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Posts Tagged: classic

A rotted-out 1970 Dodge Challenger becomes Project Ultra Violet in this POWERNATION Detroit Muscle build. The crew brings in chassis builder Jeff Schwartz for a full-frame conversion, grafts in a low-deck aluminum Hemi and a Tremec six-speed, and finishes it off with metallic purple paint and graphics from builder Chris Ryan. Watch to see how a shell most shops would have scrapped becomes a genuinely modern resto-mod.

This 1961 Ford Galaxie Sunliner packs a 390-cubic-inch V8 that could be optioned up to 401 horsepower on paper, paired with a stripped-down three-on-the-tree manual and no power assist anywhere. Years before anyone used the phrase ‘muscle car,’ Ford was already quietly building the ingredients for one. Read on to find out what driving a full-size Ford built this way actually felt like.

This Forest green 1951 Ford F1 half-ton shortbed wears the Five-Star Cab that grew out of Ford’s Million Dollar Cab redesign, and it backs it up with an upgraded 350, power steering, disc brakes, and air conditioning that no 1951 work truck ever offered. Ford built about 117,400 F1 pickups that year, yet very few survive looking this sharp. Read on to find out what Ford’s investment bought truck buyers and how this build finished the job.

A factory mix-up put an SS badge on this 1969 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu convertible — and when it was restored decades later, the family that had owned it since new put the mistake right back on, badge and all. The story was even verified and published in the Grand Rapids Press back in 1996. Watch to find out why a factory error became part of the car’s identity instead of something to correct.

Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale week has a way of setting the tone for where muscle car money is headed each year, and 2017 was no exception. With 1,719 vehicles crossing the block and 40 sales records falling, the results revealed which corners of the market were heating up — and which classics were starting to share the spotlight with unexpected competition. A Shelby GT350 and a Boss 429 both cracked six figures, but the real headline was who else was cashing in.

Automotive Territory rounds up ten classic American muscle cars rebuilt with modern engines, transmissions, and brakes — machines its host argues could outperform today’s supercars. Builders like Ring Brothers show up on the list, and the comments have turned into a running debate over whether a restomod still counts as a real muscle car. Watch to see the full ten and decide for yourself.

Chevrolet dropped its first real big-block into the Corvette in 1966, and the numbers on paper barely tell the whole story. The 427 arrived in two versions, a 390-horsepower hydraulic-lifter L36 and a 425-horsepower solid-lifter L72 that Chevrolet had briefly advertised at 450. Nearly one in five of the 27,720 Corvettes built that year carried the top engine. Read on to find out what made the 427-powered ’66 Sting Ray one of the most significant Corvettes Chevrolet ever built.

Butch Clayton’s 1978 Jeep CJ5 stood on two wheels at a quarterly Ladson car show, tires and frame on full display, but the stunt was the least remarkable thing about it. His father bought the Jeep, and Butch and his son William restored it together during a hard year, turning an AMC-era off-roader into three generations of family history. From the 304 V8 it shares with AMC’s muscle cars to why a one-family CJ matters more than a rare one, read on to find out what makes this Lowcountry Jeep worth a second look.

This Tahoe Turquoise 1966 Ford Mustang convertible carries the 76B Pony interior package, a 225-horsepower 289 four-barrel, factory wire hubcaps, and a power top — nearly every option a 1966 convertible buyer could check. Ford sold over 72,000 Mustang convertibles that year, more than double its nearest rival. Read on to find out exactly what made the Pony interior worth the extra money.

In the years right after World War II, Packard wasn’t just competing with Cadillac for America’s luxury car buyers — it was actually winning, with the Clipper-era lineup outselling Cadillac and LaSalle combined for a stretch. This 1949 Eight represents that high point: America’s last great straight-eight era, built the same year Packard’s total production topped 116,000 cars. It also marks the beginning of the end, since the brand still lacked the modern overhead-valve V8 that was about to reshape the entire industry.

This 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 spent forty years sitting untouched, accumulating dust while the collector market around it exploded. Built from a Trans-Am homologation special that Chevrolet only ever intended for racing, it represents the peak production year of one of the most celebrated small-block muscle cars ever built. Read on to find out what forty years of storage actually does to a car like this.

This 1967 Chevrolet Camaro RS convertible wears factory Ermine White over Bright Blue, and the Rally Sport package on the nose says nothing at all about what is under the hood. RS was a roughly $105 appearance option with hidden headlights and revised taillights, nothing more. This one carries a 327 V8, a floor-shifted Powerglide, a power top and a console. Read on to find out why cars ordered this way often survive better than the four-speeds.

This LS engine teardown starts with the same uncertainty every rebuild does — you never quite know what years of neglect actually did until the first bolts come loose. Viewers ranging from lifelong diesel technicians to first-time builders have weighed in on the technique, debating everything from head bolt removal order to a cheap salvage-yard 6.0-liter with an oddball factory quirk. Watch to see exactly what comes out of this engine, one bolt at a time.

A nationwide search-data report from ClassicCars.com found one car dominating collector car searches in more U.S. states than anything else — GM models included. The 1965 and 1967 Ford Mustang model years topped the list state after state, for reasons that trace straight back to the car’s origin as the founder of the entire pony car segment. Read on to find out which states are chasing it hardest.

In Queens, one owner has spent decades keeping his 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlass alive, running, and racing through exactly the kind of environment that kills most classic cars: rock salt, potholes, and a driving culture built on aggression. MotorTrend’s House of Muscle profiles Eddie and the car locals call “AY OOH,” a nickname earned through years of street racing rather than a paint shop decal. Watch to see how a car this old survives New York City.

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