Resto Mods and Pro Touring

IMHO,, it was a great article, every car i ever owned had some kind of mod, wether a complete resto, or just an custom air filter.

most interesting is the value placed on good resto-mods.

i was lookin at at 1966 corvette, average stock value around 25K-35K,( maybe?), as a resto-mod it sold at auction for $185,000.

now ,i was at the shop that was appraising it, dont get me wrong,it was very nice, but on a lift with wheels drooped, it had small problems, altho not serious, but for big money, id want it better than perfect.

I'm one of "them" with a 70 Firebird thats more G-machine than Pro-Touring in my opinion. It might perhaps best be catagorized as a Streetfighter. I'm mostly a lurker here, rarely posting, and although I've bought several issues of CM on the news stand I've never been a subscriber (Sub to GRM).

I don't subscribe to CM because frankly there isn't much content that relates to cars I currently own except maybe the 86 Carrera. If there was more content about modified American classics I probably would subscribe, and get the added bonus of learning more about the foriegn cars.

I've been watching this thread since I saw it pop up a couple weeks ago but figured I'd read the article first before commenting. Seems most of the comments in this thread indicate an acceptance of the modified modernized classic cars but within certain limits. And each person has their own definition of where the line should be drawn as to what content is beyond what they'd like to see in CM. As an example while some might feel 15"-16" wheel sizing is acceptable others think 18" sizing is ok and I suspect the majority of the current readership would reject the 20"+ wheels that are being installed on many Pro-touring cars now. That leaves a lot of decision making to the editorial staff to determine what "fits" and what doesn't in CM if they decide to bring more "pro-mod" content into the magazine. Where should the staff draw the line on modifications or modernization? How do they decide what is "to much"?

The readership demographics would likely change if there's more "pro-mod" content influencing the results of polls taken, so the current majority opinion on certain things might change thereby influencing the direction the magazine goes in upcoming years.

Nice article Liz wrote Steve, and your car looks great! For those of you who might doubt Steve drives that Camaro, I personally witnessed him blasting around Pocono with it in the pouring rain with 6" of standing water in some sections of the track. It was raining so hard I wouldn't even take my car out of the trailer because of the tires I had on it, I would have been hydroplaning all over!

So here's one of my cars. While I do own completely stock classics this car is heavily modified.It's more track oriented than most of the pro touring cars. With a full cage, Nascar Kirkey seats, 6 point harnesses, fire systems etc. However it is street driven regularly. No, not to cruise nights and car shows, but to the post office, grocery store, hardware store, nearby track days, and today on my search to find the July issue of CM to read the article LOL (thanks Books A Million).

There's not much for creature comfort when compared to the full boat Pro-Touring cars. No cup holders, AC, leather, TV, sound deadener etc. however it retains functional heat, wipers, basic stereo etc. It's more of a driving car with lots of suspension and safety upgrades for the track. Not built from a valuable or restored car. It was originally a 70 Firebird Esprit, it's recieved the TA body parts and sits about 4 " lower than stock on 17" wheels. Pontiac powered but with modern ignition, water pump, intake/carb, electric fuel pump, Road Race oil pan, etc. The tranny and rear have also had upgrades to make them more durable for track use and reliability. So if the cars refered to as "pro mod" cars are introduced more often into CM editorial, would this car be accepted by the current CM readers? Almost every single part of the car has been modified in some way including everything on the exterior, but is it acceptable? In the gray area? Or too much for CM content?

That Firebird is stunning! Cheers, Scott

Dig the bird! Doubt I could make it in and out of it, but it's very cool.

I don't officially like Resto-mod nor do I see the magazine content changing much. That said... pretty much every project car I do is a Resto-mod. It is just a matter of degree. The Tiger is very much a Resto-mod, but I worked real hard to keep it understated and reversible. If you are actually going to drive and not just show them, most of these cars we play with, can and need some modernization for safety and to make them fun.

I love restored classics, and factory correct rare cars. I love resto-mods, street rods, full customs. I love making purists get their closed minded panties in a wad. that's actually the best part. Whether it's air cooled VW purists who would retch at the thought of a split window bug turned into a baja, to musclecar fans who hate lowriders and customs.

My own '63 Mercury Comet convertible is getting a Lexus DOHC V8 and 5 speed manual, custom frame, fully custom interior, new sheetmetal mods, lighting, and air ride over 18" wheels. And the more purists bitch, the happier I'll be. ddavidv will HATE the shaved doorhandles. I've been doing 'em for decades. other sporty car types will hate the air ride suspension. but I've HAD race cars. Not every car has to be a race car to be valid.

Going from this factory V8 car:

to this:

thouch I haven't settled on wheel style yet. maybe somthing more along the lines of big, deep halibrand style wheels:

in 18x8 and 18x9.5...

Cool. I once saw a custom convertible Ranchero that looked very similar.

Can I answer with it depends? I like it as long as it is a more common car. I wouldn't like to see something like a Hemi Cuda or a Ferrari 250 GTO resto moded. I didn't like the wheels on a lot of the cars in the article. I also hate street rods.

96DXCivic wrote: Can I answer with it depends? I like it as long as it is a more common car. I wouldn't like to see something like a Hemi Cuda or a Ferrari 250 GTO resto moded. I didn't like the wheels on a lot of the cars in the article. I also hate street rods.

As to that last, why woudl you hate this? Strikes me as VERY closed minded. Why would that be a goal for you?

Absolutely stunning craftsmanship and artisanship, build kinetic sculpture. I'd kill to be able to build that. Or this:

While admittedly not grassroots, I'd like to shoot for that level of quality on my '63 as I build my own custom frame and suspension. i just have to trade money for time to achieve it.

It is just personal taste. I prefer the dare I say it more traditional hot rods. They just seem very gaudy.

96DXCivic wrote: It is just personal taste. I prefer the dare I say it more traditional hot rods. They just seem very gaudy.

As an automotive enthuisiast, I can't see how these are gaudy and worthy of hate. Sorry, makes it seem petty and closed minded. Not just a difference in preferences (we should all have different preferences, otherwise it'd be boring. But hating on something that isn't a preference is stupid).

How are street rods not a preference? Maybe hate wasn't the right word to use I strongly dislike them and would never buy one.

I can definitely appreciate the time, effort and artistry that goes into building a top-notch street or hot rod, but at the same time, I'm not sure I'd want to own one... practically too nice to drive.

It's like I told a MINI friend of mine who has been searching for (and recently purchased) a hot rod. I'd love to build one... wouldn't want to own it.

WELL, after 60yrs of specialty cars , my opnion is ,,if its got big tires or big tits,, thats OK by me.