Innholdsfortegnelse for September 2019 i Hemmings Muscle Machines

1965 FORD MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE PRICE Base price ....................................................................................................................$2,722 Options on car profiled.................................. 271-hp High Performance 289, four-speed, and HD suspension; reverse lamps ENGINE Type......................................... Ford small-block V-8, cast-iron block and cylinder heads Displacement.........................................................................................................289-cu.in. Bore x stroke....................................................................................................4.00 x 2.87-in Compression ratio..........................................................................................................10.5:1 Horsepower @ rpm.............................................................................................271 @ 6,000 Torque @ rpm......................................................................................................312 @ 3,400 Camshaft..................................................310-degrees duration (advertised), .460-in lift Valvetrain ...............................Solid lifters; pushrods; valves; valve springs; rocker arms Main bearings...................................................................................................................Five Fuel system........................................................Autolite 4100 four-barrel; manual choke; cast-iron intake manifold; mechanical pump Ignition.....................................................Dual-point distributor with no vacuum advance Lubrication system..............................................................Full pressure; oil pump, oil pan Electrical system..........................................................................................................12-volt Exhaust system.................................................................“HiPo” cast-iron manifolds, dual TRANSMISSION Type .....................................................................................................Toploader four-speed Ratios ....................................................... 1st/2.32:1 … 2nd/1.69:1 … 3rd/1.29:1 … 4th/1.00:1 DIFFERENTIAL Type..................................................................................................9-inch ring gear; hypoid Ratio ...............................................................................................................................3.89:1 STEERING Type.............................................................................................................Recirculating ball Overall ratio........................................................................................................................22:1 Turns-to-lock......................................................................................................................3.7 BRAKES Type.................................................................................................................Hydraulic drum Front..............................................................................................10-in drum, self-adjusting Rear...............................................................................................10-in…

DOES READING THE NEWS make your head hurt? It could be worse. Like 1979 worse, for instance. Here are just a few of the top headlines from 40 years ago: a partial reactor meltdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant; an energy crisis that rocked the U.S. economy; 52 Americans were held hostage in Iran; and if that weren’t enough, an out-of-control space station made a nosedive back to Earth. (NASA couldn’t say where it was going to land exactly, but was keeping its fingers crossed that it didn’t hit you or your house.) ENGINE In stock, well-maintained condition the 403 Oldsmobile 6.6. Litre and the Pontiac 400 T/A 6.6 are almost boringly reliable but gutsy performers… by mid-to-late-1970s standards. The 403 wasn’t designed to make a lot…

WHAT IF YOU TOOK the concept of Factory Appearing Stock Tire (F.A.S.T.) and applied it to the modern muscle car era? Well, that is exactly what the race organizers have done at the F.A.S.T. Spring Nationals race at US 131 for the last four years, with some pretty exciting results. When doing a Modern Muscle class was first discussed, the thought was to apply a very strict set of rules to the new class and, of course, require the use of the stock tire. Soon it became painfully obvious that tech for modern muscle would be much more difficult, so instead, an invitation to run almost anything with a factory look and full exhaust went out. Bring it, run it, and for the most part, drive it home. The participants…

COVERED COVERCAR LLC • 623-337-6179 WWW.COVERCARCONCEPTS.COM • $869 (INDOOR/GARAGE); $1,529 (OUTDOOR) If you are looking for something that is a step above a typical car cover, the CoverCar will help you protect and preserve your classic. It is manually operated and is a low-profile, fully encapsulated car cover and protection system. The frame is made of anodized aluminum tubing with glass-filled injection-molded plastic connectors, and the indoor/garage cover is made of 420 Denier (0.17-mm) polyester fabric, which is breathable, SPF-protected, and water resistant. The outdoor version uses a fabric that is made of Sunbrella Marine acrylic canvas; Sunbrella Fabrics provide UV protection and are fade, mold, mildew, and water resistant, and they’re breathable to allow air to pass through. For a visual demonstration, assembly instructions, and product dimensions, please…

SEPTEMBER AUGUST 29-SEPTEMBER 1 RM SOTHEBY’S Auburn, Indiana • 260-927-9797 AUGUST 30-31 WORLDWIDE AUCTIONEERS Auburn, Indiana • 800-990-6789 AUGUST 31-SEPTEMBER 1 SILVER AUCTIONS Sun Valley, Idaho 800-255-4485 1 HEMMINGS MUSCLEPALOOZA 30 West Lebanon, New York 800-227-4373 1 SUMTER SWAP MEET Bushnell, Florida • 727-848-7171 4-7 MECUM AUCTIONS Dallas, Texas • 262-275-5050 6-8 GOODGUYS COLORADO NATIONALS Loveland, Colorado 925-838-9876 13-14 OOB CAR SHOW Old Orchard Beach, Maine 207-934-2500 13-14 PURE STOCK MUSCLE CAR DRAGS Stanton, Michigan • 517-647-2474 13-15 DAVE & ED’S SUPER AUTO EVENTS Canfield, Ohio • 330-477-8506 13-15 HEMMINGS MOTOR NEWS CONCOURS d’ELEGANCE Lake George, New York 800-227-4373 13-15 SPRINGFIELD SWAP MEET AND CAR SHOW Springfield, Ohio 937-376-0111 14-15 PALM BEACH CAR SWAP AND CAR SHOW West Palm Beach, Florida 954-205-7813 19-22 CORVETTE FUNFEST Effingham, Illinois 866-309-3973 20-21 MECUM…

BOSS REUNION TO CELEBRATE THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY In 1969, Ford debuted a Mustang to counter the Chevrolet Camaro’s dominance in the SCCA’s Trans-Am series. Simultaneously, the Blue Oval brand needed a platform to carry its semi-hemi 429-cu.in. V-8, developed specifically for NASCAR. The resulting homologation-special Boss 302 and Boss 429 Mustangs went on to become performance legends and sought-after collectibles, and on August 30-September 1, the Boss Reunion 2019 will honor these (and other) limited-production Boss models. The festivities take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and begin with daytime events at Pittsburgh International Race Complex, followed by a banquet at the Pittsburgh Marriott North. Featured guest speakers will include Bill Barr, the Ford engineer credited with developing the original Boss 302 engine; Kar Kraft test engineer Don Eichstaedt; 2012 Boss 302…

A SIGNIFICANT FACTION OF THE POPULATION reaching adulthood in the 1960s craved cars that were adept at serving not only as transportation, but also as an extension of their personas. Some even sought vehicles that would assist in crafting how they’d prefer to be perceived by others. Pursuing a car capable of enhancing your social standing among your peers wasn’t a new concept, and it certainly wasn’t limited to the under-35 age group of the 1960s. Rather, the sheer size of this particular market segment and the purchasing power it wielded is what commanded the attention of automakers. The Mustang’s contemporary styling; athletic proportions — 108-inch wheelbase and 181.6-inch length; long list of standard items including bucket seats; sporty, comfort, and convenience options; and attractive base price (thanks in part…

CHALLENGER. 426 HEMI. FOUR-SPEED. Track Pack with a Dana 60. For just about any Mopar guy, that combination spells out the Holy Grail, a pony car for the ages, adept at obliterating the pavement — and tires — one quarter-mile at a time. For Bob Conca, his ’70 Challenger, factory delivered and pictured here with those components, is a return to his formative years as a Mopar guy. Without getting too deep into the debate about “kids today” and whatever ails them and their generation, it’s probably safe to say that today’s average 17-year-old hasn’t spent too much time thinking about cars. But we’d also like to think that those who do think about cars are thinking about Challengers, just as Bob was doing when the all-new Challenger was announced…

BY NOW YOU’D PROB- ably need a scorecard of some sort to keep track of the myriad variations of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ (FCA) Dodge Challenger. Even skipping over the V-6 offerings and 5.7-liter Hemi-powered R/Ts straight to the SRT stuff only narrows the field a bit. The first SRT8 versions of FCA’s rear-drive passenger cars were impressive at the time, with 6.1 liters making a familiar 425 horsepower, but Dodge continued conjuring ever more powerful examples of its Gen-III Hemi. The 6.4-liter evolution of the naturally aspirated package, now rated for 485 hp, ought to seem amazing, but of course, it’s been completely eclipsed, first by the Hellcat, and then some of its offspring. For 2018, Dodge created the Challenger SRT Hellcat Demon, a dedicated — but road- and smog-legal…

THE NUMBER OF AUCTIONS that occur in and around the Scottsdale area each January seems to have stabilized once again, and currently there are seven. Rather than focusing on volume sales, four of those auction companies have the distinction of offering a carefully curated catalog featuring a fine blend of rare and historic vehicles from all facets of the automotive world. Since vintage American muscle cars make up just part of many of these one- and two-day sales, we’ve opted to combine coverage from two events, in two installments. This year marked the 20th annual sale for RM Sotheby’s in the desert valley, which was held at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix on January 17-18. The Canadian-based auction house offered 155 vehicles, of which 131 sold (84.5 percent), for a…

2020 CHARGER WIDEBODY: FOR HELLCAT AND SCAT PACK — QUICKER, GIRTHIER Turns out, what’s good for the Challenger is good for the Charger: a new Widebody kit becomes available on Charger SRT Hellcat and Charger Scat Pack models for 2020. The new Widebody exterior adds 3.5 inches of width to cover the 305-section, 20-inch Pirelli rubber on all corners, and new front and rear fascias also come as part of the package. Other features include Brembo six-piston front calipers with two-piece front brake rotors and Bilstein three-mode adaptive damping shocks. These changes alone make the 2020 Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody run 2.1 seconds faster on a 2.1-mile road course compared to a 2019 model, and will allow the 2020 model to hit .96 g on a skidpad. That’s about 13…

IT WAS A COMBINATION CHEVROLET TEASED, but never actually released — the fuel-injected Corvette small-block in the lightweight Chevy II compact. The basic concept of a small-block-powered compact predated the Chevy II by a couple years — it was a natural extension of repowering lightweight prewar cars with late-model engines. In one of the earliest examples, legendary hot-rodder Wally Parks shoehorned a small-block Chevy in his 1960 Comet (upscale sibling of the Ford Falcon), which was about the same size and weight as the Chevrolet Chevy II that came out for 1962. It made sense. The SBC was the hot-rodder’s powerplant of choice at the time, thanks to its compact, lightweight design and incredible power potential. Chevrolet itself didn’t have a suitable small car, however — the Corvair was simply…

1970 DODGE CHALLENGER R/T PRICE Base price....................................................................................................................$3,266 Options on car profiled..............................426-cu.in. Hemi V-8; F8 Dark Green Metallic; Sport Stripe delete; black vinyl roof; power windows ENGINE Type......................... Chrysler Street Hemi OHV V-8; cast-iron block and cylinder heads Displacement..................................................................426-cu.in. (currently 428-cu.in.) Bore x stroke .................................................4.25 in x 3.75 in (currently 4.26 in x 3.75 in) Compression ratio............................................................................10.25:1 (currently 9.7:1) Horsepower @ rpm...........................................................................................425 @ 5,000 Torque @ rpm............................................................................................490 lb-ft @ 4,000 Camshaft ............................................ 284/284 degrees duration (adv.), .484/.475-in lift Valvetrain.................................................................Hydraulic lifters; 2.25/1.94-in valves; dual rocker shafts per cylinder head Main bearings...................................................................................................................Five Fuel system .........................................................Dual Carter AFB four-barrel carburetors (4139S in front, 4140S in rear); aluminum intake manifold Ignition............................................................................................Dual-breaker distributor Lubrication....................................................................Full pressure with gear-type pump Electrical........................................................................................................................12-volt Exhaust............................................Cast-iron manifolds with dual mufflers and tailpipes TRANSMISSION Type....................................................New Process A833 heavy-duty four-speed manual Ratios.......................... 1st/2.65:1 ……

WHEN THE CALL CAME, IT WAS almost unbelievable. The quarter-million-mile Corvette that we were literally days away from photographing for a Driveable Dream-style feature — the one that had recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with the same enthusiast owner — had caught fire. The factory-applied finishes that had been so carefully preserved through the years were irreparably damaged. This was a stunning blow for its devoted caretaker, but he vowed to bring back his phoenix, true to its roots, and better than ever. We knew this Corvette’s backstory, since its owner, Burton Hall, had shared with the Hemmings Nation a much-admired photo essay that ran on the Hemmings Daily [www.hmn.com/1961vette]. That piece revolved around the Summer 2017 rally he’d arranged for his car-enthusiast friends that commemorated that anniversary, and honored…

NORMALLY, COMPLAINERS DON’T WARRANT much attention around here. But it’s amazing what course a conversation can take out in the shop when stimulated by some adult beverages and (semi) intelligent debate between a bunch of gearheads. One of the contributors to the discussion was complaining a mite about how much he’d spent on his latest mechanical endeavor. Some suggested that the guy had fallen victim to his own propensity for wretched excess, while others thought that the spiraling costs of manufacturing and associated overhead were the main culprits for driving the expenses associated with our hobby through the roof. So, who was right? It was certainly an intriguing prospect to discuss. But for those who lament the fact that a respectable muscle machine can’t be built nowadays for under $50…

REVIEW: INDIANA RULES SPRING WITH MECUM IN INDIANAPOLIS AND RM IN AUBURN Mecum Auctions returned to Indianapolis for the 32nd year in a row and spent the better part of a week there, from May 14 through 19. Some 2,000 cars crossed the block, with 1,189 of them finding new homes as the company did a total of $70.4 million in sales. And muscle cars were a big reason for that final tally. Among the top-10 sales were seven classic muscle cars — three Shelby Cobras and four big-block Mopars — that combined to bring in $11.4 million. Leading all sales at Mecum Indy was a 1967 427 Cobra Semi-Competition, one of 29 factory 1967 427 Cobra S/Cs and, as per Mecum, “regarded as the most original and correct 427…