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The 1963 Studebaker Avanti R2 wrapped a Paxton-supercharged 289 making 289 horsepower in a Raymond Loewy fiberglass body, and Studebaker sold it as the world’s fastest production car. Hemmings’ Mike Musto asks whether the last new car out of South Bend was America’s first muscle car — or its most beautiful misfire.
AMC’s 1968 AMX was America’s only two-seat rival to the Corvette — built by chopping a foot out of a Javelin and priced $1,000 cheaper. Three V8 options, a 19,134-car total run, and 52 factory Hurst drag cars later, here’s why this forgotten muscle car still has some of the most devoted owners in the hobby.
Dodge spent two years insisting the V8 muscle car era was over, replacing the Charger’s supercharged HEMI with a battery pack and then a turbocharged six-cylinder. Weak EV sales and comments from Dodge’s own CEO have changed that story: a supercharged 6.2-liter Hellcat V8 making more than 700 horsepower is reportedly locked in for the Charger’s 2028 refresh. Here’s what’s confirmed, what’s still rumor, and why the wait might be worth it.
Only 135 Plymouth Superbirds ever left the factory with a 426 Hemi under that towering rear wing, and one of them just crossed the Barrett-Jackson block for $396,000. A matching Hemi ‘Cuda wasn’t far behind at $302,500. Here’s what the pair says about which classic muscle cars are actually gaining value in 2026.
A 2025 highlight reel of car-meet burnouts and exhaust notes is going viral for an unlikely reason — a plain four-door Nova stealing the spotlight from a 425-horsepower Hemi Challenger. Here’s what actually made the crowd favorites roar, and why a spec sheet rarely predicts which car steals the show.
A 1970 Buick GSX in rare Apollo White just went through MCACN’s five-hour Vintage Certification process — one of only 187 built in that color, and one of just 32 with California emissions. Host Dan Vasic walks through what separates a genuinely original survivor from a car that’s been quietly refreshed. The GSX’s story turns out to be as much about engineering as paint.
Dodge built only 80 Hemi Darts in 1968, turning a humble compact into a six-figure drag-strip legend almost overnight. But a deep dive into the Dart’s full history reveals the real bargain hiding in plain sight: the ordinary Slant-Six version, famous among owners for outlasting engines twice its horsepower. Here’s what separates the unicorn from the daily driver, and why knowing the difference matters before you buy.
Chrysler and Hurst sold the 1970 300H as a hardtop only, but George Hurst had one convertible built for himself and for Linda Vaughn’s drag-strip appearances. Fifty-plus years later the numbers-matching 440 TNT drop-top survives in a private collection, and Rocket Restorations walks through every detail that proves it is real.
The 1968-1974 Chevrolet Nova rode a 111-inch wheelbase with room for a genuine 396 big-block — and, at the right dealership, a 427, turning an economy car into one of the muscle car era’s best-hidden street fighters. One owner even drove his 396 Nova 3,100 miles from California to Florida in 38 hours. Once dismissed as a cheap compact, the Nova has become one of the most underrated classics you can buy.
One of just 302 four-speed 428 SJs out of 112,486 Grand Prix built in 1969, this survivor sat on jack stands for 27 years with about 13,000 miles before Jay Leno got behind the wheel. Here is why the SJ is the rarest and most rewarding form of Pontiac’s personal luxury muscle car, and what to check before you buy one.
Lincoln-Mercury stuffed a 360-hp, 480 lb-ft 429 into a 4,500-pound fastback with hidden headlights and fender skirts, then sold fewer than 8,300 of them across 1969 and 1970. A Rare Cars documentary explains why the Marauder X-100 flopped in showrooms and why it may be the most overlooked big-block bargain from the muscle era.
Ford squeezed 662 horsepower from a supercharged V8 into the last Mustang built with a solid rear axle, a combination that made the 2013 Shelby GT500 both wildly fast and genuinely difficult to drive. A decade later, owners are still talking about the sound, the manual gearbox, and just how much respect this car demands. Here’s why the 2013-2014 GT500 remains one of the most talked-about modern Shelbys.