Photo: Classic Auto Mall
As most humans across the planet, the Americans of pre-World War II years were fascinated by cars and racing. For all intents and purposes, those decades were the glory years of motorsport, the ones that defined and shaped future generations.
Of particular interest for Americans living in that age was dirt track racing, a form of motorsport that took advantage of the existing tracks used for horse racing. It quickly expanded abroad as well, and evolved so much that it soon encompassed anything from cars to motorcycles, and from open-wheelers to stock vehicles.
The motorsport proved so popular over the years that it is still around to this day, equally as exciting as before despite the changes imposed by the evolution of safety regulations, for instance. Modern cars line up on the starting grid of most of today’s races though, not nearly as exciting as the ones of the early age of the sport.
The 1937 Chevrolet open wheeler we have in the gallery above is just a taste of how dirt track racing might have looked back in the day, blending more modern technologies with a retro-design that speaks volumes about the history of the sport.
This car was actually never driven on a dirt race track, as the posting on Classic Auto Mall where the car is listed as for sale reveals, but if it ever gets around to doing that, it would probably feel right at home.
Powered by a naturally aspirated 307ci (5.0-liter) V8 fitted with a single 4-barrel Holly carburetor and a Ford truck transmission, the car rides on massive Hoosier dirt track racing tires, flanking the cutoff Chevrolet shell. The interior sports the appropriate steel roll cage, fitted around the center-mounted racing seat, which in turn sits in front of a dash fitted with just the bare minimum.
The build has never been driven, really, and is on sale in this race-ready shape on the said lot for $17,000.
The motorsport proved so popular over the years that it is still around to this day, equally as exciting as before despite the changes imposed by the evolution of safety regulations, for instance. Modern cars line up on the starting grid of most of today’s races though, not nearly as exciting as the ones of the early age of the sport.
The 1937 Chevrolet open wheeler we have in the gallery above is just a taste of how dirt track racing might have looked back in the day, blending more modern technologies with a retro-design that speaks volumes about the history of the sport.
This car was actually never driven on a dirt race track, as the posting on Classic Auto Mall where the car is listed as for sale reveals, but if it ever gets around to doing that, it would probably feel right at home.
Powered by a naturally aspirated 307ci (5.0-liter) V8 fitted with a single 4-barrel Holly carburetor and a Ford truck transmission, the car rides on massive Hoosier dirt track racing tires, flanking the cutoff Chevrolet shell. The interior sports the appropriate steel roll cage, fitted around the center-mounted racing seat, which in turn sits in front of a dash fitted with just the bare minimum.
The build has never been driven, really, and is on sale in this race-ready shape on the said lot for $17,000.
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