Ross Mills

Ford Fairlane 1955-’59 Generations 1 & 2

The Ford Fairlane, inspired by Henry Ford’s estate, hit the roads in 1955, replacing the Crestline with a lineup flaunting stainless-steel flair. Under the hood, options ranged from the no-nonsense straight-six to the thunderous 292-cubic-inch V8. By 1957, the Fairlane got sleeker, sporting a Skyliner model with a retractable hard-top—perfect for those spontaneous drive-in theater escapes. The ’58 Fairlane’s Thunderbird-esque front and quad headlights screamed, “I’m here for a good time, not a long time!”

Classic dark blue vintage car with chrome details and whitewall tires.

Plymouth Deluxe restomod 1950 images

by Ross Mills

Plymouth’s first all-new postwar design wasn’t fast, flashy, or memorable — which is exactly why a stock-looking 1950 Deluxe is harder to spot today than most muscle cars. This example keeps that deliberately plain exterior while hiding a 350 small-block and automatic transmission underneath, along with power steering, power brakes, and vintage-style air conditioning. It’s the kind of sleeper nobody notices until the engine turns over. Here’s how Plymouth’s most forgettable postwar sedan became one.

Shiny vintage red convertible car with yellow interior.

Ford Roadster restomod 1934 images

by Ross Mills

Ford’s 1934 Model 40 was cheap, practical transportation for a country climbing out of the Depression — not a performance car. Somehow it became the chassis hot rodders have chased for nearly a century. This burnt-orange build trades the original flathead V8 for a 350 small-block, air suspension, and a fully custom leather interior while keeping the shape that started it all. Here’s why this humble Ford still turns heads at every show it enters.

Classic red convertible car with a sleek design.

Plymouth Fury III – 1967 images

by Ross Mills

Plymouth sold the Fury in three trim levels sharing one C-body platform, with the Fury III positioned as the upscale, best-equipped version of the bunch. Most buyers chose comfort over speed, which makes this 383 cubic inch, 4-speed manual example a genuinely uncommon way to order a car built primarily to coddle its passengers.

Classic white 1970s muscle car with sleek design and chrome accents.

Pontiac Grand Prix 1974 images

by Ross Mills

The 1974 Pontiac Grand Prix arrived just as the muscle car era was winding down, wearing a federally mandated 5-mph bumper and an emissions-strangled 400-cubic-inch V8 that made noticeably less power than earlier versions. Pontiac leaned into comfort and styling instead, and buyers responded: despite the power cuts, nearly 100,000 Grand Prixs sold that year. It remains one of the clearer snapshots of how regulation reshaped Detroit’s performance cars almost overnight.

Hudson Super Six 1949 images

by Ross Mills

The 1949 Hudson Super Six hid a genuinely clever piece of engineering under its conservative styling: a lowered unibody shell mounted over a reinforced ladder frame, dropping the cabin floor below the frame rails for a lower center of gravity than most full-size American cars offered. Hudson called it Step-Down construction, and it gave the Super Six handling that outclassed rivals from Buick and Chrysler. Nearly 100,000 were built in 1949 alone — one of the more underappreciated engineering stories in postwar Detroit.

Chevy II to Chevrolet Nova—The Third Generation 1968-1970

by Ross Mills

The third-generation Chevy Nova, introduced in 1968, was a makeover marvel with a longer wheelbase and a facelift that officially dropped the Chevy II name. It offered 15 powertrain options, including a 350-cubic-inch V8 for the SS model, which could turn heads and tires. By 1969, Chevy slipped in a Torque-drive for clutchless thrills, and by 1970, the Nova was all about subtle changes, like larger side marker lights. Meanwhile, the four-cylinder engine quietly exited, much like a party guest who realizes they’re at the wrong event.

Best Sounds of 2013 MUSCLE CAR

by Ross Mills

That deep, syncopated rumble rattling through a muscle car show isnt random, its the product of firing order, header length, and an almost total absence of sound deadening. Modern engineers spend real effort trying to recreate a sound older V8s produced without trying. Heres the science behind the exhaust note every muscle car fan can pick out blindfolded.

Classic red muscle car with black racing stripes in a showroom.

Chevrolet El Camino SS 1971 images

by Ross Mills

By 1970, Chevrolet let El Camino SS buyers order the same 454-cubic-inch big block that powered the fastest Chevelles, including a 450-horsepower LS6 option good for a 13.44-second quarter mile. This example carries the SS package and a big-block V8 backed by a Turbo Hydra-Matic 400 transmission. Chevrolet built only around 500 El Camino SS 454s that year, making a documented big-block example a genuinely rare way to combine a cargo bed with serious factory horsepower.

A sleek black vintage hot rod car parked in a lot.

Ford restomod Roadster 1932 images

by Ross Mills

Long before this restomod’s ceramic headers and chrome mags, the 1932 Ford roadster had already become the battleground for hot rodding’s biggest debate: Ford body, Chevy heart. Once the small-block Chevy V8 proved itself in the mid-1950s, legendary builds swapped out their Ford flatheads, and this build carries that same tradition forward.

Classic turquoise 1960s two-door car in a showroom.

Chevrolet Chevy II – 1965 images

by Ross Mills

This 1965 Chevy II carries the most basic drivetrain Chevrolet offered that year: a 194-cubic-inch inline six paired with a 2-speed automatic. The same platform, though, could be ordered with a 283-cubic-inch V8 making up to 225 horsepower, or as the sportier Nova Super Sport coupe. Chevrolet built the Chevy II fast and cheap to answer the Ford Falcon and Plymouth Valiant, moving 122,800 of them in 1965 alone across a lineup that ranged from grocery-getter to genuine performance car.

Classic black 1969 Ford Mustang parked outdoors.

Ford Mustang Mach I 1969

by Ross Mills

Ford built the 1969 Mustang Mach 1 to close a sales gap that had opened up against the Camaro and Firebird, and the fix worked almost instantly: 72,458 Mach 1s found buyers that year against only 5,396 of the outgoing GT trim. Factory engines ranged from a standard 351 Windsor up to the 428 Cobra Jet, rated at 335 horsepower and 440 lb-ft of torque. Ford dropped the GT trim entirely the following year, letting the Mach 1 carry the performance Mustang banner alone.

Classic white convertible car parked near a lake under a clear sky.

Oldsmobile Cutlass Hurst/Olds 1971 images

by Ross Mills

This is the third of just twenty-five prototypes Oldsmobile built ahead of the officially revived 1972 Hurst/Olds, which would go on to pace the Indianapolis 500. The original Hurst/Olds partnership debuted in 1968 before going dormant for two full years, and 1971 also marked the last year Oldsmobile sold the 442 as its own standalone model. The Rocket 350 V8 under this car’s hood carried the same engineering that would define the production Hurst/Olds cars buyers could purchase in 1972.

Ford Motors V8 supplement FE & FT 4 of 4

by Ross Mills

In a twist of automotive irony, Ford’s first 427 block was as temperamental as a cat in water—one slip of the casting core and voilà, a paperweight! Enter the FE 428, a budget-friendly marvel with a manageable bore and a cast iron crankshaft. In ’68, the 428 CJ roared onto the scene, leaving insurance agents shaking in their boots while pretending it only had 335 hp. The NHRA saw through the charade, rating it at 360 hp, as it blazed through the Winternationals. Meanwhile, the SCJ variant was ready to race, sporting longer-life capscrews for rods and a cheekily looser piston fit—because who needs air conditioning when you’re this cool?

A lineup of colorful sports cars parked side by side.

Trivia #03-Henry and Clem Studebaker

by Ross Mills

Long before Detroit’s muscle car wars, two Indiana blacksmiths built a company that would eventually produce one of the era’s most overlooked performance machines. The Studebaker brothers started with horseshoes, survived a Civil War wagon contract, and only reluctantly entered the automobile business decades later. Their company’s final act included a supercharged V8 capable of matching contemporaries from Detroit’s Big Three. It simply ran out of time to prove it.

Posts By: Ross Mills