Gassers!
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 19,777
Likes: 4,592
From: Canada's capital
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (appearance mods)
C1 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
Thanks Frank for posting those old guys up. Nice to see some still being built. Takes me back....
....older than dirt!
....older than dirt!
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 3,044
Likes: 210
From: Toronto ON
Damn those are coool. 
And while I'd heard the term "gasser" and recognize their distinctive "look" I never really understood their history and more importantly how that name and unique look originated.
Wikipedia to the rescue, and for the benefit of those similarly unfamiliar:
A gasser is a type of hot rod originating on the dragstrips of the United States in the late 1950s and continued until the early 1970s. Gassers are based on production models from the 1930s to mid 1950s, which have been stripped of extraneous weight and jacked up using a truck beam axle to provide better weight distribution on acceleration (Beam axles are lighter than an independent front suspension as well), though a raised stock front suspension is common as well. Common weight reduction techniques include fibreglasss body panels, stripped interiors and perspex windows (sometimes colour tinted).
Being built for racing, these cars are subject to either an engine swap, tuning or both. It was very common to fit a Roots supercharger and mechanical fuel injection, such as one from Algon, Hillborn or Crower.
With form being dictated by function, their appearance is often very top heavy and ungainly, largely due being raised higher than stock. Having their exhaust headers exiting through the fender well is a common characteristic, as it is the most direct route. Although being functional, these were often flamboyantly painted in metalflakes, pearls and candy finishes complemented by lettering in wild fonts.
The name arose because they were a gasoline-driven class, as opposed to using methanol or nitromethane.
And while I'd heard the term "gasser" and recognize their distinctive "look" I never really understood their history and more importantly how that name and unique look originated.
Wikipedia to the rescue, and for the benefit of those similarly unfamiliar:
A gasser is a type of hot rod originating on the dragstrips of the United States in the late 1950s and continued until the early 1970s. Gassers are based on production models from the 1930s to mid 1950s, which have been stripped of extraneous weight and jacked up using a truck beam axle to provide better weight distribution on acceleration (Beam axles are lighter than an independent front suspension as well), though a raised stock front suspension is common as well. Common weight reduction techniques include fibreglasss body panels, stripped interiors and perspex windows (sometimes colour tinted).
Being built for racing, these cars are subject to either an engine swap, tuning or both. It was very common to fit a Roots supercharger and mechanical fuel injection, such as one from Algon, Hillborn or Crower.
With form being dictated by function, their appearance is often very top heavy and ungainly, largely due being raised higher than stock. Having their exhaust headers exiting through the fender well is a common characteristic, as it is the most direct route. Although being functional, these were often flamboyantly painted in metalflakes, pearls and candy finishes complemented by lettering in wild fonts.
The name arose because they were a gasoline-driven class, as opposed to using methanol or nitromethane.
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Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 4,786
Likes: 70
From: Park Bench #805 NE Indiana
Race Director
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 15,359
Likes: 2,728
From: Close to DC
C2 of the Year Finalist - Modified 2020
So COOL! Does anyone remember or know of the old '40 ****** pickup truck Midnite Mover that ran at Capital Raceway in Md? Hane Dominic and Dan Fellner were owners. 
Dennis
Dennis
