Vintage shots from days gone by!

Lou Horwitz, president of Playboy Motor Car Corp., proudly shows off the 1947 Playboy at the Hotel Statler in February of 1947. This was the premier showing of the new car built in Buffalo. The car featured a rear engine and was a soft-top convertible.





Playboy cars being hand-built in the company's first factory at 988 Ellicott St., circa 1948. Lou Horwitz was the president of the company which built 97 cars in Buffalo from 1947 through 1949.

 

E. R. Thomas Company employees with Thomas Flyer cars, 1908. The test driver on the right is Clarence Buxton. Clarence was scheduled to drive in the 1908 New York to Paris race, but decided to stay home since his wife was expecting their first child.

 

The first attached photo looks to be Bill Holland and Novi owner Lew Welch with their wives; probably about 1950. Am I close, Rootie?

The second one is a great photo of Henry Banks in Lindsey Hopkins midget, again probably around 1950. This was a pretty famous car in its day and still exists. Former race driver Chris Cumberworth's father owned this car starting sometime in the 1960s and I believe the family still has it.

Rootie, the third photo appears to be Denny Moore building the Zink dirt car whose photo you posted yesterday. I noticed the extra tall looking roll bar which might have been for big Troy Ruttman although I don't know that. Jack Zink was an early proponent of roll bars and tried to the get the new USAC club to make them mandatory as early as late 1955 at one of the formation meetings. He was reportedly shouted down by the drivers present who didn't want to make racing "so safe that anyone could do it". Roll bars finally became mandatory starting in 1959.

 

From Bangkok Dean

 

Norm Grabowski bucket ???

 

Tommy Ivo .....

 

HRM's Nov. ’61 Nationals Coverage Revealed That After Pete Robinson (far Lane) Defeated McEwen & Adams For Sunday's AADragster Trophy



FE Power



FE power

 

62 Buicks




62 Catalina




62 Eldorado convert




62 Monterey Custom



62 Pontiac Catalinas

 

Ivo

 

60 Continental



60 Impala



61 Caddy



61 Chrysler



61 wagon



62 Skylark

 

Drakes Store was a landmark in the rural country side here in Anderson,South Carolina for nearly 50 years,George is gone but the building still stands. HRP

 

Ha! As a kid, would you buy a Dilly Bar from this man?

 

N. Vancouver Ave., Portland, OR 1963

 

IndyRJC, Ruttman did drive that car, third at Trenton April 1961. Looks like the Henry Banks picture is at Langhorne.

 

Is there Tempest drivetrain behind that Catalina? Slant 4 engine +clutch and "rope" driveshaft.....

 

Mis-informed!
A [wrapped] 3v560 belt on factory [unbent] pulleys adjusted just tight enough to be able to turn the alternator pulley/fan with your finger is the trick on a street engine! On my Auto-x/Track car [ in my Avatar], my rev limiter is set at 7500. Perfect pulleys and same tension and silicone spray allow the belt to slip some . Belt stays on 50% of time after a run. Usually what happens is the belt stretches and flips over which ruins it and will come off very soon! I always count on replacing belts at events!
FYI: It takes 18 Horsepower to operate the [stock ] fan at max efficiency, which is at about 4800 rpm!
A dedicated Corvair race engine will most likely have a Verticle fan set up that only really works at high rpms. Electric fans have not been proven to work well enough [yet?] to be common.

 

Good eye it sure looks like it

 

Not up on Pontiacs but is that chassis/drivetrain behind the Catalina for a 326/stick Tempest?
Thought those came out in 63.
Edit
In the middle of researching this, my tablet locked up and when it came back you Pontiac guys already had it covered.
Note to self:
Buy new tablet.

 

This would be a cool motorhome conversion...

 

The Fuzz! HRP

 

More police & Highway patrol. HRP

 

And a few '54 Fords that met a tragic end. HRP

 

Linda is looking a little "butch" in the background.

 

Holiday Traffic on Euclid Avenue & Huron Road. Cleveland, Ohio. December 1949