Hot Rod Racers #5

Dasher Dan Colton has devoted everything—his life savings and all his talent—to racing his S/SA Dodge Dart down the quarter-mile strip, but a fierce rival's Ford just edged him out for the stock eliminator crown. When his sponsor Mr. Turley offers him a chance to redeem himself with a brand-new A/FX Hemi Dodge, Dan sees his shot at victory—if he can tune the beast to perfection in time for the rematch.

Georgie Claggett has invested sweat and his dad's money into his '64 Plymouth, but Ray Hammus' Ford keeps leaving him in the dust on the drag strip. When Georgie's uncle, a Chevrolet dealer, offers to help him build a serious competitor—a 427-powered Chevelle loaded with speed equipment—Georgie discovers that raw horsepower is only half the battle. Through trial, tuning, and a crucial lesson about tire pressure and traction, he learns that brains and engineering can be just as important as cubic inches when it comes to winning on the quarter-mile.

Link Logan's custom '64 Ford is nearly a match for Flip Todd's Dodge on the track, but when Todd's aggressive driving sends Logan crashing into the wall, the upstart driver loses both his car and his shot at victory. Determined to even the score, Logan rebuilds with a new '65 Ford 500LTD and a lesson learned: raw speed isn't everything—smart driving and mechanical know-how matter just as much. When the two rivals line up again at the Regional 300, Logan's ready to prove it.

Two teenage rivals—Bob Sklar and the wealthy Tommy Simms—channel their long-standing feud from the schoolyard into a dangerous new battleground: the open road. When Tommy's reckless driving injures Bob's girl, Pennie, a local police officer points them both toward the Klunker Klub, a legitimate racing organization at Speers' Oval. Bob discovers he has real talent behind the wheel, but when Tommy challenges him to a high-stakes race—with Pennie and their club membership on the line—the boys must finally settle their score on the track.