Meet “The Seven Year Itch”. This 1967 Chevrolet “Hot Wheels” style is a completely frame off restored truck and has so many tasteful and custom attributes it hurts just thinking about them. Seven Year Itch = a seven year project. It would take a complete evening to simply take all of this truck in and [...]

By Bill McGuire Photography by Wes AlIison Good news, HOT ROD readers. You just thought you were crazy. In truth, you’re only mildly colorful. Oh sure, you’ve often reflected on how your taste in transportation trends toward the outlandish, if not the extreme. And given all those long hours you’ve spent in the garage building [...]

By Tim Bernsau Photography by Kevin Lee Spectators at the ’09 Grand National Roadster Show (GNRS) were the first to see Jim Benitez’s Model A roadster pickup in finished form. Jim’s newest and greatest creation, nicknamed Faster Pussycat, made its first formal appearance in Pomona, California, last winter-and not just in the show, but among [...]

With This ’80 Z28, George Paul Unintentionally Raised The Bar When It Comes To Building Late Second-Gens. By Nick Licata Photography by Robert McGaffin Hit any car show these days-from a colossal spread like the Detroit Autorama to an intimate gathering at the local Fuddruckers-the chance of coming across a stunning late second-gen is somewhere [...]

One Bad Bowtie! – A 1967 Chevy Camaro RS This bad boy sports a 454 Cu In, Automatic Transmission, aluminum performer RPM intake, Holley dual feed carb, MSD ignition, Big Tube headers, aluminum radiator, and engine dress-up kit complete the engine compartment. The bumble bee exterior is finished in bright yellow accented by a bold [...]

Nothing says custom more than this 1950 Mercury Lead Sled. This classy machine was built on tubular frame. It sports a ’74 Camaro Front End, ’72 Monte Carlo Rear End, Tilted Post T-Bird Interior, Air Ride Technology Suspension. This Merc will lay all the way on the ground too! Other features include a ’54 Chevrolet [...]

A 700HP, 11-Second, Diesel-Powered ’28 Dodge By Jason Sands Photography by Jason Sands Steve Darnell’s ’28 Dodge Bros. sedan is quite an attention getter. While rat rods are nothing new, Steve’s 693-rwhp, Cummins turbodiesel-powered rat rod is indeed something different. All that power isn’t for show, either, as the 3,800-pound rat has run 11.69 at [...]

In the Pantheon of American Muscle Cars, the Chevelle has staked a rock-solid position. When it first rolled off the production lines in 1964 you get it with 120hp V6 or, either a 283- or 327- V8, that with the SS set-up would produce 300 bhp. Chevrolet would continue to produce the Chevelle until 1977, [...]

By Jim Aust Photography by Kevin Lee As with so many hot rodders, the seed was planted very early for Lynn Bird. While his earliest memories would be of his uncle’s fixed up cars when he was very young, Lynn would forever be a builder after he was introduced to scale model car kits in [...]

In his teen years, George Barris, legendary Kustom car builder from California, formed a local car club named ” Kustom Car Club”. In the mid ’40s, it became “Kustoms of Los Angeles”. Again in 1949 George changed the name to “Kustoms of America”.He advertised in all the small car books and at one time it was reported [...]

When you think of a custom, does the image of a ’49-51 Mercury immediately pop into your head? The majority would probably say yes, such is the status of the legendary Merc. And for good reason. You can thank Sam and George Barris for creating some of the most iconic customs from Mercury’s all-new offering [...]