2019 Chevy Traverse Green & White LED Light Bars and Strobe Lights
Wicked Warnings:
Hi and thanks for watching. This is
George at Wicked Warnings here with a
couple of brand new 2019 Chevy Traverses.
These were outfitted with green and
white for a local college security firm.
We've done a couple of other cars as
well. The lights that we're featuring on
this build are our Linear-6. They are
down there on the rear bumper lower and
on the front bumper lower, in green. We
also have our LED HAW DUO hideaway in
the reverse lens on the left side there,
and also back-mounted in the top of the
grille on the right side. These are twin
builds, so I'm showing you the back and
the front of one at the exact same time.
We have a Feniex GPL light bar on the
roof, as well as a Feniex Fusion 600 in
all green in the back window on each
build. We're running our 42 mini six
switch as well, to control everything. We
are also featuring, in the side opera
windows, our Thin-X LED in a green and
white. Here you can see how we've mounted
the Thin-X side fire in the rear opera
windows. Let me show you a little bit
about the install. As you can see, those
rooftop light bars are amazing but being
a security outfit, they will be in and
out of the back of these vehicles. So we
elected to mount that fusion bar inside
the vehicle. That way, when they raise the
hatch and they lose the warning from the
white LED HAW DUO in the reverse lens, and
it blocks the rooftop light bar, they
still have very adequate rear warning
from that light stick that you can see
shining straight backwards. We've also
added a feature on both of these
vehicles called takedown and you can see
on the right-hand side there, where it
steady burns the take down lights in
the roof light bar, as well as
the front LED hideaways. And you can see
here also, without warning, the takedown
feature will still work steady burning
the white hideaways in the front as well
as both alleys on the light bar and the
four forward facing takedown lights. And
if you were to put the warning back on,
it will activate all of the rest of the
warning, and when you take the takedown
feature off, you can see how the lights
bounce back into the warning pattern.
These two vehicles also got the 100-watt Whelen PA system with the air horn
feature, and they as well have the
microphone with the 100-watt speaker,
as you can hear with the PA system.
They've got a 100-watt speaker
mounted behind the front grille area
there and that allows them a PA system,
as well as the air horn that they need.
Here you can see that Feniex Fusion 600
bar mounted up in the headliner there.
In here, inside the vehicle, you can see
our Thin-X mounted right up against the
rear opera glass there. We had to
customize the strap mount just a slight,
to fit this new vehicle because there
aren't any mounts made for a Traverse, but
Feniex did have a strap mount that we
were able to use, that mounts right there
in the rain guard. So we didn't have to
drill more than one hole in the roof.
However, we did drill one hole for the
wiring for the light bar. Here you can
see how we back-mounted those LED HAW DUO. The reason I chose to do that instead of
a hidden light inside the parking area
of this vehicle, is because as you can
see, Chevrolet stepped up their headlight
game and these have factory HID
headlights and they are extremely bright.
You can see how easily they wash out the
whole lens in white. So we did test some LED hideaways in these
headlights and they were highly
ineffective. So we decided to mount them
right next to the headlight, so as you
can see, the headlights do not affect the
warning. Had we put that strobe light in
the headlight, he really wouldn't have
gotten much effect from it at all. Out back
here, you can see our Linear-6 mounted
down low, very much the same way that the Illinois State Police mount on their
squads and inside there you can see our
white LED HAW. By the customer's request,
we have mounted the microphone for the
PA air horn system right here. Lays
nicely in the center console. We've also
mounted that six switch controller right
here. You can see the features that we
gave him. This will be for the front half
of the vehicle. This will be for the rear
half of the vehicle. This is your air
horn. That's a momentary program now. This is a cruise light, which I will show you
in a moment, and this is a center out
arrow stick feature, which I will show
you in a moment, and here is the takedown we've already shown you. That's the
feature set that we chose to use on that
after we communicated with the
customer. This is exactly how they wanted their interior done. Very minimal damage.
Very small hole there for the wiring to
go through, back behind there you will
never see it, and there is a rubber mat
that we took out when we drilled the
hole. So if they ever decommissioned the
vehicle, that rubber mat would hide the
hole from the wiring and it would
basically be like nothing was ever
installed. Let me show you that arrow
stick feature and the cruise lights. Here
you can see the Feniex GPL bar's cruise
light feature. It basically steady burns
the corners of the light bar. This again
was put in by the customer's request. The
Taurus and the Minivan that we did for them
previously, also have the green cruise
light feature. The particular client really
likes that, so we decided it would be no
problem to incorporate that, and he also
asked for an arrow stick center out for
the very mild occasion where he might
have to direct some traffic. So what we
did, is we programmed the light bar on
the roof, as well as the light bar in the
rear window, to do the center out arrow
stick feature. Now it's not a security
company's primary duty to be directing
traffic, but once in a while you do need
to get the flow of traffic around an
incident, and that's exactly what the
center out arrow is meant to do. Again by
request to the customer, this was a
customized build specific to the
customer's needs.
I had a little bit of choice in the
matter but this was styled totally by
what the customer wanted. I hope you
enjoyed watching this video.
The Feniex light bar and Fusion 600s
are special order. However, you can
check the link below for links to the
LED HAW DUO we've used in this build
in white, as well as our Linear-6 we've
used in the build in green, and our Thin-X in green-white. All of which are in
stock daily at Wicked Warnings and if
you do need a light bar or a rear stick,
something like this, just give us a call
and we'll order it up for you no problem.
Thanks again for watching Wicked
Warnings. We'll speak at you soon.
2020 Corvette Stingray Convertible Reveal — Mid-Engine C8 Corvette Convertible!
Edmunds:
MARK TAKAHASI: Mom,
apple pie, baseball.
These are things
we traditionally
think of as American, right?
Personally, I think
of our accomplishments
to describe the uniquely
American experience.
We're here at the
Kennedy Space Center
in Florida, where 50 years ago,
three brave astronauts strapped
into a Saturn 5 rocket,
blasted off to the moon,
forever changing
humanity's story arc.
16 years before that, though,
America's sports car was born.
And it's closely tied
to the space program.
We're here to check out the
latest version of that sports
car in the 2020 Chevrolet
Corvette convertible.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
In 1953, Chevrolet
introduced the Corvette,
a small convertible
sports car, to compete
against those little
roasters GIs were
falling in love with overseas.
America's first
astronaut, Alan Shepard,
had a '57 'vette
just like my mom's.
A decade later, the
edgier, second generation
was introduced, along with
the iconic Stingray name.
And this one, in particular,
used to be Neil Armstrong's.
Come on, how cool is that?
We just happen to have a
'66 this same color rotating
above the Edmunds
reception desks too.
The third generation,
C3m three showed up
just as the Apollo program
hit its stride in 1968.
There's a famous
photo of the Apollo 12
astronauts posing with their
custom gold 427 Stingrays.
Starting in 1984, the C4 ensured
the 80s and 90s were rad.
The C5 'vette ran
from '97 to 2004,
and we had a wonderful Z06
from 2002, our long-term fleet.
The true 21st century Corvette
started with the C6 and C7s,
which dramatically increased
the technology and performance
quotient.
That brings us to the
all-new 8th generation,
which represents the biggest
change in the Corvette's
history.
We showed you the Stingray
coupe over the summer,
and for the most
part, this convertible
is mechanically identical.
Under this deck lid is the same
6.2 liter, naturally aspirated,
push rod V8 that puts out 495
horsepower and 470-pound feet
of torque.
Attached to that is an
8-speed automated dual clutch
transmission.
Sadly, it doesn't
sound like we're
going to get a manual
this time around.
There are some design challenges
that go along with a mid engine
sports car like this.
And if you look at
something like, let's say,
the Lamborghini
Diablo Spyder, where
the deck looks really huge and
heavy and the seating position
is way too far forward.
That is not the case with
a Corvette convertible.
They styled it impeccably, so
it looks almost like the coupe.
These nacelles here that
run from the headrest all
the way to the tail really
break up some of that space.
And these intersecting
lines and decreases
lighten that visual weight.
Also helping to break up
some of that visual weight
is this black fascia
down here, which kind of
helps it not look as heavy and
chunky as it normally would.
One thing that I
was really concerned
with the design of
this new C8 Corvette
was this really,
really big center thing
with all the buttons on it.
They're all climate controls,
so it sort of makes sense,
but I have to say this.
In photos, it looks
really awkward.
In practice, sitting here,
it's actually pretty good.
I mean, you have
everything at your command.
Maybe they could have slimmed
it down with fewer buttons,
but I'm sorry.
It kind of works.
You also have this nice
little hand rest here
for the dial controller.
And this squared off
steering wheel actually
feels pretty good.
I have to say, it might be
fulfilling some like Formula 1
driver aspirations.
Overall, the interior
has a nice snug
feel without
feeling too cramped.
There are obviously
a lot of challenges
when it comes to converting
the coupe to a convertible,
so I'm here with Ed
Piatek, chief engineer
for the Corvette.
Ed, what kind of
challenges did you
run into with this
mid engine Corvette?
ED PIATEK: Well,
typically you have
a lot of challenges from
a structure standpoint
if you're removing the
roof from a coupe that
uses the roof as a load path.
But in the case of all
the Corvettes going back
to the 6th generation car,
they've all effectively
been convertibles.
They all have
removable roof panels.
So we can't count on the roof.
So when we do a
car like this, we
use a tunnel-dominant structure.
If you took a look at
the underbody of the car
you'll see we've got a
really big tunnel section.
And that gives it
sort of the backbone
that gives you great bending
and torsional stiffness.
So for us to do a convertible,
it's not as big a challenge,
as far as having to remediate
that and put band-aids
on the car to get
the structure back.
MARK TAKAHASI: So that's
all really impressive,
but something I heard earlier
is even more impressive.
How much more does
this convertible
weigh than the coupe?
ED PIATEK: We're still in
the final validation phase,
so I don't have an exact number.
But it's going to be less
than 100 pounds difference
from coupe to
convertible, which is
why we think the acceleration
performance that everyone's
excited about for the
coupe will carry right
over into the convertible.
MARK TAKAHASI: That's
amazing considering
that a lot of convertibles
weigh several pounds more
than their coupe counterparts.
Thanks a lot, Ed.
ED PIATEK: Hey, thank you.
MARK TAKAHASI: It's
been a pleasure.
I can't wait to drive it.
ED PIATEK: It's great.
I'm here with Kirk Bennion,
chief designer of the Corvette.
What were your main
challenges with the C8?
KIRK BENNION: Well,
I would tell you
in developing this
convertible top,
the mechanization was something
that we started on very early.
There were certain
things that we wanted
to maintain in the design.
We want to maintain the
shoulders and the quarters.
But also we wanted to
maintain some surfacing that
led up to those nacelles.
So we started with a
small patch of surface,
and we continued to develop
that fiber link system
to give us his tapered upper.
But to work around
that early surface--
we didn't even know
what the car was
going to look like
as a whole, but we
knew we wanted these particular
elements in the design.
MARK TAKAHASI: But a lot of
the challenges for mid engine
is the back end
looks really heavy,
and the passenger
compartment looks like it's
squished too far forward.
How did you solve that?
KIRK BENNION: A lot of that
depends on just where you
place that windshield.
And, you know, kind of like
with the windshield assembly,
and your wiper assembly,
call panel and that,
we like that to be
over center of axle--
center of the front wheel.
We feel it-- for this car that
gives us the best proportion.
It's that right
amount to reach, where
it doesn't look
like it's crammed,
with it's reaching forward.
And then it gives
us just enough room
in the back to kind of stretch
things out and still get
that for-- you know, what we
call a cockpit forward accent.
But in doing so, that allows us
to lean out the car, basically.
MARK TAKAHASI: Well,
it's a pleasure
to see it in the flesh.
Thanks for taking the time.
KIRK BENNION: Thank you.
MARK TAKAHASI: If you ask
me, the Corvette convertible
is just as sharp as the coupe.
And it's also as relatively
affordable costing,
$7,500 more.
Expect a starting
price of around $67,000
when it goes on sale
in March of 2020.
I'm not completely convinced
it's worth shelling out
the extra money for
the convertible,
since the coupe already
has a removable roof.
Whether you choose the
coupe or the convertible
you're pretty much
guaranteed you're
going to be driving the new
hotness for at least a couple
months.
That's it from the
Corvette convertible unveil
at the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida.
If you thought we'd come here
and not check out the astronaut
experience, you're wrong.
For sticking around this
long, here's a bonus.
Some snippets from
astronaut camp.
Woohoo!
Come on, Doug.
Let's go steal a rocket.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
That's where I belong.
2020 Corvette Stingray Review ― Test Drive of the New Corvette C8
Edmunds:
KURT NIEBUHR: You know,
there's been a lot of buzz
around this all new Corvette.
It's supposed to be mid-engine.
It's faster.
It's supposed to have a really
nice interior in it too.
It's supposed to
handle really well.
It's supposed to be a lot.
I'll believe it when I see it.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
If we can ignore the fact that
this new Corvette is completely
new and is also a
mid-engine Corvette--
try really hard to ignore the
fact that this is a mid-engine
Corvette--
the interior on this car is
the biggest talking point.
It's amazing.
It's really well crafted.
It's nice.
It looks like no other
Corvette interior ever,
and that's a good thing.
So the first thing you
really see on the inside
when you sit down is
the steering wheel,
which is a two-spoke steering
wheel, something you wouldn't
expect in a sports car.
But it's also a little square.
And when you're on the
road, it doesn't really
matter that much.
You're not putting a lot
of lock into the wheel.
And once you start to make
U-turns or tighter turns,
it does get a little
weird because you wind up
grabbing a corner.
It's not the end of the world.
It's just unique.
So the second thing you're
likely to see in this car--
maybe it's the first thing--
is this climate
control arrangement.
And they've put all of the
buttons, all of the switches
in a row, which is unique.
When I first saw it in pictures,
I wasn't thrilled about it.
But to be honest, now that I've
spent some time in the car,
it does work.
And the climate control
system is pretty good.
So you just set it, and then
you don't even look at it.
And it frees up this
whole center console area
and keeps it relatively
clutter free.
But like the square
steering wheel, it's unique.
Another big change with
this brand new Corvette
is the digital instrument panel.
And it changes with the
drive mode that you select.
And some manufacturers can
get that a little tacky
with explosions and weird swipes
and changes on the screen.
The Corvette is very simple.
And when you change the
instrument panel display,
the heads up display also
changes at the same time.
I think it's kind of cool.
It's one of the better
executions on the market.
So the passenger seat
in the new Corvette
is what I like to call the
sit down and shut up seat,
because as you can
see, you really
don't have anything to control.
You have seat ventilation, seat
heating, and climate control
buttons.
Everything else--
that's for the driver,
kind of as it should be.
Another nice touch
on this interior,
and one that was
totally unexpected,
are these nifty
little air vents.
I'll admit-- at first glance,
they looked a little useless.
But they have good airflow,
good adjustability,
and they're well-made
with a nice, oily action.
I think they're pretty cool.
[ROCK MUSIC]
Yeah, yeah, so who cares
about the rest of it, right?
What's it like to drive?
Well, it's got a 6.2-liter V8,
495 horsepower with the Z51
exhaust, 470 foot
pounds of torque.
I mean, it's a small
block Chevy, man.
It's great.
Ah, listen to that.
There's only one
transmission offered in this,
and it's an
eight-speed automatic.
Now, before you get all sad and
wish that they made a manual,
I can tell you that the
time I've spent in this car,
I have never wanted
for a manual.
This transmission is very
smooth and quick acting,
and the shifts are seamless.
Listen to that.
And as an added bonus, these
shift paddles are heavy.
They're metallic.
They feel really good.
It's just-- it's
extra confidence,
and it just makes the whole car
feel better and more upscale
than it's ever felt before.
The way this thing shifts--
downshifts really
quickly, upshifts quickly.
Everything is
seamless and smooth,
and the car is never
upset by the transmission.
For all the power
that this car makes,
that's something to
really celebrate.
I wouldn't even buy a manual
transmission in this car
if they offered it.
Yeah, you can take away
my performance driving
card if you want.
I don't care.
That's a Lotus Elise.
How fast is it?
Well, we were able to
take it to our test track
and put the car
through its paces,
so let's go see how that went.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
First off, yes, these
numbers aren't as quick
as we were expecting.
But since we didn't have
access to 93 octane,
we only get 91
octane in California,
and we used a fairly
standard asphalt surface,
we were limited on
outright traction.
The Vet spun its wheels
through most of first gear,
even with launch control, so
these are real world numbers.
But hey, 3.2 seconds
to 60, 11.5 seconds,
and 118.7 miles an hour
through the quarter mile
is nothing to sneeze at.
105 feet from 60 miles
an hour is pretty solid.
There is good consistency
and stability.
Of course, wider grip
your tires would easily
shave off another 10 feet.
We suspect they're saving
those for the inevitable Z06.
Pulling 1.09 on the skid
pad puts the Corvette
in some pretty rare
company, and that's
with Pilot Sport 4Ss and a
fairly narrow 245 section front
tire.
Sure, we could talk about
how it needs more tire,
but this number speaks volumes
about the chassis, suspension,
and differential tunings.
FYI-- that number was pulled in
track mode with ESC fully off.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
That small block V8 provides
what you'd expect out
of a small block V8--
a broad, meaty power
band that sounds
just amazing at full
throttle, just amazing.
[ENGINE REVVING]
See?
Amazing.
Probably the biggest
change with this Corvette
is how fast you can go with it.
I'm not saying the other
Corvettes were slow.
The C7 was no slouch.
The C6 was no slouch.
Any Z06-- ferocious.
But you had to be really
careful with them.
And unless you spent a lot
of time in an older Corvette,
it took a while to
get to know the car.
And they could catch you out.
They could catch out
experienced drivers
simply because the
front axle didn't really
tell you what was going on,
how much grip you had left.
You know?
In this car, it's talking
to you constantly.
I know right where the
grip is on the front end.
Also unlike those
older Corvettes,
the back end on this
car behaves itself.
495 horsepower in this
trim follows the front,
helps power you out of corners.
I am not afraid of
this car on this road.
And I wouldn't be driving
a C7 or a C6 Corvette
anywhere near this quickly.
In order to drive
on a road like this,
as hard as you want to drive on
it, you need good brakes too.
With the Z51 package,
you get good brakes.
I think they're 13.6 inch in
the front and 13.8 in the back.
I hope I got that right.
[DINGING]
If I didn't, I'm
sure the Corvette
forums will let me know.
But there's a lot of feel
with these brakes too,
and the pedal is
solid and consistent.
Much like the ability to change
steering effort and weighting,
this Corvette allows you to
change brake pedal pressure.
So if you like a harder,
more immediate pedal,
you can punch it up.
Punch it up on the screen,
and you can change it.
That changes with the
drive mode as well.
My feet aren't
sophisticated enough
to really tell the
individual modes apart,
but I spend no time adjusting
in between the modes.
The brakes are intuitive
and easy to use.
And when you're going fast,
that's the best thing to be.
All of this phenomenal
grip is brought to you
by rather ordinary Michelin
Pilot Sport 4S tires.
These are tires you can find
on a lot of normal cars.
In other words, they're
not super hero tires.
They have tread.
They're not noisy,
but they still
offer near supercar
levels of grip.
That just goes to show you
how good the chassis is.
So this car has three
main drive modes.
And I'm going to
say three because I
live in LA, so I don't need a
snow mode or a weather mode.
You've got the
touring mode, which
is what we're in right now.
And it just slackens off
the shocks a little bit.
It's really good compliance.
This is a pretty bumpy road,
and I'm not that upset.
It also tones down the exhaust.
You get a lighter steering
feel and the slightly less
jumpy throttle.
Moving into sport
mode, everything
gets a little bit more intense.
The throttle becomes
more sensitive.
The ride becomes a
little bit more firm,
as you can probably see.
And sport mode is a really good
all-around mode in this car.
You could drive in
sport mode all the time.
You can even drive it on this
road, which is fantastic,
and you wouldn't really
want for anything else.
But there is track mode.
The track mode is not silly.
I've driven cars with track
modes that try and knock
the fillings out of your teeth.
This car, with the
[INAUDIBLE] shocks,
gets tracked mode right.
So I've got two
complaints with this car.
They're not really
serious complaints
because you don't have to get
these things, like this tan.
This tan causes reflections
all through the windshield.
It's really annoying.
But you can get it in black,
so just buy it in black.
So the other complaint
I have are these seats.
Now, these are the
competition seats.
And I know that I'm not a small
man, but I'm not that big.
I'm 6'1", like 210 pounds.
But these seats pinch
my legs to the point
where it's uncomfortable.
But just like the tan
leather up here, you
don't have to get these seats.
You have two other options--
the regular seat, and
you have the GT2 seat.
I'd get the GT2 seat.
So the Corvettes
is an automatic.
Will the Corvette do a burnout?
Of course the Corvette
will do a burnout.
Turn traction control off.
Pull the paddles to
put it in neutral.
Ride the rev limiter.
[ENGINE REVVING]
Oh!
Proper burnout.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
So maybe it's a
good thing that we
didn't have as much
time in the Corvette
as we wanted to, because
I think if I kept
driving that, I'd get arrested.
It's really fast.
It's so composed and so easy to
drive on any manner of roads,
even on the open highway.
It's a total piece of cake.
This mid-engine car has
ushered in a whole new era
for Corvette, and I
think it was about time.
So what does this
car compete with?
It is basically a
mid-engine supercar,
but it doesn't cost as much
as a mid-engine supercar.
It's about half
the price or less.
So a base Corvette is $60,000.
The one that you see behind
us is pretty well optioned up,
but that's still about
$83,800, I think.
In that car's price range is
now the BMW M4, which is slower.
It's the Shelby GT350,
which is slower.
It is the Porsche 718 Cayman
S, which is slower and does not
have the rad V8 engine in it.
And there are probably a
couple other cars in the class
that I have missed simply
because I can't remember them,
because they don't make as
much of an impression on me
as this thing does.
This is-- it's really that good.
I'm genuinely surprised
at how good this car is.
So yeah, this is a shorter
video than you'd probably like,
and we really need to get into
the minutia about this car,
but we didn't have
a lot of time.
But fear not.
Edmunds has bought a
2020 Chevrolet Corvette.
That's right.
We bought one, and we're
going to keep it for a year.
So subscribe so
that you don't miss
any of those upcoming
videos, probably late
January or early February.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Best Hybrid Cars 2019 (and the ones to avoid) – Top 10s | What Car?
What Car?:
CHEVY ASTRO VAN - Everything You Need to Know | Up to Speed
Donut Media:
(care engine roaring)
(metal scraping)
- Do you have a passion for
the ultimate family mobile?
Something that can handle
a trip to Home Depot
for plywood, Costco for groceries in bulk,
a road trip across America with grandma
to see Mount Rushmore,
and trips to hockey practice
with the entire team?
Well, mama and papa do
I have a car for you.
A car that's not a car.
It's a van.
This is everything you need to know
to get up to speed on
the Chevrolet Astro Van.
(lighting striking)
(upbeat electric music).
Big thanks to this weeks sponsor Audible.
Listen up Amazon Prime member.
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can start an Audible
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we couldn't make it without them.
Now, back to the show.
Before we start talking about vans,
we should first mention the Station Wagon.
The once upon a time stereotypical
American family vehicle.
The Station Wagon dangerously carried
Many-a-restless kid
across the American roads
seat belts optional.
But, in the late 1970s the sale of big
gas guzzling Station
Wagons was on the decline.
The do it all wagons
future was looking grim,
partly due to the gas prices,
but more partly due because
of the new category of cars.
So, in 1984 the Chrysler
van program birthed,
the Plymouth Voyager mini-van.
The first of it's kind, the Voyager was
hugely popular for it's ability
to tote all the kids around,
get better gas mileage
then a Station Wagon,
and, yes, be able to fit
in a garage safely away
from those mean suburban streets,
It was a great all around
package for the modern family,
and GM quickly realized that
hey needed their own version
of the the mini-van.
- Should we make our own miniature van?
- Uh Yeah!
We already have one in the works.
Don't you know about it?
- Uh, 'course I do.
What's it called?
- The Astro
- Astro!
Yep, I said it first.
I knew it, totally knew it.
There's a reason I'm the boss.
Keeping with the space theme that Plymouth
started with the Voyager,
in 1985 Chevy released their all new
not so mini mini-van the Chevy Astro,
A van so sick, it cam time-warp,
and drive on the rings of Saturn.
The boxy middle van and
it's twin GMC brother
the Safari were only 1.5 inches shorter,
and 2 and a half narrower than Chevy's
smallest full-size van.
And, while it was seven inches shorter,
and claimed to be able to fit in a garage,
Chevy quickly acknowledged
their bulked up box on wheels,
and used the middle van
status in their advertising.
- [Man] The new Chevy Astro.
Built to do more than a mini-van can.
- Not a mini-van, not a full-size van,
but a middle van.
The real world giant box mobile
had multiple seating configurations,
allowing you to carry you,
and seven of your so-called friends.
Let's be honest,
they just wanted to sit In those
comfy, cozy, fluffy, cloth bench seats.
Or, you could take out all the seats,
and use it as a cargo van.
Unlike it's mini-van competition,
the Astro was built on a truck chassis,
with a bolt-on sub frame.
The front suspension shared many
of the same components directly from
the Caprice Station Wagon,
while the rear had composite
leaf springs like the S-10.
Engine options on the first year Astro,
were either the 98 Mini Shetland Pony
Horsepower 2.3 liter four cylinder,
or the optional 165
midi-horsepower 4.3 liter V6.
(engine roaring)
And the placement of said engines?
How bout' right under the
front dash cup holders.
You could swap out your battery,
and check the oil in
the mini-hood up front.
But, any serious work
would have to be done
inside the van.
A big bump in between
the two front seats got
covered with a hatch,
and gave way to an access panel,
that once removed exposed
the engine on the Astro.
Mechanics loved it.
The coolest part,
is that you could get it with a manual.
That's right, the base transmission
that the Astro came with,
was a four speed manual which is sick.
And, you could get it with an
optional five speed until 1989.
After that they went full auto.
But, I'm grateful that
it was manual at all.
(chiming music)
By the end of the eighties, the demand for
mini-vans as family vehicles had largley
superseded full size
Station Wagons in the US.
Rest in peace Station Wagon.
It wouldn't be until 1989 that Chevy
would release a more comparable
front wheel drive van
to take on the Chrysler mini-van.
The Lumina APV.
But, that didn't stop GM from also selling
the Astro and the Safari.
People loved it for it's ability
to not only haul kids around,
but also haul stuff around.
The Astro could pull five thousand pounds.
No other mini-van was
pullin' that kind of weight.
It could also carry 1700
pounds in the cargo area.
That's a lot of fat little boys.
- All right kids, let's
go to hockey practice.
- Can we all stop at McDonald's?
- Yeah, I want some nuggets.
- Yeah, I wanna get a Big Mac.
- Yeah, we can get the McDonald's.
- Yay, chunky butts on three.
One, two, three,
- [All] Chunky butts!
- Chunky butts.
- Side note, Chevy marketed
Astro van to fat people.
- [Man] Tired of watching your weight?
If you had a GMC Safari,
you wouldn't have to.
- With a strong commercial game like that,
how could you not want an
Astro if you're a chunky butt?
Towards the final stretch
of the first gen Astro,
GM really started to
turn up the technology.
In 1990, the Astro came
with all wheel drive,
as well as four wheel anti-lock brakes.
Their competitors over at Ford,
with the Aerostar.
Again, another space theme van.
What is the deal?
They didn't have ABS, all right?
And, that's pretty important when you're
carrying your fat little family around.
And you got a space car,
you don't want regular doors,
you want dutch doors.
Two rear doors with flip
up windows on top of 'em.
And Dutch people love 'em.
Also because parents were
complaining about their
fat little kids making a mess,
Scotch Guard Fabric Protection also
became a standard feature with
Astro vans with cloth seats.
The second gen Astro came out in 1995,
and Chevy was deep in the,
let's sell this thing as a tough dude
all family vehicle game.
Load the back up with dirt bikes, sure!
Total horse trailer? Yeah!
The Astro was tough like a rock!
♪ Oh, like a rock. ♪
- But not much really
changed from the first gen
to the second gen Astros.
They got updated headlights to match the
rectangular ones on the Silverado.
There was also only one engine option.
The 4.3 liter Vortec V6.
And, there was only one body option.
The shorter version was ditched,
They did improve that engine hatch in the
center of the two front seats
to increase front leg room,
and help cut down on interior noise.
You know, since the
motor was inside the car?
They improved dash installation too.
You know, 'cause the
motor's inside the car.
(engine roaring)
(tires screeching)
The second gen also got passenger airbags
which by the way, speaking of safety,
the Astro was not safe.
It eventually improved
from a one gold star
rating in 1991, to three gold star rating,
for the driver only in 2000.
If you were a kid in the
eighties or nineties,
and your friends had an Astro,
they were the bell of the ball.
But, if they had a conversion van Astro,
they were the king of the ball.
Companies like Glaval,
Mark III, and Star Craft,
took the bone stock Astro,
and turned them into
lush rich kids basements
on wheels.
The summer road trip van made visiting
your grandparents not all that bad because
you could watch freakin'
movies and play Super Nintendo
all while sitting in the most comfortable
captains chairs on the planet.
Yeah, that's right.
It's a chair for a freakin' captain.
He's the leader of the ship.
If your eyes got too tired from playing
video games or watching
Mrs. Doubtfire on VHS,
because of course it has a VHS player,
You could just crawl on
over to the back bench seat,
fold it down and take a big old nap.
Safe? No.
Comfortable?
You betcha' chunky little butt it is.
- [All] Chunky butts
- Chunky butts
- My friend Vince's dad had an Astro van,
and we played Earthworm Gym for hours.
And we were in the driveway.
The Astro helped put conversion vans
on the map for the masses.
In 1994 there was
roughly 200,000 shipments
of van conversions to dealers.
People all over the world
loved their conversion Astros.
Even this guy, AKA Russian James.
(speaking in Russian)
(retro video game sounds)
The Astro space van would eventually
end in 2005 as well as Chevy mini-vans.
The venture to consolidate
for a single mini-van,
the Uplander.
But, that didn't last long.
Four years later, Chevy left
the mini-van market completely,
and while the majority
of Astro's have found
their way into the hands
of construction workers,
van life hipsters, or
sadly even junk yards,
it still remains as the
not so mini mini-van
that warmed our fuzzy little
nostalgic chunky butts.
(upbeat electronic music)
WE GOT ONE: Up Close with The Mid-Engine C8 Corvette | Bumper 2 Bumper
Donut Media:
(upbeat band music)
- Guys and gals,
you frickin' car nerds,
it is here at last,
a real, honest to dog, production ready,
fast AF, mid-engine American sports car.
We have been dreaming and
speculating and gossiping
for literally decades about this thing.
And I can't think of another
car that's been hyped
more than this besides the Supra.
But the difference is, this one
didn't disappoint everybody.
It blew everyone's frickin' minds.
Let's find out why this thing,
this beautiful thing, is so special.
We're goin front to
trunk, bumper to bumper,
on the new mid-engine
C8 Corvette.
(lively rock music)
Big ol' big boy thanks
to this week's sponsor,
Audible.
(thunder cracks)
Listen, I like to listen to audio books
because I never have time to read.
And the Audible app makes it super easy.
I actually use this almost every day.
You can choose up to three titles a month,
one audio book and two Audible originals.
And they have a ton of
great titles to choose from
in basically any genre.
I can't wait to listen
to Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s autobiography,
"Racing To The Finish."
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We couldn't make our content without them.
Now back to the show.
(dramatic jazz music)
Now I'm as excited as you
guys to dive into this car.
But before we do that,
we need to understand
how this car happened.
(tones squeal)
Mid-engine Corvette
rumors and concept cars
have been swirlin' around
GM since the 1960s,
thanks to engineer and avid
racer Zora Arkus-Duntov.
The first gen Vette started
out as a total flop.
But when Zora was
promoted to Head Engineer
of the Corvette program,
everything changed.
(upbeat electronic music)
He started puttin' buffer and buffer
small-block V8s under the hood.
But he always knew that
the mid-engine layout
offered better performance.
It would push the Corvette into the ranks
of exotic European sports cars.
(engines rev)
And even though Zora Arkus-Duntov
isn't here to see it,
his hard work has paid off.
And I think that if Zora were here today,
he would be the proudest
dad that you ever did see.
I've never seen a proud dad.
(mellow jazz music)
So the new Corvette
is a slightly different shape
than the Corvette has sort of always been.
And a lotta people on the internet
are boohooin' about how the new look
might ruin the character of the Vette.
But those people have
only seen pictures of it.
And in person, it looks very Corvette,
the angular body lines, the sharky nose,
the quad tail lights, all
unmistakably Corvette.
Only now, it's unmistakably
very well-vented Corvette.
There are vents in the front.
(bell chimes)
There's vents on the sides.
(tones squeaks)
There's vents above the engine.
There's vents across the back,
all for the sake of
coolin' this beast's heart.
Don't worry.
I'm gonna get to that
after you ring that little
notification bell.
(bell chimes)
And you guys clicking that
is how we get to do stuff like this.
And I don't wanna stop
doin' stuff like this.
(exhales deeply)
Puttin' the engine in the
back means that you have
all this other room up
front for activities
like a lower hood line
and a bigger windshield
for better forward visibility.
And yeah, now you get a front
that can carry a suitcase
or a couple of duffle bags full of money.
The critical part of this
is that if you buy one,
you get to say frunk all the time.
Oh, you wanna go work out?
Yeah, let me go grab my gym bag
from the frunk.
(tones squirt)
Sir, do you have anything
illegal in your frunk?
Nah, frunk the police.
The door handles are very
cleverly hidden
(tones chime)
under the black side trim
which keeps the design
lookin' nice and clean,
just like your boy.
It feels like Chevy kept
the black vent trim element
from the C7's front quarter panel
to retain some of that old character.
The Corvette's hallmark
removable roof panel is
(drumbeats rattle)
still removable.
And it fits in the trunk, locks in nice.
And the trunk can still
hold two golf bags.
Now this is a very, very
important selling point
for Corvette buyers.
Golf bags and Corvettes go together
like Goober grape peanut
butter and jelly and bread.
(lively jazz music)
Apparently, the C8's body
is 10% stiffer than the C7's
for two big reasons.
One is the huge, and I
mean huge, center tunnel
that acts like a super strong backbone.
The other is six
(tones zing)
extra large, extra beefy,
extra strong aluminum castings
that make up the frame.
That's gonna make the new
Vette handle even better
than the last one.
And the last one handled very, very well.
And now, it's time to go back
to the back of the car.
(electronic tones reverberate)
(mellow jazz music)
The back of the car is
probably the most identifiable
Corvette part of the entire thing.
The high set tail lights,
(tones zing)
the black low trim, they're
all a natural evolution
of all the previous designs.
But there are a lot of changes too,
like the vents that pass hot air
out of the engine compartment.
The quad tail pipes used
to be in the center.
I really liked that.
Now they've been squared up and split up.
Don't worry, you guys.
There's still four tail pipes.
They're just separated.
Also, you can't see it,
but the rear bumper beam
is made out of carbon fiber.
Now that's to help offset
the weight of the engine
being in the back now.
I know; I know.
But I'm gonna say that one more time.
The engine is in the back now.
Well, it's in the front of the back.
Okay, so like I got a tramp stamp
when I was 12 years old.
And then, I hit a growth spurt.
So now, my tramp stamp is
at the middle of my back.
Max, can we see a picture of that?
(screams)
Which brings us to the
exciting part, the engine.
It's still a pushrod engine,
but its shape allowed GM to mount it
lower in chassis for a
better center of gravity.
And it's no slouch.
The Stingray's new 6.2 liter LT2 V8
makes 495 horsepower and
470 pound feet of torque
with the Z51 package which
is what this car has.
That includes performance exhausts
along with improved engine cooling vents,
better brakes, cooler aerodynamics,
an electronic LSD and stickier tires.
(mellow jazz music)
Every single C8 is gonna
have a dry sump oil system,
this car that costs less
than 60 grand. (chuckles)
And that'll keep the engine
from starving for lubrication,
even when it's pullin'
a G or more.
(engine revs)
I cannot wait to see what the aftermarket
does with these things, man.
People all over the world are gonna be
soupin' these bad boys up.
Seein' 'em this year is gonna be sick,
Corvette, Corvette,
Corvette, Corvette, Corvette.
(chuckles) Cool dude.
(car door slams)
Whoa, this is sick.
It feels like a cockpit.
This is the nicest cockpit
of any Corvette ever, 1,000%.
Goose, take me home or lose me forever!
Chevy had a few goals when designing
the cockpit of the new C8.
Goal number one, perfecting driver focus,
optimizing the F out of visibility.
I think they did a good job.
The steering wheel is a new square design
'cause it's square.
And it's shaped so the driver can see
the entire gauge cluster.
And let me tell you guys,
this gauge cluster is sick.
The dash also sits as low as possible,
so you can see the road better
over the really small hood.
This is like no American
car dash I've ever seen.
Like the amount of texture and elevation,
landscapey changes, I
can't believe that this
is a $55,000 Chevy.
(funky electronic music)
Chevy's second goal was
to do somethin' new.
And they did that for sure.
The vertical climate control cluster,
a.k.a. the climate control strip,
is like a partition separating
the driver and the passenger,
the designers obviously
going for a fighter jet vibe.
And this unconventional design,
the layout really reminds
me of a MKIV Supra,
a lot more than the new Supra does.
Some people like it.
Some people don't like it.
Personally, I love it.
I feel like I get into a lotta cars,
and I don't know how to
do the basic car stuff,
how to turn on the AC,
how to turn on the seat
heaters or whatever.
And in this car, everything
is right here, very clear.
So I can focus on lookin'
cool and my golf game.
(lively electronic music)
That being said, the C8 does
also have a touch screen
which is pretty commonplace
in new cars today.
But what makes this
one a little bit cooler
and a little bit different
is the performance data
recorder or PDR which is cool.
It records your lap
times, breaking points,
bunch of data when you're at the track.
It's race car stuff.
Race car stuff is cool.
(engine revs)
So let's talk about something
that we don't see in the
cockpit, a gear shifter.
For the first time in the
history of the Corvette,
it will not be available
with a manual transmission at launch.
Let's just take a moment
and mourn it and move on.
There is a lot of speculation
that Chevy will add one in the future.
But I'm not necessarily holding my breath
because apparently, 15% of C7
Vettes were sold with a stick.
And Chevy isn't gonna spend the money
to develop a manual if
no one's gonna buy 'em.
So it sucks, but it's
our fault. (chuckles)
Welcome to Business Lesson 101.
Don't make a product if
no one's gonna buy it.
But that is not to say
that the new eight-speed
dual-clutch transmission isn't great.
It clicks off shifts in
less than 100 milliseconds
and provides continuous torque.
So it is absolutely faster than a manual,
hard facts from big bro.
(mellow electronic music)
The final goal is make the
Corvette a true super car killer.
And that takes more than just speed.
Because who buys super cars?
Rich guys.
It's gotta have a nice interior.
And this one is a very nice interior.
GM has been hammered by
people on the internet
about the Vette interior for a long time.
So the team went out of their way
to give the C8 the feeling
of true interior quality.
The seats are real leather.
The metal accents are real aluminum.
Some trim levels will have
real carbon fiber accents.
They could've just made this interior
as a plastic, cozy coupe
'cause that would have really
helped their bottom line.
After all, GM is in the
business of making money.
But they're playing with the
mid-engine kids now, all right?
The piece that looks like a
material is that material.
This is a really big deal.
This car is a very, very big deal.
I just wanna thank everyone
who watches all of our videos
because three years ago,
I would never think that
other than my mentor and
best friend Jay Leno,
I would be the second person
starting this car on YouTube.
So thank you.
(Vette engine rumbles)
(engine revs)
(laughs)
This thing is very, very cool, dude.
It's very weird because I know
I'm sitting in a Corvette.
But I hear so much intake
noise right behind my head
which is the coolest part
about driving a mid-engine car.
Not the coolest part, it's
a very cool part though.
(engine revs)
(lively band music)
I can't figure out how GM has made a car
this advanced, this fast, this nice
for under $60,000.
In a couple of months, we're gonna see
like a thousand horsepower
versions of these
when people start boltin'
on superchargers and turbos
and stuff like that.
And those cars will still
be less than $100,000.
This is a game changer, y'all.
I'm probably the furthest thing
from a Chevy guy that you will find.
But I respect Chevy so much.
And I wanna thank them for respecting us.
They listened, and they gave the people
exactly what they wanted
and more for less.
Respect.
The builders of this Cressida
are the Moonlight Runners,
also known as John and Astrid.
They grew up in the American punk scene.
And they felt a special connection
with the boasters of the culture
of young motor heads
who challenges boring.
When they discovered
they didn't quite fit in
with typical car enthusiasts around here,
they were inspired to
build something different.
2017 Chevrolet Trax Review — Cars.com
Cars.com:
the Chevrolet Trax is updated for 2017
and it really needed it the 2015 version
finished dead last in cars comes
subcompact SUV comparison but for 2017
there is some newness that might help it
finish better in our next comparison
there are some hits on this one there
are also some misses the most notable
change is going to be on the outside
where the front end is significantly
restyled the 2015 and 2016 model looked
way outdated and that's because really
it was that model was on sale globally
way before we ever got it here in the US
so it came to us and it came to
dealerships already looking a few years
old because it was well the 2017 model
has a much cleaner more sophisticated
look that looks a lot like other
Chevrolet vehicles newer Chevrolet
vehicles and on this premier model we're
testing there's an LED strip on the
headlights that is a feature commonly
seen in more expensive vehicles and adds
a nice little touch to this subcompact
SUV what we most like inside the Trax is
its new multimedia system it has
standard apple carplay and android auto
and the biggest advantage to those two
features is navigation it uses your
phone's native navigation to display
directions right on this touchscreen
there's also multiple USB ports there
are two and then in the back of this
premier trim level you have a household
AC outlet another mobile-friendly
feature in the Trax is the 4G LTE
cellular connection and that is a
subscription-based service but they give
you a free trial at first that creates a
Wi-Fi hotspot in the car also on the
inside is this redesigned dashboard and
it's a little more upscale than the old
one on mid and upper trim levels you
have this new kind of - accent with some
contra
stitching and then also these chrome
white pieces around the climate controls
overall it adds just a touch more
upscale feeling to be inside of the
tracks where I think Chevrolet missed
the mark on the redesign is also on the
inside here there are fewer storage
areas compared with the old tracks so
you lose the top storage compartment
you lose the upper glovebox storage
compartment and then you also there are
these two little storage cubbies on the
side of the center console that are also
gone actually I don't mind those being
gone they were so small they didn't have
much of a use but still those others are
notable storage options that you don't
have anymore there is a storage
compartment underneath the front
passenger seat that's pretty sizable
although on ours it is clunky and hard
to open and close the new gauge cluster
is fine but it lacks the uniqueness and
style that the old one had and in a
vehicle that's already kind of just not
really that interesting it lost some of
its individuality with the previous
instrument cluster gage pot which I
thought was super cool it had a digital
speedometer and an analogue tachometer
that was styled after a motorcycle gauge
pod and it was just super cool in a car
that otherwise was super not very cool
so the new one has just the basic tech
emitter speedometer and the new gauge
cluster is just a little more boring in
a car that's already kind of boring the
2017 Trax has more available advanced
safety features but it's still not all
the way there
there's forward collision warning but
there's no automatic emergency braking
component and while that sounds like a
high-end luxury feature it's not
competitors have a forward collision
warning system with automatic emergency
braking that it's going to detect a
collision and in certain circumstances
brake for you the tracks however is just
gonna let you know that there's a
collision coming but it's not gonna
break for you
despite its misses the 2017 does hit on
a few good areas and it is a notable
improvement over the 2016 but this class
as a whole continues to grow and change
with new additions like the Ford
EcoSport the Subaru Crosstrek and the
Nissan Rogue Sport and how does this
compare to those well we'll find out as
we test the entire segment in 2018
you
How To Soda & Media Blast a Car! Hands-On Cars 2 from Eastwood
Eastwood Company:
on this episode of hands on cars we take
a ride in an unrestored 52 Chevy while
Kevin starts blasting the old paint and
rust office camaro before visiting a hot
rod shop owned by a former NASCAR lead
mechanic
hi I'm Kevin gates and you're watching
hands on cars
we are on a mission but we're also on a
budget this is projects and slander 78
z28 camaro that we're doing a budget
pro-touring build on pro touring is tons
of fun
twistys straight line good performance
but we're going to reach it affordably
because we don't have a giant stack of
cash to build this sucker
so one of the best ways to get the
bottom of all of the sins in the past is
to do media blasting media blasting when
you farm it out costs
don't worry we're going to show you guys
how to do it at home with some
reasonably priced equipment and do what
you need to do without destroying your
substrate but there's some things to
consider
no we're not endorsing soft drinks but I
wanted to show you what you can
accomplish with the correct media on the
right substrate
the point I'm trying to make is that
there's more than one material on this
car there's steel there's fiberglass and
there's urethane and if you choose your
media correctly and your equipment you
can get there
you can do a non-destructive job get to
the bottom of things
we're using Eastwood's dual blasting
system which has two reservoirs one for
an abrasive media and one for a
non-abrasive media
we're using aluminum oxide on one side
and soda not baking soda but bicarbonate
of soda which is much more aggressive
but still doesn't profile the substrate
it's a great system because you can use
one or the other or a blend of both with
the valve here now it's a great system
but it does require a pretty good air
supply and more importantly than a lot
of bear clean dry air
let's check one out you got to think
about the air compressor is the heart of
your shop and it's worth spending some
money on
I paint cars i do media blasting I run a
lot of air tools so i need a honkin
compressor this campbell hospital
commercial-grade compressor gives me 25
CFM at 90 psi
it's a two-stage cast iron pump and an
80 gallon horizontal storage tank
the important thing to remember is it's
got an after cooler which separates the
moisture before it even gets to the air
supply so it doesn't end up in my air
tools
it doesn't end up in my paint guns and
it doesn't end up in my abrasive media
think about it spend the money wisely
but sometimes you just got to spend it
on gusta
there's a couple of accessories you want
one is a protective hood to protect your
eyes and your ears and
all the other holes in your head to keep
the media out of it
you want to have a pair of gloves to
protect your hands from bounce back and
i like to use an old paint suit just to
keep the stuff out of all my cracks and
crevices a funnel with some sort of a
strainer is a great idea to keep the big
chunks out of your reservoirs and after
that it's a matter read the instructions
and dialing the equipment and so let's
load it up when you're choosing your
abrasive media keep in mind that sand
it's sand and it's made from silica and
that can cause silicosis which is a
horrible lung disease
seriously guys not fun aluminum oxide
doesn't contain silica a little more
expensive
it's a way better media team is a lot
safer hands on cars is brought to you by
the eastwood company when you're
restoring a car truck or motorcycle
Eastwood has everything you need to do
the job right
eastwood since 1978 looks like Kevin's
really gonna have his hands full
removing the paint and rust from the zed
sled but it should go quick with the
east with dual blaster
now remember there's a lot of different
types of materials on that old Camaro
from the standard sheet metal the pot
metal fiberglass and urethane bumpers
so we're going to get to see how the
blaster and the different media types
affect each of those materials before we
see what's hiding underneath that old
paint
let's check out Kevin's recent visit the
street visions
yeah
yeah
yeah
hey we're over here at Street visions in
Pottstown Pennsylvania look around we
got street rods late models restaurants
pro-touring full on restoration all
manner of awesome custom stuff
Derek white is the owner of this shop
with a 16-year tenure in NASCAR is a
crew chief and an engine builder and
obviously his talents and skills bleed
over into whatever he does in this shop
so let's go find Derek and give me a
shout Jack you got some great work
happening here the Stingray it's
beautiful but what caught my eyes and 55
couldn't get a cab induction hood for 55
Chevy what we did was we took a steel 55
Chevy hood and took a z28 hood and made
our own
yeah it looks like a stamped piece
another awesome detail is the smooth
bumpers are California bombers I've just
been educated as to what they're called
the panel gaps the color
this is a great traditional street rod
it's not too far from stock but it's
still custom and again we've got
beautiful custom airbrushed bel-air
emblems on the side of this car
it's an awesome street but it's
certainly not all they do here there's
plenty more to look at
now this is obviously a restoration and
a beautiful one at that
but the paint is not cut as flat as some
of the other projects that you've got in
there talk to me like that
I'm what we try to do kevin was the guy
wanted it the way the car was originally
painted you know they had peel and I'm
yeah so he wanted the car restored back
to this is the way it was a 65 tab the
appeal and it not to have a show car
show car
but anyway they came out of the factory
right it was the next year there was
strips that was runs and yeah I don't
see the drips or runs are over spray but
you you've recreated what it looked like
a good factory paint job in the day yeah
what we try to do is just keep the
texture in it and what is also a single
stage right so yeah this is a single
state your thing that we sprayed and
then we did white sand and polish if it
didn't cut
yes hard yeah so there's technique to
that as well with this you're trying to
create the illusion that this is a
factory original car right yeah it's a
little bit nicer than what a factory
came out and take a look under the hood
this is a restoration look at the hose
clamps the plug wires are only the
fourth stamping on the radiator bypass
hose the stickers
everything everything is faithfully
recreated and done in a way that it was
done may have come off the showroom just
like this down to the state full auto
life battery
this is the kind of detail that often
gets overlooked in a restoration
these guys are Street visions the
defendant asked job in this car from
stem to stern all the way around
well thanks for showing us around we're
going to get out from under your feet
let's go back to work
I appreciate you and eastwood Kevin for
coming around and you guys are always
welcome here door's always open
cool guess what we built on the driver
well I'm gonna hold you to that
I want to see some tire smoke from some
of these cars are definitely all these
cars and leave here
yeah they can spin the tires awesome all
right thank you
hands on cars were out
and that's why
I let's see what we got we did for
distinctly different substrates for
completely different materials to
sandblast with two different types of
media
the first being soda and these gills
they're made out of pot little very soft
very fragile metal aluminum oxide would
eat it up soda
smooth as a baby's butt and honestly it
kind of bounced right off of there
didn't take very long at all
let's move on now the front bumper cover
a little bit different story
this thing is in sad shape lots of sun
damage lots of damage from it just being
exposed this urethane isn't UV strong
and the paint while underneath the paint
it's pretty smooth
the soda moved it it didn't do as great
as we thought I think it was just sort
of bouncing off so if you're going to
sort of last year thin bumper
you better have a couple of bags of soda
and a little bit extra time on your
hands because it's just going to take a
while now with the fiberglass rear
spoiler and quarter panel extensions
soda did great
it left the surface very very smooth and
the paint practically blew off plus the
added bonus is I could do this on the
car
I don't have to worry about my lights
and I don't have to make stands but I
did kind of mess up i want to show you
come a little closer right here you can
see the surface is degraded a little bit
i mixed and some of the aluminum oxide
with the soda and it ate away the
fiberglass
surprise surprise I was just trying to
get the job done a little bit faster and
it bit me in the butt
so now i know only soda on the soft
stuff finally right here i use a hundred
percent aluminum oxide on this surface
rest which was nasty and is completely
gone is completely removed and the bonus
is no warpage so I'm fine with that
my goal was never to strip the entire
vehicle with the dual blaster it was to
utilize two different types of media
that are kind to the substrate or the
surface that i'm working on and not
destroy anything so mission accomplished
we're going to strip the rest of the
panels with stripping discs and be done
with it get down to the substrate find
out what since the other two or three or
four paint jobs are hiding
so we got to tear the car part throw it
on a rotisserie and start attacking this
floors
yeah feature wings and this is why it's
a really good idea to bag your
carburetor second snowstorm the taste
bad
yeah
by the way you're doing what we're
dealing with the car assembled
make sure your windows are done up or
your sunroof is closed now that we
showed you the dual blast they're
handled all the different parts of the
camaro
Kevin's going to take the body off the
frame and really start digging into it
if you'd like to learn more about
blasting click the link to visit
eastwood.com and remember there's more
media types and just aluminum oxide and
soda
we also offer wanna shells ground glass
and glass beads with a chart that shows
you the best uses for each before we
check in on Kevin's progress
we're going to take a ride in this old
unrestored chevy with Eastwood zone matt
murray you probably know matt from our
social media sites as well as project
pile house
he recently found this cool old
unrestored car and we're going to check
it out
yeah
so can you see out of this mirror over
here at all
I can't see anything out of this one I
can see here no I can't see anything I
can't even see the passenger and the
drivers bear and swaps around so how
long have you had this
I've had this thing probably about three
months now since the day I actually
pulled it out of the
Raj 1952
Debbie styleline the locks and it's a
235 with a Powerglide in it
so is that what you're looking for I
mean
that the exhaust follow
that's it gets it the rare heads on the
and Mark bombs
childhood friend of mine
his father in law on this car and
he gave me a car asked me if I was
interested I knew anybody that was said
it was a four door and I pretty much
immediately sit down right on interested
but as today send me some pictures you
know i'd like to see somebody get a hold
of it and he sent me some pictures of it
initially in the garage all covered in
dust
boxes stacked on top of it so I agreed
to come take a look at it and when I
went to see it and heard the whole story
about the card kind of fell in love and
your daughter says 51,000 almost fifty
two thousand I've been it's probably a
hundred fifty thousand on it the guy I
bought it from seems Paul is a
grandfather bought the car / a new and
52 and drive it daily
it was a family car for a few years and
Paul's father bought it from his dad he
pretty much had in my entire life so
it's not a Tony stores craft is still
good
place to buy alcohol with you
maryland and get thrown off there we go
i bought the car took it home
immediately the next morning I started
working on and I got the fire up the
same with less than 24 hours of buying
it
probably the biggest thing Savior of
this whole project was useful in aerosol
injected cleaner and look every single
hardline off the car because Paul's
father had rust proof and recruited the
whole car every hard line was still in
pristine shape so I pulled all the hard
lines few lines of brake lines and use
their so injector cleaner an idea inside
yeah that's great everything out so I
have a couple of pretty good pictures on
on our blog and eastwood blog about
blowing out these lines and show him you
know 20-foot some breaking fuel lines
and a can of that
pressurizing it which is never shaken
out the other side
yeah but the interior it looks it looks
original
apparently when the car was only a hand
for your full of years old
either his mother's grandmother stitched
a new headliner for the car door cards
sun sun visors 60 year old car
big bench seeds just a ton of history I
mean you don't make people probably did
it
I mean like right here where we're
sitting right now I I actually kind of
joke
I just all about next video isn't it
another story told me was that I him bar
and dads 52 picking this group his
girlfriend up with you know take her out
to on gates if they don't you know i'm
gonna talked about what
who knows what could have happened on
these on these seats and it's pretty
pretty neat
you got any plans for this card I did a
couple of modifications like I lowered
it can be fine PopCap's on some stuff
like that just little things going to
set a wide whites but I kept buying
supplies because if i wanted to keep it
kind of again know . correct going
through the car was like walking back in
time I got the you know the original
dealers repair manual you know the spare
tire still in there the jack and the
road flares they're in there and it's
not kept all that stuff it's kind of
cool to display the trunk
well i guess thanks for giving us a ride
problem and we should be there and back
the woodwork
unless you want to film and where is it
that we could we're not getting anywhere
to quit that
yeah
yeah
yeah
have a goal of doing this is not to
strip all the paint off is to see what
kind of metal needs to be replaced and
this is telling me that i could patch
this around here but I'm going to need a
trunk floor
kind of disappointing but at the same
time and speak to learn it now trying to
find a silver lining
it's a cloud of poo
on the next episode of hands on cars
Kevin replaces the floor pans in a
Camaro and takes jaden to the Nashville
Goodguys show before we dig up the real
dirt on this Canadian rocker
Best Electric Cars for 2019 & 2020 ― Top-Rated EV Cars and SUVs
Edmunds:
WILL KAUFMAN: Hey
Elena, when is getting
charged with multiple
batteries a good thing?
ELENA SCHERR: No-- no--
no-- no.
WILL KAUFMAN: What?
ELENA SCHERR: No.
WILL KAUFMAN: What?
ELENA SCHERR: No, we
are not doing this.
We are not doing the electricity
jokes in the EV video.
WILL KAUFMAN: Guess
what, it's too late,
we're already rolling.
Let's talk EVs.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
ELENA SCHERR: Electric
cars are good now.
Did you get the memo?
Yeah, they have enough
range and they're
available in enough
price ranges that they're
a viable alternative
for most commuters.
Imagine never having to
go to a gas station again.
Today, we're rounding
up the best EVs
so you don't have to
go charging in blind.
Oh, man now I'm doing it.
WILL KAUFMAN: Gotcha.
Everything we're
going to talk about
has been through our full
testing and rating process,
which you can see more about--
[BUBBLES POPPING]
There's a link.
There's a link--
ELENA SCHERR: Somewhere.
We put a link in.
WILL KAUFMAN: This list
includes everything
we've tested up until now.
Our ratings are
updated in real-time.
So if you don't see the
vehicle you're looking for,
make sure to check edmunds.com
to see if it's there.
ELENA SCHERR: All right, let's
actually talk about the cars.
Tesla may have captured
consumers imaginations
with its futuristic
and pricey vehicles,
but there are affordable
EVs out there that cost
less than $40,000.
When the Kona electric
hit the market,
it immediately became
our favorite new EV.
Why?
Well, because it's
just a car, but better.
You get a comfy
practical hatchback
with Hyundai's easy infotainment
and useful driver aids.
Only it's faster and more
efficient than the gas models.
In our testing, the Kona EV was
more than a half second quicker
to 60 mile per hour than
its turbocharged sibling.
And all that power is
available right off the line.
So you don't have to wait
for a turbo to spool up
or a transmission to wake up.
WILL KAUFMAN: We picked a Kona
EV up for our long term fleet.
I really enjoy
commuting in ours.
I think it's the stereo.
It's better than
most in the class.
Although, that rear seat is kind
of tight for big infant seats.
Rear seat infant
accommodations aside,
we liked the Kona
electric so much
we gave it our Editor's Choice
Award for the top EV of 2019.
ELENA SCHERR: Good job, Kona.
WILL KAUFMAN: This
is one electric
that won't be wearing
the Kona shame.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
When it launched,
the Chevrolet Bolt
leapfrogged the competition
with its 238 miles
of range, quick acceleration,
and approachable price.
Even with more competitors
on the market now,
the Bolts strengths mean
it's worth checking out
if you're shopping for an EV.
ELENA SCHERR: The
Bolt isn't perfect.
The interior is
kind of plastic-y.
And it has a unique infotainment
system that is just not
as good as Chevy's norm.
The lightweight and firm
seats aren't very adjustable.
And some people
around the office
felt they were a deal breaker.
But your mileage
wattage may vary.
WILL KAUFMAN: We put
30,000 miles on a Bolt
as part of our long
term testing program.
And its nimbleness
and small size
made it a solid choice
for the daily commute.
ELENA SCHERR: One thing
that's awesome about the Bolt
is its one pedal driving,
where lifting off the gas pedal
causes the electric motors to
slow the car down so you don't
even have to touch the brake,
and you're recapturing energy
while it happens.
That is a neat EV trick.
For 2020, it offers
259 miles of range.
Although, those few extra
miles aren't enough to help
it nab the top EV
spot from Hyundai.
You can find out why on our full
video comparison of those two
cars.
WILL KAUFMAN: The Volkswagen
e-Golf, or e-Golf,
as no one calls
it, is practically
a dinosaur in the EV world,
having come out way back
in 2015.
We like the e-Gulf for
being, well, a golf--
a likeable small car
with comfortable seats
and Volkswagen
driving dynamics that
make it more pleasant
than competitors
from behind the wheel.
For 2019, the e-Golf is
up to 125 miles of range.
That's well behind
top competitors,
but still enough to get most
commuters through their day.
You also get standard car
play and Android Auto,
and a generous trunk
with folding seats
that give the e-Golf
plenty of space for cargo.
ELENA SCHERR: The e-Golf is
the affordable EV that feels
the most like a regular car.
But it's not as torque and
quick as, say, the Kona,
and it's definitely
down on range.
WILL KAUFMAN: If you're willing
to skip the bells and whistles,
the e-Golf's base price
is pretty affordable.
But you'll have to pay extra
for things like active safety
features.
If you're looking for a
friendly and familiar way
to get into electric
motoring, the e-Golf
is worth checking out.
ELENA SCHERR: Nissan
doesn't get enough credit
for making the first
successful affordable EV.
In fact, the Leaf is still the
top selling EV in the world.
The current generation
Leaf introduced for 2018
is quieter, more comfortable,
and more rewarding to drive.
It offers plenty of range.
WILL KAUFMAN: The
Leaf's steering wheel
doesn't telescope, making
the car a little less
comfortable for taller drivers.
And steering feels artificial.
But overall, the Leaf has far
more strengths than weaknesses,
especially if you don't need
the chart topping range offered
by the Kona or the
Bolt. And if you do,
the Leaf plus variant
amps up the range
to a competitive 226 miles.
ELENA SCHERR: Kilowatt
hours, not amps.
WILL KAUFMAN: Stay
in your lane, Scherr.
ELENA SCHERR: Hey Will,
are you tired of hearing
about the Edmunds long
term test fleet yet?
WILL KAUFMAN: How
could anyone ever
get tired of hearing about
such a valuable resource
for shoppers and
enthusiasts alike?
ELENA SCHERR:
Good, because we've
had both generations
of Leaf in our garage.
WILL KAUFMAN: And the
second generation really
was a big improvement.
Even though it was
slower, I liked
commuting in the Leaf a
bit more than the Bolt
just for the seats.
Although for someone
my size, it felt a bit
like driving a toy car.
ELENA SCHERR: Will is
actually a lot taller than me.
And I am standing
on a box right now.
The Hyundai Ioniq electric
has a low cost of entry.
Yet, it offers all
the user-friendly tech
we expect from a Hyundai.
It also has the most
efficient electric drive
train on the market per the EPAs
miles per gallon equivalent--
MPGE.
Which means you'll pay
less to keep it charged.
The Ioniq isn't the
best driving EV,
and the rear seat is not
particularly comfortable,
nor roomy.
But it gets a shout
out for offering
a lot of features at
an appealing price
and for being so efficient.
If you want to go green and
you want to go all the way,
the Ioniq electric
is the current champ.
WILL KAUFMAN:
Luxury electric cars
aren't just about adding
luxury features and performance
to the EV formula.
They're also about
pushing boundaries.
Luxury brands work hard to show
off their visions of the future
and attempt new and
younger buyers like you.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
ELENA SCHERR: The
Tesla Model S might
be the oldest Tesla
in production,
but it is still our favorite of
the company's three offerings.
And it is only now seeing
serious direct competition.
It combines a roomy attractive
cabin with astonishing speed
and outstanding range.
Depending on how it's
equipped, the Model S
can be staggeringly
quick in a straight line.
The price tag, however,
is equally intimidating.
And compared to similarly priced
internal combustion sedan,
it feels a bit unpolished
and lacks some of the luxury
features like massaging seats.
But if you're after
something with a Tesla badge
or serious bragging rights,
the S is the best of the bunch.
WILL KAUFMAN: You know, we've
owned all 3 Tesla models.
So you can find out what
they're like to live
with in our long term blog.
In fact, I did the math
and we've given Tesla
a total of $295,700.
ELENA SCHERR: I mean,
Elon should really
send us a thank you note.
WILL KAUFMAN: The BMW i3
does have the shortest range
of any of the luxury
electrics on this list
with just 153 miles.
But it does offer the
option of a range extender
that gets you up to 200 miles.
The i3 is a unique little car.
From its funky looks outside
to its truly special interior,
we think the i3 has one of the
best interiors on the road.
It's stylish and modern
with novel materials,
but it's still user-friendly.
And the i3 drives the way
you'd expect a BMW to drive.
ELENA SCHERR: Between
the rear suicide doors,
big wheels with skinny tires,
and that dramatic interior,
the i3 really isn't like
anything else on the road.
Our long term i3--
yeah, we had one--
made a great city run about.
And if you're looking for
something a little different
from your EV, the
i3 is a standout.
WILL KAUFMAN: The Tesla Model 3
encountered some early growing
pains.
And the elusive $35,000
model didn't exactly live up
to its advanced billing.
But if you don't mind
the teething issues,
you'll find the Model 3 a
remarkably sporty electric car
with a healthy amount of
space for its small footprint,
and an interior that pushes
the definition of modern.
ELENA SCHERR: I'm going to
be the Tesla complainer.
Oh, no.
I'm not a big fan of having
all the cars controllers
go through that big
center touch screen.
And the displays
sort of made me feel
like I was driving in
a room with someone who
was playing a video game.
WILL KAUFMAN: It's
definitely more distracting
to adjust vehicle settings,
even simple things
like adjusting your mirrors.
But the Model 3 performed
so well in our testing
that we had to give it its due.
In fact in a recent head
to head comparison test,
our own Carlos Lago said
that it was more fun to drive
than the new BMW 3 Series.
ELENA SCHERR: I'm not
going to argue with Carlos.
The I-Pace is an
impressive machine
that exudes style,
poise, comfort,
and technical sophistication.
The all wheel drive
electric SUV delivers plenty
of range and good utility.
But Jaguar is relative
inexperience with EV technology
results in surprisingly
high electricity
consumption and a lack of
smoothness when braking
at low speeds.
One of the things I personally
liked about the I-Pace
was how it melded a sci-fi
future with classic design,
especially in the interior.
It's one of the prettiest
EVs out there even
if it isn't the most efficient.
WILL KAUFMAN: This is
also one of those cars
where we've seen some
really strong discounts.
So you might be able to
find a deal on it too.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
The Tesla Model X is currently
the only electric vehicle
you can get with
three rows of seating.
It also has the most
personality of any Tesla,
which is a mixed bag.
The Falcon wing doors
and panoramic windshield
set it apart.
But these features could also
be viewed as gimmicks that
don't really add functionality.
ELENA SCHERR: Either way, the
Model X's firm to rough ride
doesn't do it any favors.
Still, there is no denying
that this is one quick SUV.
Our long term Model X
launched to 60 miles per hour
in a truly ludicrous
3.5 seconds.
And you can get all
the futuristic tech
that make Tesla Model special.
But there are so many
new EVs on the way.
WILL KAUFMAN: Volkswagen's
got the ID coming,
which is a whole new
electric platform for them.
And Ford says they're making
both an SUV and a pickup truck.
ELENA SCHERR: Yeah,
they partnered up
with Rivian, who are making
a truck and a large SUV.
There's also the Mercedes
Benz EQC and Audi e-tron.
WILL KAUFMAN: We have an e-tron
coming in for testing soon.
So keep your eyes on our
electric car rankings
to see how it stacks
up against the Model X.
ELENA SCHERR: For
our sports car fans,
Porsche just
unveiled the Taycan,
a pricey high performance sedan
that could give the Tesla Model
S a run for its money.
I mean, not like directly
dollar for dollar for the money.
Anyway, it's really
fast, it's really cool.
We think people are
going to like it.
We just had a chance to
check it out in person
and we were pretty impressed.
WILL KAUFMAN: And
there's even more.
The Polestar 2 looks great.
The new generation Kia Soul
is getting a new EV version.
And of course, Tesla has
the model Y coming, along
with the new Roadster--
ELENA SCHERR: Roadster.
WILL KAUFMAN: And
their own pickup truck.
ELENA SCHERR: It feels
like new electric cars
and new EV technology are
being announced every day.
So stay tuned to
Edmunds for news
and reviews on the latest EVs.
You can also read full
reviews of every car
that we talked
about in this video
and find great deals on
electric vehicles near you.
WILL KAUFMAN: Did we
mention our long term blog?
ELENA SCHERR: Shockingly, yes.
WILL KAUFMAN: Whomp.
Whomp.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Greatest barn find collection known to man | Barn Find Hunter - Ep. 46
Hagerty:
(energetic blues music)
- It's oh-dark-thirty and
we're already on the road
heading to a place north of here
by about 2 and a half hours,
where a gentleman's got
buildings full of cars
that are unbelievable.
He said, "I bought them
'cause I loved them,
"not 'cause they were
gonna go up in value."
Well they all went up in value
and so now we've been invited to see
buildings full of cars that he restored
20, 30, 40 years ago
and now they're sitting
in those buildings,
kind of unrestoring themselves.
It's a pretty sad sight
but the cars are amazing
so come along for the ride.
So whats a Barn Find guy doing flowers?
Well I like flowers, okay?
Actually, we're going
to see a guy named Billy
who's got an amazing selection of cars
and he happened to tell me that today
is his wife Carolee's birthday
so bought Carolee some flowers.
This is what you do to be a
successful barn find hunter.
Sometimes it takes buying
a bouquet of flowers.
Remember what I told you in
the past about dead end roads?
These are the roads that
contain the treasures that
nobody wants to go down a dead end road.
Well, this is where the treasures are, so
this is the perfect case-in-point
for going down dead end roads.
Look at these, here we go.
Building's full of this.
Here we go, Billy and Carolee.
This is the ladies love me.
- Oh my, thank you, they're beautiful!
- Happy birthday, Carolee.
- Thank you very much.
- [Tom] So Billy, what's your dad's name?
- Walter "Bicket" Eubanks.
- [Tom] Walter, okay.
- Just call him Bicket.
- [Tom] Nice to meet you, Bicket.
And thanks for teaching
this guy about car stuff.
Where do we start, which
room do we start in,
over here, over here?
- Well, uh, probably since
we're in here and it's raining,
let's look at the--
- [Tom] Okay.
- You wanna look at
the Lincoln and the Stutz?
Now they're dirty, I
ain't cleaned them up.
- Good, we don't want 'em clean.
- [Billy] Had a lot of fast cars and, uh,
and drove fast a lot but
I never had a ticket.
- [Tom] Never got a ticket?
- [Billy] Never had a ticket.
- [Tom] Man...
And this is a 1929 Stutz,
overhead cam shaft vertical engine.
And how long have you
had something like this?
- [Billy] It's been several years.
This is oh-40, that's a 1940.
- [Tom] 1940 Lincoln Continental?
- [Billy] Yeah, the 41,
they had two-piece fenders
but the 41's were two-pieces stamped out.
The 40's, the back half of
that fender was handmade.
- [Tom] Handmade.
- [Billy] Was six slits
in the back fender to make that turn.
- [ Tom] Oh man.
- [Billy] When I first
cleaned the paint off,
I says, "well somebody homemade
a fender on this thing.
"It's torn to pieces".
Well, I went to the show, when
I went and got that Lincoln
Ford Motor Company trophy, they said that
Lincoln handmade those fenders
and I had the only Lincoln
there, there were six Lincolns,
maybe four, four or
six, 40's there to show.
And I was the only one that had
the homemade fenders skirts on it.
- And this was basically a handmade car?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- Wow.
- That whole back end is handmade.
- Are there cars back here too?
- [Billy] The cars are
in there, the other side
(energetic blues music)
- [Tom] Oh, now we're getting
to some stuff here, wow.
Alright, so even though you're a Mopar guy
and a Hudson guy, I mean,
you've got Chevrolets.
Do you remember any stories
about any of these cars?
About who you got them from or anything?
- I was working at the
Chevrolet dealership
and this car got traded in.
It got stolen one time, you
know they got a switch on this.
Mama drove it to work one night and they,
she didn't get the switch cut off right
and somebody stole it.
It upset me so bad that
I prayed to the Lord
that he'd give it back
to me by the weekend
or he'd either give me the understanding
to handle that problem, my
faith worried me to death.
But that Friday night, the
law the from nearby town
said he had a Corvette racer.
Didn't need it, we could come get it.
They had got it out in the woods
and it won't hurt except
to say it didn't half run.
Well what the people had
done, they jerked it so hard
they pulled three spark
plug wires off the left side
when it broke the motor mount.
- [Tom] Oh, doing a burnout?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- [Tom] Oh!
- So I went down and got it and
drove it home on five cylinders.
I didn't know why it was running bad,
I was just tickled to get it back.
- [Tom] Now that's an
intriguing car right there.
A Daytona, what's the story with that car?
- If you do look back into
history of these Dodges
when they started building them,
they had a wide wing on the back.
I don't know if you ever
seen a picture of one
with a wider wing.
- [Tom] A wider one?
- A wider wing, I might have one.
I have got one somewhere, but anyway,
there's a set of holes in
this car right out here.
You can see on the inside.
Feel it where they welded them up.
They put the regular wing back on
but they did some testing
with 'em on the outside,
with the wing out flush
and this was that car.
I joined the Daytona Superbird Club
and not many of them
had clear lenses in 'em.
This one's got all clear glass in it.
No power steering, no power brakes.
It was a 440 four-speed.
- [Tom] So 440 four-speed,
single four-barrel?
- [Billy] Yep, well
it's got two on it now.
It has two on it when I got it but
it didn't come that way, I don't think.
- [Tom] And did you drive this car much?
- [Billy] I have driven
it, yeah, I've driven it.
- [Tom] It really had
no value then, did it?
- [Billy] No.
- [Tom] What did you,
do you remember what you paid for it?
- [Billy] No.
- [Tom] Now here's a 440 six-pack Charger.
- [Billy] It's the RT but I
painted to take the decals off.
- [Tom] Uh huh and
that's an automatic car.
Boy, look at that air cleaner, whoa.
So you got three two-barrels
underneath there.
You do nice paint jobs,
I gotta tell you that.
(energetic blues music)
So what cars are interesting in here?
Alright, so here we have two rare Fords.
That's a Torino Talladega.
- [Billy] Yep.
- [Tom] Is that a 70 or 69?
- [Billy] 69.
- [Tom] Now some of these had big motors.
Does this have a 429?
- Well they had the same motor in 'em.
This is a 428.
- A 428 Cobra Jet?
So that's a single four-barrel 428?
- [Billy] Yeah.
Need to oil that hood.
- See this was an extended nose
that Ford put on a standard Torino.
It's about three inches longer
or maybe longer than that.
Holman and Moody and Ford
Motor Company got together
and designed a car with
Snoopy nose, a sloopy nose
to keep it down at tracks like Talladega
so that the front end
wouldn't come up in the air.
Okay, Mercury Cyclone, that's
the Dan Gurney special.
The Mercury was tagged
"Dan Gurney Special".
- [Billy] The Mercury's a lot
rarer than the Ford to me.
700 Fords, they claimed
to make 500 Mercuries,
but I think they made about 275.
- [Tom] No kidding.
Is that an automatic car?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- This is a 302 in here?
- [Billy] No, it's a 351 I think.
- [Tom] What an intriguing
package deal here
are these two cars, wow, nice.
- [Billy] That's a 57 Chevy Nomad.
- [Tom] Mm hmm, 57 Chevy.
Now anything usual about
this engine, is it 283?
- [Billy] Yeah but it's just a Nomad.
- [Tom] So no fuel injection
or anything like that?
- [Billy] No.
- [Tom] That's a manual
gear box, three on the tree.
That's a Mark two, that
was the most expensive car.
In effect, Ford charged
so much money and yet
they still lost money in every car.
So it's a Hudson Hornet Coupe.
Oh, you have a Rolls Royce.
It's a special car.
Oh, here we have another Chrysler 300?
Another big Hemi with two four-barrels.
Boy, that's some rare stuff here.
427 Chevy Impala convertible.
It's automatic console, bucket seats.
I can't imagine the
torque that that car has.
58 Chrysler Imperial and so did you,
did you drive this car to high school?
- [Billy] I drove it to high school, yes.
- [Tom] This was your
high school car, wow.
So a 55 four-door.
- It's got 30, 36,000 miles on it.
- [Tom] No kidding.
More cars, how do you like that?
This is amazing that we're walking by cars
that on a normal episode,
we would spend a half
hour looking at that car,
salivating over it if we found it in
Northern California or Texas.
Wow, look at that 55, it's great.
But here, there's so many
other cars that are around
that I feel guilty about
not paying attention
and giving credit to these cars.
Oh, nice Jaguar.
Well you didn't know you'd be
pressed into service today.
- No, I didn't, no I didn't.
(laughter)
- On your birthday, no less.
- Right.
(chuckles)
- [Tom] Now Billy's knee has taken him
out of service for a little
while, he's got a bad knee.
So Carolee, on her
birthday, has volunteered to
walk us through these buildings.
- [Carolee] Volunteered
might be a little of--
(laughter)
- So here you've got
turbo jet 360 horsepower.
That's a big block, you can
tell by the valve covers.
That's a factory big block 427,
so we've seen two of those so far.
Red convertible and this,
I guess it's a black
or dark blue convertible.
Have you, uh, maybe you'll find
cars you never knew you had?
- It's very possible.
We have over 100.
- [Tom] No kidding.
- [Carolee] My grandchildren went around
and counted them one
day and we've got about,
they're not all fixed up
but the woods are full.
It's been quite his life work.
- [Tom] Yeah, isn't that wonderful?
So this is a Z28.
- [Carolee] Yeah.
[Tom] So, I don't know,
it's probably a 70.
So this is a Chrysler,
probably a 57 Chrysler
I'm guessing by the--
[Carolee] He liked the
Chryslers and he liked,
he really liked the old
cars that every year
got real excited about
the models coming out.
- [Tom] Now this I know
is a Lincoln Cosmopolitan.
To my knowledge, the Continental
was not a Lincoln Continental,
it was a Continental made by Lincoln.
But this is a Lincoln Cosmopolitan
so it's got both names on the fender.
And I think this was the
lower priced Lincoln,
if I'm not mistaken.
It was based on kind
of a Mercury-sized car.
- [Carolee] Well when Billy
first started collecting,
he was more into the old Lincolns.
He liked the old Lincolns.
- [Tom] Mm hmm.
- [Carolee] When we first got married,
he only had a car or two.
(laughter)
And then after our daughter was born,
I was in the hospital
and he came and he said,
"get up and look out the window."
He was just really weird, I thought,
"he's so happy about our little girl."
But he bought another car.
He had it parked outside the hospital
and wanted me to see it.
And my life has been
like that forever more.
(raucous laughter)
- [Tom] Oh man, you can't make that up.
(energetic blues music)
- [Carolee] This is the car he
wanted me to tell you about.
- [Tom] Oh, okay.
- [Carolee] This was a
car that he restored.
We have showed a few cars,
but Billy doesn't do with fixing them.
He's not that much into competing.
But we went to Gatlinburg,
we hauled this one to Gatlinburg
when my daughter, older
daughter was about 15.
Billy registered the car in her name
'cause he didn't want
to go to the banquette.
He wanted to stay out and swap car parts
with all the other nuts.
So Tammy and I went into the banquette.
You know, they gave out
all the little trophies
and Tammy was kind of disappointed.
She thought her daddy'd like a trophy.
And then they got to this big one
and they said, "Tommy Eubanks".
Well, it was Tammy Eubanks
and that child got up
and got that trophy so fast I
couldn't even get a picture.
- Isn't that something?
- She was up and back at her seat
and wanting to run out and tell her daddy.
- So this won Best of Show.
- Yeah, it did.
And it was still a bargain.
- [Tom] Oh, here he is.
We're hearing all the stories here.
Here we have a Studebaker.
So here's the supercharger's
belt-driven off the crankshaft
and drives air through that
hose and down the carburetor,
the carburetor being in here.
So it's a blow-through supercharger.
So look at this, you have an alternator,
you've got the supercharger
here driven by the belt
and spring-loaded so it's got tension.
You see that arm moves back and forth.
Here's an alternator.
It probably would've been a
generator on here originally.
And then here's an air-conditioning unit.
A lot going on with belts here.
This was a 289 engine,
it was a 289 cubic inches
Studebaker motor, not a Ford engine.
So here's another Dodge Daytona.
Most of these street cars were purchased.
Again, we'll bring up
the word homologation.
Chrysler had to build a
certain number of cars,
whether it was a Dodge or a Plymouth,
to qualify the car
homologated for NASCAR racing.
Bill France wouldn't allow
someone to build a custom car
and bring it on the track.
Remember, these were called stock cars.
They're supposed to represent what
people drove on the street.
So Chrysler came out with
a limited-production car
that people could buy but they weren't
necessarily modified very much.
They had a 440, lots
of 'em had automatics.
They had this wing and they had a nose,
a sloopy nose on there,
but they weren't really modified cars.
But some people took those
cars and modified them
and this is one of those cars.
These cars either came,
mostly came with 440s in them.
I think some had maybe 383s.
I don't know what this car had in it.
Probably a 440 originally but this one now
has a 426 Hemi in it.
It's got really huge wheels
and tires in the back
and skinnier ones in
the front, so I take it,
this was a drag car at one time.
Billy told us that the
previous owner of this car
had brought it to a test
track, Chrysler Proving Ground,
I think in Highland Park or something,
and ran it and this car
went to 190 miles an hour.
That's for a street-driven
car, which is amazing.
It's got a four-speed pistol-grip shifter.
You know, a couple of gauges were added,
a, uh, oil pressure gauge, a Suntec.
But the real modifications
are up in the front here.
This car most likely came with a 440
but this one has a 426 Hemi
engine and two four-barrels
on a high rise intake manifold
and has a big hole cut in the hood here.
So let me just put this hood down
for half a second if we can.
As you can see, those carburetors
are gonna come right out the top.
So this was a very
modified car and I take it
that this car was a drag
car that probably was
drag raced back in the day.
Very modified, who knows what the
horsepower's on that thing,
probably, y'know, 600.
Who knows, maybe more.
We don't know if it's bored in stroke.
NASCAR wouldn't allow a high
rise manifold like that.
You had to have the
carburetors under the hood.
So that's why I say this
is either a street car,
a street race car, or a drag car.
Here we are in rural
North Carolina looking at
a pretty substantial
piece of history here.
A 1970 Plymouth Superbird,
the 43rd Superbird made,
same number as Richard
Petty's famous race number.
I just want to let you
know the value of this.
I'm going through the Hagerty Price Guide
and in number four condition,
this has a value of $91,000.
The average condition or one
in good condition is $124,000.
If it were excellent, it'd be $169,000
and in concours condition, $216,000.
Well, what condition is this in?
It hasn't started in a long time.
It's dirty but I guarantee
that this car would drive,
run in drive and be cleaned up to probably
something of concours
condition or greater because
it's better than concours condition.
It's got original paint,
never been repainted.
It's got the original interior.
It's got the original drivetrain
and it's the 43rd made so
this car has a value well into
$200,000 range I would say,
according to the history
of these cars being sold.
(energetic blues music)
Well, another Hudson Hornet.
Now that's a significant car, 59 Cadillac.
This is a Biarritz Eldorado.
- [Caralee] I think it's
a Biarritz Eldorado.
- Yeah, I can't imagine what
a car like this is worth.
(door slams)
Box is blocking the way but
just look at the size of this.
The weight's probably
gotta be 5, 6000 pounds.
I mean this is the most obscene
taillight ever known to man.
It was 1959 Cadillac came out with
the fin and the tail lights.
Just amazing piece of artwork.
- [Caralee] Wanna see the Godfather?
- Oh yeah, this is it right here.
Huh, okay, another piece of history here.
41 Lincoln Continental.
This car appeared in the Godfather movie
and you can see it's got
bullet holes throughout.
This was an actual movie car.
Wow, look at this, there's a sign.
"Actual 45 caliber bullets
were fired into this
"special effects car from
a Thompson machine gun
"from the death scene in
the movie 'The Godfather'".
(bullets firing)
So this is a Hollywood star of sorts.
But this car here,
we should look at this
car for a little bit.
It's not even really a car,
it's not really a truck.
It's called a Ute and
you spell that U-T-E.
Made in Australia by
Chrysler the car company.
I think it's a Plymouth
if I'm not mistaken.
So this is probably a 56,
57 with the big fin here.
Wayfarer Chrysler, so it
usually has a tailgate.
And I'm not sure if they were built
in Australia for tax reasons.
I don't know why they were built but
they were still building Utes until just
not too many years ago.
The Airflow Chrysler,
you know, I love them
but apparently they didn't sell very well.
If you look at this 35 and any
other car, Chevrolet or Ford,
they were so much more primitive.
If you look at this car,
it's got aerodynamics.
The headlights are built into the body,
not separate, sitting up here.
And it was designed with the idea
of getting better fuel economy
and speed from a car that
was designed differently
than the normal car of the day was.
And it never caught on and
it didn't sell very well.
Now this is the car
I've been dying to see.
So this was a, what year was it?
- [Billy] 57.
- [Tom] D500.
Tell us, Billy, this is a
car you've had since new?
- [Billy] Daddy bought it new
and I've traded back for it a time or two
but I'm gonna keep it this time.
(laughter)
- [Tom] So this was a Dodge that came--
- [Billy] With a Hemi engine.
- [Tom] Equipped like you
would build like a NASCAR,
stock car out of back in the
day when they were stock cars.
It's got a Hemi engine with
a four-barrel carburetor.
Did you drive this to high school, Billy?
- Yeah.
- [Tom] So is that like a 274?
- No, it's a three-something, 315 maybe.
- [Tom] 315 so smaller
engine than a Chrysler had.
Dodges had smaller engines.
- But it was still a Hemi.
- Still a Hemi, right.
And it had a manual transmission?
- [Billy] Yeah, pretty car,
I love the chrome on it.
- [Tom] Boy, and you
bought this new, whoa.
- So you told me you ordered
it once and it came in wrong?
- [Billy] Yeah and it
was just like he ordered.
The colors were reversed,
it had an automatic in it
with the two four-barrels.
- [Tom] So his dad ordered
one from the local dealer.
- [Billy] It came wrong.
- [Tom] It had two four-barrels and a Hemi
but it had an automatic and
his dad wanted a standard.
So they went to another dealership
and ordered one with
a manual transmission.
It came with one four-barrel,
which is fine I guess.
- [Billy] It would fly.
- [Tom] Yeah, I bet, wow.
How fast have you had
this up to, do you know?
- [Billy] It didn't have the speed but
it didn't seem like it wanted to run fast
as that Imperial over there.
- [Tom] Is that right?
- [Billy] But that Imperial,
that's a 392 in it.
But this would turn
tight, it just wouldn't--
- [Tom] Is this original paint on here?
- [Billy] No, that's all my work.
- [Tom] And those are the
original hubcaps on there.
- [Billy] Yeah.
- [Tom] And that was a very
limited production car, I bet.
- [Billy] Yeah but they had one
one a little rarer than that
and we didn't know about it,
but you could get it with the 392 in it.
- Wow, that's a rare car, boy.
That's a beauty too.
- [Billy] Let's walk out
this door right here,
some more down there.
(laughter)
You like junk?
- [Tom] Oh I love junk.
(energetic blues music)
You know, I see a couple
of iconic 1960s cars.
Olds Tornado and a Buick
Riviera and both cars
are now seen as classics,
American classic cars
because they were so breathtaking,
cutting edge in their
styling and in this case,
front wheel drive,
like, who heard of that?
Front wheel drive at that point was Saabs.
And Oldsmobile did it with a huge Tornado.
Aha!
(garage door clacks)
Wow
- Open the door,
then just look inside at how nice it is.
It's got 49,000 actual miles.
- How many?
- [Billy] 49.
- 49 miles?
- [Billy] 49,000.
- Oh 49,000, right.
Wow, it's beautiful, so there's a 318?
Look how clean the fender
walls are, the fire wall.
That could be a nice car, boy, ooh.
- I got two old Chevrolets in here.
- [Tom] Oh another, two more Nomads.
Oh, ha, jeez, too many toys.
Okay, so this is the car
that Billy told us about.
This is a rare, rare car.
A 1968 Corvette 427 435 horsepower,
so it was the highest
horsepower Corvette, tri-power.
Okay, that's a rare
option it itself, okay?
Four speed, air-conditioning,
power steering, power brakes,
side exhaust, original from the factory.
It's gotta be one of the
rarest Corvettes of this era.
It's metallic blue with, it looks like,
dark brown or maybe black interior.
So this was the highest horsepower car
with all the options you
could get, so somebody was,
you know, a well heeled
person who bought this car.
They wanted power but they wanted luxury.
Factory Air, amazing.
Have you ever seen another
one optioned like this?
- [Billy] No, have you?
- No.
Power steering, power
brakes, air-conditioning,
side exhaust, high horsepower.
- [Billy] Well it's a 400 horse.
- 400 okay, so it's not 435, okay.
- [Billy] No, they
didn't make it that way.
- Ah, okay.
- [Billy] Yeah you either,
you could either have 435
or you could have air-conditioning.
But it was different cams.
- [Tom] Got it.
Okay, got it.
How you can have cars like this
and never having had a speeding
ticket, I have no idea.
Alright so here's a
sweetheart, a 57 Corvette.
So that's a four-speed car, 283.
Is this the one you'd like to
put the fuel injection on maybe?
- [Billy] Maybe.
- [Tom] Yeah.
Okay and here have another wing
car, another Dodge Daytona.
- [Billy] That's got the fast front on it
So it's a real Daytona, it's
got the double-x serial number.
That's why they had to
put, you know, all those
templates on the cars
now before they race it.
I got that front end
and I put the hood on it
the thing was 3/4 of an
inch long on the right side.
- [Tom] On purpose?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- Oh, alright so what Billy's telling us,
this is the era when NASCAR
started to require templates
before cars to go through tech inspection
because they were being built strangely
and Billy said the right side of this car
is 3/4 of an inch longer
than the left side
and he knows that because he
had to do front end repairs.
- [Billy] I had to do
rush the hood over it.
- So this nose was actually
purchased from Harry Hyde
and this was on an actual NASCAR race car
that Bobby Isaac drove.
What motor's in this?
- [Billy] It has got a red hot 440 in it.
It has to, it's got so much cam,
the power brakes don't work.
- So that's not really a street car.
There's no headlights, right?
- [Billy] No.
- X-X the first two numbers in the VIN
indicate that it's a genuine Daytona.
What year is it, 69?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- Mm hmm.
So all Superbirds are 70s and
all Daytonas are 69s, okay.
So it's got an automatic.
I wonder how many miles are on this thing.
73,206 miles.
So you got this whole nose from Harry?
- [Billy] Yeah.
- So this is--
- [Billy] Except for the hood.
- Okay, so I wonder what
was here when this plated.
- [Billy] I think they had a
place that could a hole in it.
- [Tom] Oh yeah, they
had the overflow tanks
or the sump tanks here I
guess, huh, pretty neat.
(energetic blues music)
We have a Super Bee and let's
see what's under the hood.
426 Hemi, ha ha, okay,
this is a hot rod then.
Bring that flashlight up again.
426 Hemi head, who knows
what the horsepower is in
that thing, probably at least 500.
This had to have been restored.
I mean the paint under
this hood is just perfect.
So this car has Super Bee on it,
but it wasn't born as a Super
Bee, it was born as a Coronet.
And it was born with a
318 cubic inch engine,
now it has a Hemi, so
it's a bit of a hot rod.
It's got low mileage, only 47,000 miles.
What's it worth, it's
probably worth in the,
I don't know, I'd say in
the 40's maybe because
for all practical purposes,
it is a Super Bee,
but it was just born a Coronet.
Any car, and it shows me that, you know,
Billy's into hot rodding
because, most likely,
he built this because he was able to find
a really solid Coronet and it
was hard to find a Super Bee.
Alright now we're in the
downstairs of this building.
(laughter)
So just more cars of
Billy's eclectic taste.
Another Chrysler 300
next to a Jaguar XJ12L.
58 Chevys, you know for a long time,
I walked past 58 Chevys
looking for 57 Chevys
and 55 Chevys, 56
Chevys, but now 58 Chevys
have kind of come onto their own.
Oh boy, fun never stops.
This is your Ford building?
I got a Corvette, Corvette, Corvette.
Nah, it's not all Fords.
Okay, so we have three 57 Thunderbirds,
which all three of them
have chrome wire wheels,
which was an option.
Now this is the rare one
of the three, the red one.
And Billy told me it's
got two four-barrels,
factory two four, so
this is called an E Code.
This is a T-Bird with an E
Code motor, two four-barrels.
Also, very unusual for a
T-Bird, is that it's got a
manual transmission, a
three-speed on the floor.
Oh, plus overdrive, okay,
three-speed plus overdrive.
White interior, white top, red body,
chrome wire wheels, big
motor, standard transmission.
Nice, nice little package here.
54 Corvette, now if you
know about Corvettes,
if you don't, I'll tell you about it.
53 first year of the Corvette,
fiberglass body and 54.
Those two years, it was
called a Blue Flame six.
You couldn't get a V8 in
a Corvette in those days
and the reason they
developed a car like this
is because Jaguar was the
sportiest car of the day.
And Jaguars had a six cylinder motor
and they handled well
and they performed well
and they raced well and
Corvette came out with
their own version of a Jaguar,
which was the Corvette.
Instead of a steel body,
it had a fiberglass body.
But the problem was they used
production parts they had
for sedans and so it didn't quite have
the same lineage as Jaguar did.
So it had a six cylinder
overhead valve motor
with three carburetors on it
because Jaguars also had
multiple carburetors.
This had three Rochester
side drafts I think.
Also for the first two years,
you couldn't get a standard transmission.
It was only available in
a Powerglide automatic.
Some of these were raced,
some were road raced.
Not a lot of them and they
didn't do particularly well.
But over the next couple years,
Corvettes started to come on their own.
They added a three-speed and
a four-speed and a V8 engine.
And ultimately when you got to
a Stingray, independent suspension.
But this is where it
started and thankfully,
they didn't end production on the Corvette
because as we know, it's one of the most
successful sports cars in the world.
We've seen a couple of Corvettes already.
This is, I think, the
fourth that we've seen.
This one's been off the road since 1988.
In 67, the highest
horsepower car you could get
was an L-88 427 but they're
rarer than hen's teeth.
They only made a few of them.
So this was the highest horsepower
production car you could really get.
This car's got a big block with
three two-barrels tri-power.
It's got side exhaust.
It's a four-speed and it's a sweet car.
I mean I can't imagine how
good this car would sound
if started up, my goodness.
So this is a 1980 Corvette
that Billy bought new.
He had to order it,
took a long time to get.
It had angle port heads.
It had a four-bolt main
so even though it wasn't high horsepower,
because back in 80, you know,
cars didn't have a lot
of horsepower back then,
this was a pretty special car.
He's still got plastic on the seats.
Man, look at that.
It's an automatic, let's see
what the mileage is on this.
Whoa, is that the real mileage?
Nine point two miles.
(laughter)
Wow, man.
So how's it run?
(laughter)
You know, think about that car next to us,
which is before the pollution
standards were put in place,
435 horsepower probably underrated,
probably 500 horsepower okay,
for insurance reasons 435.
That 67 to 1980, 220 horsepower.
I drive a Mini Cooper
that's got 210 horsepower
so it doesn't seem fair that a Corvette
only had that much
horsepower but, you know,
they were a comfortable, nice-driving car
and they just didn't have
a lot of horsepower at the time but it was
the best car you could get
in America in that time.
And now we're coming to
probably the last car.
Pantera was build by De
Tomaso with a Ford motor
and it was a car that you could
buy at a Lincoln dealership.
Ford at the time had lots
of high performance cars.
Boss 429s and Boss 302s and they had just
come through the Cobra era.
This was one chance that Mercury had to
get in the high performance
sports car business as well.
The Pantera was sold through
Lincoln dealerships in the day.
It had a 351 Cleveland motor but this was
the original Pantera which
had the small fenders,
not those big flairs and wings.
This was a pure sports car.
I wonder how many miles are on this.
Probably not a lot, huh?
14,532 miles, wow.
Alright, so we've seen
building on top of building,
car on top of car.
I thought I'd see all the cars.
I've found my favorite car
of the whole collection.
It's a Jaguary XK120 Coupe and
you can't really see it here,
but it's dark blue and
it's got brown interior
and as Billy told me, the interior's,
except for this one seat
bottom, the interior's original.
What a beautiful, beautiful car.
We saw an XK140 earlier,
which as a longer roof and,
for a guy like me, better leg room,
but this is the more pure design
with the short roof and the long hood.
So if Billy said take one home,
that would be it right here.
(energetic blues music)
Follow this man.
Oh, we haven't seen all the buildings yet.
Alright, this is gonna
be the most mammoth,
impressive car you've ever seen.
59 Cadillac Eldorado
Biarritz, my goodness.
Factory bucket seats.
I didn't know there was
bucket seats in 59, man.
And tri-power.
Is that a 472 or something?
- [Billy] I can't remember what it is.
- What a mammoth car, my goodness.
We looked this car up on
the Hagerty Price Guide
and it's unbelievable.
In fair condition, which is
number four condition, $101,000.
In good condition, which is what
most of them are, is $133,000.
In excellent condition 180 grand
and in concours condition $260,000.
So we're looking at a car here that
has a value greater than
the Superbirds we saw
in the other buildings.
You know what, cleaned up, I'd say this is
probably a concours car so
we're looking at a car worth
a quarter of a million
dollars, just amazing.
We've been here for
hours and hours and hours
looking at what I think is
probably the finest collection of
unknown cars that I've
ever seen in my life.
And just when we thought there
was no more buildings to see,
Billy invites us inside to see,
oh there's another building here,
and there's a 59 Cadillac
Biarritz convertible
that's, like, a piece of sculpture.
Bright red, something that
Elvis Presley would've driven
or Lucile Ball or somebody like that.
It's been an amazing
day here in the woods.
I'm glad we were able to share it with you
because it's a very private collection and
not too many people know about this but
we were given permission
by the owner to come here
respectfully and tour it.
Nothing's for sale so
don't even bother asking.
It's just one special
man who has collected
a series of special cars during his life.
He bought them when they were cheap
and kept 'em because he loved 'em,
not because they were
worth a lot of money.
And now they are worth a lot of money.
Happy hunting.
(indistinct conversation)
So, 59 Ford convertible, 58
Chevy Impala two-door hard top.
A Studebaker, oh a custom
Studebaker, look at that, ha.
A couple Eldorados.
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