I come back to this video every few months. I’m a younger guy, under 30 and it’s nice seeing younger guys like me with these cars. I have a 73 cuda, ratty, and I live by “if I break it, I’ll fix it. I’ve broken a ton of stuff driving always back on the road in a couple weeks.

Great thing about a cuda is no matter what condition it is in, you are still driving a cuda.

This is the culture I'm talking about. No status, just love and respect for cars and one another.

1:25 "If i break it, i´ll fix it." That´s the way it should be for all car guys

I have so much respect for this guy he is the epitome of what I want to be. I bought a 1966 Ford Mustang and have been wrenching the shit out of it because I've always wanted one. I just recently joined the U.S. Army as a Ah-64D helicopter mechanic. I graduated high school in may and leave for basic training next Tuesday. I know most people won't care but I just related to this guy and wanted to share a little bit of my story.

Something tells me he would get along well with roadkill guys

I love old schools like this .. honestly they have more character than the restored shiny classics.. it just tells its own story

Honestly this is the only motortrend series that has stayed good and isn't a constant advertisement. Good job

if it looks bad on the outside but runs like a top that's fine. performance over cosmetics.

I'm totally into this and am so happy about this movement of Ratty Muscle Cars !!! I like to see old iron on the road no matter what it looks like. I bought my childhood dream car 13 years ago, A 1969 Camaro RS/SS (clone) on ebay sight unseen except ebay pictures, They ended up being photo shopped and it was not as perfect as I thought when it arrived off the shipping truck, I was like ahh its not the show car I thought I was getting but now I can drive it and not be as concerned about rock chips and such, it was still a well done clone. I made an intake change, 2 camshafts, street slicks, carbs and whatnot. About 8 years ago a micro burst picked up, spun and dropped the canvas carport it was parked under and gauged the soso paint all over, I was 42 at the time with a wife, two kids a mortgage and always at work, I was devastated and didn't have the funds or time to bring it back. I did some filling, sanding and primer on the damaged areas. I drove it here and there but less and less as I felt embarrassed when pulling up to the gas station, 7-11 or whatever. So it ended up mostly sitting for 7 years with me talking to it daily saying one day ill have you back on the road, mind you there was nothing wrong with it besides the way it looked. So it sat semi neglected with some rust now popping out of the rockers and lower doors and nice patinaed primer, sanded and some shiny paint. I watched an episode of Ratty Muscle Cars and said holly shit, there's lots of people out there like me with not perfect old iron driving on the road (unlike me). This inspired me to get my shit back on the road for me to enjoy and dammed what anyone else thought about it. I installed a new clutch and drove it all summer, weather permitting and put more miles on it in 4 months then I had over the last 13 years. Getting thumbs up everywhere, people talking to me at the gas station or anywhere I park it, Including the weekend car shows I would go to parking my car on the outskirts with members stopping me while looking at their rides and asking... hay did you drive that Camaro that's parked way out there? why don't you pull it in here where it belongs !!! Its been the best damn summer for me and my ride and I have helped 3 other friends get their junk back on the road. I'm looking forward to driving through the fall until the snow drops and hopefully making the long trip to the next #NoShineShitList event in the spring P. Get that ratty old iron back on the road where it belongs !!! (sorry this ended up way more long winded then intended :) )

Can't possibly put into words just how much I enjoy this show, and it's predecessor, but this episode really came the closest to explaining the "why"… I still have a stupid grin on my face as I write this, 'nuff said.

I've been doing this for 25 years. I always say,if it's too pretty you'll be afraid to run it. Love it

Ratty cars are my favorite, I love that I don't have to care about it

I could not agree MORE! I have a 78 C3 Corvette Silver Anniversary that I drive almost every day. I bought it running for $1100.00 with a trashed interior and a broken rear window... all fixed with the help of Ebay and Craigs list. Sure Its rough in spots, has some cracks and spiders in the body and sketchy paint. She has well over 300,000 on her, a third trans (Just put in a Tremic 5 and Hydro Throw out) and a well refreshed 4 bolt out of a 76 pick up, after breaking a piston skirt on the original motor. Rusty Hooker full length headers and a home made exhaust that looks and performs better than anything the General ever made. Number matching??? F that! Most of all, I'm not afraid to beat the snot out of it on the back roads or park it at X-mart if I need something. Sure I hit the car shows, I park it outside and admire the shiny money pits. Then.... rumble past the trailer queens, pull out of the parking lot and light up the 'Pro Comps'. All with a little molten rubber on the rear quarters and a big fat oil leak spot where she was sitting. So while your polishing your rig, buying another trophy case and hoping some dust doesn't land on daddy's little girl, my junk is hood down and commuting two hours a day.

Good ole boy 's , good ole days , how I grew up , I miss em ! Nice to see you still got ' em .

These cars are my favorite, like me they are a bit rough on the outside, a bit too loud and sometime smoke too much but they are still moving and looking for a good time. Keep em' running and on the roads.

FINALLY!!! some dudes that have real class for cars!! much respect.

like how like how he has fun in a ratty car. This episode reminds me of why I like roadkill.

i can appreciate this show i have a 72 cougar my great grandpa bought new im the 4th owner always family owned,it sat outside since 02 i've had her back on the road daily driven about 5 months now all original,love it!

Austin 😘

This. This is what classic cars are truly about to me. They were never perfect, they never handled great. But they're bring us together. And there's no point in having one sitting in storage under a cover looking like it rolled off the production line. It was built to be enjoyed. Want to stare at it? Buy the poster. Want to drive it? Work, buy one, enjoy the wheels off it, then buy new wheels for it. Classic cars are turning into rich boy (and girl) toys. When I left high school I could buy some classic cars for $500. Now they're going for $50,000. Same car, same condition. It's great to see these guys taking hot rodding back to the roots of it all.

Reminds me of a Dukes of Hazzard episode with him driving through a field!

Great job mike, my favorite episode yet.These are my kinda people, made me want to go wrench with them.

great episode. Those guys get more enjoyment out of their cars than 99% of people who own these classics.

old ratty cars are great, but I sure hope they aren't driving around of 30 year old tires.

This is the definition of men. There should be a KZfaq channel dedicated to the Rat Muscle cars

I just wanna say that I've watched the episode over again at least once a month since it came out. It's my inspiration, and would love to see cars like this on the road more often. My favorite house of muscle to date.

Awesome episode, I've had my ratty 72 mustang for 12 years and it always makes me smile when I fire it up!

Best episode yet. They keep getting better and better! Great work!

Best episode so far imho. I love the mentality of this guy!

I love this channel, it's a great way to learn about an entire culture. These are the kinds of episodes that will last for years, not roadkill.

I have restored a few classics myself to former glory. but i could only store them outside under the open sky. So after a few months little spots of rust would come trough the new paint, and i was so tired of that, i just took my 68 charger, put some plexiglass windows on it, build a healthy 440 with 727 for it, and just daily and graveling the crap out of it! And you know what, i should have done that way earlier! Love the thing!

Dude you were stationed at Shaw!! I was also in the gambler amu. I was a weapons tech, and also worked on 353. "double down"!!!

more of this please! the average Joe with his passion for cars... period

This is the TRUE nature of Hotrodding! It's not about how much you spend... but how you make the car an extension of yourself. Loved the show, the car's and the real down home folks...THANX

If it gets you down the road without breaking, thats a gem to the owner. Love and respect to my brothers and sisters.

Excellent story! love it. Keep it simple and enjoy small thing.

holy shit i follow that guy on instagram i didnt know he was on this

I love Ratty cars, they have real character with the faded paint and dents, they have a story to tell. My old Ford Falcon looks like it belongs in a scrap yard but I do not lose sleep if it scores more shopping trolley dents or some more scrapes on the paint. A new shiny car would be too stressful so I will stay with pre-stuffed cars.

Meet Austin the year before my dad passed away and he is the real deal man. He is a true Ratty Muscle Car lover

Love this! Great to see videos on other people daily driving classics like we do. Although we couldn't get ahold of an icon like this cuda, as 19 year olds we're still more than happy daily-ing and making KZfaq videos about our 72 mustang and 89 camaro

Oh Boy I'm glad I came back to this video. After watching videos of what supposedly is considered "RatStyle" here in Germany...

Rat rods are one of my favorite. the idea to just make it mechanically perfect and continuing to run is something great. and what this guy is doing is awesome. cheers.

Brought back a bunch of memories. Many beaters back in the day. Loved the camaro. Hit a speed bump, rust falls off. Launch it and the seat bolts broke and I fell into the back seat. Maxed out many a credit cards back then. :)

The closest I ever had to a "muscle car" was a '67 Dart GT with a stout small block. I wasn't especially careful with it either. I miss driving it like that so much. Its the only actual car I've ever owned for myself; everything else was a truck. I love that 'Cuda and the condition it's in, mostly. I'd have to do something with the rust, though.

I'm liking Mike in this series. Great stuff

Wow! Great video. Very deep. It's so easy to get caught up in the show car/ pro touring look (which is amazing), but it's nice to see car enthusiasts come together and just enjoy what they have without being judged by what's trendy or a status symbol. 👏👏👏

Very cool. Thanks for your service. I too wrenched F-16's at Luke AFB in the early 80's, C shop.

you can have more fun with a car you don't care about than one what you won't even drive

More videos like this please!

My 88 mustang is dark red with a bright red driver door, teal passenger door, black hood, and dark blue hatch. its had countless owners and has dings and dents everywhere. but its mine. I made it my own. I’m always working on it, but I love that. Its a passion not everyone has. I care about my car but I have no problem laying tools on the fenders and laying dirty parts on the seats. Thats the beauty of a ratty muscle car. I don’t think i’d drive anything else.

Episodes like this are the reason why I will always watch anything with Mike in it

at the very least, fix the frame rust correctly

I LOOOOVE the way that red Camaro looks. The way it looks like its black with red spots painted on looks demonic.

Love everything you guys do!! Keep up the Great work!!

I love this episode, I'm glad to see that people enjoing their cars the wey it is, many people wait a lot for restore a project and when they finish they can't enjoy it for been taking care of it. Well done ! ! ! !

Good ol' crew chief zero f*cks

Performance > Perfume

I drove my trans am for 10 years as a daily driver till I got it painted . Beautiful now , but I sometimes miss not having to worry about it .Good show

Ratty Muscle Cars gives me inspiration. I plan on getting something ratty one day, and driving it while I fix it up. No amount of rust will stop the enjoyment of a loud V8

This guy is roadkill before roadkill was roadkill.

While I generally support the philosophy, perforating rust (especially structural) is a huge no-no.

I've always had ratty musclecars too. Way back in 91, I got a FREE, banged up, gutted, rusted out 68 Charger RT. Put a FREE 400 and 727 in it, and 3.91s, and eventually ran 13.39 at 106mph at Mission Raceway, just across the border in BC. It's in Car Craft Readers Rides, July 98, page 93. I'm Jeff, Donell is my wife.

Very nice, Austin! Starting a movement! I could see it in those people's eyes! May God bless you and yours! Great work as usual, Mike and crew!! :-)))

When he was sitting on the bonnet I thought he only had one foot!!

my dream car is a 1967 Chrysler Newport 2 door with a 383.

Love it. It's nice to see old car being used rather than sitting around and rusting away. I like to see them out even if they look rusty and beat up only getting better and better as some one tinkers with them.

this was the best and most well spoken and written episode of house of muscle ever. thanks for showcasing my kind of people and cars. Respect.

it doesnt get more ´murica than this.

I'd pick this rusty muscle car over any overrated italian sports car with out any doubt

In the mid '70's, I drove a '65 Malibu SS that looked like an abandoned car. The car was British Racing Green with a flat black hood. No dents but there were scratches all over it. Someone had added rear flairs to run N50's. I stuck in an old 396 with oval port heads, a Sig Erson Hi-Flo II cam, factory high rise and an 800 Holley. I added a 10,000 RPM nitrous unit which meant cutting a hole in the hood for the air cleaner to stick out. Underneath the air cleaner was blacked out cardboard to hide the nitrous. I had an M21 and 4:88 gears. I cut the flairs off and rolled the quarter panels with a baseball bat to fit 11" M&H slicks. After I blew the 396 after a year of racing, I installed an old LS6 I bought from a neighbor. I never worried about door dings and scratched paint. It was a fun car for street racing.

This will forever be my inspiration for my 1970 impala that i saved outa a buddies yard after it sat for 20 years

Finally, some common sense enters the culture. I think the world has it's fair share of overly restored, too-shiny-to-drive collector cars. Would you rather drive your muscle car or hang it on the wall over the fireplace?

If I ever had a Valiant Charger it would look like ass on the outside but would have beautiful mechanicals and frame. Yeah if she runs well and stops safely that's all that matters.

I love the way people react to my ratty lil Maverick with chrome torque thrusts. Puts a smile on my face every single time!

when vids like this come out it makes me want to work on my first car again. just get it on the road and enjoy the car with friends and family. ive got a 1968 coupe that i saved from going to a crusher.

I don't want to be that guy but those are clean cars to tear up like that

Make MTOD on gift cards similar to an iTunes or Amazon Card. Make a 1 month, 3 month, and a Year. Trust me a lot more will buy, even me!

Best episode yet! The world needs more people like this. Ratty muscle cars are the best. Keep 'em coming!

Austin, you are my hero! I'm a fellow Alabama boy and what you do makes me feel like what I do ain't so dumb!! I have an 03 Mustang GT that is my baby!! I was always taught that you spend your money on the drive train. When you whoop up on a fancy girly car people look at you in a whole different way!!!! You go brother and all your friends have the kinda friendship we all long for.

I'll race you with my chevette.

I have been trying to locate a ratty muscle car but it isn't easy. I want to have my dog beside me going anywhere without stressing. Every body wants to "fix them up", throw a bad paint job on it, hideous wheels, and try to sell it for a fortune. PLEASE STOP! Just leave them original!

I love these cars, such a great bond between man and machine

Nice to drive these cars and not have the worry of the full restorations. I've always been an advocate to "DRIVE EM"!!!

340 is the best small block ever made. Eats chebby and phord variants yesterday, today, alllllll day tomorrow

Because everyone enjoys breaking down every ten minutes.

As a European: This couldn't be more American thing! Everything in this video! LOVE IT! :D

Love this and the whole angle with the ratty muscle cars. Drive em and enjoy them!! Chuck in Kansas

You should spice it up! Do house of IMPORTS

There's nothing more fun than a vehicle you don't care about but still love haha. Also, not at all surprised he was a crew chief.

What a great Cuda, A great story and another great episode. I think you can tell I enjoyed it!

My friends and I have been doing this for years. I'm glad there is a following for ratty cars and trucks

I love the way these guys roll! You guys are obviously having fan. Although I went in in 1980, I was a Crew Chief on C-130s in the USAF. My cars are shiny and perfect but I don't know anyone who likes to have fun like this!

Great video! Thanks House Of Muscle!

Thank you Mike Musto, this was a very great piece.

I have to say this is probably the best episode ever because it truly exemplifies the grass roots of hot rodding

That’s the kind of people that Me My wife and our Daughter would love to spend A Saturday with. Your whole Family can have fun in Ratty Muscle Cars. We hope one day to go visit those people, And have fun all day.

Awesome episode... real people, real cars, real fun!

LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!!!!! I like a rough ride much more than a concourse quality car.... what you have here is what's known as CHARACTER!

These are honestly the kind of people I want to be around