Street Fighter
When was the last time you saw an automatic car smoke the manual drive competition on a road race circuit? Well, it probably was smoking from the overheated transmission fluid. It's no secret that manual transmissions dominate the road race and autocross venues and are also quite popular at the dragstrip. Our reason for the swap into our '66 Mustang is for all of the above, and the general fun-to-drive factor that comes with a clutch.

Even the Chevy guys can't deny the greatness of Ford's legendary 9-inch rearend, so boldly opting to install a lesser 8.8-inch rear in a Mustang requires a compelling argument. Fear not, for such a questionable antic is more than justified. Sure, the 9-inch's virtues of strength, affordability, and ease of serviceability-thanks to its slick drop-out center section-are irrefutable. However, its 8.8-inch little brother is lighter, cheaper, takes less power to turn, and can be built just as strong. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to the GM 12-bolt, which the 9-inch is often compared, the 8.8 has proven its mettle in the world's fastest Outlaw Mustang drag cars, where countless racers have pushed them well into the 7s.

'71 Pantera
Domestic Blend
The DeTomaso Pantera story is a long one, but we'll give you the condensed version. Argentina-born Alejandro DeTomaso ventured to Italy to work on Maserati race cars and quickly found himself in the driver seat. That's where he got the inspiration to found his own company called DeTomaso Automobili in 1959.

'69 Cougar
Racer From The Start
It's hard for people to know the complete history of their cars when they aren't the original owner. For newer cars, this isn't really an issue, but when you're looking at a car whose value lies in its past, it is an issue. Lucky for Kenny Bailey of Eldridge, Iowa, he got the full scoop.

Hydraulic Roller Conversion
Lunati BareBones
Lunati has just released its BareBones line of cost-effective cam and lifter kits for hydraulic roller applications. These BareBones kits are the perfect choice for guys wanting to convert their street engines to hydraulic rollers. With complete cam and lifter kits starting at just $599.99, Lunati claims these new aggressive hydraulic roller kits will deliver more usable horsepower for your Chevy than any other engine upgrade available. BareBones cam kits feature asymmetrical lobe designs, allowing gentler and quieter valve closing and reduced valvetrain wear. The lobe profiles offer more duration and lift over factory camshafts, greatly improving every aspect of an engine's performance. Matched with the camshaft is a set of high-quality Lunati Street Performance lifters, which ensures optimum performance and extended durability. The manufacturer says no other hydraulic roller camshaft package delivers more durability in a street-friendly, low-price package than Lunati's BareBones. Bare on price and big on performance, the BareBones camshaft improves throttle response, acceleration, and maintains good engine vacuum on street machines-it's one of the best values on the market.

'71 Camaro
Burnt Burner
Could you image landing this '71 Camaro as your first car? Being driven to the DMV for your license test, then driving your early second-gen Camaro to school the next day? Well Greg Meredith of Allendale, Michigan, was that lucky. The car wasn't in the shape it's in today, but Greg got a hold of this car on his 16th birthday in 1981. It started out as a father-son build, but unfortunately Greg's father passed away the next year. He didn't stop working on the car though, and transformed it into a real-life street-driven drag car.

'68 Torino
Rinovation
For not being in the automotive industry, Dawson Davenport sure gets a lot of work done on his car. This didn't happen out of thin air; he spent much of his youth studying automotive magazines, building and racing slot cars, and immersed in anything related he could get his hands on. Once he was old enough to work in the biz, he realized that while cars were his passion, building and racing them was not likely to be a primary source of gainful employment. He changed careers and left building cars as a hobby; and that's where this '68 Torino comes into play.

Power Brokers:
Mast Motorsports LY6 HO
Let GM's loss be your gain! Mast Motorsports is offering brand-new-and breathed on-factory truck engines for your hot rod. The 6.0L LY6 V-8 is the variable valve timing version of the LS2 engine, but with the better-flowing cylinder heads from the larger 6.2L LS3. The relatively obscure LY6 is currently the 6.0L step-up option from the 5.3L in GM trucks, and makes about 360 hp in factory trim. The variable cam timing, or VVT, is a step up from previous GM 6.0L offerings too, and endows the LY6 with a fatter torque curve that kicks in at a much lower rpm than older Gen III 6.0L engines, like the LQ9.

www.righttorepair.org
Right To Repair
A new bill has been introduced in Congress that would force manufacturers to provide diagnostic access to the new Camaro, and other new cars. The Act is being supported by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association. The idea behind the bill is to ensure that car owners, not car companies and dealers, are in the driver seat when it comes to where, and by whom, vehicle repairs are performed. At issue is the encrypted, proprietary nature of on-board vehicle diagnostic systems and their software components, which effectively enforces a repair monopoly for new car dealerships. The Right To Repair Act would make manufacturers provide diagnostic access equally to everyone. Besides providing a measure of choice for new car owners in their car repair decisions, the Right To Repair would also make it much easier for small and midsized aftermarket companies to develop street-legal performance parts, tools, and software for modern hot rods.

One thing that every car nut wants sometime in his life is to get his car in a magazine. It's the ultimate achievement for many, and it doesn't come easy. The problem is that magazines only have a finite number of pages, so unless you've got fat bank, mad fab chops, or something really over the top, the chances are slim. We feel your pain, and we're here to help. For this year's photo contest, we're going publish every single car that our readers send to us. We're not going to discriminate against any brand, build style, cost, color, performance level, or model year-everybody gets in, period. Street rods, customs, muscle cars, late models, as long as it's American iron with four wheels, you're in

Power Brokers: Wegner LS Crate Engine
Ever since the first LS engines hit the open market over a decade ago, hot rodders have been grabbing them up, and Wegner has been there to provide the aftermarket support to make those hot rod dreams come true. When it comes to LS hardware, Wegner is an experienced hand, and is now offering 415ci engine assemblies based on a new L92 block, a 4-inch stroke Compstar forged crankshaft, 6.125-inch forged con rods, and custom forged pistons. In complete form, the Wegner 415 LS crate motor makes a dyno-verified 610 hp at 6,300 rpm, and 550 lb-ft of torque at 5,400 rpm.

SoundOff!
Rant Of The Month
No More Camaros!
I applaud your recent offer to publish reader projects regardless of condition. That is refreshing and commendable because the status quo was getting very old. I am vomiting day-glo sick of your mag and others featuring '69 Camaros with Z06 Vette motors or '70 Challengers with Viper motors. I personally have $15,000 in a '73 Hurst/Olds 442 with the GMPP ZZ4 crate motor and Turbo 400. Purists can cry, but it looks cool, spanks Mustangs, Chargers, and WRX Subarus regularly, and turns heads wherever I go. These are the types of cars you should feature, not some rich guy's garage jewelry.

Keith Scott
Reno, Nevada

'68 Firebird
R&D Guy's Ride
Builder Cris Gonzalez of Oxnard, California, has a lot of experience in the automotive industry. He worked in the research and development department of Wilwood Engineering as their project coordinator. Wilwood has an excellent reputation for producing high-quality parts, and are always creating new products. Cris left Wilwood to build cars for a living full time under the name JCG Restoration and Customs. He has been known to turn out some great Camaros over the years. Cris worked alongside Firebird owner, Ken Ramey, at Wilwood, giving them over 35 years of machining and product development experience between the two of them.

'70 GTX
Mopar Couple
Sherri Launchnor is the kind of woman every car guy wishes he could marry. Sherri and her husband, Dave, have never had the conversation about spending too much money on the cars, but rather that they don't spend enough. Sherri has always supported Dave in his love for muscle cars, but she wanted one of her own.

Ground Control
Q I recently read your story about relocating the battery to the trunk in your project Mustang. I was wondering how effective the body is for grounding the battery. Do you need to do anything special to make it work? I would like to do the same thing to my '68 Mustang.
Mark Edwards
Branson, MO

Ultra High-Performance Tires
Extreme Contact DW
When you think of all-out tires for classic muscle cars, even the folks at Continental will admit that their name brand doesn't normally spring to the lips of enthusiasts-at the least the ones driving Chevelles or Road Runners. In fact, Continental has been serving up tall doses of performance for elite European supercars for many years, and is considered among Euro enthusiasts a spoiler of sorts. They like taking on larger manufacturers, doing so with superior products at a value price that's hard to ignore.

www.armdroplive.com
Pinks For The Masses
When the timing gear at Memphis Motorsports Park was taken out of action by rain last September during a production of Pinks All Out, Rich Christensen didn't let that stop him. Thinking on his feet, he decided to run the entire event arm-drop style, with spotters at the finish line holding flags to announce the winner. The improvised format was such a success, Christensen is taking the idea, called ArmDrop Live, on the road for 2009. The ArmDrop Live tour will not be televised like Pinks or Pinks All Out, but it will allow for all kinds of whacky racing, including bikes, mopeds, snowmobiles, and ATVs. Oh yeah, and cars too. Christensen says come on out, and bring your video camera. He expects lots of bragging fodder to end up on YouTube. Interested? Check it out on www.armdroplive.com. Here's the tentative list of dates remaining for the 2009 Arm Drop Live tour:

One thing that every car nut wants sometime in his life is to get his car in a magazine. It's the ultimate achievement for many, and it doesn't come easy. The problem is that magazines only have a finite number of pages, so unless you've got fat bank, mad fab chops, or something really over the top, the chances are slim. We feel your pain, and we're here to help. For this year's photo contest, we're going publish every single car that our readers send to us. We're not going to discriminate against any brand, build style, cost, color, performance level, or model year-everybody gets in, period. Street rods, customs, muscle cars, late models, as long as it's American iron with four wheels, you're in.

Problem Solver:
ECI Accessory Drive
Looking for a compact way to mount your A/C compressor and alternator? We're talking compact enough for lots of steering box clearance, fewer steering U-joints, and a bunch more exhaust options. The new Simplicity Engine and Accessory Mounting System from Engineered Components (ECI) might be your answer. The kit shown (PN EC-300) costs $375 and mounts to the front of the block using a total of eight attaching bolts; four at the bottom of the block, and four at the water pump attachment holes between the block and the pump. ECI says this provides an extremely rigid mount. Since no cylinder head or intake manifold attachment points are used, head and intake swaps are a breeze. And check out the engine mounts, which give the ECI kit a pro engine-plate look, only lighter, and without the fabrication hassle. ECI makes the kit for small-block Chevy V-belt applications with either short or long water pumps. Optional driver-side mounts are available for alternator and power steering pump mounting.

www.camaros.net
2010 Camaro News & Rumors
As we approach the much anticipated release of the 2010 Camaro, the plot thickens. On a recent trip to Camaros.net, we discovered some interesting tidbits--some rumors, and some verified facts. First fact: It appears that GM is suing one of its suppliers, Cadence Innovation LLC, for holding hostage some parts and tooling required to build the new Camaro. The thread was bolstered by a story from the Detroit News that ran on December 27. In that story, it was reported that back in 2006, Cadence garnered GM's prestigious "Supplier Of The Year" award, but filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last August. Cadence manufactures door panels, airbag covers, and consoles for GM, Ford, and Chrysler.

One of the most important things you can do to guarantee a successful project car buildup is to have a clear idea of the project's outcome. Sometimes describing what you have planned isn't always sufficient, especially when you're working with another shop. Our advice is to spend the money and time to get a visual rendering.

1969 Nova
Eight-Second Bow Tie
Not all kids in high school are lucky enough to know what they want to do for the rest of their life. Ron Smith of Sykesville, Maryland, knew what he wanted to do before his junior year. At the time, it was common for high schoolers to train at a vocational center to give them the skills they need to get a job after graduation. That's how Ron spent two years training as an auto collision tech. He worked for Ford, prepping cars for paint through his two-year stint, but then got a job at a local body shop, and never had to serve as a coffee boy or shop sweep. He started honing his skills as a collision tech, and eventually bought a local business called Miles Body Shop. It was a landmark in town, so he kept the name. He's been running it for nine years, and still enjoys the work he set out to do over 30 years ago.

Once your love affair with muscle cars becomes full blown, it usually doesn't take much time to develop an unhealthy obsession with the tools you need to work on them. First comes the roll-away box full of Snap-Ons, then an air compressor, and the next thing you know, you're assembling engines, welding, and doing bodywork. We even know guys who, in the most severe cases, get withdrawal symptoms once their car is complete! Of course, nothing cures that faster than getting a new project with a completely new set of challenges. Cars change, but the tools don't, so a garage full of the right tools can last a lifetime.

1970 AMX
AMC Perfection
Ron Serab of Saint George, Utah, has always wanted a 1970 AMX. The '70 model year yielded many aesthetic changes that Ron favored over the previous years, but he was especially drawn to this year because it was the last of the two-seaters. His search for that special car to rebuild ended when he spotted this particular car in Hemmings Motor News. Only trouble was that it was located 3,000 miles away in Virginia Beach, Virginia. This wasn't much trouble for Ron since he had his own enclosed trailer riding behind his Ford Super Duty pickup truck. He racked up the miles to bring it home. The car had the expected problems caused by spending the last 15 years on the East Coast. The documentation proves it was born in California, but made its way across the country. There was only minor rust in the usual places: under the back glass, and at the bottom of the quarter-panels.

1967 Corvette
Bud's First 'Vette
Bud Delgado of Rancho Santa Fe, California, has been hooked on Chevys since high school. In those days, he owned a handful of them, including a '69 Chevelle, a '65 El Camino, and a '69 Nova. At the time, funds were low, so the cars remained stock for the most part. Over the last several years, Bud had been searching for a project he could work on now that he's out of high school and can finally afford it. He grew up in the San Fernando Valley in Southern California ,where cruising was the thing to do. His dad always had a Chevy, and whenever possible he ordered it with the high-performance SS package. It was a natural for Bud to be a Chevy guy, and he always will be.