Classic American magazine September 2019

1954 CHRYSLER IMPERIAL

EEBEO!X FGLR OV GUIDE

'71 FURY UK Off-sale date – 19/09/2019 No.341 September 2019

1965 COMET

2 GUYS & A TRUCK

£4.50

Ben Klemenzson

Viewpoint

Image: The Paul Malon Archives

I

t seems that what was once hailed as a miracle of modern technology is now decried as one of the biggest scourges of modern life: Plastic. When it first appeared, it seemed an exotic, modern and without issue miracle substance. A product of the petro-chemical industry, the scale of its use and manufacture has grown almost exponentially in parallel to our consumption of the sticky black stuff.

So far, so good; however, we now discover, just as we appear to be completely hooked on plastics, there are some downsides (to put it mildly!) chiefly when it comes to disposing of the wretched stuff. In short, a lot of it is ending up in the sea, killing fish and sea-birds and even when it breaks up, it seems we humans are ingesting it too and we don’t know what

PLASTIC. FANTASTIC? the long-term effects could be…

The American car industry pioneered the wide-scale use of plastics from the Fifties onwards and anyone who’s owned a car from that era and then owned one from a decade or so later, is struck by how inventive and pervasive that use of plastic became in cars. And yet, what’s striking is how ineffectual and short-term those plastics are when compared to the steel or glass items they replaced. I’m thinking dashboards, vinyl roofs, trim… you name it.

Metal can be resprayed, but a split plastic dash?! Of course, things have now moved on even further, with cars utilising plastics for body panels, bumpers, headlamps, even engine manifolds and other components.

Will plastics be phased out and will we return to widespread use of natural

materials such as wood, steel and leather?

It’s an interesting idea, but how realistic?

And speaking of plastics dovetails neatly into this month’s magazine which includes a couple of Corvette features, namely the three-car collection of Jeff Shadbolt who founded CAPS (Corvette Appreciation and Preservation Society) and a report from this year’s Classic Corvette Club UK’s annual show… And of course we all know Corvettes aren’t really made out of plastic.

That would just be silly!

Ben Klemenzson, editor bklemenzson@mortons.co.uk

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EVENTS

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F E AT U R E S 27 34 41 50 55 72

1954 Chrysler Imperial Miller Tribute Mercury Comet YouTube Star Corvette Collection Sex sells!

83 89 95 101 108

Stars & Stripes Tatton Park Goodwood Festival of Speed Damn Yankees’ Summer Slam Dragstalgia Santa Pod CCCUK Corvette Nationals

WORKSHOP 78

Tech: Electronic Ignition Ford Flathead

AMERICAN AND MODIFIED 14 63

American & Modified News 1971 Plymouth Fury

CLUB NEWS 114

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Classic American

News

CAR OF THE YEAR HEAT WINNERS

There’s been a flurry of Car of the Year heats over the past month, listed below are the latest lucky winners in the Kingstown Shipping & RH

Steve Hughes, receiving the heat winner’s trophy from Jackie Dod d of RH Insurance.

Insurance Car of the Year competition…

Stars & Stripes

The heat winner of round four of the Kingstown Shipping & RH Insurance Car of the Year competition at the Classic American Stars and Stripes weekend at Tatton Park was this stunningly gorgeous 1958 Oldsmobile 98 four-door hardtop, belonging to Steve Hughes from Conwy, Wales.

What makes this car unique is its totally original condition – it still wears its original paint which has worn through to primer in a few spots and its immaculate interior has survived down to the use of plastic covers throughout the car’s life. One rare option it carries is air conditioning, but it’s the car’s stunning original condition that really is what makes it special… like they say: “It’s only original once!”

Rally of the Giants

Take a bow heat winner number five of the Kingstown Shipping & RH Insurance Car of the Year, which was chosen at the Pre-’50 American Auto Club’s Rally of the Giants show at Blenheim Palace. This stunning 1955 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer belongs to John Miller, who is editor of the Pre-’50 club’s magazine and a real enthusiast of early ‘forward look’ Mopars. With only 10,000 miles on the clock, this Dodge is every bit the survivor car, with immaculate tri-colour paintwork and immaculate interior.

Fitted with a Super Red Ram 270cu in V8 motor and two-speed Torqueflite auto ’box, it’s no slouch either. Be sure to come and check it out on the Classic American stand at the NEC Classic Motor Show this November.

Pleased as punch! Nick Barnes with his ’67 Riviera.

Pre-’50 AAC committee member trophy to John Miller.

er’s

Alan Murphy gives the heat winn

D Y k Damn Yankees

The winner of heat six at the Damn Yankees Summer Slam, held at North Weald, was this stunning 1967 Buick Riviera, belonging to Nick Barnes from Enfield, Essex. This California car has had a respray in the original Buick colour of Platinum Mist, but retains a stunning original and unmarked black vinyl interior with immaculate real wood trim.

Power comes from Buick’s 360bhp 430cu in V8 and being Buick’s top line personal luxury offering, it features all the goodies one would expect, including air-con, power steering and power brakes, Super Turbine auto transmission and, of course, that front-wheel drive which was so revolutionary at the time and shared with sibling GM personal luxury coupes, the Eldorado and Toronado.

Snow in August?!

Snow foam that is! Meguiar’s has just introduced a new premium car wash called ‘Ultimate Snow Foam’ that it claims is engineered specifically towards car enthusiasts looking for a snow foam to use along with a foam cannon and pressure washer. Ultimate Snow Foam, with Xtreme Cling foam, is the perfect way to obtain a swirl-free wash that won’t damage wax protection. The formula contains a specialised Xtreme Cling foaming action that delivers an intense foam that sticks and clings to painted surfaces gently loosening road grime, dirt and contaminants. It is fine-tuned to carefully and thoroughly clean coated, waxed or sealed finishes, while preserving protection and leaving a brilliant, swirl-free shine.

It can be used in one of two ways: either as a pre-wash prior to using a traditional two-bucket method, or with a premium wash mitt. If the vehicle you are working with needs deep cleaning, spray the Ultimate Snow Foam on the

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paint and rinse off. Then, wash the vehicle using your favourite car wash using two buckets: one bucket with your wash solution and the second as a rinse bucket with water to help keep your wash mitt clean and free of debris. For lighter cleaning, you can instead spray on the Ultimate Snow Foam and gently work in with a premium wash mitt before rinsing off and drying.

With either method, it’s claimed that Ultimate Snow Foam will deliver an amazing foaming action that will help loosen dirt and debris while helping lubricate and buffer the paint to help prevent swirls and will ultimately preserve the protection that’s on your paint.

Meguiar’s Ultimate Snow Foam comes in a 946ml bottle and has an RRP of £18. It can be found in UK stores and online.

SIMON ‘NEFARIOUS’ POLLOCK 1967-2019 Keith Harman remembers a popular and talented individual who many readers will be familiar with…

Many people will be shocked and saddened to hear of the sudden passing of Simon Pollock, aka ‘Nefarious’, one of the most talented and well-known pinstripers in the country. Simon was equally well-known in the custom and hot rod world, the Harley and wider biking scene, as well as the American car scene too, both here and in Europe. The chances are that even if you didn’t know him, you’ve seen his work gracing a car, truck, bike, or crash helmet, or even a random ‘art’ object like a bowling skittle, soda siphon, or coffee mug.

There was much more to Simon than pinstriping however; he was an accomplished website designer, a roller skater, a VW enthusiast, and a family man. He also built elaborate and macabre electronic displays for Halloween, ‘just for fun’. We knew Simon personally, and had often spent time with him at events, chatting informally and enjoying his dry humour as he carried on striping, his hand as steady as a rock.

To say he’ll be missed by many is an understatement, especially as it was an unexpected passing. Having suffered an aneurysm late in June, despite receiving the best hospital care over the weekend, he passed away with his family around him on July 2. We recall with a sad smile that his business motto was ‘Pinstriping that doesn’t suck’, unfortunately though, having to write this about a guy we knew as a friend, really does. Rest in Peace Simon.

classic-american.com 7

Classic American

News 1962 Corvette.

AUCTION REPORT

WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: RICHARD CONEY

Historics at Brooklands Brooklands, Surrey July 13

F

AMC M151 A2 MUTT.

1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe.

1954 Corvette C1.

1959 Ford F100 pick-up.

1932 Ford Model B hot rod pick-up.

1950 Chevrolet 3600 pick-up.

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1922 Mack AC fire truck.

1925 Ford Model T fire truck.

or the first time in several years there was a decent selection of American cars and trucks on offer at the Historics at Brooklands auction held on July 13. Each year they migrate between Brooklands, Royal Ascot and Mercedes Benz World, but this time returned to their spiritual home in the Brooklands Auto Museum.

As well as the half-dozen vehicles featured in the preview published in the July 2019 issue, there were several more, the majority of which found new homes on the day.

The vehicles, from a Northamptonshire private collection – previewed a couple of months back – were all offered at ‘no reserve’. Of these, the white 1959 Ford F100 pick-up sold for a respectable £10,080, including buyer’s fees. The 1969 Lincoln Continental with oversized wheels achieved a reasonable £8830 and the star of the collection, a very presentable 1972 metallic red boat-tail Buick Riviera, managed an also reasonable £16,240.

If you wanted a Cadillac, this was the day to bid, as the clean gold coloured 1972 Eldorado Coupe changed hands for £7075, the metallic green four-door pillarless 1975 Sedan de Ville went for an affordable £4760 and the comparatively modern 1996 ‘triple black’ Fleetwood could only reach £3640. A lot of car for the money.

There were many more Americans on offer, including several oldies, all very presentable, if of a rather specialist interest. The 1925 Ford Model T NYC fire truck was offered without reserve, yet sold for £10,080. A remarkably similar 1922 Chevrolet Light 490 New York Police ‘paddy wagon’ could only achieve £8500. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the enormously imposing 1922 Mack AC chain-driven fire truck, with an estimate of between £13,000 and £18,000, failed to sell.

Also unsold that day was an exceptionally clean and desirable 1932 Ford Model B hot rod pickup. Immaculate throughout, tastefully painted in mid-blue and powered by a Buick 401 ‘Nailhead’ V8, producing a claimed 400bhp, it was priced realistically for a high-end street rod, with an estimate of £38,000 to £47,000. Sadly, this was too steep for the bidders.

1922 Chevrolet police truck.

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