What better way to spend one of the last nice weekends of summer than cruising in a classic convertible, right? Well, this weekend’s trip to Snoqualmie Falls left Jen and I on the side of the highway waiting for a flatbed. We had been getting sick of a dump truck that was obstructing our scenic drive, so I pulled out to pass and put the hammer down. The first downshift was nice and crisp as the Impala roared down the road on the left of the centerline, but then it suddenly lost all of its gears–no matter how high the engine revved, there was no acceleration whatsoever. Luckily we had built up enough momentum to pass the truck and coast about a quarter mile, pulling off of the two-lane blacktop into a farmer’s driveway. Turns out the new torque converter failed under the stress of the freshly-built 383 stroker motor.

How about you? What did you do this weekend?

For those of us who own and work on cars built in the last couple of decades, the question may not seem so meaningful. But when your pride and joy falls a little further back, it’s a rare occurrence to find your car still rusting peacefully at the local junkyard. This weekend, Jen and I were both completely blown away by the inventory at All American Classics, but when I stumbled upon not one but four 1966 Impalas, including this yellow 327 Super Sport, I totally lost it. What amazed me even more was the incredible amount of good useable parts that remained on these cars–I wanted to take everything, and I guess now I understand a little better why the shelves in our garage are lined with enough Ford Escort parts to build a whole ‘nother one of Jen’s cars. Luckily, I’d left my credit card at home–but I still left with a trunk full of really cool stuff and I’m sure it won’t be long before I find myself going back for more.

How about you–ever found your rare or classic car at the junkyard?

Continue reading "Ever Found “Your” Car in the Junkyard?" »

On Saturday I’ll be attending the 17th Annual Greenwood Car Show in North Seattle on Greenwood Avenue.  I’ve been entering my ‘66 Impala each year since 2006 and I’m excited to show off all the hard work that went into it over the past year.  This will be Jen’s first Greenwood Show and she’s planning to enter her Concord. With 15 city blocks of all types of hot rods, customs, classics, muscle cars and stock models of all makes, you could imagine why the Greenwood Car Show has always proven to be one of my favorite days of the year. More information at www.greenwoodcarshow.com

With help from John at Autosport I installed all new bearings and spider gears in the rear end of my ‘66 Impala Convertible and got the car back on the road again.

What did you do this weekend?

With the front end restoration of my ‘66 Impala in the final stages I decided it was time to have a little fun. Jen and I took the car to a nearby parking lot and let the new 383 Stroker lay some rubber on the asphalt.

I’ve had a ton of fun driving this car over the past few weeks but now it’s back to the garage to rebuild the rear end. Something broke in the rear differential and I ended up limping home at about 10 miles an hour. After work I’ll be tearing it apart to see just how bad it is. I’ve been kicking myself but I figure if the 44 year old rear end couldn’t handle a little abuse it was only a matter of time before I’d be left on the side of the road. At least it happened close to home and we were able to drive it back to the garage.

This is, hands down, the best part of a project–the first time you’re able to take the car for a spin under its own power. Chris and I fired up the ‘66 Impala for the first time last night on its completely rebuilt 383 stroker, then took it out and terrorized the neighborhood for a bit. Don’t you just love hearing an engine that you’ve had completely and utterly apart actually fire back to life? Check out its first drive below, and click here watch some of the break-in and carb tuning. Thanks a mil to John from Autosport, who was a total rock star for coming over after work to help!

On Saturday, the badass 383 stroker motor that Jen and I have spent the past few months building was finally completed. It met its new home in the freshly rebuilt front end of my ‘66 Impala convertible. I then spent the rest of the weekend making countless trips to five different parts stores to complete all the plumbing and linkages necessary to get the convertible back on the road before I miss too many more sunny days.

How about you? What did you do this weekend?

This auction gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “put out to pasture.” With my Impala rebuild well underway I can’t help but feel for this poor car left sitting out to rust. Come on, basket-case rescue anyone?

More pictures after the jump and check out the eBay auction here.

Continue reading "On eBay: ‘66 Impala, Cattle Not Included" »

There isn’t much that gives away this ‘69 Vette as a 1200-horsepower supercar–its slightly modified original C3 body and refined stance are only somewhat undercut by the implied performance of that through-the-fender exhaust. Take a closer look and you’ll notice that the body is concealing a twin-turbocharged 565 cubic inch powerplant cradled by a tubular chrome moly frame and modern Corvette suspension. Now, in my opinion the C3 Stingray is the most beautiful shape ever dreamt up, so I might be a little biased–but you can’t argue with 1200 hp nestled in such a perfectly updated package of modern features. I’m tempted to call this 2008 SEMA show car the most incredible custom Corvette I’ve ever seen. The guys at S/S definitely outdid themselves with this one.

More pictures after the jump, and check out the eBay auction here.

Continue reading "On eBay: Incredible Twin-Turbo SEMA Corvette" »

The first SC 427 Cobra ever built is looking for a new home.  With only 3,800 miles, this car is completely original other than one repaint and is even sporting its first set of tires.  This is the first of only 2 stock gold Cobras to roll off the dealer floor.  Throw in the original one-owner title and dealer purchase order and you’ve got one hell of a piece of automotive history.

Follow the jump for more pictures and check out the eBay auction here.

Continue reading "The First SC 427 Cobra for sale on eBay!" »

Check out this Modern Mechanics article from February, 1931. I’m always fascinated by our previous projections of our automotive future. Follow the jump to read more on our past visions of future cars.

Continue reading "Yesterday’s Cars Of Tomorrow" »

Well, due to its impracticalities I’m sure you won’t be seeing one of these on the showroom floor any time soon–nor will it be the next cure-all solution to the energy crisis. However, I was very interested to see what this group of British builders is doing in their attempt to break the steam-car speed record. The current “official” steam-powered speed record was set in 1906 by Fred Marriott who achieved a top speed of 127.659 MPH, and for a brief few years this was the overall world speed record until it was broken by a gas-powered Benz in 1910. This 25 ft steam-powered car generates a healthy 360 horsepower but literally guzzles a ton of water every 20 minutes. Although last week’s Thorney Island test was unsuccessful due to an electrical malfunction, the British team plans to bring their steam-car stateside this August where they will attempt to smash the century-old record with expected speeds of over 170 MPH.

More pictures after the jump.

Continue reading "Steam Power!" »

When I looked at the calendar and noticed today’s date, I couldn’t help but think of my all-time favorite Chevy small block: the 327. This predecessor to the all-too-well-known SB 350 was only in production for eight years, but became an icon of GM’s muscle era. The 327’s 4-inch bore is perfect for big-valve heads and has a fairly short 3.25-inch stroke. For its time, the little workhorse had one of the highest hp per cubic inch ratings of any small block–even in its stock form, a Turbo Fire 327 would put out 350 hp.  Since these engines are hard to come by, I’ve never owned a complete 327. But recently I was excited to find a set of 1966 327 heads, with all the hallmarks of a racy small-block build: decked to the nines, with tiny combustion chambers and huge valves–just the thing for my high-compression 383 stroker build.

How about you: what engines do you hold near and dear, and do 3-digit dates and times make you think of them?

Last night I sat down to make a list of all the vehicles I’ve owned, and I found the number had grown to 17. And of course, since I don’t have unlimited space, I’ve sold a few along the way. The reasons for letting each one go are varied, and it’s not like I regret the loss of every vehicle I ever posted on Craigslist or put in the Auto Trader. But there’s a few, like my ‘75 Firebird, that I still dream about on a daily basis. Unless you’re like Jen, who still owns every car she ever bought, you’ve probably had a car or two get away from you as well. What car do you regret selling, and why’d you give it up in the first place?

Follow the jump to see some more of the cars that got away from me.

Continue reading "What Car Do You Regret Selling?" »

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?" »