Voodoo Magic: Jerry Gardner's Voodoo Special

61 Stimson continued: “ The American hot rods have been called sports cars and some of them do approach that classification. Most of them, however, are designed primarily for racing wide open against time on a straight and level course. Usually, their engines are highly stressed and are tuned for peak efficiency at maximum revolutions per minute. They are inefficient at ordinary road speeds. Too, most of the hot rods steer and corner very poorly by sports car standards. In competition with true sports cars, the hot rods usually turn over or spin off the course if the driver is heavy footed; if he drives more conservatively, he falls way behind the leaders. ” “ What the American sports car designers are achieving is a new idea in automobiles. They are combining the sure - footedness of the typical European car with the roomier body and good seating capacity of American cars. Most of the American - built sports cars are roadsters or convertible coupes, the convertibles having a hard or soft top that may be completely removed. A short wheelbase of 100 inches or a little more is preferred even though the body itself is much longer. The motor must have plenty of power. Steering and suspension are especially important and the car must be stable at all times. ” Stimson also described several early American postwar sports cars including: • 1948 Kurtis - Omohundro Comet designed by Frank Kurtis and Paul Omohundro and coachbuilt by the Comet Company in Bellflower, California (this was the second of two cars built by Omohundro – the first one is shown at the beginning of this article). • 1948 Timbs Streamliner designed by Norman Timbs and coachbuilt by Deidt and Levosky • 1949 Kurtis Sports Cars – designed and built by Frank Kurtis and his Kurtis - Kraft company of Los Angeles, California • 1949 Edwards R - 26 designed by Sterling Edwards and coachbuilt by Diedt & Lesovsky of Culver City, California Handcrafted American Sports Cars American sports cars, desired by enthusiasts, didn ’ t exist until enterprising young men and small companies built them. Though original in design, many were influenced by European styling. The chassis and drivetrains were almost always American, which were inexpensive and easily found. Glasspar, Wildfire, Victress, Meteor, Allied, and Vale were among the first on the market, becoming central – not peripheral – to the automotive public. Magazines featured these cars as mainstream interest pieces for their readership. Article Continued on Next Page