Muscle Car Special Editions

“Get one before one gets you!” Motion Performance’s catchy sales pitch for builder Joel Rosen’s Phase III Specialty Muscle Cars sums up the escalating performance scene in the late 1960s. Special edition muscle cars were essential to keep pace. Joel and other independent car builders (such as Carroll Shelby, George Hurst, Dick Harrell, Mr. Norm, and Jim Wangers) did what the factories couldn’t do: take the muscle car and turn it into a tire-burning monster. Although the Pontiac GTO established the muscle car category in 1964, a host of corporate safety restrictions restrained factories from offering turn-key race cars off the showroom floor. Independent car builders enhanced appearance and amplified performance in an attempt to do what the manufacturers wouldn’t. Motion Performance issued a written guarantee: Phase III cars would run 11.5 at 120 mph down the quarter-mile! Some of the most iconic nameplates in automotive history were applied in this era with names that included Cheetah, Black Panther, Royal Bobcat, Super Hugger, Manta Ray, Super Snake, Deuce, Fast Track, and The Machine. How did manufacturers stealthily promote these special edition muscle cars as “halo cars” while pretending not to endorse them? What happened to these innovators when factories assimilated their ideas? It’s all covered inside. Muscle car historian Duncan Brown takes us through these special edition muscle cars, their creators, and the behind-the-scenes forces that shaped these wild beasts into legends that left a lasting legacy.

“Just what is a Muscle Car?” Road Test magazine asked in June 1967. The answer: “Exactly what the name implies. It is a product of the American car industry adhering to the hot rodder’s philosophy of taking a small car and putting a BIG engine in it. . . . The Muscle Car is Charles Atlas kicking sand in the face of the 98 horsepower weakling.” Unconcerned with such trivial details as comfort and handling, the vintage American muscle car was built for straight-line speed and quickly became the ride of choice for power-hungry racers and serious gearheads. In a country where performance was measured in brute force, a quarter mile at a time, the muscle car was the perfect machine. In the intervening years, these down-and-dirty, high-performing beauties have earned their place in the automotive pantheon. As prized by collectors and aficionados as they are by denizens of garages and drag strips, classic muscle cars now fetch upwards of a million dollars at auctions and feature in any story of America’s automotive glory days. The icons of muscle car art—including Camaro and Chevelle SS, the Hemi and 440-6 ’Cuda, Challenger, Roadrunner, Super Bee, GTX, Super Bird, Daytona Charger, Super Cobra Jet and Boss Mustang, Talladega Torino, Buick GSX and W30 Oldsmobile 442, and AMX Javelin—are all here, on full display in this lavishly illustrated volume, each described in a detailed essay followed by a gallery of portraits and special gatefold presentations that capture the art of the muscle car at its finest.

Since its launch in 1967, the Camaro has been a friend to driving enthusiasts. Chevrolet’s performance-minded individuals had their bona fide bowtie pony car, and right away, it was off to the races to craft and create versions that went above and beyond. The Camaro proved to be the perfect canvas for many kinds of special editions, and it has remained that way throughout six generations of the iconic model that have been loved worldwide. In Camaro Special Editions: 1967–Present, author and expert Matt Avery spotlights the most significant special editions and closely explores the pinnacles and highpoints of the model’s lineage. Beginning with the classics, the story is told of the venerable Z28, the Corvette-sourced L89 and JL8, and the factory COPO zeniths, including the legendary ZL1. Moving to the realm of outside heavy hitters, Avery profiles the efforts of dealership partners, such as Nickey, Dana, Gorries, Baldwin-Motion, Yenko, and the works of motor maverick drag racer Dick Harrell. From its first year, the Camaro played a starring role as an Indy 500 pace car and during the festival celebration. A comprehensive look at the many different variants that have been present at the famed Brickyard speedway is included. A new bodystyle in the 1980s brought further special editions, including the race-ready Player’s series and subsequent 1LE option. Fast forward to the Camaro’s fourth generation, and activities accelerated even quicker with contemporary tuners, such as Callaway and Street Legal Performance (SLP), joining the fray along with dealer programs from Berger Chevrolet, GMMG, Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet, and more. The very latest Camaros are documented as well, including the resurrected ZL1 and Z28, Specialty Vehicle Engineering’s reimagined Yenko street terror, and Chevrolet Performance’s all-out COPO race car. Factory packages, such as the Hot Wheels and Transformers, are covered, and all of the anniversary editions are examined, each marking milestones in the model’s 55-year journey in becoming the thumping heartbeat of American sports car prowess. It’s been quite a ride, and there’s no letting up anytime soon. This book is a must-have resource and authoritative guide for celebrating the Camaro and its many fantastic and storied special editions.

When Ford rolled out the Mustang in April 1964 it was an instant hit. Even with its immense popularity it didn’t stop Ford Corporate, zone managers, and dealerships from taking it an extra step further. Just two short months later, the first special-edition Mustang debuted at the Indianapolis 500 tasked with pacing the race, and it’s been full throttle ever since. This book examines more than 300 special-edition Mustangs from 1964 through today. Coverage includes factory offerings such as the 2001 Bullitt and SVT Cobras, regional promotions including the Twister Special, third-party tuners such as Roush and Saleen, and factory race cars including the 1968-1/2 Cobra Jets and the 2000 Cobra-R. You may find Mustangs in this book that you had no idea even existed! Never has a volume this detailed and with this many model Mustangs been offered published. The authors have taken their decades of research and logged them into a single compilation. Each Mustang is accompanied by production numbers, key features, and photos of surviving cars whenever possible. This book is sure to be a valued resource in your Mustang memorabilia collection! p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Arial}

An entire volume dedicated to detailing and preserving the iconic muscle car dealerships of the 1960s and early 1970s, many whose doors are now closed. Text is supported with more than 350 historic photos and illustrations. Muscle car historian Duncan Brown revisits this glorious automotive era when Nickey 427 Camaros and supercharged Dodge Demons by Grand Spaulding Dodge terrorized the streets. Drag sponsored cars from Reynolds Buick, Yeakel Chrysler-Plymouth, and Mel Burns Ford informed buyers that if you came to their dealership, you too could have a screaming fast muscle car just like the ones you saw at the dragstrip. It was these dealerships that created the lasting muscle car legacy through their innovative advertising and over-the-top performance. The majority of these dealerships floundered, unable to re-attract the customers they had prior to the muscle car. Thankfully, a volume has been dedicated to preserving the history of those less fortunate and revisiting the past success of these Lost Muscle Car Dealerships.

Learn about the rarest muscle cars ever produced with this new book. In the world of muscle cars, many were produced and sold in large enough quantities that they would be considered special but not particularly rare at the time of production. The Boss 429 and Plymouth Superbird were produced for racing homologation reasons, and since they were very expensive to produce, the manufacturers ensured that they would be rare. However, there is rare, and then there is rare. Prototypes and special factory builds, factory production cars, and super car tuners and builders are all covered in this new book by muscle-car historian Wes Eisenschenk. Some are single examples, some are very close to being the last remaining example, and all are extremely rare. Some have no surviving example known to exist. Featured cars include a Boss 429 Cougar, a 1971 Pontiac Ventura II Sprint 455, a 1965 Chevelle 300 COPO car with the L78 option, and a 1970 FK5 Deep Burnt Orange Metallic Superbird. Dealer promotional specials include a 1968 AMC AMX Von Piranha, a 1970 Dick Harrell LS6 454 Camaro, and a 1973 Nickey Chevrolet 427 Nova. These are cars that you will read about but likely never see. For a fun ride through muscle-car history and great stories of the rarest muscle cars ever produced, add this book to your automotive library today.

This title introduces the classic American muscle car, the Ford Mustang. Readers will learn about the Mustang's history, models, special features, technical specs, racing career, and prevalence in popular culture. Large dynamic photos, easy-to-read text, a timeline, and infographics put readers in the driver's seat! High-interest sidebars give readers cool facts to share with their friends. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Big Buddy Books is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.