HAJEK MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM OF NASCAR AND DRAG RACING HISTORY

Posted on May 14, 2025May 14, 2025 by MartynL

Some of the most significant competition cars have been carefully preserved and are on display in the HAJEK MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM OF NASCAR AND DRAG RACING HISTORY in Ames, OK. When I was writing FORD TOTAL PERFORMANCE in 2015 for Motorbooks, I had the pleasure of communicating with consummate carguy, Brent Hajek. There were several drag racing cars, as well as at least one land speed record Bonneville Mustang, that I was featuring, and needed some background and timeline information. These we...

’66 MERCURY COMET CYCLONE 390 GT

Posted on May 10, 2025May 10, 2025 by MartynL

Ford’s Lincoln-Mercury Division joins the Supercar Sweepstakes with the ’66 MERCURY COMET CYCLONE 390 GT! No longer a compact model, the Comet-Cyclone lineup for 1966 received styling and big-block power updates to compete with midsize models from GM and Chrysler, as well as Ford’s revamped Fairlane. The most stylish and powerful model - ’66 MERCURY COMET CYCLONE 390 GT - came stock with a 390 cubic-inch FE big-block with four-barrel intake and dual exhausts under its scooped fiberglass...

SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE

Posted on May 4, 2025 by MartynL

Prepped for the 2026 Mille Miglia in Italy, Team Zora USA’s SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE rocks at Corvettes on the Circle! Competitive Historic racer Michael Moss - Lola T70 & Gurney Eagle - wins Class and Favorite Car “gold” with his SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE at the 26th Annual Skyway Corvette Club’s Corvettes on the Circle show on May 3rd. Held at St. Armands Circle, Sarasota, FL, this year’s show hosted more than 175 Corvettes spanning eight generations of America’...

’70 DODGE CHALLENGER T/A – SIX-PACK TO GO!

Posted on May 2, 2025 by MartynL

Created to battle Z/28 Camaros and Boss 302 Mustangs on the road and track, the 340-inch ’70 DODGE CHALLENGER T/A - SIX-PACK TO GO! proved that less could be more. Both Dodge and Plymouth had been involved in SCCA competitive events since the early to mid-1960s, before the Ponycar explosion and factory participation in Trans-Am racing. SCCA’s 1970 Trans-Am rules allowed carmakers to destroke production engines to meet the series’ 305-cube limit. Chrysler responded with the Challenger T/...

’72 OLDS W30 4-4-2 & W-45 HURST/OLDS

Posted on April 29, 2025April 29, 2025 by MartynL

The ’72 OLDS W30 4-4-2 & W-45 HURST/OLDS were the last of the great ones from Lansing! Like the GTO and LeMans, Oldsmobile’s venerable 4-4-2 was reduced to an option available on various Cutlass models. To get maximum 4-4-2 power and image, you had to opt for the W29 Sport/Handling 4-4-2 and the W30 Performance Packages. When you selected the W30, it included the L77 Force-Air 455 rated at 300 horsepower at 4,700 rpm and 410 pound-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm. The best part of the W2...

CHEVY SUPER SPORT: ICONIC SS STYLE & PERFORMANCE

Posted on April 25, 2025April 25, 2025 by MartynL

It all started in 1961 with the 409 CHEVY SUPER SPORT: ICONIC SS STYLE & PERFORMANCE; the 615-horsepower BLAZER SS continues the legacy! On December 17, 1960, both the Impala SS (Super Sport), one-off showcar, above, and the legendary 409 engine were announced. The initial version of the engine, with a single Carter AFB four-barrel carburetor, produced 360 horsepower. In 1962, this same engine generated 380 horsepower, and a new dual-quad 409 horsepower 409 topped the option list. The o...

SKYLARK GS-400: HOWITZER WITH WINDSHIELD WIPERS!

Posted on April 21, 2025 by MartynL

Buick joins the Musclecar Revolution with a SKYLARK GS-400: HOWITZER WITH WINDSHIELD WIPERS! Not long after having access to 1965 performance cars, I suggested to Mel Jacolow, editor of CARS magazine, that he change the award – American Classic of The Year - he presented annually to carmakers. With production cars getting quicker and faster and carmakers targeting the burgeoning youth market, I felt we needed something more relevant. My suggestion: Top Performance Car of The Year. It...

’65 DODGE CORONET DELIVERED MID-SIZE & MAX-PERF!

Posted on April 17, 2025April 17, 2025 by MartynL

Dodge’s entry in the Musclecar marketplace may have been short on sex appeal, but the ’65 DODGE CORONET DELIVERED MID-SIZE & MAX-PERF! Dodge covered all bases, catering to performance enthusiasts in 1965. New Dodge Coronets could be ordered with 365-horsepower 426 Street Wedge engines with four-speed or TorqueFlite. Unlike the GTO and 4-4-2, Mopar middleweights were void of eye-catching decor. But they were strong enough to get the job done. A total of 2,100 Coronets with 426 Street...

’70 PLYMOUTH SUPERBIRD: WINGED WARRIOR

Posted on April 10, 2025April 10, 2025 by MartynL

Not to be outdone by Dodge, the ’70 PLYMOUTH SUPERBIRD: WINGED WARRIOR continued Mopar’s assault on the Musclecar marketplace and NASCAR’s Super Speedways! Plymouth’s ’70 PLYMOUTH SUPERBIRD: WINGED WARRIOR was basically a midsize Road Runner with a wing and a nose job. Also produced by Creative Industries, the Charger-Daytona-influenced Superbird proved to be a more complex build than the Charger Daytona. It required Dodge Coronet front fenders and a hood to work with the steel “nose cone”. The...

’68 BIG-BLOCK, LOW-BUCK CHEVROLET

Posted on April 5, 2025April 5, 2025 by MartynL

For less than $3,000, you could buy a Baldwin-Motion ’68 BIG-BLOCK, LOW-BUCK CHEVROLET with dyno-tuned 427/425 power, four-speed, and F41 suspension! Overshadowed by the SS-427 Impala in the late-1960s, few enthusiasts were aware that Chevrolet was building a low-end, two-door “post” Biscayne that could be optioned with a 425 horsepower 427 big-block and four-on-the-floor. In 1968, Baldwin-Motion’s entry-level SS-427 Biscayne Street Racer’s Special, with a dyno-tuned 427/425 big-block,...