By Chris Bicknell

Bick66

I’ve been knee deep in the front-end restoration of my ’66 Impala convertible for a few months now and I recently found myself faced with a surprisingly difficult question: power or manual brakes? Getting rid of those old stab-n-steer front drums and single-chamber master cylinder was obvious, but after making the decision to do a full front disc brake conversion I found that car enthusiasts seem to be quite opinionated on the issue of power vs. manual brakes. Some of the sources I tapped claimed the power booster only created more potential for malfunction, and in the event of a stall, the car would be more difficult to bring to a grinding halt than it would be if it just had manual in the first place. Still, others swore that power is the only way to go, for reasons ranging from pedal effort to stopping power. The only opinion everyone seemed to share was that I’d be crazy to not to agree with them. In the end I decided to go with the power brake booster. How about you–what’s your preference and why?

Check out pictures of my new stock-spinal power disc brake conversion kit after the jump.

Continue reading "Brakes: Power or Manual?" »

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Just look at this early ’80s Fiat Panda designed by Giugiaro and then look at Dan’s new ’94 Laredo and tell me that Jeep wasn’t influenced by the little Italian.

By Ryan Porter

IN-N-OUT Editor

My favorite Porsche just got sicker. If you recall, Vincent Wong of iForged built the sickest Porsche which debuted in the Mobile 1 booth at SEMA last year. Prior to seeing this car at SEMA I had also been following the crazy build at Rennlist where Vincent documented the entire build from 996TT to Techart 997TT GT Street. Yes, this started out as a 996 and evolved into the most beautiful 997.

Well, with the release of the 997.2 body, Vincent has stepped it up and added the LED tails. Talk about keeping up with the Joneses!

Check out Vincent’s ride page for more details and check out all his sick rides!

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

Where I live in upstate NY suburbia, auto theft rarely crosses my mind. I couldn’t tell you how many times this past winter that I’ve left my car running as I grabbed something quick from the convenience store on my way to work (to warm up the car before I start my commute, not ’cause I like to waste gas). I know for some of you, though, car theft is always on your mind when you walk away from your ride. The FBI “Uniform Crime Reports” for 2007 stated that a car is stolen in the U.S. every 28.8 seconds. That worked out to 363 cars stolen for every 100,000 that are on the road. They also noted that the worst cities were typically in year-round warm climates–San Diego CA, Larado TX, and Phoenix AZ made the top 10 with ease. There was some good news though: the theft rate dropped 8.1 percent from 2006 and 2007. One can only wonder what those statistics will look like for 2008-2009–considering the economic crisis it probably won’t look good. So I ask you, how would you rate the car theft in your area?

[polldaddy poll="1482052"]

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Ok, so maybe I’m biased… Tunnel rammed big block with a 4 speed! Two more pics after the jump—the interior is hilarious. Thanks Scott for the pics!

Continue reading "Coolest Car at MATS?" »

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

When I chatted with Paul Walker at the Fast & Furious shoot last year, he struck me as a pretty serious gearhead. But at the time I never suspected he could rip up a track like this. It’s too bad they didn’t let him do any of the stunt driving for the film–(he was a little sad about that, too)–because he seems to have some pretty burly skills on him. Check out this epic drift video from Streetfire–Walker, Tanner Faust ‘n’ pals go out to play at Willow Springs raceway in a bunch of awesome rides, including  a 2010 Mustang and a whole heap of GT-Rs. Enjoy!

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Welcome to the CarDomain Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot, a regular feature which aims to expand the notion of what a muscle car is, and to throw all conventional thinking out the window while we’re at it. For this installment, we are reaching back to the dawn of the 50′s, when most cars has less than 100 HP under the hood, handling was scary at best, and brakes were an afterthought. However, the racing tracks across the country were breeding innovation. Engines were being tuned to produce power, braking systems were being upgraded to handle the extra power and speed, and the cars were becoming more and more reliable on the track. In NASCAR racing, one car was busy winning races all across the country from 1951 through 1955. Let’s take a look at the Fabulous Hudson Hornet.

Photo by Bob Krueger

Continue reading "CarDomain Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot: The Fabulous Hudson Hornet" »

By Dan Strohl

Hemmings

I had sworn I wouldn’t repeat the mistake I made – on two different occasions – by passing up the five-speed Astros I saw in the local classifieds. I mean, c’mon, you don’t see those every day. So when it came time to replace the GMC, I wanted something unique and utilitarian. Since I spent so much time messing with the stroker in the HMX, I was leaning toward another Jeep 4.0L-powered vehicle.

I had never been much of a fan of the ZJ Grand Cherokee (though I’d not toss a 5.9 Limited out of bed for eating crackers), but I was surprised at how low prices for them had become. And then this one showed up on my radar: a ‘94 Laredo with the 4.0L and a five-speed manual transmission. The brakes were grinding bad and the body looked like it went 10 rounds with Buster Douglas, but it was all there, and the seller accepted my offer of $900. Continue reading at Hemmings

By Rob Einaudi

Editor-in-Chief

Photoshop? Or not? Courtesy of VWVortex.

Update: I have confirmed that it’s a photoshop done by a Danish member of the Road Runner Nest who posts as “Capsule.” I just did a follow up post with some of his other awesome chops.

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

A bit ago we told you about the Fiesta Movement, Ford’s grassrootsy approach to promoting its all-new hot hatch. In a nutshell, they want you to make a video to convince them that you’re deserving of a 6-month field test of the Fiesta–you get to take it home, drive it everywhere you go, and document all your hijinks on video. CarDomain’s very own CoolPacer has made a video entry for the contest, and it’s pretty hilarious. Go rate it up on YouTube to help him get the test car!