TMCP #624: SEMA 2025 Product Preview: Blaine Burnett on Ridetech’s All New Pro-Touring Chevelle (and GM A-Body) Replacement Chassis!
If you’ve ever dreamed of giving your classic A-body the precision handling of a modern performance car—this week’s MuscleCar Place episode is for you. Rob sits down with Blane Burnett of RideTech to dive into the all-new MOMENTUM Series Chassis, a complete foundation engineered for 1964–1972 GM A-bodies like the Chevelle, Tempest, Cutlass, and Skylark. Built on RideTech’s legacy of innovation—now strengthened through its partnership with Fox Factory Holding Corp—the MOMENTUM Series delivers modern geometry, rigidity, and customization in a true plug-and-play solution. Even better, a full chassis comes in at an incredibly competitive $20,000–$30,000, putting high-end engineering within reach for serious builders.
Adding even more credibility to the project, long-time Optima Ultimate Street Car competitor Tom Farrington has partnered with RideTech, trusting the new chassis under his ’66 Chevelle. Farrington’s proven record as a multi-event winner in the OUSCI series speaks volumes about RideTech’s confidence and craftsmanship. Tune in to hear Blane break down the engineering, options, and vision behind the MOMENTUM Series—and see it in action at RideTech.com or YouTube.com/@RideTechTV.
TMCP 623: Don Abenante – Fabricator to YouTube Star – Building And Driving a 1970 Chevelle From Rhode Island To Vegas For SEMA 2025!
Don Abenante of Retro Fabworks isn’t your average YouTube builder — his story blends Hollywood grit, family legacy, and pure horsepower. After early stints on Below Deck, Horsepower Wars, and Netflix’s Resurrected Rides, Don found his true calling behind the welder instead of the camera, documenting every cut and weld for his growing audience.
His current project is deeply personal: a 1970 Chevelle he first planned to build with his late father. That dream paused for years but never died — and now it’s roaring back to life. Don’s transforming the Chevelle into a Ford Coyote–powered showstopper for SEMA 2025, filming the process step by step for his followers. The twist? He plans to drive the car all the way to Vegas, proving that craftsmanship, creativity, and heart still belong on the open road.
TMCP #616: ASK RICK – Restoration Sheetmetal for 80’s Cars, Fox Body Mustangs Values On the Rise, and the Mustang GTD as the Best MidLife Crisis Car Investment?
TMCP #616: ASK RICK – Restoration Sheetmetal for 80’s Cars, Fox Body Mustangs Values On the Rise, and the Mustang GTD as the Best MidLife Crisis Car Investment?
TMCP #599: Rodger Lee with Ironworks – Building Cars, Teaching Business, and a “Production Line” Chevelle?
Rodger Lee with Ironworks – Building Cars, Teaching Business, and a “Production Line” Chevelle?
TMCP #577: Pro-Touring Update with Tom Farrington – Insider Scoop on Attending and Racing in Pro-Touring Events
It’s once again is the quarterly Pro-Touring Update, Presented by Ron Francis Wiring, and normally starring Mr. Larry Callahan! BUT, Due to unforeseen circumstances we have a special guest host, Mr. Tom Farrington!
Tom has been on the show before way back in Episode #62 and a quick search of the internet returns many other interviews and articles ever since then. He and his wife Debbie are mainstays at Pro-Touring tracks and has a vast knowledge of the ins and outs of racing and attending these events. We asked Tom to give this quarter’s update due to his high lack of participation in events. Basically, Tom’s in the know!
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Be sure to stay all the way to the end on this one…..because our favorite firstborn kid is just about to graduate from high school. Emily will be attending Drake University this fall to study education and minor in music. Her birth was the big reason I knew I needed to find a new way to do life to achieve all of the dreams we wanted to attempt…and TMCP was one of the outcomes of that. Long story short, if you dig these shows, you have her to thank. Congrats, Em!
TMCP #567: 15 Year Anniversary Throwback – The Time Jeff Allison Built My Chevelle For Free!
TMCP #567: 15 Year Anniversary Throwback – The Time Jeff Allison Built My Chevelle For Free!
TMCP #561 – Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals Show 2023 – The Greatest Muscle Car Show of the All?
Welcome to the first ever show from the streets of Chicago at the Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals show (MCACN). Ryan Brutt, the Auto Archeologist himself, brought out man Scotty Stap into the event to get a deeper look at what has become the premier annual muscle car event in the country! MCACN is a unique show in that both original, unrestored, barn find, and rare/oddball unique muscle cars are curated along with barn finds, specialty restoration parts suppliers, and everything in between! Thanks to Ryan we also secured a significant interview with Bob Ashton, the Managing Member of the show. We last had Bob on in the show in 2015 (Episode 265), so we were definitely overdue for a catchup!
TMCP #545: Bonus Episode – Todd Liebelt and his Amazing Corner Carving ’65 Chevelle!
This week on The Muscle Car Place is an extra “4th-of-the-month” bonus episode that I simply could not wait until next month to share! I spoke with Todd Liebelt who not only races autocross (as I like to do) but has built an almost identical in appearance Chevelle to mine. I say almost because Todd was able to make the changes in his car, that after years of ownership I now wish I had made to mine. Our paths have never crossed before, but somehow we have generated two cars that are certainly really close siblings!
Ten years ago I made some decisions on how to build my Chevelle. Since the car has been built I have had some great driving opportunities but I have wondered how it would have been if I had built it just a little differently. Specifically, I’ve always been curious about the chassis and if it would have been better to go with a full replacement instead of (as we did) modifying the factory GM frame and then adding great bolt-on suspension options on.
I also wonder how would it have handled on the track if I had bigger tires, especially up front where I’ve run out of grip time and time again? Well, luckily for me I have been presented with the unique opportunity to talk to Todd who has an almost identical car ….except that he made the choices I did not and has the inside scoop on if it was worth it. Basically, by speaking with Tood I have the chance to go back in time and learn what the “other path not taken” would have been like (and if I should take it now).
TMCP #543: New Show Debut – The “Factoryish” Podcast – The Real Life, Times, and Cars Inside a Hot Rod Shop!
This week, I have the outstanding privilege of of introducing a brand new podcast on The MuscleCar Place Network. It’s called “Factorish” and is hosted by my great friends Kirk Hansen and Zip Simons. This new show is an all new concept for us, and one that Kirk has pioneered, with Zip providing the insight that only a hot rod shop owner can. It’s a full talk show, built for YouTube and audio podcast release but featuring automotive reviews and drives as well. Think of it like The MuscleCar Place, combined with My Classic Car, combined with Entrepreneur magazine.
You can plan to watch and listen to two new episodes of Factoryish each month. Be sure to visit their website often and bookmark ALL of the platforms below!
Factoryish.com
Watch Factoryish on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@factoryish9260
Listen to Factoryish on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factoryish/id1689680197?mt=2&ls=1
Listen Factoryish on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/03pn8RQkhiPjxBa2R8fimT
Listen to Factoryish on iHeart Radio:
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-factoryish-114913862/
Listen to Factoryish on Audible:
https://www.audible.com/pd/FACTORYISH-Podcast/B0C4Z3CS9W?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp
TMCP #505: Chasing the Dream with Zip Simons – 10 Years of Building Elite Rides at Street Metal Concepts!
Many years ago I was in the middle of a surreal experience of realizing the dream of building my parents car, that I grew up in, into an auto-cross machine that was made better than I ever imagined. I met lifetime friends that donated time to make the dream happen. Street Metal Concepts turned the metal handiwork of Jeff Allison, into the gleaming, flawless paint, perfectly gapped, SEMA Show car that it became.
Almost 10 years later my Chevelle is back at Street Metal Concepts for a few tweaks and updates so I wanted to check in with Street Metal Concepts to see how things are going, what life lessons they have learned, and to catch up with my buddy Zip Simons!