ELKS LODGE 613: GROOVIN’ IN THE GROVE

Posted on August 1, 2021August 3, 2021 by MartynL

This annual gathering of car enthusiasts - ELKS LODGE 613: GROOVIN' IN THE GROVE - reaps big rewards for Santa Barbara area veterans and their families. CGC's Jim Palam brought his support and camera to capture some of the good things that can happen when Car Guys with a Cause gather in The Grove! The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks was founded in New York City in 1868. Part of their stated mission is "To inculcate the principles of Charity, Justice, Brotherly Love and Fidelity – and to...

PONTIAC GTO: AMERICA’S ORIGINAL MUSCLE CAR

Posted on August 1, 2021 by MartynL

Musclecar Maven and Hagerty contributor Scott Oldham blogs about 15 facts you might not know about PONTIAC GTO: AMERICA’S ORIGINAL MUSCLE CAR. In the early spring of 1963, during a “what if” session at GM’s Milford, Michigan, Proving Grounds, a small team of Pontiac engineers led by John Z. DeLorean realized the 389-cubic-inch V-8 from the full-size Bonneville would fit easily in the new midsize Tempest. A week later, they were doing burnouts in the first prototype, and the car widely acc...

COPO 572 CAMARO: BIG-BLOCK BRAWLER

Posted on July 31, 2021July 31, 2021 by MartynL

Chevy’s '22 COPO Camaro returns to a drag strip near you (and its roots) with a COPO 572 CAMARO: BIG-BLOCK BRAWLER, proving that there really isn’t a substitute for cubic inches except more cubic inches! The COPO Camaro returns for 2022 with a newly available 572-cubic-inch engine. It channels the spirit of the original ‘69 COPO Camaro, a purpose-built drag racer created by dealers using the Central Office Production Order system to equip cars with Chevrolet’s largest V-8 at the time – 427-in...

ROD & CUSTOM: ART & THE AUTOMOBILE

Posted on July 26, 2021 by MartynL

https://patganahl.com/2021/07/26/unreal-auto-art/

Rod & custom archivist/historian, Pat Ganahl blogs about Charlie Smith’s ROD & CUSTOM: ART & THE AUTOMOBILE that turns as many heads as do iconic show-stoppers. I was going to title this column “The Unknown Artist,” but that’s not true at all. I’ve known Charlie Smith of Kansas City at least since the mid-1980s. I’ve published his work in Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, and you’ve seen it elsewhere. You’ve also seen cars he’s designed, though you might not know it. Just one example is...

1970 GM-455: MAGNUM FORCE FROM MOTOWN

Posted on July 17, 2021July 17, 2021 by MartynL

The new year ushered in bigger, more powerful engines, new specialty Supercars and a plethora of Ponycars. Buick, Pontiac and Oldsmobile muscle machines, powered by similar but different 455-inch engines, led the displacement race: 1970 GM-455: MAGNUM FORCE FROM MOTOWN. In many ways, 1970 was the storm before the calm. The war in Southeast Asia continued casting a pall over a much-divided country and thinning the ranks of young enthusiasts. Carmakers’ racing budgets were being drasticall...

DURANGO SRT HELLCAT: ONE HELLUVA SUV

Posted on July 1, 2021July 1, 2021 by MartynL

With 710 Hemi horsepower, room for six, and Supercar acceleration, Dodge’s latest Sport Utility Vehicle - DURANGO SRT HELLCAT: ONE HELLUVA SUV – has no peers, blogs Dan Scanlan. Yes, the Durango has been around for 10 years, making it pretty long-in-tooth in automotive model cycles. And the fine folks at what is now Stellantis have put its supercharged HEMI in many other products including Chargers, Challengers and the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. Packing a supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI...

TANGERINE DREAM: ’21 HURÁCAN EVO RWD SPYDER

Posted on June 26, 2021June 26, 2021 by MartynL

It's fast, it's furious and an assault on the senses. And now with just rear-wheel drive, the TANGERINE DREAM: '21 HURÁCAN EVO RWD SPYDER is even more of a thrill ride, blogs Howard Walker. We all know about endorphins. They're those spunky polypeptides produced by the body that stimulate feelings of immense pleasure and well-being. Eating chocolate and drinking wine are great endorphin releasers. Of course, you knew that. But there's another source of endorphin production that's far...

MENDENHALL: CARS, GAS PUMPS & PETROLIANA MUSEUM

Posted on June 18, 2021June 18, 2021 by MartynL

CarGuyChronicles’ Jim Palam pulls in to the MENDENHALL: CARS, GAS PUMPS & PETROLIANA MUSEUM to fill-up with American petroleum industry history and an eyeful of colorful signage and cars from a bygone era. Sitting at a window table at Ellen's Pancake House I could see the large neon and red Pegasus rising up above the tall wooden perimeter fence surrounding the Mendenhall Museum – located just across Avenue of the Flags from the eatery in Buellton, CA. Over the years I had picked up a ...

CHEVY LS: MORE POWER, LESS WEIGHT; EASY TO SWAP!

Posted on June 17, 2021June 17, 2021 by MartynL

When GM engineers took the LT-1 to the next stage in 1997 - LS1 - the venerable small-block was lighter, more powerful and showcased in the C-5 Corvette. It signaled the start of a growing portfolio - CHEVY LS: MORE POWER, LESS WEIGHT; EASY TO SWAP! Hemmings’ Daniel Strohl presents a definitive guide to LS-Series V-8s. Just as the original Ed Cole-design Chevrolet small-block V-8 launched an era of American performance upon its introduction in the mid-Fifties, so did the LS-series third...

SHOWTIME: 2021 AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS

Posted on May 31, 2021 by MartynL

‘Expect the unexpected’ is why people from here and abroad flock annually to Bill Warner’s spectacle in the sunshine. Dan Scanlan brings us the best of the best from SHOWTIME: 2021 AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS, complete with photos and videos. There was grace with pace last week at the 26th Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. For pace, how about 3 Dog Garage’s ‘85 Roush Ford Mustang IMSA racer in the Cars of Lyn St. James Class? She thundered onto the show field in that Mustang that secured h...