Terry Dietrich cannot describe in words the moment last week when, for the first time in 43 years, she laid eyes on her beloved bright blue Corvette Stingray — stolen from her in 1972, when she was 19.

“It’s a memory in my head that I will never, ever forget,” said Dietrich, 62, a lifelong resident of Duluth.

Even better: The reunion was on her birthday, filmed on Thursday for the “Today Show.”

“It was an awesome day,” she said.

The strange and somewhat miraculous story of Dietrich’s missing Stingray began back in 1953, the year both she and the Stingray debuted. Dietrich said she’d always hoped to own one.

Her dream came true in ’72, but only for a few months. On Nov. 14 of that year, the Stingray was stolen from the parking lot of her work, she said.

The police told [...]

Rare Cars, Parts & Pepsi Bottles

You ever hear the story of how Machu Picchu was found? Hiram Bingham was in the Andes Mountains looking for something else, but a guide knew of some ruins nearby. The guide took him there, yet nothing could be seen until he came around a rock outcropping. And there it was, Machu Picchu in all its jungle-covered glory. This yard I photographed in the hills of North Carolina, while not to that level of discovery, had its own historically significant pieces in the ground.

I was in North Carolina for the 2014 Hot Rod Power Tour but got there a few days early to allow myself time to photograph barn finds. A mutual friend relayed me a name and number to call about a few cool cars that were sitting nearby. When I called, a woman picked up. I asked for the gentleman who had all the cars. She [...]

Fiat Chrysler, Honda and General Motors scored modest U.S. sales increases last month while Ford, Nissan and Toyota fell as the industry appeared poised to record one of the strongest months in nearly a decade.

Sales at FCA US rose 4 percent from May 2014 levels as the automaker tallied its 62nd straight advance. GM, aided by truck- and crossover-brand GMC, climbed 3 percent. The Volkswagen brand chalked up a rare monthly gain, up 8 percent. American Honda benefited from a strong performance at Acura in tallying a 1.3 percent increase.

Ford Motor Co., meanwhile, dropped 1.3 percent. Nissan Group and Toyota Motor Corp. each recorded declines of less than 1 percent. Toyota’s drop marked its first setback in more than a year.

Results from the first automakers to report set the stage for a quirky month in which overall demand was projected to decline from strong year-earlier levels while sales on a seasonally adjusted [...]

Chevy supercar emerges as most likely ‘V8 sports car’ from Holden as GM rules out RHD Camaro

Chevrolet’s Corvette musclecar has emerged as the model most likely to be the “V8 sports car” Holden has promised to release in Australia in coming years.

This scenario has firmed following news that the new Camaro coupe will not be produced in right-hand drive.

The sixth iteration of the Camaro had been widely tipped to be the mystery sports flagship. But in a joint statement by Chevrolet and Holden following yesterday’s Camaro debut, GM has ruled out RHD production of its sixth-generation pony car, at least “at this stage in the program”.

“The Chevrolet Camaro is an iconic product and the sixth-generation, all-new vehicle offers even higher levels of performance, technology and refinement… However, a RHD variant is not in the current plan. If this changes, Holden will of course take a very close look,” said GM yesterday.

“I’d been after this car for 20 years,” Michael Lightbourn said. He first spotted this Camaro in a rural neighborhood in El Paso, Texas, in 1990. Initially he simply knocked on the door of the house and asked the lady who answered if the ’69 Camaro in her backyard was for sale. The answer was no. Her son was going to “fix it up.”

Yet the car didn’t move. It sat there year after year. Michael didn’t give up. He kept checking on the Camaro with the RS/SS badges.

Then one day the Camaro disappeared. The house was vacant. Apparently the family had moved. He didn’t know where or if they had sold the Camaro. Oh well, he had tried his best.

A few months later, while driving down Interstate 10 in El Paso, Michael spotted what appeared to be the hideaway headlights of a first-generation Camaro. Could this car be the same ’69 he [...]