My V-8 dreams....nope.

[HardDrive]

I have had this notion that I need to try out some kind of 'Muscle' car. I guess a 68-9 Chevelle would be my favorite.

But it just seems that you have to spend an insane amount of money to get a half decent car that would actually be fun to drive. A 350/350 clone is typically $15k at least (drifting into Carrera country....), and if you want anything really clean, or you want a big block, the skys the limit on the price. A 350? ZZZZzzzzz....when your pulling 4000lbs of American steel around, it ain't so peppy.

It just doesn't seem worth it. Most of the 'muscle cars' I have driven....I would take an SC over these cars any day of the week. If I'm all wrong about this, then set me straight.

Anyone out there have some American Muscle? Do you enjoy it as much as your P-car?

[vash]

not sleeping?

anyways, a 1969 RS Z28 would shake my 911 resolve. hell, so would an early bronco.

i like all cars. and can see the pros much more than the cons. much to wife's chagrin.

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by vash

i like all cars. and can see the pros much more than the cons. much to wife's chagrin.

I hear that! I went and drove a 1953 Ford Mainline 4 door the other day. The brakes scared the heck of me on Seattles hills, but still....in the back of my mind.....I could see it in my driveway. My wife is a patient person.

[Rick V]

True that a 350 in a battleship is a little lacking in the snap your neck dept, but you can do a lot with that engine for cheep, just off the top of my head a 350 stroker comes to mind. Not a bad job to do and will feed the need. Just need to use a 4 bolt main so it will last. Keep in mind that a 4 bolt 400 is weak, go figure.
Ya want some old iron, just move here to the south, you can't sling a dead cat without bouncing it off some domestic tank monster. I for one am tired of all the domestic shine runners. Just me. I recon I spent too many years drag racing.
The 4th of Just weekend should bring out all that old iron. Most of it can be had on the spot, bring your checkbook.

[lin7310948]

i know that many on this forum do not like the v8 hybrids, but it satisfies my porsche/muscle car cravings. it provides lots of power in a lightweight package. and, with the proper suspension and brake upgrades can provide more than enough driving satisfaction. so, i took a used up 71 911 coupe with rs flares and added an all aluminum dart 434 all roller sbc with mass flo efi along with a short bell 930 transaxle and ended up with a 2250 pound, 585 chp muscle car with better than original balance. of course, there was a lot of rust to repair and most suspension and brake pieces to upgrade and the interior to be redone and so on! most guys on this forum end up doing these upgrades, just not the v8 conversion. it is not a cheap conversion if done to high standards but nothing about porsches...stock or otherwise seems cheap.

[MatthewBrum]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

I have had this notion that I need to try out some kind of 'Muscle' car. I guess a 68-9 Chevelle would be my favorite.

It just doesn't seem worth it. Most of the 'muscle cars' I have driven....I would take an SC over these cars any day of the week. If I'm all wrong about this, then set me straight.

Anyone out there have some American Muscle? Do you enjoy it as much as your P-car?

there are some things an American muscle car can do that you 911 won't do as well....like burnouts. Muscle cars are great for cruising and beating on. I do believe that a properly set-up muscle car can take more abuse than a 911.

You can get a decent 928 in that price range..this is the Porsche muscle car. Plenty of low end torque to spin the tires and they can take a beaten like you wouldnt believe. But if you wanted an American muscle car you can get a 98-01 Z28 for cheap and build it up. The LS1 is a great engine.

[masraum]

You can buy or build serious small blocks. A small block in the right early body with fun gearing can be a lot of fun. Most aren't likely to be faster 0-60 than a 3.2L Carrera, but they'll feel different (that V-8 torque), smell different, sound different, etc....

Yeah, to get a nice car isn't cheap. If you want cheap, then you have to get a car that needs work, a project.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by MatthewBrum

But if you wanted an American muscle car you can get a 98-01 Z28 for cheap and build it up. The LS1 is a great engine.

Blech!

late model cars may have the power and technology, but they have the charisma and personality of a loaf of wonderbread. The old cars are cool, the new cars are what the 17 year old next door has.

[Rot 911]

Look around. Certain muscle cars bring big dollars, others, for some reason don't. If you like Camaro's, but don't like the high dollars. Look at the same year Pontiac Firebird. For some reason they will be anywhere from 20% to 50% cheaper than the Camaro. There are any number of non-number matching Chevelles out there for less than $10K.

[jyl]

A 65/66 Mustang curb weight is <2800 lbs, a 69 Camaro appx 3100 - per random Internet sources, never weighed my Mustang. Not terribly heavy, really, and you could lighten it up.

But if looking for a V8, I'd rather have a 928S4.

[jhynesrockmtn]

I love the look of older muscle cars but for what I want to do in a car, carve up a track or a piece of twisty road, a 911 beats it hands down. To me I enjoy a car with balance, good power, suspension and brakes to slow things down much more than pure straight line acceleration. I wouldn't go back. I had a 65 Mustang Fastback with a very nicely built 289, 5 speed conversion, etc. That car was fun but to make it handle and stop would have cost me as much in upgrades as I had in buying it. No thanks. My goal eventually is a long hood with a 3.0 or 3.2 swap.

[VINMAN]

Nothing wrong with a small block. you can build alot of power out of one.
I'm buidling a 351 stroker for this right now. Should put out in the low-mid 400's

[Oh Haha]

This peaked my interest:


I won't give up my 911 for a musclecar or hot rod, though.

[kaisen]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

But it just seems that you have to spend an insane amount of money to get a half decent car that would actually be fun to drive. A 350/350 clone is typically $15k at least (drifting into Carrera country....

So $15K is an insane amount of money?

[fastfredracing]

I grew up on muscle cars, and while they can be fast, do burnouts, you can grab a handful of muncie 2nd gear without worrying about exploding the trans, they are relatively cheap /easy and rewarding to work on( your dollar goes a whole lot further than with a porsche), but the driving experience is like a lawn tractor with big power.
If you intent is to go to cruises/car shows, or maybe take up some drag racing, then go for it, but if you really want to drive , and enjoy it, may not be the cure for your ills.
A couple of weeks ago I did some work on an older camaro that I built for a guy about 15 years ago. I used to think this car was soo cool, but driving it around I was astounded at what a sh$t box it was, and how poorly it handled and stopped.
Stay on the dark side, for early z28, or big block chevelle money, you can have a nice 930.
I did however have an 86 mustang gt for the last 2 years as a beater run around car, and I did enjoy melting the tires every morning heading out the driveway for work. I think that is about the only thing that car was good for. It was also dirt cheap to repair, and easy to work on

[kmhemi]

A 15 thousand dollar muscle car is probably a GIFT these days. TRUE (60s-70's) muscle car prices have have gotten out of hand but are finally startng to drop some. Just like everything else they WILL go back up. they seem to be a solid investment.

[asphaltgambler]

Nothing beats cubic inches.....................period. The torque that comes from a good running big-block is addictive. You can buy nice #2 quality big-block ('68-9)chevelles for under $30K. If these cars are built / restored correctly they will hold their value while you enjoy them.

"Tribute" cars are about $5-8K less depending on what options and how close the equipment is to OE look.

Small block cars are not anywhere near the same experience unless it is a large cubic inch special build. The difference is a lot like say driving an original RS spec car vs a 912. Yes they are both Porsches but completely opposite

[VINMAN]

Why do some of you guys insist on saying just get a 930/928/9-whatever?

Hes talking about a muscle car. Different car for a different purpose. You know the saying, variety is the spice of life!

[Jeff Higgins]

My first car was a '67 GTO, 400 4 speed. Second was a '66 Sport Fury, 383 automatic. Then a '67 R/T, 440 automatic. Then a '68 Road Runner, 440 4 speed. Last of the line was a '69 Super Bee, 383 4 speed.

Big block power is absolutely addictive, especially those 440's. The R/T actually had disc brakes on the front, but they didn't seem to make much difference over the drums on the others. This is a whole different world than 911's, or sports cars in general; an awful lot of fun, just entirely different.

Funny, I wanted to get back into these cars about a decade ago. I was stunned at the prices for even run-of-the-mill Road Runners and such. Those prices finally drove me into the 911 world, and I haven't looked back. When the costs are about the same, there really is no comparison - the 911 is far more car for the money. I would like to get back into the big block MOPARs again someday, preferably with a Hemi, but I know I'll wind up spending several times what I have in my 911 to do so. And I'm not giving up the 911 to make this happen...

[VINMAN]

The prices are rapidly dropping back down to reality. The Barret Jackson phase has worn out.