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Three second-generation Camaros, two build philosophies: manicured Pro Touring precision versus raised, tire-smoking Pro Street menace. The split says something about where builder taste has landed on a body style that Chevy first drew as a European GT-inspired F-body in 1970, then watched lose two-thirds of its horsepower to emissions rules by the late ’70s. That power drought is exactly why so many second-gen Camaros wear modern engines today instead of their original small-blocks.
A brand-new 2014 Corvette Stingray with 76 miles on the clock was stripped down and rebuilt around a twin-turbo 548 HEMI making 3,500 horsepower — a number that did not even stay the final figure. Built to run in the Pro Mod class against turbocharged Mustangs, this C7 kept only its roof and rear bodywork from the factory car.
A 1969 Chevelle with a twin-turbocharged 540-cubic-inch big-block sounds less like a classic muscle car and more like a jet on a runway. Instead of chasing horsepower with nitrous or a supercharger, this build relies on two turbochargers feeding a stroked, forged-internals big-block — a combination capable of mid-8-second quarter miles while staying streetable.
Alloway’s Hot Rod Shop took a 1955 Plymouth Savoy and did something unusual for a resto-mod: they held back. The body stayed close to stock, the changes are subtle, and the biggest transformation is hiding under the hood, where the shop installed an all-polished aluminum HEMI over 500 cubic inches that they say is one of only two in existence. Add an Art Morrison chassis, shop-exclusive billet wheels, and a Steve Holcomb interior, and you get a Mopar that looks quiet and runs anything but.
Only about 39 Dodge Daytonas were ever built with a factory 426 Hemi, and Lou Costabile gets to ride in one of them — a remarkably original Spring Green example with a black tail, owned by Tom Lembeck. Built purely to win NASCAR’s aerodynamic arms race, the Daytona remains one of the rarest and strangest-looking muscle cars Chrysler ever put into production. Watch the full ride-along to hear its story firsthand.
Not every 1969 Pontiac GTO with a 400-cubic-inch four-barrel and four-speed was built the same. Pontiac offered three distinct versions of that engine that year, from an economy-minded option to a Ram Air racing mill with forged internals and four-bolt mains. Here’s what separated a standard GTO from the one performance buyers actually wanted.
Ford hid its most serious 1966 Mustang engine behind a single letter on the order form. The K-code 289 traded hydraulic lifters and a vacuum-advance distributor for solid lifters and race-bred internals — and about 13,000 buyers knew enough to ask for it. Here’s what separated the K-code from every other V8 in the Mustang lineup that year.
In 1966, Hertz rental counters quietly handed out one of the most track-capable Mustangs Ford ever built — the Shelby GT350H. Some customers brought them back with roll bars installed after unofficial weekend races. Here’s how a genuine SCCA-dominating race car ended up as a rent-a-car, and why the program remains one of the wildest experiments in muscle car history.
Stock-motor, stock-turbo quarter-mile racing is a surprisingly competitive corner of the Porsche 911 world, where a handful of tenths separates casual bragging rights from an actual record. This twin-turbo 911 leans on nitrous and drag radials rather than internal engine work to chase that record — a very different game than the heavily built cars dominating the outright quarter-mile books.
A Ford Falcon is supposed to be a family sedan, not a nearly 200 mph drag weapon. But at Sydney’s Sport Compact Jamboree, in the tire-limited 275 class, that’s exactly what one Falcon delivers, pass after pass. 1320video calls it a contender for the fastest Falcon on Earth, built from a platform nobody expected to see at these speeds. See the run that’s sparking the debate.
In 1991, a Wisconsin seller was ready to let go of this 1959 Pontiac Catalina Sport Sedan for one simple reason: in his corner of the state, nobody wanted a Pontiac. Rich Sperling didn’t share that bias, and nearly three decades later, he’s still driving it. Lou Costabile catches up with Sperling and his Silver Mist Catalina at Elmhurst’s 34th Annual Show & Swap Meet.
Only 125 Ford Falcon XB coupes were built in 1976, the final year before Ford Australia retired its pillarless hardtop shape for good. One now carries the nickname XBOSS — earned, not badge-stamped. Here’s what made the XB coupe a touring car icon, and why so few survived to become the collector pieces they are today.