Innehållsförteckning för May 2022 från Classic American

Welcome to our May issue – I don’t know about you, but it feels like this year is flying by; maybe it’s the contrast with the last two years’ glacial pace caused by lockdowns and Covid. This month’s magazine features not one, but two purple muscle cars. This wasn’t deliberate, it’s just a bit like the old bus analogy – we had one then another one turned up very shortly after and we just had to share them both with you. In some ways they represent different ends of the muscle car spectrum. The ’67 GTO is nearer the beginning of this halcyon period, while the ’72 ’Cuda the end. And that’s the funny thing, the muscle car era barely lasted a decade, yet it’s the era that many enthusiasts…

An exclusive exhibition to be shown for the very first time in London, the collection offers rarely seen vintage and modern prints of stunning images captured by Lew Allen. Shot in Cleveland and New York from 1956 to ’58, Allen’s work features Elvis Presley and a stellar assemblage of early rock ’n’ roll icons such as The Everly Brothers, Bobby Darin, Frankie Avalon and Buddy Holly. His lens embodies one of the last links to visually document those early days when rock was just beginning. This remarkable work takes you back to a time before these rock pioneers rose to legendary status. Proud Galleries’ ground-breaking show brings together a comprehensive selection of photography prints, delving into a wonderful and nostalgic bygone era that captured the meteoric rise of the ‘King…

Vic didn’t come from a motorsport background. He was born and raised in London where his parents ran a modest working men’s cafe. As a youngster he had very little money so he wasn’t able to enter motorsport until he was 26, and then as a rally navigator because he couldn’t afford a car of his own. But once he got behind the steering wheel, he was a demon and proved to be an incredibly versatile driver. He was one of a rare breed that could jump into any car, drive it to its maximum from the word go and often win. He was soon rallying works Porsche 911s and won the 1967 European Rally Championship. Porsche then gave him the opportunity to race their mighty sports racers which only…

“Not surprisingly, it is a pretty good automobile and despite its somewhat misty European credentials, Europeans find it a likeable example of American engineering. The GTO has a harsher ride than an Olds 4-4-2; it doesn’t corner quite as well and it isn’t as solid, but even if it were, that’s not why the kids want it. They want a kind of Spartan, lean-feeling machine with no monkey motion, one that jumps – this is what the GTO is. Not by accident or luck, but because John DeLorean and his enthusiastic Pontiac bunch have honed their products to fit the critical youth market standards.” Erick Dahlquist, Hot Rod, May 1967 “Front disc brakes are available to further enhance good braking system… three-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic is quick and smooth… 400 cubic…

1972 Plymouth ’Cuda ENGINE: 340cu in V8 Holley carb Weiland intake Mopar electronic ignition Mopar Performance valve covers Hi-Torque mini starter TRANSMISSION: Torqueflite 727 8¾in rear axle with Suregrip and 3.55 gears SUSPENSION: KYB shocks WHEELS & TYRES: US American 17in mag wheels 225/45/17 tyres (front) 225/50/17 tyres (rear) BRAKES: Power brakes EXTERIOR: In Violet paint – Code FC7 AAR rear spoiler AAR strobe black body stripes ’71 spec rear panel and lights INTERIOR: Rallye gauge cluster Console-mounted floor shifter Re-covered seats Dynamat floor sound insulation…

Oldsmobile W-Powered Muscle Cars £35 Author: David Newhardt Published by: Car Tech ISBN: 978-1-61325-540-7 Oldsmobile is not the first name that comes to mind when discussing muscle cars, yet they arguably produced the first ones as far back as 1949 with their Futuramic 88. This used the relatively light 76 Series car, with a V8 substituting the standard six-cylinder engine. The powerful combination gained them many wins in the blossoming NASCAR series of the day. So perhaps it was not too surprising that when Pontiac introduced the GTO in 1964, squeezing a V8 into their mid-size Tempest, the inter-GM rivalry prompted Oldsmobile to follow suit. Their F-85 with Police Apprehender Pursuit Package added a four-barrel carburettor, a four-speed transmission and a dual exhaust and was designated the 4-4-2 as a…

The UK’s number one Fifties rock ’n’ roll weekender, Ritchie Gee’s The Wildest Cats In Town, is back! There’ll be an unbelievable line-up of bands, DJs and Fifties atmosphere this summer, celebrating the 20th year reunion at Pontins while showcasing the best bands from the US, Europe and the UK from June 30 to July 4. This fantastic weekender features dozens of Fifties-style stalls, a fantastic sprung floor ballroom, an outside stage, beach party and late-night burlesque show. There’s also a huge restaurant overlooking the sea and an awesome annual classic car and bike cruise into Lowestoft, with the Lord Mayor arriving at the Royal Green, as well as hot rock ’n’ roll band Shane And The Korrados and DJ Route 66. This event has grown such that it is…

ALTERNATIVE TO ELECTRIC? Dear Classic American, Reading your editor’s Viewpoint article in the latest edition, he mentioned how prohibitive petrol prices have become and the march of the electric cars. A few years ago, there was a big campaign promoting LPG for cars. At the time I ran a ’79 Mercury Marquis and had that converted to LPG. I never noticed any difference in performance from when it was running on petrol and I got the same mileage from a tank of LPG as I did from a tank of petrol, but about half the price, and recovered the conversion costs in about one and a half years. Fast forward to today and I have ’49 Buick Woodie that I run totally on LPG. (No petrol tank.) I did the…

Heading east out of Edmonton, Alberta, on Highway 21, the lights of the gas towers recede in your rear-view mirror. Soon the highway is just a single lane of asphalt in each direction. Under a wide, open sky, fields of grain and pasture stretch out to an indeterminate horizon, blotted by the dust clouds of a distant, working combine. Pull off the slim ribbon of highway on to a gravel Range Road and all you can hear is the creak and clonk of an occasional Lufkin pump (those ‘nodding donkey’ oil pumps still a familiar sight in the Mid-West) and the rustle of tall grass in the breeze. Welcome to the Canadian Prairies! The story of the ’57 Ford Custom started the day Andrew Scott took that road out of…

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Scalextric Dodge Challenger Is a slot car a model or a toy? Years ago, Scalextric cars were certainly intended for the toy market, mindful of the wear they would encounter in the hands of young carpet racers. These days such is the quality of their manufacture and decoration, with well proportioned bodies and many details, I’m sure many people collect these 1:32 scale slot cars for display, being too wary of their racing skills to risk damaging these excellent models. The fact that in recent years they have incorporated LED lighting and optional digital control makes them even more sophisticated, though obviously one would only appreciate such technical advances on the track. This iconic 1970 Dodge Challenger represents the one year only T/A (Trans Am) version which was introduced to…

April 14-17 VIVA LAS VEGAS Rockabilly weekender in sin city, Orleans Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada. 25th year. See www.vivalasvegas.netfor tickets or more info. 15 WHEELS DAY Surrey Street Rodders' annual season-opening extravaganza to raise money for charity and kick off the UK car show season takes place on Good Friday, which this year is on April 15. Expect to see Americans, hot rods, custom cars, British classics, VWs – basically anything interesting on four or two wheels. John Price will be on the P/A and there will be many traders and autojumble, with plenty of activities for kids and the whole family, as well as food and drink retailers. For more information and to register to enter, go to www.surreystreetrodders.comor see their Facebok page. Registration is necessary to enter, you…