Roadkill Garage

This is the pilot episode of an all-new show that will be appearing exclusively on Motor Trend On Demand monthly in 2016. Roadkill Garage features David Freiburger from Roadkill and Steve Dulcich from Engine Masters (but, don't worry, Mike Finnegan is still the co-host on Roadkill). RK Garage will show Freiburger and Dulcich wrenching on Roadkill project cars and other things that meet the Roadkill vibe. They'll show you how to do the wrong things the right way. In this episode, the guys attempt a three-day overhaul of the 351 Cleveland engine from the '67 Mercury Cougar that belonged to Freiburger when the show began, but that transferred to Dulcich before the shoot was over. The "rebuild" is not exactly kosher, but it's dirt cheap and generates good tire smoke!

In episode 40 of the Roadkill show, hosts David Freiburger and Mike Finnegan met up with Steve Dulcich to drag a ’70 Plymouth Duster out of a purgatory of mud at Dulcich’s farm, then stabbed a big-block Mopar under the hood and blasted 12.34 seconds in the quarter-mile. In this episode of Roadkill Garage, the Crop Duster is back! It has a fresh, 500-horsepower 383 engine now, and is fresh off the road from Hot Rod magazine’s Drag Weekend event where—it will come as no surprise—the car had some trouble. That included a wiring fire and a fuel-delivery problem that held the car back to a 12.06-second e.t.—not much better than the old 12.34 considering the newer, much more powerful engine. In this Roadkill Garage, Freiburger and Dulcich attack those demons, have a lot of fun in the process, and return to the drag strip in the hunt for the elusive 11-second timeslip.

Roadkill Garage is all about what two average guys can get done in a single weekend of wrenching, and this time hosts David Freiburger and Steve Dulcich will show you how to revive an engine that’s been rotting outside since Ronald Reagan was president. The patient is a gutted 1975ish Dodge pickup with a 360ci small-block V-8. When the adventure starts, the guys have no clue if the engine can be saved at all, but in the end, it’s out doing donuts! Watch and learn how to get a long-neglected engine back on the road

The 1967 Chevy known as the Crusher Camaro has a long history at Hot Rod magazine as well as on Roadkill and Hot Rod Garage. Most recently, the car was transformed by Hot Rod Garage into a Pro Touring machine with supercharged LS power, but the fans spoke out: They wanted the car to return to retro! Starting with this episode of Roadkill Garage, that’s what’s gonna happen. The newest look for the Crusher is inspired by early-’70s NHRA Modified Production drag cars, and this first installment shows the transformation of a BluePrint Engines 400ci small-block Chevy into a tunnel-rammed, retro monster making about 560 hp! Best of all, this episode features 60 percent more fire. Stay tuned later in the season for future installments of the Crusher Camaro’s retro revival.

Lurking in the background of many episodes of Roadkill Garage is Steve Dulcich’s 1973 Dodge D100 stepside pickup, his pet project loaded with a 550hp, 360ci, 7,000-rpm small-block Mopar and a four-speed. In this episode, the Mopar Muscle Truck comes into the spotlight as Dulcich and David Freiburger finally wrap up the last details of the buildup that have been lingering for more than a year, then hit the road. A shootout with the LS6-powered Roadkill 1974 Chevy C10 stepside seemed like the obvious plotline. But can the famed Roadkill Muscle Truck outrun the Roadkill Garage Mopar Muscle Truck? Inquiring minds will watch the episode to find out.

See the Crusher Camaro get its eighth engine in its 23rd year as a project car! This 1967 Camaro has been built in a number of different styles in its time with Hot Rod magazine and Roadkill, and in Roadkill Garage episode 14 we initiated the latest makeover into an early-'70s drag racer by reworking a 550-horsepower small-block into retro style. In this episode we'll install the engine along with a radical TH350 transmission from Gearstar, then fire it up as motivation for the next steps on the way to hitting the dragstrip.

Freiburger and Dulcich have a new project car, a quick and dirty ’40 Ford Fordor. Other than the lack of interior, some rust, poor suspension it really only has one main problem…it’s too slow! The guys decide to beef it up with some new heads, a new carb and a supercharger. The ’40 Ford already has a small-block Chevy power plant that either needs some TLC or to be retired completely. The guys dig into the grimy engine and find it’s more trouble than it’s worth, but they have a solution and end up hitting the farm roads to relive some bootlegging outlaw action.

Vintage Chevy C10 pickups are hot, and there are tons of them around the Motor Trend world, including two 1967s that you’ll see in this episode along with Freiburger’s wild schemes for pickup-truck greatness. It all begins with a grandpa-fresh longbed and a 630-horsepower, 454ci Chevy big-block that has been seen in several installments of our Engine Masters show (its current configuration is the same as that in Engine Masters episode 10, “600hp Camshaft Shootout”). You’ll learn how to big-block-swap any ’67-’72 Chevy or GMC truck along with a Gearstar Transmissions Stage 4 700R4 overdrive automatic that’s beefed to handle the power. But did Freiburger and Dulcich create the ultimate tow rig they were hoping for? Well, let’s just say that this truck excels as an epic burnout machine.

“Station wagons: there is no finer American institution.” That’s what David Freiburger wrote way back in 1998 as the editor of Car Craft magazine. Twenty years later, it’s still true! Hot rodders love old station wagons, and surprisingly, many models can still be purchased cheaply. That’s proven in this episode of Roadkill Garage as Freiburger scores a 1968 Chrysler Town & Country wagon for $1,800—and it has a 440ci big-block for power! It’s soon dubbed the Gargantuwagon. Freiburger and Steve Dulcich show you how to give any old car a basic once-over before they also teach you how to give one a good thrashing without really hurting much. Soon it becomes clear that Dulcich’s 1967 Pontiac Bonneville wagon from Episode 11 needs to come play along—and if two full-size American land barges are good, then three are better as Lucky Costa from the HOT ROD Garage show jumps in with his 1966 Plymouth Fury wagon loaded with 512ci of big-block power!

On this episode of Roadkill Garage, Steve Dulcich’s teenage dreams finally come true as David Freiburger surprises him with a new project: a 1965-ish VW Dune Buggy! The guys have mastered the American engine; now it’s time they take on something new, or at least new to them. The “Boon Duggy” has a German-engineered four-cylinder 1200 boxer engine boasting a furious 40 horsepower and a four-speed transaxle. There’s only one problem—it’s been sitting around for years and may not even run. Will the guys’ knowledge of V-8s translate to VWs, or will they figure out how to overheat an air-cooled engine? Watch as the guys have maximum fun with minimal car.

On this episode of Roadkill Garage, David Freiburger and Steve Dulcich have been challenged by Fred Williams and Dave Chappelle from Dirt Every Day to a Jeep build-off. What’s the best way to improve a 1975 CJ-5 with a small-block Chevy? Step one: Don't focus on the suspension, axles, gearing, and so forth. Step two: Add more power, of course! With some leftover parts from Engine Masters, the guys swap in a 383 short-block topped with a Weiand 671 supercharger and create the blown CJ-5 now known as the BJ-5! Before heading to the driving challenge set up by the Dirt Heads, the guys call in JP Editor Rick Péwé to help sort out some other mechanical issues and take the blown Jeep for its first off-road test drive.

When one project fails, fix another! That’s the motto on this episode of Roadkill Garage as David Freiburger and Steve Dulcich have fun with a project vehicle smorgasbord. First the guys set out to make the Cadillac 500–powered ’74 Gremlin faster at the track. Unfortunately for the Caddy Gremi, it spun a bearing after some epic burnouts. But on the farm, one car’s misfortune is another’s chance at a revival as the guys decide to rescue Dulcich’s ’71 Plymouth Satellite powered by a 383 big-block. With a little bit of work and some inspiration from burnouts in the ’75 blown small-block BJ-5 Jeep, the guys get it running and test it in the “Two-Pole” against Freiburger’s ’71 Road Runner.

David and Steve nab a '56 Chevy 210 that was once an NHRA champion, but the body is complete garbage -- even by their standards. They try to bring the car closer to its former glory, then it's off for some passes at the Kingman Street Drags on Route 66.

Steve finally convinces David to work on his 1975 Chrysler Conqueror, a boat that's powered by 318 V8 and a jet drive instead of a standard outboard engine. They'll get the engine running and test it out on the lake -- assuming that it will float.

The guys are finally making some progress marrying the 406 Cleveland engine to their Jeep Commando. They get the drivetrain sorted out, fitting the engine to a Chevrolet transmission, then show how to stuff everything into the Jeep body.

The ‘67 Cougar powered by a Windsor-based 360ci stroker and backed by a four-speed is back! Almost. Freiburger and Dulcich try to fix a multitude of issues and get it back on the road. Then they take a detour with another project, the F-Rod ’31 Model A!

Freiburger and Dulcich actually get the Bang-Shifting Cougar back on the road only to have trouble once again. As Dulcich sorts out some shifting issues, Freiburger gets started on the F-Rod '31 Model A. With a naturally-aspirated 572 big-block Chevy V8, he hopes his dream drag machine will run 8s in the quarter mile.

Freiburger and Dulcich make some significant progress on the F-Rod, and David goes deep into the automotive wiring abyss, teaching all the tips and tricks he knows for correctly wiring a hot rod. The guys also get reacquainted with the reacquired '68 Chrysler Town & Country known as the Gargantuwagon.

Freiburger and Dulcich hit the road in a '66 Chevy Chevelle purchased sight unseen in an attempt to score two new project cars. A lack of horsepower doesn't equate to a lack of fun as the guys fix and tune their way from Washington to Arizona to rescue a dirt-cheap junkyard '75 Dodge Dart.

Freiburger and Dulcich give some much-needed love to the '69 Chevy known as the Crusher Impala by way of a new 9-inch rear and a less squatty suspension overhaul. The guys also fix a major throttle issue that finally unlocks full use of the supercharged 498ci big block before hitting the road for monster burnouts.

Freiburger and Dulcich tune up the supercharged big block in the '69 Crusher Impala at Westech's dyno before hitting the road and the dragstrip. After some monster burnouts and a romp through the desert to find a possible new project 440 Dart, the guys run the Impala's fastest time in the quarter mile, but discover some new Roadkill-level issues.

Freiburger pits his '69 Ford Mustang Mach 1 known as the Disgustang against Dulcich's '67 Mercury Bang-Shifting Cougar. After some suspension and rear-end modifications and upgrades on the Cougar, the guys hit the road and an airport runway to find out which car is the better beater.

Freiburger and Dulcich give gold-medal examples of doing the wrong thing the right way with a big-block, four-speed '73 El Camino in need of an engine refresh; fixing a 454 that's obviously been messed with by means of a cheap at-home rebuild.

The problematic pig of a '73 El Camino named El Cochino is back; Freiburger and Dulcich address the camshaft and lifter issues that remain on their factory SS 454 four-speed Chevy, while also attempting to repair a terrible wheel-hop issue.

Freiburger and Dulcich death-proof their questionably assembled '40 Ford Fordor, then hit the road to multiple junkyards to hunt for a project vehicle. After a lengthy search, they fall in love with a barn-find '60s truck that's too good to be true

The '73 Chevy step-side "Muscle Truck" has a storied history. Freiburger and guest host Dave Chappelle fabricate another chapter in the truck's saga with the addition of a beefy four-link suspension and coilovers to hopefully get it to finally sit right.

Freiburger and Dulcich add 1,000+ hp to David's Pro Street 1969 Chevy Nova. In an attempt to make a true street/strip car, the guys fully build out this roller before taking it to the track to run some impressive times out of the gate.