Art & Inspiration What Makes a Hotrod a 'Special'?

Alright, here's something I've been mulling over lately. I did some Google and H.A.M.B. searching, but I obviously didn't use the right combination of words to bring up a result.

Anyways, we have plenty of examples of both historical and modern hotrods being called a special. The Pacific Gunsight Special, The Sachem Special and the Dust Bowl Special are just three 'named specials' that I can think of off the top of my head.

So what makes a car a 'special'? What must it have, or not have? Can any hotrod be called a special, or are there defining characteristics?
(And no, I'm not looking for what makes a car special to you, nor am I hoping for a debate on whether the three above cars are actually 'specials' or not. Those were just for reference).

 

I think you're gonna find what you're not looking for---- that is that a "Special" is defined by what makes the car special to "you"--- You being the owner/customizer.

 

Is it just a generic term for not factory, one off, purpose built or is it a more specific term?

 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^That pretty much works for me^^^^^^^^^^^^

 

I don't know. You tell me! Let's take The Pacific Gunsight Special for example: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=27704 (just because there was a recent JJ feature on it), why is it a 'Special'?

 

maybe all hot rods are special ?

 

3 window Larry is special

 

you've been talking to my mother, ain'tcha

 

Alright, a little follow up on this. Since I don't subscribe to the "you're special, I'm special, we're all special" viewpoint, I'll quote what The Rodder's Journal has to say on specials. This comes from TRJ Number Sixty One, in their article "Duffy's Specialty".

"Road racing's objective was to show off the cornering, handling, and braking abilities of foreign imports such as Ferraris, Allards, and Porsches, leaving the straight-line racing to the Levi-clad. Rodder's took great exception to this and responded with "Specials" to take the import-lovers down a notch. What separated a Special from the average hot rod was the need for it to conform to a sports car club's regulations. Oftentimes, this meant the car had to be street-legal with its headlights/taillights, and so forth."

So, while by todays standards, most hot rods can be considered Specials, there was, at least at one point in time, a reason for the definition.

That satisfies my curiosity that spurred the initial post.

 

Well this one will be the Southern Employment Special. LOL





Anyone can hang special on the end of whatever they call their hot rod or race car. it usually has something to do in conjunction with a feature of the car or the cars history. For instance my old heap once belonged to an Employment agency called Southern Employment here in KC.

Now @Ned Ludd did a thread on specials and as I recall they were hand built so ports cars that were raced. But that I believe is a whole nuther discussion aside from what I am sellin right here.

 

Most of the Indy roadsters were called Sponsor's Name Special.

 

Also depends on what era you are looking at. From my readings, IIRC; since the 30's, maybe 20's, through at least the 70s', all Indy racers had to called "____ ------ Special". Usually the sponsers' name or company. A purpose-built car, for that one (type of) race. The board track & dirt track race cars - both one & two man - usually weren't labeled as such. Still, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that later, the road racers glommed onto that term, to differentiate their racers from other types at the time. I'm thinking that most hotrods, back then, or today, do not qualify as a "special". Due to no specific class to race in - while theoretically being 'street-legal'. Hot rods were primarily street cars w/race overtones, 'Specials' were primarily class-spec race cars w/street overtones.
FWIW.
Marcus...

 

I always thought "specials" were home built sports cars, which makes me think of roadsters with cut-down doors or popular mechanics style cut down sedans and stuff like that.

 

A set of keys and a sunny day.

 

My understanding is there are two kinds of 'special.'

One is an Indy or other oval race car...they all seemed to be called the 'XXXXX Special,' per sponsor's name as others have noted already.

The other kind is the English use. This is when a factory car is stripped to a rolling chassis and a new - usually sporty - body is built for it. These were/are used for both street and racing, often hillclimbs for example.

 

Since I have more cardboard boxes in the garage than I have parts to show for them I am considering naming mine the 1-800 Special.

 

It's a special because someone called it one. As others have pointed out, this comes from the race track originally.

I have seen old articles in do it yourself magazines where some guy built a little car for the kids and called it a "Joe Blow Special". There are no rules and nobody to enforce them.

 

Here's my coupe.
Cheers,
Stewart.

 

This is my roadster in progress.
Cheers,
Stewart.

 

My favorite special of all time.

 

The Timbs Special
http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?title=Norman_Timbs'_Buick_Special

 

What makes them "special" is you/we built them ourselves. I am butch/56sedandelivery.

 

Here's the thread Beaner referred to above: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/specials.720448/

The term had slightly different senses in the US and elsewhere, though I think there was some overlap and mutual influence. In the UK I believe a "special" was originally something which car clubs or competition sanctioning bodies couldn't quite classify as to manufacture. That is, something either built from a variety of parts or something modified radically. The sense is something like the "special mixes" local tobacconists once kept on record for regular customers, for instance: something personalized, heterogeneous, and unusual.

The US usage is most famous as applied to mid-20th-century Indy cars, but no obvious origin suggests itself. I suspect that it drew on the British usage.

 

If I happen to own it.... it's "Special" to me.

 

My take is that it's a custom-built, one-off car that, initially anyway, doesn't fit the rules. It is in a class of it's own - a special. It was probably built by someone handy who said, "Hey, I can do that! Or, "I bet I can learn to do that, too!" Or even, "I bet can do that better than you, Mr. Ferrari!" Unlike performance cars in established disciplines, with special tracks and rule books and all, by design or perhaps with a little ignorance, home-grown specials didn't get built to specific rules. Whether they were design exercises, shown in competition, or raced they were placed in special or unlimited classes until new classes were devised, or the cars were outlawed, or until their owners promoted a new series to support their kinds cars. Or... their owner's just drove them around enjoying the fruits of their labor and imagination. Gary

 

I should have worded the title of this thread different. Half of the posts are replying to the question "What makes a hotrod special?" and the other half are replying to the question "What makes a hotrod a 'Special'?

Either way, thanks to everyone's replies. Neat to learn the history and insight into words when applied to our little hotrod world.

 

I honestly believe using the terminology "special" over the years has been a conscious attempt of the owner/builder to call attention to their newest creations.

There are no rules or stipulations on how to build a hot rod or custom and anoint it with the word .

In recent years a fellow hamber, KIRK designed and built a unique car he named The Legion Special.

Hopefully KIRK will drop by and give us his thoughts on using the special connotation. HRP

 

Don't overthink it, Speedy. It's an old automotive term, and as happens to most terminology, it becomes twisted and redefined as needed via uninformed opinion.

 

"Bardahl Special" or "Highland Plating Special"....show casing their products and abilities.