Indholdsfortegnelse for June 2002 i Hot Rod

For this month's From the Archives I’m Sharing two oft-seen photos—and the interoffice memos between Baskerville and me—that have hung on my office wall for years, Dad and I agreed that Jere Alhadeff’s shot of Jim Miles’ Topo splattering crankshaft all over the track—and trampling the oil pan ta’ boot—is the single best photo of all time. At least judging by Gray’s delirium (“N-n-nitro! Whoo-who! It's so bitchin!”) every time he focused on it. A close second is Bob McClurg’s ‘classic of Wild Willie grabbin’ more than. his share of the lane at Pomo; Gray stood next to Bob as he clacked the shutter for this one. Gray’s “Fuel Altereds Forever” bumper Sticker lived in his’ office for at least the 10 years I knew him—probably longer. Now. you know…

About a year ago, RK’s promo guy Gary Bryson sent us a slick proposal along with a rendering of a bad-boy C5 in bright yellow. Now, we didn’t need any more C5 Corvettes, especially yellow ones, but this example is at once subtle and arresting. There are two versions—one a coupe—but both are equipped with the same mechanical goodies. In the matter of parts dispersion, RK, Lingenfelter, and Magnuson Engineering will be the only purveyors. The 400hp-plus engine wears a Magnuson supercharger (6 psi) and sends torque through a six-speed manual. At the outer re: aches, 18-inch ch tend Dunlop or Michelin tires. The yellow exterior creeps down over the dashboard and center console and brings some of the exterior dynamics with it. Right now, RK and the others will…

Bob Lutz: “Needless to say, assuming affordability, there isn’t one guy in the United States who wouldn’t like to have it sooner than later.” Remember back in the Sept. 01 issue (“13 Reasons Why America Needs This Car Now”) when we showed you the LS1, six-speed, rear-drive Aussie Holden Ute SS? And begged for it to be sold here? Well, it seems that Holden is spot-on business-wise and the leader in Australian new-car sales (with a market share of 21 percent). Holden is ahead of GM North America in all the company’s goals, including running a clean, profitable, and flexible business. We've been following the slick (0.31Cd) Australian-built Holden Monaro for the past year, the supercar that holds four adults in complete comfort, and as recently as the March issue…

Remember former HOT ROD and Car Craft Editor Terry Cook? We do, and he’s good for a cackle or two every time we cross paths. He’s been in a particularly good mood ever since selling his Scrape custom Lincoln Zephyr to Robert E. Petersen. You know the car—it’s a wild purple thing. You can get one as an 1/18-scale Mattel die-cast for $24.95—about 1/100,000th of what Pete coughed up for the real deal. Anyway, Terry sells fiberglass Scrape clones and now this: a wild speedster (we're not supposed to say it looks like an Auburn Boattail) inspired by a Chip Foose design. Pretty cool, huh? We might cut out the rear wheelwells, or maybe even run it fenderless as a highboy roadster. Either way, this thing’s huge! Try a 127-inch…

“In a roadster you're out there, part of everything that's gonna happen. I wouldn't trade it for anything”. —Gray Baskerville To anyone on the motorhead scene during the past 35 years, it’s just Gray’s roadster. Been everywhere, seen in HOT ROD and Rod & Custom; the mechanical embodiment of the B’ville persona. Secretly this Deuce was all of that to Gray, too—but more importantly, he saw it as a collection of the parts and memories of the friends who assembled it. He emphasized that repeatedly when we spent an entire afternoon talking about the car just a few weeks before he passed away. So why the Paul Horning Roadster? That’s how Gray thought of it. Paul first started building the ’32 in 1954 before Gray knew him. Paul was a…

Moving beyond the typical 331/347 strokers that are so popular in stock 5.0L blocks, we did some math to look at just a few of the big-bore combos made possible by the aftermarket blocks with commonly available cranks, rods, and pistons. We also listed the common specs so you can do your own math. "BLOCK" refers to the block deck height, WC/HW is the piston compression height, and "DECK" refers to the piston deck clearance. Because we presumed the block had an out-of-the4>ox deck height, our listed piston deck height may seem excessive in a few cases, but the block can be milled to give zero deck or whatever you may need for compression ratio or piston-to-head clearance. Stock 302 cranks have 2.123 rod journals and 351s have 2.311, so…

It's been a long cold while since anything about street-car racing seemed fresh. Most of it looks a lot like throwing dollars on a fire, but changes are afoot throughout the scene. One of 5em is the most intriguing thing we’ve seen since HOT ROD kindled the street-legal flames with our first Fastest Street Car Shootout in '92. Its a new class called Cheap Street, and in this story we'll spell it out for you in a nutshell because we're kinda stoked about it. The sanctioning body is Pro, a re-monikering of the same guys who run the National Mustang Racer's Association. Guys who, incidentally, mostly used to work here. The brains behind Cheap Street is James Lawrence, who told us, “I had you specifically in mind when I came…

We aren't going to kid you—the Holley Strip Annihilator ignition, as its name implies, isn't for the average guy looking for a hotter spark for better cruise night shenanigans. It's a serious drag racing ignition control system intended for the regular bracket racer. In addition to the expected high spark intensity, Holleys PN 800-210 Strip Annihilator includes the following race-only user-programmable features: • Burnout rev limiter to prevent destructive valve float and connecting-rod strain in the bleach box • Staging rev limiter to set engine rpm when the trans-brake button is depressed and the gas pedal hits the floor •Main rev limiter to prevent engine overspeed damage in case of a missed shift or driveline breakage • Dual rpm-activated switches to control the on/off function of things like air shifters,…

Welcome to The HOT ROD Magazine Power Tour 2002! The Power Tour is ready to hit the pavement again. We're just weeks away from kicking off the 9th Annual running of our massive motoring circus, with its too-cool Cruise Nights, Long-Haul camaraderie, prizes, surprises, and more. This year’s trip could be nicknamed the “Heartland Tour,” as our route covers more than 1,600 miles snaking through the center of the country. We'll start the rolling party May 24th at Speedway Motors in Lincoln, Nebraska, and end the trip a week later in Youngstown, Ohio, just in time for the start of the Hot Rod Super Nationals at the Canfield Fairgrounds. In between, our route will take us to Cruise Night parties in Kansas City and St. Louis, Missouri; Louisville, Kentucky; Columbus,…

SATURDAY, MAY 25: Lincoln, NE to Kansas City, MO; Cruise Night sponsored by Edelbrock Corp. Power Tour 2002's first drive is a 280-mile shakedown run that leaves Lincoln bright and early and heads south along the western edge of Missouri to Kansas City. As is the case with all the Power Tour legs, you're welcome to drive with the group, but if you'd rather set your own schedule, that’s fine, too. There’s no scheduled lunch today, but the Tour will stop midday at the Kansas City Harley-Davidson Assembly Plant, just outside Platte, Missouri. If you've never seen these classic American motorcycles going together, you’re in for a real treat. Speaking of a treat, the evening's Cruise Night is sponsored by Edelbrock, a company that has generously supported the Power Tour…

Need a break after yesterday's big events? Welcome to Day 5, a short, 250-mile hop northeast from Louisville to Columbus. The Tour doesn't depart Kentucky until 10 a.m., cruises easy Interstate routes, bypasses Cincinnati and Columbus proper, and is scheduled to arrive at the National Trail Raceway by 2 in the afternoon. You can even eat lunch anytime and anywhere you'd like. The evenings Cruise Night is sponsored by the SEMA Action Network (SAN), a nationwide partnership between automobile clubs, individual enthusiasts, and the specialty auto parts industry designed to help stamp out legislative threats to the automotive hobby and pass favorable laws. According to SEMA, SAN participants pay no fees or dues, they simply pledge to “spread the news, regarding state or federal laws that will negatively affect our…

I had the sorry experience of clearing out Gray’s office last week, realizing that the hollowed environ of the OI Dad will no longer emanate his vibe. Then I found this never-before-published letter and photos in Gray's desk; I'd guess it’s from around 1989. It speaks more clearly than I could about the Dad’s enthusiasm, his vision for the magazine, and his love of the job. The players are HOT ROD founder Robert E. “Pete” Petersen, then-Publisher Harry Hibler, and B’ville to the bone. Pete, Harry Hibler fell by my room the other day. During his short stay, “the Hibs” casually mentioned a conversation he had with you during which you expressed concern over our apparent lack of hands-on involvement with hot rodding. Fear not, we're still at it… and…

Have you ever used a circular saw with a clear window in the blade guard so you can see the pencil line you’re trying to follow? If so, your life has been touched by Dave Campbell, the 37-year-old owner and builder of this subtly but extensively reengineered '67 Camaro. You see, Dave is an Innovations Design Manager for Black & Decker Power Tools where he helps develop new concepts for drill motors, miter saws, jigsaws, chop saws, reciprocating saws, and yes, circular saws. He holds the patent for the nifty Sightline window we described. For Dave, being an engineer is’nt a 9-to-5 job-its a passion that impacts virtually every area of his life, but none more so than his hot rodding activities. His Camaro bristles with plenty of store-bought hardware…

The whole import drag racing scene is a love/hate affair for most traditional V-8/RWD hot rodders. On the one hand, its a bunch of young people doing the hot rod thing with their cars. On the other, its their affinity for foreign machinery and an almost hostile disdain for American iron. When Ford introduced the Focus a few years back, its marketing mavens used the principle of product placement to hopefully lure some of the import kids' dollars back to American shores. By giving literally hundreds of Focuses to high profile public personalities ranging from snowboarding champions to swimsuit models, they hoped to trigger a desire-through-association impulse that goes like this: "Hmm, that band is pretty cool and the lead singer drives a Focus. The Focus must be pretty cool,…

SUNDAY, MAY 26: Kansas City, MO, to St. Louis, MO; Cruise Night sponsored by Chevrolet DD: Three of the '02 Power Tour cuts due east across Missouri from Kansas City to St. Louis. The quick way to get there would be to just set the cruise control and zone out on I-70, but we had something a little more interesting in mind. Instead of mind-numbing interstate, the Tour will travel on smaller highways: Route 50 to Jefferson City (smack dab in the middle of the state), and then along Route 44, which comes up on St. Louis from the south. There are no scheduled lunch stops between KC and St. Louis, though there will be plenty of opportunities to stop for food and gas along 50 and 44. Those of…

From a mileage standpoint, Day 6 is the shortest drive: a little over 230 miles from central Ohio to Pontiac, which is just north of Detroit. Good thing, as it'll give Tourers time to get parked and ready for Motown madness. Ever since the very first Power lour, the Detroit metro area has thrown out a huge welcome mat for the Event, and this year will be no different. The city of Pontiac, which was the kickoff point for last years lour, is preparing a street party that'll be full of local musclecar and hot-rod fanatics, (plus—get ready for this-car-friendly cops!). Sponsor of the Pontiac cruise night is iCan!, a company that provides a number of services for the disabled. If you were with us last year, you'll remember the…

In the street-rod legion, there are no more coveted trophies than America's Most Beautiful Roadster in the West and the Ridler Award from the East. The latter is named for Don Ridler, a professional promoter hired by the MHRA in 1957 to hype the Autorama. His idea was the first-ever inclusion off music acts and celebrities in a car show, and the resulting publicity blitz pushed the show to new heights. When Ridler passed away in 1963, his name was honored with the creation of the Ridler Award to be presented to the most excellent car at the Autorama that has never before been on display. The first Ridler went to Al Bergler in 1964 and, thus far, only one person has won more than once: Jerry Pennington in 1972…

Description: This is unlike any other aftermarket product we know o£ but its similar to the removable bellhousing seen on OE Ford C4 transmissions. With the J.W UltraBell, you cut off your automatics original cast-in bellhousing and replace it with the Ultrabell, which bolts on using longer bolts in the factory front pump. The benefit is that the Ultrabell is SFI-approved, so you don't need to add a bulky flexplate shield to be dragstrip-legal. Also, the Ukra-bell is available in designs that will adapt nearly any auto trans you want to run. Need a C4 behind your big-block Ford? Done. Same for a Chevy trans behind nearly any Ford or Mopar engine—see the sidebar for the mix-and-match pairings. No matter what your combo, the UltraBell is a lot easier than…

Greg Orr Sr. ’67 Dodge Coronet Convertible Hamlet, I IM OWNER'S OCCUPATION: Farmer/ATV sales ENGINE: 318ci small-block ENGINE MODS: Hedman headers, Edelbrock intake, MP valve covers and air cleaner, electronic ignition DYNO-PROVEN POWER: NA TRANSMISSION: 727 Torqueflite REAREND: 8%-inch, 2.91:1 gears WHEEL TYPE AND SIZE: Stock steel wheels, Dodge pickup hubcaps TIRE TYPE AND SIZE: 225/70-15 PAINT COLOR: Viper Red BODY MODIFICATIONS: None APPROXIMATE TOTAL INVESTMENT: $10,000 WHATS THE BEST MODIFICATION YOU'VE MADE?: “Headers and Flowmaster mufflers଎ sounds gooood!!” WHAT'S THE BIGGEST PROBLEM YOU'VE HAD?: The torque converter HOW LONG HAVE YOU OWNED IT?: Four years HOW MANY MILES HAVE YOU DRIVEN IT?: 12,000 HOW FAST IS THE CAR AT THE DRAGSTRIP?: Dunno TELL US A GOOD ROAD-TRIP STORY: "Cruisin, the river bend at Evansville. Indiana" HAS THE CAR WON…

If you're running an abbreviated exhaust system without tailpipes, try installing a 45-degree down-turn on each muffler outlet but angle them so they aim inward, toward the centerline of the car. The traditional straight-down or tire-targeted tips blow dust and grit out from beneath the car and make a mess as you drive through the pits, staging lanes, or car show. Tipping bm inboard won't eliminate the problem but should reduce the nuisance factor for yourself and others. And if your local track has noise regulations and you know the decibel meter is always positioned at the same location, direct both tips away from the meter for a little extra sonic wiggle room. Additionally, the guys at Flowmaster have told us that aiming the outlets at each other can have…

Remembering Baskerville More than anyone, Dad, you shaped my thoughts of what was hot and what was not. I began reading HOT ROD in the early °70s as an 8- or 9-year-old, not understanding much of the tech but loving the customs and the racing. I cut my teeth on your articles, and because of your influence I’ve always shunned trailer queens and chrome. Youre why my computer desktop sports a photo of Wild Willie smokin’ the meats at LACR. Greg LenderinkVia hotrod.com Many years ago, Gray and I were in Atlanta covering an ISCA event. After checking in, we went to our room. Gray had a little beater suitcase—he traveled very light. Contents were as follows: one electric coffee pot, three pairs of white shorts, five HOT ROD shirts,…

Curious to see what impact intake valve lash adjustment would have on power, Ebbert increased the lash from 0.024 to 0.034. This opens the intake valves later, decreases net lift, and shortens overall duration. The result was 1,046 hp at 6,700 rpm and 896 Ib-ft at 5,300 rpm with a tad more power below 5,000 rpm—too low to have any impact beCause this engine runs at 6,300 rpm. Then Ebbert reversed direction and tightened the intake lash to 0.014, thus causing the cam to move the valve sooner and increasing net lift and duration. This resulted in 1,054 hp at 6,600 rpm and 888 lb-ft at 5,400 rpm. Ebbert says, “Experimenting with lash will give you an idea of whether the cam is best suited to the engine combination. If…

It used to be the sole reign of Ford Racing, but now that ground is shared by the aftermarket: The Dart Iron Eagle small Ford race block has landed. These all-new, cast-iron small-blocks fer a number of significant performance upgrades over junkyard-scrounged OE cores, but were most stoked by the stroker combos made possible by the available deck heights, siamesed cylinder bores, and scal-loped pan rails for big cranks. In addition to the stock 302 and 79-up 351W deck heights of 8.200 and 9.500 inches (the latter can easily be cut to 3.480 for early 351s), the Dart Iron Eagle is also available in heights of 8.700 (aftermarket tail-deck 302) and 9.200 (OE 351c style). The larger deck heights mean that longer connecting rods can be used with big strokes…

So there are a whole bunch of air filter companies on the market these days. They all make their claims, and from what we've observed, all their products work well. But how well? We rounded up four of the most popular 14x3-inch performance offerings from Advanced Flow Engineering, Barry Grant, Holley, and K&N, plus a parts-store OE replacement) and put them through a series of tests to see if major differences exist. Approximate Airflow Capacity Because hot rodders live by flow numbers for heads, carburetors, and manifolds, we had hoped to be able to put the filter elements on a flow bench, suck the living daylights out of em, and get a measurement of ultimate airflow capacity. Easier said than done. Westech's burly, Pro Stock-capable Super Flow SF600 wasn't big…

MAY 3-5 NMRA 3rd Annual Ford All-Star Nationals National Trail Raceway Columbus. OH 4-5 Fun Ford Weekend: 12th Annual Texas Thunder Houston Raceway Park Houston, TX 16-19 World Ford Challenge 5 Gateway International Raceway, St. Louis, MO 18-19 NMCA/NSCA Super Series Virginia Motorsports Park Petersberg, VA 8-19 OSCA Shootout Louisville, KY 25-28 PSCA Memorial Weekend Shootout Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas. NV JUNE 1 OSCA Shootout Bowling Green, KY 1-2 NMCA/NSCA Super Series Cecil County Dragway Rising Sun, MD 7-9 Fun Ford Weekend Gainesville Raceway Gainesville, FL 7-9 Inaugural PRO-Edelbrock Nationals Beech Bend Raceway Park Bowling Green, KY 8 Heads-Up Midwest Oklahoma Racing Series Thunder Valley Noble, OK 15 Bradenton Southern Outlaw Series Bradenton Motorsports Bradenton, FL 15-16 Ontario Street Car Association Toronto Motorsports Park Toronto, Ontario, Canada 21-22…

This brand-new Ram is the latest and most intimidating Dodge light-duty truck yet, but we’re in salacious Southern California where nothing (even the meat in that taco) is really as it seems to be. So why shouldn’t there be a greedy refugee straight out if the '60s making noise beneath that bulbous black hood? It shouldn’t be, yet here it is. Keep telling yourself this is just an exercise in kinkiness, an aberrant vision perhaps—an experiment that could snafu in the bat of an eye. On the other hand, what could be cooler than a time machine, a way to relive history every time you crank the engine and stomp the throttle? Its initial outing was the Daytona 500 last February, and that actual hands-on test time was limited to…

Chevrolet will have a number of special vehicles on this year's Tour. The guru of Chevy's skunk works, Jon Moss, will again pack some of his pet projects aboard the Chevy big-tig… Several GM vehicles driving on the Tour will be undergoing validation testing for future production. Check out the GM display for more details… Compact car fans should watch for a supercharged Sunfire… On Tour again this year are the Motor Medics, a group of GM engineers driving their familiar 502-powered white box van. They'll be there to assist the walking wounded with light parts, tools, and plenty of advice… Speaking of parts, GM will team up with local dealers to bring parts displays to each cruise night stop, including some of the hottest new goodies for 2002. FRIDAY,…

The Power Tour is on the road early on Day Four, as there are 350 miles to travel between St. Louis and Louisville. The route first swings east into Illinois, with an early lunch stop planned at Mid America Direct in Effingham. Mid Americas Mike Yager will host lunch for all Power Tour participants (spectators will be able to purchase lunch, too), and he'll offer a 10-percent discount plus free ground shipping to Tourers who buy Mid America products. Bring your waller and your dreams. After leaving Mid America Direct, the Tour heads south, and then east to arrive at the Kentucky Fair & Expo Center in Louisville by mid-afternoon. Holley Performance Products, our cruise night host, plans to treat Tour participants with a heapin' helpin of Southern hospitality. Registered…

After January's twin car-show juggernauts in Detroit and Los Angeles, you'd think that February’s Chicago event would be an anticlimax—devoid of news or interest, as bare for scribbling scribes as a Tinley Park tree in winter. Wrong! Besides being one of the nation’s largest consumer shows, Chicago represents wise strategy: Car companies often let the din of the competing shows die down so that their own news has a better chance to stand out in the headlines. Such was the case this year, as both the highly anticipated and the completely unexpected combined to produce a show as strong as a Lake Michigan wind gust. 2003 Mustang Cobra In 1992, Ford introduced the SVT Cobra at the Chicago Auto Show and created a legend. Exactly one decade later, Ford stunned…

Copper Head Gaskets SCE Gaskets 888/GASKET-1 www.scegaskets.com We're really into these. Not just because copper head gaskets seem like way cool race parts that we don't normally get to tinker with, but because they're available in compressed thicknesses of 0.021, 0.032, 0,043, 0,050, 0,062, 0,072, 0.080, and 0.093 inches. That means near infinite tunability of compression ratio and piston-to-head clearance. Better yet, SCE has just introduced the first copper gaskets imprinted with silicone-like sealing beads so RTV is not needed around water ports. The company also carries a full line of performance gaskets, and the ProSeal line of composite head gaskets are offered in 0.0395-inch and 0.0595-inch thicknesses, providing yet another alternative to the more common gasket thicknesses available in the aftermarket. Mopar Big Brakes Stainless Steel Brakes 800/448-7722 www.ssbrakes.com…