Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2017 i Classic American

Welcome to American and Modified 5! Classic American has always catered for stock American cars; however, we know there is a growing appetite for customs, rods and other modified American vehicles – and that’s why we introduced these regular supplements and sections to cater for that interest. I hope you enjoy this month’s selection, truth be told we could have filled a supplement double this size; however, space won’t allow, so what we have here is what we’d like to think of as an exciting and interesting selection of American modified vehicles. Enjoy!…

It probably wasn’t surprising given the wind-down of General Motors’ Australian operations but the Chevrolet SS, which has flown below the radar stateside since its introduction as a 2014 model, will be cancelled after this year. The car is based on the Australian Holden Commodore SS, which is also in its final year Down Under. A new Commodore model will debut in Australia for 2018 but it will be imported from Europe and largely based on the Opel Insignia. Sadly, this means it will feature four- and six-cylinder power and put power to the pavement with the front tyres, or via AWD in higher-spec models. The Chevrolet SS features a tyre-smoking 415 horsepower, 6.2-litre LS3 V8 and can be spec’d with a six-speed manual gearbox for added fun; a rare…

I’VE SEEN THE LIGHT! Dear Classic American, Firstly let me say how much I enjoy reading your magazine. Despite being amassive petrol head I am relatively new to the American car scene and, like many people, have got into it via TV shows like Fast N Loud and Wheeler Dealers. I was fortunate to own a Ferrari 308 and a Testarossa but sold them as they are basically works of art and rubbish to drive and I bought a C6 Corvette which changed my whole car ethos overnight. I now have a ’66 Mustang, a ‘Starsky’ Torino and a 2014 Camaro which has just arrived from Georgia. As the classic car market has grown and many enthusiasts have been priced out of their dream classics, I think there will be…

When it comes to classic cars in North America, one topic that often comes to mind, especially during restorations or modified builds, is whether to stick with a carburettor or go with electronic fuel injection (EFI). Over the last three decades, EFI conversion kits designed for older cars have mushroomed in popularity and you’ll find them in many builds, especially modern-style customs and pro-tourers. Even on some factory stock appearing cars, electronic fuel injection can seem like the obvious choice. Compared to a carburettor, EFI allows for more precise air and fuel metering, more efficient delivery, better drivability, improved fuel economy and lower emissions. It’s precisely for this reason why electronic fuel injection began to supplant carburettors on most North American cars in the early-Eighties. By the end of the…

Owning a genuine muscle car in the mid-Seventies got you much admiration when most young lads had merely warmed-over Minis or Escorts. John Castleman was guaranteed respect at the traffic lights when he rolled up in his first American car – a 1968 Charger. Trouble was, one of his mates could go one better. “He had a Superbird,” remembers John, “I’d never seen one before and it looked so outrageous with that nose cone and massive wing. I saw the Road Runner logos and thought it was a cartoon car until I read up on them. When I found out about the NASCAR history I knew I had to have one.” John eventually bought himself an orange Superbird in 1979. “It cost me £1500. I knew a few other people…

The company was founded in 1957 by engineer John Holman and race car driver and ace race mechanic Ralph Moody. It was Ford’s race department for most of the Sixties and achieved remarkable success. Ford quit racing in 1970 and with most of Holman and Moody’s eggs in one basket, the consequences were considerable. Ralph Moody sold his stake at the end of 1971 while John soldiered on until 1975 when he collapsed and died of a stress-induced heart attack aged just 57. However, that was not the end of the story, but merely the start of a new chapter. John’s son Lee, who first started working for the company at its beginning when he was just 12 years old, stepped into the breach. The business was in dire straits…

Residing at Pontins Holiday Centre in Camber Sands, Sussex, the Rhythm Riot is one of the world’s biggest Fifties-inspired festivals and, despite being held in mid-November, it’s an event that draws thousands of party goers from all over the UK, Europe and worldwide, with a good number willing to break their classic cars’ hibernation and bring them along for all to admire. To celebrate its 20th year, November’s Rhythm Riot ran for an extra day, for the first time starting on Thursday, giving everyone even longer to enjoy a top-quality line-up of bands from 20 countries and some of Europe’s best rockin’ DJs covering musical styles ranging from rhythm and blues to western and rockabilly. With three venues featuring music and dancing all the way through to the early hours,…

Lindberg’s 1940 Ford Convertible At the other end of the scale, size-wise at least, is this similarly vintage kit from a ‘lost’ kit manufacturer, Lindberg. In their day, The Lindberg Line range of kits were popular and sought after, many being slightly different in both scale and subject matter, compared to the larger companies. Rediscovered and reissued by Round 2 LLC, who now also own the tooling for AMT, MPC and Hawk kits, this attractive 1:32 scale 1940 Ford Deluxe Convertible is a relatively simple kit. Nevertheless it has a detailed interior and chassis, clear windows and headlights and plastic tyres. Proudly made in the US in Kalkaska, Michigan and now available in the UK, expect to pay under £15 for this classic. Monogram’s big 'Vette – rebooted Way back…

At Fiat Chrysler’s Jeep brand, the Detroit show witnessed confirmation that a reborn Jeep Grand Wagoneer is on the way and will arrive by 2020. Last listed as part of the line-up in 1991, the new Grand Wagoneer will be a stretched version of the already announced Wagoneer and both will be traditional-style SUVs with body-on-frame construction derived from the ½ ton Ram pick-up. Both Wagoneer models are designed to compete against large and premium SUVs, including GM’s Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon models, as well as the Ford Expedition. The Grand Wagoneer will be pitched against the extended-length version of these offerings as well as the likes of the Range Rover. Expect six- and eight-cylinder engine options and possibly a hybrid version as well.…

Friends and relatives paid a fond farewell to Classic American contributor Steve Miles, who passed away last November. The funeral, held at Banbury Crematorium on Tuesday, December 13, saw tributes from his friends on the American car scene, as well as the canal boat community with which he was also involved. Also in attendance were his precious Packard and Chrysler, which were bequeathed to friends and his entire photographic collection has been left to the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.…

Anyone who has ever uttered the adage ‘There’s no such thing as bad publicity’ is clearly unfamiliar with the book Unsafe at Any Speed by Ralph Nader. This coruscating Sixties exposé of cars deemed to be unnecessarily dangerous is forever linked with the Chevrolet Corvair. It certainly wasn’t singled out for a kicking, but General Motors’ bungled attempts at smearing Nader served only to boost sales of the book. Effectively it cemented the Corvair’s status as a widow maker. It was nothing of the sort unless you couldn’t differentiate between braking and steering, but mud sticks. What’s more, there were several tuners and coachbuilders which viewed this rear-engined, flat-six-powered saloon as the perfect blank canvas. Renowned Turinese coachbuilder Pininfarina was one of the more celebrated styling houses to have a…

For classic car enthusiasts in Surrey and around the south east, the start of a new year can mean only one thing – a visit to Brooklands for the New Year’s Day Gathering. With such an expansive and scenic location, it’s not unknown for attendance to hit four figures, including all manner of rare and unusual classics. Sadly, intermittent drizzle in the early morning meant a lot of people probably preferred to stay in bed, and although the rain had cleared by the time the show began, by early afternoon it was pouring down again, prompting many of the exhibitors to pack their bags and say goodbye. Nevertheless, there was no shortage of variety and old Yanks of all ages and styles were scattered around the site. Pre-war cars were…

The Classic Corvette Club UK is delighted to announce that its annual Nationals event is moving to Bedfordshire on the weekend of June 3 and 4, 2017. The Nationals is a two-day show that brings together CCCUK members from all over the UK and Europe, giving them the opportunity to show their pride and joy at the biggest Corvette event outside of the US. It’s also an opportunity for the general public to get up close and personal with this prestigious American marque. Hundreds of Corvettes from all eras are always on display, including the famous Stingrays. Building on the success of the event held earlier this year, the CCCUK has managed to secure the Sharnbrook Hotel, Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire as the venue for its 2017 event. Not only does this…

Classic car experts at Hagerty partnered with the Arizona Concours d’Elegance (full report in next month’s Classic American ) to give youngsters a chance to experience classic cars, including driving sessions and STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Art and Maths) education stations. The event, NextGen Autofest, took place from January 14-16 in Scottsdale, Arizona. The NextGen Autofest included three main programmes created for different age groups ranging from 10 to 25 years old. Hagerty Test Garage: The team hosted 130 fifth-grade students from Scottsdale Unified School District who participated in a variety of hands-on STEAM-related stations. Students held a mock car sale in Auctions in Action; used The Great Race rally as a quick-thinking maths skills exercise; tinkered with batteries and circuits to learn about energy innovation; learned…

The Scale Autos section in Classic American , curated by Richard Coney (10 out of 10 if you spotted our use of the latest trendy media buzz word usage!) has always been an immensely popular section of the magazine. And why not? We may all have abucket list of a dozen different American vehicles we’d love to own, but the likelihood, certainly of owning them all at the same time, is pretty slim. Not so with models and many folk enjoy collecting them and possess vast arrays of model cars. So it was with great pleasure that we discovered American Auto Mags are stocking magazines on this very topic. Currently they can offer the bi-monthly Scale Auto for £5.99, the quarterly…

Dear Classic American, I’ve just returned from the Isle of Man after delivering my daughter and her husband’s first foray into American car ownership, a 2002 Mustang convertible (only a V6, but a lovely driving car anyway!). Having all read your article about the Motor Museum a few issues ago and with me being a long-time Yank owner and classic car fan, we went to the motor museum, where we had a brilliant day. The collection is truly fantastic, covering everything from early motorcycles to racing bikes (not surprising with the TT) and every sort of vehicle you can imagine, from steam cars to fire engines and some classic Yanks I’d never seen before – even in my many visits across the pond! Oh, and I forgot to mention the…

It feels enormous, even on the empty track we’ve borrowed for our photos. I’m reminded of those promo films from the Seventies, with a cheesy voice-over praising some big Ford’s ‘wider stance and road-hugging weight’. Well, that was a feature well-established in the Fifties, only back then the steering wheel and the pedals made you work a little harder. There’s some definite heft to the wheel, power-assisted though it is. It helps you keep track of which way the Edsel’s front paws are pointing, though that’s not the same as sporty handling, as we’ll find out later. The brake pedal is massive and inspires confidence with its solid feel while even the accelerator puts up something of a fight compared with today’s feather-footed controls. At the core of this sense…

The Doncaster Custom Car show in Yorkshire has been an annual event for many years now. There’s nothing unusual about that you may think, as there are loads of shows that have been going for years; but the number of times we hear ‘Donny’ mentioned as an early inspiration to becoming a petrolhead seems to be unique – for Northerners at least! Andrew Atkinson, the proud keeper of this amazingly well-kept ’74 Impala sedan also remembers visiting Doncaster’s Custom Car show in the Eighties with great fondness: “Most of the cars there were totally unique and had hours of work poured into them,” he smiles. Andrew also had the bonus of seeing a handful of the regular attendees each time he visited his granddad at nearby Royston in Barnsley. “My…

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Stuart rescued this 1989 Lincoln in 2011, when he saw it on eBay: “I gave the owner a ring and spoke to him about placing a deposit to hold the car until I could get down there to view it. When I saw the car up close for the first time it was in a right mess: primer patches on most of the panels and the vinyl roof had been painted. I bought the car and drove it home, then I began to wonder if I had bitten off more than I could chew. Throwing caution to the wind, I set about restoring the car to a standard that would enable me to use the Limousine for weddings…” Stuart worked on the motor, the brakes, suspension and the exhaust, only…

This month we’re back in Loretto, Kentucky for our second and final visit to Lyon’s Auto Salvage. Nestled in the heart of the state’s famous Bourbon-distilling region, this is certainly one of the more picturesque yards we’ve encountered. Lyon’s, which is happy to ship parts and entire cars to the UK, operates on an appointment-only basis. This 1963 Ford Galaxie 500, which sits at the yard’s entrance, could be yours for $1800. I love the classic lines of this International Harvester KB 3 panel van. The KB series, which was the follow-up to the successful K Series, was built between 1947 and 1949, and I believe this to be an early example. Unfortunately, rust has taken a hold, and the chances of its survival are slim. The Plymouth Cranbrook, which…

2015 Vendor: David Johnson Ford Lincoln, Manchester. Telephone: 0161 747 8749, www.davidjohnsonpartnership.com Price: £16,500 We’re always pleased to see American car dealers in this country taking the plunge and bringing over new American cars. However, in recent years it seems that there has been less and less of this as traditional well-established dealers have hit the buffers or started dealing in other types of vehicles. How refreshing then to learn that David Johnson Ford Lincoln has not only taken the plunge in bringing over a significant number of new and nearly new American cars, but is offering the whole spectrum of Fords and Lincolns available Stateside. There’s everything from SUVs like the new Ford Explorer, the Lincoln MKX and the MKC to compact, economical Ford Fiestas and luxury sedans like…