The old saying that states that something is only worth what two fools agree upon is evident here. Driving a piece of history is to be cherished but a confusing transmission shift pattern, iffy brakes and no mufflers makes for a less than desirable bucket list item. Some things are better enjoyed from a static perspective. Just sayin'. ... View more

The damage to our planet due to EV production grows larger every day, but how often does the global news media have anything to say about it? Well over 95 percent of an ICE vehicle can be recycled. Even the starting batteries can be recycled and new ones made from the residue. About the only things that a typical EV offers for recycling are the plastics in the interior and some body parts. The battery array is not economically feasible for recycling at this point, I'm told. It can be done, but the separation/extraction technology is lagging a bit. I still think that a hybrid offers the best compromise, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of interest from the major manufacturers in pursuing that option. What a shame. ... View more

The Skoda 110 looks like a Saab Sonnet rear-ended a Bricklin SV-1. ... View more

A couple of years ago, we had rented a small hangar at a local airport for a special project vehicle. Right next door was an aircraft refurbishing shop and their specialty was repainting airplanes. They exclusively used chemical paint strippers, and after seeing them strip a Beechcraft KingAir to bare aluminum in two days, we understood why they used that method. It would have taken a couple of weeks to hand-sand that plane and it would have been twice as expensive to do the whole refinishing job. The strippers they used were tailored to the task, and was environmentally friendly with low to no odor, in addition to leaving the surface ready for primer. The various bits of fibreglass (antenna nacelles and other lumps and bumps) also were not damaged by the stripper. Use of chemicals to remove paint is a choice but when doing paint for a living on million dollar airplanes, there's a lesson to be learned. ... View more

Bear in mind that the material that the wrap is made of is not very thick and any surface irregularities will still be visible. The article goes into detail about preparing the surface for the topcoat, so proper body prep will yield the best results regardless of that topcoat. And if you've ever had to remove a years-old wrap, you'll wish you were working with metal. That adhesive is a sonuvagun to remove! ... View more

Kelvinators unite! ... View more

AKA the crotch cooler... ... View more

Did they? Look at the Caddy in the lead photo... ... View more

Your response could be interpreted as human beings are responsible for everything bad in the world. Granted, mankind has definitely had an impact on part of the planet. However, I know for a fact that mankind is not responsible for earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes and other "natural" disasters. Mankind did not cause any of the previous ice ages, did not cause the Sahara desert to form or make Mount Vesuvius erupt. Contrary to your point, we aren't the enemy here because this planet is now and will always be in flux. Just ask the dinosaurs... ... View more

Everest and Jennings might have just what you're looking for... ... View more

And no kiss! ... View more

About as much as Obama.... ... View more

Which Apache are you referring to? The '58 is still too cool for school! ... View more

While I was stationed at Fort Polk, LA in 1976, a newly -arrived E-7 showed up with a new TR-7. He was assigned to our unit and he and I discovered a shared appreciation for cars. He began buying things for his little Triumph and I volunteered to bolt them on. A pair of Weiand Lynx air filters replaced the giant air cleaner that it came with, and then a header was added. Some Western aluminum wheels, Koni shocks and a little engine tuning made his car a lot of fun on those Louisiana back roads but, because it rains A LOT in that place, the wipers got quite a workout. After a few months at Camp Swampy, the best of Britain began to exhibit a strange tendency: When the lights and wipers were on at the same time, the headlight doors would open and close in time with the wipers' sweep. Several trips to the nearest dealer in Houston never solved the problem for more than a week. I finally wired the lights around the fuse panel and installed a secondary relay to provide them with uninterrupted power. Ralph got rid of it when the mold that began to grow in the trunk started asking for crawfish... ... View more

Porsche has already done that... ... View more

Or when Chevy copied Ford's Thunderbird and built the Corvette (obviously, GM had a time machine) or when Chevy copied the 1969 Ford "385" series engine when they brought out the 396 and 427 engines in 1964 (dang time machine!) or when Cadillac copied the '73 LTD rear marker light design in '71 and how about that 8.8" rear axle that looks suspiciously like a 1966 12 bolt... oops, I mean the 1966 12 bolt that looks like an 8.8.  And I seem to recall seeing a Suburban with a highly modified Econoline nose grafted on to it just before the Excursion was introduced. Nah, I must have imagined all that stuff. Ford did make something that was so revolutionary that no one ever copied it: the "Twin I Beam" front suspension on the F100/150. All of the alignment shops around here sure loved them! Almost forgot! Didn't the first Ford V8 engines use overhead valves? What? They didn't? That amazes me! I thought Ford did everything first! ... View more

You only used the word "fun" twice and it wasn't in the context of affordable racing. Speaking as someone that has spent a few years in both professional road and drag racing, the element of fun is very small in those categories due to manufacturer and sponsor expectations. Winning is the only thing. It wasn't a lot of fun (it was a job, after all) but it was hugely educational, and the lessons learned have helped me tremendously. Since I have stepped away from the big leagues, a day at Willow Springs or at Famoso with people that are just enjoying their toys is also educational and while going fast is always desirable, having a good time while attempting to do so is of more importance at these lower levels. We have enough stress in our lives these days. Shouldn't club racing be focused on having a safe, fun outlet to release that inner Walter Mitty? Be as good as you can be, but remember that there will always be someone faster. ... View more

Not so. Look at the GM "odd-fire" V6 of a few years ago. 90-150-90 degree firing impulses gave that engine a neat sound. ... View more

Does that '77-'78 Pinto really count as a Mustang? Asking for a friend... ... View more

When William Durant was building General Motors, he wanted a truck to combat Henry Ford's strangle hold on that market. He arranged to buy the Grabowsky Motor Company that was highly regarded for their truck products. Part of the deal was the name would not be changed, hence "GMC" still stands for "Grabowsky Motor Company," not "General Motors Corporation." David Buick had cut the same deal earlier when Durant bought the company. ... View more

Well, do the math: Both cars equipped with 4.10/4.11 rear axle ratio, approximately the same size (diameter) rear tires but the 413's 6500 RPM compared to the Chevy's 7000 RPM redline. Now do you get it? ... View more

Whew! The article teaser said that the partial restoration was going to be "unorthodox." Thought for a second that meant electrification... because, you know, trends. I have an idea: Take lots of pictures, have them laminated and display the photo collection with the nicely restored car. The new owners could take some of the really rusty, had-to-be-cut-off panels and entomb them in clear acrylic and display those as well. Might take longer and cost more, but the end justifies the means and they would end up with a better car. ... View more

It's a shame that some people don't know satirical fiction when they read it. ... View more

Maybe Stellantis could be convinced to resurrect the Turbine car and make this happen... or ol' Elon could whip one up and make it cruise on juice! Electricity and water are always good friends! ... View more

Okay, one more time, and PAY ATTENTION! Electric MOTORS are not ENGINES!! Electric motors CONSUME energy. Engines PRODUCE energy. I am not aware of an electric "engine" that produces energy. A front wheel drive chassis could have been equipped with a "jet engine" effect with extreme safety. There is a local promoter in my part of the world with a jet engine mounted in the rear of a full-sized fire truck that still has its internal combustion engine. He chains salvaged cars to the rear and "burner pops" them into so much charred metal. ... View more

You might investigate using a small-cap electronic distributor like the Summit 850205. Easy to hook up, outstanding spark and doesn't take up a lot of room. It's our go-to for small block powered street rod engines because it fits an early (1927 to 1935) Ford firewall nicely. Should fit your Nova as well. ... View more

I'd like to see a head-to-head comparison between this and a Rallyfighter. ... View more

*gasp*! Is Danger Girl really Debra Winger?? ... View more

The article says that each turbo feeds three cylinders... ... View more

I understand that deodorant was a seldom-used option in that part of the world as well... ... View more

Holy moly, they had different drugs back then. No mention of air conditioning for that "Roast Driver Under Glass." And would it have fit in the single car garages of the period? Would have been fun to (try to) parallel park. But this also shows us that even a failure is a successful learning example. ... View more

The early Sub's had one door on the left and two on the right. That "20 Series" has a strong Ford vibe! Looks like an overgrown Bronco II. ... View more

Maybe the Autorama should consider another category: Majority home-built. The owner could document the process(es) required to build the car and have witness verification to back it up. I can see paint and upholstery being farmed out, but if the owner did those also, extra points. Then, the professionally built cars would be competing against each other and the backyard entries would have a better chance. ... View more

You own a Fiat. Your mental state is indeed suspect... ... View more

In keeping with that thought, Chevy should reintroduce a big-block Corvette... 632, anyone? ... View more

The transmission shop that we used was very familiar with the park pawl issue and came up with their own solution: they slightly undercut the teeth on the spur and increased the angle a bit on the pawl itself. It required a bit more effort to disengage, but solved the problem well enough that the local Ford dealer sent all of their transmissions to them for the fix. Regarding the fuel gauge, ensure that the instrument cluster voltage regulator is sound. Changing it might help. ... View more

Used to have to explain to customers that asked for a "valve job" that renewing the cylinder head(s) would cause the engine in question to become an oil burner. The old rings would have more cylinder pressure on them because of the improved valve sealing and allow oil to be sucked past them and into the combustion chambers during the intake stroke. We would offer the customer two options: rebuild the entire engine or buy a new crate unit. ... View more

I have a vice: buying too many cars. My bench VISE on the other hand is quite useful! ... View more

No, a drill press can't hurt you, stupid people using a drill press can hurt you. Stop, pay attention, and THINK before using any tool, power or otherwise. ... View more

Can't put air in tires with a battery... ... View more

A push broom, dust pan and a liquid-tight large trash can are also essential. ... View more

What? No Duesenberg?! ... View more

I'm in sorry to hear about the passing of Mr. Carson and "Uncle Brad." Team logistician Bob Gosch is still in contact with Dan Foley, who was the driveline specialist on the team when I was there. We're you part of the move to the GT-P program with David Hobbs? ... View more

I have personal history with the Levi Garrett Camaro! I was fortunate enough to be a "FIG" (fly in guy) on the Peerless team when "861" as we called it was campaigned. We were chosen to help develop the Delco CCR 1000 electronic, height-adjustable shocks before they were factory options on the Corvette and Cadillac. We had a few other, um, "advantages" that IMSA never found as well. What memories! ... View more

You'd have to wear your pink slippers and a feather boa when you drove it... ... View more

Hard to look at the Munster Koach as "beautiful." ... View more

Let's see now. Buy a Rolls to prove to yourself that you have too much money, get schooled by your daughter that your reward to yourself is foolish and wasteful, sell your house to spend more money to make the car less efficient while simultaneously irritating your wife enough to leave you to live in it by yourself, but feeling that you've made a difference in the world by converting ONE car to use electricity. Is his daughter happy now? ... View more

Ummm, the "...four speed automatic..." wasn't available in 1969, only a three speed Turbo 400 if one checked the "shift for me" box on the order form. Beyond that, however, is the question of weight. Given that Barris must have single- handedly kept Bondo in business for decades, what would this creation weigh? What price beauty... ... View more

Like you, I am still involved with racing, at a semi-professional level. I also often wonder how liquid-fueled motorsports will have any relevance in the coming years, because it seems like fewer folks are getting involved in it as opposed to playing an simulated version on a screen. If someone can come up with an acceptable noise generator AND some tear-inducing fumes for a high performance EV, I would definitely look at getting involved with one. ... View more

But not even a throttle body fuel injection kit will ease that 390's thirst. ... View more