in the seams and between the driprail and the roof? There isn’t a dip tank anywhere close to me, and sand blasting will just push sand into the seams and make a bigger mess. Typically I will spray a rust converter on the sanded surface followed by a coat of epoxy primer, then use body filler where required. I have used Rust Mort, Dupli-Color’s Rust Fix, and Mar-Hyde One-Step in the past. Is there something that can be poured into the seam to get at the rust hiding in there?

My second question is about lead. The lead the factory used at the roof to A-post and the A-post to cowl joints is in good condition without any signs of cracking or rust under it. I know I should remove it but leaving it alone might make sense because it appears to be in good condition. Unfortunately, the blending of the lead to the steel is a bit crude. The curves don’t match and there are some waves in the lead. I have been told I can lightly sand the lead, seal it with epoxy primer, and then proceed with plastic autobody filler to straighten these areas out. What are your thoughts on this approach?

Tom Keyes
Via the Internet

A.
I talked with Gary George at Gary’s Rods and Restorations in Watsonville, California, about this issue. He’s well known for his outstanding car builds and he’s my local go-to guy for anything relating to paintwork. He said that Rust Mort is the product he would use to treat rust in the areas that can’t be reached directly. He would follow that by sealing the metal with epoxy primer and then use some seam sealer on the joint before the final finish coats.

For the leaded areas, I think if the lead has lasted for 85 years with no problem, it will probably last the rest of your (and my) lifetime. Yes, you can seal it with epoxy primer and use plastic filler to smooth the rough areas out.

You can email your questions to Professor Hammer at covell@cruzio.com or mail a letter to Covell Creative Metalworking, 106 Airport Blvd., Suite 105, Freedom, CA 95019. You will receive a personal reply. Ron Covell has made many videos on metalworking, and they can now be streamed or downloaded from his website. Check these out at covell.biz, along with his ongoing series of workshops held across the nation, or call for a current schedule of workshops and a free catalog of DVDs. Phone (831) 768-0705. Also, check out Ron’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/covellron

The post Sealing Rust in Exposed Joints appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

With the 2018 NHRA racing season over, we look back at some of the biggest moments and notice one explosive similarity: a lot of cars wrecked and blew up. Gnarly accidents are a risk that comes with the job for drivers and teams, but last year was plainly riddled with more. More crashes, more explosions, and more brutality.

The folks at NHRA have done a wonderful job compiling this highlight reel of what they call “Wild Rides” from 2018, and what better way to ring in the New Year than with excitement and carnage from some of the most insane cars on the planet.

The post Crashes, Explosions, and Carnage from the 2018 NHRA Season. appeared first on Hot Rod Network.