HRM: What does HOT ROD represent, in your opinion?
Johnny Hunkins: HOT ROD is unlike every other car magazine-and I've worked for a lot of them in that it is about inclusion rather than exclusion. When other magazines singled out one make of car, one era of car, or one build style of car, HOT ROD always embraced them all. For all the grief we get about favoring one brand or another, HOT ROD is universal. There's no drawing of a line in the sand and saying, "If your car isn't old enough or isn't this brand, or that style, you're not in our club." This has not always been an easy road to follow as passing fads have sometimes played an outsized role in deciding the content that magazines publish. And where are those magazines today? They're gone. They weren't inclusive enough and didn't have the remit they needed to survive. HOT ROD is like that old comfortable pair of jeans that always fits and always feels good in any situation in any era.
HRM: Prior to being on staff, what was your impression of Hot Rod?
HUNKINS: Most of my 30-year career has ironically been spent competing against HOT ROD, first as the editor of Popular Hot Rodding. then as editor of Car Craft. Other stints working for Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords, GM High-Tech Performance, and Mopar Muscle magazines meant that I always had a close eye on what HOT ROD was doing; HOT ROD was alternately a bellwether or an acid test for me, so I'd have to say it played a North Star role. Prior to working in the industry, HOT ROD played an important but subservient role to the influence of Super Stock & Drag Illustrated and Cars Illustrated, two magazines that themselves were alternative responses to the strong influence of HOT ROD.
HRM: What is the most memorable article/feature/event in HRM's history?
This story is from the January 2023 edition of Hot Rod.
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This story is from the January 2023 edition of Hot Rod.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Making Connections
Project T-top Coupe: We install a Terminator X Max for big power.
LET IT BREATHE!
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TUNING OPTIMIZED
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Re-Flange It!
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THE TRIBUTE FOR THE WIN
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So Close
Following a nearly flawless performance, a pít lane penalty kept the C8.R off the top of the podium in the IMSA Sportscar Weekend.
A RADICAL SHIFT
When you're a teenager and the police know you by name, it's not usually because of your volunteer work or class-topping GPA. Not at all. That was especially true for Jeff Kainz when he was behind the wheel of his 1975 Camaro. In the '80s, while cruising his hometown in North Dakota, his buddies with police scanners often heard the police tell one another: \"Kainz is out on Main Street.\"
WILD MASH-UP
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6 TIMER!
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JIM MCFARLAND'S INFLUENCE WENT WAY BEYOND HOT ROD MAGAZINE.
Jim McFarland, the multitalented, multifaceted Texan who enjoyed several careers in the automotive performance industry, passed away in October 2023 at the age of 88.