Innehållsförteckning för June 1990 från Hot Rod

CREV III TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATOR The Corporate Experimental Research Vehicle (CERV III) is GM’s latest exercise in technological exploration and the pursuit of new ideas tor production cars. The CERV III is as “zoomy” and high-tech as they come with its 6-speed automatic transmission mated to a twin-turbocharged ZR-1 Corvette engine producing 650 hp. The all-wheel-drive machine features Kevlar/Nomex body panels, four-wheel steering, and active suspension. A new type of “pedal-pusher” antilock brake system pushes back against the force of the driver’s foot to prevent lock-up, and each wheel is fitted with dual carbon-fiber brake rotors. Zero to 60 speed is reported to be 3.9 seconds with a top speed of more than 225 mph. Viper Production Update A tentative limited-production run of approximately 100 Chrysler Viper sports cars is planned…

Tell me something. How many guys who mess with Streeters for a living practice what they preach? It’s my observation that too few pros, who profit from this thing we call street/hot rodding, actually drive their own self-modified pre-‘48s. Obviously Jeff Tischler, a painter/striper from Rockaway Township, New Jersey, isn’t one of them because he artfully closes the credibility gap by pounding the pavement in his delightful deluxe ‘37 Chevy coupe. Now don’t get me wrong. Jazzy Jeff had tots of help doing what came professionally. For instance, Ken Fenical, better known as Posie, was responsible for causing all the heavy construction—from fitting the stock chassis with a Heidt-handled Mustang II front end and 12-bott rearend to adding his own springs and shocks as well. Posie’s people did the bodywork…

When it comes to well-built, high-value, most-bang-for-your-buck, midsize, American-built performance sedans, Ford and Lincoln-Mercury are the only ball games in town. The supercharged Mercury Cougar XR7 and Thunderbird Super Coupe are the hottest cars available in this segment of the market, standing head and shoulders above their domestic competition and clearly equal—or superior—to most offshore competitors. As the most innovative and forwardthinking automakers of the ‘80s, Ford and Lincoln-Mercury have paid more than lip service to customer satisfaction by delivering exciting, beautifully styled performance sedans that will run rings around their competitors. Moreover, they have done a terrific job of maintaining the unique identity and special character of both the Cougar XR7 and the Thunderbird. While both of these well-dressed tough guys are loaded for bear, the Cougar sports a…

Several years ago, Mike Sturgeon, a Louisville, Kentucky, based mechanic, brought home this ‘83 Chevy Malibu in five boxes. “It was,” said Mike, “a total basket case.” But after three years of “long nights and empty pockets,” Mike transformed his basket-case ‘Bu into a “Ratified” street screamer. Mike first decided on a Bow-Tie, aluminum-headed, .060-inch-over ‘69 427 Chevy for power. Gerald Geary Racing Engines squared up the block and balanced the 12.5:1 TRW forged pistons hinged to 7/16-inch rods and a stock crankshaft. The top-end combination is keyed around a pair of Bow-Tie aluminum heads with titanium valves and Manley springs. A Weiand Team G and Holley 1050 Dominator comprise the intake while Hooker Super Comp headers scavenge the exhaust. Competition Cams lifters and bumpstick control the Mallory-ignited air/fuel flow.…

Corner burning is rapidly becoming the rage of the ‘90s, and it hasn’t taken enthusiasts long to combine the thrill of going fast in a corner with the test of competition in the form of autocrossing. One of the more intriguing variations of autocrossing is the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Pro Solo competition, which is a side-by-side national championship series that attracts many of the best solo racers in the country. Last year, Dan Livezey put together an incredibly successful season in his Street Prepared 4 (SP4) ‘82 Z/28 Camaro to take the Pro Solo points championship for 1989 and the E/Street Prepared Solo II National Championship. An achievement like this is a combined effort of driving talent and car preparation, and we thought it would be interesting…

When Larry and Sue Rhodes first set eyes on the remains of this beautiful ’33 Chevrolet cabriolet, they must have thought twice. The body was split into nine pieces, while the wood that had once joined them had long since rotted away. Yet with only 4276 of these models originally produced, they had to have it! Once home, what was left of the body was completely reworked including fabricated patch panels for the cowl and rear body. It was then re-assembled with new wood and steel reinforcement throughout by Larry and Gene Stewart. Other changes included a 2-inch top chop, a molded grille shell and front pan, a front-opening Rootleib hood, and “bobbed” rear fenders and pan. A louvered bellypan conceals the gas tank. All latches were replaced with solenoid-operated…

B-EAUTIFUL DART I married into a ’62 Dodge Dart 440 four-door sedan, which sports the early-style 318 motor. What mods are needed to update it to something I can play with, say a 383 or 440? Can the push-button trans be retained for nostalgia sake, and, if so, how strong are these units? My wife thinks that we should drop in a 440 because of the “Dart 440” fender badges–thank God she didn’t own a Lancer 770! Jan-Mark ZentlerBrentwood, California The ’63 and earlier Darts are actually built on the B-Body (intermediate) chassis and should not be confused with the ’64-up compact A-Bodied Darts. A “B”(383/400) or “RB”(413/426W/440) engine will fit the ’62-’65 B-Body by using the same front “K” member and insulator as the existing 318 engine, but new…

Advances in automotive high performance, like those in the world at large, are evolutionary in nature, with each successive step forward building on the work and accomplishments of those that have come before. That’s how planes fly higher, and cars continually run faster and handle better. Back in 1987, the aftermarket made its first serious attempt to modernize the ’64-’72 General Motors intermediate (A-chassis) front suspension. Components were offered to adapt the ’70-’81 Camaro/Firebird (F-car) front steering knuckle (spindle) and disc-brake components to the early intermediate chassis, thereby providing a relatively inexpensive front-disc-brake conversion while also improving the car’s front-suspension geometry due to the later knuckle’s taller height (See “Knuckle Sandwich,’” HRM June ’87). When combined with the proper shocks, springs, sway bars, and wheel/tire package, this conversion offered dramatic…

When Detroit decided cars should be beautiful, the designers at Willys must have been out to lunch. In more recent times, rod builders around the world have rediscovered the Willys. One such wayward Willys found its way to Canadian Doug MacLanders. Like his brother Dan (see “Dan’s Overland,” HRM August ‘89), Doug has a passion for ‘39 Overlands in particular. The chassis is based around a custom 2x4- and 2x3-inch mild steel frame, which Doug fabricated. In front, he added an independent suspension using 73 Camaro spindles and disc brakes, homebuilt A-arms and brackets, Koni shocks, and 70 Pinto rack-and-pinion steering. In back, a 9-inch Ford rearend utilizes Spax coil-over shocks and multiple locator bars. A pair of 15x15 Weld wheels combines with 33x21.50-15 Mickey Thompsons for traction while smaller…

Last month, we highlighted the driveline components—the muscle, if you will—of the General Tire-sponsored Hot Rod Super Nationals and Hot Rod& Street Machine Super Nationals giveaway car: the ‘64 Fairlane Baby ‘Bolt. But raw muscle isn’t all there is to building a truly streetable performance car. It’s got to have control and finesse as well. In short, to be a worthy road warrior, all the details need to be handled in a precise, uncompromising way—and that is exactly what Scott Sullivan has done, with a little help from his friends. ENGINE DETAILS Installing a modern, computer-controlled, fuel-injected engine in a ‘60s car is slightly more complicated than doing the same with a nonelectronic carbureted engine. Yet the added performance potential with such an induction system is worth the extra effort.…

Richard Boyd did the Pro Street bop on his ’78 Z/28 Camaro and added shock value by stuffing in a blown, aluminum-headed 427 Rat motor between the fenders. The ’70 427 is bored ,060-inch over and is filled with L88 rods and TRW forged slugs, which have been balanced with the crankshaft. The aluminum heads get a pressurized mixture from a Weiand 6-71 blower that’s fed by a pair of Predator variable venturi carburetors. Mallory ignites the fire and Hedman headers exhaust the gases. A Hurst Super Shifter-equipped ’69 Muncie 4-speed with McLeod clutch backs the motor and feeds the torque to the ’70 Dana 60 rearend. A custom 2x3-inch box tube frame with narrowed rails provides the pickup points for the link-style suspension with Carrera coil-over shocks. Monroe 90/10…

The Jim Hall Kart Racing School (JHR) in Ventura, California, is the only full-time kart-racing school in the country. The school has its own tight, twisting, and very challenging racetrack in the dunes just inland of the Pacific and just south of the Ventura marina, and conducts school seven days a week–if you want to learn about karting, the instructors there will find the time to teach you. To get a firsthand look at the Jim Hall school, and a deep-end course in fullrace karting, Joe Pettitt and I signed up for the JHR 2-day school, a concentrated course designed to get us from the nervous novice phase of karting all the way to the point where we’d be theoretically ready to line up for our first official club race.…

STRIP AND STREET Will Rogers was once quoted as saying, “I never met a man I didn’t like.” I feel the same way about old hot rods. I’ve never met a highboy roadster that I didn’t like. There is something totally unique that surrounds the quintessential hot rod; if you have to ask about it, you aren’t getting the vibes. It’s everything a rod should be … no pretensions, no fluff, no eyewash, and no top. Aside from spending 25 years behind the windshield of my own roadster, I’ve driven other people’s rod warriors from Memphis to Los Angeles, from Los Angeles to Indy, and from Kansas City to New York. Each experience simply furthered my conviction of just how bitchin’ a highboy roadster really is … and Chuck Lombardo’s…

Da Grind The Dynafile II easily converts to three different tools in seconds. It’s a belt sander, disc sander, and die grinder all in one that is perfect for grinding, polishing, and deburring in normally inaccessible areas (will enter as small as 5/16-inch-diameter openings). This unique air-powered tool is a must for every serious hot rodder. For more info, contact Dynabrade Automotive Products, Dept. HR-06, 72 E. Niagara St., Tonawanda, NY 14150, (716) 694-4600. Power Mod Accel has just introduced the Power-Processor. This electronic module plugs into the vehicle’s wiring harness and takes control of fuel delivery and wide-open-throttle ignition timing, allowing the stock computer to regulate other computer functions. The Power-Processor allows you to modify your computer-controlled engine with cams, cylinder heads, pistons, and/or headers, and enables you to…

Father Time sure can be a nasty old bugger, can’t he? Among wine connoisseurs, he’s a hero, but members of the musclecar flock often have nightmares of the old man standing on their hoods with a sledgehammer and a smile. The sledgehammer, of course, is symbolic of the effect he has on an aging musclecar. Time spent outdoors not only causes that beautiful megabuck custom paint job to fade and oxidize, but it also plays havoc on the interior. Imagine your painted body panels in a greenhouse, where the sun’s rays are magnified several times, and you can understand what your poor interior goes through on a summer day. Added to that is the wear and tear that’s caused every time you get in and out of the car. Needless…

Chandler, Arizona’s Dan Fagerstrom was enlightened 25 years ago. In his words, he “made a mistake and bought a car magazine.” Since that time, he’s been hooked on hot rods, with a keen interest in the Pro Street movement an the venerable Willys coupe. So it was only natural that he should combine the two in the work of art you see here. Starting with an original all-steel 4-cylinder car he found in Canada, Dan had John Boyle fabricate a frame out of 1 ½-inch steel tube. Up front are Morrison struts controlling the suspension action, while a Pinto gave up its rack-and-pinion to direct the 15x6 Cragar/Mickey Thompson rolling stock. Out back is a Boyle-built four-link suspending a 4.86-geared, 9-inch Ford. Power is put to the pavement via 33x21.5-15…

At one time or another we’ve all been there. Model cars were the first access most of us had to the real thing, and they, along with HOT ROD Magazine, are what led us to interests we enjoy today. And while times continue to change, model building is still the most common entry into the full-scale automotive world. This has never been more evident than at the 1990 Hot Rod Magazine Model Car Nationals at the Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, March 3 and 4, 1990. Builders of all ages entered over 1000 models and remote-control (R/C) vehicles of the highest quality. The models ranged from dragsters, sprinters, and Indy cars to customs, classics, and street rods, some with well-detailed dioramas that scaled down reality. For those looking to improve…

In a motorcycling world that’s shrinking as fast as the Communist Party, Harley-Davidson continues to ring up higher sales, better quality, and increased market share. And the Men from Milwaukee aren’t prospering by faster, newer, and tricker machines the way the Japanese are. The Harley secret is giving its customers what they want–and carefully, slowly, strategically changing what the customers want to conform with what Harley’s got. Since 1985, almost every piece of every Harley has been changed, twisted, rethought, and redesigned to keep on giving 1930s’ style and heritage–and 1990s’ reliability. And because Harley’s customers don’t demand a new engine every three years, Harley is free to assemble new models on style alone–in effect, coming up with new combinations from the old parts bins and mixing and matching frames,…

COPE OF GOLD To show you what a dark horse Daytona 500 winner Derrike Cope really was, his hometown of Spokane, Washington, didn’t even telecast the running of NASCAR’s premier race. Instead, the folks there opted for a local college basketball game. So his family had to go out of town to witness one of the most incredible upsets in the annals of Daytona history. Up until the last lap, and in the lead with one mile to go, three-time Winston Cup champ Dale Earnhardt seemingly had it made. Then, literally within sight of the checkered flag, Earnhardt, who has never won a Daytona 500 but had led a total of 155 laps of this 200-lap race, ran over a piece of debris and punctured a tire. Unlike the rest…