Lost Car Show Videos

Here are a couple of videos I forgot to post up.

The first is my friend Steve Fagan’s 427 vette he just finished restoring.  Took 2nd place in his class at one of the largest car shows in the areas.

And here is my Mustang at the same show.

Enjoy.

Tim

BOSS 302: Scary Test Result as Brakes Fail

Don Royby Don Roy on April 26, 2011

It is easy to envy the job of a road test editor for a magazine or web site. After all, when it comes to the world of automotive enthusiasts, you’re pretty much living the dream. Often flown at other’s expense to exotic locations, you’re wined and dined in expensive establishments and given the latest high performance hardware to thrash around in. Other times, you just get really neat stuff to park in your driveway and make your neighbors jealous.

Generally, the only rule is ‘bring it back in one piece’ and given today’s anti-lock braking, electronic stability control, hugely capable tires and other modern developments, it’s pretty hard to break that rule. So, imagine that you are on a quarter-mile track, running some brake tests for which you run up to 70 mph and stand on the brake pedal and mostly let the electronics keep the shiny side up. Say you’ve done this dozens of times on all manner of performance cars, but this time the pedal goes right to the floor just as a metallic ‘snap’ registers in your brain.

Perhaps it is not always such an enviable position to be in because that is just what happened recently to Motor Trend editor, Scott Mortara, while evaluating a Boss 302 Mustang. Fortunately, the experienced tester was able to slow the car by downshifting the manual transmission and get off the track without serious incident. What followed from there, as reported by MT senior editor Angus McKenzie, is both a PR nightmare and a curiously unsatisfying conclusion for all.

An immediate and thorough investigation by Ford, which also involved stopping production temporarily at the Flat Rock, MI, assembly plant, revealed no inherent problem with production cars. The test car, however, appeared to have its brake pedal incorrectly assembled, so that a pivot pin sheared under the extreme load and master cylinder actuation was lost.

No conclusive evidence has been identified as to how this car’s brake pedal got to the state it was in, but once you let these cars out into the hands of others, anything is possible. This is the type of thing that Ford will continue to pursue internally until there is nothing left to investigate. In the meantime, this set of freaky circumstances serves well to remind all of us that bantha poo-doo happens and paying continual attention while driving is highly justified.

Checker Cab Note from a Reader

Thanks Bill.

This web site claims you CANNOT tell Checker years 1960 to 1982 apart:

http://jalopnik.com/#!266317/checker-marathon

I still wonder what would have happened to Checker if Ed Cole had not died in a plane crash. Ed Cole was a GM Engineer who was ‘the father’ of the Chevy 283. The story goes that Checker was about to go out of business, and Ed Cole had accepted an offer to take the company over. Ed had retired ‘comfortably’ from GM, and wanted to have some fun with Checker. Legend has it that Ed planned to get the GM Impala/Roadmaster RWD chassis, drop in a a Mitusbishi V6 drivetrain from the Diamante, and keep the SAME Checker body panels. His goal was to keep the car in fleet sales with great MPG and long term reliability,

Knowing what I know today about Government regulation for automobiles, I have to think that Ed Cole would have prolonged Checker perhaps another few years, or so. Crash test alone cost about 1 million dollars per car model today.

My THREE cents for the day!

Happy Easter, Bill

Name That Car – 2A

Here this one is going to be a tough one.

Jump in the ‘way back’ machine and guess this early turn of the 20th Century car.

Name That Car

Good luck.

Remember you need 5 correct answers to win.  If you are reading this on Facebook you need to chase the link and post on the blog.

Thanks for playing.

Tim

Name That Car – #1A Answer

The correct answer is 1956 Continental

1956 Continental

Bob Sweeting was the first correct answer.

(No I don’t believe we are related.)

Thanks for Playing Bob.

Next one coming up right up.

Tim

Name That Car – #1A

Ok.. Steve Sear won the last round.

This round the rules are the same.  You have to be the first to get 5 correct answers.

If you see this on Facebook you have to chase the link and post your answer on the Blog.

You’ll have to provide a mailing address to receive the prize.

So here is the first car in the next round.

This car was once it’s own company.

This particular car is 1950’s era.

Name that Car #1A

Good luck  and thanks for playing.

Tim

Chevy’s 283 Follow up Site

A while back I did an engine mini series on Chevy’s 283. Since then I found a great site for more information on the 283.

Links – http://wp.me/pKHNM-nu
http://wp.me/pKHNM-nB
http://wp.me/pKHNM-nT

http://chevroletphotosblog.com/?p=23046
Chevy 283 Motor | ChevroletPhotosBlog.com
chevroletphotosblog.com
‎1965 chevy 283 motor complete runs good 500.00 cash call 205-792-4699. Location: Tuscaloosa. State: Alabama City: Tuscaloosa tuscaloosa.americanlisted.com

Thanks for reading

Tim

Name that Car – #7Sup Answer

Steve Sears got this one correct. – Nice job.

I love these cars.

The Studebaker Golden Hawks are my favorite model in that brand.

This is the 1956 Golden Hawk.

1956 Studebaker Golden Hawk

Current tally is:

Thanks for playing.

Tim

Name that Car – #7Sup

Ok…this one is older than what I’ve been serving up.

Again, this is not one of the top 3.  This car was also very prone to rust because of the body structure.

Good luck.

Name That Car #7sup

Thanks for playing.

Tim

Error and Correction – Name that Car #7

So I’m pretty sure I got that image wrong on what I called a 1966 Rambler.  It was not.

So I’m going to toss that one and a new one will come up shortly  as #7sup.

Thanks for Playing.