Tag Archives: 2015

Power Wagon 1949 Four Wheel Drive Beast

January 2, 2016 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

Power Wagon’s were produced by Dodge and were popular heavy duty, four wheel drives, before every truck line was offered as a 4X4. They were popular after WWII, as our GI’s came back and wanted a domestic version of their military masters. So Dodge “civilized’ their military monsters and offered up the Power Wagon.

Jay Leno’s Garage recently took a look at a 1942 Dodge Power Wagon that was modified into a six wheel drive monster. That reminded us of a similar FOUR wheel drive Power Wagon that we saw last year at the SEMA Show.

1949 Power Wagon

It’s a 1949 Dodge Power Wagon Four Door or Crew Cab. This baby was heavily modified and pounded on to make it look this beautiful.

Chevy Powered for the Power Wagon

It is powered by a reliable Chevy LS3 engine with a 6.2 liter displacement, producing 430 horses and 424 foot pounds of torque for this bad boy. It also kept it in the family with a GM transmission; a 4L85E along with an Atlas transfer case.

They used a Dana 60 front axle, a Corp 14 bolt rear end with locking differentials and Warn locking hubs. They are using Bilstein shocks to smooth out the ride. Creature comforts included not only power windows and door locks, but power running boards plus Vintage Air Conditioning.

Can’t expect either ride to get any “Arizona pin striping” soon, but they are sure beautiful brutes.

What do you think?

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Car show, Uncategorized

Engraved Paint on Silver 2013 Nissan GTR

December 27, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

Okay so perhaps you get jaded at the SEMA Show with all the rides on display. After a while you might say, “enough” but then you turn the corner and spot this 2013 Nissan GTR. Yes, ignore the eye candy and focus on the car. Sure a Nissan GTR may not be super rare, but it is different, right? But then check out the exterior finish.

Nissan GTR

That my friend may look like somebody silversmithed and engraved into the metal; but it is actually layers upon layers of paint! The artists from Japan slaved over this Nissan and with extensive taping added on layer after layer of paint to end up with this engraved look. They even used a buffer and tapered tool to grind into the paint and create some of those images.

Engraved paint

One of the workers was present at the show and mentioned they were then working on a different model for the upcoming Japan Car Show but in gold tones.

Forget the car, the artistry to make the paint act as engraved metal is outstanding. What do you think?

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Car show

Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) Shows Off at SEMA

December 20, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

The Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) holds an evening reception during the SEMA Show. And while I enjoy meeting up with old buddies and making new friends, I also enjoy checking out the cars that were handpicked to be displayed at the reception.

A total of six cars and trucks were highlighted this year, so let’s take a look at these beauties.

HRIA – 55 T-Bird

From NASCAR’s” hometown” Mooresville, NC came this 55 Thunderbird in silver hues. A tube chassis mated up to a stock floor pan. It has a Ford Coyote 5.0 L 302 under the hood and Tremec six speed, with Vintage Air Conditioning and nice Halibrand knock off wheels.

HRIA – 63 Corvette

This convertible Corvette is powered by a Chevy small block 355 with a five speed Tremec. A slick set of Inglese side draft carburetors looked mean and it borrowed some C4 chassis components and a C5’s brake set up. The blue color was an added touch.

HRIA – 55 Ford

Another Texas build, this one used an Art Morrison chassis and a 528 Boss engine with a TKO 600 transmission. Knock of wheels looked nice with that stance and Gabe’s Interiors did the upholstery.

HRIA – 59 Rambler

I never get tired looking at this beauty. It was a Great Eight finalist for the Ridler Award in Detroit. The 2 door wagon features a LS small block with Hemi heads and a supercharger. Gabe’s did this interior as well and a Mesa, AZ shop did the work, including over 30 body modifications.

HRIA – 70 Challenger

This blue beauty hailed from Mooresville, NC as well and used a 4L60E transmission with an Edelbrock EFI set up. Lots of custom work went into shaping those bumpers and changing the rocker panels by lowering them.

HRIA- 69 Chevy C-10

In acknowledgement that trucks can be hot rods and the C-10 is a hot model, out rolled this nice 1969 Chevy. It has a LSX engine (461 ci) with a supercharger and a Tremec six speed. The Roadster Shop supplied the chassis and the owner claims 1000 horsepower with this set up.

So a nice collection of vehicles helped make for a great evening with the Hot Rodders. They gave out some nice awards and acknowledgements. Can’t wait to meet up with them next year.

So what vehicle struck your heart?

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Car show, Manufacturer news, Uncategorized

Laid Back Hauler

November 19, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

When I first saw this COE set up as a hauler at SEMA at the Laid Back USA clothing booth I was blown away. And the more I looked and drooled, the more I liked!

Laid Back Hauler

The 47 GMC COE is a real deal patina featured hauler. The owner of Laid Back USA has a couple of woodies he uses as part of the promotional display but felt like he needed something authentic to haul the classics around in.

Enter this GMC truck that was converted into a car hauler in five short months, just ready for a premiere at our friends at Hot Rod’s Power Tour. I especially likedthe innards were modified to be reliable but the exterior was kept “as is” essentially.

Laid Back Clothing

And since Laid Back USA makes a line of classic car themed shirts, you just knew they had to make a shirt for their hauler right?

Here’s a link to the full article from eBay Motors.

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Car show, Manufacturer news, Uncategorized

Krypton Green 2016 Camaro Is Hypnotic

November 14, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

SEMA Show has plenty of amazing new and improved products. But the one display that kept the crowds baffled was Chevrolet’s floor display of a 2016 Camaro – labeled Krypton Green. What kept the crowds mystified was a pulsating display of bow ties on the front quarters.

The display was hypnotic as the bow ties came on and off. Crowds kept looking for a light source or a projector beam but could not find one. Lots of smart guys put their hand in front of the body panel thinking they would block the “light”.

Lumilor Paint

But the bow ties were actually layers of paint – LumiLor paint to be specific that glowed as an electric current was applied to the body panel.

This is a neat look but at $80,000 for the effect, might be out of the budget for most folks. But a great display of undying American ingenuity from Darkside Scientific.

Click here for more details from the eBay Motors blog.

What do you think? Would you do it if you could afford it?

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Uncategorized

9-11 A Day We Will Always Remember

September 11, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

Patriot Day falls on September 11th (also commonly known as ‘Nine-Eleven’) and remembered globally as the anniversary of the catastrophic terrorist attacks on the USA on September 11, 2001. All of us will remember where we were when we first heard of these crashes. In later days I reached out to my friends in DC to check on them.

9-11

Embedded in the memories of everyone who lived through it, this was the day four jet planes were hijacked and crashed into the New York World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, causing the deaths of 2,977 people. The fourth plane (United Airlines Flight 93) was directed at Washington DC, but its passengers bravely attempted to take back control and it crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. In the wake of the World Trade Center collisions, many brave men and women from the emergency services risked their lives to try to help rescue victims of the attacks, and of them 411 lost their own lives attempting to fight fires and rescue people.

Patriot Day

Patriot Day is recognized by US law as the official day of remembrance for these tragic events, and has been observed every year since. Each year on this day, American flags are flown at half-staff to honor and commemorate those lives lost. The US President asks fellow Americans to observe a moment of silence at 8:46am (Eastern Daylight Time), the time of the first plane collision into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

While the events took place within the USA, the shock and grief experienced in response to the attacks was shared across the globe.

We will never forget that awful day!

Manufacturer news, Uncategorized

Lingenfelter Car Collection

September 9, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

The Lingenfelter Company is known for hopping up the Corvettes to boost their power and handling. As if a C7 Corvette needed anything more?

Next week on the Velocity Channel starting on Monday September 14, 2015 the car show Car Crazy hosted by Barry Meguiar of the car care business fame will look at the Lingenfelter Collection with Ken Lingfelter.

As a recent press release noted, the show will feature an in-depth look at one of the most outstanding car collections in the world and explore the unique story of the man responsible for this dream garage.

Lingenfelter Collection

The Lingenfelter Collection, assembled and curated by Ken Lingenfelter, owner of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, is a 40,000-square-foot building filled with over 200 unique and historically significant American muscle cars, Corvettes and late-model exotics, including a Bugatti Veyron, a Lamborghini Reventon and eight Ferraris, including a 2015 LaFerrari.

The Collection’s diversity comes from Lingenfelter’s wide-ranging automotive interests and cars he likes. Corvettes, both old and new, are of course featured in the Collection which includes a ’53 Supercharged Corvette, the first supercharged Corvette, (one of two ever produced and the only one believed to still be in existence); the ’54 Duntov Test Mule, which is considered the first true high performance Corvette as well as Lingenfelter Performance Engineering’s new Level One and Level Two tuned C7 Z06s.

This amazing private collection is not only a showcase of some of the coolest cars ever, but it is also serves a noble purpose – helping others. Lingenfelter uses the Collection as a unique venue for public tours and special events to generate financial support for charitable organizations through The Lingenfelter Foundation. Over the years, Collection events have raised funds for breast cancer, juvenile diabetes, youth organizations and other worthwhile causes.

As a quintessential “car guy”, Lingenfelter has a deep appreciation for stylish, high-performance automobiles, and he puts that passion into his work as the owner of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering, a leading automotive performance engineering brand with a worldwide reputation for creating performance-tuned GM vehicles, engines and aftermarket components.

Velocity Channel

As usual check your Velocity cable listings for dates and times in your location. Let us know what you think and if you set up the DVR!

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Car show, Uncategorized

Triple Nickel via the Grand National Roadster Show

May 16, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

When you go to a roadster show, you expect to see roadsters. At the Grand National Roadster Show you’re going to see LOTS of roadsters. In fact eighteen roadsters were vying for the title of America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR). The winner came out of Bobby Alloway’s shop, but we also saw this 32 Ford and so did our friends at Hot Rod. They are featuring the Triple Nickel in the July 2015 issue of Hot Rod magazine.

AMBR Award

Now to be eligible for the roadster award you have to meet these requirements

The car must be a roadster (no hardtop),
have no windows in the doors,
younger than 1937
and not been entered into any previous public show.

And while the judges selected another car with an unconventional “top” last year, I don’t think they wanted to buck “tradition” twice in a row, so by displaying the car at the Pomona Fairgrounds with the stainless steel top attached, the owner might have lost a little interest.

Triple Nickel

But there is no denying the look and stance of this car is killer. And those wheels! Those are actual cast magnesium wheels that were then CNC’d to the final design to mimic the old Hallibrand looks. When is the last time you saw actual magnesium wheels on a new car? Yeah, I though so….

So enjoy our look at this Hot Rod featured car.

Car show, Uncategorized

Contenders for America’s Most Beautiful Roadster

February 12, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

We already showed you the winner of this year’s America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) award at the Grand National Roadster Show. There were eighteen contenders and many of them were great builds and worthy of serious contention. Figured this would be a good time to spotlight the others, who perhaps put as much time, sweat and effort into their builds.

32 Ford

This is an interesting build with twin turbos sticking out above the headlights. The owner wanted to compete so much for the AMBR award that he crafted two sets of doors, the ones shown have no windows and the other set have roll up windows (which would disqualify it for the AMBR).

1932 Ford Pickup

This truck qualified as a roadster and uses a 350 short block with a 700R4 transmission. It’s always neat to see pickups as a contender for America’s Most Beautiful Roadster.

28/29 Ford

Hats off to a guy who built it himself except for the paint and interior. Front end is reminiscent of a sprint car.

1932 Ford Roadster

This owner is from Norway but Hollywood Hot Rods built it here in the good old USA.

34 Ford

Again an owner/builder wrenched on this car and amazingly it is powered with a Nissan engine. Perhaps because the builder worked for Nissan? A Speed Star body doesn’t generally scream to me as a traditional roadster but…

32 Ford

It comes with a Hemi engine and the Hilborn injection is retrofitted for electronic fuel injection. Mike Curtis built the wheels (he did last year’s winners wheels too).

33 Chevy

Finally a bow tie was in the mix! A LS 6 engine provides the power with fuel injection and a Jaguar rear end.

31 Ford pickup

The owner has had this truck for over fifty years and did some custom aluminum casting for some of the parts.

32 Ford

Now this sure seems to be what comes to mind for a traditional roadster. If nothing else the display should win an award!

34 Ford

Lots of body work and part swapping went into this build. LS 7 powers this baby with a blower for extra force. Kugel independent front and rear suspension too.

36 Ford

Lincoln engine with a supercharger is under this louvered hood.

32 Ford

The top is interesting on this roadster with power from a Ford 351. Not sure about the wheels though?

Grass Hopper

Galpin Ford built this baby as a tribute to the “Grass Hopper” from the early 6o’s. Some of you might have built the model kit from years ago. An Olds engine is here with a blower (notice a trend?) with a Hallibrand quick change rear end.

26 Track car

This came from Charly’s Garage in Arizona who we profiled before. We loved the Buick finned drum brakes.

26 Hiboy

Another owner built car so we have to love it too. Stock body with a custom frame. Personally this looks period correct and could have been time warped from the 50’s easily.

30 Ford Roadster

30 Roadster with a hand built body and a big 540 ci Hemi with a Viper speed. The owner comes from Sweden.

26 Roadster

Father and son team worked on this car with a small block Chevy and 700R4 transmission.

So there you have the other contenders from the Grand National Roadster Show. Which is your favorite?

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Auctions, Uncategorized

Two Lane Blacktop Builder

February 5, 2015 Route 66 Pub Co Leave a comment

Two Lane Blacktop

Here is a link to a recent article that we did for eBay Motors on the original builder of the 55 Chevy’s for the cult classic movie Two Lane Blacktop.

Barrett-Jackson

The 55 Chevy recently sold at Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale for $159,500. The builder has some great stories and we think it a shame he never provided more awesome cars for Hollywood.

What do you think of his build?

1949 Power Wagon

Chevy Powered for the Power Wagon

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Nissan GTR

Engraved paint

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HRIA – 55 T-Bird

HRIA – 63 Corvette

HRIA – 55 Ford

HRIA – 59 Rambler

HRIA – 70 Challenger

HRIA- 69 Chevy C-10

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Laid Back Hauler

Laid Back Clothing

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Lumilor Paint

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9-11

Patriot Day

Lingenfelter Collection

Velocity Channel

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AMBR Award

Triple Nickel

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Two Lane Blacktop

Barrett-Jackson

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