Happy New Year from the Mantis Rodz crew and Mantis Mobile

Here is the "Praying Mantis" leaving the 2007 Good Guys Show in Puyallup, Washington. Mantis shared a booth with Street Rod Visions at the show-see their web site here . Looking forward to many new members in 2008 from all over the country. Happy New Year and the best to everyone in 2008!

Hello Mantis! Does this Cadillac belong here?

Rodzrookie spotted this Cadillac up on Queen Anne while working. This Seattle neighborhood is full of old rides. Unfortunately this was the only car that I saw at the time. I did spot this other car, which I'm thinking is a Cuda? I know that the older Cadillac's are more sought after. How about the other ride? Would it be worth restoring? Hey Mantis or other rodzreaders-please comment on the photos and inform me on what kind of car and year you think it is. Thanks.

Mukilteo, Washington run produces two cool rigs!

The rodzrookie was at a Christmas gathering with family in Mukilteo and saw two similar rigs. Hopefully the viewers can see these trucks because the light was limited by the ferry landing for one of the photos. One of the trucks has a license plate 1948 and it's a Studebaker. The other truck appears to be close to the rusty model, but fully restored. Hopefully the Mantis crew or the readers can let me know what kind of truck the restored model is.

1972 Buick LeSabre found in Bellingham, WA

Mantis knows that green is an awesome color, but check out this purple '72 Buick LeSabre that Andrew out of Bellingham owns. What a cool ride! Mantis was making some Christmas Eve runs and luckily cruised by Andrew at the perfect time. If only the light was better, our readers could see how awesome his car is. Check out the 24" tires that Andrew's ride houses. Mantis and the rodz readers will be looking forward to hearing about the Bellingham LeSabre soon. Cruise on by Andrew-and tell our readers more about your '72 Buick.

1957 Flatbed Chevy 3800 Series

This is Northwest Sheet Metal's original work truck for the shop. It was purchased out of Rochester, Washington for $700.00. The truck needed oil and water and drove it home with the fenders flapping going 50mph-with the original 283 granny 4-speed.

Silver55

Who is the mystery man?

Meet Gary and his rare 1967 Comet Caliente

Gary, from Woodinville, Washington sports his 1967 Mercury Comet Caliente-and it's exactly that-"muy caliente!" What a gem of a ride he has. He says that his next car of choice is a Ford Fairlane 500 because it has the same body and style of his Comet. Gary has a great story of how he came across his gem-and Mantis and the rodz-readers look forward to seeing Gary on here soon to share his passion. Thanks again Gary! Here is a web site for the true Ford fans to visit: Dearborn Classics.

Merry Christmas Mantis Rodz and its members!

What do you think of this "Christmas Ride?" I'm not sure what Santa Claus is trying to do here. Would this van be worth restoring? I'll have to look up what kind of van this is. Does anyone on here know? Having my camera with me today was worth it. Merry Christmas everyone! The Rodzrookie. Look at some Car and Truck pictures for some great old photos of rigs and rides.

Mantis meets Tyler of Bothell and his fast 1969 Mustang

Fortunately Mantis was at the right place and right time to see this "arrival blue" newly painted Mustang. Tyler and his friend just got out of the car to hit they gym-but prior to that-Mantis was able to get the scoop on the 1969 Mustang that houses a 289 engine. He said the car was purchased for $1,400.00 and could barely run. Tyler and his step-father-from Bothell, Washington, turned the "heap" into a beauty. The upholstery looks awesome too! He mentioned that he took some before and during photos of the restoration. Mantis is hoping to have Tyler as a Mantis Rodz member soon so that he can share the real story. Thanks for taking the time to talk about your ride Tyler-and make sure and show family and friends your post! Hey-rodz readers-if you like great restoration stories check out Jeff Lilly's site.

Mantis meets Mustang

Does anyone from the Boeing Company recognize this ride? This Mustang Fastback was a challenge to catch up with. Mantis finally reached the automobile and snapped a photo prior to it turning into the Everett-Boeing parking lot. Here's the Boeing web site for you aerospace folks. Check out Big Planes. Mantis imagines there is an entire city of hot-rodders packed at the aerospace company in this facility alone. Speaking of packed-here is a site dedicated to Mustang enthusiasts. Look at TopStangs.

Cool rides from the Good Guys Show in Puyallup

2007 Good Guys Show in Puyallup brought some awesome cars and lots of people. Unfortunately the weather was on and off for the onlookers-and the car owners didn't know if they should buff their cars or wait out the rains. The Rodzrookie enjoyed the show. Some people might recognize their cars? The So-Cal Speed Shop car pictured here is a nice rod. See So Cal for more cars like this one. Another website that shows small cars like the BMW Isetta is Micro Car. This site even shows some vintage minis from You Tube.

NOSTALGIC DRAGSTRIP PHOTOS

Here at Mantis, we are all about our roots. How did we get here? Where, and when did it all start? We are big believers in "Nostalgia!" We want you to find some nostalgic photos, along with the stories that go with them, and post them! Without these guys forging the way, we would not be where we are today. We found a couple pictures of some local drag strips from the 60's to get started. The first photo is of Puyallup Raceways, the second, Arlington Drag Strip in "65", the third photo is of Pacific Raceways "65"-"Northwind." We look forward to your pics and stories! Mantis would like to thank the comment from rodzrookie. This person also sent us an email with a website that he thought other readers would like to visit. See American Nostalgia Racing Organization.

Mantis spotted another awesome Pick-Up: 1954 F-100

Look at this cool rig that Mantis ran across in Everett, Wa. The featured ride is a 1954, F-100 Pick-Up. It houses a 302, 5-speed manual transmission, posi and four-wheel disc brakes. The owner mentioned that he is modifying the transmission, but Mantis will leave that for Tom to discuss in a later entry. Tom Jensen owns Pacific Western Design (Rain Gear), a company that designs windshield wiper systems for hot rods. His company's web site is Pacific Western Designs. Cruise on over to Tom's site and check it out.

"Hey, El Camino owner - looky here!"

It took Mantis a while to hunt down the cruising machine pictured here in Edmonds, WA. What do you think of this El Camino? The owner even had a Golden Lab enjoying the drive. This "dog" wasn't riding shotgun though. He was taking in the spacious, canopied covered bed all to himself. Afterall-pets are a huge part of the car culture. Why can't they ride in style? Here's a great El Camino web site to view...check it out. El Camino Central.

"UPDATE": Glen's 31 Model A Roadster

*This is an update to this build: The top picture is the latest moch-up... as you can see there are many changes from one pic to the next. The top pic shows the final body fit, body work in progress, windshield frame fit, different headlight assembly, grill metal finished, steering in place, and getting close to disassembly....

*Back to original post:

Check out this "Traditional '31 Model A Roadster" being put together by Glen out of Sultan, WA. This car is being assembled with a combination of parts Glen has collected over time, (trading, bartering, swap meet hunting, ect...) You may notice this is purely an "Old School Build." The body and frame consists of genuine "Henry Ford" metal, no new stampings here. The original metal, along with the flathead v-8, 39 topload gearbox, 36 banjo rear-end, traditional I-beam axle, dual carb intake, original 32 grill and framerails, are going to make this a true "Period correct" build. We can't wait to see this one done!! Thanks Glen!! Check out these sites: Ford Barn , Reds-Headers, Flathead Drag, Roadsters, to look at some other awesome early Ford automobiles.

Fenders and Fins spotted in Woodinville

Mantis and car folks understand that shops and garages come in all shapes and sizes. Tucked in Woodinville, WA-one will find this cool place Fenders and Fins auto restoration and paint shop hopping. Jon Carson, seen in the photo working on a customer's Chevy, was kind enough to let us look at his operations. At the time Mantis toured the shop-he had four cars in various stages-and several cars getting ready to make it to the garage. Jon is a car guy-and stated his web site is a work in progress-afterall aren't we all? "Hey Jon, we hope to see some of your cars on our site too!"

Mantis Founder Kevin Brown enjoys the rides he has restored!

We all have passions-and for Kevin-it is cars. As you read in the "about us" page on the Mantis site, the car culture was in his veins at an early age. Take a look at some of the cars that he has recently restored. Mantis could show you these cars from start to finish, but this site is about you-the readers/members-it's for you to share with other car enthusiasts. You might be just starting out with cars and have limited knowledge-or you could be a Chip Foose in the making. We all started somewhere. Hop online and join the mission of passing along the wrench that Kevin's father handed to him.

Check out the next project for Mantis Rodz: '36 Ford Pick Up

Max is standing in front of the latest Mantis project; a '36 Ford Pick-up. He is thinking it's not a project at all and likes it just the way it is, but Mantis has a different idea. We'll keep you posted on the progress. This is what the site is about; posting car restorations from start to finish-and all the great stuff in between. Post your passion online with Mantis-share your enthusiasm with other car buffs. Sign on and blog away. By the way-check out this cool Ford site that Mantis ran across Rasloto. It shows a number of great photos and projects in the works.

Parking Lot Pontiac video

Mantis spotted this LeMans out cruzin. The owner didn't have any trouble showing off his car-he even popped the hood to expose the restored gem of an engine with tri-power carbs. Mantis hopes to have Bob on our site soon to sport his ride. Is this smoke show worthy of a free one-year membership to Mantis Rodz? Mantis sure thinks so! We ask the readers to let us know if Bob should get our free membership-he could even get a Mantis Rodz Shirt! Send in your comments!

Look at the classic beauty that Mantis recently spotted.

Why couldn't Mantis capture the entire car? Was it because this vintage automobile zipped through the light near 85th in Kirkland, Wa? Not at all-Mantis was in awe of this incredible green specimen. The driver even slowed down to wave while the photo was snapped. Help us hunt down the owner of this true beauty so that he can share the real deal. Does anyone know the year, make and model of this precious car? Let Mantis and our readers know by posting your comments!

Mantis co-founder Steve Lazar finds ride of the century!

Lazar's recent journey to this exotic place brought him to a vintage automobile. Mantis asks the question, "Does anyone recognize this "bag of bones"...not Steve-the heap?" Another question that Mantis would like answered is how in the world did this car get here? Does anyone know? Send in your emails or post comments on what island you think he was at-and give us your best scenario on how this car landed at the edge of a cliff. Getting here was a chore, challenge-a real hike. Shaka bra!

Rodz, rain and wind: Mercury Cougar XR7

Mantis spotted this cool Cougar in the Alderwood Mall parking lot. Was this future Mantis Rodz member getting ready for a car show or trying to beat the crowd to get his wife some jewelry for Christmas? Mantis thinks that he was doing both! What do our readers think? What kind of engine do you think is under this hood? Send us your comments. Here's a Pacific Northwest club web-site for your viewing pleasure: Cascade Cougar Club.

Mantis Rodz founder Kevin Brown cruzin the Mantis Mobile

Here is Kevin getting ready for a "Mantis Run." Notice the Mitee Mouse decal on the front quarter panel of the gasser? Click on the photo to enlarge the wagon. That's one of the Mantis Rodz decals available in our "gearbag" section. Stop by and scoop some up!

Mantis Jr. Exec. Max Lazar goes to New York

Thanks to family and friends, Max recently was able to go to New York. He saw some of New York's finest and wanted to get this awesome ride online. Mantis Rodz thanks the New York Fire Department for what they do. Here's an opportunity to display your thanks and comments to the Fire Fighters around the country.