History Classic Indy roadsters: Most beautiful oval racers ever?

If they black flagged Parnelli Jones, Jim Clark a non establishment foreigner would of won the race. Clark and the Lotus ran on Gasoline and made fewer pit stops. He was making up lap times on Jones and would of been able to pass Jones if it were not for the oil slick track.


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From what I remember (I was born in 1961, so no, I was not there) of the story, the external tank cracked, and once the oil level leaked to the level of the crack, there would be no more leakage. I also seem to remember that Parnelli's ol' Calhoun, was not the only car plagued with an oil leak. Thanks for the link, falcongeorge.

 

well, I think the finish of the '63 Indy 500 will still be a subject of debate well after we are dead. One thing I will say, I also saw the post-race photos of Rufus car, and there was a HELL of a lot of oil on the tail. So was it the shooter on the grassy knoll??

 

Yep, got to agree with you there, there was a LOT of oil on the tail.

 

Yep, that one will be debated until the end of time. All part of the great lore of the Speedway.

 

Lujie Lesvosky's "bent 8" Wolcott Spl.

 

Thanks, fascinating car. Note how driver is offset to the left.

 

Lujie Lesvosky's "bent 8" Wolcott Spl.

That car is supercharged. fantastic.


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HA! maybe... maybe not.
Actually, It was quite a scene at the starting line, with Chapman whining in Harlan Fengler's ear to pull Parnelli off the track and Aggie, in Fengler's other ear, telling him not to mess with Parnelli.
Fortunately, Fengler let the race play out....
Fact is that Parnelli and Clark were both racing on the same slick track.... Had the oil been gushing out of Parnelli's oil tank as much as Chapman claimed, it would have been all over Jones' left rear tire and he would have spun out....... or, he would have run out of oil and blown up his engine. Neither of those things happened and Parnelli won the race by 34 seconds(half a lap) so it wasn't really that close.
Nice try Colin! Can't blame Chapman for going for the cheap win.

mac miller in INDY

 

Actually, It was quite a scene at the starting line, with Chapman whining in Harlan Fengler's ear to pull Parnelli off the track and Aggie, in Fengler's other ear, telling him not to mess with Parnelli.
Fortunately, Fengler let the race play out....



I'll accept that .



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thats my dad in the dark shirt

 

Indeed. As I said, the story is great Indy lore and bench racers will be adjudicating it until the end of time.

My person take is that Chapman and group received very friendly press 1963-65. Nothing nefarious -- they were simply the new kids on the block providing fresh story lines.

 

NOVI! Biased because I lived near Lou Welch's factory.

 

Where was it exactly? Is the facility still there?

 

More famous Indy roadsters from the story...


Another look at the Indy roadster era | Mac's Motor City Garage.com

 

HA! A bad idea then and still a bad idea now......
One of the main things that destroyed the INDY 500

mac miller in INDY

 

A few years ago I heard of a movie about early Indy being made, similar to WFI. Cars were being built, some looking very authentic, others just for distance shots. Any body heard anything about it?

 

Actually, one car got built by Coker Tire Co.... a good replica of the 1911 Marmon Wasp. They were suppose to build some more but the money never happened.... I don't think the project ever had any substantial financial backing but if it did, it got flattened by the economy 3 or 4 years ago and never got off the ground.
I will try to find a pic of the Coker Wasp.....

mac miller in INDY

 

Thanks Mac, I got to see Coker's Wasp at the AACA musuem when the Great American Race past through here. I know this was one of the cars built for the movie, just wondering if the dream was still alive. Has the potensial to be a cool movie.

 

Yep. That toothpaste is not going back in the tube.

 

I want to build one of these cars one day. good thread.

 

Dont know much about this stuff yet but I had these pics saved on my computer.





This thing is pretty sweet.

 

These old cars are beautiful, But in the search for more speed race cars evolve.
I like the the race cars before the wings. Formula one up till 1967 even though they are rear engined. When F1 allowed major sponsorship on the bodies it wasn't the same. About that time is when aerodynamics started to appear.


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If I'm not mistaken, Bruce Crower built the wing.

 

I have liked this one since I was a kid. Remember when the Indy 500 was still a showcase for innovation, and the magazines used to do "Indy Preview" issues, and we actually used to look forward to reading them? Remember that??



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Crossed over to the dark side...

 

Before the race was shown live on TV it was shown locally on closed circuit. My uncle bought me tickets a few years to watch it in the Hershey Arena on the big screen, would have been around '63 or so.

 

Art Malone in the #73 NOVI. He just passed away quite recently. The NOVI crankcase was cast with a V8 Ford bellhousing pattern to fit in a Miller/Ford. Imagine one in the V8 Ford of your choice.

 

Hence the "crossed over" comment.

 

Oh, I now see. Sorry, I'm a little slow.