Happy 2010! It’s a new year, so it’s time to make a leap on some muscle car goals! Here are the top 7 things I would like to see/do/buy, and all come right back to my love for my old ’64 Chevelle (the car that started The MuscleCar Place)!
1) Drive the 2010 Hot Rod Power Tour
If you’ve never been on this week long road trip, now is the time! It’s 7 days of driving, eating, driving, talking cars with old and new friends, and driving. It launches in early June at the Iowa Speedway (Iowa’s NASCAR track)!
2) Attend the 2010 SEMA Show
The annual SEMA Show in November is to the aftermarket and restoration industry what the Detroit Auto Show is to the new car industry…..but is likely more fun (it’s in Vegas). It’s not open to the public, though, so you must be in industry to attend.
3) Go to Bobby Ore’s Stunt Driver School
Has there ever been a kid that didn’t want to park his Charger in a box while starting at 70mph using nothing but the e-brake? Of course not! Bobby Ore is one of the best, and has taught most of the stunt drivers that you see in every movie. (He’s also the master of “Skiiing” a car on two wheels!)
4) Attend Bob Bondurant Racing School
Racing school is where you learn to road race like a professional – and you’ll probably learn that you’re nowhere near as good a driver as you thought you were (yet). Bondurant’s school is one of the golden standards in the industry and has taught many of the drivers you watch on Sunday’s! Plus, who doesn’t want to wheel a new Corvette all day long?
5) Rebuild the 350 in the Chevelle (again)
The 350 in my Chevelle runs strong …..and is using oil like it’s free. It was completely rebuilt just a little over a year ago, but we ran into some piston ring problems somewhere along the way. This will be the first project completed this year – as soon as the garage thaws out.
6) Install the FAST EZ-EFI System on the ’64 Chevelle
Since I like to drive my car a lot, a fuel injection system is a no brainier when it comes to things like easy starting and fuel efficiency. FAST now has a system that is a bolt on all-in-one package with a computer that learns your engine and (in tests) gets it running as strong as it ever was with a tuned carb – but with much greater efficiency. No tuning or laptop required – just plug and play. (Hot Rod Magazine put this setup on a ’65 Chevelle with a 327 and a 4-Speed….and mileage jumped from 14mpg up to near 20mpg – all without giving up horsepower!)
7) Install a Keisler Perfect-Fit 5-Speed on the ’64 Chevelle
This goes along with Goal #6 (and Goal #1) I like to drive my car a lot…..but spending another week on the road at 80 mph turning 4000 RPM sounds fairly un-fun. An overdrive is the key, and Keisler’s Perfect-Fit requires no modification to your floors for fitment. What’s better is that you’ll end up with a modern and tight TKO transmission with a rail shifter, so the driving experience of the car will get nothing but better!
How about you? What are your goals? What do you want to do? Where do you want to go? Maybe this will be the year you drive that ’70 Cuda across the country!
Here’s wishing you the best in 2010. Looking forward to hearing your stories!
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-Robert Kibbe
TheMuscleCarPlace.com – Great Muscle Cars for Sale