The famous "HEMI UNDER GLASS"

"HEMI UNDER GLASS"

Wheelstander

The massive Shell/Pennzoil/Quaker State display at the 2019 Specialty Equipment Market Association show in Las Vegas offered attendees a rare opportunity for an up-close look at the 1968 version of the famous “Hemi under Glass” exhibition wheel stander.

The supercharged Hemi powered Plymouth Barracuda was conceived in 1965 and according to legend sketched onto a cocktail napkin by Hot Rod magazine editor Ray Brock for George Hurst. Brock intended it to be a competitive racer, but testing uncovered a problem– the mid-engine placement of the supercharged Hemi engine caused the lightened front end of the car to jump into the air at the hit of the accelerator pedal.

Instead of a competitive race car, Hurst, a master promoter, put the wheel standing car on tour and it became a huge hit with spectators and spawned dozens of imitators.   

The “Hemi Under Glass” has only had three drivers through the years – Bob Shrewsberry, Bob Riggle and the current driver, Mike Mantel. 

Shrewsberry left  the "Hemi Under Glass" and Hurst after one season, and developed his own "LA Dart" wheel stander ( a later version featured the supercharged Hemi engine in the car's trunk) sponsored by LA area Dodge dealers.  Later in the late seventies Shrewsberry toured the "Berry Wagon" a fiberglass 1930 Ford Model delivery truck wheelstander sponsored by the Knott's Berry Farm amusement park.     

The original 1965 "Hemi Under Glass" power train was used for the construction of the 1968 Barracuda body style and the 1965 car no longer exists.  Multiple versions of the  second generation "Hemi Under Glass" toured the country for Hurst through 1970, then the company was sold and Hurst just sponsored the cars until Riggle was injured in a crash in 1975.

 

Bob Riggle reintroduced the "Hemi Under Glass" in 1992 and performed with the car until another crash in 2016, after which Mantel became the designated driver.  The author was assured by Shell officials that the car shown at SEMA 2019 was not the same car crashed on the famous episode of "Jay Leno's Garage." 

Mantel planned to introduce a new  modern "Hellephant" supercharged 1,000 hp and 950 lb-ft of torque Hemi powered LX- class Dodge "Hemi under Glass" Challenger for the 2020 season.  

All photos by the author 

2017 SEMA "Battle of the Builders" winner

Troy Trepanier of Rad Rides by Troy was the winner of the coveted 2017 SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) “Battle of the Builders” competition held during SEMA Ignited, the official SEMA Show after-party held after the 2017 SEMA Show.

Trepanier’s 1929 Ford Model-A Tudor sedan shown at the B&M booth in the SEMA 2017 Central Hall edged out Alan Johnson’s 1932 Ford Tudor and Troy Ladd’s 1936 Packard roadster for the title. The three builders will be featured along with many other SEMA Show builders in a new episode of the TV special "SEMA: Battle of the Builders," which will premiere on the Velocity Channel on Tuesday, January 2, 2018. 

The 1929 Model A Tudor is powered by a GM first generation fuel-injected aluminum small block engine with custom valve covers and air cleaner connected to a Legend Gear and Transmission LGT-700 5-speed transmission with a Hurst Competition Plus ™ shifter and a modified Halibrand rear end. The exhaust is all stainless steel, fed through stainless steel Flowmaster ™ Super HP2 mufflers.   

The car built for Mark and Dennis Marianai features front and rear torsion bar suspension with an entirely hand fabricated body including the hood air cleaner and grille shell that was covered with a custom mixed bronze paint from Glasurit a division of BASF.  The car rides on CNC machined custom artillery  style wheels built in the Rad Rides shop. 

 For more details check out these sites: 

https://www.glasurit.com/en-int

http://www.bmracing.com/

http://legendgt.com/

All photos by the Author

A pair of hot Ford street cars at the 2016 SEMA show

 

Today we share two of the domestic manufacturer modified street cars spotted at the 2016 SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) show in Las Vegas Nevada.

 

 

Ford Motor Company presented a 2017 Ford Fusion Sport Sedan known as ‘Ballistic’ customized by the folks at Webasto Thermo and Comfort North America the world leader in air conditioning, sunroofs, and convertible roofs. The Focus’ Ecoboost™ engine’s 235 horsepower output was increased through the addition of a JMS Chip Performance BoostMax boost controller and PedalMax throttle installed and recalibrated by SCT Performance. The car rides lower and corners betters after the installation of an H&R suspension kit with the braking ability improved with larger Rotora brakes on all four wheels

On the exterior, Webasto added their own natural finish Kevlar® front lip spoiler and Kevlar® side skirts along with a heat-extracting hood with the body finished in ‘Ballistic White’ metallic custom paint sprayed by MRT Performance. The Fusion rides on 20-inch Modulare Alloy wheels fitted with Toyo Proxes T1 tires. Webasto also installed an engine heater and a portable 12-volt refrigerator-freezer unit in the trunk.  The whole ‘Ballistic’ package is topped by the installation of a Webasto H735-III comfort in-built sunroof with protective Venus® glass to reflect 99% of UV radiation, 80% of light and 97% of heat to protect the Katzkin custom leather and suede upholstery  interior. Check out Webasto’s website at https://www.webasto.com/us/

 

 

Built by Hurst In collaboration with Kenne-Bell superchargers unveiled their 2017 Hurst/Kenne Bell ‘R-Code’ Mustang advertised to produce 750 horsepower through the installation of Kenne Bell liquid-cooled twin-screw supercharger atop the Mustang’s 5-liter (305 cubic inch) Coyote modular V-8 engine.

 

Photo courtesy of Hurst

 

In addition to the trademark gold and white Hurst paint laid down by Rounsville Auto Body in San Bernardino California with graphics designed by “Lil Louie,” the car features a Hurst rear wing, side skirts, chin spoiler and 20-inch Hurst chrome “Stunner” wheels. Hurst will only build 50 of these special edition Mustangs which come equipped with 3-inch Flowmaster exhaust and a Hurst “Comp Plus” shifter. Order yours at http://www.hurst-shifters.com/hurst-elite/

Photos by the author except as noted