Retro Review: 1983-1984 Hurst Olds and 1985–1988 442
Oldsmobile had a long and distinguished history—and suffered a slow, painful death.
The process of mortification began in the early 1980s, when General Motors gutted the formerly independent engineering departments of each...
Classic Car Pros… and Cons
It's fun to own a "classic" (read, pre-modern) car. It can also be a hassle. Before you dive in, it's a good idea to know what you're in for, both good...
How Uncle Killed Pontiac
The French philosopher-economist Frederic Bastiat wrote about the unseen repercussions of government interfering with the market's natural progressions. In other words, what might have been. Perhaps the saddest four words in...
The Great Pumpkin
Today I took the Great Pumpkin out for a long-neglected drive.
My 1976 Trans-Am. Carousel Red (orange, really; same paint code used in 1969 on the GTO Judge). Polycast "Honeycomb" wheels (they...
The Old Trans-Am vs. The New Camaro
I've owned my '76 Trans-Am for more than 20 years. It used to be an incandescent gas hog relative to the new cars. It's not anymore.
I have driven several during the...
To Harass And Impose
It was a beautiful August Saturday night; high 70s, low humidity and mostly sunny. A local restaurant on the main strip of our town (honestly it's not that much of a...
Roadrunner with Richmond 6 Speed Transmission
A good friend of my father's has a modified Roadrunner with a 440. For performance and improved gas mileage he has a Richmond six speed (ROD). He has had it for...
Muscle Cars Were Slow . . . Part II
I wrote a column a couple years ago (see here) that mentioned an unspeakable truth: Relative to now - classic muscle cars were slow. Back in the day, when the typical passenger car...
Lawyer Problem
My first word was car and much of my spare money growing up went into my MR2 to make it look nicer and go faster. I was never much of a...
Retro Review: 1980-’81 Z28 Camaro
Arguably, the best second-generation Z28s were the first - and the last.
While the Z's sister car - Pontiac's Trans-Am - rose to the occasion several times during the lowest points of...