Bitchin!
-Nick
Richard Petty truly is the King. Say what you want about King George, or King Midas, or King Felipe VI. But, to me, Richard Petty will always be The King. Back in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Chrysler Corporation ruled NASCAR with a lethally fast combination of the aero-bodied Charger 500, Superbird, and Charger Daytona, all of which were powered by the unstoppable 426 Hemi. They were so dominant, in fact, that in 1971, NASCAR handed the boys from Auburn Hills an ultimatum–either get rid of the aero body or drop the Hemi. Chrysler responded accordingly, by putting the 426 in the newly-rebodied Road Runner and Charger for the 1971 season. Petty, as per tradition, took the keys to this #43 Corporate Blue Road Runner and drove it for the entirety of that season. Continue reading 1971 Plymouth Road Runner, raced by Richard Petty, at the 2016 Amelia Island Concours
When it comes to Trans-Am racing, the first car most people think of isn’t what you’re staring at right now. In fact, it’s usually a blue and yellow Chevrolet Camaro, which is of course one of the most highly celebrated Trans-Am cars of all time. If you think of a Mopar, a Challenger may come to mind before one of these. However, Dan Gurney and his cronies crafted three ‘Cudas–and this one is one of those three, and after some further research, this is a car with some technology that could rival the infamous Smokey Yunick. Continue reading Dan Gurney’s #42 Plymouth AAR ‘Cuda at the 2016 Amelia Island Concours
Gotta love those old Mopars!
-Nick
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When it comes to the second-generation Chevrolet Chevelle, I feel that the ’68 is overlooked. Despite being the launch year, it’s not known for any dealership-modified specials (such as the Yenko in 1969) or the Hemi-eating LS-6 engine (such as the 1970), or even being the last of the era (the ’71-72). These were handsome intermediates for the era, and certainly looked a bit more upscale than the offerings from Plymouth and Ford during the same era. The fastback roofline looks very crisp, even though it blunts rear 3/4 visibility somewhat. Continue reading 1968 Chevrolet Chevelle SS-396 at Lead East 2015
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Having a sibling that lives in Los Angeles has been good for car spotting. That said, it’s rather unusual that the cars that he and my other brother usually send to me which work end up being Camaros. I’m not going to complain when it’s a blue ’67 convertible like this one. Matt sends me stuff like this all the time, and I always feel terrible turning him down–but this time, the photos were absolutely usable and of what I could work with, they did a good job at least getting the photos. It’s not a Stickercity Viper or a spy-shot Camaro, but this’ll do. Nice spot, Matt!
-Albert S. Davis
The Plymouth Hemicuda is my favorite car from the Muscle Car era, bar none. It has the perfect engine, Chrysler’s 426ci Hemi V8, the perfect gearbox, a manual with a pistol-grip shifter, and it is the perfect color, bright middle finger green.
The Hemicuda has the brash audacity that I look for in a muscle car. It speaks loudly and carries a big stick. Too many muscle cars were soft-spoken “sleepers,” which is cool in some ways, but I much prefer the blunt honesty of the ‘Cuda. It doesn’t beat around the bush with petty small talk, it just says “Get the hell out the way!”
I’m generally a non-partisan guy when it comes to automotive brand loyalty, but I must admit that Mopars are my favorite of the old-school muscle cars. They had a fantastic lineup of engines, of which the Hemi was king. But even past that, Chrysler cars just had that flavor that embodied the very spirit of the American Muscle car. The Plymouth ‘Cuda is the crown jewel for me, but I always love me a Road Runner, a Charger, a Challenger, etc too.
Seeing a ‘Cuda like this turns me into a little kid every time, and this one was absolutely ideal. We saw it at the Concours of America, just outside of Detroit, MI. Naturally the Motor City area has the cream of the muscle car crop, and I have yet to be disappointed when visiting.
Enjoy the gallery of this bad mutha!
Continue reading This 1971 Plymouth Hemicuda is a Mean Green Muscle Machine!
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While Shane, Nick, and I were illegally crossing Woodward Avenue (note to anyone in the area: Find a crosswalk, Woodward’s one of the busiest streets I’ve ever seen, more so even than Route 4 in Bergen County), I saw this 1966 Chevrolet rumbling up the road, only to pull into the car meet we were attending. I’m a sucker for 1966 full size Chevrolets, as this was the last year before GM went to a “fuselage” look wiht a smoother set of fenders and a much wider stance. The bulldog stance of the ’66, especially this one finished in Tuxedo Black with dog-dish hubcaps and little to no chrome garnish to be found, looks absolutely mean. The wide tires out back and evil exhaust note did little to keep me from thinking only “If I end up in Hell, this car will be my chariot.” Enjoy.
Allow me to be the first to say to all our readers, Happy New Year! Here’s your welcome to 2016 present, a car which is now celebrating its 50th birthday. Continue reading 1966 Ford Fairlane 500XL Convertible spotted in Royal Oak, MI
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Feast your eyes on the king of Plymouth stock cars. Back in 1970, Plymouth was racing in NASCAR, and the Dodge Charger Daytona was winning big the previous season. Of course, they wanted in on all the fun, and the top brass was only more than happy to oblige, gifting them the Superbird. The nose cone, massive rear wing, and flush rear window all contributed to a massive aerodynamic advantage at the time–allowing these cars to break to nearly 200 MPH on the oval tracks of the day when equipped with the 426 Hemi. They were so dominant that NASCAR got sick of seeing Mother Mopar basically destroy everybody every Sunday afternoon, so 1971 brought in a rule change that forced Plymouth and Dodge to either ditch the aero body or ditch the Hemi–effectively dumping cold water on the party. Continue reading 1970 Plymouth Superbird at the 2015 Concours of America at St John’s
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Being at Lead East for the first time in 3 years was a great experience, even if I eventually ran out of steam and had a few issues getting good pictures thanks to the glare around the show. Luckily, that didn’t affect my chances of shooting this 1968 Plymouth Road Runner. Continue reading Sox and Martin 1968 Plymouth Road Runner Replica at Lead East, 2015
On our way home from Radnor, Nick and I were looking for anything interesting on the highway, and this old Nova turned up making quite an entrance. I’m a sucker for the compact Chevy from the late Sixties and early Seventies–because of their low weight, a built small block or most mild big blocks can turn a rather ho-hum little car into a terrifying little rocket of a car. This brown one packed a loud V8 and traction bars underneath the leaf springs, as well as some sweet torq-thrust wheels and nicely-done white letter tires–all in all, a clean looking old Nova packing some punch. I genuinely wish I saw more of these.
-Albert S. Davis
Mind Over Motor 