Dodge Challenger Super Stock (Oh, and a New Hemi)
The Mopar SkunkWerks team is at it again, twisting one of our naughty nighttime dreams into reality: a Dodge Challenger Super Stock concept with a 392 Hemi. The car has a Dodge Magnum chassis and a Challenger shell built around the big news: a 392 Hemi crate engine. There will be three 392 crates: a carb'd (Holley four-barrel) version that will make 540 hp/490 lb-ft of torque, a 525hp SEFI model worth 510 lb-ft of torque, and a long-block. All will have a cast-iron block, a 10.5:1 compression ratio, CNC-ported aluminum twin-plug cylinder heads, 2.100-inch intake and 1.600-inch exhaust valves, forged pistons, a 4.055-inch bore, and a forged-steel crankshaft with 3.795-inch stroke.
Chrysler Firepower: Dead?
It was revealed in early 2005: a concept car stuffed with an SRT-developed 6.1L Hemi, a five-speed AutoStick, and a Dodge Viper-themed suspension, as well as other performance and luxo parts. If you've been marking days off your calendar anticipating the arrival as a production model, stop it. It's very rumored to be very dead. Thanks, gas prices!
GM EcoJet
When Jay Leno speaks, GM listens. And that's how the EcoJet concept came to be. The General Motors Advanced Design Studio was behind this project car, which has a biodiesel-fueled turbine engine that makes 650 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque and a modified Corvette Z06 aluminum frame. The design borrows from jets and F-1 race cars (and we'd say Cadillac). See jaylenosgarage.com
Web Sites For GMPP And Mopar
GM Performance Parts has relaunched its Web site as gmperformanceparts.com, which stars its crate engines, has tips on how to build your project car, and provides racing advice from NHRA Pro Stock man Warren Johnson. Meanwhile, Mopar's mo-pod.com has podcasts, videos, events, racing stuff, and more.
7-Second Reads* The founder of World of Outlaws Sprint Series, Ted Johnson, has died at age 72.* Shelby Automobiles built a GT-H (Rent-a-Racer) concept in convertible form to tout its new components for '05-and-later Mustangs.* Warner Bros. is turning Speed Racer into a live-action flick. 'Hot Rod's Rob Kinnan will play Chim Chim the monkey.* Researchers at the University of Illinois are saying that because Americans are so fat, we're consuming more gasoline because our vehicles end up weighing more.* A new show from Fox is due to arrive next spring called Drive, which will cover a fictional cross-country rally of outlaws. * Decodethis.com can decode a VIN. Worth checking out if you're trying to avoid purchasing a clone. VIN patterns in the database include Camaros, Mustangs, 'Cudas, and Corvettes.* New Jersey has a bill floating around that would require drivers to get the snow and ice off a vehicle (excludes what falls while driving).
Dyno-Proven Big-Blocks
That's the name of the new line created by Lingenfelter and Motion, who have together developed Signature Series Lingenfelter/Motion engines that will be available only in Baldwin Motion SS-427, Phase III 540, and Super Series (SuperCoupe and SuperSpeedster) Camaros. First out of the box will be an all-aluminum 540 that'll make 660 hp and 640 lb-ft of torque. It comes attached to a $500,000 car, so we're guessing you'll order two
Ford Taurus: 1985-2006
The former best-selling car in the United States is being honored for that by being killed off. Ford has Dumpstered the model due to lack of sales-and because engineers sort of forgot it existed and neglected to update it in the last 10 years.
Mickey Thompson Case Goes to Trial
In 1988, Mickey Thompson and his wife were shot in front of their home in a Los Angeles suburb. But it had been a cold case. However, Michael Frank Goodwin, Thompson's estranged biz partner, has been accused of the murders, and the case is finally going to trial. Car Craft spoke to journalist Jerry Garrett, who in 1999 wrote a feature about the murders (after two years of researching) for Car and Driver magazine. The story, "Getting Away With Murder," pointed directly to Goodwin. "I was able to get some new information about it, and leads started coming in, and others started covering it," Garrett said. The others included America's Most Wanted and Unsolved Mysteries. Ah, the good old days of investigative journalism.
Good Deals: Dying But Not Yet Extinct
We've gotta admit we've cut down quite a bit on touring the car corrals at our local swap meets. It's just gotten way too depressing. With the surge in TV-show auction prices, eBay bidding wars, and the ease of online listings on craigslist.com, all of a sudden every bozo with an old four-door thinks his junk is worth retirement money. The days of scoring an $800 Duster just because you're bored one weekend seem to be gone.
Nevertheless, we cinched up our cynicism last month and wore off a few miles of shoe leather at the famous Pomona Swap Meet, billed as the West Coast's largest. Held eight times a year alongside the NHRA's dragstrip in the parking lot of the Fairplex in Pomona, California, the meet attracts sellers from all the western states and buyers from this continent and beyond. In years past, we scored the likes of a '67 Nova for $1,800, a '57 Chevy wagon for $1,500, a '73 Camaro for $800, and other similarly cheap mainstream rides. It's been increasingly tough to catch those kinds of deals, but this time, we did find some really good buys, especially when you view them in the context of today's booming market. Check 'em out, and if you've got the stomach to walk past 50 early Camaros for $25,000 and up, you just might score yourself a new project. -David Freiburger
Go To Pomona
Get all the details on how to attend a Pomona Swap Meet at (duh) pomonaswapmeet.com. Here are the dates of upcoming events:January 14, 2007March 4, 2007April 22, 2007June 3, 2007July 15, 2007August 26, 2007October 14, 2007December 2, 2007