Car Guy Magazine 215

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ISSUE 215

AMERICAN DRIVER Corky Coker WACKY 1953 Aston Martin Bertone

AMERICAN DRIVES Colonial Parkway

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CONTENTS 215 Car Guy Magazine

04 Publishers Note 06 Masthead 08 AMERICAN DRIVER Corky Coker 18 WACKY 1953 Aston Martin Bertone 28 2015 Porsche Cayman GT4 32 AMERICAN DRIVES Colonial Parkway 40 2015 Dodge Challenger Scat Pack 42 2015 Volvo V60 TS R AWD Wagon 46 2016 Ford Focus RS AWD 50 BEHIND THE SCENES 08 54 HOT PICK 1973 Ford Bronco 60 LISTED on Ebay 74 DRIVER Doug Bielefeld 76 NORRA Mexican 1000 Rally

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ith a name like Corky Coker you might have only a few career choices available to you. Perhaps as a route driver delivering soft drink products for Coca Cola, or a street businessman in Miami providing white powdered party favors, or a confectionery store owner selling assortments of chocolates some with nuts others not, or a personal injury lawyer in Houston driving a new Bentley with 29” wheels, or a wine sommelier at an upscale restaurant dispensing various grape vintage factoids or even a slick haired bartender at a college hangout working the young and beautiful crowd who likes to party. But none of that happened. Corky decided to follow in his dad’s, Mr. Coker to you, footsteps manufacturing vintage tires from rubber trees. Not to mention to being the very best at it, in fact Corky rocks the classic car world. Not only does he supply the tires for thousands of no longer manufactured motor vehicles but he participates in the hobby in a very big way. He’s the real deal and a great guy to boot. We revisit with Corky from the paper pages of my former American Driver magazine to the digital on-sceen pages of Car Guy Magazine you see here.

You’ve already read the Table of Contents and have a good idea where you want to go from here, so I’ll let you “have at it” like my own dad use to say. In which I would promptly fall off of something, run into something and/or even blow something up.

So there ya go, enjoy your 80 plus pages of electronic joy including videos and live weblinks!

Sincerely, Tim Miller tim@carguymagazine.com

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the publisher’s note

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PROUDLY CREATED IN THE GRAND OLD U.S.A. View FREE digital editions on your smartphone, tablet and computer at www.carguymagazine.com. All advertising is subject to publisher approval before acceptance. Car Guy Magazine reserves the right to refuse any ad for any reason. Advertiser’s warrant and represent that the descriptions of the products and services advertised are true in all respects. Car Guy Magazine assumes no responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Car Guy Magazine, Madwest Media, LLC, its officers, directors, employees and agents make no recommendations as to the purchase or sale of any product, service, or other items. All views expressed in all articles are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Car Guy Magazine. Car Guy Magazine™ , The Car Guy Show™ and A Kick in the Asphalt™ are trademarks of Madwest Media, LLC. Copyright ©2014 All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital copying and distributing, in whole

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Few automotive enthusiasts can forget the stir that the GM Parade of Progress Futureliner truck made when it crossed the auction block a number of years ago. But that brightly painted, extra large rolling museum wouldn’t have been quite the hit it was had it not been for Corky Coker.

When the restorers of the Futureliner realized that they needed to find rubber shoes for the behemoth, Chattanooga, Tennessee-based Coker Tire was the obvious choice. The tires used on the Futureliner had to be custom-made – like nearly everything else about the extraordinarily rare vehicle – and nobody has the expertise in antique car rubber that Corky Coker and Coker Tire has.

Known as the Indiana Jones of the automotive aftermarket, Joseph “Corky” Coker travels the world seeking out vintage tire molds and spreading the gospel of the collector car hobby.

Coker was able to deliver impossibly large 10:00-20 Wide Whitewall USRoyal GM Parade of Progress tires for the GM Futurliner truck.

Since this extremely rare vehicle is 33 feet long, eight feet wide, nearly 12 feet tall, and sits on an astounding 248-foot wheelbase, Coker Tire was the only company with the ability to create period-correct wide whitewalls for this massive and historic vehicle.

Coker didn’t gain his reputation and expertise overnight, of course.

After taking the reigns of the antique tire division of his father’s Chattanooga B.F. Goodrich tire dealership in 1974, the young Coker quickly recognized a growing demand from collectors for vintage tires that were no longer commercially available. Since the early 1970s, Coker Tire has uncovered original tire molds and reproduced new ones to provide a large array of specialty tires for most antique and collector cars.

In less than three decades, Coker turned a small division of his family tire dealership into the world’s largest supplier of collector vehicle tires for automobiles, trucks and motorcycles.

With the antique tire division originally operating out of a 500 square foot space in the back of a retail tire store, Coker’s vintage tire business has come a long way in the past 33 years. Today, the collector tire business accounts for 95 percent of Coker’s business and the com-

Left: Nobody has helped keep the vintage auto industry rolling like Corky Coker.

This page: Coker’s classic car passion extends beyond work into his private collection.

pany’s headquarters alone occupies over 100,000 square feet of space in Chattanooga. Although he didn’t recognize it in 1974, Coker’s passion for his hobby and the preservation of historic automobiles would go on to literally change the face of the automotive aftermarket industry.

In addition to his successful business, Coker is a supporter of the collector car hobby and frequently speaks on behalf of car collectors, as well as working with lobbies in Washington, D.C., against “clunker” bills and other anti-collector car legislation. As one of the most active executives in the automotive aftermarket industry, Coker was one of the founders of the Automobile Restoration Market Organization (ARMO), a council of the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA).

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Coker likes to take his 1909 Lozier Great Race competitor out for a spin occasionally. Naturally, it rides on Coker tires.

After serving numerous years on the SEMA Board of Directors, Coker assumed the chairmanship of SEMA in 2003, making him the first chairman to come from the Restoration/Street Rod segment of the automotive aftermarket. In 1999, Coker was named to the ARMO Hall of Fame because of his work as a founding member and former chairman of the organization.

Coker, whose life-long nickname, “Corky,� comes from a character of the newspaper comic strip Gasoline Alley, was born into the collector car hobby. His father, Harold, started the Coker Tire Company in 1958. Having collected and restored cars for many years, Harold began to see the need for specialty tires through his interaction with fellow collectors. But his vision presented an obvious challenge: Would the car collecting and auto restoration hobby grow enough to support this niche antique tire business now and in the future?

Working in the early years with his father, Coker set out to revitalize the vintage tire trade at a time when the industry was only in its infancy. Coker’s initial job was to find suppliers of antique tires or reproduce tires that were no longer being manufactured. Then he needed to determine which sizes would be most popular and how to market, sell and distribute them.

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Coker also faced the difficult task of increasing his offerings and brands, developing a customer base, and designing a marketing program that would evolve most efficiently with this type of business.

“I never looked at adversity as an obstacle. It was merely a hurdle that needed to be overcome,” he says.

To overcome the challenge of reproducing antique tires, Coker determined that he would be his own source of vintage treads. He began to scour the world for vintage tire molds from original manufacturers. To acquire these antiquated yet valuable molds, Coker traveled to old factories throughout the world. When the original molds were lost, Coker was able to reproduce new molds from original drawings.

Not wishing to secure the capital necessary to open a manufacturing facility himself, he negotiated contract production in Pennsylvania and Ohio for domestic supply.

As the collector car hobby boomed in the 1980s, so did Coker’s business. Managing rapid growth of the company became Coker’s primary objective.

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Coker brokered deals with major tire producers that secured Coker Tire the worldwide licensing agreements and exclusive distributorships for big-name vintage brands, including B.F. Goodrich, Firestone, Michelin and U.S. Royal. In addition to tires, Coker saw a need for the company to create another division to sell tire related accessories and collectible automobilia. This division markets a variety of diverse products from tire and whitewall cleaners to officially licensed Michelin memorabilia. Another division, Coker Classic Cycles, markets vintage-style Monster Cruiser bicycles and Big One unicycle, a unique 36” unicycle with a world-wide following.

To grow his customer base, Coker initially went straight to his customers. Coker and just one employee would load a small van with tires and work endless weekends of car shows across the country. To save money, the Coker Tire team would sleep in the back of the van. Today, Coker Tire attends over 60 shows a year and utilizes a fleet of tractor-trailers. The crew’s sleeping accommodations have improved, too.

With more than 70 collector cars and 50 vintage motorcycles in his personal collection, Coker is now widely regarded as an expert on collecting and restoring antique automobiles and motorcycles.

With his son Cameron, Coker recently participated in the 2003 Great Race in a 1909 Lozier, the oldest vehicle competing in the annual 2,000-mile cross-country rally. The tires on the Lozier? They came right out of Coker Tire’s warehouse.

A life long collector, Coker holds memberships in numerous collector clubs including the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA), Horseless Carriage Club of America, Antique Motorcycle Club of America, Cushman Club of America, and the Antique Truck Historical Society. In 2006, Keith Martin’s Sports Car Market named Coker as one of the top 50 automobile collectors in North America.

Every year Coker participates in various car shows, cruises, rallies, swap meets and other automotive events. Along with his participation and sponsorship of the Great Race, Coker also hosts the annual Coker Tire Challenge regional timed endurance rally.

Coker’s classic car passion extends beyond work into his private collection.

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Right: Coker’s Chattanooga, Tennessee, facility produces a wide variety of classic tires.

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“The Great Race and Coker Tire Challenge are both fun ways for collectors to drive and showcase their prized vehicles in an exciting and family friendly manner,” Coker says.

Coker Tire is regularly involved in creating one-off tires for authentic restorations of extremely rare vehicles. This service is offered to collectors and organizations who need authentic tires that match hard-to-find vintage automobiles. Recently, Coker reproduced oneof-a-kind all-white tires for a 1919 Pierce-Arrow Model that was originally custom made for silent movie star Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle. The 2007 Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance awarded the Pierce-Arrow by awarding the pristine restoration with first place in the class B (Vintage 1916-1924) category.

“Thanks to our sparkling white tires, the ’Fatty‘Arbuckle PierceArrow could be seen for miles at Pebble Beach,” Coker says.

Because of its expertise in the vintage tire industry, Coker Tire has made appearances in various television programs and films. The company’s products were featured in Tim Allen’s fictional garage on Home Improvement, as well as in several major motion pictures, including Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Driving Miss Daisy, Ghostbusters, The Green Mile and many others. Coker Tire personnel also helped design some of the period tire shop storefronts seen in both Roger Rabbit as well as the film Miller’s Crossing.

In 2003, Coker Tire was approached by Law & Order: Criminal Intent to assist with the authentication of a plot. In the episode, the show’s detectives used the classic vehicle tread marks on a garage floor to determine what type of cars had been purchased.

“NBC sought us out for our classic tire expertise,” says Coker.

“We provided them with a selection of classic tires with a variety of unique tread designs, some photos of tires tracks and a supply of our tire catalogs to validate the show’s premise.”

Coker also re-kindled the Honest Charley Speed Shop with business partner “Honest” Mike Goodman. Honest Charley, originally founded in 1948, is widely known to be the world’s first mail order speed shop.

Many see Coker as a true savior to the collector car market; if not for his passion for preservation and restoration, so many collector cars would go without proper and authentic tires. His diligent, determined passion helps keep the hobby rolling.

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It isn’t perfect. For a few moments, the engine struggles to catch. Starter grinds are drawn out, though the mechanized whines ring determined.

But what follows the wait has a high net worth.

This is a distinctive machine; a custom Aston Martin Bertone with no peer-year 1953. It fires with an abrupt cough, and after a couple of sputtering grunts, settles into a low, sexy rumble you can feel all the way through to your ribs. The resonance is throaty. In the engine compartment the cams clatter with clean precision. That’s where the highly polished plaque is; the one that sets this car apart from all other Aston one-offs. It reads: Presented to Charles A. Ward, president and general sales manager, Brown & Bigalow, with sincerest appreciation from your 60 sales managers, Christmas 1953.

Below the names of the sixty sales managers from forty-eight states are etched into the polished metal. These managers, from the Minneapolisbased greeting card and calendar firm where Ward was chief, paid $6,800 for this Christmas present.

That’s $52,337.08 in today’s dollars, according to the Federal Reserve; a bargain when you consider the current entry level Ford-era Aston, the V8 Vantage, will consume more than 100,000 of today’s dollars.

And this is a far more distinctive piece of machinery. Ward’s monogram is embedded in the steering wheel hub. A commission plaque is affixed to the dash. Included with the car was a personalized tool kit in a custom-crafted wooden case. The car was fitted with just three seats, with the fourth behind the driver’s seat surrendering to a custom-made picnic hamper complete with a bar and glassware. Ward was a lover of picnics.

According to automobile collector Gene Ponder, Charles Ward owned the car for exactly one year. “Well that’s the sad part now,” Ponder says with some exasperation. “They gave it to him Christmas of ’53 and he sold it the next year. I mean, your employees go and give you something like this and it means no more to you than to sell it the next year?”

WORDS MARK STUERTZ PHOTOS GLENN ZANOTTI

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ART OF THE WHEEL Ponder refers to this Aston as a work of art; a magnificent automobile. But then, he refers to most pieces his sixty-one car collection as art forms. He searched years for this Aston after first eyeing it at a California auction in the late 1980s, where it was snapped up by a wealthy Japanese businessman.

He finally located it again in 2000 in a garage in Missouri. It was tattered. The metallic blue paint was tired and fading. The red leather interior was worn. The engine didn’t fire. Ponder says he reluctantly paid something north of $300,000 for the machine.

Not a stiff price when you consider its breeding. Stanley H. “Wacky” Arnolt, a Chicago entrepreneur who made a fortune securing the manufacturing rights to the Waukesha Sea-Mite marine engine in the late 1930s, commissioned this Aston Martin. The flathead four was used as auxiliary power for sailing yachts and, with the onset of World War II, Arnolt recognized the engine’s potential to drive the lifeboats that would accompany troop transports. Hence, he grew wealthy satisfying rich defense contracts.

Arnolt used his fortune to nurse a passion for European mechanicals and coachwork, and in 1950 he opened a dealership showcasing Bentley, Bristol, MG, Austin and Aston Martin. His automotive passions drew him to the Turin auto show in 1952, where he forged a relationship with Nuccio Bertone, heir to the struggling Italian coach builder founded in 1912 by his father Giovanni. By the time Nuccio shook hands with Arnolt, Bertone had been faltering after achieving marked success through the 1930s.

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These managers, from the Minneapolis-based greeting card and calendar firm where Ward was chief, paid $6,800 for this Christmas present.

That’s $52,337.08 in today’s dollars...

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Arnolt was smitten with the coachbuilder’s work, and he filled his showroom with Bertone bodied chassis and mechanicals from MG, Bristol, Bentley and Aston Martin.

Among the more obscure Arnolt vehicles were the Bertone Aston Martins, based on the DB2-4.

RESTORING HISTORY Ponder’s example was the first Arnolt Aston Martin delivered stateside. Propelling the convertible coupé was a 2.6 liter twin-cam six churning out 125 horses. Its long elegant body is finished in rich maroon with a red interior trimmed in beige piping. Ponder sunk more than $175,000 in the restorative project in an effort to approach its original luster – or, more likely, exceed it.

“It’s not something you’d want to, with the restoration I’ve put into it, take out and drive 1,000 miles in the countryside, rocks kicking up on it,” says Ponder. “It’d break your heart.”

Ponder says he has no idea what the original color was.

He has been unable to locate color photographs of the original car and there was no color designation on the build sheets.

“But definitely, it probably wasn’t red,” says Kevin Kay of Kevin Kay Restorations, an eight-man classic car refurbishing operation in Redding, California, that caters to British and European cars with a particular focus on Aston Martins. Kay says his personal fascination with the car is its pedigree. “To me it’s that whole history of those guys having commissioned the car and giving it to Ward as a present,” he says. “That’s what identifies that car; that plaque and that story and the whole nine yards.”

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Arnolt was smitten with the coachbuilder’s work, and he filled his showroom with Bertone bodied chassis and mechanicals from MG, Bristol, Bentley and Aston Martin.

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Kay says this Aston Bertone was featured in the November 25, 1953 issue of the English magazine The Motor. In 1954 it appeared in the Earls Court Motor Show. It showed up at Connecticut’s Lime Rock Park Concourse in 1986 and ‘87, at the Pebble Beach Concours in 1987. But the Bertone Aston’s history is otherwise a blur.

Kay says Bertone affixed its elegant coachwork to the chassis with crude welds, instead of bolting it to the underpinnings as was the custom at the Aston Martin factory. “This thing, they just took the Aston chassis and literally just welded stuff all over it,” he says. “Italian coach building was not the equal to English coach building by any stretch.”

Yet Kay says welding the Bertone body to the chassis actually made the car more rigid than its English counterpart, potentially making it more agile navigating through the weaves and winds in the roads of East Texas, where Ponder keeps his collection.

But it won’t be doing that any time soon. Like his Arnolt Bristols and Arnolt Bentley, Ponder is putting this Aston Martin Bertone under the auction gavel. And with it will go a distinctive piece of European automotive history entwined with a chunk of Ponder’s legacy.

“I just like the flair and the style that the Europeans had,” Ponder says. “And my cars, every one I do, I’ve got to do better than the last one. That in itself drives you crazy.”

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This Aston Bertone was featured in the November 25, 1953 issue of the English magazine The Motor. In 1954 it appeared in the Earls Court Motor Show. It showed up at Connecticut’s Lime Rock Park Concourse in 1986 and ‘87, at the Pebble Beach Concours in 1987.

But the Bertone Aston’s history is otherwise a blur.

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PORSCHE

The Cayman GT4

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Porsche’s GT family is proud to announce the addition of an exciting new member: the Cayman GT4. This is the first Porsche GT sports car based on the Cayman and features components of the 911 GT3. Clocking a lap time of 7 minutes and 40 seconds on the North Loop of the Nürburgring, the Cayman GT4 earns the same lap time as the 2011 911 GT3 and positions itself as the new benchmark atop its market segment. The Cayman GT4 clearly demonstrates Porsche’s dedication and passion to continue to promote truly industry-leading two-door sports cars in the future – sports cars that are developed at the Motorsport department in Weissach.

The engine, chassis, brakes, and aerodynamic design of the Cayman GT4 are configured for maximum driving dynamics while retaining the versatility and everyday utility that are typical of the two-seater Porsche coupe. Powered by a 385 hp 3.8-liter flat-six engine derived from the 911 Carrera S engine, the Cayman GT4 transmits its power solely through a sixspeed manual transmission with dynamic gearbox mounts. Zero to 60 mph is accomplished in 4.2 seconds; its top track speed

is 183 mph. The chassis – which features a 30 mm lower ride height and a generously sized brake system – consists almost entirely of components from the 911 GT3.

Ready for the race track: The first Porsche Cayman with added downforce at both axles The exterior of the Cayman GT4 highlights it as a member of the Porsche GT family and provides a clear distinction to related mid-engine coupes. Three pronounced inlet openings at the front and a large fixed rear wing are part of an aerodynamic package which is systematically designed for downforce.

Upon request, the performance capabilities of Cayman GT4 can be taken even further. Available options include the Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake (PCCB) system, full bucket seats made of carbon fiber composite, and a custom Sport CarGuyMagazine.com

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Chrono Package featuring a Track Precision app.

The interior of the Cayman GT4 focuses on maximizing the experience of unfiltered driving enjoyment for both driver and passenger. Standard sport seats, which are upholstered in a combination of leather and AlcantaraÂŽ, offer excellent lateral support.

The new Cayman GT4 sport steering wheel guarantees ideal control and direct steering feedback due to its compact dimensions.

Technical aspects of this new GT sports car are based on the 911 GT3.

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As a mid-engine sports car and a prime example of driving dynamics in its class, it follows the conceptual tradition of such cars as the 904 GTS, 911 GT1, Carrera GT and 918 Spyder.

GT sports cars engineered by Porsche embody the most passionate connection possible between everyday driving and Porsche’s competition heritage and highlight the sporty core of the brand: Intelligent Performance.

The Porsche Cayman GT4 celebrates its world premiere in early March at the Geneva International Motor Show. This vehicle will arrive at U.S. dealers in July 2015. The starting MSRP for the Cayman GT4 is $84,600. MSRP does not include a destination charge of $995.

NEW BENCHMARK

TOP OF SEGMENT CarGuyMagazine.com

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It is hard to fathom any road in the United States that can connect so much colonial history together as the Colonial Parkway in Virginia. Grade school textbooks are brought to life all along an especially scenic and historic byway that connects Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Virginia’s license plates remind us that 2007 is the 400th anniversary of Fort Jamestown — better known as Jamestown. The remnants of the fort built in 1607 still stand, much to the surprise and exaltation of the archeologists digging up the shards of pottery, the rusty weapons, jewelry, clothing, shoes and even the bodies of the early settlers.

In 1994, William Kelso rediscovered Jamestown, which was thought to be lost to the waters of the everchanging James River. A specialist in colonial American archaeology, Kelso disagreed with the fort-in-the-river crowd and correctly assumed that the fort was more inland — but not by much — next to the remains of a brick church tower built in 1690. After about an hour of digging, Kelso and his history making shovel unearthed fragments of early 17th century ceramics, proving to the skeptics that Fort James was on land and not covered with water, and that with time he would be able to reconstruct the fort. Very similar to the analogy of purchasing a frame, radiator cap and boxes of automobile bits and proclaiming that there is a car in those boxes somewhere, Kelso just needed some time to sort everything out.

By using the discoloration in the soil where posts and logs once stood, it took Kelso about 10 years to map out the triangular shape of the fort, along with the foun-

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dations of buildings, wells containing layer upon layer of some of the million artifacts discovered, and a burial ground. The burial grounds are significant, as the first settlers were ill-prepared for the glorious adventure on which they had embarked.

Nearly three-quarters of the settlers perished within a few years of trying to establish the settlement. After figuring out that settlers were dying from typhoid, dysentery and salt poisoning after drinking from the James River, a well was dug to make fresh water available. This quenched the thirst of the settlers, but filling empty stomachs proved more difficult.

During this time, the Chesapeake River was enduring what would become a seven-year drought, and trying to grow anything to eat became a difficult challenge. Trying to barter with the local Indians proved fruitless. The natives figured out that the settlers were not too smart, since they had tried to establish a colony in an area where there was no food or water. They thought that if they refused to trade for food, the settlers would starve and head for home, leaving the natives in peace again.

The winter of 1609 was a difficult one for the settlers and has become known to historians as “the starving time.” During this winter, the colonists ate WORDS & PHOTOS TED GLOVER

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anything and everything they could get their hands on, including their shoes; and tasty morsels they were to the few remaining hunger-ravaged adventurers. This was the last straw and the survivors decided to pack it in and head for home, only to be met in the bay by ships from England with more New World fortune seekers. Eventually tobacco was grown as the cash crop, John Smith was saved by Pocahontas, and the colony became the stepping stone for England to start laying claim to the New World.

In 1699, the capital moved from Jamestown 10 miles northwest to Williamsburg. In 1699 it took about one to two days to make the trip on rough, bumpy dirt roads in carts pulled by oxen. Today visitors can enjoy a nice leisurely drive between Jamestown and Williamsburg on the smooth, concrete Colonial Parkway in more modern “carts� motivated by many horses.

There was much debate and discussion about moving the capital to Williamsburg, originally referred to as Middle Plantation. One of the deciding factors was that it was pleasant and wholesome, two descriptions which did not describe Jamestown.

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Once Williamsburg was established as the capital, ideas of independence began sprouting faster than tobacco could be grown, with each new action by the crown in England fertilizing the settlers’ minds.

After years of being treated as second-class subjects, the colonists realized that they would never enjoy the rights and privileges of Englishmen. They decided that if they could not have freedom with Britain, they wanted freedom from Britain. Their words and actions contributed to uniting the colonists and the Revolution began.

Fast forward 150 years and Williamsburg had become just another backwater town. World War I was over and all that was left behind were gas stations, mechanic shops and surplus factories, a sad nadir for such an important facet in the evolution of the United States.

As usually happens in situations like this, someone with vision steps in, says he cannot take this anymore, and starts the oxcart in motion to restore the town. Dr. W.A.R. Goodwin, rector of the local Bruton Parish Church, had a goal to restore the entire town. And to do this, he needed a benefactor with unlimited funds.

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Dr. Goodwin felt that the new-fangled automobile was destroying the colonial character of the town, so he reasoned that since most of the automobiles were Fords, he would speak to Henry Ford about his ideas for Williamsburg. Without insight about Henry Ford, and with even less tact and diplomacy, he told Edsel Ford why they should pay for the restoration. Dr. Goodwin should not have been surprised when they responded with an answer less than positive. The crisp response by Henry Ford was that he was “unable to interest himself in the matter mentioned.”

To the rescue came John D. Rockefeller Jr., who in 1924 said “that the opportunity to restore a whole town was something he could not resist.” With the Rockefeller money, the restoration of Williamsburg was started and continues to this day.

Drive about 13 miles on the Colonial Parkway to the northeast, you arrive in Yorktown. Pretend you’re in the year 1781 and you’ll be present for the defeat of the British forces under the command of General Charles Cornwallis. The battle of Yorktown was the last major battle of the Revolution and for all intents and purposes marks the end of the Revolutionary War. In 1930, Congress authorized a parkway connecting these three historically significant sites covering 174 years of history.

The problems presented with building this parkway were how to connect three distinct sites in different natural environments without destroying anything. Making it even more complicated was trying to construct the parkway during the Great Depression and the Second World War. Fortunately for us, the ultimate result was a nearly perfect 23-mile National Scenic Byway similar to the Natchez Trace

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Parkway. There are no billboards, no stoplights, no views of commercial development, no modern intrusions and no “visual junk.”

The premise for this style of parkway was based on 19th century romantic landscape theories. Look at any of the old lithographs of elegant horse-drawn carriages on serene country lanes and the model for the Colonial Parkway is clear. In keeping with these ideas, all the parkway underpasses were built with the same red “Virginia-Style” brickwork seen in so many of the colonial era structures. Even the concrete used in the construction of the road was made to resemble the earth tone colors of the early trails. River gravel mixed in with the concrete gives the appearance of millions of pebbles on the road in front of you and a less than smooth, quiet ride.

In addition to winding through scenic forests where the trees form shady passageways of nature’s tunnels, this three-lane pebble concrete ribbon also travels abreast the scenic shorelines of the James and York Rivers.

One interesting fact about the parkway is that it is the only “Suicide Highway” remaining in the U.S. There are three lanes with no stripes or lane markers, and when passing is permitted, it occurs in the middle lane. If both directions decide to pass simultaneously, it becomes a suicide lane.

The visual appearance and the slow pace — the speed limit is 45 mph — were intended to make drivers slow down and appreciate the history and scenery.

Despite its curves, the Colonial Parkway is best suited to classic cars, not high-horsepower machines. But any vehicle makes an ideal chariot to enjoy the untouched countryside that is nearly the same as it was 400 years before.

Above: Commercial development is nonexistent along the Colonial Parkway; history is everywhere.

Top Right: It is easy to step back into a forgotten era along the Colonial Parkway thanks to the tireless efforts of local historians.

Center Right: People in period clothing add authenticity to the town center.

Right: Just imagine who has passed down this tree-lined driveway in the past.

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Williamsburg

Yorktown

Original Jamestown

James River

Online Information www.colonialwilliamsburg.com www.yorkcounty.gov/tourism/ www.jamestown2007.org www.byways.org/explore/byways/60441/

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Hold My Beer and Watch This!

WORDS Jim Sherman Okay so this story doesn’t involve the consumption of alcohol, sorry.

But what it does involve is a few days with a “redneck rocket” the Dodge Challenger Scat Pack. A certain friend of mine is a raving fan of the new Chrysler product line so I solicited her completely bias opinion when I found out I was going to get one to try out. Basically the conversation was one-sided (note to self make sure she doesn’t read this) but what I got out of it was that Dodge makes no apologies for the Challenger it is a raw and unbridled slap in the face. American muscle cars have come a long way only to end up where they started powerful, big and bulky.

This one in particular was the 485 hp 6.4L Hemi Scat Pack, a 6 speed manual transmission rear drive beast of a car. Just like the Shaker Challenger we had over the summer this one sways from side to side and up and down like a land yacht. Tires are way too narrow and brakes are way too small and now I get this thing in the winter. Its simple physics: 33 Degrees + Rain + Challenger = Wheel Spinning Mayhem for that matter any condition + Challenger = Wheel Spinning Mayhem.

“And in this corner weighing in at just over two tons!”

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Published curb weight for the 2015 Challenger is 4200lbs. In 1970 the 1st generation Challenger was only 3700lbs.

The Scat Pack back then was not a performance package rather an exclusive group.

It included: 1: A high-performance parts catalog 2: Wallet identification card 3: An embroidered jacket patch 4: A hard-nosed bumper sticker 5: 40 page guide to auto racing So over the last 45 years the car has gained at least 500lbs and lost the “hardnosed” bumper sticker. That’s disappointing. It is a fun car at it’s core. It’s loud and in your face. So loud in fact that on a cold morning if you start it in your neighborhood you will wake up just about everyone, unless you live next to a cemetery and even then.

Start the car rev it up and go have an absolute blast. Just remember to plan your braking like its raining and plan the turns like you’re in a truck. The acceleration in this thing is pure exhilaration braking and cornering is absolute terror. Now I’m not saying that it’s any more or less dangerous than any other muscle car I’m just saying keep your head on straight and focus when you start to push this car or it will bite you in the…wallet.

Test Notes: Miles: 475 (front wheels) Miles: 590 (rear wheels) MPG: 18 Moving Violations: 0 Near Death Experiences: 4

2015 DODGE CHALLENGER SCAT PACK

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WORDS Jim Sherman So there I was in the cold pouring rain staring at this little red wagon thinking to myself; “Self, what a perfect day for a fling with a Sweede”. Now don’t get me wrong I am loyal to my daily driver, which will remain unnamed. But this was a Volvo, the classic example of brand identification, who would ever argue against Volvo’s safety? Ask anyone what the safest car on the road is and they are nearly guaranteed to say Volvo. How much of that is legendary marketing vs true statistics is really a topic for another day.

The R-Design is the sport designation for Volvo. This particular example, the V60, is a sort of hatch but not quite a wagon type crossbreed. Equipped with the turbo charged I6 putting out 325/354 hp/tq through a six-speed automatic and all-wheel-drive. Definitely has plenty of power to have some fun with.

Off the line in the cold north Texas rain it’s a missile. Thrust line under heavy acceleration in low traction is almost perfectly straight, which is not typical to many all-wheel-drive cars. A whisper of a roar, a couple of shifts and boom this thing is fun. I think the best way to describe the handling is well balanced, this is an easy to drive sport wagon for sure. You can toss it around, you can drive conservative, you can sit in traffic, this car does everything well. Brakes are strong and it takes a lot to get them to start to show a little fade. Each corner was grip and go regardless of the conditions. I really love all-wheel-drive.

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Volvo and style usually don’t go hand in hand. This one though, is an exception, well if you like wagon cars. Sweeping lines with a tapering roof line is easy on the eyes. 19”wheels that fill the wheel wells for a sporty look. This is where I would typically say large brake calipers, but while they look big, a closer look reveals that they are “normal” sized with gigantic brackets. A good healthy exhaust note with limited road noise. If you opt for the cross bars be ready to have an irritating symphony of sounds from them at speed. I had to finally just pull over and take them off even though it was fun trying to play a tune by varying my speed between 60-80mph.

I would have to say that the interior is the simplest most user friendly I have seen in a long time, typical for Volvo. The right buttons are in the right places and there is not a whole lot of extra frivolous electronic things that you don’t really need anyway. It took hardly any time at all to sync up my phone and program the radio.

Interior seating is well thought out.

Full sized adults can sit comfortably in the back seats. Cargo space is versatile with flat folding rear seats and a built-in dog net for the furry kids. One downside is the roof-line tapers towards the back so you loose height in the cargo area, a seemingly small price to pay for a less boxy appearance. The front seats are firm but supportive, something I could definitely take on a 1000-mile road trip without worrying about comfort. But

2015 VOLVO V60 T6 R-Design AWD

ain’t nobody got time for that? This is a Volvo after all, so lets throw on some yoga pants, find some Starbucks to hold in one hand and take some kids to the mall…

If you’re looking for a great all around family hauler with an edgy sport attitude and you don’t want an SUV, this Volvo should be on your list.

TEST NOTES Miles driven: 547 Average MPG: 24.9

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Feb 3, 2015 | Cologne, Germany -- Ford today revealed the all-new Focus RS, a highperformance road car that debuts Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive with Dynamic Torque Vectoring Control, which contributes to performance never before seen in a Focus RS. The all-new Focus RS is equipped with a new 2.3-liter EcoBoost® engine producing well in excess of 315 horsepower.

Focus RS is the latest unveiling in a new era of Ford performance that will bring more than 12 performance vehicles to global customers by 2020.

In addition to pleasing enthusiasts, these vehicles help deliver the company’s One Ford plan for profitable growth, product excellence and innovation in every part of its business.

“The all-new Focus RS is a serious machine with high-performance technology and innovative engineering that sets a new benchmark for driving exhilaration on the road and track,” said Raj Nair, group vice president, Global Product Development, Ford Motor Company. “The RS line has a proud history of technical breakthroughs that have migrated to mainstream Ford vehicles to benefit all of our customers, and the new Focus RS is no exception. It’s a great example of our passion for innovation through performance, and creating vehicles that make people’s hearts pound.”

Developed by a small team of global Ford Performance engineers, the new Focus RS is the third generation in the line, following models launched in 2002 and 2009. It will be the 30th car to wear the legendary RS badge, following such technology trendsetters as the 1970 Escort RS1600 with 16 valves, 1985 Sierra RS Cosworth with turbocharging and radical aerodynamics and 1992 Escort RS Cosworth with four-wheel drive.

Sporting a dramatic exterior design that delivers enhanced aerodynamics and cooling, the new Focus RS offers technologies new to the RS line including Ford SYNC® con-

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nectivity system.

The all-new Focus RS is the first-ever RS model that will be sold around the world, including the United States, and produced for all markets at Ford’s Saarlouis, Germany, manufacturing plant beginning late this year.

“We are acutely aware of the benchmarks we have set ourselves with RS performance models through the years, and rest assured this new car raises the game to a new level,” said Jim Farley, president, Ford of Europe, Middle East and Africa.

“Just as important is the fact that with technologies such as EcoBoost, we are able to demonstrate how an innovation that powers almost every car in our range can also be the heartbeat of our finest performance cars,” added Farley.

Gymkhana and World Rallycross star Ken Block was brought on as a consultant on the all-new Focus RS, and joined the Ford Performance team at the preview event in Cologne, Germany –where the RS legend was born with the Ford 15M RS in 1968.

Innovative Ford Performance AllWheel Drive offers a new level of handling The all-new Focus RS exploits innovative new Ford Performance All-Wheel Drive with Dynamic Torque Vectoring to deliver a new level of handling capability and driver enjoyment, combining outstanding traction and grip with exciting agility and cornering speed.

The Ford Performance All-WheelDrive system is based on twin electronically controlled clutch packs on each side of the rear drive unit. These manage the car’s front/rear torque split, and can control the side-to-side torque distribution on the rear axle – delivering the “torque vectoring” capability that has a dramatic impact on handling and cornering stability.

FORD FOCUS RS AWD All New High Performance Hatch

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The control unit in the rear drive unit continuously varies the front/rear and side-to-side torque distribution to suit the current driving situation, monitoring inputs from multiple vehicle sensors 100 times per second. A maximum of 70 percent of the drive torque can be diverted to the rear axle. Up to 100 percent of available torque at the rear axle can be sent to each rear wheel.

During cornering, the rear drive unit pre-emptively diverts torque to the outer rear wheel immediately based on inputs such as steering wheel angle, lateral acceleration, yaw and speed.

This torque transfer has the effect of “driving” the car into the bend, achieving improved turn-in and stability, and virtually eliminating understeer.

The AWD system has been tuned to deliver exceptional grip – with lateral acceleration exceeding 1 g – and great cornering speed and acceleration out of a bend. With neutral and adjustable limit handling, and the ability to achieve controlled oversteer drifts at the track, Focus RS delivers an exceptional fun-to-drive experience.

To deliver optimum driving dynamics, the Ford Performance AllWheel-Drive system was calibrated alongside the car’s advanced Electronic Stability Control, in particular the brake-based Torque Vectoring Control system that works in parallel with the torque-vectoring AWD. Other exclusive chassis features include sports suspension with spring rates, bushings and antiroll bars – all of which are stiffer than those found in Focus ST, and twomode switchable dampers, which offer a firmer setting for track driving. A carefully tuned electric power-assisted steering system working in combination with a more rigid front suspension knuckle design and shorter-link arms

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delivers connected and responsive steering with outstanding feel.

“The Focus ST and Fiesta ST showed that we can achieve sporty steering feel with an electric powerassisted steering system, and the RS raises the bar,” said Dave Pericak, director, Global Ford Performance. “We set out to provide drivers with steering that is very direct, precise and well balanced – and the RS delivers.”

Ford engineers worked closely with Michelin to develop a choice of high-performance 235/35 R19 tires to complement the driving dynamics of the Focus RS: a standard Pilot Super Sport tire for every-day use, and – for the first time on an RS – an optional Pilot Sport Cup 2 tire for enhanced vehicle dynamics on the track.

The vehicle’s exterior design has also been developed to support the dynamic objectives. Careful aerodynamic optimization of the front splitter, rear spoiler and underbody features eliminates lift forces, and the final design delivers balanced performance with zero lift front and rear for optimum high-speed handling and stability.

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BEHIND THE

SCENES of The Car Guy Show

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Email us to feature your car or garage on the show at tim@thecarguyshow.com CarGuyMagazine.com

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Streetside Classic’s HOT PICK!

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1972 Ford Bronco

Having sold more of these early Broncos than just about any other dealer, we have a pretty good handle on what makes them so special. This 1972 Ford Bronco offers V8 power, an awesome color combination, and just the right patina to make it OK to take it into the dirt when you want to play.

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1972 Ford Bronco The best Broncos stick to the factory recipe instead of going too hardcore. Modifications are a matter of taste, but just about everyone can agree that this little red 4x4 is a great-looking truck. You can’t go wrong with red paint on something like this, since it’s going to be highvisibility no matter what you do, and while the work is a few years old, you won’t mind the attention it generates today. Good panel fit and a great shine to the paint don’t seem to be hiding any nasty secrets underneath, although it’s impos-

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sible to guarantee a truck like this hasn’t had its share of fun off road.

White fender flares permit the use of oversized rubber and they match the bumpers and grille, giving the Bronco a cheerful disposition. The only brightwork on the whole truck is the stainless rub strip along the flanks, the mirror, and the door handles, all of which are in good shape.

The interior is basic, yes, but it does basic with high style. The bucket seats are clearly close relatives of those found in early Mustangs, and they’ve been reupholstered in cor-

rect black vinyl with vertical pleats with a rear bench seat to match.

The rest is pure industrial-strength utility, from the painted floors with diamond-plate reinforcements to the 4-point roll bar overhead. The dash puts all the gauges in a single round pod to the left of the steering column, while the secondary controls are arrayed across the middle.

It includes an AM/FM/CD stereo head unit and a cue ball knob for the 3-speed manual transmission.

The second lever is, of course, for the 2-speed transfer case, and the

combination of the big steering wheel and quick reflexes make the Bronco easy to handle even in the suburban jungle. And while your first choice will always be to drive the Bronco alfresco, there’s a recent white convertible top that offers decent weather protection, just in case.

The 302 cubic inch V8 offered in later Broncos like this is what should have been there all along. Torquey, smooth, and way fun to drive, it matches the Bronco’s personal-

ity perfectly. It appears fairly stock under the hood, wearing bright Ford Blue engine enamel on the air cleaner and valve covers, a 2-barrel carburetor, and even the original exhaust manifolds. If you can tune a vintage Mustang, you can tune this Bronco and the bark from the twin pipes out back makes it a lot of fun to run it through the gears, on road or off. The 3-speed shifts crisply and the heavy-duty axles never seem to mind the work off-roading. There is a recent set of shocks under there,

along with what appear to be new coils up front, giving it a slightly taller stance that allows plenty of room for those big General off-road tires.

Affordably priced, but only for now, this would be a great starter collector car or even a fun daily driver. Whatever the choice, the Bronco is always entertaining. Call today!

This vehicle is located in our Atlanta, GA showroom. For more information, please call (678) 2791609 or toll free (877) 367-1835.

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Catch Some Fresh Air

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front wheel and tire assembly. I suspect someone installed a liner (a section of a tire used to reinforce a weak spot in a tire casing) inside that tire many years ago.

Amazingly, none of these four very special tires ever appeared to have sat flat during the last 79 years as too often happens with vehicles or tractors of this age. When that happens, the tires often develop bad cracks, become weak in the flat spot and then blow out later when pumped back up. These ancient tires have some minor flat spots on them so when I drive this car, it does not ride very smoothly. I have never driven this car over 10 miles and hour or so.

At that speed there is enough tire vibration to make the front fenders flop a bit which makes this car look like a big bird trying to take off and fly after it had eaten too much.

The rear axle and wood spoke wheels are from a 1919 - 1927 Model TT Ford one ton truck. That axle assembly was installed in order to get the higher numerical axle ratio to handle the larger diameter tractor tires. The front wheels are made from mid 1928 - 1929 21” Model A Ford wheels. The outer row of spokes was long enough to reach the dropped section on the inside of the 24” tractor rims. The inner crossed spokes were too short to reach the tractor design was not self-cleaning when runThis is a very special unrestored but ning in moist dirt so these tires were not as rims. They were completely removed and extensively modified 1930 Model A Ford replaced with spokes about 3” longer. All popular with some farmers as they might convertible coupe or cabriolet that was otherwise have been. Goodyear had thou- welds on this conversion were done with manufactured around June of 1930. This an acetylene torch because electric weldcar was modified in 1936 by Roman Chupp sands of various sizes of this type of tire ers were virtually non-existent in rural Monof Bloomfield Montana for Milton Hill, also in their warehouses in the late 1930’s and found it hard to find homes for them. They tana back in 1936 when this conversion of Bloomfield Montana to use to deliver rural mail around that area. A Model T Ford eventually sold them for snow applications was done.

I have listed the mileage on this car as such as on this car or for use on agricultural truck rear axle with a higher reduction being only 25,649 miles because that is ratio than the stock Model A rear axle was equipment such as grain combines that what is shown on the speedometer odominstalled along with four Goodyear 11-25 x were normally only used in dry weather eter. That may be how many miles were on 24 pneumatic rear tractor tires mounted on conditions. this car when Milton Hill bought it to have 24” tractor tire rims. These wide and tall tires The four tires on this rig are now 79 the rural mail delivery car or snowmobile gave this car ground clearance and helped years old so they are showing their age but they are still in relatively good and pli- conversion done back in 1936. After the it float over packed snow drifts or plow Model TT Ford ton truck rear axle assembly through loose snow. able condition. You can still see the name was installed, there would have been no GOODYEAR painted white on all of them.

I believe these tires were introduced place to drive the speedometer as there in 1935 or 1936 and were Goodyear’s first This may have been done at the factory was on a stock Model A Ford car drive shaft but I am not certain about that. There are pneumatic farm tractor rear tires. They had a diamond with a hole in the center lots of checks and small cracks in them. The housing.

Please notice the 5/16” x 2” steel straps for the tread pattern. This distinctive tread left front tire has a three inch long split in it used to mount the backs of the rear fendand that wheel and tire assembly weighs ers. They were torch welded to the thin about 20 pounds more than the other CarGuyMagazine.com

LISTED ON EBAY 1930 MODEL A FORD

MODIFIED RURAL DELIVERY VEHICLE

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steel on the back of the body and to the thin steel in the fenders. This took a very good welder who know what he was doing in order to avoid burning through the thin sheet metal in the fenders and body.

The inner parts of the front fenders have been cut and extended with sheet metal triangles in order to raise them up to clear the large front tires. The backs of the rear fenders have been modified in a similar way by opening them up to a larger diameter. The insides of the rear fenders were torch welded directly to the body quarter panels above the rear wheel wells.

This car was originally painted dark blue and was repainted a medium blue probably sometime after this car was converted for rural mail delivery. The top is not the original top and and was replaced sometime before 1940. The second and third photos of this listing show Milton Hill with this car. A notation on the back of one of the photos indicate that this conversion was done in 1936. If you look closely, you can see that the top in the third photo matches the top in the current photos.

How many Model A’s have you seen that still have a 75 year old or older convertible top still intact?

Who ever installed the custom replacement top did not tailor it properly to let the top fold down. The top should have had a split in it about 3 inches long directly behind the bottom of the back of the side window. I suspect that whoever had the original top replaced was more concerned with keeping typical eastern Montana winter weather out than enjoying fresh air on the nicer winter days. One needs to remember that this car was only used to deliver mail during bad weather conditions.

Whoever used it back in the 30’s, 40’s and early 50’s no doubt had a more modern and easier to use vehicle to deliver mail with most of the time.

The front seat upholstery is the original tan whip cord and is in tough shape. The rumble seat back rest is the original black artificial leather material and is in amazingly nice original condition. Milton Hill probably removed the rumble seat cushions so he could haul more packages and groceries

for his customers in that rear deck area.

It is an absolute miracle that the original rumble seat back rest is still with this car.

The rumble seat bottom cushion is smaller than the original and is from another car of this era but it fits fairly well and lets people enjoy riding high in the rumble seat of this gem.

Some Early History Since I first listed this car here on eBay, I spent many hours over a several day period a few months ago calling people around Lindsay and Bloomfield in north eastern Montana. I have learned a lot of very important history relating to this car and I want to share that history with you here.

I eventually learned that Milton J. Hill of Bloomfield Montana used it to deliver rural mail before Leonard Quammen even owned it. The old Montana title for this car has the number 254564 and was issued on 10/22/41 to Leonard J Quammen of Lindsay Montana. This title listed a $200 lien if favor of Lester H. Hill who was the administrator of the estate of his father Milton J. Hill. The lien was paid off a bit over a year later on 11/30/42 so Lester H. Hilled signed the lien release at about that time. The fact that this title had a $200 lien on it in 1941 sparked my interest to dig deeper into the history of this very special mail car. Why would anyone have a $200 lien on a 11

year old Model A Ford unless it was worth a lot more than a normal Model A for some special reason?

After making some more calls to the area around Bloomfield Montana and talking with several residents there, I located Lester H. Hill’s daughter Ardice who would be Milton J. Hill’s granddaughter. She was born in 1934 and barely remembered her father and grandfather using this car to deliver rural mail there. She would only have been 6 years old when her father Lester Hill sold this car to Leonard Quammen of Lindsay Montana. She informed me that there was an early photo of this car in the book “Our Times, Our Lives” A History Of Dawson County. I had already found a copy of that book here on eBay so I opened it up to the history of Milton J. Hill’s family and found that priceless bit of this car’s history.

That photo was taken some time between 1936 and 1940 and is shown as the second photo of this listing.

That photo is not of great quality so I had my friend enhance it as much as possible using her Photoshop program. That photo shows Milton J. Hill leaning of the left front fender of this very car that happens to have the driver’s door open for some reason. The caption under the photo

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Milton’s son Lester H. Hill finished his father Milton’s rural mail delivery contract for the rest of the year of 1940. He then sold this car to Leonard Quammen who used it deliver mail in tough weather for several more years. Leonard Quammen farmed near Lindsay Montana that was about 30 miles away from Bloomfield Montana.

Leonard had mail routes both north and south of Lindsay. He would deliver mail on one route on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and deliver mail on the other route on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

I called Ardice just a few days ago and she told me that she found another photo with Milton sitting in this car with the driver’s door open and his left foot on the running board. She promised to have here granddaughter scan that photo and email it to me. I received that scan a few days ago. I had my friend enhance that photo by removing damage from it. That photo is shown as the third photo of this listing. A not on the back in Lester Hill’s handwriting indicates that this mail car was converted in 1936.

Ardice’s brother Hal is still living and I was able to talk with him. He remembers spending his summers with his grandfather Milton Hill who mentioned that this car “came from Chicago on the train”. I can’t understand that unless Model A Ford cabriolets were not assembled in the Twin Cities Ford plant that supplied most of the Model A’s in this part of the country. Could a relatively low production model like the cabriolets only have been assembled in certain in the book mentions that Roman Chupp in Nebraska. During the tough times there, plants such as the Ford plant in Chicago? modified this car for Milton J. Hill. I can date Milton Hill supplemented his farm income I am hoping an authority on this subject by delivering rural mail. He may have used reads this and gets in touch with me. that photo as being taken sometime between 1936 and 1940 thanks to help from horse drawn vehicles before hiring Roman I talked recently with a local friend Ardice.

Chupp to build this early snowmobile from who is now 72 years old and was raised in She told me that her grandfather Mila Model A Ford. eastern Montana. He mentioned that times ton J. Hill and several of his friends were Milton went back to visit friends and were so tough there during the depresliving in Bloomfield Nebraska but decided family in Bloomfield Nebraska sometime in sion that almost nobody bought a new 1940. Unfortunately he died in a head on to come to farm west of Glendive around car. After the depression eased up a bit 1910 or so. They brought their families with collision with a drunk driver while he was and things improved there around 1936 or them and started farming there and later near Bloomfield. Ardice told me that the even a bit later, there was an acute shortnamed the town Bloomfield Montana in gear shift lever (which was most likely still age of good used cars for the local resihonor of the town they were recently from on the floor unless he had a relatively new dents to buy. Many of them could not yet car) entered Milton’s body in the wreck and afford a new car so they were interested he died in a local hospital a day later. in a good used car instead. Consequently, CarGuyMagazine.com

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enterprising individuals purchased nice used cars back east in places like Chicago and shipped them out here on the train.

Perhaps that is how this Model A arrived in eastern Montana on the train. Perhaps this car had a bad convertible top back in 1936 and was very reasonably priced because of that relatively minor and easily repairable problem.

More Recent History I have nick-named this car “Bigfoot” when I displayed it at the Model A Restorer’s Club national meet in Merrillville, Indiana in 2009. There were over 300 cars there but I suspect this ugly old beast attracted more attention than any other car there. I gave at least 200 people rides in it around the parking lot even though the brakes don’t work at all yet.

While I was at that Model A meet, it was very interesting to note how people reacted to this gem. I would say the majority of them appreciated it for what it was made into and encouraged me to preserve it they way it is now. Several people simply could not understand how anyone could “hack up” a car as scarce and desirable as a Model A cabriolet is. Every time I patiently reminded them that any Model A cabriolet was most likely nearly worthless in 1940 or 1941. That was because the folding top covering would have been about 10 years old at that time and in poor condition. Very few people in Lindsay Montana would have had any use for a “topless” Model A Ford. Why would anyone invest $35 or so in having a convertible top installed on a car worth about that same amount? I suspect Leonard acquired this car for next to nothing, had the conversion done to it, found out that it worked OK on the bad roads and later on had a new top installed that did not fold down.

I have over two hundred vehicles in my collection and have never had any vehicle create as much interest and attention as this car does. I showed it at a local car show a few years ago and won the antique class over 6 other nicely restored Model A and V8 Fords. This is not a show car and I don’t collect trophies but I was happy to see the crowd show their appreciation for a truly

special and unique “survivor” vehicle like this. I really treasure this car as it is, due to it’s special history, and would never restore it. I have worked hard to take care of it and preserve it just as it is.

The third from the last photo is of original artwork done a few years ago for me by Don Greytak of Havre Montana. Don is well known for his fabulous and super realistic pencil sketches of farm and ranch life as well as transportation related topics. The image measures 12” high by 15-1/2” wide while the outside of the frame measures 20” high by 23-1/2” wide. Please notice the “US MAIL” sign above the front license plate and the pair of stick on defroster shields which are still on the inside of the windshield of this car. It appears that Leonard Quammen used the rumble seat to deliver a Christmas tree to a friend who is on horseback. This unique piece of artwork sells with this car.

At this time, I know of at least 3 more Model A Ford mail delivery cars that are still in existence but they have been neglected and are in poor condition. I also know of a WW II Dodge 1 ton 4wd chas-

sis that a mail carrier installed a Chevrolet sedan body on. He then installed 4 road grader tires and used this vehicle to haul mail for many years. This vehicle still exists in a friend’s junk pile and I am trying to get it. I can barely remember it as a child. The owner of that vehicle had Polio and built it while working in a wheel chair. I have no idea how he ever got into and out of that vehicle but I do know he always took somebody with him when he used it for mail deliveries in tough weather.

Back in 2009, I advertised a 1914 Model T Ford engine block for sale here on eBay. The first photo of that listing showed the bare block setting on the right hand running board of this car. Below is the interesting comment I received from an early automobile enthusiast: “My gosh, you are probably getting more response to your Model A than the blocks ever would. Your listing information is great history on this mail car! Being a cabriolet is even more amazing, and it appears to be very original in top fabric and rumble

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seat. I have a 1930 cabriolet, and this style model is the one with roll-down windows as opposed to the more common roadster of only side curtains. Of course folks would say to restore the rarer cabriolet, but you have a “national treassure” as they’d say on Antiques Roadshow. If you took this to Hersheys this fall, you’d steal the whole

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Ebay Ask a Question inquiry. I went back to your listings, and clicked your Completed Listings. On the wooden bumper listing, I found more photos, history, and where to find more snaps of your amazing mail truck cabriolet. Wow. Your writing of this vehicle’s history is sure commendable. You are treating it as the special unique beast it is, and realizing its value as what it is. To take it apart toward a restored Model A cabriolet would be to ruin a brilliant creation. To make it into a hot-rodded mud monster would be an equally sad fate for this surviving WWII vintage home warrior. To nurture it back true to it’s 1941 state of being, should be the only option, if one so cared to do.

In the history of America making home-made tractors of Model T’s and A’s, or work-horses of the engines and frames to keep life rolling, or snowmobiles, and mail trucks, this is a superb grand-daddy for them all.

Another rural mail carriers US postage stamp of this vehicle would not be out of the realm of possibilities. As a winter mail truck, your vehicle not only could keep the mail going through, but could be a winter ambulance, road opener, cattle-feeder in blizzards, and welcome sight every snowstorm. I’m sure your mail truck has many tales in its history.

Your astute history of the tires says much. (Airplane bomber tires and wheels after WWII were also surplused to many a combine here in Kansas.) I showed a Goodyear dealer your close-up photos, and we agreed you might contact Goodyear and see if they would sponsor you toward anything with your grand beast. After all, your vehicle made their tires useful to serious use...and they are still rolling! The fact show! What an amazing blend on enginu- that the tread did not work will in mud, but ity. Useful nessesity and folk art! Does it in snow, is a saving grace plus. Your marun? The National Mud shows would beg chine together with the Goodyear blimp, you to display it. Hot Wheels would want would be a sensation anywhere! to make a toy example of it. “Don’t restore The ingenuity and how parts were all or touch it”, would be the advice of many, combined, would make a vocational-agribut to preserve it. Find out all the history culture article, and for Hemmings, too. The on it,the maker, etc. This is THE mail truck of farm-made as opposed to factory-made, is the American landscape.

American heartland at its best.

Big thank you for your response to my And yet the most amazing thing about

the vehicle, is how it’s proportions work.

It has more character than a Disney talking car cartoon! It is bigger than life, and visually jumps out of the photos. An auto designer couldn’t top it for appeal, as you have sure noticed as People’s Choice. Jay Leno would be honored to be seen with this real car character, and he would surely enjoy contact on this, too. Of course you’d want a stack of T-shirts with this on the front anywhere you show it. State Fairs, Dollywood, and all.

I won’t be able to afford this, if I keep bragging on what all you have there, and you might not want to ever sell it.

Bob,you’d maybe want to at least have it in a high-end national auction after promoting it and enjoying it around the country.

If handled right, you have an item that would be a huge draw at the Smithsonian or Chicago Institute of Science and Industry as a showpiece in their collections. This is an honest masterpiece of all the vehicles made in hard times, wars, and doing the impossible. And being a cabriolet just crowns it all as in an ornery grin.”

Well, this guy named Roger Hubert sure liked this mail delivery car so I just emailed him 5 years after the above letter letting him know it is here on eBay with his comments. I will be adding more information and photos soon and will drop the first bid price at that time. Thanks a lot, Bob Woodburn in Bozeman, Montana My friend Stan Howe from Helena is an auctioneer that knows a lot about a lot of different things including collectible vehicles like this. Back in March of 2008 he sent me about a dozen photos of this car and mentioned that it would be selling at one of his upcoming living estate auctions in Havre Montana. He also mentioned that he thought it was my kind of car and his is right. I tend to color outside the lines a bit and be interested in things that most “normal” people are not interested in.

Stan had a local mechanic in Havre clean the fuel system and do general service work on this gem so that it would run on it’s own power long enough to impress the crowd during the auction sale. The mechanic sand blasted (not bead blasted) at

least the outside of the original Zenith cast iron carburetor for some reason that I will never understand. This car did run without smoke or unusual noise but it did not run well due to carburetor mixture problems.

Stan knew I have been working on Model A Fords since I was in the 8th grade so he asked me to drive this beauty (or ugly) through the auction ring for him even though he knew I was very serious about owning it. As it came time to sell it, I started it up and drove it into position using the choke to help regulate the fuel/air mixture.

I assume the main jet was messed up or plugged but I have not torn that carburetor apart yet. I later substituted a nice running original Zenith cast iron carburetor for the “blasted” on that came on this car when I bought it.

Stan introduced me to the auction crowd and mentioned that I had an extensive car collection, liked Model A Fords and unusual vehicles, was helping him out at the sale and that I might be bidding on this car. I wanted this car so badly that day that I was quite nervous which is unusual for me since I have bought many hundreds of vehicles, tractors, toys, signs and other collectible items at auctions so far in my life.

I don’t remember where the bidding

started but I do remember that the under bidder was a friend’s wife and she was very disappointed that she did not get this car.

She said that if she had won it, she would have restored it. Evidently she had no appreciation for the very historically significant modifications done to this car. She was unhappy with me winning the auction and was not her normal friendly self toward me for about a year after that auction. Now she can look back and laugh at that incident.

I was not smart enough to bring my trailer to the sale that day so I had to leave this car in the auction hall for a couple of days until I could get back there with my trailer. I drove it out of the auction hall and had a friend take a few marginal videos of me driving this car out of the building and to my car trailer. There is a link to those videos I placed on YouTube further down in this description. I had no enclosed trailer at that time so I wrapped several blankets around the very fragile old convertible top and very carefully secured them with several nylon straps to protect the top from the wind on the way home.

I have an original open Montana title

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for this car that was issued to Leonard Quamenn back in 1940 or 1941. That title is an important and valuable part of the history of this car so I have not yet transferred ownership to my name. I can do that and have the Montana DMV return the old title to me. I can also apply for a completely new title. That process only costs $12.00 and takes about two weeks to get the new title. The problem is that with Model A Fords that have the serial number on the top of the frame and under the body, the Montana DMV requires that some goofy non-Ford number be used at least at the start of the title application process.

Since other states handle this problem with Model A serial numbers differently, I have decided to work with the new owner on options regarding a new title if they even want one. I would not encourage anyone to ever drive this beast on a public road anyway for several reasons. The first and main reason is that this vehicle is completely unique and can not be repaired or replaced if it is ever damaged. The second reason is that this vehicle is a hazard on the

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road because it literally stops traffic. The third reason is that this vehicle currently has no brakes whatsoever and may never have had good brakes since it was converted so many years ago. I will address this brake issue later.

The original title is for a 1930 Ford convertible coupe with an engine number that is of June 1930 vintage and about the right vintage for this car. I assume the number on the title matches the frame number on this car. The engine in this car is from a 1929 Model A Ford so it is obviously a replacement engine. Most (like over 75%) of Model A’s I find, have owned or seen have had at least one engine swap at some time in their past. It is even harder to find a commercially used Model A like this that still has it’s original engine because those vehicles were used harder than the typical Model A passenger car was. Back in the 30’s and 40’s, it was much less expensive to install a good running used engine than it was to have one rebuilt due to the work required in re-babbiting the main and connecting rod bearings.

Please note that the photo that shows the left side of the engine shows an electric

heater installed in the water inlet casting.

I have never seen one like this before and assume this it was built by the handy blacksmith that converted this car. Please also note that original two blade fan is still on this beast. I suspect this car was generally used only in cold weather so nobody felt that a 4 blade fan was necessary for better cooling. The paint on the right hood top is not as good as on the left side hood top so I suspect that there may have been a minor carburetor fire on that side at one time even though I have never known of a Model A Ford to have a carburetor fire.

It appears that nobody ever even attempted to make brakes work on the rear wheels. That may have been because Model T’s had only cast iron brake shoes inside the rear axle drums because they were only used for parking brakes. The service brake was inside the transmission on all stock Model T and TT Ford vehicles.

This conversion may never have had good brakes because one Lindsay Montana resident mentioned that Leonard drove this car into the post office there one time.

That same person also mentioned that Leonard enjoyed tipping a few now and then so that may also have been a factor in the post office building colliding with him.

That person also mentioned that the local residents referred to this car as being the “beast” or the “tank” and usually pulled of the road when they saw Leonard coming at them with this “beast”.

Another Lindsay resident recalled that Leonard got stuck in a snow drift on main street one day. He recruited a few guys from the local pub to help push him out of the drift. Supposedly one helper was pushing from behind the car and did not get out of the way in time when Leonard decided to back up and take another run at the drift. Leonard backed over that guy who was not hurt because of the soft snow, wide tires and relatively light car.

The helper was not hurt but did scream at Leonard when he was under the middle of the car to keep Leonard from running over him a second time.

Another Lindsay resident mentioned that Leonard was giving a rural school

teacher a ride to town one day when the hot water heater hose inside the car broke and sprayed coolant on her stockings.

Leonard stopped and whittled a wooden plug to stop the leak and refilled the cooling system before continuing on toward town that day.

As you can see, this car still has some of the original whipcord upholstery in it. I call it the $800 seat because there is a 1/8” diameter steel rod that is sticking out of the top of the bottom cushion about 4” where the driver sets. I took this car to the local show about 3 years ago and that rod ripped a hole in my right rear pants pocket where I keep my billfold without me realizing it. I lost my billfold with $800 in it somewhere later that day and it has never turned up yet.

This car has a Briggs body which is actually based on a Briggs Fordor sedan body. The cabriolets use modified Briggs Fordor sedan front doors, cowl, firewall, windshield structure and windshield frame.

The original wood sills at the bottom of this body are in excellent condition as is the wood framing in both doors. This body has absolutely NO rusted out sheet metal in it anywhere thanks to our relatively dry climate here in Montana and the fact that every owner from Leonard Quamenn onward has taken excellent car of this car and kept it inside. I can’t even find any evidence of mice ever having spent their lives in this car which is unusual here in the rural parts of Montana.

I have been thinking of how this car might be displayed and enjoyed in the future. These 4 Goodyear tractor tires are coming up on 80 years of age and would be nearly impossible to replace if damaged. I would really hesitate to even try to remove one from the rim to repair if for fear that some bead wires might be weak due to age or break due to the stress from dismounting and remounting a tire.

One could buy 4 new 24” tractor rear rims from the M. E. Miller Tire Company for bout $110 each plus shipping. One could install 4 new 12.4-24 (replaces old size 11.25-24) lugged rear tractor tires for $310 to $325 each plus shipping. It would be

easy to adapt these new rims to the Model TT truck rear wheels. One would probably want to duplicate the modified Model A Ford 21” wheels that are on the front axle.

That way one could enjoy this car without any fear of damaging or destroying the impossible to replace fragile old original Goodyear farm tractor rear tires.

Related Model A Ford History As an interesting side note to the issue of the fragile convertible top, I will add

another related story. My Dad was born in 1921 and grew up on the home ranch north of Geraldine Montana. He worked together with Grandpa and Grandma for many years who never owned a pickup truck. They had a 1929 Model AA Ford truck and later added a 1937 International D-15 tonner to the fleet. After WW II, Dad drove 70 miles to Great Falls Montana and paid

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until the storm stopped. He then walked back to his Model A pickup and found that the hail storm had completely shredded the canvas top covering. Since the car now was “topless” he simply tossed his jacket into it through the open top.

I still have that pickup which was built it January of 1929 so it still had the old style 7 tooth sector steering gear. Dad mentioned that the steering gear was worn out so bad that the steering wheel had about an eighth of turn of slop in it. That made it hard to drive so his trick was to drive near the edge of the road so the car would pull to the right and he would have to pull back some on the steering wheel. It is a wonder that he never went into the ditch.

Once he changed oil on the engine and forgot to tighten the oil drain plug.

Thank goodness the car had an oil pressure gauge on it and he happened to notice the needle jumping around. He walked back to where the trail or oil started, found the oil drain plug, walked back to the dead Model A, installed the oil drain plug, filled the engine with tractor motor oil and continued on to the field.

Dad removed the Tudor sedan body from the other car, shortened the chassis, mounted the rear axle rigidly to the frame, installed an auxiliary transmission from a burned up 1929 Chevrolet and mounted a 25 foot long paddle elevator above the other Model A. He added a flat belt pulley between the Model A transmission and the Chevrolet transmission. By putting the Model A transmission in gear and the Chevrolet transmission in neutral, he could use the power from the Model A engine to drive the paddle loader and use it to load grain. He used it in harvest to unload trucks and well as later in the year to empty the $35 each for a 1929 Model A Tudor sedan Advanced Eight straight 8 engine. He fired grain bins and load trucks when hauling and a 1929 Model A business coupe. It was it up and used it to burn the back off of the the grain to the grain elevator in town. This like a sport coupe with no landau irons and business coupe. He then built a respect“grain loader” as we called it was quite an had a trunk rather than a rumble seat. Dad able looking wood box for it and had his innovation before the grain augers became drove them home and then did something very first pickup truck. He usually drove it popular in the early 1950’s. terrible to each of them. to the field and hauled fuel and supplies in This car was featured on pages 22 Dad had a large Lincoln electric arc the box. He mentioned working in the field and 23 of the May-June 2010 “Model A welder generator powered by a 1934 Nash one day before a severe hail storm came News” magazine published by the Model along. The tractor had no cab so he hid be- “A” Restorers Club. This car was also menhind one of the rear wheels of the tractor tioned but not shown in the history of the CarGuyMagazine.com

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Quammen family in the book “Our Times, Our Lives” A History Of Dawson County.

This interesting book discusses the history of the country around Glendive Montana and includes a section describing Lindsay Montana. I recently found a copy of that book here on eBay so that copy goes with this car. I later learned that this car is shown in a different section of that book that is devoted to the residents around the town of Bloomfield Montana. It is shown with the history of the Milton J. Hill.

I forgot to mention that this car is nearly 6-1/2 feet tall which makes it difficult to transport in a typical enclosed car trailer that has a vertical rear door opening of just over 6 feet. When I haul this car in my enclosed trailer, I remove the front wheels and install a pair of 1935 Ford 16” wire wheels and tires. That drops the front of this car enough so that it can be driven in and backed out of my trailer with a bit of room to clear over the convertible top. The last photo of this listing shows this gem with the small tires in front. They make it look very strange - somewhat like a drag car - low in the front and ready for takeoff on a drag strip. Thanks a lot, Bob Woodburn in Bozeman MT On Jan-30-15 at 00:05:18 PST, seller added the following information: Please Note : I am sorry that I neglected to include a bit of interesting history regarding Leonard Quammen and his wife Eva. From the book “Our Times, Our Lives” A History Of Dawson County, I copied the following information: “During their early years of marriage Leonard and Eva resided in Lindsay where they were engaged in farming and ranching. He was also a rural mail carrier for 43 years. He would often speak Norwegian to some of his patrons. When drifts of snow made roads impassable by car he used a sleigh and a team of horses. In time he had a Model A Ford to which he added special high wheels to ride over the drifts. He enjoyed his mail delivery and was known for his dedication and promptness. He retired in 1965 and they bought a home at 1039 North Meade Avenue in Glendive.”

That is a nice short summary of Leon-

ard’s career even if it is not correct and credits him with adding the tall wheels and tires to this car. This was probably written

by Leonard’s son and or daughter in the mid 1980’s and they may not have been old enough to remember his buying this modified rural mail delivery car from the Hill family in 1941.

My quest for history regarding this car is always ongoing. I received a call just this afternoon from Leonard’s grandson who now lives in the Spokane area. He has been

very helpful in helping sort out some of the details of the Quammen family. He also mentioned that his aunt has a photo of his mother and her brother setting on the hood of an early car. I am hopeful that I can get a copy of that photo. I am also hopeful that that photo shows those two children setting on the hood of this very special vehicle. What a prize that would be !!

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I guess this listing is going viral. Yesterday morning a friend sent me the following link to a Yahoo listing of this car: https://autos.yahoo.com/news/ bigfoot-model-mail-truck-stuff-legends-200019446.html This evening I did a Google search and found the following site: http://truckyeah.jalopnik.com/the-oralhistory-of-an-amazing-1930-ford-model-aoff-ro-1588212852 There are many interesting comments on the above site with one exception. It is very interesting to note how stupid some people really are. Now I understand how our country is in the mess it is today. Some idiot wrote the following comment which I find to be very offensive: “Such a shame. How could anyone own something so awesome and not take care of it? Not cool. This beauty needs a new owner, asap.”

I take this comment to imply that I do

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not take care of this car which is definitely not the case as far as I am concerned. I very carefully padded and wrapped the very fragile 75 year old convertible top on this car when I hauled it about 300 miles from where I bought it in Havre Montana to where I live in Bozeman Montana. I later used an enclosed trailer to haul it to the Model A Restorer’s Club national meet in Merrilville Indiana and back several years ago. I then used the same trailer to haul this car to the car show in Billings Montana last June and to the West Yellowstone Montana car meet last July. This car is stored in the safest, driest and therefore the best rental warehouse in the Bozeman area whenever it is not on the road in an enclosed trailer.

I rent three 20’ by 40’ units in a row there and none of the vehicles in any of the units have batteries hooked up in them. I don’t store solvents or fuels there and always drain the horrible modern day gasoline from this car and my 1914 Model T Ford roadster when they are stored there. I block up the front and rear axles on this car to

preserve the tires whenever it is in storage.

If a fire breaks out in one of the neighboring units, it will have to go through another unit I rent before I can get to this car.

The interior walls of that truly exceptional rental warehouse are not a single layer of steel sheeting but double sheeted with sheet rock which will help to keep any fire from spreading very far. We have a very dry climate here in Montana so things do not corrode at all like they do in about 3/4 of the rest of this country. The convertible top on this car was tattered a bit the day I bought it as you can seen in the video of me driving it out of the auction building and it is in no worse condition today. I keep a blanket on the seat cushion and backrest when I am driving it to help preserve what is left of the very fragile original upholstery. I have to wonder what the above mentioned wizard would have me do differently or better to take care of this car?

Thanks again and good luck bidding on this unique piece of Montana and U. S. Mail history. Bob Woodburn

Seven Videos of the Model A Ford in Action! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrqqso1ZtEYfVDoOeXEXeGg/videos

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WORDS John Dagys www.sportscar365.com One of the most successful teams in Pirelli World Challenge history is returning to competition next year, as LG Motorsports has laid out plans for a three-car, multiclass effort with Aston Martin VanLone Star Corvette Club tages.

Three-time is dedicated to the Corvette lifestyle and the people that ownWorld them.Challenge Our Club slogan says it all:champion Lou Gigliotti confirmed to Sportscar365 that his TexasGood Friends…Great Cars! based squad is finalizing the purchase of an Aston Martin Vantage Founded in 1983, the Club now enjoys over 1,100 members, each with his or her V12 GT3 and two Vantage GT4 cars, own story to tell of how they found that perfect ‘Vette. all from Europe, to compete in the sprint race championship in the GT LSCC offers just about any activity an owner of America’s Sports and GTS classes.Car could want: Gigliotti, got his first taste of Road Trips Day Trips Garage64,Tours the British sports car at TRG-AMR’s Drag Racing Open Road Racing Autocross open testand at Sebring last month NCRS Car Shows Displays Parades and was immediately sold on the For 26 years, our signature annual eventprogram. has been the Lone Star Corvette Classic, now held each May at Texas Motorold, Speedway “I’m getting so I wanted to go out and have some fun,” GigliotThe Club meets on the second Saturday of each monthti at locations toldvarious Sportscar365.

“Kevinaround Buckler the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. We would love to have us at meeting; had you this join test day at aSebring.

My dates and locations are on our website: www.LoneStarCorvetteClub.com. goal was to see how good the Aston was and to see if I could still go While you’re on our website, take a look at the latest issue of our award-winning fast after taking a season off. online newsletter. Just click on the Newsletter button “It’s likeand golfenjoy! or tennis, if you don’t swing the club or the racket, you lose a little bit. I went down Lone Star there and I was fast and I felt great.

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CAR GUY DRIVER Doug Bielefeld Doug Bielefeld has been a sports enthusiast for many years competing as a professional tennis player to his current passion of road racing in the Tudor US Sports Car Championship. He started just three years ago driving a GT3 Cup in the Porsche Club of America along with racing NASA. He won multiple podiums and two consecutive National Podium Titles.

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In 2013 he had his first chance to drive in the Grand Am Series in a Aston Martin Vantage for TRG at the new Circuit of the Americas. After a reasonable lead lap finish he was offered a chance to test with the very successful podium winning ALMS team of Bar1 Motorsports. After three successful tests he went on to compete and finish the first Tudor US Sports car challenge race at Daytona in the 24 hours with Bar 1 Motorsports. Then, the next month finished 6th in the 12 Hours of Sebring with the same successful Bar 1 Team. He went on to race in the Prototype Challenge class at Laguna Seca, Kansas Speedway, Watkins Glen, and Indianapolis.

The Team, which included two LeMan’s champions and Doug, finished second on the podium at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen.

Bar1 Motorsports is a professional race team based in Ohio lead by a LeMan’s winning crew chief, and owner, Brian Alder. This team is comprised of eleven professional mechanics along with sponsorship and marketing professionals.

This is the team’s fourth season competing in a professional race series, as the team came within one point of winning the series last year. With two cars owned by the team their marketing presence has been expanded for sponsors and charitable entities. This team has a winning combination. http://www.bar1motorsports.com/ www.facebook.com/doug.bielefeld.7

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NORRA’S “HAPPIEST RACE ON EARTH” TAKES SHAPE FOR 6TH ANNUAL GENERAL TIRE MEXICAN 1000 RALLY 76 CarGuyMagazine.com

(Agua Dolce, Calif.): While winter still rages over much of the greater United States and Canada, for a special group fun-loving competitors, adventure seekers, crew members and families, the dream of spending a sun-filled week rallying down the Baja peninsula is starting to become reality.

For the past six years, the National Off Road Racing Association (NORRA) has set into motion a powerful yearning to enjoy a new motorsports passage of spring, and it appears 2015 won’t be an exception. While the 6th annual General Tire NORRA Mexican 1000 may be three months away, many of NORRA’s unique racing family are already making plans and prepping their two and four-wheel machinery.

In keeping with NORRA tradition, official registration for the “Happiest Race on Earth” and NORRA’s new Cortez Rally Raid opened precisely at noon Pacific Standard Time on January 1, 2015. This year’s General Tire Mexican 1000 rally is scheduled to run from Ensenada, Baja, Mexico to the sands of Cabo San Lucas from April 25 – 29, 2015.

While new entries being submitted on a constant basis, the current list of 2015 competitors already includes some of the sport’s most notable superstars, including Walker Evans, Rod Hall, Larry Ragland, Brian Collins, Jimmy Smith, Michael Gaughan, John Swift, Mark Stahl, Randy Wilson, Clark Gable, Buddy Feldkamp, Brad Lovell, JT Taylor and many others.

spirit of NORRA. According to their entry form; “Threewheelers are outlawed in the U.S., so why not race one in Baja?”

As was the case in 2014, leading the online registration process was veteran rally racer Dave Sykes, who will once again race his 1972 Ford/ Dodge hybrid race truck fondly referred to as the “Super Fodge.” Sykes will once again be entered in NORRA’s Vintage Open Truck Sykes will run in NORRA’s popular Vintage Open Truck/ SUV category that already includes seven entries. The Mexican 1000’s Vintage 108” Wheelbase 4x4 class (pre1978) is also seeing strong early interest, with seven vintage Ford Broncos scheduled to take on the 1,200-plus mile adventure. Leading the motorcycle categories is the Modern Open Motorcycle/ATV class, with both KTM and Husqvarna-built bikes on the entry list.

“While we are expecting many, many more entries before we arrive in Ensenada for the Mexican 1000’s opening night welcome party, we are really excited about the fun and colorful group of race teams already signed-up,” explained NORRA President Mike Pearlman. “All of our guests have a great story to tell. NORRA’s goal for 2015 is to communicate the tales of hospitality, competition, history and commoradire that separates this event from

Recognizable names, however, are only part of the annual NORRA Mexican 1000 story. As has been the case since the first event in 2010, the true heartbeat of this vintage-flavored on and off-road rally lies in adventurous men and women taking on a true “bucket” list event with a wide variety of trucks, sedans, dune buggies and motorcycles.

An early sentimental favorite is a three wheel 1985 Honda ATC entered by Brian Wilson, Craig Saxe and Tom LaJoie – otherwise known as “Dynamically Unstable Racing.” In reference to their rather unusual (and now illegal) choice of vehicle, their motto is in perfect keeping with the fun-filled

any other on the off-road landscape.”

The Mexican 1000 rally is building a growing reputation as one of the world’s most enjoyable and accessible motorsports adventures. Given that momentum, NORRA is also expecting to host a large contingent of national and international media, as well as various automotive and off-road industry VIPs. In addition to General Tire, NORRA is also supported

by General Tire, American Racing Wheel, Azunia Tequila, South Point Hotel and Casino, Walker Evans Racing, Bilstein Shocks, KC HiLites and MasterCraft/Impact Safety.

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