Some more "Dogs" that can be Pit Bulls....

Remember comedian Bill Engvall's hit comedy song-"Here's Your Sign?" ( That said-"I'm Stupid" ). Got a couple emails about the last post from someone who needs a sign. He said I was wrong about some engines not really being "dogs". He pointed out how the 360 Chrysler didn't have anywhere near the performance of the 340 and that the Chevy 400 small-block wasn't anywhere near as good as a 327 or a 350, and the 403 Olds wasn't anywhere near as good as a 350. Here's your sign. I say this-because just like I pointed out about the various GM, Ford, and Chrysler big-blocks-he's comparing apples and oranges for the same reasons!  The 340 from 1968-71 had 10.5:1 compression, a hot cam, and big-port heads with 2.02 / 1.60 valves, and a Carter AVS 4bbl. In '72-73 the compression was dropped to 8.5:1 to run on low-lead fuels which dropped the hp rating from 275 to 240-but they still had everything else-good heads,cam and intake,etc. The 360 was introduced in 1971 in trucks and vans and never had more than 8.5:1 compression,and had small-valve ( 1.88 / 1.50 ) 318 style heads, a lazy cam and 2bbl carburation, and single exhaust!!  In fact-a 4bbl carb was only offered on a few 1974 Dusters and 'Cuda / Challengers, and Charger / Road Runners, and the '78-79 Li'l Red Express pickup. The millions of other 360s in various Dodge cars and trucks and Chrysler / Plymouth vehicles through the '70's all had 2bbl carburation. Again-all other things being equal-heads, cam, intake, exhaust, compression ratio,axle ratio-the 20 extra cubes of the 360 will be worth at least 25 hp and 30 lbs ft of torque. As for the 400 Chevy-same thing. The 275 hp 327 and 300 hp 350s had 10.25:1 compression. and Quadrajet 4bbls. The 350 hp L79 327 and the 370 hp LT1 350s had 11:1 compression, "202" heads, hot cams, and 780 Holley carbs on an aluminum high-rise intake. The 400 Small-block was introduced in 1970 as a "towing" engine in Impalas, station wagons and trucks. It had 9.0:1 compression, "194" heads, a lazy cam and was only available with a 2bbl and single exhausts. In 1971 compression was further lowered to 8.2:1. A 4bbl wasn't even an option until 1976 in the trucks. Every magazine writer whose ever done an article on building a high-performance small-block Chevy will tell you that a 400 will make tons more power and torque than a 350!!  50 extra cubes makes a BIG difference. And now that Dart is selling brand new 400 blocks building one has never been easier. Ditto for the Olds engines. Late '60's and early '70's 350 Olds engines had 10.5:1 compression, and were rated at 310 hp. The high-performance "W31" had larger valve heads,a 308 degree cam, and an aluminum high-rise intake. It was grossly under-rated at 325 hp and was only available with a 4-speed and 3.90:1 or 4.33:1 gears!!  The 403 was GM's "corporate" big-block in the late '70's. It had 7.9:1 compression, a lazy cam, and was only available with an automatic and 2.56:1 gears. A few WS6 Firebirds had 3.23:1 gears. Again-all other things being equal-53 more cubes means more power and torque!  Mastermind        

Here's a tip-some '70's "Dogs"...Aren't really dogs....they just need a little help...

I love listening to self-proclaimed "experts" who give people bad advice. One of these idiots was pontificating at the shop I work at the other day. He was saying that a 429 Ford engine is a great performance engine, but a 460 is a dog. He also said that a 427 Chevy was a great engine, but a 454 is a dog, and that 383 Mopars and 428 Pontiacs were great, but 400 Mopars and 455 Pontiacs were dogs. I had to correct him. All other things being equal-the larger engine will always make more power and torque. The key words being  "All other things being equal".  429s up to 1971 were rated at 375 hp and had 10.5:1 compression. '72 and later 460s had about 205 net hp and 8.0:1 compression and a lazy cam. '60's 427 Chevys-depending on if they were in an Impala or a Corvette and depending on whether they were a 390 hp,425 or 435 hp versions ( L71,L72,L88,L89 ) -had 10.25:1, 11:1 and 12.5:1 compression!! And high-lift hydraulic and solid-lifter cams, and aluminum high-rise intakes with a 780 Holley or  3 Holley 2bbls!! With the exception of the 1100 or so 425 hp LS6 454s that were put in Corvettes and a few SS Chevelles in 1971-most '71 and later 454s had 8.25:1 compression, an iron manifold with a Quadrajet, and a lazy cam. Ditto for the Mopars and Pontiacs. The 383 Magnum had 10:1 compression and the heads and cam, and the excellent Carter AVS 4bbl carb and intake from it's big brother the 440 Magnum. '72 and later Chrysler 400s had 8.2:1 compression,a "station wagon" cam and a Carter ThermoQuad carb. Some '75 and later models had the horrible "Lean Burn" ignition systems, and single exhausts with catalytic converters that really choked them. 428 Pontiacs had 10.75:1 compression and either the "066" or "068" cam and were rated at 370 and 390 hp respectiveley. All '71 and later 455s-had only 8.0:1 compression and a lazy "smog" cam. '75-76 models had even more anemic 7.6:1 compression and catalyst choked exhausts. The rare and vaunted '71-72 455HO and  '73-74 455SD models-while having good RAIV style heads, and a decent cam and intake-only had 8.4:1 compression-a far cry from the 10.75:1 of the old 428!  And in addition-whether GM, Ford or Chrysler- most '60's cars-even if they weren't performance models had axle ratios like 3.23:1 or 3.55:1-especially if they had a towing package. Most '70's cars had salt-flats gearing like 2.56:1 or 2.80:1, which further hindered acceleration. So this clown was half-right. Yes a '66 Impala with a 10.25:1 compression 390 hp 427 backed by a TH400 and 3.31:1 gears will blow the doors off a '73 Impala with an 8.25:1 compression 245 hp 454 with a TH400 and 2.73:1 gears!!  Yes, your 10.75:1 compression 390 hp 428 powered '69 Gran Prix with 3.23:1 gears will suck up and spit out a '76 Gran Prix with a 7.6:1 compression 455 and 2.56:1 gears!!  A '69 T-Bird with a 375 hp 10.5:1 429, a C6 and 3.25:1 gears will run a lot faster than a 7.9:1 compression 460 powered '73 model with 2.80:1 gears!!  Thank you, Captain Obvious.  So remember the "All other things being equal"-factor-the larger cube engine will always make more power. Always. Just had to vent that. Mastermind              

How many times do I have to say it? "Period Correct" doesn't always mean bone stock...

Saw a really nice 1953 Ford F100 for sale the the other day. It was jet black with chrome wheels. It also had a Mustang II front clip-which gave it front disc brakes and power rack and pinion steering. It had a warmed over 302 V8 and a C4 automatic trans. Typical late '70's "Restification". Ford guys would vomit-but the other way was a Chevelle front clip with a big-block Chevy / TH400 swap. Either one made the old trucks blisteringly fast-and made them stop and handle decent. This was par for the course in the late '70's. Ditto for a '55-57 Chevy with a "Pete and Jakes" straight front axle and disc brakes, and a snarling small or big-block and radiused rear wheelwells and big tires. 'Vettes with headers and sidepipes were very common. Firebirds with Rat motors were common too.  So if you see a nice car modified in this fashion but well preserved, it's as much a piece of history as a Concours "Just as it Left the Factory" Mustang with a repro Autolite Battery and Coker Tire Firestone Wide Ovals. I'd much rather see a '69 Nova with a 350 with headers and a "30-30" solid-lifter cam,an Edelbrock "Scorpion" manifold and a 750 Holley, and a 3.11 1st / 2.02 second geared "Saginaw" 4-speed out of a Vega with Cragar mags and traction bars that was built in 1975 than one with an LS3 / 4L80E and 4-wheel disc brakes and a DSE front and rear subframe that was built in 2012!!  A "Macho T/A" with a Hooker chrome rollbar, Hooker headers,a "Doug Nash" 5-speed, and 15" "Snowflake" wheels is way more '70's cool than a T/A with an LS3 and a 6-speed and 20 inch wheels!!  If your having a "Disco" party your going to play Donna Summer, not Beyonce'!!!  Capice?  Mastermind      

Be "Arnie" from "Christine" if you want....Just don't expect everyone else to drink the Kool-Aid!!

I get a lot of flack for some of the things I post. Like the last post-making fun of the guy with the plain-jane Nova that he thought was "too valuable" to drive. Here's the deal people-I started this blog to help people make good buying decisions when searching for a musclecar or to let them know what was and wasn't a factory option on a certain vehicle, and to share stories about racing history, how certain models came to be, and chat about musclecars in movies, and anything related to mine and millions of other people's love for these cars. What I won't be is a cheerleading, modern parent type-"Everyone gets a trophy" just for showing up. If you didn't read the classic Stephen King novel or see the movie-"Christine" was about a nerdy 16 year-old who bought a piece of shit '58 Plymouth Fury from a miserable old bastard who died soon after and came back to haunt the kid. The car consumed the kid's life-he put all his money and time into it, alienated his parents,his girlfriend and best buddy, and started running drugs and contraband for the crooked auto shop owner he worked for. And everyone who crossed the kid, got killed, and he eventually died at the end. Read the book-( it's much better than the movie). My point being-if you want to invest hundreds of man hours and thousands of dollars in some piece of shit-go ahead. It's your time and money. But just don't expect me or anyone else to go apeshit and tell you how wonderful and priceless we think your Edsel is!! I try to tell people the honest truth. For example-in our local newspaper a guy is trying to sell a '72 Malibu for $28,000!!!  Not an SS454-a bench seat, 350 automatic 2 dr Malibu. How he came up with that figure-I don't know. Maybe that's what he spent restoring it. In the same newspaper another guy is selling a 400, 4-speed '69 GTO with "Judge" stripes and spoiler for $27,000. ( It's not an original "Judge", but it is a for-real, numbers-matching GTO ). Which is the better deal?  RK Motors in Charlotte, North Carolina-which specializes in restored classic cars has two Mopars for sale. One is a 440 / Six-Pack '69 Super Bee and the other is a 440 / Six-Pack '71 Charger. Their asking $99,000 for the Super Bee and $89,000 for the Charger. Both have Torqueflite transmissions. The Charger is the way better deal, and not because of the 10k price difference. If you have that kind of cash-they's probably work with you on the price. Here's why the Charger is the better deal. The Charger has power steering, power front disc brakes, power windows,bucket seats and a console,and factory a/c, a factory AM/FM,recording stereo and a 4.10 Sure-Grip rear end. The Super Bee is a bench seat,column-shifted model with 4-wheel drum brakes, manual steering, and has a 3.23:1 open rear end. Now which car is going to be both nicer to drive and faster? The one with power steering, disc brakes, A/C and 4.10 gears, or the 3.23 geared,drum-braked, manual steering model?  So am I an asshole for advising someone who wants a classic Mopar B-Body and has 100k burning a hole in his pocket that in my opinion the Charger is the better deal? Am I an asshole If I tell a Pontiac buyer that a 400, 4-speed, 4-wheel disc braked, t-topped 10th Annivesrary T/A with 66,000 miles on it priced at $14,900 is a much better deal than the hardtop, 403 Olds / Automatic that's priced at $11,900???   Buy anything you want-and restore it how you want. But don't expect me or anyone else to jump up and down and tell you how great it is. I have a friend whose into old Porsches. If he buys a '69 911S I'll be duly impressed. If he buys a '68 912-( the 911 body with a 4-cylinder VW engine!! ) I'll laugh in his face and say "What the hell were you thinking?"  If he gets butthurt over that-then he needs to be thicker skinned!  Mastermind        

A small-block Nova that's "Too Valuable" to drive?....Not in my universe....

Spoke to someone the other day who was lamenting that he might not bring his car out to Hot August Nights this year because he's afraid someone might hit it, and it's "Too Valuable" to risk damaging it. Was this a Hemi 'Cuda convertible?  One of the eight '69 Trans-Am convertibles? One of 116 L88 '69 Corvettes?  A 427 Thunderbolt Fairlane?  No, this was a Nova. Not an L78 / L89 396 / 4-speed model. Not a Nickey Chevrolet or Baldwin-Motion L88 427 or LS6 454 model. This was a small-block model. With a 2bbl. And an automatic. That's right-it wasn't a low-mileage  L79 350 hp 327 / 4-speed '66-67 model, or an LT1 / 4-speed 370 hp '70 Yenko Deuce. It wasn't even an SS350 model.  No-this was a '72 "Rally Nova" with an 8.5:1 compression L65 2bbl 350 rated at 165 net hp backed by a column-shifted TH350. ( it had bench seats, not buckets ). Puhleeze. The "Rally Nova" package in '71-72 consisted of taking a base-model strippy Nova, adding a stripe down the side that said on the 1/4 panel-duh-"Rally Nova" and 14X6 slotted steel wheels. That's it. No special engine, or suspension-they had 4-wheel drum brakes!! ( Front discs were an extra-cost option ). This is "Too Valuable" to drive? On what planet? Certainly not Earth in 2016!!! I don't mean to deride someone's pride and joy, but come on. A drum-braked, bench-seat, 2bbl, automatic Nova? I've had similar conversations with the owner of a "Too Valuable" 301 powered '79 Trans-Am, and the owner of a bench seat, drum-braked, 318, 3-speed '72 Duster. Here's the hard news people-"Rare" doesn't automatically mean "Valuable." I talked in an earlier post about 305 / automatic 1980 Corvettes. There's way less of those than there are 1971 425 hp LS6 454 models. Guess what-a nice, documented '71 LS6 'Vette will bring 100K in any state in the union. If you asked 10K for a 1980 305 model-people would laugh themselves sick. A friend of mine used to say-"A rare turd is still a turd."  He's right. If you want to play with some, rare, obscure car-like a V8 Gremlin "X", or an OHC 6-cylinder-Firebird go ahead-just don't get pissed when someone argues that it's not worth anywhere near the price of say-a 390 / 4-speed AMX or an SD-455 Trans-Am!! That's all I'm saying. The guy with a for-real 1963 SD-421 Catalina or the owner of a for-real '"DZ" 302 '69 Z/28 who won't run his car at the Pure Stock drags because he doesn't want to risk blowing it up-I understand that, and I respect their position completely. The guy who says the same thing about a '70's Formula 400 Firebird or a 350 Chevelle needs his ass kicked. See the difference? Just had to vent that. Mastermind              

You don't have to lie about a car's performance......

I blame the "Fast&Furious" movies for this with their incessant spouting about "10 second" cars. How many people have actually driven an honest-to-god 10 second car?  I haven't. The fastest cars I've driven have been my Judge ( which ran 11.80s ), a 675 hp Roush Mustang which reportedly runs in the high to low 11s,-depending on if you fry the tires halfway down the track or all the way down the track, and a Nissan GTR which according to Car and Driver does 0-60 in 2.9 seconds and the 1/4 in 11 flat. Those cars were so eyeball-flattening fast-that if you actually "need" anything quicker-then you either need a Top Fuel dragster, a competent therapist, or a cage. I know without a doubt that most of the people spouting numbers have never actually ran their car on the track. Hot Rod said several years ago-"If you think your car can run 12s and you've never been to the track, then your probably running low 13s." Truer words were never spoken. What made me think of this was a guy older than me that was bragging how fast his '65 GTO was. A stock, 4bbl '65 GTO, not the tri-power model. I had to really bite my tongue to keep from laughing out loud. The reason is even at the height of the musclecar era-very few cars could run low 13s right off the showroom floor and with just maybe headers and slicks could drop into the 12s. You can count them on one hand-Hemi 'Cudas, LS6 Chevelles, 428 CJ Mustangs, W30 442s, RAIV GTOs.  440 / Six-Pack Mopars, and 427 'Vettes would make the list too, but that's about it. The fact is-most peoples "Musclecar Memories" whether their talking about their own car or a friend or relative's-involve "Entry-Level" musclecars-i.e. 389 GTOs,396 Chevelles, 383 Road Runners, etc. Or stuff like 340 Dusters, 350 Camaros, 351 Mustangs, and 400 Firebirds. Tales of nearly pulling the front wheels, being pushed back in the seat and third-gear rubber seem silly when someone pulls out a yellowed, dog-eared copy of Hot Rod or Car and Driver and we find that the machine in question ran in the 14.60's. There's nothing wrong with that. I think the car I loved the most of all the ones I've owned was my '77 Trans-Am that I had in the mid-'80's. It certainly wasn't the fastest car I ever had-but I enjoyed the hell out of it. It looked cool, it handled like a slot car, the engine idled smoothly, the seats were comfortable, the suspension didn't rattle your fillings loose, and it was fast enough that I didn't have to take crap from little boys in 305 IROC-Z's and 5.0 Mustangs, or older guys in late '70's and early '80's 'Vettes. Your 383 Road Runner or whatever can be your all-time favorite ride. But you don't have to exaggerate and tell tall tales about how ungodly fast it was, because we know it wasn't!!  Just had to vent that. Mastermind        

More on What's "Right" for a given car....

Here's the deal-no matter how pristine it is, no matter how anal the owner. no 40 or 50 year old car is completely original!!  Even if someone bought say a GTO brand new in 1968 and kept it until now, it's not original. Here's why. In say 1970-when it had maybe 25,000 miles on it-those bias-ply Firestone Wide Ovals were probably worn out. So the tires aren't original. Chances are if he drove it hard-around the 30k mark it probably needed new front brake pads. After a couple of years of summer and winter weather-it probably needed wiper blades. He wanted to keep it well tuned, so doubtless he replaced the spark plugs and the points and condenser and maybe the wires. Pre-1969 GM Quadrajets had problems with the floats sinking and the baseplates leaking. If the dealer replaced it under warranty with the updated replacement carb-guess what Mr. Conours Judge? The car doesn't have a numbers-matching carburator!! Pre-1970 Pontiacs were notorious for throwing their timing chains because of the plastic gears. Dealers would replace them with steel gears under warranty or customer pay. If it was a 4-speed, eventually he's going to need a new clutch. See where I'm going with this? Even if the original owner didn't add headers or Cragar mags, etc-before the car was five years old, it had all kinds of "non-original" parts on it. So today this car may have a numbers-matching engine and trans in it-but if  they've been rebuilt-after 48 years they most surely have-the internal parts like pistons,rings, bearings, etc aren't original. Pontiac is no more, and the last 400 rolled off the assembly line in November 1977. ( A bunch were stockpiled for '78 and '79 T/A's ). GM quit making replacement parts for '70's Pontiacs in 1997.  ( 20 years ) So that RAIII cam that you bought-is a replica from Melling, TRW, Crane, Lunati etc-not a "Genuine" GM replacement.  So some snooty bastard at a Ford meet with a Mustang with Coker Tire Repro Polyglas GT's, and an Exide battery with a phony repro Autolite case, etc-who looks down his nose at someone who has BFG Radial T/A's on their car and a Die Hard under the hood is a double asshole-because his car is just as "unoriginal" as the other guys!!!  This is why the Pure Stock Drags and some Concours show organizations have amended their rules to allow "Original Type" parts. No one expects a 50 year old carburator or distributor to work flawlessly. So if your 1970 Z/28 has a #3310 780 Holley on it that you bought at Summitt last week-that's ok. No one's going to disqualify you because it doesn't have 1970 date codes on it. If your '67 GTO has a Muncie 4-speed that came out of a '71 Chevelle or a TH400 that came out of a '73 Firebird-they don't care-it's the original type. When you rebuilt your front end with new ball joints, tie rod ends, control arm bushings, drag link and idler arm from Just Suspension-guess what? Your car now has an "unoriginal" front end!!!  Good thing, because you probably couldn't hold it in the road otherwise!!   So don't be one of these idiots-it's okay to use Wagner brake pads, Moog suspension parts, and Dayco belts and hoses, but KYB or Gabriel or Monroe shocks are taboo because their not shipped in a Delco, Autolite or Mopar box??  Like Ditka says-"Come on, Man!!"  Mastermind            

The "Just as it Left the Factory" shit is worse than a Gypsy curse.....

Had an argument the other day with a guy who spent $99,000 on an SD-455 Trans-Am. He asked about increasing it's performance. I said the main thing would be to add some Hooker Round-Port headers and full dual exhausts. Everyone knows the awful "crossflow" muffler system of '70-'74 Firebirds cost the big 455HO and SD 'Birds at least 25 hp, with the stock manifolds. For example- the RAIII was rated at 335 hp in the T/A and 366 hp in the GTO- a difference of 31 hp. The RAIV was rated at 345 hp in the Firebird and 370 hp in the GTO- a difference of 25 hp. 1971 drag tests bared this out. '71 455HO powered GTOs were nearly 1/2 a second quicker in the 1/4 than 455HO T/A's because they had a full dual exhaust system instead of the 2-into-1 "Crossflow" muffler of the F-bodies. And that was with stock iron manifolds. With headers and re-jetting the carb richer to compensate for the improved exhaust flow, headers and a 2 1/2 or 3 inch true dual exhaust system could add as much as 50 hp to a healthy 455 powered '70's F-body. I also suggested using 1.65:1 rockers to bump lift on the RAIII cam from .414 to .455-within a hairsbreadth of the RAIV's .470, and installing a shift kit in the TH400. I said these simple mods could easily drop him into the low 13s with the stock 3.23:1 or 3.42:1 gearing, and if he wanted to go for 3.73:1 or 3.90:1 gears he could probably get in the 12 s pretty easily, and keep the car more or less basically stock. He was mortally offended. "I didn't spend 100 grand on a pristine numbers-matching car to modify it!!" he sneered in a snotty email. Really?? Then why did you ask my advice on how to make it go faster? What the hell did you think I was going to say? Run premium gas in it? Bump the timing? And honestly-again-I've said it a thousand times-why do people care so goddamn much about what a car will be worth if and when they sell it? If he did want to sell it-is a potential buyer going to go-"Gee, bud-the car is pristine and low-mileage and numbers-matching and one of 731 ever built, and certainly worth the money, but those headers ( even though you have the original manifolds ) and the shift kit and 3.90:1 gears ( even though you have the original 3.23:1s ) is  a real freakin' deal breaker, sorry, I'll have to pass." Like Mike Myers said in "Wayne's World" "NOT!!!".  Get over yourself!!!  If you put a Holley or Edelbrock Carb on a Boss 351 in place of the awful Autolite 4300, you've done the world a favor!!!  If you put a Hurst Competition-Plus shifter in an SS396 or 454 Chevelle in place of the awful Muncie unit, you've done the world a favor!!!  99.999% of people get that!!! So don't worry about offending .0001 % of possible buyers, if or when you ever decide to sell your prize car!!!  Are we clear on that? Mastermind        

You can add options to your car....

In the last post I said there was no "Used Car Factory" where you could get exactly what you wanted. That doesn't mean you have to settle for something you don't really want. You can add options to a car without compromising it's value. For example-if you have a '71 Charger with a 440 4bbl and you buy the Edelbrock "Six-Pack" manifold, the three Holley 2bbls, and the air cleaner and linkage and put it on the car-enjoy the increased performance and the cool sound. And you've INCREASED the value of the car, not hurt it. Keep the 4bbl carb and intake in case you want to sell the car to someone really anal, but otherwise enjoy it. If you've got a Chevelle with a bench seat and you want buckets and a console-buy them from Year One or NPD and put them in the car!!  If your '70's Firebird has Rally II wheels and you prefer the "Snowflakes"-then get them!!  If you buy a 340 Duster with a 3-speed stick and a standard steering wheel, and you want a 4-speed and a "Tuff" steering wheel-that's not that hard a swap. If you want to put a spoiler and "Judge" stripes and emblems on your '69-71 GTO go ahead. Phoenix Graphics sells the stencils-if you want to paint your '77-79 T/A like a "Macho T/A"- or dress up your Cutlass like a "Hurst / Olds" you can. If you buy a six-cylinder, 3-speed '69 Nova and drop in a 350 and a 4-speed, have you "ruined" it's value?  If you buy a "Plum Crazy" '70 Challenger and want to paint it white because you love the movie "Vanishing Point"-What's stopping you? If you ever sell it and the buyer wants it the original color, then he has to paint it, or look for another car, right?  Don't let the "Just as it left the factory" crowd bully you into leaving a car a color you don't want or running ugly wheels, etc. It's your car-do it how you want. Mastermind