I was fortunate enough to have grown up during the muscle car era, owned a few (69 GTX 440/4 speed, 67 Chevelle 396/350) and trust me these cars could run hard. The way to make them run is no different than the ways we use to make our stangs run hard now - add the right parts, give it some traction and take the time to tune and refine your combo so that you can use all of the power that you are making. Owning both an 87 5.0 and an original 1965 289/271 K code, I get to live on both sides of the fence. In any race between these cars the 5.0 would beat the snot out of the old HiPo any day of the week, it handles and stops much better, gets better gas mileage, and is a lot more comfortable as a day in, day out driver. It was also very easy to get this car into the 13's with just simple bolt on's. The HiPo car however provides a driving experience that 5.0 could never, ever match. The unique sound, smell and feel of the old solid lifter engine at idle and under acceleration, the feel of the quick ratio manual steering, the 60's style driving position etc. - this car provides an awesome interactive driving experience and demands a high level of your concentration every time you drive it - hard to describe unless you have had the chance to put down some miles in one. I love both cars and both have their strong points, but when it comes down to pure performance, technology rules. The late model EFI cars possess incredible potential and as can be seen by the sheer number of 11 and 12 second cars on the streets, can easily be modified to do things that the old cars can only dream about.
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1965 K code coupe - numbers matching - restoration ongoing. 1987 LX notch, stock heads and intake, typical bolt on's 13.89@100.25
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