A period-modified 1970 GTO appears on the ‘Rockford Files’

Posted on Sep 3, 2020 in Featured | 2 comments

As a regular viewer of The Rockford Files when the show originally aired in the 1970s and I was just a little kid, I’ve remained a fan since then. Every few years or so, I end up watching episodes again via reruns on TV or the DVD collection. While there’s plenty to be written on Jim Rockford’s (James Garner) string of gold second-gen Firebirds, this blog will...

Speed Limit: 80. Who’s Ready?

Posted on Aug 22, 2020 in Safety | Comments Off on Speed Limit: 80. Who’s Ready?

We all do it anyway. With many Interstate speed limits at 70 miles per hour, it’s easy to push that to 75 or even 80 when cruising the vast spaces between cities. On a recent trip from Washington to Oregon, I had my cruise set at 75 and still got passed by cars that had to be going 85. Upon entering Oregon I experienced the pain of a sudden decrease to 65 and...

Still the Standard: 1968 Cadillac brochure

Posted on Aug 18, 2020 in Featured | 2 comments

Decades ago, before Cadillac’s ultimate goal was to out-BMW the Bavarians, this General Motors flagship division sought to offer Americans the utmost in luxury and effortless motoring. And in the late 1960s, they did this in great style. The 1968 Cadillac line featured some of the cleanest, most handsome interpretations of the stacked headlamp/sliver taillamp...

A Pause for IndyCar Champ Dan Wheldon

Posted on Aug 8, 2020 in Racing | Comments Off on A Pause for IndyCar Champ Dan Wheldon

It’s always difficult to choose a topic after such an intense weekend of auto-related news and events. Unfortunately, the biggest news this weekend was the tragic death of IndyCar champion Dan Wheldon, who died in a massive accident yesterday during the Las Vegas Indy 300. It makes other news and developments feel trivial, so I’d like to devote this post to the...

The 100 Year Wave

Posted on Aug 1, 2020 in Antique | Comments Off on The 100 Year Wave

“The times, they are a changin” was not just a song by Bob Dylan, it is a fact confirmed each day by the unrelenting advance of modern technology. As true as this statement is, it should be noted that as the times change, parts of the past disappear. During a recent conversation about music, I came to realize that many people under the age of 18 have never...

Can You Trust Your Fuel Gauge?

Posted on Jul 26, 2020 in Safety | Comments Off on Can You Trust Your Fuel Gauge?

I’ll just get gas when I go out later tonight. Sure, the gas light came on and I’m 12 miles from home, but I’ll make it and I have to go out later anyway and will be closer to a gas station tonight. That’s not an uncommon thought for me, and it’s one of the problems of living in an area that’s at least 15 miles from a gas station. Earlier this week it happened...

Cobra CDR 900 HD Dash Camera Review

Posted on Jul 25, 2020 in Technology | 1 comment

The Cobra CDR 900 HD Dash Cam films in 1296P Super HD or 1080P HD. The Ambarella™ A7LA chipset will record flawlessly, even at night. Be it short runs to the grocery store or long road trips, the Cobra CDR 900 HD Dash Cam is ready to capture the action! Professional drivers will like the CDR 900’s ability to record the track while the everyday family can...

Rare ’68 Dodge Super Bee Hemi snags Best in Show at Musclepalooza XXII

Posted on Jul 6, 2020 in Featured | 2 comments

Joe Sokola with his 1968 Dodge Super Bee. Call us suckers for factory stripped-down muscle cars, if you want. And Hemis. And four-speeds. And numbers-matching models. And rare combinations. And spectacular restorations to factory-correct standards. Add it all up, as was the case with Joe Sokola’s 1968 Dodge Super Bee, and you get our Best in Show winner for...

I Bought a Scion Once

Posted on Jun 24, 2020 in Editorials | 1 comment

“Sir, I don’t think you understand how our pricing model works.” It was the winter of 2004, and a sad-sack of a salesman sat at the desk across from Mrs. Bark and me at a morbidly depressing Toyota-Scion dealership near Dayton, Ohio. My dear wife was the less-than-proud owner of a 2001 Hyundai Elantra that had been the very first car she’d ever purchased new....

Most Beautiful Cars: Lamborghini Countach

Posted on Jun 20, 2020 in Antique | Comments Off on Most Beautiful Cars: Lamborghini Countach

When all think alike, then no one is thinking – Walter Lippman Every vehicle that made my list of Most Beautiful Cars was a milestone in the development of the automobile. Each of them changed the way cars were designed, and advanced automotive technology in a way that no other cars had done before. In the process they became icons of the automotive world, cars...

GM Recall Poses a Serious Safety Issue

Posted on Jun 13, 2020 in Safety | Comments Off on GM Recall Poses a Serious Safety Issue

Sometimes topics in the auto world get pretty serious. We like to have some fun and make light of certain situations, but there are times when humor is off the table. The fact is, building cars is a dangerous business. A lot can go wrong when putting together the pieces of these metal capsules that hurl us down traffic-filled roads at upwards of 70 miles per...

10 Old Car Features We Desperately Miss [Infographic]

Posted on Jun 6, 2020 in Technology | 1 comment

Stop what you’re doing; I’ve got some breaking news. Cars have changed significantly since they began hitting the roads. I know this isn’t breaking news, but it’s no less interesting. Since the beginning cars have been evolving. Many features have come and gone. For some enthusiasts, of which I count myself as one, I see all of this technology and miss some of...

Demolition of Carter Carburetor factory in St. Louis begins

Posted on Jun 3, 2020 in Featured | 2 comments

Image via Google Maps. For decades, Carter remained a cornerstone of the carburetor industry, supplying many of the major carmakers, but then the adoption of electronic fuel injection wiped the company out nearly overnight. For 30-plus years, the old Carter Carburetor factory has sat empty, an admonition to the intractable, until this week, when the cleanup of...