Hot Rodder or Purist?

Hot Rodder, Purist or Somewhere in between?

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MomsDuster

MomsDuster

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Where do you stand. Over the years on this forum I’ve concluded that I myself am not a “Mopar guy” per say. I’m a car guy that has a Mopar.
I love the hot rodding world where folks can think and do things outside of the box.
I can appreciate the work and dedication it takes to do a complete restoration down to every nut and washer.
I can even appreciate the low riders, not my thing but the design and execution of paint schemes, hydraulic, and electrical systems not to mention the mechanical aspects that keep these vehicles in one piece.
But me personally, give me the hot rod, the make, model and sometimes year doesn’t matter. If you take a vehicle, any vehicle, make it yours, that’s what the hobby is for me.
Guess that’s why I’m drawn to the incomplete runners, the rat rods, the hot rods, again not taking anything away from the originals. Just my opinions.
Where do you folks stand?
 
I tend to be a day 2 kind of guy I used to be, decades ago, 100% purist,
I also have a 50 Dodge project it might not be practical nor fun to go pure on that old beast!
I have always considered a color change on my Mopars, but admit I refuse to go to modern colors.
I have no problem with other people doing their resto mod thing, just is not be me personally. Not doubt, the future will hold for more of such as time goes on.
 
For me, I like the total package. That is why I have always had a MOPAR. My brother and I put a lot of miles on our A Body Barracudas. They were spared no indignity and always did what we wanted. I like handling and speed. So I got a 273 and a 4 speed. My brother just wanted a reliable car. He got a 273, Auto trans that was never allowed to shift on it's own, and AC. I like the torsion bar suspension. Both cars turned out to be life long test mules. Both still run solid lifter 273's. My car eventually ended up close to stock, with all the best parts. Tom's car ended up with 11.75 Pin calipers and a custom 8 3/4 with 10 x 2 1/2' BBP brakes.
 
well, it depends
generally im all for hot rodding

unless hot rodding means rat rodding or wagon wheels
then i cant stand it
 
Can't afford to be a purist, and I ain't pay'n ye'all's prices :D
I guess that makes me a hot rodder, but I like using as much from mother mopar as possible (does that make me a purist??) LOL
 
I can appreciate everything, but I wouldn't hack up a super rare factory muscle car. I like the two day car on anything because it's mostly cosmetic stuff that can be reversed. Rat Rods- most of them I do not like- same with Low Riders, but I can appreciate quality work on them.
 
Not a purist per se, but I do like original correctness. Why? Because I have so many parts around here that when I need to change something, I can just hit the boxes and find another, instead of making up something. I’ve reversed many a cobbled up mess by just removing and chucking the mangled up mess and putting on the original piece. If it’s fabbed up correctly, I have no problem with hot rodding or improving an inadequate factory setup. To each his own, I always say.
 
I've had a lot of cars over the years all Mopars. I've had the numbers matching "survivor" car and I've had just about everything in between. The most fun car I've ever had was a 440 six pack "clone" Plum Crazy purple 70 Challenger I built from a basket case. I could change anything at anytime and it made it a better car WITHOUT hurting the value of it.

I appreciate all makes of cars that other guys built themselves. I've done it myself and appreciate all the time and effort it takes.
 
I am definitely not a purist! I appreciate a 100 point resto but would never likely own one. Over all, I am a car guy! I appreciate them all. Now that said, my money gets spent on Mopar stuff and likely always will. I use Mopar parts and pieces when at all possible. When I installed the overdrive auto in my Duster, I used an A-500. A 200r4 was not even a consideration. I'm not against it, it may be a better route to go, but just not for me personally.

Oh, and LS swapped Mopars drive me nuts!. It just shows a lack of imagination!

Cley
 
My 70 Dart has Unmodified sheet metal and stock interior. The 360 magnum is a 5 footer, if you give it a precursory glance it looks to be a 340. The only definitely not stock items are the Cragar SS wheels. So.....I’ve got a Dart that appears 95 percent stock with a 500 hp
Engine, wide 114 lsa cam that only rumbles, no loud mufflers
In essence, A SLEEPER
 
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Wayyyy back before the "clone" thing, original (NOT with the motor it was born with!) Mopar musclecars were everywhere. Few people dropped BB into slant or 318 whatever cars. Too many real cars out there even if they were rollers, most were not though. But back in the 70s, 80s, these muscle cars were just old gas guzzlers too. Back then, there were probably more traditional hotrodders, stuff out of the 30s, 40;s 50s.
When the first clones showed up at BJ,I asked myself WHY!????? Too darn easy f=to find a real car to restore and haul to BJ to flip. I figured those were flipper cars!
Now days it does not bother me at all, o buy any "lesser" car and make it what I want, not really a true clone, just building what I want out of what Mother Mopar gave me to work with!
 
I say keep the rare cars as close to factory as possible, all others well....smoke em if ya got em!!! I like when cars look pretty stock on the exterior and interior but, make tons of power but, I also like car that will just cruise. My 71 Challenger looks pretty stock besides the wheels but, the 512 under the hood makes it a hot rod..ish. My 75 360 Duster looks stock..well...because it is for the most part, not original but stock looking and, it just cruises.
 
If upgrading breaks, rearend, exhaust and lighting is hot rodding then yes, hotrod is what I go for

Car show wedding pic's 146.jpg
 
I'm a purist and voted as such. BUT, if the OEM piece is a POS and there is a better aftermarket fix, I'm all in. Purity is a good thing until it turns stupid and then it's not such a good thing
 
I'm much closer to purist.
Most non corporate engine swaps annoy me, especially if a Mopar body!
And the medias coverage of LS@IT engine swaps really pisses me off!
Glad that seems to be slowing down, I mean too much of anything is boring, unless its MOPAR of course!
Now I am a torsion bar purist!
 
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As a builder I spend most of my days working on cars,and bikes. Parts that are factory engineered matched to the car make install a breeze. Availability is the problem.
Making a car look stock but with repops is a *****. Most repops are cheap. Missing fasteners ,need modification,or just look bad. Not fun.
Customs are great with the right customer. Can use imagination, engineering.
So as far as the builder stand point I'd rather go custom if the customer is willing to pay for it.
Personally I like to build oddball vehicles with better handling performance,and more horsepower than ever intended. But I like to make them look as if it came factory that way.
I'm a painter,and airbrush artist but I believe subtle is beautiful. Make people look for the cool stuff. Just shove it in their face if you know what I mean.
So custom all the way!
 
I LOVE the way my modern Hemi and 8 speed run in my 2013 Ram truck BUT modern Hemi's don't belong in old cars. Sorry I guess I'm a purist in the sense that I'll never get used to seeing a new Hemi in an old car no matter how much "Better" they are. I personally wouldn't put one in my 68 Barracuda the only Hemi it will ever see is an "old school one"
 
I will also say this, I have a rare car, completely stock and original, and look to keep it that way. However, there are sever limitations in that arena, things that you have to do to maintain the originality. It’s a tough road to follow, not being able to just go up to the parts store and buy stuff off the shelf. Sure, things like oil and filters and such are ok, but when a specific part needs replacement, it severely limits your chances of finding that part, and finding it reasonably priced. I also have a buddy who has an extremely rare car that had a fender bender in 1971 and was put away with just 17k miles because of that. He took out the radiator and chucked it in his pile of scrap because it was slightly bent. I pulled it off the pile and hit him over the head with it and told him he has to keep it for the numbers on the tank alone. He doesn’t understand what makes the value of the car so high, so he does nothing to it out of fear. Not interested in gaining knowledge, not rich enough to buy the correct parts or have them fixed, and too scared to sell it because he won’t get every last penny he thinks it’s worth. It’s a curse sometimes, and you have to be ready for that. It’s the cost of being a true purist because the car deserves it, not too many people can handle that!
 
I like "stock looking" for the most part. My 70 dart 340 has an Edelbrock intake and carb, and MP electronic ignition. Not stock in a purist sense. Interior is going to be stock looking ,only thing different is i l have a tach on the column, and a Hurst shift boot, and white shift knob. Oh and an aftermarket Radio. I guess my car will be more of a "day two" type car.
 
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