Indholdsfortegnelse for January 1984 i Hot Rod

Part I: Better Racing Through Chemistry Nitrous oxide is probably the most misunderstood ingredient in the modern hot rodder’s cook book. Its power enhancing properties are widely recognized and debated, but the practical application of nitrous remains a black art to most performance enthusiasts. No one argues with the results, but nearly everyone has something to say about why, when, how, and where it should be used. Nitrous people are known as “bottle babies” to those who fancy themselves the great engine builders of Western society. They don’t need all that artificial horsepower to go fast, but they do need to restructure their priorities if they think they’re not missing out on a good thing. Nitrous oxide is not a crutch for the incompetent; it’s a tool for the well…

Judging from the title, you’d think we were breaking the latest news. But the fact is Southern California’s surprising Top Gas drag racing association has just completed its sixth season. We figured it was about time somebody talked about these intrepid, bucks-down, low-profile, fun-loving racers and how fast they run. By the time most drag racers get to the “Sumptin’ oughta be done” stage of bench racing, that’s usually about the time they decide to hang it up and pursue a new hobby. But back in 1978, when A/Econo Dragster pilot Larry Kruzick started talking this way, and fellow bench racers such as Jerry Campbell, Jim Culp, and Eldon P. Slick hung around to listen, they decided to actually do something. These were the days when quite a bit of…

Most project cars suffer from a commodity precious to the magazine business-time. Regardless of how a project is going, there comes the moment when the editor says, “time’s up, that car is finished.” Project cars also suffer another problem, a lack of a firm goal and a sound plan on how to reach it. Well, it’s 1984 and HOT ROD has a pair of project cars that didn’t fall into the usual trap. They were placed under no deadlines, and they had specific goals: run in the 12s, do it with bolt-on parts, and leave the factory short-block intact. What we set out to prove was that this new crop of musclecars from Detroit is as good as any ever produced and that their 5 liter motors were capable of…

Dennis Zainfeld—a full-on Fordnatic, whose shop (751 N. Vernon Ave., Azusa, CA 91702, 213/334-4118) specializes in modernizing Panteras, Mangustas, Shelbys, and Mustangs—doesn’t mince words. He steps right up by writing, “The objective of this ’72 Pantera project was to create the ultimate GT, a car featuring the latest materials and engineering technology without cost compromises while continuing to maintain the original body design.’’ For instance, the original 351 Cleveland was replaced by a monster-inch, twin-turbocharged Ford “sock” engine … rated at 1500-plus horsepower @ 6800 rpm, which is cooled by a specially designed aluminum radiator and fed from a crash-resistant fuel bladder. For instance, the exhaust system was fabricated from 718 Inconel alloy. For instance, the drivetrain consists of a 5-speed, mag case Hewland transaxle fitted with 4140 chrome-moly stub…

About 20 miles south of Rockford, Illinois, lies the farming community of Oregon, Illinois. Head east along the back roads past the fertile fields till you hit Brick Road. Up ahead on your right is a large aluminum structure, definitely not typical of the myriad red barns complete with silos that normally dot the area. Behind the structure are legions of Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth “hanger queens.” A sign on the building says it all: “MoPar City—Direct Connection Parts Sold Here.” It hits you that Larry J. Pontnack’s place does not grow corn and soybeans. On the contrary, here in the midst of America’s heartland, illuminated by the constantly rotating strobe light atop the just-completed Byron Nuclear Plant, is the home of the area’s premier MoPar high-performance parts center, and…

After thrashing the engine and suspension last month, we’ll concentrate on how the Rampage looks and runs at the strip in this episode. As you remember, the Rancho-suspended, NOS-injected junior pickup was handling better than we had anticipated, and from a seat-of-the-pants aspect felt like it was gonna be a fairly good ride at the strip. The hitch was we didn’t think either the paint or interior were up to HOT ROD snuff. We acted. HOT ROD Art Director Charlie Hayward and I were mid-tunafish sandwich one day while reminiscing about how BMW had campaigned factory race cars with a series of berserk paint schemes, one of which had a diagonal theme that dealt with the shape of the cars really well. Charlie noodled out a quick sketch of what…

Gettin’ the Low Down This year at Merced, California, the creepers were flying low again for the crowd at the NSRA meet. Pictured is Rick Rostawicki of Specialized Auto Components (Anaheim, California) in an intense drift around the course right-hand sweeper. The SAC/Tom Breiting/Joey Moore built creeper featured independent front suspension and an 80cc Yamaha engine. The organization in charge of this mania is called the Low Profile Creeper Racers (2725 Chinook Port, Union City, CA 94587). There are rules, believe it or not: the creepers can be powered by gas engines of less than 100cc, can have wheels of up to 8-inch diameters, and should be no bigger than 44 inches long by 18 inches wide. Rick’s ride was an ’82 version, and they’ll be coming back with an…

How many times have you read I I that some stroke “built this car to be different?” Well, fellow Ford fanciers, Winter Park, Florida’s “Red” Stauffer’s hammered highboy ’33 Vicky is different … decidedly different! First of all, ol’ Henry didn’t build all that many Victorias in 1933. And most hot rodders have left the survivors pretty much alone. Actually, there are precious few hot rodders who have the courage to high-tech a hard-to-find body style—but not Red. He started by fashioning a narrowed, lengthened, and recontoured frame out of 10-gauge mild steel. Then he built his own tube front axle four-link split radius rods, “bat wing” ’* brackets, and mounting elements. He also rebuilt the 355-inch Chevy, installed the Moon intake manifold which supports four Weber carburetors, and brewed…

Anyone who disputes the value of bolt-on parts has never really felt a right-on combination of out-of-the-box hardware. Bolt-on equipment is the backbone of our sport, and it works far better than most people realize. Careful component management is the secret. The right combination of bolt-on parts will flat peel your eyelids back, and our Z28 project car is proof which will stand up in any high-performance court in the land. Up front we’ll admit we broke the Camaro, but we proved some important points. First and foremost is the fact that a 305 Camaro will run like the dickens if you tickle its fancy with the right mix of bolt-on components. Second, bolt-on parts will make all the power you can ask for, providing your engine is up to…

It’s just not possible to market an inexpensive bolt-on turbocharger kit, so the people at Pfaff Turbo Systems (2152 O’Toole Ave., San Jose, CA 95131, 408/946-9751) reasoned that quality would have to be their overriding concern in offering their new twin turbo kits for late-model Camaros. Their three-stage small-block Chevy kits offer quality components with various degrees of performance potential, and a special beautification option that provides chromed components and hardware to enhance the looks of the installed system. The kits will actually work on any low-compression small-block, and they are probably the most thoroughly designed bolt-on kits available. The Stage I Camaro kit is their basic package, and the best part about it is that it may be only weeks away from achieving a goal that no other manufacturer…

Although hot rodders have generally been restoring the early Mustangs, a few with Ford blue running through their veins, like Mike Solis (Santa Clara, California), haven’t been afraid to “upgrade” their Mustangs by a little horse trading. What Solis did was put the ol’ 289 out to pasture and corral a Boss 351 for the ’67 ’Stang. Not being content with a “stocker,” Mike increased the “baby rat’s” horsepressure by boring the Cleveland out to 357 inches and adding a set of 12.7:1 TRW pistons and a Comp Cam-ground roller-type tappet tickler. He updated its lubrication system with a TRW pump and “Muldoon” 9-quart pan, and greatly increased its breathing capacity with a set of fully ported, polished, and cc’d cylinder heads; a Weiand tunnel ram intake manifold; and two…

The “Softail” represents the biggest change to a Harley in more than 40 years. The normally slow-evolving company unleashed a barrage of new technology on the Softail for 1984, and true to form, they succeeded in the difficult task of producing backward evolution. For Harley-Davidson the irony of using modern technology to preserve the past is necessary. Their lifeblood is image and heritage. A digital readout tachometer or silky smooth engine would only enrage their following. We buy Harleys because they’re long, low, loud, and primitive. We like to feel 80 cubic inches of V-twin rumbling beneath us. They look right, they sound right, and they make us feel good. Of course, it would be nice to have all this without some of the problems like leaking oil, bad brakes,…

SELL—15 Chevrolet LS-7 motors, 454465 hp. New in crates, $24,000. Bob Gemmill, days at (206) 364-6010. SELL—19641/2 Mustang fastback, 289 4-barrel. Air, auto, $2500 or best offer. Kim Beaudry, 124 Carroll Trail, Lewistown, MT 59457. (406) 538-8827. SELL—’67 Coronet 500 convertible. Red with white interior. Fresh paint with fresh 440, best of everything. $4500. Box 288, Cedarville, OH 45314. (513) 766-5301. SELL—1969 Camaro, new 6-71, motor, trans, paint, V-top, black on black, 19 mpg highway, fast, and very clean! $7500 or trade for 320i. Brad Peceimer, 20B Sierra Madre, Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93410. (805) 546-4416. SELL—Ford 302 Boss engine, 1971, partially assembled, Ford Trans Am cam, pop-up pistons. Cross-Boss manifold, inline 4-barrel, the good block, never run. Daniel Horn, 478 Montana S.W., Huron, SD 57350.…

Ron Filkins and his black beast are throwbacks. They’re from another era. Both epitomize drag racing’s “ingenuity in action” roots, and because of that and today’s array of cookie-cutter cars, Filkins’ incredible ’57 Bel Air continues to be a welcome break in the action. As the reader can see, Ron Filkins’ fun runner is a stock-bodied (only the hood is ’glass), 3385-pound pachyderm which is docile enough to be driven on the streets … a quarter-of-a-mile at a time! But when Ron tickles the “horses” switch, this elephant has the energy to say, “Adios, brother.” In short, Filkins’ act has to be seen to be appreciated which, we might add, has been playing at OCIR (Orange County International Raceway) for the past three years. For instance, on hot Sundays, thirsty…

High-tech is what’s happening in the street rod world. What’s high-tech, you say? We gave you a brief look at this latest wrinkle in the hot rod art form in our December ’83 35th anniversary issue. You’ve seen it on plenty of our feature cars, starting with Lil’ John’s hand-whittled roadsters, continuing through Coddington’s milled and massaged reprofiled rods, and virtually exploding on the street rod scene this past year. If you have been to any of the major rod runs anywhere in the country for the past couple of seasons, you have seen subtle examples lurking in the most inconceivable places on more and more of the rods in attendance. So what is high-tech, you’re still saying? It’s the new, smooth, ultra-modern look for old-time street rods that gets…

Like the saying goes, “Old racers never die, they just flail away.” Take Tom Rice’s Pasadena, California-based ’68 Camaro for instance. The ol’ warrior was originally modified at Blair’s Speed shop back in the early ’70s so it could compete in the Super Stock wars. But 10 years later, Tom, the shop foreman at Butler & Wright, decided to convert the Camaro into both a Junior Pro Gasser and occasional boulevard bandito. For the record, “Hose Um’s” stock underpinnings have been tied together with mild steel rectangular tubing augmented by a full roll cage. Its front suspension system consists of 6-cylinder Chevy front coil springs and 90/10 Gabriel shocks, while the rear suspension relies on ladder bars, Gabriel 50/50 shocks, modified coil springs, and a narrowed Dana 60 rearend to…

Dragstrip SURVIVAL Once upon a time—1964 through 1969 to be exact—HOT ROD Magazine staged a major annual drag race, the HOT ROD Championships. The site? Riverside International Raceway, a well-known road course located about 75 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Why hold a major drag race on a “sports car” track? Back then, there were plenty of other dragstrips in Southern California where such an event could be held, but the relatively new, large, impressive Riverside facility was a first-class raceway of international recognition … a great place to promote a major drag meet seeking to establish its own identity. For that first HRM Championships in 1964, Les Richter and the Riverside crew graded pit areas, set up bleachers, built a timing tower, installed guard rails, and made several other…

There’s no doubt that Tom “Stroker McGurk” Medley has some serious pull. I mean when a hi-fi company like Winters Performance Products, Inc. (manufacturers of super-quality racing components), will spend 21 days and 26 “geezers” to build ol’ Tomcat a HOT ROD Magazine Super Nationals cruiser, you know that’s gotta tell you something … like “T. Med’s” got it made in the shade. But more than that, Winters wanted to “build a track roadster-type street rod using some of the parts we manufacture to show the street rodder their adaptability and point out the fact that our high-quality parts don’t carry a high price tag.” They also point out the fact that you can assemble a competition-style roadster out of over-the-counter assemblies. The Gary Martz-constructed chassis is a catalog item…

Tool Tray When working on your car, do you have trouble finding a handy place to put your tools? Try bolting an old radiator cap to a cake pan and then just screw the radiator cap back in place. You’ll have a handy tool tray you can use on any car. Mike GibbonsLong Beach, California Low Drag Alternator Many racers and some street cars use an alternator field cutout switch to reduce alternator drag during acceleration. I have found that instead of using a toggle switch, it is better to use a vacuum switch to cut the field current automatically under low vacuum conditions such as racing or passing. Use one that is normally open and will close the circuit above 4 inches of vacuum This allows the alternator to…