Ford
If your Bronco is still stock, it’s time for an upgrade. At the 2025 Great Smoky Mountain Bronco® Stampede in Pigeon Forge, the LeConte Center was transformed into a playground for anyone who refuses to settle for factory specs. First-gen classics mingled with lifted Sasquatch Editions, chopped customs, and wild builds that looked like they might break a few laws—on purpose. Every aisle was stacked with vendors showing off suspension systems, armor, lighting, audio, and off-road gear—everything needed to turn a perfectly nice stock Bronco into a beast that dominates the trail and turns heads everywhere it rolls.
The 3rd Annual Great Smoky Mountain Bronco® Stampede thundered into Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, on August 15–16, 2025, and for two days straight the LeConte Center was wall-to-wall Broncos. Old, new, stock, modified, lifted—if it had a Bronco badge, it had a place in the herd.
In the late ’40s, car manufacturers looked for different ways to modernize their vehicles, and this strategy was evident when the Big Three introduced their ’49 line of passenger cars. For the most part, the pickups stayed the same, but many things changed for the better when the slabside approach went into a more modernized production process. Those looking for a new car said goodbye to fat fenders, slabsided doors and dated suspension that were the norm with previous models. Of those manufacturers, Ford was certainly the leader in this revolutionary new-car building technique, as it produced a stylish ’49 model range to bring in this new production process.
Mustang enthusiasts Tony and Tammy Seader of La Salle, Colorado, have always wanted a classic Mustang fastback, and about three years ago Tony found this ’66 Mustang 2+2 sitting on a used car lot.
At The Auto Builder, we’re always on the lookout for products made by real enthusiasts—folks who don’t just sell parts, they live them. That’s why we like the team at DIESELSITE. They don’t just talk the talk—they walk the walk. These guys live and breathe diesel, and they know firsthand the problems truck owners face. They take a hard look at factory OEM designs and make them better. Period.
In an unmarked garage in north central Oklahoma (parked next to an original ’70 Boss 429) sat the Econoline. After moving the dead varmint skeletons and wiping off many years of dust, Kirk’s rolling time capsule was ready to see daylight again. Since the 406 Ford FE big block was no longer “politically correct,” a modern powerplant was decided upon.
You’ve probably heard those Zen sayings that ask questions like, “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” or, “If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?” Those particular questions may be a little weighty for the scope of this article, but Ford’s new Vehicle Personalization plan has us asking a few questions of our own.
As the saying goes, “some guys have all the luck.” Out in the great state of New York, there is more going on than the Manhattan madness that most folks envision. There’s a distinct geographical separation between the urban density of Manhattan and the more rural confines of the area known as upstate New York. Most of us think of New York the city, where all the cars seem to be yellow, but in other parts of the state, driving is not a form of gladiatorial combat and there are more than a few hot rods around.
Michelle Holstien of Moreno Valley, California, grew up with a passion for cars. She took auto shop in high school for two years, and her dad, Bruce, helped her build a ’72 Ford Econoline van and a ’62 Econoline pickup.
But she really had her heart set on a Boss 302 Mustang. Just listen to her talk about the Boss: “For as long as I can remember, I have always had an interest in Bosses.
“Carroll Shelby has pulled the trick of the year. He’s combined Ford’s new drag champion 428 Cobra Jet engine with his complete road car, the Cobra G.T.500. Result? Cobra G.T.500KR…King of the Road.” Those words accompanied the full-page advertisements for the mid-year introduction of the ’68 Shelby Cobra G.T.500KR. The new model replaced the early ’68 G.T.500 and its more docile 428 V-8 engine.
