Glory Days! No not the Springsteen song, it’s the cover story of Hot Rod’s May 2007 issue. It doesn’t seem that long ago that big horsepower was 250. Now you can’t even get a mention unless your engine is putting out over 450 and that’s a beautiful thing. Chevy, Ford and Mopar all have something up their sleeve. The Viper is rated at 600hp, while the Shelby Mustang is over 500hp and the Camaro(I don’t care what people say it’s damn ugly and looks nothing like a first generation Camaro) could have anything the Vette has under the hood.
Of course if you like your sheetmetal more vintage, give a call to Unique Performance. They can build you a Mustang with just about any engine combo you’d care for or a Foose big-block Camaro and coming soon an early ‘70's Challenger. But bring a big checkbook because we’re talking $120,000+ for any of the above. Mr. Norms back with a Hemi powered Dart with some seriously out of place(read ugly) wheels. They kill an otherwise damn cool car. There is a beautiful ‘66 Chevelle that’s as nice as anything around. There is an article on how to swap a modern lump(for our English friends) into a some classic tin.
But don’t be afraid Hot Rod hasn’t forgotten the hot rods. Ray Dunham’s ‘36 Ford coupe struts it’s stuff with chopped top, air bags and a blown flathead. It’ gets your attention in all the right ways.
And there is a nice editorial from David Freiburger about Dandy Dick Landy. We’ll miss him.
www.hotrod.com
