NEW GEAR FOR MUSCLE CAR FANS: 1963 CORVETTE Z06 MODEL, TRANS AM NEON CLOCK, AND A HISTORY OF FLORIDA SPRINT CAR RACING

1:18-scale 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06

HEMMINGS • 800-227-4373 X 79550 • HEMMINGS.COM/STORE • $114.99

“RPO Z06” was the box to tick in 1963 if you wanted your new Sting Ray to come from the factory with the best performance parts Chevrolet offered. This Regular Production Option code–combined with the required fuel-injected 327-cu.in. V-8, four-speed manual, and Positraction–included heavy-duty suspension and braking components, quicker steering, and at the start, knock-off alloy wheels and a 36.5-gallon fuel tank. Just 199 split-window coupes with this option were built that year, and this 1:18-scale model (item AMM1308) represents a real one that, after a detailed 2006 restoration, won numerous prestigious awards. Its Ermine White paint is set off with detailed brightwork, while opening doors reveal the red interior with legible gauges, and an accurate representation of the 360-horsepower engine sits under the hood. This model will surely please all mid-year Corvette enthusiasts.

Trans Am Neon Clock

SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT • 888-501-9619 • SUMMITRACING.COM • $79.99

In the world of high-performance American cars, few can match the iconic graphics symbolizing Pontiac’s F-body Trans Am. Summit Racing Equipment retails this eye-catching and practical clock from the neon experts at Neonetics (item NNI-8TRANS) that is a celebration of the hottest Firebird models built from the 1960s through the 2000s. It’s 15 inches in diameter and 3 inches deep, the clock’s quartz movement is powered by a single AA battery, and its ring of genuine hand-blown glass neon tubing–outputting 25 watts of red light–takes power from a standard household wall outlet. Setting off the black and gold clock face, with its Pontiac arrowhead logo, is a gleaming chrome rim. It’s custom-made to order and will become a focal point of your den or garage.

“Racers In The Sun” by Richard Golardi

COASTAL181.COM • 877-907-8181 • $32.00

Despite it being our third-largest state, Florida has historically come up short when it comes to preserving and venerating its motorsport history, aside from NASCAR. And in the roaring world of Sprint car racing, Florida has a rich history dating back to the 1940s, involving Hall of Fame drivers who have largely gone unrecognized until now. Racers in the Sun is a 569-page softcover accounting the legend of Florida Sprint racing on both dirt and asphalt, told through the biographies of the luminaries who contest it to this day.

Author Richard Golardi intimately knows and loves his subject matter, having spent years developing this book, relying on research that incorporates extensive oral history on some of the very best. Its pages contain authorized biographies of Pete Folse and Frank Riddle, both enshrined in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Iowa. Riddle was a multi-time winner of the famed Little 500 in Indiana, a race in which Florida drivers have traditionally excelled, and which is discussed in depth here. Other careers delineated include those of Wayne Reutimann, from a famed racing family; Larry Brazil, Pancho Alvarez, and the immortal “Ralphie the Racer” Liguori. Venues, including the legendary Tampa Fairgrounds, also get their due. What’s most impressive about this excellent work of history is that it’s self-published; one guy did all this, and admirably well. –Jim Donnelly  

The post New Gear For Muscle Car Fans: 1963 Corvette Z06 Model, Trans Am Neon Clock, And A History Of Florida Sprint Car Racing appeared first on The Online Automotive Marketplace.

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