American enthusiasts tend to idealise if not idolise California as it was in the 1950s and '60s, when large and often outrageously styled automobiles ruled the streets and boulevards. It was a great time to be young, especially if you loved sports cars, muscle cars and hot rods. Having been in the midst of it all, Rick Lorenzen can certainly relate.
Growing up in Wilmington, near Los Angeles, Lorenzen had the good fortune of regularly visiting Lions Drag Strip, located a few miles away from his home, starting in the late 1950s until it closed in '72. He took a liking for the Gas categories opened to a variety of hot rods, which originally prowled the streets of America and later evolved into track only vehicles. These cars, nicknamed gassers, quickly became very popular with the crowds. The 1930s and early '40s Willys models proved especially competitive, so Lorenzen bought a 1941 coupe in 1960 for just $65. He still owns it to this day, although it has remained untouched since 1964 because he never quite finished his own gasser project. It takes pride of place within his collection, housed in an industrial building in Rancho Dominguez, which is itself just a short distance from the original Lions Drag Strip site.
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Denne historien er fra July 2022-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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A Breath of Fresh Air- Alfa Romeo's exotic, V8-powered Montreal was like nothing the marque had made before, but can it compare with a Porsche masterpiece, the 911S 2.4?
The stereotype of the ItaloGermanic automotive rivalry is that the Latin car will be brilliant to drive, but poorly built and ergonomically flawed, while the Teutonic will be the opposite. Yet these 2+2 sports coupés both ran against orthodoxy. In the Montreal, Alfa Romeo created an outlandish-looking two-door more comfortable, more powerful and more refined than anything it had produced for decades. Meanwhile, Porsche continued to refine its back-to-front, austere and increasingly aged 911. Neither took a traditional development path, but both created thrilling and individual cars that have echoed through the decades.
Daring to be diminutive
AMC's Gremlin and Pacer, and Ford's much-derided Pinto, led America's response to the threat of imported European compacts
THE LONG WAY ROUND
There is a great tradition of overland trips by Land-Rover, but the tale of this 70s Aussie epic and the car itself was discovered by chance
Handsome cab
The Phantom V limousine marked the beginning of the end for coachbuilder James Young, but this Rolls-Royce represents the craft at its very best
DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES
Racing for their own F1 teams brought some drivers success and an enduring legacy. For others, it turned into a nightmare
20 30 LITRES CYLINDERS, 400BHP......AND MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD
Thunderous torque, flame-spitting stub-exhausts, white-knuckle thrills - and hopefully no spills - aboard a trio of Edwardian racing titans
ICON.
The three top-selling vehicles in the USA in 2023 were pick-ups, topped by the Ford F-Series. This is the truck that started it all
Blurred Lines
lan 'Del' Lines blended the V8 burble of Triumph's open GT with real practicality in his Stag V8 saloons and estates
Home of the brave
The innovative Silverstone proved a hit with keen amateur drivers. To mark its 75th, Healey's club racer returns to the circuit for which it is named
PLAYING ALL THE ANGLES
Alfa Romeo's wild RZ eschewed the jellymould styling of the period to offer a striking, wedge-shaped take on open-topped performance motoring