Innehållsförteckning för October 1989 från Hot Rod

It’s a brisk Sunday morning right on the San Francisco bay. There’s a collection of cars in the paddock area and you choose a spot and unload the race car. Yesterday was practice and qualifying on the fast slalom course. As with all autocross races, this SCCA-run Pro Solo course is challenging, since you must. run a gauntlet of orange cones as efficiently as possible in order to shave precious tenths of a second from your lap times. Pro Solo differs from most autocrosses in that you race against another car on mirror-image courses and leave the starting line heads-up, pitted against a dragstrip Christmas Tree. This race is the culmination of months of work, experimentation, sweat, frustration, and more money spent than you would care to admit. As you…

Big-Block Breakthrough The new Dart II Merlin iron head for Chevy big-blocks features all the latest flow techniques from the current crop of 200-mph door-slammers and can be ordered with oval or rectangular ports. The heads have a .400-inch-thick deck, siamesed intake and exhaust ports, reinforced rocker arm stud bosses, and fully machined rocker cover rails as well as standard-steel exhaust seat inserts. For additional info, contact Bill Mitchell Products, Dept. HR-10, 80 Trade Zone Ct., Ronkonkoma, NY 11779, (516) 737-0372. Fat ’n’ Low Bridgestone’s RE71s for the Ferrari F-40 feature an ultralow profile and special tread pattern. The 335/35ZR17 will be original equipment for the F-40. Because of the extra-low profile required on the Ferrari’s rear tire, seven straight grooves are employed to optimize the contact patch for street…

There engine assemblers, and then there are engine builders. It’s one thing to merely bolt a bunch of parts together. It’s quite another thing to carefully assemble machined components to precise tolerances. If you don’t believe that, just look at how much top-rate shops charge for fully blueprinted engines—usually, you can’t even walk in the door for under $6000. Naturally, there’s an alternative: You can do it yourself. And as the following photos illustrate, lots of megabuck tools aren’t really needed. Sure, it’d be nice to have a full set of micrometers, dial-bore gauges, and other exotica, but by using common tools no more advanced than a dial indicator (which you need anyway for degreeing-in a camshaft or checking disc brake rotor runout), in combination with lots of patience and…

Rich and Jacklyn Gebhardt, a husband and wife car-building team from Jacksonville, Illinois, are noted for their extraordinary Pro Street creations, and this “Prokist” orange ’88 Beretta is no exception. It took Best Overall Street Machine at this year’s Street Nats in DuQuoin, Illinois, a pleasant surprise for the Gebhardts. “Our goal,” said Jacklyn, “was to place in the Top 5 GM’ category. So I was glad I was sitting down when they announced that we’d won Best Overall Street Machine,” The car was built with the help of their good friend Mark Whiting over a two-year period of weekends and slack time between building client cars. A Don Ness Chassis twin-rail Funny Car frame and cage sits on a Strange/Carrera suspension. The front strut suspension features lightweight slotted rotors,…

We’d like to be able to report that our favorite General has generated incredible new performance levels as part of a powerful step into the 1990s. However, it appears that while GM has made a couple of significant strides toward stronger performance models, 1990 is only a sequel to last year’s movie, with a couple of juicy scenes added to keep everyone interested. CHEVROLET The biggest news from the Bow-Tie brigade is the final presentation of the long-awaited ZR1 Corvette. We won’t rehash the power figures on the LT5 engine; suffice it to say that the 12-second, 180-mph ZR1 will be in short supply at a stout price. And you can bet they’ll sell each one they build. Since the truck market has become the new darling of Detroit, Chevy…

Street machiners will spend every waking minute building a car that will out-accelerate anything this side of an M-X missile, but it’s just as important to build a suspension that is up to the task. This list of suspension specialists is just the ticket to making that ground-assault weapon a stable high-speed ride or an all-out canyon carver. VETTE BRAKES & PRODUCTS, INC. Vette Brakes, the leader in bolt-on brake and suspension components, introduces their new front transverse leaf spring kit for Corvettes (pictured above) and Camaros. “Max out” with the best ride and handling combination available. VB’s fiberglass front spring kit allows you to adjust the ride height and spring rate without changing the spring. Result: The suspension reacts more quickly and smoothly, plus the dual-mount spring pulls double-duty,…

Robby Gordon, the first driver ever to win an off-road race piloting a pickup (SCORE’S 20th annual President Baja International), has a racing agenda that isn’t so hidden. The 20-year-old ground-pounder from Orange, California, wants to follow former off-roader great Rick Mears to Indy-type racing. Meanwhile, Gordon’s BFGoodrich-equipped Ford F-100 remains in a classic Ford versus Chevy duel with Frank Vessels’ American Thunder Chevy. Between the two, either Gordon or Vessels have finished first in Class-8 competition in four of the five rounds held so far in this year’s HDRA/SCORE off-road series. HAUL IN THE FAMIL After spending the better part of Memorial Day watching the Indy 500, I felt that something was lacking. Oh, the cars and coverage were visual winners. It was the audio portion that left something…

ZZ IS THE TOPS Just had to send you all a big note of thanks for including me in your fantastic “Dare To Be Different” article in the July ’89 issue. Finding all those old negatives was great, and I received calls from oodles of guys who remembered and enjoyed. As for the new ZZ Top CadZZilla, it’s the most superb car I have seen in years. Everybody who worked on the project should be proud. Again, thanks gang, and keep up the outstanding work at HOT ROD! George BarrisHollywood, California On CadZZilla—Wow! This vehicle redefines the phrase “understated elegance.” What a work of art! Congrats to the designer, tin bender, and everyone else involved in the project. The license plate had me stumped, but my friend Zeke “ZZ” Zukoski…

Does the name Mike Burroughs ring a bell? doesn’t, we’ll refresh your memory. Burroughs is the guy who romanced Uncle Keith (Black) into helping him assemble a tripie-purpose Camaro (see “Triple-Threat Camaro,” March to May ’87) that was equally at home on the street and strip, skidpad, superspeedway, or road-racing course. Well, high-flyin’ Mike has done it again, but this time with a ’Bird of play. But before we delve into this litany of research, development, and parts testing, you have to know where Mike Burroughs comes from. In short, he is what we call an advertising executive. What he does for a living is to represent various hot-rod parts manufacturers, and he does this by seeing that companies he represents receive media exposure. So Mike has the hot rodder’s…

A we approach the beginning of a new decade, Ford Motor Company is holding all the aces with the most formidable and popular fleet of performance cars in more than 20 years. Ford has been grooming these modern musclecars since the early ’80s, and as the decade closes the company emerges as a Clear-cut winner in the race to deliver the best performance value to the consumer. The success story of the ’80s—and unquestionably the best performance value of the decade—is, of course, the Mustang GT and its low-buck spinoff, the 5.0L Mustang LX. Unfortunately, these undaunted performance veterans have pretty much reached their zenith, as tightening CAFE standards continue to squeeze their existence. The good news is that Ford will be able to keep them in a holding pattern…

Since day one, many hot rods have been molded in the image of race cars that preceded them, whether by design or function. One of the most well-known racers of the ’50s and ’60s, “Ohio” George Montgomery, successfully campaigned flawless Willys Gassers, and it was these cars that had a significant impact on Bill Bowman. To revive those memories, numerous craftsmen were brought together, including Curt Hall, John List, Posies, and Bill Bowman, Jr., to create Bill’s version of an “Ohio Willys.” The original frame rails had been boxed and reinforced with a K-member before all seams were molded. The suspension components were positioned with the body in place for the right stance before being permanently attached. These included Kugel front spindles, tubular stainless A-arms, GM rotors and JFZ calipers,…

HOT STUFF CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING REQUIREMENTS: $225.00 for 25 words. $6.50 for each additional word, $1.00 extra per word in bold. Company name and address are FREE! Count phone number as one word. $150 for photo, logo or illustration 5% discount for signing up and prepaying for 6 or more issues. 1" DISPLAY prepaid rates for each insertion: 1X: $340, 3X $315, 6X $305, 12X $270. Advertisers in CA. using a P.O. Box are required to supply a permanent street address and telephone number. PAYMENT MUST ACCOMPANY ALL ORDERS! VISA/MasterCard accepted. All ads must be received by the 14th of the 3rd month preceding issue date, (e.g., Oct issue deadline is July 14th.) Orders received after the 14th will automatically run in the next issue. Mail orders with payment to:…

New York City Salutes HOT ROD And ZZ Top At the recent unveiling of ZZ Top’s new CadZZilla ’48 Cadillac in New York City, it was declared HOT ROD/ZZ Top Day. A proclamation was presented honoring HOT ROD and ZZ Top for long-standing success in their individual fields. The new ZZ Top Cadillac was unveiled to the media and Madison Avenue advertising executives at Chevy’s Restaurant, a popular spot on 20th Avenue. The car was also the subject of a special segment aired on MTV: Music Television and is scheduled to make appearances in future ZZ Top videos. ZR32 Corvette Under Construction At California Street Rods Rodders who dig state-of-the-art, high-tech street rods will be interested to know that Chuck Lombardo’s California Street Rods is preparing the world’s first 32-valve,…

Cylinder Heads One of the most important factors in choosing the right cylinder heads is cost. A good Set of reworked, cast-iron factory heads can provide improvements, although performance production cores are becoming more and more difficult to find in salvage yards. There is also a danger in reworking the port between the valve and spring pad areas, as water jackets are situated close to these areas, and nothing is worse than “hitting water!” The after-market iron and aluminum heads are a good alternative to production heads, and in some cases cost just slightly more. The advantages of aluminum include lighter weight, repositioned water jackets that allow greater degrees of porting and machine work, improved performance, and also better repairability. Valves The complement to any cylinder head is the valves…

How many old-time, drive-in burger joints are now catering to and promoting a place to cruise ’n’ schmooze for the American Graffiti crowd? A bunch! But nostalgia nights aren’t exactly new to John Souza. You see, the 44-year-old owner of Majors Coffee Shop and Frosty King (in downtown Pine Valley, California) has been doing this for years. As a hard-core hot rodder, he’s been able to combine his burger business with, among three or four other hotties, a ’47 pickup for pleasure. But his latest four-wheel acquisition has been a stop-and-go trip down Hop ’n’ Chop Lane. It all started during a trip to St. Paul, Minnesota, when a pal took John to a barn and introduced him and his wife, Cindy, to a ’48 Merc Convert. Buying the old…

America’s performance front-drive automaker enters the new decade on a steady course. The new model year finds expanded application and refinement of proven technology with a few new technical pieces to keep up interest, such as a 3.3L MPI V6 and redesigned 5-speed transaxle. The only new hot rod from Chrysler is the Eagle Talon TSi AWD, and it’s based on the Laser platform that was introduced last year. Still, there’s enough puffed-up performance in the Chrysler lineup to make for lively street driving. The Eagle Talon TSi AWD is a canyon-slashing street machine. The all-wheel-driven Talon—mixed with a potent 190 hp at 6000 rpm, with 203 Ibs.-ft. of torque at 5000 rpm and an intercooled turbo 4-cylinder—absolutely scats. The Talon sticks in the corners with its advanced strut-type independent…

And don’t ya wanna know how it works? It runs on Max Wedge power with Dodge Styling reminiscent of the ’60s altered-wheelbase cars and Pro Street science to bring it up to date. Even as HOT ROD was endorsing alternative body styles, Steve Gantz was taking it to heart with this 10-second (estimated) Pro Street ’65 Dodge Coronet. A former owner of various Ford and GM street machines, Steve elected to make a clean break from the cookie-cutter car scene by seeking out an attractive, early-model car and modifying it to suit his personal vision. With the help of his brother Bob and his friend Bob Richey, the car was completed in 1½ years with a work schedule averaging 25 hours a week. With the exception of the interior, they…

CARS & TRUCKS ’68 AMC JAVELIN SST. 343 motor, original disc brakes, tilt steering, etc. Runs good but needs work. $1500. James Bevins, 268 Brookside Dr., Angwin, CA 94508, (707) 9653528, evenings. ’69 CHEVELLE WAGON. Pro-built 350, P/S, P/B, A/T, TH350. Cherry body, needs paint, nice. Jeff Locke, P.O. Box 237, Little Lake, MI 49833, (906) 346-3402. ’27 CHEW PRO STREET ROADSTER. AA/FA style, 350 Chevy, Don Garlits fuel injection, big 21.50 Mickey Thompson tires, custom blue Metalflake paint, lots of polished aluminum, chrome, and stainless steel. This is a very exotic street-driven show car. $18,500. Call for more info: Wallace Craft, (703) 977-2046, Virginia. ’74 COMET. 302-cid, 3-speed, 40,000 original miles, 400-plus hours in paint job, interior mint, never seen winter. Tony, P.O. Box 376, E. Barre, VT 05649,…