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(Music)
Ford's lightning fast Thunderbolt put the blue oval on top of Super Stock, edging out the Max Wedge Mopars that had ruled the strip for so many years.
(Tommy)>> Ford teamed up with Dearborn Steel Tubing to transform its humble Fairlane 500 into a drag demon. Only 100 were built, and you had to be a diehard racer to get your hands on one.
(Joel)>> Steve took one look at the car in a magazine and was hooked, but the Ford dealer was reluctant to sell it to him because he was only 16. So he had to bring along all of his trophies and time slips to prove that he was the real deal, and it worked but they kept trying to sell him an automatic.
(Steve)>> And I'd say, no, automatics are for little old ladies and schoolteachers, and I'd like to have a four speed.
(Tommy)>> He finally got his wish in March of '64 and towed the car all the way home from Michigan to Alabama through a snowstorm. Once home he started blueprinting the motor with the help of the legendary Don Nicholson.
(Joel)>> The formula for the Thunderbolt was simple, big power in a little car. The monster 427 was shoehorned in and topped off with a high rise manifold and dual four barrel Holleys. Air was gulped in through tubes hooked to the headlight bezels. Rated at 425 horse, it made upwards of 600 in race tune.
(Tommy)>> To shave off weight fiberglass was used for the teardrop hood and fenders. The bumpers and grille were aluminum, and the windows were made of Plexi-glass.
(Joel)>> The inside was stripped down to the bare essentials. No heater, no radio, no carpet. Just some van seats, a four speed, and a tach. All told, it came in at just 20 pounds above the minimum Super Stock weight.
(Tommy)>> Underneath the suspension was beefed up with asymmetrical heavy duty leaf springs and two inch by three inch rectangular traction bars. You can see how the car hops up almost six inches on launch.
(Joel)>> Steve won his first time out and race the car for a year all over the southeast taking on guys like Billy Jacobs and Emmitt Austin.
(Steve)>> All of the stuff that I did I had to do on my own. No pit crew, no sponsors, and just kinda dog paddling to get by.
(Tommy)>> Must have been some pretty fast dog paddling. He won over 100 races. Every weekend he hit the drag strips, but during the week he was hitting the books at Auburn.
(Steve)>> I learned about weight transfer, leverage, and all of that, and every week I would polish my skills in school to go make my car run faster.
(Tommy)>> He wound up shaving off a second on his e-t, running 10.97 at 131 miles per hour.
(Joel)>> In '65 Steve went to work for Ford, where he got a drag Comet as his company car. He traded the Thunderbolt for a Mustang and $1,000 bucks, but the check bounced.
(Steve)>> When I tried to go to court to get my money I almost got eliminated, and I had to run for my life.
(Tommy)>> 40 years later the car is Steve's once again, and he also earned a spot in the Southeastern Drag Racers Hall of Fame.
(Joel)>> His racing days may be behind him but he still loves taking it to the track. ( )>> Any last words?
(Steve)>> This is a blast!
Show Full Transcript
Ford's lightning fast Thunderbolt put the blue oval on top of Super Stock, edging out the Max Wedge Mopars that had ruled the strip for so many years.
(Tommy)>> Ford teamed up with Dearborn Steel Tubing to transform its humble Fairlane 500 into a drag demon. Only 100 were built, and you had to be a diehard racer to get your hands on one.
(Joel)>> Steve took one look at the car in a magazine and was hooked, but the Ford dealer was reluctant to sell it to him because he was only 16. So he had to bring along all of his trophies and time slips to prove that he was the real deal, and it worked but they kept trying to sell him an automatic.
(Steve)>> And I'd say, no, automatics are for little old ladies and schoolteachers, and I'd like to have a four speed.
(Tommy)>> He finally got his wish in March of '64 and towed the car all the way home from Michigan to Alabama through a snowstorm. Once home he started blueprinting the motor with the help of the legendary Don Nicholson.
(Joel)>> The formula for the Thunderbolt was simple, big power in a little car. The monster 427 was shoehorned in and topped off with a high rise manifold and dual four barrel Holleys. Air was gulped in through tubes hooked to the headlight bezels. Rated at 425 horse, it made upwards of 600 in race tune.
(Tommy)>> To shave off weight fiberglass was used for the teardrop hood and fenders. The bumpers and grille were aluminum, and the windows were made of Plexi-glass.
(Joel)>> The inside was stripped down to the bare essentials. No heater, no radio, no carpet. Just some van seats, a four speed, and a tach. All told, it came in at just 20 pounds above the minimum Super Stock weight.
(Tommy)>> Underneath the suspension was beefed up with asymmetrical heavy duty leaf springs and two inch by three inch rectangular traction bars. You can see how the car hops up almost six inches on launch.
(Joel)>> Steve won his first time out and race the car for a year all over the southeast taking on guys like Billy Jacobs and Emmitt Austin.
(Steve)>> All of the stuff that I did I had to do on my own. No pit crew, no sponsors, and just kinda dog paddling to get by.
(Tommy)>> Must have been some pretty fast dog paddling. He won over 100 races. Every weekend he hit the drag strips, but during the week he was hitting the books at Auburn.
(Steve)>> I learned about weight transfer, leverage, and all of that, and every week I would polish my skills in school to go make my car run faster.
(Tommy)>> He wound up shaving off a second on his e-t, running 10.97 at 131 miles per hour.
(Joel)>> In '65 Steve went to work for Ford, where he got a drag Comet as his company car. He traded the Thunderbolt for a Mustang and $1,000 bucks, but the check bounced.
(Steve)>> When I tried to go to court to get my money I almost got eliminated, and I had to run for my life.
(Tommy)>> 40 years later the car is Steve's once again, and he also earned a spot in the Southeastern Drag Racers Hall of Fame.
(Joel)>> His racing days may be behind him but he still loves taking it to the track. ( )>> Any last words?
(Steve)>> This is a blast!
