Indholdsfortegnelse for November 1982 i Hot Rod

Luxo Racers Slated for production late next year, Ford’s Continental Concept 90 is definitely a radical departure from your typical luxury car. With a drag coefficient of only .32 it is one of the slipperiest U.S. passenger cars yet, and its styling is very close to the newly introduced ’83 Thunderbird. The wheelbase is shorter than the legal limit for NASCAR racing, but the planned exemption to the rule will certainly put Ford right back in racing at the NASCAR level. It will also put a significant number of 351W-powered cars on the street for homologation purposes. Can Funny Car bodies and Pro Street Continentals be far behind? Cool Flash Patents have recently been granted on a significant engineering breakthrough regarding engine cooling and thermal efficiency. The system involves a…

Californians tend to be ahead of the rest of the country in many ways, and in Northern California they’re ahead when it comes to starting the weekend. Every Thursday night between April and October—while the rest of the country is still counting down to Friday—a few hundred adults who might otherwise be parked in front of TV screens are parked around the A&W restaurant in downtown San Jose, instead. Only those who arrive within a 1958 or earlier American motor vehicle are actually allowed inside the brightly lit parking lot, and not just any old car or truck will do; the vehicle must also display true Fifties styling. Restorations and fiberglass reproductions are acceptable, and you won’t get turned away for modern radial tires; but you can’t drive through with…

A Hard Act to Follow Indianapolis is a traditional Showcase for drag racing’s best efforts. And this year’s U.S. Nationals provided some of the most dramatic drag racing ever seen in NHRA’s quarter-mile ‘‘theater for the performing arts.” Magic abounded. Gary Beck’s 5.48 in Top Fuel was the result of the same kind of wizardry that enabled Don Prudhomme to set Funny Car low e.t. at 5.63 and establish a new national record at 5.73. Warren Johnson stepped out of the Pro Stock shadows to nab low e.t. honors with a superb 7.76, and he came within an eyelash of running 180 mph in his short-wheelbase 1980 Olds Starfire. Capacity crowds were also treated to a Budweiser sponsored ‘‘Big Bud Shootout’; a spectacular three-round Funny Car race that awarded $25,000…

If you are to have any success with a performance car, you need information—the more the better. Much of this information is locked away under the hood, just waiting to be let out. And a good set of gauges is the key. From cooling to oil pressure to rpm to vacuum, the right combination of gauges will leave nothing to the imagination when it comes to analyzing your vehicle’s performance. However, for information to be useful it must be precise, both in terms of accuracy and response time. Here, there is a difference between mechanical and electronic gauges, although high-quality gauges of either type are for the most part comparable. Readability is another important factor, as you don’t have all day to decipher what your gauges say, especially under racing…

Powder painting, or powder coating, is a “new” process that was originated in 1956, but not put into wide-spread use until much later. It’s a process that can be used on any ferrous or non-ferrous metal surface and can be applied without primer and with only a minimum amount of preparation. The powder is a polyester resin-based coating that is formulated for application by electrostatic powder spray equipment. This process produces a smooth, hard, high-gloss finish, free from runs and sags. The coating is mar-resistant and withstands high impact without chipping and cracking. Recently, powder painting has become popular with automotive enthusiasts. It is excellent for car parts that are subjected to abuse such as suspension and engine components, but works equally well on other car parts, too. Powder coating…

We know it’s the beginning of November. We realize Jackson Frost is here and that those ’48-and-earliers are headed for the garage to be taken apart and readied for next year’s cruise-a-thon. And that’s what we’re getting at…next year—1983—a new rod-related season that wouldn’t be complete unless all of you hot rodders and lead sledders plan to attend HOT ROD Magazine’s 5th Annual Super Nationals. The date is June 17-18-19, 1983; the place is Berea, Ohio; the time will be the best of your life. True, we’re asking you to spend some money like a $25 pre-entry fee (or $35 at the gate), but look what you get for your hard-earned bucks: FIRST: A door prize to end all door prizes. We got Little John Buttera to build us a…

Each of us here at HOT ROD have an opportunity to write an autobiographical sketch and have it appear in ‘Hot Shots.” This month it’s my turn. After considerable thought it occurred to me what I wanted to say didn’t involve my history as much as that of the people I’ve known over the last 15 years, for rodding is more than equipment or fine rolling stock; it’s hard work and good people. It’s sharing your last beer after firing up that knuckle buster you and your best friend have brought to life at three in the morning. At the top of my "Rogue’s Gallery" of rodders is Mike Mazzola. Terrific hands. Name a musclecar and he’s owned one. He’s also built some incredible two-wheeled stuff. "Moe" and I have…

Safety in Numbers While I am not the average hot rodder at 53½, I read my 17-year-old son’s copy. The fact that I’m alive today with no scars from auto accidents I can truly attribute to the excellent acceleration of automobiles I’ve owned. That acceleration was my only salvation at the time of several incidents where "bone-head" turns and/or other maneuvers put me in a very bad situation. Unfortunately, the acceleration I have attested as a "life-saving" attribute in an automobile also has the potential for life-threatening situations as well, if abused or misused. In any case, I am definitely for acceleration potential; not notable features of my Datsun 310 or my wife’s 302 Granada. Harold J. NorridTroy, Tennessee Cheryl’s Peril Not many females write in and show off their…

In this era of escalating rod costs, I, for one, think the other side should be heard from. So let’s hear it for the National Association for the Advancement of Beaters (NAAB). The slogan here is "don’t crab (about magazines featuring high-dollar hotties that don’t go fast), join NAAB!" I mean, Pete "P-Wood" Eastwood and Rick "Bearcat" Barakat got NAAB’d and look what happened. They put together what is probably the fastest, frugal, fender-free, funky Ford this side of Fontana. Now, if we have you confused, look at "Down ’n’ Dirty" in this manner. It’s a pile. It was built from a pile of parts scrounged from both P-Wood and Bearcat’s garages. The body is, at best, a pile of rust. It’s piles of fun to drive. And when you…

Peter Certo of Niagara Falls, New York, owns this black blast from the past. The little ’37 Willys keeps the A/Gas tradition alive from the polished Hilborn hoodscoop to the chromed wheelie bars. The racer image is backed up by a 402-cubic-inch, big-block Chevy engine, delivering power to a B&M trans and 4.30:1-geared ’57 Olds. The chassis is a stock unit that has been boxed, reworked, and features a front-to-rear roll cage. A custom tube axle and stock springs are used up front with steering from a ’67 Mustang. To whoa the go, the original brakes were retained. Race car rolling stock consists of C78-15 Remington tires on 15x3 Center Line wheels on the front, and Goodyear 1½9-15 tires and 15x10 Center Line wheels on the rear. The body massage…

Hot roddins’s post-war boom took many directions including the "roaring roadsters.” These circle burning dirt T’s are still with us thanks to the efforts of guys like Jack Campbell, a body shop manager from Liberty, Missouri. Jack’s street-strokin’ trackster is based on a 1½x3-inch boxed rectangular tube frame supported by a front suspension made up of a Super Bell axle, Delco tube shocks, parallel-link split wishbones, and a simple, cross-leaf spring. The rear suspension is just as traditional. A Halibrand center section is placed between a pair of narrowed (6 inches) ’46 Ford axle housings to which are attached a set of Carrera coil-over shocks. Mustang front disc brakes augmented by ’40 Ford drums supply the needed whoa power. The roadster does its circling on Kelsey-Hayes wires, (16x4 front, 16x10…

Address all HOT ROD Mart correspondence to: Dept. HRM, HOT ROD Magazine, 8490 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90069. HOT ROD Mart requirements: 25-word limit per ad, not including name and address. We reserve the right to edit copy or refuse ads. While not responsible for accuracy of description, we will reject misleading statements. No ads from commercial firms will be accepted. Only one car may be listed in any one ad, but this limitation does not apply to parts or equipment listings. Only one month may be paid for per ad. $20 per ad must accompany each insertion. When photo is included, the rate is increased to $32.50 per insertion. Photos cannot be returned. Due to normal publication schedule, allow at least six months from time ad is received…

Tool Crib Here are two new handy tools for the professional or amateur painter. Pratco’s Mask-N-Tear is a handy little masker that makes the chore much easier. The small, hand-held masker lets its user roll a continuous row of masking paper and tape right on the surface to be masked. The masker is priced right at $19.95. After the car is masked it can be sprayed using Pratco’s D-2 (Dual Purpose) spray gun, which retails for $69.95. This item bridges the gap between production guns and touchup guns. The spray gun comes with two different size cups for different jobs. The side-mounted cup is designed to rotate 360 degrees, enabling its user to spray in virtually any position without a drip of fluid from the cup. The larger snap-lock cup…

Clutch Play Midway Industries has introduced a new clutch design. The new concept of the "Center Force" centrifugal weighting system takes full advantage of the fast, smooth engagement and superior wear characteristics of the diaphragm-style clutch design while completely eliminating the "going over center" hang up problems that have long been connected with this type of unit. For further information contact Midway Industries, Dept. HR-11, 15112 Adams St., Midway City, CA 92655, (714) 989-4477. Economic Profile Crane Cams has announced their new Crane Econo-Power camshaft, which is a series of cam profiles designed to deliver improved performance as well as fuel efficiency. Crane is offering a specialized and carefully applied cam series for specific applications, thereby eliminating improper applications. They are available for all popular V8 engines. For more information…

Building a race car is usually more fun with a little help; the Broguiere brothers can tell you all about it. Chief wrench Danny and brothers Robert and Ray have been around racing quite a while and decided Pro Gas or Super Gas would be the way to go. They bought a Race Craft chassis built in 1978 by Don Ness and loaded it with mouse power. The chassis features Lamb struts and spindles, Lamb-built discs, and a 4-link rear suspension. Firestone 24-15s are mounted on Cragar spun wheels out back, while the front rolls on Cragars and M & H 3.5-15s. Monza’s hood, front end, and deck lid are fiberglass; main body and door sections are acid dipped. Pearl white paint was applied by Danny Gracia, and detailed with…

In the past, most of us have concentrated on the more tangible aspects of our cars—acceleration, appearance, and brakes. Recently, though, U.S. manufacturers have turned their attention toward how the cars handle at speed and around town. A good example is the handling ability of GM’s “F” bodied cars (Camaro and Firebird). Through the years, many subtle changes in suspension technology have evolved from racing experience and the trial methods of the chassis builders. The average rodder can take advantage of several bolt-ons to improve the handling of his car. Aftermarket shocks, sway bars, and springs are available for most vehicles; however, selecting the right combination has recently been the largest problem. Two major approaches to improved handling exist: use a heavy spring rate and relatively light sway bars to…

No matter how it balances out, banker Allen Owen’s ’auler is a real car. It’s not a carport queen, just clean, and it made the 250-mile round trip from El Cajon (a suburb of San Diego, California) to Hollywood and back without jumper cables, tow straps, or enclosed trailers. What originally started out as a $3100 "grease heap with a slipping transmission and wasted engine” was ultimately transformed—thanks to the collective talents of painter Mark Lueck, tranny rebuilder Jim Deck, engine overhauler Allen Owen, six months of time, and the expenditure of five grand—into this colorful mix of candy-ized Cuda. True, the ’72‘s paint scheme is overwhelming, but so is what’s under the multi-hued skin. Owen armed his Cuda with such chassis components as chrome Monroe shocks (Max Air rear),…

Customizing is the only way to personalize today’s mass produced vehicles—and the possibilities are endless. Combining ’80s sleek with ’50s nostalgia, our ’82 Chevy S-10 styling project has given birth to a hot rod hybrid that’s a real attention getter. Already the vehicle has been lowered; stripped of the bumpers; had the extraneous trim removed; louvers, grille, and rolled pans have been added; and the wheels and tires were replaced (see June ’82 and Sept. ’82 installments). Now we’ll take a final look at the latest cosmetic improvements before this S-10 gets a paint job and new powerplant. Nerf bars were added to serve a twofold purpose—to give the truck an updated, sporty image and protect the rolled pans from being damaged during maneuvers such as parallel parking. To give…

Address all questions to Talking Tech, HOT ROD Magazine, 8490 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90069. Please restrict inquiries to one question per letter. All letters must be signed and contain a return address. Due to the large number of questions received each month, personal replies are not possible. Questions will be answered only in this column, so please, no tech questions by phone. Taking Vacuum Devices to the Cleaners Will turbocharger or supercharger boost damage my power brake unit or the vacuum-operated headlight and windshield wiper doors on my 1972 Corvette? Frank HallAurora, Colorado It is possible that your vacuum advance could be damaged under boost pressure. The solution is to install a check valve in the vacuum line that remains open under vacuum conditions but closes under boost.…

Piston Deck Milling The declining quality of gas requires enthusiasts to reduce their engine’s compression ratio accordingly, but since high-performance, low-compression forged pistons may not be available for all engines, it may become necessary to mill the piston down to achieve the desired lower-compression ratio. To do this, you must know the dome or deck thickness on your particular piston, as well as the minimum safe thickness required for the particular application contemplated. While there are special micrometers available for measuring dome thickness, Total Performance (40631 Irwin, Mt. Clemens, MI 48045, 31¾68-FORD) has come up with a viable, low-buck way to measure deck or dome thickness that’s accurate to within .015-inch. All that’s needed (besides the piston to be measured, of course) is a piece of stiff welding rod and…