WINTER 2015 VOL. 15 NO.4 TWENTY-FIVE CENTS
PERFORMANCE DIRECTORY
PIM
E V E RYB O DY ’ S AU T O M OT I V E M AGA Z I N E VOL. 15 NO. 4 Published Oddly
Bob McJannett Publisher Rob McJannett Editor Bonnie Staring Reluctant Passenger Carol “Comma” LaVigne Proofreader
Contributors Thomas Anderson Mark Bovey Jim Madigan Dave Thomas Ted Barnes Stacee Richards Darwin Kent/photoguys.ca
FEATURES The Publisher Says............................................Bob McJannett Ruthven Park Car Cruise............................. Thomas Anderson Whose Car is it Anyway?.......................... Robert Michaelson Targa Truck Road Trip Preview...............................Mark Bovey Vintage in the Village..................................................... Len Sly P.I. Sale Flyer................................................................................. All in the Family - Barnes Boys Racing...........Bob McJannett HEMI A History of Chrysler’s Iconic V8 . .............Book Review Project: Why Wait Begins.................................... Dave Thomas Roadmates 40th Corn Roast..............................Jim Madigan Reluctant Passenger..........................................Bonnie Staring
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Performance in Motion Publications, 87 Advance Road, Toronto, ON M8Z 2S6 • Phone: 416-259-3678 • Fax: 416-259-6433
COVER
Artist Chris Piscitelli created mock-ups for Dave “Stanceiseverything” Thomas to help kick-start his 1951 GMC 3100 five-window Truck “Project: Why Wait.” The photo of Jackson Barnes guiding his father Ted through the burnout box was shot by Darwin Kent.
MOVING? Please let us know! E-mail both your old & new address to: moving@performanceimprovements.com Canada Post please return undeliverables to: 87 Advance Road, Toronto, ON M8Z 2S6 PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40609642 • PERFORMANCE IN MOTION is published four times a year: Spring, Early Summer, Late Summer, Fall, and Winter. Circulation is 30,000+ (ISSN 1703-8421) Performance in Motion Copyright ©2015 by Performance In Motion Publishing. 87 Advance Road, Toronto, ON M8Z 2S6 Phone ADams 9-3678 (Phone: 416-259-3678 • Fax: 416-259-6433) Be good to the environment, recycle this magazine – give it to your friends! We respect your privacy, and do not sell our mailing list. All opinions are those of our writers, (the usual gang of idiots) most of whom think gas fumes are acceptable as aftershave. The information presented is via said gas sniffers from which there can be no responsibility by the Publishers as to legality, completeness and accuracy. If you enjoy our magazine, be sure to let us know! This magazine may not be reprinted without permission of Performance In Motion Publishing. (We’re nice guys, just ask)
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Performance in Motion
The Publisher Says:
I
see where Ontario has agreed to allow the testing of driverless vehicles on our roads. The rationale is that other jurisdictions in the U.S. are doing it and we will be left behind if we don’t jump into the fray. It is worth noting that current U.S. tests are being conducted in the sunshine states of Virginia, Nevada, California and Florida. Driverless cars are operated with both a computer and artificial intelligence controlled with sensors and cameras. However, during testing there must be a licensed driver behind the wheel. Apparently any and all roads can be used for testing purposes, and all driving rules must be followed. The Minister of Transportation, Stephen Del Duca assured us that “All of the normal rules and penalties that are in the Highway Traffic Act would apply.” This all leads me to wonder, how will this technology work under adverse conditions? Rain and snow can deflect the cameras accuracy, an ice storm could completely enclose the camera making it useless. Can’t you just picture your Mom trying to clear the ice on the top of her driverless car before she goes to the store? My other wonder is who will be responsible if one is involved in an accident. Oh I know they claim that it can’t happen once everything is 100%, but if I’m sitting in it but having nothing to do with driving it who will get the blame? Would you have to go back on the supplier, the owner or the manufacturer? Lots of Lawyers are rubbing their hands with glee at these prospects. Call me naive, but can’t a computer nerd attack the system and take over the driving? If they can hack into U.S. government military computers, the driverless car should be a cake walk. Imagine the fun if some hacker decides to spin one around and have it going the wrong way in it’s designated lane. One group, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers have this to say. “Distinguished members of IEEE, the world’s largest professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for humanity, have selected autonomous vehicles as the most promising form of intelligent transportation, anticipating that they will account for up to 75 percent of cars on the road by the year 2040.” They are predicting massive changes in the roadways, two types of lanes, one for the peasants and one for the driverless vehicles. Since we can’t seem to keep our existing roads in good shape now, claiming we don’t have the money, I have to wonder who will pay for this new deal. Anyway food for thought. I’ll be 101 in 2040 so I’m not going to lose a lot sleep over this, but this is what they say is coming. Best get out and drive that specialty car now, before big brother comes to take it away. Photo Illustration by Rob McJannett based on a Photo by: Eric Risberg / AP Photo
WINTER 2015
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Story by Thomas Anderson • Photos by: Jim Madigan & Bob McJannett
If
you are a racing enthusiast in southern Ontario, you already know about Toronto Motorsports Park and the soon-toreopen Cayuga Motor Speedway. If you are a foodie, you will recognize the name Twisted Lemon considered one of the best restaurants in southern Ontario. All of these are in the village of Cayuga, but do you know about nearby Ruthven Park, also in Cayuga? There is quite a tale to tell about Ruthven. The property, 1,500 acres, is home to an 1840s Greek Revival mansion, owned and farmed by five generations of the Thompson family. In the 90s the property was transferred to the Lower Grand River Land Trust and designated a National Historic Site.
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I learned about the history of Ruthven, while talking with Betsy Smith. Betsy was born and raised in the area and was always fascinated with the property and its history. In fact, she can remember when the “story” was that if you went on the property the owners were likely to shoot at you. Once it became the responsibility of the Land Trust, Betsy became one of the volunteers who worked to promote the site and make it better known. Like a lot of volunteer jobs be careful what you wish for, she soon became a member of the Board of Directors, moving up to President, a position she still holds. Today, Ruthven Park is home to numerous walking trails, two ancient cemeteries to
explore, great bird-watching and a number of 18th-century out-buildings to view. But the crown jewel is the main house filled with original family furnishings and possessions. An undisturbed example of the way things were. So what is this doing in Performance In Motion? Well, Betsy is closely involved with the car hobby. She is married to legendary chassis builder FJ Smith and the Mom of Victoria, drag racer extraordinaire. It was natural for her to suggest that Ruthven should have some type of involvement with automobiles. She suggested a cruise-in and the rest is history. This year, their 19th cruise-in, saw absolutely fabulous weather, which brought
Performance in Motion
out the cars in droves. In fact, by early morning, they had run out of the free donuts and coffee and were overwhelmed by the amazing response. No matter, since it is one of the nicest venues at which to hold an event. Well-groomed grounds, great food, interesting mansion tours. For most of us, this was probably our last run of the year. You couldn’t have had a better day! No matter what type of car interests you, there was something to see. Hot Rods, Antiques, Muscle Cars, Imports and Pickups were all on the grounds. Here are a couple of shots from the day just to show the variety that attended. Plan to be there next year on Thanksgiving Monday. We will be!
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WINTER 2015
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Performance in Motion
Performance Directory
WINTER 2015
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GLOSSARY
You can’t tell the players without a scorecard, and this article is confusing enough to need a Glossary.
WHOSE CAR IS IT ANYWAY?
Auto Alliance - The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is an association of 12 car and light truck manufacturers: BMW Group, Fiat Chrysler LLC, Ford Motor Company, General Motors Company, Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz USA, Mitsubishi Motors, Porsche Cars North America, Toyota, Volkswagen Group of America and Volvo Cars of North America. DMCA - Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which went into effect in 1998. DMCA Section 1201 - the anti-circumvention provision of the DMCA, was created, supposedly, to help discourage people from breaking DRM restrictions in order to infringe, but in practice it has chilled legitimate activities. DRM - Digital Rights Management ECU - Electronic Control Units EFF - Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization defending civil liberties in the digital world. Fair Use - allows people to use copyrighted material without permission or payment, for things such as (but not restricted to) criticism, commentary, and education. SEMA - Specialty Equipment Market Association founded in 1963, represents the $36 billion specialty automotive industry. TPP - Trans Pacific Partnership is a proposed trade agreement among twelve Pacific Rim countries concerning a variety of matters of economic policy, about which agreement was reached in October, 2015, after 7 years of negotiations.
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Story and Photo by: Rob McJannett
Modern cars are getting more and more sophisticated. People have joked about new cars being mostly computers - well now the auto manufacturers want to take that thought to the next level. Tinkering with your vehicle at home could be illegal, a violation of the auto manufacturer’s software copyright.
T
his is a complicated story, but one worth telling and hopefully worth reading. It comprises a very simple idea: Do we own the items we buy? The answer to this question used to be simple, yes, of course. Things have changed to make this question less cut and dried. If you’ve ever purchased software, (and actually read all 27 pages of the Terms and Conditions before clicking ACCEPT) you know that you do not own that software. You only license it from the manufacturer. It is often protected by Digital Rights Management (DRM). Bought an ebook from Amazon but can’t read it on your reader of choice? That’s DRM. Bought a smartphone but can’t use the applications you want on it? That’s also DRM. Corporations claim that DRM is necessary to fight copyright infringement and keep consumers safe from viruses. But there’s no evidence that DRM helps fight either of those. Instead DRM stifles innovation and competition by making it easy to quash “unauthorized” uses of media and technology. If you purchase an iPhone, you may own it, but you’re not allowed to modify it. The only way to do so is by “jailbreaking” your iPhone, a fantastic name for a simple idea. I want to take this thing I bought, and make it do what I want - even if I have to break
it out of Apple jail to do so. Apple says you don’t really own your phone, and now the automakers want to say that too. DRM has proliferated, thanks to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA), which sought to outlaw any attempt to bypass DRM. According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), when the DMCA was passed, Congress created “anti-circumvention” measures, to prevent people from undermining DRM for purposes of copyright infringement. But every three years, groups can propose exceptions to these rules. For this year’s review, the EFF proposed an exemption that would allow people to access the computer programs in your car “for the purposes of diagnosis, repair and modification of vehicles.” The proposal was “fully supported” by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which believes the exemption is “necessary to allow consumers to continue to engage in the longstanding practice of working on their own vehicles.” Exemptions are only arrived at by a long process involving public comments, responses, and hearings. “The DMCA shouldn’t keep vehicle owners from looking under the hood,” said EFF Staff Attorney Kit Walsh, lead drafter of the petitions relating to vehicles. “We all Performance in Motion
benefit when independent repair shops have the knowledge they need to compete, when experts are able to check for safety issues, and when enthusiasts can come up with car mods and share their knowledge with the world.” The EFF claims would be a chance to fight back, through the same process that made it legal to unlock an iPhone. These exemptions are more narrow than the phone-unlocking measures, but they raise many of the same fundamental issues of ownership. “It’s the same basic principle,” says Walsh. “If you own something, you ought to be able to see what code is running in it and modify that code.” Auto Alliance want to use Copyright law to make working on your car illegal Repairing your vehicle at home could be illegal in the future, and it’s all due to copyright infringement. According to the DMCA, tinkering with a vehicle’s computer system, either by the vehicle’s owner or a third party, could be a violation of the auto manufacturer’s copyright on the software. The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Auto Alliance) argue you shouldn’t be allowed to repair your own car because you might not do it right. They say you shouldn’t be allowed to modify the code in your car because you might defraud a used car purchaser by changing the mileage. They say no one should be allowed to even look at the code without the manufacturer’s permission because letting the public learn how cars work could help malicious hackers, “third-party software developers” and competitors. People might get access to diagnostic info... and then break emissions controls and pollute the environment or something. Apparently, cough*VW*cough only the automakers should be allowed to do that by themselves. The Auto Alliance said the EFF exemptions are “unnecessary” because “vehicle owners have alternative options, such as manufacturer-authorized repair shops and tools.” They also claimed that unrestricted access to this software could present “serious public health, safety and environmental concerns” — an intended or unintended modification could disable the airbags or the anti-lock brakes, for instance. John Deere argued letting people modify car computer systems will result in them pirating music through the on-board entertainment system, one of the more convoluted ways to copy media. If I want to rip a DVD I head right for the tractor! WINTER 2015
Arguments were made to the Library of Congress. The Automakers asking to lock you out of your car, EFF and SEMA in favour of exemptions to allow us to continue to tinker. SEMA provided 13 pages of comments to the Copyright Office, seeking an exemption from the DMCA for “circumvention of controls on vehicle software for the purpose of vehicle diagnosis, repair or modification by the vehicle owner.” SEMA pointed out that it’s critically important, and now taken for granted, that many safety advances originated in the hobbyist community independent of the automakers. Cruise Control, Intermittent Wipers, Retractable Seat Belts, Air Bags ... these were all ideas developed by “tinkerers.” “The issue of copyright affecting the ability to diagnose, repair and modify vehicles has come up recently due to the proliferation of advanced vehicle technology, specifically software, in modern vehicles,” said SEMA CEO and President Chris Kersting. “SEMA has always maintained that the right to access vehicle systems to utilize, maintain and upgrade vehicles is legal as fair use under copyright law, as are activities undertaken to achieve interoperability with aftermarket products.” Carmakers Can’t Use The DMCA To Make Working On Your Car Illegal An exemption has been issued to allow vehicle owners to perform vehicle diagnosis, repair and modification without fear of prosecution under the DMCA. However, the Copyright Office declined to provide the exemption to third parties who diagnose, repair or modify a vehicle on behalf of the vehicle owner. The Copyright Office concluded that extending the reach of an exemption to cover third-parties requires a legislative amendment undertaken by Congress. Access to a vehicle’s telematics or entertainment system was also specifically excluded from the exemption. While some are claiming victory, the battle is not over. This exemption is only for the owner of the vehicle. It specifically states you cannot authorize someone else to work on your car for you - no mechanics allowed under your hood. And in the future if the automakers tie their ECU in to the entertainment system, we will be locked out once again. Their is also a one year delay in implementation of a three year exemption. Then the process to beg for an exemption begins all over again.
Who cares - we’re in Canada, the DMCA is an American Act Now you may be tempted to file this under American Craziness (right beside Donald Trump) but the DMCA may end up applying in Canada. Unfortunately, we still don’t know the details of the top secret Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement that has been made behind closed doors. The text may not be released for sometime. There has been a leak of the intellectual property chapter and despite the Harper government’s claims that the deal was consistent with current law, it looks like the TPP will require significant changes to Canadian copyright. It already looks like there will be a requirement to extend the term of copyright from life of the author plus 50 years, to life plus 70 years. The additional 20 years will keep works out of the public domain for decades. The New Zealand government estimates that this change alone will cost NZ$55 million per year, for a country that is one-ninth the size of Canada. The TPP also would appear to bring a copyright takedown system to Canada without the involvement of Canadian courts and potentially without the application of Canadian copyright law. Does this mean the DMCA may be forced down Canadian throats, and into our cars? Auto manufacturers shouldn’t stop me from working on my car, just because they can. We should be able to install whatever software we want on our phone, tablet, video game system ... or car. You bought it. You own it. That’s the way it used to be, and should be again. What can we do? Support the EFF & SEMA Action Network. You can’t apply for an exemption unless you know the rule exists and these groups are staying on top of the latest rules.
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With files from EFF, SEMA, Michael Geist, Jalopnik, AutoBlog
EFF Electronic Frontier Foundation is defending your rights in the digital world: eff.org. SAN SEMA Action Network designed to help stamp out legislative threats to the automotive hobby: semasan.com.
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Story and Photos by: Mark Bovey
2015 McJannett ad half 4c:09 McJannett ad 1/2
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Performance in Motion
2,950+ kms, 8 states, 1 Province. 7 days. No trailer. H
olley’s LS Fest has always been on my to do list. It’s not a huge event, but it really brings out the big guns. It’s held in Bowling Green, Kentucky, that’s where GM builds Corvettes. 2015 had proven to be an odd year for the Targa Truck. Some lingering issues from the 2014 Targa Newfoundland and a crazy life schedule got in the way of doing any serious events. However, Holley LS Fest looked survivable, even if it was 1,600 kms away. As usual, it was a thrash until the moment of departure. That departure would never have happened without Performance Improvements finding me parts to replace my broken stuff and a few spare parts for the road. The next issue of Performance In Motion will have the full story including getting the truck across the border, having my butt kicked by the likes of Danny Popp and Kyle Tucker (DSE), being interviewed by Chad of Bang Shift fame, photos of the amazing cars, amazing new friends and of course, broken parts, and barfing fluid on pitch black highways in the middle of nowhere. It was awesome. All of it.
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WINTER 2015
When I met the owner of this Cougar, with it’s swapped DBW Holley Hi-Rammed 5.3/ T-56 combo, I had no idea he was Andrew Borodin, a Moderator for pro-touring.com.
It was very cool to see Kyle Tucker and his DSE mule in action. Also, had the chance to speak with him, he’s very nice and can he ever make this Camaro dance.
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Story and Photos by: Len Sly
VINTAGE IN THE VILLAGE - CLASSIC CAR SHOW
S
treetsville Councillor George Carlson, the Mississauga Classic Car Club and the Streetsville BIA presented this firstever car event. On Sept. 20, with the sun shining brightly, the cars came out to fill the Streetsville Village Square. By 10 a.m., the suggested start time, there was virtually no space left on the square, cars were being double-parked. No matter what you’re favourite style of vehicle, there was something to see. Hot Rods, Muscle Cars, Custom Pickups and Restored vehicles were all on the square. Along with the cars, there was a DJ with great tunes, a food truck with home-made burgers, dogs and fries. Non-perishable food items were collected for “Eden Food For Change,” as usual, the car owners participated strongly in this. Mississaga councilor Ron Starr brought his carefully restored Oldsmobile to the show to support the event. It was a great day. We hope they are enthusiastic enough to have another and think closing the main street similar to the way they do it in Orilla would bring a huge crowd to the village. Congratulations to all involved.
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Performance in Motion
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$779 $529 $225
performance suspension parts WHITELINE delivers the handling, balance, and traction you need to get a better overall driving experience: bushings, end links, control arms, motor mounts, strut tower braces, sway bars and sway bar links, panhard bars, and more. Now Only
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SamcoSport hose kits are specifically designed to directly replace your Original Equipment hoses. These premium quality, hand crafted, high performance silicone hoses work to greater levels of temperature & pressure - which is essential when you’re upgrading your engine’s performance. Now Only MSTCS394CBL 07-09 MUSTANG GT V8 4.6L HOSE KIT BLUE $499 MSTCS437CBK 05- MUSTANG 4.0L V6 HOSE KIT BLACK
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Wilwood rotors, calipers, and brake pads are engineered to excel under harsh, high-temperature race conditions while reducing unsprung weight, and you can precisely tune your brakes to your application and driving style with numerous pad formulations and rotor designs. Now Only MS14011291R F CALIPER KIT D52 GM 1.04” ROTOR RED $575 MS14010996R HD F BRAKE KIT 67-72 CAMARO/NOVA
$1,275
Performance Mustang Products
QuickCar, their name says it all!
Whether you’re upgrading your street machine or pavementburning racer, Steeda has the parts you need: suspension and brake components, exhaust systems, interior and exterior styling accessories, all-out air/fuel power products, transmission components, and more.
QuickCar offers a wide assortment of gauges, cable and wire kits for which the company has set industry standards. Keep your car starting time after time with ignition and electrical switches, track your winning speeds with reliable gauges, keep your head in one piece with roll bar padding, and head toward the finish line with steering wheels, all of which will help take your racecar to the next level.
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Now Only
MS50-830
2ga WIRING KIT W/BLACK PANELS
MS50-832
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$275 $275 5
Upper Gage Ave
Dunlop St. W
The ONLY retailer in Canada where all locations are a 3 Diamond Dealer or higher! Our Toronto Superstore is a 4 Diamond Dealer - The highest rated independent Dealer in Ontario!
What does this mean for you? We are not like other ‘crappy’ parts stores, where all WeatherTech Digital Fit Liners are special order, requiring a 7 day wait.
Our 3 Diamond locations fill 20%* of orders the same day, our Superstore 4 Diamond Dealer fills OVER 60%* of orders same day. Over 80%* of orders are ready by the next business day! 12 Rutherford Rd. S 905-453-9901
Lincoln Alexander Pkwy
Stone Church Rd. E
4909 Boul St Charles 514-626-1866
HWY 427 Gardiner Expressway
Islington Ave.
Advance Road
P.I. BARRIE
Queen St. E
P.I. BRAMPTON
Clark Blvd.
P.I. HAMILTON
1515 Upper Ottawa 905-574-6940
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1487 Simcoe St. N 905-725-3533
Taunton Rd.
P.I. PIERREFONDS
Boul Pierrefonds
• Due to fluctuations in the Canadian dollar, all prices are subject to change – we reserve the right to correct pricing at the point of sale. All prices in Canadian Dollars, applicable taxes are extra. • This is just a small sample of the our product selection - don’t see what you’re looking for? Visit one of our stores for more selection! • While we try our best to make the most accurate flyer possible, we are not obligated to sell items based on errors or misprints in typography or photography. • P.I. No Hassle Return Policy: If you’re not completely happy with your purchase, simply return it in the undamaged packaging with your original receipt within 30 days of purchase. We will either replace it, refund your money or give you a credit note at our discretion. Special Order items excluded. • We reserve the right to limit quantities. Accessories not included unless stated. • * WeatherTech Order Fill rate is based off WeatherTech Canada’s popularity ranking over the previous 12 Months. **FAST FIT Guarantee applies to BLACK WeatherTech Floor Liners and Cargo Liners only! Due to variances in colour, we encourage you to come and look at a sample in person for grey or tan liners. Orders over $600 require a deposit. *** WT Price Guarantee must be for an identical new, unused product sold by an Authorized Weather Tech dealer in Canada. Online prices that do not include shipping will have the appropriate shipping charge included to determine the actual selling price. Offer subject to change without notice. Thanks for reading the fine print! •
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Upper Ottawa
We have shopped our competitors online & in-store, and have the right price the first time! If you find a lower advertised price at an authorized Weather Tech dealer, online or in-store, we will beat it!*** Rutherford Rd.
87 Advance Road 416-259-9656
Boul St Jean
Simcoe St. N
Give us a call first! If we have your liners in stock, we will hold them for you. If we don’t, we will get them for you FAST! No personal information or payment required - just a name and phone number!
Boul St Charles
P.I. TORONTO
The Barnes Boys Racing Team L to R: Bill, Jackson & Ted
Story by Bob McJannett • Photos by: Darwin Kent/photoguys.ca, Stacee Richards & Ted Barnes
R
egulars at the drag strips of southern Ontario are probably familiar with Ted Barnes’ Datsun race car. But you may not realize that Ted is the tasty centre of an Oreo cookie of car enthusiasts. You see, usually when they are at the track there are three generations of car nuts in attendance. Ted’s Dad, Bill “The Clapper” Barnes, although he never raced, (except for those Model T adventures that he’ll never talk about) has been there from day one. His first act was building a garage for the two of them to work on the race car. Then he acted as crew chief, videoing every run in the early days,
bringing the car to the line during every race and being totally supportive of his son. In fact Bill, a skilled electrician, should have been a promoter; he never misses an opportunity to tell anyone that will listen how well they are doing with the Datsun. Ted bought his Datsun in 1984 when he was in grade 12. He had it cleaned up and painted in time to drive it to his graduation in June, 1985. On Labor Day weekend in 85 that car went down the track for the first time. With the original 1600cc engine it turned a tire churning 19.52 ET. Not really fast, but the die was cast. During his first year
Jackson takes Ted & his Datsun through a burnout. WINTER 2015
of university the car got a small-block V8 for power and drag racing became a regular weekend adventure. For a few years Ted raced in the Sportsman class, coming close to winning a points championship, but not quite. By 91 he had his car running in the 12s. They stepped up to a 383 stroker engine, high 10-second ET’s and moved the car into Super Pro, winning the track championship in 92 and 93. He won again in 2000 and 2001. Their focus now is 10.90 index racing with the TNT Super Series. Today, however, we want to tell you about
Ted lines up Jackson & the Jr. Dragster before a pass.
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Given the car is only 225 lbs plus the driver, the Barnes Boys had to de-tune the all-aluminum 1-cylinder engine as much as possible without losing consistency. A smaller 33mm carburetor, (instead of a 42mm) 80 pounds of lead and a lot of tweaking got Jackson a consistent 7.90 car with 60’ times in the low 1.70s.
Sure doesn’t look like a lawn mower!
Jackson Barnes, Ted’s son. Jackson came to the races regularly with Dad and Grandpa but he wanted more. In 2011 they began to play with a Jr Dragster. Jackson’s sister Cassidy also went down the track in 2012, but didn’t share her brother’s desire. Starting out with a used Jegster, he spent the time learning exactly how to run one. These are NHRA’s hope for the future of drag racing, a means to interest young people between 5 and 17 in the sport. A Jr. Dragster is a half-scale version of a Top Fuel dragster. Using a five-horsepower, single-cylinder engine, a Jr. Dragster can go as fast as 85 mph and as quick as 7.90 seconds in an eighth-mile, though younger age groups are restricted to slower times/speeds. In 2013 he raced in competition running high 12s (go back and check dad’s first pass) by years end it was obvious that Jackson had natural talent to run a car. All those years coming to the track had not been wasted. By years end it was decided to step up the equipment, a 2004 Mike Bos Chassiscraft
Jackson had a handicap start, that’s his competitor already downtrack, but caught up and passed him. That was his final round win on Labour Day.
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was found with a 10 second engine already resting between the chrome moly rails. Some careful tuning was done to prepare for next season. First race in 2014 saw Jackson in the winners circle at Toronto Motorsports Park. By the end of the year they had the car running consistent 10.15s. The winter rebuild in early 2015 took the car to the next level. Moving to the top of the class they partnered with Stack Brothers Racing in Wingham, Ontario, who found them an all-aluminum Rhino 2 bullet making almost 50 hp to stuff into the frame. With a number of tuning changes and some additional weight they were able to produce consistent 7.90 ET’s with 60’ times in the low 1.70s. Now the car would go rounds, in fact Jackson often goes deeper in the field than Dad. By the end of the season there had been multiple trophies and Jackson had earned 5th place in the DSE Sportsman Series Junior Class. So what’s next? Well, let’s see if it will go
faster! They are going to try some Outlaw 330 races; these are races for the cars that are too fast to run in the 1/8th sanctioning body rules prevent cars from dialing faster than 7.90 to get around that they shorten the track to 330 feet. These cars run that distance in the low 4s! What a great way for a young person to learn the pleasures of Drag Racing and a great way for the three generations to keep in touch. Our hat is off to all the fathers and grandfathers who are supporting the next generation of sons or daughters. You deserve a pat on the back. The three amigos want to thank Ryan at Stack Brothers Racing for the excellent tune up, Joe at Joe’s Transmission for his on-track expertise, Sharon at F&M Signs for always being there when needed and the team at Performance Improvements for their consistent support of our endeavours, and making sure we have the best go-fast parts.
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Photos courtesy of: Ted Barnes, Stacee Richards and Darwin Kent/photoguys.ca
Performance in Motion
_REVIEW HEMI - A History of Chrysler’s Iconic V8 in Competition
If you are a fan of Chrysler’s mighty Hemi engine, this is a must-read. The Hemi is arguably the most iconic American V-8 in competition history. Employing a talented team of engineers, Chrysler refined the hemispherical combustion chamber design and created an engine that produced towering performance. This book covers first the early Hemis, and then details the 426 Hemi from birth in 1964 up until the engines of today. As you read, you will see every change the engineers made to make the engine competitive Author Geoff Stunkard retraces the fascinating Hemi competition history and covers the big wins, many championships and key developments in the engine’s life. First, he delves into the development and racing exploits of the first-generation 392-ci Hemi. And gives you a behindthe-scenes retrospective of the mammoth effort and resources that went into developing the 426 Hemi. In eight months, Al Ekstrand, Tom Hoover and other engineers took the 426 Hemi from drawing board to racetrack. In NHRA competition, the triumphs and challenges of Don Garlits, Dick Landy, Sox and Martin, and other drag racers are recounted. In NASCAR competition, the 426 Hemi debuted at the 1964 Daytona 500. Richard Petty qualified second, lapped the entire field, and won the race. By the end of the 1964 Grand National season, Hemi-powered cars amassed 26 race victories. NASCAR stars, such as Richard Petty, Bobby Isaac, and David Pearson, piloted the 426 Hemi-equipped Charger 500, Charger Daytona, Plymouth Superbird, and other Chrysler stock cars to many victories and championships. In addition, the Hemi set speed run records and closed-course speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats. The pages are fi lled with photos of the racers who pioneered the Hemi engine, no detail about its creation and successes has been left out.
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The old Datsun still going strong after 31 years as a racecar! Squint & you can see Bill & Jackson in the background. WINTER 2015
HEMI • Author Geoff Stunkard • Hardcover • 192 pages • CT 537 • $55.99
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Story and Photos by: Dave Thomas
It
— There’s no time —
might come as some surprise to those of you familiar with my work here in Performance In Motion, but I’ve actually never had a proper project car. That of course isn’t to say all of my cars have been stock, in fact none have, but none of them have been been modified much past simple suspension and motor bolt-ons. A proper non-daily driver project is something that always lay over the horizon for “some day.” On the way home from a Street Classics cruise a few years ago, my wife Lyndsey caught sight of a family cruising in their classic, turned to me and asked “Why are you waiting to buy something?”
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With plans to start a family and a larger second home purchase inevitable, I suggested that now might not be the best time for a project. She challenged back with now might not be the best time, but it certainly isn’t the worst time either. Her only words of warning were that I not put us in the poorhouse and that I don’t think of the project as solely mine. Yes, I would be the one spinning the wrenches, but in the end, the truck would belong to her and ultimately my son Asher as well. Considering it meant that I would be getting a project vehicle years sooner than I previously thought, meeting her more
than fair terms was certainly no problem. However, choosing what ‘Project X’ would actually be, proved a little more difficult. Race cars were out, because for the foreseeable future neither Lyndsey nor Ash could enjoy them. Redoing vehicles of my past where out too, as she was never overly fond of them. Anything newer than 1970 was also eliminated, because long term value-wise we agreed to hedge our bets on something a little older. Obviously, I don’t consider this build to be an investment worthy of Wall Street, but I don’t want it to be worthless at the end either. With both of us being Chevy fans, we
Performance in Motion
— like the present — started there, and car-wise we both love Chevelles. Unfortunately, plenty of other people love Chevelles too, which means they demand quite a pretty penny. I’m not sure if it were her or I, but eventually one of us suggested why not a truck? They are generally a bit cheaper, generally a bit more practical, and generally pretty awesome. Blair Taylor of Taylor’d Customs caught wind of the idea and was more than onboard, helping us look for the project, as well as provide a place to store and work on it. I barely had to get the idea out of my mouth talking to Rob and Andy McJannett before they said they and Performance Improvements were onboard as well.
WINTER 2015
This was all two or so years ago and the hunt took a little bit longer than I anticipated. Partly due to my initial budget and partly due to the fact that we live in a pretty treacherous rust belt here in Ontario.
While we started out originally looking for a Task Force (55-59), in the end, we settled on an Advanced Design (49-55) truck. More specifically a ‘51 GMC 3100 five-window. Both the five-window and GMC bits were
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not planned, but the price was right, and it will help the truck stand out just a little bit more all said and done. Dubbed project “Why Wait,� this truck arrived from Saskatchewan mid-summer without a bed, but also without a whole lot of rust. A perfect starting point for someone like me who is decent with tools, but thus far has no real fabrication experience. Starting a project like this without any sort of plan is a daunting endeavour, so I
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quickly contacted my friend Chris Piscitelli to do up a few mock-ups of the ideas I had for the truck. Rather than go all out custom and risk having a dated truck down the road (see tweed interior and wild neon paint hues of the 90s), I urged Chris to keep things simple and after a couple revisions and a few colour combinations and wheel choices, we settled on a patina blue truck, white flake roof, white door art, and steels with wide whites.
Of course, the truck also had to be set in the weeds for the proper stance. With an end goal now firmly burned into my brain, picking a place to start was the next task, and the ground up seemed like the perfect place to begin. In the midst of researching potential donor frames (S10) and front end swaps (Mustang II or Camaro) my friend, and Hit Man Hot Rods Fabricator, Jeff Wybrow let me know he was thinking of parting ways with the chassis he built with
Performance in Motion
his friend Dave Newberry. The chassis in question started as a stock long-bed identical to mine, but now has a G body front clip and extremely awesome triangulated four-link back half. Since he’s decided to take his truck in a different direction, this chassis needed a new home. A couple of handshakes, high fives and dollar bills later, this chassis is now sitting beside my truck at Taylor’d customs, ready to be mounted underneath my truck.
WINTER 2015
I’ve already got a laundry list of items from the PI Speed Shops catalogue to purchase, but first this chassis needs some shock mounts, a rad support, and a few more odds and ends before it is sandblasted. As soon as I finish moving into that second house I talked about, it’s time for a tear down! I’m eagerly looking forward to learning a lot through this entire build and sharing it here in Performance In Motion and on stanceiseverything.com.
Dave Thomas blogs extensively about the Ontario automotive enthusiast scene, check out photos and more events at: stanceiseverything.com. See more of Chris Piscitelli’s artwork at: piscitellidesign.com.
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ROADMATES 40th Annual Story and Photos by: Jim Madigan
R
oadmates Car Club’s 40th Annual Corn Roast was held Sept. 5, 2015 on the clubhouse grounds in Mississauga. It is always held on the Saturday of Labour Day weekend. What originally started as a small club get-together many years ago, has become an annual car show and corn roast, an event that is a “Must Attend” for hot rodders in Southern and Central Ontario along with many attendees from New York State. This year we had 90 plus cars show up on an extremely hot and humid day, but as the pictures show, we have a lot of shade on the property. Pop and water are free and hot dogs and corn on the cob are cooked from 11am until evening. As you can see, it is a very casual day, no pressure, no awards just enjoy the day with friends and families, talk with folks you haven’t seen since last year and look at all the cars, tour thefacility and tell tall stories. Next year, we will celebrate our 60th consecutive year as a car club. Not many clubs can say that! We think that ‘60’ is a real milestone and are all ready working on next year’s Corn Roast. Plans call for live music, posters, T-shirts, and who knows what other ideas will pop up. Our 50th saw 150 cars show up, we have lots of room, so keep Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016 marked on your calendar. Come out and help us celebrate our 60th year having fun with cars. It’s going to be a great time.
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Performance in Motion
WINTER 2015
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ROADMATES 40th Annual Corn Roast
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Performance in Motion
Performance Directory
WINTER 2015
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Reluctant Passenger
N
ow that the heat of summer has become a memory and our thoughts turn to winter prep, winter storage and other things chilly and auto related, it’s time to address a problem that can rear its ugly head at car shows, in parking lots or even on your driveway. It’s the perception that one make or model, a model year, how “stock” it is or even the odometer reading makes a vehicle more or less worthy of automotive enthusiasm. Don’t go trying to act all innocent here. Reluctant passengers hear all and see all, even when we’d rather not. You might be a car racist. Okay, stop laughing. A car racist isn’t someone who races cars. It’s someone whose attitude about
Fender Equality
the vehicles that don’t fit into his or her ideal parameters turns the person into a complete jerk of all trades. Usually they give themselves away at cruise nights and other automotive events by checking out a ride and saying things like:
trailer?” or “At least I’m not compensating.” As an automotive enthusiast who respects the notion that everyone deserves to love their vehicle, no matter how rusted, Frankensteined or butt ugly it is, the best thing to do is walk away from the idiot.
“Why on earth would you want to drive that?”
But sometimes that’s not possible. For some reason, a car racist will hone in on your ride the same way a freshly washed car attracts bird crap, bug splatter and flyers for political candidates. So here are some car-racist-busting tactics:
“Don’t you wish you had the S edition instead?” “I always thought the coupes had more style.” “It might drive faster with racing stripes.” “Bet it spends more time in the garage than on the road.” “You do the bodywork yourself?” When confronted by a car racist, it can be hard to resist sinking to his or her level and responding with something like, “Is yours the one that came in on the
Pretend you don’t speak English Peer at the idiot as if you don’t understand the rude comment. Add a “Que?” to emphasize the point. Change the subject Take your pick: the weather, sports, alien abductions — anything to get the car racist to stop mocking your pride and joy.
Pull a De Niro Go ahead and recite the famous line from Taxi Driver: “You talkin’ to me?” Feel free to ad lib and add the Bronx accent. Start making a low humming noise If the jerk comes closer, hum louder. “Oh, it’s you.” This usually makes the knob ask, “Have we met before?” And you get to respond with, “My friends warned me that an idiot was making the rounds. You can move along now.” Fender equality is all about being able to love our rides no matter what their condition, edition and how long we’ve held their pink slips. It’s also about treating other automotive enthusiasts with respect, and letting car racists know when they’ve crossed the line. Feel free to vote those boys and girls off the island. Enjoy the ride.
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About the Author: Bonnie Staring is a comedic triple-threat (writer, performer, coupon user), and she appreciates the road of life a lot more than she might let on. Bonnie has plans to master social media one day, right after she learns how to machine rotors. www.bonniestaring.com
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Performance in Motion
Ford Motor Company Trademarks and Trade Dress used under license to Mothers, Inc.