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Time to face the facts: not every kid right out of school can go out and build a super clean shoebox or resto-mod muscle car. When money is tight, school loans stack up and big dollar auction houses are hyper-inflating the price of even a bare bones second generation Camaro, the environment for our young and willing hot rodders is a little dicey.
[2]Although you might call this a comparison of "new" and "old," notice the '57 is touting some late-model LT-1 power.
Sure, there’s plenty of project cars available, but getting the average barn find fleetside pickup or field-salvaged Mustang is gonna require quite a bit of time and money to get up and rolling.
But, that doesn’t mean that a decent mid-80s Firebird or a straight Fox body Mustang can’t be found for a bargain. In fact, quite the opposite. The smog-bogged, and tiny-cubed intermediates of the mid-1970s through the early 1990s are abundant and dropping in market value day by day.
While that might sound negative, it’s actually a blessing for those youthful ‘rodders wanting to enjoy the feel of a V8 hazing the rear wheels for pennies on the dollar. Despite a bird’s nest of 1980s wiring or plasticy interiors, the cars passed up 20 years ago, are today’s starter project cars.
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Although this wildly detailed '10 Camaro might not be your particular cup 'o tea - particularly as this blue-on-blue-on-blue pony car featured more airbrushed naked women than the back row of your local magazine rack, there's no possible denying the artisanship that went into this machine.
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Manufacturers featured plenty of late-model horsepower on display in the vendor's rows; be it this slammed and shaved Dodge Ram or this mean-from-the-factory Coyote-powered 'Stang.
That is why the Goodguys Rod & Custom Association [9] blew open the doors of their admittance restrictions for the Super Sunday Get-Togethers. The Sunday festivities welcome all domestic makes and models as well as all foreign cars running Detroit powerplants.
[10]The AutoCross was opened up to all Super Sunday Get-Together entries, providing a couple free laps to the enterprising late-model owner who wanted to put their modern muscle through the paces.
What that means is that vintage MGs running Chevrolet Blue Flame six-bangers, small block Ford-powered DeTomaso Panteras, Holden-based ’06 Pontiac GTOs, and brand-new, off-the-lot SRT8 Challengers are greeted as warmly as any ’32 deuces and ’57 Bel Airs.
The newly minted addition to the year-long Goodguys event schedule was attached to nearly two dozen shows, bringing in an added boost of attendance and fresh enthusiasm to the ever-popular series.
Kicking off the year in Scottsdale, Arizona at the third annual Spring Nationals, Sunday the 11th witnessed a parade of fourth and fifth generation Camaros, a smattering of new Mustangs and even a handful of late-model Mopars. We even stumbled across some G-Bodies and a lone GXP Bonneville.
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Camaro vs. Mustang; the eternal struggle. There was a sad six years where there was no competition for the 'Stang to fight against, but strong contenders like this burnt orange fourth generation SS had plenty of fight left in it.
While modern pickup trucks still haven’t been given the greenlight, we’re certain as the Super Sunday Get-Togethers continue to grow, custom trucks, slammed SUVs, and neo-belly-dragging “hellaflush” customs will begin to fill the rows alongside bagged Impalas and the occasional donk.
[15]The new Challenger - although not nearly the performer as say, the lighter GT 'Stangs or more aftermarket-friendly Camaro - is still a gorgeous machine.
Yeah, these terms might scare the bejeezus out of some of you, but it’s all hot rodding, and Goodguys gets it. Hot rodding – in all of its various forms – needs to be preserved and national events like the Spring Nationals are where they’ll be protected.
New to the Goodguys event roster has been one of its most successful additions, the Goodguys AutoCross.
The cordoned-off course of twists and turns is almost tailor-fit for the Super Sunday events, as so many modern muscle cars can do it all: handle and haul ass.
The combination of throttle-on-the-fly and cutting-edge road manners and management make carving the corners a cinch for many late-model GT Mustangs and Super Sport Camaros. These latter-day street machines receive a free pass around the track with their Sunday admission, encouraging newcomers to take their ride for a lap and hopefully catch the bug.
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OK, none of these might be exactly what you'd like to expect at a massive, national car show, but hey, everybody's welcome to join in the fun, and that's what hot rodding is all about.
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