Hemmings Daily: Jungle Jim's Vega among three finalists for NHRA's top funny car

Photo by Steve Reyes. Though it's been 40 years since "Jungle Jim" Liberman died, the impression he left on the sport of drag racing - particularly among funny car fans - through his incessant touring, his stagecraft and his attention-grabbing cars remains today, which likely accounts for Liberman's 1973 Vega making it to the top three in the NHRA's top 20 funny car countdown. Liberman, who started racing in stock classes in 1964, quickly switched to funny cars, perhaps because their outrageous appearances mat

View in Browser | Subscribe Friday, October 28, 2016 Jungle Jim's Vega among three finalists for NHRA's top Funny Car Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photo by Steve Reyes. Though it's been 40 years since "Jungle Jim" Liberman died, the impression he left on the sport of drag racing - particularly among funny car fans - through his incessant touring, his stagecraft and his attention-grabbing cars remains today, which likely accounts for Liberman's 1973 Vega making it to the top three in the NHRA's top 20 funny car countdown. Liberman, who started racing in stock classes in 1964, quickly switched to funny cars, perhaps because their outrageous appearances mat... Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1973 Ford Maverick Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1973 Ford Maverick with the optional 250-cu.in. inline six for sale. From the seller's description: 1973 Ford Maverick in excellent original condition, and in perfect driving condition. I have purchased the car from a Dealer in Indiana, who bought it from the original owner in Nevada. The dealer never drove the car and didn't know much about it (he said that he bought it because it looked nice, but that he was more of a mustang/camaro guy). However, for those who know, this is an excellent car that Ford came up ...Read More Can't afford to own a classic car? Now you can rent one Posted by Kurt Ernst - Screen grabs from ClassicsAndExotics.com. >From homes, to boats, to garage space, the "sharing economy" is opening opportunities for renters and rentees in a variety of markets. Add classic and exotic cars to the list, as Classics&Exotics Inc., based in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, aims to pair car owners with pre-qualified drivers, potentially netting additional income for the former while broadening access to the old car hobby. Classics&Exotics (spaces deleted intentionally) was founded in 2014 by Peter Z...Read More Beyond El Malacon, part 2 - Gavin's Cuba holiday Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photos courtesy Gavin in the UK. Continuing our effort to document the old cars of Cuba as they are now, before the country embraces modernization and before the cars themselves break down one last time, we have a collection of photos sent in by Gavin Upstill, known to our commenting public as Gavin in the UK. He writes: We holidayed in Cuba earlier this year and can confirm that the old 1950s cars are still very much evident everywhere, but that they will get replaced as time goes by, with most of the survivo...Read More Year, Make and Model - 1965 Chevrolet Bel Air Posted by Matt Litwin - Photos by Daniel Strohl. Editor's note: This piece includes excerpts from a story that appeared in the December 2012 issue of Hemmings Motor News. In the mid-1960s, Chevrolet's full-size offerings were the brand's mainstay, selling over 1.57 million examples in 1964 alone. A redesign for 1965 was a big roll of the dice, then, but the gamble paid off with sales of 1.65 million units, carrying Chevrolet to a new single-year sales record. Although the Impala had ousted the Bel Air as the range-topping model ...Read More Burbank, California, 1966 Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1966 Location: Burbank, California Source: Jim and Chester's Garage What do you see here?...Read More THIS DAY IN AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY 10/28/1954: Chevrolet introduces the small-block V-8 UPCOMING EVENTS The Albany Auto Show November 4, 2016 - Albany, NY Wheels of Confusions Dazed & Confused 13 November 4, 2016 - Lake Elsinore, CA VIVA ALFA Romeo Car Show 2016 November 5, 2016 - Downtown Celebration, FL Dave & Ed's Super Auto Events November 5, 2016 - Canton, OH Miller's Automotive Swap Meet and Cruise-In November 5, 2016 - Chillicothe, OH 44th Annual Vintage Wheels Rod & Custom Car Show November 5, 2016 - Richmond, IN See All Events FEATURED CLASSIFIEDS Sponsored By: 1978 Dodge Challenger $11,995 1989 GMC Suburban $22,500 1934 Chrysler Airflow $45,000 1967 Oldsmobile 442 $39,795 1955 Packard 400 $27,500 1965 Ford $13,900 1968 Volkswagen Beetle $8,500 1954 Ford Crestline $16,750 PRO SELLER LISTING 1971 Porsche 911 $67,500 PROMOTED LISTING 1967 Shelby GT500 $125,900 PROMOTED LISTING 1973 Ford Bronco Auction 1968 Oldsmobile Rocket 350 Engine $500 View All Classifieds FEATURED IN THE BLOG Midweek Matinee: Achievement USA, 1954 Is the World of Speed the best racing museum you've never heard of? See All Featured Blog Posts FOLLOW US: View Newsletter Archives WEEK IN REVIEW Thursday, October 27, 2016 World's largest Ford museum to close, may sell entire collection at once Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photos by Bruno Costers. Two years after shifting its focus to attract younger visitors, the world's largest Ford museum - the Den Hartogh in the Netherlands - has failed to attract a new executive director and has announced that it will close in another month or so. According to a report on MuseumActueel.nl published earlier this month, the Den Hartogh Ford Museum in Hillegom will close December 1 with the retirement of the museum's current director, Greske Rust. Rust, daughter of museum founder Piet den Hart...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1969 Jeep CJ-5 Posted by Daniel Strohl - Buick V-6-powered 1969 Jeep CJ-5 for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: It has 59,574 original miles and is an original Colorado vehicle. I have owned it for 2 years and have made many improvements, which are listed below. It has much of the original patina, but has been well taken care of and always garaged. It has the original Buick Dauntless V-6, which runs perfect. Recent upgrades: Recently repainted in newer jeep color of Rescue Green, New Mickey Thompson tires (31x10.5/15LT Load Range C),...Read More Great Race officials announce the 2017 city stops Posted by Matt Litwin - Map images courtesy of The Great Race. At the conclusion of the 2016 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty, Great Race and Coker Tire Company owner Corky Coker announced that the 2017 event the country's premier time/distance vintage car rally would travel along the historicDixie Highway; the third such legendary stretch of blacktop the rally would traverse in as many years. As the 2017 announcement was in its infancy, veteran and rookie participants only had a general idea as to the route...Read More Open Diff: What car are you constantly defending? Posted by Kurt Ernst - First, second, and third-generation Mazda Miatas. Photo courtesy Mazda USA. It happened again today. After two days of harping by a reader on the Mazda Miata's blandness, I felt compelled to chime in, speaking in defense of the finest British roadster to ever come out of Hiroshima, Japan, in the words of our own David LaChance. Those who've driven a Miata in a proper sporting manner understand that this car may be many things, but bland isn't one of them. Its styling may be too "cute" for som...Read More Predicting the (near) future - Mercury's 1956 XM Turnpike Cruiser concept Posted by Kurt Ernst - Mercury's 1956 XM Turnpike Cruiser concept. Images courtesy The Old Car Manual Project. In April of 1954, John Najjar, then head of Lincoln's pre-production studios, sketched a series of five futuristic concept cars. While none of Najjar's original designs would make it to the clay model phase, one of his suggestions, the Mandalay, was reworked into a Mercury concept called the XM Turnpike Cruiser. Remarkably, this car would see production (in slightly altered form), but it would also help to prematurely end the ...Read More Sunnyvale, California, 1973 Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: July 1973 Location: Sunnyvale, California Source: found photo via myBelAir62 on Tumblr What do you see here?...Read More Wednesday, October 26, 2016 A 'Bird that flies - the 1968 Pontiac Firebird Ram Air II Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1968 Pontiac Firebird 400 Ram Air II. Photos courtesy Mecum Auctions. Arriving late to the pony car party, four-plus months behind the Chevrolet Camaro and the Mercury Cougar, Pontiac's Firebird faced the potential of an identity crisis. To ensure that the Firebird remained memorable to performance-oriented consumers, Pontiac offered five distinct versions, including the range-topping (for 1967 ) Firebird 400, available with the optional Ram Air induction package. In 1968, Pontiac improved the performance of ...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1963 Morris Minor delivery van Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1963 Morris Minor delivery van for sale. From the seller's description: Wallace and Gromit, The Curse of the Were-Rabbit immortalized these more-than-cute English delivery vans, theirs being an Austin, of course, but remarkably similar in its architecture to this delightful survivor 1963 Morris Minor van. Found languishing in front of the SoCo Creamery's production facility in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, sans an engine and transmission. I purchased the Morris van and immediately set about locating an engine...Read More "Magic Skyway" 1964 Ford Thunderbird comes to AACA Museum Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1964 Ford Thunderbird, once part of Ford's Magic Skyway at the New York World's Fair. Photo by Mark Usciak, courtesy AACA Museum. The 1964-'65 New York World's Fair presented Ford with a unique opportunity to market its wares to visitors from across the country and around the world. Enlisting the help of Walt Disney and his W.E.D. Enterprises, Inc., Ford created a Magic Skyway ride that took visitors from the distant past into the wondrous future, comfortably seated in a Ford, Lincoln or Mercury convert...Read More Black Cat Hell Drivers make an appearance at The Race of Gentlemen in Pismo Beach Posted by Jim O'Clair - We spotted this promotional car in the parking lot while waiting to go out on the wet beach during The Race of Gentleman West. This 201-cubic-inch flat-six 1938 Plymouth is the ambassador vehicle representing the Black Cat Hell Drivers. They are the only operating new-car automobile stunt tour in North America, and the team still frequents many state and local county fairs. Based in Ohio, most of their shows are performed east of the Mississippi. The Black Cat Hell Drivers have frequented the Vermont State Fa...Read More Bentley apprentices learn classic car restoration skills Posted by Kurt Ernst - Bentley's most recent apprentice class included 36 students, 19 in manufacturing and 17 in other business areas such as engineering, sales and marketing, purchasing and human resources. Photos courtesy of Bentley Motors. With most automakers, a manufacturing apprenticeship program involves learning the skills necessary to produce the latest products as quickly and efficiently as possible. For 19 lucky manufacturing apprentices at Bentley Motors, their path to the future begins in the past, specifically with the r...Read More Riverton, New Jersey, 1960s Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1960s Location: 10 Broad Street, Riverton, New Jersey Source: RivertonHistory.com via Rod Hengst What do you see here?...Read More Tuesday, October 25, 2016 Dan Gurney presented with Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award Posted by Kurt Ernst - Dan Gurney in 2016. Images courtesy Petersen Automotive Museum. Over the past six decades, Dan Gurney has earned remarkable success as a driver, team owner and constructor, but his ideas and designs have also helped to shape modern racing, making it safer and more competitive. On Saturday, October 22, his efforts were honored by the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, which presented Dan with its Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award at the institution's 22nd-annual gala. A young Dan Gurney ...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1968 Cadillac Eldorado Posted by Daniel Strohl - Caribou-built 1968 Cadillac Eldorado pickup for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: Hand built by Traditional Coachworks. 472 cubic engine. One of a kind. Unique. In storage 25 years. Pictures are recent. This was built by Caribou under the auspices of Jean Lang. Special ordered from the dealership. Been in the family all this time. Fully restored. $5,000 spent on recent restoration. Truly in perfect condition. 32,000 miles. See more Cadillacs for sale on Hemmings.com....Read More Here, kitty kitty - A weekend with the 2016 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Posted by Kurt Ernst - Consider this: The Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat weighs nearly 4,500 pounds, but thanks to a 707-horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V-8, can sprint from 0-60 MPH in just 3.6 seconds, on its way to a manufacturer's claimed top speed of 199 MPH, a figure limited only by aerodynamics, not electronics. It isn't simply the equivalent of bringing a gun to a knife fight; instead, it's more along the lines of bringing a fast attack submarine to a sailboat race. That said, when a press fleet example landed in our pa...Read More Stolen car alert: 1965 Ford Mustang fastback Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photos provided by the owner. While it took several years for Gavin Murdoch and his daughter to restore the family's 1965 Ford Mustang fastback - and another few years for his wife to warm up to it - it only took a moment for thieves to steal the car earlier this month, and now Gavin's hoping Hemmings readers can help return it to his garage. As Gavin wrote: Back in 2000, I bought my first classic Mustang (a coupe) from a Mecum car auction in Belvidere, IL. My daughter was a freshman in high school at the tim...Read More Motorcycle Cannonballers race TROG West on century-old two-wheelers Posted by Jim O'Clair - Shinya Kimura's 1915 Indian twin, fresh from this year's Motorcycle Cannonball. Photos by the author. As if 3,306 miles of grueling highway riding just a few weeks ago wasn't enough, several riders from the 2016 Motorcycle Cannonball Race of the Century were on hand at The Race of Gentleman West in Pismo Beach on October 15. Detail of the Indian's 101-year old twin. Shinya Kimura, aboard his 1915 Indian, was spotted in the racers area before the beach pits were opened. Later we learned that Doug Feinsod...Read More Phoenix, Arizona, 1960s Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1960s Location: North 32nd Street and Indian School Road, Phoenix, Arizona Source: Phoenix, Arizona Historical Images on Google Plus What do you see here?...Read More Monday, October 24, 2016 Three American auto museums up for IHMA Museum of the Year award Posted by Daniel Strohl - Photo courtesy Petersen Automotive Museum. While the typically Euro-centric International Historic Motoring Awards have recognized the occasional American cars and American auto institutions in the past, 2016 appears to be a breakout year for Yanks in the IHMA with numerous award nominations, most notably three nominations - representing half the field - in the Museum of the Year category. As announced this week, the Petersen Automotive Museum, the Mullin Automotive Museum, and the LeMay America's Car Museum h...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk Posted by Kurt Ernst - >From the seller's description: 1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk with a numbers matching supercharged V8 motor with automatic transmission and 81K miles. The car was delivered new to eastern NC and remained there until the last several years. It was my father's car for over 45 years. Starting in 2009 the car went through a frame-off, rotisserie, multi-year, and no expense spared restoration performed to be period correct. The motor, transmission, and supercharger were rebuilt during the restoration. All new tinted glass ...Read More Upcoming Italian "Duemila Ruote" sale offers something for very nearly everyone Posted by Kurt Ernst - 1946 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Barchetta. Photo by Tom Wood, all photos courtesy RM Sotheby's. Imagine what a collection of mechanical things might look like if one needn't worry about cost or storage space. Would it center exclusively on automobiles, or would it incorporate motorcycles, too? What about boats, bicycles and automobilia? Those answering "yes" to the above questions may want to pay attention to RM Sotheby's upcoming Duemila Ruote sale, to be held from November 25-27 in conjunction with Milan AutoClassica i...Read More Tangerine Dream: We drive an unrestored 1979 Mercury Bobcat Posted by Jeff Koch - Photography by the author. When's the last time you were in a Pintoor its secret twin seen here, the Mercury Bobcat? It's old enough to be out of America's collective memory now, but between Ford and Mercury, Ford sold more than 220,000 Pintos a year for most of the '70s and clear into 1980. Model year 1979 was the Mercury Bobcat's bestselling season, with sales jumping by more than a third year-to-year, for a couple of reasons. First, OPEC II: Electric Boogaloo choked America's fuel spigot once...Read More Interview: How to preserve a one-of-four GM-built munchkin-sized 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air Posted by Hemmings contributor - Text courtesy Joe Essid. Photos courtesy Marty Martino and GM Media. Marty Martino, owner of Martino Productions, should be known by now to Hemmings readers for his work on restoring several 1950s GM concept vehicles and creating The PsyClone, a tribute to Harley Earl's 1959 Cadillac XP-74 Cyclone. Now Marty has once again come up with a unique piece of 1950s automotive history, a very rare scale model of a 1955 Chevrolet convertible. He showed it recently at Classics on the Green in New Kent, Virginia, and ...Read More Harderwijk, Holland, 1960s Posted by Daniel Strohl - Date: circa 1960s Location: Harderwijk, Holland Source: via Ran When Parked What do you see here?...Read More Sunday, October 23, 2016 Four-Links - 2JZs in everything, West Coast Crosley meet, Year of the Unilamp, the leaded gas problem Posted by Daniel Strohl - While the Toyota 2JZ isn't quite the ubiquitous engine swap as the SBC or the LS, the straight-six still manages to make its way in between the frame rails of a good diversity of cars, trucks, and other vehicles, as this recent roundup from Stance is Everything shows. Mustangs, rat rods, even a Lada... * The big Crosley meet takes place in Ohio every year, but a smaller, equally as interesting meet also takes place on the West Coast. Tim Foster got to attend the latter and bring back plenty of pictures. ...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1980 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Posted by Daniel Strohl - Original owner turbocharged 1980 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am for sale on Hemmings.com. From the seller's description: This sharp, special ordered, Van Nuys built, Pontiac Trans Am is being sold by it's SOLE owner. It is a one of a kind, number matching, collectable that is exceptionally clean with a mint exterior and interior and very low mileage. It was just recently very positively appraised and it is only being sold due to family changes which suggest that it is probably time to get this collectable a nice, new ho...Read More Hemmings Sunday Cinema - the only 1983 Corvette, the British 1965 racing car show, Revenge of the Pink Panther Posted by Daniel Strohl - Why did Chevrolet decide to keep just one 1983 Corvette in existence? That's a question the National Corvette Museum decided to tackle for its Heritage Series of videos this week. * Though they're short, British Pathe videos manage to capture not only moments in history - such as the 1965 British Racing Car Show in London, as seen here, attended by a number of British racing celebrities - but also the general mood and sentiments of the time. (via) * One more Pink Panther car chase scene? Sure. This one's from ...Read More Hemmings Find of the Day - 1964 Buick Electra 225 Posted by Kurt Ernst - >From the seller's description: 1964 BUICK ELECTRA 225 four door thin-pillar Sedan The Wildcat 445 engine has 235 horsepower in the "401-4" V-8 engine specifically 401 cubic inches, 4-stroke and 10.25 compression ratio. OEM transmission is an automatic three-speed Super Turbine. HISTORY . ELECTRA was the name of a sister-in-law of then BUICK President Harlow H. Curtice who later rose to be President of General Motors. This model was built at Flint, Michigan in three versions namely ELECTRA 225, 225 Limited ...Read More LAST WEEK'S MOST READ Selling a collection of "Papa's Toys" Posted by Don Homuth - Inside the warehouse during an open house. Photos courtesy the Davis family, unless otherwise noted. The massive battleship grey warehouse complex on the north side of Cornelius, Oregon covers several acres. In the rain, the huge empty paved parking lot seems now somehow desolate. On the north loading dock of the L-shaped building is the only bit of color - a smallish sign that says "Papa's Toys." It all started with cars. The local hot rod club met in the back yard of Susan's family. She mostly stayed inside ...Read More LAST WEEK'S BEST DISCUSSION The world's best-known '76 AMC Pacer sets auction record in Las Vegas Posted by Kurt Ernst - The Wayne's World 1976 AMC Pacer. Photos courtesy Barrett-Jackson. According to the latest value guides, a 1976 AMC Pacer in excellent overall condition (but falling short of concours-quality) should be worth in the neighborhood of $6,000, but when that Pacer is the original Mirthmobile, driven by Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar (actually, Mike Myers and Dana Carvey) in the surprise 1992 hit Wayne's World, all bets are off. Last Saturday, the recently restored Wayne's World 1976 AMC Pacer crossed the stage at Ba...Read More Hemmings Motor News will not sell or share your e-mail address with other companies. For more information about this newsletter, email webmaster@hemmings.com or write to: Customer Service, Hemmings Motor News, 222 Main St., Bennington VT 05201. If you do not want to receive this newsletter from Hemmings Motor News, you can change your email preferences here.