Dumb magazine errors

-
D

DartSportDude

Old school A-body owner
Joined
Nov 30, 2007
Messages
138
Reaction score
0
Location
Western U.S.
If you're like me, you read most of the Mopar enthusiast magazines. These are magazines that cover nothing by Dodge and Plymouth muscle-era cars. What surprises me is the number of dumb errors one finds in their articles. I can understand a few mistakes in technical articles; let's face it, auto repair can be a challenge even for seasoned mechanics. But to lack basic knowledge of vehicle models and characteristics is unforgivable for a hobby-related magazine.

Case in point: This month's "Mopar Muscle" magazine includes a letter from a guy who is considering the purchase of a "1971 Duster" that he wants to convert into a drag car. He mentioned that the car has a fold-down rear seat. The editor wrote back and said the car has the "Space Duster" feature that provides more rear cargo room. He suggested that the guy find a different vehicle to build for racing.

If you know ANYTHING about 70s-era A-bodies, you know that a 71 Duster did not come stock with a fold-down rear seat. It's possible the owner had converted the '71 to the fold-down configuration, but I doubt it (that would require a lot of work). Regardless, the editor should not have implied a '71 Duster came equipped with the Space Duster feature.

Is this error a big deal? Probably not, but it should make readers wonder what other information is screwed up in the magazine. I see this kind of mistake (and much worse) on a routine basis in the Mopar magazines.

Why can't publishers hire guys with true Mopar experience?
 
I don't know much about racing, but why the heck would the Space Duster be a bad choice for a drag car anyway? Maybe - at worst - the sunroof adds some weight and MAYBE affects the rigidity, but is it so much that you would recommend someone get a different car to drag race? I would think the back seat would be removed anyway in a drag car.

With that said, I subscribe to Mopar Muscle and don't usually find too many mistakes for what it's worth...
 
Do the MOPAR mags in general seem to be of a lesser quality than the others? I just seem to notice more typos, worse photos and more mistakes than in most other mags.
 
I don't think the Mopar mags are any worse than others in terms of accuracy. The problem is, these editors move around from magazine to magazine. Today they're working on a Chevy magazine; tomorrow it could be Mopar. That keeps them from becoming real expects in any one area. That's why I like Mopar Collector's Guide -- those guys have been around Mopars for years, and they do nothing else. I still catch mistakes in that magazine, but not so bad.

Personally, I think Mopar Muscle is junk. I think they're positioning that magazine to cover the "new muscle" market once the 2008 Challenger comes out.
 
Mopar Muscle gave someone else the credit for this web site in an article. I was still happy to have in mentioned in the magazine but it would have been nice to see my name. 2 years later thay ran my car in the readers section and chnaged my name to Brian half way through the article.
 
I quit reading mags years ago because of all of the mistakes and crap they put in them. To me they are no different than the TV or newpaper, they only tell you what they want you to see or read. They are a big waste of money to just see pics of cars. I can do that here or on other sites and I get a hell of a lot more technical info from this site than any mag ever thought of.


Chuck
 
Slanted66 said:
Do the MOPAR mags in general seem to be of a lesser quality than the others? I just seem to notice more typos, worse photos and more mistakes than in most other mags.
Click to expand...



i think all the mopar mags are falling off quickly... believe it or not hot rod and car craft have had quite a few good mopar things in them latley.. and in my opinion the best magazine out there now is hemmings muscle machines...
 
I notice small mistakes all of the time in magazines. I agree that most of the writers move around too much to really know their subject matter. I remember reading in a magazine where somebody wrote to them asking what a Formula S Barracuda was. The magazine said it was Mopars answer to the Z28 Camaro. Yeah right! The Formula S started with the 1965 models & the Camaro was introduced as a 1967 model. Must've been a Chevy guy.
 
As soon as I feel comfortable with my laptop in the "library", I may not have the need for printed reading material lol

Grant
 
I subscribe to Hemmings Muscle Machines, but frankly, I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, they do cover some obscure cars...that makes for fun reading. On the other hand, the editor seems to have a big thing for late 70s/early 80s GM "Colonnade" cars -- I guess that's what he grew up with. At the same time, he'll run an article on a '77 Volare Roadrunner and go on and on about what slugs these cars were. This publication has a little too much personal bias for my tastes.
 
I get a bunch of magazines and they all have mistakes in them but i still find the reading enjoyable.

My order of preference is;

1. Car Craft - Truely a well rounded performance magazine with well thought out tech articles and a minimum of concours restoration grease mark craziness.

2. Mopar Muscle - the only monthly mopar mag and it covers some late model stuff that I like to here about.

3. Hot Rod - The largest in terms of page count and they cover salt flat racing.

4. Mopar Action - Only comes out 6 times per year.

5. Mopar Collectors Guide - Lots of info on where to get parts and write up on those parts, but too much restoration stuff.

5. Muscle Car Review - All restoration but they do cover some less common cars.

6. Hemmings Muscle Machines - Same as Muscle Car review

7. Cruisen New England Magazine - Keeps me up on what's going on in the New England area.

8. Popular Hot Rodding - Too much pro-touring

I just subscribed to Mopar Enthusiast and have not received a copy yet so no comment.
 
my subscription to mopar muscle is up in april and im not renewing it. i really dont care about new cars or trucks and im really sick of all the hemi crap. every issue is about hemis, or hemi cars. like everyone can afford to drop 8-10grand for a hemi!! just over killed. and the engine challenge. same s!@t different month. rant over
 
They all make mistakes as I see it all the time. But I love muscle cars and still enjoy reading about them. I know when the info is wrong and I just ignore it. But it is pretty bad when a Mopar mag calls a Demon a Duster ! Ron
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top