CLUNKBUCKET

Mike Streets could have crammed one of many and readily available Ford V8 mills into the engine bay of his 1974 Pinto Wagon. Instead he chose to transplant a 2.3-liter single overhead cam turbocharged four-banger from a 1988 Ford Thunderbird in place of the aspirated stocker. Why? “A V8 would have been too easy”, said Mike – who is a former SCCA Pinto road racer and current owner of the now legendary Boss Pinto. Mike drives this wagon-in-progress whenever possible, running the boost at around 9 or 10 psi through the stock turbo for road going amusement. What you see here is only the beginning, or perhaps the late middle of an ongoing project that will eventually result in the turbocharged Boss Pinto panel wagon Ford never made. Read the rest of this entry »

We first encountered this Ferrari in true Clunkbucket fashion. The owner, Scott Isquick of Pepper Pike, Ohio, was having a little trouble getting it started outside the post-show banquet at the 2008 Greenwich Concours. Finally, the 4.0 liter V12 caught, interrupting the sharp mechanical shriek of the starter. The ‘67 motored off into the Connecticut darkness, leaving a dark hole where its rather inexplicable aura — something beyond mere Ferrari-ness — had held us rapt. The drive back to Manhattan in our borrowed ‘05 Rolls-Royce Phantom felt a little less special after the encounter with the one-of-99 330 GTS. In fact, we recall positing at the time that we’d gladly trade three of the Anglo-Teutonic brutes for that particular Italian droptop.

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From the I could have been a contender department comes this bone stock all-original survivor 1978 Fiat 128 Sport from the 2010 Concours d’Lemons. The plucky Fiat did not take home a prize of any kind. It stands as the first of a few coming contraptions that for reasons not understood went home sans trophy. Owner Steve has driven the Fiat occasionally and on the weekends since acquiring the dust-covered compact several years ago from a man with a possible top secret past. This is the first time Steve took the Fiat to any sort of show, and the farthest the Fiat had ever gone from its Santa Clara, California home. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s that time of summer when the diffuse light and crisp sea air of the Monterey, California will play host to the viewing of the world’s finest automobiles pristine Mercury Bobcats and Chevrolet Citations. The seersucker and old-fashioned sipping bunch down at Pebble Beach could suffer an aneurysm if they ventured up the road from their storied event to the collection of cars and contraptions known as the Concours d’Lemons. A new feature for the second annual Monterey running of the event is the added enjoyment of a swap meet, or autojumble for the tweed cap and Triumph TR7 crowd. Minivans and the SUV are featured vehicles this time around. At last you no longer have to wonder where to go on August 14th in that mint 1990 Pontiac Trans Sport while dressed in full Lieutenant Commander Worf Klingon regalia. Stuff the cargo compartments full of Citroën 2CV parts and head to Toro Park in Monterey with great dispatch.

The Concours d’Lemons is scheduled for August 14th, 2010 at Toro Regional Park in Monterey. For more information head over to the Concours d’Lemons web site.

This is not the the first time for rear engine air-cooled Czechoslovakian automobiles and contraptions around here. First there was the Tatra. For motoring across the vast snow-covered plains of Mother Russia, a purpose-built Tatra snowmobile. Ham and eggs for breakfast near Chinatown in Los Angeles? Time for yet another, modern Tatra 603. This is, however, a first for authentic Czech goulash and Tatra-shaped cookies in celebration of Tatra. With the exception of the Tatra snowmobile, the aforementioned Tatras and more were in attendance at a party in honor of Los Angeles Tatra historians and restorers Paul Greenstein and Dydia DeLyser taking the coveted New York Times Collectible Car of the Year Contest win with the Tatra – their gorgeous 1941 Tatra T87. The Blue Star Cafe played host to the party, served up the authentic Czech food, a T87 shaped cake, a Tatra motorcycle and sidecar that never was, and saw the surprise appearance of a Tatraplan. The four-cylinder beauty motored down from Hrad Von Greenstein under its own power for the big celebration by burning a combination of antique gasoline and distilled spiders. Fun was had by all.

A special thanks to Paul, Dydia, Harpo the wonder dog, the mighty Tatra T87, and the Blue Star Cafe for making all this fun possible.

While far saltier dry lake cousin Bonneville gets most of the glory, it was in the dusty Southern California high desert where drag and dry lake racing got going on a grass roots level. Miscreants, racers, nerds, and tough guys alike motored out from Los Angeles and Orange County to the high desert in hopped-up gow jobs and jalopies. The goal was to run flat out in a unlimited contest of speed and on-the-spot innovation. The trip out from the Los Angeles basin to the dry lake beds was a challenge in itself. Over one hundred miles in each direction without modern convenience was no easy drive for cars powered by junk and recycled speed equipment from circle track cars, or whatever else they could scrounge up.

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It’s time to face facts. You need more Van Nuys in your life. A lot more. Every second Wednesday of the month means that after a twenty-something year hiatus, the Van Nuys Cruise Night is back in the San Fernando Valley. The former orange growing region experienced an influx of homes and people after WWII, to the point that by 1960 over one million people were living in The Valley. We have it on good authority from a former resident that cruising on Van Nuys Boulevard was already well underway by the early fifties. By the seventies things had gotten to the point that Hollywood took notice, and produced Corvette Summer – some of which was filmed on Van Nuys Boulevard. A few years after that cinematic screen gem wowed the globe, things got a little too ugly for Van Nuys residents and merchants to deal with. The LAPD shut the the whole cat and mouse game down in the early eighties by blocking off the streets. A kinder, gentler Van Nuys Cruise Night is now back with police and merchant approval. While we did see a Plymouth or two, a Dodge Daytona, and a ham sangwich at the Four ‘N 20 Grill & Bakery, we did not experience any negative waves whatsoever at this cruise night back in April. In an action would surely make The Dude unhappy, the only people who didn’t welcome the cruisers seemed to be Ralphs supermarket. The Dude minds. This aggression that will not stand, Man.

More: Van Nuys Cruising Association

Skid Plate racing rules are straightforward. Any 1980 or newer four or six-banger front wheel drive car with a 90-inch or longer wheelbase is OK. No secret reinforcements or buttressing allowed. No added weight. Hitting the buffet a few times to add weight to the driver before the race is OK. A Skid Plate Race car must be stock at its core. If you are going to run a V6, two of its cylinders must be disabled. The key to Skid Plate racing are the rear wheels, and absence of rear tires. Mild steel flat plates welded onto stock rear steel wheels are the only racing-spec part. The skid plates are available from the House of Irwindale, and cannot be modified. Auto Soccer and Demo Derby Master of Mayhem Robert Rice created and tested the rear skid plate wheels for use in this unique to Irwindale style of 1/3 mile banked oval motor racing. Bolt the rear skid plates on, attach the safety chains, pull up the parking brake, and it’s time to go racing! Read the rest of this entry »