All posts by Albert S. Davis

Car Shows

Muscle Cars at the Original Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank, CA

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1969 Chevrolet Camaro RS:SS

So, as all of you readers know, I was in Los Angeles during Thanksgiving week visiting my brother Matthew and his fiancee, Rachel. After a delicious meal of sushi that evening in Burbank, we started to notice a whole bunch of American hot rods (old and new) passing us by on the streets outside. It didn’t take long for my interest to become piqued by the sounds of pushrod V8s and high-lift cams, so my brother said, “Let’s go check it out after dinner.” Thankfully, my flight wasn’t slated to leave until midnight, so we went out to the scene over at the original Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank, where the meet was going down.

Continue reading Muscle Cars at the Original Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank, CA →

Car Shows

2015 Los Angeles International Auto Show General Gallery

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Lexus LFA Nurburgring Edition//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Over Thanksgiving weekend this year, I finally got to cash in my birthday present from last year–my brother Matt agreed to take me to the Los Angeles Auto Show if I’d come visit him. I decided that it would be foolish to say no–after all, I’d been going to the New York Auto Show for a decade and a half, and I’d never seen the show in Los Angeles. Sorry, New York crew–but the LA Auto Show is indeed better. It’s cleaner, the city doesn’t smell like a New Jersey sewer, there’s real parking (and they charge only twenty bucks, whereas New York charges whatever they darn well please), and there’s even some ride-and-drives (which I did only two, but will definitely drive one of those two cars again soon). Continue reading 2015 Los Angeles International Auto Show General Gallery →

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

When an engine seizes, what can cause it? Find out here.

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Hot Rod Garage has morphed in a favorite show of mine over on YouTube, simply because of the subject matter covered, and the way in which it is covered. Here, Tony Angelo, proud owner of a matching numbers (same engine as what ended up in the car at the factory) 1971 Dodge Demon 340 in lime green, diagnoses why his engine seized up solid after attempting to break in a new camshaft. While this has never happened to me because I’ve never done serious engine work to a car in my posession, there’s a lot to learn here about what sort of places to look to find the causes of engine seizure, as well as how to make the right repairs. This show’s been going for a few years now from Hot Rod Magazine–and Tony’s a great host. So take a few minutes on your lunch break to watch–plenty to learn.

-Albert S. Davis

Car Shows

1971 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible at the 2015 Radnor Hunt Concours

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1971 Corvette Stingray Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

It seemed like this year in particular, there were plenty of great representatives from the muscle car era at the Radnor Hunt Concours. When I think of the C3 Corvette, I usually come up with the late 1960s models like the ZL-1 and the L88 series cars with the 427. For whatever reason, probably because this engine was so famous for being the big option in the Chevelle SS, I occasionally forget about the 454 being an option in the ‘Vette after it launched in 1970. Continue reading 1971 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible at the 2015 Radnor Hunt Concours →

Car Shows

1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 at the Concours of America 2015

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1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

This isn’t just any run-of-the-mill split window Sting Ray. C2 Sting Rays are probably the most highly sought-after Corvettes of the brand’s sixty-plus year history, but the 1963 model can claim fame as quite a great story. The split window was a one-year option on the 1963 model year only, and that this is a Z06 and a development mule makes our featured car here a great story itself. Continue reading 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 at the Concours of America 2015 →

Auto Idolatry, SHOWCASE

Motor Trend gets their hands on the new Shelby GT-350!

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Jason Cammisa has been a great addition to the Motor Trend field of reviewers, and his take on the Shelby GT350 isn’t just a great watch, it’s pretty educational–then Randy Pobst turns up and shows us all what this brand-new, track destroying Mustang was built to do, in the best way possible. Turn up your speakers and take a lunch break, because you deserve it and need to hear this thing sing.

Car Shows

1970 Buick GSX at the 2015 Radnor Hunt Concours

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1970 Buick GSX Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Until Buick made this car, GM had some issues in the 1966-1971 War of Horsepower. They were clawing behind Chrysler and Ford Motor Co, thanks to a directive from GM that no intermediate car (midsize today) could have an engine larger than 400 cubic inches. In 1970, that restriction was killed off, and the Buick engineers went bananas. Continue reading 1970 Buick GSX at the 2015 Radnor Hunt Concours →

Car Shows

1974 Dodge Charger Rallye at the 2014 River Edge Car Show

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1974 Dodge Charger Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

1974 was the end of an era. The Dodge Charger was in its final year with its sleek, masculine lines, to be replaced the next year with a clone of the Chrysler Cordoba. In 1974, the Charger would see lower sales, yet people were still buying them. While a shadow of its former mighty self, the styling was a throwback to what used to be the coolest car on the street from Dodge save for the Challenger. Plenty of room inside, combined with attractive styling and strong engines, made the Charger, even in its waning days of youth, a sharp car to drive. In this chocolate brown finish, this particular car was set atop the hill for the 2014 River Edge Car Show and seemed to be cut off from the other Charger at the show, “Dodgezilla.” Yet, it displayed a touch of early-mid 70s class in this show, and the rims installed offered up a great stance for this old dog. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading 1974 Dodge Charger Rallye at the 2014 River Edge Car Show →

Cars We've Seen

1967 Chevrolet Camaro spotted in Royal Oak, MI

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1967 Camaro MI Front Angle//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

While Nick, Shane, and I were eating dinner, a bunch of the local cruising-scene regulars started turning up all over Woodward Avenue. Luckily for us, this rumbling, street-terror 1967 Chevy Camaro coupe rolled into our parking lot, and it looked great with its slick black paint, power-dome hood, Draglite wheels, and Mickey Thompson ET Street rubber. Someone treats this old machine quite well, and that made me a happy camper after scarfing down a delicious French Dip earlier. Enjoy the photos of this classic pony car. Continue reading 1967 Chevrolet Camaro spotted in Royal Oak, MI →

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

Twin-Turbo DeLorean up for auction at Bonhams Greenwich, 2015

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Turbocharged Delorean Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

And here, I present the only DeLorean I’ve ever seen that might have a decent shot at making it to 88 miles per hour before slamming into the front of the Twin Pines Mall. This is no ordinary DeLorean that I laid eyes on at the auction tent in Greenwich this past summer. I’d read up on this before turning up and I gleefully discovered that this one’s got a twin turbocharger on it. It’s not a factory part, of course (all DeLorean DMC-12s came from the factory with a genuinely anemic PRV V6, good for a pathetic 109 MPH thanks to emissions regulations and low power output), but the swap was there. Continue reading Twin-Turbo DeLorean up for auction at Bonhams Greenwich, 2015 →

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

1966 Dodge Coronet Police Cruiser at Lead East

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1966 Dodge Coronet Front//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

When it comes to old police cars, Chrysler had the market pretty much cornered for some time. In fact, up until 1989 or so, Dodge and Plymouth ruled the squad market to the point that they would usually dictate its direction. This 1966 Coronet, while I’m not sure is real, certainly looks like an old cop car that’s been dragged out of mothballs and driven out to Lead East. I’ll be honest, the shoe polish in the rear window scrawled out as “Lead East Or BUST” is quite a nice touch–as is the notebook and radio strung over the rear view mirror inside. A big whip antenna, period correct lightbar, and loudspeaker-style siren on top finish off the period correct look. Enjoy the photos, and stay safe out there on the roads (or you’ll end up in the back of this old Dodge). Continue reading 1966 Dodge Coronet Police Cruiser at Lead East →

Car Shows, SHOWCASE

Bonneville Salt Flats Record Cars at the 2015 Concours of America

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1932 Ford Turquoise//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

I’ve held a fascination with land-speed records for as long as I can remember. When I saw two belly-tank racers sitting on the show field in the Concours of America this summer, I made a beeline for the section and started looking at what was on hand. Back in the early 1930s, salt flat racing in Bonneville became massively popular, having started in 1914–and people are still out there every year attempting to set new records in an ever-evolving form of motorsport. These cars all hail from the prewar era and looked fantastic in period-correct trimmings. From belly-tanker racers to a few old-school hot rods modified for salt, the history was all in plain sight. Enjoy the photos. Continue reading Bonneville Salt Flats Record Cars at the 2015 Concours of America →