A sad day for the car community

Its always sad when somebody dies.  Well today, one of my hero's, Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins died.  He was 81 years old.  He started racing in the late 1950s, and in 1963 he won little eliminator at the Nationals in a A/FX Chevy II.  In 1964 and 1965 He raced in A/FX and eventually Super Stock Eliminator with his Black Arrow Dodges.  Due to Chrysler officials not wanting to meet his terms in 1966, Jenkins went back to Chevy's, and the rest is history.  Racing Camaros, Vegas, Monzas, and a ton of other well built cars.  His last full season was in 1975, and in 1976 he only raced the first event of the season and then handed driving duties over to Larry Lombardo, who won the season.  After 1983 the Grump' retired from being a team owner, but was still involved in helping teams throughout the years after his retirement.  He will be greatly missed!

sunday drive

This is what happens when you follow your friends 1959 Rambler through a nice industrial section.  You get some great photos, and on a nice day, its like a flashback to the 1960s.  

And now, for something completely different!

There are a lot of odd things that you see in the automotive world, but for me, this one has to take the cake!  Starting in 1979 Honda started putting oval piston engines in their bikes.  Making 150hp with these weird pistons, it wasn't exactly exactly slow on power, but it wasn't very competitive. It won only once well in competition, which would explain its short life span.

 

Take a look at the comparison of the oval block to the regular piston block!

The rotating assembly of the motor.  So crazy

Got dome??

The bike that the motor was used in

Emissions!

I think that all hot rodders and car enthusiasts hate emissions.  It makes your car heavier, slower, and it limits how much you can modify it.  Well California might be changing the laws a bit, so that cars that are from 1981 or older, will not have to comply with emissions. Currently the law is all cars that are 1975 or older do not have to comply with emissions, but either way its still not fair to the car crowd.  streetlegaltv.com reported on the article, and hopefully on March 27th, all cars 1981 or older will be allowed to be emissions free!

Daily picture

I think that the picture speaks for itself, its just so epic!

when men were men and cars were cars

This video clearly goes back to a time when racing was so much simpler, and better for that matter. You didn't need a million dollars and a major sponsor for a year of racing, and you didn't have a million safety requirements, and the cars actually resembled real production cars!  The footage is from 1973, and includes interviews with Jungle Jim, Don Garlits, and Shirley Muldowney!  Its a wild video to watch, link is below!
http://vimeo.com/25680255  

Daily video #9

Of all things to show up at the dragstrip I think this just about takes the cake, and the sleeper award as well.