Late Model
The Time-Worn Look Is More Popular Than Ever Author Defining Patina in Street Rods Patina is defined as “a pleasing surface sheen on something that develops with age or frequent handling.” When that definition is applied to street rods, a patina rod can take on any number of variations. The exterior can be close to original, with age showing through the painted surface in the form of primer. Sometimes the faint appearance of rust can also classify a rod as having patina, provided the rust has not taken over the entire car. Many times these patina rods are built from those treasured “barn finds” that seem to be discovered by undaunted rodders scouring the country searching for the Holy Grail of hot rods. The Art and Trend of Patina One of the modern trends of the street rodding hobby has been to create that cherished patina look. The art of patina can be tricky. We have seen patina rods crafted in such a fashion that the naked eye cannot tell the difference between real and invented, the real old and the fabricated old. The Appeal of Patina Rods As with all aspects of rodding, each of us has a different definition of what makes a patina rod. There does seem to be one theme that runs through each variation, though: the owners have a lot of fun with their cars. For some, it is a chance to get back to the basics. For others, it is a chance to reverse the high-end trophy-hound trend.
Traditional hot rods are all the rage, and while it’s a great experience to run across a true barn-find hot rod, some folks would rather make their own with the perfect blend of colors, textures and just the right amount of sanding. It’s definitely a way to grab attention, as these so-called beaters steal the show from some of the finest rods around, but there’s no doubt lots of time and money is spent to obtain this look.
There are many ways to finish the bottom of any car. Whether you are building new, from the ground up or even detailing a rebuild that is not the off-the-frame type, you have options. And regardless of the extent of the refurbishing, you could even leave the underside in some shade of primer as it is easy to touch up, and the fenderwells and underside often become marked with use.
When news of the Show Car Buildoff began circulating, the team at DuPont Hot Hues saw it as an excellent opportunity to not only become involved, but also to provide a sound platform to help all of us better understand what is involved in painting a car. The color selection is a process in and of itself, but having a better understanding of the characteristics of the materials used, how to use them and what is involved in using them is helpful as well.
Magna Charger may not be a name immediately familiar to most Ford owners, but if your Camaro-owning buddy beat you out at the track during your last grudge match, Magna Charger may be the reason.
What Do You Do When You Want the Power and Performance of a Dodge Viper but Need the Utility and Space of a Quad-Cab Pickup? Well, you can buy a Dodge Viper and you can buy a Dodge Ram pickup, or you could buy a Dodge Ram SRT-10. The Ram SRT-10 is a limited-edition pickup that Dodge built as a regular cab from 2004 to 2006 and in a Quad Cab from 2005 to 2006. These trucks appear to be the result of some aggressive engineering, combining the racing pedigree of the Viper with a pickup truck, resulting in outstanding performance—and it works!
If you’ve ever imagined a time when you could simply pick up the phone or send an e-mail to General Motors and order the engine of your dreams, pull it out of a box delivered to your door and plug it into the car of your dreams, then stop dreaming as that time has come. While it’s not new information that GM Performance Parts provides an assortment of engines to choose from, it’s never been easier to select the one that is best for your budget and the intended purpose of your car.
Low in its architecture and functionally beautiful, the LS2 engine is an ideal replacement for a previous generation of Chevy powerplants. It offers good
performance, greatly improved economy and plenty of support from an industry leaders.
In this day and age, getting the most power out of your late-model truck or SUV is both difficult and easy. Now that we have covered ourselves technically, we will give you the reasoning behind this convoluted theory. New vehicles are hard to work on but easy to upgrade. See? That was easy.
When GM introduced the Gen III small block in the F-body, it rekindled a dying performance flame with its new-generation small block. While the Gen I small block actually kick-started the hobby and got it into gear, it’s the latest family of small-block engines that has grabbed the attention of enthusiasts everywhere—and for good reason.
