Some '60's and '70's full-sizes that make cool drivers...

If you don't want to pay the king's ransom for a "traditional" muscle car-i.e. GTO, SS Chevelle, Charger, Road Runner, Mustang, etc, etc, here's some good alternatives. Every car maker had at least one, some had several really cool full-size cars that would still be fun to own and drive and be unique. Here's my list in no particular order. # 1. 1965-68 Pontiac Gran Prix. GP's had 389 or 400 cubes standard all years with 421 and 428 optional, backed by either a 4-speed or the excellent TH400. I personally like the '65-66 models best, but the fastback '67-68 models are cool too. Ray Liotta drove a '68 in "Goodfellas". There's tons of speed equipment for Pontiac V8s and any suspension or brake upgrades that fit an Impala will fit these cars. # 2. 1967-68 Chevy Impala SS. 427 models are priced in the stratosphere, but 327 models are still reasonable. 75,600 were built in '67 and another 38,200 in '68, so their not a moon rock. Most have cool interiors with bucket seats and a console and front disc brakes, and other good stuff.  # 3. 1967-69 Ford Thunderbird. Cool hidden headlight styling and 390, 428 or 429 cubes under the hood. I personally like the 2 dr models, but a lot of people like the "suicide door" 4dr models. You can't go wrong either way.  #4. 1969-71 Plymouth Sport Fury. Cool, "fuselage" styling and 383 or 440 cubes under the long hood. Peter Graves drove one on "Mission: Impossible".  # 5. 1966-69, 1971-73 Buick Riviera. I personally think the '66-67 Riviera is one of the best-looking cars GM ever put out. They resemble the revolutionary Toronado, but have cleaner styling and are rear wheel drive. With 430 cubes under the hood, they move pretty good too. '68-69 models have a bit different front bumper, but their cool too. The '71-73 Model is the famous "Boat Tail" design. With 455 cubes under the hood,you get Cadillac like luxury and GTO like acceleration. #6. 1977-78 Lincoln MK V. Even though they were "downsized" compared to the gargantuan '72-76 MK IV model, their still a big car. I loved the clean, hidden headlight styling, and with 460 cubes under the hood their no slug. '79 models are identical, but for some reason the largest engine that year was a 2bbl 400M. Any of these would be a cool ride to cruise around in today. Mastermind

If you have one of these "Oldie but goodies" by all means use it....

The last couple posts about overlooked engines caused some people to remind me of some viable ones they thought I forgot. I didn't forget them,I just dont think their plentiful enough to look for.  # 1. 289 Ford. I loves 289s. Their reliable, and offer tremendous bang for the buck. However, they've been out of production since 1968. That's 48 years. If you have a 289 V8 in the car or can buy one cheap, then by all means use it.  If your restoring a '65 Mustang to the nth degree, then a 289 is the only way to fly. For anything else-the 302 was used in millions of cars, trucks and suvs from 1968 to 2002 and is still in production and being sold as a crate motor to this day. That's all I'm saying-don't search the galaxy for a 289 while passing over hundreds of 302s!!  # 2. 396 / 402 Chevy. 396s run great.  If  you have one already in the car or your restoring an SS396 Chevelle or El Camino, Camaro or Nova to concours status, then this is the engine that you "gotta have." But they've been out of production since 1972. Why frantically search for a rare 44 year old engine, when 454s are plentiful in junkyards, and GM is selling 427 and 454 crate engines to this day?   # 3. 383 / 400 Chrysler. Same thing here. 383 / 400s run great. With the right combination, just as fast as a 440. However the 383 has been out of production since 1971, and the 400 since 1978. If you have one, or can buy one cheap by all means use it. However-again, I wouldn't chase a 38-45 year old 400 cube "B" engine, when Chrysler is selling 400 hp 360 crate motors, 500 hp 505 wedge ( a 440 stroker ) engines and 426, 472 and 528 hemis with 465-610 hp. # 4. 351C Ford. Again, if you have one already in the car, by all means use it. There's still a ton of speed equipment available for these engines. However they've been out of production since 1974. The 351W was used in cars and trucks until 1997, and is still in production today the- hi-performance 351W crate motors being sold by Ford, and Edelbrock and Trick Flow offering "Cleveland" style heads and manifolds to make "Boss" clones on Windsor blocks, it just doesn't make sense to try to find a 42 year old engine to build. Unless your restoring a Boss 351 Mustang or a Pantera. That's why these were left off the the list, not because they don't make big power. Mastermind      

Sometimes dynamite comes in small packages.....

The trend in the buff magazines always seems to be "Bigger is Better". Everything they feature has a 500 inch monster motor. If you can afford that, by all means do it. However-there are a lot of people who don't need or want a 500+hp engine. They'd just like a little better than stock performance from their base model car. Here's my suggestions on how to do this. # 1. 318 Mopars. There are a ton of 318 powered Duster / Darts, Challenger / Barracudas, Satellites, Coronets and Chargers out there. In all it's history-the 318 was Chrysler's lowest warranty engine. Their bulletproof. '92 and later "Magmum" heads will bolt up to earlier blocks, and Edelbrock sells "Magnum" bolt pattern Performer and Performer RPM intakes. With headers and dual exhausts, maybe a mild cam and a good shift kit in the Torqueflite-you'd be amazed at how fast a 318 can run. Especially in a light car. So before you sell your sould for a big-block or a 360 crate motor, you might consider warming up the 318 that's already in the car.  # 2. 350 Pontiacs. There are a lot of 350 powered LeMans, Tempest, Firebird and Ventura ( Pontiac's version of the Nova ) models out there. Basic hot rod tricks-4bbl carb and intake, headers and or dual exhausts, mild cam-really "wake up" a 350 Pontiac. You can make 350 hp and 400 lbs of torque pretty easy-which should give you some exciting street performance-13 second 1/4s in most cars. Beyond that-you'll need a 400 or 455. The reason is the small-bore / long stroke design. It gives them great low-end torque, but the big-valve, big port heads used on the larger engines that are necessary for really big power won't fit. ( The valves wil hit the block. )  # 3. 350 Olds. There's way more 350 Cutlasses out there than there are 400 and 455 442s. Like their Pontiac cousins, they respond very well to basic upgrades-4bbl carb and intake, headers, etc.  Edelbrock claims 397 hp and 400 lbs of torque from their "Performer RPM" package on a 350 Olds. 400 honest hp will make any street car into an absolute rocket.  # 4. 302 Ford. There's a lot of Mustangs, Cougars, Torinos, Montegos, and Mavericks and Comets with 302 power. Except for the small-block Chevy, there's more speed equipment for a 302 Ford than just about anything else on the planet. A buddy with a 440 Road Runner got his doors blown off by a hot 302 Maverick one night. With the right equipment in a light car-you can quote Chuck Berry's classic "Maybelline"- "Nothin' outrun my V8 Ford"  Mastermind

Some "Junkyard Jewels" that people overlook.....

There are a lot of engines that could make big power for low bucks, that a lot of enthusiasts overlook. Here's a few that I think offer the most "bang" for the buck. # 1. 400C / M Ford. These were in hundreds of thousands of Ford cars and trucks from 1971-82. They were unfairly labelled as "dogs" because they were saddled with 2bbl carburation, single exhausts, a lazy cam and salt-flats gearing. However-with a 4bbl carb and intake, a decent cam and some dual exhausts-they can really rock. Anything 400 cubes is going to make serious power and torque with the proper equipment-every year someone builds one in the "Engine Masters Challenge" that makes over 500 hp.  # 2. 360 "Magnum" Chrysler. Used in millions of Dodge Trucks and SUVs as well as millions of Jeep Grand Cherokees from 1992-2003, these are plentiful in junkyards. They have roller cams from the factory, and the "magnum" heads breathe better than any factory head and many aftermarket ones. Edelbrock offers 4bbl Performer and Performer RPM intakes for those who want to use them in old cars.  # 3. 350 Chevy "Vortec" . Used in millions of Chevy / GMC trucks, vans and SUVs, these are plentiful. The "Vortec" heads breathe better than any factory heads and many aftermarket ones. These also have roller cams from the factory. Edelbrock and Weiand offer 4bbl intakes that fit these engines. If you need a small-block Chevy that makes big power for low bucks, this is the ticket. # 4. 360 AMC V8. These were used in millions of Jeep Grand Wagoneers through 1993, so they are plentiful in junkyards. Edelbrock makes aluminum heads and intakes for them. An easy way to go if your restoring a Javelin or AMX and can't find a 390 or 401, or a bolt-in replacement for a 304. # 5. 403 Olds V8. Although they were only used from 1977-79, there were millions of them sold in Pontiac Bonnevilles, Olds 88s and 98s, Buick Electras and Rivieras, all the big GM wagons, ( except Chevys ) and Pontiac Trans-Ams and Formula Firebirds. Externally identical to a 350, ( almost everything interchanges ) the extra 53 cubes would be a great power infusion for a 350 Cutlass. The only reason they were considered "dogs" was they were always put in heavy cars with 2.41:1 or 2.56:1 gears. In a medium weight car with reasonable gearing like 3.23:1-3.73:1, a decent cam and intake, and dual exhausts they would really rock. Might be something to consider if you don't need or want a numbers-matching engine. Mastermind    

Let's see some cool kit cars restored....

Back in the '70's and '80's there were a lot of companies making Kit Cars. The Daytona Spider driven by Don Johnson on "Miami Vice" was actually a 1981 Corvette with a replica Ferarri body that was built by Tom McBurny that fit the '68-82 Corvette chasiss. McBurnie and Rowley stopped making them after being sued by Ferarri. There was a company called Saxon that made Austin-Healey 3000 replicas that a lot of guys put 302 Fords and 350 Chevys into. I remember Fiberfab who had two-one was called the "Jamaican" a swoopy two door coupe that looked like a cross between a Corvette and a Jaguar XKE. The cool thing about the Jamaican was it could be built on the ubiquitous VW Beetle chassis like a lot of Kit Cars were, or it could be built front-engine on an MGA, Triumph TR4 or TR250 Chassis. Their other offering was called the Kelmark GT and it looked almost exactly like a Ferarri 246 Dino. Car Craft featured one that had a 455 Olds V8 and a Toronado transaxle in the rear. As I remember it ran something like 10.60 in the 1/4; it only weighed like 2,400 lbs and obviously got great traction. There was a Manta Ray that looked like a Can-Am racer that Popular Hot Rodding tested that had a mid-engine 327 attatched to a Corvair transaxle. ( The one on "Hardcastle&McCormack was VW based ).  A friend of my dad's had a Ford GT40 replica that used a 215 inch Aluminum Buick V8 attatched to a Corvair transaxle. There was 1963 Ferarri GTO replica kit that fit a Datsun 240Z body. The "Ferarri" that Maxwell Caulfield drove on the "Dynasty" spin-off  "The Colbys" was a "Z" with a body kit and a 350 Chevy under the hood. What I'm saying is a lot of these cars were bought and not finished because a lot of people over-estimated their mechanical skills. If you look around you can probably get a good deal on an unfinished kit car. I know there were some '55-57 T-Bird kits, and there were some Gran Sport Corvette replicas out there as well. It might be a cool thing to investigate.....Mastermind

Lets do some Period Correct hot rods....'60s, '70's and '80's style....

Is everyone as sick as I am of cookie-cutter cars everywhere? It's seems the trend is one of two things-the car is either bone-stock, Concours, "Just as it Left the Factory" down to the hose clamps, or ( depending on if it's a GM, Ford or Chrysler product ) it has an LS motor, a Coyote, or a 5.7 / 6.1 / 6.4 Hemi backed by an six-speed manual or an overdrive automatic, with rack&pinion steering, a DSE or Global West suspension system, 4-wheel disc brakes, and 20 inch wheels. You know what I'd like to see? Some period correct stuff-like a '55 Chevy with no front bumper, a straight front axle, radiused rear wheel wells, and a snarling 327 or 427 backed by a Muncie 4-speed or a TH400. Real badass '60's "Gasser" / Street Racer style. Or a Camaro,Corvette, Firebird, Mustang, Cougar or Challenger done in '70's Trans-Am / IROC style. Flared fenders over huge tires on Minilite wheels, front and rear spoilers,loud side-exit exhausts-Picture Jerry Titus' famous # 8 T/A at Lime Rock, John Greenwoods Corvette at Laguna Seca, or Sam Poseys Challenger,Mark Donohues Javelin, or Parnelli Jones' Mustang. And the power to back it up with snarling 350 Chevys, 351W Fords,340 / 360 Mopars, and 400 Pontiacs and 401 AMC's. What about the late '70's truck and van craze? I'd love to see some 2wd, short bed, Chevy, Ford and Dodge pickups with lowered suspensions, fat tires, wild paint schemes, and thumpin' 454, 440, or 460 V8s under the hood. The Factories even got in on it-remember the Dodge "Adult Toys?" The Li'l Red Express hot rod 2wd pickup, the Warlock, and "Macho" 4wd models? They were cool. The GMC "Street Coupe" pickups and the "Nite" Package Ford pickups and Broncos?  Or some cool vans with trick paint, fat tires, and outlandish interiors with TV's, waterbeds, stocked bars.  How about some "Pro Street" tributes-an '80's Monte Carlo with a narrowed rear end, monster meats, and a tunnel-rammed 454 jutting out of the hood?  I said it once before, but I think sports car guys are smarter. If you go to a sports car show you might see a '70's 240Z with a header and some Weber carbs,Koni struts and shocks and some wider wheels and tires, but you never see one with the engine and tranny out of a 2013 370Z!!  You'll never see a 1969 Porsche 911 with the drivetrain out of a 2010 Carerra 4!!  You don't see a 1967 Jaguar XKE with the Supercharged V8 out of 2009 XKR!!!  You don't see a 1964 Aston Martin DB5 ( The "Goldfinger" car ) with the V12 out of a 2006 Vanquish!!  Just had to vent that. Mastermind        

Every car doesn't have to be a premium, fire-breathing monster....

I blame the buff magazines and TV shows like Overhaulin' for this. People think that if a car doesn't have a 500 inch big-block or a blower on it, it's not cool. Or if it's not a numbers matching 428 CJ Mustang or 440 Six-Pack Road Runner. it's not cool. Not true. For every GTO and SS Chevelle out there, there are fifty base-model Malibus and Tempest / LeMans models that would make great drivers or project cars. Ford sold 300,000 Mustangs in 1969 alone, but only 70,000 of them were Mach 1s. That leaves 230,000 others, many with 302 or 351W power under the hood, and that's just one single model year!! Pontiac built way more base-model Firebirds than they ever did Trans-Ams. See what I'm getting at?  And not everything has to have a stompin' big block. Let's say you did buy a '73 Firebird with a 350 2bbl / TH350 powertrain. If you added a factory or aftermarket 4bbl carb and intake, a set of dual exhausts behind the stock manifolds, and put a B&M or TransGo shift kit in the trans-the improvement in performance would be stunning. Your friends would swear that you swapped in a 400. And you could drive the car just like that for the next ten years and be perfectly happy. You don't need a 455 and a 700R4, and 20 inch wheels, etc. Ditto for a 318 Challenger, Charger or Duster. A 4bbl carb and intake, dual exhausts and a shift kit will make people think it's a 340. If you wanted to, you could swap in a 360 crate motor, or a 440-but you don't have to. If your happy with a basically stock, nice running car, that's nothing to be ashamed of. So go ahead and buy that 350 Malibu or Cutlass that your neighbor is selling-you don't have to sell your soul for a 442 or SS396 / 454 because the magazines glorify them!!  For some people, happiness is a base model!  Mastermind