What automotive magazines do you read?

[FORDification]

Just curious about what kind of automotive-related magazines you all subscribe to.

I currently have subscriptions to Hot Rod, Car Craft and Popular Hotrodding, and really aren't overly impressed with any of them. I'll be letting the subscriptions run out on the first two, but will go ahead and maintain the PHR subscription, since it's a lot more into hands-on type work with tips and tricks, whereas the other two are just showcases of mega-dollar buildups or high-end pieces that the average enthusiast would never even see in his dreams...and a great many of their buildups (and virtually ALL their covers) are devoted to early Camaros and newer GM engines. They used to cater to Joe Average and were pretty diverse, but have gotton so far away from that focus that now it's just not worth the subscription price. They seem to have forgotton what a carburetor is. I'll occasionally browse through them at the newsstand and if one of them has any content which might be worth reading I'll grab a copy, but that's it. They'll get read once and then end up on a shelf in the bathroom.

I've also just decided to subscribe to Classic Trucks...although they normally don't have many mentions or features of '67-'72 Ford trucks. However, it's some good reading, when I can find a copy. The newsstands around here don't carry that, so I'll grab a copy whenever I'm out of town. I'll try a year's subscription to that and see what I think.

...and of course, I always try to stay up-to-date with all the major parts suppliers catalogs: LMC, Dennis Carpenter, NPD, Jegs, Summit, JC Whitney, Eastwood, etc.

So what do you read?

[1968Ranger]

Funny you should metion this Keith. Yesterday I got my first issue of Classic Trucks. It was a Christmas present. I have only read one or two articles. Seems allright. Most old old trucks. Although the Jan issue did have one picture of a 67-69 as a afterthought from a gallery of pictures at a car show in Texas.

[willowbilly3]

I read the same three you mentioned. I really don't get much out of any feature articles but all of them do have good tech stuff from time to time. I used to get the cast off 4x4 and off road at the library and they had some good junkyard tips on casting numbers ect.
I have always liked CarCraft but it has turned into the Hugger Orange 69 Camero owners handbook and is so thin that it's only good for about 2 trips to the crapper.
I don't think there is any good grass roots type truck magazines. They all pander to their advertisers and a low buck engine build is still $4000.

[crazy larry]

Rod and Custom.

[DuckRyder]

• AutoWeek
  Hot Rod
  Car Craft
  Roundel (BMW Car Club of America)
  Mustang Monthly
  Mustang and Ford
  American Motorcyclist
  Sport Rider
  Classic Trucks
  Legendary Ford
  Classic Motorsports

I'm probably going to let Classic Trucks lapse, it is not really classic trucks anymore. The first couple of issues I got were more into restored or mildly modified trucks, lately it has seemed to delve into more highly modified and completely custom trucks, which just isn't my taste.

[morganater]

Hot Rod
Classic Trucks
Off Road
Sport Truck
Motor Trend
Truck Trend

are what i'm subscribed to. occasionally i'll pick up a custom classic trucks off the stand.

[BigRedTruck]

classic trucks and custom classic trucks

[Comet]

Ok, let me see if I can remember all of them.
4 Wheel Drive and SUV mag (only Primedia mag. I going to keep subscribing to).
4Wheel & Off Road (Although I do like Pewe the editor-ok, maybe I'll keep this one too)
JP (Gone. Crappy tech, childish articles, thin and all adictles-my term for ads disguised as articles)
Classic Trucks (Just started this 2 issues ago only because it was hard to find. After the 2nd issue I was so disappointed I sent an e-mail to the editor about how I won't be renewing. Now that they opened it up to later trucks, half the articles are about square chevies. Also, they re-printed an article word for word from Rodder's Digest, which is not a Primedia rag.)
Xtreme 4x4 (new extreme 4x4 mag that focuses on extreme tech and the rock crawling circuit. Well done and started by some guys I know locally)
Kustoms Illustrated (customs and lead sleds, very cool rag).
Hop Up (annual hot rod softcover book with lots of cool vintage tin and stories).

It's really hard to find auto related (especially trucks) magazine that are not published by Primedia. I really don't like much of there stuff, but feel stuck with them on certain topics. I thought of subscribing to 4x4 Builder which is a Buckaroo publication (they do Rodder's Digest-excellent- and Truck Builder), but they focus on too broad of offroad spectrum for my tastes, ie desert racing.

[heep70]

None. Used to be JP. I like the pics. One of my old Jeeps was in there.

[lobuck76]

I was thinking about renewing classic trucks. I've got two or three years of them. I let the subscription expire about a year ago. I agree about the other mags. Most of the stuff they cover is way out of my league.

[Faithful Old Road Dog]

Does Easy Rider or Low Rider count? I, uh, find their tech articles very attractive!

[FORDification]

Does Easy Rider or Low Rider count? I, uh, find their tech articles very attractive!

This will be just a bit off-topic, but it reminded me of a funny story. I used to buy Easyriders and In The Wind at the local newsstands when I was a teenager. I'd bring 'em home and have to hide them just like a regular skin mag. However, I came home from school one day and my mom had found one of the In The Wind mags in my room. This was a year-in-review issue, so it was pretty thick, with nothing but pictures....no articles of any kind. Anyway, she actually sat down and cut EVERY SINGLE PICTURE out of the magazine which showed a boob (or more). Every cut was perfectly square and clean, so she had to have used an X-acto knife and a ruler...and it HAD to have literally taken her all day to do this!

The funny thing is....neither one of us ever mentioned the incident to the other, and haven't to this day.

[shrektruck]

Gotta be careful reading Easyrider on the crapper...you might get stuck. 'Sides, doc says get in there and git er done. Sitting too long causes hemmoroids.
I buy my mags on base so they're the same price as having a subscription. That way I only have to get the ones that look good for the month. But, in addition to most of those mentioned and a couple more biker rags I almost always get the local truck trader, heavy equipment trader and parts trader. Scored a $20 dollar weiand intake out of the parts trader.
Oh yeah, the lovely bride keeps leaving Martha Stewart Living in my bathroom. She has some really nice drapes in this months issue....

[CACWBY]

For most of my life I have spent a lot on mags - having got hooked on R&C and others in mid fifties. In High School I would read them from cover to cover and then re-read. Over the years I decided subscribing was saving money over newsstand, but some months have only maybe a few minutes of interest, so I'm still undecided. Curently subscribing to a lot, enjoyed PHR for tech info and good writing, but let lapse and look it over at newstandf to see if it's an issue I want.

Since Primedia took over the publishing world most of theirs are a real crapshoot. They re-use articles between mags, some even share editors, etc.

Primedia Titles:
Rod & Custom (still a favorite- no idea why)
Hot Rod (practically turned into Jay Leno's monthly newsletter)
Car Craft (actually surprises me sometime with something useful)
Street Rodder (going downhill faster than a Box Car Derby Racer)
Street Trucks (better than you might think)
Truckin' (usually a total waste)
Classic Trucks (I kinda sorta think this is best, and not just because they included my truck in their 2003 Supernats coverage)
Custom Classic Trucks ( Hey it's only got trucks, although they include Street Rod Trucks in their definition)
Mustangs & Fast Fords (only because Super Fords is gone)
VW Trends ( (what can I say I used to be a VW guy- and may be again someday- Keith understands)

Non Primedia Titles:
American Rodder (Years ago this was published by same family as Easy Riders and was a much better publication, even if not so glossy)
Vintage Truck (I love this - used to be This Old Truck but the legal A Holes from This Old House made them change the name- and as it turns out, for the better)
The Rodders Journal (a high price tag Quarterly, but in-depth articles & very few ads)
Old Cars Weekly (a newspaper with good stuff, events, auction results, ads, etc., and you get a free calendar every year when you renew!)
Hemmings Classic Car (Used to be Special Interest Auto-a fun magazine, even though no hot rods or customs)

After reviewing this I came to the conclusion-
I either have too much disposable income,
or I need to get a life,
or both.
But I do enjoy Magazines, can I get away with calling them a "Hobby?"

[DuckRyder]

I almost forgot Legendary Ford and Classic Motorsports. Those two and the Roundel are the highest quality overall. But probably only Legendary Ford is worthwhile for a Ford only person.

I also like to pick up some of the english rags from time to time: "Performance Bikes" and "Golf" are too good ones. "SuperBike" is O.K. if you like a little skin mixed with your motorcycles.