Hemmings Muscle Machines June 2021

mean and green

An iconic muscle car, this 1969 Plymouth Road Runner is the quintessential Mopar, with its vibrant color and giant 426ci Hemi engine. This particular example has 33,000 miles on it and recently underwent an extensive restoration to bring it back to life. Even though the Road Runner had once been used as a drag car, it was still very complete after 40 years of dry storage, and many of its original parts were reconditioned. When it came time to get the restored Mopar rolling, authenticity was the top priority, so the owner chose our Firestone Wide Oval bias ply tires, but we also manufacture this popular tire in modern radial construction. The redlines and body-color steel wheels are a perfect combination for this incredible Mopar muscle car. Wade Kawasaki is the President…

seeking the score

“I couldn’t help but wonder—what if it was one of those crazy stories we’ve all heard?” The email from a coworker was brief: “Check this out!” Attached was a link to an online classified ad for a ’70 Barracuda convertible. There was only one picture, but it showed what appeared to be a completely stock example of the breed, right down to the whitewall tires and full wheel covers, and it looked to be in very nice shape. The eye-opener was the asking price: $2,000. Naturally, it got my attention, but I didn’t allow myself to get too excited; it seemed a clear case of “If it seems too good to be true….” Still, I couldn’t help but wonder — what if it was one of those crazy stories we’ve all heard?…

backfire

Letter of the Month: Twin T/As “ Thank you for your two-part article on the 1977 Trans Am (HMM #211 and # 212). I own a 1977 Y82 Trans Am that has the W72 400 engine and the four-speed; I bought the car when it was just a year old and have babied it ever since. Although it was driven through one Michigan winter by the previous owner, it has only seen rain twice (at car shows) in the last 43 years. My girlfriend has a black 1976 T/A that she bought when it was a year old, and it is in the same condition as mine. Although hers was ordered without a hood bird, we installed a blue one to match the factory-installed decals. Oddly, the blue bird was not offered…

production line

2021 CORVETTE STINGRAY CONVERTIBLE ENTIRELY NEW, YET STRANGELY FAMILIAR Corvettes are, by and large, traditional machines. They’ve been atop Chevy’s (and arguably GM’s) food chain since the ’50s: aspirational-yet-attainable, low-slung high-performance for the American everyman with a whiff of competition-fettled prowess, a treat after the retirement dinner and once the kids are out of the house. Despite some early innovation (fuel injection in ’57, four-wheel disc brakes in ’65), later advances often felt more incremental, to the point where even a new Corvette didn’t feel entirely new anymore. Perhaps because of this, Corvette found itself in a corner. It continued to be an agile and capable performer, but it’s been the same basic car since the fifth generation launched for 1997 (Gen III-and-up power ahead of the driver, transaxle between the rear wheels,…

split-window daytripper

RICH ROSETTI’S SPLIT-WINDOW COUPE bucks restomod trends toward lowering a 600-plus-hp engine into the bay and stuffing 19-inch wheels with steamroller tires into the fender wells, because brutal power and flypaper-like stick in the corners weren’t his goals for this build. Instead, the real estate developer from New York State set out to raise this Corvette’s performance, drive-ability, and comfort levels to his satisfaction without altering its legendary styling. Just as important, this sports car had to be reliable enough for worry-free road trips. “I already owned a matching-numbers, restored-to-stock ’63,” Rich explains, “and I didn’t feel comfortable driving it much, so I looked for another that I could modify without guilt.” That meant beginning with a split-window coupe in need of TLC that no longer possessed its original powertrain.…

specifications

1963 CORVETTE STING RAY PRICE Baseprice.....................................................................................................................$4,257 Options on car profiled....................... Upgraded factory AM/FM radio; aftermarket A/C, power windows and door locks, steering, brakes, and heated seats ENGINE Blocktype........................................Chevroletcast-ironsmall-blockV-8;two-boltmains Cylinder heads ........................................................ GM Vortec cast iron; 64-cc chambers Displacement.........................................................................................................350-cu.in. Bore x stroke....................................................................................................4.00x3.48in Compressionratio...........................................................................................................9.4:1 Pistons............................................................................................Hypereutecticaluminum Connectingrods.....................................................................................GMpowderedmetal Crankshaft....................................................................Cast iron; one-piece rear main seal Horsepower@rpm....................................................................................350 @ 5,200 rpm Torque @ rpm....................................................................................400 lb-ft @ 3,500 rpm Camshafttype................................................................................................Hydraulicroller Duration......................................................................196/206-degrees duration (at .050) Lift.........................................................................................................................460/.481-in Valvetrain.........................................1.94/1.50-in valves; 1.6:1 ratio roller-tip rocker arms; pushrods; valve springs Induction system ..............................Electronic port fuel injection; 75-mm throttle body, 22 lb/h injectors, aluminum intake manifold Lubricationsystem.............................................................................Oil pump; 5-qt oil pan Ignition system.............. GM electronic distributor, coil, and wires; ACDelco sparkplugs Exhaustsystem......................................................Patriot Tight Tuck headers; dual pipes; Magnaflowmufflers;brighttips Originalengine..........................................................Chevrolet327-cu.in.small-blockV-8 TRANSMISSION Type..........................................................................................TremecTKO-500five-speed Ratios.........1st/3.27:1 … 2nd/1.98:1 … 3rd/1.34:1 … 4th/1.00:1 … 5th/.68:1 … Reverse/3.0:1 DIFFERENTIAL Type.................................................................................................GMhypoid,Positraction Ratio...............................................................................................................................3.36:1 STEERING Type......................................................................Steeroidsrack-and-pinion,powerassist Turns-to-Lock...........................................................................................Approximately2.5 BRAKES Type.......................................................................................Power-assistedhydraulicdisc Front/Rear .................... Wilwood four-piston calipers, drilled and slotted 11.75-in rotors SUSPENSION Front....................Independent; aluminum upper and lower control arms, coilovers with single-adjustable shocks and 400 lb-in spring rate, 1.13-in anti-roll bar Rear...............................................Independent;coiloverswithsingle-adjustableshocks and…