Technical | Muscle Car Fan

Mechanic working on a car engine in a garage with 'Roadkill Extra' text overlay.

How to: Compression Ratio Explained

David Freiburger spends this episode of Roadkill Extra doing something Roadkill rarely does: teaching, not wrecking. Compression ratio sounds like a spec sheet footnote until he breaks down exactly how bore, stroke, chamber volume, and camshaft timing all feed into the number that decides how much power an engine can make before it starts destroying itself. It’s the kind of explanation builders bookmark and come back to before their next build. Find out what the calculator actually needs to get right.

Classic 1967 Ford Mustang GT convertible showcased in a video review.

The Basics On How To Buy Your First Classic Mustang

by Wes

CJ Pony Parts built a first-time buyer’s guide to classic Mustangs around the actual mistakes their customers have made over the years, VIN mismatches on interior trim, cowl panel rust that only shows up after purchase, and impulse buys that skip inspection entirely. The comments add their own cautionary tales, including one buyer who did not discover a leaking cowl panel until years later. Prices on desirable fastback models have only climbed since. Watch before writing a check on your first one.

Close-up of an engine cylinder head with visible valves and chambers.

LS Upgrade 6.0 to 6.2

by Wes

A 6.0-liter LS truck engine doesn’t become a 6.2 with a few bolt-on parts, and this hands-on build video from Myvintageiron7512 shows exactly why, bore work, machine shop tolerances, and the same architecture GM used to build the LS3 that powers C6 Corvettes and fifth-gen Camaros. One viewer summed up the appeal simply: this is someone who clearly knows the platform inside and out. See what it actually takes to bridge the gap between a budget truck engine and genuine LS3-spec displacement.

A Ford 302 engine undergoing complete teardown in a workshop.

Ford 302 Complete Engine Tear Down

by Wes

EricTheCarGuy tears down a Ford 302 for the long-running #FairmontProject expecting a straightforward rebuild — until the inspection turns up a problem that changes the entire plan. The video’s own description admits the block likely won’t work, then pivots straight into the next phase: a turbo kit already in development. Watch to see exactly what disqualified the block, and what comes next.

Close-up of hands repairing a car's instrument cluster with a Roadkill Extra badge.

Tech Advice: Electric vs Mechanical Gauges

by Wes

David Freiburger uses this Roadkill Extra episode to preview the final chapter of the Crusher Camaro’s retro makeover while breaking down electric versus mechanical gauges — and the real tradeoffs most builders don’t consider until they’re already mid-install. It’s practical, hands-on advice from someone who has made both mistakes already. Watch for the gauge tips most builds skip entirely.

Man showcasing a Chevy 350 small block engine top end on a video thumbnail.

ow-To Rebuild Top End Chevy 350 Small Block Engine

by Wes

Episode 67 of the Motorz rebuild series picks up the Chevy 350 build at its most consequential stage — the top end, where a single missed torque step or skipped sealant can undo three prior episodes of careful work. Viewers with decades of small block experience have weighed in throughout, flagging two specific mistakes worth avoiding and trading tricks that never make it into a written manual. Watch to see exactly where a home rebuild can go right, or wrong.

Close-up of a classic car engine with a chrome air filter and polished components.

5 Best Unknown V8 Engines From The Muscle Car Era

by Wes

Everyone knows the 426 Hemi, the LS6 454, the 455 HO, the Stage 1, the W-30 — the five or six names that dominate every muscle car retrospective. OldCarMemories.com went looking for the V8s that matched or beat those legends and got left out of the story anyway, and found that marketing budgets, not dyno sheets, decided who became famous. Read on to find out why cubic inches won the conversation and what that means for collectors today.

Super Rare! 1970 Dodge Coronet Convertible 4 Speed – 440 tear down

by Wes

A 440-powered, four-speed Dodge Coronet convertible is rare enough on its own — most big-block Mopar buyers skipped the convertible body entirely. Nick’s Garage treats the teardown of this particular example less like routine work and more like something worth savoring, and the engine underneath explains exactly why. Viewers with decades of engine-building experience call it one of the most satisfying breakdowns the shop has posted. Watch to see what a patient, detail-focused teardown of a genuinely rare Mopar actually looks like.

Mechanic working on a car part in a garage with 'Roadkill Extra' branding.

Compression Ratio Explained

by Wes

Compression ratio is the number every engine builder throws around, and the one most can’t actually explain past ‘higher is better.’ Roadkill Extra host David Freiburger breaks down exactly what it measures, why pushing it too far invites engine-destroying detonation, and how builders actually raise or lower it on a real engine. One top comment argues the fourteen-minute video teaches the concept better than a university engineering class. Here’s what actually earned that praise.

Car engine bay with fuel injection system shown.

Choosing Carb over Fuel injection – Why I did it?

by Wes

Regular Guy Garage is dropping a 347 stroker into a 1986 Mustang Notchback, and against the current of nearly every build video out there, he’s doing it with a carburetor instead of fuel injection. His reasoning — no sensors, no wiring harness, no computer to fight with — has resonated with viewers who own everything from Chargers to Firebirds to Camaros. Watch to hear the full case for going old-school.

Comparison of Lucas and STP engine additives in a garage setting.

Which engine self-destructs first? Lucas or STP?

by Wes

Project Farm’s Todd runs a test no responsible mechanic ever would: deliberately starving a running engine of oil, once treated with Lucas Oil Stabilizer and once with STP, to see which additive actually buys more time before the engine seizes completely. It’s the latest entry in a channel built entirely on settling exactly this kind of gearhead argument with real destructive testing instead of marketing claims. Watch to see which product actually wins.

Illustration of sneakers and a blister patch on a foot.

10 Awesome Techniques to Become a Skilled Driver

by Wes

Most drivers pick up their license without ever learning why a car understeers, how to recover from a skid, or what heel-toe downshifting actually accomplishes — skills that separate merely operating a car from truly controlling one. This rundown breaks down the driving techniques rarely taught in standard instruction, from defensive driving fundamentals to handbrake turns, and explains which ones are worth practicing and which belong on a closed course only. Read on to find out where the real gaps in most drivers’ education actually are.

Video thumbnail questioning if wider tires provide more grip.

Do Wider Tires Actually Have More Grip? Testing 27 Cars

by Wes

Wider tires mean more grip — or so every car enthusiast has been told. Engineering Explained’s Jason Fenske put that assumption to the test at NWAPA’s 2017 Mudfest, running sixty-to-zero braking tests across twenty-seven different AWD and 4×4 trucks and SUVs with a Vbox data logger. The results complicate the simple version of the story muscle car owners repeat about tire width, weight, and stopping distance. Commenters, including more than one physics teacher’s former student, dig into exactly why. Watch to see what the data actually says.

Close-up of a zombie chase small block engine on a green stand.

Zombie Chevy Small Block on the Dyno

by Wes

It doesn’t look like much on Nick’s dyno — until the numbers start climbing. This small block Chevy proves you don’t need 600-plus horsepower to earn a following, and the comments underneath prove it. Nick’s Garage built a channel around builds like this one: honest, approachable, and capable of putting up a fight against engines twice its size. Watch to see why viewers keep coming back to this one.

Detailed view of a Chevrolet Dom V8 engine assembly in progress.

Chevrolet Corvette V8 Engine Assembly

by Wes

Cars Garage skips the dyno-pull theatrics and shows the entire assembly of a Chevrolet Corvette 6.2L supercharged LS9 — the engine that once made the ZR1 the fastest production car GM had ever built. Every torque spec, every forged component, every step from bare block to finished 638-horsepower engine is on camera. Watch to see what actually separates a factory-grade rebuild from a shortcut.

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