Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2014 i Hot Rod

Crossing into a military facility at 2:30 a.m. is a thrill most civilians never experience. Just driving up to the gate of a secured compound the size of Rhode Island was intimidating, and when the soldiers at the guard house asked us to pull our vehicle into their holding lot—we complied without question—we’d just rolled onto sacred hot rod land. The quest for speed and performance has thrived in the deserts north of Los Angeles for decades. First on the vast, fat lakebed of Muroc in pistonpowered cars, and then in the air above it with rocket-fuel-fed crafts designed to test the physical limits of man and machine. Although cars no longer race on its soil, hot rodding has not left this land; it’s just gotten faster and higher in…

Go on, make the Dr. Strangelove joke, and get it out of your system. We’ll wait. We can’t blame you for wanting to cruise this missile with a yodel and a cowboy hat in your hand. It’s an explosive ride well worthy of that famous Slim Pickens scene. Luckily, you don’t need to drop from a plane to get the bomb up to speed; builder Chad Norman filled the casing’s empty belly with a 6½hp gas engine and says the resulting “Bomb Kart” is too fast for its own good. We’ll be the judges of that—thank you very much. Just in case you aren’t up on your ordinance ID skills, Chad’s Bomb Kart started out as a M129E2 “leafet” bomb. Back in those dark days before the Internet, leaflet bombs…

Jesse Iwuji bought a used Challenger with the goal of someday running in the 11s in the quarter-mile. Several iterations later and he’s got more than 1,100 hp at the crank and his eyes set on becoming the fastest modern Mopar in the standing mile, all while keeping the car street-legal and street-driven. Built by Spankin Time Performance in San Bernardino, California, Jesse Iwuji’s Challenger uses a Darton-sleeved, 408ci Hemi stroker crank from Scat spinning a set of Carillo rods and CP pistons. The engine also has ThiTek heads and a 4.2L Kenne Bell supercharger that runs as much as 22 psi of boost on E85. The exhaust uses OVX long tube headers, Bassani mid-pipes, and Flowmaster Super 40–Series muffers. The 912 rwhp gets to the ground by way of…

1964: Pontiac introduced the GTO to much fanfare (and much chagrin, if you’re Ferrari). 1965: The Tri-power 389’s rating increased 12 hp to reach 360 hp, and sales more than doubled. The Ram Air accessory was introduced. 1966: The GTO became its own model instead of a package, and the curvy new body was a hit with buyers as GTO production increased to an all-time high of 96,946. The little-known “XS” 389 Ram Air motor was introduced mid-year. 1967: The 400 replaced the 389, the 400 Ram Air received more visibility, and the TH400 automatic (with optional Hurst Dual/Gate shifter) replaced the two-speed automatic. 1968: A complete redesign with Endura rubber bumper helped garner a Motor Trend Car of the Year win. The mid-year replacement for the Ram Air 400—Ram…

Presented by Co-Sponsored by Paul Nichols pushed his ’68 Camaro into the empty pits at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis. It was nearly dark, and he’d been driving all day through the cornfields and climbing vines of the Midwest, fghting intermittent fuel-delivery problems the whole time. The Chevy sputtered and shut of just outside the gates, so Paul did the only thing that made sense—he pushed his car those last few feet inside. No security blocked his path, and he used the remainder of the setting sun to track down a loose wire and get the Camaro running again. All alone, Paul pulled up to the start line and stared down the quiet quarter-mile. It was a warm night, sticky with late-summer humidity. To escape the mosquitoes, Paul…

It’s been nearly 50 years since Plymouth and Ford ushered in a new class of performance vehicle—the ponycar. Each manufacturer based its combatant on their respective compact-car platforms: Plymouth’s Valiant became the Barracuda, and Ford’s Falcon led to the Mustang. The Mustang was so successful it earned the right to have the entire category titled after its galloping namesake. With two doors, a long hood, a short trunk, and a low cost of admission, ponycars were marketed to a younger audience than their larger muscle-car brethren. For the ’67 model year, General Motors stepped into the ponycar market with the Camaro and Firebird. Following the Barracuda and Mustang philosophy, the Camaro and Firebird borrowed heavily from compact-car chassis that underpinned its Nova. Ford added the Mercury Cougar for ’67,…

01] SLP SLPonline.com; 855.757.7373; $1,299.95; PN 30211 These SLP headers have 1¾-inch primaries that dump into a 3-inch collector. Made from stainless steel, they’re advertised to produce an extra 23 hp and 21 lb-ft at the wheels. The set pictured has an aluminum-ceramic thermal barrier coating that helps lower underhood temperatures and is said to speed up exhaust scavenging. They’ll mate to the factory H-pipe, and SLP includes a lifetime warranty. Prices start at $1,199.95. 02] FLOWMASTER FlowmasterMufers.com; 707.544.4761; $872.69; PN 814117 Did you know Flowmaster makes headers? Its Scavenger Series Elite headers have the ball-and-socket-style flange that makes removal easy—no torch necessary. Built from 16-gauge stainless steel, the primaries measure 17 ⁄8 inches and flow into a 3-inch collector. The flange won’t warp, it’s3 ⁄8-inch laser-cut, and the headers…

This ’68 Eric Rickman shot at the Carson, California, Goodyear blimp airfield, located just behind dragster builder impresario Don Long’s shop, gives you only a glimpse of the immersion and influence by Long into all forms of drag racing in the ’60s through the ’80s. Like to learn more about the Pipe Prophet? Check out this month’s Take 5 With Don Long on page 26. From left: Don Prudhomme (driver) and Lou Baney (owner) with Shelby’s Super Snake Top Fuel dragster Long chassis #19; Ed Donovan (sponsor), Bob Creitz (owner), and Victor Brown (driver) with the Creitz, Greer, and Donovan Top Fuel dragster chassis #23; Vern Anderson (driver) and Doug Walton (owner) with the Walton and Anderson Top Fuel dragster chassis #29; Roland Leong (owner) and crew member Charley Morse…

On page 102, you’ll see inside Chevrolet’s R07 NASCAR Sprint Cup engine and learn how it can produce 850 hp at 10,000 rpm for more than 600 miles in a given weekend. So you might ask, “How can I get one?” Well, It’s easier than you might think. A friend of the magazine, Jimmy Bullard, purchased a used R07 race engine and an older SB2 (the previous-generation NASCAR engine) motor and fit them into two Rat-rod builds. “These engines are more streetable than some crate engines I’ve had,” says Bullard. He got his NASCAR motors from 2nd Chance Race Parts (2ndChance RaceParts.com) in Mooresville, North Carolina, which specializes in hand-me-down race-car parts. Used race engines like these become available to the public when a team closes up shop or a…

Ray and Mildred Lambrecht ran a Chevrolet dealership in the small town of Pierce, Nebraska, from 1946 until 1996 and were known for having the lowest prices around. The Lambrechts also drove a hard bargain. If a new car didn’t sell for their asking price, Ray moved the car off the show floor to make room for incoming models. Unsold vehicles wound up in a wooded field northwest of town. The same went for vehicles taken as trade-ins. As the decades passed, a select few cars remained in storage indoors, and while locals would offer to buy the cars and trucks, the Lambrechts always turned them away. So the cars sat until Ray and Mildred, now 96 and 92, respectively, decided it was time to clear out their inventory. For…

Bill Osborne designed and fabricated more than 100 race cars in his lifetime. His creations competed in everything from Trans Am to Sprint Cup; the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) series to the Silver State Classic. He also crafted a little Camaro you might have heard of called Big Red. That car graced the pages of HOT ROD several times through the years because it was not only trendsetting (it was Pro Touring before Pro Touring was cool), but it’s also fat-out fast, whether around corners or in a straight line. Before Osborne passed away in 2009, he created (along with partner Corey Weber) a company called Agent 47 Competition Products. Agent 47 (AgentFortySeven.com) produces hardcore road-racing suspension parts and exterior aerodynamic enhancements for ’79–’14 Mustangs. It also produces…

Dave Ahokas is a Drag Week™ veteran, but as his mechanic Lloyd Welty helped strap us into the seat of his 6.83-second, 204-mph car, he admitted that road tripping the Jerry Bickel–built machine that he’s been campaigning since 2012 might be a little more involved than he had planned. “We have to stop for gas before we get on the route,” Dave told us. “It’s about a mile down the road. You can get out there if this is too much for you.” We scoffed at the insinuation that we couldn’t hack it. But when he started the car and we wondered if it could be any louder and hotter if we were actually inside the engine, there was a definite moment when we weren’t sure that we could make…

To say Ford invented drag racing isn’t entirely true—but it’s close. Whether it was the old Model T bangers racing two (or three) abreast at the lakes, or fathead Fords facing of at places like Santa Ana and Pomona, Ford has participated in quarter-mile racing action from the very beginning. Now Ford has announced it’s halting sponsorship of professional Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock drag race teams after 2014. How can that be? Ford’s motorsport dollars helped fund drag racing from the early days. It helped bring Top Fuel racing into the national spotlight with the rise of the SOHC motors in the mid-to late-’60s with drivers like Connie Kalitta and Sneaky Pete Robinson. It created the Ford Drag Council and a feet of 427ci ’65 Mustang…

Bill Akin started his gasoholic proclivities picking up HOT ROD and listening to the yearly Indy 500 broadcasts as a kid in Nashville, Tennessee. Then, a ’40 Ford coupe (and some other old heaps) propelled him to become a bona fide hot rodder. After building some seriously nice rods, his search began for one of his earliest interests—Indy roadsters. He scrounged some ravaged remnants in a junkyard in Kentucky, studied roadsters near and far, and in 1989 finished restoring the ’61 Autolite Special. After 25 years of show ’n’ go, Bill decided to re-restore the car to its ’62 roadster representation. Here’s what he did. FACTOIDS Don Branson qualified in 11th place and finished in 12th place at the ’62 Indy 500 in this car Bill Akin restored. Parnelli Jones…

THE ORIGINAL COMBO Jeff Blitz purchased his ’66 Chevy II Nova four years ago, complete with a carbureted 10.5:1 355ci small-block Chevy, a TH350 automatic with a 3,000-rpm stall-speed converter, a 3.55:1 12-bolt rearend, and a manual front disc-brake conversion. Although built up using a factory roller-cam–style block, as received the engine ran a hydraulic flat-tappet cam and GM Vortec cylinder heads modified for close-tolerance pushrod guideplates and cut-down valveguide bosses compatible with high-lift cams. THE PROBLEM Blitz was continuously plagued by noisy lifters. “They tick at all times,” explained a frustrated Blitz. “It’s very slight during cold-start, but after it’s fully warmed up there’s a large and audible ticking. Only some of the lifters tick, generally on the driver-side bank.” A rocker-stud on the driver-side bank also…

Performance Online // 714.278.0098 // PerformanceOnline.com Have a first-generation Camaro or Firebird that just isn’t cutting it around the corners? Get a new-car feel out of your classic muscle car with Performance Online’s Power Steering kit. This kit includes a steering gearbox, a power-steering pump, necessary hoses and brackets, and a rag joint. It doesn’t include a power-steering pitman arm. The kit also comes with power-steering fluid and a limited lifetime warranty. Price: $465.99 Everything You Need in One Bucket Meguiar’s // 800.347.5700 Meguiars.com If you’re flipping through these pages at a Walmart magazine stand right now, then head to the car-care area and check out Meguiar’s Walmart Holiday Bucket kit—but only after you buy this issue of HOT ROD, of course. The Holiday Bucket has everything you need to…

SEND YOUR PHOTOS To be included in Scene by Readers, send low-rez photos and some information about them to HOTROD@HotRod.com. If we elect to use your photo, we will email back with instructions on how to send us a high-rez photo for publication.…

JaredFreemyer //Fairfax, Missouri We like Jared’s ’67 RS/SS factory four-speed Camaro. The interior is mostly original, but he’s restored almost everything else. Robert Wayne Fowler //Durham, North Carolina This ’86 Monte Carlo SS features a 468ci big-block making around 800 hp. The car has a full tube chassis, but Robert hasn’t had a chance to make a pass with it yet. Peter Liddy II //Holden, Massachusetts Peter found this ’65 Pontiac GTO seven years ago in Maine (it’s originally from Arizona). Featuring a T ripower 389, the Pontiac is a nice highway cruiser. Graham Scriven //Australia The Australian hot-rod scene has been exploding in the last decade. Here’s Graham’s ’34 Ford coupe with a blown Ford 302. Terry Beltz //Hudson, Florida Terry owns this ’46 Studebaker pickup with his wife…

Tired of finding LS engines in everything and long for the days when a big-block was the ultimate underhood bragging right? Those days have returned. The Mercury Racing (MercuryRacing.com) division of Mercury Marine has unveiled a new all-aluminum, quad-cam, four-valve-per cylinder (QC4v) 9.0L big-block crate motor based on its twin-turbo marine engine. Mercury Racing designed the QC4v engine architecture in 2010. It’s a 90-degree V8 with a deep-skirt block, cross-bolted main bearing caps, dual overhead cams (DOHC), four valves per cylinder, dry-sump oiling system, sequential-port fuel injection, and coil-on-plug ignition. When fit into a boat (with effectively unlimited cooling) these 552ci powerplants are offered in three trim levels: 1,100 hp, 1,350 hp, and 1,650 hp. Why should you care? These engines features a 90-degree Chevy V8 bellhousing, and Mercury Racing…

After shooting the Camaros for the Jan. ’14 issue, I meandered my way through Indiana. I had no set route; I was just headed northeast toward Michigan when I got turned around. I’d made a wrong turn on a back road and ended up discovering two frst-generation Dodge Chargers sitting alongside some railroad tracks. I pulled into the driveway, and the cars’ owner came walking out of his garage. He was working on a friend’s ’69 Camaro. I introduced myself and asked about the Chargers, which he was more then happy to talk about. We walked over to the first car, a ’66 Charger in red. It was an original 383ci car that had been hot rodded with headers, an electronic ignition, and chrome valve covers. Like the car, the…

If cars have thoughts, Ron Cizek’s ’40 Ford is probably blinking its bezeled headlights in confusion right about now. It’s trying to figure out how a Ridler-winning show car goes from basking in the lights of the Detroit Autorama (Autorama.com) to making laps around a local Friday night car cruise in small-town Nebraska. We’d like to claim all the credit for getting this showpiece of its trailer, but the truth is the car’s builders and owner intended to drive it from day one. It just took them a little longer than they planned to get the car on the road. Built by Andy Leach’s CAL Automotive Creations (CalAutoCreations.com) and nicknamed Checkered Past, Ron Cizek’s Ford was started in 2010 after Andy moved back to Bennington, Nebraska. Andy spent…

Replacing Rusty Floorplans, Cont’d Next Month: Hemi Block Repair Contact CLASSIC INDUSTRIES; Huntington Beach, CA; 800.854.1280; ClassicIndustries.com OVERLAP VS. BUTT-WELDING Overlapping metal by flanging it along its length cuts down on fit-up time, but it increases the chance of corrosing it along its length cuts down on fit-up time, but it increases the chance of corrorosion from inside out. Here, we made special steps to cut down on the chances, but it’s still possible. Overlapping may or may not stray from factory appearances since automakers did overlap metal in certain areas. With our Impala, the factory overlapped the front of the pans, which was the only part of the original floorboards we kept.…

Disconnecting the battery while the engine is running isn’t a valid test for alternator function and may damage sensitive electronic parts. Instead, use a common voltmeter and the following test procedure. Although some of the steps reference typical GM alternators, the basic methodology is valid for any charging system. 01] Test voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running. A good alternator should maintain battery voltage between 13.9 and 14.8 volts (14.2 is optimum). Even worstcase, with all accessories turned on, there should be at least 13 volts at the battery. Be sure that the engine is running at a high enough rpm for the charging system to function (especially if running a one-wire alternator excited at a specific rpm). If voltage is low, go to Step 02. If…

Q: I’m looking into upgrading my ’81 Oldsmobile Calais with a 4.3L (260ci) V8. Are there aftermarket parts for this engine, including headers, chrome valve covers, dual-exhaust systems, intake manifolds, carburetors, a dual-snorkel air filter, and any other performance parts? I’ve been told to just dump the engine; everyone says it’s not worth hopping up. A: I’m not gonna pull any punches here: The littlebitty 260 Olds isn’t worth hopping up. Size matters. Although a member of the Olds small-block V8 family, the 260’s tiny 3.5-inch bore pretty much precludes a head swap from a 350-or-larger Olds engine or using modern aftermarket heads, such as Edelbrock’s offerings. Ditto for an intake manifold swap. All 260s came stock with two-barrel carbs. There are no dedicated factory or aftermarket 260 four-barrel…

Sometimes, you have to buy the car you need, not the one you want. It happened to me recently and got me thinking about the state of affairs in mundane transportation. See, my wife and I both have Jeep ZJs a breath away from 200,000 miles. As a Jeep and 4x4 guy, I like them because they are capable of-road, and they’ve been bulletproof, but now the electronics are getting hinky in both of them. They randomly die and throw no codes, and it’s erratic enough to defy troubleshooting. I’ve tried all the known problem areas. Our local good-guy repair place won’t touch ’em because the owner says I’ll spend more on diagnosis than the vehicles are worth. There must be millions of cars in the same circumstance. In the…