Indholdsfortegnelse for November 1988 i Hot Rod

Let’s shake things up in the street machine world a little bit, shall we? For years it seems that the post-’49 crowd has lived in the shadow of the Camaro. I believe we are on the verge of a whole new era in street machining that has already been initiated by those who speak only in street rod tongues. For the last few years, we have witnessed the street rodders experiment with alternative body styles. While the ’32 Ford will always be a classic, rodders have been toying with such oddities as Hudsons, ’40 Olds sedans, and ’48 Chevys with amazing success. Yet on the street machine side of things, there have been few who have tested the waters of ignored cars. I think it’s time to spark a little…

STREET ROD NATS…

Mud. It was everywhere. Imagine driving your pristine ’32 Ford highboy very fast through a giant mud puddle—repeatedly—and enjoying every minute of the experience. Insane, you say? Maybe. But this contest, and many more, is what the 4-Wheel & Off-Road Jamboree Spring Nationals is all about. Oh sure, there’s Show & Shine, cruisin’ the fairgrounds, and the ever-present Midwest corn dog stands, but for the four-wheelers of this world, this event easily qualifies for an Old Milwaukee beer commercial: It just doesn’t get any better than this! The Spring Nationals is one of three off-road truck events staged by Special Events, Inc. over the course of the summer. The Spring Nationals is the first event of the year and is held in Springfield, Illinois, during the weekend of April 29…

There is something about a Corvette that draws people together. Park a classic Sting Ray on the street and it will draw a crowd. Assemble a couple thousand of these fiberglass wonders and you have a serious event. For the last 15 years, the Bloomington Gold Corvettes USA show has assembled the finest two-seat Chevy sports cars in the country. The show was dubbed “Earthquake ’88,” and for good reason. This was the year for the earth shakers and the ground pounders—the L88 427 Corvettes. The Bloomington Gold Corvette show, for those of you who’ve never attended, is the mecca for the plastic fantastic lovers, and it occurs the same weekend as the Street Machine Nationals, just a few hours north in Illinois. Each year, a specific Corvette is highlighted,…

You may or may not agree with Chevrolet’s decision to reinvent the small-block Chevy V8, but few people could argue that the all-new, 350-cubic-inch Corvette engine does not represent state-of-the-art, high-tech engineering. Developed jointly by CPC Engineering and GM’s Lotus Division in Hethel, England, the all-aluminum, 32-valve DOHC V8 is one of the few four-cam, four-valve-per-cylinder V8 engines built anywhere for any purpose other than racing. For all intents and purposes it really is a racing engine. Refined, tamed, and emission certified, the LT5 engine slated to power the upcoming ZR1 Corvette not only shares the same general architecture as Chevrolet’s highly successful V8 Indy racing engine, but it also beats the current gas-guzzler regulations and qualifies for a full General Motors extended warranty while delivering upward of 380 horsepower…

By the late ’60s, the musclecar era was well underway, and most automakers’ contemporary car and motor combinations had become products of linear evolution. With few exceptions, the hottest new models from any manufacturer were usually direct descendants of the performance packages that preceded them. Sometimes the pairing of powerplant and platform was predictable, and enthusiasts often outguessed the product planners as to which hot combo would next roll from which factory. After all, many automakers’ staff engineers were enthusiasts, too, and their ideas about practical store-bought hot rods weren’t very different from those of the buying public. Occasionally, however, the Big Three’s complicated corporate structures obscured an otherwise obvious model and motor match up. Whether it was a case of a manufacturer being too large to respond quickly, the…

When Labe Guirino drove his blown, fat-fendered ’38 coupe to the HRM Supernationals in ’82, it was the first fat attack Ford I had ever seen. But, as in the case of so many other hot rodders, Labe couldn’t leave well enough alone. According to his son Jody, who works with Labe at their radiator shop (Labe’s Radiator in Dayton, Ohio), “Dad and I decided to completely upgrade the car in ’87.” This rebuild consisted of a two-prong attack. Attack one centered around reworking the ’38’s body. Additional mods included molding in the head-lights and taillights, adding a hoodscoop, recessing the rear license plate bracket, shaving off the door handles and drip rails, in addition to installing smoothy running boards, which was done by the ol’ man. For attack two,…

You caught a glimpse of it last month in Roddin’ At Random, where it was part of our sneak preview of the new Pro Street cars of ’88. Here it is today in vivid color right before your bewildered eyes: Matt and Debbie Hay’s twice-blown, too bad T-Bird! Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last three years, you should remember the Chandler, Arizona, couple for their white, blown, alky burning ’84 Olds Cierra, which was one of HOT ROD’S Top Ten cars of 1985. If you need a refresher course, we suggest that you find a copy of the November ’85 issue of HOT ROD Magazine. Matt and Debbie sharpened their building skills and established their innovative automotive reputation with a ’66 and a ’79 Ford Mustang,…

Circle the number(s) of the literature you'd like to receive. Enclose a check or money order payable to HOT ROD Magazine for the total literature fees plus $1.00 handling charge. Mail coupon and remittance to: HOT ROD Magazine, P.O. Box 1580, Riverton, NJ 08077. Catalogs will be mailed directly to you by the companies making the offer. Please allow 6 to 8 weeks for shipment. Requests will be honored if received by January 31,1989. HOT ROD Magazine and Petersen Publishing Company are not responsible for unprocessed orders. Companies participating in this section have accepted full responsibility for filling reader requests. 1. Miller Electric/Auto Arc ($1.00) 2. Crutchfield ($1.00) 3. Vertex/Ronco ($3.00) 4. USA-1 Interiors ($2.00) 5. Bushwacker ($2.00) 6. Total Performance ($4.00) 7. Chevelle Classics Parts ($2.00) 8. Tower Hobbies…

Double-Sided Mears While Roger “rearview” Mears is enduring a string of offroad racing DNFs with his Nissan pickup, including the one at Riverside’s final event, brother Rick recently made history when he captured his third straight CART PPG Indy car series 500-mile event pole position. After previously recording the fastest qualifying lap at Indy (219.198 mph) and Michigan International Speedway (218.42 mph), Ricky “Racer” Mears lapped Pocono’s 2.5-mile triangular International Raceway in 43.996 seconds at 204.564 mph. Amato And LaHaie In Sweden? If the men weren’t actuary there, their machines were, at the hands, respectively, of pretty Liv Bergstad of Norway and Swedish Top Fuel ace Pelle Udelow. A former Pro Stock driver, Uv Bergstad was offered the wheel of Joe Amato’s all-new ’88 car (Joe wasn’t satisfied with it)…

GOT IT As an enthused first-year subscriber I have but a few things to say: I love your magazine! HOT ROD rules! Kill all competitors! Read HOT ROD! Keep up the excellent work. HOT ROD is the cure for hotrodocravia. Have a nice day. Scott A. WilliamsHolly, Michigan P.S. Did I tell you that I like your magazine? (We did not make up this letter. Honest.) CALLING ALL RAMCHARGERS I was pleased to read that Edelbrock is working on resonant engine manifolding. But to give credit where it’s due, the benefits of unequal-length runners were recognized 30 years ago by Tom Hoover in his record-holding and Nationals-winning C/GA ’57 Plymouth. Tom, one of the original Ramchargers, fabricated an intake manifold with a single 4-barrel situated over one of the valve…

Aside from the Roadster Roundup—which began back in the early ’60s when members of the L.A. and Bay Area Roadsters clubs would meet at some location halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco—one of street rodding’s oldest annual events has been the L.A. Roadsters’ famed (now 24th) annual Father’s Day roadster exhibition and swap meet. According to Dick Scritchfield (the most ancient of all L.A. Roadsters club members), the meet started as a car show that was originally held at the Hollywood Bowl. A switch in format—in the form of a swap meet—caused the event to be moved to the Great Western Exhibition Center. It was there that a scheduling problem (“We could only get it on Father’s Day”) gave the exhibition/meet its unique Father’s Day flavor. And when the…

Let’s talk HOT! Not only was this year’s Street Machine Nationals hotter than last year—with all the new Pro Street and street machine entries—but the Midwest drought brought with it searing temperatures that actually made the pavement melt! We’re talking 105 degrees in the shade on Saturday. But that didn’t stop the post-’49 crowd from making the trek to DuQuoin, Illinois, during the last weekend in June for the 12th annual event. This was the third year for the event at DuQuoin’s beautiful state fairgrounds, and a record 3500 street machines came from as far away as Juneau, Alaska. The high-ticket draw this year was the debut of several new Pro Street cars that were, as usual, completed mere minutes before the show started. The Pro Street judging, which is…

According to the East Coast hot rodders, their Midwest brethren have it too easy. The folks on the right coast claim that all the hot events happen in the Midwest, too far away to attend. So beginning last year, Special Events organized the first of the Street Machine Nationals East events at Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey, to give the Atlantic cruisers a chance to show their stuff. This year’s event was again held the second weekend in August. In keeping with its East Coast flavor, the Nationals East offers alternatives to the usual street machine show, with the additional drama of bracket racing for those more inclined to go than show. For those interested in Pro Street, a number’ of high-quality cars attended—with Rocky Robertson the…

For 30 years, Saugus Speedway has been home to a revolving f array of left swingers. This fun-running bunch of racers is generally known as Hobby Stocks, Foreign Stocks, Jalopies, Factory Stock Enduro, Modified Sportsmen, USAC Midgets, 3A Midgets, USAC Super Modifieds, Street Stocks, and Mini Modifieds. What’s more, Saugus’ pancake-flat paved oval, located just northeast of the San Fernando Valley, also plays host to such thrill shows as Figure 8s, a thing called the Ego Challenge, train racing(?), and, of course, a destruction derby. Obviously, space limitations preclude an overview of all these various types of circle squirters, so I bit the bullet and chose the Saturday night that featured the greatest contrasts: USAC’s mighty Super Modifieds versus NASCAR’s fender-flapping, body-banging, panel-pounding Street Stock Oval/Figure 8 runners. It was…

Those of you who recall Rocky Robertson’s Pro Street ’87 Buick Somerset Regal are already aware of Rocky’s penchant for building unusual cars. The Centralia, Illinois-based body and paint shop owner thrives on controversy, and his latest creation is sure to add fuel to the fire. Two years ago Rocky’s Regal departed from traditional Pro Street thinking by running a transplanted Buick Grand National V6 engine complete with intercooler and full factory electronic controls. It earned high marks for being one of the most original and driveable Pro Street cars built, and his new ’88 Buick Le Sabre is even better. Although it retains the total Pro Street flavor, once again Rocky’s car departs from a traditional mainstream powerplant selection by using an injected Buick V6 assembled from components found…

In an effort to make a quick and fast first impression on prospective musclecar buyers, race fans, and the enthusiast press, Ford fielded a veritable fleet of fast back Cobra Jet Mustangs at the 1968 NHRA Winternationals. Six of the first 428 CJ Mustangs assembled in late ’67 were race-prepped by Holman/Moody/Stroppe and local Ford dealers for Stock and Super Stock competition at the NHRA’s season-opening Winternationals drag races. As a showcase for Detroit’s high-performance production iron, the Super Stock ranks were divided into classes for automatic and manual transmission models, which were then classified according to their advertised-horsepower-to-shipping-weight ratios. Super Stock and Super Stock/Automatic entries were also allowed to use any size tire that fit inside their original wheelwells, and any camshaft that would slide into the engine. Otherwise,…

Some rodders are into “profilin’ “—making their car look good. Never mind how fast they go. For others, power isn’t everything, it’s the only thing. Hot rod builder Jack Bliss wants it all. Jack says: “I wanted an up-to-date roadster with all the goodies, yet keep a monster drivetrain so I can race if I want.” For Bliss, happiness began at John Lingenfelter Racing, where a hungry 496-cid Rat motor fed by a 15-percent-over-driven Hampton 8-71 blower topped by dual Holley Dominators was assembled. With its Cam Dynamics roller cam, 7.5:1 blower pistons, LS7 con rods, Mallory ignition, open-chamber heads, O-ringed block, and Jack’s own custom valve covers, this rodent was built to be nasty. The mean Rat plagued John’s dyno, actually breaking it during the initial pull before ultimately…

LOW-COMPRESSION HEAD SWAPS/PONTIAC V8 Today’s low-octane unleaded gas mandates a compression ratio reduction for ’60s supercars. The easiest way to lower compression is usually to swap on late-model heads; not only do their larger chambers lower compression, but also the exhaust valve seats are often hardened to resist the effects of unleaded fuel. Pontiac V8s can be tricky when it comes to such swaps, so we consulted with the Pontiac experts at H-0 Racing Specialties (4708 W. Compton, Lawndale, CA 90260, 213/973-7078). To begin with, real Pontiac compression ratios are invariably half a point lower than advertised, so your otherwise stock, unblueprinted engine may already have low compression (9.5:1 or less). Second, Pontiac began hardening its exhaust valve seats in ’72, but by then combustion chambers were so huge that…

V8 S-10 Kit Offered by R&S Racing, “The Ultimate S-10” V8 engine conversion kit allows the installation of small-block Chevy engines in 4-cylinder or V6-powered four-wheel-drive Chevy S-10s. The kit allows retaining of the A/C, power steering, and cruise control, and it is available for both manual- or automatic-transmission applications. For more information, contact R&S Racing, Dept. HR-11, 726 Marshall St., Albert Lea, MN 56007, (507) 373-5907 or (507) 373-8397. An Eye On T.P.I. T.P.I. Specialties introduces a new foil designed and generated utilizing both a Super Flo flow bench and a computerized dyno to achieve a torque and horsepower increase of 12.5 lbs.-ft. and 11.8 hp by modifying the shape of the airflow as it enters the throttle-blade area. This new foil installs easily and rapidly. For more information,…

For the first time in its eightyear history, the Kustom Kemps of America’s Leadsled Spectacular moved to the small, lakeside, Dutch-flavored resort community of Holland, Michigan. Other than the blistering weather of last summer’s Midwest drought, it was a Dutch treat. The small fairgrounds afforded plenty of shade, and the kruzin’ was kool. There are unquestionably more chopped Mercs now than there ever were in the ’50s, and all of these lowered, chopped, sectioned, shaved, and trenched kandy-kolored streamline babies get better every year. Go low. Go slow. Furple, furple.…

I hate to tell you about this event. It’s probably the best all-around car happening anywhere, and I’m really afraid of how big it might get if any more people discover it. It started as a small, local car show in the resort town of St. Ignace, Michigan (located at the north end of the Mackinac bridge), 13 years ago and has developed—thanks to indefatigable organizer Ed Reavie—into a three-day “carnucopia” that attracted nearly 2500 cars and 60,000 spectators last June. It begins with an all-morning parade on Friday, this year led by Tom Monaghan of Domino’s Pizza (who brought several of his cars, including his Bugatti Royale and Ed Roth’s Outlaw) and guest of honor Don Garlits (who brought his Swamp Rat and yellow T). That night is cruise…

Some of us still remember what it was like in 1970: You could walk into the local Chevy dealer’s showroom, plunk down $4500, drive out in a 454-inch/450-horse SS Chevelle, and lay rubber from here to eternity. Of course, you’d get only about 150 miles on a tank of gas, but then gas was only 30 cents a gallon. Now gas is more than a buck a gallon, and the SS Chevelle’s modern descendant, the Monte Carlo SS, gives you half the car for about three times the price. I call this the “hot rodder’s misery index": inflated prices, deflated engines. But there’s no use crying over spilled oil. If the factory can’t give us real, honest-to-goodness, neck-snapping, tire-melting, gas-guzzling, big-block power, we’ll just have to build it ourselves—just as…

In the era of “Pro Cars,” Pro Street, Pro Sled, Pro Fat, etc., how about a new category for the rods such as Neumann’s tubbed out, fully scooped, low going, flash red but totally stock ’79 Plymouth TC3? How about Pro Sneak, or would you believe Top Fool? Anyhow, the garage mechanic from Hanna, Illinois, decided to have fun with his daily driver (isn’t that what hot rodding is all about?) and did so by building this unique Pro Sneaker. “I got tired of seeing $40,000 nonstreetable PS cars with corporate sponsorship and uniforms. So we decided to build a budget PS car ($3400) that gets 31 mpg and is never on a trailer.” Kurt started the eight-month project by combining the stock front portion of the frame (although he…

If you have a lemon, make lemonade.” Rather than complain about all the newfangled computer/smog technology, wise hot rodders are finding that they can adapt much of it to make their cars run faster. Case in point: In the past, tuning a fuel system was often frustrating and time consuming. Recently, by taking advantage of factory oxygen sensor technology, MSD/Autotronic Controls and K&N Engineering have each introduced aftermarket devices that help tuners dial the correct air/fuel ratio into their fuel metering system by continually monitoring the engine’s air/fuel ratio while the engine is running. Both units—the MSD Rich/Lean Indicator (RLI) and K&N’s Air/Fuel Ratio Monitor-consist of two major components: an oxygen sensor and a control unit. The oxygen sensor mounts in the exhaust systern, where it detects the percentage of…

HERE COMES DE-STROKE Q Could you please give me some tips on destroking a 400-cid Chevy small-block? I would probably use a 327 crank because of availability. I understand that oversize main bearings are on the market to match the 327 crank to the 400 block. Is this method reliable? Also, any information you could give me on rod and piston combinations needed to achieve .035 to .040 inches of clearance between the piston top and cylinder head on a completed engine would be most helpful. G.L. Sommer Feeding Hills, Massachusetts A Special thick-wall main bearings are available to install a ’67-up large-journal (2.45-inch o.d.) 327 crank in the 400 block, but nothing is offered commercially to install the earlier small-journal crankshafts. In the past, special thicker bearings were used…

CARS & TRUCKS ’29 A ROADSTER. Steel, no rust, disassembled, straight body, fenders. Most parts included for completion, many extras. Newly rebuilt, small-block Chevy engine and trans. $3500 o.b.o. Bob Willems, 1591 Millard Way, Dinuba, CA 93618, (209) 591-2258. ALTERED ROADSTER PRO GAS CAR. 402-cubic-incn big-block Chevy, Turbo 400, B&M converter, A-1 valve body, Hooker headers, Center Lines, Firestone slicks, Ford 9-inch with Zoom 5.14 gears. Tilt body, show winner with trailer. $8000. Jan McAnelly, 2045 Dillow Dr., West Linn, OR 97068, (503) 656-1222. ’73 BARRACUDA. 80-percent restored, new Bo Laws-built 340, Edelbrock, Crane, Direct Connection, Hedman, 727 with shift kit, brand-new interior, $4450 firm. Dean Chastain, 4811 Deauville Dr., Orlando, FL 32808, (407) 297-8042. ’87 BUICK GRAND NATIONAL. Hardtop, cruise, tilt, AM/FM/cassette, P/W, power seat and locks. 7000 miles,…