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    Scholars in the Field, from The Piston Foundation: A Practical Look

    Byjustpastevehicles

    The depth of knowledge that exists within the BaT community is unfathomable, and we are ever indebted to the folks who come here to share their expertise, day in and day out. After all, what makes car culture a “culture” in the proper sense is that information and traditions are passed down, and that’s why we are firm believers in the mission of the Piston Foundation. We’ve been proud to support their work over the years, and have funded dozens of scholarships for students who are now working all over the country, restoring and maintaining all manner of classic and enthusiast vehicles. Their new video series, Piston Scholars in the Field, is a testament to the success of their efforts.

  • A Look at yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “A big block, 4 speed and dog dish wheels. Doesn’t get much better than that. GLWTA!”

    25

    70_duster commented on 1966 Ford Galaxie 500 Fastback 428 4-Speed

    “Nice to see that @Riofrio did a proper sorting on this car as well as replacing the infamous sagging headliner that all W202 as well as W210s will eventually need to be addressed. I would not expect the new owner to be “dumping money” into this car as all of the heavy lifting has been done by the current owner.
    Its good to see a car worthy of this level of preservation being completed and not just passed around from flipper to flipper trying to make a fast and easy buck with just a quick…”

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    Dean_Laumbach commented on Japanese-Market 1999 Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG Wagon

    “It was around 1960-61. I would hitchhike from home in Livingston NJ to S&R Imports in Hanover. Lew Schultz sold all the odd British cars; TVR, Morgan and Elva. He saw something in me (I was 14) and let me work on a very special Elva. It was driven by Mark Donohue he went on the win the SCCA championship in that car. I made a special head gasket and a fuel fitting in metal shop. I got to know Mark a bit. Many years later I was re-united with the car at a Donohue reunion at Watkins Glen. What…”

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    FoLolaT70 commented on No Reserve: 1961 Elva Courier Project

  • A Look at question of the Week: What Car Advertising Claim Have You Foolishly Tried to Verify?—WINNER’S UPDATE

    Byjustpastevehicles

    WINNER’S ANNOUNCEMENT:

    We’re back to announce the winner for our Question of the Week, where our victor will accept a $25 credit for a hat or T-shirt from the BaT Gear Store and the acclaim of their peers.

    Our question was: What car advertising claim have you foolishly tried to verify?

    Thanks to everyone who participated. You dropped your best tales of automotive consumer verification this week, and today we’re exercising our Editorial Privilege by choosing the comment that stood out to us the most! The prize goes to BaT member @kens, who widened the scope with a quote from a 1980s Ferrari advertising campaign (who knew Ferrari did ad campaigns?):

    “When Ferrari introduced the 308 GTS, their advertisement read; “What Can Be Conceived Can Be Created”. Well, that opened the door to a fifteen year engine swap project. I introduced an Alfa Romeo V6 3.0 24V into a mid-engine Lancia. I am rather certain that for the same amount of time and effort, I could have created a Fortune 500 company.”

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    kens commented on Question of the Week: What Car Advertising Claim Have You Foolishly Tried to Verify?—WINNER’S UPDATE

  • BaT Auction Success Story: Too Many Cars, but Room for One More You Should Know

    Byjustpastevehicles

    This Success Story comes to us from BaT member northstrand, who won this 2001 BMW Z8 from NHD4OSU in an August 2025 BaT auction:
    I had owned two silver Z8s before, and I wasn’t looking to buy another one. I had been spending my time searching for Italian and British cars with American drivetrains. I currently own a ’64 Apollo 5000 GT convertible, a ’67 Ghia 450SS, and a Maserati Mistral with a Z28 Camaro engine. But I also own a ’73 Jensen Interceptor convertible, a Panoz Esperante, and a Sunbeam Tiger. I even bought an XKE with a 350ci Chevy V8 on BaT a few years ago. 

  • Yesterday’s comments of note You Should Know

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “@the.flagrant.bidder no, that was chassis C22. You can read about C20 and C22 on the GTS-R registry at Viper Racing History.
    C20 presents an opportunity to own a piece of history from the program that dominated international GT racing at the turn of the millennium. Its win at Hockenheim in the FIA GT race on June 27, 1999 was part of a rare international sweep in which Viper Team ORECA simultaneously won the American Le Mans Series race at Mosport on the same day. The car’s “All American…”

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    str5010 commented on Ex–Viper Team ORECA 1999 Chrysler Viper GTS-R

    “All three Muncie 4-speeds were available in the ’69 Z28. Performance wise, the M20 is the best choice as it has a better first, second and third gear. This is all called out in my 1969 Camaro facto book. Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins always raced with the transmission with the lowest first gear. He told me this years ago.”

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    JerryatCHP commented on 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 Coupe 4-Speed

    “rgpiatt: The chain/sprocket assembly is for adjusting ride height. I worked in the Ford Design Studio from 2005-2022 and these adjustment mechanisms were primarily used on clay armatures and were adjustable to simulate various ride height conditions. These were used on non-powered “pusher” properties for market research and internal evaluation as well. These design studies definitely weren’t built to last and most wound up as scrap. I’m not sure if these older mechanisms allowed for track…”

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    Southside_Ronnie commented on 1983 Ford Probe IV Concept by Ghia

  • Yesterday’s comments of note: A Practical Look

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “That looks like it would be perfect in the back seat area of a 65-69 Corvair.”

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    CorvairGA commented on No Reserve: Chevrolet C8 Corvette Stingray 6.2L LT2 V8 Engine & Transaxle

    “Single hump, RWD, 6MT, chestnut manual seats annd only 24k on the clock…any better and it would have a factory installed MPE. Sheesh! 😮‍💨”

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    Inglewood commented on 24k-Mile 2012 BMW 328i Sports Wagon M Sport 6-Speed

    “My father was in the Army from 1939 until 1969 when he retired as a Colonel. He was active duty thru WWII and then in the reserve until he retired. He drove a split window VW like this to his reserve meetings and drills. I once asked him why the VW? He said it was reliable and got great gas mileage. Having been raised during the depression he was very frugal. This auction brings many fond memories. GLWTA.”

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    JWHBOOMER commented on No Reserve: 1951 Volkswagen Beetle Split-Window

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    (B)aT the Movies: American Graffiti (1973) — Explained

    Byjustpastevehicles

    The fourth in our series about Car Movies: the surprise hit American Graffiti—the scrappy George Lucas effort featuring Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, and many more names whose roles left indelible marks on so many of us, plus the cast of A-listers led by John Milner’s legendary yellow Deuce coupe.

  • A Look at yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “Never met a Norton I didn’t like. Probably explains why I have three already. Great bikes.”

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    Bobbity commented on No Reserve: 1972 Norton Commando 750 Roadster

    “It’s nice seeing one of these pop up that was actually raced! So many of these factory race cars (from every manufacturer) end up sitting in a collection, never turning a single revolution in anger.
    Awesome Camaro!”

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    Gmmuscleusa commented on No Reserve: 2015 Chevrolet COPO Camaro 427 4-Speed #25

    “As the builder of this immaculate machine I will answer some of the questions that have been posted .
    I’m the Genius that installed the Palmini floor pan on the floor pan . It was and still common to mount the fuel tank in this location . on this paticular kart with three engines there is no room for a seat back tank .
    all of the compoenants are original , I spent a lot of time and money aquiring all the Palmini , Hands and Van Tech parts to build this machine
    All three engines are original…”

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    Eddiegofast commented on No Reserve: Triple-Engined 1963 Go-Kart 800

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    La Fleur de Citroen—Our Fresh Spring Tee, Now in the BaT Gear Store You Should Know

    Byjustpastevehicles

    Forget what the groundhog says—real ones know spring by the position of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun. March 21 is the day when our planet’s equator pulls up on plane with its local yellow dwarf star, and for the next several months, the days will be longer than the nights on the top half of the globe. This is cause for celebration, and we’re observing the occasion by introducing a bold new design in the BaT Gear Store—the Citroen Floral graphic tee!

  • Here’s baT Auction Success Story: Marj the Morgan

    Byjustpastevehicles

    BaT member williamglenn95 wrapped up a fly-and-drive adventure with the 1967 Morgan 4/4 GT that he won from 97mar in an August 2025 BaT auction. He affectionately named it Marj, and wrote in to tell us how the name came to be:
    As a kid, I had a hardwired fascination for all types of beautiful and unique vehicles. This was inspired by my older cousins, who owned everything from motorcycles to a 1960s VW sand rail and a 1965 Sting Ray. My brother and I would play a game every time we rode in the third row of our family’s Chevy Astro van, trying to accurately state the make, model, and year of every car we passed, even at night (I can still read headlight and taillight signatures with surprising accuracy). We also collected hundreds of Hot Wheels cars and spent countless hours talking about our future rides. I inherited both of my current vehicles and started a separate savings account for my dream car.