Boost in a Box
May 31, 2024
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
THE GRILLEMEISTER
Those who longed for their engines to look as they did back in the old days of multiple-carb setups were out of luck. Cool as they were to look at, there are lots of reasons why the multi-carb setup fell out of favor, and most of them had to do with the fact that they were a bear to sync. The advent of the four-barrel carb was the death for these systems, though the purists among us prayed for a breakthrough. Thanks to Ken Farrell and his company, Retro Tek, those prayers have been answered. Farrell started off converting old mechanical fuel injection systems (Hilborn & Enderle) when the first aftermarket EFI systems became available. His new system, which uses the latest in EFI mated together with the classic Stromburg 97 design, came about when Farrell saw that there was interest in the benefits of EFI, but he also knew that they were lacking in the looks department. The idea was simple take the best aspects of both and add them together.
ENGINE BAY ART FORM
The goal of many builders in today’s high-class, high-dollar world of rodding is to develop new trends to help keep the hobby fresh with new ideas. For some time, the focus has been on the bigger picture—the external appearance of a vehicle. Now builders are focusing a lot more on the details and areas such as the engine compartment, as they become a canvas on which to display the latest and slickest art form.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
In the summer of 1977, a young couple expecting a son decided to purchase a new family vehicle, one that would provide ample room, safety and the ability to handle their love of camping and the outdoors. After deciding on a Chevrolet, the couple headed out and purchased a new ’78 two-wheel-drive Blazer from a dealer in Knoxville, Tennessee. Optioned out nicely for the time, the Blazer was equipped with A/C, a 400-inch small block, an automatic transmission, power disc brakes and a factory tach-equipped instrument cluster.
After driving the Blazer for several years, the couple decided to present it to their son, Travis Griffin, as a 16th birthday present. He drove the Blazer to and from high school, and then was given the opportunity to have the Blazer painted for graduation.
Spotlighter
BLACKBIRD
October 30, 2025
No Comments
We all have our own passions and preferences in whatever we do: food, music, dress, sports and cars. And passions can run high, particularly with cars. For some it may be Fords, for others Mopars, and there’s the whole broad
NEWMAD
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Automobiles and customizing developed simultaneously. There have always been individuals who had a need, a persistent yearning, to personalize their belongings. Some people add their initials to clothing or suitcases, some homeowners paint and landscape their dwellings differently than their
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix LED Digital Gauge Panel for ’73–’87 Chevy/GMC Trucks
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Upgrade your square-body dash game with the ultimate blend of modern precision and classic truck aesthetics. If your ride is a ’73-’87 Chevy or GMC and you’re ready to swap out that outdated cluster, this digital panel means business.
Honoring Steve Frisbie: A Legend in Metal and Vision
October 24, 2025
No Comments
The custom car world has lost one of its true visionaries. Steve Frisbie, founder of Steve’s Auto Restorations in Portland, Oregon, passed away on Saturday, October 18, 2025, surrounded by loved ones in his home. His departure leaves a profound
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix Analog Gauge Panel for Squarebody GM Trucks (1973–1987)
October 20, 2025
No Comments
Bring your Squarebody’s dash into the modern era with the Intellitronix Analog Replacement Gauge Panel (AP6004) — a killer upgrade that blends classic analog style with next-gen performance and precision.
C10 Nationals 2025: Nashville Sets Record-Breaking Truck Celebration
October 16, 2025
No Comments
The 5th annual Classic Parts of America C10 Nationals® presented by Chevrolet Performance roared into Nashville last weekend, and 2025 set new all-time records! With 1,400 trucks on display, this was two days of pure, non-stop excitement for C10 fans
Product Spotlight: Bill Mitchell Products Aluminum LS Engine Block
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’re building an LS engine meant to dominate the strip, carve canyon roads, or simply crush the scales on any dyno, the BMP‑086515 Aluminum LS Engine Block is your ticket. Built from high-strength 357T6 aluminum alloy, it weighs a
Product Spotlight: Pyramid Optimized Design Sequential Aurora Taillight for 1964½–1966 Mustang
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’ve ever followed a classic Mustang at night, you know the taillights were never its strong suit. Pyramid Optimized Design decided to fix that—with style. The Sequential Aurora Taillight is a modern LED retrofit that finally gives your early
Product Spotlight: DIESELSITE 17-Row COOLERMAX Transmission Cooler
October 2, 2025
No Comments
Rated at a monster 59,000 BTUs, this cooler doesn’t just compete—it sets the bar. Standard factory units limp along at 15k–30k BTU. Even most “heavy-duty” aftermarket coolers top out well below the COOLERMAX’s rating. That extra capacity can mean the
Ford Fever in the Smokies
September 30, 2025
No Comments
Every September, the Smoky Mountains turn Ford blue when the F-100 Supernationals takes over Sevierville, Tennessee. This isn’t just a truck show—it’s the largest gathering of classic Ford haulers on the planet, and it’s been pulling fans in for decades.
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
PRISTINE PRETENDERS
August 29, 2024
FROM RAW TO REALITY
July 16, 2023
Remembering Chris Raschke: A Life Engineered for Speed
August 6, 2025
CAMARO FAVORITE
First-generation Camaros are all the rage these days, and no wonder. With so many ways to bring them into a new era, they make great selections. So, while the big-block power and a five-speed trans served owner Gary Johnson well over the years, rocketing gas prices led him to a more efficient LS2 option.
PLYMOUTH ROCKS!
For the most part, automotive enthusiasts tend to display a degree of loyalty to their brand of choice. It’s rare to find someone who has equal parts Ford and Chevy in the garage; most owners tend to favor one or the other. Mopar fans, though, typically take the concept of brand loyalty to a whole new level. Those who don’t own Mopars tend to think of Mopar owners as something of a cult. Is it a fair comparison? Well, the verdict could go either way, but we can think of worse obsessions to have.
R-CODE Refined
Neal Hensl is a true muscle car enthusiast. Over the years he’s owned plenty of them, including Novas, Chevelles, Corvettes and a Fairlane. Not long ago, he picked up a ’68 Mustang fastback, and it wasn’t just any fastback—it was a rare R-code.
Spotlighter
BLACKBIRD
October 30, 2025
No Comments
We all have our own passions and preferences in whatever we do: food, music, dress, sports and cars. And passions can run high, particularly with cars. For some it may be Fords, for others Mopars, and there’s the whole broad spectrum of General Motors products—Cadillacs, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs and Chevys,
NEWMAD
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Automobiles and customizing developed simultaneously. There have always been individuals who had a need, a persistent yearning, to personalize their belongings. Some people add their initials to clothing or suitcases, some homeowners paint and landscape their dwellings differently than their neighbors, and some auto enthusiasts customize their automobiles to stand
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix LED Digital Gauge Panel for ’73–’87 Chevy/GMC Trucks
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Upgrade your square-body dash game with the ultimate blend of modern precision and classic truck aesthetics. If your ride is a ’73-’87 Chevy or GMC and you’re ready to swap out that outdated cluster, this digital panel means business.
Honoring Steve Frisbie: A Legend in Metal and Vision
October 24, 2025
No Comments
The custom car world has lost one of its true visionaries. Steve Frisbie, founder of Steve’s Auto Restorations in Portland, Oregon, passed away on Saturday, October 18, 2025, surrounded by loved ones in his home. His departure leaves a profound void in the restoration and hot-rod community, yet the imprint
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix Analog Gauge Panel for Squarebody GM Trucks (1973–1987)
October 20, 2025
No Comments
Bring your Squarebody’s dash into the modern era with the Intellitronix Analog Replacement Gauge Panel (AP6004) — a killer upgrade that blends classic analog style with next-gen performance and precision.
C10 Nationals 2025: Nashville Sets Record-Breaking Truck Celebration
October 16, 2025
No Comments
The 5th annual Classic Parts of America C10 Nationals® presented by Chevrolet Performance roared into Nashville last weekend, and 2025 set new all-time records! With 1,400 trucks on display, this was two days of pure, non-stop excitement for C10 fans from across the country. From garage-built classics to jaw-dropping pro-level
Product Spotlight: Bill Mitchell Products Aluminum LS Engine Block
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’re building an LS engine meant to dominate the strip, carve canyon roads, or simply crush the scales on any dyno, the BMP‑086515 Aluminum LS Engine Block is your ticket. Built from high-strength 357T6 aluminum alloy, it weighs a mere 135 lbs with caps and sleeves, giving you a
Product Spotlight: Pyramid Optimized Design Sequential Aurora Taillight for 1964½–1966 Mustang
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’ve ever followed a classic Mustang at night, you know the taillights were never its strong suit. Pyramid Optimized Design decided to fix that—with style. The Sequential Aurora Taillight is a modern LED retrofit that finally gives your early Mustang the bright, even illumination it always deserved—no hot spots,
Product Spotlight: DIESELSITE 17-Row COOLERMAX Transmission Cooler
October 2, 2025
No Comments
Rated at a monster 59,000 BTUs, this cooler doesn’t just compete—it sets the bar. Standard factory units limp along at 15k–30k BTU. Even most “heavy-duty” aftermarket coolers top out well below the COOLERMAX’s rating. That extra capacity can mean the difference between cruising safely at 180° or cooking at 240°.
Ford Fever in the Smokies
September 30, 2025
No Comments
Every September, the Smoky Mountains turn Ford blue when the F-100 Supernationals takes over Sevierville, Tennessee. This isn’t just a truck show—it’s the largest gathering of classic Ford haulers on the planet, and it’s been pulling fans in for decades. If you’ve never been, imagine rows of F-series as far
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
CIMTEX RODS SUPER CAMEO: PART 10
In part nine of our Cimtex Rods Super Cameo Buildup Series, we covered the installation of the Classic Industries Parts and Accessories reproduction ’55-’59 Chevrolet/GMC lower door hinge panels, doorsill rocker panels, upper and lower door hinges, new right- and left-side front floor pans, inner and outer lower cab patch panels, and right- and left-side truck cab supports. To put it in a nutshell, the crew at Cimtex Rods in Jarrell, Texas, basically rebuilt the whole bottom end of our Super Cameo ’56 Chevrolet big window truck cab from stem to stern. Now, with a rock-solid truck cab firmly bolted onto our Cameo’s highly modified C4 Corvette-suspended truck chassis, we closed with the promise that we would be installing a new set of Dynacorn International Inc. ’55-’59 Chevrolet/GMC reproduction truck doors, followed by angle-chopping the top on our ’56 big-window a total of 3-1/2 inches in the front and 3 inches in the rear. Unfortunately, things didn’t exactly go according to plan.
12-BOLT ALTERNATIVE
Back in the ’80s (40-some years ago, if you can believe it has been that long already), it was fairly easy to find a 12-bolt rearend for under your muscle car. The strength and presence can’t be denied, but finding one today is so much more difficult and expensive that most people don’t even bother looking anymore. This is part of the reason why so many 9-inch Ford rearends have been put under so many GM cars.
THE GRILLEMEISTER
Those who longed for their engines to look as they did back in the old days of multiple-carb setups were out of luck. Cool as they were to look at, there are lots of reasons why the multi-carb setup fell out of favor, and most of them had to do with the fact that they were a bear to sync. The advent of the four-barrel carb was the death for these systems, though the purists among us prayed for a breakthrough. Thanks to Ken Farrell and his company, Retro Tek, those prayers have been answered. Farrell started off converting old mechanical fuel injection systems (Hilborn & Enderle) when the first aftermarket EFI systems became available. His new system, which uses the latest in EFI mated together with the classic Stromburg 97 design, came about when Farrell saw that there was interest in the benefits of EFI, but he also knew that they were lacking in the looks department. The idea was simple take the best aspects of both and add them together.
Spotlighter
BLACKBIRD
October 30, 2025
No Comments
We all have our own passions and preferences in whatever we do: food, music, dress, sports and cars. And passions can run high, particularly with cars. For some it may be Fords, for others Mopars, and there’s the whole broad spectrum of General Motors products—Cadillacs, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs and Chevys,
NEWMAD
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Automobiles and customizing developed simultaneously. There have always been individuals who had a need, a persistent yearning, to personalize their belongings. Some people add their initials to clothing or suitcases, some homeowners paint and landscape their dwellings differently than their neighbors, and some auto enthusiasts customize their automobiles to stand
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix LED Digital Gauge Panel for ’73–’87 Chevy/GMC Trucks
October 28, 2025
No Comments
Upgrade your square-body dash game with the ultimate blend of modern precision and classic truck aesthetics. If your ride is a ’73-’87 Chevy or GMC and you’re ready to swap out that outdated cluster, this digital panel means business.
Honoring Steve Frisbie: A Legend in Metal and Vision
October 24, 2025
No Comments
The custom car world has lost one of its true visionaries. Steve Frisbie, founder of Steve’s Auto Restorations in Portland, Oregon, passed away on Saturday, October 18, 2025, surrounded by loved ones in his home. His departure leaves a profound void in the restoration and hot-rod community, yet the imprint
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: Intellitronix Analog Gauge Panel for Squarebody GM Trucks (1973–1987)
October 20, 2025
No Comments
Bring your Squarebody’s dash into the modern era with the Intellitronix Analog Replacement Gauge Panel (AP6004) — a killer upgrade that blends classic analog style with next-gen performance and precision.
C10 Nationals 2025: Nashville Sets Record-Breaking Truck Celebration
October 16, 2025
No Comments
The 5th annual Classic Parts of America C10 Nationals® presented by Chevrolet Performance roared into Nashville last weekend, and 2025 set new all-time records! With 1,400 trucks on display, this was two days of pure, non-stop excitement for C10 fans from across the country. From garage-built classics to jaw-dropping pro-level
Product Spotlight: Bill Mitchell Products Aluminum LS Engine Block
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’re building an LS engine meant to dominate the strip, carve canyon roads, or simply crush the scales on any dyno, the BMP‑086515 Aluminum LS Engine Block is your ticket. Built from high-strength 357T6 aluminum alloy, it weighs a mere 135 lbs with caps and sleeves, giving you a
Product Spotlight: Pyramid Optimized Design Sequential Aurora Taillight for 1964½–1966 Mustang
October 16, 2025
No Comments
If you’ve ever followed a classic Mustang at night, you know the taillights were never its strong suit. Pyramid Optimized Design decided to fix that—with style. The Sequential Aurora Taillight is a modern LED retrofit that finally gives your early Mustang the bright, even illumination it always deserved—no hot spots,
Product Spotlight: DIESELSITE 17-Row COOLERMAX Transmission Cooler
October 2, 2025
No Comments
Rated at a monster 59,000 BTUs, this cooler doesn’t just compete—it sets the bar. Standard factory units limp along at 15k–30k BTU. Even most “heavy-duty” aftermarket coolers top out well below the COOLERMAX’s rating. That extra capacity can mean the difference between cruising safely at 180° or cooking at 240°.
Ford Fever in the Smokies
September 30, 2025
No Comments
Every September, the Smoky Mountains turn Ford blue when the F-100 Supernationals takes over Sevierville, Tennessee. This isn’t just a truck show—it’s the largest gathering of classic Ford haulers on the planet, and it’s been pulling fans in for decades. If you’ve never been, imagine rows of F-series as far
