Hot Rods How many guys drive street brawlers?

Ya gotta know your old cause you let off, a kid would still have his foot in it till the cops showed up

 

Yes I'm Old, just not to Old. It's okay to let off when you're way out front. The Cops only catch the Slow cars.

 

Yeah, my 41 Chevy looks stock, but with a pretty hopped um 261 under the hood - about 200 horse and tons of low end torque . Sometimes I attend a quarter mile race (pre war class) just for fun and the spirit of it, like the upcoming Normandy Beach Race this year.

At the stoplight, I probably would not have a serious chance against a modern ricebowl or BMW, but sometimes I take them by surprise.
Most of the time, I'm just cruising low and slow though.

 

I define a street Brawler as something with power to spank most street cars, a WOLF in SHEEPS clothing street car. No race car converted to street use. Here are a couple of my 1965 and before street brawlers. 500 plus HP L88... and 427 Medium riser...

 

Tough to say a Vette is a wolf in sheeps clothing. I consider that phrase to be a sleeper. And still tough to calla Vette a sleeper!

 

some of you guys better double check what new cars run in the 1/4 mile these days...you might get an awakening one day!

 

In the mid 1980s I owned a couple of OT muscle cars from 1968 and 1970. On Friday and Saturday night I would stay home with the two babies so my wife could take the cars out and street race. The woman loved to drive a 4-speed.

 

I don't but I did, and as daily drivers too. The majority don't fit here, but I have aspirations to do 1 more. I'll "warm up" with the GTO, but will likely be trade bait to take on an old school street racer. I envision a 64-5 Chevelle or El Camino. Definitely a BBC, not negotiable on that. Preferred CID is 427 based. Automatic too perhaps using a built 700R4 to avoid excess electronics. I'd build it rough and tumble looking like faded primer, minimalist interior but comfy seats, definitely a basic roll bar too just to keep it stiff. Oh yeah, nitrous. Gotta have it. If it went 10.999 in the ¼ I'd be happy. 8" rally wheels out back, 6s up front. Can you see it? I can. For the record I said 65 Chevelle outta respect for the board, I didn't say what it would ACTUALLY be.

But then again it might also be a TLB rebirth too. I really wanna do that.

 

With my 66 chevelle I could get a street race almost every time I drove it. It had some scratches and a few small dents. It didn't look like much but it was fairly fast. Best of mid 11s.
The coupe when orange i could get races because it looked like a 60s show car. It could run high 9s with the 354 hemi.
The coupe was repainted green. It received a 498 hemi on nitro. It has run 6.80 in the quarter. I don't get it I can't ever for the life of me get a street race. Must be the green paint.

 

This is no doubt. My son and I went to look at fairly late model vette that had some work done to it and it was likely building around 600 hp without the nitrous. It doesn’t take much for these new cars to build lots of hp. I knew that some of these cars are way faster than what we thought fast was years ago, but driving one was pretty dang impressive. I would also have way more in an old car to run like that one did and it wouldn’t be as streetable either. Some of these young guys with late model cars are definitely the next generation of hot rodders and they sure can make things go fast.

 

in 1971 my buddy who worked night's in the local factory had a new big block monty, i worked the day shift in the same factory. that monty with his wife riding shotgun and a different driver about every nite was one fast car,

 

i hate to say it here but any old hot cars can quickly become a fast car with efi. controlling the spark and fuel for optimum performance is easy. thats how the new cars are making so much power. with traction control thrown in by retarding the spark they can hook up to. i have one old car thats all still old and another with efi.

 

Yeah it’s no longer 12s in the 1/4 mile. That was fast in the day.

 

New approaches may be fast n all, but me setting up my tune with a laptop on the roof? I dunno, somehow it feels like getting caught riding a pink girls bicycle with streamers in the handlebars...

 

I have had, when younger, 3 Hipo drivers. My pockets were never deep.
I do claim tho that when a Brawler gets next to me at a light, I'll make him work for the lead.
The juice is on, the window is down, before the light says go.

 

I used the hood on my 55, not the roof, because it was a rather tall car.

 

A brawler, well, no, after high school and four years in trade school things had to get serious career wise. I then built a 1/4 mile car (OT), so not much street activity.
In high school my second car, a 57 BelAir looked the part though, it was more of a poser mainly because it was my moms and my daily driver as she never drove and because she helped finance it she said "don't break it".



It only had a tired 283 (1964), but when I put the 4 speed in it things got fun, until I started breaking parts, the first was an axle while showing off in the high school parking lot then I blew the spider gears in the 3.08 rearend, found a 4.11 third member at the local wrecking yard so It did seem pretty hot to me.
Next, I put this 65 Chevelle together with plans of racing it but just ran out of money, it did have license plates and BIG PURPLE HORNIES.
I did drive it a little but not long enough to do any real street "brawling".

 

I see what you did there. At least I think I do...

 

Must be nice to be able to open up the dwell on the points or change jet sizes on the carbs with just the stroke of a few keys....

-Abone.

 

Everything we build is with the intent to "thrash" on it; even if it is a driver.
To me it just goes with the territory. It's seriously sad and a great misrepresentation when a traditional hot rod isn't somewhat fast. I've always felt like there's an image to uphold if you're going to drive around something that looks like it's fast.
I'm 54 and my dad is 76; so maybe as we get older we'll find ourselves appreciating "milder" cruisers. But for right now, we still enjoy an old car with a snotty camshaft and a little "Kick" to it. The last time out with our SBC powered, Muncie 4-speed Model A we went a best of 10.64 @ 131.
Thanks for starting the thread Roothawg!

 

My last exhibition of speed ticket was in the '60's. I didn't like the cost.

 

Hmmm…I have old Carters on everything, may have to switch to one of those fancy electronic Holleys.

 

We talk about that alot. My Fairlane dynoed at 517 hp/534 tq and has 4:11 gears , lumpy cam, but look at some of the late model stuff and running 11.9s/low 12s in a 61 aint that quick any more, and dont get me started on a honda pulling up next to you and what they might be running. But whether its a honda or a late model, they will never be as cool as as what most of us drive

 

Recently sold this fun one...dyno'd at 650hp...fun car, fun burnouts...

 

Boyhowdy, A Mach-E GT electric golf cart on steroids will embarrass my junk.

My Anglia project will get that color green. Love it.

I once did a Stoplite Grand Prix holeshot on a little Honda Civic or some such in my Mustang GT powered / 4 spd / 4.11 posi Hot Tub and was feeling pretty giddy - until I heard his turbo spool up...
...and that was the last I saw of him.

Mine are still fun to drive. And when the chicks wave to me when I'm out in one of my hot rods I smile and wonder "Where the hell were you all when I was 16."

 

yep, my new O/T Chevy muscle car runs right on the 12 flat mark in the 1/4 . Buddy with a more stripped down model ran in the 11's right off the showroom and its like going down the highway. My old 33 was running high 12s when it was drag truck and its a handful at the other end and has quite a bit of work done to the small block.

 

As kid, I was a street racer, I raced open wheel cars into my 40's, been playing with cars all my life, none of my hot rods were race cars but fairly quick, HighBoy Roadster, pretty hot 355 TH400, 3:73 posi, 32 coupe, speed shop crate 355, TH350, 3:50 posi, these cars are light and I did on occasion race fellow hot rodders and friends for bragging rights and the bet was always the lunch tab. My OT hobby cars are stock but again fairly quick and the same deal I have raced friends for the lunch tab, bragging rights. I do not do this anymore as I'm now 75, I have matured some, But "Never Say Never" on any subject is one thing I know for sure at this time. and I still will get on her for that tickle, you all know the feeling.

 

angle iron tacked to the bottom of the hood, and a bead of bondo to radius the top side.

 

I have a hankering for a street driven gasser. Stupid fast...bad mileage...loud...obnoxious.

 

My 57, blown 355, reverse manual 400, 9 inch 4.11s