Oh man that’s a cool timeline! The pre 54 guise is really doing it for me but man they all are super cool!
It is interesting to see the decisions made that transition from a purpose-built utility machine to a show display.
I think it went from a Bonneville car to more of a drag car... And aesthetically, it's very hard to beat a streamlined car set up for land speed racing. The #2 livery is my favorite version of the car without question.
The Yellow Streamlined version is aesthetically perfect and in my opinion probably its most pure iteration...
Definitely agree the yellow #2 livery is the best and purest one of its many iterations. It looks like something that **** Teaque, Rex Burnette, or Gus Maanum would have drawn. Heck for all I know maybe they did. Anyone know?
That yellow version is so RAD! Here are some pictures I took at RPM NATIONALS ‘19… actually a couple of the fancier ones might have been taken by the extremely handsome Bryan Rusk, my copilot on the trip.
@Ryan, compared to me, you're a young man and I fear for you. I'm 81 and my mind lets me down on occasion. I've long since forgotten the name of the girl with whom I lost my virginity while I can remember with perfect clarity the '41 Chevy pickup in which I learned to drive, and I firmly believe that I could never forget driving a vehicle like that yellow roadster.
That is a perfect example of, well many things - a beautiful racecar for starters, but also just how much paint, wheel's & stance can change the look of a car, but as for the question - I've got nothing.
I just can't believe there aren't more images of the car in yellow and as it appeared in '54. I need to go through my own archives.
Excellent! What were they drilling earlier in the vid? I wish some of this stuff wouldn’t have a ***le in the middle of the view oh well excellent any way. Dan
I somewhat remember @Legendary Lars Mapstead (the current caretaker of the Sylva Roadster) posting some vintage B&W photos of the car in its yellow #2 livery . . . but I haven't found them . . . but will keep looking!
The yellow car is interesting. The streamliner is very interesting. Any chance you have anything more on that one?
probably stake holes for a tent or shade tarp. I think I have some more images in my archive. Will check tomorrow.
Bad*** Hot Rod! I personally like the '52 Bonneville version the most. But the yellow '54 Bonneville with the streamlining is so unique almost like a 'Spindizzy' tether car. You look at the likes of Chester Osgood T roadster, Al Dal Porto T roadster, later version of Ray Brown T roadster, Salt Shaker T roadster they all used super wide noses to try and streamline the front end. The other cars with axle fairings I can recall Don Waite rebuilt T roadster, Niekamp T & the Jim Khougaz T, I love this style as it has more flow.
Here's all of J.R. Eyerman's color photos of Eugene LeBlanc's #888 E-cl*** Streamliner at the 1954 6th Annual Bonneville National Speed Trials: I'm sure that I have more photos of this 'liner in my archives . . . but don't want to hijack @Ryan's TJJ Blog (& resultant HAMB thread) about the Sylva Roadster any further.
Here's a few vintage photographs of the Sylva Roadster at the 1954 6th Annual Bonneville National Speed Trials: images from the Petersen Digital Archive
No need for a roll bar in this one. The tires will do the job ***uming if it got upside down that the body would get a bit of damage. Thanks for posting the pictures. I was about 3 months old when those pictures were taken…
Hello, How apropos to the current season. This photo reminded me of an earlier photo that became the inspiration for a one time Christmas Season art work involving the track nose roadster. Everyone has their own way to see a modified roadster and add touches to the finished build, whether it is in real time or artwork. This is artwork. The full barrage of large gifts need a custom trailer and full power of the hot rod build… We did not see many track nose roadsters during our early teenage years. Most of our friends were interested in sedans, preferably, two door sedans. But, there were some similar body roadsters at the drags located near our Long Beach houses. The original red roadster of Hill Acala /Hunter Oil was close as a sample, but slightly different. No, not a Mooneyes roadster, but the start of the Moon eyes artwork we have all come to enjoy. But, the style of the different grill was evident versus the normal Model A grill or 32 grill. Jnaki There was one other track nose roadster that was difficult to get some form of reality in the artwork. A work in progress... But, I labeled it as a custom street hot rod with racing ties… YRMV
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