Junkyard Life: Classic Cars, Muscle Cars, Barn finds, Hot rods and part news

B-Body Mopar mania in a Minnesota junkyard

2012-02-20T09:03:00.000-06:00

Mopar muscle car graveyard, B-body edition. Hundreds of muscle car-era Mopars, including Chargers, Challengers, Road Runners, Duster and Darts are piled in a snowy field at a junkyard in Western Minnesota. Our good friend Joe Marano, of Ham Lake, Minnesota, sent us the goods on the yard after spending five hours on a blustery day searching for parts. "The yard is out in the sticks," said

Junkyard Adventures: Parts search uncovers pile of 1969-1977 Pontiac Grand Prixs

2012-02-03T23:29:00.000-06:00

The accidental Pontiac Grand Prix junkyard crawl. It was actually a Junkyardlife Adventure day when Anthony, Jody and I took to the highway to spy our eyes on some cool out of the way junkyards. I, however turned the day into…drum roll, please…. Ron’s Grand Prix Adventure! Although, more realistically we were all on quest for other things-like a whole host of things for a 1955 Chevy sedan,

Junkyard find: 1972 Plymouth Road Runner

2012-01-25T22:25:00.000-06:00

Lemon Twist 1972 Road Runner sold for scrap price to junkyard. Brian B., a hotrodder from Foley, Alabama, sent junkyardlife photos of this fresh find at Barry’s U Pull It junkyard in Mobile, Alabama. There’s no doubt that Brian quickly noticed this Road Runner’s eye-searing, yellow paint and unmistakable strobe roof stripes. Any would-be-junkyard-junkie knows this car is a valued relic from

Cars in Yards: Crushed dream cars, Corvette, Impala convertible lost to storm damage

2012-01-19T23:04:00.000-06:00

Being a muscle car owner is much like being “Treasure Keeper.” Think of all the traps and downfalls you are always up against to maintain your collectible car in pristine condition. From the beginning of ownership in the late-1960s, you paid heavily for ultra cool options besides the big engine, like disc brakes and a convertible top. Then you had to deal with with large insurance premiums

Catch-22 project car, free 1955 Chevrolet is a classic but it comes with a 30-year-old tree

2012-01-04T16:23:00.000-06:00

Grab a chainsaw we’re going to pick up a free 1955 Chevy. If only it were that easy for Robert Capps, a 48-year-old gear head from Auburn, Alabama. Capps picked up this freebie, 2-door, blue and white 1955 Chevy 210 after it spent the last 30 years parked outside. "The car was free, the problem was removing the 30-year-old water oak," said Capps. "It took two people, eight hours using a

Cars in Yards: Buccaneer Red 1973 Pontiac Trans Am tops my Christmas wish list

2011-12-25T22:59:00.001-06:00

Santa didn't leave a Buccaneer Red 1973 Trans Am under my tree this year. But I did have this 455-powered ’73 T/A project on my wish list this year. This Trans Am, one-of-4,772 built for the 1973 model year, reappeared this summer after being tucked away in an ancient, clapboard garage several years ago northeast of Birmingham, Alabama. The owner didn’t want to talk about his rare bird when

Crushed Pontiac Grand Prix SJ recycled at scrap yard instead of junkyard

2011-12-19T21:20:00.004-06:00

Being a car guy at times can be painful. You see things you don’t want to see. Or you find things you are looking for but under the wrong circumstances. Such as this trailer in Birmingham, Alabama loaded with crushed cars and mangled parts. This gruesome sight made me stop in my tracks when I saw a rare Grand Prix flattened under a stack of cars. What's worse than a crushed Pontiac Grand Prix

Look what I found: 1963 Pontiac Catalina

2011-12-11T19:52:00.001-06:00

A 1963 Pontiac Catalina followed me home. This time I may have gone a bit overboard when checking out a cool car to write about. Junkyardlife guys love finding a cool car, photographing it, dreaming a lot and then writing the whole thing down. How much further did I go with this Catalina? It is now in my driveway. The story unfolded innocently enough. I went to a house where I heard

Barn find: 1974 Dodge Charger project car

2011-12-05T09:41:00.001-06:00

Driving a classic car leads to more old cars. Ham Lake, Minnesota’s Joe Marano experienced the powerful ability an American muscle car has to ignite a conversation. Marano was minding his own business, walking to his red 1968 Chevy Nova SS in the church parking lot, when a stranger started a conversation about his own old car. “I was jokingly asked if I wanted a Dodge Charger?,” said Marano

Junkyard tour: Classic cars at Junkyard USA in French Lake, Minnesota

2011-11-24T23:10:00.001-06:00

Chasing classic cars in junkyards. Junkyardlife's new best friend in Minnesota is 21-year-old Joe Marano of Ham Lake. Marano recently turned his hobby into a full-time business he calls Junkers Towed by Joe. He hauls junk cars, sells parts, cars and is accumulating a fleet of desirable restoration projects along the way. Marano provided photos from a trip to Junkyard USA, a giant 100-acre

Readers ride: Stolen 1969 Camaro Z28 races back to life in Hugger Orange without DZ302

2011-11-16T22:42:00.001-06:00

Fast times in a stolen 1969 Camaro Z/28. Forty years ago Alabama drag racer, Wayne Simpson, bought a theft-recovered 1969 Camaro Z/28 for $750. The 11,000-mile Rally Sport Camaro received a big-block engine transplant in 1971, then spent the next 13 years at the drag strip racing in Super Stock ‘D’ class. In 1984, when bracket racing became the only game in town, Simpson quit racing. That

Cars in Yards: 1979 Corvette L-82 nearly crushed by an oak tree after 20 year hiatus

2011-11-07T22:21:00.000-06:00

TIMBER! If a tree falls onto a Corvette and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? This dark blue 1979 Corvette, parked for many years outdoors, beside a house, narrowly escaped the crushing blow of a falling oak tree. The long dormant Vette was completely hidden from view by overgrown foliage. Recently, a strong storm system that rocked Alabama this spring tried to destroy this

LOL Cars: Monster ‘dub’ rims for Halloween

2011-10-31T10:03:00.000-05:00

Frankenstein rolls on monster dubs. You've seen 30-year-old donk, box and bubble Chevys transformed into flashy rides just by adding 22-inch chrome rims. Lately, the wheels have been getting scary big. 30s are the new 20s. Look up and you will notice the bodies on these cars are rising. The latest 2-wheel drive monsters use a 6-inch, up to a 17-inch, suspension lift to raise the car

Cars in Yards: 1970 Pontiac LeMans coupe

2011-10-25T23:43:00.000-05:00

Economy car in a muscle car body. Kevin Carnevale found this solid, six cylinder LeMans in the weeds next to an auto repair shop in North Reading, Massachusetts. "There was a weathered 'For Sale' sign in the window," said Kevin. "I owned one of these when I was 18 years old back in 1988 but I sold it." Kevin didn't want this one to get away. He grabbed the sign to prevent anyone else from

Cars in Yards: Just say 'No' GTO

2011-10-16T22:41:00.001-05:00

Hey, look at that GTO! The words hadn't left my mouth when I spotted the large "N" and "O" on the Pontiac's windshield. Two of the fiercest muscle car era Pontiac GTOs, a 1967 (above) and a 1969 (below), sparkled like emeralds along the back roads of Rainbow City, Alabama. I jammed on the brakes and rubbernecked like mad for a few seconds. GTOs of this vintage are seldom seen parked in the

Top 10 reasons to buy a burned Smart ForTwo Passion Cabriolet

2011-10-06T23:44:00.000-05:00

Need 10 reasons to buy a burned Smart car? Some guys have all the luck. They plunk down $18,000 for the safety of a microcar designed by Mercedes to impress the ladies (or men if they so desire) and to give eco-conscious co-workers a reason to turn green with envy. Then, bam! A completely toasted Smart car in a (hopefully) limited edition shade of burned exhaust valve turns up at the local

Cars in Yards: 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1

2011-09-20T23:26:00.000-05:00

Uncovering a 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 project in New York. Cars painstakingly covered and parked in a driveway can be torture for swivel-head, automotive buffs on the prowl. "What's hiding under there? Could it be a classic? Is is for sale?" Mental notes of the mystery car's location are recalled on every routine outing. They circle their prey as often as possible in hopes of getting a

Auctions: Lincoln Town Car bites the bullet as production ends on Ford's Panther platform

2011-09-14T00:53:00.000-05:00

Ford ceases production of the rear-wheel drive, V8, Panther platform, which includes Lincoln Town Cars, on Thursday. It was ironic to see a bullet-riddled 1981 Town Car at a recent Birmingham, Alabama auction. Ford started production of the smaller Town Car in 1981 as a replacement for their larger-than-life 1979 Lincoln Continental. The Town Car has been Lincoln's flagship automobile for

1971 Pontiac Trans Am barn find

2011-09-06T06:56:00.001-05:00

Barn find Trans Am finds previous owner 30 years later. Sweden's Thomas Rosenborg placed a "want" ad in his local newspaper seeking a 1969 Pontiac GTO. A few days later, he received a call from a woman wanting to sell a slightly damaged Trans Am that had been parked since 1993. Rosenborg, a long-time Pontiac fan, decided to make the 250-mile trip to look at Anneli's Trans Am. A quick check

Barn find: 1969 Chevy Camaro X44 dream car project exposed in Long Island, New York

2011-08-20T23:05:00.000-05:00

1969 Camaro project car hunt leads to barn find First-Gen in New York. Gary K., of Long Island, New York, followed up on a tip about a '69 Camaro parked beside a vacant house in an upscale suburban neighborhood. Gary took a short drive and found this black X-44 1969 Camaro equipped with a 4-speed manual transmission, white bucket seats, 307-V8 and 2-barrel carburetor. Surprisingly, the car sits

1984 Corvette: Intelligent design or bugly?

2011-08-13T00:56:00.000-05:00

Corvette sold for parts, goofy, giant dash pad intact. Scoring a cheap Vette at the local car auction is everyones' dream. I had a chance to live the dream when I spotted this 1984 Chevrolet Corvette at a Birmingham, Alabama wrecker company up for bid. The faded silver bullet suffered some front end damage and was minus the 350 cubic inch, 205hp engine that makes early C4s forgettable. One

Cars in Yards: Washington reader delivers Model A Fords, 1938 Buick, Austin more

2011-07-31T23:20:00.000-05:00

Rusting classic cars and trucks offer glimpse of the past in the Great Northwest. Dave Kennett of Washington State has watched a yard full of vintage iron, from the 1920s through 1940s, slowly morph into the lush, green landscape. Kennett has driven by the acres of farmland, which sits 12 miles south of the Canadian border, for several decades. He finally decided to stop and snap a few photos of

Uncovering the paint code mystery on a pink patina 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air 2-door post

2011-07-26T12:12:00.002-05:00

Gang, it looks like we got a mystery on our hands! Look what I found. It’s a pink 1953 Chevrolet in really great shape. Clearly, it has not spent its life in the elements. The owner said it’s a 1953 Business Sedan that he found in northern Birmingham, Alabama. He also revealed that the previous owners’ grandparents dated in the car. Way cool so far, but the current owner wouldn’t provide

Cars in Yards: 1972 Pontiac GTO post coupe

2011-07-15T23:49:00.001-05:00

Rare 1972 Pontiac a 'post'er child for neglect. Gary K., a 28-year-old fan of classic American muscle cars, from Long Island, New York tried to rescue this 1972 Pontiac GTO that he found languishing in his suburban neighborhood. Gary is a junkyardlife kind of guy. When he finds a classic car sitting outside, he wants to find out the car's story and possibly work a deal to purchase the car and

Readers ride: 1959 Chevy El Camino, a finished project with junkyard attitude

2011-06-29T17:03:00.000-05:00

Don't even think about buying this El Camino. Bruce King, a 54-year-old from Hartselle, Alabama, loves everything about his 1959 Chevrolet El Camino. 25 years ago he traded his '78 Camaro for the keys to the low-slung pickup. “This car is the most fun to drive of any that I’ve owned,” said King. Custom flames, mag wheels, layers of peeling paint, rust and graffiti surround the enthusiastic