Interesting Facts | Muscle Car Fan

A large engine block in a workshop on a red stand.

$10k Coyote vs LS3 Shootout – The Build

EngineLabs handed two teams an identical $9,999 budget and one instruction: build the strongest engine possible, Ford’s Coyote for one, GM’s LS3 for the other. The result is less a definitive winner and more a clinic in budget-build tradeoffs, big pushrod displacement against high-revving overhead cams, cheap aftermarket parts against premium modular components. Even the comments split along brand lines, with one self-described “Ford guy” breaking ranks to praise the LS3 outright. Watch the full build to see which philosophy actually made more power for the money, and decide for yourself which side of this rivalry your own garage falls on.

Classic 1966 Chevrolet Chevy Chevelle in glossy blue with chrome accents.

1969 Chevrolet Chevy Chevelle COPO (Central Office Production Order)

by Wes

Van Hurst’s father once owned this 1969 Chevelle COPO — before it left the family, disappeared for years, and turned up again through nothing more than an internet search. Built through Chevrolet’s Central Office Production Order loophole, the car was deliberately disguised as a base-model Malibu to hide its 427 big block from the crowd. Between a Chilean sighting decades ago and a trio of Calgary neighbors who bought sister cars together in 1969, this COPO’s story stretches well past its own build sheet. Watch the full reunion.

Two vibrant classic Pontiac cars parked side by side, showcasing striking orange and red paint.

1969 Pontiac GTO Judge vs. 2006 Custom Pontiac GTO

by Wes

MotorTrend pits a numbers-matching 1969 Pontiac GTO Judge against a twin-turbo, 750-horsepower 2006 GTO inside Ken Lingenfelter’s personal collection, then asks a simple question with no easy answer: which one would you actually want to drive? The Judge brings 1969 history and mechanical honesty; the modern car brings more than double the factory horsepower. Watch the comment section split right down generational lines.

Classic Pontiac GTO car from the 1960s in a showroom.

Pontiac GTO Commercial (1967)

by Wes

A 1967 television commercial for the Pontiac GTO sold horsepower the way modern car ads almost never do – through swagger, identity, and a voice actor’s delivery that viewers are still praising decades later. One commenter even traces BMW’s Ultimate Driving Machine slogan back to what Pontiac was already doing here first. Watch to hear the pitch that built a legend.

Classic black 1971 Buick GS convertible on display.

71 Cuda 440 Six pack

by Wes

Filmed in 2007 for a television series most viewers have never heard of, this segment captures a 1971 Plymouth Cuda’s 440 Six Pack coming to life under Legendary Motorcar’s care. The triple-carburetor setup gives the big-block a distinctive burble that Mopar collectors can pick out by ear alone. See why this specific engine badge still commands serious money and even more serious attention.

A 1969 Pontiac Trans Am muscle car featured in a video episode.

1969 Pontiac Trans Am Ram Air III 4-Speed

by Wes

The 1969 Firebird Trans Am existed for exactly one model year in this form, wearing a color combination buyers couldn’t change and stripes that ran straight over the roof, a look Pontiac never repeated. This Ram Air III 4-speed example from The Brothers Collection pairs that one-year-only styling with a functional hood feeding a 400 cubic inch V8. See what made the very first Trans Am look and drive like nothing else on the lot.

Video showing how to pack a parachute safely.

How To Pack Your Parachute For Racing by Nick Scavo

by Wes

Veteran drag racer Nick Scavo walks through exactly how to pack a parachute for drag racing, footage pulled from the V8TV Archives and produced by Kevin Oeste. At speeds where brakes alone can’t stop a car safely, a parachute packed wrong can fail at the worst possible moment. This is hands-on knowledge rarely captured on camera. Watch to see the precise, repeatable process a real racer trusts his own safety to.

Three muscle cars racing on a track under a cloudy sky.

A range of ratings for American muscle cars – IIHS News

by Wes

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety put a trio of America’s best-known sports coupes through its full crash test battery in a May 2016 release, and none of them walked away with a TOP SAFETY PICK award. Long hoods, low rooflines, and rear-drive proportions built for speed don’t always cooperate with small-overlap crash structure. What actually held these pony cars back is more specific than the headline suggests. Watch to see how the numbers break down.

Three Dodge Charger cars parked outside a dealership with a sign.

Dodge Charger Daytona vs. Stock Charger vs. Hellcat: Wind Tunnel

by Wes

A stock 1969 Dodge Charger, an authentic Charger Daytona with its full nose cone and rear wing, and a modern 2015 Hellcat all go through the same wind tunnel to answer a question muscle car fans have argued for decades: how much did the Daytona’s radical aero package actually do? NASCAR banned the bodywork almost as soon as it proved effective. Watch to see what the real numbers say, fifty years later.

Man frustrated with car troubles, caption reads 'More Problems'.

MY NEW $83,000 WIDEBODY HELLCAT CHALLENGER HAS MORE DAMAGE AGAIN

by Wes

John’s widebody Hellcat Challenger cost $83,000, and according to this video, it’s developed damage again — the kind that’s split his comment section between “take it to the dealer immediately” and “that’s just modern Hellcat ownership.” Between an electrical tape debate and a stability control fault viewers are tracing back to the shocks, this is less a build reveal than a real-time look at what owning a heavily modified, six-figure-adjacent Mopar actually involves. Watch to see what breaks next.

Two muscle cars, a red Dodge Charger and a yellow Dodge Challenger, ready for a review.

2017 Dodge Challenger GT AWD vs Ford Mustang vs Chevy Camaro Mashup

by Wes

Pony car purists have a firm opinion about rear-wheel-drive muscle cars in the snow: it doesn’t go well. The team at The Fast Lane Car put the all-wheel-drive Challenger GT up against a Mustang and Camaro on the same snowy pavement to settle whether Dodge’s unusual drivetrain choice actually held up. Watch the full comparison to see which pony car kept moving when the others couldn’t.

1952 Indy Car with open cockpit and yellow-blue paint.

1952 Indy 500 Car John Snowberger Restores His Dad Russ Snowberger’s

by Pat C

Six decades after Russ Snowberger wheeled his own cars around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, his son John has taken on the job his father never got to finish. This 1952 Indy-style racer sat quietly for decades before the Snowberger family decided its story deserved a second act. What emerges is less a restoration than a homecoming, one built from memory, patience, and a name that once ran with the best at the Brickyard.

Vintage car engine with detailed components and colorful wires.

The Barn Find HEMI GTX and yard FULL of Mopars

by Wes

Clay and Sons Mopar recycling yard in rural Missouri hides more factory-original muscle than most private collections, and The Auto Archaeologist’s latest find proves it: a real 1968 GTX still wearing its original 426 Hemi and 4-speed. The yard behind it holds Darts, a Barracuda, and a yellow Coronet that have viewers calling it Mopar heaven in the comments. Watch to see what else is sitting in that field.

1961 Buick Riviera 'Morpheus' customized with a unique rear design and glossy maroon finish.

1963 Buick Riviera “ Morpheus ” in Ruby Red & Engine Sound

by Wes

Brian Whitis grew up on a street called Riviera Drive, and decades later he finally bought the car that shared its name — then transformed it into something entirely his own. Named “Morpheus” for how far it’s morphed from stock, this Ruby Red 1963 Buick Riviera turned heads at World of Wheels. Watch to see the full build.

1971 Dodge Challenger R/T 440 Six Pack classic muscle car in black and orange.

Review: 1971 Dodge Challenger R/T 440 Six Pack

by Wes

Episode 239 of Muscle Car of the Week spotlights a 1971 Dodge Challenger R/T built around the legendary 440 Six Pack, straight from the Brothers Collection. Shot in deep black paint during golden hour, this Mean Machine was built for one purpose: burning up the drag strip. Watch the full walkaround.

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