Hi Gang…

This is the first time I’ve written about the nicely designed “Fibersport” sports car and I look forward to many new articles in the future.  A few of these “Illinois born and bred” cars have been found and at least one beautifully restored example has been seen recently at a show/race.

There’s lots to share about these fascinating fiberglass cars gang!!!  Let’s see how these cars were introduced back in February 1954 by Car Life Magazine.

Fibersport Sport Car
Car Life: February 1954

Although Bloomington, Illinois is noted primarily as an agricultural community, there is also an intense interest in sport car racing in that Midwest city.  That interest stems from Fibersport, Inc., a young aggressive company manufacturing a fiberglass sport car.

This unit was designed and developed by John C. Mays, a Bloomington garage owner, sport car enthusiast and driver.  Mays has been noted for his work with small displacement engines and has an outstanding reputation for speed turning on domestic and foreign sport cars.

The engine is a highly modified Crosley which is coupled with a Morris 4-speed transmission.  The car is driven through a stock Crosley rear axle.  With a wheelbase of 86 inches, tread is 43 inches and the speedster tips the scales at 1100 pounds.

Top speed, when fitted with the 900 cc (55 cubic inch) engine, is in excess of 100 mph with a 0-60 mph time of 11 seconds.  This car has been raced at Bergstrom Air Force Base, won a second place in the Maquoketa, Iowa hill climb and ran the Rantoul, Illinois road races.

An identical car, using a 750 cc (46 cubic inch) engine, won first place at Rantoul.  The fiberglass body is available as a separate unit, or the car may be purchased assembled and ready to run.  A complete car sells for between $2400 and $2850 depending on equipment and accessories.

The body to fit an 86 inch wheelbase is priced at $650 to $750 depending on how equipped.  The body is complete with doors, hood, and trunk mounted and floorboards, seats and body molded in one-piece.

Summary:

So we have another fiberglass sports car built in the Midwest.  We keep finding more and more of these types of cars (fiberglass sports cars built by small companies) being built in the Midwest and Northeast – even the Southeast as in our recent story on the “Shark.”

The more you “dig” into the history of fiberglass sports cars in America….the more you find intriguing and inspiring.  If you thought we hit “rock bottom” on this research gang….we didn’t.  Or if we did….we’ve kept “digging” with the help of each and every one of you.

Hope you enjoyed the story, and until next time…

Glass on gang…

Geoff
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