Autoblog

I need this. My back isn't what it used to be, so when it's time to fiddle with the undercarriage, I start thinking wistfully about lifts or pits. It'd also make it easier to hang off the end of the breaker bar for those monster-torque suspension fasteners. Exhaust work? No more lying on your back, rust crispies falling into your mouth, embers from that bolt you're torching out ending up who knows where. Of course, it's always a plus to make sure there are no fluids in the car, or they'll remind you of their presence once you get the car on its side.

Eastwood's catalog is chock-full of tools that look awesome, and yet, I have no idea how to use them. Their Tilt-A-Car unit is pretty self-evident. It attaches with the lugs and one side has a radius. You pop your 3/8" driver drill on the lift screw, and it's bottoms up. This unit would have made repairing the rust-tastic rockers and rear quarters on my Volvo 245 a cinch. It's about half the price of a lift – not counting the installation cost, and it seems more useful on a fully assembled car than a rotisserie is.

Thanks for the tip, Keith!

[Source: bbgadgets]

No ersatz diamonds here, but the Zirconia based coating from Zircotec in the UK will help your vehicle be more durable and powerful. The Zircotec ceramic coating was developed for the nuclear industry and has been proven in automotive applications by several Formula 1 teams. The purpose of the coating is to increase engine efficiency, improve aesthetics and improve thermal management. Older cars don't have the ability to manage the heat generated by their powertrain as effectively as more modern designs. There are also those pesky laws of thermodynamics and physics – a turbocharger housing is going to get bloody hot, no matter what. With a cherry red turbo snail, you'd best make sure anything that can burn or melt is well insulated. Coating parts like exhaust manifolds will improve engine efficiency by keeping the ambient temperature of the engine bay down, a by-product of which is lower intake plumbing temperatures. Turbocharged engines will also see a performance increase. The turbine is driven by the expansion of exhaust gas as it cools, and keeping the heat in the exhaust stream allows the turbos to spool harder. Engine blocks and intake manifolds also see benefits when coated, due to better insulation.

The Zircotec coating is so good at providing a thermal barrier that a motorcycle racing team discovered they could remove exhaust pipes without gloves, while the gasses coursing through the pipes were, uh, piping hot. The Zircotec coating sounds like it's well-suited to keeping your vintage sports car from cooking you, or making sure that the 502 you stuffed in your Chevette doesn't blister the paint on the quarter panels due to heat coming off the headers. We'd love to try it out and see for ourselves. No longer burning our fingerprints off on the hot parts underhood sounds like it might be worth the shipping.

More photos after the jump.

[Source: gizmag.com]

Nearly all of us can remember when we first got bit by the auto bug while working on the family truckster with our pops. While my father and I spent some time together replacing the head gasket on a Pontiac 6000, Flickr member Billy the Kid spent what must have been three glorious months in 1996 with his father restoring this 1967 Ford Mustang back to life. It features the inline-six and drum brakes, which BTK claims kept him out of trouble in high school, and when purchased had only 77,000 miles on the odomoter. The project was completed in time for BTK's 16th birthday (what a present!), but not before replacing a few major body panels, frame members, suspension pieces and floor pans so the 'Stang could be granted a bill of rust-free health. BTK claims this was the car for him, the one that turned his blood into gasoline, the one that made certain he would forever change his own oil, and the one showed him how much a cool car could improve one's standing with the ladies. It's been ten years since the car was completed and it was long ago sold to another 16 year old whose father had just passed away at the time, which certainly makes it a poignant vehicle purchase. If only we were all so lucky to wrench a car like this back to life with our fathers.

You can check out more photos of BTK's Mustang after the jump, but you should really visit his Flickr set where there's a gallery of the entire buildup.

If you'd like to see your own ride featured here, simply upload photos of your ride into our Flickr group. We select one image to highlight each week day, and on the weekend let you vote for the RR of the Week. Detailed instructions can be found after the jump.

We recently made a visit to the Mercedes-Benz Classic Car Center in Irvine, California, to check out this restoration and retail facility. Located adjacent to a cluster of auto showrooms, it looks like just another modern dealership. But the cars inside are anything but modern. For starters, there's a 1954 220 Coupe out front. Once inside the building, you'll be greeted by some of the most desirable models from Mercedes' glorious past. Gullwings and Patent-Motorwagens, SLRs and Pullmen.

(Follow the jump for the rest of the story and a gallery of wallpaper-sized pics.)

We've all heard the stories. Some mid-century family stows their gorgeous car, which they used minimally and of which they took excellent care, in some old barn, where it was forgotten until fifty years later. Half a century later, some lucky sot happens on (or tracks down) the sleepy classic, at which point it emerges dry, still relatively beautiful, and turns over like day it was put  away. But that's just an automotive fairy tale, right?

Not for a 1939 Lagonda V12 Drophead Coupe that was recently uncovered in a dry barn, ready for restoration. The vehicle, which sports original equipment ranging from the radio and brown leather upholstery to the headlamps, will be auctioned off at H&H's upcoming Buxton, Derbyshire, UK (July 25/26) sale. It's expected to fetch between about $65,000 and $78,000.

Ever encountered any 'barn finds' of your own? Any great 'The one that got away' stories to share? Assuage your conscience in 'Comments.'

[Source: Gizmag]

Autoblog reader Phez turned us on to this 1951 Studebaker Champion... and boy, does it look like it could prove the old adage that restoring a car is a labor of love. The odometer reads a repectable 56,600 and the engine is an inline 6-cylinder, so if the mechanical stuff runs right it could be a great find. It evidently served as a working model for a tech school, so interpret that how you will (it's either in great shape or was a mad scientist experiement).  Cosmetically, the vehicle looks like it needs some mad TLC... the ripped headliner, "tired" upholstery and rusty innards (and outards) will all need some attention, but as Phez says, "Damnit, its a Studebaker."

Alright. So you have a hankering to restore your dad or mom's 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle (pictured) or 1996 Ford Taurus but know little, if anything, about car restoration since you built models as a young child.

SecondChanceGarage lists some basic guidelines on tackling a car restoration project. As the article points out, many would-be restorers underestimate the amount of  time, space required, and costs (both financially and to one's sanity), that restoring a vehicle can take.

The steps include:

• Selecting what car you want to restore. Make sure it has some personal fascination. Car restoration is hardly a 'Get Rich Quick' scheme.

• How to find the car. This includes contacting auto clubs.

• How much space you'll need. It'll take a lot more than your two-car garage.

• Required tools. Consider renting many of them, especially if you're a novice.

• Estimating how long a project will take. Just like remodeling a house, it'll always take longer than expected.

• Costs. There's a big difference in the finances required to restore a car just to drivability or for the show circuit.

• Have your family's commitment in the project.

• How close to the "original" model do you want to restore too.

A full discussion on each step can be found at the link. What advice would you offer would-be restorers?


[Source: SecondChanceGarage.com via Business Week]