''Hot Rod'' is a monthly American car magazine devoted to hot rodding, drag racing, and muscle cars—modifying automobiles for performance and appearance.

History

''Hot Rod'' is the oldest magazine devoted to hot rodding, having been published since January 1948. Robert E. Petersen founded the magazine and his Petersen Publishing Company was the original publisher. The first editor of ''Hot Rod'' was

Wally Parks Wallace Gordon Parks (January 23, 1913 – September 28, 2007) was an American writer. He was the founder, president, and chairman of the National Hot Rod Association, better known as NHRA. He was instrumental in establishing drag racing as a le ...

, who went on to found the

National Hot Rod Association The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorspo ...

(NHRA). Petersen Publishing was sold to British publisher EMAP in 1998, who then sold the former Petersen magazines to

Primedia Primedia is a South African media group, headquartered in Sandton, Johannesburg. History Primedia was established in 1994 and its listing on the JSE Securities Exchange was completed in April 1995. Primedia remained listed on the JSE until 1 O ...

in 2001. Today it is published by

Motor Trend Group Motor Trend Group, LLC, formerly known as Source Interlink Media and TEN: The Enthusiast Network, is a media company that specializes in enthusiast brands, such as ''Motor Trend'', ''Hot Rod'', and ''Roadkill''. Headquartered in New York City, ...

, formerly known as TEN: The Enthusiast Network and Source Interlink Media. Source Interlink acquired the magazine along with Primedia's Consumer Magazine division in 2007. ''Hot Rod'' has a strategic relationship with

Universal Technical Institute Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (UTI) is a private for-profit system of technical colleges throughout the United States. The school offers specialized technical education programs under the banner of several brands, including Universal Tech ...

, referring to UTI as its sponsor. In March 1948, ''Hot Rod'' published the first appearance of Tom Medley's cartoon hot rodder, Stroker McGurk. The feature would survive until 1955.

Sponsored events

Between 1961 and 1969, the Hot Rod Magazine Championship Drag Races, "one of the most significant drag racing events" of that era, were hosted by the magazine at

Riverside Raceway Riverside International Raceway (sometimes known as Riverside, RIR, or Riverside Raceway) was a motorsports race track and Road racing, road course established in the Edgemont area of Riverside County, California, just east of the city limits ...

. The championship offered a US$37,000 prize, greater even than a

national event prize at the time.Taylor, p.11. The "Hot Rod Power Tour" is an organized tour where hot rodders drive a pre-planned route throughout the United States. It began in 1995 when ''Hot Rod'' staff members decided to take some of their project cars on a cross-country drive from

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Norwalk, Ohio Norwalk is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Huron County. The population was 17,012 at the 2010 census. The city is the center of the Norwalk Micropolitan Statistical Area and part of the Cleveland-Akron-Canton Combined ...

. Thousands of people participated along the way but only seven participants (other than staff members) made the entire journey and were inducted into the original "Long Hauler Gang". Since its inception, this event has continued to gain in popularity and is now one of the most anticipated automotive events each year. It is typically six to eight days in length and held in late May or early June. In recent years, the tour has evolved to become what is essentially a continuous trek around the United States in that it begins in or near the location that it ended in the previous year. Each stop is combined with events or activities that vary as much as the participants themselves. The starting points can change from year to year on the power tour. Tour Stops along the way on the power tour often feature entertainment, celebrities, contests, and games.

Video games

'' Burnout: Championship Drag Racing'' (1998) was licensed by Hot Rod. ValuSoft has published ''Hot Rod: American Street Drag'' and '' Hot Rod: Garage to Glory'', drag racing video games in which the goal is to win the cover feature of ''Hot Rod'' magazine.

References

External links

Official site
{{Motor Trend Group Motor Trend Group Automobile magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1948 Monthly magazines published in the United States Magazines published in Los Angeles Automotive events Turner Sports