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    Pump It Up

    Small-block water pumps are common replacement parts and are available at prices that are nearly impossible to beat. However, while getting a brand-new water pump for cheap is great, sometimes you need to keep the one you have. If it’s date-coded, or maybe you’ve installed a chrome steel or an aluminum water pump. You aren’t going to get those at the parts counter. In cases like these, rebuilding a water pump is preferred to buying a new one. 

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    The Great 8 at Detroit Autorama 2025

    We were back in the Motor City for the 72nd Detroit Autorama, held from February 28 to March 2, 2025, at Huntington Place. Over 800 custom cars, trucks, and motorcycles filled the halls, showcasing everything from high-dollar, jaw-dropping builds to gritty, backyard-bred machines. But the biggest prize? The Don Ridler Memorial Award, aka the Ridler, handed out to the one car that stands above all others for design, craftsmanship, and attention to detail.

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    10 Minutes To Improved Towing

    Smart boat owners know that diesel-powered towing vehicles are wise investments. A diesel powerplant’s premium price is eventually recovered through better fuel economy and engine longevity, and nothing quite compares to the off-the-line towing pull provided by a late-model oil-burner.

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    THE RIGHT WAY

    A Young Installer Does a Painstaking Install to Show Us How to Upgrade With a SS Speed Grille

    Author

    Picture of Marshall Spiegel

    Marshall Spiegel

    Story & Photography

    The white ’04 Tundra, a well-converted, slightly lifted street truck, showed up in the driveway of installer Eric Leopold, owner of Diamond Star Racing in Atascadero, California. The customer had purchased a Street Scene (SS) Speed Grille and brought it to Eric to be installed. 

    Eric read the SS “screws-and-clips” installation instructions, and the job appeared to him to be the proverbial piece of cake. Then he got to the part that says, “If your grille has a chrome inlay on it, we highly recommend masking off and painting it black.” It didn’t say anything about white trucks with white stock grille appointments.

    There’s a right way and a wrong way to perform any installation, and installer Leopold demonstrated how to do it the “rightest” way possible. The accompanying photos show the highlights of his approach.

    Installer Eric Leopold, owner of Diamond Star Racing in Atascadero, California, unpacked the Street Scene (SS) Speed Grille slated for installation on this white ’04 Tundra.
    Eric test fit the bumper insert of the billet Speed Grille into the bumper opening.
    He then test fit the main grille insert over the stock grille and determined that the white stock grille was much too visible through the Speed Grille and must be painted black.
    The four-barrel carb has served the truck well, but the future is electronic.
    He then sprayed the stock grille with several coats of black.
    When the stock grille was thoroughly dry he reinstalled it (with the main Speed Grille insert in place over it) into the stock grille shell.
    With a combination of two-sided tape and cement, he secured the Toyota emblem in place.
    After securing the main Speed Grille insert into the stock grille shell with six clips across the top and six screws across the bottom (per the instructions), Leopold removed the masking tape from the grille shell.
    Leopold can’t resist a good look at his handiwork—a Speed Grille in place over a blackened and barely visible stock grille.
    With the main insert of the Speed Grille clipped in place over the blackened stock grille, Leopold installed the new grille assembly into the hood.
    He then reconnected the secondary hood release.
    Before continuing, Leopold took a moment to double-check the main insert installation.
    The lower Speed Grille insert was positioned.
    The lower insert was clipped permanently in place.
    This flawless installation is a credit to Leopold’s attention to detail.

    ARTICLE SOURCES

    Picture of Street Scene Equipment

    Street Scene Equipment

    365 McCormick Ave.
    Costa Mesa, CA 90262

    714/426-0590

    Diamond Star Racing

    5005 Traffic Way
    Units A & B
    Atascadero, CA 93422

    805/275-2360

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