BOOSTED BIRD
April 8, 2024
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NASH PASSION
Itās often been said that beauty is in the eye of the beholderāand when you consider the total transformation of this ā51 Nash Rambler, this old saying proves to be true once again. After all, the starting point was anything but beautiful, and more to the point, some people remember these Nash wagons as downright ugly. But now the right mixture of elements has transformed this unusual and outstanding example, giving it an all-new character thatās easy to appreciate.
BUDDYāS BUILD
They say donāt mess with it if it isnāt broken. This straightforward build of a 2006 Honda Ridgeline RTL puts that advice into practice. Hondaās foray into the truck realm seems to have tapped into something big: that some people really want their truck to be more like a big, spacious car. Those people, for whatever reason, like the idea of driving a truck, but deep down they prefer something more comfortable and more refined. That is exactly what the Honda Ridgeline delivers.
So when Buddy Rice, Honda and Fesler Built started talking about customizing a Ridgeline, the conversation didnāt involve an all-out overhaul. Instead the team wanted to rely on the designed-in features that have made the Ridgeline so popular.
All Mocked Up
When building a street rod, unless you are building it to look like the day it rolled off the showroom floor, you find yourself constantly hiding whatever you can, wherever you can. One area that usually ends up hiding more items than was ever intended is the dashboard.
The dash is the one area that lives up to the old saying, ā10 pounds of stuff in a 5-pound bag,ā which generally carries with it a whole set of challenges and/or problems. When it comes to the ā33-ā34 Ford, conditions are worse than normal, as thereās practically no space behind or under the dash. By the time you place your gauges and an A/C unit, there is little room left for much else, including a glovebox. When your needs are such that you require a certain amount of equipment behind the dash, most of the time the answer to your dilemma is a smooth dash.
A VISIT WITH THE LOBECKS
Youāve heard the saying, āThey went to different schools together.ā Well, Ginny and Barry Lobeck did just that. In the 1970s, street rodding was well into its ārebirth,ā and mail-order business was just a fledgling industry. In southern Ohio, a young Barry Lobeck was busy finishing a ā65 Riviera. Slammed
DINNER WITH BARRY
Originally published in the November 2000 issue of Street Rod Builder, this candid conversation with legendary hot rod builder Barry Lobeck captures the humor, honesty and unmistakable personality behind some of the industryās most influential creations. More than 25 years later, Lobeckās thoughts on traditional styling, proper stance and the
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: DYNAMAT XTREME RACE BOND
Available exclusively through SRI Performance, Race Bond is a fast-bonding crash-repair material designed to help crews make strong, durable trackside repairs and get damaged race cars back into the action. It is quick, versatile, and built to survive the heat, vibration, and punishment that would make ordinary repair tape wave
TRI-FIVE FEVER TAKES OVER BOWLING GREEN
For three days, Bowling Green, Kentucky, became the center of the Tri-Five Chevy universe as the 11th Annual Tri-Five Nationals rolled into Beech Bend Raceway Park, August 13ā15, 2026.
Presented by Classic Performance Products, the annual gathering brought together an incredible assortment of 1955, 1956, and 1957 Chevrolets from
THE NATS EXPERIENCE
There are car shows, and then thereās the Nats. If youāve been there, you know exactly what we mean. For four days, the Kentucky Exposition Center becomes its own hot rod cityāmore than 10,000 street rods, customs, classics, muscle cars, and trucks filling seemingly every available piece of pavement, with
Standout Builds from the 2026 NSRA Street Rod Nationals Builders’ Showcase
The 57th Annual NSRA Street Rod Nationals rolled into the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Kentucky, August 6ā9, 2026, once again bringing together more than 10,000 street rods, customs, classics, muscle cars, and trucks for four days of horsepower, craftsmanship, and everything that makes this hobby great.
NEW PRODUCT ROUND-UP AT THE NSRA NATS
Thereās always something new to discover at the NSRA Street Rod Nationals, and the 57th Annual gathering in Louisville was no exception. From August 6ā9, 2026, the Kentucky Exposition Center was packed with thousands of street rods, customs, trucks, muscle cars, and the builders and manufacturers who keep the hobby
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Braille Battery ā Drop the Weight. Keep the Power.
Every hot rod builder obsesses over horsepower, suspension geometry, and shaving pounds wherever possible. Yet one of the easiest ways to lose dead weight while improving reliability often gets overlookedāthe battery. That’s where Braille Battery comes in.
THE BIG ONE
Extreme weather temperatures and high gasoline prices didnāt keep participants from attending the Street Rod Nationals in Louisville, Kentucky, on the weekend of August 3-6, 2006. Street rods from all over the country drove to the Street Rod Mecca, and all 11,664 rods and participants were in for a pleasant
The Trucks of Goodguys Columbus 2026
The Goodguys Summit Racing Nationals in Columbus, Ohio, has long been a gathering place for some of the finest hot rods, muscle cars, and customs in the country. While the event may not be dedicated specifically to trucks, the pickup presence continues to grow, and the 2026 show proved that
