Chrysler's sub-brand had committed to building a modern-day hot rod—a factory-built, street-legal custom car with dramatic proportions. It had a long, pointed nose, an open-wheel front end, and ...

Of course, the aforementioned nose-heavy condition still persists with ... was an aluminum small-block V-8-powered Vega, the same car that is pictured on this month’s cover.

Emory, now 50, is hot-rod royalty in North Hollywood and torchbearer of the 356 Outlaw, a series of fewer than 200 cars that command ... Cabriolet with a longer nose and tail, installed brakes ...

As a teen, he added to his first car antennas decorated with fox tails — even though the vehicle had no radio.

It’s every street racer’s fantasy: The government, facing an intractable problem that its brightest scientists and most dedicated agents can’t solve, turns its eye toward the hot rod ...