Not your everyday hot rod!

When most people think, “hot rods” they envision 5-widow coupes, 23 T’s, Rat Rods, and Detroit Muscle. But hot rodding is the world of improv and that means cars are as varied as their owners. Today, we enjoyed some of those not-so-ordinary rides. Some see these cars and exclaim, “You call that a hot rod?” But look closely before rendering an opinion. You might be surprised at what you find under the hood. So let’s take a look, but first check out some of the sights and sounds on the road to the Rockingham Speedway in Rockingham, NC.

Surprise of the day . . .

In keeping with the theme of “Not Your Everyday Hot Rod”, Shannan and I spotted this Chevrolet Chevette parked in a sea of cars. Chevrolet produced almost 3 million of these tiny cars between 1976 and 1989. They peaked at a touch over 100 cubic inches. Power monsters they were not, which made this little guy and that big V8 under the hood a very surprising “hot rod.”

British Muscle . . .

The Triumph TR6 has some beautiful lines, but like the Chevette this British legend is underpowered for today’s driving, with a straight six producing just 150 horses. When we saw the TR6 sitting next to the C8 Corvette, we had to stop. Impressive! The owner of the TR6 took boxes of parts and invested five years to make it “Tour Ready,” driving the now V8-powered TR6 all the way from Iowa.