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It's just like a race car driver to pick an engine and then worry about what car to build around it. Of course, when you are four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson, you can do just about whatever you want with your cars. This '67 Camaro just happens to be a tribute to fallen engine builder Randy Dorton, and it's powered by a real-deal Cup motor right out of the Hendrick Motorsports shop.

This rod looks like a totally traditional, '50s-flavored '34 three-window, doesn't it? But hold on: First looks, as they say, can be deceiving. Under the period detailing, this is all 21st century hardware. The coupe belongs to Kurt Kurtenbach of Experi-metal Inc. (EMI) in Sterling Heights, Michigan. A specialist in prototyping and short-run stampings for the Detroit OEs, EMI is also the manufacturing force behind a number of the all-new, all-steel bodies exploding across the hot rod aftermarket, the newest being the '34 coupe shell marketed by Steve's Auto Restorations in Portland, Oregon. Grabbing one of the first bodies off the line, Kurt combined the shiny, new '34 sheetmetal with the latest in engine technology from Ford Motor Co., the EcoBoost V-6. This rod is the result.inline_mediumwraptextrightThe Steve's Auto Restorations body is built with a stock roof height and opening but employs a one-piece, 360-degree door ring pressing for maximum strength and consistent panel fits.26896916/featuredvehicles/hrdp_1004_1934_ford_coupehrdp_1004_01+1934_ford_coupe+front_view.jpgTrue

In a world without limits, camshaft designers have known for decades what profiles they'd like to grind. But real-world technological limitations-in terms of design feasibility, materials science, and manufacturing process-have held them back. Now, the introduction of sophisticated lobe design and analysis software, better materials, and computer-controlled manufacturing has pushed cams and lifters into a whole new performance envelope. Then there's recent original-equipment innovations such as variable valve timing (VVT) and perhaps ultimately electronic valve timing. There's no telling where it will all end. From the lowest street cam to the most radical high-end professional racing applications, big changes are occurring, so HOT ROD felt it was high-time we took a look at the state of today's cam and lifter technology.inline_mediumwraptextrightCams used to be designed by hand, based on experience and a laborious cut-and-try, trial-and-error approach. Now major companies like Comp Cams design all their new cams, lifters, and valvetrain parts on the computer. The advanced software gives cam profilers much more discrete control over the exact shape of the lobe profile than ever before.26961599/techarticles/engine/hrdp_1004_cam_lifter_technologyhrdp_1004_01+cam_and_lifter_technology+.jpgTrue

Nestled in the hills southeast of Morro Bay, California, lies the quaint town of Paso Robles-and the pride and joy of Jimmy DeBrauwere. "It's a '67 Divco milk truck I picked up on eBay for $1,000," Jimmy reports. "The guy I bought it from in Oregon said it needed a bit of firewall repair, but otherwise it was in great shape." Half of that turned out to be true: the firewall did need a little work. "However, the rest was basically crap," Jimmy says. With preliminary frame-off work done in Oregon, Jimmy hauled the derelict truck down to its new home in Paso. With a bit of TLC and another $24,000, Jimmy transformed this former dairy truck into a working transport for his local photography business. It now sports a mild Chevy 350, a TH400 tranny, custom paint and graphics, a custom dash, new suspension, and 16-inch wheels. "It goes everywhere I go," Jimmy says. "It's a real head turner."