By D. Brian Smith
Photography: CI Teammates & Mecum Auctions
Though we spend our five- and six-day work weeks catering to the needs of our honored customers who own and are working on, driving, showing, and enjoying American muscle machines, many Classic Industries employees are wrenching away, driving, and enjoying our own vintage vehicles in our free time. Some of us drive our old cars daily.
We Can Well Relate to Our Customers' Challenges
Many of us spend our free time hunting for parts on the CI website and in the specific vehicle model catalogs. We're driving in cruises on the weekends. We're going to Donut Derelicts in Huntington Beach, CA at zero dark hundred on a Saturday morning, so we can grab a great parking spot, perhaps a cup of joe, and some glazed donuts to give us that gross sugary, greasy aftertaste that stays us with until we brush our teeth about five times after devouring the delicious treat once we've cruised back home.
If we were fortunate enough to have an old car as our first or second vehicle when we were newly licensed drivers, there most often is a great deal of nostalgia and reminiscing that goes on, should we be lucky enough to have an American pony or muscle machine(s) as more experienced, older drivers.
Show & Tell Time
Craig's 1985 Buick Regal T-Type & 1964 Chevy C10 Pickup
Above: Craig's, aka Jersey's 1985 Buick Regal T-Type has a silver exterior and a navy-blue interior.
In Craig's words: "My family has had Buicks for as long as I can remember. I was 20 and working for a flooring company. Used to ride my BMX to work... Worked as many hours as I could stuff into a week. One day I was out with my father, and we saw a silver Regal sitting near a pool place. Stopped and gave her a look and instantly fell in love."
"Turned out it was one of those spicy Buick Regals with the turbo. Now it was not a GN (Grand National) or even one of the '86 / '87 LC2 desirable cars. It turns out it was an '85 hot air car, one of the ones with no intercooler, silver exterior with a navy-blue interior. Went inside the pool hall and inquired about it and came to find out the owner is a friend of mine's uncle."
"The gentleman says, 'Well, since you know my nephew, I'll let it go for $2K' ... SOLD! My father followed me home and could not keep up with me. After I took him for a ride, he was blown away by how stout the turbo six was even for being a hot air car. He described it as 'scary fast.'"
"After getting to the point where I could no longer keep the car on the road, blew the motor up as well as the turbo and then got stiffed by someone that I purchased the replacement LC2 motor from. He decided he didn't want to include the turbo or ECM and decided to tell me that AFTER I handed him the cash."
"Even after years of working in hot rod shops, I still couldn't piece the car back together. Years pass. I decide I am moving to California, and the car still sits in New Jersey at my folks' house."
"We finally moved it to a location that is more conducive to the car not getting beat up by the weather in hopes that someday I will get back to it."
"I check on it when I get back home... It still breaks my heart to know it's there just waiting... Some day."
"I also currently have a '64 Chevy C10, but I am unable to work on it in my garage, because of the neighbors and the landlord and have already lost several thousands of dollars in parts due to my garage being broken into."
Jim's 1970 Camaro, 1965 Buick Riviera, 1971 Chevy El Camino
Above: James, aka Jim's 1970 Camaro
Jim had a 1971 Chevy El Camino that he rescued from close to being forlorn and forgotten that he used for daily driving duty in his tool business.
At the same time, he owned a 1965 Buick Riviera. The interior of the Riviera was so rough that when he drove it home from its purchase, he sat on a milk crate. Jim performed all the bodywork and began to paint the Riviera hot rod black at Golden West College. The body shop closed before he had finished the work. He decided that if he was going to pay for a paint job that it would be red, specifically a House of Kolors Candy Apple Red. Powered by a 401-cubic inch Nailhead V8 and a TH400 automatic, Jim owned the Riviera about 10 years. He sold both of these vehicles to purchase the Camaro.
Above: Jim's Camaro originally had a 350-cubic inch V8 backed by a TH350 automatic transmission and a 4.08:1 Posi-traction rear end. His Camaro now sports a slightly modified 350-cubic inch V8 with aluminum heads and roller camshaft that's backed by a 700R4 trans and a 12-bolt Posi with 3.73:1 gears. Monitoring and reporting the Camaro's vital signs is a Dakota Digital dash. Seventeen-inch five spoke mag wheels give the Camaro a period-correct appearance with a bit of modern high-performance added to the mix. Classic Industries' teammates have the good fortune of seeing Jim's Camaro in the employee parking lot several times a week. He has had the Camaro just a couple years but is already planning on installing a 383-cubic inch V8 Chevy stroker mill to go "just a little faster!" That's the spirit.
Lead Photo - Undisclosed Owner 1969 Camaro
It's fitting that the owner of the Tuxedo Black hued and white stripes with Ivory Houndstooth Deluxe interior 1969 Z/28, Rally Sport Camaro wishes to be anonymous. If this Camaro was a Transformer movie car, the character's name would be Mr. Shaken Not Stirred himself or James Bond. Dressed to kill in that Tuxedo Black paint and the rare Ivory Houndstooth Deluxe interior, can't you just imagine the Camaro driving up to the roulette wheel at a casino in Monaco and putting all his chips on 007 black? If the Z/28 could talk, a Scottish brogue, a-la Sean Connery era James Bond would emanate from the twin tailpipes. For all we know there might be machine gun barrels hiding beneath the headlights, behind the hideaway headlight panels.
After an intense, four-year internet search for a Tuxedo Black, 1969 RS Z/28 Camaro with matching numbers, the owner found the car on Volo Auto Sales website in 2017. The matching numbers 302-cubic inch V8 is backed by its matching M22 rock crusher Muncie four-speed manual transmission. The differential/rear axle is a 12-bolt Posi-traction with a 3.73:1 gear ratio.
Whenever the owner drives the Camaro to local car shows, it's always a big crowd pleaser. The usual questions are, "is it a real Z/28? "Is it for sale?" "Was that interior really offered back then?"
Steve's 1956 Chevy 210 Two-Door Handyman Wagon, 1965 Pontiac LeMans, & 1968 Z/28 Camaro
Steve has three muscle cars, two of which are more in the project phase, and his 1965 Pontiac Lemans above that is a daily driver resto mod. The Lemans is painted Corvette Yellow. The original 326-cubic inch V8 has a TH350 automatic transmission with a mild shift kit and a B&M ratchet shifter, and Moser GM 12-bolt with 3.42:1 gearing differential/rear axle completing the drivetrain. The suspension has been renewed with tubular upper and lower control arms and frame supports. There is adjustable coil over shocks at all four corners and anti-sway bars front and rear. A power front disc brake conversion gets the Pontiac stopping better than new. As for the interior, there's new carpet, seats, kick panels, and a custom sound system. The gauge cluster and dash also have subtle custom modifications.
Steve's 1956 Chevy 210 two-door handyman wagon is currently in the bodywork phase. The Chevy's design theme is a tasteful trio of resto mod, pro street, and pro touring. Many parts thus far have been collected for the Handyman's resurrection.
Some of the gathered components include:
- BluePrint Engines small block Chevy 383 Power Adder Series engine
- Weiand 671 roots blower (supercharger) with dual quad Holley carbs
- 700R4 transmission
- B&M ratchet shifter
- Moser GM 12-bolt rear axle assembly with disc brakes and 3.73:1 gearing (narrowed 3 inches)
- Tubbed wheel wells
- RideTech four-link rear suspension with adjustable coil over shocks
- Aluminum fuel tank
- Tubular control arms
- Front power disc brake conversion
- Front adjustable coil over shocks
- Dakota Digital gauge cluster
- Painless Wire complete front to rear kit
- Pro Car bucket seats
- New glass and seals (complete vehicle)
- carpet kit
Steve's other muscle machine is a 1968 Z/28 Chevrolet Camaro that he's building to be an occasional driver / hot rod / muscle car. Currently, the Camaro is stripped down to its bare metal, and it has an engine and transmission within it. The next step in the Chevy's restoration is the bodywork and paint.
Some of the collected parts for his Camaro hot rod include:
- GM 502 cubic inch big block V8 deluxe crate motor
- Turbo 400 transmission with shift kit
- B&M ratchet shifter
- GM 12-bolt rear axle assembly
- Tubular front control arms
- Adjustable coil over shocks
- Front sway bar
- Subframe connectors
- Painless wiring kit (front to rear)
- New carpet
- Be Cool aluminum radiator
- Flaming River rack and pinion steering
- Custom made headers
Since Steve is doing all the work himself, eventually he'll have three great muscle cars to drive and enjoy.
Craig C.'s 1955 Chevy 210 Handyman Two Door Wagon
Craig's great grandfather purchased the Chevy 210 Handyman wagon in Northern California when it was brand new. The Chevy has been in the family ever since, which is way cool! The car was built with a straight-six-cylinder engine that was backed by a three-speed manual transmission with overdrive. The vehicle now has a mild small block Chevy V8 mill that is backed by a 700R4 automatic transmission with overdrive. Craig has also treated the Chevy's suspension to a four-link rear equipped with an Air Ride suspension for laying frame as depicted in the included overall photos.
Noe's 1965 Ford Mustang & 1988 Fox Body Ford LX Mustang
Noe is an authentic Ford Mustang fan, as are his kids. He owns the 1965 Mustang in the above photo. It's equipped with a rebuilt 302-cubic inch V8 that has a mild cam, a tunnel ram, dual four-barrel carbs, and too many high-tech internal engine components to detail. The built C4 automatic transmission also boasts some aftermarket goodies to make it stouter and optimize the shifts. The rear end has a PowerTrax unit and a 3.55:1 final drive ratio.
Noe's 1988 Fox Mustang has a stock 302 Ford V8 with under drive pulleys. This pony car has a five-speed manual that's attached to a Center Force clutch and a short throw shifter. BBK shorty headers, a stainless exhaust system, and Flowmaster mufflers send the mill's spent fumes on their merry way. For corner carving, Noe has sourced some Eibach and UPR components to improve the suspension.
We mentioned Noe's kids, because both of his grown children drive and enjoy manual transmission equipped Mustangs. It sounds as though Noe and his wife have raised the youngsters quite well.
Marc's 1970 Boss 302 Ford Mustang, 1969 Chevy Impala, 1973 Chevy C20 long bed, & 1964 Mercury Parklane
Marc, a self-proclaimed gearhead since he first received his driver's license (and even before if truth be told), has owned a number of pony and muscle cars. Regrettably, he doesn't have any pictures of the rides from his well-spent and mischievous (allegedly) youth. Never mind. We'll use some photos courtesy of Mecum Auctions to give you an idea of what he had. The 1970 Boss 302 Mustang above is courtesy of Mecum. Boss 302's for 1969 and 1970 all had 290-horsepower, 302-cubic inch V8 engines and four-speed manual transmissions. Some had the functional hood shaker air scoop and the window louver slats atop the back glass windshield to better shade the interior.
All 1969-'70 Boss 302 Mustangs also had black vinyl interiors. Marc's Boss 302 had this Gold and Black paint scheme similar to this road course warrior.
He mentioned that he hot rodded the heck out of it. Since the statute of limitations is well past, we think he was referring to how fast he used to drive the pony car, as opposed to his modifying the engine and chassis with high-performance, go-fast parts. Though knowing Marc, perhaps he was referring to doing both.
Marc also owned a 1969 Chevy Impala, a 1973 Chevy C20 long bed pickup, and a 1964 Mercury Parklane two-door hardtop with a Ford big-block 390-cubic inch FE V8 (three photos below courtesy of Mecum Auctions).
Luke's 1966 Chevy Malibu Chevelle
Luke bought his Ermine White 1966 Chevy Malibu Chevelle from the original owner some 25 years ago. His road burner has worn well over the years, as he takes her on cruises and to shows on the weekends. In fact, the above photo was from a recent quarantine cruise on a SoCal Sunday. Look for a full feature article soon on the CI website.
Vicente's 1976 Chevrolet Corvette
Vicente's dad painted this racy red Corvette in his body shop back in the 1980's and performed other work on the car back in the day. He liked the Corvette so much when he had finished all the body and paintwork that he purchased the sports car from the customer. He drove it on the weekends over the years and fixed it up little by little. His end goal was to fully renew it and pass it on to his son Vicente, when Vicente became an adult.
As often happens with these old car projects, raising a family and living life frequently can put a halt to renewing many a worthy muscle car that's weathering away with age. The good news is that Vicente's dad did give the Corvette to him when Vicente came of age. It's now up to son and father to renew the car. The two men need to spend some quality time in the garage. From these photos, it looks like it would be pretty easy to get the Corvette running again. Everything looks to be there and in decent shape.
Start by doing some clean up and detailing of the Stingray, and you'd be surprised by how much that would motivate you to then work on the car in earnest. Drain and replace all the fluids. Replace the spark plug wires and spark plugs. Make sure that the brakes' hydraulic fluids have been flushed, bled, and replaced, after checking the brake lines for leaks. Ascertain whether there's dirt and sediment in the fuel tank. Have a fire extinguisher handy. You'll need to replace the car's battery. Then keep your fingers crossed and turn the key.
Bryan's 1954 Ford Customline Sedan
Classic Industries currently employs three Bryan's. This particular Bryan has a 1954 Ford Customline sedan that sports a four-inch chopped top, frenched headlights and taillights, shaved doors and emblems, and a rattle-can paint job that suits this sweet Ford Customline to perfection. Bryan replaced the 239-cubic inch straight-six engine with a 292-cubic inch Y-block V8 from an old Ford pickup and a Borg Warner T-10 four-speed manual transmission.
The full air suspension, four-inch chopped roof, BFGoodrich Silvertown wide whitewall tires with crossbar hubcaps, and the dummy spotlights on the cowl give Bryan's Customline a commanding presence whether he's cruising the boulevards of SoCal or chilling at a local show with his family and friends.
As for the interior, there's black vinyl upholstery covering the front and back bench seats. Not shown in this photo, but there's a long, floor shift shifter that a buddy welded together and fabricated from chain links, which fits this '50's custom sled theme of American hot rodding impeccably well.
Matt's 1965 Dodge Dart 270 Wagon
Matt's daily driver for about three years was a 1965 Dodge Dart 270 station wagon that he drove for college, freelance photography work, and his full-time job. The wagon offered plenty of space for his photography gear behind the back seat.
The Dart 270 wagon is powered by the venerable Mopar 225-cubic inch slant-six engine that is well-known for being a reliable, rugged, and economic engine delivering miles upon miles of trouble-free service.
After purchasing the surf wagon from its original owner, Matt and his dad replaced the four-wheel drum brakes with a much safer four-wheel disc brake conversion kit. They also flushed all the old fluids and replaced the oil, filter, fuel filter, radiator coolant and water, and auto trans fluid shortly after purchase. Aftermarket temp and oil gauges were also installed beneath the dash to better monitor the engine's vital signs. By the time that Matt was ready to sell the Dart down the road, the odometer had rolled over to more than 100,000 miles, proving once again how rock solid the Chrysler 225 slant-six mill was engineered and constructed back in the day.
Ray's 1970 Chevrolet Nova SS
When it comes to talking about his 1970 Chevy Nova SS, Ray is the master of understatement. From the way he has described how he has owned the Nova for years and years, and how the Chevy has moved with him and his family from the East Coast to the Midwest, to the West Coast, we were under the impression that the car was in pretty rough shape. Based on these two photos, that's definitely not the case. Great Nova SS, Ray. Well done you!
Gabe's 1989 Ford Fox Body Mustang
You may have already watched Gabe's 1989 Fox Mustang being built on several Car Craft, Battle of the 80's episodes, which is on the MotorTrend Channel. If you haven't, you'll be excited to check it out. The project build included restoration parts from Classic Industries, an engine swap to a Ford 7.3-liter Godzilla V8 mill that's backed by an American Powertrain Tremec TKX five-speed manual trans, and many more goodies we can expand upon at a later date (hint, hint). Rest assured that this Fox Mustang is even faster than it looks, both in a straight line and on the twisty bits. And that's saying something!
Video: Car Craft, Battle of the 80's
Bret's 1963 Chevy Impala SS & 2004 Ford F-150 Pickup
Bret purchased this car himself when he was 18. He bought the 1963 Chevy Impala from a man named Bogart in Anaheim, CA. The photo was taken at his parent's house right after Bret installed the American Racing Torq-Thrust II wheels on the Impala. The exterior hues are an Ermine White hardtop with a Sea Foam Green body. The interior is black vinyl buckets in the front with a bench seat in the rear. Bret's Impala was powered by its original 283-cubic inch V8 and backed by a TH350 automatic transmission.
A supercharged 2004 Ford F-150 pickup is another muscle vehicle that Bret used to own in his well-spent youth.
Smith Men's 1934 Ford Roadster Pickup
While this humble scribe was on staff as the feature editor of Custom Classic Trucks magazine and later as the editor of KIT CAR magazine, my Dad, brother Kevin, and I were building a 1934 Ford roadster pickup as a project vehicle for the magazines. That's Kevin reenacting a photo I took of him when he was 17 in our parents' garage in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, when the three of us were working on a 1930's vintage German sports car we still own.
Above: The RPU gets its custom fabricated stainless steel MagnaFlow exhaust system at Warner's Mufflers, in Oceanside, CA back in the day.
Steve's Auto Restorations, in Portland, OR fabricated the Ford car body roadster pickup cab by crafting the back wall of the cab and mating it to their 1933-34 Ford new roadster all-steel body. The fully boxed 1933-34 Ford chassis has custom tubular crossmembers and was welded together from frame strips on a frame jig by a master welder who learned his craft as an underwater deep sea oil rig welder. The chassis is comprised of a polished stainless and aluminum Kugel Komponents independent front suspension and independent rear suspension system with double Aldan coil over shocks in the rear and Aldan coil over shocks in the front. As for stopping power, there's Wilwood Engineering six-piston caliper disc brakes in the front and four-piston Wilwood's on the rear, clamping on 16-inch rotors in the front and 13-inch discs in the caboose.
The '34 RPU has a Smeding Performance 427-cubic inch Ford 351 Windsor stroker V8 balanced and blueprinted engine that's topped with a Hilborn velocity stack EFI system. The engine produced 555.3-horsepower and 557.6 lb.-ft. of torque on the ninth and final pull on the engine dyno at Superior Automotive Engineering! A Tremec TKO-600 five-speed manual trans backs the mill.
Above: A custom fabricator at Steve's Auto Restorations rendered this version of the RPU before the SAR crew went to work handcrafting the roadster pickup cab.
My Dad instilled in my brother and me from a very young age a love of all things automotive. The best thing about the old car hobby for me is working on, driving, and enjoying vintage vehicles with my family and friends.
Above: From left to right that's my cousin Kenny stabilizing the tailshaft of the Tremec TKO-600 five-speed manual trans. Kenny used to race 1st generation Ford Broncos for Mickey Thompson Racing. He also has restored several Broncos as a hobby, so he knows his way around Ford hi-po mills. My Dad, Dan Brian Smith, Sr. is helping to steady the engine/trans as it's being moved into its new home in the '34 Ford RPU chassis. Dad's first car was a 1932 Ford three-window coupe that had a hopped-up '37 Ford flathead V8 engine backed by a three-speed manual Ford trans. Kenny's good buddy Ben is 'driving' the engine hoist. Ben has worked a number of years for Ford dealerships managing the parts counters. Notice all three of those great gentlemen are wearing smiles. A picture speaks a thousand words (get it?).
Dylan's 1974 Chevy Nova
Dylan recently purchased her 1974 Chevy Nova from the original owner. From all appearances, it looks to be a solid car. Her plan is to drive it daily to and from work and everywhere else she needs to go.
When Dylan purchased the Nova, the now former first owner provided a handwritten 'window sticker' of how the car was originally equipped. A screenshot of this document is just below. As the 'window sticker' indicates, the Nova is powered by a Turbo Thrift 250 L-6 engine (also known as a straight-six cylinder) and backed by a Turbo-Hydramatic three-speed automatic transmission. That's the same powertrain in the Nova to this day. Dylan bought a matching-number '74 Nova from the original owner that is a true survivor!
Above and below: The Nova's interior looks just fine for daily driving. Of course, if the owner wishes to recover the seats, there are a number of options on the Classic Industries' website.
Whatever Dylan wishes to do with her new Nova on down the road, we're guessing that she bought a wonderful vintage muscle car. The Light Gold Metallic machine is in the CI employee parking lot every workday, so it must be as reliable as many new vehicles. Before long, she's sure to collect handwritten notes pinned under the driver's side windshield wiper asking if the Nova's for sale. We can't wait to hear the stories.
Eric's 1973 Ford Mustang Grande
Eric's nickname is Batman, which suits him well, as he's a good guy and a great CI teammate. For 14 years, he was the proud owner of a 1973 Ford Mustang Grande that his parents found online and bought for him, after his Ford Fairmont went kaput.
The previous owner was an aircraft mechanic who rebuilt the engine. A 351-cubic inch Cleveland V8 with a three-speed automatic Ford FMX transmission, and a Ford nine-inch differential/rear axle equipped with an Auburn posi-traction pumpkin forms the basis for the Grande's healthy drivetrain.
Eric was the third owner of the Mustang. Before he and his folks finished the restoration, the Grande's original exterior hue was Metallic Copper. The Grande now wears a first-class Ford Medium Blue- and jet-black hood paint scheme that well accentuates the iconic Coke bottle silhouette of America's first pony car.
Markas' 1963 Chevy Nova 400 Series Station Wagon
Markas always thought a four-door classic American station wagon would be the perfect muscle machine for his family that included two younger kids. He figured that a Chevy Nova wagon offered more than enough room, but it wasn't a land barge like many of the '60's full-size station wagons. After a two-year hunt he found a one owner, seldom driven 1963 Chevy Nova 400 series station wagon that provided 10 years of reliable service for his young family from its straight-six powered and two-speed automatic trans Powerglide.
Coworkers at the car magazine publishing company where he worked convinced him to upgrade the drivetrain to a GM Performance 350 crate engine and a Gearstar 700R4 automatic transmission.
Paint N Place, in Placentia, CA lavished the Nova's exterior in a GM Satin Silver hue that's as deep as our summer days are long. There's 15-inch Rally wheels wrapped in BFGoodrich radials that give the Nova the desired understated sleeper appearance. Markas sourced new components for the front and rear suspension from CPP, in addition to the four-wheel CPP disc brakes conversion.
Here's what Markas has to say about being this Nova's careful car custodian for more than 28 years, "Over the years we enjoyed hundreds of hours driving our baby everywhere from the beach to the mountains. It's not for sale...ever."
Classic Industries Has the American Muscle Car Parts You're Seeking
We'd welcome the opportunity to help you find those must-have components for your American pony or muscle machine. You can shop online from the Classic Industries always growing and improving website. You can also enhance your search by having us mail you a parts catalog for the vehicle(s) that you own by clicking on the button below, finding your vehicle's catalog, and filling out the form. Happy shopping, building, driving, enjoying, and showing your pride and joy!
