Gassers...What Made Racing Great

by Andrea L. Algar
Motorheads Performance

When I got into cars with my husband Guy, I had no idea what the term "Gasser" meant, but I knew it was important in drag racing history, so I knew I had better learn since I was being groomed to live in the world of classic cars, muscle cars and cars that run on the street and on the drag strip!

First, let me say that "Gasser" is more a "style". It does not define a specific car, manufacturer, or a rigid setup. In many ways, it is a "culture"... and one that I predict is making a comeback in huge ways. In order to understand the culture, you have to dig much deeper than just how they evolved, the look they are famous for, or the contributions to our current sport of drag racing. It was a way of life that encouraged individuality, sportsmanship, camaraderie.....and FUN!

Some love the look of a Gasser, others do not...likening them to cartoons, but one thing you walk away with once you understand what they are and how they came to be, is that they are deserving of the special place they hold in automotive history. I like to think of them as pre-cursers to the muscle cars, for without the innovations the hot rodders made, we wouldn't have had them. Do I love Gassers?......You bet I do!

Over the years, I've learned that the term "Gasser" was created in the late 1950's -1960's for a vehicle that drag raced on gasoline rather than racing fuel. They were built to compete in "heads up" drag racing. Gassers were at their height from 1955-1968 when they dominated drag strips across the country. It can safely be said that Gassers were responsible for the successful launch of the NHRA. In fact, Gassers and Fuel Altered cars were the top drag racing classes prior to today's Top Fuel Dragsters, Funny Cars, and Pro Stock classes.

Gassers were often built, maintained and raced by the owner, or with a small "crew" of buddies. Professional "teams" did not exist at the time...they developed as the sport grew in popularity. As Gassers developed, racers made modifications to the suspension and wheelbase of their preferred car in order to go for a competitive edge. Some worked - others did not.

The best known modification is the straight-axle front suspension, which in today's "Gasser" world, is a necessity. Not only did the straight-axle create an intimidating stance, it served an important function of transferring weight to the rear wheels, giving the driver a big start line advantage. This is one reason why you'll see the "nose-up" stance which also helps to transfer weight to the rear "drive" wheels.

Most Gassers are based on production models from the ‘30s through the ‘60s that have been stripped of extra weight, modified with a solid front axle and “jacked up” with suspension modifications. Cars with shorter wheelbases are preferable due to lower overall weights. Other modifications were weight-reduction techniques including fiberglass body panels, stripped interiors, bumper removal and Plexiglas windows. Built for racing, Gassers are often subject to an engine swap and it’s common to include fuel injection and performance headers. These changes translate to faster speeds and lower elapsed times at the drags.

But, these modifications are not just thrown-together by shade-tree mechanics! There is science behind the choices, and they've been time-tested by the daring guys that jumped behind the wheel and raced them. And, there are rules you adhere to when creating a Gasser. Big meaty tires in the rear, smaller tires in the front, yes, but true Gassers adhere to a formula perfected by the pioneers, and it's one that is not often deviated from. Those who make them know, for example, that there are only 5 wheels you can put on the front of a Gasser!

Certain brands of cars were well-suited to being modified into Gassers. Most popular were the Willys, Anglia, Henry J, Austin, Studebaker, Thames and of course, Chevrolet and Ford. So what specific model cars are chosen for Gassers?  Although just about any car could be made into a Gasser style, the ones that were selected have remained the most sought after by those who covet them. Probably the best-known, most-popular, most-desired (and thereby most-expensive) is the Willys.

Willys vehicles dominate the "most-desired" list and have cars from two distinct eras, with the '41 Willys topping the list. The '41-'42 Willys were officially called the Willys Americar. Willys-Overland produced this style from '37 to '42, long before the company later became known as Jeep. The '40 Willys runs a close second with their distinctive two-piece grill assembly and slightly different trim design. The '33 Willys Model 77 Coupe is #3 on the list. Back in the day, $395 bought you a vehicle that now sells for $90k or more in original steel.

Other popular Gassers include the '55 Chevy Gasser, which many have dubbed as the "coolest" of all the Gassers. Chevy conversions were popular in large part because of the great monster stock engines that Chevy created. They were easy to work on, parts were affordable and plentiful, and they were customizable. Add a solid front axle, fiberglass front end, fenderwell headers, radiused wheel wells, slicks....you've got yourself a Gasser! It's no wonder why the '55 Gasser got starring roles in classic 50's movies such as American Graffiti, Two Lane Blacktop, and a lesser-known Sometimes They Come Back.

While we're talking Chevy, we can't forget the '55 Nomad. Popular as a stock street car, it is also a very popular car for gassers, making #7 in the top ten list. Other Chevys include the '57 Corvette (yes, a Corvette Gasser), which was a popular choice for those who could afford it. These C1 Vettes were popular because they came straight from the factory being able to do the 1/4 mile in an amazing 14.3 seconds! The '49 Chevy was another popular choice that produced monster Gassers.

Although Willys and Chevys seem to dominate, there were a few other models that stand on their own in the world of Gassers. 1955 was a popular year for Gassers, and Ford was not to be left out with it's contribution of the '55 Thunderbird, a car developed by Ford to compete head-on with the Corvette. In '55 they actually outsold Corvette 26:1 and made them a popular choice for Gassers.

A late-comer to the Gasser group was the '48 Anglia, a car manufactured by Ford in the U.K. This little car was once tauted as the "cheapest car in the world" because of their sparse features. Their lightweight body and short wheelbase made these little rockets popular in the 60's after the NHRA made a rule-change which allowed the shorter wheelbase.

And finally, another late-comer to the group of most-popular Gassers was the '51 Henry J, a car developed by the Kaiser-Frazer Corp. Their distinctive front-end certainly draws attention, but what caught the eye of the racers was the fact that they were 18" shorter than the average 50's car, and made great Gassers!

Over the years, many of these cars have been turned into formidable racing machines on the strip and street. Although they had lost their presence in current drag race classes, they can still be seen in nostalgia drag races across the country, and we're seeing a rise in popularity as many re-discover the Great Gassers!

RESOURCES FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Hot Rod Magazine - Gasser Heaven
Wikipedia - Gasser (car)
YouTube VIDEO - 2012 Gasser Reunion / Nostalgia Drag Racing Videos

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Andrea L. Algar is co-owner of a classic car performance and restoration design shop in Leesville, Texas. Motorheads Performance specializes in repairs, maintenance, performance upgrades and restorative work on cars and trucks from the 1930's through 1970's. Her husband Guy L. Algar is a Mechanical Engineer with over 25 years experience. He holds 5 ASE Certifications from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence and has been working on old cars and trucks for over 37 years. Together they share their passion for old cars and trucks with other enthusiasts from around the country.

Ice Cream Automobiles - Remembering "Pop"

by Andrea L. Algar

This week we lost “Pop” but rather than be saddened I feel joy in remembering his life of almost 82 years and our "ice cream automobiles"!

My dad lost his rather short battle with a very aggressive brain tumor November 19th. While his passing happened in the most peaceful non-suffering way, which is a blessing, it stirred up a lot of memories as I looked for comfort in the last weeks and again as I reviewed his obituary. I’m inspired by my husband Guy, but my dad helped make the work I do with classic cars and muscle cars possible.

"Pop" as a boy next to the family car

I’m convinced that my memory of “how one chooses a great car” was quite different than that of most kids. For as long as I can remember, I recall my dad (referred to as “Pop” ever since my oldest daughter renamed him when she learned to talk) saying that the car had to: 1) know it’s way to the ice cream shop, 2) have head room, and 3) be big enough for all of us on the long car trips our family often took.

As a matter-of-fact, when I was a little girl, I actually believed that our car “knew the way to the Dairy Queen all by itself!” That’s what our dad said every time we were on our way to get a big cone, shake, or a hot fudge sundae. He would even raise his hands in the “look no hands” style, secretly steering with his knee, exclaiming, “Look, it’s taking us for ice cream!” much to the excitement of us all! Sometimes he’d pretend to “fight” with the car to try to keep it from taking us there, with us squealing and begging him to let it drive there. On long road trips, our cars all magically found old ice cream stands in the middle of nowhere so it was easy to believe that he was telling the truth!

Looking back over all the cars we had owned, they were always ranked as to how well they transported us to the local ice cream shop, Dairy Queen, or any (and all) ice cream stands along the road.  Top dog was “The Flying Rabbit”, a 1960's big white Olds 98 that was one of his two favorite cars. Second was “Molly”, the trusty and reliable white 1955 Chevy station wagon that transported all us kids throughout our early years. 

The car with the most notorious history (and almost equally adept at getting us to an ice cream store even though we were teenagers by then) was the green 1972 Lincoln Continental that was stolen and used in a Kenmore Square bank robbery in 1975! (Yeah, I know, not much of a collector car, but he did love the room in that one.) Never could get the red dye out of the rear seat so he reluctantly sold the car because you couldn’t drive in it without your eyes tearing, even after many attempts at professional cleaning. I don’t know what they used in the red dye in those days, but it was certainly potent!

My idea of an ideal car has always varied from my dads. He was one who loved the cars that I didn’t, but that didn’t stop us from talking about them and having fun debates. He was a fan of the Fords and the square-bodied cars of the early 1960’s – ones I enjoyed calling “ugly” just to get him riled up. Being 6’5” tall, he valued cars that had a bit of head room and a large roomy interior, so he was a happy camper during the 1950’s when headroom was never an issue, and through the 1960’s and 1970’s when big cars were easy to find and just kept getting bigger and bigger. 

I, however, had a taste for something quite different. Being 10-11 years old at the time, I remember being fascinated with the 1968 and 1969 cars. Didn’t really matter what they were – Mopar, Chevy, Pontiac and yeah, sometimes the Ford Mustang – there was just something about the sexy lines of the cars that made me love them. My favorites at the time were the Firebird and the Corvette Stingray. I couldn’t put one above the other though – I loved them both even though I was far too young for driving.

My dad, at the time, talked of putting together a Cobra kit car. He had bought every book and read every car magazine on the subject, and he felt it would be a fun thing to do because you were doing all the work yourself. There is truth in the saying that it’s one thing to drive it, another to drive something you’ve built yourself.

My dad was an inspiration to me. At times when I did not conform to the “girlie” things that most little girls did, he encouraged me and liked my enthusiasm. When I was about 4-5 years old I insisted that the only thing in the world I wanted for Christmas was a set of pearl handled guns (with holster of course) so I could be a cowboy, or the time when I was about 8 and wanted to build a go-cart, which he happily helped me plan out using old parts from all sorts of odds and ends I thought would do the job. These helped set the stage for feeling comfortable doing the unconventional. While I’ve always done the “girlie” things like being a part-time modeling instructor at just 16, I’ve always preferred simple, creative things that are much more satisfying - photography, horses, gardening...and now old cars.

Pop also opened my eyes to Guy, who was a friend I felt an unusual kinship to. We shared so many things in common and could have placed ourselves in each other’s home as a kid and thought we were still in our own. While I had always liked driving cars, Guy opened my eyes to the enjoyment of them. Working on them with him taught me how satisfying it was to “wrench”. Watching and feeling the passion he felt about the old cars was like flipping a light switch – I had a sudden understanding of what men see in their cars, (you know the things we women giggle or roll our eyes over) and I must admit, I’m hooked!

My ’73 Corvette Stingray is a testament to this, and to my constant love for my two favorite cars. I am finally knee deep in my own ambitious restoration that I am completing myself  - with guidance and welding from Guy when I need it, along with some enthusiastic help from our daughter who restored her own 1985 Jeep CJ7 - complete with it's bubble-gum pink engine!

Pop has supported our work with classic cars and muscle cars, and was always thoroughly impressed with Guy’s immense knowledge of them. Pop had a lot of knowledge he had obtained from reading just about everything, but not so much hands-on experience. His experience went about as far as planning the build that never materialized due to work, kids, bills, etc. – you know, the kind of things everyone who has ever owned a classic car or muscle car has had to deal with at some point!  Some decide to stick it out and stubbornly hold onto their dream, others let the dream slide by, and some get a start with something only to let it go at the wife’s urging or insistence (more on that in another article)! But Pop always loved hearing about the projects we had both in our shop and those of our own.

I’ll dearly miss our “Pop” – my dad – but he will continue to inspire us in the work we do at Motorheads Performance.

Tim Allen Shares A Ride In His 1968 COPO Camaro with Jay Leno

by Andrea L. Algar

Any serious motorheads knows that both Jay Leno and comedian Tim Allen are both classic car enthusiasts. Did I really say "enthusiasts"? Many might call them "classic car nuts", but they certainly qualify for the "real car guys" category.

Just have to share a video that just appeared on YouTube that shows the two taking a cruise in Allen's 1968 Camaro - a 427 COPO Camaro to be exact! What a nice ride. One of my favorites.

It's always nice to appreciate a classic car that is enjoyed being driven. Too many just don't take the time to get out on the road to truly enjoy their classic car or muscle car for what it was made for...being on the road. Nothing wrong with an occasional trailer ride to a show, but even a show car deserves to get on the road to breathe a little!

Hope you enjoy the video.  More than one person has commented on Allen's expression when doing the burnout....what do you think?  Scared or just hamming it up? 

RESOURCE

YouTube - Tim Allen's 1968 Camaro 427 COPO - Jay Leno's Garage

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andrea L. Algar is co-owner of a classic car performance and restoration design shop in Leesville, Texas. Motorheads Performance specializes in repairs, maintenance, performance upgrades and restorative work on cars and trucks from the 1920's through 1970's. Her husband Guy L. Algar is a Mechanical Engineer with over 25 years experience. He holds 5 ASE Certifications from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence and has been working on old cars and trucks for over 37 years. Together they share their passion with other enthusiasts from around the country.

It's Official - Z28 Camaro IS Making A Comeback!

by Andrea L. Algar
Motorheads Performance

I've reported on the rumors in the past, but it's now been made official! Yes, the legendary Z28 IS making it's comeback, and I have no doubt it's going to be extremely popular.

Photo Credit: Reuters

Camaro is already reveling in the success of the new line of Camaro muscle cars introduced several years ago. It captured the muscle car market with the great looks and performance that motorheads around the country have come to expect.

In many ways, the current line of Camaros have lived up to all of the expectations associated with the name "Camaro", while in the background, the real enthusiasts have been crying out (loudly) for the return of the Z28.

The new Camaro Z28 is designed for the racetrack and is build for speed, handling and great looks. It has been reported that it will be faster and almost 1000 pounds lighter than a standard Camaro. The power-house V8 engine is the same used by the Corvette. More on the specs later.

The 2014 Camaro Z28 was unveiled and on display at the New York International Auto Show held on March 27, 2013 in New York. And the world of muscle car enthusiasts is a buzz! We'll report on all the details of this iconic car. Until then, you can bet that a whole new generation of teenage boys will be dreaming about this car and the legend of the Z28.

REFERENCE:
Classic Car News - GM to Re-Introduce the Legendary Z28 Camaro?

CamaroZ28.com - Chevrolet COPO Camaro Goes from Concept to Production
Chevy High Performance - Camaro Z28 Concept

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andrea L. Algar is co-owner of a classic car performance and restoration design shop in Leesville, Texas. Motorheads Performance specializes in repairs, maintenance, performance upgrades and restorative work on cars and trucks from the 1920’s through 1970’s. Her husband Guy L. Algar is a Mechanical Engineer with over 25 years experience. He holds 5 ASE Certifications from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence and has been working on old cars and trucks for over 37 years. Together they share their passion for old cars and trucks with other enthusiasts from around the country.

New Feature Makes It Easier to Find Articles of Interest

by Andrea L. Algar
Motorheads Performance

We want this electronic newsletter (blog) to work for you. We've just added a new feature we hope you'll find useful in finding the information that is important to you.

Past articles are archived by month/year so that finding an article you might want to read might be easily be missed, or take a long time going through each and every month!  We've got a new solution we think you're going to like. In the "Pages" section of the right sidebar you'll see a new page entitled "Articles By Category". This new page keeps a list of all our articles organized neatly by categories such as Informational & How To, Industry News, Lists & Resources, Old Car Pics, Events, General, and Motorheads Performance. And, the lists of articles are alphabetical, making them easy to scan through.

You also have the option of searching by keywords such as "classic car", "motor mounts", "muscle car", or even "1968 Pontiac GTO"! If we've used the words in an article, it will give you the results at the top of whatever page you're on (like the screen shot below demonstrates):

 Again, we hope you like the new look of Classic Car News, and the improvements we've made so your experience here is better than ever. Guy and I look forward to providing articles that will help you enjoy your love for classic cars!  Thanks for helping to make our newsletter a success. We couldn't do it without your support, involvement, and sharing us with others.

Andrea & Guy Algar

Motorheads Performance