January, 1953

This will likely be my last post of 2014… and in honor of our new 1953 Calendar, I thought it might be appropriate to go back and look at the January, 1953 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. Most people that see the Crosley bodied competition sedan on the cover skip over this issue as frankly, it’s an awkward appearing car at first glance. And possibly, the second as well…

Of course, there’s no nose thumbing at the car’s performance. Running in both class B and class C, the car dominated the Bonneville Nationals in 1952 – setting a new class B record of 131.96 mph while running a destroked 217-inch Merc flathead. After some quick work in the pits, the 217-inch motor was then tossed aside in favor of a 295-inch job and a class B designation. With this motor, the car placed second in class with a speed of 149 mph. Unfortunately, the fellas ran out of time and never got the opportunity to run their S.CO.T. blown class D motor. One can only guess that further ass would have been hauled.

Anyway, all that speed came not only by motor but also by the akwardly shaped yet very slippery Crosley body. The car was jointly owned and built by Dick Hubbard and Al Palamides. I doubt they game many shits about it’s appearance – they were both accomplished racers that enjoyed success on the salt before and after this little car. But that’s neither here nor there. The real reason I featured this car today is that it features one of my all time favorite competition paint jobs.

Ignore the Crosley lines for a moment. Focus instead on the nose scallop that gracefully transitions into a single flame lick down each side of the car, is overlapped by the car’s number, and flanked by the car’s sponsors. It’s all done in black and white over a red base which, of course, is highlighted by the black wheels. I especially love the exhaust cutouts located just below the forward edge of the doors. The black pipes against white striping just does it for me. Whoever did this scheme knew graphic design. So much so that he was able to take a car that visually disturbs me and make it one that I think about quite often.

Anyway, there ya have it… See you guys next year. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Happy whatever else it is you celebrate. Just be happy, ok?

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