Indholdsfortegnelse for May 1950 i MotorTrend

CHEVROLET owners have long felt that their cars are equal to, or surpass, other cars in looks, performance, and otherwise. To further their point, as far as appearance is concerned, here is a group of photographs to show that restyled Chevys can look as attractive as any other type of car. The ‘41 Chevy club coupe is owned by Dick Arkline of Los Angeles, California, and was customized by Barris Kustom Shop. It has been completely dechromed, has pushbutton doors and a half-blanked grille. The nose has been shaved, the deck has been filled in, and the license plates have been placed in the center of the ‘48 bumpers. The rear bumper guards have plastic tail lights. The color is bluish, high ingredient purple (made by A & H Paint…

NOTE—“Roscoe” Turner is well known as an authority on auto racing, having been connected with the sport since 1930. In 1938 he introduced a team of midget racers into New Zealand, this team consisting of such famous names as Swede Lindskog, Duane Carter, Paul Swedberg, and Roy Richter. “Roscoe” has held various posts in Southern California racing organizations, having been ORA president in 1945 and 1948.—Editor. THE ¾ midget race car being a new entry into the auto racing picture— everyone is asking, “What is this car? What type of tracks will they appear on, why were they built, what are the aims of the boys who have built these cars and what are the specifications, types of power plants, wheels and tires, etc.” I shall endeavor to outline briefly…

A car that could well have been designed by a French carrossier in Paris is evidenced in this rendering by Colonel Alexis de Sakhnoffsky. It includes the following French ideas in design: great emphasis on front fender prominence; sharp color contrast to bring out the streamlined effects on front fenders; headlights in the hood-fender valley; long hood with instrument panel board close to the steering wheel; elaborate use of chrome ornaments to underline design features; exaggerated (to the American eye) downsweep of the waistline towards the rear fender; comparatively short deck; exquisite interiors, beautifully tailored with unusual upholstery materials such as black and white patterned unborn calf, brown shaved pony fur, lizard, etc.; and emphasis on bucket type seats rather than bench type. This type of body, composed of a…

FROM Toledo, Ohio, on March 30th, came word that Willys-Overland was continuing in its’ traditional field—the utility and economy automotive market. Their new models are changed in appearance, but most interesting is that a choice of a four or six-cylinder engine is possible. Changes apply to Willys-Overland four and six two-wheel drive station wagons, jeepster, four-wheel-drive truck, and panel delivery. The new four, called “Hurricane,” is an “F” head (intake valve in head, exhaust valve in block), has a displacement of 134.2 cu. ins., compression ratio of 7.4:1, and delivers 72 hp at 4000 rpm. Willys engineers believe this engine is one of the most significant advances made in automotive engineering, making possible better performance, endurance and fuel economy. An “F” head engine allows an increased intake charge at cooler…

MG OWNERS have various beliefs— those who swear by their MG and its stock engine; those who tune them for more performance through engine changes or the addition of a supercharger; and those who like its handling characteristics, but prefer the performance of other engines. Paul Trousdale is apparently of the latter belief, for his MG is powered by a Ford V-8-60, which was installed by the So-Cal Speed Shop. To install this engine, special mounts were made. The MG drive shaft was cut off and replaced with a Ford drive shaft with universal joint. 26-tooth Zephyr gears are used in the gear box. The engine has been bored .100-inch over, has a stock stroke, and has been ported and relieved. JE Pistons are used, along with Edelbrock heads of…

EXPANDING its production of tubeless tires, the B. F. Goodrich Company late in February introduced this new tire to the West Coast for the first time. The tire features a tread in which the tougher, longer wearing “cold rubber” is used. Retaining air without the use of an inner tube, the tire is built with a special layer of rubber inside that enables it to run over nails and glass that would ordinarily cause punctures. The construction is shown in the cross-section:Special concentric ridges, molded on the beads, seal the tire against the rim and prevent air from getting out around the edges. Rubber washers inside and outside the valve keep the air from escaping at that location. The sealant is on the inner side of the tread area. Price—less…

THERE’S no reason why not. That’s right … none. You can even have one custom-built today. Its fuel consumption will leave something to be desired, but that’s the case with lots of custom jobs. For a revolutionary type of engine, there’ll be remarkably few bugs in it, but then there are only a couple of moving parts to develop expensive noises. Of course, authorities have said that practical performance can’t be had from small scale turbines … but they said that diesel passenger cars were impossible, too. They were still saying that when Mercedes-Benz had sweet-running diesels on the road for a couple of years. The gas turbine is here, just as surely as we have atomic fission. The gas turbine will, within the next few decades, become as revolutionary…

TAKE one Cisitalia chassis, enlarge the engine from 1100 to 1221 cc, shrink a sleek Farina-inspired Alfa-Romeo type convertible body to fit, and you have, in essence, the new Simca. But wait! Look at that $2495 price tag on a car which is essentially the counterpart of last year’s $7500 creations. These Frenchmen must have shaved costs somewhere along the line. So I decided to have a closer look. I opened and slammed a door. Solid! I slumped upon a soft leather seat. No lack of comfort here, and this leather reeks quality. The steering wheel is slightly offset to provide better leverage, as are some Delahayes and Talbots. Still not convinced, I released the hood latch under the instrument panel, walked around to the front and practically disappeared into…

FROM April 15th to 23rd, New York City will be host to nearly a score of British automobile manufacturers displaying their cars at the British Automobile and Motorcycle Show. Choosing as a theme, “See British Craftsmanship on Wheels,” these manufacturers will exhibit over 100 British cars at Grand Central Palace. The automotive industry, the largest exporting industry in Great Britain, is staging the New York exhibition to show its products to U.S. dealers and consumers in the hopes of finding and developing new markets, thereby bridging the “dollar gap” by supplying good products at fair prices. Specifically, items exhibited will be: automobiles, motorcycles and bicycles, full lines of diesel engines, accessories, garage equipment and related lines, and trucks, busses and trailers. Special features and events will include record-holding race cars…

ENGLISH trials comprise a brand of competition unknown to the average American sports car owner. This type of event, which enjoys wide popularity in Great Britain, is intended by its organizers to provide a very searching reliability test of the machines entered and an equally difficult trial of driver skill. Each club of motor enthusiasts has its own regular schedule of events, and the history of some of the more important meets can be traced back to the very early days of motoring. For example, last December witnessed the 31st running of the famous Gloucester Trial, sponsored by the Northwest London Club. This Club has been in operation for no less than 45 years. Naturally, each annual running of a big trial attracts nationwide interest in the motoring world. Keen…

ON MAY 5th, numerous stock cars will start out from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, (across the border from El Paso, Texas) on a five-day, 2178-mile international speed trial to the southern border. The race, inaugurating the completion of the Pan-American Highway System in Mexico, will finish on May 9th in El Ocotal, a small town on the Guatemalan frontier. The race will be run in eight legs, one each on the first and last days, and two each (divided by a half-hour rest period) on the other three days (see map). To be eligible for the main prizes, entrants must maintain a minimum speed of 50 mph on each leg. Based entirely on speed, prize money is as follows: (1) $17,341, (2) $11,560, (3) $5,780. Small prizes will also be awarded…

FRANKLIN AIR-COOLED Gentlemen: Your current issue of MOTOR TREND is the first one I have had the pleasure to read. … The article by Mr. Hoeppner, “Are Foreign Cars the Bunk?” was particularly interesting. Although I would appreciate a newer car I am mighty proud of my 1926 Franklin coupe (with six-cylinder, air-cooled engine, wooden chassis and wheels), because it is in fair shape for its age, is not common and has several advantages over new cars … … I sit up high and the headlights are adjusted so that I can see ruts on country roads in time to miss them. Quick steering is a help. … The low speed (of the engine) and the transmission, combined with large wheels and slow-acting brakes make it an ideal car for…

IN THE recent Mobilgas Grand Canyon Run, the 1950 Mercury proved that for economy it is the car to beat. This made us wonder about the Mercury’s other performance characteristics, for fuel economy is generally a good yardstick for judging an engine’s efficiency. For this reason we arranged with the Public Relations Department of the Lincoln-Mercury plant in South Gate, California, for a road test of the new Mercury. Early one morning, Technical Assistant Wally Parks, Photographer Tom Medley, and I met at the Lincoln-Mercury plant. Here we obtained a 1950 maroon, four-door, Mercury sedan for test purposes. The car used was a company car with 1848 miles on the odometer, and had been driven by many different people in the short time that it rolled off the assembly line.…

SELDOM in the history of motor racing has the world seen anything to equal the prewar successes of the Mercedes and Auto-Union racing teams. With an interested government providing almost limitless financial support, and with the cream of Europe’s drivers, regardless of nationality, competing under the star of Mercedes and the circle of Auto-Union, the German motor industry deeply embossed itself into the pages of auto racing annals. With Hitler’s invasion of Poland in 1939, the international scope of Grand Prix racing faded. Europe was thrown into the net of World War 11. The Grand Prix was being run for keeps. The swastika of Nazidom no longer appeared in the pits of Donington or Spa. It became a symbol of war, emblazoned upon the hulls of tanks, the wings of…

ALMOST seven million vehicle registrations in eleven Western states account for the coming-to-life of a huge, close-knit automotive industrial empire on the Coast. This trend toward “recentralization” on a regional basis was amply demonstrated at the Second Annual Pacific Automotive Show in San Francisco, Feb. 16-19, where the West’s jobbing and service trades were invited to see the newest and best equipment that 303 firms had to offer. Primarily designed to be a meeting between the Nation’s biggest firms and the West’s most forward-looking automotive businessmen, there was, nevertheless, much to interest the motorist-in-the-street at the accessory and hand tool stands, although these accounted for just a fraction of the. four million dollars’ worth of equipment on display. Sparton scooped the air horn field with dual, all-electric, tankless, chrome-plated brass…

THEY CALL it “The Best Car in the World,” and it probably is, all counts considered. Still, it wasn’t the product of a large organization of college-trained engineers but, like the Bugatti, was the brainchild of a single man who had never seen the inside of a technical school. Somewhere along the line, probably at birth, Frederick Henry Royce developed an unyielding and fanatical passion for what engineers call “practical utility” which, on the highest level of engineering practice, translates as “perfection.” He used to say, and it was even carved on his mantel-piece, “Whatever is rightly done, no matter how humble, is noble.” As self-made as a man can get, Royce had no noticeable formal education and was selfsupporting at the age of seven. He was apprenticed to a…

CREATING quite a storm in and around Tulare, California, is the weird custom car owned and built by Manuel Avila of that city. Bearing some resemblance to the original Topper Car (December 1949, MOTER TREND), the car is basically a ‘40 Ford V-8. It uses a ‘40 V-8 frame, stock rear end and transmission. The powerplant is a stock ‘50 Mercury. The body is of special build, with the front and rear fenders having been made from airplane belly tanks. Extra ornamentation includes portholes, an Oldsmobile radiator ornament, twin air horns, and twin rear view mirrors. This car bears evidence to the fact that individuality—no matter in what form—is one of America’s proudest possessions.…

CONSISTENTLY rated as one of America’s finest automobiles, the Cadillac had its origin in 1903. The antique car pictured in this month’s column was produced during the company’s first year in business and is one of fifty “rear entrance tonneau” models produced that first year. Only three Cadillacs of this model and year are known to still be in existence. One is owned by Raymond C. Levis, Annapolis, Md.; another by Walter Marr, a vice president of General Motors and the third by William F. Fleming, Wycombe, Pa. The car shown here is that owned by Mr. Fleming. It was selected by the Antique Automobile Club of America for the 1948 championship trophy awarded to the year’s “finest restoration of an antique automobile.” Mr. Fleming did all of the mechanical…