Saturday, July 30, 2011

1942 Ford Coupe



 

Check out Ken's infamous 1942 Ford Coupe... Why infamous? Ken drives EVERYWHERE and ANYWHERE - day and night,  rain, out of state and maybe even some snow, who knows... But there really isn't much that Ken or his 42' Coupe miss. If you haven't seen this Coupe around, then you haven't been around! Sometimes we at Empire Muscle Cars think Ken drives his 42' Coupe more than his daily driver. For us at Empire Muscle Cars, Ken is a great member and addition to this club. He is just as nice as his 42' Coupe AND his 1954 Ford Custom. That's right, Ken has TWO cars, but for now, we'll talk about his 42' Coupe.
The car was an important purchase to Ken because it was the first car he had ever owned long ago. He found this 42' Coupe and purchased it in 2004 from Scranton, Pennsylvania where the restoration process had already been started and was brought back to NY for completion.  
The motor compartment boasts a 350 small block that has been bored out 60 over along with a 350 transmission. It is completely detailed in chrome with Billet accessories. When that foot is put to the pedal, that phat Chevy powerplant responds with true ferocity. 
The Ford did have a complete frame off restoration. The roof has been chopped and the body shaved. The body is all steel except for the rear fenders and the suspension includes 4 bar coil overs. Rebuilt original frame with a straight axle, GM rear end with 3:23 gears, Camaro front discs and 7” dual master,  power disc brakes and power steering augment the old school hotrodding experience the car provides with many modern conveniences. 
The interior has high back bucket seats with a center console and a custom made rear seat  accented with a Le Carra steering wheel. The car has a GM tilt column and cruise control.  The dash boasts  Autometer gauges to keep Ken informed of all the vital signs. Music is provided by a hefty AM/FM radio with a CD player coming through four speakers. And with all that, Air conditioning, heat and defrost are activated with ease.  Power steering, power windows and a power antenna have been installed for modern day comfort. It has many additional features  such as a CB radio, under car lighting, electric wipers and a 22 gallon gas tank.
With all these added features, it's no wonder Ken drives such an old classic so much and so far! And with all the comforts, Ken added some new flare to this old beauty. With a custom paint job, Ken also went for a very different, cool pinstripe design that is unique and makes every body line of his car pop out. There is no place on this Ford you won't stop and see some minor custom paint design. With paint, came custom side mirrors and rear custom tailights along with a nice set of chrome Torq Thrust II's. (not pictured in second picture, we wanted to show off some of that paint)
Ken gets looks everywhere he goes in his Ford simply because everywhere he goes it's appreciated and liked. Ken is definitely a serious addition to our family and if you see him on the road, don't be shy and say Hello but do beware to try and follow him... you never know where he off and moving to! To speak to Ken today, find him in our Members section - kens42ford. 



Wednesday, June 29, 2011

1994 Mustang / GNX





Isn't that a Mustang? But wait, that's a Turbo? A GNX? These are probably some of the most heard words Tony must hear whenever he is out in this vehicle he has nicknamed, "Buford."
Tony's Buford (which stands for Buick - Ford) is rare indeed, come on, when was the last or first time you ever saw this combination? Tony really hit the nail on the head in doing something different, and then made it all even better. And if you love it or hate it depending on which side you favor, you simply cannot deny Tony has done something great with this Mustang and did an awesome job piecing it all together and making it work.
Buford was first built in 1992 starting with a 1982 Fox Body Mustang. The Buford you see here on Empire Muscle Cars is a 1994, and the fourth version of the LC2 Buick engine and Mustang body combo. The reason Tony had for building this cross-breed was due to the phenomenal off-the-line performance coupled with an automatic transmission. The Buick engine offered a distributor-less ignition system, a "tunnel-ram" fuel intake and less overall weight than a Ford engine at the time. This engine currently in the Mustang has 200 miles since a fresh rebuild and includes a Billet Roller Cam, Forged Pistons and Ported Heads with larger Stainless Valves matched to a Champion Ported Intake Manifold. The Injectors are 62.5 pounders and the Turbo is a Roller Bearing Unit. A front mount Spearco Intercooler, which is a universal unit with custom Mandrel Bent Tubes fabricated at Full Metal Customs along with a 3" Downpipe.
Now after all that, don't you wish you would have thought to build it first? Don't worry, we are sure Tony will have this car for sale at some point in time, but for now we can all just sit and admire it. And if you are interested in getting some work done, Full Metal Customs is actually Tony's business he started in 2009.  He specializes in appearance, performance and value enhancements to cars, trucks and motorcycles. The body and paintwork done on his Buford were all done at his shop, Full Metal Customs. And that's including the the custom 3-link rear suspension, which is an exmaple of why Buford is a tribute to the DNA of the Regal GNX.
Like all Members here at Empire Muscle Cars, Tony is a great guy and a good friend to all in our group. Keep him in mind for your car one day and bring it over to Full Metal Customs, he'll be more than happy to help you and work on making your car as great as his. Speak to Tony on Empire Muscle Cars by looking him up in our Members section - Mustang/GNX.

Friday, June 3, 2011

1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass



Mike's Cutlass is wildly known in Long Island and for good reason, LOOK AT IT! We can't say we have ever seen a Cutlass done up right, let alone look this good! Everything about Mike's Cutlass is awesome all around. What makes his Cutlass even cooler, the history behind the car. Mike's father (also a Empire Muscle Car Member) bought this car brand new in 1978. After owning it until 1990 he decided to give it to Mike. The car was a bonding experience between father and son, and this bond got Mike turning wrenches and even leading to a career choice. This bonding experience and learning sessions created one of the rarest 78's we have seen, period. The Cutlass came originally with a 260 V8, but in 1991 Mike threw in a Chevy 350 and drove the car around for 4 years. Then he pulled the engine and did a race ready 350 with NOS and the went 10.70 with that set-up. It stayed this way from 1995 - 2002. That's when Mike went a little more crazier and threw in this BBC 502 Fuel injection set-up, a nice little NOS bottle in the trunk, Turbo 440 with 3000 stall and a gear vendors overdrive unit. Obviously, Mike is going in better directions with this car the older it gets. He put in a Grand National rear with 3:90 gears, 4 wheel disc brakes with B-Body fronts and Cadillac rears. The Transmission was done by Freddie Brown and all the machine work was done by S&S Speed Shop. But Mike didn't just stop on speed and upgrades, he had the car painted back in 1996 to it's current color which is also the factory color, Dark Carman, and had all the chrome redone. Then he even added a wheel set-up that had us asking, where did those wheels come from? Mike went with 18x8 Billet Specialties wheels and Yokohama 245/45/18's. He went even further with the interior , adding an 8 point cage and doing a custom gauge panel using Autometer Phantom gauges and a Kenwood stereo/DVD player. With this story, one can gather Mike wins trophies at every show he attends, and no one is ever surprised by that. He built a great Oldsmobile and did it differently than anyone else. We know this Cutlass will always be an ongoing project, as Mike also hopes to pass his Cutlass down to his sons, just as his father passed it down to him. Mike isn't just a member, but a good guy we'd all be able to call at Empire Muscle Cars a good friend. Speak to Mike on Empire Muscle Cars by looking him up at our Members Section - dr78442

Monday, May 2, 2011

2010 Dodge Challenger R/T

Shawn’s Challenger may be brand new and Purple, but the modifications done to this Dodge go above the norm. What also makes this R/T stand out is it was one of the first heavy modified Challengers around, being the first one to try and do new things and look great doing so. Billet Technology produced a lot of the interior trim dress-up to transform the interior into a total new design of it’s own. With iForged’Sprint’ wheels; 22x8 front, 22x10 rear and Lexani Tires; 255/30/22 front and 295/25/22 rear give this Plum Crazy Purple Pearl rider an even meaner look. We can keep going on looks from the HID custom purple headlights to the vented fenders and blacked out tailights. But let’s not forget, this is a HEMI! 345 cubic inches stock was not enough for Shawn. Shawn went with American Racing Longtube headers with cat-less mid-pipes, Magnaflow Competition series cat-back exhaust, Billet Technology 84.25mm throttle body and HHP Racing Mopar SRT transmission control module and plenty of rare Purple custom pieces. One last thing Shawn didn’t overlook was a fully custom sound system. Let’s put it this way, it has enough sound to DJ 5 blocks worth of block parties. With style if you can’t see him coming, you can certainly hear him coming. A dedicated Mopar Man, this is not Shawn’s first Challenger and he also owns a Dakota R/T truck that is just as customized as his Challenger. All we can say is, Mopar should be in love with Shawn, he makes them look so good! Speak to Shawn on Empire Muscle Cars by looking him up at our Members Section - RT4406