Indholdsfortegnelse for January 1969 i Hot Rod

FOR MARIO Gentlemen: We are officers of the Mario Andretti Fan Club and would like to have the name of our club printed in the Post Entry column of your magazine. Andretti race fans, write: Mario Andretti Fan Club, 7312 North Oriole Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60648. Thank you for your interest. Through your support we hope to gain many members. Ralph Capparelli, Pres. Jeff Thomas, Vice Pres. THE RISING COST … Dear Sir: In your September issue you published a letter from a gentleman from the East Coast who felt that the admission prices of drag races were getting out of hand. I must say that I could not agree with him more. We in the Tulsa, Oklahoma, area have been plagued with the problem of fewer races and higher…

“Cubic Tulsa Why do you suppose it is that a premier event is required to unfold on a course that limits (for example) a 6.70 AA/FD to a 7.0? Is there something wrong when National Record holders of Jr. Stock (Stock) cars are unable to qualify for an event when they've flogged their rigs and won throughout an entire season of drag racing … and the only reason for their failure to qualify appears to be a lack of bite (and excessive horsepower)? Know how many Division Points winners are asking themselves if it's going to be worth it next year? Some officials asserted that everybody was sandbagging his car. Followers of professional football writhed in disgust a couple of years ago when a certain “pro bowl” was located in…

This year's SCTA Speed Week, on the salt, may well be termed the meet that almost didn't happen. The situation was no-go as late as the preceding Friday. Saturday, about 3 in the afternoon, I heard that Speed Week was on again. The two months between the original meet and this late October date were used by SEMA's Burke LeSage to organize another sponsor drive, raising an additional $6000 to finance the second installment of Speed Week. That ambulance doesn't come out for nothing, and those “Chick Sales” have to be rented, in addition to many other expenses, not the least of which were the long distance phone calls to inform everyone the meet was off, then back on again. Thompson had the salt for the preceding week and had…

Cobra Specifications—Standard engine: 428 CID 4V V-8. Bore and stroke, 4.13x3.98 in. 10.6:1 compression, premium fuel. 335 hp at 5200 rpm. Torque 440 Ibs-ft at 3400 rpm. Ram-Air induction optional. Transmissions: 4-speed manual; ratios: 2.72:1, 1.89:1, 1.29:1, 1.00:1. Optional SelectShift (floor shift with optional console), ratios: 2.46:1, 1.46:1, 1.00:1. Rear Axle ratio: 3.25:1 standard (3.45, 3.91, 4.30 optional). Brakes: 10.0 in. drums, lining area 173.3 sq. in. Optional power front disc brakes, total swept area 232.0 sq. in. Wheelbase: 116". Overall length 201.1". Weights, hardtop 3633, SportsRoof 3689 lb. Wheels: 14", 6” rim. F70-14 wide-tread belted tires. Suspension: Competition HD. Cobra Options: 4V Cobra Jet Ram-Air V-8 with functional hood scoop—$133.44 over base 428 V-8•F70 x 14 Wide-Oval Belted Tires, raised letter (required with 428 Cobra Jet Ram-Air)—$13.05•Power Front Disc…

Every so often someone comes up with a new way of doing something that is really “trick,” as they say in the hot rodding trade. If it makes for better performance, and thereby more wins, it's accepted quite readily by the masses. Recent developments in the field of clutches have produced friction material that has the ability to withstand tremendous heat build-up and yet not slip, once the slipping action that precipitated this heat ceases. Of course I'm referring to the slipping clutches that are being used in most gas and fuel dragsters. These same diggers are also using multiple clutch discs with floater plates. Those familiar with these units realize that longer-than-normal fasteners must be used to attach the pressure plate hat to the flywheel. These fasteners, or bolts,…

I've been in or around hot rodding for over 20 years and occasionally (but not very often) a really groovy piece of speed equipment comes along that positively gets the job done. You know what I mean — something that's easy to put on, doesn't require you to be a mechanical genius, only takes an afternoon to install, and really gives your car a kick in the pants — increased performance you can feel. Enter the Dyno-Tune Kit. I first heard about the new Dyno-Tune Kit a few months ago when I visited John Geraghty's Automotive and Marine Diagnostic Center in Los Angeles, while gathering information on dyno-tuning for the Motor Trend Auto Repair Manual. At that time, Geraghty mentioned that a complete kit which would enable anyone, anywhere, to…

Call it a puffer, blower, compressor, or 'charger, that big converted GMC diesel supercharger on your “motor” is bound to increase performance. Now, just how much it'll help you is something else. Like everything else in the world of hot rodding, where change is continually taking place, there is more than one way to modify a diesel blower for use on a modified passenger car engine. And we aren't referring to Mercedes-Benz diesel engines, either. Just one of many guys involved in setting up Gimmy blowers for drag racing use is Tommy Larkin, a North Hollywood, California, drag racer. His approach to this task is similar to others in some respects, but Tom has a lot of ideas that are strictly personal. If you're interested in how GMC blowers are…

When I think back some 20-odd years ago to the first time I installed a set of “hydros” on my '29 Ford roadster, the few other brake rebuild jobs I performed, and the many that I've seen other guys perform — man, I get the shivers. It's the same old story: When you're older you think about all the foolish things you did and wonder how you survived. I was doing the best I could with the coins available, and I sure wasn't taking chances with my life. After all, those “better” brakes were being installed in an effort to stop that rod more surely, and not merely for looks. Still, when one looks back (after gaining a heck of a lot more knowledge), he realizes that things weren't so…

The Canadian-American Challenge Cup series of races was inaugurated in 1966 and has since turned into the richest sports car race series in the world. There's better than a half-million dollars involved in the total purse for the six annual races. Johnson Wax people kick in a huge chunk just for the Championship Award fund, decided by points accumulation standings at the end. John Surtees won the Can-Am in '66, and Bruce McLaren won in '67. With luck, McLaren may win it again for '68. Beginning in September, Can-Ams wander across the U.S. and Canada, with the final held in Las Vegas in November. Cars used are Group 7, two-seater, openor closed-cockpit, with virtually no limitation on engine displacement or total car weight. The door is open to almost anything,…

HOT ROD MART Requirements: 25 word limit per ad, not including name and address. We reserve right to edit copy or refuse ads. While not responsible for accuracy of description, we will reject misleading statements. No ads from commercial firms. Only one car may be listed in any one ad; this limitation not to apply to parts or equipment, however. $10 per ad must accompany each insertion. When photo is included, the rate is increased to $15 per insertion. Due to normal publication schedule, allow at least two months from time ad is received until it is printed. SELL — '58 Austin-Healey. Fiberfab Banshee body, '66 Ford 289, and 4-speed with Hurst, Sun tach, and gauges. Interior needs work. $2500. J. B. Morehouse, 4132 Avenham Avenue, S.W., Apt 7-1, Roanoke,…

Continual braking and accelerating can be tough on your car's engine. With moments of stress equalled only in competitive racing. Moments that cause excessive engine wear. That's why your car needs the full-time extra protection built into Valvoline—the motor oil that's race proved to meet the rigors of everyday driving. Every can of Valvoline contains the power, performance, and protection know-how distilled from millions of miles of racing. Take the wear and tear out of yo"~ engine's toughest moments. Ask for Valvoline.…

We got the chance to be in on “the crate opening” for one of the first 351 Fords to be shipped to the West Coast, so it seemed natural to be in on the dynochecking of the same engine when the process began several hours later. A short test series was set up which included a number of prototype performance parts from Carroll Shelby Enterprises, so you might get some idea of performance potential. There are two versions of the 351. The standard version is equipped with a two-barrel carburetor and pistons configured to produce a compression ratio of 9.5:1. The optional version utilizes a four-barrel carb and manifold to dump a fuel mixture on the flat-topped, but eyebrowed, pistons, yielding a static pressure of 10.6:1. The intake system and…

On the premise that if some is good and more is better then too much will be just enough, the Burkholder Brothers followed their A/A '33 Ford coupe with a AA/A Bantam Roadster and concluded with this outta sight AA/FA. Harry and Pete started from scratch on this one, using 1 1/2by. 065-inch moly tube for the main rails and adding their own cross-torsion front end. American 12spokers are wrapped with Pirelli skins and snubbed with 50/50 tubular shocks. A 394 cu. in. Olds fits the engine pit and boasts a. 280 overbore; 5/8-in. stroker crank from Valley Ring & Rebore in Sacramento; an Engle cam to tickle 2-in. intake and 1 15/16-in. exhaust valves with 3/8-in. moly rods, Engle lifters, and M/T rockers in on the action. M/T flat-topped…

At the age of 53, Dick Bonnot has created what has to be one of Southern California's finest street rods. The Oldspowered '29 Ford 1/4-ton roadster pickup features a 401-inch mill, polished heads, with a Howard cam, Jahns forged pistons, DuCoil ignition, homemade brassfilled headers, topped with two Carter AFB's. Original firewall was moved back four inches, with dash remolded from early Chevy. A dropped '32 front axle complete with transverse spring and Gabriel shocks complete front assembly. Gears are selected through a '41 LaSalle trans backed up with a '41 Ford rear carrying 3.78 gears. Steering gear is of '32 vintage, cut and shortened. Steering wheel is from a 1967 Mustang. Ford hydraulic front and rear brakes are used. Adjustable aircraft-type radius rods were made by Dick. All exterior…

Dune Buggies Magazine and Vic Wilson Enterprises have now tapped the young automotive enthusiasts' Mother Lode. The first National Bug-In was a little bit like every county fair you've ever attended, with an all-day singin' and chicken-eatin' thrown in for good measure. The Volkswagen-oriented show featured dune buggies, desert racers, buses, sedans, and dragsters in slalom and drag racing and a concours d'elegance show. National Off Road Racing Association officials were on hand to pre-tech several dozen of the vehicles scheduled to participate in the Mexican 1000. Additionally, 20 manufacturers had rented tent space and were present with products, information, and a sales pitch. Revell (the model car makers) had roped off an area around their entry into the Mexican 1000 and gone to work applying a psychedelic paint job.…

Jerry Blundy's personal opinion is that sprint cars should be sprint cars, and not modifieds. That's just an opinion, mind you, and it didn't stop him from loading up his caged sprint car, his racing equipment, and his wife, and towing out to Sacramento from Galesburg, Illinois, on his vacation. He came west to run in the First Annual C.R.A. Sanction, U.S. Open Competition Super Modified and Caged Sprint Car, 100-Mile Championship Race. That's a mouthful. But the length of the title for this event fits the large (for this type of racing) purse up for grabs: $10,000 total, $5000 first place money. Blundy returned home with the five grand top money, to the surprise of many, especially the three drivers following him to the finish. Each thought he was…

Now that the smoke has cleared in Tulsa, NHRA's “World Finals” is history. Emerging victorious, Dave Boertman of Muskegon, Michigan, copped the 1968 World Points Stock Eliminator Championship by consistently clicking off record times. Dave's winning P/S Chevy was a fine example of a well-bred (Junior) Stocker and driver ability to adapt a car to the not-so-ideal conditions presented by the Tulsa International Raceway track. As a matter of interest, the short-block in Dave's haulin' little Chevy was out of Tom Elk's record-holding K/S Chevy panel truck, which runs considerably under its own rather stiff National Record. Sliding on down to the runner-up position, we find Bill Izykowski (who missed all the gold by about 12 inches) with his just-sold B/S Chevy. Bill, sponsored by Duffy's Performance Center in Red…

The California Highway Patrol has issued a statement of enforcement policy regarding transportation of dune buggies and other custom-built cars intended for off-highway use. While this directive is only for the State of California, it would be well for out-ofstate residents to peruse it — especially if they plan on towing a vehicle into California for any of the various offroad events which are being planned for this area. We'll repeat the directive as published by the California Highway Patrol and leave it at that; some study now could save some time and money later on for you. Keep that in mind. Reconstructed and specially constructed motor vehicles not intended to be driven on the highway must, nevertheless, be registered if they are to be towed on public thoroughfares. However,…

Here's a stitch in time for anyone running any of the heavier equipment off the road, utilizing the third member setup shown. The steel axle housings are forced into the cast gear case. With continuous pounding off the road, the axle begins to flex inside the casting. It may take several years for this to happen; but when it does, the casting will break, the axle housing will bend at the joint, and the axle will bend, which in turn may misalign the inner splines, causing the ring and pinion gear to lunch. Needless to say, when this occurs, the vehicle becomes somewhat difficult to move — especially if you happen to be forty miles from the nearest road. A relatively effective remedy for this malady is to run a…

We're gonna do it again. We're going to make Ford and MoPar fans write letters to us, just as sure as you're reading Hot Rod right now. Some of them will be a bit rough reading for our secretary. She can read okay, but some of those words — wow! It isn't our fault really; it's the car. The Z/28. It doesn't come promising anything. About the only pitch you get is “closest thing to a 'Vette yet,” which it is. Especially in light of the fact there's not much around “close to a 'Vette yet” in any form. Now, remember to put the proper postage on your letters. A Z/28 is a 302 cubic inch-powered Camaro sports coupe carrying a price tag — in absolute clean condition — of…

The 4130 chrome moly tube frame, designed and built by R. L. Cohee of Long Beach, Calif., locates the 650cc Triumph vertical twin mill reworked by Long Beach Triumph. Use of dual Amal G.P. carbs required unsplaying heads and heli-arcing straight throats. Oil tank up fronts holds 4j/2 quarts, mounts Corvair cooler. Axle and fittings are 4130 steel with Crosley spindles. Dyer Electroplating, Inc., get the credit for all the shiny stuff. Old-time cycle racer “Sparks” Drennan is still trying to shake the habit of throwing it in the corner with his fanny and hanging his foot out over the side. Shades of Ascot! Casale full-midget live rear end is torsion-mounted and snubbed with Gabriel shocks, mounts single Airheart disc. Cornis Engineering's in-out box is hooked to Lincoln ball-joint torque…

owner: Joe Cardoza San Jose, California car: '29 Model A pickup There's no telling what you'll see when the fog lifts in Pismo Beach. For example, Joe Cardoza's '29 'A' Roadster pickup materialized during just such a happening. Joe, a member of the San Jose Roadsters, has spent several years and many bucks on his steel-bodied Ford in a search for perfection. This is the combo he feels comes closest to the mark. Snuggled near the polished aluminum firewall is a 289 cube Ford Cobra mill complete with four Weber 48's and Vertex mog. Extensive use of chrome and Edelbrock covers help pop the eyeballs. Automatic trans dumps power to a plated Jaguar XK-E rear end assembly. Pickup bed was shortened by 10 inches, rear fenders bobbed 4 inches. Naples…

• It takes a pretty wild combo to “score” on the show circuit and at the drag strip nowadays, and the end result usually makes the transition from one to another by way of a posh trailer. Not that show and go are incompatible, mind you; just that drag strip potential and freeway performance aren't geared to one another. At least they weren't until the one-of-a-kind Cougar “Eliminator” made the show and go scene. There's more to this machine than a dazzling Sun Gold pearlescent exterior, functional front and rear spoilers, and a mod interior. The new hot setup for street and strip can be found on the other end of that 428 cubic inch, 335-horsepower, Cougar CJ mill. It's the Dana-Spicer two-speed “Streep” rear axle. This goody makes it…

This month we go back to Drag Machine in Gardena; it seems that's where most of the engine swap action is lately. Leon Kosberg did this job for a customer with a tired 215 cubic inch aluminum engine in his '62 Buick. In this case, the customer had a 283 cubic inch Chevrolet, so that is what he had installed. When considering Chevrolet, this installation will apply to all the small-block engines, from 265 to 350 cubic inches. We checked with the parts man at one of the local Buick agencies, and he questioned the addition of a couple of hundred pounds of cast iron; he claims he can rebuild the little 215 cubic inch aluminum Buick to deliver over 300 horses. If there are enough requests, we just might…

EUROPE’S FIRST REAL “WHEELIE". .. The British have a “wheelie” car. Roy Phelps, of Bromley, Kent, has constructed a Sting Ray body that rests on a Tensile tubing frame. The power comes from a 317 Oldsmobile, but this will soon be replaced by a 427 ’Vette, and the word is that the big-block Chevy will feed into a Rolls-Royce four-speed automatic. (Things are pretty tough all over, huh?) An eighty-yard wheelie with an e.t. for the quarter of 13.6 is the best run to date, but this will be improved upon once that ’Vette mill resides in the engine compartment. OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS, auto racing has become second only to horse racing in terms of spectator attendance. In keeping with this, a giant racing complex is under construction…

SPACE SHOT A.M.A. Records set at Bonneville Nationals A.M.A. Sanction No. 4157 October 21 to 25, 1968…

The timing of boat races presented no great problem until drag boating entered the picture. Circle races were timed by stopwatches, and this was sufficiently accurate for the purpose. But when the drag boats arrived, with sevenand eight-second times for the quarter and 150-plus mph trap times, problems began to arise. The American Power Boat Association (APBA) has used J. Otto Crocker's scan-type timers for their events. This system utilizes a scanner made from a rifle scope mounted on a set of cycle handlebars. A scanner is mounted at the starting line, with a pair at the trap to measure top speed and e.t. Each scanner is operated by holding the scope cross hairs on the nose of the oncoming boat and following it across the line. A contact system…

HAMMER 'EM BACK Dear Jim: Is there any way to prevent valve head destruction whenever an engine is rpm'd to the point of valve float? Spence Nagle Seattle, Washington In typical fashion, there are probably several suitable methods, but we know of only one — the 428-inch Ford engine that was introduced last year ('68) as a so-called Cobra Jet. Option incorporated intake valves with small buttonlike protrusions located on the chamber side of the valve and on an axis in coincidence with the valve stem axis. Thus (theoretically), any contact and attending shock between valve head and piston top would be administered at a point on the valve head that was “in alignment'' with the valve stem axis, almost cancelling movement loading as a function of impact at some…