Memory Lane: 1984-1986 Mustang SVO
Trying to keep the performance flame flickering in the late '70s was no easy task. Powerful V-8s had been all but outlawed, victims of stifling insurance costs and ever-stricter emissions laws. The pitiful handful that still remained in production after 1974 had been kneecapped to the point that the output of their gelded V-8s barely surpassed what economy car sixes were producing. Ford's once-proud 302 V-8, for instance, had been reduced to a 120 horsepower embarrassment by 1976 - and the downsized, Pinto-ish Mustang II in full free-fall.While it would have been no problem, engineering-wise, to beef up the Mustang II's V-8 engine to respectable levels, the two-fisted stranglehold of OPEC and the EPA made that strategy a non-starter.
12 Great Gearhead Gift Ideas - Christmas 2008
Buying gifts for a gearhead is easy - if you're a gearhead yourself. But what if you have no clue what to buy for your four-wheel-minded (or two-wheel-minded) significant other?That's where a cheat sheet comes in handy!
Here's a list of 12 possible gift ideas ranging in price from under $20 to around $150 or so that ought to at least get you pointed in the right direction:
New SUV Review: 2008 GMC Acadia
GMC is GM's upscale SUV and truck division - up a notch from Chevy, not quite as high-end as Cadillac.And up until now, it has only sold trucks - and truck-based SUVs.
Of course, not everyone needs or wants a truck - or even truck-based SUV, for that matter. Realizing this, GM decided to broaden GMC's product portfolio by adding the new Acadia to the lineup.
The Death Of The Old Car Hobby
Will it be economically impossible (or just too complicated) to maintain/restore late model cars 25-plus years down the road?
Consider it:
Pre-computer/pre-emissions cars are pretty basic machines. The entire engine in a '60s or '70s-era car, for example, can typically be rebuilt to as-new condition for about $2,000. Or less. And it's a task that can be handled by an Average Joe backyard mechanic type. No special skills or training are needed.
