Innholdsfortegnelse for Summer 2025 i Hot Rod

Dale Golucke can recall two distinct influences that pushed him to build his 1955 Chevy. The first experience came at a very young age from his brother Lanny, who at 11 years Dale’s senior, already had his license and his own ’55 Chevy. Lanny would treat Dale and his twin brother, Dean, to short blasts around the neighborhood in his green ’55, which sparked a fire in young Dale. “My brother’s car only had a 283 with a lopey cam and a four-speed, but at 5 or 6 years old, it sounded and felt fast,” Dale recalled. “After watching Lanny work that four-speed, I couldn’t wait for my own.” The second Chevy that really stoked Dale’s fire came from the famous 150 sedan from Two-Lane Blacktop. This may not come…

DAVID FREIBURGER STILL CONSIDERS HIMSELF “JUST A MAGAZINE GUY” EVEN AS HE CONTINUES TO BE WHY AUTOMOTIVE CONTENT THRIVES—OR FAILS—ACROSS EVERY MEDIA PLATFORM It was 1991, mere hours before 24-year-old David Freiburger went to interview for a staff writer job at HOT ROD magazine. He walked into a “long-hair, rock ’n’ roll kind of hair-cutting place” on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles “with full-on heavy-metal hair and got it all cut off.” The hair advice had come from Jeff Smith a couple years earlier when he was editor of Car Craft. “David was very young with a ton of enthusiasm but not much life experience,” Jeff recalled to HOT ROD. “I told him it would be better to work in the industry for a while and gain experience, which is…

ALEX MILADINOVICH IS A SCRAPPY, ARTFUL COMPETITOR WHO STRETCHES EVERY NICKEL INTO A DOLLAR. Statistically, it borders on the improbable that an average drag-racing fan could race and qualify for the NHRA’s Top Fuel Funny Car ranks at a national event level with a car he built in his garage, yet here we are talking with Alex Miladi-novich, a 48-year-old longshoreman mechanic who works at the Port of Los Angeles and lives in Orange County. During the week, Alex is responsible for helping move thousands of tons of freight through the port safely and efficiently, but his dream has always been to drive a race car. While Alex has yet to become a household name in NHRA Top Fuel Funny Car fandom, he has amassed a following among Top Fuel…

If you talk to any Fox-body fan, the car they’re driving is almost certainly not their first of the infinitely adaptable platform. Born in the late ’70s and driving its way into the 21st century, the Fox platform has had many return customers who have owned many over the years—and often have more than one in their garage. Jasen Ramsey is typical of the breed. He’s a Gen Xer who was introduced to Fox Fords at an early age and has been sinking his time and money into them from pretty much the moment he could hold a driver’s license and wrench at the same time. He’s owned five Foxes so far, and yes, his garage houses three of them at the moment. One is a very rare 1986 ASC…

This issue we celebrate home-built cars—built not bought, as some would say—and that is a large part of HOT ROD’s legacy. Since the first issue, our mantra has been to inform and inspire, and every issue since then has had a how-to or tech column. The first issue, printed in January 1948, featured a column by noted race engine builder George Riley. For those unaware, Riley had been building racing components since the 1920s through his company Multi-Lift. It was known for its rocker-arm F-heads for the A/B Ford, which was a common engine for racing at that time. The column broke down the typical after-race inspection process the professionals used at the time. The half-page stories became a regular column from a rotating cast of writers, eventually leading into…

What is the future of hot-rodding? It’s a question that’s been asked thousands of times, generating plenty of answers across the spectrum. One focus has always been bringing the passion and excitement to the next generation. While it’s easy to stare into the looking glass of our past, it’s another thing to bring that same devotion into the modern age. This ’27 Ford drag roadster belongs to Kayleigh McEvoy of Natick, Massachusetts, and it’s a perfect example of teamwork and perseverance to bring a young hot-rodder’s dream to life. Like every build that revolves around a journey, Kayleigh’s roadster has a great story to tell. Having grown up in a devout NASCAR household, her earliest memories involve enjoying the races on a regular basis surrounded by two generations of her…

The days of the budget-friendly crate engine have sadly disappeared. Sure, you can still find a fully assembled long-block for less than $3,000, but with cast pistons and rebuilder heads, these are rarely parts a performance engine builder would choose. The alternative is to build the engine yourself. But therein lies the challenge. The actual procedures aren’t that difficult, and the most daunting impediment may be assembling the tools needed to do the job properly. If you are like most budding engine builders, you already have a solid collection of hand tools and perhaps a few specialty items like a torque wrench, a battery-powered drill, and other such items. But engine assembly is a specific category unto itself that demands significant investments. We’ll take a look at what it takes…