Who Buys the Most Muscle Cars? —> The Top 10 Most Power-Hungry States
To find out who buys the most muscle
cars, iSeeCars.com’s data team analyzed 4 million sales of used
passenger cars (coupes, sedans, convertibles and hatchbacks) and
identified how many had at least 400 horsepower – twice the average of
cars on the road – and they are located.
The most power-hungry state is Texas. The first-ranked Lone Star State
had 5 percent of used passenger cars sold with 400+ hp, which is 1.4
times the national average of 3.6 percent. One percent of all the
passenger cars purchased in Texas are 400+ hp Ford Mustang
models. That’s almost double the number of Mustangs purchased in
Florida, which is tied with Arizona for second place on the top 10 list.
In Florida, California and New Jersey, luxury power is very popular with
a large portion of the 400+ hp cars sold in those states being high-end
Maseratis, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Rolls Royces, Aston Martins,
McLarens and others. It appears that the South Florida and Southern
California big-screen stereotypes are based on some reality. New Jersey
is a bit of a surprise, but given its proximity to New York City and the
fact that it ranks third in the US for median household income, maybe
it’s not so puzzling. Jersey’s most popular muscle car is the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
(iSeeCars.com)
Monday, May 8, 2017
Long Live The Bus
Peace, Love, & the VW Bus
The story of a boxy legend.
"The hippie movement fell in love with the bus for a few reasons," says McKeel Hagerty, classic car market expert and the CEO of Hagerty Insurance. "It was cheap to maintain, easy to work on, and big enough to live in."
The VW microbus was great at many things, but keeping up with traffic wasn't one of them. The first models could carry nine passengers but had engines that delivered a mere 25 horsepower. Now, the bus was deeply geared to make the most of those horses, but even when power improved to 40, it was still really slow. On the twisty, narrow German backroads, that was perhaps not problem. But not here on the open roads of the USA. A typical six-cylinder engine in a 1950s American sedan had more than four times the power of the VW.
The upside is that the classic Volkswagen four-cylinder engines have plenty of aftermarket support. There are catalogs of speed parts available.
(PopularMechanics.com)
The story of a boxy legend.
"The hippie movement fell in love with the bus for a few reasons," says McKeel Hagerty, classic car market expert and the CEO of Hagerty Insurance. "It was cheap to maintain, easy to work on, and big enough to live in."
The VW microbus was great at many things, but keeping up with traffic wasn't one of them. The first models could carry nine passengers but had engines that delivered a mere 25 horsepower. Now, the bus was deeply geared to make the most of those horses, but even when power improved to 40, it was still really slow. On the twisty, narrow German backroads, that was perhaps not problem. But not here on the open roads of the USA. A typical six-cylinder engine in a 1950s American sedan had more than four times the power of the VW.
The upside is that the classic Volkswagen four-cylinder engines have plenty of aftermarket support. There are catalogs of speed parts available.
(PopularMechanics.com)
25 Years Of Age Defying Performance Gains
Here's Why The Toyota Supra's 2JZ Is Such A Legendary Engine
Tuner Potential
From the factory, the 2JZ-GTE is already a pretty special engine. It’s got dual overhead camshafts, four valves per cylinder, a distributor-less ignition system, liquid-cooled sequential turbos keeping the power band nice and broad, and a “square” (one to one) bore-to-stroke ratio that provided a great compromise between low-end grunt and high-end power. Start tuning it, though, and the engine goes from “special” to downright supernatural.
The
reason why the 2JZ-GTE is so prolific in the tuning scene is because of
its strength. Its iron block is tough as nails, its seven main
bearings—despite only being held by two bolts each—are absolutely
gargantuan and hold the crankshaft firmly, its forged 12-counterweight
steel crankshaft can handle huge power and high engine speeds, the oil
pump and water pump can take the heavy mods without failure, the fully-closed deck
means the engine can withstand enormous cylinder pressures, forged
connecting rods are stout, and the oil-cooled cast aluminum pistons can
handle a beating as well.
Power Without Limit
Getting there isn’t really that difficult, either. Though there are a couple big-bore and stroker kits out there, most high-horsepower 2JZ-GTEs get that grunt by way of changing out the intake and exhaust, swapping those sequential turbos out for an enormous single turbo (67mm is common), installing a bigger front-mount intercooler, and bolting on some bigger injectors and fuel lines.
It was an advanced engine in its day, and for 1998, it became even more so, as the Japanese version got variable valve timing. Sadly, the U.S. market got nothing, and ’98 was the final model year for the legendary 2JZ-GTE in the U.S.
But despite its short run here, the 2JZ-GTE remains a crown jewel in the tuner community, with Supras and 2JZ-swapped anything else continually winning drag races and whatever else they’re called to do.
Even 25 years after its debut, the 2JZ-GTE continues to decimate all.
(Jalopnik.com)
Tuner Potential
From the factory, the 2JZ-GTE is already a pretty special engine. It’s got dual overhead camshafts, four valves per cylinder, a distributor-less ignition system, liquid-cooled sequential turbos keeping the power band nice and broad, and a “square” (one to one) bore-to-stroke ratio that provided a great compromise between low-end grunt and high-end power. Start tuning it, though, and the engine goes from “special” to downright supernatural.
Power Without Limit
Getting there isn’t really that difficult, either. Though there are a couple big-bore and stroker kits out there, most high-horsepower 2JZ-GTEs get that grunt by way of changing out the intake and exhaust, swapping those sequential turbos out for an enormous single turbo (67mm is common), installing a bigger front-mount intercooler, and bolting on some bigger injectors and fuel lines.
It was an advanced engine in its day, and for 1998, it became even more so, as the Japanese version got variable valve timing. Sadly, the U.S. market got nothing, and ’98 was the final model year for the legendary 2JZ-GTE in the U.S.
But despite its short run here, the 2JZ-GTE remains a crown jewel in the tuner community, with Supras and 2JZ-swapped anything else continually winning drag races and whatever else they’re called to do.
Even 25 years after its debut, the 2JZ-GTE continues to decimate all.
(Jalopnik.com)
Meet The Raptor's Rebel Cousin
Think the Standard Ford Raptor is Insane? Check Out the F-250 MegaRaptor
More power, more ground clearance, more bragging rights
Based in Tucson, Ariz., F250R specializes in turning your average, workman F-250s into desert and rock crawling behemoths. And with a name like MegaRaptor, you know things aren’t going to be standard in any way.
Starting off with a stock F-250 with a 6.7-liter Powerstroke diesel-equipped truck; F250R changes quite a few things. First out are the truck’s front and rear fenders for flared units that are able to house the massive 46-inch Michelin XZLs (395/85R20) and aluminum wheels sourced from an MRAP (a military anti-land mine vehicle).
To fit these new wheels, in addition to the new flared fenders, and trimmed wheel wells, the company swaps the standard 8-lug hubs for a 10-lug that corresponds to the military pattern.
Pricing starts at $28,000 without the donor vehicle. A stripper model F-250 starts at $32,535, meaning without any options on either the truck or the kit, you’re looking at a $60,535 rig. Start adding some of the options from both Ford and F250R and you could easily eclipse $70,000-80,000.
(MotorTrend.com)
More power, more ground clearance, more bragging rights
Based in Tucson, Ariz., F250R specializes in turning your average, workman F-250s into desert and rock crawling behemoths. And with a name like MegaRaptor, you know things aren’t going to be standard in any way.
Starting off with a stock F-250 with a 6.7-liter Powerstroke diesel-equipped truck; F250R changes quite a few things. First out are the truck’s front and rear fenders for flared units that are able to house the massive 46-inch Michelin XZLs (395/85R20) and aluminum wheels sourced from an MRAP (a military anti-land mine vehicle).
To fit these new wheels, in addition to the new flared fenders, and trimmed wheel wells, the company swaps the standard 8-lug hubs for a 10-lug that corresponds to the military pattern.
Pricing starts at $28,000 without the donor vehicle. A stripper model F-250 starts at $32,535, meaning without any options on either the truck or the kit, you’re looking at a $60,535 rig. Start adding some of the options from both Ford and F250R and you could easily eclipse $70,000-80,000.
(MotorTrend.com)
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