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D. Brian Smith

Recent Posts by D. Brian Smith:

New & Improved! Online Order Cancelling

​​Have you ever submitted an order on ClassicIndustries.com and then realized you had selected the wrong part? In the past, you had to contact us by phone or via email to void an order. Our website’s new feature can now save you the time and energy of calling us or sending us an email. Within a 30-minute window of time, you can now cancel the order yourself in five easy steps. Read on to see how you can do-it-yourself with just a few clicks.

A Restomod Built Right - 1967 Camaro RS/SS

Most old car projects involve many obstacles and challenges along the way that wind up making the completed build that much more satisfying when the finish line is successfully crossed. On some occasions, there are daunting and unexpected build problems that occur right from the start. That’s the sort of fork in the road where some car caretakers might just scrap a project and sell the car down the road before they barely get started.

OER Smart Battery Chargers Keep Your Muscle Machines Batteries Strong

Have you ever jumped in your 1965 Shelby GT350 Mustang early on a Saturday morning to grab some caffeine and good vibes at the local Cars & Coffee gathering only to have the pony car not start? That slow cranking malaise sort of sound with no success sure is annoying. Or maybe your numbers matching 1970 Plymouth Superbird is only very sparingly driven and the battery has discharged. Perhaps that Trans Am 1969 Camaro Z28 had an outrageously successful vintage racing season, and it needs to be tucked away for a well-earned winter hibernation before next year’s campaign.

The 70th Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance

A 1938 Mercedes-Benz 540K Autobahn Kurier won Best of Show at the 70th edition of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, held Sunday, August 15, 2021. For the first time ever there were also 38 former Pebble Beach Concours Best of Show automobiles on display to welcome the 540K to this prestigious club of Best of Show winners at the pinnacle of vintage automobile events.

Living the Life of Riley - a 1977 Ford Bronco Ranger

Some collectible cars and trucks lead charmed lives. They have been driven, pampered, and renewed over the years by the people who have been and who currently are their caretaker. Such is the case with a very solid 1977 Ford Bronco Ranger, owned for the last 16 years by Mr. Dave Kunz of Glendale, California.

Fabulous Fords Forever - the 35th Edition

The Fabulous Fords Forever show made a triumphant return on Sunday, June 13, in Irwindale, California. Drawing more than 1,000 Ford cars, including Mustangs (Classic, Fox Body, SN95, New Edge, S197, S550), Falcons, Cougars, Thunderbirds, Broncos, and F100s, and thousands of Ford fans, the long-running So Cal show was a massive hit in it's first appearance at Irwindale Speedway!

1979-1986 Mercury Capri History - Mercury's Second Pony Car

Ford Lincoln-Mercury's second pony car was the 2nd generation Mercury Capri. For the sake of clarity and brevity, its moniker was simply the Mercury Capri, as opposed to the Ford Lincoln-Mercury Capri. Like the Mercury Cougar from 1967-1974, the 2nd generation Mercury Capri (1979-1986) shared the Mustang chassis that Ford produced at the time. This go round though Ford manufactured an all new chassis for the Ford Mustang known as the Fox platform from 1979-1993, it's 3rd generation platform for the original pony car. In this article, we'll examine Mercury Capri history and how it changed from 1979 to 1986.

1960-1977 Mercury Comet History - A Midsize Innovator

The Lincoln-Mercury division of Ford introduced a big sister car to the Ford Falcon in March of 1960 called the Mercury Comet. Though still classified as a compact car, the Comet was a foot longer than the Ford Falcon. Back in the day it was called a “senior compact”. Having the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, many automotive historians now recognize the Comet as the first midsized car. Read on as we look back at Mercury Comet history across six generations, from 1960 through 1977

1966-1996 Ford Bronco History: Goes Over Any Terrain

Before the professional sports acronym G.O.A.T. came to mean "Greatest Of All Time," it was the internal project name of the Ford Bronco and stood for “Goes Over Any Terrain.” With the advantage of 20/20 hindsight, that project code name was very apropos. Thanks to the involvement of some pretty sharp individuals like Lee Iacocca and Donald Frey, there was a pretty strong chance that G.O.A.T. would be successful. History tells us that these are the very same two Ford employees who developed and created the magnificent Mustang behind Henry Ford II’s back. They also assisted Carroll Shelby with the Ford GT40 program that enabled Ford to outrun every automotive manufacturer, including Ferrari, at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. They repeated this astonishing feat in 1967, 1968, and 1969.

1960-1970.5 Ford Falcon History - It Flew High for a While

The Ford Falcon was introduced on September 2, 1959, a full month ahead of its American foes, the Chevrolet Corvair and the Plymouth Valiant. Ford’s extensive market research is what led to the Falcon’s promising creation. Read on as we take a look back through Ford Falcon history, and learn how it influenced the development of other popular models such as the Mustang.