It’s hard to miss Jim McIlvaine and his Grabber Blue 1969 Mercury Cyclone GT. At 7 feet 1 inch, the 46-year-old former NBA center towers over most, and his Merc, dubbed “Confucius,” makes an equally powerful appearance. McIlvaine played pro ball from 1994 to 2001; in fact his first field goal was a dunk against Shaq. Following his career, McIlvaine moved into the automotive field, signing on as a part-time freelance writer penning stories for a host of automotive titles, and then as a social media specialist for Optima Batteries.
“When I was in the NBA, I had a lot of down time on the road, and that gave me the chance to think about what car I’d like to own. I wanted to get a modern performance car, one I could modify and take to the next level. I couldn’t fit in a Corvette, so I looked at Mustangs, including Roush’s Stage 3, but ultimately I ordered a 1999 Z/28 with a six-speed. It was a convertible because I couldn’t fit in the T-top or hardtop. It was bright green metallic and got dropped shipped to Buds Chevrolet in St. Mary, Ohio.
“It was the first LS1 F-body that Lingenfelter built with a 383 stroker. It got Kenny Brown subframe connectors, produced 440 hp at the crank, and had Fikse FM5 17-inch wheels. I signed up on Camaroz28.com in April 1999 and became friends with Chris Frezza and Jason Debler who started the forum. Not long after that, John Hunkins (then editor of the now-defunct GM High Tech Performance and now editor of Car Craft) showed up online. He was provocative and controversial and happened to be based in New Jersey. At the time, I was playing for the Nets in New Jersey, so they asked if I would connect with Hunkins, and we hit it off. He started reading my posts and asked if I wanted to write for the magazine.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 2020-Ausgabe von Hot Rod.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 2020-Ausgabe von Hot Rod.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
What Is Pro Street?
You know it when you see it.
Pro Street in Pure Vision
Builder Steve Strope weighs in on the Pro Street look and what he would build today.
THE GAS ERA LIVES ON
These vintage race cars chart the evolution of technology in the early days of drag racing.
MOTOR HEAD FOR LIFE
Scott Sullivan is one of the original Pro Street pioneers. He still builds cars today out of a small shop in Dayton, Ohio.
BRINGING BACK PRO STREET!
David Freiburger and Roadkill Garage built a Pro Street Nova.
SWEET ASPIRATIONS
Jerry and Matthew Sweet added an 800ci Pro Stock mountain motor to chase HOT ROD Drag Week's Pro Street NA Record.
Making Bad Decisions Badder
Bradley Gray's 1970 Nova is a Hybrid! It's a streetable Funny Car.
ART PROJECT
This Rad Rides by Troy-built '63 split-window Corvette went from restaurant prop to ripping up the street!
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
THE PRO STREET ERA PEAKED IN THE '80S. ARE WE IN THE BEGINNING OF A RESURGENCE?
Making Connections
Project T-top Coupe: We install a Terminator X Max for big power.